3/26/2010

juchre.org

The Holy Scriptures

According to the Masoretic Text

A New Translation

With the aid of previous versions and with constant consultation of Jewish Authorities

Max Leopold Margolis

The Jewish Publication Society

1917

THE PROPHETS:

Table of Contents

Joshua Judges 1 Samuel 2 Samuel 1 Kings 2 Kings Isaiah

Jeremiah Ezekiel Hosea Joel Amos Obadiah Jonah

Micah Nahum Habakkuk Zephaniah Haggai Zechariah Malachi

Joshua

[01] [02] [03] [04] [05] [06] [07] [08] [09] [10]

[11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] [19] [20]

[21] [22] [23] [24]

JOSHUA 1 — 1 Now it came to pass after the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, that the LORD spoke unto Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying: 2 'Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, thou, and all this people, unto the land which I do give to them, even to the children of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, to you have I given it, as I spoke unto Moses. 4 From the wilderness, and this Lebanon, even unto the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and unto the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your border. 5 There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee; I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. 6 Be strong and of good courage; for thou shalt cause this people to inherit the land which I swore unto their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, to observe to do according to all the law, which Moses My servant commanded thee; turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest have good success whithersoever thou goest. 8 This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth, but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy ways prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. 9 Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of good courage; be not affrighted, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.'

10 Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying: 11 'Pass through the midst of the camp, and command the people, saying: Prepare you victuals; for within three days ye are to pass over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land, which the LORD your God giveth you to possess it.'

12 And to the Reubenites, and to the Gadites, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, spoke Joshua, saying: 13 'Remember the word which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, you, saying: The LORD your God giveth you rest, and will give you this land. 14 Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle, shall abide in the land which Moses gave you beyond the Jordan; but ye shall pass over before your brethren armed, all the mighty men of valour, and shall help them; 15 until the LORD have given your brethren rest, as unto you, and they also have possessed the land which the LORD your God giveth them; then ye shall return unto the land of your possession, and possess it, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising.'

16 And they answered Joshua, saying: 'All that thou hast commanded us we will do, and whithersoever thou sendest us we will go. 17 According as we hearkened unto Moses in all things, so will we hearken unto thee; only the LORD thy God be with thee, as He was with Moses. 18 Whosoever he be that shall rebel against thy commandment, and shall not hearken unto thy words in all that thou commandest him, he shall be put to death; only be strong and of good courage.'

JOSHUA 2 — 1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two spies secretly, saying: 'Go view the land, and Jericho.' And they went, and came into the house of a harlot whose name was Rahab, and lay there. 2 And it was told the king of Jericho, saying: 'Behold, there came men in hither to-night of the children of Israel to search out the land.' 3 And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying: 'Bring forth the men that are come to thee, that are entered into thy house; for they are come to search out all the land.' 4 And the woman took the two men, and hid them; and she said: 'Yea, the men came unto me, but I knew not whence they were; 5 and it came to pass about the time of the shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out; whither the men went I know not; pursue after them quickly; for ye shall overtake them.' 6 But she had brought them up to the roof, and hid them with the stalks of flax, which she had spread out upon the roof. 7 And the men pursued after them the way to the Jordan unto the fords; and as soon as they that pursued after them were gone out, the gate was shut. 8 And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof; 9 and she said unto the men: 'I know that the LORD hath given you the land, and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea before you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, unto Sihon and to Og, whom ye utterly destroyed. 11 And as soon as we had heard it, our hearts did melt, neither did there remain any more spirit in any man, because of you; for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above, and on earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the LORD, since I have dealt kindly with you, that ye also will deal kindly with my father's house-and give me a true token- 13 and save alive my father, and my mother, and my brethren, and my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.' 14 And the men said unto her: 'Our life for yours, if ye tell not this our business; and it shall be, when the LORD giveth us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.' 15 Then she let them down by a cord through the window; for her house was upon the side of the wall, and she dwelt upon the wall. 16 And she said unto them: 'Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers light upon you; and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned; and afterward may ye go your way.' 17 And the men said unto her: 'We will be guiltless of this thine oath which thou hast made us to swear. 18 Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread in the window which thou didst let us down by; and thou shalt gather unto thee into the house thy father, and thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy father's household. 19 And it shall be, that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless; and whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. 20 But if thou utter this our business, then we will be guiltless of thine oath which thou hast made us to swear.' 21 And she said: 'According unto your words, so be it.' And she sent them away, and they departed; and she bound the scarlet line in the window. 22 And they went, and came unto the mountain, and abode there three days, until the pursuers were returned; and the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not. 23 Then the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun; and they told him all that had befallen them. 24 And they said unto Joshua: 'Truly the LORD hath delivered into our hands all the land; and moreover all the inhabitants of the land do melt away before us.'

JOSHUA 3 — 1 And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and they removed from Shittim, and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel; and they lodged there before they passed over. 2 And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the midst of the camp; 3 and they commanded the people, saying: 'When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it. 4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure; come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go; for ye have not passed this way heretofore.'

5 And Joshua said unto the people: 'Sanctify yourselves; for to-morrow the LORD will do wonders among you.' 6 And Joshua spoke unto the priests, saying: 'Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass on before the people.' And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people.

7 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee. 8 And thou shalt command the priests that bear the ark of the covenant, saying: When ye are come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, ye shall stand still in the Jordan.'

9 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel: 'Come hither, and hear the words of the LORD your God.' 10 And Joshua said: 'Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that He will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Hivite, and the Perizzite, and the Girgashite, and the Amorite, and the Jebusite. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth on before you over the Jordan. 12 Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, for every tribe a man. 13 And it shall come to pass, when the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the LORD, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, even the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand in one heap.' 14 And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over the Jordan, the priests that bore the ark of the covenant being before the people; 15 and when they that bore the ark were come unto the Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bore the ark were dipped in the brink of the water-for the Jordan overfloweth all its banks all the time of harvest-16 that the waters which came down from above stood, and rose up in one heap, a great way off from Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those that went down toward the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, were wholly cut off; and the people passed over right against Jericho. 17 And the priests that bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, while all Israel passed over on dry ground, until all the nation were passed clean over the Jordan.

JOSHUA 4 — 1 And it came to pass, when all the nation were clean passed over the Jordan, that the LORD spoke unto Joshua, saying: 2 'Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man, 3 and command ye them, saying: Take you hence out of the midst of the Jordan, out of the place where the priests' feet stood, twelve stones made ready, and carry them over with you, and lay them down in the lodging-place, where ye shall lodge this night.'

4 Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man; 5 and Joshua said unto them: 'Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take you up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel; 6 that this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask in time to come, saying: What mean ye by these stones? 7 then ye shall say unto them: Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off; and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever.' 8 And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of the Jordan, as the LORD spoke unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel; and they carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9 Joshua also set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests that bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there unto this day. 10 And the priests that bore the ark stood in the midst of the Jordan, until every thing was finished that the LORD commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua; and the people hastened and passed over. 11 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the LORD passed on, and the priests, before the people. 12 And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, passed on armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spoke unto them; 13 about forty thousand ready armed for war passed on in the presence of the LORD unto battle, to the plains of Jericho.

14 On that day the LORD magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life.

15 And the LORD spoke unto Joshua, saying: 16 'Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of the Jordan.' 17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying: 'Come ye up out of the Jordan.' 18 And it came to pass, as the priests that bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD came up out of the midst of the Jordan, as soon as the soles of the priests' feet were drawn up unto the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned unto their place, and went over all its banks, as aforetime. 19 And the people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, on the east border of Jericho. 20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, did Joshua set up in Gilgal. 21 And he spoke unto the children of Israel, saying: 'When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying: What mean these stones? 22 then ye shall let your children know, saying: Israel came over this Jordan on dry land. 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up from before us, until we were passed over, 24 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that it is mighty; that ye may fear the LORD your God for ever.'

JOSHUA 5 — 1 And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, that were by the sea, heard how that the LORD had dried up the waters of the Jordan from before the children of Israel, until they were passed over, that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more, because of the children of Israel.

2 At that time the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Make thee knives of flint, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time.' 3 And Joshua made him knives of flint, and circumcised the children of Israel at Gibeath-ha-araloth. 4 And this is the cause why Joshua did circumcise: all the people that came forth out of Egypt, that were males, even all the men of war, died in the wilderness by the way, after they came forth out of Egypt. 5 For all the people that came out were circumcised; but all the people that were born in the wilderness by the way as they came forth out of Egypt, had not been circumcised. 6 For the children of Israel walked forty years in the wilderness, till all the nation, even the men of war that came forth out of Egypt, were consumed, because they hearkened not unto the voice of the LORD; unto whom the LORD swore that He would not let them see the land which the LORD swore unto their fathers that He would give us, a land flowing with milk and honey. 7 And He raised up their children in their stead; them did Joshua circumcise; for they were uncircumcised, because they had not been circumcised by the way. 8 And it came to pass, when all the nation were circumcised, every one of them, that they abode in their places in the camp, till they were whole.

9 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you.' Wherefore the name of that place was called Gilgal, unto this day.

10 And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal; and they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho. 11 And they did eat of the produce of the land on the morrow after the passover, unleavened cakes and parched corn, in the selfsame day. 12 And the manna ceased on the morrow, after they had eaten of the produce of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year.

13 And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted up his eyes and looked, and, behold, there stood a man over against him with his sword drawn in his hand; and Joshua went unto him, and said unto him: 'Art thou for us, or for our adversaries?' 14 And he said: 'Nay, but I am captain of the host of the LORD; I am now come.' And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and bowed down, and said unto him: 'What saith my lord unto his servant?' 15 And the captain of the LORD'S host said unto Joshua: 'Put off thy shoe from off thy foot; for the place whereon thou standest is holy.' And Joshua did so.

JOSHUA 6 — 1 Now Jericho was straitly shut up because of the children of Israel: none went out, and none came in.-2 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'See, I have given into thy hand Jericho, and the king thereof, even the mighty men of valour. 3 And ye shall compass the city, all the men of war, going about the city once. Thus shalt thou do six days. 4 And seven priests shall bear seven rams' horns before the ark; and the seventh day ye shall compass the city seven times, and the priests shall blow with the horns. 5 And it shall be, that when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, and when ye hear the sound of the horn, all the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him.' 6 And Joshua the son of Nun called the priests, and said unto them: 'Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests bear seven rams' horns before the ark of the LORD.' 7 And he said unto the people: 'Pass on, and compass the city, and let the armed body pass on before the ark of the LORD.' 8 And it was so, that when Joshua had spoken unto the people, the seven priests bearing the seven rams' horns before the LORD passed on, and blew with the horns; and the ark of the covenant of the LORD followed them. 9 And the armed men went before the priests that blew the horns, and the rearward went after the ark, the priests blowing with the horns continually. 10 And Joshua commanded the people, saying: 'Ye shall not shout, nor let your voice be heard, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth, until the day I bid you shout; then shall ye shout.' 11 So he caused the ark of the LORD to compass the city, going about it once; and they came into the camp, and lodged in the camp.

12 And Joshua rose early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of the LORD. 13 And the seven priests bearing the seven rams' horns before the ark of the LORD went on continually, and blew with the horns; and the armed men went before them; and the rearward came after the ark of the LORD, the priests blowing with the horns continually. 14 And the second day they compassed the city once, and returned into the camp; so they did six days. 15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they rose early at the dawning of the day, and compassed the city after the same manner seven times; only on that day they compassed the city seven times. 16 And it came to pass at the seventh time, when the priests blew with the horns, that Joshua said unto the people: 'Shout; for the LORD hath given you the city. 17 And the city shall be devoted, even it and all that is therein, to the LORD; only Rahab the harlot shall live, she and all that are with her in the house, because she hid the messengers that we sent. 18 And ye, in any wise keep yourselves from the devoted thing, lest ye make yourselves accursed by taking of the devoted thing, so should ye make the camp of Israel accursed, and trouble it. 19 But all the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are holy unto the LORD; they shall come into the treasury of the LORD.' 20 So the people shouted, and (the priests) blew with the horns. And it came to pass, when the people heard the sound of the horn, that the people shouted with a great shout, and the wall fell down flat, so that the people went up into the city, every man straight before him, and they took the city. 21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, both young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword. 22 And Joshua said unto the two men that had spied out the land: 'Go into the harlot's house, and bring out thence the woman, and all that she hath, as ye swore unto her.' 23 And the young men the spies went in, and brought out Rahab, and her father, and her mother, and her brethren, and all that she had, all her kindred also they brought out; and they set them without the camp of Israel. 24 And they burnt the city with fire, and all that was therein; only the silver, and the gold, and the vessels of brass and of iron, they put into the treasury of the house of the LORD. 25 But Rahab the harlot, and her father's household, and all that she had, did Joshua save alive; and she dwelt in the midst of Israel, unto this day; because she hid the messengers, whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho.

26 And Joshua charged the people with an oath at that time, saying: 'Cursed be the man before the LORD, that riseth up and buildeth this city, even Jericho; with the loss of his first-born shall he lay the foundation thereof, and with the loss of his youngest son shall he set up the gates of it.'

27 So the LORD was with Joshua; and his fame was in all the land.

JOSHUA 7 — 1 But the children of Israel committed a trespass concerning the devoted thing; for Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took of the devoted thing; and the anger of the LORD was kindled against the children of Israel.

2 And Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is beside Beth-aven, on the east side of Beth-el, and spoke unto them, saying: 'Go up and spy out the land.' And the men went up and spied out Ai. 3 And they returned to Joshua, and said unto him: 'Let not all the people go up; but let about two or three thousand men go up and smite Ai; make not all the people to toil thither; for they are but few.' 4 So there went up thither of the people about three thousand men; and they fled before the men of Ai. 5 And the men of Ai smote of them about thirty and six men; and they chased them from before the gate even unto Shebarim, and smote them at the descent; and the hearts of the people melted, and became as water. 6 And Joshua rent his clothes, and fell to the earth upon his face before the ark of the LORD until the evening, he and the elders of Israel; and they put dust upon their heads. 7 And Joshua said: 'Alas, O Lord GOD, wherefore hast Thou at all brought this people over the Jordan, to deliver us into the hand of the Amorites, to cause us to perish? would that we had been content and dwelt beyond the Jordan! 8 Oh, Lord, what shall I say, after that Israel hath turned their backs before their enemies! 9 For when the Canaanites and all the inhabitants of the land hear of it, they will compass us round, and cut off our name from the earth; and what wilt Thou do for Thy great name?'

10 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Get thee up; wherefore, now, art thou fallen upon thy face? 11 Israel hath sinned; yea, they have even transgressed My covenant which I commanded them; yea, they have even taken of the devoted thing; and have also stolen, and dissembled also, and they have even put it among their own stuff. 12 Therefore the children of Israel cannot stand before their enemies, they turn their backs before their enemies, because they are become accursed; I will not be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. 13 Up, sanctify the people, and say: Sanctify yourselves against tomorrow; for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: There is a curse in the midst of thee, O Israel; thou canst not stand before thine enemies, until ye take away the accursed thing from among you. 14 In the morning therefore ye shall draw near by your tribes; and it shall be, that the tribe which the LORD taketh shall come near by families; and the family which the LORD shall take shall come near by households; and the household which the LORD shall take shall come near man by man. 15 And it shall be that he that is taken with the devoted thing shall be burnt with fire, he and all that he hath; because he hath transgressed the covenant of the LORD, and because he hath wrought a wanton deed in Israel.'

16 So Joshua rose up early in the morning, and brought Israel near by their tribes; and the tribe of Judah was taken. 17 And he brought near the family of Judah; and he took the family of the Zerahites. And he brought near the family of the Zerahites man by man; and Zabdi was taken. 18 And he brought near his household man by man; and Achan, the son of Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was taken. 19 And Joshua said unto Achan: 'My son, give, I pray thee, glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make confession unto Him; and tell me now what thou hast done; hide nothing from me.' 20 And Achan answered Joshua, and said: 'Of a truth I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel, and thus and thus have I done. 21 When I saw among the spoil a goodly Shinar mantle, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them; and, behold, they are hid in the earth in the midst of my tent, and the silver under it.' 22 So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran unto the tent; and, behold, it was hid in his tent, and the silver under it. 23 And they took them from the midst of the tent, and brought them unto Joshua, and unto all the children of Israel; and they laid them down before the LORD. 24 And Joshua, and all Israel with him, took Achan the son of Zerah, and the silver, and the mantle, and the wedge of gold, and his sons, and his daughters, and his oxen, and his asses, and his sheep, and his tent, and all that he had; and they brought them up unto the valley of Achor. 25 And Joshua said: 'Why hast thou troubled us? the LORD shall trouble thee this day.' And all Israel stoned him with stones; and they burned them with fire, and stoned them with stones. 26 And they raised over him a great heap of stones, unto this day; and the LORD turned from the fierceness of His anger. Wherefore the name of that place was called The valley of Achor, unto this day.

JOSHUA 8 — 1 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Fear not, neither be thou dismayed; take all the people of war with thee, and arise, go up to Ai; see, I have given into thy hand the king of Ai, and his people, and his city, and his land. 2 And thou shalt do to Ai and her king as thou didst unto Jericho and her king; only the spoil thereof, and the cattle thereof, shall ye take for a prey unto yourselves; set thee an ambush for the city behind it.' 3 So Joshua arose, and all the people of war, to go up to Ai; and Joshua chose out thirty thousand men, the mighty men of valour, and sent them forth by night. 4 And he commanded them, saying: 'Behold, ye shall lie in ambush against the city, behind the city; go not very far from the city, but be ye all ready. 5 And I, and all the people that are with me, will approach unto the city; and it shall come to pass, when they come out against us, as at the first, that we will flee before them. 6 And they will come out after us, till we have drawn them away from the city; for they will say: They flee before us, as at the first; so we will flee before them. 7 And ye shall rise up from the ambush, and take possession of the city; for the LORD your God will deliver it into your hand. 8 And it shall be, when ye have seized upon the city, that ye shall set the city on fire; according to the word of the LORD shall ye do; see, I have commanded you.' 9 And Joshua sent them forth; and they went to the ambushment, and abode between Beth-el and Ai, on the west side of Ai; but Joshua lodged that night among the people.

10 And Joshua rose up early in the morning, and numbered the people, and went up, he and the elders of Israel, before the people to Ai. 11 And all the people, even the men of war that were with him, went up, and drew nigh, and came before the city, and pitched on the north side of Ai-now there was a valley between him and Ai. 12 And he took about five thousand men, and set them in ambush between Beth-el and Ai, on the west side of Ai. 13 So the people set themselves in array, even all the host that was on the north of the city, their rear lying in wait on the west of the city; and Joshua went that night into the midst of the vale. 14 And it came to pass, when the king of Ai saw it, that the men of the city hastened and rose up early and went out against Israel to battle, he and all his people, at the time appointed, in front of the Arabah; but he knew not that there was an ambush against him behind the city. 15 And Joshua and all Israel made as if they were beaten before them, and fled by the way of the wilderness. 16 And all the people that were in Ai were called together to pursue after them; and they pursued after Joshua, and were drawn away from the city. 17 And there was not a man left in Ai or Beth-el, that went not out after Israel; and they left the city open, and pursued after Israel.

18 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Stretch out the javelin that is in thy hand toward Ai; for I will give it into thy hand.' And Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand toward the city. 19 And the ambush arose quickly out of their place, and they ran as soon as he had stretched out his hand, and entered into the city, and took it; and they hastened and set the city on fire. 20 And when the men of Ai looked behind them, they saw, and, behold, the smoke of the city ascended up to heaven, and they had no power to flee this way or that way; and the people that fled to the wilderness turned back upon the pursuers. 21 And when Joshua and all Israel saw that the ambush had taken the city, and that the smoke of the city ascended, then they turned back, and slew the men of Ai. 22 And the other came forth out of the city against them; so they were in the midst of Israel, some on this side, and some on that side; and they smote them, so that they let none of them remain or escape. 23 And the king of Ai they took alive, and brought him to Joshua.

24 And it came to pass, when Israel had made an end of slaying all the inhabitants of Ai in the field, even in the wilderness wherein they pursued them, and they were all fallen by the edge of the sword, until they were consumed, that all Israel returned unto Ai, and smote it with the edge of the sword. 25 And all that fell that day, both of men and women, were twelve thousand, even all the men of Ai. 26 For Joshua drew not back his hand, wherewith he stretched out the javelin, until he had utterly destroyed all the inhabitants of Ai. 27 Only the cattle and the spoil of that city Israel took for a prey unto themselves, according unto the word of the LORD which He commanded Joshua. 28 So Joshua burnt Ai, and made it a heap for ever, even a desolation, unto this day. 29 And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until the eventide; and at the going down of the sun Joshua commanded, and they took his carcass down from the tree, and cast it at the entrance of the gate of the city, and raised thereon a great heap of stones, unto this day.

30 Then Joshua built an altar unto the LORD, the God of Israel, in mount Ebal, 31 as Moses the servant of the LORD commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of unhewn stones, upon which no man had lifted up any iron; and they offered thereon burnt-offerings unto the LORD, and sacrificed peace-offerings. 32 And he wrote there upon the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote before the children of Israel. 33 And all Israel, and their elders and officers, and their judges, stood on this side the ark and on that side before the priests the Levites, that bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD, as well the stranger as the home-born; half of them in front of mount Gerizim and half of them in front of mount Ebal; as Moses the servant of the LORD had commanded at the first, that they should bless the people of Israel. 34 And afterward he read all the words of the law, the blessing and the curse, according to all that is written in the book of the law. 35 There was not a word of all that Moses commanded, which Joshua read not before all the assembly of Israel, and the women, and the little ones, and the strangers that walked among them.

JOSHUA 9 — 1 And it came to pass, when all the kings that were beyond the Jordan, in the hill-country, and in the Lowland, and on all the shore of the Great Sea in front of Lebanon, the Hittite, and the Amorite, the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, heard thereof, 2 that they gathered themselves together, to fight with Joshua and with Israel, with one accord.

3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done unto Jericho and to Ai, 4 they also did work wilily, and went and made as if they had been ambassadors, and took old sacks upon their asses, and wine skins, worn and rent and patched up; 5 and worn shoes and clouted upon their feet, and worn garments upon them; and all the bread of their provision was dry and was become crumbs. 6 And they went to Joshua unto the camp at Gilgal, and said unto him, and to the men of Israel: 'We are come from a far country; now therefore make ye a covenant with us.' 7 And the men of Israel said unto the Hivites: 'Peradventure ye dwell among us; and how shall we make a covenant with you?' 8 And they said unto Joshua: 'We are thy servants.' And Joshua said unto them: 'Who are ye? and from whence come ye?' 9 And they said unto him: 'From a very far country thy servants are come because of the name of the LORD thy God; for we have heard the fame of Him, and all that He did in Egypt, 10 and all that He did to the two kings of the Amorites, that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon king of Heshbon, and to Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth. 11 And our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying: Take provision in your hand for the journey, and go to meet them, and say unto them: We are your servants; and now make ye a covenant with us. 12 This our bread we took hot for our provision out of our houses on the day we came forth to go unto you; but now, behold, it is dry, and is become crumbs. 13 And these wine-skins, which we filled, were new; and, behold, they are rent. And these our garments and our shoes are worn by reason of the very long journey.' 14 And the men took of their provision, and asked not counsel at the mouth of the LORD. 15 And Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them, to let them live; and the princes of the congregation swore unto them.

16 And it came to pass at the end of three days after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbours, and that they dwelt among them. 17 And the children of Israel journeyed, and came unto their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, and Chephirah, and Beeroth, and Kiriath-jearim. 18 And the children of Israel smote them not, because the princes of the congregation had sworn unto them by the LORD, the God of Israel. And all the congregation murmured against the princes. 19 But all the princes said unto all the congregation: 'We have sworn unto them by the LORD, the God of Israel; now therefore we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them, and let them live; lest wrath be upon us, because of the oath which we swore unto them.' 21 And the princes said concerning them: 'Let them live'; so they became hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all the congregation, as the princes had spoken concerning them. 22 And Joshua called for them, and he spoke unto them, saying: 'Wherefore have ye beguiled us, saying: We are very far from you, when ye dwell among us? 23 Now therefore ye are cursed, and there shall never fail to be of you bondmen, both hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God.' 24 And they answered Joshua, and said: 'Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you; therefore we were sore afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing. 25 And now, behold, we are in thy hand: as it seemeth good and right unto thee to do unto us, do.' 26 And so did he unto them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, that they slew them not. 27 And Joshua made them that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, and for the altar of the LORD, unto this day, in the place which He should choose.

JOSHUA 10 — 1 Now it came to pass, when Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem heard how Joshua had taken Ai, and had utterly destroyed it; as he had done to Jericho and her king, so he had done to Ai and her king; and how the inhabitants of Gibeon had made peace with Israel, and were among them; 2 that they feared greatly, because Gibeon was a great city, as one of the royal cities, and because it was greater than Ai, and all the men thereof were mighty. 3 Wherefore Adoni-zedek king of Jerusalem sent unto Hoham king of Hebron, and unto Piram king of Jarmuth, and unto Japhia king of Lachish, and unto Debir king of Eglon, saying: 4 'Come up unto me, and help me, and let us smite Gibeon; for it hath made peace with Joshua and with the children of Israel.' 5 Therefore the five kings of the Amorites, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon, gathered themselves together, and went up, they and all their hosts, and encamped against Gibeon, and made war against it. 6 And the men of Gibeon sent unto Joshua to the camp to Gilgal, saying: 'Slack not thy hands from thy servants; come up to us quickly, and save us, and help us; for all the kings of the Amorites that dwell in the hill-country are gathered together against us.' 7 So Joshua went up from Gilgal, he, and all the people of war with him, and all the mighty men of valour.

8 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Fear them not; for I have delivered them into thy hand; there shall not a man of them stand against thee.' 9 Joshua therefore came upon them suddenly; for he went up from Gilgal all the night. 10 And the LORD discomfited them before Israel, and slew them with a great slaughter at Gibeon; and they chased them by the way of the ascent of Beth-horon, and smote them to Azekah, and unto Makkedah. 11 And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, while they were at the descent of Beth-horon, that the LORD cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died; they were more who died with the hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword.

12 Then spoke Joshua to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel; and he said in the sight of Israel:

'Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon;

And thou, Moon, in the valley of Aijalon.'

13 And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed,

Until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies.

Is not this written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stayed in the midst of heaven, and hasted not to go down about a whole day. 14 And there was no day like that before it or after it, that the LORD hearkened unto the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel.

15 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal.

16 And these five kings fled, and hid themselves in the cave at Makkedah. 17 And it was told Joshua, saying: 'The five kings are found, hidden in the cave at Makkedah.' 18 And Joshua said: 'Roll great stones unto the mouth of the cave, and set men by it to keep them; 19 but stay not ye; pursue after your enemies, and smite the hindmost of them; suffer them not to enter into their cities; for the LORD your God hath delivered them into your hand.' 20 And it came to pass, when Joshua and the children of Israel had made an end of slaying them with a very great slaughter, till they were consumed, and the remnant which remained of them had entered into the fortified cities, 21 that all the people returned to the camp to Joshua at Makkedah in peace; none whetted his tongue against any of the children of Israel. 22 Then said Joshua: 'Open the mouth of the cave, and bring forth those five kings unto me out of the cave.' 23 And they did so, and brought forth those five kings unto him out of the cave, the king of Jerusalem, the king of Hebron, the king of Jarmuth, the king of Lachish, the king of Eglon. 24 And it came to pass, when they brought forth those kings unto Joshua, that Joshua called for all the men of Israel, and said unto the chiefs of the men of war that went with him: 'Come near, put your feet upon the necks of these kings.' And they came near, and put their feet upon the necks of them. 25 And Joshua said unto them: 'Fear not, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage; for thus shall the LORD do to all your enemies against whom ye fight.' 26 And afterward Joshua smote them, and put them to death, and hanged them on five trees; and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening. 27 And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had hidden themselves, and laid great stones on the mouth of the cave, unto this very day.

28 And Joshua took Makkedah on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof; he utterly destroyed them and all the souls that were therein, he left none remaining; and he did to the king of Makkedah as he had done unto the king of Jericho.

29 And Joshua passed from Makkedah, and all Israel with him, unto Libnah, and fought against Libnah. 30 And the LORD delivered it also, and the king thereof, into the hand of Israel; and he smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining in it; and he did unto the king thereof as he had done unto the king of Jericho.

31 And Joshua passed from Libnah, and all Israel with him, unto Lachish, and encamped against it, and fought against it. 32 And the LORD delivered Lachish into the hand of Israel, and he took it on the second day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein, according to all that he had done to Libnah.

33 Then Horam king of Gezer came up to help Lachish; and Joshua smote him and his people, until he had left him none remaining.

34 And Joshua passed from Lachish, and all Israel with him, unto Eglon; and they encamped against it, and fought against it. 35 And they took it on that day, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and all the souls that were therein he utterly destroyed that day, according to all that he had done to Lachish.

36 And Joshua went up from Eglon, and all Israel with him, unto Hebron; and they fought against it. 37 And they took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof, and all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining, according to all that he had done to Eglon; but he utterly destroyed it, and all the souls that were therein.

38 And Joshua turned back, and all Israel with him, to Debir; and fought against it. 39 And he took it, and the king thereof, and all the cities thereof; and they smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all the souls that were therein; he left none remaining; as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king thereof; as he had done also to Libnah, and to the king thereof.

40 So Joshua smote all the land, the hill-country, and the South, and the Lowland, and the slopes, and all their kings; he left none remaining; but he utterly destroyed all that breathed, as the LORD, the God of Israel, commanded. 41 And Joshua smote them from Kadesh-barnea even unto Gaza, and all the country of Goshen, even unto Gibeon. 42 And all these kings and their land did Joshua take at one time, because the LORD, the God of Israel, fought for Israel. 43 And Joshua returned, and all Israel with him, unto the camp to Gilgal.

JOSHUA 11 — 1 And it came to pass, when Jabin king of Hazor heard thereof, that he sent to Jobab king of Madon, and to the king of Shimron, and to the king of Achshaph, 2 and to the kings that were on the north, in the hill-country and in the Arabah south of Chinneroth, and in the Lowland, and in the regions of Dor on the west, 3 to the Canaanite on the east and on the west, and the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Jebusite in the hill-country, and the Hivite under Hermon in the land of Mizpah. 4 And they went out, they and all their hosts with them, much people, even as the sand that is upon the sea-shore in multitude, with horses and chariots very many. 5 And all these kings met together, and they came and pitched together at the waters of Merom, to fight with Israel.

6 And the LORD said unto Joshua: 'Be not afraid because of them; for to-morrow at this time will I deliver them up all slain before Israel; thou shalt hough their horses, and burn their chariots with fire.' 7 So Joshua came, and all the people of war with him, against them by the waters of Merom suddenly, and fell upon them. 8 And the LORD delivered them into the hand of Israel, and they smote them, and chased them unto great Zidon, and unto Misrephoth-maim, and unto the valley of Mizpeh eastward; and they smote them, until they left them none remaining. 9 And Joshua did unto them as the LORD bade him; he houghed their horses, and burnt their chariots with fire.

10 And Joshua turned back at that time, and took Hazor, and smote the king thereof with the sword: for Hazor beforetime was the head of all those kingdoms. 11 And they smote all the souls that were therein with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying them; there was none left that breathed; and he burnt Hazor with fire. 12 And all the cities of those kings, and all the kings of them, did Joshua take, and he smote them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed them; as Moses the servant of the LORD commanded. 13 But as for the cities that stood on their mounds, Israel burned none of them, save Hazor only-that did Joshua burn. 14 And all the spoil of these cities, and the cattle, the children of Israel took for a prey unto themselves; but every man they smote with the edge of the sword, until they had destroyed them, neither left they any that breathed. 15 As the LORD commanded Moses His servant, so did Moses command Joshua; and so did Joshua; he left nothing undone of all that the LORD commanded Moses.

16 So Joshua took all that land, the hill-country, and all the South, and all the land of Goshen, and the Lowland, and the Arabah, and the hill-country of Israel, and the Lowland of the same; 17 from the bare mountain, that goeth up to Seir, even unto Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon under mount Hermon; and all their kings he took, and smote them, and put them to death. 18 Joshua made war a long time with all those kings. 19 There was not a city that made peace with the children of Israel, save the Hivites the inhabitants of Gibeon; they took all in battle. 20 For it was of the LORD to harden their hearts, to come against Israel in battle, that they might be utterly destroyed, that they might have no favour, but that they might be destroyed, as the LORD commanded Moses.

21 And Joshua came at that time, and cut off the Anakim from the hill-country, from Hebron, from Debir, from Anab, and from all the hill-country of Judah, and from all the hill-country of Israel; Joshua utterly destroyed them with their cities. 22 There was none of the Anakim left in the land of the children of Israel; only in Gaza, in Gath, and in Ashdod, did some remain. 23 So Joshua took the whole land, according to all that the LORD spoke unto Moses; and Joshua gave it for an inheritance unto Israel according to their divisions by their tribes. And the land had rest from war.

JOSHUA 12 — 1 Now these are the kings of the land, whom the children of Israel smote, and possessed their land beyond the Jordan toward the sunrising, from the valley of Arnon unto mount Hermon, and all the Arabah eastward: 2 Sihon king of the Amorites, who dwelt in Heshbon, and ruled from Aroer, which is on the edge of the valley of Arnon, and the middle of the valley, and half Gilead, even unto the river Jabbok, the border of the children of Ammon; 3 and the Arabah unto the sea of Chinneroth, eastward, and unto the sea of the Arabah, even the Salt Sea, eastward, the way to Beth-jeshimoth; and on the south, under the slopes of Pisgah; 4 and the border of Og king of Bashan, of the remnant of the Rephaim, who dwelt at Ashtaroth and at Edrei, 5 and ruled in mount Hermon, and in Salcah, and in all Bashan, unto the border of the Geshurites and the Maacathites, and half Gilead, even unto the border of Sihon king of Heshbon. 6 Moses the servant of the LORD and the children of Israel smote them; and Moses the servant of the LORD gave it for a possession unto the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.

7 And these are the kings of the land whom Joshua and the children of Israel smote beyond the Jordan westward, from Baal-gad in the valley of Lebanon even unto the bare mountain, that goeth up to Seir; and Joshua gave it unto the tribes of Israel for a possession according to their divisions; 8 in the hill-country, and in the Lowland, and in the Arabah, and in the slopes, and in the wilderness, and in the South; the Hittite, the Amorite, and the Canaanite, the Perizzite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite:

9 the king of Jericho, one;

the king of Ai, which is beside Beth-el, one;

10 the king of Jerusalem, one;

the king of Hebron, one;

11 the king of Jarmuth, one;

the king of Lachish, one;

12 the king of Eglon, one;

the king of Gezer, one;

13 the king of Debir, one;

the king of Geder, one;

14 the king of Hormah, one;

the king of Arad, one;

15 the king of Libnah, one;

the king of Adullam, one;

16 the king of Makkedah, one;

the king of Beth-el, one;

17 the king of Tappuah, one;

the king of Hepher, one;

18 the king of Aphek, one;

the king of the Sharon, one;

19 the king of Madon, one;

the king of Hazor, one;

20 the king of Shimron-meron, one;

the king of Achshaph, one;

21 the king of Taanach, one;

the king of Megiddo, one;

22 the king of Kedesh, one;

the king of Jokneam in Carmel, one;

23 the king of Dor in the region of Dor, one;

the king of Goiim in the Gilgal, one;

24 the king of Tirzah, one.

All the kings thirty and one.

JOSHUA 13 — 1 Now Joshua was old and well stricken in years; and the LORD said unto him: 'Thou art old and well stricken in years, and there remaineth yet very much land to be possessed. 2 This is the land that yet remaineth: all the regions of the Philistines, and all the Geshurites; 3 from the Shihor, which is before Egypt, even unto the border of Ekron northward-which is counted to the Canaanites; the five lords of the Philistines: the Gazite, and the Ashdodite, the Ashkelonite, the Gittite, and the Ekronite; also the Avvim 4 on the south; all the land of the Canaanites, and Mearah that belongeth to the Zidonians, unto Aphek, to the border of the Amorites; 5 and the land of the Gebalites, and all Lebanon, toward the sunrising, from Baal-gad under mount Hermon unto the entrance of Hamath; 6 all the inhabitants of the hill-country from Lebanon unto Misrephoth-maim, even all the Zidonians; them will I drive out from before the children of Israel; only allot thou it unto Israel for an inheritance, as I have commanded thee. 7 Now therefore divide this land for an inheritance unto the nine tribes, and the half-tribe of Manasseh.' 8 With him the Reubenites and the Gadites received their inheritance, which Moses gave them, beyond the Jordan eastward, even as Moses the servant of the LORD gave them; 9 from Aroer, that is on the edge of the valley of Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the table-land from Medeba unto Dibon; 10 and all the cities of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, unto the border of the children of Ammon; 11 and Gilead, and the border of the Geshurites and Maacathites, and all mount Hermon, and all Bashan unto Salcah; 12 all the kingdom of Og in Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth and in Edrei-the same was left of the remnant of the Rephaim-for these did Moses smite, and drove them out. 13 Nevertheless the children of Israel drove not out the Geshurites, nor the Maacathites; but Geshur and Maacath dwelt in the midst of Israel unto this day. 14 Only unto the tribe of Levi he gave no inheritance; the offerings of the LORD, the God of Israel, made by fire are his inheritance, as He spoke unto him.

15 And Moses gave unto the tribe of the children of Reuben according to their families. 16 And their border was from Aroer, that is on the edge of the valley of Arnon, and the city that is in the middle of the valley, and all the table-land by Medeba; 17 Heshbon, and all her cities that are in the table-land; Dibon, and Bamoth-baal, and Beth-baal-meon; 18 and Jahaz, and Kedemoth, and Mephaath; 19 and Kiriathaim, and Sibmah, and Zerethshahar in the mount of the valley; 20 and Beth-peor, and the slopes of Pisgah, and Beth-jeshimoth; 21 and all the cities of the table-land, and all the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, whom Moses smote with the chiefs of Midian, Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba, the princes of Sihon, that dwelt in the land. 22 Balaam also the son of Beor, the soothsayer, did the children of Israel slay with the sword among the rest of their slain. 23 And as for the border of the children of Reuben, the Jordan was their border. This was the inheritance of the children of Reuben according to their families, the cities and the villages thereof.

24 And Moses gave unto the tribe of Gad, unto the children of Gad, according to their families. 25 And their border was Jazer, and all the cities of Gilead, and half the land of the children of Ammon, unto Aroer that is before Rabbah; 26 and from Heshbon unto Ramath-mizpeh, and Betonim; and from Mahanaim unto the border of Lidbir; 27 and in the valley, Beth-haram, and Beth-nimrah, and Succoth, and Zaphon, the rest of the kingdom of Sihon king of Heshbon, the Jordan being the border thereof, unto the uttermost part of the sea of Chinnereth beyond the Jordan eastward. 28 This is the inheritance of the children of Gad according to their families, the cities and the villages thereof.

29 And Moses gave inheritance unto the half-tribe of Manasseh; and it was for the half-tribe of the children of Manasseh according to their families. 30 And their border was from Mahanaim, all Bashan, all the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, and all the villages of Jair, which are in Bashan, threescore cities; 31 and half Gilead, and Ashtaroth, and Edrei, the cities of the kingdom of Og in Bashan, were for the children of Machir the son of Manasseh, even for the half of the children of Machir according to their families.

32 These are the inheritances which Moses distributed in the plains of Moab, beyond the Jordan at Jericho, eastward. 33 But unto the tribe of Levi Moses gave no inheritance; the LORD, the God of Israel, is their inheritance, as He spoke unto them.

JOSHUA 14 — 1 And these are the inheritances which the children of Israel took in the land of Canaan, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed unto them, 2 by the lot of their inheritance, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses, for the nine tribes, and for the half-tribe.-3 For Moses had given the inheritance of the two tribes and the half-tribe beyond the Jordan; but unto the Levites he gave no inheritance among them. 4 For the children of Joseph were two tribes, Manasseh and Ephraim; and they gave no portion unto the Levites in the land, save cities to dwell in, with the open land about them for their cattle and for their substance.-5 As the LORD commanded Moses, so the children of Israel did, and they divided the land.

6 Then the children of Judah drew nigh unto Joshua in Gilgal; and Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite said unto him: 'Thou knowest the thing that the LORD spoke unto Moses the man of God concerning me and concerning thee in Kadesh-barnea. 7 Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the LORD sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land; and I brought him back word as it was in my heart. 8 Nevertheless my brethren that went up with me made the heart of the people melt; but I wholly followed the LORD my God. 9 And Moses swore on that day, saying: Surely the land whereon thy foot hath trodden shall be an inheritance to thee and to thy children for ever, because thou hast wholly followed the LORD my God. 10 And now, behold, the LORD hath kept me alive, as He spoke, these forty and five years, from the time that the LORD spoke this word unto Moses, while Israel walked in the wilderness; and now, lo, I am this day fourscore and five years old. 11 As yet I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me; as my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for war, and to go out and to come in. 12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the LORD spoke in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakim were there, and cities great and fortified; it may be that the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out, as the LORD spoke.' 13 And Joshua blessed him; and he gave Hebron unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh for an inheritance. 14 Therefore Hebron became the inheritance of Caleb the son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite, unto this day; because that he wholly followed the LORD, the God of Israel. 15 Now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba, which Arba was the greatest man among the Anakim. And the land had rest from war.

JOSHUA 15 — 1 And the lot for the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families was unto the border of Edom, even to the wilderness of Zin southward, at the uttermost part of the south. 2 And their south border was from the uttermost part of the Salt Sea, from the bay that looked southward. 3 And it went out southward of the ascent of Akrabbim, and passed along to Zin, and went up by the south of Kadesh-barnea, and passed along by Hezron, and went up to Addar, and turned about to Karka. 4 And it passed along to Azmon, and went out at the Brook of Egypt; and the goings out of the border were at the sea; this shall be your south border. 5 And the east border was the Salt Sea, even unto the end of the Jordan. And the border of the north side was from the bay of the sea at the end of the Jordan. 6 And the border went up to Beth-hoglah, and passed along by the north of Beth-arabah; and the border went up to the Stone of Bohan the son of Reuben. 7 And the border went up to Debir from the valley of Achor, and so northward, looking toward Gilgal, that is over against the ascent of Adummim, which is on the south side of the brook; and the border passed along to the waters of En-shemesh, and the goings out thereof were at En-rogel. 8 And the border went up by the Valley of the son of Hinnom unto the side of the Jebusite southward-the same is Jerusalem-and the border went up to the top of the mountain that lieth before the Valley of Hinnom westward, which is at the uttermost part of the vale of Rephaim northward. 9 And the border was drawn from the top of the mountain unto the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah, and went out to the cities of mount Ephron; and the border was drawn to Baalah-the same is Kiriath-jearim. 10 And the border turned about from Baalah westward unto mount Seir, and passed along unto the side of mount Jearim on the north-the same is Chesalon-and went down to Beth-shemesh, and passed along by Timnah. 11 And the border went out unto the side of Ekron northward; and the border was drawn to Shikkeron, and passed along to mount Baalah, and went out at Jabneel; and the goings out of the border were at the sea. 12 And as for the west border, the Great Sea was the border thereof. This is the border of the children of Judah round about according to their families.

13 And unto Caleb the son of Jephunneh he gave a portion among the children of Judah, according to the commandment of the LORD to Joshua, even Kiriath-arba, which Arba was the father of Anak-the same is Hebron. 14 And Caleb drove out thence the three sons of Anak, Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak. 15 And he went up thence against the inhabitants of Debir-now the name of Debir beforetime was Kiriath-sepher. 16 And Caleb said: 'He that smiteth Kiriath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.' 17 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, the brother of Caleb, took it; and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 18 And it came to pass, when she came unto him, that she persuaded him to ask of her father a field; and she alighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her: 'What wouldest thou?' 19 And she said: 'Give me a blessing; for that thou hast set me in the Southland, give me therefore springs of water.' And he gave her the Upper Springs and the Nether Springs.

20 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Judah according to their families.

21 And the cities at the uttermost part of the tribe of the children of Judah toward the border of Edom in the South were Kabzeel, and Eder, and Jagur; 22 and Kinah, and Dimonah, and Adadah; 23 and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Ithnan; 24 Ziph, and Telem, and Bealoth; 25 and Hazor, and Hadattah, and Kerioth, and Hezron-the same is Hazor; 26 Amam, and Shema, and Moladah; 27 and Hazar-gaddah, and Heshmon, and Beth-pelet; 28 and Hazar-shual, and Beer-sheba, and Biziothiah; 29 Baalah, and Iim, and Ezem; 30 and Eltolad, and Chesil, and Hormah; 31 and Ziklag, and Madmannah, and Sansannah; 32 and Lebaoth, and Shilhim, and Ain, and Rimmon; all the cities are twenty and nine, with their villages.

33 In the Lowland: Eshtaol, and Zorah, and Ashnah; 34 and Zanoah, and En-gannim, Tappuah, and Enam; 35 Jarmuth, and Adullam, Socoh, and Azekah; 36 and Shaaraim, and Adithaim, and Gederah, with Gederothaim; fourteen cities with their villages.

37 Zenan, and Hadashah, and Migdal-gad; 38 and Dilan, and Mizpeh, and Joktheel; 39 Lachish, and Bozkath, and Eglon; 40 and Cabbon, and Lahmas, and Chithlish; 41 and Gederoth, Beth-dagon, and Naamah, and Makkedah; sixteen cities with their villages.

42 Libnah, and Ether, and Ashan; 43 and Iphtah, and Ashnah, and Nezib; 44 and Keilah, and Achzib, and Mareshah; nine cities with their villages.

45 Ekron, with its towns and its villages; 46 from Ekron even unto the sea, all that were by the side of Ashdod, with their villages. 47 Ashdod, its towns and its villages; Gaza, its towns and its villages; unto the Brook of Egypt, the Great Sea being the border thereof.

48 And in the hill-country: Shamir, and Jattir, and Socoh; 49 and Dannah, and Kiriath-sannah-the same is Debir; 50 and Anab, and Eshtemoh, and Anim; 51 and Goshen, and Holon, and Giloh; eleven cities with their villages.

52 Arab, and Rumah, and Eshan; 53 and Janum, and Beth-tappuah, and Aphekah; 54 and Humtah, and Kiriath-arba-the same is Hebron, and Zior; nine cities with their villages.

55 Maon, Carmel, and Ziph, and Juttah; 56 and Jezreel, and Jokdeam, and Zanoah; 57 Kain, Gibeah, and Timnah; ten cities with their villages.

58 Halhul, Beth-zur, and Gedor; 59 and Maarath, and Beth-anoth, and Eltekon; six cities with their villages.

60 Kiriath-baal-the same is Kiriath-jearim, and Rabbah; two cities with their villages.

61 In the wilderness: Beth-arabah, Middin, and Secacah; 62 and Nibshan, and the City of Salt, and En-gedi; six cities with their villages.

63 And as for the Jebusites, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the children of Judah could not drive them out; but the Jebusites dwelt with the children of Judah at Jerusalem, unto this day.

JOSHUA 16 — 1 And the lot for the children of Joseph went out from the Jordan at Jericho, at the waters of Jericho on the east, going up from Jericho through the hill-country to the wilderness, even to Beth-el. 2 And it went out from Beth-el-luz, and passed along unto the border of the Archites to Ataroth. 3 And it went down westward to the border of the Japhletites, unto the border of Beth-horon the nether, even unto Gezer; and the goings out thereof were at the sea. 4 And the children of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, took their inheritance. 5 And the border of the children of Ephraim according to their families was thus; even the border of their inheritance eastward was Atroth-addar, unto Beth-horon the upper. 6 And the border went out westward, Mich-methath being on the north; and the border turned about eastward unto Taanath-shiloh, and passed along it on the east of Janoah. 7 And it went down from Janoah to Ataroth, and to Naarah, and reached unto Jericho, and went out at the Jordan. 8 From Tappuah the border went along westward to the brook of Kanah; and the goings out thereof were at the sea. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Ephraim according to their families; 9 together with the cities which were separated for the children of Ephraim in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Manasseh, all the cities with their villages. 10 And they drove not out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in the midst of Ephraim, unto this day, and became servants to do taskwork.

JOSHUA 17 — 1 And this was the lot for the tribe of Manasseh; for he was the first-born of Joseph. As for Machir the first-born of Manasseh, the father of Gilead, because he was a man of war, therefore he had Gilead and Bashan. 2 And the lot was for the rest of the children of Manasseh according to their families; for the children of Abiezer, and for the children of Helek, and for the children of Asriel, and for the children of Shechem, and for the children of Hepher, and for the children of Shemida; these were the male children of Manasseh the son of Joseph according to their families. 3 But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters; and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. 4 And they came near before Eleazar the priest, and before Joshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying: 'The LORD commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brethren'; therefore according to the commandment of the LORD he gave them an inheritance among the brethren of their father. 5 And there fell ten parts to Manasseh, beside the land of Gilead and Bashan, which is beyond the Jordan; 6 because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons; and the land of Gilead belonged unto the rest of the sons of Manasseh.

7 And the border of Manasseh was, beginning from Asher, Michmethath, which is before Shechem; and the border went along to the right hand, unto the inhabitants of En-tappuah.-8 The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh; but Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim.-9 And the border went down unto the brook of Kanah, southward of the brook, by cities which belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh; but the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook; and the goings out thereof were at the sea: 10 southward it was Ephraim's, and northward it was Manasseh's, and the sea was his border; and they reached to Asher on the north, and to Issachar on the east.

11 And Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher Beth-shean and its towns, and Ibleam and its towns, and the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, and the inhabitants of En-dor and its towns, and the inhabitants of Taanach and its towns, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns, even the three regions. 12 Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities; but the Canaanites were resolved to dwell in that land. 13 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel were waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to taskwork, but did not utterly drive them out.

14 And the children of Joseph spoke unto Joshua, saying: 'Why hast thou given me but one lot and one part for an inheritance, seeing I am a great people, forasmuch as the LORD hath blessed me thus?' 15 And Joshua said unto them: 'If thou be a great people, get thee up to the forest, and cut down for thyself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the Rephaim; since the hill-country of Ephraim is too narrow for thee.' 16 And the children of Joseph said: 'The hill-country will not be enough for us; and all the Canaanites that dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are in Beth-shean and its towns, and they who are in the valley of Jezreel.' 17 And Joshua spoke unto the house of Joseph, even to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying: 'Thou art a great people, and hast great power; thou shalt not have one lot only; 18 but the hill-country shall be thine; for though it is a forest, thou shalt cut it down, and the goings out thereof shall be thine; for thou shalt drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they be strong.'

JOSHUA 18 — 1 And the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled themselves together at Shiloh, and set up the tent of meeting there; and the land was subdued before them. 2 And there remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet received their inheritance. 3 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel: 'How long are ye slack to go in to possess the land, which the LORD, the God of your fathers, hath given you? 4 Appoint for you three men for each tribe; and I will send them, and they shall arise, and walk through the land, and describe it according to their inheritance; and they shall come unto me. 5 And they shall divide it into seven portions: Judah shall abide in his border on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their border on the north. 6 And ye shall describe the land into seven portions, and bring the description hither to me; and I will cast lots for you here before the LORD our God. 7 For the Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the LORD is their inheritance; and Gad and Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan eastward, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave them.'

8 And the men arose, and went; and Joshua charged them that went to describe the land, saying: 'Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come back to me, and I will cast lots for you here before the LORD in Shiloh.' 9 And the men went and passed through the land, and described it by cities into seven portions in a book, and they came to Joshua unto the camp at Shiloh. 10 And Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the LORD; and there Joshua divided the land unto the children of Israel according to their divisions.

11 And the lot of the tribe of the children of Benjamin came up according to their families; and the border of their lot went out between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph. 12 And their border on the north side was from the Jordan; and the border went up to the side of Jericho on the north, and went up through the hill-country westward; and the goings out thereof were at the wilderness of Beth-aven. 13 And the border passed along from thence to Luz, to the side of Luz-the same is Beth-el-southward; and the border went down to Atroth-addar, by the mountain that lieth on the south of Beth-horon the nether. 14 And the border was drawn and turned about on the west side southward, from the mountain that lieth before Beth-horon southward; and the goings out thereof were at Kiriath-baal-the same is Kiriath-jearim-a city of the children of Judah; this was the west side. 15 And the south side was from the uttermost part of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went out westward, and went out to the fountain of the waters of Nephtoah. 16 And the border went down to the uttermost part of the mountain that lieth before the Valley of the son of Hinnom, which is in the vale of Rephaim northward; and it went down to the Valley of Hinnom, to the side of the Jebusite southward, and went down to En-rogel. 17 And it was drawn on the north, and went out at En-shemesh, and went out to Geliloth, which is over against the ascent of Adummim; and it went down to the Stone of Bohan the son of Reuben. 18 And it passed along to the side over against the Arabah northward, and went down unto the Arabah. 19 And the border passed along to the side of Beth-hoglah northward; and the goings out of the border were at the north bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan; this was the south border. 20 And the Jordan was to be the border of it on the east side. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the borders thereof round about, according to their families.

21 Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Beth-hoglah, and Emek-keziz; 22 and Beth-arabah, and Zemaraim, and Beth-el; 23 and Avvim, and Parah, and Ophrah; 24 and Chephar-ammonah, and Ophni, and Geba; twelve cities with their villages: 25 Gibeon, and Ramah, and Beeroth; 26 and Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah; 27 and Rekem, and Irpeel, and Taralah; 28 and Zela, Eleph, and the Jebusite-the same is Jerusalem, Gibeath, and Kiriath; fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families.

JOSHUA 19 — 1 And the second lot came out for Simeon, even for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families; and their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Judah. 2 And they had for their inheritance Beer-sheba with Sheba, and Moladah; 3 and Hazarshual, and Balah, and Ezem; 4 and Eltolad, and Bethul, and Hormah; 5 and Ziklag, and Beth-marcaboth, and Hazar-susah; 6 and Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen; thirteen cities with their villages: 7 Ain, Rimmon, and Ether, and Ashan; four cities with their villages; 8 and all the villages that were round about these cities to Baalath-beer, as far as Ramah of the South. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families. 9 Out of the allotment of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon, for the portion of the children of Judah was too much for them; therefore the children of Simeon had inheritance in the midst of their inheritance.

10 And the third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families; and the border of their inheritance was unto Sarid. 11 And their border went up westward, even to Maralah, and reached to Dabbesheth; and it reached to the brook that is before Jokneam. 12 And it turned from Sarid eastward toward the sunrising unto the border of Chisloth-tabor; and it went out to Dobrath, and went up to Japhia. 13 And from thence it passed along eastward to Gath-hepher, to Ethkazin; and it went out at Rimmon-methoar unto Neah. 14 And the border turned about it on the north to Hannathon; and the goings out thereof were at the valley of Iphtahel; 15 and Kattath, and Nahalal, and Shimron, and Idalah, and Beth-lehem; twelve cities with their villages. 16 This is the inheritance of the children of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.

17 The fourth lot came out for Issachar, even for the children of Issachar according to their families. 18 And their border was Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem; 19 and Hapharaim, and Shion, and Anaharath; 20 and Rabbith, and Kishion, and Ebez; 21 and Remeth, and En-gannim, and En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez; 22 and the border reached to Tabor, and Shahazim, and Beth-shemesh; and the goings out of their border were at the Jordan; sixteen cities with their villages. 23 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar according to their families, the cities with their villages.

24 And the fifth lot came out for the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families. 25 And their border was Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph; 26 and Allam-melech, and Amad, and Mishal; and it reached to Carmel westward, and to Shihor-libnath. 27 And it turned toward the sunrising to Beth-dagon, and reached to Zebulun and to the valley of Iphtahel northward at Beth-emek and Neiel; and it went out to Cabul on the left hand, 28 and Ebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, even unto great Zidon. 29 And the border turned to Ramah, and to the fortified city of Tyre; and the border turned to Hosah; and the goings out thereof were at the sea from Hebel to Achzib; 30 Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob; twenty and two cities with their villages. 31 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.

32 The sixth lot came out for the children of Naphtali, even for the children of Naphtali according to their families. 33 And their border was from Heleph, from Elon-beza-anannim, and Adami-nekeb, and Jabneel, unto Lakkum; and the goings out thereof were at the Jordan. 34 And the border turned westward to Aznoth-tabor, and went out from thence to Hukok; and it reached to Zebulun on the south, and reached to Asher on the west, and to Judah at the Jordan toward the sunrising. 35 And the fortified cities were Ziddim-zer, and Hammath, and Rakkath, and Chinnereth; 36 and Adamah, and Ramah, and Hazor; 37 and Kedesh, and Edrei, and En-hazor; 38 and Iron, and Migdal-el, and Horem, and Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh; nineteen cities with their villages. 39 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali according to their families, the cities with their villages.

40 The seventh lot came out for the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families. 41 And the border of their inheritance was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Ir-shemesh; 42 and Shaalabbin, and Aijalon, and Ithlah; 43 and Elon, and Timnah, and Ekron; 44 and Eltekeh, and Gibbethon, and Baalath; 45 and Jehud, and Bene-berak, and Gath-rimmon; 46 and Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border over against Joppa. 47 And the border of the children of Dan was too strait for them; so the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and dwelt therein, and called Leshem, Dan, after the name of Dan their father. 48 This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families, these cities with their villages.

49 When they had made an end of distributing the land for inheritance by the borders thereof, the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun in the midst of them; 50 according to the commandment of the LORD they gave him the city which he asked, even Timnath-serah in the hill-country of Ephraim; and he built the city, and dwelt therein.

51 These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the LORD, at the door of the tent of meeting. So they made an end of dividing the land.

JOSHUA 20 — 1 And the LORD spoke unto Joshua, saying: 2 'Speak to the children of Israel, saying: Assign you the cities of refuge, whereof I spoke unto you by the hand of Moses; 3 that the manslayer that killeth any person through error and unawares may flee thither; and they shall be unto you for a refuge from the avenger of blood. 4 And he shall flee unto one of those cities, and shall stand at the entrance of the gate of the city, and declare his cause in the ears of the elders of that city; and they shall take him into the city unto them, and give him a place, that he may dwell among them. 5 And if the avenger of blood pursue after him, then they shall not deliver up the manslayer into his hand; because he smote his neighbour unawares, and hated him not beforetime. 6 And he shall dwell in that city, until he stand before the congregation for judgment, until the death of the high priest that shall be in those days; then may the manslayer return, and come unto his own city, and unto his own house, unto the city from whence he fled.'

7 And they set apart Kedesh in Galilee in the hill-country of Naphtali, and Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and Kiriath-arba-the same is Hebron-in the hill-country of Judah. 8 And beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness in the table-land out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh. 9 These were the appointed cities for all the children of Israel, and for the stranger that sojourneth among them, that whosoever killeth any person through error might flee thither, and not die by the hand of the avenger of blood, until he stood before the congregation.

JOSHUA 21 — 1 Then came near the heads of fathers' houses of the Levites unto Eleazar the priest, and unto Joshua the son of Nun, and unto the heads of fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel; 2 and they spoke unto them at Shiloh in the land of Canaan, saying: 'The LORD commanded by the hand of Moses to give us cities to dwell in, with the open land thereabout for our cattle.' 3 And the children of Israel gave unto the Levites out of their inheritance, according to the commandment of the LORD, these cities with the open land about them.

4 And the lot came out for the families of the Kohathites; and the children of Aaron the priest, who were of the Levites, had by lot out of the tribe of Judah, and out of the tribe of the Simeonites, and out of the tribe of Benjamin, thirteen cities.

5 And the rest of the children of Kohath had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Ephraim, and out of the tribe of Dan, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, ten cities.

6 And the children of Gershon had by lot out of the families of the tribe of Issachar, and out of the tribe of Asher, and out of the tribe of Naphtali, and out of the half-tribe of Manasseh in Bashan, thirteen cities.

7 The children of Merari according to their families had out of the tribe of Reuben, and out of the tribe of Gad, and out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve cities.

8 And the children of Israel gave by lot unto the Levites these cities with the open land about them, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.

9 And they gave out of the tribe of the children of Judah, and out of the tribe of the children of Simeon, these cities which are here mentioned by name. 10 And they were for the children of Aaron, of the families of the Kohathites, who were of the children of Levi; for theirs was the first lot. 11 And they gave them Kiriath-arba, which Arba was the father of Anak-the same is Hebron-in the hill-country of Judah, with the open land round about it. 12 But the fields of the city, and the villages thereof, gave they to Caleb the son of Jephunneh for his possession.

13 And unto the children of Aaron the priest they gave Hebron with the open land about it, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Libnah with the open land about it; 14 and Jattir with the open land about it, and Eshtemoa with the open land about it; 15 and Holon with the open land about it, and Debir with the open land about it; 16 and Ain with the open land about it, and Juttah with the open land about it, and Beth-shemesh with the open land about it; nine cities out of those two tribes. 17 And out of the tribe of Benjamin, Gibeon with the open land about it, Geba with the open land about it; 18 Anathoth with the open land about it, and Almon with the open land about it; four cities. 19 All the cities of the children of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with the open land about them.

20 And the families of the children of Kohath, the Levites, even the rest of the children of Kohath, they had the cities of their lot out of the tribe of Ephraim. 21 And they gave them Shechem with the open land about it in the hill-country of Ephraim, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Gezer with the open land about it; 22 and Kibzaim with the open land about it, and Beth-horon with the open land about it; four cities. 23 And out of the tribe of Dan, Elteke with the open land about it, Gibbethon with the open land about it; 24 Aijalon with the open land about it, Gath-rimmon with the open land about it; four cities. 25 And out of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Taanach with the open land about it, and Gath-rimmon with the open land about it; two cities. 26 All the cities of the families of the rest of the children of Kohath were ten with the open land about them.

27 And unto the children of Gershon, of the families of the Levites, out of the half-tribe of Manasseh they gave Golan in Bashan with the open land about it, the city of refuge for the manslayer; and Beeshterah with the open land about it; two cities. 28 And out of the tribe of Issachar, Kishion with the open land about it, Dobrath with the open land about it; 29 Jarmuth with the open land about it, En-gannim with the open land about it; four cities. 30 And out of the tribe of Asher, Mishal with the open land about it, Abdon with the open land about it; 31 Helkath with the open land about it, and Rehob with the open land about it; four cities. 32 And out of the tribe of Naphtali, Kedesh in Galilee with the open land about it, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Hammoth-dor with the open land about it, and Kartan with the open land about it; three cities. 33 All the cities of the Gershonites according to their families were thirteen cities with the open land about them.

34 And unto the families of the children of Merari, the rest of the Levites, out of the tribe of Zebulun, Jokneam with the open land about it, and Kartah with the open land about it; 35 Dimnah with the open land about it, Nahalal with the open land about it; four cities. [36 And out of the tribe of Reuben, Bezer with the open land about it, and Jahaz with the open land about it; 37 Kedemoth with the open land about it, and Mephaath with the open land about it; four cities. (These two verses, taken from 1 Chronicles 6:63-64, are excluded from the text in authoritative codices and placed in the margin.)] 38 And out of the tribe of Gad, Ramoth in Gilead with the open land about it, the city of refuge for the manslayer, and Mahanaim with the open land about it; 39 Heshbon with the open land about it, Jazer with the open land about it; four cities in all. 40 All these were the cities of the children of Merari according to their families, even the rest of the families of the Levites; and their lot was twelve cities.

41 All the cities of the Levites-forty and eight cities with the open land about them-shall be in the midst of the possession of the children of Israel, 42 even these cities, every one with the open land round about it; thus it shall be with all these cities.

43 So the LORD gave unto Israel all the land which He swore to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. 44 And the LORD gave them rest round about, according to all that He swore unto their fathers; and there stood not a man of all their enemies against them; the LORD delivered all their enemies into their hand. 45 There failed not aught of any good thing which the LORD had spoken unto the house of Israel; all came to pass.

JOSHUA 22 — 1 Then Joshua called the Reubenites, and the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh, 2 and said unto them: 'Ye have kept all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, and have hearkened unto my voice in all that I commanded you; 3 ye have not left your brethren these many days unto this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of the LORD your God. 4 And now the LORD your God hath given rest unto your brethren, as He spoke unto them; therefore now turn ye, and get you unto your tents, unto the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the LORD gave you beyond the Jordan. 5 Only take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD commanded you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments, and to cleave unto Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.' 6 So Joshua blessed them, and sent them away; and they went unto their tents.

7 Now to the one half-tribe of Manasseh Moses had given inheritance in Bashan; but unto the other half gave Joshua among their brethren beyond the Jordan westward. Moreover when Joshua sent them away unto their tents, he blessed them, 8 and spoke unto them, saying: 'Return with much wealth unto your tents, and with very much cattle, with silver, and with gold, and with brass, and with iron, and with very much raiment; divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren.'

9 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh returned, and departed from the children of Israel out of Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go unto the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they were possessed, according to the commandment of the LORD by the hand of Moses. 10 And when they came unto the region about the Jordan, that is in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by the Jordan, a great altar to look upon. 11 And the children of Israel heard say: 'Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh have built an altar in the forefront of the land of Canaan, in the region about the Jordan, on the side that pertaineth to the children of Israel.' 12 And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered themselves together at Shiloh, to go up against them to war.

13 And the children of Israel sent unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, into the land of Gilead, Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest; 14 and with him ten princes, one prince of a fathers' house for each of the tribes of Israel; and they were every one of them head of their fathers' houses among the thousands of Israel. 15 And they came unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, unto the land of Gilead, and they spoke with them, saying: 16 'Thus saith the whole congregation of the LORD: What treachery is this that ye have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following the LORD, in that ye have builded you an altar, to rebel this day against the LORD? 17 Is the iniquity of Peor too little for us, from which we have not cleansed ourselves unto this day, although there came a plague upon the congregation of the LORD, 18 that ye must turn away this day from following the LORD? and it will be, seeing ye rebel to-day against the LORD, that to-morrow He will be wroth with the whole congregation of Israel. 19 Howbeit, if the land of your possession be unclean, then pass ye over unto the land of the possession of the LORD, wherein the LORD'S tabernacle dwelleth, and take possession among us; but rebel not against the LORD, nor rebel against us, in building you an altar besides the altar of the LORD our God. 20 Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass concerning the devoted thing, and wrath fell upon all the congregation of Israel? and that man perished not alone in his iniquity.'

21 Then the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh answered, and spoke unto the heads of the thousands of Israel: 22 'God, God, the LORD, God, God, the LORD, He knoweth, and Israel he shall know; if it be in rebellion, or if in treachery against the LORD-save Thou us not this day-23 that we have built us an altar to turn away from following the LORD; or if to offer thereon burnt-offering or meal-offering, or if to offer sacrifices of peace-offerings thereon, let the LORD Himself require it; 24 and if we have not rather out of anxiety about a matter done this, saying: In time to come your children might speak unto our children, saying: What have ye to do with the LORD, the God of Israel? 25 for the LORD hath made the Jordan a border between us and you, ye children of Reuben and children of Gad; ye have no portion in the LORD; so might your children make our children cease from fearing the LORD. 26 Therefore we said: Let us now prepare to build us an altar, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice; 27 but it shall be a witness between us and you, and between our generations after us, that we may do the service of the LORD before Him with our burnt-offerings, and with our sacrifices, and with our peace-offerings; that your children may not say to our children in time to come: Ye have no portion in the LORD. 28 Therefore said we: It shall be, when they so say to us or to our generations in time to come, that we shall say: Behold the pattern of the altar of the LORD, which our fathers made, not for burnt-offering, nor for sacrifice; but it is a witness between us and you. 29 Far be it from us that we should rebel against the LORD, and turn away this day from following the LORD, to build an altar for burnt-offering, for meal-offering, or for sacrifice, besides the altar of the LORD our God that is before His tabernacle.'

30 And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation, even the heads of the thousands of Israel that were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spoke, it pleased them well. 31 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh: 'This day we know that the LORD is in the midst of us, because ye have not committed this treachery against the LORD; now have ye delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD.' 32 And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them back word. 33 And the thing pleased the children of Israel; and the children of Israel blessed God, and spoke no more of going up against them to war, to destroy the land wherein the children of Reuben and the children of Gad dwelt. 34 And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar-: 'for it is a witness between us that the LORD is God.'

JOSHUA 23 — 1 And it came to pass after many days, when the LORD had given rest unto Israel from all their enemies round about, and Joshua was old and well stricken in years; 2 that Joshua called for all Israel, for their elders and for their heads, and for their judges and for their officers, and said unto them: 'I am old and well stricken in years. 3 And ye have seen all that the LORD your God hath done unto all these nations because of you; for the LORD your God, He it is that hath fought for you. 4 Behold, I have allotted unto you for an inheritance, according to your tribes, these nations that remain, from the Jordan, with all the nations that I have cut off, even unto the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun. 5 And the LORD your God, He shall thrust them out from before you, and drive them from out of your sight; and ye shall possess their land, as the LORD your God spoke unto you. 6 Therefore be ye very courageous to keep and to do all that is written in the book of the law of Moses, that ye turn not aside therefrom to the right hand or to the left; 7 that ye come not among these nations, these that remain among you; neither make mention of the name of their gods, nor cause to swear by them, neither serve them, nor worship them; 8 but cleave unto the LORD your God, as ye have done unto this day; 9 wherefore the LORD hath driven out from before you great nations and mighty; but as for you, no man hath stood against you unto this day. 10 One man of you hath chased a thousand; for the LORD your God, He it is that fought for you, as He spoke unto you. 11 Take good heed therefore unto yourselves, that ye love the LORD your God. 12 Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you; 13 know for a certainty that the LORD your God will no more drive these nations from out of your sight; but they shall be a snare and a trap unto you, and a scourge in your sides, and pricks in your eyes, until ye perish from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you. 14 And, behold, this day I am going the way of all the earth; consider ye therefore in all your heart and in all your soul, that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the LORD your God spoke concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, not one thing hath failed thereof. 15 And it shall come to pass, that as all the good things are come upon you of which the LORD your God spoke unto you, so shall the LORD bring upon you all the evil things, until He have destroyed you from off this good land which the LORD your God hath given you. 16 When ye transgress the covenant of the LORD your God, which He commanded you, and go and serve other gods, and worship them; then shall the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and ye shall perish quickly from off the good land which He hath given unto you.'

JOSHUA 24 — 1 And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God. 2 And Joshua said unto all the people: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Your fathers dwelt of old time beyond the River, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor; and they served other gods. 3 And I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac. 4 And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau; and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it; and Jacob and his children went down into Egypt. 5 And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did in the midst thereof; and afterward I brought you out. 6 And I brought your fathers out of Egypt; and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and with horsemen unto the Red Sea. 7 And when they cried out unto the LORD, He put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt; and ye dwelt in the wilderness many days. 8 And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, that dwelt beyond the Jordan; and they fought with you; and I gave them into your hand, and ye possessed their land; and I destroyed them from before you. 9 Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel; and he sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you. 10 But I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he even blessed you; so I delivered you out of his hand. 11 And ye went over the Jordan, and came unto Jericho; and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Girgashite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I delivered them into your hand. 12 And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; not with thy sword, nor with thy bow. 13 And I gave you a land whereon thou hadst not laboured, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell therein; of vineyards and olive-yards which ye planted not do ye eat. 14 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve Him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. 15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.'

16 And the people answered and said: 'Far be it from us that we should forsake the LORD, to serve other gods; 17 for the LORD our God, He it is that brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, and that did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the peoples through the midst of whom we passed; 18 and the LORD drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites that dwelt in the land; therefore we also will serve the LORD; for He is our God.'

19 And Joshua said unto the people: 'Ye cannot serve the LORD; for He is a holy God; He is a jealous God; He will not forgive your transgression nor your sins. 20 If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then He will turn and do you evil, and consume you, after that He hath done you good.'

21 And the people said unto Joshua: 'Nay; but we will serve the LORD.' 22 And Joshua said unto the people: 'Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you the LORD, to serve Him. -And they said: 'We are witnesses.'-23 Now therefore put away the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD, the God of Israel.' 24 And the people said unto Joshua: 'The LORD our God will we serve, and unto His voice will we hearken.'

25 So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem. 26 And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a great stone, and set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the LORD. 27 And Joshua said unto all the people: 'Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it hath heard all the words of the LORD which He spoke unto us; it shall be therefore a witness against you, lest ye deny your God.' 28 So Joshua sent the people away, every man unto his inheritance.

29 And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being a hundred and ten years old. 30 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-serah, which is in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash. 31 And Israel served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, and had known all the work of the LORD, that He had wrought for Israel. 32 And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money; and they became the inheritance of the children of Joseph. 33 And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in the Hill of Phinehas his son, which was given him in mount Ephraim.

Judges

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JUDGES 1 — 1 And it came to pass after the death of Joshua, that the children of Israel asked the LORD, saying: 'Who shall go up for us first against the Canaanites, to fight against them?' 2 And LORD said: 'Judah shall go up; behold, I have delivered the land into his hand.' 3 And Judah said unto Simeon his brother: 'Come up with me into my lot, that we may fight against the Canaanites; and I likewise will go with thee into thy lot.' So Simeon went with him. 4 And Judah went up; and the LORD delivered the Canaanites and the Perizzites into their hand; and they smote of them in Bezek ten thousand men. 5 And they found Adoni-bezek in Bezek; and they fought against him, and they smote the Canaanites and the Perizzites. 6 But Adoni-bezek fled; and they pursued after him, and caught him, and cut off his thumbs and his great toes. 7 And Adoni-bezek said: 'Threescore and ten kings, having their thumbs and their great toes cut off, gathered food under my table; as I have done, so God hath requited me.' And they brought him to Jerusalem, and he died there.

8 And the children of Judah fought Jerusalem, and took it, and smote it with the edge of the sword, and set the city on fire. 9 And afterward the children of Judah went down to fight against the Canaanites that dwelt in the hill-country, and in the South, and in the Lowland. 10 And Judah went against the Canaanites that dwelt in Hebron-now the name of Hebron beforetime was Kiriath-arba-and they smote Sheshai, and Ahiman, and Talmai. 11 And from thence he went against the inhabitants of Debir-now the name of Debir beforetime was Kiriath-sepher. 12 And Caleb said: 'He that smiteth Kiriath-sepher, and taketh it, to him will I give Achsah my daughter to wife.' 13 And Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother, took it; and he gave him Achsah his daughter to wife. 14 And it came to pass, when she came unto him, that she moved him to ask of her father a field; and she alighted from off her ass; and Caleb said unto her: 'What wouldest thou?' 15 And she said unto him: 'Give me a blessing; for that thou hast set me in the Southland, give me therefore springs of water.' And Caleb gave her the Upper Springs and the Nether Springs.

16 And the children of the Kenite, Moses' father-in-law, went up out of the city of palm-trees with the children of Judah into the wilderness of Judah, which is in the south of Arad; and they went and dwelt with the people. 17 And Judah went with Simeon his brother, and they smote the Canaanites that inhabited Zephath, and utterly destroyed it. And the name of the city was called Hormah. 18 Also Judah took Gaza with the border thereof, and Ashkelon with the border thereof, and Ekron with the border thereof. 19 And the LORD was with Judah; and he drove out the inhabitants of the hill-country; for he could not drive out the inhabitants of the valley, because they had chariots of iron. 20 And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses had spoken; and he drove out thence the three sons of Anak. 21 And the children of Benjamin did not drive out the Jebusites that inhabited Jerusalem; but the Jebusites dwelt with the children of Benjamin in Jerusalem, unto this day.

22 And the house of Joseph, they also went up against Beth-el; and the LORD was with them. 23 And the house of Joseph sent to spy out Beth-el-now the name of the city beforetime was Luz. 24 And the watchers saw a man come forth out of the city, and they said unto him: 'Show us, we pray thee, the entrance into the city, and we will deal kindly with thee.' 25 And he showed them the entrance into the city, and they smote the city with the edge of the sword; but they let the man go and all his family. 26 And the man went into the land of the Hittites, and built a city, and called the name thereof Luz, which is the name thereof unto this day.

27 And Manasseh did not drive out the inhabitants of Beth-shean and its towns, nor of Taanach and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Ibleam and its towns, nor the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns; but the Canaanites were resolved to dwell in that land. 28 And it came to pass, when Israel was waxen strong, that they put the Canaanites to task-work, but did in no wise drive them out.

29 And Ephraim drove not out the Canaanites that dwelt in Gezer; but the Canaanites dwelt in Gezer among them.

30 Zebulun drove not out the inhabitants of Kitron, nor the: inhabitants of Nahalol; but the Canaanites dwelt among them, and became tributary.

31 Asher drove not out the inhabitants of Acco, nor the inhabitants of Zidon, nor of Ahlab, nor of Achzib, nor of Helbah, nor of Aphik, nor of Rehob; 32 but the Asherites dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; for they did not drive them out.

33 Naphtali drove not out the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh, nor the inhabitants of Beth-anath; but he dwelt among the Canaanites, the inhabitants of the land; nevertheless the inhabitants of Beth-shemesh and of Beth-anath became tributary unto them.

34 And the Amorites forced the children of Dan into the hill-country; for they would not suffer them to come down to the valley. 35 But the Amorites were resolved to dwell in Harheres, in Aijalon, and in Shaalbim; yet the hand of the house of Joseph prevailed, so that they became tributary. 36 And the border of the Amorites was from the ascent of Akrabbim, from Sela, and upward.

JUDGES 2 — 1 And the angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said: '…I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I swore unto your fathers; and I said: I will never break My covenant with you; 2 and ye shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall break down their altars; but ye have not hearkened unto My voice; what is this ye have done? 3 Wherefore I also said: I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be unto you as snares, and their gods shall be a trap unto you.' 4 And it came to pass, when the angel of the LORD spoke these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept. 5 And they called the name of that place Bochim; and they sacrificed there unto the LORD.

6 Now when Joshua had sent the people away, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land. 7 And the people served the LORD all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of the LORD, that He had wrought for Israel. 8 And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died, being a hundred and ten years old. 9 And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash. 10 And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers; and there arose another generation after them, that knew not the LORD, nor yet the work which He had wrought for Israel.

11 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baalim. 12 And they forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the peoples that were round about them, and worshipped them; and they provoked the LORD. 13 And they forsook the LORD, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth. 14 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He delivered them into the hands of spoilers that spoiled them, and He gave them over into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies. 15 Whithersoever they went out, the hand of the LORD was against them for evil, as the LORD had spoken, and as the LORD had sworn unto them; and they were sore distressed. 16 And the LORD raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those that spoiled them. 17 And yet they hearkened not unto their judges, for they went astray after other gods, and worshipped them; they turned aside quickly out of the way wherein their fathers walked, obeying the commandments of the LORD; they did not so. 18 And when the LORD raised them up judges, then the LORD was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for it repented the LORD because of their groaning by reason of them that oppressed them and crushed them. 19 But it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to worship them; they left nothing undone of their practices, nor of their stubborn way. 20 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel; and He said: 'Because this nation have transgressed My covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto My voice; 21 I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations that Joshua left when he died; 22 that by them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of the LORD to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.' 23 So the LORD left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered He them into the hand of Joshua.

JUDGES 3 — 1 Now these are the nations which the LORD left, to prove Israel by them, even as many as had not known all the wars of Canaan; 2 only that the generations of the children of Israel might know, to teach them war, at the least such as beforetime knew nothing thereof; 3 namely, the five lords of the Philistines, and all the Canaanites, and the Zidonians, and the Hivites that dwelt in mount Lebanon, from mount Baal-hermon unto the entrance of Hamath. 4 And they were there, to prove Israel by them, to know whether they would hearken unto the commandments of the LORD, which He commanded their fathers by the hand of Moses. 5 And the children of Israel dwelt among the Canaanites, the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites; 6 and they took their daughters to be their wives, and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.

7 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgot the LORD their God, and served the Baalim and the Asheroth. 8 Therefore the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He gave them over into the hand of Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram-naharaim; and the children of Israel served Cushan-rishathaim eight years. 9 And when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised up a saviour to the children of Israel, who saved them, even Othniel the son of Kenaz, Caleb's younger brother. 10 And the spirit of the LORD came upon him, and he judged Israel; and he went out to war, and the LORD delivered Cushan-rishathaim king of Aram into his hand; and his hand prevailed against Cushan-rishathaim. 11 And the land had rest forty years. And Othniel the son of Kenaz died.

12 And the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD strengthened Eglon the king of Moab against Israel, because they had done that which was evil in the sight of the LORD. 13 And he gathered unto him the children of Ammon and Amalek; and he went and smote Israel, and they possessed the city of palm-trees. 14 And the children of Israel served Eglon the king of Moab eighteen years. 15 But when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, the LORD raised them up a saviour, Ehud the son of Gera, the Benjamite, a man left-handed; and the children of Israel sent a present by him unto Eglon the king of Moab. 16 And Ehud made him a sword which had two edges, of a cubit length; and he girded it under his raiment upon his right thigh. 17 And he offered the present unto Eglon king of Moab-now Eglon was a very fat man. 18 And when he had made an end of offering the present, he sent away the people that bore the present. 19 But he himself turned back from the quarries that were by Gilgal, and said: 'I have a secret errand unto thee, O king.' And he said: 'Keep silence.' And all that stood by him went out from him. 20 And Ehud came unto him; and he was sitting by himself alone in his cool upper chamber. And Ehud said: 'I have a message from God unto thee.' And he arose out of his seat. 21 And Ehud put forth his left hand, and took the sword from his right thigh, and thrust it into his belly. 22 And the haft also went in after the blade; and the fat closed upon the blade, for he drew not the sword out of his belly; and it came out behind. 23 Then Ehud went forth into the porch, and shut the doors of the upper chamber upon him, and locked them. 24 Now when he was gone out, his servants came; and they saw, and, behold, the doors of the upper chamber were locked; and they, said: 'Surely he is covering his feet in the cabinet of the cool chamber.' 25 And they tarried till they were ashamed; and, behold, he opened not the doors of the upper chamber; therefore they took the key, and opened them; and, behold, their lord was fallen down dead on the earth. 26 And Ehud escaped while they lingered, having passed beyond the quarries, and escaped unto Seirah. 27 And it came to pass, when he was come, that he blew a horn in the hill-country of Ephraim, and the children of Israel went down with him from the hill-country, and he before them. 28 And he said unto them: 'Follow after me; for the LORD hath delivered your enemies the Moabites into your hand.' And they went down after him, and took the fords of the Jordan against the Moabites, and suffered not a man to pass over. 29 And they smote of Moab at that time about ten thousand men, every lusty man, and every man of valour; and there escaped not a man. 30 So Moab was subdued that day under the hand of Israel. And the land had rest fourscore years.

31 And after him was Shamgar the son of Anath, who smote of the Philistines six hundred men with an ox-goad; and he also saved Israel.

JUDGES 4 — 1 And the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, when Ehud was dead. 2 And the LORD gave them over into the hand of Jabin king of Canaan, that reigned in Hazor; the captain of whose host was Sisera, who dwelt in Harosheth-goiim. 3 And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron; and twenty years he mightily oppressed the children of Israel.

4 Now Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lappidoth, she judged Israel at that time. 5 And she sat under the palm-tree of Deborah between Ramah and Beth-el in the hill-country of Ephraim; and the children of Israel came up to her for judgment. 6 And she sent and called Barak the son of Abinoam out of Kedesh-naphtali, and said unto him: 'Hath not the LORD, the God of Israel, commanded, saying: Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun? 7 And I will draw unto thee to the brook Kishon Sisera, the captain of Jabin's army, with his chariots and his multitude; and I will deliver him into thy hand. 8 And Barak said unto her: 'If thou wilt go with me, then I will go; but if thou wilt not go with me, I will not go.' 9 And she said: 'I will surely go with thee; notwithstanding the journey that thou takest shall not be for thy honour; for the LORD will give Sisera over into the hand of a woman.' And Deborah arose, and went with Barak to Kedesh. 10 And Barak called Zebulun and Naphtali together to Kedesh; and there went up ten thousand men at his feet; and Deborah went up with him.

11 Now Heber the Kenite had severed himself from the Kenites, even from the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had pitched his tent as far as Elon-bezaanannim, which is by Kedesh.

12 And they told Sisera that Barak the son of Abinoam was gone up to mount Tabor. 13 And Sisera gathered together all his chariots, even nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the people that were with him, from Harosheth-goiim, unto the brook Kishon. 14 And Deborah said unto Barak: 'Up; for this is the day in which the LORD hath delivered Sisera into thy hand; is not the LORD gone out before thee?' So Barak went down from mount Tabor, and ten thousand men after him. 15 And the LORD discomfited Sisera, and all his chariots, and all his host, with the edge of the sword before Barak; and Sisera alighted from his chariot, and fled away on his feet. 16 But Barak pursued after the chariots, and after the host, unto Harosheth-goiim; and all the host of Sisera fell by the edge of the sword; there was not a man left.

17 Howbeit Sisera fled away on his feet to the tent of Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite; for there was peace between Jabin the king of Hazor and the house of Heber the Kenite. 18 And Jael went out to meet Sisera, and said unto him: 'Turn in, my lord, turn in to me; fear not.' And he turned in unto her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. 19 And he said unto her: 'Give me, I pray thee, a little water to drink; for I am thirsty.' And she opened a bottle of milk, and gave him drink, and covered him. 20 And he said unto her: 'Stand in the door of the tent, and it shall be, when any man doth come and inquire of thee, and say: Is there any man here? that thou shalt say: No.' 21 Then Jael Heber's wife took a tent-pin, and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly unto him, and smote the pin into his temples, and it pierced through into the ground; for he was in a deep sleep; so he swooned and died. 22 And, behold, as Barak pursued Sisera, Jael came out to meet him, and said unto him: 'Come, and I will show thee the man whom thou seekest.' And he came unto her; and, behold, Sisera lay dead, and the tent-pin was in his temples. 23 So God subdued on that day Jabin the king of Canaan before the children of Israel. 24 And the hand of the children of Israel prevailed more and more against Jabin the king of Canaan, until they had destroyed Jabin king of Canaan.

JUDGES 5 — 1 Then sang Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam on that day, saying:

2 When men let grow their hair in Israel,

When the people offer themselves willingly,

Bless ye the LORD.

3 Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes;

I, unto the LORD will I sing;

I will sing praise to the LORD, the God of Israel.

4 LORD, when Thou didst go forth out of Seir,

When Thou didst march out of the field of Edom,

The earth trembled, the heavens also dropped,

Yea, the clouds dropped water.

5 The mountains quaked at the presence of the LORD,

Even yon Sinai at the presence of the LORD, the God of Israel.

6 In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath,

In the days of Jael, the highways ceased,

And the travellers walked through byways.

7 The rulers ceased in Israel, they ceased,

Until that thou didst arise, Deborah,

That thou didst arise a mother in Israel.

8 They chose new gods;

Then was war in the gates;

Was there a shield or spear seen

Among forty thousand in Israel?

9 My heart is toward the governors of Israel,

That offered themselves willingly among the people.

Bless ye the LORD.

10 Ye that ride on white asses,

Ye that sit on rich cloths,

And ye that walk by the way, tell of it;

11 Louder than the voice of archers, by the watering-troughs!

There shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the LORD,

Even the righteous acts of His rulers in Israel.

Then the people of the LORD went down to the gates.

12 Awake, awake, Deborah;

Awake, awake, utter a song;

Arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abinoam.

13 Then made He a remnant to have dominion over the nobles and the people;

The LORD made me have dominion over the mighty.

14 Out of Ephraim came they whose root is in Amalek;

After thee, Benjamin, among thy peoples;

Out of Machir came down governors,

And out of Zebulun they that handle the marshal's staff.

15 And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah;

As was Issachar, so was Barak;

Into the valley they rushed forth at his feet.

Among the divisions of Reuben

There were great resolves of heart.

16 Why sattest thou among the sheepfolds,

To hear the pipings for the flocks?

At the divisions of Reuben

There were great searchings of heart.

17 Gilead abode beyond the Jordan;

And Dan, why doth he sojourn by the ships?

Asher dwelt at the shore of the sea,

And abideth by its bays.

18 Zebulun is a people that jeoparded their lives unto the death,

And Naphtali, upon the high places of the field.

19 The kings came, they fought;

Then fought the kings of Canaan,

In Taanach by the waters of Megiddo;

They took no gain of money.

20 They fought from heaven,

The stars in their courses fought against Sisera.

21 The brook Kishon swept them away,

That ancient brook, the brook Kishon.

O my soul, tread them down with strength.

22 Then did the horsehoofs stamp

By reason of the prancings, the prancings of their mighty ones.

23 'Curse ye Meroz,' said the angel of the LORD,

'Curse ye bitterly the inhabitants thereof,

Because they came not to the help of the LORD,

To the help of the LORD against the mighty.'

24 Blessed above women shall Jael be,

The wife of Heber the Kenite,

Above women in the tent shall she be blessed.

25 Water he asked, milk she gave him;

In a lordly bowl she brought him curd.

26 Her hand she put to the tent-pin,

And her right hand to the workmen's hammer;

And with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote through his head,

Yea, she pierced and struck through his temples.

27 At her feet he sunk, he fell, he lay;

At her feet he sunk, he fell;

Where he sunk, there he fell down dead.

28 Through the window she looked forth, and peered,

The mother of Sisera, through the lattice:

'Why is his chariot so long in coming?

Why tarry the wheels of his chariots?'

29 The wisest of her princesses answer her,

Yea, she returneth answer to herself:

30 'Are they not finding, are they not dividing the spoil?

A damsel, two damsels to every man;

To Sisera a spoil of dyed garments,

A spoil of dyed garments of embroidery,

Two dyed garments of broidery for the neck of every spoiler?'

31 So perish all Thine enemies, O LORD; but they that love Him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might.

And the land had rest forty years.

JUDGES 6 — 1 And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of Midian seven years. 2 And the hand of Midian prevailed against Israel; and because of Midian the children of Israel made them the dens which are in the mountains, and the caves, and the strongholds. 3 And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites came up, and the Amalekites, and the children of the east; they came up against them; 4 and they encamped against them, and destroyed the produce of the earth, till thou come unto Gaza, and left no sustenance in Israel, neither sheep, nor ox, nor ass. 5 For they came up with their cattle and their tents, and they came in as locusts for multitude; both they and their camels were without number; and they came into the land to destroy it. 6 And Israel was brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel cried unto the LORD.

7 And it came to pass, when the children of Israel cried unto the LORD because of Midian, 8 that the LORD sent a prophet unto the children of Israel; and he said unto them: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I brought you up from Egypt, and brought you forth out of the house of bondage; 9 and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all that oppressed you, and drove them out from before you, and gave you their land. 10 And I said unto you: I am the LORD your God; ye shall not fear the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but ye have not hearkened unto My voice.'

11 And the angel of the LORD came, and sat under the terebinth which was in Ophrah, that belonged unto Joash the Abiezrite; and his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him: 'The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.' 13 And Gideon said unto him: 'Oh, my lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where are all His wondrous works which our fathers told us of, saying: Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath cast us off, and delivered us into the hand of Midian.' 14 And the LORD turned towards him, and said: 'Go in this thy might, and save Israel from the hand of Midian; have not I sent thee?' 15 And he said unto him: 'Oh, my lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house.' 16 And the LORD said unto him: 'Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.' 17 And he said unto him: 'If now I have found favour in thy sight, then show me a sign that it is thou that talkest with me. 18 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and lay it before thee.' And he said: 'I will tarry until thou come back.' 19 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of meal; the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the terebinth, and presented it. 20 And the angel of God said unto him: 'Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth.' And he did so. 21 Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there went up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight. 22 And Gideon saw that he was the angel of the LORD; and Gideon said: 'Alas, O Lord GOD! forasmuch as I have seen the angel of the LORD face to face.' 23 And the LORD said unto him: 'Peace be unto thee; fear not; thou shalt not die.' 24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it 'Adonai-shalom'; unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

25 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him: 'Take thy father's bullock, and the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the Asherah that is by it; 26 and build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this stronghold, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt-offering with the wood of the Asherah which thou shalt cut down.' 27 Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had spoken unto him; and it came to pass, because he feared his father's household and the men of the city, so that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night. 28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the Asherah was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built. 29 And they said one to another: 'Who hath done this thing?' And when they inquired and asked, they said: 'Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.' 30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash: 'Bring out thy son, that he may die; because he hath broken down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the Asherah that was by it.' 31 And Joash said unto all that stood against him: 'Will ye contend for Baal? or will ye save him? he that will contend for him, shall be put to death before morning; if he be a god, let him contend for himself, because one hath broken down his altar.' 32 Therefore on that day he was called Jerubbaal, saying: 'Let Baal contend against him, because he hath broken down his altar.'

33 Now all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east assembled themselves together; and they passed over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel. 34 But the spirit of the LORD clothed Gideon; and he blew a horn; and Abiezer was gathered together after him. 35 And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; and they also were gathered together after him; and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them. 36 And Gideon said unto God: 'If Thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as Thou hast spoken, 37 behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing-floor; if there be dew on the fleece only, and it be dry upon all the ground, then shall I know that Thou wilt save Israel by my hand, as Thou hast spoken.' 38 And it was so; for he rose up early on the morrow, and pressed the fleece together, and wrung dew out of the fleece, a bowlful of water. 39 And Gideon said unto God: 'Let not Thine anger be kindled against me, and I will speak but this once: let me make trial, I pray Thee, but this once with the fleece; let it now be dry only upon the fleece, and upon all the ground let there be dew.' 40 And God did so that night; for it was dry upon the fleece only, and there was dew on all the ground.

JUDGES 7 — 1 Then Jerubbaal, who is Gideon, and all the people that were with him, rose up early, and pitched beside En-harod; and the camp of Midian was on the north side of them, by Gibeath-moreh, in the valley.

2 And the LORD said unto Gideon: 'The people that are with thee are too many for Me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against Me, saying: mine own hand hath saved me. 3 Now therefore make proclamation in the ears of the people, saying: Whosoever is fearful and trembling, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead.' And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.

4 And the LORD said unto Gideon: 'The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there; and it shall be, that of whom I say to thee: This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee: This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.' 5 So he brought down the people unto the water; and the LORD said unto Gideon: 'Everyone that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink.' 6 And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, was three hundred men; but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water. 7 And the LORD said unto Gideon: 'By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thy hand; and let all the people go every man unto his place.' 8 So they took the victuals of the people in their hand, and their horns; and he sent all the men of Israel every man unto his tent, but retained the three hundred men; and the camp of Midian was beneath him in the valley.

9 And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him: 'Arise, get thee down upon the camp; for I have delivered it into thy hand. 10 But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Purah thy servant down to the camp. 11 And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thy hands be strengthened to go down upon the camp.' Then went he down with Purah his servant unto the outermost part of the armed men that were in the camp. 12 Now the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is upon the sea-shore for multitude. 13 And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man telling a dream unto his follow, and saying: 'Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the camp of Midian, and came unto the tent, and smote it that it fell, and turned it upside down, that the tent lay flat.' 14 And his fellow answered and said: 'This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: into his hand God hath delivered Midian, and all the host.'

15 And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped; and he returned into the camp of Israel, and said: 'Arise; for the LORD hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.' 16 And he divided the three hundred men into three companies, and he put into the hands of all of them horns, and empty pitchers, with torches within the pitchers. 17 And he said unto them: 'Look on me, and do likewise; and, behold, when I come to the outermost part of the camp, it shall be that, as I do, so shall ye do. 18 When I blow the horn, I and all that are with me, then blow ye the horns also on every side of all the camp, and say: For the LORD and for Gideon!'

19 So Gideon, and the hundred men that were with him, came unto the outermost part of the camp in the beginning of the middle watch, when they had but newly set the watch; and they blew the horns, and broke in pieces the pitchers that were in their hands. 20 And the three companies blew the horns, and broke the pitchers, and held the torches in their left hands, and the horns in their right hands wherewith to blow; and they cried: 'The sword for the LORD and for Gideon!' 21 And they stood every man in his place round about the camp; and all the host ran; and they shouted, and fled. 22 And they blew the three hundred horns, and the LORD set every man's sword a against his fellow, even throughout all the host; and the host fled as far as Beth-shittah toward Zererah, as far as the border of Abel-meholah, by Tabbath. 23 And the men of Israel were gathered together out of Naphtali, and out of Asher, and out of all Manasseh, and pursued after Midian. 24 And Gideon sent messengers throughout all the hill-country of Ephraim, saying: 'Come down against Midian, and take before them the waters, as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan.' So all the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and took the waters as far as Beth-barah, and also the Jordan. 25 And they took the two princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and they slew Oreb at the Rock of Oreb, and Zeeb they slew at the Winepress of Zeeb, and pursued Midian; and they brought the heads of Oreb and Zeeb to Gideon beyond the Jordan.

JUDGES 8 — 1 And the men of Ephraim said unto him: 'Why hast thou served us thus, that thou didst not call us when thou wentest to fight with Midian?' And they did chide with him sharply. 2 And he said unto them: 'What have I now done in comparison with you? Is not the gleaning of Ephraim better than the vintage of Abiezer? 3 God hath delivered into your hand the princes of Midian, Oreb and Zeeb; and what was I able to do in comparison with you?' Then their anger was abated toward him, when he had said that.

4 And Gideon came to the Jordan, and passed over, he, and the three hundred men that were with him, faint, yet pursuing. 5 And he said unto the men of Succoth: 'Give, I pray you, loaves of bread unto the people that follow me; for they are faint, and I am pursuing after Zebah and Zalmunna, the kings of Midian.' 6 And the princes of Succoth said: 'Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy power, that we should give bread unto thine army?' 7 And Gideon said: 'Therefore when the LORD hath delivered Zebah and Zalmunna into my hand, then I will tear your flesh with the thorns of the wilderness and with briers.' 8 And he went up thence to Penuel, and spoke unto them in like manner; and the men of Penuel answered him as the men of Succoth had answered. 9 And he spoke also unto the men of Penuel, saying: 'When I come back in peace, I will break down this tower.'

10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their hosts with them, about fifteen thousand men, all that were left of all the host of the children of the east; for there fell a hundred and twenty thousand men that drew sword. 11 And Gideon went up by the way of them that dwelt in tents on the east of Nobah and Jogbehah, and smote the host; for the host was secure. 12 And Zebah and Zalmunna fled; and he pursued after them; and he took the two kings of Midian, Zebah and Zalmunna, and discomfited all the host. 13 And Gideon the son of Joash returned from the battle from the ascent of Heres. 14 And he caught a young man of the men of Succoth, and inquired of him; and he wrote down for him the princes of Succoth, and the elders thereof, seventy and seven men. 15 And he came unto the men of Succoth, and said: 'Behold Zebah and Zalmunna, concerning whom ye did taunt me, saying: Are the hands of Zebah and Zalmunna now in thy power, that we should give bread unto thy men that are weary?' 16 And he took the elders of the city, and thorns of the wilderness and briers, and with them he taught the men of Succoth. 17 And he broke down the tower of Penuel, and slew the men of the city. 18 Then said he unto Zebah and Zalmunna: 'Where are the men whom ye slew at Tabor?' And they answered: 'As thou art, so were they; of one form with the children of a king.' 19 And he said: 'They were my brethren, the sons of my mother; as the LORD liveth, if ye had saved them alive, I would not slay you.' 20 And he said unto Jether his first-born: 'Up, and slay them.' But the youth drew not his sword; for he feared, because he was yet a youth. 21 Then Zebah and Zalmunna said: 'Rise thou, and fall upon us; for as the man is, so is his strength.' And Gideon arose, and slew Zebah and Zalmunna, and took the crescents that were on their camels' necks.

22 Then the men of Israel said unto Gideon: 'Rule thou over us, both thou, and thy son, and thy son's son also; for thou hast saved us out of the hand of Midian.' 23 And Gideon said unto them: 'I will not rule over you, neither shall my son rule over you; the LORD shall rule over you.' 24 And Gideon said unto them: 'I would make a request of you, that ye would give me every man the ear-rings of his spoil.'-For they had golden ear-rings, because they were Ishmaelites. 25 And they answered: 'We will willingly give them.' And they spread a garment, and did cast therein every man the ear-rings of his spoil. 26 And the weight of the golden ear-rings that he requested was a thousand and seven hundred shekels of gold; beside the crescents, and the pendants, and the purple raiment that was on the kings of Midian, and beside the chains that were about their camels' necks. 27 And Gideon made an ephod thereof, and put it in his city, even in Ophrah; and all Israel went astray after it there; and it became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house. 28 So Midian was subdued before the children of Israel, and they lifted up their heads no more. And the land had rest forty years in the days of Gideon.

29 And Jerubbaal the son of Joash went and dwelt in his own house. 30 And Gideon had threescore and ten sons of his body begotten; for he had many wives. 31 And his concubine that was in Shechem, she also bore him a son, and he called his name Abimelech. 32 And Gideon the son of Joash died in a good old age, and was buried in the sepulchre of Joash his father, in Ophrah of the Abiezrites.

33 And it came to pass, as soon as Gideon was dead, that the children of Israel again went astray after the Baalim, and made Baal-berith their god. 34 And the children of Israel remembered not the LORD their God, who had delivered them out of the hand of all their enemies on every side; 35 neither showed they kindness to the house of Jerubbaal, namely Gideon, according to all the goodness which he had shown unto Israel.

JUDGES 9 — 1 And Abimelech the son of Jerubbaal went to Shechem unto his mother's brethren, and spoke with them, and with all the family of the house of his mother's father, saying: 2 'Speak, I pray you, in the ears of all the men of Shechem: Which is better for you, that all the sons of Jerubbaal, who are threescore and ten persons, rule over you, or that one rule over you? remember also that I am your bone and your flesh.' 3 And his mother's brethren spoke of him in the ears of all the men of Shechem all these words; and their hearts inclined to follow Abimelech; for they said: 'He is our brother.' 4 And they gave him threescore and ten pieces of silver out of the house of Baal-berith, wherewith Abimelech hired vain and light fellows, who followed him. 5 And he went unto his father's house at Ophrah, and slew his brethren the sons of Jerubbaal, being threescore and ten persons, upon one stone; but Jotham the youngest son of Jerubbaal was left; for he hid himself.

6 And all the men of Shechem assembled themselves together, and all Beth-millo, and went and made Abimelech king, by the terebinth of the pillar that was in Shechem. 7 And when they told it to Jotham, he went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried, and said unto them: 'Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you. 8 The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive-tree: Reign thou over us. 9 But the olive-tree said unto them: Should I leave my fatness, seeing that by me they honour God and man, and go to hold sway over the trees? 10 And the trees said to the fig-tree: Come thou, and reign over us. 11 But the fig-tree said unto them: Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruitage, and go to hold sway over the trees? 12 And the trees said unto the vine: Come thou, and reign over us. 13 And the vine said unto them: Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to hold sway over the trees? 14 Then said all the trees unto the bramble: Come thou, and reign over us. 15 And the bramble said unto the trees: If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shadow; and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. 16 Now therefore, if ye have dealt truly and uprightly, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands-17 for my father fought for you, and adventured his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian; 18 and ye are risen up against my father's house this day, and have slain his sons, threescore and ten persons, upon one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his maid-servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother-19 if ye then have dealt truly and uprightly with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you. 20 But if not, let fire come out from Abimelech, and devour the men of Shechem, and Beth-millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem, and from Beth-millo, and devour Abimelech.' 21 And Jotham ran away, and fled, and went to Beer, and dwelt there, for fear of Abimelech his brother.

22 And Abimelech was prince over Israel three years. 23 And God sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech; 24 that the violence done to the threescore and ten sons of Jerubbaal might come, and that their blood might be laid upon Abimelech their brother, who slew them, and upon the men of Shechem, who strengthened his hands to slay his brethren. 25 And the men of Shechem set liers-in-wait for him on the tops of the mountains, and they robbed all that came along that way by them; and it was told Abimelech.

26 And Gaal the son of Ebed came with his brethren, and went on to Shechem; and the men of Shechem put their trust in him. 27 And they went out into the field, and gathered their vineyards, and trod the grapes, and held festival, and went into the house of their god, and did eat and drink, and cursed Abimelech. 28 And Gaal the son of Ebed said: 'Who is Abimelech, and who is Shechem, that we should serve him? is not he the son of Jerubbaal? and Zebul his officer? serve ye the men of Hamor the father of Shechem; but why should we serve him? 29 And would that this people were under my hand! then would I remove Abimelech.' And he said to Abimelech: 'Increase thine army, and come out.' 30 And when Zebul the ruler of the city heard the words of Gaal the son of Ebed, his anger was kindled. 31 And he sent messengers unto Abimelech in Tormah, saying: 'Behold, Gaal the son of Ebed and his brethren are come to Shechem; and, behold, they will incite the city against thee. 32 Now therefore, up by night, thou and the people that are with thee, and lie in wait in the field. 33 And it shall be, that in the morning, as soon as the sun is up, thou shalt rise early, and set upon the city; and, behold, when he and the people that are with him come out against thee, then mayest thou do to them as thou shalt be able.'

34 And Abimelech rose up, and all the people that were with him, by night, and they lay in wait against Shechem in four companies. 35 And Gaal the son of Ebed went out, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and Abimelech rose up, and the people that were with him, from the ambushment. 36 And when Gaal saw the people, he said to Zebul: 'Behold, there come people down from the tops of the mountains.' And Zebul said unto him: 'Thou seest the shadow of the mountains as if they were men.' 37 And Gaal spoke again and said: 'See, there come people down by the middle of the land, and one company cometh by the way of Elon-meonenim.' 38 Then said Zebul unto him: 'Where is now thy mouth, that thou saidst: Who is Abimelech, that we should serve him? is not this the people that thou hast despised? go out now, I pray, and fight with them.' 39 And Gaal went out before the men of Shechem, and fought with Abimelech. 40 And Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him, and there fell many wounded, even unto the entrance of the gate. 41 And Abimelech dwelt at Arumah; and Zebul drove out Gaal and his brethren, that they should not dwell in Shechem.

42 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the people went out into the field; and it was told Abimelech. 43 And he took the people, and divided them into three companies, and lay in wait in the field; and he looked, and, behold, the people were coming forth out of the city; and he rose up against them, and smote them. 44 And Abimelech, and the companies that were with him, rushed forward, and stood in the entrance of the gate of the city; and the two companies rushed upon all that were in the field, and smote them. 45 And Abimelech fought against the city all that day; and he took the city, and slew the people that were therein; and he beat down the city, and sowed it with salt.

46 And when all the men of the tower of Shechem heard thereof, they entered into the hold of the house of El-berith. 47 And it was told Abimelech that all the men of the tower of Shechem were gathered together. 48 And Abimelech got him up to mount Zalmon, he and all the people that were with him; and Abimelech took an axe in his hand, and cut down a bough from the trees, and took it up, and laid it on his shoulder; and he said unto the people that were with him: 'What ye have seen me do, make haste, and do as I have done.' 49 And all the people likewise cut down every man his bough, and followed Abimelech, and put them to the hold, and set the hold on fire upon them; so that all the men of the tower of Shechem died also, about a thousand men and women.

50 Then went Abimelech to Thebez, and encamped against Thebez, and took it. 51 But there was a strong tower within the city, and thither fled all the men and women, even all they of the city, and shut themselves in, and got them up to the roof of the tower. 52 And Abimelech came unto the tower, and fought against it, and went close unto the door of the tower to burn it with fire. 53 And a certain woman cast an upper millstone upon Abimelech's head, and broke his skull. 54 Then he called hastily unto the young man his armour-bearer, and said unto him: 'Draw thy sword, and kill me, that men say not of me: A woman slew him.' And his young man thrust him through, and he died. 55 And when the men of Israel saw that Abimelech was dead, they departed every man unto his place. 56 Thus God requited the wickedness of Abimelech, which he did unto his father, in slaying his seventy brethren; 57 and all the wickedness of the men of Shechem did God requite upon their heads; and upon them came the curse of Jotham the son of Jerubbaal.

JUDGES 10 — 1 And after Abimelech there arose to save Israel Tola the son of Puah, the son of Dodo, a man of Issachar; and he dwelt in Shamir in the hill-country of Ephraim. 2 And he judged Israel twenty and three years, and died, and was buried in Shamir.

3 And after him arose Jair, the Gileadite; and he judged Israel twenty and two years. 4 And he had thirty sons that rode on thirty ass colts, and they had thirty cities, which are called Havvoth-jair unto this day, which are in the land of Gilead. 5 And Jair died, and was buried in Kamon.

6 And the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and served the Baalim, and the Ashtaroth, and the gods of Aram, and the gods of Zidon, and the gods of Moab, and the gods of the children of Ammon, and the gods of the Philistines; and they forsook the LORD, and served Him not. 7 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He gave them over into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the children of Ammon. 8 And they oppressed and crushed the children of Israel that year; eighteen years oppressed they all the children of Israel that were beyond the Jordan in the land of the Amorites, which is in Gilead. 9 And the children of Ammon passed over the Jordan to fight also against Judah, and against Benjamin, and against the house of Ephraim, so that Israel was sore distressed. 10 And the children of Israel cried unto the LORD, saying: 'We have sinned against Thee, in that we have forsaken our God, and have served the Baalim.' 11 And the LORD said unto the children of Israel: 'Did not I save you from the Egyptians, and from the Amorites, from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines? 12 The Zidonians also, and the Amalekites, and the Maonites, did oppress you; and ye cried unto Me, and I saved you out of their hand. 13 Yet ye have forsaken Me, and served other gods; wherefore I will save you no more. 14 Go and cry unto the gods which ye have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress.' 15 And the children of Israel said unto the LORD: 'We have sinned; do Thou unto us whatsoever seemeth good unto Thee; only deliver us, we pray Thee, this day.' 16 And they put away the strange gods from among them, and served the LORD; and His soul was grieved for the misery of Israel.

17 Then the children of Ammon were gathered together, and encamped in Gilead. And the children of Israel assembled themselves together, and encamped in Mizpah. 18 And the people, the princes of Gilead, said one to another: 'What man is he that will begin to fight against the children of Ammon? he shall be head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.'

JUDGES 11 — 1 Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty man of valour, and he was the son of a harlot; and Gilead begot Jephthah. 2 And Gilead's wife bore him sons; and when his wife's sons grew up, they drove out Jephthah, and said unto him: 'Thou shalt not inherit in our father's house; for thou art the son of another woman.' 3 Then Jephthah fled from his brethren, and dwelt in the land of Tob; and there were gathered vain fellows to Jephthah, and they went out with him.

4 And it came to pass after a while, that the children of Ammon made war against Israel. 5 And it was so, that when the children of Ammon made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to fetch Jephthah out of the land of Tob. 6 And they said unto Jephthah: 'Come and be our chief, that we may fight with the children of Ammon.' 7 And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead: 'Did not ye hate me, and drive me out of my father's house? and why are ye come unto me now when ye are in distress?' 8 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah: 'Therefore are we returned to thee now, that thou mayest go with us, and fight with the children of Ammon, and thou shalt be our head over all the inhabitants of Gilead.' 9 And Jephthah said unto the elders of Gilead: 'If ye bring me back home to fight with the children of Ammon, and the LORD deliver them before me, I will be your head.' 10 And the elders of Gilead said unto Jephthah: 'The LORD shall be witness between us; surely according to thy word so will we do.' 11 Then Jephthah went with the elders of Gilead, and the people made him head and chief over them; and Jephthah spoke all his words before the LORD in Mizpah.

12 And Jephthah sent messengers unto the king of the children of Ammon, saying: 'What hast thou to do with me, that thou art come unto me to fight against my land?' 13 And the king of the children of Ammon answered unto the messengers of Jephthah: 'Because Israel took away my land, when he came up out of Egypt, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and unto the Jordan; now therefore restore those cities peaceably.' 14 And Jephthah sent messengers again unto the king of the children of Ammon; 15 and he said unto him: 'Thus saith Jephthah: Israel took not away the land of Moab, nor the land of the children of Ammon. 16 But when they came up from Egypt, and Israel walked through the wilderness unto the Red Sea, and came to Kadesh; 17 then Israel sent messengers unto the king of Edom, saying: Let me, I pray thee, pass through thy land; but the king of Edom hearkened not. And in like manner he sent unto the king of Moab; but he would not; and Israel abode in Kadesh. 18 Then he walked through the wilderness, and compassed the land of Edom, and the land of Moab, and came by the east side of the land of Moab, and they pitched on the other side of the Arnon; but they came not within the border of Moab, for the Arnon was the border of Moab. 19 And Israel sent messengers unto Sihon king of the Amorites, the king of Heshbon; and Israel said unto him: Let us pass, we pray thee, through thy land unto my place. 20 But Sihon trusted not Israel to pass through his border; but Sihon gathered all his people together, and pitched in Jahaz, and fought against Israel. 21 And the LORD, the God of Israel, delivered Sihon and all his people into the hand of Israel, and they smote them; so Israel possessed all the land of the Amorites, the inhabitants of that country. 22 And they possessed all the border of the Amorites, from the Arnon even unto the Jabbok, and from the wilderness even unto the Jordan. 23 So now the LORD, the God of Israel, hath dispossessed the Amorites from before His people Israel, and shouldest thou possess them? 24 Wilt not thou possess that which Chemosh thy god giveth thee to possess? So whomsoever the LORD our God hath dispossessed from before us, them will we possess. 25 And now art thou any thing better than Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab? did he ever strive against Israel, or did he ever fight against them? 26 While Israel dwelt in Heshbon and its towns, and in Aroer and its towns, and in all the cities that are along by the side of the Arnon, three hundred years; wherefore did ye not recover them within that time? 27 I therefore have not sinned against thee, but thou doest me wrong to war against me; the LORD, the Judge, be judge this day between the children of Israel and the children of Ammon.' 28 Howbeit the king of the children of Ammon hearkened not unto the words of Jephthah which he sent him.

29 Then the spirit of the LORD came upon Jephthah, and he passed over Gilead and Manasseh, and passed over Mizpeh of Gilead, and from Mizpeh of Gilead he passed over unto the children of Ammon. 30 And Jephthah vowed a vow unto the LORD, and said: 'If Thou wilt indeed deliver the children of Ammon into my hand, 31 then it shall be, that whatsoever cometh forth of the doors of my house to meet me, when I return in peace from the children of Ammon, it shall be the LORD'S, and I will offer it up for a burnt-offering.' 32 So Jephthah passed over unto the children of Ammon to fight against them; and the LORD delivered them into his hand. 33 And he smote them from Aroer until thou come to Minnith, even twenty cities, and unto Abel-cheramim, with a very great slaughter. So the children of Ammon were subdued before the children of Israel.

34 And Jephthah came to Mizpah unto his house, and, behold, his daughter came out to meet him with timbrels and with dances; and she was his only child; beside her he had neither son nor daughter. 35 And it came to pass, when he saw her, that he rent his clothes, and said: 'Alas, my daughter! thou hast brought me very low, and thou art become my troubler; for I have opened my mouth unto the LORD, and I cannot go back.' 36 And she said unto him: 'My father, thou hast opened thy mouth unto the LORD; do unto me according to that which hath proceeded out of thy mouth; forasmuch as the LORD hath taken vengeance for thee of thine enemies, even of the children of Ammon.' 37 And she said unto her father: 'Let this thing be done for me: let me alone two months, that I may depart and go down upon the mountains, and bewail my virginity, I and my companions.' 38 And he said: 'Go.' And he sent her away for two months; and she departed, she and her companions, and bewailed her virginity upon the mountains. 39 And it came to pass at the end of two months, that she returned unto her father, who did with her according to his vow which he had vowed; and she had not known man. And it was a custom in Israel, 40 that the daughters of Israel went yearly to lament the daughter of Jephthah the Gileadite four days in a year.

JUDGES 12 — 1 And the men of Ephraim were gathered together, and passed to Zaphon; and they said unto Jephthah: 'Wherefore didst thou pass over to fight against the children of Ammon, and didst not call us to go with thee? we will burn thy house upon thee with fire.' 2 And Jephthah said unto them: 'I and my people were at great strife with the children of Ammon; and when I called you, ye saved me not out of their hand. 3 And when I saw that ye saved me not, I put my life in my hand, and passed over against the children of Ammon, and the LORD delivered them into my hand; wherefore then are ye come up unto me this day, to fight against me?' 4 Then Jephthah gathered together all the men of Gilead, and fought with Ephraim; and the men of Gilead smote Ephraim, because they said: 'Ye are fugitives of Ephraim, ye Gileadites, in the midst of Ephraim, and in the midst of Manasseh.' 5 And the Gileadites took the fords of the Jordan against the Ephraimites; and it was so, that when any of the fugitives of Ephraim said: 'Let me go over,' the men of Gilead said unto him: 'Art thou an Ephraimite?' If he said: 'Nay'; 6 then said they unto him: 'Say now Shibboleth'; and he said 'Sibboleth'; for he could not frame to pronounce it right; then they laid hold on him, and slew him at the fords of the Jordan; and there fell at that time of Ephraim forty and two thousand.

7 And Jephthah judged Israel six years. Then died Jephthah the Gileadite, and was buried in one of the cities of Gilead.

8 And after him Ibzan of Beth-lehem judged Israel. 9 And he had thirty sons, and thirty daughters he sent abroad, and thirty daughters he brought in from abroad for his sons. And he judged Israel seven years. 10 and Ibzan died, and was buried at Beth-lehem.

11 And after him Elon the Zebulunite judged Israel; and he judged Israel ten years. 12 And Elon the Zebulunite died, and was buried in Aijalon in the land of Zebulun.

13 And after him Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite judged Israel. 14 And he had forty sons and thirty sons' sons, that rode on threescore and ten ass colts; and he judged Israel eight years. 15 And Abdon the son of Hillel the Pirathonite died, and was buried in Pirathon in the land of Ephraim, in the hill-country of the Amalekites.

JUDGES 13 — 1 And the children of Israel again did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years.

2 And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bore not. 3 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her: 'Behold now, thou art barren, and hast not borne; but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son. 4 Now therefore beware, I pray thee, and drink no wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing. 5 For, lo, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and no razor shall come upon his head; for the child shall be a Nazirite unto God from the womb; and he shall begin to save Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.' 6 Then the woman came and told her husband, saying: 'A man of God came unto me, and his countenance was like the countenance of the angel of God, very terrible; and I asked him not whence he was, neither told he me his name; 7 but he said unto me: Behold, thou shalt conceive, and bear a son; and now drink no wine nor strong drink, and eat not any unclean thing; for the child shall be a Nazirite unto God from the womb to the day of his death.'

8 Then Manoah entreated the LORD, and said: 'Oh, LORD, I pray Thee, let the man of God whom Thou didst send come again unto us, and teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born.' 9 And God hearkened to the voice of Manoah; and the angel of God came again unto the woman as she sat in the field; but Manoah her husband was not with her. 10 And the woman made haste, and ran, and told her husband, and said unto him: 'Behold, the man hath appeared unto me, that came unto me that day.' 11 And Manoah arose, and went after his wife, and came to the man, and said unto him: 'Art thou the man that spokest unto the woman?' And he said: 'I am.' 12 And Manoah said: 'Now when thy word cometh to pass, what shall be the rule for the child, and what shall be done with him?' 13 And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah: 'Of all that I said unto the woman let her beware. 14 She may not eat of any thing that cometh of the grapevine, neither let her drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing; all that I commanded her let her observe.' 15 And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD: 'I pray thee, let us detain thee, that we may make ready a kid for thee.' 16 And the angel of the LORD said unto Manoah: 'Though thou detain me, I will not eat of thy bread; and if thou wilt make ready a burnt-offering, thou must offer it unto the LORD.' For Manoah knew not that he was the angel of the LORD. 17 And Manoah said unto the angel of the LORD: 'What is thy name, that when thy words come to pass we may do thee honour?' 18 And the angel of the LORD said unto him: 'Wherefore askest thou after my name, seeing it is hidden?' 19 So Manoah took the kid with the meal-offering, and offered it upon the rock unto the LORD; and the angel did wondrously, and Manoah and his wife looked on. 20 For it came to pass, when the flame went up toward heaven from off the altar, that the angel of the LORD ascended in the flame of the altar; and Manoah and his wife looked on; and they fell on their faces to the ground. 21 But the angel of the LORD did no more appear to Manoah or to his wife. Then Manoah knew that he was the angel of the LORD. 22 And Manoah said unto his wife: 'We shall surely die, because we have seen God.' 23 But his wife said unto him: 'If the LORD were pleased to kill us, He would not have received a burnt-offering and a meal-offering at our hand, neither would He have shown us all these things, nor would at this time have told such things as these.'

24 And the woman bore a son, and called his name Samson; and the child grew, and the LORD blessed him. 25 And the spirit of the LORD began to move him in Mahaneh-dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.

JUDGES 14 — 1 And Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 And he came up, and told his father and his mother, and said: 'I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore get her for me to wife.' 3 Then his father and his mother said unto him: 'Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines?' And Samson said unto his father: 'Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well.' 4 But his father and his mother knew not that it was of the LORD; for he sought an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines had rule over Israel.

5 Then went Samson down, and his father and his mother, to Timnah, and came to the vineyards of Timnah; and, behold, a young lion roared against him. 6 And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he rent him as one would have rent a kid, and he had nothing in his hand; but he told not his father or his mother what he had done. 7 And he went down, and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. 8 And after a while he returned to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion; and, behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. 9 And he scraped it out into his hands, and went on, eating as he went, and he came to his father and mother, and gave unto them, and they did eat; but he told them not that he had scraped the honey out of the body of the lion. 10 And his father went down unto the woman; and Samson made there a feast; for so used the young men to do. 11 And it came to pass, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him. 12 And Samson said unto them: 'Let me now put forth a riddle unto you; if ye can declare it me within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment; 13 but if ye cannot declare it me, then shall ye give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of raiment.' And they said unto him: 'Put forth thy riddle, that we may hear it.' 14 And he said unto them:

Out of the eater came forth food,

And out of the strong came forth sweetness.

And they could not in three days declare the riddle. 15 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that they said unto Samson's wife: 'Entice thy husband, that he may declare unto us the riddle, lest we burn thee and thy father's house with fire; have ye called us hither to impoverish us?' 16 And Samson's wife wept before him, and said: 'Thou dost but hate me, and lovest me not; thou hast put forth a riddle unto the children of my people, and wilt thou not tell it me?' And he said unto her: 'Behold, I have not told it my father nor my mother, and shall I tell thee?' 17 And she wept before him the seven days, while their feast lasted; and it came to pass on the seventh day, that he told her, because she pressed him sore; and she told the riddle to the children of her people. 18 And the men of the city said unto him on the seventh day before the sun went down:

What is sweeter than honey?

And what is stronger than a lion?

And he said unto them:

If ye had not plowed with my heifer,

Ye had not found out my riddle.

19 And the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon, and smote thirty men of them, and took their spoil, and gave the changes of raiment unto them that declared the riddle. And his anger was kindled, and he went up to his father's house. 20 But Samson's wife was given to his companion, whom he had had for his friend.

JUDGES 15 — 1 But it came to pass after a while, in the time of wheat harvest, that Samson visited his wife with a kid; and he said: 'I will go in to my wife into the chamber.' But her father would not suffer him to go in. 2 And her father said: 'I verily thought that thou hadst utterly hated her; therefore I gave her to thy companion; is not her younger sister fairer than she? take her, I pray thee, instead of her.' 3 And Samson said unto them: 'This time shall I be quits with the Philistines, when I do them a mischief.' 4 And Samson went and caught three hundred foxes, and took torches, and turned tail to tail, and put a torch in the midst between every two tails. 5 And when he had set the torches on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks and the standing corn, and also the oliveyards. 6 Then the Philistines said: 'Who hath done this?' And they said: 'Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he hath taken his wife, and given her to his companion.' And the Philistines came up, and burnt her and her father with fire. 7 And Samson said unto them: 'If ye do after this manner, surely I will be avenged of you, and after that I will cease.' 8 And he smote them hip and thigh with a great slaughter; and he went down and dwelt in the cleft of the rock of Etam.

9 Then the Philistines went up, and pitched in Judah, and spread themselves against Lehi. 10 And the men of Judah said: 'Why are ye come up against us?' And they said: 'To bind Samson are we come up, to do to him as he hath done to us.' 11 Then three thousand men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson: 'Knowest thou not that the Philistines are rulers over us? what then is this that thou hast done unto us?' And he said unto them: 'As they did unto me, so have I done unto them.' 12 And they said unto him: 'We are come down to bind thee, that we may deliver thee into the hand of the Philistines.' And Samson said unto them: 'Swear unto me, that ye will not fall upon me yourselves.' 13 And they spoke unto him, saying: 'No; but we will bind thee fast, and deliver thee into their hand; but surely we will not kill thee.' And they bound him with two new ropes, and brought him up from the rock. 14 When he came unto Lehi, the Philistines shouted as they met him; and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and the ropes that were upon his arms became as flax that was burnt with fire, and his bands dropped from off his hands. 15 And he found a new jawbone of an ass, and put forth his hand, and took it, and smote a thousand men therewith. 16 And Samson said:

With the jawbone of an ass, heaps upon heaps,

With the jawbone of an ass have I smitten a thousand men.

17 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking, that he cast away the jawbone out of his hand; and that place was called Ramath-lehi. 18 And he was sore athirst, and called on the LORD, and said: 'Thou hast given this great deliverance by the hand of Thy servant; and now shall I die for thirst, and fall into the hand of the uncircumcised?' 19 But God cleaved the hollow place that is in Lehi, and there came water thereout; and when he had drunk, his spirit came back, and he revived; wherefore the name thereof was called En-hakkore, which is in Lehi unto this day. 20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

JUDGES 16 — 1 And Samson went to Gaza, and saw there a harlot, and went in unto her. 2 [And it was told] the Gazites, saying: 'Samson is come hither.' And they compassed him in, and lay in wait for him all night in the gate of the city, and were quiet all the night, saying: 'Let be till morning light, then we will kill him.' 3 And Samson lay till midnight, and arose at midnight, and laid hold of the doors of the gate of the city, and the two posts, and plucked them up, bar and all, and put them upon his shoulders, and carried them up to the top of the mountain that is before Hebron.

4 And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. 5 And the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and said unto her: 'Entice him, and see wherein his great strength lieth, and by what means we may prevail against him, that we may bind him to afflict him; and we will give thee every one of us eleven hundred pieces of silver.' 6 And Delilah said to Samson: 'Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth, and wherewith thou mightest be bound to afflict thee.' 7 And Samson said unto her: 'If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings that were never dried, then shall I become weak, and be as any other man.' 8 Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bowstrings which had not been dried, and she bound him with them. 9 Now she had liers-in-wait abiding in the inner chamber. And she said unto him: 'The Philistines are upon thee, Samson.' And he broke the bowstrings as a string of tow is broken when it toucheth the fire. So his strength was not known. 10 And Delilah said unto Samson: 'Behold, thou hast mocked me, and told me lies; now tell me, I pray thee, wherewith thou mightest be bound.' 11 And he said unto her: 'If they only bind me with new ropes wherewith no work, hath been done, then shall I become weak, and be as any other man.' 12 So Delilah took new ropes, and bound him therewith, and said unto him: 'The Philistines are upon thee, Samson.' And the liers-in-wait were abiding in the inner chamber. And he broke them from off his arms like a thread. 13 And Delilah said unto Samson: 'Hitherto thou hast mocked me, and told me lies; tell me wherewith thou mightest be bound.' And he said unto her: 'If thou weavest the seven locks of my head with the web.' 14 And she fastened it with the pin, and said unto him: 'The Philistines are upon thee, Samson.' And he awoke out of his sleep, and plucked away the pin of the beam, and the web. 15 And she said unto him: 'How canst thou say: I love thee, when thy heart is not with me? thou hast mocked me these three times, and hast not told me wherein thy great strength lieth.' 16 And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, that his soul was vexed unto death. 17 And he told her all his heart, and said unto her: 'There hath not come a razor upon my head; for I have been a Nazirite unto God from my mother's womb; if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.' 18 And when Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying: 'Come up this once, for he hath told me all his heart.' Then the lords of the Philistines came up unto her, and brought the money in their hand. 19 And she made him sleep upon her knees; and she called for a man, and had the seven locks of his head shaven off; and she began to afflict him, and his strength went from him. 20 And she said: 'The Philistines are upon thee, Samson.' And he awoke out of his sleep, and said: 'I will go out as at other times, and shake myself.' But he knew not that the LORD was departed from him. 21 And the Philistines laid hold on him, and put out his eyes; and they brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he did grind in the prison-house. 22 Howbeit the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven.

23 And the lords of the Philistines gathered them together to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice; for they said: 'Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.' 24 And when the people saw him, they praised their god; for they said: 'Our god hath delivered into our hand our enemy, and the destroyer of our country, who hath slain many of us.' 25 And it came to pass, when their hearts were merry, that they said: 'Call for Samson, that he may make us sport.' And they called for Samson out of the prison-house; and he made sport before them; and they set him between the pillars. 26 And Samson said unto the lad that held him by the hand: 'Suffer me that I may feel the pillars whereupon the house resteth, that I may lean upon them.' 27 Now the house was full of men and women; and all the lords of the Philistines were there; and there were upon the roof about three thousand men and women, that beheld while Samson made sport. 28 And Samson called unto the LORD, and said: 'O Lord GOD, remember me, I pray Thee, and strengthen me, I pray Thee, only this once, O God, that I may be this once avenged of the Philistines for my two eyes.' 29 And Samson took fast hold of the two middle pillars upon which the house rested, and leaned upon them, the one with his right hand, and the other with his left. 30 And Samson said: 'Let me die with the Philistines.' And he bent with all his might; and the house fell upon the lords, and upon all the people that were therein. So the dead that he slew at his death were more than they that he slew in his life. 31 Then his brethren and all the house of his father came down, and took him, and brought him up, and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the burying-place of Manoah his father. And he judged Israel twenty years.

JUDGES 17 — 1 Now there was a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, whose name was Micah. 2 And he said unto his mother: 'The eleven hundred pieces of silver that were taken from thee, about which thou didst utter a curse, and didst also speak it in mine ears, behold, the silver is with me; I took it.' And his mother said: 'Blessed be my son of the LORD.' 3 And he restored the eleven hundred pieces of silver to his mother, and his mother said: 'I verily dedicate the silver unto the LORD from my hand for my son, to make a graven image and a molten image; now therefore I will restore it unto thee.' 4 And when he restored the money unto his mother, his mother took two hundred pieces of silver, and gave them to the founder, who made thereof a graven image and a molten image; and it was in the house of Micah. 5 And the man Micah had a house of God, and he made an ephod, and teraphim, and consecrated one of his sons, who became his priest. 6 In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

7 And there was a young man out of Beth-lehem in Judah-in the family of Judah-who was a Levite, and he sojourned there. 8 And the man departed out of the city, out of Beth-lehem in Judah, to sojourn where he could find a place; and he came to the hill-country of Ephraim to the house of Micah, as he journeyed. 9 And Micah said unto him: 'Whence comest thou?' And he said unto him: 'I am a Levite of Beth-lehem in Judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find a place.' 10 And Micah said unto him: 'Dwell with me, and be unto me a father and a priest, and I will give thee ten pieces of silver by the year, and a suit of apparel, and thy victuals.' So the Levite went in. 11 And the Levite was content to dwell with the man; and the young man was unto him as one of his sons. 12 And Micah consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest, and was in the house of Micah. 13 Then said Micah: 'Now know I that the LORD will do me good, seeing I have a Levite as my priest.'

JUDGES 18 — 1 In those days there was no king in Israel; and in those days the tribe of the Danites sought them an inheritance to dwell in; for unto that day there had nothing been allotted unto them among the tribes of Israel for an inheritance. 2 And the children of Dan sent of their family five men from their whole number, men of valour, from Zorah, and from Eshtaol, to spy out the land, and to search it; and they said unto them: 'Go, search the land'; and they came to the hill-country of Ephraim, unto the house of Micah, and lodged there. 3 When they were by the house of Micah, they knew the voice of the young man the Levite; and they turned aside thither, and said unto him: 'Who brought thee hither? and what doest thou in this place? and what hast thou here?' 4 And he said unto them: 'Thus and thus hath Micah dealt with me, and he hath hired me, and I am become his priest.' 5 And they said unto him: 'Ask counsel, we pray thee, of God, that we may know whether our way which we are going shall be prosperous.' 6 And the priest said unto them: 'Go in peace; before the LORD is your way wherein ye go.'

7 Then the five men departed, and came to Laish, and saw the people that were therein, how they dwelt in security, after the manner of the Zidonians, quiet and secure; for there was none in the land, possessing authority, that might put them to shame in any thing, and they were far from the Zidonians, and had no dealings with any man. 8 And they came unto their brethren to Zorah and Eshtaol; and their brethren said unto them: 'What say ye?' 9 And they said: 'Arise, and let us go up against them; for we have seen the land, and, behold, it is very good; and are ye still? be not slothful to go and to enter in to possess the land. 10 When ye go, ye shall come unto a people secure, and the land is large; for God hath given it into your hand; a place where there is no want; it hath every thing that is in the earth.'

11 And there set forth from thence of the family of the Danites, out of Zorah and out of Eshtaol, six hundred men girt with weapons of war. 12 And they went up, and encamped in Kiriath-jearim, in Judah; wherefore that place was called Mahaneh-dan unto this day; behold, it is behind Kiriath-jearim. 13 And they passed thence unto the hill-country of Ephraim, and came unto the house of Micah. 14 Then answered the five men that went to spy out the country of Laish, and said unto their brethren: 'Do ye know that there is in these houses an ephod, and teraphim, and a graven image, and a molten image? now therefore consider what ye have to do.' 15 And they turned aside thither, and came to the house of the young man the Levite, even unto the house of Micah, and asked him of his welfare. 16 And the six hundred men girt with their weapons of war, who were of the children of Dan, stood by the entrance of the gate. 17 And the five men that went to spy out the land went up, and came in thither, and took the graven image, and the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image; and the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men girt with weapons of war. 18 And when these went into Micah's house, and fetched the graven image of the ephod, and the teraphim, and the molten image, the priest said unto them: 'What do ye?' 19 And they said unto him: 'Hold thy peace, lay thy hand upon thy mouth, and go with us, and be to us a father and a priest; is it better for thee to be priest unto the house of one man, or to be priest unto a tribe and a family in Israel?' 20 And the priest's heart was glad, and he took the ephod, and the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in the midst of the people. 21 So they turned and departed, and put the little ones and the cattle and the goods before them. 22 When they were a good way from the house of Micah, the men that were in the houses near to Micah's house were gathered together, and overtook the children of Dan. 23 And they cried unto the children of Dan. And they turned their faces, and said unto Micah: 'What aileth thee, that thou comest with such a company?' 24 And he said: 'Ye have taken away my god which I made, and the priest, and are gone away, and what have I more? and how then say ye unto me: What aileth thee?' 25 And the children of Dan said unto him: 'Let not thy voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you, and thou lose thy life, with the lives of thy household.' 26 And the children of Dan went their way; and when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back unto his house. 27 And they took that which Micah had made, and the priest whom he had, and came unto Laish, unto a people quiet and secure, and smote them with the edge of the sword; and they burnt the city with fire. 28 And there was no deliverer, because it was far from Zidon, and they had no dealings with any man; and it was in the valley that lieth by Beth-rehob. And they built the city, and dwelt therein. 29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel; howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first. 30 And the children of Dan set up for themselves the graven image; and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of the Danites until the day of the captivity of the land. 31 So they set them up Micah's graven image which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.

JUDGES 19 — 1 And it came to pass in those days, when there was no king in Israel, that there was a certain Levite sojourning on the farther side of the hill-country of Ephraim, who took to him a concubine out of Beth-lehem in Judah. 2 And his concubine played the harlot against him, and went away from him unto her father's house to Beth-lehem in Judah, and was there the space of four months. 3 And her husband arose, and went after her, to speak kindly unto her, to bring her back, having his servant with him, and a couple of asses; and she brought him into her father's house; and when the father of the damsel saw him, he rejoiced to meet him. 4 And his father-in-law, the damsel's father, retained him; and he abode with him three days; so they did eat and drink, and lodged there. 5 And it came to pass on the fourth day, that they arose early in the morning, and he rose up to depart; and the damsel's father said unto his son-in-law: 'Stay thy heart with a morsel of bread, and afterward ye shall go your way.' 6 So they sat down, and did eat and drink, both of them together; and the damsel's father said unto the man: 'Be content, I pray thee, and tarry all night, and let thy heart be merry.' 7 And the man rose up to depart; but his father-in-law urged him, and he lodged there again. 8 And he arose early in the morning on the fifth day to depart; and the damsel's father said: 'Stay thy heart, I pray thee, and tarry ye until the day declineth'; and they did eat, both of them. 9 And when the man rose up to depart, he, and his concubine, and his servant, his father-in-law, the damsel's father, said unto him: 'Behold, now the day draweth toward evening; tarry, I pray you, all night; behold, the day groweth to an end; lodge here, that thy heart may be merry; and to-morrow get you early on your way, that thou mayest go home.' 10 But the man would not tarry that night, but he rose up and departed, and came over against Jebus-the same is Jerusalem; and there were with him a couple of asses saddled; his concubine also was with him. 11 When they were by Jebus-the day was far spent-the servant said unto his master: 'Come, I pray thee, and let us turn aside into this city of the Jebusites, and lodge in it.' 12 And his master said unto him: 'We will not turn aside into the city of a foreigner, that is not of the children of Israel; but we will pass over to Gibeah.' 13 And he said unto his servant: 'Come and let us draw near to one of these places; and we will lodge in Gibeah, or in Ramah.' 14 So they passed on and went their way; and the sun went down upon them near to Gibeah, which belongeth to Benjamin. 15 And they turned aside thither, to go in to lodge in Gibeah; and he went in, and sat him down in the broad place of the city; for there was no man that took them into his house to lodge. 16 And, behold, there came an old man from his work out of the field at even; now the man was of the hill-country of Ephraim, and he sojourned in Gibeah; but the men of the place were Benjamites. 17 And he lifted up his eyes, and saw the wayfaring man in the broad place of the city; and the old man said: 'Whither goest thou? and whence comest thou?' 18 And he said unto him: 'We are passing from Beth-lehem in Judah unto the farther side of the hill-country of Ephraim; from thence am I, and I went to Beth-lehem in Judah, and I am now going to the house of the LORD; and there is no man that taketh me into his house. 19 Yet there is both straw and provender for our asses; and there is bread and wine also for me, and for thy handmaid, and for the young man that is with thy servants; there is no want of any thing.' 20 And the old man said: 'Peace be unto thee; howsoever let all thy wants lie upon me; only lodge not in the broad place.' 21 So he brought him into his house, and gave the asses fodder; and they washed their feet, and did eat and drink. 22 As they were making their hearts merry, behold, the men of the city, certain base fellows, beset the house round about, beating at the door; and they spoke to the master of the house, the old man, saying: 'Bring forth the man that came into thy house, that we may know him.' 23 And the man, the master of the house, went out unto them, and said unto them: 'Nay, my brethren, I pray you, do not so wickedly; seeing that this man is come into my house, do not this wanton deed. 24 Behold, here is my daughter a virgin, and his concubine; I will bring them out now, and humble ye them, and do with them what seemeth good unto you; but unto this man do not so wanton a thing.' 25 But the men would not hearken to him; so the man laid hold on his concubine, and brought her forth unto them; and they knew her, and abused her all the night until the morning; and when the day began to spring, they let her go. 26 Then came the woman in the dawning of the day, and fell down at the door of the man's house where her lord was, till it was light. 27 And her lord rose up in the morning, and opened the doors of the house, and went out to go his way; and, behold, the woman his concubine was fallen down at the door of the house, with her hands upon the threshold. 28 And he said unto her. 'Up, and let us be going'; but none answered; then he took her up upon the ass; and the man rose up, and got him unto his place. 29 And when he was come into his house, he took a knife, and laid hold on his concubine, and divided her, limb by limb, into twelve pieces, and sent her throughout all the borders of Israel. 30 And it was so, that all that saw it said: 'Such a thing hath not happened nor been seen from the day that the children of Israel came up out of the land of Egypt unto this day; consider it, take counsel, and speak.'

JUDGES 20 — 1 Then all the children of Israel went out, and the congregation was assembled as one man, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, with the land of Gilead, unto the LORD at Mizpah. 2 And the chiefs of all the people, even of all the tribes of Israel, presented themselves in the assembly of the people of God, four hundred thousand footmen that drew sword.-3 Now the children of Benjamin heard that the children of Israel were gone up to Mizpah. -And the children of Israel said: 'Tell us, how was this wickedness brought to pass?' 4 And the Levite, the husband of the woman that was murdered, answered and said: 'I came into Gibeah that belongeth to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to lodge. 5 And the men of Gibeah rose against me, and beset the house round about upon me by night; me they thought to have slain, and my concubine they forced, and she is dead. 6 And I took my concubine, and cut her in pieces, and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel; for they have committed lewdness and wantonness in Israel 7 Behold, ye are all here, children of Israel, give here your advice and council.' 8 And all the people arose as one man, saying: 'We will not any of us go to his tent, neither will we any of us turn unto his house. 9 But now this is the thing which we will do to Gibeah: we will go up against it by lot; 10 and we will take ten men of a hundred throughout all the tribes of Israel, and a hundred of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand, to fetch victuals for the people, that they may do, when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, according to all the wantonness that they have wrought in Israel.' 11 So all the men of Israel were gathered against the city, knit together as one man.

12 And the tribes of Israel sent men through all the tribe of Benjamin, saying: 'What wickedness is this that is come to pass among you? 13 Now therefore deliver up the men, the base fellows that are in Gibeah, that we may put them to death, and put away evil from Israel.' But the children of Benjamin would not hearken to the voice of their brethren the children of Israel. 14 And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together out of their cities unto Gibeah, to go out to battle against the children of Israel. 15 And the children of Benjamin numbered on that day out of the cities twenty and six thousand men that drew sword, besides the inhabitants of Gibeah, who numbered seven hundred chosen men. 16 All this people, even seven hundred chosen men, were left-handed; every one could sling stones at a hair-breadth, and not miss.

17 And the men of Israel, beside Benjamin, numbered four hundred thousand men that drew sword; all these were men of war. 18 And the children of Israel arose, and went up to Beth-el, and asked counsel of God; and they said: 'Who shall go up for us first to battle against the children of Benjamin?' And the LORD said: 'Judah first.' 19 And the children of Israel rose up in the morning, and encamped against Gibeah. 20 And the men of Israel went out to battle against Benjamin; and the men of Israel set the battle in array against them at Gibeah. 21 And the children of Benjamin came forth out of Gibeah, and destroyed down to the ground of the Israelites on that day twenty and two thousand men. 22 And the people, the men of Israel, encouraged themselves, and set the battle again in array in the place where they set themselves in array the first day. 23 And the children of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until even; and they asked of the LORD, saying: 'Shall I again draw nigh to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother?' And the LORD said: 'Go up against him.'

24 And the children of Israel came near against the children of Benjamin the second day. 25 And Benjamin went forth against them out of Gibeah the second day, and destroyed down to the ground of the children of Israel again eighteen thousand men; all these drew the sword. 26 Then all the children of Israel, and all the people, went up, and came unto Beth-el, and wept, and sat there before the LORD, and fasted that day until even; and they offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before the LORD. 27 And the children of Israel asked of the LORD-for the ark of the covenant of God was there in those days, 28 and Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron, stood before it in those days-saying: 'Shall I yet again go out to battle against the children of Benjamin my brother, or shall I cease?' And the LORD said: 'Go up; for to-morrow I will deliver him into thy hand.' 29 And Israel set liers-in-wait against Gibeah round about.

30 And the children of Israel went up against the children of Benjamin on the third day, and set themselves in array against Gibeah, as at other times. 31 And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and they began to smite and kill of the people, as at other times, in the field, in the highways, of which one goeth up to Beth-el, and the other to Gibeah, about thirty men of Israel. 32 And the children of Benjamin said: 'They are smitten down before us, as at the first.' But the children of Israel said: 'Let us flee, and draw them away from the city unto the highways.' 33 And all the men of Israel rose up out of their place, and set themselves in array at Baal-tamar; and the liers-in-wait of Israel broke forth out of their place, even out of Maareh-geba. 34 And there came over against Gibeah ten thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and the battle was sore; but they knew not that evil was close upon them. 35 And the LORD smote Benjamin before Israel; and the children of Israel destroyed of Benjamin that day twenty and five thousand and a hundred men; all these drew the sword.

36 So the children of Benjamin saw that they were smitten. And the men of Israel gave place to Benjamin, because they trusted unto the liers-in-wait whom they had set against Gibeah.-37 And the liers-in-wait hastened, and rushed upon Gibeah; and the liers-in-wait drew forth, and smote all the city with the edge of the sword. 38 Now there was an appointed sign between the men of Israel and the liers-in-wait, that they should make a great beacon of smoke rise up out of the city.-39 And the men of Israel turned in the battle, and Benjamin began to smite and kill of the men of Israel about thirty persons; for they said: 'Surely they are smitten down before us, as in the first battle.' 40 But when the beacon began to arise up out of the city in a pillar of smoke, the Benjamites looked behind them, and, behold, the whole of the city went up in smoke to heaven. 41 And the men of Israel turned, and the men of Benjamin were amazed; for they saw that evil was come upon them. 42 Therefore they turned their backs before the men of Israel unto the way of the wilderness; but the battle followed hard after them; and they that came out of the city destroyed them in the midst of the men of Israel. 43 They inclosed the Benjamites round about, and chased them, and overtook them at their resting-place, as far as over against Gibeah toward the sunrising. 44 And there fell of Benjamin eighteen thousand men; all these were men of valour. 45 And they turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon; and they gleaned of them in the highways five thousand men; and followed hard after them unto Gidom, and smote of them two thousand men. 46 So that all who fell that day of Benjamin were twenty and five thousand men that drew the sword; all these were men of valour. 47 But six hundred men turned and fled toward the wilderness unto the rock of Rimmon, and abode in the rock of Rimmon four months. 48 And the men of Israel turned back upon the children of Benjamin, and smote them with the edge of the sword, both the entire city, and the cattle, and all that they found; moreover all the cities which they found they set on fire.

JUDGES 21 — 1 Now the men of Israel had sworn in Mizpah, saying: 'There shall not any of us give his daughter unto Benjamin to wife.' 2 And the people came to Beth-el, and sat there till even before God, and lifted up their voices, and wept sore. 3 And they said: 'O LORD, the God of Israel, why is this come to pass in Israel, that there should be to-day one tribe lacking in Israel?' 4 And it came to pass on the morrow that the people rose early, and built there an altar, and offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings. 5 And the children of Israel said: 'Who is there among all the tribes of Israel that came not up in the assembly unto the LORD?' For they had made a great oath concerning him that came not up unto the LORD to Mizpah, saying: 'He shall surely be put to death.' 6 And the children of Israel repented them for Benjamin their brother, and said: 'There is one tribe cut off from Israel this day. 7 How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing we have sworn by the LORD that we will not give them of our daughters to wives?' 8 And they said: 'What one is there of the tribes of Israel that came not up unto the LORD to Mizpah?' And, behold, there came none to the camp from Jabesh-gilead to the assembly. 9 For when the people were numbered, behold, there were none of the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead there. 10 And the congregation sent thither twelve thousand men of the valiantest, and commanded them, saying: 'Go and smite the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead with the edge of the sword, with the women and the little ones. 11 And this is the thing that ye shall do: ye shall utterly destroy every male, and every woman that hath lain by man.' 12 And they found among the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead four hundred young virgins, that had not known man by lying with him; and they brought them unto the camp to Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan.

13 And the whole congregation sent and spoke to the children of Benjamin that were in the rock of Rimmon, and proclaimed peace unto them. 14 And Benjamin returned at that time; and they gave them the women whom they had saved alive of the women of Jabesh-gilead; and yet so they sufficed them not. 15 And the people repented them for Benjamin, because that the LORD had made a breach in the tribes of Israel.

16 Then the elders of the congregation said: 'How shall we do for wives for them that remain, seeing the women are destroyed out of Benjamin?' 17 And they said: 'They that are escaped must be as an inheritance for Benjamin, that a tribe be not blotted out from Israel. 18 Howbeit we may not give them wives of our daughters.' For the children of Israel had sworn, saying: 'Cursed be he that giveth a wife to Benjamin.' 19 And they said: 'Behold, there is the feast of the LORD from year to year in Shiloh, which is on the north of Beth-el, on the east side of the highway that goeth up from Beth-el to Shechem, and on the south of Lebonah.' 20 And they commanded the children of Benjamin, saying: 'Go and lie in wait in the vineyards; 21 and see, and, behold, if the daughters of Shiloh come out to dance in the dances, then come ye out of the vineyards, and catch you every man his wife of the daughters of Shiloh, and go to the land of Benjamin. 22 And it shall be, when their fathers or their brethren come to strive with us, that we will say unto them: Grant them graciously unto us; because we took not for each man of them his wife in battle; neither did ye give them unto them, that ye should now be guilty.' 23 And the children of Benjamin did so, and took them wives, according to their number, of them that danced, whom they carried off; and they went and returned unto their inheritance, and built the cities, and dwelt in them. 24 And the children of Israel departed thence at that time, every man to his tribe and to his family, and they went out from thence every man to his inheritance. 25 In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did that which was right in his own eyes.

1 Samuel

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[21] [22] [23] [24] [25] [26] [27] [28] [29] [30]

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1 SAMUEL 1 — 1 Now there was a certain man of Ramathaim-zophim, of the hill-country of Ephraim, and his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, an Ephraimite. 2 And he had two wives: the name of the one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah; and Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children. 3 And this man went up out of his city from year to year to worship and to sacrifice unto the LORD of hosts in Shiloh. And the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there priests unto the LORD. 4 And it came to pass upon a day, when Elkanah sacrificed, that he gave to Peninnah his wife, and to all her sons and her daughters, portions; 5 but unto Hannah he gave a double portion; for he loved Hannah, but the LORD had shut up her womb. 6 And her rival vexed her sore, to make her fret, because the LORD had shut up her womb. 7 And as he did so year by year, when she went up to the house of the LORD, so she vexed her; therefore she wept, and would not eat. 8 And Elkanah her husband said unto her: 'Hannah, why weepest thou? and why eatest thou not? and why is thy heart grieved? am not I better to thee than ten sons?' 9 So Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk-now Eli the priest sat upon his seat by the door-post of the temple of the LORD; 10 and she was in bitterness of soul-and prayed unto the LORD, and wept sore. 11 And she vowed a vow, and said: 'O LORD of hosts, if Thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of Thy handmaid, and remember me, and not forget Thy handmaid, but wilt give unto Thy handmaid a man-child, then I will give him unto the LORD all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.' 12 And it came to pass, as she prayed long before the LORD, that Eli watched her mouth. 13 Now Hannah, she spoke in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice could not be heard; therefore, Eli thought she had been drunken. 14 And Eli said unto her: 'How long wilt thou be drunken? put away thy wine from thee.' 15 And Hannah answered and said: 'No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I poured out my soul before the LORD. 16 Count not thy handmaid for a wicked woman: for out of the abundance of my complaint and my vexation have I spoken hitherto.' 17 Then Eli answered and said: 'Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant thy petition that thou hast asked of Him.' 18 And she said: 'Let thy servant find favour in thy sight.' So the woman went her way, and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad. 19 And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the LORD, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah; and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the LORD remembered her. 20 And it came to pass, when the time was come about, that Hannah conceived, and bore a son; and she called his name Samuel: 'because I have asked him of the LORD.'

21 And the man Elkanah, and all his house, went up to offer unto the LORD the yearly sacrifice, and his vow. 22 But Hannah went not up; for she said unto her husband: 'Until the child be weaned, when I will bring him, that he may appear before the LORD, and there abide for ever.' 23 And Elkanah her husband said unto her: 'Do what seemeth thee good; tarry until thou have weaned him; only the LORD establish His word.' So the woman tarried and gave her son suck, until she weaned him. 24 And when she had weaned him, she took him up with her, with three bullocks, and one ephah of meal, and a bottle of wine, and brought him unto the house of the LORD in Shiloh; and the child was young. 25 And when the bullock was slain, the child was brought to Eli. 26 And she said: 'Oh, my lord, as thy soul liveth, my lord, I am the woman that stood by thee here, praying unto the LORD. 27 For this child I prayed; and the LORD hath granted me my petition which I asked of Him; 28 therefore I also have lent him to the LORD; as long as he liveth he is lent to the LORD.' And he worshipped the LORD there.

1 SAMUEL 2 — 1 And Hannah prayed, and said:

My heart exulteth in the LORD,

My horn is exalted in the LORD;

My mouth is enlarged over mine enemies;

Because I rejoice in Thy salvation.

2 There is none holy as the LORD,

For there is none beside Thee;

Neither is there any rock like our God.

3 Multiply not exceeding proud talk;

Let not arrogancy come out of your mouth;

For the LORD is a God of knowledge,

And by Him actions are weighed.

4 The bows of the mighty men are broken,

And they that stumbled are girded with strength.

5 They that were full have hired out themselves for bread;

And they that were hungry have ceased;

While the barren hath borne seven,

She that had many children hath languished.

6 The LORD killeth, and maketh alive;

He bringeth down to the grave, and bringeth up.

7 The LORD maketh poor, and maketh rich;

He bringeth low, He also lifteth up.

8 He raiseth up the poor out of the dust,

He lifteth up the needy from the dung-hill,

To make them sit with princes,

And inherit the throne of glory;

For the pillars of the earth are the LORD'S,

And He hath set the world upon them.

9 He will keep the feet of His holy ones,

But the wicked shall be put to silence in darkness;

For not by strength shall man prevail.

10 They that strive with the LORD shall be broken to pieces;

Against them will He thunder in heaven;

The LORD will judge the ends of the earth;

And He will give strength unto His king,

And exalt the horn of His anointed.

11 And Elkanah went to Ramah to his house. And the child did minister unto the LORD before Eli the priest.

12 Now the sons of Eli were base men; they knew not the LORD. 13 And the custom of the priests with the people was, that, when any man offered sacrifice, the priest's servant came, while the flesh was in seething, with a flesh-hook of three teeth in his band; 14 and he struck it into the pan, or kettle, or caldron, or pot; all that the flesh-hook brought up the priest took therewith. So they did unto all the Israelites that came thither in Shiloh. 15 Yea, before the fat was made to smoke, the priest's servant came, and said to the man that sacrificed: 'Give flesh to roast for the priest; for he will not have sodden flesh of thee, but raw.' 16 And if the man said unto him: 'Let the fat be made to smoke first of all, and then take as much as thy soul desireth'; then he would say: 'Nay, but thou shalt give it me now; and if not, I will take it by force.' 17 And the sin of the young men was very great before the LORD; for the men dealt contemptuously with the offering of the LORD.

18 But Samuel ministered before the LORD, being a child, girded with a linen ephod. 19 Moreover his mother made him a little robe, and brought it to him from year to year, when she came up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. 20 And Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, and say: 'The LORD give thee seed of this woman for the loan which was lent to the LORD.' And they would go unto their own home. 21 So the LORD remembered Hannah, and she conceived, and bore three sons and two daughters. And the child Samuel grew before the LORD.

22 Now Eli was very old; and he heard all that his sons did unto all Israel, and how that they lay with the women that did service at the door of the tent of meeting. 23 And he said unto them: 'Why do ye such things? for I hear evil reports concerning you from all this people. 24 Nay, my sons; for it is no good report which I hear the LORD'S people do spread abroad. 25 If one man sin against another, God shall judge him; but if a man sin against the LORD, who shall entreat for him?' But they hearkened not unto the voice of their father, because the LORD would slay them. 26 And the child Samuel grew on, and increased in favour both with the LORD, and also with men.

27 And there came a man of God unto Eli, and said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD: Did I reveal Myself unto the house of thy father, when they were in Egypt in bondage to Pharaoh's house? 28 And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be My priest, to go up unto Mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod before Me? and did I give unto the house of thy father all the offerings of the children of Israel made by fire? 29 Wherefore kick ye at My sacrifice and at Mine offering, which I have commanded in My habitation; and honourest thy sons above Me, to make yourselves fat with the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel My people? 30 Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, saith: I said indeed that thy house, and the house of thy father, should walk before Me for ever; but now the LORD saith: Be it far from Me: for them that honour Me I will honour, and they that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed. 31 Behold, the days come, that I will cut off thine arm, and the arm of thy father's house, that there shall not be an old man in thy house. 32 And thou shalt behold a rival in My habitation, in all the good which shall be done to Israel; and there shall not be an old man in thy house for ever. 33 Yet will I not cut off every man of thine from Mine altar, to make thine eyes to fail, and thy heart to languish; and all the increase of thy house shall die young men. 34 And this shall be the sign unto thee, that which shall come upon thy two sons, on Hophni and Phinehas: in one day they shall die both of them. 35 And I will raise Me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in My heart and in My mind; and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before Mine anointed for ever. 36 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left in thy house shall come and bow down to him for a piece of silver and a loaf of bread, and shall say: Put me, I pray thee, into one of the priests' offices, that I may eat a morsel of bread.'

1 SAMUEL 3 — 1 And the child Samuel ministered unto the LORD before Eli. And the word of the LORD was precious in those days; there was no frequent vision. 2 And it came to pass at that time, when Eli was laid down in his place-now his eyes had begun to wax dim, that he could not see-3 and the lamp of God was not yet gone out, and Samuel was laid down to sleep in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was, 4 that the LORD called Samuel; and he said: 'Here am I.' 5 And he ran unto Eli, and said: 'Here am I; for thou didst call me.' And he said: 'I called not; lie down again.' And he went and lay down. 6 And the LORD called yet again Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli, and said: 'Here am I; for thou didst call me.' And he answered: 'I called not, my son; lie down again.' 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, neither was the word of the LORD yet revealed unto him. 8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli, and said: 'Here am I; for thou didst call me.' And Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the child. 9 Therefore Eli said unto Samuel: 'Go, lie down; and it shall be, if thou be called, that thou shalt say: Speak, LORD; for Thy servant heareth.' So Samuel went and lay down in his place. 10 And the LORD came, and stood, and called as at other times: 'Samuel, Samuel.' Then Samuel said: 'Speak; for Thy servant heareth.' 11 And the LORD said to Samuel: 'Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle. 12 In that day I will perform against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from the beginning even unto the end. 13 For I have told him that I will judge his house for ever, for the iniquity, in that he knew that his sons did bring a curse upon themselves, and he rebuked them not. 14 And therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be expiated with sacrifice nor offering for ever.' 15 And Samuel lay until the morning, and opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel feared to tell Eli the vision. 16 Then Eli called Samuel, and said: 'Samuel, my son.' And he said: `Here am I.' 17 And he said: 'What is the thing that He hath spoken unto thee? I pray thee, hide it not from me, God do so to thee, and more also, if thou hide any thing from me of all the things that He spoke unto thee.' 18 And Samuel told him all the words, and hid nothing from him. And he said: 'It is the LORD; let Him do what seemeth Him good.'

19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan even to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD. 21 And the LORD appeared again in Shiloh; for the LORD revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of the LORD. 1 SAMUEL 4 — 1 And the word of Samuel came to all Israel.

Now Israel went out against the Philistines to battle, and pitched beside Eben-ezer; and the Philistines pitched in Aphek. 2 And the Philistines put themselves in array against Israel; and when the battle was spread, Israel was smitten before the Philistines; and they slew of the army in the field about four thousand men. 3 And when the people were come into the camp, the elders of Israel said: 'Wherefore hath the LORD smitten us to-day before the Philistines? Let us fetch the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of Shiloh unto us, that He may come among us, and save us out of the hand of our enemies.' 4 So the people sent to Shiloh, and they brought from thence the ark of the covenant of the LORD of hosts, who sitteth upon the cherubim; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. 5 And when the ark of the covenant of the LORD came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang. 6 And when the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said: 'What meaneth the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews?' And they knew that the ark of the LORD was come into the camp. 7 And the Philistines were afraid, for they said: 'God is come into the camp.' And they said: 'Woe unto us! for there was not such a thing yesterday and the day before. 8 Woe unto us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty gods? these are the gods that smote the Egyptians with all manner of plagues and in the wilderness. 9 Be strong, and quit yourselves like men, O ye Philistines, that ye be not servants unto the Hebrews, as they have been to you; quit yourselves like men, and fight.' 10 And the Philistines fought, and Israel was smitten, and they fled every man to his tent; and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. 11 And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.

12 And there ran a man of Benjamin out of the army, and came to Shiloh the same day with his clothes rent, and with earth upon his head. 13 And when he came, lo, Eli sat upon his seat by the wayside watching; for his heart trembled for the ark of God. And when the man came into the city, and told it, all the city cried out. 14 And when Eli heard the noise of the crying, he said: 'What meaneth the noise of this tumult?' And the man made haste, and came and told Eli. 15 Now Eli was ninety and eight years old; and his eyes were set, that he could not see. 16 And the man said unto Eli: 'I am he that came out of the army, and I fled to-day out of the army.' And he said: 'How went the matter, my son?' 17 And he that brought the tidings answered and said: 'Israel is fled before the Philistines, and there hath been also a great slaughter among the people, and thy two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God is taken.' 18 And it came to pass, when he made mention of the ark of God, that he fell from off his seat backward by the side of the gate, and his neck broke, and he died; for he was an old man, and heavy. And he had judged Israel forty years.

19 And his daughter-in-law, Phinehas' wife, was with child, near to be delivered; and when she heard the tidings that the ark of God was taken, and that her father-in-law and her husband were dead, she bowed herself and brought forth; for her pains came suddenly upon her. 20 And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her: 'Fear not; for thou hast brought forth a son.' But she answered not, neither did she regard it. 21 And she named the child Ichabod, saying: 'The glory is departed from Israel'; because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father-in-law and her husband. 22 And she said: 'The glory is departed from Israel; for the ark of God is taken.'

1 SAMUEL 5 — 1 Now the Philistines had taken the ark of God, and they brought it from Eben-ezer unto Ashdod. 2 And the Philistines took the ark of God, and brought it into the house of Dagon, and set it by Dagon. 3 And when they of Ashdod arose early on the morrow, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD. And they took Dagon, and set him in his place again. 4 And when they arose early on the morrow morning, behold, Dagon was fallen upon his face to the ground before the ark of the LORD; and the head of Dagon and both the palms of his hands lay cut off upon the threshold; only the trunk of Dagon was left to him. 5 Therefore neither the priests of Dagon, nor any that come into Dagon's house, tread on the threshold of Dagon in Ashdod unto this day.

6 But the hand of the LORD was heavy upon them of Ashdod, and He destroyed them, and smote them with emerods, even Ashdod and the borders thereof. 7 And when the men of Ashdod saw that it was so, they said: 'The ark of the God of Israel shall not abide with us; for His hand is sore upon us, and upon Dagon our god.' 8 They sent therefore and gathered all the lords of the Philistines unto them, and said: 'What shall we do with the ark of the God of Israel?' And they answered: 'Let the ark of the God of Israel be carried about unto Gath.' And they carried the ark of the God of Israel about thither. 9 And it was so, that, after they had carried it about, the hand of the LORD was against the city with a very great discomfiture; and He smote the men of the city, both small and great, and emerods broke out upon them. 10 So they sent the ark of God to Ekron. And it came to pass, as the ark of God came to Ekron, that the Ekronites cried out, saying: 'They have brought about the ark of the God of Israel to us, to slay us and our people.' 11 They sent therefore and gathered together all the lords of the Philistines, and they said: 'Send away the ark of the God of Israel, and let it go back to its own place, that it slay us not, and our people'; for there was a deadly discomfiture throughout all the city; the hand of God was very heavy there. 12 And the men that died not were smitten with the emerods; and the cry of the city went up to heaven.

1 SAMUEL 6 — 1 And the ark of the LORD was in the country of the Philistines seven months. 2 And the Philistines called for the priests and the diviners, saying: 'What shall we do with the ark of the LORD? declare unto us wherewith we shall send it to its place.' 3 And they said: 'If ye send away the ark of the God of Israel, send it not empty; but in any wise return Him a guilt-offering; then ye shall be healed, and it shall be known to you why His hand is not removed from you.' 4 Then said they: 'What shall be the guilt-offering which we shall return to Him?' And they said: 'Five golden emerods, and five golden mice, according to the number of the lords of the Philistines; for one plague was on you all, and on your lords. 5 Wherefore ye shall make images of your emerods, and images of your mice that mar the land; and ye shall give glory unto the God of Israel; peradventure He will lighten His hand from off you, and from off your gods, and from off your land. 6 Wherefore then do ye harden your hearts, as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? when He had wrought among them, did they not let the people go, and they departed? 7 Now therefore take and prepare you a new cart, and two milch kine, on which there hath come no yoke, and tie the kine to the cart, and bring their calves home from them. 8 And take the ark of the LORD, and lay it upon the cart; and put the jewels of gold, which ye return Him for a guilt-offering, in a coffer by the side thereof; and send it away, that it may go. 9 And see, if it goeth up by the way of its own border to Beth-shemesh, then He hath done us this great evil; but if not, then we shall know that it is not His hand that smote us; it was a chance that happened to us.'

10 And the men did so; and took two milch kine, and tied them to the cart, and shut up their calves at home. 11 And they put the ark of the LORD upon the cart, and the coffer with the mice of gold and the images of their emerods. 12 And the kine took the straight way by the way to Beth-shemesh; they went along the highway, lowing as they went, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left; and the lords of the Philistines went after them unto the border of Beth-shemesh. 13 And they of Beth-shemesh were reaping their wheat harvest in the valley; and they lifted up their eyes, and saw the ark, and rejoiced to see it. 14 And the cart came into the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite, and stood there, where there was a great stone; and they cleaved the wood of the cart, and offered up the kine for a burnt-offering unto the LORD. 15 And the Levites took down the ark of the LORD, and the coffer that was with it, wherein the jewels of gold were, and put them on the great stone; and the men of Beth-shemesh offered burnt-offerings and sacrificed sacrifices the same day unto the LORD. 16 And when the five lords of the Philistines had seen it, they returned to Ekron the same day.

17 And these are the golden emerods which the Philistines returned for a guilt-offering unto the LORD: for Ashdod one, for Gaza one, for Ashkelon one, for Gath one, for Ekron one; 18 and the golden mice, according to the number of all the cities of the Philistines belonging to the five lords, both of fortified cities and of country villages, even unto Abel by the great stone, whereon they set down the ark of the LORD, which stone remaineth unto this day in the field of Joshua the Beth-shemite. 19 And He smote of the men of Beth-shemesh, because they had gazed upon the ark of the LORD, even He smote of the people seventy men, and fifty thousand men; and the people mourned, because the LORD had smitten the people with a great slaughter. 20 And the men of Beth-shemesh said: 'Who is able to stand before the LORD, this holy God? and to whom shall it go up from us?' 21 And they sent messengers to the inhabitants of Kiriath-jearim, saying: 'The Philistines have brought back the ark of the LORD; come ye down, and fetch it up to you.'

1 SAMUEL 7 — 1 And the men of Kiriath-jearim came, and fetched up the ark of the LORD, and brought it into the house of Abinadab in the hill, and sanctified Eleazar his son to keep the ark of the LORD.

2 And it came to pass, from the day that the ark abode in Kiriath-jearim, that the time was long; for it was twenty years; and all the house of Israel yearned after the LORD. 3 And Samuel spoke unto all the house of Israel, saying: 'If ye do return unto the LORD with all your heart, then put away the foreign gods and the Ashtaroth from among you, and direct your hearts unto the LORD, and serve Him only; and He will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.' 4 Then the children of Israel did put away the Baalim and the Ashtaroth, and served the LORD only.

5 And Samuel said: 'Gather all Israel to Mizpah, and I will pray for you unto the LORD.' 6 And they gathered together to Mizpah, and drew water, and poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and said there: 'We have sinned against the LORD.' And Samuel judged the children of Israel in Mizpah.

7 And when the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mizpah, the lords of the Philistines went up against Israel. And when the children of Israel heard it, they were afraid of the Philistines. 8 And the children of Israel said to Samuel: 'Cease not to cry unto the LORD our God for us, that He save us out of the hand of the Philistines.' 9 And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered it for a whole burnt-offering unto the LORD; and Samuel cried unto the LORD for Israel; and the LORD answered him. 10 And as Samuel was offering up the burnt-offering, the Philistines drew near to battle against Israel; but the LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten down before Israel. 11 And the men of Israel went out of Mizpah, and pursued the Philistines, and smote them, until they came under Beth-car. 12 Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpah and Shen, and called the name of it Eben-ezer, saying: 'Hitherto hath the LORD helped us.' 13 So the Philistines were subdued, and they came no more within the border of Israel; and the hand of the LORD was against the Philistines all the days of Samuel. 14 And the cities which the Philistines had taken from Israel were restored to Israel, from Ekron even unto Gath; and the border thereof did Israel deliver out of the hand of the Philistines. And there was peace between Israel and the Amorites. 15 And Samuel judged Israel all the days of his life. 16 And he went from year to year in circuit to Beth-el, and Gilgal, and Mizpah; and he judged Israel in all those places. 17 And his return was to Ramah, for there was his house; and there he judged Israel; and he built there an altar unto the LORD.

1 SAMUEL 8 — 1 And it came to pass, when Samuel was old, that he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 Now the name of his first-born was Joel; and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beer-sheba. 3 And his sons walked not in his ways, but turned aside after lucre, and took bribes, and perverted justice.

4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah. 5 And they said unto him: 'Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways; now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.' 6 But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said: 'Give us a king to judge us.' And Samuel prayed unto the LORD. 7 And the LORD said unto Samuel: 'Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not be king over them. 8 According to all the works which they have done since the day that I brought them up out of Egypt even unto this day, in that they have forsaken Me, and served other gods, so do they also unto thee. 9 Now therefore hearken unto their voice; howbeit thou shalt earnestly forewarn them, and shalt declare unto them the manner of the king that shall reign over them.'

10 And Samuel told all the words of the LORD unto the people that asked of him a king. 11 And he said: 'This will be the manner of the king that shall reign over you: he will take your sons, and appoint them unto him, for his chariots, and to be his horsemen; and they shall run before his chariots. 12 And he will appoint them unto him for captains of thousands, and captains of fifties; and to plow his ground, and to reap his harvest, and to make his instruments of war, and the instruments of his chariots. 13 And he will take your daughters to be perfumers, and to be cooks, and to be bakers. 14 And he will take your fields, and your vineyards, and your oliveyards, even the best of them, and give them to his servants. 15 And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and to his servants. 16 And he will take your men-servants, and your maid-servants, and your goodliest young men, and your asses, and put them to his work. 17 He will take the tenth of your flocks; and ye shall be his servants. 18 And ye shall cry out in that day because of your king whom ye shall have chosen you; and the LORD will not answer you in that day.' 19 But the people refused to hearken unto the voice of Samuel; and they said: 'Nay; but there shall be a king over us; 20 that we also may be like all the nations; and that our king may judge us, and go out before us, and fight our battles.' 21 And Samuel heard all the words of the people, and he spoke them in the ears of the LORD. 22 And the LORD said to Samuel: 'Hearken unto their voice, and make them a king.' And Samuel said unto the men of Israel: 'Go ye every man unto his city.'

1 SAMUEL 9 — 1 Now there was a man of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valour. 2 And he had a son, whose name was Saul, young and goodly, and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people. 3 Now the asses of Kish Saul's father were lost. And Kish said to Saul his son: 'Take now one of the servants with thee, and arise, go seek the asses.' 4 And he passed through the hill-country of Ephraim, and passed through the land of Shalishah, but they found them not; then they passed through the land of Shaalim, and there they were not; and he passed through the land of the Benjamites, but they found them not. 5 When they were come to the land of Zuph, Saul said to his servant that was with him: 'Come and let us return; lest my father leave caring for the asses, and become anxious concerning us.' 6 And he said unto him: 'Behold now, there is in this city a man of God, and he is a man that is held in honour; all that he saith cometh surely to pass; now let us go thither; peradventure he can tell us concerning our journey whereon we go.' 7 Then said Saul to his servant: 'But, behold, if we go, what shall we bring the man? for the bread is spent in our vessels, and there is not a present to bring to the man of God; what have we?' 8 And the servant answered Saul again, and said: 'Behold, I have in my hand the fourth part of a shekel of silver, that will I give to the man of God, to tell us our way.'-9 Beforetime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he said: 'Come and let us go to the seer'; for he that is now called a prophet was beforetime called a seer.-10 Then said Saul to his servant: 'Well said; come, let us go.' So they went unto the city where the man of God was. 11 As they went up the ascent to the city, they found young maidens going out to draw water, and said unto them: 'Is the seer here?' 12 And they answered them, and said: 'He is; behold, he is before thee; make haste now, for he is come to-day into the city; for the people have a sacrifice to-day in the high place. 13 As soon as ye are come into the city, ye shall straightway find him, before he go up to the high place to eat; for the people will not eat until he come, because he doth bless the sacrifice; and afterwards they eat that are bidden. Now therefore get you up; for at this time ye shall find him.' 14 And they went up to the city; and as they came within the city, behold, Samuel came out toward them, to go up to the high place.

15 Now the LORD had revealed unto Samuel a day before Saul came, saying: 16 'To-morrow about this time I will send thee a man out of the land of Benjamin, and thou shalt anoint him to be prince over My people Israel, and he shall save My people out of the hand of the Philistines; for I have looked upon My people, because their cry is come unto Me.' 17 And when Samuel saw Saul, the LORD spoke unto him: 'Behold the man of whom I said unto thee: This same shall have authority over My people.' 18 Then Saul drew near to Samuel in the gate, and said: 'Tell me, I pray thee, where the seer's house is.' 19 And Samuel answered Saul, and said: 'I am the seer; go up before me unto the high place, for ye shall eat with me to-day; and in the morning I will let thee go, and will tell thee all that is in thy heart. 20 And as for thine asses that were lost three days ago, set not thy mind on them; for they are found. And on whom is all the desire of Israel? Is it not on thee, and on all thy father's house?' 21 And Saul answered and said: 'Am not I a Benjamite, of the smallest of the tribes of Israel? and my family the least of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin? wherefore then speakest thou to me after this manner?'

22 And Samuel took Saul and his servant, and brought them into the chamber, and made them sit in the chiefest place among them that were bidden, who were about thirty persons. 23 And Samuel said unto the cook: 'Bring the portion which I gave thee, of which I said unto thee: Set it by thee.' 24 And the cook took up the thigh, and that which was upon it, and set it before Saul. And Samuel said: 'Behold that which hath been reserved! set it before thee and eat; because unto the appointed time hath it been kept for thee, for I said: I have invited the people.' So Saul did eat with Samuel that day. 25 And when they were come down from the high place into the city, he spoke with Saul upon the housetop. 26 And they arose early; and it came to pass about the break of day, that Samuel called to Saul on the housetop, saying: 'Up, that I may send thee away.' And Saul arose, and they went out both of them, he and Samuel, abroad. 27 As they were going down at the end of the city, Samuel said to Saul: 'Bid the servant pass on before us-and he passed on-but stand thou still at this time, that I may cause thee to hear the word of God.'

1 SAMUEL 10 — 1 Then Samuel took the vial of oil, and poured it upon his head, and kissed him, and said: 'Is it not that the LORD hath anointed thee to be prince over His inheritance? 2 When thou art departed from me to-day, then thou shalt find two men by the tomb of Rachel, in the border of Benjamin at Zelzah; and they will say unto thee: The asses which thou wentest to seek are found; and, lo, thy father hath left off caring for the asses, and is anxious concerning you, saying: What shall I do for my son? 3 Then shalt thou go on forward from thence, and thou shalt come to the terebinth of Tabor, and there shall meet thee there three men going up to God to Beth-el, one carrying three kids, and another carrying three loaves of bread, and another carrying a bottle of wine. 4 And they will salute thee, and give thee two cakes of bread; which thou shalt receive of their hand. 5 After that thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the garrison of the Philistines; and it shall come to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, that thou shalt meet a band of prophets coming down from the high place with a psaltery, and a timbrel, and a pipe, and a harp, before them; and they will be prophesying. 6 And the spirit of the LORD will come mightily upon thee, and thou shalt prophesy with them, and shalt be turned into another man. 7 And let it be, when these signs are come unto thee, that thou do as thy hand shall find; for God is with thee. 8 And thou shalt go down before me to Gilgal; and, behold, I will come down unto thee, to offer burnt-offerings, and to sacrifice sacrifices of peace-offerings; seven days shalt thou tarry, till I come unto thee, and tell thee what thou shalt do.'

9 And it was so, that when he had turned his back to go from Samuel, God gave him another heart; and all those signs came to pass that day. 10 And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a band of prophets met him; and the spirit of God came mightily upon him, and he prophesied among them. 11 And it came to pass, when all that knew him beforetime saw that, behold, he prophesied with the prophets, then the people said one to another: 'What is this that is come unto the son of Kish? Is Saul also among the prophets?' 12 And one of the same place answered and said: 'And who is their father?' Therefore it became a proverb: 'Is Saul also among the prophets?' 13 And when he had made an end of prophesying, he came to the high place.

14 And Saul's uncle said unto him and to his servant: 'Whither went ye?' And he said: 'To seek the asses; and when we saw that they were not found, we came to Samuel.' 15 And Saul's uncle said: 'Tell me, I pray thee, what Samuel said unto you.' 16 And Saul said unto his uncle: 'He told us plainly that the asses were found.' But concerning the matter of the kingdom, whereof Samuel spoke, he told him not.

17 And Samuel called the people together unto the LORD to Mizpah. 18 And he said unto the children of Israel: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I brought up Israel out of Egypt, and I delivered you out of the hand of the Egyptians, and out of the hand of all the kingdoms that oppressed you. 19 But ye have this day rejected your God, who Himself saveth you out of all your calamities and your distresses; and ye have said unto Him: Nay, but set a king over us. Now therefore present yourselves before the LORD by your tribes, and by your thousands.' 20 So Samuel brought all the tribes of Israel near, and the tribe of Benjamin was taken. 21 And he brought the tribe of Benjamin near by their families, and the family of the Matrites was taken; and Saul the son of Kish was taken; but when they sought him, he could not be found. 22 Therefore they asked of the LORD further: 'Is there yet a man come hither?' And the LORD answered: 'Behold, he hath hid himself among the baggage.' 23 And they ran and fetched him thence; and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from his shoulders and upward. 24 And Samuel said to all the people: 'See ye him whom the LORD hath chosen, that there is none like him among all the people?' And all the people shouted, and said: 'Long live the king.'

25 Then Samuel told the people the manner of the kingdom, and wrote it in a book, and laid it up before the LORD. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house. 26 And Saul also went to his house to Gibeah; and there went with him the men of valour, whose hearts God had touched. 27 But certain base fellows said: 'How shall this man save us?' And they despised him, and brought him no present. But he was as one that held his peace.

1 SAMUEL 11 — 1 Then Nahash the Ammonite came up, and encamped against Jabesh-gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said unto Nahash: `Make a covenant with us, and we will serve thee.' 2 And Nahash the Ammonite said unto them: 'On this condition will I make it with you, that all your right eyes be put out; and I will lay it for a reproach upon all Israel.' 3 And the elders of Jabesh said unto him: 'Give us seven days' respite, that we may send messengers unto all the borders of Israel; and then, if there be none to deliver us, we will come out to thee.' 4 Then came the messengers to Gibeath-shaul, and spoke these words in the ears of the people; and all the people lifted up their voice, and wept. 5 And, behold, Saul came following the oxen out of the field; and Saul said: 'What aileth the people that they weep?' And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh. 6 And the spirit of God came mightily upon Saul when he heard those words, and his anger was kindled greatly. 7 And he took a yoke of oxen, and cut them in pieces, and sent them throughout all the borders of Israel by the hand of messengers, saying: 'Whosoever cometh not forth after Saul and after Samuel, so shall it be done unto his oxen.' And the dread of the LORD fell on the people, and they came out as one man. 8 And he numbered them in Bezek; and the children of Israel were three hundred thousand, and the men of Judah thirty thousand. 9 And they said unto the messengers that came: 'Thus shall ye say unto the men of Jabesh-gilead: To-morrow, by the time the sun is hot, ye shall have deliverance.' And the messengers came and told the men of Jabesh; and they were glad. 10 And the men of Jabesh said: 'To-morrow we will come out unto you, and ye shall do with us all that seemeth good unto you.'

11 And it was so on the morrow, that Saul put the people in three companies; and they came into the midst of the camp in the morning watch, and smote the Ammonites until the heat of the day; and it came to pass, that they that remained were scattered, so that two of them were not left together. 12 And the people said unto Samuel: 'Who is he that said: Shall Saul reign over us? bring the men, that we may put them to death.' 13 And Saul said: 'There shall not a man be put to death this day; for to-day the LORD hath wrought deliverance in Israel.'

14 Then said Samuel to the people: 'Come and let us go to Gilgal, and renew the kingdom there.' 15 And all the people went to Gilgal; and there they made Saul king before the LORD in Gilgal; and there they sacrificed sacrifices of peace-offerings before the LORD; and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.

1 SAMUEL 12 — 1 And Samuel said unto all Israel: 'Behold, I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made a king over you. 2 And now, behold, the king walketh before you; and I am old and grayheaded; and, behold, my sons are with you; and I have walked before you from my youth unto this day. 3 Here I am; witness against me before the LORD, and before His anointed: whose ox have I taken? or whose ass have I taken? or whom have I defrauded? or whom have I oppressed? or of whose hand have I taken a ransom to blind mine eyes therewith? and I will restore it you.' 4 And they said: 'Thou hast not defrauded us, nor oppressed us, neither hast thou taken aught of any man's hand.' 5 And he said unto them: 'The LORD is witness against you, and His anointed is witness this day, that ye have not found aught in my hand.' And they said: 'He is witness.'

6 And Samuel said unto the people: 'It is the LORD that made Moses and Aaron, and that brought your fathers up out of the land of Egypt. 7 Now therefore stand still, that I may plead with you before the LORD concerning all the righteous acts of the LORD, which He did to you and to your fathers. 8 When Jacob was come into Egypt, then your fathers cried unto the LORD, and the LORD sent Moses and Aaron, who brought forth your fathers out of Egypt, and they were made to dwell in this place. 9 But they forgot the LORD their God, and He gave them over into the hand of Sisera, captain of the host of Hazor, and into the hand of the Philistines, and into the hand of the king of Moab, and they fought against them. 10 And they cried unto the LORD, and said: We have sinned, because we have forsaken the LORD, and have served the Baalim and the Ashtaroth; but now deliver us out of the hand of our enemies, and we will serve Thee. 11 And the LORD sent Jerubbaal, and Bedan, and Jephthah, and Samuel, and delivered you out of the hand of your enemies on every side, and ye dwelt in safety. 12 And when ye saw that Nahash the king of the children of Ammon came against you, ye said unto me: Nay, but a king shall reign over us; when the LORD your God was your king. 13 Now therefore behold the king whom ye have chosen, and whom ye have asked for; and, behold, the LORD hath set a king over you. 14 If ye will fear the LORD, and serve Him, and hearken unto His voice, and not rebel against the commandment of the LORD, and both ye and also the king that reigneth over you be followers of the LORD your God-;15 but if ye will not hearken unto the voice of the LORD, but rebel against the commandment of the LORD, then shall the hand of the LORD be against you, and against your fathers. 16 Now therefore stand still and see this great thing, which the LORD will do before your eyes. 17 Is it not wheat harvest to-day? I will call unto the LORD, that He may send thunder and rain; and ye shall know and see that your wickedness is great, which ye have done in the sight of the LORD, in asking you a king.' 18 So Samuel called unto the LORD; and the LORD sent thunder and rain that day; and all the people greatly feared the LORD and Samuel. 19 And all the people said unto Samuel: 'Pray for thy servants unto the LORD thy God, that we die not; for we have added unto all our sins this evil, to ask us a king.' 20 And Samuel said unto the people: 'Fear not; ye have indeed done all this evil; yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; 21 and turn ye not aside; for then should ye go after vain things which cannot profit nor deliver, for they are vain. 22 For the LORD will not forsake His people for His great name's sake; because it hath pleased the LORD to make you a people unto Himself. 23 Moreover as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you; but I will instruct you in the good and the right way. 24 Only fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart; for consider how great things He hath done for you. 25 But if ye shall still do wickedly, ye shall be swept away, both ye and your king.'

1 SAMUEL 13 — 1 Saul was — years old when he began to reign; and two years he reigned over Israel. 2 And Saul chose him three thousand men of Israel; whereof two thousand were with Saul in Michmas and in the mount of Beth-el, and a thousand were with Jonathan in Gibeath-benjamin; and the rest of the people he sent every man to his tent. 3 And Jonathan smote the garrison of the Philistines that was in Geba, and the Philistines heard of it. And Saul blew the horn throughout all the land, saying: 'Let the Hebrews hear.' 4 And all Israel heard say that Saul had smitten the garrison of the Philistines, and that Israel also had made himself odious with the Philistines. And the people were gathered together after Saul to Gilgal.

5 And the Philistines assembled themselves together to fight with Israel, thirty thousand chariots, and six thousand horsemen, and people as the sand which is on the sea-shore in multitude; and they came up, and pitched in Michmas, eastward of Beth-aven. 6 When the men of Israel saw that they were in a strait-for the people were distressed-then the people did hide themselves in caves, and in thickets, and in rocks, and in holds, and in pits. 7 Now some of the Hebrews had gone over the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead; but as for Saul, he was yet in Gilgal, and all the people followed him trembling.

8 And he tarried seven days, according to the set time that Samuel had appointed; but Samuel came not to Gilgal; and the people were scattered from him. 9 And Saul said: 'Bring hither to me the burnt-offering and the peace-offerings.' And he offered the burnt-offering. 10 And it came to pass that, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt-offering, behold, Samuel came; and Saul went out to meet him, that he might salute him. 11 And Samuel said: 'What hast thou done?' And Saul said: 'Because I saw that the people were scattered from me, and that thou camest not within the days appointed, and that the Philistines assembled themselves together against Michmas; 12 therefore said I: Now will the Philistines come down upon me to Gilgal, and I have not entreated the favour of the LORD; I forced myself therefore, and offered the burnt-offering.' 13 And Samuel said to Saul: 'Thou hast done foolishly; thou hast not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which He commanded thee; for now would the LORD have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever. 14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue; the LORD hath sought him a man after His own heart, and the LORD hath appointed him to be prince over His people, because thou hast not kept that which the LORD commanded thee.'

15 And Samuel arose, and got him up from Gilgal unto Gibeath-benjamin. And Saul numbered the people that were present with him, about six hundred men. 16 And Saul, and Jonathan his son, and the people that were present with them, abode in Gibeath-benjamin; but the Philistines encamped in Michmas. 17 And the spoilers came out of the camp of the Philistines in three companies: one company turned unto the way that leadeth to Ophrah, unto the land of Shual; 18 and another company turned the way to Beth-horon; and another company turned the way of the border that looketh down upon the valley of Zeboim toward the wilderness.

19 Now there was no smith found throughout all the land of Israel; for the Philistines said: 'Lest the Hebrews make them swords or spears'; 20 but all the Israelites went down to the Philistines, to sharpen every man his plowshare, and his coulter, and his axe, and his mattock. 21 And the price of the filing was a pim for the mattocks, and for the coulters, and for the forks with three teeth, and for the axes; and to set the goads. 22 So it came to pass in the day of battle, that there was neither sword nor spear found in the hand of any of the people that were with Saul and Jonathan; but with Saul and with Jonathan his son was there found. 23 And the garrison of the Philistines went out unto the pass of Michmas.

1 SAMUEL 14 — 1 Now it fell upon a day, that Jonathan the son of Saul said unto the young man that bore his armour: 'Come and let us go over to the Philistines' garrison, that is on yonder side. But he told not his father. 2 And Saul tarried in the uttermost part of Gibeah under the pomegranate-tree which is in Migron; and the people that were with him were about six hundred men, 3 and Ahijah, the son of Ahitub, Ichabod's brother, the son of Phinehas, the son of Eli, the priest of the LORD in Shiloh, wearing an ephod. And the people knew not that Jonathan was gone. 4 And between the passes, by which Jonathan sought to go over unto the Philistines' garrison, there was a rocky crag on the one side, and a rocky crag on the other side; and the name of the one was Bozez, and the name of the other Seneh. 5 The one crag rose up on the north in front of Michmas, and the other on the south in front of Geba.

6 And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armour: 'Come and let us go over unto the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the LORD will work for us; for there is no restraint to the LORD to save by many or by few.' 7 And his armour-bearer said unto him: 'Do all that is in thy heart; turn thee, behold I am with thee according to thy heart.' 8 Then said Jonathan: 'Behold, we will pass over unto the men, and we will disclose ourselves unto them. 9 If they say thus unto us: Tarry until we come to you; then we will stand still in our place, and will not go up unto them. 10 But if they say thus: Come up unto us; then we will go up; for the LORD hath delivered them into our hand; and this shall be the sign unto us.' 11 And both of them disclosed themselves unto the garrison of the Philistines; and the Philistines said: 'Behold Hebrews coming forth out of the holes where they hid themselves.' 12 And the men of the garrison spoke to Jonathan and his armour-bearer, and said: 'Come up to us, and we will show you a thing.' And Jonathan said unto his armour-bearer: 'Come up after me; for the LORD hath delivered them into the hand of Israel.' 13 And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet, and his armour-bearer after him; and they fell before Jonathan; and his armour-bearer slew them after him. 14 And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armour-bearer made, was about twenty men, within as it were half a furrow's length in an acre of land. 15 And there was a trembling in the camp in the field, and among all the people; the garrison, and the spoilers, they also trembled; and the earth quaked; so it grew into a terror from God. 16 And the watchmen of Saul in Gibeath-benjamin looked; and, behold, the multitude melted away, and they went hither and thither.

17 Then said Saul unto the people that were with him: 'Number now, and see who is gone from us.' And when they had numbered, behold, Jonathan and his armour-bearer were not there. 18 And Saul said unto Ahijah: 'Bring hither the ark of God.' For the ark of God was there at that time with the children of Israel. 19 And it came to pass, while Saul talked unto the priest, that the tumult that was in the camp of the Philistines went on and increased; and Saul said unto the priest: 'Withdraw thy hand.' 20 And Saul and all the people that were with him were gathered together, and came to the battle; and, behold, every man's sword was against his fellow, and there was a very great discomfiture. 21 Now the Hebrews that were with the Philistines as beforetime, and that went up with them into the camp round about; even they also turned to be with the Israelites that were with Saul and Jonathan. 22 Likewise all the men of Israel that had hid themselves in the hill-country of Ephraim, when they heard that the Philistines fled, even they also followed hard after them in the battle. 23 So the LORD saved Israel that day; and the battle passed on as far as Beth-aven.

24 And the men of Israel were distressed that day; but Saul adjured the people, saying: 'Cursed be the man that eateth any food until it be evening, and I be avenged on mine enemies.' So none of the people tasted food. 25 And all the people came into the forest; and there was honey upon the ground. 26 And when the people were come unto the forest, behold a flow of honey; but no man put his hand to his mouth; for the people feared the oath. 27 But Jonathan heard not when his father charged the people with the oath; and he put forth the end of the rod that was in his hand, and dipped it in the honeycomb, and put his hand to his mouth; and his eyes brightened. 28 Then answered one of the people, and said: 'Thy father straitly charged the people with an oath, saying: Cursed be the man that eateth food this day; and the people are faint.' 29 Then said Jonathan: 'My father hath troubled the land; see, I pray you, how mine eyes are brightened, because I tasted a little of this honey. 30 How much more, if haply the people had eaten freely to-day of the spoil of their enemies which they found? had there not been then a much greater slaughter among the Philistines?' 31 And they smote of the Philistines that day from Michmas to Aijalon; and the people were very faint. 32 And the people flew upon the spoil, and took sheep, and oxen, and calves, and slew them on the ground; and the people did eat them with the blood. 33 Then they told Saul, saying: 'Behold, the people sin against the LORD, in that they eat with the blood.' And he said: 'Ye have dealt treacherously; roll a great stone unto me this day.' 34 And Saul said: 'Disperse yourselves among the people, and say unto them: Bring me hither every man his ox, and every man his sheep, and slay them here, and eat; and sin not against the LORD in eating with the blood.' And all the people brought every man his ox with him that night, and slew them there. 35 And Saul built an altar unto the LORD; the same was the first altar that he built unto the LORD.

36 And Saul said: 'Let us go down after the Philistines by night, and spoil them until the morning light, and let us not leave a man of them.' And they said: 'Do whatsoever seemeth good unto thee.' Then said the priest: 'Let us draw near hither unto God.' 37 And Saul asked counsel of God: 'Shall I go down after the Philistines? wilt Thou deliver them into the hand of Israel?' But He answered him not that day. 38 And Saul said: 'Draw nigh hither, all ye chiefs of the people; and know and see wherein this sin hath been this day. 39 For, as the LORD liveth, who saveth Israel, though it be in Jonathan my son, he shall surely die.' But there was not a man among all the people that answered him. 40 Then said he unto all Israel: 'Be ye on one side, and I and Jonathan my son will be on the other side.' And the people said unto Saul: 'Do what seemeth good unto thee.' 41 Therefore Saul said unto the LORD, the God of Israel: 'Declare the right.' And Jonathan and Saul were taken by lot; but the people escaped. 42 And Saul said: 'Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son.' And Jonathan was taken. 43 Then Saul said to Jonathan: 'Tell me what thou hast done.' And Jonathan told him, and said: 'I did certainly taste a little honey with the end of the rod that was in my hand; here am I: I will die.' 44 And Saul said: 'God do so and more also; thou shalt surely die, Jonathan.' 45 And the people said unto Saul: 'Shall Jonathan die, who hath wrought this great salvation in Israel? Far from it; as the LORD liveth, there shall not one hair of his head fall to the ground; for he hath wrought with God this day.' So the people rescued Jonathan, that he died not. 46 Then Saul went up from following the Philistines; and the Philistines went to their own place.

47 So Saul took the kingdom over Israel, and fought against all his enemies on every side, against Moab, and against the children of Ammon, and against Edom, and against the kings of Zobah, and against the Philistines; and whithersoever he turned himself, he put them to the worse. 48 And he did valiantly, and smote the Amalekites, and delivered Israel out of the hands of them that spoiled them.

49 Now the sons of Saul were Jonathan, and Ishvi, and Malchi-shua; and the names of his two daughters were these: the name of the first-born Merab, and the name of the younger Michal; 50 and the name of Saul's wife was Ahinoam the daughter of Ahimaaz; and the name of the captain of his host was Abner, the son of Ner, Saul's uncle. 51 And Kish was the father of Saul, and Ner the father of Abner was the son of Abiel.

52 And there was sore war against the Philistines all the days of Saul; and when Saul saw any mighty man, or any valiant man, he took him unto him.

1 SAMUEL 15 — 1 And Samuel said unto Saul: 'The LORD sent me to anoint thee to be king over His people, over Israel; now therefore hearken thou unto the voice of the words of the LORD. 2 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: I remember that which Amalek did to Israel, how he set himself against him in the way, when he came up out of Egypt. 3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.'

4 And Saul summoned the people, and numbered them in Telaim, two hundred thousand footmen, and ten thousand men of Judah. 5 And Saul came to the city of Amalek, and lay in wait in the valley. 6 And Saul said unto the Kenites: 'Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites, lest I destroy you with them; for ye showed kindness to all the children of Israel, when they came up out of Egypt.' So the Kenites departed from among the Amalekites. 7 And Saul smote the Amalekites, from Havilah as thou goest to Shur, that is in front of Egypt. 8 And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword. 9 But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, even the young of the second birth, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them; but every thing that was of no account and feeble, that they destroyed utterly.

10 Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying: 11 'It repenteth Me that I have set up Saul to be king; for he is turned back from following Me, and hath not performed My commandments.' And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. 12 And Samuel rose early to meet Saul in the morning; and it was told Samuel, saying: 'Saul came to Carmel, and, behold, he is setting him up a monument, and is gone about, and passed on, and gone down to Gilgal.' 13 And Samuel came to Saul; and Saul said unto him: 'Blessed be thou of the LORD; I have performed the commandment of the LORD.' 14 And Samuel said: 'What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?' 15 And Saul said: 'They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God; and the rest we have utterly destroyed.' 16 Then Samuel said unto Saul: 'Stay, and I will tell thee what the LORD hath said to me this night.' And he said unto him: 'Say on.'

17 And Samuel said: 'Though thou be little in thine own sight, art thou not head of the tribes of Israel? And the LORD anointed thee king over Israel; 18 and the LORD sent thee on a journey, and said: Go and utterly destroy the sinners the Amalekites, and fight against them until they be consumed. 19 Wherefore then didst thou not hearken to the voice of the LORD, but didst fly upon the spoil, and didst that which was evil in the sight of the LORD?' 20 And Saul said unto Samuel: 'Yea, I have hearkened to the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. 21 But the people took of the spoil, sheep and oxen, the chief of the devoted things, to sacrifice unto the LORD thy God in Gilgal.' 22 And Samuel said:

'Hath the LORD as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices,

As in hearkening to the voice of the LORD?

Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice,

And to hearken than the fat of rams.

23 For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft,

And stubbornness is as idolatry and teraphim.

Because thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, He hath also rejected thee from being king.' 24 And Saul said unto Samuel: 'I have sinned; for I have transgressed the commandment of the LORD, and thy words; because I feared the people, and hearkened to their voice. 25 Now therefore, I pray thee, pardon my sin, and return with me, that I may worship the LORD.' 26 And Samuel said unto Saul: 'I will not return with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of the LORD, and the LORD hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.' 27 And as Samuel turned about to go away, he laid hold upon the skirt of his robe, and it rent. 28 And Samuel said unto him: 'The LORD hath rent the kingdom of Israel from thee this day, and hath given it to a neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. 29 And also the Glory of Israel will not lie nor repent; for He is not a man, that He should repent.' 30 Then he said: 'I have sinned; yet honour me now, I pray thee, before the elders of my people, and before Israel, and return with me, that I may worship the LORD thy God.' 31 So Samuel returned after Saul; and Saul worshipped the LORD.

32 Then said Samuel: 'Bring ye hither to me Agag the king of the Amalekites.' And Agag came unto him in chains. And Agag said: 'Surely the bitterness of death is at hand.' 33 And Samuel said:

As thy sword hath made women childless,

So shall thy mother be childless among women.

And Samuel hewed Agag in pieces before the LORD in Gilgal.

34 Then Samuel went to Ramah; and Saul went up to his house to Gibeath-shaul. 35 And Samuel never beheld Saul again until the day of his death; for Samuel mourned for Saul; and the LORD repented that He had made Saul king over Israel.

1 SAMUEL 16 — 1 And the LORD said unto Samuel: 'How long wilt thou mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from being king over Israel? fill thy horn with oil, and go, I will send thee to Jesse the Beth-lehemite; for I have provided Me a king among his sons.' 2 And Samuel said: 'How can I go? if Saul hear it, he will kill me.' And the LORD said: 'Take a heifer with thee, and say: I am come to sacrifice to the LORD. 3 And call Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will tell thee what thou shalt do; and thou shalt anoint unto Me him whom I name unto thee.' 4 And Samuel did that which the LORD spoke, and came to Beth-lehem. And the elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said: 'Comest thou peaceably?' 5 And he said: 'Peaceably; I am come to sacrifice unto the LORD; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice.' And he sanctified Jesse and his sons, and called them to the sacrifice. 6 And it came to pass, when they were come, that he beheld Eliab, and said: 'Surely the LORD'S anointed is before Him.' 7 But the LORD said unto Samuel: 'Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have rejected him; for it is not as man seeth: for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart.' 8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said: 'Neither hath the LORD chosen this.' 9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said: 'Neither hath the LORD chosen this.' 10 And Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse: 'The LORD hath not chosen these.' 11 And Samuel said unto Jesse: 'Are here all thy children?' And he said: 'There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep.' And Samuel said unto Jesse: 'Send and fetch him; for we will not sit down till he come hither.' 12 And he sent, and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and withal of beautiful eyes, and goodly to look upon. And the LORD said: 'Arise, anoint him; for this is he.' 13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren; and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 14 Now the spirit of the LORD had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the LORD terrified him. 15 And Saul's servants said unto him: 'Behold now, an evil spirit from God terrifieth thee. 16 Let our lord now command thy servants, that are before thee, to seek out a man who is a skilful player on the harp; and it shall be, when the evil spirit from God cometh upon thee, that he shall play with his hand, and thou shalt be well.' 17 And Saul said unto his servants: 'Provide me now a man that can play well, and bring him to me.' 18 Then answered one of the young men, and said: 'Behold, I have seen a son of Jesse the Beth-lehemite, that is skilful in playing, and a mighty man of valour, and a man of war, and prudent in affairs, and a comely person, and the LORD is with him.' 19 Wherefore Saul sent messengers unto Jesse, and said: 'Send me David thy son, who is with the sheep.' 20 And Jesse took an ass laden with bread, and a bottle of wine, and a kid, and sent them by David his son unto Saul. 21 And David came to Saul, and stood before him; and he loved him greatly; and he became his armour-bearer. 22 And Saul sent to Jesse, saying: 'Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight.' 23 And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took the harp, and played with his hand; so Saul found relief, and it was well with him, and the evil spirit departed from him.

1 SAMUEL 17 — 1 Now the Philistines gathered together their armies to battle, and they were gathered together at Socoh, which belongeth to Judah, and pitched between Socoh and Azekah, in Ephes-dammim. 2 And Saul and the men of Israel were gathered together, and pitched in the vale of Elah, and set the battle in array against the Philistines. 3 And the Philistines stood on the mountain on the one side, and Israel stood on the mountain on the other side; and there was a valley between them. 4 And there went out a champion from the camp of the Philistines, named Goliath, of Gath, whose height was six cubits and a span. 5 And he had a helmet of brass upon his head, and he was clad with a coat of mail; and the weight of the coat was five thousand shekels of brass. 6 And he had greaves of brass upon his legs, and a javelin of brass between his shoulders. 7 And the shaft of his spear was like a weaver's beam; and his spear's head weighed six hundred shekels of iron; and his shield-bearer went before him. 8 And he stood and cried unto the armies of Israel, and said unto them: 'Why do ye come out to set your battle in array? am not I a Philistine, and ye servants to Saul? choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. 9 If he be able to fight with me, and kill me, then will we be your servants; but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.' 10 And the Philistine said: 'I do taunt the armies of Israel this day; give me a man, that we may fight together.' 11 And when Saul and all Israel heard those words of the Philistine, they were dismayed, and greatly afraid.

12 Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Beth-lehem in Judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons; and the man was an old man in the days of Saul, stricken in years among men. 13 And the three eldest sons of Jesse had gone after Saul to the battle; and the names of his three sons that went to the battle were Eliab the first-born, and next unto him Abinadab, and the third Shammah. 14 And David was the youngest; and the three eldest followed Saul.-15 Now David went to and fro from Saul to feed his father's sheep at Beth-lehem.-16 And the Philistine drew near morning and evening, and presented himself forty days.

17 And Jesse said unto David his son: 'Take now for thy brethren an ephah of this parched corn, and these ten loaves, and carry them quickly to the camp to thy brethren. 18 And bring these ten cheeses unto the captain of their thousand, and to thy brethren shalt thou bring greetings, and take their pledge; 19 now Saul, and they, and all the men of Israel, are in the vale of Elah, fighting with the Philistines.' 20 And David rose up early in the morning, and left the sheep with a keeper, and took, and went, as Jesse had commanded him; and he came to the barricade, as the host which was going forth to the fight shouted for the battle. 21 And Israel and the Philistines put the battle in array, army against army. 22 And David left his baggage in the hand of the keeper of the baggage, and ran to the army, and came and greeted his brethren. 23 And as he talked with them, behold, there came up the champion, the Philistine of Gath, Goliath by name, out of the ranks of the Philistines, and spoke according to the same words; and David heard them. 24 And all the men of Israel, when they saw the man, fled from him, and were sore afraid. 25 And the men of Israel said: 'Have ye seen this man that is come up? surely to taunt Israel is he come up; and it shall be, that the man who killeth him, the king will enrich him with great riches, and will give him his daughter, and make his father's house free in Israel.'

26 And David spoke to the men that stood by him, saying: 'What shall be done to the man that killeth this Philistine, and taketh away the taunt from Israel? for who is this uncircumcised Philistine, that he should have taunted the armies of the living God?' 27 And the people answered him after this manner, saying: 'So shall it be done to the man that killeth him.' 28 And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spoke unto the men; and Eliab's anger was kindled against David, and he said: 'Why art thou come down? and with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy presumptuousness, and the naughtiness of thy heart; for thou art come down that thou mightest see the battle.' 29 And David said: 'What have I now done? Was it not but a word?' 30 And he turned away from him toward another, and spoke after the same manner; and the people answered him after the former manner.

31 And when the words were heard which David spoke, they rehearsed them before Saul; and he was taken to him. 32 And David said to Saul: 'Let no man's heart fail within him; thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine.' 33 And Saul said to David: 'Thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him; for thou art but a youth, and he a man of war from his youth.' 34 And David said unto Saul: 'Thy servant kept his father's sheep; and when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock, 35 I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth; and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him. 36 Thy servant smote both the lion and the bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath taunted the armies of the living God.' 37 And David said: 'The LORD that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine.' And Saul said unto David: 'Go, and the LORD shall be with thee.' 38 And Saul clad David with his apparel, and he put a helmet of brass upon his head, and he clad him with a coat of mail. 39 And David girded his sword upon his apparel, and he essayed to go,but could not; for he had not tried it. And David said unto Saul: 'I cannot go with these; for I have not tried them.' And David put them off him. 40 And he took his staff in his hand, and chose him five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them in the shepherd's bag which he had, even in his scrip; and his sling was in his hand; and he drew near to the Philistine.

41 And the Philistine came nearer and nearer unto David; and the man that bore the shield went before him. 42 And when the Philistine looked about, and saw David, he disdained him; for he was but a youth, and ruddy, and withal of a fair countenance. 43 And the Philistine said unto David: 'Am I a dog, that thou comest to me with staves?' And the Philistine cursed David by his god. 44 And the Philistine said to David: 'Come to me, and I will give thy flesh unto the fowls of the air, and to the beasts of the field.' 45 Then said David to the Philistine: 'Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a javelin; but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast taunted. 46 This day will the LORD deliver thee into my hand; and I will smite thee, and take thy head from off thee; and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel; 47 and that all this assembly may know that the LORD saveth not with sword and spear; for the battle is the LORD'S, and He will give you into our hand.' 48 And it came to pass, when the Philistine arose, and came and drew nigh to meet David, that David hastened, and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slung it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead; and the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell upon his face to the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and with a stone, and smote the Philistine, and slew him; but there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 And David ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath thereof, and slew him, and cut off his head therewith. And when the Philistines saw that their mighty man was dead, they fled. 52 And the men of Israel and of Judah arose, and shouted, and pursued the Philistines, until thou comest to Gai, and to the gates of Ekron. And the wounded of the Philistines fell down by the way to Shaaraim, even unto Gath, and unto Ekron. 53 And the children of Israel returned from chasing after the Philistines, and they spoiled their camp. 54 And David took the head of the philistine, and brought it to Jerusalem; but he put his armour in his tent.

55 And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host: 'Abner, whose son is this youth?' And Abner said: 'As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell.' 56 And the king said: 'Inquire thou whose son the stripling is.' 57 And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58 And Saul said to him: 'Whose son art thou, thou young man?' And David answered: 'I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Beth-lehemite.'

1 SAMUEL 18 — 1 And it came to pass, when he had made an end of speaking unto Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. 2 And Saul took him that day, and would let him go no more home to his father's house. 3 Then Jonathan made a covenant with David, because he loved him as his own soul. 4 And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was upon him, and gave it to David, and his apparel, even to his sword, and to his bow, and to his girdle. 5 And David went out; whithersoever Saul sent him, he had good success; and Saul set him over the men of war; and it was good in the sight of all the people, and also in the sight of Saul's servants.

6 And it came to pass as they came, when David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, that the women came out of all the cities of Israel, singing and dancing, to meet king Saul, with timbrels, with joy, and with three-stringed instruments. 7 And the women sang one to another in their play, and said:

Saul hath slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands.

8 And Saul was very wroth, and this saying displeased him; and he said: 'They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands; and all he lacketh is the kingdom!' 9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.

10 And it came to pass on the morrow, that an evil spirit from God came mightily upon Saul, and he raved in the midst of the house; and David played with his hand, as he did day by day; and Saul had his spear in his hand. 11 And Saul cast the spear; for he said: 'I will smite David even to the wall.' And David stepped aside out of his presence twice. 12 And Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with him, and was departed from Saul. 13 Therefore Saul removed him from him, and made him his captain over a thousand; and he went out and came in before the people. 14 And David had great success in all his ways; and the LORD was with him. 15 And when Saul saw that he had great success, he stood in awe of him. 16 But all Israel and Judah loved David; for he went out and came in before them.

17 And Saul said to David: 'Behold my elder daughter Merab, her will I give thee to wife; only be thou valiant for me, and fight the LORD'S battles.' For Saul said: 'Let not my hand be upon him, but let the hand of the Philistines be upon him.' 18 And David said unto Saul: 'Who am I, and what is my life, or my father's family in Israel, that I should be son-in-law to the king?' 19 But it came to pass at the time when Merab Saul's daughter should have been given to David, that she was given unto Adriel the Meholathite to wife. 20 And Michal Saul's daughter loved David; and they told Saul, and the thing pleased him. 21 And Saul said: 'I will give him her, that she may be a snare to him, and that the hand of the Philistines may be against him.' Wherefore Saul said to David: 'Thou shalt this day be my son-in-law through the one of the twain.' 22 And Saul commanded his servants: 'Speak with David secretly, and say: Behold, the king hath delight in thee, and all his servants love thee; now therefore be the king's son-in-law.' 23 And Saul's servants spoke those words in the ears of David. And David said: 'Seemeth it to you a light thing to be the king's son-in-law, seeing that I am a poor man, and lightly esteemed?' 24 And the servants of Saul told him, saying: 'On this manner spoke David.' 25 And Saul said: 'Thus shall ye say to David: The king desireth not any dowry, but a hundred foreskins of the Philistines, to be avenged of the king's enemies.' For Saul thought to make David fall by the hand of the Philistines. 26 And when his servants told David these words, it pleased David well to be the king's son-in-law. And the days were not expired; 27 and David arose and went, he and his men, and slew of the Philistines two hundred men; and David brought their foreskins, and they gave them in full number to the king, that he might be the king's son-in-law. And Saul gave him Michal his daughter to wife. 28 And Saul saw and knew that the LORD was with David; and Michal Saul's daughter loved him. 29 And Saul was yet the more afraid of David; and Saul was David's enemy continually.

30 Then the princes of the Philistines went forth; and it came to pass, as often as they went forth, that David prospered more than all the servants of Saul; so that his name was much set by.

1 SAMUEL 19 — 1 And Saul spoke to Jonathan his son, and to all his servants, that they should slay David; but Jonathan Saul's son delighted much in David. 2 And Jonathan told David, saying: 'Saul my father seeketh to slay thee; now therefore, I pray thee, take heed to thyself in the morning, and abide in a secret place, and hide thyself. 3 And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where thou art, and I will speak with my father of thee; and if I see aught, I will tell thee.'

4 And Jonathan spoke good of David unto Saul his father, and said unto him: 'Let not the king sin against his servant, against David; because he hath not sinned against thee, and because his work hath been very good towards thee; 5 for he put his life in his hand, and smote the Philistine, and the LORD wrought a great victory for all Israel; thou sawest it, and didst rejoice; wherefore then wilt thou sin against innocent blood, to slay David without a cause?' 6 And Saul hearkened unto the voice of Jonathan; and Saul swore: 'As the LORD liveth, he shall not be put to death.' 7 And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan told him all those things. And Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as beforetime.

8 And there was war again; and David went out, and fought with the Philistines, and slew them with a great slaughter; and they fled before him. 9 And an evil spirit from the LORD was upon Saul, as he sat in his house with his spear in his hand; and David was playing with his hand. 10 And Saul sought to smite David even to the wall with the spear; but he slipped away out of Saul's presence, and he smote the spear into the wall; and David fled, and escaped that night. 11 And Saul sent messengers unto David's house, to watch him, and to slay him in the morning; and Michal David's wife told him, saying: 'If thou save not thy life to-night, to-morrow thou shalt be slain.' 12 So Michal let David down through the window; and he went, and fled, and escaped. 13 And Michal took the teraphim, and laid it in the bed, and put a quilt of goats' hair at the head thereof, and covered it with a cloth. 14 And when Saul sent messengers to take David, she said: 'He is sick.' 15 And Saul sent the messengers to see David, saying: 'Bring him up to me in the bed, that I may slay him.' 16 And when the messengers came in, behold, the teraphim was in the bed, with the quilt of goats' hair at the head thereof. 17 And Saul said unto Michal: 'Why hast thou deceived me thus, and let mine enemy go, that he is escaped?' And Michal answered Saul: 'He said unto me: Let me go; why should I kill thee?'

18 Now David fled, and escaped, and came to Samuel to Ramah, and told him all that Saul had done to him. And he and Samuel went and dwelt in Naioth. 19 And it was told Saul, saying: 'Behold, David is at Naioth in Ramah.' 20 And Saul sent messengers to take David; and when they saw the company of the prophets prophesying, and Samuel standing as head over them, the spirit of God came upon the messengers of Saul, and they also prophesied. 21 And when it was told Saul, he sent other messengers, and they also prophesied. And Saul sent messengers again the third time, and they also prophesied. 22 Then went he also to Ramah, and came to the great cistern that is in Secu; and he asked and said: 'Where are Samuel and David?' And one said: 'Behold, they are at Naioth in Ramah.' 23 And he went thither to Naioth in Ramah; and the spirit of God came upon him also, and he went on, and prophesied, until he came to Naioth in Ramah. 24 And he also stripped off his clothes, and he also prophesied before Samuel, and lay down naked all that day and all that night. Wherefore they say: 'Is Saul also among the prophets?'

1 SAMUEL 20 — 1 And David fled from Naioth in Ramah, and came and said before Jonathan: 'What have I done? what is mine iniquity? and what is my sin before thy father, that he seeketh my life?' 2 And he said unto him: 'Far from it; thou shalt not die; behold, my father doeth nothing either great or small, but that he discloseth it unto me; and why should my father hide this thing from me? it is not so.' 3 And David swore moreover, and said: 'Thy father knoweth well that I have found favour in thine eyes; and he saith: Let not Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved; but truly as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, there is but a step between me and death.' 4 Then said Jonathan unto David: 'What doth thy soul desire, that I should do it for thee?' 5 And David said unto Jonathan: 'Behold, to-morrow is the new moon, when I should sit with the king to eat; so let me go, that I may hide myself in the field unto the third day at even. 6 If thy father miss me at all, then say: David earnestly asked leave of me that he might run to Beth-lehem his city; for it is the yearly sacrifice there for all the family. 7 If he say thus: It is well; thy servant shall have peace; but if he be wroth, then know that evil is determined by him. 8 Therefore deal kindly with thy servant; for thou hast brought thy servant into a covenant of the LORD with thee; but if there be in me iniquity, slay me thyself; for why shouldest thou bring me to thy father?' 9 And Jonathan said: 'Far be it from thee; for if I should at all know that evil were determined by my father to come upon thee, then would not I tell it thee? 10 Then said David to Jonathan: 'Who shall tell me if perchance thy father answer thee roughly?' 11 And Jonathan said unto David: 'Come and let us go out into the field.' And they went out both of them into the field.

12 And Jonathan said unto David: `The LORD, the God of Israel-when I have sounded my father about this time to-morrow, or the third day, behold, if there be good toward David, shall I not then send unto thee, and disclose it unto thee? 13 The LORD do so to Jonathan, and more also, should it please my father to do thee evil, if I disclose it not unto thee, and send thee away, that thou mayest go in peace; and the LORD be with thee, as He hath been with my father. 14 And thou shalt not only while yet I live show me the kindness of the LORD, that I die not; 15 but also thou shalt not cut off thy kindness from my house for ever; no, not when the LORD hath cut off the enemies of David every one from the face of the earth.' 16 So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David: 'The LORD even require it at the hand of David's enemies.' 17 And Jonathan caused David to swear again, for the love that he had to him; for he loved him as he loved his own soul.

18 And Jonathan said unto him: 'To-morrow is the new moon; and thou wilt be missed, thy seat will be empty. 19 And in the third day thou shalt hide thyself well, and come to the place where thou didst hide thyself in the day of work, and shalt remain by the stone Ezel. 20 And I will shoot three arrows to the side-ward, as though I shot at a mark. 21 And, behold, I will send the lad: Go, find the arrows. If I say unto the lad: Behold, the arrows are on this side of thee; take them, and come; for there is peace to thee and no hurt, as the LORD liveth. 22 But if I say thus unto the boy: Behold, the arrows are beyond thee; go thy way; for the LORD hath sent thee away. 23 And as touching the matter which I and thou have spoken of, behold, the LORD is between me and thee for ever.'

24 So David hid himself in the field; and when the new moon was come, the king sat him down to the meal to eat. 25 And the king sat upon his seat, as at other times, even upon the seat by the wall; and Jonathan stood up, and Abner sat by Saul's side; but David's place was empty. 26 Nevertheless Saul spoke not any thing that day; for he thought: 'Something hath befallen him, he is unclean; surely he is not clean.' 27 And it came to pass on the morrow after the new moon, which was the second day, that David's place was empty; and Saul said unto Jonathan his son: 'Wherefore cometh not the son of Jesse to the meal, neither yesterday, nor to-day?' 28 And Jonathan answered Saul: 'David earnestly asked leave of me to go to Beth-lehem; 29 and he said: Let me go, I pray thee; for our family hath a sacrifice in the city; and my brother, he hath commanded me; and now, if I have found favour in thine eyes, let me get away, I pray thee, and see my brethren. Therefore he is not come unto the king's table.'

30 Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said unto him: 'Thou son of perverse rebellion, do not I know that thou hast chosen the son of Jesse to thine own shame, and unto the shame of thy mother's nakedness? 31 For as long as the son of Jesse liveth upon the earth, thou shalt not be established, nor thy kingdom. Wherefore now send and fetch him unto me, for he deserveth to die.' 32 And Jonathan answered Saul his father, and said unto him: 'Wherefore should he be put to death? what hath he done?' 33 And Saul cast his spear at him to smite him; whereby Jonathan knew that it was determined of his father to put David to death. 34 So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and did eat no food the second day of the month; for he was grieved for David, and because his father had put him to shame.

35 And it came to pass in the morning, that Jonathan went out into the field at the time appointed with David, and a little lad with him. 36 And he said unto his lad: 'Run, find now the arrows which I shoot.' And as the lad ran, he shot an arrow beyond him. 37 And when the lad was come to the place of the arrow which Jonathan had shot, Jonathan cried after the lad, and said: `Is not the arrow beyond thee?' 38 And Jonathan cried after the lad: 'Make speed, hasten, stay not.' And Jonathan's lad gathered up the arrows, and came to his master. 39 But the lad knew not any thing; only Jonathan and David knew the matter. 40 And Jonathan gave his weapons unto his lad, and said unto him: 'Go, carry them to the city.' 41 And as soon as the lad was gone, David arose out of a place toward the South, and fell on his face to the ground, and bowed down three times; and they kissed one another, and wept one with another, until David exceeded. 42 And Jonathan said to David: 'Go in peace, forasmuch as we have sworn both of us in the name of the LORD, saying: The LORD shall be between me and thee, and between my seed and thy seed, for ever.' 1 SAMUEL 21 — 1 And he arose and departed; and Jonathan went into the city.

2 Then came David to Nob to Ahimelech the priest; and Ahimelech came to meet David trembling, and said unto him: 'Why art thou alone, and no man with thee?' 3 And David said unto Ahimelech the priest: 'The king hath commanded me a business, and hath said unto me: Let no man know any thing of the business whereabout I send thee, and what I have commanded thee; and the young men have I appointed to such and such a place. 4 Now therefore what is under thy hand? five loaves of bread? give them in my hand, or whatsoever there is present.' 5 And the priest answered David, and said: 'There is no common bread under my hand, but there is holy bread; if only the young men have kept themselves from women.' 6 And David answered the priest, and said unto him: 'Of a truth women have been kept from us about these three days; when I came out, the vessels of the young men were holy, though it was but a common journey; how much more then to-day, when there shall be holy bread in their vessels?' 7 So the priest gave him holy bread; for there was no bread there but the showbread, that was taken from before the LORD, to put hot bread in the day when it was taken away.-8 Now a certain man of the servants of Saul was there that day, detained before the LORD; and his name was Doeg the Edomite, the chiefest of the herdmen that belonged to Saul.-9 And David said unto Ahimelech: 'And is there peradventure here under thy hand spear or sword? for I have neither brought my sword nor my weapons with me, because the king's business required haste.' 10 And the priest said: 'The sword of Goliath the Philistine, whom thou slewest in the vale of Elah, behold, it is here wrapped in a cloth behind the ephod; if thou wilt take that, take it; for there is no other save that here.' And David said: 'There is none like that; give it me.'

11 And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath. 12 And the servants of Achish said unto him: 'Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing one to another of him in dances, saying:

Saul hath slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands?'

13 And David laid up these words in his heart, and was sore afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 14 And he changed his demeanour before them, and feigned himself mad in their hands, and scrabbled on the doors of the gate, and let his spittle fall down upon his beard. 15 Then said Achish unto his servants: 'Lo, when ye see a man that is mad, wherefore do ye bring him to me? 16 Do I lack madmen, that ye have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? shall this fellow come into my house?'

1 SAMUEL 22 — 1 David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave of Adullam; and when his brethren and all his father's house heard it, they went down thither to him. 2 And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became captain over them; and there were with him about four hundred men.

3 And David went thence to Mizpeh of Moab; and he said unto the king of Moab: 'Let my father and my mother, I pray thee, come forth, and be with you, till I know what God will do for me.' 4 And he brought them before the king of Moab; and they dwelt with him all the while that David was in the stronghold. 5 And the prophet Gad said unto David: 'Abide not in the stronghold; depart, and get thee into the land of Judah.' Then David departed, and came into the forest of Hereth.

6 And Saul heard that David was discovered, and the men that were with him; now Saul was sitting in Gibeah, under the tamarisk-tree in Ramah, with his spear in his hand, and all his servants were standing about him. 7 And Saul said unto his servants that stood about him: 'Hear now, ye Benjamites; will the son of Jesse give every one of you fields and vineyards, will he make you all captains of thousands and captains of hundreds; 8 that all of you have conspired against me, and there was none that disclosed it to me when my son made a league with the son of Jesse, and there is none of you that is sorry for me, or discloseth unto me that my son hath stirred up my servant against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?' 9 Then answered Doeg the Edomite, who was set over the servants of Saul, and said: 'I saw the son of Jesse coming to Nob, to Ahimelech the son of Ahitub. 10 And he inquired of the LORD for him, and gave him victuals, and gave him the sword of Goliath the Philistine.'

11 Then the king sent to call Ahimelech the priest, the son of Ahitub, and all his father's house, the priests that were in Nob; and they came all of them to the king. 12 And Saul said: 'Hear now, thou son of Ahitub.' And he answered: 'Here I am, my lord.' 13 And Saul said unto him: 'Why have ye conspired against me, thou and the son of Jesse, in that thou hast given him bread, and a sword, and hast inquired of God for him, that he should rise against me, to lie in wait, as at this day?' 14 Then Ahimelech answered the king, and said: 'And who among all thy servants is so trusted as David, who is the king's son-in-law, and giveth heed unto thy bidding, and is honourable in thy house? 15 Have I to-day begun to inquire of God for him? be it far from me; let not the king impute any thing unto his servant, nor to all the house of my father; for thy servant knoweth nothing of all this, less or more.' 16 And the king said: 'Thou shalt surely die, Ahimelech, thou, and all thy father's house.' 17 And the king said unto the guard that stood about him: 'Turn, and slay the priests of the LORD; because their hand also is with David, and because they knew that he fled, and did not disclose it to me.' But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the LORD. 18 And the king said to Doeg: 'Turn thou, and fall upon the priests.' And Doeg the Edomite turned, and he fell upon the priests, and he slew on that day fourscore and five persons that did wear a linen ephod. 19 And Nob, the city of the priests, smote he with the edge of the sword, both men and women, children and sucklings, and oxen and asses and sheep, with the edge of the sword. 20 And one of the sons of Ahimelech the son of Ahitub, named Abiathar, escaped, and fled after David. 21 And Abiathar told David that Saul had slain the LORD'S priests. 22 And David said unto Abiathar: 'I knew on that day, when Doeg the Edomite was there, that he would surely tell Saul; I have brought about the death of all the persons of thy father's house. 23 Abide thou with me, fear not; for he that seeketh my life seeketh thy life; for with me thou shalt be in safeguard.'

1 SAMUEL 23 — 1 And they told David, saying: 'Behold, the Philistines are fighting against Keilah, and they rob the threshing-floors.' 2 Therefore David inquired of the LORD, saying: 'Shall I go and smite these Philistines?' And the LORD said unto David: 'Go, and smite the Philistines, and save Keilah.' 3 And David's men said unto him: 'Behold, we are afraid here in Judah; how much more then if we go to Keilah against the armies of the Philistines?' 4 Then David inquired of the LORD yet again. And the LORD answered him and said: 'Arise, go down to Keilah; for I will deliver the Philistines into thy hand.' 5 And David and his men went to Keilah, and fought with the Philistines, and brought away their cattle, and slew them with a great slaughter. So David saved the inhabitants of Keilah.

6 And it came to pass, when Abiathar the son of Ahimelech fled to David to Keilah, that he came down with an ephod in his hand. 7 And it was told Saul that David was come to Keilah. And Saul said: 'God hath delivered him into my hand; for he is shut in, by entering into a town that hath gates and bars.' 8 And Saul summoned all the people to war, to go down to Keilah, to besiege David and his men. 9 And David knew that Saul devised mischief against him; and he said to Abiathar the priest: 'Bring hither the ephod.' 10 Then said David: 'O LORD, the God of Israel, Thy servant hath surely heard that Saul seeketh to come to Keilah, to destroy the city for my sake. 11 Will the men of Keilah deliver me up into his hand? will Saul come down, as Thy servant hath heard?' O LORD, the God of Israel, I beseech Thee, tell Thy servant.' And the LORD said: 'He will come down.' 12 Then said David: 'Will the men of Keilah deliver up me and my men into the hand of Saul?' And the LORD said: 'They will deliver thee up.' 13 Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed out of Keilah, and went whithersoever they could go. And it was told Saul that David was escaped from Keilah; and he forbore to go forth.

14 And David abode in the wilderness in the strongholds, and remained in the hill-country in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand. 15 And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life; and David was in the wilderness of Ziph in the wood. 16 And Jonathan Saul's son arose, and went to David into the wood, and strengthened his hand in God. 17 And he said unto him: 'Fear not; for the hand of Saul my father shall not find thee; and thou shalt be king over Israel, and I shall be next unto thee; and that also Saul my father knoweth.' 18 And they two made a covenant before the LORD; and David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house.

19 Then came up the Ziphites to Saul to Gibeah, saying: 'Doth not David hide himself with us in the strongholds in the wood, in the hill of Hachilah, which is on the south of Jeshimon? 20 Now therefore, O king, come down, according to all the desire of thy soul to come down; and our part shall be to deliver him up into the king's hand.' 21 And Saul said: 'Blessed be ye of the LORD; for ye have had compassion on me. 22 Go, I pray you, make yet more sure, and know and see his place where his haunt is, and who hath seen him there; for it is told me that he dealeth very subtly. 23 See therefore, and take knowledge of all the lurking-places where he hideth himself, and come ye back to me with the certainty, and I will go with you; and it shall come to pass, if he be in the land, that I will search him out among all the thousands of Judah.' 24 And they arose, and went to Ziph before Saul; but David and his men were in the wilderness of Maon, in the Arabah on the south of Jeshimon. 25 And Saul and his men went to seek him. And they told David; wherefore he came down to the rock, and abode in the wilderness of Maon. And when Saul heard that, he pursued after David in the wilderness of Maon. 26 And Saul went on this side of the mountain, and David and his men on that side of the mountain; and David made haste to get away for fear of Saul; for Saul and his men compassed David and his men round about to take them. 27 But there came a messenger unto Saul, saying: 'Haste thee, and come; for the Philistines have made a raid upon the land.' 28 So Saul returned from pursuing after David, and went against the Philistines; therefore they called that place Sela-hammahlekoth. 1 SAMUEL 24 — 1 And David went up from thence, and dwelt in the strongholds of En-gedi.

2 And it came to pass, when Saul was returned from following the Philistines, that it was told him, saying: 'Behold, David is in the wilderness of En-gedi.' 3 Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men upon the rocks of the wild goats. 4 And he came to the sheepcotes by the way, where was a cave; and Saul went in to cover his feet. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. 5 And the men of David said unto him: 'Behold the day in which the LORD hath said unto thee: Behold, I will deliver thine enemy into thy hand, and thou shalt do to him as it shall seem good unto thee.' Then David arose, and cut off the skirt of Saul's robe privily. 6 And it came to pass afterward, that David's heart smote him, because he had cut off Saul's skirt. 7 And he said unto his men: 'The LORD forbid it me, that I should do this thing unto my lord, the LORD'S anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing he is the LORD'S anointed.' 8 So David checked his men with these words, and suffered them not to rise against Saul. And Saul rose up out of the cave, and went on his way.

9 David also arose afterward, and went out of the cave, and cried after Saul, saying: 'My lord the king.' And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth, and prostrated himself. 10 And David said to Saul: 'Wherefore hearkenest thou to men's words, saying: Behold, David seeketh thy hurt? 11 Behold, this day thine eyes have seen how that the LORD had delivered thee to-day into my hand in the cave; and some bade me kill thee; but mine eye spared thee; and I said: I will not put forth my hand against my lord; for he is the LORD'S anointed. 12 Moreover, my father, see, yea, see the skirt of thy robe in my hand; for in that I cut off the skirt of thy robe, and killed thee not, know thou and see that there is neither evil nor transgression in my hand, and I have not sinned against thee, though thou layest wait for my soul to take it. 13 The LORD judge between me and thee, and the LORD avenge me of thee; but my hand shall not be upon thee. 14 As saith the proverb of the ancients: Out of the wicked cometh forth wickedness; but my hand shall not be upon thee. 15 After whom is the king of Israel come out? after whom dost thou pursue? after a dead dog, after a flea. 16 The LORD therefore be judge, and give sentence between me and thee, and see, and plead my cause, and deliver me out of thy hand.'

17 And it came to pass, when David had made an end of speaking these words unto Saul, that Saul said: 'Is this thy voice, my son David?' And Saul lifted up his voice, and wept. 18 And he said to David: `Thou art more righteous than I; for thou hast rendered unto me good, whereas I have rendered unto thee evil. 19 And thou hast declared this day how that thou hast dealt well with me; forasmuch as when the LORD had delivered me up into thy hand, thou didst not kill me. 20 For if a man find his enemy, will he let him go well away? wherefore the LORD reward thee good for that which thou hast done unto me this day. 21 And now, behold, I know that thou shalt surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in thy hand. 22 Swear now therefore unto me by the LORD, that thou wilt not cut off my seed after me, and that thou wilt not destroy my name out of my father's house.' 23 And David swore unto Saul. And Saul went home; but David and his men got them up unto the stronghold.

1 SAMUEL 25 — 1 And Samuel died; and all Israel gathered themselves together, and lamented him, and buried him in his house at Ramah. And David arose, and went down to the wilderness of Paran.

2 And there was a man in Maon, whose possessions were in Carmel; and the man was very great, and he had three thousand sheep, and a thousand goats; and he was shearing his sheep in Carmel. 3 Now the name of the man was Nabal; and the name of his wife Abigail; and the woman was of good understanding, and of a beautiful form; but the man was churlish and evil in his doings; and he was of the house of Caleb. 4 And David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep. 5 And David sent ten young men, and David said unto the young men: 'Get you up to Carmel, and go to Nabal, and greet him in my name; 6 and thus ye shall say: All hail! and peace be both unto thee, and peace be to thy house, and peace be unto all that thou hast. 7 And now I have heard that thou hast shearers; thy shepherds have now been with us, and we did them no hurt, neither was there aught missing unto them, all the while they were in Carmel. 8 Ask thy young men, and they will tell thee; wherefore let the young men find favour in thine eyes; for we come on a good day; give, I pray thee, whatsoever cometh to thy hand, unto thy servants, and to thy son David.'

9 And when David's young men came, they spoke to Nabal according to all those words in the name of David, and ceased. 10 And Nabal answered David's servants, and said: 'Who is David? and who is the son of Jesse? there are many servants now-a-days that break away every man from his master; 11 shall I then take my bread, and my water, and my flesh that I have killed for my shearers, and give it unto men of whom I know not whence they are?' 12 So David's young men turned on their way, and went back, and came and told him according to all these words. 13 And David said unto his men: 'Gird ye on every man his sword.' And they girded on every man his sword; and David also girded on his sword; and there went up after David about four hundred men; and two hundred abode by the baggage.

14 But one of the young men told Abigail, Nabal's wife, saying: 'Behold, David sent messengers out of the wilderness to salute our master; and he flew upon them. 15 But the men were very good unto us, and we were not hurt, neither missed we any thing, as long as we went with them, when we were in the fields; 16 they were a wall unto us both by night and by day, all the while we were with them keeping the sheep. 17 Now therefore know and consider what thou wilt do; for evil is determined against our master, and against all his house; for he is such a base fellow, that one cannot speak to him.'

18 Then Abigail made haste, and took two hundred loaves, and two bottles of wine, and five sheep ready dressed, and five measures of parched corn, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs, and laid them on asses. 19 And she said unto her young men: 'Go on before me; behold, I come after you.' But she told not her husband Nabal. 20 And it was so, as she rode on her ass, and came down by the covert of the mountain, that, behold, David and his men came down towards her; and she met them.-21 Now David had said: 'Surely in vain have I kept all that this fellow hath in the wilderness, so that nothing was missed of all that pertained unto him; and he hath returned me evil for good. 22 God do so unto the enemies of David, and more also, if I leave of all that pertain to him by the morning light so much as one male.'-23 And when Abigail saw David, she made haste, and alighted from her ass, and fell before David on her face, and bowed down to the ground. 24 And she fell at his feet, and said: 'Upon me, my lord, upon me be the iniquity; and let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak in thine ears, and hear thou the words of thy handmaid. 25 Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this base fellow, even Nabal; for as his name is, so is he: Nabal is his name, and churlishness is with him; but I thy handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. 26 Now therefore, my lord, as the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, seeing the LORD hath withholden thee from bloodguiltiness, and from finding redress for thyself with thine own hand, now therefore let thine enemies, and them that seek evil to my lord, be as Nabal. 27 And now this present which thy servant hath brought unto my lord, let it be given unto the young men that follow my lord. 28 Forgive, I pray thee, the trespass of thy handmaid; for the LORD will certainly make my lord a sure house, because my lord fighteth the battles of the LORD; and evil is not found in thee all thy days. 29 And though man be risen up to pursue thee, and to seek thy soul, yet the soul of my lord shall be bound in the bundle of life with the LORD thy God; and the souls of thine enemies, them shall he sling out, as from the hollow of a sling. 30 And it shall come to pass, when the LORD shall have done to my lord according to all the good that He hath spoken concerning thee, and shall have appointed thee prince over Israel; 31 that this shall be no stumbling-block unto thee, nor offence of heart unto my lord, either that thou hast shed blood without cause, or that my lord hath found redress for himself. And when the LORD shall have dealt well with my lord, then remember thy handmaid.'

32 And David said to Abigail: 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent thee this day to meet me; 33 and blessed be thy discretion, and blessed be thou, that hast kept me this day from bloodguiltiness, and from finding redress for myself with mine own hand. 34 For in very deed, as the LORD, the God of Israel, liveth, who hath withholden me from hurting thee, except thou hadst made haste and come to meet me, surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light so much as one male.' 35 So David received of her hand that which she had brought him; and he said unto her: 'Go up in peace to thy house; see, I have hearkened to thy voice, and have accepted thy person.'

36 And Abigail came to Nabal; and, behold, he held a feast in his house, like the feast of a king; and Nabal's heart was merry within him, for he was very drunken; wherefore she told him nothing, less or more, until the morning light. 37 And it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, that his wife told him these things, and his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. 38 And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, so that he died.

39 And when David heard that Nabal was dead, he said: 'Blessed be the LORD, that hath pleaded the cause of my reproach from the hand of Nabal, and hath kept back His servant from evil; and the evil-doing of Nabal hath the LORD returned upon his own head.' And David sent and spoke concerning Abigail, to take her to him to wife. 40 And when the servants of David were come to Abigail to Carmel, they spoke unto her, saying: 'David hath sent us unto thee, to take thee to him to wife.' 41 And she arose, and bowed down with her face to the earth, and said: 'Behold, thy handmaid is a servant to wash the feet of the servants of my lord.' 42 And Abigail hastened, and arose, and rode upon an ass, with five damsels of hers that followed her; and she went after the messengers of David, and became his wife.

43 David also took Ahinoam of Jezreel; and they became both of them his wives. 44 Now Saul had given Michal his daughter, David's wife, to Palti the son of Laish, who was of Gallim.

1 SAMUEL 26 — 1 And the Ziphites came unto Saul to Gibeah, saying: 'Doth not David hide himself in the hill of Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon?' 2 Then Saul arose, and went down to the wilderness of Ziph, having three thousand chosen men of Israel with him, to seek David in the wilderness of Ziph. 3 And Saul pitched in the hill of Hachilah, which is before Jeshimon, by the way. But David abode in the wilderness, and he saw that Saul came after him into the wilderness. 4 David therefore sent out spies, and understood that Saul was come of a certainty. 5 And David arose, and came to the place where Saul had pitched; and David beheld the place where Saul lay, and Abner the son of Ner, the captain of his host; and Saul lay within the barricade, and the people pitched round about him.

6 Then answered David and said to Ahimelech the Hittite, and to Abishai the son of Zeruiah, brother to Joab, saying: 'Who will go down with me to Saul to the camp?' And Abishai said: 'I will go down with thee.' 7 So David and Abishai came to the people by night; and, behold, Saul lay sleeping within the barricade, with his spear stuck in the ground at his head; and Abner and the people lay round about him. 8 Then said Abishai to David: 'God hath delivered up thine enemy into thy hand this day; now therefore let me smite him, I pray thee, with the spear to the earth at one stroke, and I will not smite him the second time.' 9 And David said to Abishai: 'Destroy him not; for who can put forth his hand against the LORD'S anointed, and be guiltless?' 10 And David said: 'As the LORD liveth, nay, but the LORD shall smite him; or his day shall come to die; or he shall go down into battle, and be swept away. 11 The LORD forbid it me, that I should put forth my hand against the LORD'S anointed; but now take, I pray thee, the spear that is at his head, and the cruse of water and let us go.' 12 So David took the spear and the cruse of water from Saul's head; and they got them away, and no man saw it, nor knew it, neither did any awake; for they were all asleep; because a deep sleep from the LORD was fallen upon them.

13 Then David went over to the other side, and stood on the top of the mountain afar off; a great space being between them. 14 And David cried to the people, and to Abner the son of Ner, saying: 'Answerest thou not, Abner?' Then Abner answered and said: 'Who art thou that criest to the king?' 15 And David said to Abner: 'Art not thou a valiant man? and who is like to thee in Israel? wherefore then hast thou not kept watch over thy lord the king? for there came one of the people in to destroy the king thy lord. 16 This thing is not good that thou hast done. As the LORD liveth, ye deserve to die, because ye have not kept watch over your lord, the LORD'S anointed. And now, see, where the king's spear is, and the cruse of water that was at his head.'

17 And Saul knew David's voice, and said: 'Is this thy voice, my son David?' And David said: 'It is my voice, my lord, O king.' 18 And he said: 'Wherefore doth my lord pursue after his servant? for what have I done? or what evil is in my hand? 19 Now therefore, I pray thee, let my lord the king hear the words of his servant. If it be the LORD that hath stirred thee up against me, let Him accept an offering; but if it be the children of men, cursed be they before the LORD; for they have driven me out this day that I should not cleave unto the inheritance of the LORD, saying: Go, serve other gods. 20 Now therefore, let not my blood fall to the earth away from the presence of the LORD; for the king of Israel is come out to seek a single flea, as when one doth hunt a partridge in the mountains.'

21 Then said Saul: 'I have sinned; return, my son David; for I will no more do thee harm, because my life was precious in thine eyes this day; behold, I have played the fool and erred exceedingly.' 22 And David answered and said: 'Behold the king's spear! let then one of the young men come over and fetch it. 23 And the LORD will render to every man his righteousness and his faithfulness; forasmuch as the LORD delivered thee into my hand to-day, and I would not put forth my hand against the LORD'S anointed. 24 And, behold, as thy life was much set by this day in mine eyes, so let my life be much set by in the eyes of the LORD, and let Him deliver me out of all tribulation.' 25 Then Saul said to David: 'Blessed be thou, my son David; thou shalt both do mightily, and shalt surely prevail.' So David went his way, and Saul returned to his place.

1 SAMUEL 27 — 1 And David said in his heart: 'I shall now be swept away one day by the hand of Saul; there is nothing better for me than that I should escape into the land of the Philistines; and Saul will despair of me, to seek me any more in all the borders of Israel; so shall I escape out of his hand.' 2 And David arose, and passed over, he and the six hundred men that were with him, unto Achish the son of Maoch, king of Gath. 3 And David dwelt with Achish at Gath, he and his men, every man with his household, even David with his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the Carmelitess, Nabal's wife. 4 And it was told Saul that David was fled to Gath; and he sought no more again for him.

5 And David said unto Achish: 'If now I have found favour in thine eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities in the country, that I may dwell there; for why should thy servant dwell in the royal city with thee?' 6 Then Achish gave him Ziklag that day; wherefore Ziklag belongeth unto the kings of Judah unto this day.

7 And the number of the days that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a full year and four months. 8 And David and his men went up, and made a raid upon the Geshurites, and the Gizrites, and the Amalekites; for those were the inhabitants of the land, who were of old, as thou goest to Shur, even unto the land of Egypt. 9 And David smote the land, and left neither man nor woman alive, and took away the sheep, and the oxen, and the asses, and the camels, and the apparel. And he returned, and came to Achish. 10 And Achish said: 'Whither have ye made a raid to-day?' And David said: 'Against the South of Judah, and against the South of the Jerahmeelites, and against the South of the Kenites.' 11 And David left neither man nor woman alive, to bring them to Gath, saying: 'Lest they should tell on us, saying: So did David, and so hath been his manner all the while he hath dwelt in the country of the Philistines.' 12 And Achish believed David, saying: 'He hath made his people Israel utterly to abhor him; therefore he shall be my servant for ever.'

1 SAMUEL 28 — 1 And it came to pass in those days, that the Philistines gathered their hosts together for warfare, to fight with Israel. And Achish said unto David: 'Know thou assuredly, that thou shalt go out with me in the host, thou and thy men.' 2 And David said to Achish: 'Therefore thou shalt know what thy servant will do.' And Achish said to David: 'Therefore will I make thee keeper of my head for ever.'

3 Now Samuel was dead, and all Israel had lamented him, and buried him in Ramah, even in his own city. And Saul had put away those that divined by a ghost or a familiar spirit out of the land. 4 And the Philistines gathered themselves together, and came and pitched in Shunem; and Saul gathered all Israel together, and they pitched in Gilboa. 5 And when Saul saw the host of the Philistines, he was afraid, and his heart trembled greatly. 6 And when Saul inquired of the LORD, the LORD answered him not, neither by dreams, nor by Urim, nor by prophets. 7 Then said Saul unto his servants: 'Seek me a woman that divineth by a ghost, that I may go to her, and inquire of her.' And his servants said to him: 'Behold, there is a woman that divineth by a ghost at En-dor.'

8 And Saul disguised himself, and put on other raiment, and went, he and two men with him, and they came to the woman by night; and he said: 'Divine unto me, I pray thee, by a ghost, and bring me up whomsoever I shall name unto thee.' 9 And the woman said unto him: 'Behold, thou knowest what Saul hath done, how he hath cut off those that divine by a ghost or a familiar spirit out of the land; wherefore then layest thou a snare for my life, to cause me to die?' 10 And Saul swore to her by the LORD, saying: 'As the LORD liveth, there shall no punishment happen to thee for this thing.' 11 Then said the woman: 'Whom shall I bring up unto thee?' And he said: 'Bring me up Samuel.' 12 And when the woman saw Samuel, she cried with a loud voice; and the woman spoke to Saul, saying: 'Why hast thou deceived me? for thou art Saul.' 13 And the king said unto her: 'Be not afraid; for what seest thou?' And the woman said unto Saul: 'I see a godlike being coming up out of the earth.' 14 And he said unto her: 'What form is he of?' And she said: 'An old man cometh up; and he is covered with a robe.' And Saul perceived that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground, and prostrated himself.

15 And Samuel said to Saul: 'Why hast thou disquieted me, to bring me up?' And Saul answered: 'I am sore distressed; for the Philistines make war against me, and God is departed from me, and answereth me no more, neither by prophets, nor by dreams; therefore I have called thee, that thou mayest make known unto me what I shall do.' 16 And Samuel said: `Wherefore then dost thou ask of me, seeing the LORD is departed from thee, and is become thine adversary? 17 And the LORD hath wrought for Himself; as He spoke by me; and the LORD hath rent the kingdom out of thy hand, and given it to thy neighbour, even to David. 18 Because thou didst not hearken to the voice of the LORD, and didst not execute His fierce wrath upon Amalek, therefore hath the LORD done this thing unto thee this day. 19 Moreover the LORD will deliver Israel also with thee into the hand of the Philistines; and to-morrow shalt thou and thy sons be with me; the LORD will deliver the host of Israel also into the hand of the Philistines.'

20 Then Saul fell straightway his full length upon the earth, and was sore afraid, because of the words of Samuel; and there was no strength in him; for he had eaten no bread all the day, nor all the night. 21 And the woman came unto Saul, and saw that he was sore affrighted, and said unto him: 'Behold, thy handmaid hath hearkened unto thy voice, and I have put my life in my hand, and have hearkened unto thy words which thou spokest unto me. 22 Now therefore, I pray thee, hearken thou also unto the voice of thy handmaid, and let me set a morsel of bread before thee; and eat, that thou mayest have strength, when thou goest on thy way.' 23 But he refused, and said: 'I will not eat.' But his servants, together with the woman, urged him; and he hearkened unto their voice. So he arose from the earth, and sat upon the bed. 24 And the woman had a fatted calf in the house; and she made haste, and killed it; and she took flour, and kneaded it, and did bake unleavened bread thereof; 25 and she brought it before Saul, and before his servants; and they did eat. Then they rose up, and went away that night.

1 SAMUEL 29 — 1 Now the Philistines gathered together all their hosts to Aphek; and the Israelites pitched by the fountain which is in Jezreel. 2 And the lords of the Philistines passed on by hundreds, and by thousands; and David and his men passed on in the rearward with Achish. 3 Then said the princes of the Philistines: 'What do these Hebrews here?' And Achish said unto the princes of the Philistines: 'Is not this David, the servant of Saul the king of Israel, who hath been with me these days or these years, and I have found no fault in him since he fell away unto me unto this day?' 4 But the princes of the Philistines were wroth with him; and the princes of the Philistines said unto him: 'Make the man return, that he may go back to his place where thou hast appointed him, and let him not go down with us to battle, lest in the battle he become an adversary to us; for wherewith should this fellow reconcile himself unto his lord? should it not be with the heads of these men? 5 Is not this David, of whom they sang one to another in dances, saying:

Saul hath slain his thousands,

And David his ten thousands?'

6 Then Achish called David, and said unto him: 'As the LORD liveth, thou hast been upright, and thy going out and thy coming in with me in the host is good in my sight; for I have not found evil in thee since the day of thy coming unto me unto this day; nevertheless the lords favour thee not. 7 Wherefore now return, and go in peace, that thou displease not the lords of the Philistines.' 8 And David said unto Achish: 'But what have I done? and what hast thou found in thy servant so long as I have been before thee unto this day, that I may not go and fight against the enemies of my lord the king?' 9 And Achish answered and said to David: 'I know that thou art good in my sight, as an angel of God; notwithstanding the princes of the Philistines have said: He shall not go up with us to the battle. 10 Wherefore now rise up early in the morning with the servants of thy lord that are come with thee; and as soon as ye are up early in the morning, and have light, depart.' 11 So David rose up early, he and his men, to depart in the morning, to return into the land of the Philistines. And the Philistines went up to Jezreel.

1 SAMUEL 30 — 1 And it came to pass, when David and his men were come to Ziklag on the third day, that the Amalekites had made a raid upon the South, and upon Ziklag, and had smitten Ziklag, and burned it with fire; 2 and had taken captive the women and all that were therein, both small and great; they slew not any, but carried them off, and went their way. 3 And when David and his men came to the city, behold, it was burned with fire; and their wives, and their sons, and their daughters, were taken captives. 4 Then David and the people that were with him lifted up their voice and wept, until they had no more power to weep. 5 And David's two wives were taken captives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 6 And David was greatly distressed; for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and for his daughters; but David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.

7 And David said to Abiathar the priest, the son of Ahimelech: 'I pray thee, bring me hither the ephod.' And Abiathar brought thither the ephod to David. 8 And David inquired of the LORD, saying: 'Shall I pursue after this troop? shall I overtake them?' And He answered him: 'Pursue; for thou shalt surely overtake them, and shalt without fail recover all.' 9 So David went, he and the six hundred men that were with him, and came to the brook Besor, where those that were left behind stayed. 10 But David pursued, he and four hundred men; for two hundred stayed behind, who were so faint that they could not go over the brook Besor.

11 And they found an Egyptian in the field, and brought him to David, and gave him bread, and he did eat; and they gave him water to drink; 12 and they gave him a piece of a cake of figs, and two clusters of raisins; and when he had eaten, his spirit came back to him; for he had eaten no bread, nor drunk any water, three days and three nights. 13 And David said unto him: 'To whom belongest thou? and whence art thou?' And he said: 'I am a young Egyptian, servant to an Amalekite; and my master left me, because three days ago I fell sick. 14 We made a raid upon the South of the Cherethites, and upon that which belongeth to Judah, and upon the South of Caleb; and we burned Ziklag with fire.' 15 And David said to him: 'Wilt thou bring me down to this troop?' And he said: 'Swear unto me by God, that thou wilt neither kill me, nor deliver me up into the hands of my master, and I will bring thee down to this troop.'

16 And when he had brought him down, behold, they were spread abroad over all the ground, eating and drinking, and feasting, because of all the great spoil that they had taken out of the land of the Philistines, and out of the land of Judah. 17 And David smote them from the twilight even unto the evening of the next day; and there escaped not a man of them, save four hundred young men, who rode upon camels and fled. 18 And David recovered all that the Amalekites had taken; and David rescued his two wives. 19 And there was nothing lacking to them, neither small nor great, neither sons nor daughters, neither spoil, nor any thing that they had taken to them; David brought back all. 20 And David took all the flocks and the herds, which they drove before those other cattle, and said: 'This is David's spoil.'

21 And David came to the two hundred men, who were so faint that they could not follow David, whom also they had made to abide at the brook Besor; and they went forth to meet David, and to meet the people that were with him; and when David came near to the people, he saluted them. 22 Then answered all the wicked men and base fellows, of those that went with David, and said: 'Because they went not with us, we will not give them aught of the spoil that we have recovered, save to every man his wife and his children, that they may lead them away, and depart.' 23 Then said David: `Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD hath given unto us, who hath preserved us, and delivered the troop that came against us into our hand. 24 And who will hearken unto you in this matter? for as is the share of him that goeth down to the battle, so shall be the share of him that tarrieth by the baggage; they shall share alike.' 25 And it was so from that day forward, that he made it a statute and an ordinance for Israel unto this day.

26 And when David came to Ziklag, he sent of the spoil unto the elders of Judah, even to his friends, saying: 'Behold a present for you of the spoil of the enemies of the LORD'; 27 to them that were in Beth-el, and to them that were in Ramoth of the South, and to them that were in Jattir; 28 and to them that were in Aroer, and to them that were in Siphmoth, and to them that were in Eshtemoa; 29 and to them that were in Racal, and to them that were in the cities of the Jerahmeelites, and to them that were in the cities of the Kenites; 30 and to them that were in Hormah, and to them that were in Bor-ashan, and to them that were in Athach; 31 and to them that were in Hebron, and to all the places where David himself and his men were wont to haunt.

1 SAMUEL 31 — 1 Now the Philistines fought against Israel, and the men of Israel fled from before the Philistines, and fell down slain in mount Gilboa. 2 And the Philistines followed hard upon Saul and upon his sons; and the Philistines slew Jonathan, and Abinadab, and Malchishua, the sons of Saul. 3 And the battle went sore against Saul, an the archers overtook him; and he was in great anguish by reason of the archers. 4 Then said Saul to his armour-bearer: 'Draw thy sword, and thrust me through therewith; lest these uncircumcised come and thrust me through, and make a mock of me.' But his armour-bearer would not; for he was sore afraid. Therefore Saul took his sword, and fell upon it. 5 And when his armour-bearer saw that Saul was dead, he likewise fell upon his sword, and died with him. 6 So Saul died, and his three sons, and his armour-bearer, and all his men, that same day together. 7 And when the men of Israel that were on the other side of the valley, and they that were beyond the Jordan, saw that the men of Israel fled, and that Saul and his sons were dead, they forsook the cities, and fled; and the Philistines came and dwelt in them.

8 And it came to pass on the morrow, when the Philistines came to strip the slain, that they found Saul and his three sons fallen in mount Gilboa. 9 And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the land of the Philistines round about, to carry the tidings unto the house of their idols, and to the people. 10 And they put his armour in the house of the Ashtaroth; and they fastened his body to the wall of Beth-shan. 11 And when the inhabitants of Jabesh-gilead heard concerning him that which the Philistines had done to Saul, 12 all the valiant men arose, and went all night, and took the body of Saul and the bodies of his sons from the wall of Beth-shan; and they came to Jabesh, and burnt them there. 13 And they took their bones, and buried them under the tamarisk-tree in Jabesh, and fasted seven days.

2 Samuel

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2 SAMUEL 1 — 1 And it came to pass after the death of Saul, when David was returned from the slaughter of the Amalekites, and David had abode two days in Ziklag; 2 it came even to pass on the third day, that, behold, a man came out of the camp from Saul with his clothes rent, and earth upon his head; and so it was, when he came to David, that he fell to the earth, and prostrated himself. 3 And David said unto him: 'From whence comest thou?' And he said unto him: 'Out of the camp of Israel am I escaped.' 4 And David said unto him: 'How went the matter? I pray thee, tell me.' And he answered: 'The people are fled from the battle, and many of the people also are fallen and dead; and Saul and Jonathan his son are dead also.' 5 And David said unto the young man that told him: 'How knowest thou that Saul and Jonathan his son are dead?' 6 And the young man that told him said: 'As I happened by chance upon mount Gilboa, behold, Saul leaned upon his spear; and, lo, the chariots and the horsemen pressed hard upon him. 7 And when he looked behind him, he saw me, and called unto me. And I answered: Here am I. 8 And he said unto me: Who art thou? And I answered him: I am an Amalekite. 9 And he said unto me: Stand, I pray thee, beside me, and slay me, for the agony hath taken hold of me; because my life is just yet in me. 10 So I stood beside him, and slew him, because I was sure that he could not live after that he was fallen; and I took the crown that was upon his head, and the bracelet that was on his arm, and have brought them hither unto my lord.'

11 Then David took hold on his clothes, and rent them; and likewise all the men that were with him. 12 And they wailed, and wept, and fasted until even, for Saul, and for Jonathan his son, and for the people of the LORD, and for the house of Israel; because they were fallen by the sword. 13 And David said unto the young man that told him: 'Whence art thou?' And he answered: 'I am the son of an Amalekite stranger.' 14 And David said unto him: 'How wast thou not afraid to put forth thy hand to destroy the LORD'S anointed?' 15 And David called one of the young men, and said: 'Go near, and fall upon him.' And he smote him that he died. 16 And David said unto him: 'Thy blood be upon thy head; for thy mouth hath testified against thee, saying: I have slain the LORD'S anointed.'

17 And David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son, 18 and said-To teach the sons of Judah the bow. Behold, it is written in the book of Jashar:

19 Thy beauty, O Israel, upon thy high places is slain!

How are the mighty fallen!

20 Tell it not in Gath,

Publish it not in the streets of Ashkelon;

Lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice,

Lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

21 Ye mountains of Gilboa,

Let there be no dew nor rain upon you,

Neither fields of choice fruits;

For there the shield of the mighty was vilely cast away,

The shield of Saul, not anointed with oil.

22 From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty,

The bow of Jonathan turned not back,

And the sword of Saul returned not empty.

23 Saul and Jonathan, the lovely and the pleasant

In their lives, even in their death they were not divided;

They were swifter than eagles,

They were stronger than lions.

24 Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul,

Who clothed you in scarlet, with other delights,

Who put ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

25 How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle!

Jonathan upon thy high places is slain!

26 I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan;

Very pleasant hast thou been unto me;

Wonderful was thy love to me,

Passing the love of women.

27 How are the mighty fallen,

And the weapons of war perished!

2 SAMUEL 2 — 1 And it came to pass after this, that David inquired of the LORD, saying: 'Shall I go up into any of the cities of Judah?' And the LORD said unto him: 'Go up.' And David said: 'Whither shall I go up?' And He said: 'Unto Hebron.' 2 So David went up thither, and his two wives also, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite. 3 And his men that were with him did David bring up, every man with his household; and they dwelt in the cities of Hebron. 4 And the men of Judah came, and they there anointed David king over the house of Judah.

And they told David, saying: 'The men of Jabesh-gilead were they that buried Saul.' 5 And David sent messengers unto the men of Jabesh-gilead, and said unto them: 'Blessed be ye of the LORD, that ye have shown this kindness unto your lord, even unto Saul, and have buried him. 6 And now the LORD show kindness and truth unto you; and I also will requite you this kindness, because ye have done this thing. 7 Now therefore let your hands be strong, and be ye valiant; for Saul your lord is dead, and also the house of Judah have anointed me king over them.'

8 Now Abner the son of Ner, captain of Saul's host, had taken Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and brought him over to Mahanaim; 9 and he made him king over Gilead, and over the Ashurites, and over Jezreel, and over Ephraim, and over Benjamin, and over all Israel. 10 Ish-bosheth Saul's son was forty years old when he began to reign over Israel, and he reigned two years. But the house of Judah followed David. 11 And the time that David was king in Hebron over the house of Judah was seven years and six months.

12 And Abner the son of Ner, and the servants of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, went out from Mahanaim to Gibeon. 13 And Joab the son of Zeruiah, and the servants of David, went out; and they met together by the pool of Gibeon, and sat down, the one on the one side of the pool, and the other on the other side of the pool. 14 And Abner said to Joab: 'Let the young men, I pray thee, arise and play before us.' And Joab said: 'Let them arise.' 15 Then they arose and passed over by number: twelve for Benjamin, and for Ish-bosheth the son of Saul, and twelve of the servants of David. 16 And they caught every one his fellow by the head, and thrust his sword in his fellow's side; so they fell down together; wherefore that place was called Helkath-hazzurim, which is in Gibeon. 17 And the battle was very sore that day; and Abner was beaten, and the men of Israel, before the servants of David.

18 And the three sons of Zeruiah were there, Joab, and Abishai, and Asahel; and Asahel was as light of foot as one of the roes that are in the field. 19 And Asahel pursued after Abner; and in going he turned not to the right hand nor to the left from following Abner. 20 Then Abner looked behind him, and said: 'Is it thou, Asahel?' And he answered: 'It is I.' 21 And Abner said to him: 'Turn thee aside to thy right hand or to thy left, and lay thee hold on one of the young men, and take thee his armour.' But Asahel would not turn aside from following him. 22 And Abner said again to Asahel: 'Turn thee aside from following me; wherefore should I smite thee to the ground? how then should I hold up my face to Joab thy brother?' 23 Howbeit he refused to turn aside; wherefore Abner with the hinder end of the spear smote him in the groin, that the spear came out behind him; and he fell down there, and died in the same place; and it came to pass, that as many as came to the place where Asahel fell down and died stood still.

24 But Joab and Abishai pursued after Abner; and the sun went down when they were come to the hill of Ammah, that lieth before Giah by the way of the wilderness of Gibeon. 25 And the children of Benjamin gathered themselves together after Abner, and became one band, and stood on the top of a hill. 26 Then Abner called to Joab, and said: 'Shall the sword devour for ever? knowest thou not that it will be bitterness in the end? how long shall it be then, ere thou bid the people return from following their brethren?' 27 And Joab said: 'As God liveth, if thou hadst not spoken, surely then only after the morning the people had gone away, every one from following his brother.' 28 So Joab blew the horn, and all the people stood still, and pursued after Israel no more, neither fought they any more. 29 And Abner and his men went all that night through the Arabah; and they passed over the Jordan, and went through all Bithron, and came to Mahanaim.

30 And Joab returned from following Abner; and when he had gathered all the people together, there lacked of David's servants nineteen men and Asahel. 31 But the servants of David had smitten of Benjamin, even of Abner's men-three hundred and threescore men died. 32 And they took up Asahel, and buried him in the sepulchre of his father, which was in Beth-lehem. And Joab and his men went all night, and the day broke upon them at Hebron.

2 SAMUEL 3 — 1 Now there was long war between the house of Saul and the house of David; and David waxed stronger and stronger, but the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker.

2 And unto David were sons born in Hebron; and his first-born was Amnon, of Ahinoam the Jezreelitess; 3 and his second, Chileab, of Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelite; and the third, Absalom the son of Maacah the daughter of Talmai king of Geshur; 4 and the fourth, Adonijah the son of Haggith; and the fifth, Shephatiah the son of Abital; 5 and the sixth, Ithream, of Eglah David's wife. These were born to David in Hebron.

6 And it came to pass, while there was war between the house of Saul and the house of David, that Abner showed himself strong in the house of Saul. 7 Now Saul had a concubine, whose name was Rizpah, the daughter of Aiah; and Ish-bosheth said to Abner: 'Wherefore hast thou gone in unto my father's concubine?' 8 Then was Abner very wroth for the words of Ish-bosheth, and said: 'Am I a dog's head that belongeth to Judah? This day do I show kindness unto the house of Saul thy father, to his brethren, and to his friends, and have not delivered thee into the hand of David, and yet thou chargest me this day with a fault concerning this woman. 9 God do so to Abner, and more also, if, as the LORD hath sworn to David, I do not even so to him; 10 to transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul, and to set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan even to Beer-sheba.' 11 And he could not answer Abner another word, because he feared him.

12 And Abner sent messengers to David straightway, saying: 'Whose is the land?' saying also: 'Make thy league with me, and, behold, my hand shall be with thee, to bring over all Israel unto thee.' 13 And he said: 'Well; I will make a league with thee; but one thing I require of thee, that is, thou shalt not see my face, except thou first bring Michal Saul's daughter, when thou comest to see my face.' 14 And David sent messengers to Ish-bosheth Saul's son, saying: 'Deliver me my wife Michal, whom I betrothed to me for a hundred foreskins of the Philistines.' 15 And Ish-bosheth sent, and took her from her husband, even from Paltiel the son of Laish. 16 And her husband went with her, weeping as he went, and followed her to Bahurim. Then said Abner unto him: 'Go, return'; and he returned.

17 And Abner had communication with the elders of Israel, saying: 'In times past ye sought for David to be king over you; 18 now then do it; for the LORD hath spoken of David, saying: By the hand of My servant David I will save My people Israel out of the hand of the Philistines, and out of the hand of all their enemies.' 19 And Abner also spoke in the ears of Benjamin; and Abner went also to speak in the ears of David in Hebron all that seemed good to Israel, and to the whole house of Benjamin. 20 So Abner came to David to Hebron, and twenty men with him. And David made Abner and the men that were with him a feast. 21 And Abner said unto David: 'I will arise and go, and will gather all Israel unto my lord the king, that they may make a covenant with thee, and that thou mayest reign over all that thy soul desireth.' And David sent Abner away; and he went in peace.

22 And, behold, the servants of David and Joab came from a foray, and brought in a great spoil with them; but Abner was not with David in Hebron; for he had sent him away, and he was gone in peace. 23 When Joab and all the host that was with him were come, they told Joab, saying: 'Abner the son of Ner came to the king, and he hath sent him away, and he is gone in peace.' 24 Then Joab came to the king, and said: 'What hast thou done? behold, Abner came unto thee; why is it that thou hast sent him away, and he is quite gone? 25 Thou knowest Abner the son of Ner, that he came to deceive thee, and to know thy going out and thy coming in, and to know all that thou doest.' 26 And when Joab was come out from David, he sent messengers after Abner, and they brought him back from Bor-sirah; but David knew it not.

27 And when Abner was returned to Hebron, Joab took him aside into the midst of the gate to speak with him quietly, and smote him there in the groin, that he died, for the blood of Asahel his brother. 28 And afterward when David heard it, he said: 'I and my kingdom are guiltless before the LORD for ever from the blood of Abner the son of Ner; 29 let it fall upon the head of Joab, and upon all his father's house; and let there not fail from the house of Joab one that hath an issue, or that is a leper, or that leaneth on a staff, or that falleth by the sword, or that lacketh bread.' 30 So Joab and Abishai his brother slew Abner, because he had killed their brother Asahel at Gibeon in the battle.

31 And David said to Joab, and to all the people that were with him: 'Rend your clothes, and gird you with sackcloth, and wail before Abner.' And king David followed the bier. 32 And they buried Abner in Hebron; and the king lifted up his voice, and wept at the grave of Abner; and all the people wept. 33 And the king lamented for Abner, and said:

Should Abner die as a churl dieth?

34 Thy hands were not bound, nor thy feet put into fetters;

As a man falleth before the children of iniquity, so didst thou fall.

And all the people wept again over him. 35 And all the people came to cause David to eat bread while it was yet day; but David swore, saying: 'God do so to me, and more also, if I taste bread, or aught else, till the sun be down.' 36 And all the people took notice of it, and it pleased them; whatsoever the king did, pleased all the people. 37 So all the people and all Israel understood that day that it was not of the king to slay Abner the son of Ner. 38 And the king said unto his servants: 'Know ye not that there is a prince and a great man fallen this day in Israel? 39 And I am this day weak, and just anointed king; and these men the sons of Zeruiah are too hard for me; the LORD reward the evildoer according to his wickedness.'

2 SAMUEL 4 — 1 And when Saul's son heard that Abner was dead in Hebron, his hands became feeble, and all the Israelites were affrighted. 2 And Saul's son had two men that were captains of bands; the name of the one was Baanah, and the name of the other Rechab, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, of the children of Benjamin; for Beeroth also is reckoned to Benjamin; 3 and the Beerothites fled to Gittaim, and have been sojourners there until this day.

4 Now Jonathan, Saul's son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled; and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

5 And the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, Rechab and Baanah, went, and came about the heat of the day to the house of Ish-bosheth, as he took his rest at noon. 6 And they came thither into the midst of the house, as though they would have fetched wheat; and they smote him in the groin; and Rechab and Baanah his brother escaped. 7 Now when they came into the house, as he lay on his bed in his bed-chamber, they smote him, and slew him, and beheaded him, and took his head, and went by the way of the Arabah all night. 8 And they brought the head of Ish-bosheth unto David to Hebron, and said to the king: 'Behold the head of Ish-bosheth the son of Saul thine enemy, who sought thy life; and the LORD hath avenged my lord the king this day of Saul, and of his seed.' 9 And David answered Rechab and Baanah his brother, the sons of Rimmon the Beerothite, and said unto them: 'As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, 10 when one told me, saying: Behold, Saul is dead, and he was in his own eyes as though he brought good tidings, I took hold of him, and slew him in Ziklag, instead of giving a reward for his tidings. 11 How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed, shall I not now require his blood of your hand, and take you away from the earth?' 12 And David commanded his young men, and they slew them, and cut off their hands and their feet, and hanged them up beside the pool in Hebron. But they took the head of Ish-bosheth, and buried it in the grave of Abner in Hebron.

2 SAMUEL 5 — 1 Then came all the tribes of Israel to David unto Hebron, and spoke, saying: 'Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh. 2 In times past, when Saul was king over us, it was thou that didst lead out and bring in Israel; and the LORD said to thee: Thou shalt feed My people Israel, and thou shalt be prince over Israel.' 3 So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a covenant with them in Hebron before the LORD; and they anointed David king over Israel.

4 David was thirty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned forty years. 5 In Hebron he reigned over Judah seven years and six months; and in Jerusalem he reigned thirty and three years over all Israel and Judah.

6 And the king and his men went to Jerusalem against the Jebusites, the inhabitants of the land, who spoke unto David, saying: 'Except thou take away the blind and the lame, thou shalt not come in hither'; thinking: 'David cannot come in hither.' 7 Nevertheless David took the stronghold of Zion; the same is the city of David. 8 And David said on that day: 'Whosoever smiteth the Jebusites, and getteth up to the gutter, and taketh away the lame and the blind, that are hated of David's soul-.' Wherefore they say: 'There are the blind and the lame; he cannot come into the house.' 9 And David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the city of David. And David built round about from Millo and inward. 10 And David waxed greater and greater; for the LORD, the God of hosts, was with him.

11 And Hiram king of Tyre sent messengers to David, and cedar-trees, and carpenters, and masons; and they built David a house. 12 And David perceived that the LORD had established him king over Israel, and that He had exalted his kingdom for His people Israel's sake.

13 And David took him more concubines and wives out of Jerusalem, after he was come from Hebron; and there were yet sons and daughters born to David. 14 And these are the names of those that were born unto him in Jerusalem: Shammua, and Shobab, and Nathan, and Solomon; 15 and Ibhar, and Elishua, and Nepheg, and Japhia; 16 and Elishama, and Eliada, and Eliphelet.

17 And when the Philistines heard that David was anointed king over Israel, all the Philistines went up to seek David; and David heard of it, and went down to the hold. 18 Now the Philistines had come and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. 19 And David inquired of the LORD, saying: 'Shall I go up against the Philistines? wilt Thou deliver them into my hand?' And the LORD said unto David: 'Go up; for I will certainly deliver the Philistines into thy hand.' 20 And David came to Baal-perazim, and David smote them there; and he said: 'The LORD hath broken mine enemies before me, like the breach of waters.' Therefore the name of that place was called Baal-perazim. 21 And they left their images there, and David and his men took them away.

22 And the Philistines came up yet again, and spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim. 23 And when David inquired of the LORD, He said: 'Thou shalt not go up; make a circuit behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry-trees. 24 And it shall be, when thou hearest the sound of marching in the tops of the mulberry-trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself; for then is the LORD gone out before thee to smite the host of the Philistines.' 25 And David did so, as the LORD commanded him, and smote the Philistines from Geba until thou come to Gezer.

2 SAMUEL 6 — 1 And David again gathered together all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. 2 And David arose, and went with all the people that were with him, from Baale-judah, to bring up from thence the ark of God, whereupon is called the Name, even the name of the LORD of hosts that sitteth upon the cherubim. 3 And they set the ark of God upon a new cart, and brought it out of the house of Abinadab that was in the hill; and Uzzah and Ahio, the sons of Abinadab, drove the new cart. 4 And they brought it out of the house of Abinadab, which was in the hill, with the ark of God, and Ahio went before the ark. 5 And David and all the house of Israel played before the LORD with all manner of instruments made of cypress-wood, and with harps, and with psalteries, and with timbrels, and with sistra, and with cymbals.

6 And when they came to the threshing-floor of Nacon, Uzzah put forth his hand to the ark of God, and took hold of it; for the oxen stumbled. 7 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Uzzah; and God smote him there for his error; and there he died by the ark of God. 8 And David was displeased, because the LORD had broken forth upon Uzzah; and that place was called Perez-uzzah, unto this day 9 And David was afraid of the LORD that day; and he said: 'How shall the ark of the LORD come unto me?' 10 So David would not remove the ark of the LORD unto him into the city of David; but David carried it aside into the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 11 And the ark of the LORD remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months; and the LORD blessed Obed-edom, and all his house.

12 And it was told king David, saying: 'The LORD hath blessed the house of Obed-edom, and all that pertaineth unto him, because of the ark of God.' And David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom into the city of David with joy. 13 And it was so, that when they that bore the ark of the LORD had gone six paces, he sacrificed an ox and a fatling. 14 And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod. 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting, and with the sound of the horn.

16 And it was so, as the ark of the LORD came into the city of David, that Michal the daughter of Saul looked out at the window, and saw king David leaping and dancing before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17 And they brought in the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place, in the midst of the tent that David had pitched for it; and David offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings before the LORD. 18 And when David had made an end of offering the burnt-offering and the peace-offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts. 19 And he dealt among all the people, even among the whole multitude of Israel, both to men and women, to every one a cake of bread, and a cake made in a pan, and a sweet cake. So all the people departed every one to his house.

20 Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said: 'How did the king of Israel get him honour to-day, who uncovered himself to-day in the eyes of the handmaids of his servants, as one of the vain fellows shamelessly uncovereth himself!' 21 And David said unto Michal: 'Before the LORD, who chose me above thy father, and above all his house, to appoint me prince over the people of the LORD, over Israel, before the LORD will I make merry. 22 And I will be yet more vile than thus, and will be base in mine own sight; and with the handmaids whom thou hast spoken of, with them will I get me honour.' 23 And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child unto the day of her death.

2 SAMUEL 7 — 1 And it came to pass, when the king dwelt in his house, and the LORD had given him rest from all his enemies round about, 2 that the king said unto Nathan the prophet: 'See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.' 3 And Nathan said to the king: 'Go, do all that is in thy heart; for the LORD is with thee.' 4 And it came to pass the same night, that the word of the LORD came unto Nathan, saying: 5 'Go and tell My servant David: Thus saith the LORD: Shalt thou build Me a house for Me to dwell in? 6 for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle. 7 In all places wherein I have walked among all the children of Israel, spoke I a word with any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to feed My people Israel, saying: Why have ye not built Me a house of cedar? 8 Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto My servant David: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: I took thee from the sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be prince over My people, over Israel. 9 And I have been with thee whithersoever thou didst go, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth. 10 And I will appoint a place for My people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be disquieted no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as at the first, 11 even from the day that I commanded judges to be over My people Israel; and I will cause thee to rest from all thine enemies. Moreover the LORD telleth thee that the LORD will make thee a house. 12 When thy days are fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, that shall proceed out of thy body, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He shall build a house for My name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 14 I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to Me for a son; if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men; 15 but My mercy shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. 16 And thy house and thy kingdom shall be made sure for ever before thee; thy throne shall be established for ever.' 17 According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

18 Then David the king went in, and sat before the LORD; and he said: 'Who am I, O Lord GOD, and what is my house, that Thou hast brought me thus far? 19 And this was yet a small thing in Thine eyes, O Lord GOD; but Thou hast spoken also of Thy servant's house for a great while to come; and this too after the manner of great men, O Lord GOD. 20 And what can David say more unto Thee? for Thou knowest Thy servant, O Lord GOD. 21 For Thy word's sake, and according to Thine own heart, hast Thou wrought all this greatness, to make Thy servant know it. 22 Therefore Thou art great, O LORD God; for there is none like Thee, neither is there any God beside Thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears. 23 And who is like Thy people, like Israel, a nation one in the earth, whom God went to redeem unto Himself for a people, and to make Him a name, and to do for Thy land great things and tremendous, even for you, in driving out from before Thy people, whom Thou didst redeem to Thee out of Egypt, the nations and their gods? 24 And Thou didst establish to Thyself Thy people Israel to be a people unto Thee for ever; and Thou, LORD, becamest their God. 25 And now, O LORD God, the word that Thou hast spoken concerning Thy servant, and concerning his house, confirm Thou it for ever, and do as Thou hast spoken. 26 And let Thy name be magnified for ever, that it may be said: The LORD of hosts is God over Israel; and the house of Thy servant David shall be established before Thee. 27 For Thou, O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, hast revealed to Thy servant, saying: I will build thee a house; therefore hath Thy servant taken heart to pray this prayer unto Thee. 28 And now, O Lord GOD, Thou alone art God, and Thy words are truth, and Thou hast promised this good thing unto Thy servant; 29 now therefore let it please Thee to bless the house of Thy servant, that it may continue for ever before Thee; for Thou, O Lord GOD, hast spoken it; and through Thy blessing let the house of Thy servant be blessed for ever.'

2 SAMUEL 8 — 1 And after this it came to pass, that David smote the Philistines, and subdued them; and David took Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines.

2 And he smote Moab, and measured them with the line, making them to lie down on the ground; and he measured two lines to put to death, and one full line to keep alive. And the Moabites became servants to David, and brought presents.

3 David smote also Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah, as he went to establish his dominion at the river Euphrates. 4 And David took from him a thousand and seven hundred horsemen, and twenty thousand footmen; and David houghed all the chariot horses, but reserved of them for a hundred chariots. 5 And when the Arameans of Damascus came to succour Hadadezer king of Zobah, David smote of the Arameans two and twenty thousand men. 6 Then David put garrisons in Aram of Damascus; and the Arameans became servants to David, and brought presents. And the LORD gave victory to David whithersoever he went. 7 And David took the shields of gold that were on the servants of Hadadezer, and brought them to Jerusalem. 8 And from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, king David took exceeding much brass.

9 And when Toi king of Hamath heard that David had smitten all the host of Hadadezer, 10 then Toi sent Joram his son unto king David, to salute him, and to bless him-because he had fought against Hadadezer and smitten him; for Hadadezer had wars with Toi-and he brought with him vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of brass. 11 These also did king David dedicate unto the LORD, with the silver and gold that he dedicated of all the nations which he subdued: 12 of Aram, and of Moab, and of the children of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer, son of Rehob, king of Zobah. 13 And David got him a name when he returned from smiting the Arameans in the Valley of Salt, even eighteen thousand men. 14 And he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom put he garrisons, and all the Edomites became servants to David. And the LORD gave victory to David whithersoever he went.

15 And David reigned over all Israel; and David executed justice and righteousness unto all his people. 16 And Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the host; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder; 17 and Zadok the son of Ahitub, and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar, were priests; and Seraiah was scribe; 18 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and the Pelethites; and David's sons were chief ministers.

2 SAMUEL 9 — 1 And David said: 'Is there yet any that is left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?' 2 Now there was of the house of Saul a servant whose name was Ziba, and they called him unto David; and the king said unto him: 'Art thou Ziba?' And he said: 'Thy servant is he.' 3 And the king said: 'Is there not yet any of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God unto him?' And Ziba said unto the king: 'Jonathan hath yet a son, who is lame on his feet.' 4 And the king said unto him: 'Where is he?' And Ziba said unto the king: 'Behold, he is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, in Lo-debar.' 5 Then king David sent, and fetched him out of the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, from Lo-debar. 6 And Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came unto David, and fell on his face, and prostrated himself. And David said: 'Mephibosheth!' And he answered: 'Behold thy servant!' 7 And David said unto him: 'Fear not; for I will surely show thee kindness for Jonathan thy father's sake, and will restore thee all the land of Saul thy father; and thou shalt eat bread at my table continually.' 8 And he bowed down, and said: 'What is thy servant, that thou shouldest look upon such a dead dog as I am?'

9 Then the king called to Ziba, Saul's servant, and said unto him: 'All that pertained to Saul and to all his house have I given unto thy master's son. 10 And thou shalt till the land for him, thou, and thy sons, and thy servants; and thou shalt bring in the fruits, that thy master's son may have bread to eat; but Mephibosheth thy master's son shall eat bread continually at my table.' Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11 Then said Ziba unto the king: 'According to all that my lord the king commandeth his servant, so shall thy servant do; but Mephibosheth eateth at my table as one of the king's sons.' 12 Now Mephibosheth had a young son, whose name was Mica. And all that dwelt in the house of Ziba were servants unto Mephibosheth. 13 But Mephibosheth dwelt in Jerusalem; for he did eat continually at the king's table; and he was lame on both his feet.

2 SAMUEL 10 — 1 And it came to pass after this, that the king of the children of Ammon died, and Hanun his son reigned in his stead. 2 And David said: 'I will show kindness unto Hanun the son of Nahash, as his father showed kindness unto me.' So David sent by the hand of his servants to comfort him concerning his father. And David's servants came into the land of the children of Ammon. 3 But the princes of the children of Ammon said unto Hanun their lord: 'Thinkest thou that David doth honour thy father, that he hath sent comforters unto thee? hath not David sent his servants unto thee to search the city, and to spy it out, and to overthrow it?' 4 So Hanun took David's servants, and shaved off the one half of their beards, and cut off their garments in the middle, even to their buttocks, and sent them away. 5 When they told it unto David, he sent to meet them; for the men were greatly ashamed. And the king said: 'Tarry at Jericho until your beards be grown, and then return.'

6 And when the children of Ammon saw that they were become odious to David, the children of Ammon sent and hired the Arameans of Beth-rehob, and the Arameans of Zobah, twenty thousand footmen, and the king of Maacah with a thousand men, and the men of Tob twelve thousand men. 7 And when David heard of it, he sent Joab, and all the host of the mighty men. 8 And the children of Ammon came out, and put the battle in array at the entrance of the gate; and the Arameans of Zobah, and of Rehob, and the men of Tob and Maacah, were by themselves in the field.

9 Now when Joab saw that the battle was set against him before and behind, he chose of all the choice men of Israel, and put them in array against the Arameans; 10 and the rest of the people he committed into the hand of Abishai his brother, and he put them in array against the children of Ammon. 11 And he said: 'If the Arameans be too strong for me, then thou shalt help me, but if the children of Ammon be too strong for thee, then I will come and help thee. 12 Be of good courage, and let us prove strong for our people, and for the cities of our God; and the LORD do that which seemeth Him good.' 13 So Joab and the people that were with him drew nigh unto the battle against the Arameans; and they fled before him. 14 And when the children of Ammon saw that the Arameans were fled, they likewise fled before Abishai, and entered into the city. Then Joab returned from the children of Ammon, and came to Jerusalem.

15 And when the Arameans saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they gathered themselves together. 16 And Hadadezer sent, and brought out the Arameans that were beyond the River; and they came to Helam, with Shobach the captain of the host of Hadadezer at their head. 17 And it was told David; and he gathered all Israel together, and passed over the Jordan, and came to Helam. And the Arameans set themselves in array against David, and fought with him. 18 And the Arameans fled before Israel; and David slew of the Arameans seven hundred drivers of chariots, and forty thousand horsemen, and smote Shobach the captain of their host, so that he died there. 19 And when all the kings that were servants to Hadadezer saw that they were put to the worse before Israel, they made peace with Israel, and served them. So the Arameans feared to help the children of Ammon any more.

2 SAMUEL 11 — 1 And it came to pass, at the return of the year, at the time when kings go out to battle, that David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they destroyed the children of Ammon, and besieged Rabbah. But David tarried at Jerusalem.

2 And it came to pass at eventide, that David arose from off his bed, and walked upon the roof of the king's house; and from the roof he saw a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful to look upon. 3 And David sent and inquired after the woman. And one said: 'Is not this Bath-sheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?' 4 And David sent messengers, and took her; and she came in unto him, and he lay with her; for she was purified from her uncleanness; and she returned unto her house. 5 And the woman conceived; and she sent and told David, and said: 'I am with child.'

6 And David sent to Joab [,saying]: 'Send me Uriah the Hittite.' And Joab sent Uriah to David. 7 And when Uriah was come unto him, David asked of him how Joab did, and how the people fared, and how the war prospered. 8 And David said to Uriah: 'Go down to thy house, and wash thy feet.' And Uriah departed out of the king's house, and there followed him a mess of food from the king. 9 But Uriah slept at the door of the king's house with all the servants of his lord, and went not down to his house. 10 And when they had told David, saying: 'Uriah went not down unto his house', David said unto Uriah: 'Art thou not come from a journey? wherefore didst thou not go down unto thy house?' 11 And Uriah said unto David: 'The ark, and Israel, and Judah, abide in booths; and my lord Joab, and the servants of my lord, are encamped in the open field; shall I then go into my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? as thou livest, and as thy soul liveth, I will not do this thing.' 12 And David said to Uriah: 'Tarry here to-day also, and to-morrow I will let thee depart.' So Uriah abode in Jerusalem that day, and the morrow. 13 And when David had called him, he did eat and drink before him; and he made him drunk; and at even he went out to lie on his bed with the servants of his lord, but went not down to his house.

14 And it came to pass in the morning, that David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. 15 And he wrote in the letter, saying: 'Set ye Uriah in the forefront of the hottest battle, and retire ye from him, that he may be smitten, and die.' 16 And it came to pass, when Joab kept watch upon the city, that he assigned Uriah unto the place where he knew that valiant men were. 17 And the men of the city went out, and fought with Joab; and there fell some of the people, even of the servants of David; and Uriah the Hittite died also. 18 Then Joab sent and told David all the things concerning the war; 19 and he charged the messenger, saying: 'When thou hast made an end of telling all the things concerning the war unto the king, 20 it shall be that, if the king's wrath arise, and he say unto thee: Wherefore went ye so nigh unto the city to fight? knew ye not that they would shoot from the wall? 21 who smote Abimelech the son of Jerubbesheth? did not a woman cast an upper millstone upon him from the wall, that he died at Thebez? why went ye so nigh the wall? then shalt thou say: Thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.'

22 So the messenger went, and came and told David all that Joab had sent him for. 23 And the messenger said unto David: 'The men prevailed against us, and came out unto us into the field, and we were upon them even unto the entrance of the gate. 24 And the shooters shot at thy servants from off the wall; and some of the king's servants are dead, and thy servant Uriah the Hittite is dead also.' 25 Then David said unto the messenger: 'Thus shalt thou say unto Joab: Let not this thing displease thee, for the sword devoureth in one manner or another; make thy battle more strong against the city, and overthrow it; and encourage thou him.'

26 And when the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she made lamentation for her husband. 27 And when the mourning was past, David sent and took her home to his house, and she became his wife, and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the LORD.

2 SAMUEL 12 — 1 And the LORD sent Nathan unto David. And he came unto him, and said unto him: 'There were two men in one city: the one rich, and the other poor. 2 The rich man had exceeding many flocks and herds; 3 but the poor man had nothing save one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and reared; and it grew up together with him, and with his children; it did eat of his own morsel, and drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was unto him as a daughter. 4 And there came a traveller unto the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the wayfaring man that was come unto him, but took the poor man's lamb, and dressed it for the man that was come to him.' 5 And David's anger was greatly kindled against the man; and he said to Nathan: 'As the LORD liveth, the man that hath done this deserveth to die; 6 and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.'

7 And Nathan said to David: 'Thou art the man. Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I anointed thee king over Israel, and I delivered thee out of the hand of Saul; 8 and I gave thee thy master's house, and thy master's wives into thy bosom, and gave thee the house of Israel and of Judah; and if that were too little, then would I add unto thee so much more. 9 Wherefore hast thou despised the word of the LORD, to do that which is evil in My sight? Uriah the Hittite thou hast smitten with the sword, and his wife thou hast taken to be thy wife, and him thou hast slain with the sword of the children of Ammon. 10 Now therefore, the sword shall never depart from thy house; because thou hast despised Me, and hast taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be thy wife. 11 Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house, and I will take thy wives before thine eyes, and give them unto thy neighbour, and he shall lie with thy wives in the sight of this sun. 12 For thou didst it secretly; but I will do this thing before all Israel, and before the sun.' 13 And David said unto Nathan: 'I have sinned against the LORD.' And Nathan said unto David: 'The LORD also hath put away thy sin; thou shalt not die. 14 Howbeit, because by this deed thou hast greatly blasphemed the enemies of the LORD, the child also that is born unto thee shall surely die.' 15 And Nathan departed unto his house.

And the LORD struck the child that Uriah's wife bore unto David, and it was very sick. 16 David therefore besought God for the child; and David fasted, and as often as he went in, he lay all night upon the earth. 17 And the elders of his house arose, and stood beside him, to raise him up from the earth; but he would not, neither did he eat bread with them. 18 And it came to pass on the seventh day, that the child died. And the servants of David feared to tell him that the child was dead; for they said: 'Behold, while the child was yet alive, we spoke unto him, and he hearkened not unto our voice; how then shall we tell him that the child is dead, so that he do himself some harm?' 19 But when David saw that his servants whispered together, David perceived that the child was dead; and David said unto his servants: 'Is the child dead?' And they said: 'He is dead.' 20 Then David arose from the earth, and washed, and anointed himself, and changed his apparel; and he came into the house of the LORD, and worshipped; then he came to his own house; and when he required, they set bread before him, and he did eat. 21 Then said his servants unto him: 'What thing is this that thou hast done? thou didst fast and weep for the child, while it was alive; but when the child was dead, thou didst rise and eat bread.' 22 And he said: 'While the child was yet alive, I fasted and wept; for I said: Who knoweth whether the LORD will not be gracious to me, that the child may live? 23 But now he is dead, wherefore should I fast? can I bring him back again? I shall go to him, but he will not return to me.'

24 And David comforted Bath-sheba his wife, and went in unto her, and lay with her; and she bore a son, and called his name Solomon. And the LORD loved him; 25 and He sent by the hand of Nathan the prophet, and he called his name Jedidiah, for the LORD'S sake.

26 Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the royal city. 27 And Joab sent messengers to David, and said: 'I have fought against Rabbah, yea, I have taken the city of waters. 28 Now therefore gather the rest of the people together, and encamp against the city, and take it; lest I take the city, and it be called after my name.' 29 And David gathered all the people together, and went to Rabbah, and fought against it, and took it. 30 And he took the crown of Malcam from off his head; and the weight thereof was a talent of gold, and in it were precious stones; and it was set on David's head. And he brought forth the spoil of the city, exceeding much. 31 And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brickkiln; and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem.

2 SAMUEL 13 — 1 And it came to pass after this, that Absalom the son of David had a fair sister, whose name was Tamar; and Amnon the son of David loved her. 2 And Amnon was so distressed that he fell sick because of his sister Tamar; for she was a virgin; and it seemed hard to Amnon to do any thing unto her. 3 But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother; and Jonadab was a very subtle man. 4 And he said unto him: 'Why, O son of the king, art thou thus becoming leaner from day to day? wilt thou not tell me?' And Amnon said unto him: 'I love Tamar, my brother Absalom's sister.' 5 And Jonadab said unto him: 'Lay thee down on thy bed, and feign thyself sick; and when thy father cometh to see thee, say unto him: Let my sister Tamar come, I pray thee, and give me bread to eat, and dress the food in my sight, that I may see it, and eat it at her hand.' 6 So Amnon lay down, and feigned himself sick; and when the king was come to see him, Amnon said unto the king: 'Let my sister Tamar come, I pray thee, and make me a couple of cakes in my sight, that I may eat at her hand.'

7 Then David sent home to Tamar, saying: 'Go now to thy brother Amnon's house, and dress him food.' 8 So Tamar went to her brother Amnon's house; and he was lying down. And she took dough, and kneaded it, and made cakes in his sight, and did bake the cakes. 9 And she took the pan, and poured them out before him; but he refused to eat. And Amnon said: 'Have out all men from me.' And they went out every man from him. 10 And Amnon said unto Tamar: 'Bring the food into the chamber, that I may eat of thy hand.' And Tamar took the cakes which she had made, and brought them into the chamber to Amnon her brother. 11 And when she had brought them near unto him to eat, he took hold of her, and said unto her: 'Come lie with me, my sister.' 12 And she answered him: 'Nay, my brother, do not force me; for no such thing ought to be done in Israel; do not thou this wanton deed. 13 And I, whither shall I carry my shame? and as for thee, thou wilt be as one of the base men in Israel. Now therefore, I pray thee, speak unto the king; for he will not withhold me from thee.' 14 Howbeit he would not hearken unto her voice; but being stronger than she, he forced her, and lay with her.

15 Then Amnon hated her with exceeding great hatred; for the hatred wherewith he hated her was greater than the love wherewith he had loved her. And Amnon said unto her: 'Arise, be gone.' 16 And she said unto him: 'Not so, because this great wrong in putting me forth is worse than the other that thou didst unto me.' But he would not hearken unto her. 17 Then he called his servant that ministered unto him, and said: 'Put now this woman out from me, and bolt the door after her.'-18 Now she had a garment of many colours upon her; for with such robes were the king's daughters that were virgins apparelled. -And his servant brought her out, and bolted the door after her. 19 And Tamar put ashes on her head, and rent her garment of many colours that was on her; and she laid her hand on her head, and went her way, crying aloud as she went.

20 And Absalom her brother said unto her: 'Hath Amnon thy brother been with thee? but now hold thy peace, my sister: he is thy brother; take not this thing to heart.' So Tamar remained desolate in her brother, Absalom's house. 21 But when king David heard of all these things, he was very wroth. 22 And Absalom spoke unto Amnon neither good nor bad; for Absalom hated Amnon, because he had forced his sister Tamar.

23 And it came to pass after two full years, that Absalom had sheep-shearers in Baal-hazor, which is beside Ephraim; and Absalom invited all the king's sons. 24 And Absalom came to the king, and said: 'Behold now, thy servant hath sheep-shearers; let the king, I pray thee, and his servants go with thy servant.' 25 And the king said to Absalom: 'Nay, my son, let us not all go, lest we be burdensome unto thee.' And he pressed him; howbeit he would not go, but blessed him. 26 Then said Absalom: 'If not, I pray thee, let my brother Amnon go with us.' And the king said unto him: 'Why should he go with thee?' 27 But Absalom pressed him, and he let Amnon and all the king's sons go with him. 28 And Absalom commanded his servants, saying: 'Mark ye now, when Amnon's heart is merry with wine; and when I say unto you: Smite Amnon, then kill him, fear not; have not I commanded you? be courageous, and be valiant.' 29 And the servants of Absalom did unto Amnon as Absalom had commanded. Then all the king's sons arose, and every man got him up upon his mule, and fled.

30 And it came to pass, while they were in the way, that the tidings came to David, saying: 'Absalom hath slain all the king's sons, and there is not one of them left.' 31 Then the king arose, and rent his garments, and lay on the earth; and all his servants stood by with their clothes rent. 32 And Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David's brother, answered and said: 'Let not my lord suppose that they have killed all the young men the king's sons; for Amnon only is dead; for by the appointment of Absalom this hath been determined from the day that he forced his sister Tamar. 33 Now therefore let not my lord the king take the thing to his heart, to think that all the king's sons are dead; for Amnon only is dead.'

34 But Absalom fled. And the young man that kept the watch lifted up his eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came much people in a roundabout way by the hill-side. 35 And Jonadab said unto the king: 'Behold, the king's sons are come; as thy servant said, so it is.' 36 And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of speaking, that, behold, the king's sons came, and lifted up their voice, and wept; and the king also and all his servants wept very sore.

37 But Absalom fled, and went to Talmai the son of Ammihud, king of Geshur. And David mourned for his son every day.

38 So Absalom fled, and went to Geshur, and was there three years. 39 And the soul of king David failed with longing for Absalom; for he was comforted concerning Amnon, seeing he was dead.

2 SAMUEL 14 — 1 Now Joab the son of Zeruiah perceived that the king's heart was toward Absalom. 2 And Joab sent to Tekoa, and fetched thence a wise woman, and said unto her: 'I pray thee, feign thyself to be a mourner, and put on mourning apparel, I pray thee, and anoint not thyself with oil, but be as a woman that had a long time mourned for the dead; 3 and go in to the king, and speak on this manner unto him.' So Joab put the words in her mouth.

4 And when the woman of Tekoa spoke to the king, she fell on her face to the ground, and prostrated herself, and said: 'Help, O king.' 5 And the king said unto her: 'What aileth thee?' And she answered: 'Of a truth I am a widow, my husband being dead. 6 And thy handmaid had two sons, and they two strove together in the field, and there was none to part them, but the one smote the other, and killed him. 7 And, behold, the whole family is risen against thy handmaid, and they said: Deliver him that smote his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he slew, and so destroy the heir also. Thus will they quench my coal which is left, and will leave to my husband neither name nor remainder upon the face of the earth.'

8 And the king said unto the woman: 'Go to thy house, and I will give charge concerning thee.' 9 And the woman of Tekoa said unto the king: 'My lord, O king, the iniquity be on me, and on my father's house; and the king and his throne be guiltless.' 10 And the king said: 'Whosoever saith aught unto thee, bring him to me, and he shall not touch thee any more.' 11 Then said she: 'I pray thee, let the king remember the LORD thy God, that the avenger of blood destroy not any more, lest they destroy my son.' And he said: 'As the LORD liveth, there shall not one hair of thy son fall to the earth.'

12 Then the woman said: 'Let thy handmaid, I pray thee, speak a word unto my lord the king.' And he said: 'Say on.' 13 And the woman said: 'Wherefore then hast thou devised such a thing against the people of God? for in speaking this word the king is as one that is guilty, in that the king doth not fetch home again his banished one. 14 For we must needs die, and are as water spilt on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again; neither doth God respect any person; but let him devise means, that he that is banished be not an outcast from him. 15 Now therefore seeing that I am come to speak this word unto my lord the king, it is because the people have made me afraid; and thy handmaid said: I will now speak unto the king; it may be that the king will perform the request of his servant. 16 For the king will hear, to deliver his servant out of the hand of the man that would destroy me and my son together out of the inheritance of God. 17 Then thy handmaid said: Let, I pray thee, the word of my lord the king be for my comfort; for as an angel of God, so is my lord the king to discern good and bad; and the LORD thy God be with thee.'

18 Then the king answered and said unto the woman: 'Hide not from me, I pray thee, aught that I shall ask thee.' And the woman said: 'Let my lord the king now speak.' 19 And the king said: 'Is the hand of Joab with thee in all this?' And the woman answered and said: 'As thy soul liveth, my lord the king, none can turn to the right hand or to the left from aught that my lord the king hath spoken; for thy servant Joab, he bade me, and he put all these words in the mouth of thy handmaid; 20 to change the face of the matter hath thy servant Joab done this thing; and my lord is wise, according to the wisdom of an angel of God, to know all things that are in the earth.'

21 And the king said unto Joab: 'Behold now, I have granted this request; go therefore, bring the young man Absalom back.' 22 And Joab fell to the ground on his face, and prostrated himself, and blessed the king; and Joab said: 'To-day thy servant knoweth that I have found favour in thy sight, my lord, O king, in that the king hath performed the request of thy servant.' 23 So Joab arose and went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. 24 And the king said: 'Let him turn to his own house, but let him not see my face.' So Absalom turned to his own house, and saw not the king's face.

25 Now in all Israel there was none to be so much praised as Absalom for his beauty; from the sole of his foot even to the crown of his head there was no blemish in him. 26 And when he polled his head-now it was at every year's end that he polled it; because the hair was heavy on him, therefore he polled it-he weighed the hair of his head at two hundred shekels, after the king's weight. 27 And unto Absalom there were born three sons, and one daughter, whose name was Tamar; she was a woman of a fair countenance.

28 And Absalom dwelt two full years in Jerusalem; and he saw not the kings face. 29 Then Absalom sent for Joab, to send him to the king; but he would not come to him; and he sent again a second time, but he would not come. 30 Therefore he said unto his servants: 'See, Joab's field is near mine, and he hath barley there; go and set it on fire.' And Absalom's servants set the field on fire. 31 Then Joab arose, and came to Absalom unto his house, and said unto him: 'Wherefore have thy servants set my field on fire?' 32 And Absalom answered Joab: 'Behold, I sent unto thee, saying: Come hither, that I may send thee to the king, to say: Wherefore am I come from Geshur? it were better for me to be there still; now therefore let me see the king's face; and if there be iniquity in me, let him kill me.' 33 So Joab came to the king, and told him; and when he had called for Absalom, he came to the king, and bowed himself on his face to the ground before the king; and the king kissed Absalom.

2 SAMUEL 15 — 1 And it came to pass after this, that Absalom prepared him a chariot and horses, and fifty men to run before him. 2 And Absalom used to rise up early, and stand beside the way of the gate; and it was so, that when any man had a suit which should come to the king for judgment, then Absalom called unto him, and said: 'Of what city art thou?' And he said: 'Thy servant is of one of the tribes of Israel.' 3 And Absalom said unto him: 'See, thy matters are good and right; but there is no man deputed of the king to hear thee.' 4 Absalom said moreover: 'Oh that I were made judge in the land, that every man who hath any suit or cause might come unto me, and I would do him justice!' 5 And it was so, that when any man came nigh to prostrate himself before him, he put forth his hand, and took hold of him, and kissed him. 6 And on this manner did Absalom to all Israel that came to the king for judgment; so Absalom stole the hearts of the men of Israel.

7 And it came to pass at the end of forty years, that Absalom said unto the king: 'I pray thee, let me go and pay my vow, which I have vowed unto the LORD, in Hebron. 8 For thy servant vowed a vow while I abode at Geshur in Aram, saying: If the LORD shall indeed bring me back to Jerusalem, then I will serve the LORD.' 9 And the king said unto him: 'Go in peace.' So he arose, and went to Hebron. 10 But Absalom sent spies throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying: 'As soon as ye hear the sound of the horn, then ye shall say: Absalom is king in Hebron.' 11 And with Absalom went two hundred men out of Jerusalem, that were invited, and went in their simplicity; and they knew not any thing. 12 And Absalom sent for Ahithophel the Gilonite, David's counsellor, from his city, even from Giloh, while he offered the sacrifices. And the conspiracy was strong; for the people increased continually with Absalom.

13 And there came a messenger to David, saying: 'The hearts of the men of Israel are after Absalom.' 14 And David said unto all his servants that were with him at Jerusalem: 'Arise, and let us flee; for else none of us shall escape from Absalom; make speed to depart, lest he overtake us quickly, and bring down evil upon us, and smite the city with the edge of the sword.' 15 And the king's servants said unto the king: 'Behold, thy servants are ready to do whatsoever my lord the king shall choose.' 16 And the king went forth, and all his household after him. And the king left ten women, that were concubines, to keep the house. 17 And the king went forth, and all the people after him; and they tarried in Beth-merhak. 18 And all his servants passed on beside him; and all the Cherethites, and all the Pelethites, and all the Gittites, six hundred men that came after him from Gath, passed on before the king.

19 Then said the king to Ittai the Gittite: 'Wherefore goest thou also with us? return, and abide with the king; for thou art a foreigner, and also an exile from thine own place. 20 Whereas thou camest but yesterday, should I this day make thee go up and down with us, seeing I go whither I may? return thou, and take back thy brethren with thee in kindness and truth.' 21 And Ittai answered the king, and said: 'As the LORD liveth, and as my lord the king liveth, surely in what place my lord the king shall be, whether for death or for life, even there also will thy servant be.' 22 And David said to Ittai: 'Go and pass over.' And Ittai the Gittite passed over, and all his men, and all the little ones that were with him. 23 And all the country wept with a loud voice, as all the people passed over; and as the king passed over the brook Kidron, all the people passed over, toward the way of the wilderness.

24 And, lo, Zadok also came, and all the Levites with him, bearing the ark of the covenant of God; and they set down the ark of God-but Abiathar went up-until all the people had done passing out of the city. 25 And the king said unto Zadok: 'Carry back the ark of God into the city; if I shall find favour in the eyes of the LORD, He will bring me back, and show me both it, and His habitation; 26 but if He say thus: I have no delight in thee; behold, here am I, let Him do to me as seemeth good unto Him.' 27 The king said also unto Zadok the priest: 'Seest thou? return into the city in peace, and your two sons with you, Ahimaaz thy son, and Jonathan the son of Abiathar. 28 See, I will tarry in the plains of the wilderness, until there come word from you to announce unto me.' 29 Zadok therefore and Abiathar carried the ark of God back to Jerusalem; and they abode there.

30 And David went up by the ascent of the mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered, and went barefoot; and all the people that were with him covered every man his head, and they went up, weeping as they went up. 31 And one told David, saying: 'Ahithophel is among the conspirators with Absalom.' And David said: 'O LORD, I pray Thee, turn the counsel of Ahithophel into foolishness.' 32 And it came to pass, that when David was come to the top of the ascent, where God was wont to be worshipped, behold, Hushai the Archite came to meet him with his coat rent, and earth upon his head. 33 And David said unto him: 'If thou passest on with me, then thou wilt be a burden unto Me; 34 but if thou return to the city, and say unto Absalom: I will be thy servant, O king; as I have been thy father's servant in time past, so will I now be thy servant; then wilt thou defeat for me the counsel of Ahithophel. 35 And hast thou not there with thee Zadok and Abiathar the priests? therefore it shall be, that what thing soever thou shalt hear out of the king's house, thou shalt tell it to Zadok and Abiathar the priests. 36 Behold, they have there with them their two sons, Ahimaaz Zadok's son, and Jonathan Abiathar's son; and by them ye shall send unto me every thing that ye shall hear.' 37 So Hushai David's friend came into the city; and Absalom was at the point of coming into Jerusalem.

2 SAMUEL 16 — 1 And when David was a little past the top, behold, Ziba the servant of Mephibosheth met him, with a couple of asses saddled, and upon them two hundred loaves of bread, and a hundred clusters of raisins, and a hundred of summer fruits, and a bottle of wine. 2 And the king said unto Ziba: 'What meanest thou by these?' And Ziba said: 'The asses are for the king's household to ride on; and the bread and summer fruit for the young men to eat; and the wine, that such as are faint in the wilderness may drink.' 3 And the king said: 'And where is thy master's son?' And Ziba said unto the king: 'Behold, he abideth at Jerusalem; for he said: To-day will the house of Israel restore me the kingdom of my father.' 4 Then said the king to Ziba: 'Behold, thine is all that pertaineth unto Mephibosheth.' And Ziba said: 'I prostrate myself; let me find favour in thy sight, my lord, O king.'

5 And when king David came to Bahurim, behold, there came out thence a man of the family of the house of Saul, whose name was Shimei, the son of Gera; he came out, and kept on cursing as he came. 6 And he cast stones at David, and at all the servants of king David; and all the people and all the mighty men were on his right hand and on his left. 7 And thus said Shimei when he cursed: 'Begone, begone, thou man of blood, and base fellow; 8 the LORD hath returned upon thee all the blood of the house of Saul, in whose stead thou hast reigned; and the LORD hath delivered the kingdom into the hand of Absalom thy son; and, behold, thou art taken in thine own mischief, because thou art a man of blood.'

9 Then said Abishai the son of Zeruiah unto the king: 'Why should this dead dog curse my lord the king? let me go over, I pray thee, and take off his head.' 10 And the king said: 'What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah? So let him curse, because the LORD hath said unto him: Curse David; who then shall say: Wherefore hast thou done so?' 11 And David said to Abishai, and to all his servants: 'Behold, my son, who came forth of my body, seeketh my life; how much more this Benjamite now? let him alone, and let him curse; for the LORD hath bidden him. 12 It may be that the LORD will look on mine eye, and that the LORD will requite me good for his cursing of me this day.' 13 So David and his men went by the way; and Shimei went along on the hill-side over against him, and cursed as he went, and threw stones at him, and cast dust. 14 And the king, and all the people that were with him, came weary; and he refreshed himself there.

15 And Absalom, and all the people, the men of Israel, came to Jerusalem, and Ahithophel with him. 16 And it came to pass, when Hushai the Archite, David's friend, was come unto Absalom, that Hushai said unto Absalom: 'Long live the king, long live the king.' 17 And Absalom said to Hushai: 'Is this thy kindness to thy friend? why wentest thou not with thy friend?' 18 And Hushai said unto Absalom: 'Nay; but whom the LORD, and this people, and all the men of Israel have chosen, his will I be, and with him will I abide. 19 And again, whom should I serve? should I not serve in the presence of his son? as I have served in thy father's presence, so will I be in thy presence.'

20 Then said Absalom to Ahithophel: 'Give your counsel what we shall do.' 21 And Ahithophel said unto Absalom: 'Go in unto thy father's concubines, that he hath left to keep the house; and all Israel will hear that thou art abhorred of thy father; then will the hands of all that are with thee be strong.' 22 So they spread Absalom a tent upon the top of the house; and Absalom went in unto his father's concubines in the sight of all Israel.-23 Now the counsel of Ahithophel, which he counselled in those days, was as if a man inquired of the word of God; so was all the counsel of Ahithophel both with David and with Absalom.

2 SAMUEL 17 — 1 Moreover Ahithophel said unto Absalom: 'Let me now choose out twelve thousand men, and I will arise and pursue after David this night; 2 and I will come upon him while he is weary and weak-handed, and will make him afraid; and all the people that are with him shall flee; and I will smite the king only; 3 and I will bring back all the people unto thee; when all shall have returned, save the man whom thou seekest, all the people will be in peace.' 4 And the saying pleased Absalom well, and all the elders of Israel.

5 Then said Absalom: 'Call now Hushai the Archite also, and let us hear likewise what he saith.' 6 And when Hushai was come to Absalom, Absalom spoke unto him, saying: 'Ahithophel hath spoken after this manner; shall we do after his saying? if not, speak thou.' 7 And Hushai said unto Absalom: 'The counsel that Ahithophel hath given this time is not good.' 8 Hushai said moreover: 'Thou knowest thy father and his men, that they are mighty men, and they are embittered in their minds, as a bear robbed of her whelps in the field; and thy father is a man of war, and will not lodge with the people. 9 Behold, he is hid now in some pit, or in some place; and it will come to pass, when they fall upon them at the first, and whosoever heareth it shall say: There is a slaughter among the people that follow Absalom; 10 then even he that is valiant, whose heart is as the heart of a lion, will utterly melt; for all Israel knoweth that thy father is a mighty man, and they that are with him are valiant men. 11 But I counsel that all Israel be gathered together unto thee, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, as the sand that is by the sea for multitude; and that thou go to battle in thine own person. 12 So shall we come upon him in some place where he shall be found, and we will light upon him as the dew falleth on the ground; and of him and of all the men that are with him we will not leave so much as one. 13 Moreover, if he withdraw himself into a city, then shall all Israel bring up ropes to that city, and we will draw it into the valley until there be not one small stone found there.' 14 And Absalom and all the men of Israel said: 'The counsel of Hushai the Archite is better than the counsel of Ahithophel.' -For the LORD had ordained to defeat the good counsel of Ahithophel, to the intent that the LORD might bring evil upon Absalom.

15 Then said Hushai unto Zadok and to Abiathar the priests: 'Thus and thus did Ahithophel counsel Absalom and the elders of Israel; and thus and thus have I counselled. 16 Now therefore send quickly, and tell David, saying: Lodge not this night in the plains of the wilderness, but in any wise pass over; lest the king be swallowed up, and all the people that are with him.' 17 Now Jonathan and Ahimaaz stayed by En-rogel; and a maid-servant used to go and tell them; and they went and told king David; for they might not be seen to come into the city. 18 But a lad saw them, and told Absalom; and they went both of them away quickly, and came to the house of a man in Bahurim, who had a well in his court; and they went down thither. 19 And the woman took and spread the covering over the well's mouth, and strewed groats thereon; and nothing was known. 20 And Absalom's servants came to the woman to the house; and they said: 'Where are Ahimaaz and Jonathan?' And the woman said unto them: 'They are gone over the brook of water.' And when they had sought and could not find them, they returned to Jerusalem.

21 And it came to pass, after they were departed, that they came up out of the well, and went and told king David; and they said unto David: 'Arise ye, and pass quickly over the water; for thus hath Ahithophel counselled against you.' 22 Then David arose, and all the people that were with him, and they passed over the Jordan; by the morning light there lacked not one of them that was not gone over the Jordan.

23 And when Ahithophel saw that his counsel was not followed, he saddled his ass, and arose, and got him home, unto his city, and set his house in order, and strangled himself; and he died, and was buried in the sepulchre of his father.

24 When David was come to Mahanaim, Absalom passed over the Jordan, he and all the men of Israel with him. 25 And Absalom had set Amasa over the host instead of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man, whose name was Ithra the Jesraelite, that went in to Abigal the daughter of Nahash, sister to Zeruiah Joab's mother. 26 And Israel and Absalom pitched in the land of Gilead.

27 And it came to pass, when David was come to Mahanaim, that Shobi the son of Nahash of Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and Machir the son of Ammiel of Lo-debar, and Barzillai the Gileadite of Rogelim, 28 brought beds, and basins, and earthen vessels, and wheat, and barley, and meal, and parched corn, and beans, and lentils, and parched pulse, 29 and honey, and curd, and sheep, and cheese of kine, for David, and for the people that were with him, to eat; for they said: 'The people is hungry, and faint, and thirsty, in the wilderness.'

2 SAMUEL 18 — 1 And David numbered the people that were with him, and set captains of thousands and captains of hundreds over them. 2 And David sent forth the people, a third part under the hand of Joab, and a third part under the hand of Abishai the son of Zeruiah, Joab's brother, and a third part under the hand of Ittai the Gittite. And the king said unto the people: 'I will surely go forth with you myself also.' 3 But the people said: 'Thou shalt not go forth; for if we flee away, they will not care for us; neither if half of us die, will they care for us; but thou art worth ten thousand of us: therefore now it is better that thou be ready to succour us out of the city.' 4 And the king said unto them: 'What seemeth you best I will do.' And the king stood by the gate-side, and all the people went out by hundreds and by thousands. 5 And the king commanded Joab and Abishai and Ittai, saying: 'Deal gently for my sake with the young man, even with Absalom.' And all the people heard when the king gave all the captains charge concerning Absalom.

6 So the people went out into the field against Israel; and the battle was in the forest of Ephraim. 7 And the people of Israel were smitten there before the servants of David, and there was a great slaughter there that day of twenty thousand men. 8 For the battle was there spread over the face of all the country; and the forest devoured more people that day than the sword devoured.

9 And Absalom chanced to meet the servants of David. And Absalom was riding upon his mule, and the mule went under the thick boughs of a great terebinth, and his head caught hold of the terebinth, and he was taken up between the heaven and the earth; and the mule that was under him went on. 10 And a certain man saw it, and told Joab, and said: 'Behold, I saw Absalom hanging in a terebinth.' 11 And Joab said unto the man that told him: 'And, behold, thou sawest it, and why didst thou not smite him there to the ground? and I would have had to give thee ten pieces of silver, and a girdle.' 12 And the man said unto Joab: 'Though I should receive a thousand pieces of silver in my hand, yet would I not put forth my hand against the king's son; for in our hearing the king charged thee and Abishai and Ittai, saying: Beware that none touch the young man Absalom. 13 Otherwise if I had dealt falsely against mine own life-and there is no matter hid from the king-then thou thyself wouldest have stood aloof.' 14 Then said Joab: 'I may not tarry thus with thee.' And he took three darts in his hand, and thrust them through the heart of Absalom, while he was yet alive in the midst of the terebinth. 15 And ten young men that bore Joab's armour compassed about and smote Absalom, and slew him.

16 And Joab blew the horn, and the people returned from pursuing after Israel; for Joab held back the people. 17 And they took Absalom, and cast him into the great pit in the forest, and raised over him a very great heap of stones; and all Israel fled every one to his tent.-18 Now Absalom in his life-time had taken and reared up for himself the pillar, which is in the king's dale; for he said: 'I have no son to keep my name in remembrance'; and he called the pillar after his own name; and it is called Absalom's monument unto this day.

19 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok: 'Let me now run, and bear the king tidings, how that the LORD hath avenged him of his enemies.' 20 And Joab said unto him: 'Thou shalt not be the bearer of tidings this day, but thou shalt bear tidings another day; but this day thou shalt bear no tidings, forasmuch as the king's son is dead.' 21 Then said Joab to the Cushite: 'Go tell the king what thou hast seen.' And the Cushite bowed down unto Joab, and ran. 22 Then said Ahimaaz the son of Zadok yet again to Joab: 'But come what may, let me, I pray thee, also run after the Cushite.' And Joab said: 'Wherefore wilt thou run, my son, seeing that thou wilt have no reward for the tidings?' 23 'But come what may, said he, I will run.' And he said unto him: 'Run.' Then Ahimaaz ran by the way of the Plain, and overran the Cushite.

24 Now David sat between the two gates; and the watchman went up to the roof of the gate unto the wall, and lifted up his eyes, and looked, and behold a man running alone. 25 And the watchman cried, and told the king. And the king said: 'If he be alone, there is tidings in his mouth.' And he came apace, and drew near. 26 And the watchman saw another man running; and the watchman called unto the porter, and said: 'Behold another man running alone.' And the king said: 'He also bringeth tidings.' 27 And the watchman said: 'I think the running of the foremost is like the running of Ahimaaz the son of Zadok.' And the king said: 'He is a good man, and cometh with good tidings.'

28 And Ahimaaz called, and said unto the king: 'All is well.' And he bowed down before the king with his face to the earth, and said: 'Blessed be the LORD thy God, who hath delivered up the men that lifted up their hand against my lord the king.' 29 And the king said: 'Is it well with the young man Absalom?' And Ahimaaz answered: 'When Joab sent the king's servant, and me thy servant, I saw a great tumult, but I knew not what it was.' 30 And the king said: 'Turn aside, and stand here.' And he turned aside, and stood still.

31 And, behold, the Cushite came; and the Cushite said: 'Tidings for my lord the king; for the LORD hath avenged thee this day of all them that rose up against thee.' 32 And the king said unto the Cushite: 'Is it well with the young man Absalom?' And the Cushite answered: 'The enemies of my lord the king and all that rise up against thee to do thee hurt, be as that young man is.'

2 SAMUEL 19 — 1 And the king was much moved, and went up to the chamber over the gate, and wept; and as he went, thus he said: 'O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! would I had died for thee, O Absalom, my son, my son!'

2 And it was told Joab: 'Behold, the king weepeth and mourneth for Absalom.' 3 And the victory that day was turned into mourning unto all the people; for the people heard say that day: 'The king grieveth for his son.' 4 And the people got them by stealth that day into the city, as people that are ashamed steal away when they flee in battle. 5 And the king covered his face, and the king cried with a loud voice: 'O my son Absalom, O Absalom, my son, my son!' 6 And Joab came into the house to the king, and said: 'Thou hast shamed this day the faces of all thy servants, who this day have saved thy life, and the lives of thy sons and of thy daughters, and the lives of thy wives, and the lives of thy concubines; 7 in that thou lovest them that hate thee, and hatest them that love thee. For thou hast declared this day, that princes and servants are nought unto thee; for this day I perceive, that if Absalom had lived, and all we had died this day, then it had pleased thee well. 8 Now therefore arise, go forth, and speak to the heart of thy servants; for I swear by the LORD, if thou go not forth, there will not tarry a man with thee this night; and that will be worse unto thee than all the evil that hath befallen thee from thy youth until now.' 9 Then the king arose, and sat in the gate. And they told unto all the people, saying: 'Behold, the king doth sit in the gate'; and all the people came before the king.

Now Israel had fled every man to his tent. 10 And all the people were at strife throughout all the tribes of Israel, saying: 'The king delivered us out of the hand of our enemies, and he saved us out of the hand of the Philistines; and now he is fled out of the land from Absalom. 11 And Absalom, whom we anointed over us, is dead in battle. Now, therefore, why speak ye not a word of bringing the king back?'

12 And king David sent to Zadok and to Abiathar the priests, saying: 'Speak unto the elders of Judah, saying: Why are ye the last to bring the king back to his house? -For the speech of all Israel was come to the king, to bring him to his house.-13 Ye are my brethren, ye are my bone and my flesh; wherefore then should ye be the last to bring back the king? 14 And say ye to Amasa: Art thou not my bone and my flesh? God do so to me, and more also, if thou be not captain of the host before me continually in the room of Joab.' 15 And he bowed the heart of all the men of Judah, even as the heart of one man; so that they sent unto the king: 'Return thou, and all thy servants.'

16 So the king returned, and came to the Jordan. And Judah came to Gilgal, to go to meet the king, to bring the king over the Jordan. 17 And Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, who was of Bahurim, made haste and came down with the men of Judah to meet king David. 18 And there were a thousand men of Benjamin with him, and Ziba the servant of the house of Saul, and his fifteen sons and his twenty servants with him. And they rushed into the Jordan before the king. 19 And the ferryboat passed to and fro to bring over the king's household, and to do what he thought good. And Shimei the son of Gera fell down before the king, when he would go over the Jordan. 20 And he said unto the king: 'Let not my lord impute iniquity unto me, neither do thou remember that which thy servant did iniquitously the day that my lord the king went out of Jerusalem, that the king should take it to his heart. 21 For thy servant doth know that I have sinned; therefore, behold, I am come this day the first of all the house of Joseph to go down to meet my lord the king.' 22 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah answered and said: 'Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, because he cursed the LORD'S anointed?' 23 And David said: 'What have I to do with you, ye sons of Zeruiah, that ye should this day be adversaries unto me? shall there any man be put to death this day in Israel? for do not I know that I am this day king over Israel?' 24 And the king said unto Shimei: 'Thou shalt not die.' And the king swore unto him.

25 And Mephibosheth the son of Saul came down to meet the king; and he had neither dressed his feet, nor trimmed his beard, nor washed his clothes, from the day the king departed until the day he came home in peace. 26 And it came to pass, when he was come to Jerusalem to meet the king, that the king said unto him: 'Wherefore wentest not thou with me, Mephibosheth?' 27 And he answered: 'My lord, O king, my servant deceived me; for thy servant said: I will saddle me an ass, that I may ride thereon, and go with the king; because thy servant is lame. 28 And he hath slandered thy servant unto my lord the king; but my lord the king is as an angel of God; do therefore what is good in thine eyes. 29 For all my father's house were deserving of death at the hand of my lord the king; yet didst thou set thy servant among them that did eat at thine own table. What right therefore have I yet? or why should I cry any more unto the king?' 30 And the king said unto him: 'Why speakest thou any more of thy matters? I say: Thou and Ziba divide the land.' 31 And Mephibosheth said unto the king: 'Yea, let him take all, forasmuch as my lord the king is come in peace unto his own house.'

32 And Barzillai the Gileadite came down from Rogelim; and he passed on to Jordan with the king, to bring him on the way over the Jordan. 33 Now Barzillai was a very aged man, even fourscore years old; and he had provided the king with sustenance while he lay at Mahanaim; for he was a very great man. 34 And the king said unto Barzillai: 'Come thou over with me, and I will sustain thee with me in Jerusalem.' 35 And Barzillai said unto the king: 'How many are the days of the years of my life, that I should go up with the king unto Jerusalem? 36 I am this day fourscore years old; can I discern between good and bad? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can I hear any more the voice of singing men and singing women? wherefore then should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the king? 37 Thy servant would but just go over the Jordan with the king; and why should the king recompense it me with such a reward? 38 Let thy servant, I pray thee, turn back, that I may die in mine own city, by the grave of my father and my mother. But behold thy servant Chimham; let him go over with my lord the king; and do to him what shall seem good unto thee.' 39 And the king answered: 'Chimham shall go over with me, and I will do to him that which shall seem good unto thee; and whatsoever thou shalt require of me, that will I do for thee.' 40 And all the people went over the Jordan, and the king went over; and the king kissed Barzillai, and blessed him; and he returned unto his own place.

41 So the king went over to Gilgal, and Chimham went over with him; and all the people of Judah brought the king over, and also half the people of Israel. 42 And, behold, all the men of Israel came to the king, and said unto the king: 'Why have our brethren the men of Judah stolen thee away, and brought the king, and his household, over the Jordan, and all David's men with him?' 43 And all the men of Judah answered the men of Israel: 'Because the king is near of kin to us; wherefore then are ye angry for this matter? have we eaten at all of the king's cost? or hath any gift been given us?' 44 And the men of Israel answered the men of Judah, and said: 'We have ten parts in the king, and we have also more right in David than ye; why then did ye despise us, that our advice should not be first had in bringing back our king?' And the words of the men of Judah were fiercer than the words of the men of Israel.

2 SAMUEL 20 — 1 Now there happened to be there a base fellow, whose name was Sheba, the son of Bichri, a Benjamite; and he blew the horn, and said: 'We have no portion in David, neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse; every man to his tents, O Israel.' 2 So all the men of Israel went up from following David, and followed Sheba the son of Bichri; but the men of Judah did cleave unto their king, from the Jordan even to Jerusalem.

3 And David came to his house at Jerusalem; and the king took the ten women his concubines, whom he had left to keep the house, and put them in ward, and provided them with sustenance, but went not in unto them. So they were shut up unto the day of their death, in widowhood, with their husband alive.

4 Then said the king to Amasa: 'Call me the men of Judah together within three days, and be thou here present.' 5 So Amasa went to call the men of Judah together; but he tarried longer than the set time which he had appointed him. 6 And David said to Abishai: 'Now will Sheba the son of Bichri do us more harm than did Absalom; take thou thy lord's servants, and pursue after him, lest he get him fortified cities, and escape out of our sight.' 7 And there went out after him Joab's men, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and all the mighty men; and they went out of Jerusalem, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri. 8 When they were at the great stone which is in Gibeon, Amasa came to meet them. And Joab was girded with his apparel of war that he had put on, and thereon was a girdle with a sword fastened upon his loins in the sheath thereof; and as he went forth it fell out. 9 And Joab said to Amasa: 'Is it well with thee, my brother?' And Joab took Amasa by the beard with his right hand to kiss him. 10 But Amasa took no heed to the sword that was in Joab's hand; so he smote him therewith in the groin, and shed out his bowels to the ground, and struck him not again; and he died.

And Joab and Abishai his brother pursued after Sheba the son of Bichri. 11 And there stood by him one of Joab's young men, and said: 'He that favoureth Joab, and he that is for David let him follow Joab.' 12 And Amasa lay wallowing in his blood in the midst of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people stood still, he carried Amasa out of the highway into the field, and cast a garment over him, when he saw that every one that came by him stood still. 13 When he was removed out of the highway, all the people went on after Joab, to pursue after Sheba the son of Bichri.

14 And he went through all the tribes of Israel unto Abel, and to Beth-maacah, and all the Berites; and they were gathered together, and went in also after him. 15 And they came and besieged him in Abel of Beth-maacah, and they cast up a mound against the city, and it stood in the moat; and all the people that were with Joab battered the wall, to throw it down.

16 Then cried a wise woman out of the city: 'Hear, hear; say, I pray you, unto Joab: Come near hither, that I may speak with thee.' 17 And he came near unto her; and the woman said: 'Art thou Joab?' And he answered: 'I am.' Then she said unto him: 'Hear the words of thy handmaid.' And he answered: 'I do hear.' 18 Then she spoke, saying: 'They were wont to speak in old time, saying: They shall surely ask counsel at Abel; and so they ended the matter. 19 We are of them that are peaceable and faithful in Israel; seekest thou to destroy a city and a mother in Israel? why wilt thou swallow up the inheritance of the LORD?' 20 And Joab answered and said: 'Far be it, far be it from me, that I should swallow up or destroy. 21 The matter is not so; but a man of the hill-country of Ephraim, Sheba the son of Bichri by name, hath lifted up his hand against the king, even against David; deliver him only, and I will depart from the city.' And the woman said unto Joab: 'Behold, his head shall be thrown to thee over the wall.' 22 Then the woman went unto all the people in her wisdom. And they cut off the head of Sheba the son of Bichri, and threw it out to Joab. And he blew the horn, and they were dispersed from the city, every man to his tent. And Joab returned to Jerusalem unto the king.

23 Now Joab was over all the host of Israel; and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the Cherethites and over the Pelethites; 24 and Adoram was over the levy; and Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was the recorder; 25 and Sheva was scribe; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests; 26 and Ira also the Jairite was chief minister unto David.

2 SAMUEL 21 — 1 And there was a famine in the days of David three years, year after year; and David sought the face of the LORD. And the LORD said: 'It is for Saul, and for his bloody house, because he put to death the Gibeonites.' 2 And the king called the Gibeonites, and said unto them-now the Gibeonites were not of the children of Israel, but of the remnant of the Amorites; and the children of Israel had sworn unto them; and Saul sought to slay them in his zeal for the children of Israel and Judah-3 and David said unto the Gibeonites: 'What shall I do for you? and wherewith shall I make atonement, that ye may bless the inheritance of the LORD?' 4 And the Gibeonites said unto him: 'It is no matter of silver or gold between us and Saul, or his house; neither is it for us to put any man to death in Israel.' And he said: 'What say ye that I should do for you?' 5 And they said unto the king: 'The man that consumed us, and that devised against us, so that we have been destroyed from remaining in any of the borders of Israel, 6 let seven men of his sons be delivered unto us, and we will hang them up unto the LORD in Gibeah of Saul, the chosen of the LORD.' And the king said: 'I will deliver them.'

7 But the king spared Mephibosheth, the son of Jonathan the son of Saul, because of the LORD'S oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul. 8 But the king took the two sons of Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, whom she bore unto Saul, Armoni and Mephibosheth; and the five sons of Michal the daughter of Saul, whom she bore to Adriel the son of Barzillai the Meholathite; 9 and he delivered them into the hands of the Gibeonites, and they hanged them in the mountain before the LORD, and they fell all seven together; and they were put to death in the days of harvest, in the first days, at the beginning of barley harvest.

10 And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water was poured upon them from heaven; and she suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night. 11 And it was told David what Rizpah the daughter of Aiah, the concubine of Saul, had done. 12 And David went and took the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son from the men of Jabesh-gilead, who had stolen them from the broad place of Beth-shan, where the Philistines had hanged them, in the day that the Philistines slew Saul in Gilboa; 13 and he brought up from thence the bones of Saul and the bones of Jonathan his son; and they gathered the bones of them that were hanged. 14 And they buried the bones of Saul and Jonathan his son in the country of Benjamin in Zela, in the sepulchre of Kish his father; and they performed all that the king commanded. And after that God was entreated for the land.

15 And the Philistines had war again with Israel; and David went down, and his servants with him, and fought against the Philistines; and David waxed faint. 16 And Ishbibenob, who was of the sons of the giant, the weight of whose spear was three hundred shekels of brass in weight, he being girded with new armour, thought to have slain David. 17 But Abishai the son of Zeruiah succoured him, and smote the Philistine, and killed him. Then the men of David swore unto him, saying: 'Thou shalt go no more out with us to battle, that thou quench not the lamp of Israel.'

18 And it came to pass after this, that there was again war with the Philistines at Gob; then Sibbecai the Hushathite slew Saph, who was of the sons of the giant. 19 And there was again war with the Philistines at Gob; and Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim the Beth-lehemite slew Goliath the Gittite, the staff of whose spear was like a weaver's beam. 20 And there was again war at Gath, where was a champion, that had on every hand six fingers, and on every foot six toes, four and twenty in number; and he also was born to the giant. 21 And when he taunted Israel, Jonathan the son of Shimea David's brother slew him. 22 These four were born to the giant in Gath; and they fell by the hand of David, and by the hand of his servants.

2 SAMUEL 22 — 1 And David spoke unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul; 2 and he said:

The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer;

3 The God who is my rock, in Him I take refuge;

My shield, and my horn of salvation, my high tower, and my refuge;

My saviour, Thou savest me from violence.

4 Praised, I cry, is the LORD,

And I am saved from mine enemies.

5 For the waves of Death compassed me.

The floods of Belial assailed me.

6 The cords of Sheol surrounded me;

The snares of Death confronted me.

7 In my distress I called upon the LORD,

Yea, I called unto my God;

And out of His temple He heard my voice,

And my cry did enter into His ears.

8 Then the earth did shake and quake,

The foundations of heaven did tremble;

They were shaken, because He was wroth.

9 Smoke arose up in His nostrils,

And fire out of His mouth did devour;

Coals flamed forth from Him.

10 He bowed the heavens also, and came down;

And thick darkness was under His feet.

11 And He rode upon a cherub, and did fly;

Yea, He was seen upon the wings of the wind.

12 And He made darkness pavilions round about Him,

Gathering of waters, thick clouds of the skies.

13 At the brightness before Him

Coals of fire flamed forth.

14 The LORD thundered from heaven,

And the Most High gave forth His voice.

15 And He sent out arrows, and scattered them;

Lightning, and discomfited them.

16 And the channels of the sea appeared,

The foundations of the world were laid bare

By the rebuke of the LORD,

At the blast of the breath of His nostrils.

17 He sent from on high, He took me;

He drew me out of many waters;

18 He delivered me from mine enemy most strong,

From them that hated me, for they were too mighty for me.

19 They confronted me in the day of my calamity;

But the LORD was a stay unto me.

20 He brought me forth also into a large place;

He delivered me, because He delighted in me.

21 The LORD rewarded me according to my righteousness;

According to the cleanness of my hands hath He recompensed me.

22 For I have kept the ways of the LORD,

And have not wickedly departed from my God.

23 For all His ordinances were before me;

And as for His statutes, I did not depart from them.

24 And I was single-hearted toward Him,

And I kept myself from mine iniquity.

25 Therefore hath the LORD recompensed me according to my righteousness,

According to my cleanness in His eyes.

26 With the merciful Thou dost show Thyself merciful,

With the upright man Thou dost show Thyself upright,

27 With the pure Thou dost show myself pure;

And with the crooked Thou dost show Thyself subtle.

28 And the afflicted people Thou dost save;

But Thine eyes are upon the haughty, that Thou mayest humble them.

29 For Thou art my lamp, O LORD;

And the LORD doth lighten my darkness.

30 For by Thee I run upon a troop;

By my God do I scale a wall.

31 As for God, His way is perfect;

The word of the LORD is tried;

He is a shield unto all them that take refuge in Him.

32 For who is God, save the LORD?

And who is a Rock, save our God?

33 The God who is my strong fortress,

And who letteth my way go forth straight;

34 Who maketh my feet like hinds',

And setteth me upon my high places;

35 Who traineth my hands for war,

So that mine arms do bend a bow of brass.

36 Thou hast also given me Thy shield of salvation;

And Thy condescension hath made me great.

37 Thou hast enlarged my steps under me,

And my feet have not slipped.

38 I have pursued mine enemies, and destroyed them;

Neither did I turn back till they were consumed.

39 And I have consumed them, and smitten them through, that they cannot arise;

Yea, they are fallen under my feet.

40 For Thou hast girded me with strength unto the battle;

Thou hast subdued under me those that rose up against me.

41 Thou hast also made mine enemies turn their backs unto me;

Yea, them that hate me, that I might cut them off.

42 They looked, but there was none to save;

Even unto the LORD, but He answered them not.

43 Then did I beat them small as the dust of the earth,

I did stamp them as the mire of the streets, and did tread them down.

44 Thou also hast delivered me from the contentions of my people;

Thou hast kept me to be the head of the nations;

A people whom I have not known serve me.

45 The sons of the stranger dwindle away before me;

As soon as they hear of me, they obey me.

46 The sons of the stranger fade away,

And come halting out of their close places.

47 The LORD liveth, and blessed be my Rock;

And exalted be the God, my Rock of salvation;

48 Even the God that executeth vengeance for me,

And bringeth down peoples under me,

49 And that bringeth me forth from mine enemies;

Yea, Thou liftest me up above them that rise up against me;

Thou deliverest me from the violent man.

50 Therefore I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD, among the nations,

And will sing praises unto Thy name.

51 A tower of salvation is He to His king;

And showeth mercy to His anointed,

To David and to his seed, for evermore.

2 SAMUEL 23 — 1 Now these are the last words of David:

The saying of David the son of Jesse,

And the saying of the man raised on high,

The anointed of the God of Jacob,

And the sweet singer of Israel:

2 The spirit of the LORD spoke by me,

And His word was upon my tongue.

3 The God of Israel said,

The Rock of Israel spoke to me:

'Ruler over men shall be

The righteous, even he that ruleth in the fear of God,

4 And as the light of the morning, when the sun riseth,

A morning without clouds;

When through clear shining after rain,

The tender grass springeth out of the earth.'

5 For is not my house established with God?

For an everlasting covenant He hath made with me,

Ordered in all things, and sure;

For all my salvation, and all my desire,

Will he not make it to grow?

6 But the ungodly, they are as thorns thrust away, all of them,

For they cannot be taken with the hand;

7 But the man that toucheth them

Must be armed with iron and the staff of a spear;

And they shall be utterly burned with fire in their place.

8 These are the names of the mighty men whom David had: Josheb-basshebeth a Tahchemonite, chief of the captains; the same was Adino the Eznite; [he lifted up his spear] against eight hundred, whom he slew at one time.

9 And after him was Eleazar the son of Dodo the son of an Ahohite, one of the three mighty men with David, when they jeoparded their lives against the Philistines that were there gathered together to battle, and the men of Israel were gone away; 10 he stood firm, and smote the Philistines until his hand was weary, and his hand did cleave unto the sword; and the LORD wrought a great victory that day; and the people returned after him only to strip the slain.

11 And after him was Shammah the son of Age the Ararite. And the Philistines were gathered together into a troop, where was a plot of ground full of lentils; and the people fled from the Philistines. 12 But he stood in the midst of the plot, and defended it, and slew the Philistines; and the LORD wrought a great victory.

13 And three of the thirty chief went down, and came to David in the harvest time unto the cave of Adullam; and the troop of the Philistines were encamped in the valley of Rephaim. 14 And David was then in the stronghold, and the garrison of the Philistines was then in Beth-lehem. 15 And David longed, and said: 'Oh that one would give me water to drink of the well of Beth-lehem, which is by the gate!' 16 And the three mighty men broke through the host of the Philistines, and drew water out of the well of Beth-lehem, that was by the gate, and took it, and brought it to David; but he would not drink thereof, but poured it out unto the LORD. 17 And he said: 'Be it far from me, O LORD, that I should do this; shall I drink the blood of the men that went in jeopardy of their lives?' therefore he would not drink it. These things did the three mighty men.

18 And Abishai, the brother of Joab, the son of Zeruiah, was chief of the three. And he lifted up his spear against three hundred and slew them, and had a name among the three. 19 He was most honourable of the three; therefore he was made their captain; howbeit he attained not unto the first three.

20 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man of Kabzeel, who had done mighty deeds, he smote the two altar-hearths of Moab; he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow; 21 and he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man; and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own spear. 22 These things did Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and had a name among the three mighty men. 23 He was more honourable than the thirty, but he attained not to the first three. And David set him over his guard.

24 Asahel the brother of Joab was one of the thirty; Elhanan the son of Dodo of Beth-lehem; 25 Shammah the Harodite, Elika the Harodite; 26 Helez the Paltite, Ira the son of Ikkesh the Tekoite; 27 Abiezer the Anathothite, Mebunnai the Hushathite; 28 Zalmon the Ahohite, Maharai the Netophathite; 29 Heleb the son of Baanah the Netophathite, Ittai the son of Ribai of Gibeah of the children of Benjamin; 30 Benaiah a Pirathonite, Hiddai of Nahale-gaash; 31 Abi-albon the Arbathite, Azmaveth the Barhumite; 32 Eliahba the Shaalbonite, of the sons of Jashen, Jonathan; 33 Shammah the Hararite, Ahiam the son of Sharar the Ararite; 34 Eliphelet the son of Ahasbai, the son of the Maacathite, Eliam the son of Ahithophel the Gilonite; 35 Hezrai the Carmelite, Paarai the Arbite; 36 Igal the son of Nathan of Zobah, Bani the Gadite; 37 Zelek the Ammonite, Naharai the Beerothite, armour-bearer to Joab the son of Zeruiah; 38 Ira the Ithrite, Gareb the Ithrite; 39 Uriah the Hittite. Thirty and seven in all.

2 SAMUEL 24 — 1 And again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He moved David against them, saying: 'Go, number Israel and Judah.' 2 And the king said to Joab the captain of the host that was with him: 'Go now to and fro through all the tribes of Israel, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, and number ye the people, that I may know the sum of the people.' 3 And Joab said unto the king: 'Now the LORD thy God add unto the people, how many soever they may be, a hundredfold, and may the eyes of my lord the king see it; but why doth my lord the king delight in this thing?' 4 Notwithstanding the king's word prevailed against Joab, and against the captains of the host. And Joab and the captains of the host went out from the presence of the king, to number the people of Israel. 5 And they passed over the Jordan, and pitched in Aroer, on the right side of the city that is in the middle of the valley of Gad, and unto Jazer; 6 then they came to Gilead, and to the land of Tahtim-hodshi; and they came to Dan-jaan, and round about to Zidon, 7 and came to the stronghold of Tyre, and to all the cities of the Hivites, and of the Canaanites; and they went out to the south of Judah, at Beer-sheba. 8 So when they had gone to and fro through all the land, they came to Jerusalem at the end of nine months and twenty days. 9 And Joab gave up the sum of the numbering of the people unto the king; and there were in Israel eight hundred thousand valiant men that drew the sword; and the men of Judah were five hundred thousand men.

10 And David's heart smote him after that he had numbered the people. And David said unto the LORD: 'I have sinned greatly in what I have done; but now, O LORD, put away, I beseech Thee, the iniquity of Thy servant; for I have done very foolishly.' 11 And when David rose up in the morning, the word of the LORD came unto the prophet Gad, David's seer, saying: 12 'Go and speak unto David: Thus saith the LORD: I lay upon thee three things; choose thee one of them, that I may do it unto thee.' 13 So Gad came to David, and told him, and said unto him: 'Shall seven years of famine come unto thee in thy land? or wilt thou flee three months before thy foes while they pursue thee? or shall there be three days' pestilence in thy land? now advise thee, and consider what answer I shall return to Him that sent Me.' 14 And David said unto Gad: 'I am in a great strait; let us fall now into the hand of the LORD; for His mercies are great; and let me not fall into the hand of man.'

15 So the LORD sent a pestilence upon Israel from the morning even to the time appointed; and there died of the people from Dan even to Beer-sheba seventy thousand men. 16 And when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it, the LORD repented Him of the evil, and said to the angel that destroyed the people: 'It is enough; now stay thy hand.' And the angel of the LORD was by the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite. 17 And David spoke unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said: 'Lo, I have sinned, and I have done iniquitously; but these sheep, what have they done? let Thy hand, I pray Thee, be against me, and against my father's house.'

18 And Gad came that day to David, and said unto him: 'Go up, rear an altar unto the LORD in the threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite.' 19 And David went up according to the saying of Gad, as the LORD commanded. 20 And Araunah looked forth, and saw the king and his servants coming on toward him; and Araunah went out, and bowed down before the king with his face to the ground. 21 And Araunah said: 'Wherefore is my lord the king come to his servant?' And David said: 'To buy the threshing-floor of thee, to build an altar unto the LORD, that the plague may be stayed from the people.' 22 And Araunah said unto David: 'Let my lord the king take and offer up what seemeth good unto him; behold the oxen for the burnt-offering, and the threshing-instruments and the furniture of the oxen for the wood.' 23 All this did Araunah the king give unto the king. And Araunah said unto the king: 'The LORD thy God accept thee.' 24 And the king said unto Araunah: 'Nay; but I will verily buy it of thee at a price; neither will I offer burnt-offerings unto the LORD my God which cost me nothing.' So David bought the threshing-floor and the oxen for fifty shekels of silver. 25 And David built there an altar unto the LORD, and offered burnt-offerings and peace-offerings. So the LORD was entreated for the land, and the plague was stayed from Israel.

1 Kings

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1 KINGS 1 — 1 Now King David was old and stricken in years; and they covered him with clothes, but he could get no heat. 2 Wherefore his servants said unto him: 'Let there be sought for my lord the king a young virgin; and let her stand before the king, and be a companion unto him; and let her lie in thy bosom, that my lord the king may get heat.' 3 So they sought for a fair damsel throughout all the borders of Israel, and found Abishag the Shunammite, and brought her to the king. 4 And the damsel was very fair; and she became a companion unto the king, and ministered to him; but the king knew her not.

5 Now Adonijah the son of Haggith exalted himself, saying: 'I will be king'; and he prepared him chariots and horsemen, and fifty men to run before him. 6 And his father had not grieved him all his life in saying: 'Why hast thou done so?' and he was also a very goodly man; and he was born after Absalom. 7 And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest; and they following Adonijah helped him. 8 But Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and Nathan the prophet, and Shimei, and Rei, and the mighty men that belonged to David, were not with Adonijah. 9 And Adonijah slew sheep and oxen and fatlings by the stone of Zoheleth, which is beside En-rogel; and he called all his brethren the king's sons, and all the men of Judah the king's servants; 10 but Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah, and the mighty men, and Solomon his brother, he called not.

11 Then Nathan spoke unto Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon, saying: 'Hast thou not heard that Adonijah the son of Haggith doth reign, and David our lord knoweth it not? 12 Now therefore come, let me, I pray thee, give thee counsel, that thou mayest save thine own life, and the life of thy son Solomon. 13 Go and get thee in unto king David, and say unto him: Didst not thou, my lord, O king, swear unto thy handmaid, saying: Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? why then doth Adonijah reign? 14 Behold, while thou yet talkest there with the king, I also will come in after thee, and confirm thy words.'

15 And Bath-sheba went in unto the king into the chamber. -Now the king was very old; and Abishag the Shunammite ministered unto the king.-16 And Bath-sheba bowed, and prostrated herself unto the king. And the king said: 'What wouldest thou?' 17 And she said unto him: 'My lord, thou didst swear by the LORD thy God unto thy handmaid: Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne. 18 And now, behold, Adonijah reigneth; and thou, my lord the king, knowest it not. 19 And he hath slain oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the sons of the king, and Abiathar, the priest, and Joab the captain of the host; but Solomon thy servant hath he not called. 20 And thou, my lord the king, the eyes of all Israel are upon thee, that thou shouldest tell them who shall sit on the throne of my lord the king after him. 21 Otherwise it will come to pass, when my lord the king shall sleep with his fathers, that I and my son Solomon shall be counted offenders.'

22 And, lo, while she yet talked with the king, Nathan the prophet came in. 23 And they told the king, saying: 'Behold Nathan the prophet.' And when he was come in before the king, he bowed down before the king with his face to the ground. 24 And Nathan said: 'My lord, O king, hast thou said: Adonijah shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne? 25 For he is gone down this day, and hath slain oxen and fatlings and sheep in abundance, and hath called all the king's sons, and the captains of the host, and Abiathar the priest; and, behold, they eat and drink before him, and say: Long live king Adonijah. 26 But me, even me thy servant, and Zadok the priest, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and thy servant Solomon hath he not called. 27 Is this thing done by my lord the king, and thou hast not declared unto thy servant who should sit on the throne of my lord the king after him?'

28 Then king David answered and said: 'Call me Bath-sheba.' And she came into the king's presence, and stood before the king. 29 And the king swore and said: 'As the LORD liveth, who hath redeemed my soul out of all adversity, 30 verily as I swore unto thee by the LORD, the God of Israel, saying: Assuredly Solomon thy son shall reign after me, and he shall sit upon my throne in my stead; verily so will I do this day.' 31 Then Bath-sheba bowed with her face to the earth, and prostrated herself to the king, and said: 'Let my lord king David live for ever.'

32 And king David said: 'Call me Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.' And they came before the king. 33 And the king said unto them: 'Take with you the servants of your lord, and cause Solomon my son to ride upon mine own mule, and bring him down to Gihon. 34 And let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him there king over Israel; and blow ye with the horn, and say: Long live king Solomon. 35 Then ye shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit upon my throne; for he shall be king in my stead; and I have appointed him to be prince over Israel and over Judah.' 36 And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada answered the king, and said: 'Amen; so say the LORD, the God of my lord the king. 37 As the LORD hath been with my lord the king, even so be He with Solomon, and make his throne greater than the throne of my lord king David.'

38 So Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, went down, and caused Solomon to ride upon king David's mule, and brought him to Gihon. 39 And Zadok the priest took the horn of oil out of the Tent, and anointed Solomon. And they blew the ram's horn; and all the people said: 'Long live king Solomon.' 40 And all the people came up after him, and the people piped with pipes, and rejoiced with great joy, so that the earth rent with the sound of them.

41 And Adonijah and all the guests that were with him heard it as they had made an end of eating. And when Joab heard the sound of the horn, he said: 'Wherefore is this noise of the city being in an uproar?' 42 While he yet spoke, behold, Jonathan the son of Abiathar the priest came; and Adonijah said: 'Come in; for thou art a worthy man, and bringest good tidings.' 43 And Jonathan answered and said to Adonijah: 'Verily our lord king David hath made Solomon king. 44 And the king hath sent with him Zadok the priest, and Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, and the Cherethites and the Pelethites, and they have caused him to ride upon the king's mule. 45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed him king in Gihon; and they are come up from thence rejoicing, so that the city is in an uproar. This is the noise that ye have heard. 46 And also Solomon sitteth on the throne of the kingdom. 47 And moreover the king's servants came to bless our lord king David, saying: God make the name of Solomon better than thy name, and make his throne greater than thy throne; and the king bowed down upon the bed. 48 And also thus said the king: Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who hath given one to sit on my throne this day, mine eyes even seeing it.'

49 And all the guests of Adonijah were afraid, and rose up, and went every man his way. 50 And Adonijah feared because of Solomon; and he arose, and went, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 51 And it was told Solomon, saying: 'Behold, Adonijah feareth king Solomon; for, lo, he hath laid hold on the horns of the altar, saying: Let king Solomon swear unto me first of all that he will not slay his servant with the sword.' 52 And Solomon said: 'If he shall show himself a worthy man, there shall not a hair of him fall to the earth; but if wickedness be found in him, he shall die.' 53 So king Solomon sent, and they brought him down from the altar. And he came and prostrated himself before king Solomon; and Solomon said unto him: 'Go to thy house.'

1 KINGS 2 — 1 Now the days of David drew nigh that he should die; and he charged Solomon his son, saying: 2 'I go the way of all the earth; be thou strong therefore, and show thyself a man; 3 and keep the charge of the LORD thy God, to walk in His ways, to keep His statutes, and His commandments, and His ordinances, and His testimonies, according to that which is written in the law of Moses, that thou mayest prosper in all that thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself; 4 that the LORD may establish His word which He spoke concerning me, saying: If thy children take heed to their way, to walk before Me in truth with all their heart and with all their soul, there shall not fail thee, said He, a man on the throne of Israel. 5 Moreover thou knowest also what Joab the son of Zeruiah did unto me, even what he did to the two captains of the hosts of Israel, unto Abner the son of Ner and unto Amasa the son of Jether, whom he slew, and shed the blood of war in peace, and put the blood of war upon his girdle that was about his loins, and in his shoes that were on his feet. 6 Do therefore according to thy wisdom, and let not his hoar head go down to the grave in peace. 7 But show kindness unto the sons of Barzillai the Gileadite, and let them be of those that eat at thy table; for so they drew nigh unto me when I fled from Absalom thy brother. 8 And, behold, there is with thee Shimei the son of Gera, the Benjamite, of Bahurim, who cursed me with a grievous curse in the day when I went to Mahanaim; but he came down to meet me at the Jordan, and I swore to him by the LORD, saying: I will not put thee to death with the sword. 9 Now therefore hold him not guiltless, for thou art a wise man; and thou wilt know what thou oughtest to do unto him, and thou shalt bring his hoar head down to the grave with blood.'

10 And David slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David. 11 And the days that David reigned over Israel were forty years: seven years reigned he in Hebron, and thirty and three years reigned he in Jerusalem. 12 And Solomon sat upon the throne of David his father; and his kingdom was established firmly.

13 Then Adonijah the son of Haggith came to Bath-sheba the mother of Solomon. And she said: 'Comest thou peaceably?' And he said: 'Peaceably.' 14 He said moreover: 'I have somewhat to say unto thee.' And she said: 'Say on.' 15 And he said: 'Thou knowest that the kingdom was mine, and that all Israel set their faces on me, that I should reign; howbeit the kingdom is turned about, and is become my brother's; for it was his from the LORD. 16 And now I ask one petition of thee, deny me not.' And she said unto him: 'Say on.' 17 And he said: 'Speak, I pray thee, unto Solomon the king-for he will not say thee nay-that he give me Abishag the Shunammite to wife.' 18 And Bath-sheba said: 'Well; I will speak for thee unto the king.'

19 Bath-sheba therefore went unto king Solomon, to speak unto him for Adonijah. And the king rose up to meet her, and bowed down unto her, and sat down on his throne, and caused a throne to be set for the king's mother; and she sat on his right hand. 20 Then she said: 'I ask one small petition of thee; deny me not.' And the king said unto her: 'Ask on, my mother; for I will not deny thee.' 21 And she said: 'Let Abishag the Shunammite be given to Adonijah thy brother to wife.' 22 And king Solomon answered and said unto his mother: 'And why dost thou ask Abishag the Shunammite for Adonijah? ask for him the kingdom also; for he is mine elder brother; even for him, and for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab the son of Zeruiah.' 23 Then king Solomon swore by the LORD, saying: 'God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah have not spoken this word against his own life. 24 Now therefore as the LORD liveth, who hath established me, and set me on the throne of David my father, and who hath made me a house, as He promised, surely Adonijah shall be put to death this day.' 25 And king Solomon sent by the hand of Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he fell upon him, so that he died.

26 And unto Abiathar the priest said the king: 'Get thee to Anathoth, unto thine own fields; for thou art deserving of death; but I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou didst bear the ark of the Lord GOD before David my father, and because thou wast afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted.' 27 So Solomon thrust out Abiathar from being priest unto the LORD; that the word of the LORD might be fulfilled, which He spoke concerning the house of Eli in Shiloh.

28 And the tidings came to Joab; for Joab had turned after Adonijah, though he turned not after Absalom. And Joab fled unto the Tent of the LORD, and caught hold on the horns of the altar. 29 And it was told king Solomon: 'Joab is fled unto the Tent of the LORD, and, behold, he is by the altar.' Then Solomon sent Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, saying: 'Go, fall upon him.' 30 And Benaiah came to the Tent of the LORD, and said unto him: 'Thus saith the king: Come forth.' And he said: 'Nay; but I will die here.' And Benaiah brought back word unto the king, saying: 'Thus said Joab, and thus he answered me.' 31 And the king said unto him: 'Do as he hath said, and fall upon him, and bury him; that thou mayest take away the blood, which Joab shed without cause, from me and from my father's house. 32 And the LORD will return his blood upon his own head, because he fell upon two men more righteous and better than he, and slew them with the sword, and my father David knew it not: Abner the son of Ner, captain of the host of Israel, and Amasa the son of Jether, captain of the host of Judah. 33 So shall their blood return upon the head of Joab, and upon the head of his seed for ever; but unto David, and unto his seed, and unto his house, and unto his throne, shall there be peace for ever from the LORD.' 34 Then Benaiah the son of Jehoiada went up, and fell upon him, and slew him; and he was buried in his own house in the wilderness. 35 And the king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada in his room over the host; and Zadok the priest did the king put in the room of Abiathar.

36 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him: Build thee a house in Jerusalem, and dwell there, and go not forth thence any whither. 37 For on the day thou goest out, and passest over the brook Kidron, know thou for certain that thou shalt surely die; thy blood shall be upon thine own head.' 38 And Shimei said unto the king: 'The saying is good; as my lord the king hath said, so will thy servant do.' And Shimei dwelt in Jerusalem many days.

39 And it came to pass at the end of three years, that two of the servants of Shimei ran away unto Achish, son of Maacah, king of Gath. And they told Shimei, saying: 'Behold, thy servants are in Gath.' 40 And Shimei arose, and saddled his ass, and went to Gath to Achish, to seek his servants; and Shimei went, and brought his servants from Gath. 41 And it was told Solomon that Shimei had gone from Jerusalem to Gath, and was come back. 42 And the king sent and called for Shimei, and said unto him: 'Did I not make thee to swear by the LORD, and forewarned thee, saying: Know for certain, that on the day thou goest out, and walkest abroad any whither, thou shalt surely die? and thou saidst unto me: The saying is good; I have heard it. 43 Why then hast thou not kept the oath of the LORD, and the commandment that I have charged thee with?' 44 The king said moreover to Shimei: 'Thou knowest all the wickedness which thy heart is privy to, that thou didst to David my father; therefore the LORD shall return thy wickedness upon thine own head. 45 But king Solomon shall be blessed, and the throne of David shall be established before the LORD for ever.' 46 So the king commanded Benaiah the son of Jehoiada; and he went out, and fell upon him, so that he died.

And the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon. 1 KINGS 3 — 1 And Solomon became allied to Pharaoh king of Egypt by marriage, and took Pharaoh's daughter, and brought her into the city of David, until he had made an end of building his own house, and the house of the LORD, and the wall of Jerusalem round about. 2 Only the people sacrificed in the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the LORD until those days. 3 And Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of David his father; only he sacrificed and offered in the high places.

4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there; for that was the great high place; a thousand burnt-offerings did Solomon offer upon that altar. 5 In Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said: 'Ask what I shall give thee.' 6 And Solomon said: 'Thou hast shown unto Thy servant David my father great kindness, according as he walked before Thee in truth, and in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with Thee; and Thou hast kept for him this great kindness, that Thou hast given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. 7 And now, O LORD my God, Thou hast made Thy servant king instead of David my father; and I am but a little child; I know not how to go out or come in. 8 And Thy servant is in the midst of Thy people which Thou hast chosen, a great people, that cannot be numbered nor counted for multitude. 9 Give Thy servant therefore an understanding heart to judge Thy people, that I may discern between good and evil; for who is able to judge this Thy great people?' 10 And the speech pleased the LORD, that Solomon had asked this thing. 11 And God said unto him: 'Because thou hast asked this thing, and hast not asked for thyself long life; neither hast asked riches for thyself, nor hast asked the life of thine enemies; but hast asked for thyself understanding to discern justice; 12 behold, I have done according to thy word: lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there hath been none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. 13 And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches and honour-so that there hath not been any among the kings like unto thee-all thy days. 14 And if thou wilt walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days.' 15 And Solomon awoke, and, behold, it was a dream; and he came to Jerusalem, and stood before the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and offered up burnt-offerings, and offered peace-offerings, and made a feast to all his servants.

16 Then came there two women, that were harlots, unto the king, and stood before him. 17 And the one woman said: 'Oh, my lord, I and this woman dwell in one house; and I was delivered of a child with her in the house. 18 And it came to pass the third day after I was delivered, that this woman was delivered also; and we were together; there was no stranger with us in the house, save we two in the house. 19 And this woman's child died in the night; because she overlay it. 20 And she arose at midnight, and took my son from beside me, while thy handmaid slept, and laid it in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. 21 And when I rose in the morning to give my child suck, behold, it was dead; but when I had looked well at it in the morning, behold, it was not my son, whom I did bear.' 22 And the other woman said: 'Nay; but the living is my son, and the dead is thy son.' And this said: 'No; but the dead is thy son, and the living is my son.' Thus they spoke before the king.

23 Then said the king: `The one saith: This is my son that liveth, and thy son is the dead; and the other saith: Nay; but thy son is the dead, and my son is the living.' 24 And the king said: 'Fetch me a sword.' And they brought a sword before the king. 25 And the king said: 'Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one, and half to the other.' 26 Then spoke the woman whose the living child was unto the king, for her heart yearned upon her son, and she said: 'Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and in no wise slay it.' But the other said: 'It shall be neither mine nor thine; divide it.' 27 Then the king answered and said: 'Give her the living child, and in no wise slay it: she is the mother thereof.' 28 And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had judged; and they feared the king; for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him, to do justice.

1 KINGS 4 — 1 And king Solomon was king over all Israel. 2 And these were the princes whom he had: Azariah the son of Zadok, the priest; 3 Elihoreph and Ahijah, the sons of Shisha, scribes; Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud, the recorder; 4 and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over the host; and Zadok and Abiathar were priests; 5 and Azariah the son of Nathan was over the officers; and Zabud the son of Nathan was chief minister and the king's friend; 6 and Ahishar was over the household; and Adoniram the son of Abda was over the levy.

7 And Solomon had twelve officers over all Israel, who provided victuals for the king and his household: each man had to make provision for a month in the year. 8 And these are their names: The son of Hur, in the hill-country of Ephraim; 9 the son of Deker, in Makaz, and in Shaalbim, and Beth-shemesh, and Elon-beth-hanan; 10 the son of Hesed, in Arubboth; to him pertained Socoh, and all the land of Hepher; 11 the son of Abinadab, in all the region of Dor; he had Taphath the daughter of Solomon to wife; 12 Baana the son of Ahilud, in Taanach and Megiddo, and all Beth-shean which is beside Zarethan, beneath Jezreel, from Beth-shean to Abel-meholah, as far as beyond Jokmeam; 13 the son of Geber, in Ramoth-gilead; to him pertained the villages of Jair the son of Manasseh, which are in Gilead; even to him pertained the region of Argob, which is in Bashan, threescore great cities with walls and brazen bars; 14 Ahinadab the son of Iddo, in Mahanaim; 15 Ahimaaz, in Naphtali; he also took Basemath the daughter of Solomon to wife; 16 Baana the son of Hushai, in Asher and Bealoth; 17 Jehoshaphat the son of Paruah, in Issachar; 18 Shimei the son of Ela, in Benjamin; 19 Geber the son of Uri, in the land of Gilead, the country of Sihon king of the Amorites and of Og king of Bashan; and one officer that was over all the officers in the land. 20 Judah and Israel were many, as the sand which is by the sea in multitude, eating and drinking and making merry.

1 KINGS 5 — 1 And Solomon ruled over all the kingdoms from the River unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt; they brought presents, and served Solomon all the days of his life.

2 And Solomon's provision for one day was thirty measures of fine flour, and threescore measures of meal; 3 ten fat oxen, and twenty oxen out of the pastures, and a hundred sheep, beside harts, and gazelles, and roebucks, and fatted fowl. 4 For he had dominion over all the region on this side the River, from Tiphsah even to Gaza, over all the kings on this side the River; and he had peace on all sides round about him. 5 And Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every man under his vine and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beer-sheba, all the days of Solomon.

6 And Solomon had forty thousand stalls of horses for his chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. 7 And those officers provided victual for king Solomon, and for all that came unto king Solomon's table, every man in his month; they let nothing be lacking. 8 Barley also and straw for the horses and swift steeds brought they unto the place where it should be, every man according to his charge.

9 And God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding exceeding much, and largeness of heart, even as the sand that is on the sea-shore. 10 And Solomon's wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east, and all the wisdom of Egypt. 11 For he was wiser than all men: than Ethan the Ezrahite, and Heman, and Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol; and his fame was in all the nations round about. 12 And he spoke three thousand proverbs; and his songs were a thousand and five. 13 And he spoke of trees, from the cedar that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springeth out of the wall; he spoke also of beasts, and of fowl, and of creeping things, and of fishes. 14 And there came of all peoples to hear the wisdom of Solomon, from all kings of the earth, who had heard of his wisdom.

15 And Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants unto Solomon; for he had heard that they had anointed him king in the room of his father; for Hiram was ever a lover of David. 16 And Solomon sent to Hiram, saying: 17 `Thou knowest how that David my father could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God for the wars which were about him on every side, until the LORD put them under the soles of my feet. 18 But now the LORD my God hath given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary, nor evil occurrence. 19 And, behold, I purpose to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spoke unto David my father, saying: Thy son, whom I will set upon thy throne in thy room, he shall build the house for My name. 20 Now therefore command thou that they hew me cedar-trees out of Lebanon; and my servants shall be with thy servants; and I will give thee hire for thy servants according to all that thou shalt say; for thou knowest that there is not among us any that hath skill to hew timber like unto the Zidonians.'

21 And it came to pass, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly, and said: 'Blessed be the LORD this day, who hath given unto David a wise son over this great people.' 22 And Hiram sent to Solomon, saying: 'I have heard that which thou hast sent unto me; I will do all thy desire concerning timber of cedar, and concerning timber of cypress. 23 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon unto the sea; and I will make them into rafts to go by sea unto the place that thou shalt appoint me, and will cause them to be broken up there, and thou shalt receive them; and thou shalt accomplish my desire, in giving food for my household.' 24 So Hiram gave Solomon timber of cedar and timber of cypress according to all his desire. 25 And Solomon gave Hiram twenty thousand measures of wheat for food to his household, and twenty measures of beaten oil; thus gave Solomon to Hiram year by year. 26 And the LORD gave Solomon wisdom, as He promised him; and there was peace between Hiram and Solomon; and they two made a league together.

27 And king Solomon raised a levy out of all Israel; and the levy was thirty thousand men. 28 And he sent them to Lebanon, ten thousand a month by courses: a month they were in Lebanon, and two months at home; and Adoniram was over the levy. 29 And Solomon had threescore and ten thousand that bore burdens, and fourscore thousand that were hewers in the mountains; 30 besides Solomon's chief officers that were over the work, three thousand and three hundred, who bore rule over the people that wrought in the work. 31 And the king commanded, and they quarried great stones, costly stones, to lay the foundation of the house with hewn stone. 32 And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders and the Gebalites did fashion them, and prepared the timber and the stones to build the house.

1 KINGS 6 — 1 And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the children of Israel were come out of the land of Egypt, in the fourth year of Solomon's reign over Israel, in the month Ziv, which is the second month, that he began to build the house of the LORD. 2 And the house which king Solomon built for the LORD, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits. 3 And the porch before the temple of the house, twenty cubits was the length thereof, according to the breadth of the house; and ten cubits was the breadth thereof before the house. 4 And for the house he made windows broad within, and narrow without. 5 And against the wall of the house he built a side-structure round about, against the walls of the house round about, both of the temple and of the sanctuary; and he made side-chambers round about; 6 the nethermost story of the side-structure was five cubits broad, and the middle was six cubits broad, and the third was seven cubits broad; for on the outside he made rebatements in the wall of the house round about, that the beams should not have hold in the walls of the house.-7 For the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready at the quarry; and there was neither hammer nor axe nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in building.-8 The door for the lowest row of chambers was in the right side of the house and they went up by winding stairs into the middle row, and out of the middle into the third. 9 So he built the house, and finished it; and he covered in the house with planks of cedar over beams. 10 And he built the stories of the side-structure against all the house, each five cubits high; and they rested on the house with timber of cedar.

11 And the word of the LORD came to Solomon, saying: 12 'As for this house which thou art building, if thou wilt walk in My statutes, and execute Mine ordinances, and keep all My commandments to walk in them; then will I establish My word with thee, which I spoke unto David thy father; 13 in that I will dwell therein among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.'

14 So Solomon built the house, and finished it. 15 And he built the walls of the house within with boards of cedar; from the floor of the house unto the joists of the ceiling, he covered them on the inside with wood; and he covered the floor of the house with boards of cypress. 16 And he built twenty cubits on the hinder part of the house with boards of cedar from the floor unto the joists; he even built them for himself within, for a Sanctuary, even for the most holy place. 17 And the house, that is, the temple before the Sanctuary, was forty cubits long. 18 And the cedar on the house within was carved with knops and open flowers; all was cedar; there was no stone seen. 19 And he prepared the Sanctuary in the midst of the house within, to set there the ark of the covenant of the LORD. 20 And before the Sanctuary which was twenty cubits in length, and twenty cubits in breadth, and twenty cubits in the height thereof, overlaid with pure gold, he set an altar, which he covered with cedar. 21 So Solomon overlaid the house within with pure gold; and he drew chains of gold across the wall before the Sanctuary; and he overlaid it with gold. 22 And the whole house he overlaid with gold, until all the house was finished; also the whole altar that belonged to the Sanctuary he overlaid with gold.

23 And in the Sanctuary he made two cherubim of olive-wood, each ten cubits high. 24 And five cubits was the one wing of the cherub, and five cubits the other wing of the cherub; from the uttermost part of the one wing unto the uttermost part of the other were ten cubits. 25 And the other cherub was ten cubits; both the cherubim were of one measure and one form. 26 The height of the one cherub was ten cubits, and so was it of the other cherub. 27 And he set the cherubim within the inner house; and the wings of the cherubim were stretched forth, so that the wing of the one touched the one wall, and the wing of the other cherub touched the other wall; and their wings touched one another in the midst of the house. 28 And he overlaid the cherubim with gold.

29 And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, within and without. 30 And the floor of the house he overlaid with gold, within and without. 31 And for the entrance of the Sanctuary he made doors of olive-wood, the door-posts within the frame having five angles. 32 And as for the two doors of olive-wood, he carved upon them carvings of cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold; and he spread the gold upon the cherubim, and upon the palm-trees. 33 So also made he for the entrance of the temple door-posts of olive-wood, within a frame four-square; 34 and two doors of cypress-wood; the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door were folding. 35 And he carved thereon cherubim and palm-trees and open flowers; and he overlaid them with gold fitted upon the graven work. 36 And he built the inner court with three rows of hewn stone, and a row of cedar beams.

37 In the fourth year was the foundation of the house of the LORD laid, in the month Ziv. 38 And in the eleventh year, in the month Bul, which is the eighth month, was the house finished throughout all the parts thereof, and according to all the fashion of it. So was he seven years in building it.

1 KINGS 7 — 1 And Solomon was building his own house thirteen years, and he finished all his house.

2 For he built the house of the forest of Lebanon: the length thereof was a hundred cubits, and the breadth thereof fifty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits, upon four rows of cedar pillars, with cedar beams upon the pillars. 3 And it was covered with cedar above upon the side-chambers, that lay on forty and five pillars, fifteen in a row. 4 And there were beams in three rows; and light was over against light in three ranks. 5 And all the doors with their posts were square in the frame; and light was over against light in three ranks.

6 And he made the porch of pillars: the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth thereof thirty cubits; and a porch before them; and pillars and thick beams before them.

7 And he made the porch of the throne where he might judge, even the porch of judgment; and it was covered with cedar from floor to floor.

8 And his house where he might dwell, in the other court, within the porch, was of the like work. He made also a house for Pharaoh's daughter, whom Solomon had taken to wife, like unto this porch.

9 All these were of costly stones, according to the measures of hewn stones, sawed with saws, within and without, even from the foundation unto the coping, and so on the outside unto the great court. 10 And the foundation was of costly stones, even great stones, stones of ten cubits, and stones of eight cubits. 11 And above were costly stones, after the measure of hewn stones, and cedar-wood. 12 And the great court round about had three rows of hewn stone, and a row of cedar beams, like as the inner court of the house of the LORD, and the court of the porch of the house.

13 And king Solomon sent and fetched Hiram out of Tyre. 14 He was the son of a widow of the tribe of Naphtali, and his father was a man of Tyre, a worker in brass; and he was filled with wisdom and understanding and skill, to work all works in brass. And he came to king Solomon, and wrought all his work.

15 Thus he fashioned the two pillars of brass, of eighteen cubits high each; and a line of twelve cubits did compass it about; and so the other pillar. 16 And he made two capitals of molten brass, to set upon the tops of the pillars; the height of the one capital was five cubits, and the height of the other capital was five cubits. 17 He also made nets of checker-work, and wreaths of chain-work, for the capitals which were upon the top of the pillars: seven for the one capital, and seven for the other capital. 18 And he made the pillars; and there were two rows round about upon the one network, to cover the capitals that were upon the top of the pomegranates; and so did he for the other capital. 19 And the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars in the porch were of lily-work, four cubits. 20 And there were capitals above also upon the two pillars, close by the belly which was beside the network; and the pomegranates were two hundred, in rows round about upon each capital. 21 And he set up the pillars at the porch of the temple; and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin; and he set up the left pillar, and called the name thereof Boaz. 22 And upon the top of the pillars was lily-work; so was the work of the pillars finished.

23 And he made the molten sea of ten cubits from brim to brim, round in compass, and the height thereof was five cubits; and a line of thirty cubits did compass it round about. 24 And under the brim of it round about there were knops which did compass it, for ten cubits, compassing the sea round about; the knops were in two rows, cast when it was cast. 25 It stood upon twelve oxen, three looking toward the north, and three looking toward the west, and three looking toward the south, and three looking toward the east; and the sea was set upon them above, and all their hinder parts were inward. 26 And it was a hand-breadth thick; and the brim thereof was wrought like the brim of a cup, like the flower of a lily; it held two thousand baths.

27 And he made the ten bases of brass; four cubits was the length of one base, and four cubits the breadth thereof, and three cubits the height of it. 28 And the work of the bases was on this manner: they had borders; and there were borders between the stays; 29 and on the borders that were between the stays were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and upon the stays it was in like manner above; and beneath the lions and oxen were wreaths of hanging work. 30 And every base had four brazen wheels, and axles of brass; and the four feet thereof had undersetters; beneath the laver were the undersetters molten, with wreaths at the side of each. 31 And the mouth of it within the crown and above was a cubit high; and the mouth thereof was round after the work of a pedestal, a cubit and a half; and also upon the mouth of it were gravings; and their borders were foursquare, not round. 32 And the four wheels were underneath the borders; and the axletrees of the wheels were in the base; and the height of a wheel was a cubit and half a cubit. 33 And the work of the wheels was like the work of a chariot wheel; their axletrees, and their felloes, and their spokes, and their naves, were all molten. 34 And there were four undersetters at the four corners of each base; the undersetters thereof were of one piece with the base itself. 35 And in the top of the base was there a round compass of half a cubit high; and on the top of the base the stays thereof and the borders thereof were of one piece therewith. 36 And on the plates of the stays thereof, and on the borders thereof, he graved cherubim, lions, and palm-trees, according to the space of each, with wreaths round about. 37 After this manner he made the ten bases; all of them had one casting, one measure, and one form.

38 And he made ten lavers of brass: one laver contained forty baths; and every laver was four cubits; and upon every one of the ten bases one laver. 39 And he set the bases, five on the right side of the house, and five on the left side of the house; and he set the sea on the right side of the house eastward, toward the south.

40 And Hiram made the pots, and the shovels, and the basins.

So Hiram made an end of doing all the work that he wrought for king Solomon in the house of the LORD: 41 the two pillars, and the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; and the two networks to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were on the top of the pillars; 42 and the four hundred pomegranates for the two networks, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two bowls of the capitals that were upon the top of the pillars; 43 and the ten bases, and the ten lavers on the bases; 44 and the one sea, and the twelve oxen under the sea; 45 and the pots, and the shovels, and the basins; even all these vessels, which Hiram made for king Solomon, in the house of the LORD, were of burnished brass. 46 In the plain of the Jordan did the king cast them, in the clay ground between Succoth and Zarethan. 47 And Solomon left all the vessels unweighed, because they were exceeding many; the weight of the brass could not be found out. 48 And Solomon made all the vessels that were in the house of the LORD: the golden altar, and the table whereupon the showbread was, of gold; 49 and the candlesticks, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the Sanctuary, of pure gold; and the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs, of gold; 50 and the cups, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the pans, and the fire-pans, of pure gold; and the hinges, both for the doors of the inner house, the most holy place, and for the doors of the house, that is, of the temple, of gold.

51 Thus all the work that king Solomon wrought in the house of the LORD was finished. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated, the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, and put them in the treasuries of the house of the LORD.

1 KINGS 8 — 1 Then Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the princes of the fathers' houses of the children of Israel, unto king Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD out of the city of David, which is Zion. 2 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast, in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month. 3 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark. 4 And they brought up the ark of the LORD, and the tent of meeting, and all the holy vessels that were in the Tent; even these did the priests and the Levites bring up. 5 And king Solomon and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark, sacrificing sheep and oxen, that could not be told nor numbered for multitude. 6 And the priests brought in the ark of the covenant of the LORD unto its place, into the Sanctuary of the house, to the most holy place, even under the wings of the cherubim. 7 For the cherubim spread forth their wings over the place of the ark, and the cherubim covered the ark and the staves thereof above. 8 And the staves were so long that the ends of the staves were seen from the holy place, even before the Sanctuary; but they could not be seen without; and there they are unto this day. 9 There was nothing in the ark save the two tables of stone which Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenant with the children of Israel when they came out of the land of Egypt. 10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud; for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD.

12 Then spoke Solomon:

The LORD hath said that He would dwell in the thick darkness.

13 I have surely built Thee a house of habitation,

A place for Thee to dwell in for ever.

14 And the king turned his face about, and blessed all the congregation of Israel; and all the congregation of Israel stood. 15 And he said: 'Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who spoke with His mouth unto David my father, and hath with His hand fulfilled it, saying: 16 Since the day that I brought forth My people Israel out of Egypt, I chose no city out of all the tribes of Israel to build a house, that My name might be there; but I chose David to be over My people Israel. 17 Now it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 18 But the LORD said unto David my father: Whereas it was in thy heart to build a house for My name, thou didst well that it was in thy heart; 19 nevertheless thou shalt not build the house; but thy son that shall come forth out of thy loins, he shall build the house for My name. 20 And the LORD hath established His word that He spoke; for I am risen up in the room of David my father, and sit on the throne of Israel, as the LORD promised, and have built the house for the name of the LORD, the God of Israel. 21 And there have I set a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of the LORD, which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt.'

22 And Solomon stood before the altar of the LORD in the presence of all the congregation of Israel, and spread forth his hands toward heaven; 23 and he said: 'O LORD, the God of Israel, there is no God like Thee, in heaven above, or on earth beneath; who keepest covenant and mercy with Thy servants, that walk before Thee with all their heart; 24 who hast kept with Thy servant David my father that which Thou didst promise him; yea, Thou spokest with Thy mouth, and hast fulfilled it with Thy hand, as it is this day. 25 Now therefore, O LORD, the God of Israel, keep with Thy servant David my father that which Thou hast promised him saying: There shall not fail thee a man in My sight to sit on the throne of Israel, if only thy children take heed to their way, to walk before Me as thou hast walked before Me. 26 Now therefore, O God of Israel, let Thy word, I pray Thee, be verified, which Thou didst speak unto Thy servant David my father.

27 But will God in very truth dwell on the earth? behold, heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain Thee; how much less this house that I have builded! 28 Yet have Thou respect unto the prayer of Thy servant, and to his supplication, O LORD my God, to hearken unto the cry and to the prayer which Thy servant prayeth before Thee this day; 29 that Thine eyes may be open toward this house night and day, even toward the place whereof Thou hast said: My name shall be there; to hearken unto the prayer which Thy servant shall pray toward this place. 30 And hearken Thou to the supplication of Thy servant, and of Thy people Israel, when they shall pray toward this place; yea, hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place; and when Thou hearest, forgive.

31 If a man sin against his neighbour, and an oath be exacted of him to cause him to swear, and he come and swear before Thine altar in this house; 32 then hear Thou in heaven, and do, and judge Thy servants, condemning the wicked, to bring his way upon his own head; and justifying the righteous, to give him according to his righteousness.

33 When Thy people Israel are smitten down before the enemy, when they do sin against Thee, if they turn again to Thee, and confess Thy name, and pray and make supplication unto Thee in this house; 34 then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy people Israel, and bring them back unto the land which Thou gavest unto their fathers.

35 When heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, when they do sin against Thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess Thy name, and turn from their sin, when Thou dost afflict them; 36 then hear Thou in heaven, and forgive the sin of Thy servants, and of Thy people Israel, when Thou teachest them the good way wherein they should walk; and send rain upon Thy land, which Thou hast given to Thy people for an inheritance.

37 If there be in the land famine, if there be pestilence, if there be blasting or mildew, locust or caterpillar; if their enemy besiege them in the land of their cities; whatsoever plague, whatsoever sickness there be; 38 what prayer and supplication soever be made by any man of all Thy people Israel, who shall know every man the plague of his own heart, and spread forth his hands toward this house; 39 then hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place, and forgive, and do, and render unto every man according to all his ways, whose heart Thou knowest-for Thou, even Thou only, knowest the hearts of all the children of men-40 that they may fear Thee all the days that they live in the land which Thou gavest unto our fathers.

41 Moreover concerning the stranger that is not of Thy people Israel, when he shall come out of a far country for Thy name's sake-42 for they shall hear of Thy great name, and of Thy mighty hand, and of Thine outstretched arm-when he shall come and pray toward this house; 43 hear Thou in heaven Thy dwelling-place, and do according to all that the stranger calleth to Thee for; that all the peoples of the earth may know Thy name, to fear Thee, as doth Thy people Israel, and that they may know that Thy name is called upon this house which I have built.

44 If Thy people go out to battle against their enemy, by whatsoever way Thou shalt send them, and they pray unto the LORD toward the city which Thou hast chosen, and toward the house which I have built for Thy name; 45 then hear Thou in heaven their prayer and their supplication, and maintain their cause. 46 If they sin against Thee-for there is no man that sinneth not-and Thou be angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captive unto the land of the enemy, far off or near; 47 yet if they shall bethink themselves in the land whither they are carried captive, and turn back, and make supplication unto Thee in the land of them that carried them captive, saying: We have sinned, and have done iniquitously, we have dealt wickedly; 48 if they return unto Thee with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray unto Thee toward their land, which Thou gavest unto their fathers, the city which Thou hast chosen, and the house which I have built for Thy name; 49 then hear Thou their prayer and their supplication in heaven Thy dwelling-place, and maintain their cause; 50 and forgive Thy people who have sinned against Thee, and all their transgressions wherein they have transgressed against Thee; and give them compassion before those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them; 51 for they are Thy people, and Thine inheritance, which Thou broughtest forth out of Egypt, from the midst of the furnace of iron; 52 that Thine eyes may be open unto the supplication of Thy servant, and unto the supplication of Thy people Israel, to hearken unto them whensoever they cry unto Thee. 53 For Thou didst set them apart from among all the peoples of the earth, to be Thine inheritance, as Thou didst speak by the hand of Moses Thy servant, when Thou broughtest our fathers out of Egypt, O Lord GOD.'

54 And it was so, that when Solomon had made an end of praying all this prayer and supplication unto the LORD, he arose from before the altar of the LORD, from kneeling on his knees with his hands spread forth toward heaven. 55 And he stood, and blessed all the congregation of Israel with a loud voice, saying: 56 `Blessed be the LORD, that hath given rest unto His people Israel, according to all that He promised; there hath not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised by the hand of Moses His servant. 57 The LORD our God be with us, as He was with our fathers; let Him not leave us, nor forsake us; 58 that He may incline our hearts unto Him, to walk in all His ways, and to keep His commandments, and His statutes, and His ordinances, which He commanded our fathers. 59 And let these my words, wherewith I have made supplication before the LORD, be nigh unto the LORD our God day and night, that He maintain the cause of His servant, and the cause of His people Israel, as every day shall require; 60 that all the peoples of the earth may know that the LORD, He is God; there is none else. 61 Let your heart therefore be whole with the LORD our God, to walk in His statutes, and to keep His commandments, as at this day.'

62 And the king, and all Israel with him, offered sacrifice before the LORD. 63 And Solomon offered for the sacrifice of peace-offerings, which he offered unto the LORD, two and twenty thousand oxen, and a hundred and twenty thousand sheep. So the king and all the children of Israel dedicated the house of the LORD. 64 The same day did the king hallow the middle of the court that was before the house of the LORD; for there he offered the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings; because the brazen altar that was before the LORD was too little to receive the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering, and the fat of the peace-offerings.

65 So Solomon held the feast at that time, and all Israel with him, a great congregation, from the entrance Hamath unto the Brook of Egypt, before the LORD our God, seven days and seven days, even fourteen days. 66 On the eighth day he sent the people away, and they blessed the king, and went unto their tents joyful and glad of heart for all the goodness that the LORD had shown unto David His servant, and to Israel His people.

1 KINGS 9 — 1 And it came to pass, when Solomon had finished the building of the house of the LORD, and the king's house, and all Solomon's delight which he was pleased to do, 2 that the LORD appeared to Solomon the second time, as He had appeared unto him at Gibeon. 3 And the LORD said unto him: 'I have heard thy prayer and thy supplication, that thou hast made before Me: I have hallowed this house, which thou hast built, to put My name there for ever; and Mine eyes and My heart shall be there perpetually. 4 And as for thee, if thou wilt walk before Me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep My statutes and Mine ordinances; 5 then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom over Israel for ever; according as I promised to David thy father, saying: There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel. 6 But if ye shall turn away from following Me, ye or your children, and not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but shall go and serve other gods, and worship them; 7 then will I cut off Israel out of the land which I have given them; and this house, which I have hallowed for My name, will I cast out of My sight; and Israel shall be a proverb and a by word among all peoples; 8 and this house which is so high shall become desolate, and every one that passeth by it shall be astonished, and shall hiss; and when they shall say: Why hath the LORD done thus unto this land, and to this house? 9 they shall be answered: Because they forsook the LORD their God, who brought forth their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and laid hold on other gods, and worshipped them, and served them; therefore hath the LORD brought all this evil upon them.'

10 And it came to pass at the end of twenty years, wherein Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the LORD and the king's house-11 now Hiram the king of Tyre had furnished Solomon with cedar-trees and cypress-trees, and with gold, according to all his desire-that then king Solomon gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. 12 And Hiram came out from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him: and they pleased him not. 13 And he said: 'What cities are these which thou hast given me, my brother?' And they were called the land of Cabul, unto this day. 14 And Hiram sent to the king sixscore talents of gold.

15 And this is the account of the levy which king Solomon raised; to build the house of the LORD, and his own house, and Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer. 16 Pharaoh king of Egypt had gone up, and taken Gezer, and burnt it with fire, and slain the Canaanites that dwelt in the city, and given it for a portion unto his daughter, Solomon's wife. 17 And Solomon built Gezer, and Beth-horon the nether, 18 and Baalath, and Tadmor in the wilderness, in the land, 19 and all the store-cities that Solomon had, and the cities for his chariots, and the cities for his horsemen, and that which Solomon desired to build for his pleasure in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in all the land of his dominion. 20 All the people that were left of the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the children of Israel; 21 even their children that were left after them in the land, whom the children of Israel were not able utterly to destroy, of them did Solomon raise a levy of bondservants, unto this day. 22 But of the children of Israel did Solomon make no bondservants; but they were the men of war, and his servants, and his princes, and his captains, and rulers of his chariots and of his horsemen.

23 These were the chief officers that were over Solomon's work, five hundred and fifty, who bore rule over the people that wrought in the work.

24 But Pharaoh's daughter came up out of the city of David unto her house which Solomon had built for her; then did he build Millo.

25 And three times in a year did Solomon offer burnt-offerings and peace-offerings upon the altar which he built unto the LORD, offering thereby, upon the altar that was before the LORD. So he finished the house.

26 And king Solomon made a navy of ships in Ezion-geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shore of the Red Sea, in the land of Edom. 27 And Hiram sent in the navy his servants, shipmen that had knowledge of the sea, with the servants of Solomon. 28 And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon.

1 KINGS 10 — 1 And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon because of the name of the LORD, she came to prove him with hard questions. 2 And she came to Jerusalem with a very great train, with camels that bore spices and gold very much, and precious stones; and when she was come to Solomon, she spoke with him of all that was in her heart. 3 And Solomon told her all her questions; there was not any thing hid from the king which he told her not. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built, 5 and the food of his table, and the sitting of his servants, and the attendance of his ministers, and their apparel, and his cupbearers, and his burnt-offering which he offered in the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her. 6 And she said to the king: 'It was a true report that I heard in mine own land of thine acts, and of thy wisdom. 7 Howbeit I believed not the words, until I came, and mine eyes had seen it; and, behold, the half was not told me; thou hast wisdom and prosperity exceeding the fame which I heard. 8 Happy are thy men, happy are these thy servants, that stand continually before thee, and that hear thy wisdom. 9 Blessed be the LORD thy God, who delighted in thee, to set thee on the throne of Israel; because the LORD loved Israel for ever, therefore made He thee king, to do justice and righteousness.' 10 And she gave the king a hundred and twenty talents of gold, and of spices very great store, and precious stones; there came no more such abundance of spices as these which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon. 11 And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of sandal-wood and precious stones. 12 And the king made of the sandal-wood pillars for the house of the LORD, and for the king's house, harps also and psalteries for the singers; there came no such sandal-wood, nor was seen, unto this day. 13 And king Solomon gave to the queen of Sheba all her desire, whatsoever she asked, beside that which Solomon gave her of his royal bounty. So she turned, and went to her own land, she and her servants.

14 Now the weight of gold that came to Solomon in one year was six hundred threescore and six talents of gold, 15 beside that which came of the merchants, and of the traffic of the traders, and of all the kings of the mingled people and of the governors of the country. 16 And king Solomon made two hundred targets of beaten gold: six hundred shekels of gold went to one target. 17 And he made three hundred shields of beaten gold: three pounds of gold went to one shield; and the king put them in the house of the forest of Lebanon.

18 Moreover the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid it with the finest gold. 19 There were six steps to the throne, and the top of the throne was round behind; and there were arms on either side by the place of the seat, and two lions standing beside the arms. 20 And twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the other upon the six steps; there was not the like made in any kingdom.

21 And all king Solomon's drinking-vessels were of gold, and all the vessels of the house of the forest of Lebanon were of pure gold; none were of silver; it was nothing accounted of in the days of Solomon. 22 For the king had at sea a navy of Tarshish with the navy of Hiram; once every three years came the navy of Tarshish, bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks.

23 So king Solomon exceeded all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom. 24 And all the earth sought the presence of Solomon, to hear his wisdom, which God had put in his heart. 25 And they brought every man his present, vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and raiment, and armour, and spices, horses, and mules, a rate year by year.

26 And Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen; and he had a thousand and four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen, that he bestowed in the chariot cities, and with the king at Jerusalem. 27 And the king made silver to be in Jerusalem as stones, and cedars made he to be as the sycamore-trees that are in the Lowland, for abundance. 28 And the horses which Solomon had were brought out of Egypt; also out of Keveh, the king's merchants buying them of the men of Keveh at a price. 29 And a chariot came up and went out of Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for a hundred and fifty; and so for all the kings of the Hittites, and for the kings of Aram, did they bring them out by their means.

1 KINGS 11 — 1 Now king Solomon loved many foreign women, besides the daughter of Pharaoh, women of the Moabites, Ammonites, Edomites, Zidonians, and Hittites; 2 of the nations concerning which the LORD said unto the children of Israel: 'Ye shall not go among them, neither shall they come among you; for surely they will turn away your heart after their gods'; Solomon did cleave unto these in love. 3 And he had seven hundred wives, princesses, and three hundred concubines; and his wives turned away his heart. 4 For it came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods; and his heart was not whole with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father. 5 For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, and after Milcom the detestation of the Ammonites. 6 And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and went not fully after the LORD, as did David his father. 7 Then did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the detestation of Moab, in the mount that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestation of the children of Ammon. 8 And so did he for all his foreign wives, who offered and sacrificed unto their gods.

9 And the LORD was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from the LORD, the God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice, 10 and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods; but he kept not that which the LORD commanded. 11 Wherefore the LORD said unto Solomon: 'Forasmuch as this hath been in thy mind, and thou hast not kept My covenant and My statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant. 12 Notwithstanding in thy days I will not do it, for David thy father's sake; but I will rend it out of the hand of thy son. 13 Howbeit I will not rend away all the kingdom; but I will give one tribe to thy son; for David My servant's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake which I have chosen.'

14 And the LORD raised up an adversary unto Solomon, Hadad the Edomite; he was of the king's seed in Edom. 15 For it came to pass, when David was in Edom, and Joab the captain of the host was gone up to bury the slain, and had smitten every male in Edom-16 for Joab and all Israel remained there six months, until he had cut off every male in Edom-17 that Hadad fled, he and certain Edomites of his father's servants with him, to go into Egypt; Hadad being yet a little child. 18 And they arose out of Midian, and came to Paran; and they took men with them out of Paran, and they came to Egypt, unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, who gave him a house, and appointed him victuals, and gave him land. 19 And Hadad found great favour in the sight of Pharaoh, so that he gave him to wife the sister of his own wife, the sister of Tahpenes the queen. 20 And the sister of Tahpenes bore him Genubath his son, whom Tahpenes weaned in Pharaoh's house; and Genubath was in Pharaoh's house among the sons of Pharaoh. 21 And when Hadad heard in Egypt that David slept with his fathers, and that Joab the captain of the host was dead, Hadad said to Pharaoh: 'Let me depart, that I may go to mine own country.' 22 Then Pharaoh said unto him: `But what hast thou lacked with me, that, behold, thou seekest to go to thine own country?' And he answered: 'Nothing; howbeit let me depart in any wise.'

23 And God raised up another adversary unto him, Rezon the son of Eliada, who had fled from his lord Hadadezer king of Zobah. 24 And he gathered men unto him, and became captain over a troop, when David slew them of Zobah; and they went to Damascus, and dwelt therein, and reigned in Damascus. 25 And he was an adversary to Israel all the days of Solomon, beside the mischief that Hadad did; and he abhorred Israel, and reigned over Aram.

26 And Jeroboam the son of Nebat, an Ephraimite of Zeredah, a servant of Solomon, whose mother's name was Zeruah, a widow, he also lifted up his hand against the king. 27 And this was the cause that he lifted up his hand against the king: Solomon built Millo, and repaired the breach of the city of David his father. 28 And the man Jeroboam was a mighty man of valour; and Solomon saw the young man that he was industrious, and he gave him charge over all the labour of the house of Joseph. 29 And it came to pass at that time, when Jeroboam went out of Jerusalem, that the prophet Ahijah the Shilonite found him in the way; now Ahijah had clad himself with a new garment; and they two were alone in the field. 30 And Ahijah laid hold of the new garment that was on him, and rent it in twelve pieces. 31 And he said to Jeroboam: 'Take thee ten pieces; for thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I will rend the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon, and will give ten tribes to thee-32 but he shall have one tribe, for My servant David's sake, and for Jerusalem's sake, the city which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel-33 because that they have forsaken Me, and have worshipped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Zidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the children of Ammon; and they have not walked in My ways, to do that which is right in Mine eyes, and to keep My statutes and Mine ordinances, as did David his father. 34 Howbeit I will not take the whole kingdom out of his hand; but I will make him prince all the days of his life, for David My servant's sake, whom I chose, because he kept My commandments and My statutes; 35 but I will take the kingdom out of his son's hand, and will give it unto thee, even ten tribes. 36 And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David My servant may have a lamp alway before Me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen Me to put My name there. 37 And I will take thee, and thou shalt reign over all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel. 38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in My ways, and do that which is right in Mine eyes, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as David My servant did, that I will be with thee, and will build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee. 39 And I will for this afflict the seed of David, but not for ever.'

40 Solomon sought therefore to kill Jeroboam; but Jeroboam arose, and fled into Egypt, unto Shishak king of Egypt, and was in Egypt until the death of Solomon.

41 Now the rest of the acts of Solomon, and all that he did, and his wisdom, are they not written in the book of the acts of Solomon? 42 And the time that Solomon reigned in Jerusalem over all Israel was forty years. 43 And Solomon slept with his fathers, and was buried in the city of David his father; and Rehoboam his son reigned in his stead.

1 KINGS 12 — 1 And Rehoboam went to Shechem; for all Israel were come to Shechem to make him king. 2 And it came to pass, when Jeroboam the son of Nebat heard of it-for he was yet in Egypt, whither he had fled from the presence of king Solomon, and Jeroboam dwelt in Egypt, 3 and they sent and called him-that Jeroboam and all the congregation of Israel came, and spoke unto Rehoboam, saying: 4 'Thy father made our yoke grievous; now therefore make thou the grievous service of thy father, and his heavy yoke which he put upon us, lighter, and we will serve thee.' 5 And he said unto them: 'Depart yet for three days, then come again to me.' And the people departed.

6 And king Rehoboam took counsel with the old men, that had stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, saying: 'What counsel give ye me to return answer to this people?' 7 And they spoke unto him, saying: 'If thou wilt be a servant unto this people this day, and wilt serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be thy servants for ever.' 8 But he forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him, and took counsel with the young men that were grown up with him, that stood before him. 9 And he said unto them: 'What counsel give ye, that we may return answer to this people, who have spoken to me, saying: Make the yoke that thy father did put upon us lighter?' 10 And the young men that were grown up with him spoke unto him, saying: `Thus shalt thou say unto this people that spoke unto thee, saying: Thy father made our yoke heavy, but make thou it lighter unto us; thus shalt thou speak unto them: My little finger is thicker than my father's loins. 11 And now whereas my father did burden you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.'

12 So Jeroboam and all the people came to Rehoboam the third day, as the king bade, saying: 'Come to me again the third day.' 13 And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the counsel of the old men which they had given him; 14 and spoke to them after the counsel of the young men, saying: 'My father made your yoke heavy, but I will add to your yoke; my father chastised you with whips, but I will chastise you with scorpions.' 15 So the king hearkened not unto the people; for it was a thing brought about of the LORD, that He might establish His word, which the LORD spoke by the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite to Jeroboam the son of Nebat.

16 And when all Israel saw that the king hearkened not unto them, the people answered the king, saying: 'What portion have we in David? neither have we inheritance in the son of Jesse; to your tents, O Israel; now see to thine own house, David.' So Israel departed unto their tents. 17 But as for the children of Israel that dwelt in the cities of Judah, Rehoboam reigned over them. 18 Then king Rehoboam sent Adoram, who was over the levy; and all Israel stoned him with stones, so that he died. And king Rehoboam made speed to get him up to his chariot, to flee to Jerusalem. 19 So Israel rebelled against the house of David, unto this day. 20 And it came to pass, when all Israel heard that Jeroboam was returned, that they sent and called him unto the congregation, and made him king over all Israel; there was none that followed the house of David, but the tribe of Judah only.

21 And when Rehoboam was come to Jerusalem, be assembled all the house of Judah, and the tribe of Benjamin, a hundred and fourscore thousand chosen men that were warriors, to fight against the house of Israel, to bring the kingdom back to Rehoboam the son of Solomon. 22 But the word of God came unto Shemaiah the man of God, saying: 23 'Speak unto Rehoboam the son of Solomon, king of Judah, and unto all the house of Judah and Benjamin, and to the rest of the people, saying: 24 Thus saith the LORD: Ye shall not go up, nor fight against your brethren the children of Israel; return every man to his house; for this thing is of Me.' So they hearkened unto the word of the LORD, and returned and went their way, according to the word of the LORD.

25 Then Jeroboam built Shechem in the hill-country of Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and he went out from thence, and built Penuel. 26 And Jeroboam said in his heart: 'Now will the kingdom return to the house of David. 27 If this people go up to offer sacrifices in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then will the heart of this people turn back unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah; and they will kill me, and return to Rehoboam king of Judah.' 28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold; and he said unto them: 'Ye have gone up long enough to Jerusalem; behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.' 29 And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan. 30 And this thing became a sin; for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan. 31 And he made houses of high places, and made priests from among all the people, that were not of the sons of Levi. 32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he went up unto the altar; so did he in Beth-el, to sacrifice unto the calves that he had made; and he placed in Beth-el the priests of the high places that he had made. 33 And he went up unto the altar which he had made in Beth-el on the fifteenth day in the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and he ordained a feast for the children of Israel, and went up unto the altar, to offer.

1 KINGS 13 — 1 And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Beth-el; and Jeroboam was standing by the altar to offer. 2 And he cried against the altar by the word of the LORD, and said: 'O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD: Behold, a son shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he sacrifice the priests of the high places that offer upon thee, and men's bones shall they burn upon thee.' 3 And he gave a sign the same day saying: 'This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken: Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out.' 4 And it came to pass, when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar in Beth-el, that Jeroboam put forth his hand from the altar, saying: 'Lay hold on him.' And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to him. 5 The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. 6 And the king answered and said unto the man of God: 'Entreat now the favour of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me.' And the man of God entreated the LORD, and the king's hand was restored him, and became as it was before. 7 And the king said unto the man of God: 'Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward.' 8 And the man of God said unto the king: 'If thou wilt give me half thy house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place. 9 For it so was charged me by the word of the LORD, saying: Thou shalt eat no bread, nor drink water, neither return by the way that thou camest.' 10 So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Beth-el.

11 Now there dwelt an old prophet in Beth-el; and one of his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Beth-el, and the words which he had spoken unto the king, and they told them unto their father. 12 And their father said unto them: 'What way went he?' For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, that came from Judah. 13 And he said unto his sons: 'Saddle me the ass.' So they saddled him the ass; and he rode thereon. 14 And he went after the man of God, and found him sitting under a terebinth; and he said unto him: 'Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah?' And he said: 'I am.' 15 Then he said unto him: 'Come home with me, and eat bread.' 16 And he said: 'I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee; neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place. 17 For it was said to me by the word of the LORD: Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn back to go by the way that thou camest.' 18 And he said unto him: 'I also am a prophet as thou art; and an angel spoke unto me by the word of the LORD, saying: Bring him back with thee into thy house, that he may eat bread and drink water.' -He lied unto him.-19 So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.

20 And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back. 21 And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying: 'Thus saith the LORD: Forasmuch as thou hast rebelled against the word of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, 22 but camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place of which He said to thee: Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcass shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers.' 23 And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, namely, for the prophet whom he had brought back. 24 And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him; and his carcass was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it; the lion also stood by the carcass. 25 And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcass cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcass; and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.

26 And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said: 'It is the man of God, who rebelled against the word of the LORD; therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke unto him.' 27 And he spoke to his sons, saying: 'Saddle me the ass.' And they saddled it. 28 And he went and found his carcass cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcass; the lion had not eaten the carcass, nor torn the ass. 29 And the prophet took up the carcass of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back; and he came to the city of the old prophet, to lament, and to bury him. 30 And he laid his carcass in his own grave; and they made lamentation for him: 'Alas, my brother!' 31 And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spoke to his sons, saying: 'When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones. 32 For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Beth-el, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.'

33 After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again from among all the people priests of the high places; whosoever would, he consecrated him, that he might be one of the priests of the high places. 34 And by this thing there was sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.

1 KINGS 14 — 1 At that time Abijah the son of Jeroboam fell sick. 2 And Jeroboam said to his wife: 'Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh; behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, who spoke concerning me that I should be king over this people. 3 And take with thee ten loaves, and biscuits, and a cruse of honey, and go to him; he will tell thee what shall become of the child.' 4 And Jeroboam's wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. 5 Now the LORD had said unto Ahijah: 'Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to inquire of thee concerning her son; for he is sick; thus and thus shalt thou say unto her; for it will be, when she cometh in, that she will feign herself to be another woman.'

6 And it was so, when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at the door, that he said: 'Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam; why feignest thou thyself to be another? for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings. 7 Go, tell Jeroboam: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Forasmuch as I exalted thee from among the people, and made thee prince over My people Israel, 8 and rent the kingdom away from the house of David, and gave it thee; and yet thou hast not been as My servant David, who kept My commandments, and who followed Me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in Mine eyes; 9 but hast done evil above all that were before thee, and hast gone and made thee other gods, and molten images, to provoke Me, and hast cast Me behind thy back; 10 therefore, behold, I will bring evil upon the house of Jeroboam, and will cut off from Jeroboam every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel, and will utterly sweep away the house of Jeroboam, as a man sweepeth away dung, till it be all gone. 11 Him that dieth of Jeroboam in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat; for the LORD hath spoken it. 12 Arise thou therefore, get thee to thy house; and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. 13 And all Israel shall make lamentation for him, and bury him; for he only of Jeroboam shall come to the grave; because in him there is found some good thing toward the LORD, the God of Israel, in the house of Jeroboam. 14 Moreover the LORD will raise Him up a king over Israel, who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam that day. But what is it even then? 15 for the LORD will smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water; and He will root up Israel out of this good land, which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter them beyond the River; because they have made their Asherim, provoking the LORD. 16 And He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he hath sinned, and wherewith he hath made Israel to sin.'

17 And Jeroboam's wife arose, and departed, and came to Tirzah; and as she came to the threshold of the house, the child died. 18 And all Israel buried him, and made lamentation for him; according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by the hand of His servant Ahijah the prophet.

19 And the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, how he warred, and how he reigned, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 20 And the days which Jeroboam reigned were two and twenty years; and he slept with his fathers, and Nadab his son reigned in his stead.

21 And Rehoboam the son of Solomon reigned in Judah. Rehoboam was forty and one years old when he began to reign, and he reigned seventeen years in Jerusalem, the city which the LORD had chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, to put His name there; and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess. 22 And Judah did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; and they moved Him to jealousy with their sins which they committed, above all that their fathers had done. 23 For they also built them high places, and pillars, and Asherim, on every high hill, and under every leafy tree; 24 and there were also sodomites in the land; they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD drove out before the children of Israel.

25 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem; 26 and he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all; and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made. 27 And king Rehoboam made in their stead shields of brass, and committed them to the hands of the captains of the guard, who kept the door of the king's house. 28 And it was so, that as oft as the king went into the house of the LORD, the guard bore them, and brought them back into the guard-chamber.

29 Now the rest of the acts of Rehoboam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 30 And there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam continually. 31 And Rehoboam slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and his mother's name was Naamah the Ammonitess. And Abijam his son reigned in his stead.

1 KINGS 15 — 1 Now in the eighteenth year of king Jeroboam the son of Nebat began Abijam to reign over Judah. 2 Three years reigned he in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. 3 And he walked in all the sins of his father, which he had done before him; and his heart was not whole with the LORD his God, as the heart of David his father. 4 Nevertheless for David's sake did the LORD his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him, and to establish Jerusalem; 5 because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that He commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite. 6 Now there was war between Rehoboam and Jeroboam all the days of his life.

7 And the rest of the acts of Abijam, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? And there was war between Abijam and Jeroboam. 8 And Abijam slept with his fathers; and they buried him in the city of David; and Asa his son reigned in his stead.

9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel began Asa to reign over Judah. 10 And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Maacah the daughter of Abishalom. 11 And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father. 12 And he put away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. 13 And also Maacah his mother he removed from being queen, because she had made an abominable image for an Asherah; and Asa cut down her image, and burnt it at the brook Kidron. 14 But the high places were not taken away; nevertheless the heart of Asa was whole with the LORD all his days. 15 And he brought into the house of the LORD the things that his father had hallowed, and the things that himself had hallowed, silver, and gold, and vessels.

16 And there was war between Asa and Baasa king of Israel all their days. 17 And Baasa king of Israel went up against Judah, and built Ramah, that he might not suffer any to go out or come in to Asa king of Judah. 18 Then Asa took all the silver and the gold that were left in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and delivered them into the hand of his servants; and king Asa sent them to Ben-hadad, the son of Tabrimmon, the son of Hezion, king of Aram, that dwelt at Damascus, saying: 19 'There is a league between me and thee, between my father and thy father; behold, I have sent unto thee a present of silver and gold; go, break thy league with Baasa king of Israel, that he may depart from me.' 20 And Ben-hadad hearkened unto king Asa, and sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel, and smote Ijon, and Dan, and Abel-beth-maacah, and all Chinneroth, with all the land of Naphtali. 21 And it came to pass, when Baasa heard thereof, that he left off building Ramah, and dwelt in Tirzah. 22 Then king Asa made a proclamation unto all Judah; none was exempted; and they carried away the stones of Ramah, and the timber thereof, wherewith Baasa had builded; and king Asa built therewith Geba of Benjamin, and Mizpah.

23 Now the rest of all the acts of Asa, and all his might, and all that he did, and the cities which he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? But in the time of his old age he was diseased in his feet. 24 And Asa slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jehoshaphat his son reigned in his stead.

25 And Nadab the son of Jeroboam began to reign over Israel in the second year of Asa king of Judah, and he reigned over Israel two years. 26 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin. 27 And Baasa the son of Ahijah, of the house of Issachar, conspired against him; and Baasa smote him at Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines; for Nadab and all Israel were laying siege to Gibbethon. 28 Even in the third year of Asa king of Judah did Baasa slay him, and reigned in his stead. 29 And it came to pass that, as soon as he was king, he smote all the house of Jeroboam; he left not to Jeroboam any that breathed, until he had destroyed him; according unto the saying of the LORD, which He spoke by the hand of His servant Ahijah the Shilonite; 30 for the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned, and wherewith he made Israel to sin; because of his provocation wherewith he provoked the LORD, the God of Israel.

31 Now the rest of the acts of Nadab and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 32 And there was war between Asa and Baasa king of Israel all their days.

33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah began Baasa the son of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, and reigned twenty and four years. 34 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin.

1 KINGS 16 — 1 And the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasa, saying: 2 `Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over My people Israel; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made My people Israel to sin, to provoke Me with their sins; 3 behold, I will utterly sweep away Baasa and his house; and I will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat. 4 Him that dieth of Baasa in the city shall the dogs eat; and him that dieth of his in the field shall the fowls of the air eat.'

5 Now the rest of the acts of Baasa, and what he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 6 And Baasa slept with his fathers, and was buried in Tirzah; and Elah his son reigned in his stead.

7 And moreover by the hand of the prophet Jehu the son of Hanani came the word of the LORD against Baasa, and against his house, both because of all the evil that he did in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him with the work of his hands, in being like the house of Jeroboam, and because he smote him.

8 In the twenty and sixth year of Asa king of Judah began Elah the son of Baasa to reign over Israel in Tirzah, and reigned two years. 9 And his servant Zimri, captain of half his chariots, conspired against him; now he was in Tirzah, drinking himself drunk in the house of Arza, who was over the household in Tirzah; 10 and Zimri went in and smote him, and killed him, in the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah, and reigned in his stead. 11 And it came to pass, when he began to reign, as soon as he sat on his throne, that he smote all the house of Baasa; he left him not a single man-child, neither of his kinsfolks, nor of his friends. 12 Thus did Zimri destroy all the house of Baasa, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke against Baasa by Jehu the prophet, 13 for all the sins of Baasa, and the sins of Elah his son, which they sinned, and wherewith they made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, with their vanities.

14 Now the rest of the acts of Elah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

15 In the twenty and seventh year of Asa king of Judah did Zimri reign seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were encamped against Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. 16 And the people that were encamped heard say: 'Zimri hath conspired, and hath also smitten the king'; wherefore all Israel made Omri, the captain of the host, king over Israel that day in the camp. 17 And Omri went up from Gibbethon, and all Israel with him, and they besieged Tirzah. 18 And it came to pass, when Zimri saw that the city was taken, that he went into the castle of the king's house, and burnt the king's house over him with fire, and died; 19 for his sins which he sinned in doing that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, in walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he did, to make Israel to sin.

20 Now the rest of the acts of Zimri, and his treason that he wrought, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

21 Then were the people of Israel divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king; and half followed Omri. 22 But the people that followed Omri prevailed against the people that followed Tibni the son of Ginath; so Tibni died, and Omri reigned.

23 In the thirty and first year of Asa king of Judah began Omri to reign over Israel, and reigned twelve years; six years reigned he in Tirzah. 24 And he bought the hill Samaria of Shemer for two talents of silver; and he built on the hill, and called the name of the city which he built, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill, Samaria. 25 And Omri did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and dealt wickedly above all that were before him. 26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sins wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, with their vanities.

27 Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might that he showed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 28 And Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria; and Ahab his son reigned in his stead.

29 And in the thirty and eighth year of Asa king of Judah began Ahab the son of Omri to reign over Israel; and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty and two years. 30 And Ahab the son of Omri did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD above all that were before him. 31 And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. 32 And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made the Asherah; and Ahab did yet more to provoke the LORD, the God of Israel, than all the kings of Israel that were before him.

34 In his days did Hiel the Bethelite build Jericho; with Abiram his first-born he laid the foundation thereof, and with his youngest son Segub he set up the gates thereof; according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by the hand of Joshua the son of Nun.

1 KINGS 17 — 1 And Elijah the Tishbite, who was of the settlers of Gilead, said unto Ahab: 'As the LORD, the God of Israel, liveth, before whom I stand, there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according to my word.' 2 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying: 3 'Get thee hence, and turn thee eastward, and hide thyself by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. 4 And it shall be, that thou shalt drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed thee there.' 5 So he went and did according unto the word of the LORD; for he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. 6 And the ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. 7 And it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

8 And the word of the LORD came unto him, saying: 9 'Arise, get thee to Zarephath, which belongeth to Zidon, and dwell there; behold, I have commanded a widow there to sustain thee.' 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her, and said: 'Fetch me, I pray thee, a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.' 11 And as she was going to fetch it, he called to her, and said: 'Bring me, I pray thee, a morsel of bread in thy hand.' 12 And she said: 'As the LORD thy God liveth, I have not a cake, only a handful of meal in the jar, and a little oil in the cruse; and, behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and dress it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die.' 13 And Elijah said unto her: 'Fear not; go and do as thou hast said; but make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it forth unto me, and afterward make for thee and for thy son. 14 For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: The jar of meal shall not be spent, neither shall the cruse of oil fail, until the day that the LORD sendeth rain upon the land.' 15 And she went and did according to the saying of Elijah; and she, and he, and her house, did eat many days. 16 The jar of meal was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by Elijah.

17 And it came to pass after these things, that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, fell sick; and his sickness was so sore, that there was no breath left in him. 18 And she said unto Elijah: 'What have I to do with thee, O thou man of God? art thou come unto me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to slay my son?' 19 And he said unto her: 'Give me thy son.' And he took him out of her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he abode, and laid him upon his own bed. 20 And he cried unto the LORD, and said: 'O LORD my God, hast Thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?' 21 And he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried unto the LORD, and said: 'O LORD my God, I pray thee, let this child's soul come back into him.' 22 And the LORD hearkened unto the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back into him, and he revived. 23 And Elijah took the child, and brought him down out of the upper chamber into the house, and delivered him unto his mother; and Elijah said: 'See, thy son liveth.' 24 And the woman said to Elijah: 'Now I know that thou art a man of God, and that the word of the LORD in thy mouth is truth.'

1 KINGS 18 — 1 And it came to pass after many days, that the word of the LORD came to Elijah, in the third year, saying: 'Go, show thyself unto Ahab, and I will send rain upon the land.' 2 And Elijah went to show himself unto Ahab.

And the famine was sore in Samaria. 3 And Ahab called Obadiah, who was over the household. -Now Obadiah feared the LORD greatly; 4 for it was so, when Jezebel cut off the prophets of the LORD, that Obadiah took a hundred prophets, and hid them fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.-5 And Ahab said unto Obadiah: 'Go through the land, unto all the springs of water, and unto all the brooks; peradventure we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive, that we lose not all the beasts.' 6 So they divided the land between them to pass throughout it: Ahab went one way by himself, and Obadiah went another way by himself.

7 And as Obadiah was in the way, behold, Elijah met him; and he knew him, and fell on his face, and said: 'Is it thou, my lord Elijah?' 8 And he answered him: 'It is I; go, tell thy lord: Behold, Elijah is here.' 9 And he said: 'Wherein have I sinned, that thou wouldest deliver thy servant into the hand of Ahab, to slay me? 10 As the LORD thy God liveth, there is no nation or kingdom, whither my lord hath not sent to seek thee; and when they said: He is not here, he took an oath of the kingdom and nation, that they found thee not. 11 And now thou sayest: Go, tell thy lord: Behold, Elijah is here. 12 And it will come to pass, as soon as I am gone from thee, that the spirit of the LORD will carry thee whither I know not; and so when I come and tell Ahab, and he cannot find thee, he will slay me; but I thy servant fear the LORD from my youth. 13 Was it not told my lord what I did when Jezebel slew the prophets of the LORD, how I hid a hundred men of the LORD'S prophets by fifty in a cave, and fed them with bread and water? 14 And now thou sayest: Go, tell thy lord: Behold, Elijah is here; and he will slay me.' 15 And Elijah said: 'As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself unto him to-day.'

16 So Obadiah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Elijah. 17 And it came to pass, when Ahab saw Elijah, that Ahab said unto him: 'Is it thou, thou troubler of Israel?' 18 And be answered: 'I have not troubled Israel; but thou, and thy father's house, in that ye have forsaken the commandments of the LORD, and thou hast followed the Baalim. 19 Now therefore send, and gather to me all Israel unto mount Carmel, and the prophets of Baal four hundred and fifty, and the prophets of the Asherah four hundred, that eat at Jezebel's table.'

20 And Ahab sent unto all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together unto mount Carmel. 21 And Elijah came near unto all the people, and said: 'How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.' And the people answered him not a word. 22 Then said Elijah unto the people: 'I, even I only, am left a prophet of the LORD; but Baal's prophets are four hundred and fifty men. 23 Let them therefore give us two bullocks; and let them choose one bullock for themselves, and cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under; and I will dress the other bullock, and lay it on the wood, and put no fire under. 24 And call ye on the name of your god, and I will call on the name of the LORD; and the God that answereth by fire, let him be God.' And all the people answered and said: 'It is well spoken.'

25 And Elijah said unto the prophets of Baal: 'Choose you one bullock for yourselves, and dress it first; for ye are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under.' 26 And they took the bullock which was given them, and they dressed it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even until noon, saying: 'O Baal, answer us.' But there was no voice, nor any that answered. And they danced in halting wise about the altar which was made. 27 And it came to pass at noon, that Elijah mocked them, and said: 'Cry aloud; for he is a god; either he is musing, or he is gone aside, or he is in a journey, or peradventure he sleepeth, and must be awaked.' 28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their manner with swords and lances, till the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And it was so, when midday was past, that they prophesied until the time of the offering of the evening offering; but their was neither voice, nor any to answer, nor any that regarded.

30 And Elijah said unto all the people: 'Come near unto me'; and all the people came near unto him. And he repaired the altar of the LORD that was thrown down. 31 And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, unto whom the word of the LORD came, saying: 'Israel shall be thy name.' 32 And with the stones he built an altar in the name of the LORD; and he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed. 33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bullock in pieces, and laid it on the wood. 34 And he said: 'Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt-offering, and on the wood.' And he said: 'Do it the second time'; and they did it the second time. And he said: 'Do it the third time'; and they did it the third time. 35 And the water ran round about the altar; and he filled the trench also with water. 36 And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening offering, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said: 'O LORD, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that Thou art God in Israel, and that I am Thy servant, and that I have done all these things at Thy word. 37 Hear me, O LORD, hear me, that this people may know that Thou, LORD, art God, for Thou didst turn their heart backward.' 38 Then the fire of the LORD fell, and consumed the burnt-offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said: 'The LORD, He is God; the LORD, He is God.' 40 And Elijah said unto them: 'Take the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.' And they took them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and slew them there.

41 And Elijah said unto Ahab: 'Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is the sound of abundance of rain.' 42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. 43 And he said to his servant: 'Go up now, look toward the sea.' And he went up, and looked, and said: 'There is nothing.' And he said: 'Go again seven times.' 44 And it came to pass at the seventh time, that he said: 'Behold, there ariseth a cloud out of the sea, as small as a man's hand.' And he said: 'Go up, say unto Ahab: Make ready thy chariot, and get thee down, that the rain stop thee not.' 45 And it came to pass in a little while, that the heaven grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode, and went to Jezreel. 46 And the hand of the LORD was on Elijah; and he girded up his loins, and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezreel.

1 KINGS 19 — 1 And Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and withal how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jezebel sent a messenger unto Elijah, saying: 'So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to-morrow about this time.' 3 And when he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongeth to Judah, and left his servant there. 4 But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom-tree; and he requested for himself that he might die; and said: 'It is enough; now, O LORD, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers.' 5 And he lay down and slept under a broom-tree; and, behold, an angel touched him, and said unto him: 'Arise and eat.' 6 And he looked, and, behold, there was at his head a cake baked on the hot stones, and a cruse of water. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. 7 And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said: 'Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee.' 8 And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meal forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God.

9 And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold, the word of the LORD came to him, and He said unto him: 'What doest thou here, Elijah?' 10 And he said: 'I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant, thrown down Thine altars, and slain Thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.' 11 And He said: 'Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.' And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice. 13 And it was so, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle, and went out, and stood in the entrance of the cave. And, behold, there came a voice unto him, and said: 'What doest thou here, Elijah?' 14 And he said: 'I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts; for the children of Israel have forsaken Thy covenant, thrown down Thine altars, and slain Thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.'

15 And the LORD said unto him: 'Go, return on thy way to the wilderness of Damascus; and when thou comest, thou shalt anoint Hazael to be king over Aram; 16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi shalt thou anoint to be king over Israel; and Elisha the son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah shalt thou anoint to be prophet in thy room. 17 And it shall come to pass, that him that escapeth from the sword of Hazael shall Jehu slay; and him that escapeth from the sword of Jehu shall Elisha slay. 18 Yet will I leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him.'

19 So he departed thence, and found Elisha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he with the twelfth; and Elijah passed over unto him, and cast his mantle upon him. 20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Elijah, and said: 'Let me, I pray thee, kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow thee.' And he said unto him: 'Go back; for what have I done to thee?' 21 And he returned from following him, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the instruments of the oxen, and gave unto the people, and they did eat. Then he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered unto him.

1 KINGS 20 — 1 And Ben-hadad the king of Aram gathered all his host together; and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses and chariots; and he went up and besieged Samaria, and fought against it. 2 And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel, into the city, 3 and said unto him: 'Thus saith Ben-hadad: Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine.' 4 And the king of Israel answered and said: 'It is according to thy saying, my lord, O king: I am thine, and all that I have.' 5 And the messengers came again, and said: 'Thus speaketh Ben-hadad, saying: I sent indeed unto thee, saying: Thou shalt deliver me thy silver, and thy gold, and thy wives, and thy children; 6 but I will send my servants unto thee tomorrow about this time, and they shall search thy house, and the houses of thy servants; and it shall be, that whatsoever is pleasant in thine eyes, they shall put it in their hand, and take it away.'

7 Then the king of Israel called all the elders of the land, and said: 'Mark, I pray you, and see how this man seeketh mischief; for he sent unto me for my wives, and for my children, and for my silver, and for my gold; and I denied him not.' 8 And all the elders and all the people said unto him: 'Hearken thou not, neither consent.' 9 Wherefore he said unto the messengers of Ben-hadad: 'Tell my lord the king: All that thou didst send for to thy servant at the first I will do; but this thing I may not do.' And the messengers departed, and brought him back word. 10 And Ben-hadad sent unto him, and said: 'The gods do so unto me, and more also, if the dust of Samaria shall suffice for handfuls for all the people that follow me.' 11 And the king of Israel answered and said: 'Tell him: Let not him that girdeth on his armour boast himself as he that putteth it off.' 12 And it came to pass, when Ben-hadad heard this message, as he was drinking, he and the kings, in the booths, that he said unto his servants: 'Set yourselves in array.' And they set themselves in array against the city.

13 And, behold, a prophet came near unto Ahab king of Israel, and said: 'Thus saith the LORD: Hast thou seen all this great multitude? behold, I will deliver it into thy hand this day; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.' 14 And Ahab said: 'By whom?' And he said: 'Thus saith the LORD: By the young men of the princes of the provinces.' Then he said: 'Who shall begin the battle?' And he answered: 'Thou.' 15 Then he numbered the young men of the princes of the provinces, and they were two hundred and thirty-two; and after them he numbered all the people, even all the children of Israel, being seven thousand.

16 And they went out at noon. But Ben-hadad was drinking himself drunk in the booths, he and the kings, the thirty and two kings that helped him. 17 And the young men of the princes of the provinces went out first; and Ben-hadad sent out, and they told him, saying: 'There are men come out from Samaria.' 18 And he said: 'Whether they are come out for peace, take them alive; or whether they are come out for war, take them alive.' 19 So these went out of the city, the young men of the princes of the provinces, and the army which followed them. 20 And they slew every one his man; and the Arameans fled, and Israel pursued them; and Ben-hadad the king of Aram escaped on a horse with horsemen. 21 And the king of Israel went out, and smote the horses and chariots, and slew the Arameans with a great slaughter. 22 And the prophet came near to the king of Israel, and said unto him: 'Go, strengthen thyself, and mark, and see what thou doest; for at the return of the year the king of Aram will come up against thee.'

23 And the servants of the king of Aram said unto him: 'Their God is a God of the hills; therefore they were stronger than we; but let us fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they. 24 And do this thing: take the kings away, every man out of his place, and put governors in their room: 25 and number thee an army, like the army that thou hast lost, horse for horse, and chariot for chariot; and we will fight against them in the plain, and surely we shall be stronger than they.' And he hearkened unto their voice, and did so.

26 And it came to pass at the return of the year, that Ben-hadad mustered the Arameans, and went up to Aphek, to fight against Israel. 27 And the children of Israel were mustered, and were victualled, and went against them; and the children of Israel encamped before them like two little flocks of kids; but the Arameans filled the country. 28 And a man of God came near and spoke unto the king of Israel, and said: 'Thus saith the LORD: Because the Arameans have said: The LORD is a God of the hills, but he is not a God of the valleys; therefore will I deliver all this great multitude into thy hand, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.' 29 And they encamped one over against the other seven days. And so it was, that in the seventh day the battle was joined; and the children of Israel slew of the Arameans a hundred thousand footmen in one day. 30 But the rest fled to Aphek, into the city; and the wall fell upon twenty and seven thousand men that were left. And Ben-hadad fled, and came into the city, into an inner chamber.

31 And his servants said unto him: 'Behold now, we have heard that the kings of the house of Israel are merciful kings; let us, we pray thee, put sackcloth on our loins, and ropes upon our heads, and go out to the king of Israel; peradventure he will save thy life.' 32 So they girded sackcloth on their loins, and put ropes on their heads, and came to the king of Israel, and said: 'Thy servant Ben-hadad saith: I pray thee, let me live.' And he said: 'Is he yet alive? he is my brother.' 33 Now the men took it for a sign, and hastened to catch it from him; and they said: 'Thy brother Ben-hadad.' Then he said: 'Go ye, bring him.' Then Ben-hadad came forth to him; and he caused him to come up into his chariot. 34 And Ben-hadad said unto him: 'The cities which my father took from thy father I will restore; and thou shalt make streets for thee in Damascus, as my father made in Samaria.' 'And I,said Ahab, will let thee go with this covenant.' So he made a covenant with him, and let him go.

35 And a certain man of the sons of the prophets said unto his fellow by the word of the LORD: 'Smite me, I pray thee.' And the man refused to smite him. 36 Then said he unto him: 'Because thou hast not heartened to the voice of the LORD, behold, as soon as thou art departed from me, a lion shall slay thee.' And as soon as he was departed from him, a lion found him; and slew him. 37 Then he found another man, and said: 'Smite me, I pray thee.' And the man smote him, smiting and wounding him. 38 So the prophet departed, and waited for the king by the way, and disguised himself with his headband over his eyes. 39 And as the king passed by, he cried unto the king; and he said: 'Thy servant went out into the midst of the battle; and, behold, a man turned aside, and brought a man unto me, and said: Keep this man; if by any means he be missing, then shall thy life be for his life, or else thou shalt pay a talent of silver. 40 And as thy servant was busy here and there, he was gone.' And the king of Israel said unto him: 'So shall thy judgment be; thyself hast decided it.' 41 And he hastened, and took the headband away from his eyes; and the king of Israel discerned him that he was of the prophets. 42 And he said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD: Because thou hast let go out of thy hand the man whom I had devoted to destruction, therefore thy life shall go for his life, and thy people for his people.' 43 And the king of Israel went to his house sullen and displeased, and came to Samaria.

1 KINGS 21 — 1 And it came to pass after these things, that Naboth the Jezreelite had a vineyard, which was in Jezreel, hard by the palace of Ahab, king of Samaria. 2 And Ahab spoke unto Naboth, saying: 'Give me thy vineyard, that I may have it for a garden of herbs, because it is near unto my house; and I will give thee for it a better vineyard than it; or, if it seem good to thee, I will give thee the worth of it in money.' 3 And Naboth said to Ahab: 'The LORD forbid it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.' 4 And Ahab came into his house sullen and displeased because of the word which Naboth the Jezreelite had spoken to him; for he had said: 'I will not give thee the inheritance of my fathers.' And he laid him down upon his bed, and turned away his face, and would eat no bread.

5 But Jezebel his wife came to him, and said unto him: 'Why is thy spirit so sullen, that thou eatest no bread?' 6 And he said unto her: 'Because I spoke unto Naboth the Jezreelite, and said unto him: Give me thy vineyard for money; or else, if it please thee, I will give thee another vineyard for it; and he answered: I will not give thee my vineyard.' 7 And Jezebel his wife said unto him: 'Dost thou now govern the kingdom of Israel? arise, and eat bread, and let thy heart be merry; I will give thee the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite.' 8 So she wrote letters in Ahab's name, and sealed them with his seal, and sent the letters unto the elders and to the nobles that were in his city, and that dwelt with Naboth. 9 And she wrote in the letters, saying: 'Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people; 10 and set two men, base fellows, before him, and let them bear witness against him, saying: Thou didst curse God and the king. And then carry him out, and stone him, that he die.'

11 And the men of his city, even the elders and the nobles who dwelt in his city, did as Jezebel had sent unto them, according as it was written in the letters which she had sent unto them. 12 They proclaimed a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people. 13 And the two men, the base fellows, came in and sat before him; and the base fellows bore witness against him, even against Naboth, in the presence of the people, saying: 'Naboth did curse God and the king.' Then they carried him forth out of the city, and stoned him with stones, that he died. 14 Then they sent to Jezebel, saying: 'Naboth is stoned, and is dead.' 15 And it came to pass, when Jezebel heard that Naboth was stoned, and was dead, that Jezebel said to Ahab: 'Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give thee for money; for Naboth is not alive, but dead.' 16 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, that Ahab rose up to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.

17 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying: 18 'Arise, go down to meet Ahab king of Israel, who dwelleth in Samaria; behold, he is in the vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to take possession of it. 19 And thou shalt speak unto him, saying: Thus saith the LORD: Hast thou killed, and also taken possessions? and thou shalt speak unto him, saying: Thus saith the LORD: In the place where dogs licked the blood of Naboth shall dogs lick thy blood, even thine.' 20 And Ahab said to Elijah: 'Hast thou found me, O mine enemy?' And he answered: 'I have found thee; because thou hast given thyself over to do that which is evil in the sight of the LORD. 21 Behold, I will bring evil upon thee, and will utterly sweep thee away, and will cut off from Ahab every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel. 22 And I will make thy house like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasa the son of Ahijah, for the provocation wherewith thou hast provoked Me, and hast made Israel to sin. 23 And of Jezebel also spoke the LORD, saying: The dogs shall eat Jezebel in the moat of Jezreel. 24 Him that dieth of Ahab in the city the dogs shall eat; and him that dieth in the field shall the fowls of the air eat.' 25 But there was none like unto Ahab, who did give himself over to do that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, whom Jezebel his wife stirred up. 26 And he did very abominably in following idols, according to all that the Amorites did, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

27 And it came to pass, when Ahab heard those words, that he rent his clothes, and put sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softy. 28 And the word of the LORD came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying: 29 'Seest thou how Ahab humbleth himself before Me? because he humbleth himself before Me, I will not bring the evil in his days; but in his son's days will I bring the evil upon his house.'

1 KINGS 22 — 1 And they continued three years without war between Aram and Israel. 2 And it came to pass in the third year, that Jehoshaphat the king of Judah came down to the king of Israel. 3 And the king of Israel said unto his servants: 'Know ye that Ramoth-gilead is ours, and we are still, and take it not out of the hand of the king of Aram?' 4 And he said unto Jehoshaphat: 'Wilt thou go with me to battle to Ramoth-gilead?' And Jehoshaphat said to the king of Israel: 'I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.'

5 And Jehoshaphat said unto the king of Israel: 'Inquire, I pray thee, at the word of the LORD today.' 6 Then the king of Israel gathered the prophets together, about four hundred men, and said unto them: 'Shall I go against Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall I forbear?' And they said: 'Go up; for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king.' 7 But Jehoshaphat said: 'Is there not here besides a prophet of the LORD, that we might inquire of him?' 8 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat: 'There is yet one man by whom we may inquire of the LORD, Micaiah the son of Imlah; but I hate him; for he doth not prophesy good concerning me, but evil.' And Jehoshaphat said: 'Let not the king say so.' 9 Then the king of Israel called an officer, and said: 'Fetch quickly Micaiah the son of Imlah.' 10 Now the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah sat each on his throne, arrayed in their robes, in a threshing-floor, at the entrance of the gate of Samaria; and all the prophets prophesied before them. 11 And Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah made him horns of iron, and said: 'Thus saith the LORD: With these shalt thou gore the Arameans, until they be consumed.' 12 And all the prophets prophesied so, saying: 'Go up to Ramoth-gilead, and prosper; for the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king.'

13 And the messenger that went to call Micaiah spoke unto him, saying: 'Behold now, the words of the prophets declare good unto the king with one mouth, let thy word, I pray thee, be like the word of one of them, and speak thou good.' 14 And Micaiah said: 'As the LORD liveth, what the LORD saith unto me, that will I speak.' 15 And when he was come to the king, the king said unto him: 'Micaiah, shall we go to Ramoth-gilead to battle, or shall we forbear?' And he answered him: 'Go up, and prosper; and the LORD will deliver it into the hand of the king.' 16 And the king said unto him: 'How many times shall I adjure thee that thou speak unto me nothing but the truth in the name of the LORD?' 17 And he said: 'I saw all Israel scattered upon the mountains, as sheep that have no shepherd; and the LORD said: These have no master; let them return every man to his house in peace.' 18 And the king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat: 'Did I not tell thee that he would not prophesy good concerning me, but evil?' 19 And he said: 'Therefore hear thou the word of the LORD. I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the host of heaven standing by Him on His right hand and on his left. 20 And the LORD said: Who shall entice Ahab, that he may go up and fall at Ramoth-gilead. And one said: On this manner; and another said: On that manner. 21 And there came forth the spirit, and stood before the LORD, and said: I will entice him. 22 And the LORD said unto him: Wherewith? And he said: I will go forth, and will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And He said: Thou shalt entice him, and shalt prevail also; go forth, and do so. 23 Now therefore, behold, the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of all these thy prophets; and the LORD hath spoken evil concerning thee.'

24 Then Zedekiah the son of Chenaanah came near, and smote Micaiah on the check, and said: 'Which way went the spirit of the LORD from me to speak unto thee?' 25 And Micaiah said: 'Behold, thou shalt see on that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.' 26 And the king of Israel said: 'Take Micaiah, and carry him back unto Amon the governor of the city, and to Joash the king's son; 27 and say: Thus saith the king: Put this fellow in the prison, and feed him with scant bread and with scant water, until I come in peace.' 28 And Micaiah said: 'If thou return at all in peace, the LORD hath not spoken by me.' And he said: 'Hear, ye peoples, all of you.'

29 So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat the king of Judah went up to Ramoth-gilead. 30 And the king of Israel said unto Jehoshaphat: 'I will disguise myself, and go into the battle; but put thou on thy robes.' And the king of Israel disguised himself, and went into the battle. 31 Now the king of Aram had commanded the thirty and two captains of his chariots, saying: 'Fight neither with small nor great, save only with the king of Israel.' 32 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw Jehoshaphat, that they said: 'Surely it is the king of Israel'; and they turned aside to fight against him; and Jehoshaphat cried out. 33 And it came to pass, when the captains of the chariots saw that it was not the king of Israel, that they turned back from pursuing him. 34 And a certain man drew his bow at a venture, and smote the king of Israel between the lower armour and the breastplate; wherefore he said unto the driver of his chariot: 'Turn thy hand, and carry me out of the host; for I am sore wounded.' 35 And the battle increased that day; and the king was stayed up in his chariot against the Arameans, and died at even; and the blood ran out of the wound into the bottom of the chariot. 36 And there went a cry throughout the host about the going down of the sun, saying: 'Every man to his city, and every man to his country.'

37 So the king died, and was brought to Samaria; and they buried the king in Samaria. 38 And they washed the chariot by the pool of Samaria; and the dogs licked up his blood; the harlots also washed themselves there; according unto the word of the LORD which He spoke.

39 Now the rest of the acts of Ahab, and all that he did, and the ivory house which he built, and all the cities that he built, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 40 So Ahab slept with his fathers; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.

41 And Jehoshaphat the son of Asa began to reign over Judah in the fourth year of Ahab king of Israel. 42 Jehoshaphat was thirty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and five years in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Azubah the daughter of Shilhi. 43 And he walked in all the way of Asa his father; he turned not aside from it, doing that which was right in the eyes of the LORD; 44 howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places. 45 And Jehoshaphat made peace with the king of Israel.

46 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoshaphat, and his might that he showed, and how he warred, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 47 And the remnant of the sodomites that remained in the days of his father Asa, he put away out of the land. 48 And there was no king in Edom: a deputy was king. 49 Jehoshaphat made ships of Tarshish to go to Ophir for gold; but they went not; for the ships were broken at Ezion-geber. 50 Then said Ahaziah the son of Ahab unto Jehoshaphat: 'Let my servants go with thy servants in the ships.' But Jehoshaphat would not. 51 And Jehoshaphat slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Jehoram his son reigned in his stead.

52 Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and he reigned two years over Israel. 53 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherein he made Israel to sin. 54 And he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked the LORD, the God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.

2 Kings

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2 KINGS 1 — 1 And Moab rebelled against Israel after the death of Ahab.

2 And Ahaziah fell down through the lattice in his upper chamber that was in Samaria, and was sick; and he sent messengers, and said unto them: 'Go, inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron whether I shall recover of this sickness.' 3 But an angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite: 'Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them: Is it because there is no God in Israel, that ye go to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? 4 Now therefore thus saith the LORD: Thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.' And Elijah departed.

5 And the messengers returned unto him, and he said unto them: 'Why is it that ye are returned?' 6 And they said unto him: 'There came up a man to meet us, and said unto us: Go, return unto the king that sent you, and say unto him: Thus saith the LORD: Is it because there is no God in Israel, that thou sendest to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed whither thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.' 7 And he said unto them: 'What manner of man was he that came up to meet you, and told you these words?' 8 And they answered him: 'He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins.' And he said: 'It is Elijah the Tishbite.'

9 Then the king sent unto him a captain of fifty with his fifty. And he went up to him; and, behold, he sat on the top of the hill. And he spoke unto him: `O man of God, the king hath said: Come down.' 10 And Elijah answered and said to the captain of fifty: 'If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty.' And there came down fire from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 11 And again he sent unto him another captain of fifty with his fifty. And he answered and said unto him: 'O man of God, thus hath the king said: Come down quickly.' 12 And Elijah answered and said unto them: 'If I be a man of God, let fire come down from heaven, and consume thee and thy fifty.' And the fire of God came down from heaven, and consumed him and his fifty. 13 And again he sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. And the third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and besought him, and said unto him: 'O man of God, I pray thee, let my life, and the life of these fifty thy servants, be precious in thy sight. 14 Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and consumed the two former captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in thy sight' 15 And the angel of the LORD said unto Elijah: 'Go down with him; be not afraid of him.' And he arose, and went down with him unto the king. 16 And he said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD: Forasmuch as thou hast sent messengers to inquire of Baal-zebub the god of Ekron, is it because there is no God in Israel to inquire of His word? therefore thou shalt not come down from the bed whether thou art gone up, but shalt surely die.'

17 So he died according to the word of the LORD which Elijah had spoken. And Jehoram began to reign in his stead in the second year of Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah; because he had no son. 18 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaziah which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?

2 KINGS 2 — 1 And it came to pass, when the LORD would take up Elijah by a whirlwind into heaven, that Elijah went with Elisha from Gilgal. 2 And Elijah said unto Elisha: 'Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me as far as Beth-el.' And Elisha said: 'As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee.' So they went down to Beth-el.-3 And the sons of the prophets that were at Beth-el came forth to Elisha, and said unto him: 'Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to-day?' And he said: 'Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.'-4 And Elijah said unto him: 'Elisha, tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to Jericho.' And he said: 'As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee.' So they came to Jericho.-5 And the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho came near to Elisha, and said unto him: 'Knowest thou that the LORD will take away thy master from thy head to-day?' And he answered: 'Yea, I know it; hold ye your peace.'-6 And Elijah said unto him: 'Tarry here, I pray thee; for the LORD hath sent me to the Jordan.' And he said: 'As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee.' And they two went on.

7 And fifty men of the sons of the prophets went, and stood over against them afar off; and they two stood by the Jordan. 8 And Elijah took his mantle, and wrapped it together, and smote the waters, and they were divided hither and thither, so that they two went over on dry ground. 9 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha: 'Ask what I shall do for thee, before I am taken from thee.' And Elisha said: 'I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me.' 10 And he said: 'Thou hast asked a hard thing; nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so.' 11 And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, which parted them both assunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

12 And Elisha saw it, and he cried: 'My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof!' And he saw him no more; and he took hold of his own clothes, and rent them in two pieces. 13 He took up also the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and went back, and stood by the bank of the Jordan. 14 And he took the mantle of Elijah that fell from him, and smote the waters, and said: 'Where is the LORD, the God of Elijah?' and when he also had smitten the waters, they were divided hither and thither; and Elisha went over.

15 And when the sons of the prophets that were at Jericho some way off saw him, they said: 'The spirit of Elijah doth rest on Elisha.' And they came to meet him, and bowed down to the ground before him. 16 And they said unto him: 'Behold now, there are with thy servants fifty strong men; let them go, we pray thee, and seek thy master; lest peradventure the spirit of the LORD hath taken him up, and cast him upon some mountain, or into some valley.' And he said: 'Ye shall not send.' 17 And when they urged him till he was ashamed, he said: 'Send.' They sent therefore fifty men; and they sought three days, but found him not. 18 And they came back to him, while he tarried at Jericho; and he said unto them: 'Did I not say unto you: Go not?'

19 And the men of the city said unto Elisha: 'Behold, we pray thee, the situation of this city is pleasant, as my lord seeth; but the water is bad, and the land miscarrieth. 20 And he said: 'Bring me a new cruse, and put salt therein.' And they brought it to him. 21 And he went forth unto the spring of the waters, and cast salt therein, and said: 'Thus saith the LORD: I have healed these waters; there shall not be from thence any more death or miscarrying.' 22 So the waters were healed unto this day, according to the word of Elisha which he spoke.

23 And he went up from thence unto Beth-el; and as he was going up by the way, there came forth little children out of the city, and mocked him, and said unto him: 'Go up, thou baldhead; go up, thou baldhead.' 24 And he looked behind him and saw them, and cursed them in the name of the LORD. And there came forth two she-bears out of the wood, and tore forty and two children of them. 25 And he went from thence to mount Carmel, and from thence he returned to Samaria.

2 KINGS 3 — 1 Now Jehoram the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria in the eighteenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned twelve years. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; but not like his father, and like his mother; for he put away the pillar of Baal that his father had made. 3 Nevertheless he cleaved unto the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom.

4 Now Mesha king of Moab was a sheep-master; and he rendered unto the king of Israel the wool of a hundred thousand lambs, and of a hundred thousand rams. 5 But it came to pass, when Ahab was dead, that the king of Moab rebelled against the king of Israel. 6 And king Jehoram went out of Samaria at that time, and mustered all Israel. 7 And he went and sent to Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, saying: `The king of Moab hath rebelled against me; wilt thou go with me against Moab to battle?' And he said: 'I will go up; I am as thou art, my people as thy people, my horses as thy horses.' 8 And he said: 'Which way shall we go up?' And he answered: 'The way of the wilderness of Edom.' 9 So the king of Israel went, and the king of Judah, and the king of Edom; and they made a circuit of seven days' journey; and there was no water for the host, nor for the beasts that followed them. 10 And the king of Israel said: 'Alas! for the LORD hath called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.' 11 But Jehoshaphat said: 'Is there not here a prophet of the LORD, that we may inquire of the LORD by him?' And one of the king of Israel's servants answered and said: 'Elisha the son of Shaphat is here, who poured water on the hands of Elijah.' 12 And Jehoshaphat said: 'The word of the LORD is with him.' So the king of Israel and Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom went down to him.

13 And Elisha said unto the king of Israel: 'What have I to do with thee? get thee to the prophets of thy father, and to the prophets of thy mother.' And the king of Israel said unto him: 'Nay; for the LORD hath called these three kings together to deliver them into the hand of Moab.' 14 And Elisha said: 'As the LORD of hosts liveth, before whom I stand, surely, were it not that I regard the presence of Jehoshaphat the king of Judah, I would not look toward thee, nor see thee. 15 But now bring me a minstrel.' And it came to pass, when the minstrel played, that the hand of the LORD came upon him. 16 And he said: 'Thus saith the LORD: Make this valley full of trenches. 17 For thus saith the LORD: Ye shall not see wind, neither shall ye see rain, yet that valley shall be filled with water; and ye shall drink, both ye and your cattle and your beasts. 18 And this is but a light thing in the sight of the LORD; He will also deliver the Moabites into your hand. 19 And ye shall smite every fortified city, and every choice city, and shall fell every good tree, and stop all fountains of water, and mar every good piece of land with stones.' 20 And it came to pass in the morning, about the time of making the offering, that, behold, there came water by the way of Edom, and the country was filled with water.

21 Now when all the Moabites heard that the kings were come up to fight against them, they gathered themselves together, all that were able to put on armour, and upward, and stood on the border. 22 And they rose up early in the morning, and the sun shone upon the water, and the Moabites saw the water some way off as red as blood; 23 and they said: 'This is blood: the kings have surely fought together, and they have smitten each man his fellow; now therefore, Moab, to the spoil.' 24 And when they came to the camp of Israel, the Israelites rose up and smote the Moabites, so that they fled before them. And they smote the land, even Moab, mightily. 25 And they beat down the cities; and on every good piece of land they cast every man his stone, and filled it; and they stopped all the fountains of water, and felled all the good trees; until there was left only Kir-hareseth with the stones of the wall thereof; so the slingers encompassed it, and smote it. 26 And when the king of Moab saw that the battle was too sore for him, he took with him seven hundred men that drew sword, to break through unto the king of Edom; but they could not. 27 Then he took his eldest son that should have reigned in his stead, and offered him for a burnt-offering upon the wall. And there came great wrath upon Israel; and they departed from him, and returned to their own land.

2 KINGS 4 — 1 Now there cried a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets unto Elisha, saying: 'Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowest that thy servant did fear the LORD; and the creditor is come to take unto him my two children to be bondmen.' 2 And Elisha said unto her: `What shall I do for thee? tell me; what hast thou in the house?' And she said: 'Thy handmaid hath not any thing in the house, save a pot of oil.' 3 Then he said: 'Go, borrow thee vessels abroad of all thy neighbours, even empty vessels; borrow not a few. 4 And thou shalt go in, and shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and pour out into all those vessels; and thou shalt set aside that which is full.' 5 So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons; they brought the vessels to her, and she poured out. 6 And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said unto her son: 'Bring me yet a vessel.' And he said unto her: 'There is not a vessel more.' And the oil stayed. 7 Then she came and told the man of God. And he said: 'Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy sons of the rest.'

8 And it fell on a day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where was a great woman; and she constrained him to eat bread. And so it was, that as oft as he passed by, he turned in thither to eat bread. 9 And she said unto her husband: 'Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, that passeth by us continually. 10 Let us make, I pray thee, a little chamber on the roof; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a stool, and a candlestick; and it shall be, when he cometh to us, that he shall turn in thither.' 11 And it fell on a day, that he came thither, and he turned into the upper chamber and lay there. 12 And he said to Gehazi his servant: 'Call this Shunammite.' And when he had called her, she stood before him. 13 And he said unto him: `Say now unto her: Behold, thou hast been careful for us with all this care; what is to be done for thee? wouldest thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host?' And she answered: 'I dwell among mine own people.' 14 And he said: 'What then is to be done for her?' And Gehazi answered: 'Verily she hath no son, and her husband is old.' 15 And he said: 'Call her.' And when he had called her, she stood in the door. 16 And he said: 'At this season, when the time cometh round, thou shalt embrace a son.' And she said: 'Nay, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie unto thy handmaid.' 17 And the woman conceived, and bore a son at that season, when the time came round, as Elisha had said unto her.

18 And when the child was grown, it fell on a day, that he went out to his father to the reapers. 19 And he said unto his father: 'My head, my head.' And he said to his servant: 'Carry him to his mother.' 20 And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. 21 And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. 22 And she called unto her husband, and said: 'Send me, I pray thee, one of the servants, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and come back.' 23 And he said: Wherefore wilt thou go to him today? it is neither new moon nor sabbath.' And she said: 'It shall be well.' 24 Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant: 'Drive, and go forward; slacken me not the riding, except I bid thee.' 25 So she went, and came unto the man of God to mount Carmel.

And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Gehazi his servant: 'Behold, yonder is that Shunammite. 26 Run, I pray thee, now to meet her, and say unto her: Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child?' And she answered: 'It is well.' 27 And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught hold of his feet. And Gehazi came near to thrust her away; but the man of God said: 'Let her alone; for her soul is bitter within her; and the LORD hath hid it from me, and hath not told Me.' 28 Then she said: 'Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say: Do not deceive me?' 29 Then he said to Gehazi: 'Gird up thy loins, and take my staff in thy hand, and go thy way; if thou meet any man, salute him not; and if any salute thee, answer him not; and lay my staff upon the face of the child.' 30 And the mother of the child said: 'As the LORD liveth, and as thy soul liveth, I will not leave thee.' And he arose, and followed her. 31 And Gehazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor hearing. Wherefore he returned to meet him, and told him, saying: 'The child is not awaked.'

32 And when Elisha was come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. 33 He went in therefore, and shut the door upon them twain, and prayed unto the LORD. 34 And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands; and he stretched himself upon him; and the flesh of the child waxed warm. 35 Then he returned, and walked in the house once to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him; and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. 36 And he called Gehazi, and said: 'Call this Shunammite.' So he called her. And when she was come in unto him, he said: 'Take up thy son.' 37 Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed down to the ground; and she took up her son, and went out.

38 And Elisha came again to Gilgal; and there was a dearth in the land; and the sons of the prophets were sitting before him; and he said unto his servant: 'Set on the great pot, and seethe pottage for the sons of the prophets.' 39 And one went out into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine, and gathered thereof wild gourds his lap full, and came and shred them into the pot of pottage; for they knew them not. 40 So they poured out for the men to eat. And it came to pass, as they were eating of the pottage, that they cried out, and said: 'O man of God, there is death in the pot.' And they could not eat thereof. 41 But he said: 'Then bring meal.' And he cast it into the pot; and he said: 'Pour out for the people, that they may eat.' And there was no harm in the pot.

42 And there came a man from Baal-shalishah, and brought the man of God bread of the first-fruits, twenty loaves of barley, and fresh ears of corn in his sack. And he said: 'Give unto the people, that they may eat.' 43 And his servant said: 'How should I set this before a hundred men?' But he said: 'Give the people, that they may eat; for thus saith the LORD: They shall eat, and shall leave thereof.' 44 So he set it before them, and they did eat, and left thereof, according to the word of the LORD.

2 KINGS 5 — 1 Now Naaman, captain of the host of the king of Aram, was a great man with his master, and held in esteem, because by him the LORD had given victory unto Aram; he was also a mighty man of valour, but he was a leper. 2 And the Arameans had gone out in bands, and had brought away captive out of the land of Israel a little maid; and she waited on Naaman's wife. 3 And she said unto her mistress: 'Would that my lord were with the prophet that is in Samaria! then would he recover him of his leprosy.' 4 And he went in, and told his lord, saying: `Thus and thus said the maid that is of the land of Israel.' 5 And the king of Aram said: 'Go now, and I will send a letter unto the king of Israel.' And he departed, and took with him ten talents of silver, and six thousand pieces of gold, and ten changes of raiment. 6 And he brought the letter to the king of Israel, saying: 'And now when this letter is come unto thee, behold, I have sent Naaman my servant to thee, that thou mayest recover him of his leprosy.' 7 And it came to pass, when the king of Israel had read the letter, that he rent his clothes, and said: 'Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man doth send unto me to recover a man of his leprosy? but consider, I pray you, and see how he seeketh an occasion against me.'

8 And it was so, when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, that he sent to the king, saying: 'Wherefore hast thou rent thy clothes? let him come now to me, and he shall know that there is a prophet in Israel.' 9 So Naaman came with his horses and with his chariots, and stood at the door of the house of Elisha. 10 And Elisha sent a messenger unto him, saying: 'Go and wash in the Jordan seven times, and thy flesh shall come back to thee, and thou shalt be clean.' 11 But Naaman was wroth, and went away, and said: 'Behold, I thought: He will surely come out to me, and stand, and call on the name of the LORD his God, and wave his hand over the place, and recover the leper. 12 Are not Amanah and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? may I not wash in them, and be clean?' So he turned, and went away in a rage. 13 And his servants came near, and spoke unto him, and said: 'My father, if the prophet had bid thee do some great thing, wouldest thou not have done it? how much rather then, when he saith to thee: Wash, and be clean?' 14 Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God; and his flesh came back like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.

15 And he returned to the man of God, he and all his company, and came, and stood before him; and he said: 'Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel; now therefore, I pray thee, take a present of thy servant.' 16 But he said: 'As the LORD liveth, before whom I stand, I will receive none.' And he urged him to take it; but he refused. 17 And Naaman said: 'If not, yet I pray thee let there be given to thy servant two mules' burden of earth; for thy servant will henceforth offer neither burnt-offering nor sacrifice unto other gods, but unto the LORD. 18 In this thing the LORD pardon thy servant: when my master goeth into the house of Rimmon to worship there, and he leaneth on my hand, and I prostrate myself in the house of Rimmon, when I prostrate myself in the house of Rimmon, the LORD pardon thy servant in this thing.' 19 And he said unto him: 'Go in peace.' So he departed from him some way.

20 But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said: 'Behold, my master hath spared this Naaman the Aramean, in not receiving at his hands that which he brought; as the LORD liveth, I will surely run after him, and take somewhat of him.' 21 So Gehazi followed after Naaman. And when Naaman saw one running after him, he alighted from the chariot to meet him, and said: 'Is all well?' 22 And he said: 'All is well. My master hath sent me, saying: Behold, even now there are come to me from the hill-country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets; give them, I pray thee, a talent of silver, and two changes of raiment.' 23 And Naaman said: 'Be content, take two talents.' And he urged him, and bound two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of raiment, and laid them upon two of his servants; and they bore them before him. 24 And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand, and deposited them in the house; and he let the men go, and they departed. 25 But he went in, and stood before his master. And Elisha said unto him: 'Whence comest thou, Gehazi?' And he said: 'Thy servant went no whither.' 26 And he said unto him: 'Went not my heart with thee, when the man turned back from his chariot to meet thee? Is it a time to receive money, and to receive garments, and oliveyards and vineyards, and sheep and oxen, and men-servants and maid-servants? 27 The leprosy therefore of Naaman shall cleave unto thee, and unto thy seed for ever.' And he went out from his presence a leper as white as snow.

2 KINGS 6 — 1 And the sons of the prophets said unto Elisha: 'Behold now, the place where we dwell before thee is too strait for us. 2 Let us go, we pray thee, unto the Jordan, and take thence every man a beam, and let us make us a place there, where we may dwell.' And he answered: 'Go ye.' 3 And one said: 'Be content, I pray thee, and go with thy servants.' And he answered: 'I will go.' 4 So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down wood. 5 But as one was felling a beam, the axe-head fell into the water; and he cried, and said: 'Alas, my master! for it was borrowed.' 6 And the man of God said: 'Where fell it?' And he showed him the place. And he cut down a stick, and cast it in thither, and made the iron to swim. 7 And he said: 'Take it up to thee.' So he put out his hand, and took it.

8 Now the king of Aram warred against Israel; and he took counsel with his servants, saying: `In such and such a place shall be my camp.' 9 And the man of God sent unto the king of Israel, saying: 'Beware that thou pass not such a place; for thither the Arameans are coming down.' 10 And the king of Israel sent to the place which the man of God told him and warned him of; and he guarded himself there, not once nor twice. 11 And the heart of the king of Aram was sore troubled for this thing; and he called his servants, and said unto them: 'Will ye not tell me which of us is for the king of Israel?' 12 And one of his servants said: 'Nay, my lord, O king; but Elisha, the prophet that is in Israel, telleth the king of Israel the words that thou speakest in thy bed-chamber.' 13 And he said: 'Go and see where he is, that I may send and fetch him.' And it was told him, saying: 'Behold, he is in Dothan.'

14 Therefore sent he thither horses, and chariots, and a great host; and they came by night, and compassed the city about. 15 And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, a host with horses and chariots was round about the city. And his servant said unto him: 'Alas, my master! how shall we do?' 16 And he answered: 'Fear not: for they that are with us are more than they that are with them.' 17 And Elisha prayed, and said: `LORD, I pray Thee, open his eyes, that he may see.' And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw; and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha. 18 And when they came down to him, Elisha prayed unto the LORD, and said: 'Smite this people, I pray Thee, with blindness.' And He smote them with blindness according to the word of Elisha. 19 And Elisha said unto them: 'This is not the way, neither is this the city; follow me, and I will bring you to the man whom ye seek.' And he led them to Samaria.

20 And it came to pass, when they were come into Samaria, that Elisha said: 'LORD, open the eyes of these men, that they may see.' And the LORD opened their eyes, and they saw; and, behold, they were in the midst of Samaria. 21 And the king of Israel said unto Elisha, when he saw them: 'My father, shall I smite them? shall I smite them?' 22 And he answered: 'Thou shalt not smite them; hast thou taken captive with thy sword and with thy bow those whom thou wouldest smite? set bread and water before them, that they may eat and drink, and go to their master.' 23 And he prepared great provision for them; and when they had eaten and drunk, he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Aram came no more into the land of Israel.

24 And it came to pass after this, that Ben-hadad king of Aram gathered all his host, and went up, and besieged Samaria. 25 And there was a great famine in Samaria; and, behold, they besieged it, until an ass's head was sold for fourscore pieces of silver, and the fourth part of a kab of dove's dung for five pieces of silver. 26 And as the king of Israel was passing by upon the wall, there cried a woman unto him, saying: 'Help, my lord, O king.' 27 And he said: 'If the LORD do not help thee, whence shall I help thee? out of the threshingfloor, or out of the winepress?' 28 And the king said unto her: 'What aileth thee?' And she answered: 'This woman said unto me: Give thy son, that we may eat him to-day, and we will eat my son to-morrow. 29 So we boiled my son, and did eat him; and I said unto her on the next day: Give thy son, that we may eat him; and she hath hid her son.' 30 And it came to pass, when the king heard the words of the woman, that he rent his clothes-now he was passing by upon the wall-and the people looked, and, behold, he had sackcloth within upon his flesh. 31 Then he said: 'God do so to me, and more also, if the head of Elisha the son of Shaphat shall stand on him this day.'

32 But Elisha sat in his house, and the elders sat with him; and the king sent a man from before him; but ere the messenger came to him, he said to the elders: 'See ye how this son of a murderer hath sent to take away my head? look, when the messenger cometh, shut the door, and hold the door fast against him; is not the sound of his master's feet behind him?' 33 And while he yet talked with them, behold, the messenger came down unto him; and [the king] said: 'Behold, this evil is of the LORD; why should I wait for the LORD any longer?' 2 KINGS 7 — 1 And Elisha said: 'Hear ye the word of the LORD; thus saith the LORD: To-morrow about this time shall a measure of fine flour be sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.' 2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of God, and said: 'Behold, if the LORD should make windows in heaven, might this thing be?' And he said: 'Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof.'

3 Now there were four leprous men at the entrance of the gate; and they said one to another: 'Why sit we here until we die? 4 If we say: We will enter into the city, then the famine is in the city, and we shall die there; and if we sit still here, we die also. Now therefore come, and let us fall unto the host of the Arameans; if they save us alive, we shall live; and if they kill us, we shall but die.' 5 And they rose up in the twilight, to go unto the camp of the Arameans; and when they were come to the outermost part of the camp of the Arameans, behold, there was no man there. 6 For the Lord had made the host of the Arameans to hear a noise of chariots, and a noise of horses, even the noise of a great host; and they said one to another: 'Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Hittites, and the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us.' 7 Wherefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, and their horses, and their asses, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. 8 And when these lepers came to the outermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and did eat and drink, and carried thence silver, and gold, and raiment, and went and hid it; and they came back, and entered into another tent, and carried thence also, and went and hid it.

9 Then they said one to another: 'We do not well; this day is a day of good tidings, and we hold our peace; if we tarry till the morning light, punishment will overtake us; now therefore come, let us go and tell the king's household.' 10 So they came and called unto the porters of the city; and they told them, saying. 'We came to the camp of the Arameans, and, behold, there was no man there, neither voice of man, but the horses tied, and the asses tied, and the tents as they were.' 11 And the porters called, and they told it to the king's household within. 12 And the king arose in the night, and said unto his servants: 'I will now tell you what the Arameans have done to us. They know that we are hungry; therefore are they gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying: When they come out of the city, we shall take them alive, and get into the city.' 13 And one of his servants answered and said: 'Let some take, I pray thee, five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city- behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are left in it; behold, they are as all the multitude of Israel that are consumed-and let us send and see.' 14 They took therefore two chariots with horses; and the king sent after the host of the Arameans, saying: 'Go and see.' 15 And they went after them unto the Jordan; and, lo, all the way was full of garments and vessels, which the Arameans had cast away in their haste. And the messengers returned, and told the king.

16 And the people went out, and spoiled the camp of the Arameans. So a measure of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of the LORD. 17 And the king appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to have the charge of the gate; and the people trod upon him in the gate, and he died as the man of God had said, who spoke when the king came down to him. 18 And it came to pass, as the man of God had spoken to the king, saying: 'Two measures of barley for a shekel, and a measure of fine flour for a shekel, shall be to-morrow about this time in the gate of Samaria'; 19 and that captain answered the man of God, and said: 'Now, behold, if the LORD should make windows in heaven, might such a thing be?' and he said: `Behold, thou shalt see it with thine eyes, but shalt not eat thereof'; 20 it came to pass even so unto him; for the people trod upon him in the gate, and he died.

2 KINGS 8 — 1 Now Elisha had spoken unto the woman, whose son he had restored to life, saying: 'Arise, and go thou and thy household, and sojourn wheresoever thou canst sojourn; for the LORD hath called for a famine; and it shall also come upon the land seven years.' 2 And the woman arose, and did according to the word of the man of God; and she went with her household, and sojourned in the land of the Philistines seven years. 3 And it came to pass at the seven years' end, that the woman returned out of the land of the Philistines; and she went forth to cry unto the king for her house and for her land. 4 Now the king was talking with Gehazi the servant of the man of God, saying: 'Tell me, I pray thee, all the great things that Elisha hath done.' 5 And it came to pass, as he was telling the king how he had restored to life him that was dead, that, behold, the woman, whose son he had restored to life, cried to the king for her house and for her land. And Gehazi said: 'My lord, O king, this is the woman, and this is her son, whom Elisha restored to life.' 6 And when the king asked the woman, she told him. So the king appointed unto her a certain officer, saying: 'Restore all that was hers, and all the fruits of the field since the day that she left the land, even until now.'

7 And Elisha came to Damascus; and Ben-hadad the king of Aram was sick; and it was told him, saying. 'The man of God is come hither.' 8 And the king said unto Hazael: 'Take a present in thy hand, and go meet the man of God, and inquire of the LORD by him, saying: Shall I recover of this sickness?' 9 So Hazael went to meet him, and took a present with him, even of every good thing of Damascus, forty camels' burden, and came and stood before him, and said: 'Thy son Ben-hadad king of Aram hath sent me to thee, saying: Shall I recover of this sickness?' 10 And Elisha said unto him: 'Go, say unto him: Thou shalt surely recover; howbeit the LORD hath shown me that he shall surely die.' 11 And he settled his countenance stedfastly upon him, until he was ashamed; and the man of God wept. 12 And Hazael said: 'Why weepeth my lord?' And he answered: 'Because I know the evil that thou wilt do unto the children of Israel: their strongholds wilt thou set on fire, and their young men wilt thou slay with the sword, and wilt dash in pieces their little ones, and rip up their women with child.' 13 And Hazael said: 'But what is thy servant, who is but a dog, that he should do this great thing?' And Elisha answered: 'The LORD hath shown me that thou shalt be king over Aram.' 14 Then he departed from Elisha, and came to his master, who said to him: 'What said Elisha to thee?' And he answered: 'He told me that thou wouldest surely recover.' 15 And it came to pass on the morrow, that he took the coverlet, and dipped it in water, and spread it on his face, so that he died; and Hazael reigned in his stead.

16 And in the fifth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel, Jehoshaphat being the king of Judah, Jehoram the son of Jehoshaphat king of Judah began to reign. 17 Thirty and two years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned eight years in Jerusalem. 18 And he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, as did the house of Ahab; for he had the daughter of Ahab to wife; and he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD. 19 Howbeit the LORD would not destroy Judah, for David His servant's sake, as He promised him to give unto him a lamp and to his children alway.

20 In his days Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, and made a king over themselves. 21 Then Joram passed over to Zair, and all his chariots with him; and he rose up by night, and smote the Edomites that compassed him about, and the captains of the chariots; and the people fled to their tents. 22 Yet Edom revolted from under the hand of Judah, unto this day. Then did Libnah revolt at the same time. 23 And the rest of the acts of Joram, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 24 And Joram slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Ahaziah his son reigned in his stead.

25 In the twelfth year of Joram the son of Ahab king of Israel did Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah begin to reign. 26 Two and twenty years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign; and he reigned one year in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Athaliah the daughter of Omri king of Israel. 27 And he walked in the way of the house of Ahab, and did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as did the house of Ahab; for he was the son-in-law of the house of Ahab. 28 And he went with Joram the son of Ahab to war against Hazael king of Aram at Ramoth-gilead; and the Arameans wounded Joram. 29 And king Joram returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Arameans had given him at Ramah, when he fought against Hazael king of Aram. And Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah went down to see Joram the son of Ahab in Jezreel, because he was sick.

2 KINGS 9 — 1 And Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets, and said unto him: 'Gird up thy loins, and take this vial of oil in thy hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead. 2 And when thou comest thither, look out there Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi, and go in, and make him arise up from among his brethren, and carry him to an inner chamber. 3 Then take the vial of oil, and pour it on his head, and say: Thus saith the LORD: I have anointed thee king over Israel. Then open the door, and flee, and tarry not.' 4 So the young man, even the young man the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. 5 And when he came, behold, the captains of the host were sitting; and he said: 'I have an errand to thee, O captain.' And Jehu said: 'Unto which of us all?' And he said: 'To thee, O captain.' 6 And he arose, and went into the house; and he poured the oil on his head, and said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I have anointed thee king over the people of the LORD, even over Israel. 7 And thou shalt smite the house of Ahab thy master, that I may avenge the blood of My servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the LORD, at the hand of Jezebel. 8 For the whole house of Ahab shall perish; and I will cut off from Ahab every man-child, and him that is shut up and him that is left at large in Israel. 9 And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasa the son of Ahijah. 10 And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the portion of Jezreel, and there shall be none to bury her.' And he opened the door, and fled.

11 Then Jehu came forth to the servants of his lord; and one said unto him: 'Is all well? wherefore came this mad fellow to thee?' And he said unto them: 'Ye know the man and what his talk was.' 12 And they said: 'It is false; tell us now.' And he said: `Thus and thus spoke he to me, saying: Thus saith the LORD: I have anointed thee king over Israel.' 13 Then they hastened, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew the horn, saying: 'Jehu is king.'

14 So Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. -Now Joram had been guarding Ramoth-gilead, he and all Israel, because of Hazael king of Aram; 15 but king Joram was returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds which the Arameans had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Aram.-And Jehu said: 'If this be your mind, then let none escape and go forth out of the city, to go to tell it in Jezreel.' 16 So Jehu rode in a chariot, and went to Jezreel; for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah was come down to see Joram.

17 Now the watchman stood on the tower in Jezreel, and he spied the company of Jehu as he came, and said: 'I see a company.' And Joram said: 'Take a horseman, and send to meet them, and let him say: Is it peace?' 18 So there went one on horseback to meet him, and said: 'Thus saith the king: Is it peace?' And Jehu said: 'What hast thou to do with peace? turn thee behind me.' And the watchman told, saying: 'The messenger came to them, but he cometh not back.' 19 Then he sent out a second on horseback, who came to them, and said: 'Thus saith the king: Is it peace?' And Jehu answered: `What hast thou to do with peace? turn thee behind me.' 20 And the watchman told, saying: 'He came even unto them, and cometh not back; and the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi; for he driveth furiously.'

21 And Joram said: 'Make ready.' And they made ready his chariot. And Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah went out, each in his chariot, and they went out to meet Jehu, and found him in the portion of Naboth the Jezreelite. 22 And it came to pass, when Joram saw Jehu, that he said: 'Is it peace, Jehu?' And he answered: 'What peace, so long as the harlotries of thy mother Jezebel and her witchcrafts are so many?' 23 And Joram turned his hands, and fled, and said to Ahaziah: `There is treachery, O Ahaziah.' 24 And Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and smote Joram between his arms, and the arrow went out at his heart, and he sunk down in his chariot. 25 Then said [Jehu] to Bidkar his captain: 'Take up, and cast him in the portion of the field of Naboth the Jezreelite; for remember how that, when I and thou rode together after Ahab his father, the LORD pronounced this burden against him: 26 Surely I have seen yesterday the blood of Naboth, and the blood of his sons, saith the LORD; and I will requite thee in this plot, saith the LORD. Now therefore take and cast him into the plot of ground, according to the word of the LORD.'

27 But when Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled by the way of the garden-house. And Jehu followed after him, and said: 'Smite him also in the chariot'; and they smote him at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo, and died there. 28 And his servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his sepulchre with his fathers in the city of David.

29 And in the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab began Ahaziah to reign over Judah.

30 And when Jehu was come to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it; and she painted her eyes, and attired her head, and looked out at the window. 31 And as Jehu entered in at the gate, she said: 'Is it peace, thou Zimri, thy master's murderer?' 32 And he lifted up his face to the window, and said: 'Who is on my side? who?' And there looked out to him two or three officers. 33 And he said: 'Throw her down.' So they threw her down; and some of her blood was sprinkled on the wall, and on the horses; and she was trodden under foot. 34 And when he was come in, he did eat and drink; and he said: 'Look now after this cursed woman, and bury her; for she is a king's daughter.' 35 And they went to bury her; but they found no more of her than the skull, and the feet, and the palms of her hands. 36 Wherefore they came back, and told him. And he said: 'This is the word of the LORD, which He spoke by His servant Elijah the Tishbite, saying: In the portion of Jezreel shall the dogs eat the flesh of Jezebel; 37 and the carcass of Jezebel shall be as dung upon the face of the field in the portion of Jezreel; so that they shall not say: This is Jezebel.'

2 KINGS 10 — 1 Now Ahab had seventy sons in Samaria. And Jehu wrote letters, and sent to Samaria, unto the rulers of Jezreel, even the elders, and unto them that brought up the sons of Ahab, saying: 2 'And now as soon as this letter cometh to you, seeing your master's sons are with you, and there are with you chariots and horses, fortified cities also, and armour; 3 look ye out the best and meetest of your master's sons, and set him on his father's throne, and fight for your master's house.' 4 But they were exceedingly afraid, and said: 'Behold, the two kings stood not before him; how then shall we stand?' 5 And he that was over the household, and he that was over the city, the elders also, and they that brought up the children, sent to Jehu, saying: 'We are thy servants, and will do all that thou shalt bid us; we will not make any man king; do thou that which is good in thine eyes.' 6 Then he wrote a letter the second time to them, saying: 'If ye be on my side, and if ye will hearken unto my voice, take ye the heads of the men your master's sons, and come to me to Jezreel by to-morrow this time.' Now the king's sons, being seventy persons, were with the great men of the city, who brought them up. 7 And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king's sons, and slew them, even seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent them unto him to Jezreel. 8 And there came a messenger, and told him, saying: `They have brought the heads of the king's sons.' And he said: 'Lay ye them in two heaps at the entrance of the gate until the morning.' 9 And it came to pass in the morning, that he went out, and stood, and said to all the people: 'Ye are righteous; behold, I conspired against my master, and slew him; but who smote all these? 10 Know now that there shall fall unto the earth nothing of the word of the LORD, which the LORD spoke concerning the house of Ahab; for the LORD hath done that which He spoke by His servant Elijah.' 11 So Jehu smote all that remained of the house of Ahab in Jezreel, and all his great men, and his familiar friends, and his priests, until there was left him none remaining.

12 And he arose and departed, and went to Samaria. And as he was at the shearing-house of the shepherds in the way, 13 Jehu met with the brethren of Ahaziah king of Judah, and said: 'Who are ye?' And they answered: 'We are the brethren of Ahaziah; and we go down to salute the children of the king and the children of the queen.' 14 And he said: 'Take them alive.' And they took them alive, and slew them at the pit of the shearing-house, even two and forty men; neither left he any of them.

15 And when he was departed thence, he lighted on Jehonadab the son of Rechab coming to meet him; and he saluted him, and said to him: 'Is thy heart right, as my heart is with thy heart?' And Jehonadab answered: 'It is.' 'If it be, said Jehu, give me thy hand.' And he gave him his hand; and he took him up to him into the chariot. 16 And he said: 'Come with me, and see my zeal for the LORD.' So they made him ride in his chariot. 17 And when he came to Samaria, he smote all that remained unto Ahab in Samaria, till he had destroyed him, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke to Elijah.

18 And Jehu gathered all the people together, and said unto them: 'Ahab served Baal a little; but Jehu will serve him much. 19 Now therefore call unto me all the prophets of Baal, all his worshippers, and all his priests, let none be wanting; for I have a great sacrifice to do to Baal; whosoever shall be wanting, he shall not live.' But Jehu did it in subtlety, to the intent that he might destroy the worshippers of Baal. 20 And Jehu said: 'Sanctify a solemn assembly for Baal.' And they proclaimed it. 21 And Jehu sent through all Israel; and all the worshippers of Baal came, so that there was not a man left that came not. And they came into the house of Baal; and the house of Baal was filled from one end to another. 22 And he said unto him that was over the vestry: 'Bring forth vestments for all the worshippers of Baal.' And he brought them forth vestments. 23 And Jehu went, and Jehonadab the son of Rechab, into the house of Baal; and he said unto the worshippers of Baal: 'Search, and look that there be here with you none of the servants of the LORD, but the worshippers of Baal only.' 24 And they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt-offerings. Now Jehu had appointed him fourscore men without, and said: 'If any of the men whom I bring into your hands escape, his life shall be for the life of him.'

25 And it came to pass, as soon as he had made an end of offering the burnt-offering, that Jehu said to the guard and to the captains: 'Go in, and slay them; let none come forth.' And they smote them with the edge of the sword; and the guard and the captains cast them out, and went to the city of the house of Baal. 26 And they brought forth the pillars that were in the house of Baal, and burned them. 27 And they broke down the pillar of Baal, and broke down the house of Baal, and made it a draught-house, unto this day.

28 Thus Jehu destroyed Baal out of Israel. 29 Howbeit from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin, Jehu departed not from after them, the golden calves that were in Beth-el, and that were in Dan. 30 And the LORD said unto Jehu: 'Because thou hast done well in executing that which is right in Mine eyes, and hast done unto the house of Ahab according to all that was in My heart, thy sons of the fourth generation shall sit on the throne of Israel.' 31 But Jehu took no heed to walk in the law of the LORD, the God of Israel, with all his heart; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam, wherewith he made Israel to sin.

32 In those days the LORD began to cut Israel short; and Hazael smote them in all the borders of Israel: 33 from the Jordan eastward, all the land of Gilead, the Gadites, and the Reubenites, and the Manassites, from Aroer, which is by the valley of Arnon, even Gilead and Bashan. 34 Now the rest of the acts of Jehu, and all that he did, and all his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 35 And Jehu slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria. And Jehoahaz his son reigned in his stead. 36 And the time that Jehu reigned over Israel in Samaria was twenty and eight years.

2 KINGS 11 — 1 Now when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal. 2 But Jehosheba, the daughter of king Joram, sister of Ahaziah, took Joash the son of Ahaziah, and stole him away from among the king's sons that were slain, even him and his nurse, and put them in the bed-chamber; and they hid him from Athaliah, so that he was not slain. 3 And he was with her hid in the house of the LORD six years; and Athaliah reigned over the land.

4 And in the seventh year Jehoiada sent and fetched the captains over hundreds, of the Carites and of the guard, and brought them to him into the house of the LORD; and he made a covenant with them, and took an oath of them in the house of the LORD, and showed them the king's son. 5 And he commanded them, saying: 'This is the thing that ye shall do: a third part of you, that come in on the sabbath, and that keep the watch of the king's house- 6 now another third part was at the gate Sur, and another third part at the gate behind the guard-shall keep the watch of the house, and be a barrier. 7 And the other two parts of you, even all that go forth on the sabbath, shall keep the watch of the house of the LORD about the king. 8 And ye shall compass the king round about, every man with his weapons in his hand; and he that cometh within the ranks, let him be slain; and be ye with the king when he goeth out, and when he cometh in.'

9 And the captains over hundreds did according to all that Jehoiada the priest commanded; and they took every man his men, those that were to come in on the sabbath, with those that were to go out on the sabbath, and came to Jehoiada the priest. 10 And the priest delivered to the captains over hundreds the spear and shields that had been king David's, which were in the house of the LORD. 11 And the guard stood, every man with his weapons in his hand, from the right side of the house to the left side of the house, along by the altar and the house, by the king round about. 12 Then he brought out the king's son, and put upon him the crown and the insignia; and they made him king, and anointed him; and they clapped their hands, and said: 'Long live the king.'

13 And when Athaliah heard the noise of the guard and of the people, she came to the people into the house of the LORD. 14 And she looked, and, behold, the king stood on the platform, as the manner was, and the captains and the trumpets by the king; and all the people of the land rejoiced, and blew with trumpets. Then Athaliah rent her clothes, and cried: 'Treason, treason.' 15 And Jehoiada the priest commanded the captains of hundreds, the officers of the host, and said unto them: 'Have her forth between the ranks; and him that followeth her slay with the sword'; for the priest said: `Let her not be slain in the house of the LORD.' 16 So they made way for her; and she went by the way of the horses' entry to the king's house; and there was she slain.

17 And Jehoiada made a covenant between the LORD and the king and the people, that they should be the LORD'S people; between the king also and the people. 18 And all the people of the land went to the house of Baal, and broke it down; his altars and his images broke they in pieces thoroughly, and slew Mattan the priest of Baal before the altars. And the priest appointed officers over the house of the LORD. 19 And he took the captains over hundreds, and the Carites, and the guard, and all the people of the land; and they brought down the king from the house of the LORD, and came by the way of the gate of the guard unto the king's house. And he sat on the throne of the kings. 20 So all the people of the land rejoiced, and the city was quiet; and they slew Athaliah with the sword at the king's house.

2 KINGS 12 — 1 Jehoash was seven years old when he began to reign. 2 In the seventh year of Jehu began Jehoash to reign; and he reigned forty years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Zibiah of Beer-sheba. 3 And Jehoash did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD all his days wherein Jehoiada the priest instructed him. 4 Howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places.

5 And Jehoash said to the priests: 'All the money of the hallowed things that is brought into the house of the LORD, in current money, the money of the persons for whom each man is rated, all the money that cometh into any man's heart to bring into the house of the LORD, 6 let the priests take it to them, every man from him that bestoweth it upon him; and they shall repair the breaches of the house, wheresoever any breach shall be found.' 7 But it was so, that in the three and twentieth year of king Jehoash the priests had not repaired the breaches of the house. 8 Then king Jehoash called for Jehoiada the priest, and for the other priests, and said unto them: 'Why repair ye not the breaches of the house? now therefore take no longer money from them that bestow it upon you, but deliver it for the breaches of the house.' 9 And the priests consented that they should take no longer money from the people, neither repair the breaches of the house.

10 And Jehoiada the priest took a chest, and bored a hole in the lid of it, and set it beside the altar, on the right side as one cometh into the house of the LORD; and the priests that kept the threshold put therein all the money that was brought into the house of the LORD. 11 And it was so, when they saw that there was much money in the chest, that the king's scribe and the high priest came up, and they put up in bags and counted the money that was found in the house of the LORD. 12 And they gave the money that was weighed out into the hands of them that did the work, that had the oversight of the house of the LORD; and they paid it out to the carpenters and the builders, that wrought upon the house of the LORD, 13 and to the masons and the hewers of stone, and for buying timber and hewn stone to repair the breaches of the house of the LORD, and for all that was laid out for the house to repair it. 14 But there were not made for the house of the LORD cups of silver, snuffers, basins, trumpets, any vessels of gold, or vessels of silver, of the money that was brought into the house of the LORD; 15 for they gave that to them that did the work, and repaired therewith the house of the LORD. 16 Moreover they reckoned not with the men, into whose hand they delivered the money to give to them that did the work; for they dealt faithfully. 17 The forfeit money, and the sin money, was not brought into the house of the LORD; it was the priests.

18 Then Hazael king of Aram went up, and fought against Gath, and took it; and Hazael set his face to go up to Jerusalem. 19 And Jehoash king Judah took all the hallowed things that Jehoshaphat, and Jehoram, and Ahaziah, his fathers, kings of Judah, had dedicated, and his own hallowed things, and all the gold that was found in the treasures of the house of the LORD, and of the king's house, and sent it to Hazael king of Aram; and he went away from Jerusalem.

20 Now the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 21 And his servants arose, and made a conspiracy, and smote Joash at Beth-millo, on the way that goeth down to Silla. 22 For Jozacar the son of Shimeath, and Jehozabad the son of Shomer, his servants, smote him, and he died; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David; and Amaziah his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 13 — 1 In the three and twentieth year of Joash the son of Ahaziah, king of Judah, Jehoahaz the son of Jehu began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned seventeen years. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, and followed the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin; he departed not therefrom. 3 And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and He delivered them into the hand of Hazael king of Aram, and into the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael, continually. 4 And Jehoahaz besought the LORD, and the LORD hearkened unto him; for He saw the oppression of Israel, how that the king of Aram oppressed them.-5 And the LORD gave Israel a deliverer, so that they went out from under the hand of the Arameans; and the children of Israel dwelt in their tents, as beforetime. 6 Nevertheless they departed not from the sins of the house of Jeroboam, wherewith he made Israel to sin, but walked therein; and there remained the Asherah also in Samaria.-7 For there was not left to Jehoahaz of the people save fifty horsemen, and ten chariots, and ten thousand footmen; for the king of Aram destroyed them, and made them like the dust in threshing. 8 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, and all that he did, and his might, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 9 And Jehoahaz slept with his fathers; and they buried him in Samaria; and Joash his son reigned in his stead.

10 In the thirty and seventh year of Joash king of Judah began Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned sixteen years. 11 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin; but he walked therein. 12 Now the rest of the acts of Joash, and all that he did, and his might wherewith he fought against Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 13 And Joash slept with his fathers; and Jeroboam sat upon his throne; and Joash was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel.

14 Now Elisha was fallen sick of his sickness whereof he was to die; and Joash the king of Israel came down unto him, and wept over him, and said: 'My father, my father, the chariots of Israel and the horsemen thereof!' 15 And Elisha said unto him: 'Take bow and arrows'; and he took unto him bow and arrows. 16 And he said to the king of Israel: 'Put thy hand upon the bow'; and he put his hand upon it. And Elisha laid his hands upon the king's hands. 17 And he said: 'Open the window eastward'; and he opened it. Then Elisha said: 'Shoot'; and he shot. And he said: 'The LORD'S arrow of victory, even the arrow of victory against Aram; for thou shalt smite the Arameans in Aphek, till thou have consumed them.' 18 And he said: 'Take the arrows'; and he took them. And he said unto the king of Israel: 'Smite upon the ground'; and he smote thrice, and stayed. 19 And the man of God was wroth with him, and said: 'Thou shouldest have smitten five or six times; then hadst thou smitten Aram till thou hadst consumed it; whereas now thou shalt smite Aram but thrice.'

20 And Elisha died, and they buried him. Now the bands of the Moabites used to invade the land at the coming in of the year. 21 And it came to pass, as they were burying a man, that, behold, they spied a band; and they cast the man into the sepulchre of Elisha; and as soon as the man touched the bones of Elisha, he revived, and stood up on his feet.

22 And Hazael king of Aram oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz. 23 But the LORD was gracious unto them, and had compassion on them, and had respect unto them, because of His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither hath He cast them from His presence until now. 24 And Hazael king of Aram died; and Ben-hadad his son reigned in his stead. 25 And Jehoash the son of Jehoahaz took again out of the hand of Ben-hadad the son of Hazael the cities which he had taken out of the hand of Jehoahaz his father by war. Three times did Joash smite him, and recovered the cities of Israel.

2 KINGS 14 — 1 In the second year of Joash son of Joahaz king of Israel began Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah to reign. 2 He was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Jehoaddan of Jerusalem. 3 And he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, yet not like David his father; he did according to all that Joash his father had done. 4 Howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places. 5 And it came to pass, as soon as the kingdom was established in his hand, that he slew his servants who had slain the king his father; 6 but the children of the murderers he put not to death; according to that which is written in the book of the law of Moses, as the LORD commanded saying: 'The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, nor the children be put to death for the fathers; but every man shall be put to death for his own sin.' 7 He slew of Edom in the Valley of Salt ten thousand, and took Sela by war, and called the name of it Joktheel, unto this day.

8 Then Amaziah sent messengers to Jehoash, the son of Jehoahaz son of Jehu, king of Israel, saying: 'Come, let us look one another in the face.' 9 And Jehoash the king of Israel sent to Amaziah king of Judah, saying: 'The thistle that was in Lebanon sent to the cedar that was in Lebanon, saying: Give thy daughter to my son to wife; and there passed by the wild beasts that were in Lebanon, and trod down the thistle. 10 Thou hast indeed smitten Edom, and will thy heart lift thee up? glory therein, and remain at home; for why shouldest thou meddle with evil, that thou shouldest fall, even thou, and Judah with thee? 11 But Amaziah would not hear. So Jehoash king of Israel went up; and he and Amaziah king of Judah looked one another in the face at Beth-shemesh, which belongeth to Judah. 12 And Judah was put to the worse before Israel; and they fled every man to his tent. 13 And Jehoash king of Israel took Amaziah king of Judah, the son of Jehoash the son of Ahaziah, at Beth-shemesh, and came to Jerusalem, and broke down the wall of Jerusalem from the gate of Ephraim unto the corner gate, four hundred cubits. 14 And he took all the gold and silver, and all the vessels that were found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, the hostages also, and returned to Samaria.

15 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoash which he did, and his might, and how he fought with Amaziah king of Judah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 16 And Jehoash slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria with the kings of Israel; and Jeroboam his son reigned in his stead.

17 And Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah lived after the death of Jehoash son of Jehoahaz king of Israel fifteen years. 18 Now the rest of the acts of Amaziah, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 19 And they made a conspiracy against him in Jerusalem; and he fled to Lachish; but they sent after him to Lachish, and slew him there. 20 And they brought him upon horses; and he was buried at Jerusalem with his fathers in the city of David. 21 And all the people of Judah took Azariah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the room of his father Amaziah. 22 He built Elath, and restored it to Judah, after that the king slept with his fathers.

23 In the fifteenth year of Amaziah the son of Joash king of Judah Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel began to reign in Samaria, and reigned forty and one years. 24 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from all the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. 25 He restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Hamath unto the sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which He spoke by the hand of His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was of Gath-hepher. 26 For the LORD saw the affliction of Israel, that it was very bitter; for there was none shut up nor left at large, neither was there any helper for Israel. 27 And the LORD said not that He would blot out the name of Israel from under heaven; but He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam the son of Joash.

28 Now the rest of the acts of Jeroboam, and all that he did, and his might, how he warred, and how he recovered Damascus, and Hamath, for Judah in Israel, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 29 And Jeroboam slept with his fathers, even with the kings of Israel; and Zechariah his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 15 — 1 In the twenty and seventh year of Jeroboam king of Israel began Azariah son of Amaziah king of Judah to reign. 2 Sixteen years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned two and fifty years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. 3 And he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. 4 Howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places. 5 And the LORD smote the king, so that he was a leper unto the day of his death, and dwelt in a house set apart. And Jotham the king's son was over the household, judging the people of the land. 6 Now the rest of the acts of Azariah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 7 And Azariah slept with his fathers; and they buried him with his fathers in the city of David; and Jotham his son reigned in his stead.

8 In the thirty and eighth year of Azariah king of Judah did Zechariah the son of Jeroboam reign over Israel in Samaria six months. 9 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as his fathers had done; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. 10 And Shallum the son of Jabesh conspired against him, and smote him before the people, and slew him, and reigned in his stead. 11 Now the rest of the acts of Zechariah, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 12 This was the word of the LORD which He spoke unto Jehu, saying: 'Thy sons to the fourth generation shall sit upon the throne of Israel.' And so it came to pass.

13 Shallum the son of Jabesh began to reign in the nine and thirtieth year of Uzziah king of Judah; and he reigned the space of a month in Samaria. 14 And Menahem the son of Gadi went up from Tirzah, and came to Samaria, and smote Shallum the son of Jabesh in Samaria, and slew him, and reigned in his stead. 15 Now the rest of the acts of Shallum, and his conspiracy which he made, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel. 16 Then Menahem smote Tiphsah, and all that were therein, and the borders thereof, from Tirzah; because they opened not to him, therefore he smote it; and all the women therein that were with child he ripped up.

17 In the nine and thirtieth year of Azariah king of Judah began Menahem the son of Gadi to reign over Israel, and reigned ten years in Samaria. 18 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not all his days from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. 19 There came against the land Pul the king of Assyria; and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand. 20 And Menahem exacted the money of Israel, even of all the mighty men of wealth, of each man fifty shekels of silver, to give to the king of Assyria. So the king of Assyria turned back, and stayed not there in the land. 21 Now the rest of the acts of Menahem, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel? 22 And Menahem slept with his fathers; and Pekahiah his son reigned in his stead.

23 In the fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekahiah the son of Menahem began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned two years. 24 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. 25 And Pekah the son of Remaliah, his captain, conspired against him, and smote him in Samaria, in the castle of the king's house, by Argob and by Arieh; and with him were fifty men of the Gileadites; and he slew him, and reigned in his stead. 26 Now the rest of the acts of Pekahiah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

27 In the two and fiftieth year of Azariah king of Judah Pekah the son of Remaliah began to reign over Israel in Samaria, and reigned twenty years. 28 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD; he departed not from the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, wherewith he made Israel to sin. 29 In the days of Pekah king of Israel came Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and took Ijon, and Abel-beth-maacah, and Janoah, and Kedesh, and Hazor, and Gilead, and Galilee, all the land of Naphtali; and he carried them captive to Assyria. 30 And Hoshea the son of Elah made a conspiracy against Pekah the son of Remaliah, and smote him, and slew him, and reigned in his stead, in the twentieth year of Jotham the son of Uzziah. 31 Now the rest of the acts of Pekah, and all that he did, behold, they are written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

32 In the second year of Pekah the son of Remaliah king of Israel began Jotham the son of Uzziah king of Judah to reign. 33 Five and twenty years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Jerusha the daughter of Zadok. 34 And he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD; he did according to all that his father Uzziah had done. 35 Howbeit the high places were not taken away; the people still sacrificed and offered in the high places. He built the upper gate of the house of the LORD. 36 Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 37 In those days the LORD began to send against Judah Rezin the king of Aram, and Pekah the son of Remaliah. 38 And Jotham slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David his father; and Ahaz his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 16 — 1 In the seventeenth year of Pekah the son of Remaliah Ahaz the son of Jotham king of Judah began to reign. 2 Twenty years old was Ahaz when he began to reign; and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem; and he did not that which was right in the eyes of the LORD his God, like David his father. 3 But he walked in the way of the kings of Israel, yea, and made his son to pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel. 4 And he sacrificed and offered in the high places, and on the hills, and under every leafy tree.

5 Then Rezin king of Aram and Pekah son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war; and they besieged Ahaz, but could not overcome him. 6 At that time Rezin king of Aram recovered Elath to Aram, and drove the Jews from Elath; and the Edomites came to Elath, and dwelt there, unto this day.

7 So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, saying: 'I am thy servant and thy son; come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Aram, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, who rise up against me.' 8 And Ahaz took the silver and gold that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house, and sent it for a present to the king of Assyria. 9 And the king of Assyria hearkened unto him; and the king of Assyria went up against Damascus, and took it, and carried the people of it captive to Kir, and slew Rezin.

10 And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof. 11 And Urijah the priest built an altar; according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against the coming of king Ahaz from Damascus. 12 And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar; and the king drew near unto the altar, and offered thereon. 13 And he offered his burnt-offering and his meal-offering, and poured his drink-offering, and dashed the blood of his peace-offerings against the altar. 14 And the brazen altar, which was before the LORD, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of the LORD, and put it on the north side of his altar. 15 And king Ahaz commanded Urijah the priest, saying: 'Upon the great altar offer the morning burnt-offering, and the evening meal-offering, and the king's burnt-offering, and his meal-offering, with the burnt-offering of all the people of the land, and their meal-offering, and their drink-offerings; and dash against it all the blood of the burnt-offering, and all the blood of the sacrifice; but the brazen altar shall be for me to look to.' 16 Thus did Urijah the priest, according to all that king Ahaz commanded.

17 And king Ahaz cut off the borders of the bases, and removed the laver from off them; and took down the sea from off the brazen oxen that were under it, and put it upon a pavement of stone. 18 And the covered place for the sabbath that they had built in the house, and the king's entry without, turned he unto the house of the LORD, because of the king of Assyria. 19 Now the rest of the acts of Ahaz which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 20 And Ahaz slept with his fathers, and was buried with his fathers in the city of David; and Hezekiah his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 17 — 1 In the twelfth year of Ahaz king of Judah began Hoshea the son of Elah to reign in Samaria over Israel, and reigned nine years. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, yet not as the kings of Israel that were before him. 3 Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and brought him presents. 4 And the king of Assyria found conspiracy in Hoshea; for he had sent messengers to So king of Egypt, and offered no present to the king of Assyria, as he had done year by year; therefore the king of Assyria shut him up, and bound him in prison. 5 Then the king of Assyria came up throughout all the land, and went up to Samaria, and besieged it three years. 6 In the ninth year of Hoshea, the king of Assyria took Samaria, and carried Israel away unto Assyria, and placed them in Halah, and in Habor, on the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes.

7 And it was so, because the children of Israel had sinned against the LORD their God, who brought them up out of the land of Egypt from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, 8 and walked in the statutes of the nations, whom the LORD cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they practised; 9 and the children of Israel did impute things that were not right unto the LORD their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city; 10 and they set them up pillars and Asherim upon every high hill, and under every leafy tree; 11 and there they offered in all the high places, as did the nations whom the LORD carried away before them; and wrought wicked things to provoke the LORD; 12 and they served idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them: 'Ye shall not do this thing'; 13 yet the LORD forewarned Israel, and Judah, by the hand of every prophet, and of every seer, saying: 'Turn ye from your evil ways, and keep My commandments and My statutes, according to all the law which I commanded your fathers, and which I sent to you by the hand of My servants the prophets'; 14 notwithstanding they would not hear, but hardened their neck, like to the neck of their fathers, who believed not in the LORD their God; 15 and they rejected His statutes, and His covenant that He made with their fathers, and His testimonies wherewith He testified against them; and they went after things of nought, and became nought, and after the nations that were round about them, concerning whom the LORD had charged them that they should not do like them; 16 and they forsook all the commandments of the LORD their God, and made them molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served Baal; 17 and they caused their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire, and used divination and enchantments, and gave themselves over to do that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him; 18 that the LORD was very angry with Israel, and removed them out of His sight; there was none left but the tribe of Judah only. 19 Also Judah kept not the commandments of the LORD their God, but walked in the statutes of Israel which they practised. 20 And the LORD rejected all the seed of Israel, and afflicted them, and delivered them into the hand of spoilers, until He had cast them out of His sight. 21 For He rent Israel from the house of David; and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king; and Jeroboam drew Israel away from following the LORD, and made them sin a great sin. 22 And the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he did; they departed not from them; 23 until the LORD removed Israel out of His sight, as He spoke by the hand of all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away out of their own land to Assyria, unto this day.

24 And the king of Assyria brought men from Babylon, and from Cuthah, and from Avva, and from Hamath and Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead of the children of Israel; and they possessed Samaria, and dwelt in the cities thereof. 25 And so it was, at the beginning of their dwelling there, that they feared not the LORD; therefore the LORD sent lions among them, which killed some of them. 26 Wherefore they spoke to the king of Assyria, saying: 'The nations which thou hast carried away, and placed in the cities of Samaria, know not the manner of the God of the land; therefore He hath sent lions among them, and, behold, they slay them, because they know not the manner of the God of the land.'

27 Then the king of Assyria commanded, saying: 'Carry thither one of the priests whom ye brought from thence; and let them go and dwell there, and let him teach them the manner of the God of the land.' 28 So one of the priests whom they had carried away from Samaria came and dwelt in Beth-el, and taught them how they should fear the LORD. 29 Howbeit every nation made gods of their own, and put them in the houses of the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in their cities wherein they dwelt. 30 And the men of Babylon made Succoth-benoth, and the men of Cuth made Nergal, and the men of Hamath made Ashima, 31 and the Avvites made Nibhaz and Tartak, and the Sepharvites burnt their children in the fire to Adrammelech and Anammelech, the gods of Sepharvaim. 32 So they feared the LORD, and made unto them from among themselves priests of the high places, who sacrificed for them in the houses of the high places. 33 They feared the LORD, and served their own gods, after the manner of the nations from among whom they had been carried away.

34 Unto this day they do after the former manners: they fear not the LORD, neither do they after their statutes, or after their ordinances, or after the law or after the commandment which the LORD commanded the children of Jacob, whom He named Israel; 35 with whom the LORD had made a covenant, and charged them, saying: 'Ye shall not fear other gods, nor bow down to them, nor serve them, nor sacrifice to them; 36 but the LORD, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm, Him shall ye fear, and Him shall ye worship, and to Him shall ye sacrifice; 37 and the statutes and the ordinances, and the law and the commandment, which He wrote for you, ye shall observe to do for evermore; and ye shall not fear other gods; 38 and the covenant that I have made with you ye shall not forget; neither shall ye fear other gods; 39 but the LORD your God shall ye fear; and He will deliver you out of the hand of all your enemies.' 40 Howbeit they did not hearken, but they did after their former manner. 41 So these nations feared the LORD, and served their graven images; their children likewise, and their children's children, as did their fathers, so do they unto this day.

2 KINGS 18 — 1 Now it came to pass in the third year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah began to reign. 2 Twenty and five years old was he when he began to reign; and he reigned twenty and nine years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Abi the daughter of Zechariah. 3 And he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, according to all that David his father had done. 4 He removed the high places, and broke the pillars, and cut down the Asherah; and he broke in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made; for unto those days the children of Israel did offer to it; and it was called Nehushtan. 5 He trusted in the LORD, the God of Israel; so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor among them that were before him. 6 For he cleaved to the LORD, he departed not from following Him, but kept His commandments, which the LORD commanded Moses. 7 And the LORD was with him: whithersoever he went forth he prospered; and he rebelled against the king of Assyria, and served him not. 8 He smote the Philistines unto Gaza and the borders thereof, from the tower of the watchmen to the fortified city.

9 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Hezekiah, which was the seventh year of Hoshea son of Elah king of Israel, that Shalmaneser king of Assyria came up against Samaria, and besieged it. 10 And at the end of three years they took it; even in the sixth year of Hezekiah, which was the ninth year of Hoshea king of Israel, Samaria was taken. 11 And the king of Assyria carried Israel away unto Assyria, and put them in Halah, and in Habor, on the river of Gozan, and in the cities of the Medes; 12 because they hearkened not to the voice of the LORD their God, but transgressed His covenant, even all that Moses the servant of the LORD commanded, and would not hear it, nor do it.

13 Now in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah did Sennacherib king of Assyria come up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. 14 And Hezekiah king of Judah sent to the king of Assyria to Lachish, saying: 'I have offended; return from me; that which thou puttest on me will I bear.' And the king of Assyria appointed unto Hezekiah king of Judah three hundred talents of silver and thirty talents of gold. 15 And Hezekiah gave him all the silver that was found in the house of the LORD, and in the treasures of the king's house. 16 At that time did Hezekiah cut off the gold from the doors of the temple of the LORD, and from the door-posts which Hezekiah king of Judah had overlaid, and gave it to the king of Assyria.

17 And the king of Assyria sent Tartan and Rab-saris and Rab-shakeh from Lachish to king Hezekiah with a great army unto Jerusalem. And they went up and came to Jerusalem. And when they were come up, they came and stood by the conduit of the upper pool, which is in the highway of the fullers' field. 18 And when they had called to the king, there came out to them Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebnah the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder.

19 And Rab-shakeh said unto them: 'Say ye now to Hezekiah: Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? 20 Sayest thou that a mere word of the lips is counsel and strength for the war? Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou hast rebelled against me? 21 Now, behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it; so is Pharaoh king of Egypt unto all that trust on him. 22 But if ye say unto me: We trust in the LORD our God; is not that He, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and to Jerusalem: Ye shall worship before this altar in Jerusalem? 23 Now therefore, I pray thee, make a wager with my master the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. 24 How then canst thou turn away the face of one captain, even of the least of my masters servants? and yet thou puttest thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen! 25 Am I now come up without the LORD against this place to destroy it? The LORD said unto me: Go up against this land, destroy it.'

26 Then said Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and Shebnah, and Joah, unto Rab-shakeh: 'Speak, I pray thee, to thy servants in the Aramean language; for we understand it; and speak not with us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.' 27 But Rab-shakeh said unto them: 'Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit on the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own water with you?' 28 Then Rab-shakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and spoke, saying: 'Hear ye the word of the great king, the king of Assyria. 29 Thus saith the king: Let not Hezekiah beguile you; for he will not be able to deliver you out of his hand; 30 neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying: The LORD will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 31 Hearken not to Hezekiah; for thus saith the king of Assyria: Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig-tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his own cistern; 32 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards, a land of olive-trees and of honey, that ye may live, and not die; and hearken not unto Hezekiah, when he persuadeth you, saying: The LORD will deliver us. 33 Hath any of the gods of the nations ever delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? 34 Where are the gods of Hamath, and of Arpad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah? have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? 35 Who are they among all the gods of the countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?'

36 But the people held their peace, and answered him not a word; for the king's commandment was, saying: 'Answer him not.' 37 Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rab-shakeh.

2 KINGS 19 — 1 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. 3 And they said unto him: 'Thus saith Hezekiah: This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of contumely; for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. 4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear all the words of Rab-shakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to taunt the living God, and will rebuke the words which the LORD thy God hath heard; wherefore make prayer for the remnant that is left.' 5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said unto them: 'Thus shall ye say to your master: Thus saith the LORD: Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return to his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.'

8 So Rab-shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah; for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. 9 And when he heard say of Tirhakah king of Ethiopia: 'Behold, he is come out to fight against thee'; he sent messengers again unto Hezekiah, saying: 10 'Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: Let not thy God in whom thou trustest beguile thee, saying: Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered? 12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them, which my fathers have destroyed, Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden that were in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?'

14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said: 'O LORD, the God of Israel, that sittest upon the cherubim, Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; Thou hast made heaven and earth. 16 Incline Thine ear, O LORD, and hear; open Thine eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear the words of Sennacherib, wherewith he hath sent him to taunt the living God. 17 Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste the nations and their lands, 18 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them. 19 Now therefore, O LORD our God, save Thou us, I beseech Thee, out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that Thou art the LORD God, even Thou only.'

20 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Whereas thou hast prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, I have heard thee. 21 This is the word that the LORD hath spoken concerning him:

The virgin daughter of Zion

Hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn;

The daughter of Jerusalem

Hath shaken her head at thee.

22 Whom hast thou taunted and blasphemed?

And against whom hast thou exalted thy voice?

Yea, thou hast lifted up thine eyes on high,

Even against the Holy One of Israel!

23 By the messengers thou hast taunted the Lord,

And hast said: With the multitude of my chariots

Am I come up to the height of the mountains,

To the innermost parts of Lebanon;

And I have cut down the tall cedars thereof,

And the choice cypresses thereof;

And I have entered into his farthest lodge,

The forest of his fruitful field.

24 I have digged and drunk

Strange waters,

And with the sole of my feet have I dried up

All the rivers of Egypt.

25 Hast thou not heard?

Long ago I made it,

In ancient times I fashioned it;

Now have I brought it to pass,

Yea, it is done; that fortified cities

Should be laid waste into ruinous heaps.

26 Therefore their inhabitants were of small power,

They were dismayed and confounded;

They were as the grass of the field,

And as the green herb,

As the grass on the housetops,

And as corn blasted before it is grown up.

27 But I know thy sitting down, and thy going out, and thy coming in,

And thy raging against Me.

28 Because of thy raging against Me,

And for that thy tumult is come up into Mine ears,

Therefore will I put My hook in thy nose,

And My bridle in thy lips,

And I will turn thee back by the way

By which thou camest.

29 And this shall be the sign unto thee: ye shall eat this year that which groweth of itself, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof. 30 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward. 31 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that shall escape; the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall perform this. 32 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither shall he come before it with shield, nor cast a mound against it. 33 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and he shall not come unto this city, saith the LORD. 34 For I will defend this city to save it, for Mine own sake, and for My servant David's sake.'

35 And it came to pass that night, that the angel of the LORD went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred fourscore and five thousand; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. 36 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. 37 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sarezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 20 — 1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD: Set thy house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.' 2 Then he turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, saying: 3 `Remember now, O LORD, I beseech Thee, how I have walked before Thee in truth and with a whole heart, and have done that which is good in Thy sight.' And Hezekiah wept sore. 4 And it came to pass, before Isaiah was gone out of the inner court of the city, that the word of the LORD came to him, saying: 5 'Return, and say to Hezekiah the prince of My people: Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father: I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears; behold, I will heal thee; on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the LORD. 6 And I will add unto thy days fifteen years; and I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city for Mine own sake, and for My servant David's sake.' 7 And Isaiah said: 'Take a cake of figs.' And they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.

8 And Hezekiah said unto Isaiah: 'What shall be the sign that the LORD will heal me, and that I shall go up unto the house of the LORD the third day?' 9 And Isaiah said: 'This shall be the sign unto thee from the LORD, that the LORD will do the thing that He hath spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees, or go back ten degrees? 10 And Hezekiah answered: `It is a light thing for the shadow to decline ten degrees; nay, but let the shadow return backward ten degrees.' 11 And Isaiah the prophet cried unto the LORD; and he brought the shadow ten degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the dial of Ahaz.

12 At that time Berodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent a letter and a present unto Hezekiah; for he had heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And Hezekiah hearkened unto them, and showed them all his treasure-house, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious oil, and the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures; there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah showed them not. 14 Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him: 'What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee?' And Hezekiah said: `They are come from a far country, even from Babylon.' 15 And he said: 'What have they seen in thy house?' And Hezekiah answered: 'All that is in my house have they seen; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.'

16 And Isaiah said unto Hezekiah: 'Hear the word of the LORD. 17 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thy house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store unto this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 18 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, whom thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be officers in the palace of the king of Babylon.' 19 Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah: 'Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken.' He said moreover: 'Is it not so, if peace and truth shall be in my days?'

20 Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah, and all his might, and how he made the pool, and the conduit, and brought water into the city, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 21 And Hezekiah slept with his fathers; and Manasseh his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 21 — 1 Manasseh was twelve years old when he began to reign; and he reigned five and fifty years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hephzi-bah. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, after the abominations of the nations, whom the LORD cast out before the children of Israel. 3 For he built again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made an Asherah, as did Ahab king of Israel, and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them. 4 And he built altars in the house of the LORD, whereof the LORD said: 'In Jerusalem will I put My name.' 5 And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD. 6 And he made his son to pass through the fire, and practised soothsaying, and used enchantments, and appointed them that divined by a ghost or a familiar spirit: he wrought much evil in the sight of the LORD, to provoke Him. 7 And he set the graven image of Asherah, that he had made, in the house of which the LORD said to David and to Solomon his son: 'In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will I put My name for ever; 8 neither will I cause the feet of Israel to wander any more out of the land which I gave their fathers; if only they will observe to do according to all that I have commanded them, and according to all the law that My servant Moses commanded them.' 9 But they hearkened not; and Manasseh seduced them to do that which is evil more than did the nations, whom the LORD destroyed before the children of Israel.

10 And the LORD spoke by His servants the prophets, saying: 11 'Because Manasseh king of Judah hath done these abominations, and hath done wickedly above all that the Amorites did, that were before him, and hath made Judah also to sin with his idols; 12 therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Behold, I bring such evil upon Jerusalem and Judah, that whosoever heareth of it, both his ears shall tingle. 13 And I will stretch over Jerusalem the line of Samaria, and the plummet of the house of Ahab; and I will wipe Jerusalem as a man wipeth a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down. 14 And I will cast off the remnant of Mine inheritance, and deliver them into the hand of their enemies; and they shall become a prey and a spoil to all their enemies; 15 because they have done that which is evil in My sight, and have provoked Me, since the day their fathers came forth out of Egypt, even unto this day.'

16 Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the LORD. 17 Now the rest of the acts of Manasseh, and all that he did, and his sin that he sinned, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 18 And Manasseh slept with his fathers, and was buried in the garden of his own house, in the garden of Uzza; and Amon his son reigned in his stead.

19 Amon was twenty and two years old when he began to reign; and he reigned two years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Meshullemeth the daughter of Haruz of Jotbah. 20 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, as did Manasseh his father. 21 And he walked in all the way that his father walked in, and served the idols that his father served, and worshipped them. 22 And he forsook the LORD, the God of his fathers, and walked not in the way of the LORD. 23 And the servants of Amon conspired against him, and put the king to death in his own house. 24 But the people of the land slew all them that had conspired against king Amon; and the people of the land made Josiah his son king in his stead. 25 Now the rest of the acts of Amon which he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 26 And he was buried in his sepulchre in the garden of Uzza; and Josiah his son reigned in his stead.

2 KINGS 22 — 1 Josiah was eight years old when he began to reign; and he reigned thirty and one years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Jedidah the daughter of Adaiah of Bozkath. 2 And he did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left.

3 And it came to pass in the eighteenth year of king Josiah, that the king sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, the son of Meshullam, the scribe, to the house of the LORD, saying. 4 'Go up to Hilkiah the high priest, that he may sum the money which is brought into the house of the LORD, which the keepers of the door have gathered of the people; 5 and let them deliver it into the hand of the workmen that have the oversight of the house of the LORD; and let them give it to the workmen that are in the house of the LORD, to repair the breaches of the house; 6 unto the carpenters, and to the builders, and to the masons; and for buying timber and hewn stone to repair the house.'-7 Howbeit there was no reckoning made with them of the money that was delivered into their hand; for they dealt faithfully.

8 And Hilkiah the high priest said unto Shaphan the scribe: 'I have found the book of the Law in the house of the LORD.' And Hilkiah delivered the book to Shaphan, and he read it. 9 And Shaphan the scribe came to the king, and brought back word unto the king, and said: `Thy servants have poured out the money that was found in the house, and have delivered it into the hand of the workmen that have the oversight of the house of the LORD.' 10 And Shaphan the scribe told the king, saying: 'Hilkiah the priest hath delivered me a book.' And Shaphan read it before the king. 11 And it came to pass, when the king had heard the words of the book of the Law, that he rent his clothes. 12 And the king commanded Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam the son of Shaphan, and Achbor the son of Micaiah, and Shaphan the scribe, and Asaiah the king's servant, saying: 13 'Go ye, inquire of the LORD for me, and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that is found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is kindled against us, because our fathers have not hearkened unto the words of this book, to do according unto all that which is written concerning us.'

14 So Hilkiah the priest, and Ahikam, and Achbor, and Shaphan, and Asaiah, went unto Huldah the prophetess, the wife of Shallum the son of Tikvah, the son of Harhas, keeper of the wardrobe-now she dwelt in Jerusalem in the second quarter-and they spoke with her. 15 And she said unto them: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Tell ye the man that sent you unto me: 16 Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, and upon the inhabitants thereof, even all the words of the book which the king of Judah hath read; 17 because they have forsaken Me, and have offered unto other gods, that they might provoke Me with all the work of their hands; therefore My wrath shall be kindled against this place, and it shall not be quenched. 18 But unto the king of Judah, who sent you to inquire of the LORD, thus shall ye say to him: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: As touching the words which thou hast heard, 19 because thy heart was tender, and thou didst humble thyself before the LORD, when thou heardest what I spoke against this place, and against the inhabitants thereof, that they should become an astonishment and a curse, and hast rent thy clothes, and wept before Me, I also have heard thee, saith the LORD. 20 Therefore, behold, I will gather thee to thy fathers, and thou shalt be gathered to thy grave in peace, neither shall thine eyes see all the evil which I will bring upon this place.' And they brought back word unto the king.

2 KINGS 23 — 1 And the king sent, and they gathered unto him all the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem. 2 And the king went up to the house of the LORD, and all the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the people, both small and great; and he read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant which was found in the house of the LORD. 3 And the king stood on the platform, and made a covenant before the LORD, to walk after the LORD, and to keep His commandments, and His testimonies, and His statutes, with all his heart, and all his soul, to confirm the words of this covenant that were written in this book; and all the people stood to the covenant.

4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the Asherah, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beth-el. 5 And he put down the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to offer in the high places in the cities of Judah, and in the places round about Jerusalem; them also that offered unto Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven. 6 And he brought out the Asherah from the house of the LORD, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the common people. 7 And he broke down the houses of the sodomites, that were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove coverings for the Asherah. 8 And he brought all the priests out of the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had made offerings, from Geba to Beer-sheba; and he broke down the high places of the gates that were at the entrance of the gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were on a man's left hand as he entered the gate of the city. 9 Nevertheless the priests of the high places came not up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they did eat unleavened bread among their brethren. 10 And he defiled Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, that no man might make his son or his daughter to pass through the fire to Molech. 11 And he took away the horses that the kings of Judah had given to the sun, at the entrance of the house of the LORD, by the chamber of Nethan-melech the officer, which was in the precincts; and he burned the chariots of the sun with fire. 12 And the altars that were on the roof of the upper chamber of Ahaz, which the kings of Judah had made, and the altars which Manasseh had made in the two courts of the house of the LORD, did the king break down, and beat them down from thence, and cast the dust of them into the brook Kidron. 13 And the high places that were before Jerusalem, which were on the right hand of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had builded for Ashtoreth the detestation of the Zidonians, and for Chemosh the detestation of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the children of Ammon, did the king defile. 14 And he broke in pieces the pillars, and cut down the Asherim, and filled their places with the bones of men.

15 Moreover the altar that was at Beth-el, and the high place which Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin, had made, even that altar and the high place he broke down; and he burned the high place and stamped it small to powder, and burned the Asherah. 16 And as Josiah turned himself, he spied the sepulchres that were there in the mount; and he sent, and took the bones out of the sepulchres, and burned them upon the altar, and defiled it, according to the word of the LORD which the man of God proclaimed, who proclaimed these things. 17 Then he said: 'What monument is that which I see' And the men of the city told him: 'It is the sepulchre of the man of God, who came from Judah, and proclaimed these things that thou hast done against the altar of Beth-el.' 18 And he said: 'Let him be; let no man move his bones.' So they let his bones alone, with the bones of the prophet that came out of Samaria. 19 And all the houses also of the high places that were in the cities of Samaria, which the kings of Israel had made to provoke the LORD, Josiah took away, and did to them according to all the acts that he had done in Beth-el. 20 And he slew all the priests of the high places that were there, upon the altars, and burned men's bones upon them; and he returned to Jerusalem.

21 And the king commanded all the people, saying: 'Keep the passover unto the LORD your God, as it is written in this book of the covenant.' 22 For there was not kept such a passover from the days of the judges that judged Israel, nor in all the days of the kings of Israel, nor of the kings of Judah; 23 but in the eighteenth year of king Josiah was this passover kept to the LORD in Jerusalem. 24 Moreover them that divined by a ghost or a familiar spirit, and the teraphim, and the idols, and all the detestable things that were spied in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, did Josiah put away, that he might confirm the words of the law which were written in the book that Hilkiah the priest found in the house of the LORD. 25 And like unto him was there no king before him, that turned to the LORD with all his heart, and with all his soul, and with all his might, according to all the law of Moses; neither after him arose there any like him.

26 Notwithstanding the LORD turned not from the fierceness of His great wrath, wherewith His anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations wherewith Manasseh had provoked Him. 27 And the LORD said: 'I will remove Judah also out of My sight, as I have removed Israel, and I will cast off this city which I have chosen, even Jerusalem, and the house of which I said: My name shall be there.'

28 Now the rest of the acts of Josiah, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 29 In his days Pharaoh-necoh king of Egypt went up against the king of Assyria to the river Euphrates; and king Josiah went against him; and he slew him at Megiddo, when he had seen him. 30 And his servants carried him in a chariot dead from Megiddo, and brought him to Jerusalem, and buried him in his own sepulchre. And the people of the land took Jehoahaz the son of Josiah, and anointed him, and made him king in his father's stead.

31 Jehoahaz was twenty and three years old when he began to reign; and he reigned three months in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 32 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done. 33 And Pharaoh-necoh put him in bands at Riblah in the land of Hamath, that he might not reign in Jerusalem; and put the land to a fine of a hundred talents of silver, and a talent of gold. 34 And Pharaoh-necoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and changed his name to Jehoiakim; but he took Jehoahaz away; and he came to Egypt, and died there. 35 And Jehoiakim gave the silver and the gold to Pharaoh; but he taxed the land to give the money according to the commandment of Pharaoh; he exacted the silver and the gold of the people of the land, of every one according to his taxation, to give it unto Pharaoh-necoh.

36 Jehoiakim was twenty and five years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Zebudah the daughter of Pedaiah of Rumah. 37 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his fathers had done.

2 KINGS 24 — 1 In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years; then he turned and rebelled against him. 2 And the LORD sent against him bands of the Chaldeans, and bands of the Arameans, and bands of the Moabites, and bands of the children of Ammon, and sent them against Judah to destroy it, according to the word of the LORD, which He spoke by the hand of His servants the prophets. 3 Surely at the commandment of the LORD came this upon Judah, to remove them out of His sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did; 4 and also for the innocent blood that he shed; for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; and the LORD would not pardon.

5 Now the rest of the acts of Jehoiakim, and all that he did, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 6 So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers; and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead. 7 And the king of Egypt came not again any more out of his land; for the king of Babylon had taken, from the Brook of Egypt unto the river Euphrates, all that pertained to the king of Egypt.

8 Jehoiachin was eighteen years old when he began to reign; and he reigned in Jerusalem three months; and his mother's name was Nehushta the daughter of Elnathan of Jerusalem. 9 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that his father had done. 10 At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up to Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. 11 And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came unto the city, while his servants were besieging it. 12 And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers; and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. 13 And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the LORD, as the LORD had said. 14 And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths; none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land. 15 And he carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon; and the king's mother, and the king's wives, and his officers, and the chief men of the land, carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon. 16 And all the men of might, even seven thousand, and the craftsmen and the smiths a thousand, all of them strong and apt for war, even them the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon. 17 And the king of Babylon made Mattaniah his father's brother king in his stead, and changed his name to Zedekiah.

18 Zedekiah was twenty and one years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 19 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 20 For through the anger of the LORD did it come to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until He had cast them out from His presence.

And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 2 KINGS 25 — 1 And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it; and they built forts against it round about. 2 So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. 3 On the ninth day of the fourth month the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land. 4 Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king's garden-now the Chaldeans were against the city round about-and the king went by the way of the Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook him in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. 6 Then they took the king, and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah; and they gave judgment upon him. 7 And they slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes, and put out the eyes of Zedekiah, and bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon.

8 Now in the fifth month, on the seventh day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, a servant of the king of Babylon, unto Jerusalem. 9 And he burnt the house of the LORD, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great man's house, burnt he with fire. 10 And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, broke down the walls of Jerusalem round about. 11 And the residue of the people that were left in the city, and those that fell away, that fell to the king of Babylon, and the residue of the multitude, did Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carry away captive. 12 But the captain of the guard left of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen.

13 And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the LORD, and the bases and the brazen sea that were in the house of the LORD, did the Chaldeans break in pieces, and carried the brass of them to Babylon. 14 And the pots, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the pans, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away. 15 And the fire-pans, and the basins, that which was of gold, in gold, and that which was of silver, in silver, the captain of the guard took away. 16 The two pillars, the one sea, and the bases, which Solomon had made for the house of the LORD; the brass of all these vessels was without weight. 17 The height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits, and a capital of brass was upon it; and the height of the capital was three cubits; with network and pomegranates upon the capital round about, all of brass; and like unto these had the second pillar with network.

18 And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door; 19 and out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war; and five men of them that saw the king's face, who were found in the city; and the scribe of the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the land; and threescore men of the people of the land, that were found in the city. 20 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. 21 And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land. 22 And as for the people that were left in the land of Judah, whom Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had left, even over them he made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, governor.

23 Now when all the captains of the forces, they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah governor, they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth the Netophathite and Jaazaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men. 24 And Gedaliah swore to them and to their men, and said unto them: 'Fear not because of the servants of the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you.' 25 But it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, came, and ten men with him, and smote Gedaliah, that he died, and the Jews and the Chaldeans that were with him at Mizpah. 26 And all the people, both small and great, and the captains of the forces, arose, and came to Egypt; for they were afraid of the Chaldeans.

27 And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, on the seven and twentieth day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the year that he began to reign, did lift up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah out of prison. 28 And he spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon. 29 And he changed his prison garments, and did eat bread before him continually all the days of his life. 30 And for his allowance, there was a continual allowance given him of the king, every day a portion, all the days of his life.

Isaiah

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ISAIAH 1 — 1 The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth,

For the LORD hath spoken:

Children I have reared, and brought up,

And they have rebelled against Me. 3 The ox knoweth his owner,

And the ass his master's crib;

But Israel doth not know,

My people doth not consider.

4 Ah sinful nation,

A people laden with iniquity,

A seed of evil-doers,

Children that deal corruptly;

They have forsaken the LORD,

They have contemned the Holy One of Israel,

They are turned away backward.

5 On what part will ye yet be stricken,

Seeing ye stray away more and more?

The whole head is sick,

And the whole heart faint;

6 From the sole of the foot even unto the head

There is no soundness in it;

But wounds, and bruises, and festering sores:

They have not been pressed, neither bound up,

Neither mollified with oil.

7 Your country is desolate;

Your cities are burned with fire;

Your land, strangers devour it in your presence,

And it is desolate, as overthrown by floods.

8 And the daughter of Zion is left

As a booth in a vineyard,

As a lodge in a garden of cucumbers,

As a besieged city.

9 Except the LORD of hosts

Had left unto us a very small remnant,

We should have been as Sodom,

We should have been like unto Gomorrah.

10 Hear the word of the LORD,

Ye rulers of Sodom;

Give ear unto the law of our God,

Ye people of Gomorrah.

11 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto Me?

Saith the LORD;

I am full of the burnt-offerings of rams,

And the fat of fed beasts;

And I delight not in the blood

Of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he-goats.

12 When ye come to appear before Me,

Who hath required this at your hand,

To trample My courts?

13 Bring no more vain oblations;

It is an offering of abomination unto Me;

New moon and sabbath, the holding of convocations-

I cannot endure iniquity along with the solemn assembly.

14 Your new moons and your appointed seasons

My soul hateth;

They are a burden unto Me;

I am weary to bear them.

15 And when ye spread forth your hands,

I will hide Mine eyes from you;

Yea, when ye make many prayers,

I will not hear;

Your hands are full of blood.

16 Wash you, make you clean,

Put away the evil of your doings

From before Mine eyes,

Cease to do evil;

17 Learn to do well;

Seek justice, relieve the oppressed,

Judge the fatherless, plead for the widow.

18 Come now, and let us reason together,

Saith the LORD;

Though your sins be as scarlet,

They shall be as white as snow;

Though they be red like crimson,

They shall be as wool.

19 If ye be willing and obedient,

Ye shall eat the good of the land;

20 But if ye refuse and rebel,

Ye shall be devoured with the sword;

For the mouth of the LORD hath spoken.

21 How is the faithful city

Become a harlot!

She that was full of justice,

Righteousness lodged in her,

But now murderers.

22 Thy silver is become dross,

Thy wine mixed with water.

23 Thy princes are rebellious,

And companions of thieves;

Every one loveth bribes,

And followeth after rewards;

They judge not the fatherless,

Neither doth the cause of the widow come unto them.

24 Therefore saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts,

The Mighty One of Israel:

Ah, I will ease Me of Mine adversaries,

And avenge Me of Mine enemies;

25 And I will turn My hand upon thee,

And purge away thy dross as with lye,

And will take away all thine alloy;

26 And I will restore thy judges as at the first,

And thy counsellors as at the beginning;

Afterward thou shalt be called The city of righteousness,

The faithful city.

27 Zion shall be redeemed with justice,

And they that return of her with righteousness.

28 But the destruction of the transgressors and the sinners shall be together,

And they that forsake the LORD shall be consumed.

29 For they shall be ashamed of the terebinths which ye have desired,

And ye shall be confounded for the gardens that ye have chosen.

30 For ye shall be as a terebinth whose leaf fadeth,

And as a garden that hath no water.

31 And the strong shall be as tow,

And his work as a spark;

And they shall both burn together,

And none shall quench them.

ISAIAH 2 — 1 The word that Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

2 And it shall come to pass in the end of days,

That the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established as the top of the mountains,

And shall be exalted above the hills;

And all nations shall flow unto it.

3 And many peoples shall go and say:

'Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,

To the house of the God of Jacob;

And He will teach us of His ways,

And we will walk in His paths.'

For out of Zion shall go forth the law,

And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

4 And He shall judge between the nations,

And shall decide for many peoples;

And they shall beat their swords into plowshares,

And their spears into pruninghooks;

Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

Neither shall they learn war any more.

5 O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk

In the light of the LORD.

6 For Thou hast forsaken Thy people the house of Jacob;

For they are replenished from the east,

And with soothsayers like the Philistines,

And they please themselves in the brood of aliens.

7 Their land also is full of silver and gold,

Neither is there any end of their treasures;

Their land also is full of horses,

Neither is there any end of their chariots.

8 Their land also is full of idols;

Every one worshippeth the work of his own hands,

That which his own fingers have made.

9 And man boweth down,

And man lowereth himself;

And Thou canst not bear with them.

10 Enter into the rock,

And hide thee in the dust,

From before the terror of the LORD,

And from the glory of His majesty.

11 The lofty looks of man shall be brought low,

And the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down,

And the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.

12 For the LORD of hosts hath a day

Upon all that is proud and lofty,

And upon all that is lifted up, and it shall be brought low;

13 And upon all the cedars of Lebanon

That are high and lifted up,

And upon all the oaks of Bashan;

14 And upon all the high mountains,

And upon all the hills that are lifted up;

15 And upon every lofty tower,

And upon every fortified wall;

16 And upon all the ships of Tarshish,

And upon all delightful imagery.

17 And the loftiness of man shall be bowed down,

And the haughtiness of men shall be brought low;

And the LORD alone shall be exalted in that day.

18 And the idols shall utterly pass away.

19 And men shall go into the caves of the rocks,

And into the holes of the earth,

From before the terror of the LORD,

And from the glory of His majesty,

When He ariseth to shake mightily the earth.

20 In that day a man shall cast away

His idols of silver, and his idols of gold,

Which they made for themselves to worship,

To the moles and to the bats;

21 To go into the clefts of the rocks,

And into the crevices of the crags,

From before the terror of the LORD,

And from the glory of His majesty,

When he ariseth to shake mightily the earth.

22 Cease ye from man, in whose nostrils is a breath;

For how little is he to be accounted!

ISAIAH 3 — 1 For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts,

Doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah

Stay and staff,

Every stay of bread, and every stay of water;

2 The mighty man, and the man of war;

The judge, and the prophet,

And the diviner, and the elder;

3 The captain of fifty, and the man of rank,

And the counsellor, and the cunning charmer, and the skilful enchanter.

4 And I will give children to be their princes,

And babes shall rule over them.

5 And the people shall oppress one another,

Every man his fellow, and every man his neighbour;

The child shall behave insolently against the aged,

And the base against the honourable,

6 For a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father:

'Thou hast a mantle,

Be thou our ruler,

And let this ruin be under thy hand.'

7 In that day shall he swear, saying:

'I will not be a healer;

For in my house is neither bread nor a mantle;

Ye shall not make me ruler of a people.'

8 For Jerusalem is ruined,

And Judah is fallen;

Because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD,

To provoke the eyes of His glory.

9 The show of their countenance doth witness against them;

And they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not.

Woe unto their soul!

For they have wrought evil unto themselves.

10 Say ye of the righteous, that it shall be well with him;

For they shall eat the fruit of their doings.

11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him;

For the work of his hands shall be done to him.

12 As for My people, a babe is their master,

And women rule over them.

O My people, they that lead thee cause thee to err,

And destroy the way of thy paths.

13 The LORD standeth up to plead,

And standeth to judge the peoples.

14 The LORD will enter into judgment

With the elders of His people, and the princes thereof:

'It is ye that have eaten up the vineyard;

The spoil of the poor is in your houses;

15 What mean ye that ye crush My people,

And grind the face of the poor?'

Saith the Lord, the GOD of hosts.

16 Moreover the LORD said:

Because the daughters of Zion are haughty,

And walk with stretched-forth necks

And wanton eyes,

Walking and mincing as they go,

And making a tinkling with their feet;

17 Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab

The crown of the head of the daughters of Zion,

And the LORD will lay bare their secret parts.

18 In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their anklets, and the fillets, and the crescents; 19 the pendants, and the bracelets, and the veils; 20 the headtires, and the armlets, and the sashes, and the corselets, and the amulets; 21 the rings, and the nose-jewels; 22 the aprons, and the mantelets, and the cloaks, and the girdles; 23 and the gauze robes, and the fine linen, and the turbans, and the mantles. 24 And it shall come to pass, that

Instead of sweet spices there shall be rottenness;

And instead of a girdle rags;

And instead of curled hair baldness;

And instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth;

Branding instead of beauty.

25 Thy men shall fall by the sword,

And thy mighty in the war.

26 And her gates shall lament and mourn;

And utterly bereft she shall sit upon the ground.

ISAIAH 4 — 1 And seven women shall take hold of one man in that day, saying: 'We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel; only let us be called by thy name; take thou away our reproach.'

2 In that day shall the growth of the LORD be beautiful and glorious,

And the fruit of the land excellent and comely

For them that are escaped of Israel.

3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written unto life in Jerusalem; 4 when the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof, by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of destruction. 5 And the LORD will create over the whole habitation of mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory shall be a canopy. 6 And there shall be a pavilion for a shadow in the day-time from the heat, and for a refuge and for a covert from storm and from rain.

ISAIAH 5 — 1 Let me sing of my well-beloved,

A song of my beloved touching his vineyard.

My well-beloved had a vineyard

In a very fruitful hill;

2 And he digged it, and cleared it of stones,

And planted it with the choicest vine,

And built a tower in the midst of it,

And also hewed out a vat therein;

And he looked that it should bring forth grapes,

And it brought forth wild grapes.

3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah,

Judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

4 What could have been done more to my vineyard,

That I have not done in it?

Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes,

Brought it forth wild grapes?

5 And now come, I will tell you

What I will do to my vineyard:

I will take away the hedge thereof,

And it shall be eaten up;

I will break down the fence thereof,

And it shall be trodden down;

6 And I will lay it waste:

It shall not be pruned nor hoed,

But there shall come up briers and thorns;

I will also command the clouds

That they rain no rain upon it.

7 For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel,

And the men of Judah the plant of His delight;

And He looked for justice, but behold violence;

For righteousness, but behold a cry.

8 Woe unto them that join house to house,

That lay field to field,

Till there be no room, and ye be made to dwell

Alone in the midst of the land!

9 In mine ears said the LORD of hosts:

Of a truth many houses shall be desolate,

Even great and fair, without inhabitant.

10 For ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath,

And the seed of a homer shall yield an ephah.

11 Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning,

That they may follow strong drink;

That tarry late into the night,

Till wine inflame them!

12 And the harp and the psaltery, the tabret and the pipe,

And wine, are in their feasts;

But they regard not the work of the LORD,

Neither have they considered the operation of His hands.

13 Therefore My people are gone into captivity,

For want of knowledge;

And their honourable men are famished,

And their multitude are parched with thirst.

14 Therefore the nether-world hath enlarged her desire,

And opened her mouth without measure;

And down goeth their glory, and their tumult, and their uproar,

And he that rejoiceth among them.

15 And man is bowed down,

And man is humbled,

And the eyes of the lofty are humbled;

16 But the LORD of hosts is exalted through justice,

And God the Holy One is sanctified through righteousness.

17 Then shall the lambs feed as in their pasture,

And the waste places of the fat ones shall wanderers eat.

18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity,

And sin as it were with a cart rope,

19 That say: 'Let Him make speed, let Him hasten His work,

That we may see it;

And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come,

That we may know it!'

20 Woe unto them that call evil good,

And good evil;

That change darkness into light,

And light into darkness;

That change bitter into sweet,

And sweet into bitter!

21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes,

And prudent in their own sight!

22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine,

And men of strength to mingle strong drink;

23 That justify the wicked for a reward,

And take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!

24 Therefore as the tongue of fire devoureth the stubble,

And as the chaff is consumed in the flame,

So their root shall be as rottenness,

And their blossom shall go up as dust;

Because they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts,

And contemned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25 Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against His people,

And He hath stretched forth His hand against them, and hath smitten them,

And the hills did tremble,

And their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

26 And He will lift up an ensign to the nations from far,

And will hiss unto them from the end of the earth;

And, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly;

27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them;

None shall slumber nor sleep;

Neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed,

Nor the latchet of their shoes be broken;

28 Whose arrows are sharp,

And all their bows bent;

Their horses' hoofs shall be counted like flint,

And their wheels like a whirlwind;

29 Their roaring shall be like a lion,

They shall roar like young lions, yea, they shall roar,

And lay hold of the prey, and carry it away safe,

And there shall be none to deliver.

30 And they shall roar against them in that day

Like the roaring of the sea;

And if one look unto the land,

Behold darkness and distress,

And the light is darkened in the skies thereof.

ISAIAH 6 — 1 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. 2 Above Him stood the seraphim; each one had six wings: with twain he covered his face and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. 3 And one called unto another, and said:

Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts;

The whole earth is full of His glory.

4 And the posts of the door were moved at the voice of them that called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 Then said I:

Woe is me! for I am undone;

Because I am a man of unclean lips,

And I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips;

For mine eyes have seen the King,

The LORD of hosts.

6 Then flew unto me one of the seraphim, with a glowing stone in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar; 7 and he touched my mouth with it, and said:

Lo, this hath touched thy lips;

And thine iniquity is taken away,

And thy sin expiated.

8 And I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

Whom shall I send,

And who will go for us?

Then I said: 'Here am I; send me.' 9 And He said: 'Go, and tell this people:

Hear ye indeed, but understand not;

And see ye indeed, but perceive not.

10 Make the heart of this people fat,

And make their ears heavy,

And shut their eyes;

Lest they, seeing with their eyes,

And hearing with their ears,

And understanding with their heart,

Return, and be healed.'

11 Then said I: 'Lord, how long?' And He answered:

'Until cities be waste without inhabitant,

And houses without man,

And the land become utterly waste,

12 And the LORD have removed men far away,

And the forsaken places be many in the midst of the land.

13 And if there be yet a tenth in it, it shall again be eaten up; as a terebinth, and as an oak, whose stock remaineth, when they cast their leaves, so the holy seed shall be the stock thereof.'

ISAIAH 7 — 1 And it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Aram, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to war against it; but could not prevail against it. 2 And it was told the house of David, saying: 'Aram is confederate with Ephraim.' And his heart was moved, and the heart of his people, as the trees of the forest are moved with the wind.

3 Then said the LORD unto Isaiah: 'Go forth now to meet Ahaz, thou, and Shear-jashub thy son, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, in the highway of the fullers' field; 4 and say unto him: Keep calm, and be quiet; fear not, neither let thy heart be faint, because of these two tails of smoking firebrands, for the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram, and of the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Aram hath counselled evil against thee, Ephraim also, and the son of Remaliah, saying: 6 Let us go up against Judah, and vex it, and let us make a breach therein for us, and set up a king in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeel; 7 thus saith the Lord GOD:

It shall not stand, neither shall it come to pass.

8 For the head of Aram is Damascus,

And the head of Damascus is Rezin;

And within threescore and five years

Shall Ephraim be broken, that it be not a people;

9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,

And the head of Samaria is Remaliah's son.

If ye will not have faith, surely ye shall not be established.'

10 And the LORD spoke again unto Ahaz, saying: 11 'Ask thee a sign of the LORD thy God: ask it either in the depth, or in the height above.' 12 But Ahaz said: 'I will not ask, neither will I try the LORD.' 13 And he said: 'Hear ye now, O house of David: Is it a small thing for you to weary men, that ye will weary my God also? 14 Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: behold, the young woman shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. 15 Curd and honey shall he eat, when he knoweth to refuse the evil, and choose the good. 16 Yea, before the child shall know to refuse the evil, and choose the good, the land whose two kings thou hast a horror of shall be forsaken. 17 The LORD shall bring upon thee, and upon thy people, and upon thy father's house, days that have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed from Judah; even the king of Assyria.'

18 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the LORD shall hiss for the fly

That is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt,

And for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.

19 And they shall come, and shall rest all of them

In the rugged valleys, and in the holes of the rocks,

And upon all thorns, and upon all brambles.

20 In that day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired in the parts beyond the River, even with the king of Assyria, the head and the hair of the feet; and it shall also sweep away the beard.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that a man shall rear a young cow, and two sheep; 22 and it shall come to pass, for the abundance of milk that they shall give, he shall eat curd; for curd and honey shall every one eat that is left in the midst of the land.

23 And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, shall even be for briers and thorns. 24 With arrows and with bow shall one come thither; because all the land shall become briers and thorns. 25 And all the hills that were digged with the mattock, thou shalt not come thither for fear of briers and thorns, but it shall be for the sending forth of oxen, and for the treading of sheep.

ISAIAH 8 — 1 And the LORD said unto me: 'Take thee a great tablet, and write upon it in common script: The spoil speedeth, the prey hasteth; 2 and I will take unto Me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.' 3 And I went unto the prophetess; and she conceived, and bore a son. Then said the LORD unto me: 'Call his name Maher-shalal-hashbaz. 4 For before the child shall have knowledge to cry: My father, and: My mother, the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be carried away before the king of Assyria.'

5 And the LORD spoke unto me yet again, saying:

6 Forasmuch as this people hath refused

The waters of Shiloah that go softly,

And rejoiceth with Rezin and Remaliah's son;

7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them

The waters of the River, mighty and many,

Even the king of Assyria and all his glory;

And he shall come up over all his channels,

And go over all his banks;

8 And he shall sweep through Judah

Overflowing as he passeth through

He shall reach even to the neck;

And the stretching out of his wings

Shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel.

9 Make an uproar, O ye peoples, and ye shall be broken in pieces;

And give ear, all ye of far countries;

Gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces;

Gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.

10 Take counsel together, and it shall be brought to nought;

Speak the word, and it shall not stand;

For God is with us.

11 For the LORD spoke thus to me with a strong hand, admonishing me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying: 12 'Say ye not: A conspiracy, concerning all whereof this people do say: A conspiracy; neither fear ye their fear, nor account it dreadful. 13 The LORD of hosts, Him shall ye sanctify; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread. 14 And He shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.'

16 'Bind up the testimony, seal the instruction among My disciples.' 17 And I will wait for the LORD, that hideth His face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for Him. 18 Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me shall be for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwelleth in mount Zion. 19 And when they shall say unto you: 'Seek unto the ghosts and the familiar spirits, that chirp and that mutter; should not a people seek unto their God? on behalf of the living unto the dead 20 for instruction and for testimony?' -Surely they will speak according to this word, wherein there is no light.-21 And they shall pass this way that are sore bestead and hungry; and it shall come to pass that, when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse by their king and by their God, and, whether they turn their faces upward, 22 or look unto the earth, behold distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish, and outspread thick darkness. 23 For is there no gloom to her that was stedfast? Now the former hath lightly afflicted the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but the latter hath dealt a more grievous blow by the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, in the district of the nations.

ISAIAH 9 — 1 The people that walked in darkness

Have seen a great light;

They that dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,

Upon them hath the light shined.

2 Thou hast multiplied the nation,

Thou hast increased their joy;

They joy before Thee according to the joy in harvest,

As men rejoice when they divide the spoil.

3 For the yoke of his burden,

And the staff of his shoulder,

The rod of his oppressor,

Thou hast broken as in the day of Midian.

4 For every boot stamped with fierceness,

And every cloak rolled in blood,

Shall even be for burning, for fuel of fire.

5 For a child is born unto us,

A son is given unto us;

And the government is upon his shoulder;

And his name is called Pele-joez-el-gibbor-Abi-ad-sar-shalom;

6 That the government may be increased,

And of peace there be no end,

Upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,

To establish it, and to uphold it

Through justice and through righteousness

From henceforth even for ever.

The zeal of the LORD of hosts doth perform this.

7 The Lord sent a word into Jacob,

And it hath lighted upon Israel.

8 And all the people shall know,

Even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria,

That say in pride and in arrogancy of heart:

9 'The bricks are fallen, but we will build with hewn stones;

The sycamores are cut down, but cedars will we put in their place.'

10 Therefore the LORD doth set upon high the adversaries of Rezin against him,

And spur his enemies;

11 The Arameans on the east, and the Philistines on the west;

And they devour Israel with open mouth.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

12 Yet the people turneth not unto Him that smiteth them,

Neither do they seek the LORD of hosts.

13 Therefore the LORD doth cut off from Israel head and tail,

Palm-branch and rush, in one day.

14 The elder and the man of rank, he is the head;

And the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

15 For they that lead this people cause them to err;

And they that are led of them are destroyed.

16 Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men,

Neither shall He have compassion on their fatherless and widows;

For every one is ungodly and an evil-doer,

And every mouth speaketh wantonness.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

17 For wickedness burneth as the fire;

It devoureth the briers and thorns;

Yea, it kindleth in the thickets of the forest,

And they roll upward in thick clouds of smoke.

18 Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts is the land burnt up;

The people also are as the fuel of fire;

No man spareth his brother.

19 And one snatcheth on the right hand, and is hungry;

And he eateth on the left hand, and is not satisfied;

They eat every man the flesh of his own arm:

20 Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh;

And they together are against Judah.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

ISAIAH 10 — 1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees,

And to the writers that write iniquity;

2 To turn aside the needy from judgment,

And to take away the right of the poor of My people,

That widows may be their spoil,

And that they may make the fatherless their prey!

3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation,

And in the ruin which shall come from far?

To whom will ye flee for help?

And where will ye leave your glory?

4 They can do nought except crouch under the captives,

And fall under the slain.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

5 O Asshur, the rod of Mine anger,

In whose hand as a staff is Mine indignation!

6 I do send him against an ungodly nation,

And against the people of My wrath do I give him a charge,

To take the spoil, and to take the prey,

And to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

7 Howbeit he meaneth not so,

Neither doth his heart think so;

But it is in his heart to destroy,

And to cut off nations not a few.

8 For he saith:

'Are not my princes all of them kings?

9 Is not Calno as Carchemish?

Is not Hamath as Arpad?

Is not Samaria as Damascus?

10 As my hand hath reached the kingdoms of the idols,

Whose graven images did exceed them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;

11 Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols,

So do to Jerusalem and her idols?'

12 Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed His whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks. 13 For he hath said:

By the strength of my hand I have done it,

And by my wisdom, for I am prudent;

In that I have removed the bounds of the peoples,

And have robbed their treasures,

And have brought down as one mighty the inhabitants;

14 And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples;

And as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken,

Have I gathered all the earth;

And there was none that moved the wing,

Or that opened mouth, or chirped.

15 Should the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith?

Should the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it?

As if a rod should move them that lift it up,

Or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.

16 Therefore will the Lord, the LORD of hosts,

Send among his fat ones leanness;

And under his glory there shall be kindled

A burning like the burning of fire.

17 And the light of Israel shall be for a fire,

And his Holy One for a flame;

And it shall burn and devour his thorns

And his briers in one day.

18 And the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field,

He will consume both soul and body;

And it shall be as when a sick man wasteth away.

19 And the remnant of the trees of his forest shall be few,

That a child may write them down.

20 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the remnant of Israel,

And they that are escaped of the house of Jacob,

Shall no more again stay upon him that smote them;

But shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21 A remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob,

Unto God the Mighty.

22 For though thy people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea,

Only a remnant of them shall return;

An extermination is determined, overflowing with righteousness.

23 For an extermination wholly determined

Shall the Lord, the GOD of hosts, make in the midst of all the earth.

24 Therefore thus saith the Lord, the GOD of hosts: O My people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of Asshur, though he smite thee with the rod, and lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt. 25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall be accomplished, and Mine anger shall be to their destruction. 26 And the LORD of hosts shall stir up against him a scourge, as in the slaughter of Midian at the Rock of Oreb; and as His rod was over the sea, so shall He lift it up after the manner of Egypt. 27 And it shall come to pass in that day, that

His burden shall depart from off thy shoulder,

And his yoke from off thy neck,

And the yoke shall be destroyed by reason of fatness.

28 He is come to Aiath,

He is passed through Migron;

At Michmas he layeth up his baggage;

29 They are gone over the pass;

They have taken up their lodging at Geba;

Ramah trembleth;

Gibeath-shaul is fled.

30 Cry thou with a shrill voice, O daughter of Gallim!

Hearken, O Laish! O thou poor Anathoth!

31 Madmenah is in mad flight;

The inhabitants of Gebim flee to cover.

32 This very day shall he halt at Nob,

Shaking his hand at the mount of the daughter of Zion,

The hill of Jerusalem.

33 Behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts,

Shall lop the boughs with terror;

And the high ones of stature shall be hewn down,

And the lofty shall be laid low.

34 And He shall cut down the thickets of the forest with iron,

And Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.

ISAIAH 11 — 1 And there shall come forth a shoot out of the stock of Jesse,

And a twig shall grow forth out of his roots.

2 And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him,

The spirit of wisdom and understanding,

The spirit of counsel and might,

The spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD.

3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD;

And he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes,

Neither decide after the hearing of his ears;

4 But with righteousness shall he judge the poor,

And decide with equity for the meek of the land;

And he shall smite the land with the rod of his mouth,

And with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.

5 And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins,

And faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

6 And the wolf shall dwell with the lamb,

And the leopard shall lie down with the kid;

And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together;

And a little child shall lead them.

7 And the cow and the bear feed;

Their young ones shall lie down together;

And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

8 And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp,

And the weaned child shall put his hand on the basilisk's den.

9 They shall not hurt nor destroy

In all My holy mountain;

For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD,

As the waters cover the sea.

10 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples,

Unto him shall the nations seek;

And his resting-place shall be glorious.

11 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the Lord will set His hand again the second time

To recover the remnant of His people,

That shall remain from Assyria, and from Egypt,

And from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam,

And from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.

12 And He will set up an ensign for the nations,

And will assemble the dispersed of Israel,

And gather together the scattered of Judah

From the four corners of the earth.

13 The envy also of Ephraim shall depart,

And they that harass Judah shall be cut off;

Ephraim shall not envy Judah,

And Judah shall not vex Ephraim.

14 And they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines on the west;

Together shall they spoil the children of the east;

They shall put forth their hand upon Edom and Moab;

And the children of Ammon shall obey them.

15 And the LORD will utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea;

And with His scorching wind will He shake His hand over the River,

And will smite it into seven streams,

And cause men to march over dry-shod.

16 And there shall be a highway for the remnant of His people,

That shall remain from Assyria,

Like as there was for Israel

In the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.

ISAIAH 12 — 1 And in that day thou shalt say:

'I will give thanks unto Thee, O LORD;

For though Thou was angry with me,

Thine anger is turned away, and Thou comfortest me.

2 Behold, God is my salvation;

I will trust, and will not be afraid;

For GOD the LORD is my strength and song;

And He is become my salvation.'

3 Therefore with joy shall ye draw water

Out of the wells of salvation.

4 And in that day shall ye say:

'Give thanks unto the LORD, proclaim His name,

Declare His doings among the peoples,

Make mention that His name is exalted.

5 Sing unto the LORD; for He hath done gloriously;

This is made known in all the earth.

6 Cry aloud and shout, thou inhabitant of Zion,

For great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.'

ISAIAH 13 — 1 The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz did see.

2 Set ye up an ensign upon the high mountain,

Lift up the voice unto them,

Wave the hand, that they may go

Into the gates of the nobles.

3 I have commanded My consecrated ones,

Yea, I have called My mighty ones for mine anger,

Even My proudly exulting ones.

4 Hark, a tumult in the mountains,

Like as of a great people!

Hark, the uproar of the kingdoms

Of the nations gathered together!

The LORD of hosts mustereth

The host of the battle.

5 They come from a far country,

From the end of heaven,

Even the LORD, and the weapons of His indignation,

To destroy the whole earth.

6 Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand;

As destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

7 Therefore shall all hands be slack,

And every heart of man shall melt.

8 And they shall be affrighted;

Pangs and throes shall take hold them;

They shall be in pain as a woman in travail;

They shall look aghast one at another;

Their faces shall be faces of flame.

9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh,

Cruel, and full of wrath and fierce anger;

To make the earth a desolation,

And to destroy the sinners thereof out of it,

10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof

Shall not give their light;

The sun shall be darkened in his going forth,

And the moon shall not cause her light to shine.

11 And I will visit upon the world their evil,

And upon the wicked their iniquity;

And I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease,

And will lay low the haughtiness of the tyrants.

12 I will make man more rare than fine gold,

Even man than the pure gold of Ophir.

13 Therefore I will make the heavens to tremble,

And the earth shall be shaken out of her place,

For the wrath of the LORD of hosts,

And for the day of His fierce anger.

14 And it shall come to pass, that as the chased gazelle,

And as sheep that no man gathereth,

They shall turn every man to his own people,

And shall flee every man to his own land.

15 Every one that is found shall be thrust through;

And every one that is caught shall fall by the sword.

16 Their babes also shall be dashed in pieces before their eyes;

Their houses shall be spoiled,

And their wives ravished.

17 Behold, I will stir up the Medes against them,

Who shall not regard silver,

And as for gold, they shall not delight in it.

18 And their bows shall dash the young men in pieces;

And they shall have no pity on the fruit of the womb;

Their eye shall not spare children.

19 And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,

The beauty of the Chaldeans' pride,

Shall be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.

20 It shall never be inhabited,

Neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation;

Neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there;

Neither shall the shepherds make their fold there.

21 But wild-cats shall lie there;

And their houses shall be full of ferrets;

And ostriches shall dwell there,

And satyrs shall dance there.

22 And jackals shall howl in their castles,

And wild-dogs in the pleasant palaces;

And her time is near to come,

And her days shall not be prolonged.

ISAIAH 14 — 1 For the LORD will have compassion on Jacob, and will yet choose Israel, and set them in their own land; and the stranger shall join himself with them, and they shall cleave to the house of Jacob. 2 And the peoples shall take them, and bring them to their place; and the house of Israel shall possess them in the land of the LORD for servants and for handmaids; and they shall take them captive, whose captives they were; and they shall rule over their oppressors.

3 And it shall come to pass in the day that the LORD shall give thee rest from thy travail, and from thy trouble, and from the hard service wherein thou wast made to serve, 4 that thou shalt take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and say:

How hath the oppressor ceased!

The exactress of gold ceased!

5 The LORD hath broken the staff of the wicked,

The sceptre of the rulers,

6 That smote the peoples in wrath

With an incessant stroke,

That ruled the nations in anger,

With a persecution that none restrained.

7 The whole earth is at rest, and is quiet;

They break forth into singing.

8 Yea, the cypresses rejoice at thee,

And the cedars of Lebanon:

'Since thou art laid down,

No feller is come up against us.'

9 The nether-world from beneath is moved for thee

To meet thee at thy coming;

The shades are stirred up for thee,

Even all the chief ones of the earth;

All the kings of the nations

Are raised up from their thrones.

10 All they do answer

And say unto thee:

'Art thou also become weak as we?

Art thou become like unto us?

11 Thy pomp is brought down to the nether-world,

And the noise of thy psalteries;

The maggot is spread under thee,

And the worms cover thee.'

12 How art thou fallen from heaven,

O day-star, son of the morning!

How art thou cut down to the ground,

That didst cast lots over the nations!

13 And thou saidst in thy heart:

'I will ascend into heaven,

Above the stars of God

Will I exalt my throne,

And I will sit upon the mount of meeting,

In the uttermost parts of the north;

14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

I will be like the Most High.'

15 Yet thou shalt be brought down to the nether-world,

To the uttermost parts of the pit.

16 They that saw thee do narrowly look upon thee,

They gaze earnestly at thee:

'Is this the man that made the earth to tremble,

That did shake kingdoms;

17 That made the world as a wilderness,

And destroyed the cities thereof;

That opened not the house of his prisoners?'

18 All the kings of the nations,

All of them, sleep in glory,

Every one in his own house.

19 But thou art cast forth away from thy grave

Like an abhorred offshoot,

In the raiment of the slain, that are thrust through with the sword,

That go down to the pavement of the pit,

As a carcass trodden under foot.

20 Thou shalt not be joined with them in burial,

Because thou hast destroyed thy land,

Thou hast slain thy people;

The seed of evil-doers shall not

Be named for ever.

21 Prepare ye slaughter for his children

For the iniquity of their fathers;

That they rise not up, and possess the earth,

And fill the face of the world with cities.

22 And I will rise up against them, saith the LORD of hosts, and cut off from Babylon name and remnant, and offshoot and offspring, saith the LORD. 23 I will also make it a possession for the bittern, and pools of water; and I will sweep it with the besom of destruction, saith the LORD of hosts.

24 The LORD of hosts hath sworn, saying:

Surely as I have thought, so shall it come to pass;

And as I have purposed, so shall it stand,

25 That I will break Asshur in My land,

And upon My mountains tread him under foot;

Then shall his yoke depart from off them,

And his burden depart from off their shoulder.

26 This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth;

And this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations.

27 For the LORD of hosts hath purposed,

And who shall disannul it?

And His hand is stretched out,

And who shall turn it back?

28 In the year that king Ahaz died was this burden.

29 Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of thee,

Because the rod that smote thee is broken:

For out of the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk,

And his fruit shall be a flying serpent.

30 And the first-born of the poor shall feed,

And the needy shall lie down in safety;

And I will kill thy root with famine,

And thy remnant shall be slain.

31 Howl, O gate; cry, O city;

Melt away, O Philistia, all of thee;

For there cometh a smoke out of the north,

And there is no straggler in his ranks.

32 What then shall one answer the messengers of the nation?

That the LORD hath founded Zion,

And in her shall the afflicted of His people take refuge.

ISAIAH 15 — 1 The burden of Moab.

For in the night that Ar of Moab is laid waste,

He is brought to ruin;

For in the night that Kir of Moab is laid waste,

He is brought to ruin.

2 He is gone up to Baith, and to Dibon,

To the high places, to weep;

Upon Nebo, and upon Medeba, Moab howleth;

On all their heads is baldness,

Every beard is shaven.

3 In their streets they gird themselves with sackcloth;

On their housetops, and in their broad places,

Every one howleth, weeping profusely.

4 And Heshbon crieth out, and Elealeh;

Their voice is heard even unto Jahaz;

Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud;

His soul is faint within him.

5 My heart crieth out for Moab;

Her fugitives reach unto Zoar,

A heifer of three years old;

For by the ascent of Luhith

With weeping they go up;

For in the way of Horonaim

They raise up a cry of destruction.

6 For the Waters of Nimrim shall be desolate;

For the grass is withered away, the herbage faileth,

There is no green thing.

7 Therefore the abundance they have gotten,

And that which they have laid up,

Shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.

8 For the cry is gone round about

The borders of Moab;

The howling thereof unto Eglaim,

And the howling thereof unto Beer-elim.

9 For the waters of Dimon are full of blood;

For I will bring yet more upon Dimon,

A lion upon him that escapeth of Moab,

And upon the remnant of the land.

ISAIAH 16 — 1 Send ye the lambs for the ruler of the land

From the crags that are toward the wilderness,

Unto the mount of the daughter of Zion.

2 For it shall be that, as wandering birds,

As a scattered nest,

So shall the daughters of Moab be

At the fords of Arnon.

3 'Give counsel, execute justice;

Make thy shadow as the night in the midst of the noonday;

Hide the outcasts; betray not the fugitive.

4 Let mine outcasts dwell with thee;

As for Moab, be thou a covert to him from the face of the spoiler.'

For the extortion is at an end, spoiling ceaseth,

They that trampled down are consumed out of the land;

5 And a throne is established through mercy,

And there sitteth thereon in truth, in the tent of David,

One that judgeth, and seeketh justice, and is ready in righteousness.

6 We have heard of the pride of Moab;

He is very proud;

Even of his haughtiness, and his pride, and his arrogancy,

His ill-founded boastings.

7 Therefore shall Moab wail for Moab,

Every one shall wail;

For the sweet cakes of Kir-hareseth shall ye mourn,

Sorely stricken.

8 For the fields of Heshbon languish,

And the vine of Sibmah,

Whose choice plants did overcome

The lords of nations;

They reached even unto Jazer,

They wandered into the wilderness;

Her branches were spread abroad,

They passed over the sea.

9 Therefore I will weep with the weeping of Jazer

For the vine of Sibmah;

I will water thee with my tears,

O Heshbon, and Elealeh;

For upon thy summer fruits and upon thy harvest

The battle shout is fallen.

10 And gladness and joy are taken away

Out of the fruitful field;

And in the vineyards there shall be no singing,

Neither shall there be shouting;

No treader shall tread out wine in the presses;

I have made the vintage shout to cease.

11 Wherefore my heart moaneth like a harp for Moab,

And mine inward parts for Kir-heres.

12 And it shall come to pass, when it is seen that Moab hath wearied himself upon the high place, that he shall come to his sanctuary to pray; but he shall not prevail.

13 This is the word that the LORD spoke concerning Moab in time past. 14 But now the LORD hath spoken, saying: 'Within three years, as the years of a hireling, and the glory of Moab shall wax contemptible for all his great multitude; and the remnant shall be very small and without strength.'

ISAIAH 17 — 1 The burden of Damascus.

Behold, Damascus is taken away from being a city,

And it shall be a ruinous heap.

2 The cities of Aroer are forsaken;

They shall be for flocks,

Which shall lie down, and none shall make them afraid.

3 The fortress also shall cease from Ephraim,

And the kingdom from Damascus;

And the remnant of Aram shall be as the glory of the children of Israel,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

4 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the glory of Jacob shall be made thin,

And the fatness of his flesh shall wax lean.

5 And it shall be as when the harvestman gathereth the standing corn,

And reapeth the ears with his arm;

Yea, it shall be as when one gleaneth ears

In the valley of Rephaim.

6 Yet there shall be left therein gleanings,

As at the beating of an olive-tree,

Two or three berries

In the top of the uppermost bough,

Four or five in the branches of the fruitful tree,

Saith the LORD, the God of Israel.

7 In that day shall a man regard his Maker,

And his eyes shall look to the Holy One of Israel.

8 And he shall not regard the altars,

The work of his hands,

Neither shall he look to that which his fingers have made,

Either the Asherim, or the sun-images.

9 In that day shall his strong cities be as the forsaken places, which were forsaken from before the children of Israel, after the manner of woods and lofty forests; and it shall be a desolation.

10 For thou hast forgotten the God of thy salvation,

And thou hast not been mindful of the Rock of thy stronghold;

Therefore thou didst plant plants of pleasantness,

And didst set it with slips of a stranger;

11 In the day of thy planting thou didst make it to grow,

And in the morning thou didst make thy seed to blossom-

A heap of boughs in the day of grief

And of desperate pain.

12 Ah, the uproar of many peoples,

That roar like the roaring of the seas;

And the rushing of nations, that rush

Like the rushing of mighty waters!

13 The nations shall rush like the rushing of many waters;

But He shall rebuke them, and they shall flee far off,

And shall be chased as the chaff of the mountains before the wind,

And like the whirling dust before the storm.

14 At eventide behold terror;

And before the morning they are not.

This is the portion of them that spoil us,

And the lot of them that rob us.

ISAIAH 18 — 1 Ah, land of the buzzing of wings,

Which is beyond the rivers of Ethiopia;

2 That sendeth ambassadors by the sea,

Even in vessels of papyrus upon the waters!

Go, ye swift messengers,

To a nation tall and of glossy skin,

To a people terrible from their beginning onward;

A nation that is sturdy and treadeth down,

Whose land the rivers divide!

3 All ye inhabitants of the world, and ye dwellers on the earth,

When an ensign is lifted up on the mountains, see ye;

And when the horn is blown, hear ye.

4 For thus hath the LORD said unto me:

I will hold Me still, and I will look on in My dwelling-place,

Like clear heat in sunshine,

Like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.

5 For before the harvest, when the blossom is over,

And the bud becometh a ripening grape,

He will cut off the sprigs with pruning-hooks,

And the shoots will He take away and lop off.

6 They shall be left together unto the ravenous birds of the mountains,

And to the beasts of the earth;

And the ravenous birds shall summer upon them,

And all the beasts of the earth shall winter upon them.

7 In that time shall a present be brought unto the LORD of hosts of a people tall and of glossy skin, and from a people terrible from their beginning onward; a nation that is sturdy and treadeth down, whose land the rivers divide, to the place of the name of the LORD of hosts, the mount Zion.

ISAIAH 19 — 1 The burden of Egypt.

Behold, the LORD rideth upon a swift cloud,

And cometh unto Egypt;

And the idols of Egypt shall be moved at His presence,

And the heart of Egypt shall melt within it.

2 And I will spur Egypt against Egypt;

And they shall fight every one against his brother,

And everyone against his neighbour;

City against city, and kingdom against kingdom.

3 And the spirit of Egypt shall be made empty within it;

And I will make void the counsel thereof;

And they shall seek unto the idols, and to the whisperers,

And to the ghosts, and to the familiar spirits.

4 And I will give over the Egyptians

Into the hand of a cruel lord;

And a fierce king shall rule over them,

Saith the Lord, the LORD of hosts.

5 And the waters shall fail from the sea,

And the river shall be drained dry,

6 And the rivers shall become foul;

The streams of Egypt shall be minished and dried up;

The reeds and flags shall wither.

7 The mosses by the Nile, by the brink of the Nile,

And all that is sown by the Nile,

Shall become dry, be driven away, and be no more.

8 The fishers also shall lament,

And all they that cast angle into the Nile shall mourn,

And they that spread nets upon the waters shall languish.

9 Moreover they that work in combed flax,

And they that weave cotton, shall be ashamed.

10 And her foundations shall be crushed,

All they that make dams shall be grieved in soul.

11 The princes of Zoan are utter fools;

The wisest counsellors of Pharaoh are a senseless counsel;

How can ye say unto Pharaoh: 'I am the son of the wise,

The son of ancient kings'?

12 Where are they, then, thy wise men?

And let them tell thee now;

And let them know what the LORD of hosts

Hath purposed concerning Egypt.

13 The princes of Zoan are become fools,

The princes of Noph are deceived;

They have caused Egypt to go astray,

That are the corner-stone of her tribes.

14 The LORD hath mingled within her

A spirit of dizziness;

And they have caused Egypt to stagger in every work thereof,

As a drunken man staggereth in his vomit.

15 Neither shall there be for Egypt any work,

Which head or tail, palm-branch or rush, may do.

16 In that day shall Egypt be like unto women; and it shall tremble and fear because of the shaking of the hand of the LORD of hosts, which He shaketh over it. 17 And the land of Judah shall become a terror unto Egypt, whensoever one maketh mention thereof to it; it shall be afraid, because of the purpose of the LORD of hosts, which He purposeth against it.

18 In that day there shall be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan, and swear to the LORD of hosts; one shall be called The city of destruction.

19 In that day shall there be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar at the border thereof to the LORD. 20 And it shall be for a sign and for a witness unto the LORD of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they shall cry unto the LORD because of the oppressors, and He will send them a saviour, and a defender, who will deliver them. 21 And the LORD shall make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians shall know the LORD in that day; yea, they shall worship with sacrifice and offering, and shall vow a vow unto the LORD, and shall perform it. 22 And the LORD will smite Egypt, smiting and healing; and they shall return unto the LORD, and He will be entreated of them, and will heal them.

23 In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria; and the Egyptians shall worship with the Assyrians.

24 In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, a blessing in the midst of the earth; 25 for that the LORD of hosts hath blessed him, saying: 'Blessed be Egypt My people and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel Mine inheritance.'

ISAIAH 20 — 1 In the year that Tartan came into Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it; 2 at that time the LORD spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying: 'Go, and loose the sackcloth from off thy loins, and put thy shoe from off thy foot.' And he did so, walking naked and barefoot.

3 And the LORD said: 'Like as My servant Isaiah hath walked naked and barefoot to be for three years a sign and a wonder upon Egypt and upon Ethiopia, 4 so shall the king of Assyria lead away the captives of Egypt, and the exiles of Ethiopia, young and old, naked and barefoot, and with buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5 And they shall be dismayed and ashamed, because of Ethiopia their expectation, and of Egypt their glory. 6 And the inhabitant of this coast-land shall say in that day: Behold, such is our expectation, whither we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?'

ISAIAH 21 — 1 The burden of the wilderness of the sea.

As whirlwinds in the South sweeping on,

It cometh from the wilderness, from a dreadful land.

2 A grievous vision is declared unto me:

'The treacherous dealer dealeth treacherously, and the spoiler spoileth.

Go up, O Elam! besiege, O Media!

All the sighing thereof have I made to cease.'

3 Therefore are my loins filled with convulsion;

Pangs have taken hold upon me, as the pangs of a woman in travail; I am bent so that I cannot hear;

I am affrighted so that I cannot see.

4 My heart is bewildered, terror hath overwhelmed me;

The twilight that I longed for hath been turned for me into trembling.

5 They prepare the table, they light the lamps, they eat, they drink-

'Rise up, ye princes, anoint the shield.'

6 For thus hath the Lord said unto me:

Go, set a watchman;

Let him declare what he seeth!

7 And when he seeth a troop, horsemen by pairs,

A troop of asses, a troop of camels,

He shall hearken diligently with much heed.

8 And he cried as a lion: 'Upon the watch-tower, O Lord,

I stand continually in the daytime,

And I am set in my ward all the nights.'

9 And, behold, there came a troop of men, horsemen by pairs.

And he spoke and said:

'Fallen, fallen is Babylon;

And all the graven images of her gods are broken unto the ground.'

10 O thou my threshing, and the winnowing of my floor,

That which I have heard from the LORD of hosts,

The God of Israel, have I declared unto you.

11 The burden of Dumah.

One calleth unto me out of Seir:

'Watchman, what of the night?

Watchman, what of the night?'

12 The watchman said:

'The morning cometh, and also the night-

If ye will inquire, inquire ye; return, come.'

13 The burden upon Arabia.

In the thickets in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye caravans of Dedanites.

14 Unto him that is thirsty bring ye water!

The inhabitants of the land of Tema did meet the fugitive with his bread.

15 For they fled away from the swords, from the drawn sword,

And from the bent bow, and from the grievousness of war.

16 For thus hath the Lord said unto me: 'Within a year, according to the years of a hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall fail; 17 and the residue of the number of the archers, the mighty men of the children of Kedar, shall be diminished; for the LORD, the God of Israel, hath spoken it.'

ISAIAH 22 — 1 The burden concerning the Valley of Vision.

What aileth thee now, that thou art wholly gone up to the housetops,

2 Thou that art full of uproar, a tumultuous city, a joyous town?

Thy slain are not slain with the sword, nor dead in battle.

3 All thy rulers are fled together,

Without the bow they are bound;

All that are found of thee are bound together, they are fled afar off.

4 Therefore said I: 'Look away from me, I will weep bitterly;

Strain not to comfort me, for the destruction of the daughter of my people.'

5 For it is a day of trouble, and of trampling, and of perplexity,

From the Lord, the GOD of hosts, in the Valley of Vision;

Kir shouting, and Shoa at the mount.

6 And Elam bore the quiver, with troops of men, even horsemen;

And Kir uncovered the shield.

7 And it came to pass, when thy choicest valleys were full of chariots,

And the horsemen set themselves in array at the gate,

8 And the covering of Judah was laid bare,

that thou didst look in that day to the armour in the house of the forest. 9 And ye saw the breaches of the city of David, that they were many; and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool. 10 And ye numbered the houses of Jerusalem, and ye broke down the houses to fortify the wall; 11 ye made also a basin between the two walls for the water of the old pool-

But ye looked not unto Him that had done this,

Neither had ye respect unto Him that fashioned it long ago.

12 And in that day did the Lord, the GOD of hosts, call

To weeping, and to lamentation, and to baldness, and to girding with sackcloth;

13 And behold joy and gladness,

Slaying oxen and killing sheep,

Eating flesh and drinking wine-

'Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we shall die!'

14 And the LORD of hosts revealed Himself in mine ears:

Surely this iniquity shall not be expiated by you till ye die,

Saith the Lord, the GOD of hosts.

15 Thus saith the Lord, the GOD of hosts:

Go, get thee unto this steward,

Even unto Shebna, who is over the house:

16 What hast thou here, and whom hast thou here,

That thou hast hewed thee out here a sepulchre,

Thou that hewest thee out a sepulchre on high,

And gravest a habitation for thyself in the rock?

17 Behold, the LORD will hurl thee up and down with a man's throw;

Yea, He will wind thee round and round;

18 He will violently roll and toss thee

Like a ball into a large country;

There shalt thou die, and there shall be the chariots of thy glory,

Thou shame of the lord's house.

19 And I will thrust thee from thy post,

And from thy station shalt thou be pulled down.

20 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah;

21 And I will clothe him with thy robe,

And bind him with thy girdle,

And I will commit thy government into his hand;

And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to the house of Judah.

22 And the key of the house of David will I lay upon his shoulder;

And he shall open, and none shall shut;

And he shall shut, and none shall open.

23 And I will fasten him as a peg in a sure place;

And he shall be for a throne of honour to his father's house.

24 And they shall hang upon him all the glory of his father's house, the offspring and the issue, all vessels of small quantity, from the vessels of cups even to all the vessels of flagons. 25 In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall the peg that was fastened in a sure place give way; and it shall be hewn down, and fall, and the burden that was upon it shall be cut off; for the LORD hath spoken it.

ISAIAH 23 — 1 The burden of Tyre.

Howl, ye ships of Tarshish,

For it is laid waste, so that there is no house, no entering in;

From the land of Kittim it is revealed to them.

2 Be still, ye inhabitants of the coast-land;

Thou whom the merchants of Zidon, that pass over the sea, have replenished.

3 And on great waters the seed of Shihor,

The harvest of the Nile, was her revenue;

And she was the mart of nations.

4 Be thou ashamed, O Zidon; for the sea hath spoken,

The stronghold of the sea, saying:

'I have not travailed, nor brought forth,

Neither have I reared young men, nor brought up virgins.'

5 When the report cometh to Egypt,

They shall be sorely pained at the report of Tyre.

6 Pass ye over to Tarshish;

Howl, ye inhabitants of the coast-land.

7 Is this your joyous city,

Whose feet in antiquity,

In ancient days,

Carried her afar off to sojourn?

8 Who hath devised this against Tyre, the crowning city,

Whose merchants are princes,

Whose traffickers are the honourable of the earth?

9 The LORD of hosts hath devised it,

To pollute the pride of all glory,

To bring into contempt all the honourable of the earth.

10 Overflow thy land as the Nile,

O daughter of Tarshish! there is no girdle any more.

11 He hath stretched out His hand over the sea,

He hath shaken the kingdoms;

The LORD hath given commandment concerning Canaan,

To destroy the strongholds thereof;

12 And He said: 'Thou shalt no more rejoice.'

O thou oppressed virgin daughter of Zidon,

Arise, pass over to Kittim;

Even there shalt thou have no rest.

13 Behold, the land of the Chaldeans-this is the people that was not, when Asshur founded it for shipmen-they set up their towers, they overthrew the palaces thereof; it is made a ruin.

14 Howl, ye ships of Tarshish,

For your stronghold is laid waste.

15 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Tyre shall be forgotten seventy years, according to the days of one king; after the end of seventy years it shall fare with Tyre as in the song of the harlot:

16 Take a harp,

Go about the city,

Thou harlot long forgotten;

Make sweet melody,

Sing many songs,

That thou mayest be remembered.

17 And it shall come to pass after the end of seventy years, that the LORD will remember Tyre, and she shall return to her hire, and shall have commerce with all the kingdoms of the world upon the face of the earth. 18 And her gain and her hire shall be holiness to the LORD; it shall not be treasured nor laid up; for her gain shall be for them that dwell before the LORD, to eat their fill, and for stately clothing.

ISAIAH 24 — 1 Behold, the LORD maketh the earth empty and maketh it waste,

And turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof.

2 And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest;

As with the servant, so with his master;

As with the maid, so with her mistress;

As with the buyer, so with the seller;

As with the lender, so with the borrower;

As with the creditor, so with the debtor.

3 The earth shall be utterly emptied, and clean despoiled;

For the LORD hath spoken this word.

4 The earth fainteth and fadeth away,

The world faileth and fadeth away,

The lofty people of the earth do fail.

5 The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof;

Because they have transgressed the laws, violated the statute,

Broken the everlasting covenant.

6 Therefore hath a curse devoured the earth,

And they that dwell therein are found guilty;

Therefore the inhabitants of the earth waste away,

And men are left few.

7 The new wine faileth, the vine fadeth;

All the merry-hearted do sigh.

8 The mirth of tabrets ceaseth,

The noise of them that rejoice endeth,

The joy of the harp ceaseth.

9 They drink not wine with a song;

Strong drink is bitter to them that drink it.

10 Broken down is the city of wasteness;

Every house is shut up, that none may come in.

11 There is a crying in the streets amidst the wine;

All joy is darkened,

The mirth of the land is gone.

12 In the city is left desolation,

And the gate is smitten unto ruin.

13 For thus shall it be in the midst of the earth, among the peoples,

As at the beating of an olive-tree,

As at the gleanings when the vintage is done.

14 Those yonder lift up their voice, they sing for joy;

For the majesty of the LORD they shout from the sea:

15 'Therefore glorify ye the LORD in the regions of light,

Even the name of the LORD, the God of Israel, in the isles of the sea.'

16 From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs: 'Glory to the righteous.'

But I say: I waste away, I waste away, woe is me!

The treacherous deal treacherously;

Yea, the treacherous deal very treacherously.

17 Terror, and the pit, and the trap, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.

18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the terror shall fall into the pit;

And he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the trap;

For the windows on high are opened,

And the foundations of the earth do shake;

19 The earth is broken, broken down,

The earth is crumbled in pieces,

The earth trembleth and tottereth;

20 The earth reeleth to and fro like a drunken man,

And swayeth to and fro as a lodge;

And the transgression thereof is heavy upon it,

And it shall fall, and not rise again.

21 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the LORD will punish the host of the high heaven on high,

And the kings of the earth upon the earth.

22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the dungeon,

And shall be shut up in the prison,

And after many days shall they be punished.

23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed;

For the LORD of hosts will reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem,

And before His elders shall be Glory.

ISAIAH 25 — 1 O LORD, Thou art my God,

I will exalt Thee, I will praise Thy name,

For Thou hast done wonderful things;

Even counsels of old, in faithfulness and truth.

2 For Thou hast made of a city a heap,

Of a fortified city a ruin;

A castle of strangers to be no city,

It shall never be built.

3 Therefore shall the strong people glorify Thee,

The city of the terrible nations shall fear Thee.

4 For Thou hast been a stronghold to the poor,

A stronghold to the needy in his distress,

A refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat;

For the blast of the terrible ones was as a storm against the wall.

5 As the heat in a dry place, Thou didst subdue the noise of strangers;

As the heat by the shadow of a cloud, the song of the terrible ones was brought low.

6 And in this mountain will the LORD of hosts make unto all peoples

A feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees,

Of fat things full of marrow, of wines on the lees well refined.

7 And He will destroy in this mountain

The face of the covering that is cast over all peoples,

And the veil that is spread over all nations.

8 He will swallow up death for ever;

And the Lord GOD will wipe away tears from off all faces;

And the reproach of His people will He take away from off all the earth;

For the LORD hath spoken it.

9 And it shall be said in that day:

'Lo, this is our God,

For whom we waited, that He might save us;

This is the LORD, for whom we waited,

We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.'

10 For in this mountain will the hand of the LORD rest,

And Moab shall be trodden down in his place,

Even as straw is trodden down in the dunghill.

11 And when he shall spread forth his hands in the midst thereof,

As he that swimmeth spreadeth forth his hands to swim,

His pride shall be brought down together with the cunning of his hands.

12 And the high fortress of thy walls will He bring down, lay low,

And bring to the ground, even to the dust.

ISAIAH 26 — 1 In that day shall this song be sung in the land of Judah:

We have a strong city;

Walls and bulwarks doth He appoint for salvation.

2 Open ye the gates,

That the righteous nation that keepeth faithfulness may enter in.

3 The mind stayed on Thee Thou keepest in perfect peace;

Because it trusteth in Thee.

4 Trust ye in the LORD for ever,

For the LORD is GOD, an everlasting Rock.

5 For He hath brought down them that dwell on high,

The lofty city,

Laying it low, laying it low even to the ground,

Bringing it even to the dust.

6 The foot shall tread it down,

Even the feet of the poor, and the steps of the needy.

7 The way of the just is straight;

Thou, Most Upright, makest plain the path of the just.

8 Yea, in the way of Thy judgments,

O LORD, have we waited for Thee;

To Thy name and to Thy memorial is the desire of our soul.

9 With my soul have I desired Thee in the night;

Yea, with my spirit within me have I sought Thee earnestly;

For when Thy judgments are in the earth,

The inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

10 Let favour be shown to the wicked, yet will he not learn righteousness;

In the land of uprightness will he deal wrongfully,

And will not behold the majesty of the LORD.

11 LORD, Thy hand was lifted up, yet they see not;

They shall see with shame Thy zeal for the people;

Yea, fire shall devour Thine adversaries.

12 LORD, Thou wilt establish peace for us;

For Thou hast indeed wrought all our works for us.

13 O LORD our God, other lords beside Thee have had dominion over us;

But by Thee only do we make mention of Thy name.

14 The dead live not, the shades rise not;

To that end hast Thou punished and destroyed them, and made all their memory to perish.

15 Thou hast gotten Thee honour with the nations, O LORD,

Yea, exceeding great honour with the nations;

Thou art honoured unto the farthest ends of the earth.

16 LORD, in trouble have they sought Thee,

Silently they poured out a prayer when Thy chastening was upon them.

17 Like as a woman with child, that draweth near the time of her delivery,

Is in pain and crieth out in her pangs;

So have we been at Thy presence, O LORD.

18 We have been with child, we have been in pain,

We have as it were brought forth wind;

We have not wrought any deliverance in the land;

Neither are the inhabitants of the world come to life.

19 Thy dead shall live, my dead bodies shall arise-

Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust-

For Thy dew is as the dew of light,

And the earth shall bring to life the shades.

20 Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers,

And shut thy doors about thee;

Hide thyself for a little moment,

Until the indignation be overpast.

21 For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of His place

To visit upon the inhabitants of the earth their iniquity;

The earth also shall disclose her blood,

And shall no more cover her slain.

ISAIAH 27 — 1 In that day the LORD with His sore and great and strong sword will punish leviathan the slant serpent, and leviathan the tortuous serpent; and He will slay the dragon that is in the sea.

2 In that day sing ye of her:

'A vineyard of foaming wine!'

3 I the LORD do guard it,

I water it every moment;

Lest Mine anger visit it,

I guard it night and day.

4 Fury is not in Me;

Would that I were as the briers and thorns in flame!

I would with one step burn it altogether.

5 Or else let him take hold of My strength,

That he may make peace with Me;

Yea, let him make peace with Me.

6 In days to come shall Jacob take root,

Israel shall blossom and bud;

And the face of the world shall be filled with fruitage.

7 Hath He smitten him as He smote those that smote him?

Or is he slain according to the slaughter of them that were slain by Him?

8 In full measure, when Thou sendest her away, Thou dost contend with her;

He hath removed her with His rough blast in the day of the east wind.

9 Therefore by this shall the iniquity of Jacob be expiated,

And this is all the fruit of taking away his sin:

When he maketh all the stones of the altar as chalkstones that are beaten in pieces,

So that the Asherim and the sun-images shall rise no more.

10 For the fortified city is solitary,

A habitation abandoned and forsaken, like the wilderness;

There shall the calf feed, and there shall he lie down,

And consume the branches thereof

11 When the boughs thereof are withered, they shall be broken off;

The women shall come, and set them on fire;

For it is a people of no understanding;

Therefore He that made them will not have compassion upon them,

And He that formed them will not be gracious unto them.

12 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the LORD will beat off [His fruit]

From the flood of the River unto the Brook of Egypt,

And ye shall be gathered one by one, O ye children of Israel.

13 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That a great horn shall be blown;

And they shall come that were lost in the land of Assyria,

And they that were dispersed in the land of Egypt;

And they shall worship the LORD in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

ISAIAH 28 — 1 Woe to the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim,

And to the fading flower of his glorious beauty,

Which is on the head of the fat valley of them that are smitten down with wine!

2 Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one,

As a storm of hail, a tempest of destruction,

As a storm of mighty waters overflowing,

That casteth down to the earth with violence.

3 The crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim

Shall be trodden under foot;

4 And the fading flower of his glorious beauty,

Which is on the head of the fat valley,

Shall be as the first-ripe fig before the summer,

Which when one looketh upon it,

While it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.

5 In that day shall the LORD of hosts be

For a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty,

Unto the residue of His people;

6 And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment,

And for strength to them that turn back the battle at the gate.

7 But these also reel through wine,

And stagger through strong drink;

The priest and the prophet reel through strong drink,

They are confused because of wine,

They stagger because of strong drink;

They reel in vision, they totter in judgment.

8 For all tables are full of filthy vomit,

And no place is clean.

9 Whom shall one teach knowledge?

And whom shall one make to understand the message?

Them that are weaned from the milk,

Them that are drawn from the breasts?

10 For it is precept by precept, precept by precept,

Line by line, line by line;

Here a little, there a little.

11 For with stammering lips and with a strange tongue

Shall it be spoken to this people;

12 To whom it was said: 'This is the rest,

Give ye rest to the weary;

And this is the refreshing';

Yet they would not hear.

13 And so the word of the LORD is unto them

Precept by precept, precept by precept,

Line by line, line by line;

Here a little, there a little;

That they may go, and fall backward, and be broken,

And snared, and taken.

14 Wherefore hear the word of the LORD, ye scoffers,

The ballad-mongers of this people which is in Jerusalem:

15 Because ye have said: 'We have made a covenant with death,

And with the nether-world are we at agreement;

When the scouring scourge shall pass through,

It shall not come unto us;

For we have made lies our refuge,

And in falsehood have we hid ourselves';

16 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone,

A tried stone, a costly corner-stone of sure foundation;

He that believeth shall not make haste.

17 And I will make justice the line,

And righteousness the plummet;

And the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies,

And the waters shall overflow the hiding-place.

18 And your covenant with death shall be disannulled

And your agreement with the nether-world shall not stand;

When the scouring scourge shall pass through,

Then ye shall be trodden down by it,

19 As often as it passeth through, it shall take you;

For morning by morning shall it pass through,

By day and by night;

And it shall be sheer terror to understand the message.

20 For the bed is too short for a man to stretch himself;

And the covering too narrow when he gathereth himself up.

21 For the LORD will rise up as in mount Perazim,

He will be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon;

That He may do His work, strange is His work,

And bring to pass His act, strange is His act.

22 Now therefore be ye not scoffers,

Lest your bands be made strong;

For an extermination wholly determined have I heard from the Lord, the GOD of hosts,

Upon the whole land.

23 Give ye ear, and hear my voice;

Attend, and hear my speech.

24 Is the plowman never done with plowing to sow,

With the opening and harrowing of his ground?

25 When he hath made plain the face thereof,

Doth he not cast abroad the black cummin, and scatter the cummin,

And put in the wheat in rows and the barley in the appointed place

And the spelt in the border thereof?

26 For He doth instruct him aright;

His God doth teach him.

27 For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing-sledge,

Neither is a cart-wheel turned about upon the cummin;

But the black cummin is beaten out with a staff,

And the cummin with a rod.

28 Is bread corn crushed?

Nay, he will not ever be threshing it;

And though the roller of his wagon and its sharp edges move noisily,

He doth not crush it.

29 This also cometh forth from the LORD of hosts:

Wonderful is His counsel, and great His wisdom.

ISAIAH 29 — 1 Ah, Ariel, Ariel, the city where David encamped!

Add ye year to year,

Let the feasts come round!

2 Then will I distress Ariel,

And there shall be mourning and moaning;

And she shall be unto Me as a hearth of God.

3 And I will encamp against thee round about,

And will lay siege against thee with a mound,

And I will raise siege works against thee.

4 And brought down thou shalt speak out of the ground,

And thy speech shall be low out of the dust;

And thy voice shall be as of a ghost out of the ground,

And thy speech shall chirp out of the dust.

5 But the multitude of thy foes shall be like small dust,

And the multitude of the terrible ones as chaff that passeth away;

Yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly-

6 There shall be a visitation from the LORD of hosts

With thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise,

With whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.

7 And the multitude of all the nations that war against Ariel,

Even all that war against her, and the bulwarks about her, and they that distress her,

Shall be as a dream, a vision of the night.

8 And it shall be as when a hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth,

But he awaketh, and his soul is empty;

Or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh,

But he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite-

So shall the multitude of all the nations be,

That fight against mount Zion.

9 Stupefy yourselves, and be stupid!

Blind yourselves, and be blind!

Ye that are drunken, but not with wine,

That stagger, but not with strong drink.

10 For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep,

And hath closed your eyes;

The prophets, and your heads, the seers, hath He covered.

11 And the vision of all this is become unto you as the words of a writing that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying: 'Read this, I pray thee'; and he saith: 'I cannot, for it is sealed'; 12 and the writing is delivered to him that is not learned, saying: 'Read this, I pray thee'; and he saith: 'I am not learned.'

13 And the Lord said: Forasmuch as this people draw near,

And with their mouth and with their lips do honour Me,

But have removed their heart far from Me,

And their fear of Me is a commandment of men learned by rote;

14 Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvellous work among this people,

Even a marvellous work and a wonder;

And the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,

And the prudence of their prudent men shall be hid.

15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD,

And their works are in the dark,

And they say: 'Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?'

16 O your perversity!

Shall the potter be esteemed as clay;

That the thing made should say of him that made it: 'He made me not';

Or the thing framed say of him that framed it: 'He hath no understanding?'

17 Is it not yet a very little while,

And Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,

And the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?

18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of a book,

And the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.

19 The humble also shall increase their joy in the LORD,

And the neediest among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the terrible one is brought to nought,

And the scorner ceaseth,

And all they that watch for iniquity are cut off;

21 That make a man an offender by words,

And lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate,

And turn aside the just with a thing of nought.

22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:

Jacob shall not now be ashamed,

Neither shall his face now wax pale;

23 When he seeth his children, the work of My hands, in the midst of him,

That they sanctify My name;

Yea, they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,

And shall stand in awe of the God of Israel.

24 They also that err in spirit shall come to understanding,

And they that murmur shall learn instruction.

ISAIAH 30 — 1 Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD,

That take counsel, but not of Me;

And that form projects, but not of My spirit,

That they may add sin to sin;

2 That walk to go down into Egypt,

And have not asked at My mouth;

To take refuge in the stronghold of Pharaoh,

And to take shelter in the shadow of Egypt!

3 Therefore shall the stronghold of Pharaoh turn to your shame,

And the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your confusion.

4 For his princes are at Zoan,

And his ambassadors are come to Hanes.

5 They shall all be ashamed of a people that cannot profit them,

That are not a help nor profit,

But a shame, and also a reproach.

6 The burden of the beasts of the South.

Through the land of trouble and anguish,

From whence come the lioness and the lion,

The viper and flying serpent,

They carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses,

And their treasures upon the humps of camels,

To a people that shall not profit them.

7 For Egypt helpeth in vain, and to no purpose;

Therefore have I called her

Arrogancy that sitteth still.

8 Now go, write it before them on a tablet,

And inscribe it in a book,

That it may be for the time to come

For ever and ever.

9 For it is a rebellious people,

Lying children,

Children that refuse to hear the teaching of the LORD;

10 That say to the seers: 'See not,'

And to the prophets: 'Prophesy not unto us right things,

Speak unto us smooth things, prophesy delusions;

11 Get you out of the way,

Turn aside out of the path,

Cause the Holy One of Israel

To cease from before us.'

12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel:

Because ye despise this word,

And trust in oppression and perverseness,

And stay thereon;

13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you

As a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall,

Whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

14 And He shall break it as a potter's vessel is broken,

Breaking it in pieces without sparing;

So that there shall not be found among the pieces thereof a sherd

To take fire from the hearth,

Or to take water out of the cistern.

15 For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel:

In sitting still and rest shall ye be saved,

In quietness and in confidence shall be your strength;

And ye would not.

16 But ye said: 'No, for we will flee upon horses';

Therefore shall ye flee;

And: 'We will ride upon the swift';

Therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.

17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one,

At the rebuke of five shall ye flee;

Till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain,

And as an ensign on a hill.

18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you,

And therefore will He be exalted, that He may have compassion upon you;

For the LORD is a God of justice,

Happy are all they that wait for Him.

19 For, O people that dwellest in Zion at Jerusalem,

Thou shalt weep no more;

He will surely be gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry,

When He shall hear, He will answer thee.

20 And though the Lord give you sparing bread and scant water,

Yet shall not thy Teacher hide Himself any more,

But thine eyes shall see thy Teacher;

21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying:

'This is the way, walk ye in it,

When ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.'

22 And ye shall defile thy graven images overlaid with silver,

And thy molten images covered with gold;

Thou shalt put them far away as one unclean;

Thou shalt say unto it: 'Get thee hence.'

23 And He will give the rain for thy seed, wherewith thou sowest the ground,

And bread of the increase of the ground, and it shall be fat and plenteous;

In that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.

24 The oxen likewise and the young asses that till the ground

Shall eat savoury provender,

Which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.

25 And there shall be upon every lofty mountain, and upon every high hill

Streams and watercourses,

In the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun,

And the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days,

In the day that the LORD bindeth up the bruise of His people,

And healeth the stroke of their wound.

27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far,

With His anger burning, and in thick uplifting of smoke;

His lips are full of indignation,

And His tongue is as a devouring fire;

28 And His breath is as an overflowing stream,

That divideth even unto the neck,

To sift the nations with the sieve of destruction;

And a bridle that causeth to err shall be in the jaws of the peoples.

29 Ye shall have a song

As in the night when a feast is hallowed;

And gladness of heart, as when one goeth with the pipe

To come into the mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel.

30 And the LORD will cause His glorious voice to be heard,

And will show the lighting down of His arm,

With furious anger, and the flame of a devouring fire,

With a bursting of clouds, and a storm of rain, and hailstones.

31 For through the voice of the LORD shall Asshur be dismayed,

The rod with which He smote.

32 And in every place where the appointed staff shall pass,

Which the LORD shall lay upon him,

It shall be with tabrets and harps;

And in battles of wielding will He fight with them.

33 For a hearth is ordered of old;

Yea, for the king it is prepared,

Deep and large;

The pile thereof is fire and much wood;

The breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.

ISAIAH 31 — 1 Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help,

And rely on horses,

And trust in chariots, because they are many,

And in horsemen, because they are exceeding mighty;

But they look not unto the Holy One of Israel,

Neither seek the LORD!

2 Yet He also is wise,

And bringeth evil,

And doth not call back His words;

But will arise against the house of the evil-doers,

And against the help of them that work iniquity.

3 Now the Egyptians are men, and not God,

And their horses flesh, and not spirit;

So when the LORD shall stretch out His hand,

Both he that helpeth shall stumble, and he that is helped shall fall,

And they all shall perish together.

4 For thus saith the LORD unto me:

Like as the lion, or the young lion, growling over his prey,

Though a multitude of shepherds be called forth against him,

Will not be dismayed at their voice,

Nor abase himself for the noise of them;

So will the LORD of hosts come down

To fight upon mount Zion, and upon the hill thereof.

5 As birds hovering,

So will the LORD of hosts protect Jerusalem;

He will deliver it as He protecteth it,

He will rescue it as He passeth over.

6 Turn ye unto Him

Against whom ye have deeply rebelled, O children of Israel.

7 For in that day they shall cast away

Every man his idols of silver, and his idols of gold,

Which your own hands have made unto you for a sin.

8 Then shall Asshur fall with the sword, not of man,

And the sword, not of men, shall devour him;

And he shall flee from the sword,

And his young men shall become tributary.

9 And his rock shall pass away by reason of terror,

And his princes shall be dismayed at the ensign,

Saith the LORD, whose fire is in Zion,

And His furnace in Jerusalem.

ISAIAH 32 — 1 Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness,

And as for princes, they shall rule in justice.

2 And a man shall be as in a hiding-place from the wind,

And a covert from the tempest;

As by the watercourses in a dry place,

As in the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

3 And the eyes of them that see shall not be closed,

And the ears of them that hear shall attend.

4 The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge,

And the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.

5 The vile person shall be no more called liberal,

Nor the churl said to be noble.

6 For the vile person will speak villainy,

And his heart will work iniquity,

To practise ungodliness, and to utter wickedness against the LORD,

To make empty the soul of the hungry,

And to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.

7 The instruments also of the churl are evil;

He deviseth wicked devices

To destroy the poor with lying words,

And the needy when he speaketh right.

8 But the liberal deviseth liberal things;

And by liberal things shall he stand.

9 Rise up, ye women that are at ease, and hear my voice;

Ye confident daughters, give ear unto my speech.

10 After a year and days shall ye be troubled, ye confident women;

For the vintage shall fail, the ingathering shall not come.

11 Tremble, ye women that are at ease;

Be troubled, ye confident ones;

Strip you, and make you bare,

And gird sackcloth upon your loins,

12 Smiting upon the breasts

For the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine;

13 For the land of my people

Whereon thorns and briers come up;

Yea, for all the houses of joy

And the joyous city.

14 For the palace shall be forsaken;

The city with its stir shall be deserted;

The mound and the tower shall be for dens for ever,

A joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks;

15 Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high,

And the wilderness become a fruitful field,

And the fruitful field be counted for a forest.

16 Then justice shall dwell in the wilderness,

And righteousness shall abide in the fruitful field.

17 And the work of righteousness shall be peace;

And the effect of righteousness quietness and confidence for ever.

18 And my people shall abide in a peaceable habitation,

And in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting-places.

19 And it shall hail, in the downfall of the forest;

But the city shall descend into the valley.

20 Happy are ye that sow beside all waters,

That send forth freely the feet of the ox and the ass.

ISAIAH 33 — 1 Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled;

And dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee!

When thou hast ceased to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled;

And when thou art weary with dealing treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.

2 O LORD, be gracious unto us;

We have waited for Thee;

Be Thou their arm every morning,

Our salvation also in the time of trouble.

3 At the noise of the tumult the peoples are fled;

At the lifting up of Thyself the nations are scattered.

4 And your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathereth;

As locusts leap do they leap upon it.

5 The LORD is exalted, for He dwelleth on high;

He hath filled Zion with justice and righteousness.

6 And the stability of thy times shall be

A hoard of salvation-wisdom and knowledge,

And the fear of the LORD which is His treasure.

7 Behold, their valiant ones cry without;

The ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.

8 The highways lie waste,

The wayfaring man ceaseth;

He hath broken the covenant,

He hath despised the cities,

He regardeth not man.

9 The land mourneth and languisheth;

Lebanon is ashamed, it withereth;

Sharon is like a wilderness;

And Bashan and Carmel are clean bare.

10 Now will I arise, saith the LORD;

Now will I be exalted;

Now will I lift Myself up.

11 Ye conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble;

Your breath is a fire that shall devour you.

12 And the peoples shall be as the burnings of lime;

As thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.

13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done;

And, ye that are near, acknowledge My might.

14 The sinners in Zion are afraid;

Trembling hath seized the ungodly:

'Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire?

Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?'

15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly;

He that despiseth the gain of oppressions,

That shaketh his hands from holding of bribes,

That stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood,

And shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil;

16 He shall dwell on high;

His place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks;

His bread shall be given, his waters shall be sure.

17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty;

They shall behold a land stretching afar.

18 Thy heart shall muse on the terror:

'Where is he that counted, where is he that weighed?

Where is he that counted the towers?'

19 Thou shalt not see the fierce people;

A people of a deep speech that thou canst not perceive,

Of a stammering tongue that thou canst not understand.

20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemn gatherings;

Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a peaceful habitation,

A tent that shall not be removed,

The stakes whereof shall never be plucked up,

Neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.

21 But there the LORD will be with us in majesty,

In a place of broad rivers and streams;

Wherein shall go no galley with oars,

Neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.

22 For the LORD is our Judge,

The LORD is our Lawgiver,

The LORD is our King;

He will save us.

23 Thy tacklings are loosed;

They do not hold the stand of their mast,

They do not spread the sail;

Then is the prey of a great spoil divided;

The lame take the prey.

24 And the inhabitant shall not say: 'I am sick';

The people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.

ISAIAH 34 — 1 Come near, ye nations, to hear,

And attend, ye peoples;

Let the earth hear, and the fulness thereof,

The world, and all things that come forth of it.

2 For the LORD hath indignation against all the nations,

And fury against all their host;

He hath utterly destroyed them,

He hath delivered them to the slaughter.

3 Their slain also shall be cast out,

And the stench of their carcasses shall come up,

And the mountains shall be melted with their blood.

4 And all the host of heaven shall moulder away,

And the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll;

And all their host shall fall down,

As the leaf falleth off from the vine,

And as a falling fig from the fig-tree.

5 For My sword hath drunk its fill in heaven;

Behold, it shall come down upon Edom,

And upon the people of My ban, to judgment.

6 The sword of the LORD is filled with blood,

It is made fat with fatness,

With the blood of lambs and goats,

With the fat of the kidneys of rams;

For the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah,

And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.

7 And the wild-oxen shall come down with them,

And the bullocks with the bulls;

And their land shall be drunken with blood,

And their dust made fat with fatness.

8 For the LORD hath a day of vengeance,

A year of recompense for the controversy of Zion.

9 And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch,

And the dust thereof into brimstone,

And the land thereof shall become burning pitch.

10 It shall not be quenched night nor day,

The smoke thereof shall go up for ever;

From generation to generation it shall lie waste:

None shall pass through it for ever and ever.

11 But the pelican and the bittern shall possess it,

And the owl and the raven shall dwell therein;

And He shall stretch over it

The line of confusion, and the plummet of emptiness.

12 As for her nobles, none shall be there to be called to the kingdom;

And all her princes shall be nothing.

13 And thorns shall come up in her palaces,

Nettles and thistles in the fortresses thereof;

And it shall be a habitation of wild-dogs,

An enclosure for ostriches.

14 And the wild-cats shall meet with the jackals,

And the satyr shall cry to his fellow;

Yea, the night-monster shall repose there,

And shall find her a place of rest.

15 There shall the arrowsnake make her nest, and lay,

And hatch, and brood under her shadow;

Yea, there shall the kites be gathered,

Every one with her mate.

16 Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read;

No one of these shall be missing,

None shall want her mate;

For My mouth it hath commanded,

And the breath thereof it hath gathered them.

17 And He hath cast the lot for them,

And His hand hath divided it unto them by line;

They shall possess it for ever,

From generation to generation shall they dwell therein.

ISAIAH 35 — 1 The wilderness and the parched land shall be glad;

And the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose.

2 It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice,

Even with joy and singing;

The glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it,

The excellency of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of the LORD,

The excellency of our God.

3 Strengthen ye the weak hands,

And make firm the tottering knees.

4 Say to them that are of a fearful heart: 'Be strong, fear not';

Behold, your God will come with vengeance,

With the recompense of God He will come and save you.

5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened,

And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

6 Then shall the lame man leap as a hart,

And the tongue of the dumb shall sing;

For in the wilderness shall waters break out,

And streams in the desert.

7 And the parched land shall become a pool,

And the thirsty ground springs of water;

In the habitation of jackals herds shall lie down,

It shall be an enclosure for reeds and rushes.

8 And a highway shall be there, and a way,

And it shall be called The way of holiness;

The unclean shall not pass over it; but it shall be for those;

The wayfaring men, yea fools, shall not err therein.

9 No lion shall be there,

Nor shall any ravenous beast go up thereon,

They shall not be found there;

But the redeemed shall walk there;

10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,

And come with singing unto Zion,

And everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;

They shall obtain gladness and joy,

And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

ISAIAH 36 — 1 Now it came to pass in the fourteenth year of king Hezekiah, that Sennacherib king of Assyria came up against all the fortified cities of Judah, and took them. 2 And the king of Assyria sent Rab-shakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem unto king Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fullers' field. 3 Then came forth unto him Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, that was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder. 4 And Rab-shakeh said unto them: 'Say ye now to Hezekiah: Thus saith the great king, the king of Assyria: What confidence is this wherein thou trustest? 5 I said: It is but vain words; for counsel and strength are for the war. Now on whom dost thou trust, that thou hast rebelled against me? 6 Behold, thou trustest upon the staff of this bruised reed, even upon Egypt; whereon if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it; so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him. 7 But if thou say unto me: We trust in the LORD our God; is not that He, whose high places and whose altars Hezekiah hath taken away, and hath said to Judah and to Jerusalem: Ye shall worship before this altar? 8 Now therefore, I pray thee, make a wager with my master, the king of Assyria, and I will give thee two thousand horses, if thou be able on thy part to set riders upon them. 9 How then canst thou turn away the face of one captain, even of the least of my master's servants? yet thou puttest thy trust on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen! 10 And am I now come up without the LORD against this land to destroy it? The LORD said unto me: Go up against this land, and destroy it.'

11 Then said Eliakim and Shebna and Joah unto Rab-shakeh: 'Speak, I pray thee, unto thy servants in the Aramean language, for we understand it; and speak not to us in the Jews' language, in the ears of the people that are on the wall.' 12 But Rab-shakeh said: 'Hath my master sent me to thy master, and to thee, to speak these words? hath he not sent me to the men that sit upon the wall, to eat their own dung, and to drink their own water with you?' 13 Then Rab-shakeh stood, and cried with a loud voice in the Jews' language, and said: 'Hear ye the words of the great king, the king of Assyria. 14 Thus saith the king: Let not Hezekiah beguile you, for he will not be able to deliver you; 15 neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying: The LORD will surely deliver us; this city shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 16 Hearken not to Hezekiah; for thus saith the king of Assyria: Make your peace with me, and come out to me; and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig-tree, and drink ye every one the waters of his own cistern; 17 until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of corn and wine, a land of bread and vineyards. 18 Beware lest Hezekiah persuade you, saying: The LORD will deliver us. Hath any of the gods of the nations delivered his land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? 19 Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? where are the gods of Sepharvaim? and have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? 20 Who are they among all the gods of these countries, that have delivered their country out of my hand, that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?'

21 But they held their peace, and answered him not a word; for the king's commandment was, saying: 'Answer him not.' 22 Then came Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, that was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph the recorder, to Hezekiah with their clothes rent, and told him the words of Rab-shakeh.

ISAIAH 37 — 1 And it came to pass, when king Hezekiah heard it, that he rent his clothes, and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the LORD. 2 And he sent Eliakim, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, unto Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz. 3 And they said unto him: 'Thus saith Hezekiah: This day is a day of trouble, and of rebuke, and of contumely; for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth. 4 It may be the LORD thy God will hear the words of Rab-shakeh, whom the king of Assyria his master hath sent to taunt the living God, and will rebuke the words which the LORD thy God hath heard; wherefore make prayer for the remnant that is left.' 5 So the servants of king Hezekiah came to Isaiah. 6 And Isaiah said unto them: 'Thus shall ye say to your master: Thus saith the LORD: Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me. 7 Behold, I will put a spirit in him, and he shall hear a rumour, and shall return unto his own land; and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land.'

8 So Rab-shakeh returned, and found the king of Assyria warring against Libnah; for he had heard that he was departed from Lachish. 9 And he heard say concerning Tirhakah king of Ethiopia: 'He is come out to fight against thee.' And when he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah, saying: 10 'Thus shall ye speak to Hezekiah king of Judah, saying: Let not thy God in whom thou trustest beguile thee, saying: Jerusalem shall not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria. 11 Behold, thou hast heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all lands, by destroying them utterly; and shalt thou be delivered? 12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them, which my fathers have destroyed, Gozan, and Haran, and Rezeph, and the children of Eden that were in Telassar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath, and the king of Arpad, and the king of the city of Sepharvaim, of Hena, and Ivvah?'

14 And Hezekiah received the letter from the hand of the messengers, and read it; and Hezekiah went up unto the house of the LORD, and spread it before the LORD. 15 And Hezekiah prayed unto the LORD, saying: 16 'O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, that sittest upon the cherubim, Thou art the God, even Thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; Thou hast made heaven and earth. 17 Incline Thine ear, O LORD, and hear; open Thine eyes, O LORD, and see; and hear all the words of Sennacherib, who hath sent to taunt the living God. 18 Of a truth, LORD, the kings of Assyria have laid waste all the countries, and their land, 19 and have cast their gods into the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone; therefore they have destroyed them. 20 Now therefore, O LORD our God, save us from his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that Thou art the LORD, even Thou only.'

21 Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent unto Hezekiah, saying: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Whereas thou hast prayed to Me against Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word which the LORD hath spoken concerning him:

The virgin daughter of Zion

Hath despised thee and laughed thee to scorn;

The daughter of Jerusalem

Hath shaken her head at thee.

23 Whom hast thou taunted and blasphemed?

And against whom hast thou exalted thy voice?

Yea, thou hast lifted up thine eyes on high,

Even against the Holy One of Israel!

24 By thy servants hast thou taunted the Lord,

And hast said: With the multitude of my chariots

Am I come up to the height of the mountains,

To the innermost parts of Lebanon;

And I have cut down the tall cedars thereof,

And the choice cypress-trees thereof;

And I have entered into his farthest height,

The forest of his fruitful field.

25 I have digged and drunk water,

And with the sole of my feet have I dried up

All the rivers of Egypt.

26 Hast thou not heard?

Long ago I made it,

In ancient times I fashioned it;

Now have I brought it to pass,

Yea, it is done; that fortified cities

Should be laid waste into ruinous heaps.

27 Therefore their inhabitants were of small power,

They were dismayed and confounded;

They were as the grass of the field,

And as the green herb,

As the grass on the housetops,

And as a field of corn before it is grown up.

28 But I know thy sitting down, and thy going out, and thy coming in,

And thy raging against Me.

29 Because of thy raging against Me,

And for that thine uproar is come up into Mine ears,

Therefore will I put My hook in thy nose,

And My bridle in thy lips,

And I will turn thee back by the way

By which thou camest.

30 And this shall be the sign unto thee: ye shall eat this year that which groweth of itself, and in the second year that which springeth of the same; and in the third year sow ye, and reap, and plant vineyards, and eat the fruit thereof. 31 And the remnant that is escaped of the house of Judah shall again take root downward, and bear fruit upward. 32 For out of Jerusalem shall go forth a remnant, and out of mount Zion they that shall escape; the zeal of the LORD of hosts shall perform this. 33 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the king of Assyria: He shall not come unto this city, nor shoot an arrow there, neither shall he come before it with shield, nor cast a mound against it. 34 By the way that he came, by the same shall he return, and he shall not come unto this city, saith the LORD. 35 For I will defend this city to save it, for Mine own sake, and for My servant David's sake.'

36 And the angel of the LORD went forth, and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred and fourscore and five thousand; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. 37 So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed, and went, and returned, and dwelt at Nineveh. 38 And it came to pass, as he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, that Adrammelech and Sarezer his sons smote him with the sword; and they escaped into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son reigned in his stead.

ISAIAH 38 — 1 In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him, and said unto him: 'Thus saith the LORD: Set thy house in order; for thou shalt die, and not live.' 2 Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall, and prayed unto the LORD, 3 and said: 'Remember now, O LORD, I beseech Thee, how I have walked before Thee in truth and with a whole heart, and have done that which is good in Thy sight.' And Hezekiah wept sore. 4 Then came the word of the LORD to Isaiah, saying: 5 'Go, and say to Hezekiah: Thus saith the LORD, the God of David thy father: I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears; behold, I will add unto thy days fifteen years. 6 And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria; and I will defend this city. 7 And this shall be the sign unto thee from the LORD, that the LORD will do this thing that He hath spoken: 8 behold, I will cause the shadow of the dial, which is gone down on the sun-dial of Ahaz, to return backward ten degrees.' So the sun returned ten degrees, by which degrees it was gone down.

9 The writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick, and was recovered of his sickness.

10 I said: In the noontide of my days I shall go,

Even to the gates of the nether-world;

I am deprived of the residue of my years.

11 I said: I shall not see the LORD,

Even the LORD in the land of the living;

I shall behold man no more with the inhabitants of the world.

12 My habitation is plucked up and carried away from me

As a shepherd's tent;

I have rolled up like a weaver my life;

He will cut me off from the thrum;

From day even to night wilt Thou make an end of me.

13 The more I make myself like unto a lion until morning,

The more it breaketh all my bones;

From day even to night wilt Thou make an end of me.

14 Like a swallow or a crane, so do I chatter,

I do moan as a dove;

Mine eyes fail with looking upward.

O LORD, I am oppressed, be Thou my surety.

15 What shall I say? He hath both spoken unto me,

And Himself hath done it;

I shall go softly all my years for the bitterness of my soul.

16 O Lord, by these things men live,

And altogether therein is the life of my spirit;

Wherefore recover Thou me, and make me to live.

17 Behold, for my peace I had great bitterness;

But Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it

From the pit of corruption;

For Thou hast cast all my sins behind Thy back.

18 For the nether-world cannot praise Thee,

Death cannot celebrate Thee;

They that go down into the pit cannot hope for Thy truth.

19 The living, the living, he shall praise Thee,

As I do this day;

The father to the children shall make known Thy truth.

20 The LORD is ready to save me;

Therefore we will sing songs to the stringed instruments

All the days of our life in the house of the LORD.

21 And Isaiah said: 'Let them take a cake of figs, and lay it for a plaster upon the boil, and he shall recover.' 22 And Hezekiah said. 'What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the LORD?'

ISAIAH 39 — 1 At that time Merodach-baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent a letter and a present to Hezekiah; for he heard that he had been sick, and was recovered. 2 And Hezekiah was glad of them, and showed them his treasure-house, the silver, and the gold, and the spices, and the precious oil, and all the house of his armour, and all that was found in his treasures; there was nothing in his house, nor in all his dominion, that Hezekiah showed them not. 3 Then came Isaiah the prophet unto king Hezekiah, and said unto him: 'What said these men? and from whence came they unto thee?' And Hezekiah said: 'They are come from a far country unto me, even from Babylon.' 4 Then said he: 'What have they seen in thy house?' And Hezekiah answered: 'All that is in my house have they seen; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.' 5 Then said Isaiah to Hezekiah: 'Hear the word of the LORD of hosts: 6 Behold, the days come, that all that is in thy house, and that which thy fathers have laid up in store until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left, saith the LORD. 7 And of thy sons that shall issue from thee, whom thou shalt beget, shall they take away; and they shall be officers in the palace of the king of Babylon.' 8 Then said Hezekiah unto Isaiah: 'Good is the word of the LORD which thou hast spoken.' He said moreover: 'If but there shall be peace and truth in my days.'

ISAIAH 40 — 1 Comfort ye, comfort ye My people,

Saith your God.

2 Bid Jerusalem take heart,

And proclaim unto her,

That her time of service is accomplished,

That her guilt is paid off;

That she hath received of the LORD'S hand

Double for all her sins.

3 Hark! one calleth:

'Clear ye in the wilderness the way of the LORD,

Make plain in the desert

A highway for our God.

4 Every valley shall be lifted up,

And every mountain and hill shall be made low;

And the rugged shall be made level,

And the rough places a plain;

5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,

And all flesh shall see it together;

For the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.'

6 Hark! one saith: 'Proclaim!'

And he saith: 'What shall I proclaim?'

'All flesh is grass,

And all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field;

7 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth;

Because the breath of the LORD bloweth upon it-

Surely the people is grass.

8 The grass withereth, the flower fadeth;

But the word of our God shall stand for ever.'

9 O thou that tellest good tidings to Zion,

Get thee up into the high mountain;

O thou that tellest good tidings to Jerusalem,

Lift up thy voice with strength;

Lift it up, be not afraid;

Say unto the cities of Judah:

'Behold your God!'

10 Behold, the Lord GOD will come as a Mighty One,

And His arm will rule for Him;

Behold, His reward is with Him,

And His recompense before Him.

11 Even as a shepherd that feedeth his flock,

That gathereth the lambs in his arm,

And carrieth them in his bosom,

And gently leadeth those that give suck.

12 Who hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,

And meted out heaven with the span,

And comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure,

And weighed the mountains in scales,

And the hills in a balance?

13 Who hath meted out the spirit of the LORD?

Or who was His counsellor

That he might instruct Him?

14 With whom took He counsel, and who instructed Him,

And taught Him in the path of right,

And taught Him knowledge,

And made Him to know the way of discernment?

15 Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket,

And are counted as the small dust of the balance;

Behold the isles are as a mote in weight.

16 And Lebanon is not sufficient fuel,

Nor the beasts thereof sufficient for burnt-offerings.

17 All the nations are as nothing before Him;

They are accounted by Him as things of nought, and vanity.

18 To whom then will ye liken God?

Or what likeness will ye compare unto Him?

19 The image perchance, which the craftsman hath melted,

And the goldsmith spread over with gold,

The silversmith casting silver chains?

20 A holm-oak is set apart,

He chooseth a tree that will not rot;

He seeketh unto him a cunning craftsman

To set up an image, that shall not be moved.

21 Know ye not? hear ye not?

Hath it not been told you from the beginning?

Have ye not understood the foundations of the earth?

22 It is He that sitteth above the circle of the earth,

And the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers;

That stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain,

And spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in;

23 That bringeth princes to nothing;

He maketh the judges of the earth as a thing of nought.

24 Scarce are they planted,

Scarce are they sown,

Scarce hath their stock taken root in the earth;

When He bloweth upon them, they wither,

And the whirlwind taketh them away as stubble.

25 To whom then will ye liken Me, that I should be equal?

Saith the Holy One.

26 Lift up your eyes on high,

And see: who hath created these?

He that bringeth out their host by number,

He calleth them all by name;

By the greatness of His might, and for that He is strong in power,

Not one faileth.

27 Why sayest thou, O Jacob,

And speakest, O Israel:

'My way is hid from the LORD,

And my right is passed over from my God'?

28 Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard

That the everlasting God, the LORD,

The Creator of the ends of the earth,

Fainteth not, neither is weary?

His discernment is past searching out.

29 He giveth power to the faint;

And to him that hath no might He increaseth strength.

30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary,

And the young men shall utterly fall;

31 But they that wait for the LORD shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings as eagles;

They shall run, and not be weary;

They shall walk, and not faint.

ISAIAH 41 — 1 Keep silence before Me, O islands,

And let the peoples renew their strength;

Let them draw near, then let them speak;

Let us come near together to judgment.

2 Who hath raised up one from the east,

At whose steps victory attendeth?

He giveth nations before him,

And maketh him rule over kings;

His sword maketh them as the dust,

His bow as the driven stubble.

3 He pursueth them, and passeth on safely;

The way with his feet he treadeth not.

4 Who hath wrought and done it?

He that called the generations from the beginning.

I, the LORD, who am the first,

And with the last am the same.

5 The isles saw, and feared;

The ends of the earth trembled;

They drew near, and came.

6 They helped every one his neighbour;

And every one said to his brother:

'Be of good courage.'

7 So the carpenter encouraged the goldsmith,

And he that smootheth with the hammer him that smiteth the anvil,

Saying of the soldering: 'It is good';

And he fastened it with nails, that it should not be moved.

8 But thou, Israel, My servant,

Jacob whom I have chosen,

The seed of Abraham My friend;

9 Thou whom I have taken hold of from the ends of the earth,

And called thee from the uttermost parts thereof,

And said unto thee: 'Thou art My servant,

I have chosen thee and not cast thee away';

10 Fear thou not, for I am with thee,

Be not dismayed, for I am thy God;

I strengthen thee, yea, I help thee;

Yea, I uphold thee with My victorious right hand.

11 Behold, all they that were incensed against thee

Shall be ashamed and confounded;

They that strove with thee

Shall be as nothing, and shall perish.

12 Thou shalt seek them, and shalt not find them,

Even them that contended with thee;

They that warred against thee

Shall be as nothing, and as a thing of nought.

13 For I the LORD thy God

Hold thy right hand,

Who say unto thee: 'Fear not,

I help thee.'

14 Fear not, thou worm Jacob,

And ye men of Israel;

I help thee, saith the LORD,

And thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.

15 Behold, I make thee a new threshing-sledge

Having sharp teeth;

Thou shalt thresh the mountains, and beat them small,

And shalt make the hills as chaff.

16 Thou shalt fan them, and the wind shall carry them away,

And the whirlwind shall scatter them;

And thou shalt rejoice in the LORD,

Thou shalt glory in the Holy One of Israel.

17 The poor and needy seek water and there is none,

And their tongue faileth for thirst;

I the LORD will answer them,

I the God of Israel will not forsake them.

18 I will open rivers on the high hills,

And fountains in the midst of the valleys;

I will make the wilderness a pool of water,

And the dry land springs of water.

19 I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the acacia-tree,

And the myrtle, and the oil-tree;

I will set in the desert the cypress, the plane-tree, and the larch together;

20 That they may see, and know,

And consider, and understand together,

That the hand of the LORD hath done this,

And the Holy One of Israel hath created it.

21 Produce your cause, saith the LORD;

Bring forth your reasons, saith the King of Jacob.

22 Let them bring them forth, and declare unto us

The things that shall happen;

The former things, what are they?

Declare ye, that we may consider,

And know the end of them;

Or announce to us things to come.

23 Declare the things that are to come hereafter,

That we may know that ye are gods;

Yea, do good, or do evil,

That we may be dismayed, and behold it together.

24 Behold, ye are nothing,

And your work a thing of nought;

An abomination is he that chooseth you.

25 I have roused up one from the north, and he is come,

From the rising of the sun one that calleth upon My name;

And he shall come upon rulers as upon mortar,

And as the potter treadeth clay.

26 Who hath declared from the beginning, that we may know?

And beforetime, that we may say that he is right?

Yea, there is none that declareth,

Yea, there is none that announceth,

Yea, there is none that heareth your utterances.

27 A harbinger unto Zion will I give: 'Behold, behold them',

And to Jerusalem a messenger of good tidings.

28 And I look, but there is no man;

Even among them, but there is no counsellor,

That, when I ask of them, can give an answer.

29 Behold, all of them,

Their works are vanity and nought;

Their molten images are wind and confusion.

ISAIAH 42 — 1 Behold My servant, whom I uphold;

Mine elect, in whom My soul delighteth;

I have put My spirit upon him,

He shall make the right to go forth to the nations.

2 He shall not cry, nor lift up,

Nor cause his voice to be heard in the street.

3 A bruised reed shall he not break,

And the dimly burning wick shall he not quench;

He shall make the right to go forth according to the truth.

4 He shall not fail nor be crushed,

Till he have set the right in the earth;

And the isles shall wait for his teaching.

5 Thus saith God the LORD,

He that created the heavens, and stretched them forth,

He that spread forth the earth and that which cometh out of it,

He that giveth breath unto the people upon it,

And spirit to them that walk therein:

6 I the LORD have called thee in righteousness,

And have taken hold of thy hand,

And kept thee, and set thee for a covenant of the people,

For a light of the nations;

7 To open the blind eyes,

To bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,

And them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house.

8 I am the LORD, that is My name;

And My glory will I not give to another,

Neither My praise to graven images.

9 Behold, the former things are come to pass,

And new things do I declare;

Before they spring forth I tell you of them.

10 Sing unto the LORD a new song,

And His praise from the end of the earth;

Ye that go down to the sea, and all that is therein,

The isles, and the inhabitants thereof.

11 Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice,

The villages that Kedar doth inhabit;

Let the inhabitants of Sela exult,

Let them shout from the top of the mountains.

12 Let them give glory unto the LORD,

And declare His praise in the islands.

13 The LORD will go forth as a mighty man,

He will stir up jealousy like a man of war;

He will cry, yea, He will shout aloud,

He will prove Himself mighty against His enemies.

14 I have long time held My peace,

I have been still, and refrained Myself;

Now will I cry like a travailing woman,

Gasping and panting at once.

15 I will make waste mountains and hills,

And dry up all their herbs;

And I will make the rivers islands,

And will dry up the pools.

16 And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not,

In paths that they knew not will I lead them;

I will make darkness light before them,

And rugged places plain.

These things will I do,

And I will not leave them undone.

17 They shall be turned back, greatly ashamed,

That trust in graven images,

That say unto molten images:

'Ye are our gods.'

18 Hear, ye deaf,

And look, ye blind, that ye may see.

19 Who is blind, but My servant?

Or deaf, as My messenger that I send?

Who is blind as he that is wholehearted,

And blind as the LORD'S servant?

20 Seeing many things, thou observest not;

Opening the ears, he heareth not.

21 The LORD was pleased, for His righteousness' sake,

To make the teaching great and glorious.

22 But this is a people robbed and spoiled,

They are all of them snared in holes,

And they are hid in prison-houses;

They are for a prey, and none delivereth,

For a spoil, and none saith: 'Restore.'

23 Who among you will give ear to this?

Who will hearken and hear for the time to come?

24 Who gave Jacob for a spoil, and Israel to the robbers?

Did not the LORD?

He against whom we have sinned,

And in whose ways they would not walk,

Neither were they obedient unto His law.

25 Therefore He poured upon him the fury of His anger,

And the strength of battle;

And it set him on fire round about, yet he knew not,

And it burned him, yet he laid it not to heart.

ISAIAH 43 — 1 But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob,

And He that formed thee, O Israel:

Fear not, for I have redeemed thee,

I have called thee by thy name, thou art Mine.

2 When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee,

And through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee;

When thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned,

Neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.

3 For I am the LORD thy God,

The Holy One of Israel, thy Saviour;

I have given Egypt as thy ransom,

Ethiopia and Seba for thee.

4 Since thou art precious in My sight, and honourable,

And I have loved thee;

Therefore will I give men for thee,

And peoples for thy life.

5 Fear not, for I am with thee;

I will bring thy seed from the east,

And gather thee from the west;

6 I will say to the north: 'Give up,'

And to the south: 'Keep not back,

Bring My sons from far,

And My daughters from the end of the earth;

7 Every one that is called by My name,

And whom I have created for My glory,

I have formed him, yea, I have made him.'

8 The blind people that have eyes shall be brought forth,

And the deaf that have ears.

9 All the nations are gathered together,

And the peoples are assembled;

Who among them can declare this,

And announce to us former things?

Let them bring their witnesses, that they may be justified;

And let them hear, and say: 'It is truth.'

10 Ye are My witnesses, saith the LORD,

And My servant whom I have chosen;

That ye may know and believe Me, and understand

That I am He;

Before Me there was no God formed,

Neither shall any be after Me.

11 I, even I, am the LORD;

And beside Me there is no saviour.

12 I have declared, and I have saved,

And I have announced,

And there was no strange god among you;

Therefore ye are My witnesses, saith the LORD, and I am God.

13 Yea, since the day was I am He, and there is none that can deliver out of

My hand; I will work, and who can reverse it?

14 Thus saith the LORD, your Redeemer,

The Holy One of Israel:

For your sake I have sent to Babylon,

And I will bring down all of them as fugitives,

Even the Chaldeans, in the ships of their shouting.

15 I am the LORD, your Holy One,

The Creator of Israel, your King.

16 Thus saith the LORD, who maketh a way in the sea,

And a path in the mighty waters;

17 Who bringeth forth the chariot and horse,

The army and the power-

They lie down together, they shall not rise,

They are extinct, they are quenched as a wick:

18 Remember ye not the former things,

Neither consider the things of old.

19 Behold, I will do a new thing;

Now shall it spring forth; shall ye not know it?

I will even make a way in the wilderness,

And rivers in the desert.

20 The beasts of the field shall honour Me,

The jackals and the ostriches;

Because I give waters in the wilderness,

And rivers in the desert,

To give drink to My people, Mine elect;

21 The people which I formed for Myself,

That they might tell of My praise.

22 Yet thou hast not called upon Me, O Jacob,

Neither hast thou wearied thyself about Me, O Israel.

23 Thou hast not brought Me the small cattle of thy burnt-offerings;

Neither hast thou honoured Me with thy sacrifices.

I have not burdened thee with a meal-offering,

Nor wearied thee with frankincense.

24 Thou hast bought Me no sweet cane with money,

Neither hast thou satisfied Me with the fat of thy sacrifices;

But thou hast burdened Me with thy sins,

Thou hast wearied Me with thine iniquities.

25 I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy transgressions for Mine own sake;

And thy sins I will not remember.

26 Put Me in remembrance, let us plead together;

Declare thou, that thou mayest be justified.

27 Thy first father sinned,

And thine intercessors have transgressed against Me.

28 Therefore I have profaned the princes of the sanctuary,

And I have given Jacob to condemnation,

And Israel to reviling.

ISAIAH 44 — 1 Yet now hear, O Jacob My servant,

And Israel, whom I have chosen;

2 Thus saith the LORD that made thee,

And formed thee from the womb, who will help thee:

Fear not, O Jacob My servant,

And thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

3 For I will pour water upon the thirsty land,

And streams upon the dry ground;

I will pour My spirit upon thy seed,

And My blessing upon thine offspring;

4 And they shall spring up among the grass,

As willows by the watercourses.

5 One shall say: 'I am the LORD'S';

And another shall call himself by the name of Jacob;

And another shall subscribe with his hand unto the LORD,

And surname himself by the name of Israel.

6 Thus saith the LORD, the King of Israel,

And his Redeemer the LORD of hosts:

I am the first, and I am the last,

And beside Me there is no God.

7 And who, as I, can proclaim-

Let him declare it, and set it in order for Me-

Since I appointed the ancient people?

And the things that are coming, and that shall come to pass, let them declare.

8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid;

Have I not announced unto thee of old, and declared it?

And ye are My witnesses.

Is there a God beside Me?

Yea, there is no Rock; I know not any.

9 They that fashion a graven image are all of them vanity,

And their delectable things shall not profit;

And their own witnesses see not, nor know;

That they may be ashamed.

10 Who hath fashioned a god, or molten an image

That is profitable for nothing?

11 Behold, all the fellows thereof shall be ashamed;

And the craftsmen skilled above men;

Let them all be gathered together, let them stand up;

They shall fear, they shall be ashamed together.

12 The smith maketh an axe,

And worketh in the coals, and fashioneth it with hammers,

And worketh it with his strong arm;

Yea, he is hungry, and his strength faileth;

He drinketh no water, and is faint.

13 The carpenter stretcheth out a line;

He marketh it out with a pencil;

He fitteth it with planes,

And he marketh it out with the compasses,

And maketh it after the figure of a man,

According to the beauty of a man, to dwell in the house.

14 He heweth him down cedars,

And taketh the ilex and the oak,

And strengtheneth for himself one among the trees of the forest;

He planteth a bay-tree, and the rain doth nourish it.

15 Then a man useth it for fuel;

And he taketh thereof, and warmeth himself;

Yea, he kindleth it, and baketh bread;

Yea, he maketh a god, and worshippeth it;

He maketh it a graven image, and falleth down thereto.

16 He burneth the half thereof in the fire;

With the half thereof he eateth flesh;

He roasteth roast, and is satisfied;

Yea, he warmeth himself, and saith: 'Aha,

I am warm, I have seen the fire';

17 And the residue thereof he maketh a god, even his graven image;

He falleth down unto it and worshippeth, and prayeth unto it,

And saith: 'Deliver me, for thou art my god.'

18 They know not, neither do they understand;

For their eyes are bedaubed, that they cannot see,

And their hearts, that they cannot understand.

19 And none considereth in his heart,

Neither is there knowledge nor understanding to say:

'I have burned the half of it in the fire;

Yea, also I have baked bread upon the coals thereof;

I have roasted flesh and eaten it;

And shall I make the residue thereof an abomination?

Shall I fall down to the stock of a tree?'

20 He striveth after ashes,

A deceived heart hath turned him aside,

That he cannot deliver his soul, nor say:

'Is there not a lie in my right hand?'

21 Remember these things, O Jacob,

And Israel, for thou art My servant;

I have formed thee, thou art Mine own servant;

O Israel, thou shouldest not forget Me.

22 I have blotted out, as a thick cloud, thy transgressions,

And, as a cloud, thy sins;

Return unto Me, for I have redeemed thee.

23 Sing, O ye heavens, for the LORD hath done it;

Shout, ye lowest parts of the earth;

Break forth into singing, ye mountains,

O forest, and every tree therein;

For the LORD hath redeemed Jacob,

And doth glorify Himself in Israel.

24 Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer,

And He that formed thee from the womb:

I am the LORD, that maketh all things;

That stretched forth the heavens alone;

That spread abroad the earth by Myself;

25 That frustrateth the tokens of the imposters,

And maketh diviners mad;

That turneth wise men backward,

And maketh their knowledge foolish;

26 That confirmeth the word of His servant,

And performeth the counsel of His messengers;

That saith of Jerusalem: 'She shall be inhabited';

And of the cities of Judah: 'They shall be built,

And I will raise up the waste places thereof';

27 That saith to the deep: 'Be dry,

And I will dry up thy rivers';

28 That saith of Cyrus: 'He is My shepherd,

And shall perform all My pleasure';

Even saying of Jerusalem: 'She shall be built';

And to the temple: 'My foundation shall be laid.'

ISAIAH 45 — 1 Thus saith the LORD to His anointed,

To Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden,

To subdue nations before him,

And to loose the loins of kings;

To open the doors before him,

And that the gates may not be shut:

2 I will go before thee,

And make the crooked places straight;

I will break in pieces the doors of brass,

And cut in sunder the bars of iron;

3 And I will give thee the treasures of darkness,

And hidden riches of secret places,

That thou mayest know that I am the LORD,

Who call thee by thy name, even the God of Israel.

4 For the sake of Jacob My servant,

And Israel Mine elect,

I have called thee by thy name,

I have surnamed thee, though thou hast not known Me.

5 I am the LORD, and there is none else,

Beside Me there is no God;

I have girded thee, though thou hast not known Me;

6 That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west,

That there is none beside Me;

I am the LORD; and there is none else;

7 I form the light, and create darkness;

I make peace, and create evil;

I am the LORD, that doeth all these things.

8 Drop down, ye heavens, from above,

And let the skies pour down righteousness;

Let the earth open, that they may bring forth salvation,

And let her cause righteousness to spring up together;

I the LORD have created it.

9 Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker,

As a potsherd with the potsherds of the earth!

Shall the clay say to him that fashioned it: 'What makest thou?'

Or: 'Thy work, it hath no hands'?

10 Woe unto him that saith unto his father. 'Wherefore begettest thou?'

Or to a woman: 'Wherefore travailest thou?'

11 Thus saith the LORD,

The Holy One of Israel, and his Maker:

Ask Me of the things that are to come;

Concerning My sons, and concerning the work of My hands, command ye Me.

12 I, even I, have made the earth,

And created man upon it;

I, even My hands, have stretched out the heavens,

And all their host have I commanded.

13 I have roused him up in victory,

And I make level all his ways;

He shall build My city,

And he shall let Mine exiles go free,

Not for price nor reward,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

14 Thus saith the LORD:

The labour of Egypt, and the merchandise of Ethiopia,

And of the Sabeans, men of stature,

Shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine;

They shall go after thee, in chains they shall come over;

And they shall fall down unto thee,

They shall make supplication unto thee:

Surely God is in thee, and there is none else,

There is no other God.

15 Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself,

O God of Israel, the Saviour.

16 They shall be ashamed, yea, confounded, all of them;

They shall go in confusion together that are makers of idols.

17 O Israel, that art saved by the LORD with an everlasting salvation;

Ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end.

18 For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens,

He is God;

That formed the earth and made it,

He established it,

He created it not a waste, He formed it to be inhabited:

I am the LORD, and there is none else.

19 I have not spoken in secret,

In a place of the land of darkness;

I said not unto the seed of Jacob:

'Seek ye Me in vain';

I the LORD speak righteousness,

I declare things that are right.

20 Assemble yourselves and come, draw near together,

Ye that are escaped of the nations;

They have no knowledge that carry the wood of their graven image,

And pray unto a god that cannot save.

21 Declare ye, and bring them near,

Yea, let them take counsel together:

Who hath announced this from ancient time,

And declared it of old?

Have not I the LORD?

And there is no God else beside Me,

A just God and a Saviour;

There is none beside Me.

22 Look unto Me, and be ye saved,

All the ends of the earth;

For I am God, and there is none else.

23 By Myself have I sworn,

The word is gone forth from My mouth in righteousness,

And shall not come back,

That unto Me every knee shall bow,

Every tongue shall swear.

24 Only in the LORD, shall one say of Me, is victory and strength;

Even to Him shall men come in confusion,

All they that were incensed against Him.

25 In the LORD shall all the seed of Israel

Be justified, and shall glory.

ISAIAH 46 — 1 Bel boweth down, Nebo stoopeth;

Their idols are upon the beasts, and upon the cattle;

The things that ye carried about are made a load,

A burden to the weary beast.

2 They stoop, they bow down together,

They could not deliver the burden;

And themselves are gone into captivity.

3 Hearken unto Me, O house of Jacob,

And all the remnant of the house of Israel,

That are borne by Me from the birth,

That are carried from the womb:

4 Even to old age I am the same,

And even to hoar hairs will I carry you;

I have made, and I will bear;

Yea, I will carry, and will deliver.

5 To whom will ye liken Me, and make Me equal,

And compare Me, that we may be like?

6 Ye that lavish gold out of the bag,

And weigh silver in the balance;

Ye that hire a goldsmith, that he make it a god,

To fall down thereto, yea, to worship.

7 He is borne upon the shoulder, he is carried,

And set in his place, and he standeth,

From his place he doth not remove;

Yea, though one cry unto him, he cannot answer,

Nor save him out of his trouble.

8 Remember this, and stand fast;

Bring it to mind, O ye transgressors.

9 Remember the former things of old:

That I am God, and there is none else;

I am God, and there is none like Me;

10 Declaring the end from the beginning,

And from ancient times things that are not yet done;

Saying: 'My counsel shall stand,

And all My pleasure will I do';

11 Calling a bird of prey from the east,

The man of My counsel from a far country;

Yea, I have spoken, I will also bring it to pass,

I have purposed, I will also do it.

12 Hearken unto Me, ye stout-hearted,

That are far from righteousness:

13 I bring near My righteousness, it shall not be far off,

And My salvation shall not tarry;

And I will place salvation in Zion

For Israel My glory.

ISAIAH 47 — 1 Come down, and sit in the dust,

O virgin daughter of Babylon,

Sit on the ground without a throne,

O daughter of the Chaldeans;

For thou shalt no more be called

Tender and delicate.

2 Take the millstones, and grind meal;

Remove thy veil,

Strip off the train, uncover the leg,

Pass through the rivers.

3 Thy nakedness shall be uncovered,

Yea, thy shame shall be seen;

I will take vengeance,

And will let no man intercede.

4 Our Redeemer, the LORD of hosts is His name,

The Holy One of Israel.

5 Sit thou silent, and get thee into darkness,

O daughter of the Chaldeans;

For thou shalt no more be called

The mistress of kingdoms.

6 I was wroth with My people,

I profaned Mine inheritance,

And gave them into thy hand;

Thou didst show them no mercy;

Upon the aged hast thou very heavily

Laid thy yoke.

7 And thou saidst:

'For ever shall I be mistress';

So that thou didst not lay these things to thy heart,

Neither didst remember the end thereof.

8 Now therefore hear this, thou that art given to pleasures,

That sittest securely,

That sayest in thy heart:

'I am, and there is none else beside me;

I shall not sit as a widow,

Neither shall I know the loss of children';

9 But these two things shall come to thee in a moment

In one day,

The loss of children, and widow-hood;

In their full measure shall they come upon thee,

For the multitude of thy sorceries,

And the great abundance of thine enchantments.

10 And thou hast been secure in thy wickedness,

Thou hast said: 'None seeth me';

Thy wisdom and thy knowledge,

It hath perverted thee;

And thou hast said in thy heart.

'I am, and there is none else beside me.'

11 Yet shall evil came upon thee;

Thou shalt not know how to charm it away;

And calamity shall fall upon thee;

Thou shalt not be able to put it away;

And ruin shall come upon thee suddenly,

Before thou knowest.

12 Stand now with thine enchantments,

And with the multitude of thy sorceries,

Wherein thou hast laboured from thy youth;

If so be thou shalt be able to profit,

If so be thou mayest prevail.

13 Thou art wearied in the multitude of thy counsels;

Let now the astrologers, the stargazers,

The monthly prognosticators,

Stand up, and save thee

From the things that shall come upon thee.

14 Behold, they shall be as stubble;

The fire shall burn them;

They shall not deliver themselves

From the power of the flame;

It shall not be a coal to warm at,

Nor a fire to sit before.

15 Thus shall they be unto thee

With whom thou hast laboured;

They that have trafficked with thee from thy youth

Shall wander every one to his quarter;

There shall be none to save thee.

ISAIAH 48 — 1 Hear ye this, O house of Jacob,

Who are called by the name of Israel,

and are come forth out of the fountain of Judah;

Who swear by the name of the LORD,

And make mention of the God of Israel,

But not in truth, nor in righteousness.

2 For they call themselves of the holy city,

And stay themselves upon the God of Israel,

The LORD of hosts is His name.

3 I have declared the former things from of old;

Yea, they went forth out of My mouth, and I announced them;

Suddenly I did them, and they came to pass.

4 Because I knew that thou art obstinate,

And thy neck is an iron sinew,

And thy brow brass;

5 Therefore I have declared it to thee from of old;

Before it came to pass I announced it to thee;

Lest thou shouldest say: 'Mine idol hath done them,

And my graven image, and my molten image, hath commanded them.'

6 Thou hast heard, see, all this;

And ye, will ye not declare it?

I have announced unto thee new things from this time,

Even hidden things, which thou hast not known.

7 They are created now, and not from of old,

And before this day thou heardest them not;

Lest thou shouldest say: 'Behold, I knew them.'

8 Yea, thou heardest not; yea, thou knewest not;

Yea, from of old thine ear was not opened;

For I knew that thou wouldest deal very treacherously,

And wast called a transgressor from the womb.

9 For My name's sake will I defer Mine anger,

And for My praise will I refrain for thee,

That I cut thee not off.

10 Behold, I have refined thee, but not as silver;

I have tried thee in the furnace of affliction.

11 For Mine own sake, for Mine own sake, will I do it;

For how should it be profaned?

And My glory will I not give to another.

12 Hearken unto Me, O Jacob,

And Israel My called: I am He;

I am the first, I also am the last.

13 Yea, My hand hath laid the foundation of the earth,

And My right hand hath spread out the heavens;

When I call unto them,

They stand up together.

14 Assemble yourselves, all ye, and hear;

Which among them hath declared these things?

He whom the LORD loveth shall perform His pleasure on Babylon,

And show His arm on the Chaldeans.

15 I, even I, have spoken, yea, I have called him;

I have brought him, and he shall make his way prosperous.

16 Come ye near unto Me, hear ye this:

From the beginning I have not spoken in secret;

From the time that it was, there am I;

And now the Lord GOD hath sent me, and His spirit.

17 Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer,

The Holy One of Israel:

I am the LORD thy God,

Who teacheth thee for thy profit,

Who leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go.

18 Oh that thou wouldest hearken to My commandments!

Then would thy peace be as a river,

And thy righteousness as the waves of the sea;

19 Thy seed also would be as the sand,

And the offspring of thy body like the grains thereof;

His name would not be cut off

Nor destroyed from before Me.

20 Go ye forth from Babylon,

Flee ye from the Chaldeans;

With a voice of singing

Declare ye, tell this,

Utter it even to the end of the earth;

Say ye: 'The LORD hath redeemed

His servant Jacob.

21 And they thirsted not

When He led them through the deserts;

He caused the waters to flow

Out of the rock for them;

He cleaved the rock also,

And the waters gushed out.'

22 There is no peace,

Saith the LORD concerning the wicked.

ISAIAH 49 — 1 Listen, O isles, unto me,

And hearken, ye peoples, from far:

The LORD hath called me from the womb,

From the bowels of my mother hath He made mention of my name;

2 And He hath made my mouth like a sharp sword,

In the shadow of His hand hath He hid me;

And He hath made me a polished shaft,

In His quiver hath He concealed me;

3 And He said unto me: 'Thou art My servant,

Israel, in whom I will be glorified.'

4 But I said: 'I have laboured in vain,

I have spent my strength for nought and vanity;

Yet surely my right is with the LORD,

And my recompense with my God.'

5 And now saith the LORD

That formed me from the womb to be His servant,

To bring Jacob back to Him,

And that Israel be gathered unto Him-

For I am honourable in the eyes of the LORD,

And my God is become my strength-

6 Yea, He saith: 'It is too light a thing that thou shouldest be My servant

To raise up the tribes of Jacob,

And to restore the offspring of Israel;

I will also give thee for a light of the nations,

That My salvation may be unto the end of the earth.'

7 Thus saith the LORD,

The Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One,

To him who is despised of men,

To him who is abhorred of nations,

To a servant of rulers:

Kings shall see and arise,

Princes, and they shall prostrate themselves;

Because of the LORD that is faithful,

Even the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee.

8 Thus saith the LORD:

In an acceptable time have I answered thee,

And in a day of salvation have I helped thee;

And I will preserve thee, and give thee

For a covenant of the people,

To raise up the land,

To cause to inherit the desolate heritages;

9 Saying to the prisoners: 'Go forth';

To them that are in darkness: 'Show yourselves';

They shall feed in the ways,

And in all high hills shall be their pasture;

10 They shall not hunger nor thirst,

Neither shall the heat nor sun smite them;

For He that hath compassion on them will lead them,

Even by the springs of water will He guide them.

11 And I will make all My mountains a way,

And My highways shall be raised on high.

12 Behold, these shall come from far;

And, lo, these from the north and from the west,

And these from the land of Sinim.

13 Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth,

And break forth into singing, O mountains;

For the LORD hath comforted His people,

And hath compassion upon His afflicted.

14 But Zion said: 'The LORD hath forsaken me,

And the Lord hath forgotten me.'

15 Can a woman forget her sucking child,

That she should not have compassion on the son of her womb?

Yea, these may forget,

Yet will not I forget thee.

16 Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of My hands;

Thy walls are continually before Me.

17 Thy children make haste;

Thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee.

18 Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold:

All these gather themselves together, and come to thee.

As I live, saith the LORD,

Thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament,

And gird thyself with them, like a bride.

19 For thy waste and thy desolate places

And thy land that hath been destroyed-

Surely now shalt thou be too strait for the inhabitants,

And they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.

20 The children of thy bereavement

Shall yet say in thine ears:

'The place is too strait for me;

Give place to me that I may dwell.'

21 Then shalt thou say in thy heart:

'Who hath begotten me these,

Seeing I have been bereaved of my children, and am solitary,

An exile, and wandering to and fro?

And who hath brought up these?

Behold, I was left alone;

These, where were they?'

22 Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations,

And set up Mine ensign to the peoples,

And they shall bring thy sons in their bosom,

And thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.

23 And kings shall be thy foster-fathers,

And their queens thy nursing mothers;

They shall bow down to thee with their face to the earth,

And lick the dust of thy feet;

And thou shalt know that I am the LORD,

For they shall not be ashamed that wait for Me.

24 Shall the prey be taken from the mighty,

Or the captives of the victorious be delivered?

25 But thus saith the LORD:

Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away,

And the prey of the terrible shall be delivered;

And I will contend with him that contendeth with thee,

And I will save thy children.

26 And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh;

And they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine;

And all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour,

And thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.

ISAIAH 50 — 1 Thus saith the LORD:

Where is the bill of your mother's divorcement,

Wherewith I have put her away?

Or which of My creditors is it

To whom I have sold you?

Behold, for your iniquities were ye sold,

And for your transgressions was your mother put away.

2 Wherefore, when I came, was there no man?

When I called, was there none to answer?

Is My hand shortened at all, that it cannot redeem?

Or have I no power to deliver?

Behold, at My rebuke I dry up the sea,

I make the rivers a wilderness;

Their fish become foul, because there is no water,

And die for thirst.

3 I clothe the heavens with blackness,

And I make sackcloth their covering.

4 The Lord GOD hath given me

The tongue of them that are taught,

That I should know how to sustain with words him that is weary;

He wakeneth morning by morning,

He wakeneth mine ear

To hear as they that are taught.

5 The Lord GOD hath opened mine ear,

And I was not rebellious,

Neither turned away backward.

6 I gave my back to the smiters,

And my checks to them that plucked off the hair;

I hid not my face from shame and spitting.

7 For the Lord GOD will help me;

Therefore have I not been confounded;

Therefore have I set my face like a flint,

And I know that I shall not be ashamed.

8 He is near that justifieth me;

Who will contend with me? let us stand up together;

Who is mine adversary? let him come near to me.

9 Behold, the Lord GOD will help me;

Who is he that shall condemn me?

Behold, they all shall wax old as a garment,

The moth shall eat them up.

10 Who is among you that feareth the LORD,

That obeyeth the voice of His servant?

Though he walketh in darkness,

And hath no light,

Let him trust in the name of the LORD,

And stay upon his God.

11 Behold, all ye that kindle a fire,

That gird yourselves with firebrands,

Begone in the flame of your fire,

And among the brands that ye have kindled.

This shall ye have of My hand;

Ye shall lie down in sorrow.

ISAIAH 51 — 1 Hearken to Me, ye that follow after righteousness,

Ye that seek the LORD;

Look unto the rock whence ye were hewn,

And to the hole of the pit whence ye were digged.

2 Look unto Abraham your father,

And unto Sarah that bore you;

For when he was but one I called him,

And I blessed him, and made him many.

3 For the LORD hath comforted Zion;

He hath comforted all her waste places,

And hath made her wilderness like Eden,

And her desert like the garden of the LORD;

Joy and gladness shall be found therein,

Thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

4 Attend unto Me, O My people,

And give ear unto Me, O My nation;

For instruction shall go forth from Me,

And My right on a sudden for a light of the peoples.

5 My favour is near,

My salvation is gone forth,

And Mine arms shall judge the peoples;

The isles shall wait for Me,

And on Mine arm shall they trust.

6 Lift up your eyes to the heavens,

And look upon the earth beneath;

For the heavens shall vanish away like smoke,

And the earth shall wax old like a garment,

And they that dwell therein shall die in like manner;

But My salvation shall be for ever,

And My favour shall not be abolished.

7 Hearken unto Me, ye that know righteousness,

The people in whose heart is My law;

Fear ye not the taunt of men,

Neither be ye dismayed at their revilings.

8 For the moth shall eat them up like a garment,

And the worm shall eat them like wool;

But My favour shall be for ever,

And My salvation unto all generations.

9 Awake, awake, put on strength,

O arm of the LORD;

Awake, as in the days of old,

The generations of ancient times.

Art thou not it that hewed Rahab in pieces,

That pierced the dragon?

10 Art thou not it that dried up the sea,

The waters of the great deep;

That made the depths of the sea a way

For the redeemed to pass over?

11 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return,

And come with singing unto Zion,

And everlasting joy shall be upon their heads;

They shall obtain gladness and joy,

And sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

12 I, even I, am He that comforteth you:

Who art thou, that thou art afraid of man that shall die,

And of the son of man that shall be made as grass;

13 And hast forgotten the LORD thy Maker,

That stretched forth the heavens,

And laid the foundations of the earth;

And fearest continually all the day

Because of the fury of the oppressor,

As he maketh ready to destroy?

And where is the fury of the oppressor?

14 He that is bent down shall speedily be loosed;

And he shall not go down dying into the pit,

Neither shall his bread fail.

15 For I am the LORD thy God,

Who stirreth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar;

The LORD of hosts is His name.

16 And I have put My words in thy mouth,

And have covered thee in the shadow of My hand,

That I may plant the heavens,

And lay the foundations of the earth,

And say unto Zion: 'Thou art My people.'

17 Awake, awake,

Stand up, O Jerusalem,

That hast drunk at the hand of the LORD

The cup of His fury;

Thou hast drunken the beaker, even the cup of staggering,

And drained it.

18 There is none to guide her

Among all the sons whom she hath brought forth;

Neither is there any that taketh her by the hand

Of all the sons that she hath brought up.

19 These two things are befallen thee;

Who shall bemoan thee?

Desolation and destruction, and the famine and the sword;

How shall I comfort thee?

20 Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets,

As an antelope in a net;

They are full of the fury of the LORD,

The rebuke of thy God.

21 Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted,

And drunken, but not with wine;

22 Thus saith thy Lord the LORD,

And thy God that pleadeth the cause of His people:

Behold, I have taken out of thy hand

The cup of staggering;

The beaker, even the cup of My fury,

Thou shalt no more drink it again;

23 And I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee;

That have said to thy soul:

'Bow down, that we may go over';

And thou hast laid thy back as the ground,

And as the street, to them that go over.

ISAIAH 52 — 1 Awake, awake,

Put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments,

O Jerusalem, the holy city;

For henceforth there shall no more come into thee

The uncircumcised and the unclean.

2 Shake thyself from the dust;

Arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem;

Loose thyself from the bands of thy neck,

O captive daughter of Zion.

3 For thus saith the LORD:

Ye were sold for nought;

And ye shall be redeemed without money.

4 For thus saith the Lord GOD:

My people went down aforetime into Egypt to sojourn there;

And the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.

5 Now therefore, what do I here, saith the LORD,

Seeing that My people is taken away for nought?

They that rule over them do howl, saith the LORD,

And My name continually all the day is blasphemed.

6 Therefore My people shall know My name;

Therefore they shall know in that day

That I, even He that spoke, behold, here I am.

7 How beautiful upon the mountains

Are the feet of the messenger of good tidings,

That announceth peace, the harbinger of good tidings,

That announceth salvation;

That saith unto Zion:

'Thy God reigneth!'

8 Hark, thy watchmen! they lift up the voice,

Together do they sing;

For they shall see, eye to eye,

The LORD returning to Zion.

9 Break forth into joy, sing together,

Ye waste places of Jerusalem;

For the LORD hath comforted His people,

He hath redeemed Jerusalem.

10 The LORD hath made bare His holy arm

In the eyes of all the nations;

And all the ends of the earth shall see

The salvation of our God.

11 Depart ye, depart ye, go ye out from thence,

Touch no unclean thing;

Go ye out of the midst of her; be ye clean,

Ye that bear the vessels of the LORD.

12 For ye shall not go out in haste,

Neither shall ye go by flight;

For the LORD will go before you,

And the God of Israel will be your rearward.

13 Behold, My servant shall prosper,

He shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high.

14 According as many were appalled at thee-

So marred was his visage unlike that of a man,

And his form unlike that of the sons of men-

15 So shall he startle many nations,

Kings shall shut their mouths because of him;

For that which had not been told them shall they see,

And that which they had not heard shall they perceive.

ISAIAH 53 — 1 'Who would have believed our report?

And to whom hath the arm of the LORD been revealed?

2 For he shot up right forth as a sapling,

And as a root out of a dry ground;

He had no form nor comeliness, that we should look upon him,

Nor beauty that we should delight in him.

3 He was despised, and forsaken of men,

A man of pains, and acquainted with disease,

And as one from whom men hide their face:

He was despised, and we esteemed him not.

4 Surely our diseases he did bear, and our pains he carried;

Whereas we did esteem him stricken,

Smitten of God, and afflicted.

5 But he was wounded because of our transgressions,

He was crushed because of our iniquities:

The chastisement of our welfare was upon him,

And with his stripes we were healed.

6 All we like sheep did go astray,

We turned every one to his own way;

And the LORD hath made to light on him

The iniquity of us all.

7 He was oppressed, though he humbled himself

And opened not his mouth;

As a lamb that is led to the slaughter,

And as a sheep that before her shearers is dumb;

Yea, he opened not his mouth.

8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away,

And with his generation who did reason?

For he was cut off out of the land of the living,

For the transgression of my people to whom the stroke was due.

9 And they made his grave with the wicked,

And with the rich his tomb;

Although he had done no violence,

Neither was any deceit in his mouth.'

10 Yet it pleased the LORD to crush him by disease;

To see if his soul would offer itself in restitution,

That he might see his seed, prolong his days,

And that the purpose of the LORD might prosper by his hand:

11 Of the travail of his soul he shall see to the full, even My servant,

Who by his knowledge did justify the Righteous One to the many,

And their iniquities he did bear.

12 Therefore will I divide him a portion among the great,

And he shall divide the spoil with the mighty;

Because he bared his soul unto death,

And was numbered with the transgressors;

Yet he bore the sin of many,

And made intercession for the transgressors.

ISAIAH 54 — 1 Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear,

Break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail;

For more are the children of the desolate

Than the children of the married wife, saith the LORD.

2 Enlarge the place of thy tent,

And let them stretch forth the curtains of thy habitations, spare not;

Lengthen thy cords, and strengthen thy stakes.

3 For thou shalt spread abroad on the right hand and on the left;

And thy seed shall possess the nations,

And make the desolate cities to be inhabited.

4 Fear not, for thou shalt not be ashamed.

Neither be thou confounded, for thou shalt not be put to shame;

For thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth,

And the reproach of thy widowhood shalt thou remember no more.

5 For thy Maker is thy husband,

The LORD of hosts is His name;

And the Holy One of Israel is thy Redeemer,

The God of the whole earth shall He be called.

6 For the LORD hath called thee

As a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit;

And a wife of youth, can she be rejected?

Saith thy God.

7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee;

But with great compassion will I gather thee.

8 In a little wrath I hid My face from thee for a moment;

But with everlasting kindness will I have compassion on thee,

Saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

9 For this is as the waters of Noah unto Me;

For as I have sworn that the waters of Noah

Ahould no more go over the earth,

Ao have I sworn that I would not be wroth with thee,

Nor rebuke thee.

10 For the mountains may depart,

And the hills be removed;

But My kindness shall not depart from thee,

Neither shall My covenant of peace be removed,

Saith the LORD that hath compassion on thee.

11 O thou afflicted, tossed with tempest,

And not comforted,

Behold, I will set thy stones in fair colours,

And lay thy foundations with sapphires.

12 And I will make thy pinnacles of rubies,

And thy gates of carbuncles,

And all thy border of precious stones.

13 And all thy children shall be taught of the LORD;

And great shall be the peace of thy children.

14 In righteousness shalt thou be established;

Be thou far from oppression, for thou shalt not fear,

And from ruin, for it shall not come near thee.

15 Behold, they may gather together, but not by Me;

Whosoever shall gather together against thee shall fall because of thee.

16 Behold, I have created the smith

That bloweth the fire of coals,

And bringeth forth a weapon for his work;

And I have created the waster to destroy.

17 No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper;

And every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn.

This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD,

And their due reward from Me, saith the LORD.

ISAIAH 55 — 1 Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye for water,

And he that hath no money;

Come ye, buy, and eat;

Yea, come, buy wine and milk

Without money and without price.

2 Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread?

And your gain for that which satisfieth not?

Hearken diligently unto Me, and eat ye that which is good,

And let your soul delight itself in fatness.

3 Incline your ear, and come unto Me;

Hear, and your soul shall live;

And I will make an everlasting covenant with you,

Even the sure mercies of David.

4 Behold, I have given him for a witness to the peoples,

A prince and commander to the peoples.

5 Behold, thou shalt call a nation that thou knowest not,

And a nation that knew not thee shall run unto thee;

Because of the LORD thy God,

And for the Holy One of Israel, for He hath glorified thee.

6 Seek ye the LORD while He may be found,

Call ye upon Him while He is near;

7 Let the wicked forsake his way,

And the man of iniquity his thoughts;

And let him return unto the LORD, and He will have compassion upon him,

And to our God, for He will abundantly pardon

8 For My thoughts are not your thoughts,

Neither are your ways My ways, saith the LORD.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

So are My ways higher than your ways,

And My thoughts than your thoughts.

10 For as the rain cometh down and the snow from heaven,

And returneth not thither,

Except it water the earth,

And make it bring forth and bud,

And give seed to the sower and bread to the eater;

11 So shall My word be that goeth forth out of My mouth:

It shall not return unto Me void,

Except it accomplish that which I please,

And make the thing whereto I sent it prosper.

12 For ye shall go out with joy,

And be led forth with peace;

The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing,

And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.

13 Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress,

And instead of the brier shall come up the myrtle;

And it shall be to the LORD for a memorial,

For an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.

ISAIAH 56 — 1 Thus saith the LORD:

Keep ye justice, and do righteousness;

For My salvation is near to come,

And My favour to be revealed.

2 Happy is the man that doeth this,

And the son of man that holdeth fast by it:

That keepeth the sabbath from profaning it,

And keepeth his hand from doing any evil.

3 Neither let the alien,

That hath joined himself to the LORD, speak, saying:

'The LORD will surely separate me from His people';

Neither let the eunuch say:

'Behold, I am a dry tree.'

4 For thus saith the LORD

Concerning the eunuchs that keep My sabbaths,

And choose the things that please Me,

And hold fast by My covenant:

5 Even unto them will I give in My house

And within My walls a monument and a memorial

Better than sons and daughters;

I will give them an everlasting memorial,

That shall not be cut off.

6 Also the aliens, that join themselves to the LORD, to minister unto Him,

And to love the name of the LORD,

To be His servants,

Every one that keepeth the sabbath from profaning it,

And holdeth fast by My covenant:

7 Even them will I bring to My holy mountain,

And make them joyful in My house of prayer;

Their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices

Shall be acceptable upon Mine altar;

For My house shall be called

A house of prayer for all peoples.

8 Saith the Lord GOD who gathereth the dispersed of Israel:

Yet I will gather others to him, beside those of him that are gathered.

9 All ye beasts of the field, come to devour,

Yea, all ye beasts in the forest.

10 His watchmen are all blind,

Without knowledge;

They are all dumb dogs,

They cannot bark;

Raving, lying down, loving to slumber.

11 Yea, the dogs are greedy,

They know not when they have enough;

And these are shepherds

That cannot understand;

They all turn to their own way,

Each one to his gain, one and all.

12 'Come ye, I will fetch wine,

And we will fill ourselves with strong drink;

And to-morrow shall be as this day,

And much more abundant.'

ISAIAH 57 — 1 The righteous perisheth,

And no man layeth it to heart,

And godly men are taken away,

None considering

That the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.

2 He entereth into peace,

They rest in their beds,

Each one that walketh in his uprightness.

3 But draw near hither,

Ye sons of the sorceress,

The seed of the adulterer and the harlot.

4 Against whom do ye sport yourselves?

Against whom make ye a wide mouth,

And draw out the tongue?

Are ye not children of transgression,

A seed of falsehood,

5 Ye that inflame yourselves among the terebinths,

Under every leafy tree;

That slay the children in the valleys,

Under the clefts of the rocks?

6 Among the smooth stones of the valley is thy portion;

They, they are thy lot;

Even to them hast thou poured a drink-offering,

Thou hast offered a meal-offering.

Should I pacify Myself for these things?

7 Upon a high and lofty mountain

Hast thou set thy bed;

Thither also wentest thou up

To offer sacrifice.

8 And behind the doors and the posts

Hast thou set up thy symbol;

For thou hast uncovered, and art gone up from Me,

Thou hast enlarged thy bed,

And chosen thee of them

Whose bed thou lovedst,

Whose hand thou sawest.

9 And thou wentest to the king with ointment,

And didst increase thy perfumes,

And didst send thine ambassadors far off,

Even down to the nether-world.

10 Thou wast wearied with the length of thy way;

Yet saidst thou not: 'There is no hope';

Thou didst find a renewal of thy strength,

Therefore thou wast not affected.

11 And of whom hast thou been afraid and in fear,

That thou wouldest fail?

And as for Me, thou hast not remembered Me,

Nor laid it to thy heart.

Have not I held My peace even of long time?

Therefore thou fearest Me not.

12 I will declare thy righteousness;

Thy works also-they shall not profit thee.

13 When thou criest, let them that thou hast gathered deliver thee;

But the wind shall carry them all away,

A breath shall bear them off;

But he that taketh refuge in Me shall possess the land,

And shall inherit My holy mountain.

14 And He will say:

Cast ye up, cast ye up, clear the way,

Take up the stumblingblock out of the way of My people.

15 For thus saith the High and Lofty One

That inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy:

I dwell in the high and holy place,

With him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit,

To revive the spirit of the humble,

And to revive the heart of the contrite ones.

16 For I will not contend for ever,

Neither will I be always wroth;

For the spirit that enwrappeth itself is from Me,

And the souls which I have made.

17 For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth and smote him,

I hid Me and was wroth;

And he went on frowardly in the way of his heart.

18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him;

I will lead him also, and requite with comforts him and his mourners.

19 Peace, peace, to him that is far off and to him that is near,

Saith the LORD that createth the fruit of the lips;

And I will heal him.

20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea;

For it cannot rest,

And its waters cast up mire and dirt.

21 There is no peace,

Saith my God concerning the wicked.

ISAIAH 58 — 1 Cry aloud, spare not,

Lift up thy voice like a horn,

And declare unto My people their transgression,

And to the house of Jacob their sins.

2 Yet they seek Me daily,

And delight to know My ways;

As a nation that did righteousness,

And forsook not the ordinance of their God,

They ask of Me righteous ordinances,

They delight to draw near unto God.

3 'Wherefore have we fasted, and Thou seest not?

Wherefore have we afflicted our soul, and Thou takest no knowledge?'-

Behold, in the day of your fast ye pursue your business,

And exact all your labours.

4 Behold, ye fast for strife and contention,

And to smite with the fist of wickedness;

Ye fast not this day

So as to make your voice to be heard on high.

5 Is such the fast that I have chosen?

The day for a man to afflict his soul?

Is it to bow down his head as a bulrush,

And to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?

Wilt thou call this a fast,

And an acceptable day to the LORD?

6 Is not this the fast that I have chosen?

To loose the fetters of wickedness,

To undo the bands of the yoke,

And to let the oppressed go free,

And that ye break every yoke?

7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry,

And that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house?

When thou seest the naked, that thou cover him,

And that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?

8 Then shall thy light break forth as the morning,

And thy healing shall spring forth speedily;

And thy righteousness shall go before thee,

The glory of the LORD shall be thy rearward.

9 Then shalt thou call, and the LORD will answer;

Thou shalt cry, and He will say: 'Here I am.'

If thou take away from the midst of thee the yoke,

The putting forth of the finger, and speaking wickedness;

10 And if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry,

And satisfy the afflicted soul;

Then shall thy light rise in darkness,

And thy gloom be as the noon-day;

11 And the LORD will guide thee continually,

And satisfy thy soul in drought,

And make strong thy bones;

And thou shalt be like a watered garden,

And like a spring of water, whose waters fail not.

12 And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places,

Thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations;

And thou shalt be called The repairer of the breach,

The restorer of paths to dwell in.

13 If thou turn away thy foot because of the sabbath,

From pursuing thy business on My holy day;

And call the sabbath a delight,

And the holy of the LORD honourable;

And shalt honour it, not doing thy wonted ways,

Nor pursuing thy business, nor speaking thereof;

14 Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD,

And I will make thee to ride upon the high places of the earth,

And I will feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father;

For the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

ISAIAH 59 — 1 Behold, the LORD'S hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,

Neither His ear heavy, that it cannot hear;

2 But your iniquities have separated

Between you and your God,

And your sins have hid His face from you,

That He will not hear.

3 For your hands are defiled with blood,

And your fingers with iniquity;

Your lips have spoken lies,

Your tongue muttereth wickedness.

4 None sueth in righteousness,

And none pleadeth in truth;

They trust in vanity, and speak lies,

They conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

5 They hatch basilisks' eggs,

And weave the spider's web;

He that eateth of their eggs dieth,

And that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.

6 Their webs shall not become garments,

Neither shall men cover themselves with their works;

Their works are works of iniquity,

And the act of violence is in their hands.

7 Their feet run to evil,

And they make haste to shed innocent blood;

Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity,

Desolation and destruction are in their paths.

8 The way of peace they know not,

And there is no right in their goings;

They have made them crooked paths,

Whosoever goeth therein doth not know peace.

9 Therefore is justice far from us,

Neither doth righteousness overtake us;

We look for light, but behold darkness,

For brightness, but we walk in gloom.

10 We grope for the wall like the blind,

Yea, as they that have no eyes do we grope;

We stumble at noonday as in the twilight;

We are in dark places like the dead.

11 We all growl like bears,

And mourn sore like doves;

We look for right, but there is none;

For salvation, but it is far off from us.

12 For our transgressions are multiplied before Thee,

And our sins testify against us;

For our transgressions are present to us,

And as for our iniquities, we know them:

13 Transgressing and denying the LORD,

And turning away from following our God,

Speaking oppression and perverseness,

Conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

14 And justice is turned away backward,

And righteousness standeth afar off;

For truth hath stumbled in the broad place,

And uprightness cannot enter.

15 And truth is lacking,

And he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey.

And the LORD saw it, and it displeased Him

That there was no justice;

16 And He saw that there was no man,

And was astonished that there was no intercessor;

Therefore His own arm brought salvation unto Him;

And His righteousness, it sustained Him;

17 And He put on righteousness as a coat of mail,

And a helmet of salvation upon His head,

And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing,

And was clad with zeal as a cloak.

18 According to their deeds, accordingly He will repay,

Fury to His adversaries, recompense to His enemies;

To the islands He will repay recompense.

19 So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west,

And His glory from the rising of the sun;

For distress will come in like a flood,

Which the breath of the LORD driveth.

20 And a redeemer will come to Zion,

And unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob,

Saith the LORD.

21 And as for Me, this is My covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that is upon thee, and My words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.

ISAIAH 60 — 1 Arise, shine, for thy light is come,

And the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

2 For, behold, darkness shall cover the earth,

And gross darkness the peoples;

But upon thee the LORD will arise,

And His glory shall be seen upon thee.

3 And nations shall walk at thy light,

And kings at the brightness of thy rising.

4 Lift Up thine eyes round about, and see:

They all are gathered together, and come to thee;

Thy sons come from far,

And thy daughters are borne on the side.

5 Then thou shalt see and be radiant,

And thy heart shall throb and be enlarged;

Because the abundance of the sea shall be turned unto thee,

The wealth of the nations shall come unto thee.

6 The caravan of camels shall cover thee,

And of the young camels of Midian and Ephah,

All coming from Sheba;

They shall bring gold and incense,

And shall proclaim the praises of the LORD.

7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee,

The rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee;

They shall come up with acceptance on Mine altar,

And I will glorify My glorious house.

8 Who are these that fly as a cloud,

And as the doves to their cotes?

9 Surely the isles shall wait for Me,

And the ships of Tarshish first,

To bring thy sons from far,

Their silver and their gold with them,

For the name of the LORD thy God,

And for the Holy One of Israel, because He hath glorified thee.

10 And aliens shall build up thy walls,

And their kings shall minister unto thee;

For in My wrath I smote thee,

But in My favour have I had compassion on thee.

11 Thy gates also shall be open continually,

Day and night, they shall not be shut;

That men may bring unto thee the wealth of the nations,

And their kings in procession.

12 For that nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish;

Yea, those nations shall be utterly wasted.

13 The glory of Lebanon shall come unto thee,

The cypress, the plane-tree and the larch together;

To beautify the place of My sanctuary,

And I will make the place of My feet glorious.

14 And the sons of them that afflicted thee

Shall come bending unto thee,

And all they that despised thee shall bow down

At the soles of thy feet;

And they shall call thee The city of the LORD,

The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

15 Whereas thou hast been forsaken and hated,

So that no man passed through thee,

I will make thee an eternal excellency,

A joy of many generations.

16 Thou shalt also suck the milk of the nations,

And shalt suck the breast of kings;

And thou shalt know that I the LORD am thy Saviour,

And I, the Mighty One of Jacob, thy Redeemer.

17 For brass I will bring gold,

And for iron I will bring silver,

And for wood brass,

And for stones iron;

I will also make thy officers peace,

And righteousness thy magistrates.

18 Violence shall no more be heard in thy land,

Desolation nor destruction within thy borders;

But thou shalt call thy walls Salvation,

And thy gates Praise.

19 The sun shall be no more thy light by day,

Neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee;

But the LORD shall be unto thee an everlasting light,

And thy God thy glory.

20 Thy sun shall no more go down,

Neither shall thy moon withdraw itself;

For the LORD shall be thine everlasting light,

And the days of thy mourning shall be ended.

21 Thy people also shall be all righteous,

They shall inherit the land for ever;

The branch of My planting, the work of My hands,

Wherein I glory.

22 The smallest shall become a thousand,

And the least a mighty nation;

I the LORD will hasten it in its time.

ISAIAH 61 — 1 The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me;

Because the LORD hath anointed me

To bring good tidings unto the humble;

He hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted,

To proclaim liberty to the captives,

And the opening of the eyes to them that are bound;

2 To proclaim the year of the LORD'S good pleasure,

And the day of vengeance of our God;

To comfort all that mourn;

3 To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion,

To give unto them a garland for ashes,

The oil of joy for mourning,

The mantle of praise for the spirit of heaviness;

That they might be called terebinths of righteousness,

The planting of the LORD, wherein He might glory.

4 And they shall build the old wastes,

They shall raise up the former desolations,

And they shall renew the waste cities,

The desolations of many generations.

5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,

And aliens shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

6 But ye shall be named the priests of the LORD,

Men shall call you the ministers of our God;

Ye shall eat the wealth of the nations,

And in their splendour shall ye revel.

7 For your shame which was double,

And for that they rejoiced: 'Confusion is their portion';

Therefore in their land they shall possess double,

Everlasting joy shall be unto them.

8 For I the LORD love justice,

I hate robbery with iniquity;

And I will give them their recompense in truth,

And I will make an everlasting covenant with them.

9 And their seed shall be known among the nations,

And their offspring among the peoples;

All that see them shall acknowledge them,

That they are the seed which the LORD hath blessed.

10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD,

My soul shall be joyful in my God;

For He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation,

He hath covered me with the robe of victory,

As a bridegroom putteth on a priestly diadem,

And as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.

11 For as the earth bringeth forth her growth,

And as the garden causeth the things that are sown in it to spring forth;

So the Lord GOD will cause victory and glory

To spring forth before all the nations.

ISAIAH 62 — 1 For Zion's sake will I not hold My peace,

And for Jerusalem's sake I will not rest,

Until her triumph go forth as brightness,

And her salvation as a torch that burneth.

2 And the nations shall see thy triumph,

And all kings thy glory;

And thou shalt be called by a new name,

Which the mouth of the LORD shall mark out.

3 Thou shalt also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,

And a royal diadem in the open hand of thy God.

4 Thou shalt no more be termed Forsaken,

Neither shall thy land any more be termed Desolate;

But thou shalt be called, My delight is in her,

And thy land, Espoused;

For the LORD delighteth in thee,

And thy land shall be espoused.

5 For as a young man espouseth a virgin,

So shall thy sons espouse thee;

And as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride,

So shall thy God rejoice over thee.

6 I have set watchmen

Upon thy walls, O Jerusalem,

They shall never hold their peace

Day nor night:

'Ye that are the LORD'S remembrancers,

Take ye no rest,

7 And give Him no rest,

Till He establish,

And till He make Jerusalem

A praise in the earth.'

8 The LORD hath sworn by His right hand,

And by the arm of His strength:

Surely I will no more give thy corn

To be food for thine enemies;

And strangers shall not drink thy wine,

For which thou hast laboured;

9 But they that have garnered it shall eat it,

And praise the LORD,

And they that have gathered it shall drink it

In the courts of My sanctuary.

10 Go through, go through the gates,

Clear ye the way of the people;

Cast up, cast up the highway,

Gather out the stones;

Lift up an ensign over the peoples.

11 Behold, the LORD hath proclaimed

Unto the end of the earth:

Say ye to the daughter of Zion:

'Behold, thy salvation cometh;

Behold, His reward is with Him,

And His recompense before Him.'

12 And they shall call them The holy people,

The redeemed of the LORD;

And thou shalt be called Sought out,

A city not forsaken.

ISAIAH 63 — 1 'Who is this that cometh from Edom,

With crimsoned garments from Bozrah?

This that is glorious in his apparel,

Stately in the greatness of his strength?'-

'I that speak in victory, mighty to save.'-

2 'Wherefore is Thine apparel red,

And Thy garments like his that treadeth in the winevat?'-

3 'I have trodden the winepress alone,

And of the peoples there was no man with Me;

Yea, I trod them in Mine anger,

And trampled them in My fury;

And their lifeblood is dashed against My garments,

And I have stained all My raiment.

4 For the day of vengeance that was in My heart,

And My year of redemption are come.

5 And I looked, and there was none to help,

And I beheld in astonishment, and there was none to uphold;

Therefore Mine own arm brought salvation unto Me,

And My fury, it upheld Me.

6 And I trod down the peoples in Mine anger,

And made them drunk with My fury,

And I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.'

7 I will make mention of the mercies of the LORD,

And the praises of the LORD,

According to all that the LORD hath bestowed on us;

And the great goodness toward the house of Israel,

Which He hath bestowed on them according to His compassions,

And according to the multitude of His mercies.

8 For He said: 'Surely, they are My people,

Children that will not deal falsely';

So He was their Saviour.

9 In all their affliction He was afflicted,

And the angel of His presence saved them;

In His love and in His pity He redeemed them;

And He bore them, and carried them all the days of old.

10 But they rebelled, and grieved His holy spirit;

Therefore He was turned to be their enemy,

Himself fought against them.

11 Then His people remembered the days of old, the days of Moses:

'Where is He that brought them up out of the sea

With the shepherds of His flock?

Where is He that put His holy spirit

In the midst of them?

12 That caused His glorious arm to go

At the right hand of Moses?

That divided the water before them,

To make Himself an everlasting name?

13 That led them through the deep,

As a horse in the wilderness, without stumbling?

14 As the cattle that go down into the valley,

The spirit of the LORD caused them to rest;

So didst Thou lead Thy people,

To make Thyself a glorious name.'

15 Look down from heaven, and see,

Even from Thy holy and glorious habitation;

Where is Thy zeal and Thy mighty acts,

The yearning of Thy heart and Thy compassions,

Now restrained toward me?

16 For Thou art our Father;

For Abraham knoweth us not,

And Israel doth not acknowledge us;

Thou, O LORD, art our Father,

Our Redeemer from everlasting is Thy name.

17 O LORD, why dost Thou make us to err from Thy ways,

And hardenest our heart from Thy fear?

Return for Thy servants' sake,

The tribes of Thine inheritance.

18 Thy holy people they have well nigh driven out,

Our adversaries have trodden down Thy sanctuary.

19 We are become as they over whom Thou never borest rule,

As they that were not called by Thy name.

Oh, that Thou wouldest rend the heavens, that Thou wouldest come down,

That the mountains might quake at Thy presence,

ISAIAH 64 — 1 As when fire kindleth the brush-wood,

And the fire causeth the waters to boil;

To make Thy name known to Thine adversaries,

That the nations might tremble at Thy presence,

2 When Thou didst tremendous things

Which we looked not for-

Oh that Thou wouldest come down, that the mountains might quake at Thy presence!-

3 And whereof from of old men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear,

Neither hath the eye seen a God beside Thee,

Who worketh for him that waiteth for Him.

4 Thou didst take away him that joyfully worked righteousness,

Those that remembered Thee in Thy ways-

Behold, Thou wast wroth, and we sinned-

Upon them have we stayed of old, that we might be saved.

5 And we are all become as one that is unclean,

And all our righteousnesses are as a polluted garment;

And we all do fade as a leaf,

And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.

6 And there is none that calleth upon Thy name,

That stirreth up himself to take hold of Thee;

For Thou hast hid Thy face from us,

And hast consumed us by means of our iniquities.

7 But now, O LORD, Thou art our Father;

We are the clay, and Thou our potter,

And we all are the work of Thy hand.

8 Be not wroth very sore, O LORD,

Neither remember iniquity for ever;

Behold, look, we beseech Thee, we are all Thy people.

9 Thy holy cities are become a wilderness,

Zion is become a wilderness,

Jerusalem a desolation.

10 Our holy and our beautiful house,

Where our fathers praised Thee,

Is burned with fire;

And all our pleasant things are laid waste.

11 Wilt Thou refrain Thyself for these things, O LORD?

Wilt Thou hold Thy peace, and afflict us very sore?

ISAIAH 65 — 1 I gave access to them that asked not for Me,

I was at hand to them that sought Me not;

I said: 'Behold Me, behold Me',

Unto a nation that was not called by My name.

2 I have spread out My hands all the day

Unto a rebellious people,

That walk in a way that is not good,

After their own thoughts;

3 A people that provoke Me

To My face continually,

That sacrifice in gardens,

And burn incense upon bricks;

4 That sit among the graves,

And lodge in the vaults;

That eat swine's flesh,

And broth of abominable things is in their vessels;

5 That say: 'Stand by thyself,

Come not near to me, for I am holier than thou';

These are a smoke in My nose,

A fire that burneth all the day.

6 Behold, it is written before Me;

I will not keep silence, except I have requited,

Yea, I will requite into their bosom,

7 Your own iniquities, and the iniquities of your fathers together,

Saith the LORD,

That have offered upon the mountains,

And blasphemed Me upon the hills;

Therefore will I first measure their wage into their bosom.

8 Thus saith the LORD:

As, when wine is found in the cluster,

One saith: 'Destroy it not,

For a blessing is in it';

So will I do for My servants' sakes,

That I may not destroy all.

9 And I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob,

And out of Judah an inheritor of My mountains;

And Mine elect shall inherit it,

And My servants shall dwell there.

10 And Sharon shall be a fold of flocks,

And the valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down in,

For My people that have sought Me;

11 But ye that forsake the LORD,

That forget My holy mountain,

That prepare a table for Fortune,

And that offer mingled wine in full measure unto Destiny,

12 I will destine you to the sword,

And ye shall all bow down to the slaughter;

Because when I called, ye did not answer,

When I spoke, ye did not hear;

But ye did that which was evil in Mine eyes,

And chose that wherein I delighted not.

13 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, My servants shall eat,

But ye shall be hungry;

Behold, My servants shall drink,

But ye shall be thirsty;

Behold, My servants shall rejoice,

But ye shall be ashamed;

14 Behold, My servants shall sing

For joy of heart,

But ye shall cry for sorrow of heart,

And shall wail for vexation of spirit.

15 And ye shall leave your name for a curse unto Mine elect:

'So may the Lord GOD slay thee';

But He shall call His servants by another name;

16 So that he who blesseth himself in the earth

Shall bless himself by the God of truth;

And he that sweareth in the earth

Shall swear by the God of truth;

Because the former troubles are forgotten,

And because they are hid from Mine eyes.

17 For, behold, I create new heavens

And a new earth;

And the former things shall not be remembered,

Nor come into mind.

18 But be ye glad and rejoice for ever

In that which I create;

For, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing,

And her people a joy.

19 And I will rejoice in Jerusalem,

And joy in My people;

And the voice of weeping shall be no more heard in her,

Nor the voice of crying.

20 There shall be no more thence an infant of days, nor an old man,

That hath not filled his days;

For the youngest shall die a hundred years old,

And the sinner being a hundred years old shall be accursed.

21 And they shall build houses, and inhabit them;

And they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them.

22 They shall not build, and another inhabit,

They shall not plant, and another eat;

For as the days of a tree shall be the days of My people,

And Mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.

23 They shall not labour in vain,

Nor bring forth for terror;

For they are the seed blessed of the LORD,

And their offspring with them.

24 And it shall come to pass that, before they call, I will answer,

And while they are yet speaking, I will hear.

25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,

And the lion shall eat straw like the ox;

And dust shall be the serpent's food.

They shall not hurt nor destroy

In all My holy mountain,

Saith the LORD.

ISAIAH 66 — 1 Thus saith the LORD:

The heaven is My throne,

And the earth is My footstool;

Where is the house that ye may build unto Me?

And where is the place that may be My resting-place?

2 For all these things hath My hand made,

And so all these things came to be,

Saith the LORD;

But on this man will I look,

Even on him that is poor and of a contrite spirit,

And trembleth at My word.

3 He that killeth an ox is as if he slew a man;

He that sacrificeth a lamb, as if he broke a dog's neck;

He that offereth a meal-offering, as if he offered swine's blood;

He that maketh a memorial-offering of frankincense, as if he blessed an idol;

According as they have chosen their own ways,

And their soul delighteth in their abominations;

4 Even so I will choose their mockings,

And will bring their fears upon them;

Because when I called, none did answer;

When I spoke, they did not hear,

But they did that which was evil in Mine eyes,

And chose that in which I delighted not.

5 Hear the word of the LORD,

Ye that tremble at His word:

Your brethren that hate you, that cast you out for My name's sake, have said:

'Let the LORD be glorified,

That we may gaze upon your joy',

But they shall be ashamed.

6 Hark! an uproar from the city,

Hark! it cometh from the temple,

Hark! the LORD rendereth recompense to His enemies.

7 Before she travailed, she brought forth;

Before her pain came,

She was delivered of a man-child.

8 Who hath heard such a thing?

Who hath seen such things?

Is a land born in one day?

Is a nation brought forth at once?

For as soon as Zion travailed,

She brought forth her children.

9 Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth?

Saith the LORD;

Shall I that cause to bring forth shut the womb?

Saith thy God.

10 Rejoice ye with Jerusalem,

And be glad with her, all ye that love her;

Rejoice for joy with her,

All ye that mourn for her;

11 That ye may suck, and be satisfied

With the breast of her consolations;

That ye may drink deeply with delight

Of the abundance of her glory.

12 For thus saith the LORD:

Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river,

And the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream,

And ye shall suck thereof:

Ye shall be borne upon the side,

And shall be dandled upon the knees.

13 As one whom his mother comforteth,

So will I comfort you;

And ye shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

14 And when ye see this, your heart shall rejoice,

And your bones shall flourish like young grass;

And the hand of the LORD shall be known toward His servants,

And He will have indignation against His enemies.

15 For, behold, the LORD will come in fire,

And His chariots shall be like the whirlwind;

To render His anger with fury,

And His rebuke with flames of fire.

16 For by fire will the LORD contend,

And by His sword with all flesh;

And the slain of the LORD shall be many.

17 They that sanctify themselves and purify themselves

To go unto the gardens,

Behind one in the midst,

Eating swine's flesh, and the detestable thing, and the mouse,

Shall be consumed together, saith the LORD.

18 For I [know] their works and their thoughts; [the time] cometh, that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come, and shall see My glory. 19 And I will work a sign among them, and I will send such as escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard My fame, neither have seen My glory; and they shall declare My glory among the nations. 20 And they shall bring all your brethren out of all the nations for an offering unto the LORD, upon horses, and in chariots, and in fitters, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to My holy mountain Jerusalem, saith the LORD, as the children of Israel bring their offering in a clean vessel into the house of the LORD. 21 And of them also will I take for the priests and for the Levites, saith the LORD. 22 For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before Me, saith the LORD, so shall your seed and your name remain.

23 And it shall come to pass,

That from one new moon to another,

And from one sabbath to another,

Shall all flesh come to worship before Me,

Saith the LORD.

24 And they shall go forth, and look

Upon the carcasses of the men that have rebelled against Me;

For their worm shall not die,

Neither shall their fire be quenched;

And they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh.

[And it shall come to pass,

That from one new moon to another,

And from one sabbath to another,

Shall all flesh come to worship before Me,

Saith the LORD.]

Jeremiah

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JEREMIAH 1 — 1 The words of Jeremiah the son of Hilkiah, of the priests that were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, 2 to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It came also in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the end of the eleventh year of Zedekiah the son of Josiah, king of Judah, unto the carrying away of Jerusalem captive in the fifth month.

4 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:

5 Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee,

And before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee;

I have appointed thee a prophet unto the nations.

6 Then said I: 'Ah, Lord GOD! behold, I cannot speak; for I am a child.' 7 But the LORD said unto me:

Say not: I am a child;

For to whomsoever I shall send thee thou shalt go,

And whatsoever I shall command thee thou shalt speak.

8 Be not afraid of them;

For I am with thee to deliver thee,

Saith the LORD.

9 Then the LORD put forth His hand, and touched my mouth; and the LORD said unto me:

Behold, I have put My words in thy mouth;

10 See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms,

To root out and to pull down,

And to destroy and to overthrow;

To build, and to plant.

11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 'Jeremiah, what seest thou?' And I said: 'I see a rod of an almond-tree.' 12 Then said the LORD unto me: 'Thou hast well seen; for I watch over My word to perform it.'

13 And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying: 'What seest thou?' And I said: 'I see a seething pot; and the face thereof is from the north.' 14 Then the LORD said unto me: 'Out of the north the evil shall break forth upon all the inhabitants of the land. 15 For, lo, I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith the LORD; and they shall come, and they shall set every one his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all the walls thereof round about, and against all the cities of Judah. 16 And I will utter My judgments against them touching all their wickedness; in that they have forsaken me, and have offered unto other gods, and worshipped the work of their own hands. 17 Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee; be not dismayed at them, lest I dismay thee before them. 18 For, behold, I have made thee this day a fortified city, and an iron pillar, and brazen walls, against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. 19 And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee.'

JEREMIAH 2 — 1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 2 Go, and cry in the ears of Jerusalem, saying: Thus saith the LORD:

I remember for thee the affection of thy youth,

The love of thine espousals;

How thou wentest after Me in the wilderness,

In a land that was not sown.

3 Israel is the LORD'S hallowed portion,

His first-fruits of the increase;

All that devour him shall be held guilty,

Evil shall come upon them,

Saith the LORD.

4 Hear ye the word of the LORD, O house of Jacob,

And all the families of the house of Israel;

5 Thus saith the LORD:

What unrighteousness have your fathers found in Me,

That they are gone far from Me,

And have walked after things of nought, and are become nought?

6 Neither said they:

'Where is the LORD that brought us up

Out of the land of Egypt;

That led us through the wilderness,

Through a land of deserts and of pits,

Through a land of drought and of the shadow of death,

Through a land that no man passed through,

And where no man dwelt?'

7 And I brought you into a land of fruitful fields,

To eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof;

But when ye entered, ye defiled My land,

And made My heritage an abomination.

8 The priests said not: 'Where is the LORD?'

And they that handle the law knew Me not,

And the rulers transgressed against Me;

The prophets also prophesied by Baal,

And walked after things that do not profit.

9 Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the LORD,

And with your children's children will I plead.

10 For pass over to the isles of the Kittites, and see,

And send unto Kedar, and consider diligently,

And see if there hath been such a thing.

11 Hath a nation changed its gods,

Which yet are no gods?

But My people hath changed its glory

For that which doth not profit.

12 Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this,

And be horribly afraid, be ye exceeding amazed,

Saith the LORD.

13 For My people have committed two evils:

They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters,

And hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns,

That can hold no water.

14 Is Israel a servant?

Is he a home-born slave?

Why is he become a prey?

15 The young lions have roared upon him,

And let their voice resound;

And they have made his land desolate,

His cities are laid waste,

Without inhabitant.

16 The children also of Noph and Tahpanhes

Feed upon the crown of thy head.

17 Is it not this that doth cause it unto thee,

That thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God,

When He led thee by the way?

18 And now what hast thou to do in the way to Egypt,

To drink the waters of Shihor?

Or what hast thou to do in the way to Assyria,

To drink the waters of the River?

19 Thine own wickedness shall correct thee,

And thy backslidings shall reprove thee:

Know therefore and see that it is an evil and a bitter thing,

That thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God,

Neither is My fear in thee,

Saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

20 For of old time I have broken thy yoke,

And burst thy bands,

And thou saidst: 'I will not transgress';

Upon every high hill

And under every leafy tree

Thou didst recline, playing the harlot.

21 Yet I had planted thee a noble vine,

Wholly a right seed;

How then art thou turned into the degenerate plant

Of a strange vine unto Me?

22 For though thou wash thee with nitre,

And take thee much soap,

Yet thine iniquity is marked before Me,

Saith the Lord GOD.

23 How canst thou say: 'I am not defiled,

I have not gone after the Baalim'?

See thy way in the Valley,

Know what thou hast done;

Thou art a swift young camel traversing her ways;

24 A wild ass used to the wilderness,

That snuffeth up the wind in her desire;

Her lust, who can hinder it?

All they that seek her will not weary themselves;

In her month they shall find her.

25 Withhold thy foot from being unshod,

And thy throat from thirst;

But thou saidst: 'There is no hope;

No, for I have loved strangers, and after them will I go.'

26 As the thief is ashamed when he is found,

So is the house of Israel ashamed;

They, their kings, their princes,

And their priests, and their prophets;

27 Who say to a stock: 'Thou art my father',

And to a stone: 'Thou hast brought us forth',

For they have turned their back unto Me, and not their face;

But in the time of their trouble they will say:

'Arise, and save us.'

28 But where are thy gods that thou hast made thee?

Let them arise, if they can save thee in the time of thy trouble;

For according to the number of thy cities

Are thy gods, O Judah.

29 Wherefore will ye contend with Me?

Ye all have transgressed against Me,

Saith the LORD.

30 In vain have I smitten your children-

They received no correction;

Your sword hath devoured your prophets,

Like a destroying lion.

31 O generation, see ye the word of the LORD:

Have I been a wilderness unto Israel?

Or a land of thick darkness?

Wherefore say My people: 'We roam at large;

We will come no more unto Thee'?

32 Can a maid forget her ornaments,

Or a bride her attire?

Yet My people have forgotten Me

Days without number.

33 How trimmest thou thy way

To seek love!

Therefore-even the wicked women

Hast thou taught thy ways;

34 Also in thy skirts is found the blood

Of the souls of the innocent poor;

Thou didst not find them breaking in;

Yet for all these things

35 Thou saidst: 'I am innocent;

Surely His anger is turned away from me' -

Behold, I will enter into judgment with thee,

Because thou sayest: 'I have not sinned.'

36 How greatly dost thou cheapen thyself

To change thy way?

Thou shalt be ashamed of Egypt also,

As thou wast ashamed of Asshur.

37 From him also shalt thou go forth,

With thy hands upon thy head;

For the LORD hath rejected them in whom thou didst trust,

And thou shalt not prosper in them.

JEREMIAH 3 — 1…saying:

If a man put away his wife,

And she go from him,

And become another man's,

May he return unto her again?

Will not that land be greatly polluted?

But thou hast played the harlot with many lovers;

And wouldest thou yet return to Me?

Saith the LORD.

2 Lift up thine eyes unto the high hills, and see:

Where hast thou not been lain with?

By the ways hast thou sat for them,

As an Arabian in the wilderness;

And thou hast polluted the land

With thy harlotries and with thy wickedness.

3 Therefore the showers have been withheld,

And there hath been no latter rain;

Yet thou hadst a harlot's forehead,

Thou refusedst to be ashamed.

4 Didst thou not just now cry unto Me: 'My father,

Thou art the friend of my youth.

5 Will He bear grudge for ever?

Will He keep it to the end?'

Behold, thou hast spoken, but hast done evil things,

And hast had thy way.

6 And the LORD said unto me in the days of Josiah the king: 'Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel did? she went up upon every high mountain and under every leafy tree, and there played the harlot. 7 And I said: After she hath done all these things, she will return unto me; but she returned not. And her treacherous sister Judah saw it. 8 And I saw, when, forasmuch as backsliding Israel had committed adultery, I had put her away and given her a bill of divorcement, that yet treacherous Judah her sister feared not; but she also went and played the harlot; 9 and it came to pass through the lightness of her harlotry, that the land was polluted, and she committed adultery with stones and with stocks; 10 and yet for all this her treacherous sister Judah hath not returned unto Me with her whole heart, but feignedly, saith the LORD-11 even the LORD said unto me-backsliding Israel hath proved herself more righteous than treacherous Judah. 12 Go, and proclaim these words toward the north, and say:

Return, thou backsliding Israel,

Saith the LORD;

I will not frown upon you;

For I am merciful, saith the LORD,

I will not bear grudge for ever.

13 Only acknowledge thine iniquity,

That thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God,

And hast scattered thy ways to the strangers

Under every leafy tree,

And ye have not hearkened to My voice,

Saith the LORD.

14 Return, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am a lord unto you, and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion; 15 and I will give you shepherds according to My heart, who shall feed you with knowledge and understanding. 16 And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith the LORD, they shall say no more: The ark of the covenant of the LORD; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they make mention of it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more. 17 At that time they shall call Jerusalem The throne of the LORD; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the LORD, to Jerusalem; neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart. 18 In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I have given for an inheritance unto your fathers.'

19 But I said: 'How would I put thee among the sons,

And give thee a pleasant land,

The goodliest heritage of the nations!'

And I said: 'Thou shalt call Me, My father;

And shalt not turn away from following Me.'

20 Surely as a wife treacherously departeth from her husband,

So have ye dealt treacherously with Me, O house of Israel,

Saith the LORD.

21 Hark! upon the high hills is heard

The suppliant weeping of the children of Israel;

For that they have perverted their way,

They have forgotten the LORD their God.

22 Return, ye backsliding children,

I will heal your backslidings.-

'Here we are, we are come unto Thee;

For Thou art the LORD our God.

23 Truly vain have proved the hills,

The uproar on the mountains;

Truly in the LORD our God

Is the salvation of Israel.

24 But the shameful thing hath devoured

The labour of our fathers from our youth;

Their flocks and their herds,

Their sons and their daughters.

25 Let us lie down in our shame,

And let our confusion cover us;

For we have sinned against the LORD our God,

We and our fathers,

From our youth even unto this day;

And we have not hearkened

To the voice of the LORD our God.'

JEREMIAH 4 — 1 If thou wilt return, O Israel,

Saith the LORD, yea, return unto Me;

And if thou wilt put away thy detestable things out of My sight,

And wilt not waver;

2 And wilt swear: 'As the LORD liveth'

In truth, in justice, and in righteousness;

Then shall the nations bless themselves by Him,

And in Him shall they glory.

3 For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem:

Break up for you a fallow ground,

And sow not among thorns.

4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD,

And take away the foreskins of your heart,

Ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem;

Lest My fury go forth like fire,

And burn that none can quench it,

Because of the evil of your doings.

5 Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem,

And say: 'Blow ye the horn in the land';

Cry aloud and say:

'Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the fortified cities.'

6 Set up a standard toward Zion;

Put yourselves under covert, stay not;

For I will bring evil from the north,

And a great destruction.

7 A lion is gone up from his thicket,

And a destroyer of nations

Is set out, gone forth from his place;

To make thy land desolate,

That thy cities be laid waste, without inhabitant.

8 For this gird you with sackcloth,

Lament and wail;

For the fierce anger of the LORD

Is not turned back from us.

9 And it shall come to pass at that day,

Saith the LORD,

That the heart of the king shall fail,

And the heart of the princes;

And the priests shall be astonished,

And the prophets shall wonder.

10 Then said I: 'Ah, Lord GOD! surely Thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.'

11 At that time shall it be said of this people and of Jerusalem;

A hot wind of the high hills in the wilderness

Toward the daughter of My people,

Not to fan, nor to cleanse;

12 A wind too strong for this shall come for Me;

Now will I also utter judgments against them.

13 Behold, he cometh up as clouds,

And his chariots are as the whirlwind;

His horses are swifter than eagles.-

'Woe unto us! for we are undone.'-

14 O Jerusalem, wash thy heart from wickedness,

That thou mayest be saved.

How long shall thy baleful thoughts

Lodge within thee?

15 For hark! one declareth from Dan,

And announceth calamity from the hills of Ephraim:

16 'Make ye mention to the nations:

Behold-publish concerning Jerusalem-

Watchers come from a far country,

And give out their voice against the cities of Judah.'

17 As keepers of a field

Are they against her round about;

Because she hath been rebellious against Me,

Saith the LORD.

18 Thy way and thy doings have procured

These things unto thee;

This is thy wickedness; yea, it is bitter,

Yea, it reacheth unto thy heart.

19 My bowels, my bowels! I writhe in pain!

The chambers of my heart!

My heart moaneth within me!

I cannot hold my peace!

Because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the horn,

The alarm of war.

20 Destruction followeth upon destruction,

For the whole land is spoiled;

Suddenly are my tents spoiled,

My curtains in a moment.

21 How long shall I see the standard,

Shall I hear the sound of the horn?

22 For My people is foolish,

They know Me not;

They are sottish children,

And they have no understanding;

They are wise to do evil,

But to do good they have no knowledge.

23 I beheld the earth,

And, lo, it was waste and void;

And the heavens, and they had no light.

24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled,

And all the hills moved to and fro.

25 I beheld, and, lo, there was no man,

And all the birds of the heavens were fled.

26 I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful field was a wilderness,

And all the cities thereof were broken down

At the presence of the LORD,

And before His fierce anger.

27 For thus saith the LORD:

The whole land shall be desolate;

Yet will I not make a full end.

28 For this shall the earth mourn,

And the heavens above be black;

Because I have spoken it, I have purposed it,

And I have not repented, neither will I turn back from it.

29 For the noise of the horsemen and bowmen

The whole city fleeth;

They go into the thickets,

And climb up upon the rocks;

Every city is forsaken, and not a man dwelleth therein.

30 And thou, that art spoiled, what doest thou,

That thou clothest thyself with scarlet,

That thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold,

That thou enlargest thine eyes with paint?

In vain dost thou make thyself fair;

Thy lovers despise thee, they seek thy life.

31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail,

The anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child,

The voice of the daughter of Zion, that gaspeth for breath,

That spreadeth her hands:

'Woe is me, now! for my soul fainteth

Before the murderers.'

JEREMIAH 5 — 1 Run ye to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem,

And see now, and know,

And seek in the broad places thereof,

If ye can find a man,

If there be any that doeth justly, that seeketh truth;

And I will pardon her.

2 And though they say: 'As the LORD liveth',

Surely they swear falsely.

3 O LORD, are not Thine eyes upon truth?

Thou hast stricken them, but they were not affected;

Thou hast consumed them, but they have refused to receive correction;

They have made their faces harder than a rock;

They have refused to return.

4 And I said: 'Surely these are poor,

They are foolish, for they know not the way of the LORD,

Nor the ordinance of their God;

5 I will get me unto the great men,

And will speak unto them;

For they know the way of the LORD,

And the ordinance of their God.'

But these had altogether broken the yoke,

And burst the bands.

6 Wherefore a lion out of the forest doth slay them,

A wolf of the deserts doth spoil them,

A leopard watcheth over their cities,

Every one that goeth out thence is torn in pieces;

Because their transgressions are many,

Their backslidings are increased.

7 Wherefore should I pardon thee?

The children have forsaken Me,

And sworn by no-gods;

And when I had fed them to the full, they committed adultery,

And assembled themselves in troops at the harlots' houses.

8 They are become as well-fed horses, lusty stallions;

Every one neigheth after his neighbour's wife.

9 Shall I not punish for these things?

Saith the LORD;

And shall not My soul be avenged

On such a nation as this?

10 Go ye up into her rows, and destroy,

But make not a full end;

Take away her shoots;

For they are not the LORD'S.

11 For the house of Israel and the house of Judah

Have dealt very treacherously against Me,

Saith the LORD.

12 They have belied the LORD,

And said: 'It is not He,

Neither shall evil come upon us;

Neither shall we see sword nor famine;

13 And the prophets shall become wind,

And the word is not in them;

Thus be it done unto them.'

14 Wherefore thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts:

Because ye speak this word,

Behold, I will make My words in thy mouth fire,

And this people wood, and it shall devour them.

15 Lo, I will bring a nation upon you from far,

O house of Israel, saith the LORD;

It is an enduring nation,

It is an ancient nation,

A nation whose language thou knowest not,

Neither understandest what they say.

16 Their quiver is an open sepulchre,

They are all mighty men.

17 And they shall eat up thy harvest, and thy bread,

They shall eat up thy sons and thy daughters,

They shall eat up thy flocks and thy herds,

They shall eat up thy vines and thy fig-trees;

They shall batter thy fortified cities,

Wherein thou trusteth, with the sword.

18 But even in those days, saith the LORD,

I will not make a full end with you.

19 And it shall come to pass, when ye shall say: 'Wherefore hath the LORD our God done all these things unto us?' then shalt Thou say unto them: 'Like as ye have forsaken Me, and served strange gods in your land, so shall ye serve strangers in a land that is not yours.'

20 Declare ye this in the house of Jacob,

And announce it in Judah, saying:

21 Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding,

That have eyes, and see not,

That have ears, and hear not:

22 Fear ye not Me? saith the LORD;

Will ye not tremble at My presence?

Who have placed the sand for the bound of the sea,

An everlasting ordinance, which it cannot pass;

And though the waves thereof toss themselves, yet can they not prevail;

Though they roar, yet can they not pass over it.

23 But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart;

They are revolted, and gone.

24 Neither say they in their heart:

'Let us now fear the LORD our God,

That giveth the former rain, and the latter in due season;

That keepeth for us

The appointed weeks of the harvest.'

25 Your iniquities have turned away these things,

And your sins have withholden good from you.

26 For among My people are found wicked men;

They pry, as fowlers lie in wait;

They set a trap, they catch men.

27 As a cage is full of birds,

So are their houses full of deceit;

Therefore they are become great, and waxen rich;

28 They are waxen fat, they are become sleek;

Yea, they overpass in deeds of wickedness;

They plead not the cause, the cause of the fatherless,

That they might make it to prosper;

And the right of the needy do they not judge.

29 Shall I not punish for these things?

Saith the LORD;

Shall not My soul be avenged

On such a nation as this?

30 An appalling and horrible thing

Is come to pass in the land:

31 The prophets prophesy in the service of falsehood,

And the priests bear rule at their beck;

And My people love to have it so;

What then will ye do in the end thereof?

JEREMIAH 6 — 1 Put yourselves under covert, ye children of Benjamin,

Away from the midst of Jerusalem,

And blow the horn in Tekoa,

And set up a signal on Beth-cherem;

For evil looketh forth from the north,

And a great destruction.

2 The comely and delicate one,

The daughter of Zion, will I cut off.

3 Shepherds with their flocks come unto her;

They pitch their tents against her round about;

They feed bare every one what is nigh at hand.

4 'Prepare ye war against her;

Arise, and let us go up at noon!'

'Woe unto us! for the day declineth,

For the shadows of the evening are stretched out!'

5 'Arise, and let us go up by night,

And let us destroy her palaces.'

6 For thus hath the LORD of hosts said:

Hew ye down her trees,

And cast up a mound against Jerusalem;

This is the city to be punished;

Everywhere there is oppression in the midst of her.

7 As a cistern welleth with her waters,

So she welleth with her wickedness;

Violence and spoil is heard in her;

Before Me continually is sickness and wounds.

8 Be thou corrected, O Jerusalem,

Lest My soul be alienated from thee,

Lest I make thee desolate,

A land not inhabited.

9 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

They shall thoroughly glean as a vine

The remnant of Israel;

Turn again thy hand

As a grape-gatherer upon the shoots.

10 To whom shall I speak and give warning,

That they may hear?

Behold, their ear is dull,

And they cannot attend;

Behold, the word of the LORD is become unto them a reproach,

They have no delight in it.

11 Therefore I am full of the fury of the LORD,

I am weary with holding in:

Pour it out upon the babes in the street,

And upon the assembly of young men together;

For even the husband with the wife shall be taken,

The aged with him that is full of days.

12 And their houses shall be turned unto others,

Their fields and their wives together;

For I will stretch out My hand upon the inhabitants of the land,

Saith the LORD.

13 For from the least of them even unto the greatest of them

Every one is greedy for gain;

And from the prophet even unto the priest

Every one dealeth falsely.

14 They have healed also the hurt of My people lightly,

Saying: 'Peace, peace', when there is no peace.

15 They shall be put to shame because they have committed abomination;

Yea, they are not at all ashamed,

Neither know they how to blush;

Therefore they shall fall among them that fall,

At the time that I punish them they shall stumble,

Saith the LORD.

16 Thus saith the LORD:

Stand ye in the ways and see,

And ask for the old paths,

Where is the good way, and walk therein,

And ye shall find rest for your souls.

But they said: 'We will not walk therein.'

17 And I set watchmen over you:

'Attend to the sound of the horn',

But they said: 'We will not attend.'

18 Therefore hear, ye nations,

And know, O congregation, what is against them.

19 Hear, O earth:

Behold, I will bring evil upon this people,

Even the fruit of their thoughts,

Because they have not attended unto My words,

And as for My teaching, they have rejected it.

20 To what purpose is to Me the frankincense that cometh from Sheba,

And the sweet cane, from a far country?

Your burnt-offerings are not acceptable,

Nor your sacrifices pleasing unto Me.

21 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

Behold, I will lay stumblingblocks before this people,

And the fathers and the sons together shall stumble against them,

The neighbour and his friend, and they shall perish.

22 Thus saith the LORD:

Behold, a people cometh from the north country,

And a great nation shall be roused from the uttermost parts of the earth.

23 They lay hold on bow and spear,

They are cruel, and have no compassion;

Their voice is like the roaring sea,

And they ride upon horses;

Set in array, as a man for war,

Against thee, O daughter of Zion.

24 'We have heard the fame thereof,

Our hands wax feeble,

Anguish hath taken hold of us,

And pain, as of a woman in travail.'

25 Go not forth into the field,

Nor walk by the way;

For there is the sword of the enemy,

And terror on every side.

26 O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth,

And wallow thyself in ashes;

Make thee mourning, as for an only son,

Most bitter lamentation;

For the spoiler shall suddenly come upon us.

27 I have made thee a tower and a fortress among My people;

That thou mayest know and try their way.

28 They are all grievous revolters,

Going about with slanders;

They are brass and iron;

They all of them deal corruptly.

29 The bellows blow fiercely,

The lead is consumed of the fire;

In vain doth the founder refine,

For the wicked are not separated.

30 Refuse silver shall men call them,

Because the LORD hath rejected them.

JEREMIAH 7 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 Stand in the gate of the LORD'S house, and proclaim there this word, and say: Hear the word of the LORD, all ye of Judah, that enter in at these gates to worship the LORD. 3 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Amend your ways and your doings, and I will cause you to dwell in this place. 4 Trust ye not in lying words, saying: 'The temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, are these.' 5 Nay, but if ye thoroughly amend your ways and your doings; if ye thoroughly execute justice between a man and his neighbour; 6 if ye oppress not the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow, and shed not innocent blood in this place, neither walk after other gods to your hurt; 7 then will I cause you to dwell in this place, in the land that I gave to your fathers, for ever and ever. 8 Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit. 9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and offer unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye have not known, 10 and come and stand before Me in this house, whereupon My name is called, and say: 'We are delivered', that ye may do all these abominations? 11 Is this house, whereupon My name is called, become a den of robbers in your eyes? Behold, I, even I, have seen it, saith the LORD. 12 For go ye now unto My place which was in Shiloh, where I caused My name to dwell at the first, and see what I did to it for the wickedness of My people Israel. 13 And now, because ye have done all these works, saith the LORD, and I spoke unto you, speaking betimes and often, but ye heard not, and I called you, but ye answered not; 14 therefore will I do unto the house, whereupon My name is called, wherein ye trust, and unto the place which I gave to you and to your fathers, as I have done to Shiloh. 15 And I will cast you out of My sight, as I have cast out all your brethren, even the whole seed of Ephraim.

16 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to Me; for I will not hear thee. 17 Seest thou not what they do in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? 18 The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead the dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto other gods, that they may provoke Me. 19 Do they provoke Me? saith the LORD; do they not provoke themselves, to the confusion of their own faces? 20 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, Mine anger and My fury shall be poured out upon this place, upon man, and upon beast, and upon the trees of the field, and upon the fruit of the land; and it shall burn, and shall not be quenched.

21 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Add your burnt-offerings unto your sacrifices, and eat ye flesh. 22 For I spoke not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt-offerings or sacrifices; 23 but this thing I commanded them, saying: 'Hearken unto My voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be My people; and walk ye in all the way that I command you, that it may be well with you.' 24 But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in their own counsels, even in the stubbornness of their evil heart, and went backward and not forward, 25 even since the day that your fathers came forth out of the land of Egypt unto this day; and though I have sent unto you all My servants the prophets, sending them daily betimes and often, 26 yet they hearkened not unto Me, nor inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff; they did worse than their fathers.

27 And thou shalt speak all these words unto them, but they will not hearken to thee; thou shalt also call unto them, but they will not answer thee. 28 Therefore thou shalt say unto them:

This is the nation that hath not hearkened

To the voice of the LORD their God,

Nor received correction;

Faithfulness is perished,

And is cut off from their mouth.

29 Cut off thy hair, and cast it away,

And take up a lamentation on the high hills;

For the LORD hath rejected and forsaken the generation of His wrath.

30 For the children of Judah have done that which is evil in My sight, saith the LORD; they have set their detestable things in the house whereon My name is called, to defile it. 31 And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire; which I commanded not, neither came it into My mind. 32 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be called Topheth, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter; for they shall bury in Topheth, for lack of room. 33 And the carcasses of this people shall be food for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth; and none shall frighten them away. 34 Then will I cause to cease from the cities of Judah, and from the streets of Jerusalem, the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride; for the land shall be desolate. JEREMIAH 8 — 1 At that time, saith the LORD, they shall bring out the bones of the kings of Judah, and the bones of his princes, and the bones of the priests, and the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, out of their graves; 2 and they shall spread them before the sun, and the moon, and all the host of heaven, whom they have loved, and whom they have served, and after whom they have walked, and whom they have sought, and whom they have worshipped; they shall not be gathered, nor be buried, they shall be for dung upon the face of the earth. 3 And death shall be chosen rather than life by all the residue that remain of this evil family, that remain in all the places whither I have driven them, saith the LORD of hosts.

4 Moreover thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith the LORD:

Do men fall, and not rise up again?

Doth one turn away, and not return?

5 Why then is this people of Jerusalem slidden back

By a perpetual backsliding?

They hold fast deceit,

They refuse to return.

6 I attended and listened,

But they spoke not aright;

No man repenteth him of his wickedness,

Saying: 'What have I done?'

Every one turneth away in his course,

As a horse that rusheth headlong in the battle.

7 Yea, the stork in the heaven

Knoweth her appointed times;

And the turtle and the swallow and the crane

Observe the time of their coming;

But My people know not

The ordinance of the LORD.

8 How do ye say: 'We are wise,

And the Law of the LORD is with us'?

Lo, certainly in vain hath wrought

The vain pen of the scribes.

9 The wise men are ashamed,

They are dismayed and taken;

Lo, they have rejected the word of the LORD;

And what wisdom is in them?

10 Therefore will I give their wives unto others,

And their fields to them that shall possess them;

For from the least even unto the greatest

Every one is greedy for gain,

From the prophet even unto the priest

Every one dealeth falsely.

11 And they have healed the hurt of the daughter of My people lightly,

Saying: 'Peace, peace', when there is no peace.

12 They shall be put to shame because they have committed abomination;

Yea, they are not at all ashamed,

Neither know they how to blush;

Therefore shall they fall among them that fall,

In the time of their visitation they shall stumble,

Saith the LORD.

13 I will utterly consume them, saith the LORD;

There are no grapes on the vine,

Nor figs on the fig-tree,

And the leaf is faded;

And I gave them that which they transgress.

14 'Why do we sit still?

Assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the fortified cities,

And let us be cut off there;

For the LORD our God hath cut us off,

And given us water of gall to drink,

Because we have sinned against the LORD.

15 We looked for peace, but no good came;

And for a time of healing, and behold terror!'

16 The snorting of his horses is heard from Dan;

At the sound of the neighing of his strong ones

The whole land trembleth;

For they are come, and have devoured the land and all that is in it,

The city and those that dwell therein.

17 For, behold, I will send serpents, basilisks, among you,

Which will not be charmed;

And they shall bite you, saith the LORD.

18 Though I would take comfort against sorrow,

My heart is faint within me.

19 Behold the voice of the cry of the daughter of my people

From a land far off:

'Is not the LORD in Zion?

Is not her King in her?'-

'Why have they provoked Me with their graven images,

And with strange vanities?'-

20 'The harvest is past, the summer is ended,

And we are not saved.'

21 For the hurt of the daughter of my people am I seized with anguish;

I am black, appalment hath taken hold on me.

22 Is there no balm in Gilead?

Is there no physician there?

Why then is not the health

Of the daughter of my people recovered?

23 Oh that my head were waters,

And mine eyes a fountain of tears,

That I might weep day and night

For the slain of the daughter of my people!

JEREMIAH 9 — 1 Oh that I were in the wilderness,

In a lodging-place of wayfaring men,

That I might leave my people,

And go from them!

For they are all adulterers,

An assembly of treacherous men.

2 And they bend their tongue, their bow of falsehood;

And they are grown mighty in the land, but not for truth;

For they proceed from evil to evil,

And Me they know not,

Saith the LORD.

3 Take ye heed every one of his neighbour,

And trust ye not in any brother;

For every brother acteth subtly,

And every neighbour goeth about with slanders.

4 And they deceive every one his neighbour,

And truth they speak not;

They have taught their tongue to speak lies,

They weary themselves to commit iniquity.

5 Thy habitation is in the midst of deceit;

Through deceit they refuse to know Me,

Saith the LORD.

6 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Behold, I will smelt them, and try them;

For how else should I do,

Because of the daughter of My people?

7 Their tongue is a sharpened arrow,

It speaketh deceit;

One speaketh peaceably to his neighbour with his mouth,

But in his heart he layeth wait for him.

8 Shall I not punish them for these things?

Saith the LORD;

Shall not My soul be avenged

On such a nation as this?

9 For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing,

And for the pastures of the wilderness a lamentation,

Because they are burned up, so that none passeth through.

And they hear not the voice of the cattle;

Both the fowl of the heavens and the beast

Are fled, and gone.

10 And I will make Jerusalem heaps,

A lair of jackals;

And I will make the cities of Judah a desolation,

Without an inhabitant.

11 Who is the wise man, that he may understand this?

And who is he to whom the mouth of the LORD hath spoken, that he may declare it?

Wherefore is the land perished

And laid waste like a wilderness, so that none passeth through?

12 And the LORD saith:

Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them,

And have not hearkened to My voice, neither walked therein;

13 But have walked after the stubbornness of their own heart,

And after the Baalim, which their fathers taught them.

14 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood,

And give them water of gall to drink.

15 I will scatter them also among the nations,

Whom neither they nor their fathers have known;

And I will send the sword after them,

Till I have consumed them.

16 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Consider ye, and call for the mourning women, that they may come;

And send for the wise women, that they may come;

17 And let them make haste, and take up a wailing for us,

That our eyes may run down with tears,

And our eyelids gush out with waters.

18 For a voice of wailing is heard out of Zion:

'How are we undone!

We are greatly confounded, because we have forsaken the land,

Because our dwellings have cast us out.'

19 Yea, hear the word of the LORD, O ye women,

And let your ear receive the word of His mouth,

And teach your daughters wailing,

And every one her neighbour lamentation:

20 'For death is come up into our windows,

It is entered into our palaces,

To cut off the children from the street,

And the young men from the broad places.-

21 Speak: Thus saith the LORD-

And the carcasses of men fall

As dung upon the open field,

And as the handful after the harvestman,

Which none gathereth.'

22 Thus saith the LORD:

Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom,

Neither let the mighty man glory in his might,

Let not the rich man glory in his riches;

23 But let him that glorieth glory in this,

That he understandeth, and knoweth Me,

That I am the LORD who exercise mercy,

Justice, and righteousness, in the earth;

For in these things I delight,

Saith the LORD.

24 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will punish all them that are circumcised in their uncircumcision: 25 Egypt, and Judah, and Edom, and the children of Ammon, and Moab, and all that have the corners of their hair polled, that dwell in the wilderness;

For all the nations are uncircumcised,

But all the house of Israel are uncircumcised in the heart.

JEREMIAH 10 — 1 Hear ye the word which the LORD speaketh unto you, O house of Israel; 2 thus saith the LORD:

Learn not the way of the nations,

And be not dismayed at the signs of heaven;

For the nations are dismayed at them.

3 For the customs of the peoples are vanity;

For it is but a tree which one cutteth out of the forest,

The work of the hands of the workman with the axe.

4 They deck it with silver and with gold,

They fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.

5 They are like a pillar in a garden of cucumbers, and speak not;

They must needs be borne, because they cannot go.

Be not afraid of them, for they cannot do evil,

Neither is it in them to do good.

6 There is none like unto Thee, O LORD;

Thou art great, and Thy name is great in might.

7 Who would not fear Thee, O king of the nations?

For it befitteth Thee;

Forasmuch as among all the wise men of the nations, and in all their royalty,

There is none like unto Thee.

8 But they are altogether brutish and foolish:

The vanities by which they are instructed are but a stock;

9 Silver beaten into plates which is brought from Tarshish,

And gold from Uphaz,

The work of the craftsman and of the hands of the goldsmith;

Blue and purple is their clothing;

They are all the work of skilful men.

10 But the LORD God is the true God,

He is the living God, and the everlasting King;

At His wrath the earth trembleth,

And the nations are not able to abide His indignation.

11 Thus shall ye say unto them: 'The gods that have not made the heavens and the earth, these shall perish from the earth, and from under the heavens.'

12 He that hath made the earth by His power,

That hath established the world by His wisdom,

And hath stretched out the heavens by His understanding;

13 At the sound of His giving a multitude of waters in the heavens,

When He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth;

When He maketh lightnings with the rain,

And bringeth forth the wind out of His treasuries;

14 Every man is proved to be brutish, without knowledge,

Every goldsmith is put to shame by the graven image,

His molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.

15 They are vanity, a work of delusion;

In the time of their visitation they shall perish.

16 Not like these is the portion of Jacob;

For He is the former of all things,

And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance;

The LORD of hosts is His name.

17 Gather up thy wares from the ground,

O thou that abidest in the siege.

18 For thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will sling out the inhabitants of the land at this time, and will distress them, that they may feel it.

19 Woe is me for my hurt!

My wound is grievous;

But I said: 'This is but a sickness,

And I must bear it.'

20 My tent is spoiled,

And all my cords are broken;

My children are gone forth of me, and they are not;

There is none to stretch forth my tent any more,

And to set up my curtains.

21 For the shepherds are become brutish,

And have not inquired of the LORD;

Therefore they have not prospered,

And all their flocks are scattered.

22 Hark! a report, behold, it cometh,

And a great commotion out of the north country,

To make the cities of Judah desolate,

A dwelling-place of jackals.

23 O LORD, I know that man's way is not his own;

It is not in man to direct his steps as he walketh.

24 O LORD, correct me, but in measure;

Not in Thine anger, lest Thou diminish me.

25 Pour out Thy wrath upon the nations that know Thee not,

And upon the families that call not on Thy name;

For they have devoured Jacob,

Yea, they have devoured him and consumed him,

And have laid waste his habitation.

JEREMIAH 11 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 'Hear ye the words of this covenant, and speak unto the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; 3 and say thou unto them: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Cursed be the man that heareth not the words of this covenant, 4 which I commanded your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the iron furnace, saying: Hearken to My voice, and do them, according to all which I command you; so shall ye be My people, and I will be your God; 5 that I may establish the oath which I swore unto your fathers, to give them a land flowing with milk and honey, as at this day.' Then answered I, and said: 'Amen, O LORD.'

6 And the LORD said unto me: 'Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, saying: Hear ye the words of this covenant, and do them. 7 For I earnestly forewarned your fathers in the day that I brought them up out of the land of Egypt, even unto this day, forewarning betimes and often, saying: Hearken to My voice. 8 Yet they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked every one in the stubbornness of their evil heart; therefore I brought upon them all the words of this covenant, which I commanded them to do, but they did them not.'

9 And the LORD said unto me: 'A conspiracy is found among the men of Judah, and among the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 10 They are turned back to the iniquities of their forefathers, who refused to hear My words; and they are gone after other gods to serve them; the house of Israel and the house of Judah have broken My covenant which I made with their fathers. 11 Therefore thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto Me, I will not hearken unto them. 12 Then shall the cities of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem go and cry unto the gods unto whom they offer; but they shall not save them at all in the time of their trouble. 13 For according to the number of thy cities are thy gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem have ye set up altars to the shameful thing, even altars to offer unto Baal. 14 Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them; for I will not hear them in the time that they cry unto Me for their trouble.'

15 What hath My beloved to do in My house,

Seeing she hath wrought lewdness with many,

And the hallowed flesh is passed from thee?

When thou doest evil, then thou rejoicest.

16 The LORD called thy name

A leafy olive-tree, fair with goodly fruit;

With the noise of a great tumult

He hath kindled fire upon it,

And the branches of it are broken.

17 For the LORD of hosts, that planted thee, hath pronounced evil against thee, because of the evil of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, which they have wrought for themselves in provoking Me by offering unto Baal.

18 And the LORD gave me knowledge of it, and I knew it;

Then Thou showedst me their doings.

19 But I was like a docile lamb that is led to the slaughter;

And I knew not that they had devised devices against me:

'Let us destroy the tree with the fruit thereof,

And let us cut him off from the land of the living,

That his name may be no more remembered.'

20 But, O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously,

That triest the reins and the heart,

Let me see Thy vengeance on them;

For unto Thee have I revealed my cause.

21 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning the men of Anathoth, that seek thy life, saying: 'Thou shalt not prophesy in the name of the LORD, that thou die not by our hand'; 22 therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Behold, I will punish them;

The young men shall die by the sword,

Their sons and their daughters shall die by famine;

23 And there shall be no remnant unto them;

For I will bring evil upon the men of Anathoth,

Even the year of their visitation.

JEREMIAH 12 — 1 Right wouldest Thou be, O LORD,

Were I to contend with Thee,

Yet will I reason with Thee:

Wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper?

Wherefore are all they secure that deal very treacherously?

2 Thou hast planted them, yea, they have taken root;

They grow, yea, they bring forth fruit;

Thou art near in their mouth,

And far from their reins.

3 But Thou, O LORD, knowest me,

Thou seest me, and triest my heart toward Thee;

Pull them out like sheep for the slaughter,

And prepare them for the day of slaughter.

4 How long shall the land mourn,

And the herbs of the whole field wither?

For the wickedness of them that dwell therein, the beasts are consumed, and the birds;

Because they said: 'He seeth not our end.'

5 'If thou hast run with the footmen, and they have wearied thee,

Then how canst thou contend with horses?

And though in a land of peace thou art secure,

Yet how wilt thou do in the thickets of the Jordan?

6 For even thy brethren, and the house of thy father,

Even they have dealt treacherously with thee,

Even they have cried aloud after thee;

Believe them not, though they speak fair words unto thee.'

7 I have forsaken My house,

I have cast off My heritage;

I have given the dearly beloved of My soul

Into the hand of her enemies.

8 My heritage is become unto Me

As a lion in the forest;

She hath uttered her voice against Me;

Therefore have I hated her.

9 Is My heritage unto Me as a speckled bird of prey?

Are the birds of prey against her round about?

Come ye, assemble all the beasts of the field,

Bring them to devour.

10 Many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard,

They have trodden My portion under foot,

They have made My pleasant portion

A desolate wilderness.

11 They have made it a desolation,

It mourneth unto Me, being desolate;

The whole land is made desolate,

Because no man layeth it to heart.

12 Upon all the high hills in the wilderness spoilers are come;

For the sword of the LORD devoureth

From the one end of the land even to the other end of the land,

No flesh hath peace.

13 They have sown wheat, and have reaped thorns;

They have put themselves to pain, they profit not;

Be ye then ashamed of your increase,

Because of the fierce anger of the LORD.

14 Thus saith the LORD: As for all Mine evil neighbours, that touch the inheritance which I have caused My people Israel to inherit, behold, I will pluck them up from off their land, and will pluck up the house of Judah from among them. 15 And it shall come to pass, after that I have plucked them up, I will again have compassion on them; and I will bring them back, every man to his heritage, and every man to his land. 16 And it shall come to pass, if they will diligently learn the ways of My people to swear by My name: 'As the LORD liveth,' even as they taught My people to swear by Baal; then shall they be built up in the midst of My people. 17 But if they will not hearken, then will I pluck up that nation, plucking up and destroying it, saith the LORD.

JEREMIAH 13 — 1 Thus said the LORD unto me: 'Go, and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, and put it not in water.' 2 So I got a girdle according to the word of the LORD, and put it upon my loins.

3 And the word of the LORD came unto me the second time, saying: 4 'Take the girdle that thou hast gotten, which is upon thy loins, and arise, go to Perath, and hide it there in a cleft of the rock.' 5 So I went, and hid it in Perath, as the LORD commanded me. 6 And it came to pass after many days, that the LORD said unto me: 'Arise, go to Perath, and take the girdle from thence, which I commanded thee to hide there.' 7 Then I went to Perath, and digged, and took the girdle from the place where I had hid it; and, behold, the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing.

8 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:

9 Thus saith the LORD: After this manner will I mar the pride of Judah, and the great pride of Jerusalem, 10 even this evil people, that refuse to hear My words, that walk in the stubbornness of their heart, and are gone after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, that it be as this girdle, which is profitable for nothing. 11 For as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I caused to cleave unto Me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, saith the LORD, that they might be unto Me for a people, and for a name, and for a praise, and for a glory; but they would not hearken.

12 Moreover thou shalt speak unto them this word: Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: 'Every bottle is filled with wine'; and when they shall say unto thee: 'Do we not know that every bottle is filled with wine?' 13 Then shalt thou say unto them: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will fill all the inhabitants of this land, even the kings that sit upon David's throne, and the priests, and the prophets, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with drunkenness. 14 And I will dash them one against another, even the fathers and the sons together, saith the LORD; I will not pity, nor spare, nor have compassion, that I should not destroy them.

15 Hear ye, and give ear, be not proud;

For the LORD hath spoken.

16 Give glory to the LORD your God,

Before it grow dark,

And before your feet stumble

Upon the mountains of twilight,

And, while ye look for light,

He turn it into the shadow of death,

And make it gross darkness.

17 But if ye will not hear it,

My soul shall weep in secret for your pride;

And mine eyes shall weep sore, and run down with tears,

Because the LORD'S flock is carried away captive.

18 Say thou unto the king and to the queen-mother:

'Sit ye down low;

For your headtires are come down,

Even your beautiful crown.'

19 The cities of the South are shut up,

And there is none to open them;

Judah is carried away captive all of it;

It is wholly carried away captive.

20 Lift up your eyes, and behold

Them that come from the north;

Where is the flock that was given thee,

Thy beautiful flock?

21 What wilt thou say, when He shall set the friends over thee as head,

Whom thou thyself hast trained against thee?

Shall not pangs take hold of thee,

As of a woman in travail?

22 And if thou say in thy heart:

'Wherefore are these things befallen me?'-

For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts uncovered,

And thy heels suffer violence.

23 Can the Ethiopian change his skin,

Or the leopard his spots?

Then may ye also do good,

That are accustomed to do evil.

24 Therefore will I scatter them, as the stubble that passeth away

by the wind of the wilderness.

25 This is thy lot, the portion measured unto thee from Me,

Saith the LORD;

Because thou hast forgotten Me,

And trusted in falsehood.

26 Therefore will I also uncover thy skirts upon thy face,

And thy shame shall appear.

27 Thine adulteries, and thy neighings, the lewdness of thy harlotry,

On the hills in the field have I seen thy detestable acts.

Woe unto thee, O Jerusalem! thou wilt not be made clean!

When shall it ever be?

JEREMIAH 14 — 1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts.

2 Judah mourneth, and the gates thereof languish,

They bow down in black unto the ground;

And the cry of Jerusalem is gone up.

3 And their nobles send their lads for water:

They come to the pits, and find no water;

Their vessels return empty;

They are ashamed and confounded, and cover their heads.

4 Because of the ground which is cracked,

For there hath been no rain in the land,

The plowmen are ashamed, they cover their heads.

5 Yea, the hind also in the field calveth, and forsaketh her young,

Because there is no grass,

6 And the wild asses stand on the high hills,

They gasp for air like jackals;

Their eyes fail, because there is no herbage.

7 Though our iniquities testify against us,

O LORD, work Thou for Thy name's sake;

For our backslidings are many,

We have sinned against Thee.

8 O Thou hope of Israel,

The Saviour thereof in time of trouble,

Why shouldest Thou be as a stranger in the land,

And as a wayfaring man that turneth aside to tarry for a night?

9 Why shouldest thou be as a man overcome,

As a mighty man that cannot save?

Yet Thou, O LORD, art in the midst of us,

And Thy name is called upon us;

Leave us not.

10 Thus saith the LORD unto this people:

Even so have they loved to wander,

They have not refrained their feet;

Therefore the LORD doth not accept them,

Now will He remember their iniquity,

And punish their sins.

11 And the LORD said unto me: 'Pray not for this people for their good. 12 When they fast, I will not hear their cry; and when they offer burnt-offering and meal-offering, I will not accept them; but I will consume them by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence.' 13 Then said I: 'Ah, Lord GOD! behold, the prophets say unto them: Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; but I will give you assured peace in this place.' 14 Then the LORD said unto me: 'The prophets prophesy lies in My name; I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spoke I unto them; they prophesy unto you a lying vision, and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their own heart. 15 Therefore thus saith the LORD: As for the prophets that prophesy in My name, and I sent them not, yet they say: Sword and famine shall not be in this land, by sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed; 16 and the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem because of the famine and the sword; and they shall have none to bury them, them, their wives, nor their sons, nor their daughters; for I will pour their evil upon them.'

17 And thou shalt say this word unto them:

Let mine eyes run down with tears night and day,

And let them not cease;

For the virgin daughter of my people is broken with a great breach,

With a very grievous blow.

18 If I go forth into the field,

Then behold the slain with the sword!

And if I enter into the city,

Then behold them that are sick with famine!

For both the prophet and the priest are gone about to a land, and knew it not.

19 Hast Thou utterly rejected Judah?

Hath Thy soul loathed Zion?

Why hast Thou smitten us, and there is no healing for us?

We looked for peace, but no good came;

And for a time of healing, and behold terror!

20 We acknowledge, O LORD, our wickedness,

Even the iniquity of our fathers;

For we have sinned against Thee.

21 Do not contemn us, for Thy name's sake,

Do not dishonour the throne of Thy glory;

Remember, break not Thy covenant with us.

22 Are there any among the vanities of the nations that can cause rain?

Or can the heavens give showers?

Art not Thou He, O LORD our God, and do we not wait for Thee?

For Thou hast made all these things.

JEREMIAH 15 — 1 Then said the LORD unto me: 'Though Moses and Samuel stood before Me, yet My mind could not be toward this people; cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth. 2 And it shall come to pass, when they say unto thee: Whither shall we go forth? then thou shall tell them: Thus saith the LORD: Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for the famine, to the famine; and such as are for captivity, to captivity. 3 And I will appoint over them four kinds, saith the LORD: the sword to slay, and the dogs to drag, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the earth, to devour and to destroy. 4 And I will cause them to be a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth, because of Manasseh the son of Hezekiah king of Judah, for that which he did in Jerusalem.

5 For who shall have pity upon thee, O Jerusalem?

Or who shall bemoan thee?

Or who shall turn aside to ask of thy welfare?

6 Thou hast cast Me off, saith the LORD,

Thou art gone backward;

Therefore do I stretch out My hand against thee, and destroy thee;

I am weary with repenting.

7 And I fan them with a fan in the gates of the land;

I bereave them of children, I destroy My people,

Since they return not from their ways.

8 Their widows are increased to Me above the sand of the seas;

I bring upon them, against the mother, a chosen one,

Even a spoiler at noonday;

I cause anguish and terrors to fall upon her suddenly.

9 She that hath borne seven languisheth;

Her spirit droopeth;

Her sun is gone down while it was yet day,

She is ashamed and confounded;

And the residue of them will I deliver to the sword before their enemies,

Saith the LORD.'

10 Woe is me, my mother, that thou hast borne me

A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole earth!

I have not lent, neither have men lent to me;

Yet every one of them doth curse me.

11 The LORD said: 'Verily I will release thee for good; verily I will cause the enemy to make supplication unto thee in the time of evil and in the time of affliction. 12 Can iron break iron from the north and brass? 13 Thy substance and thy treasures will I give for a spoil without price, and that for all thy sins, even in all thy borders. 14 And I will make thee to pass with thine enemies into a land which thou knowest not; for a fire is kindled in My nostril, which shall burn upon you.'

15 Thou, O LORD, knowest;

Remember me, and think of me, and avenge me of my persecutors;

Take me not away because of Thy long-suffering;

Know that for Thy sake I have suffered taunts.

16 Thy words were found, and I did eat them;

And Thy words were unto me a joy and the rejoicing of my heart;

Because Thy name was called on me, O LORD God of hosts.

17 I sat not in the assembly of them that make merry, nor rejoiced;

I sat alone because of Thy hand;

For Thou hast filled me with indignation.

18 Why is my pain perpetual,

And my wound incurable, so that it refuseth to be healed?

Wilt Thou indeed be unto me as a deceitful brook,

As waters that fail?

19 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

If thou return, and I bring thee back,

Thou shalt stand before Me;

And if thou bring forth the precious out of the vile,

Thou shalt be as My mouth;

Let them return unto thee,

But thou shalt not return unto them.

20 And I will make thee unto this people a fortified brazen wall;

And they shall fight against thee,

But they shall not prevail against thee;

For I am with thee to save thee and to deliver thee,

Saith the LORD.

21 And I will deliver thee out of the hand of the wicked,

And I will redeem thee out of the hand of the terrible.

JEREMIAH 16 — 1 The word of the LORD came also unto me, saying:

2 Thou shalt not take thee a wife,

Neither shalt thou have sons or daughters in this place.

3 For thus saith the LORD concerning the sons and concerning the daughters that are born in this place, and concerning their mothers that bore them, and concerning their fathers that begot them in this land:

4 They shall die of grievous deaths;

They shall not be lamented, neither shall they be buried,

They shall be as dung upon the face of the ground;

And they shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine;

And their carcasses shall be meat for the fowls of heaven,

And for the beasts of the earth.

5 For thus saith the LORD: Enter not into the house of mourning, neither go to lament, neither bemoan them; for I have taken away My peace from this people, saith the LORD, even mercy and compassion. 6 Both the great and the small shall die in this land; they shall not be buried; neither shall men lament for them, nor cut themselves, nor make themselves bald for them; 7 neither shall men break bread for them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead; neither shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or for their mother. 8 And thou shalt not go into the house of feasting to sit with them, to eat and to drink. 9 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Behold, I will cause to cease out of this place,

Before your eyes and in your days,

The voice of mirth and the voice of gladness,

The voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.

10 And it shall come to pass, when thou shalt tell this people all these words, and they shall say unto thee: 'Wherefore hath the LORD pronounced all this great evil against us? or what is our iniquity? or what is our sin that we have committed against the LORD our God?' 11 then shalt thou say unto them: 'Because your fathers have forsaken Me, saith the LORD, and have walked after other gods, and have served them, and have worshipped them, and have forsaken Me, and have not kept My law; 12 and ye have done worse than your fathers; for, behold, ye walk every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart, so that ye hearken not unto Me; 13 therefore will I cast you out of this land into a land that ye have not known, neither ye nor your fathers; and there shall ye serve other gods day and night; forasmuch as I will show you no favour.'

14 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that it shall no more be said: 'As the LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt,' 15 but: 'As the LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel from the land of the north, and from all the countries whither He had driven them'; and I will bring them back into their land that I gave unto their fathers.

16 Behold, I will send for many fishers, saith the LORD, and they shall fish them; and afterward I will send for many hunters, and they shall hunt them from every mountain, and from every hill, and out of the clefts of the rocks.

17 For Mine eyes are upon all their ways,

They are not hid from My face;

Neither is their iniquity concealed from Mine eyes.

18 And first I will recompense their iniquity and their sin double;

Because they have profaned My land;

They have filled Mine inheritance

With the carcasses of their detestable things and their abominations.

19 O LORD, my strength, and my stronghold,

And my refuge, in the day of affliction,

Unto Thee shall the nations come

From the ends of the earth, and shall say:

'Our fathers have inherited nought but lies,

Vanity and things wherein there is no profit.'

20 Shall a man make unto himself gods,

And they are no gods?

21 Therefore, behold, I will cause them to know,

This once will I cause them to know

My hand and My might;

And they shall know that My name is the LORD.

JEREMIAH 17 — 1 The sin of Judah is written

With a pen of iron, and with the point of a diamond;

It is graven upon the tablet of their heart,

And upon the horns of your altars.

2 Like the symbols of their sons are their altars,

And their Asherim are by the leafy trees,

Upon the high hills.

3 O thou that sittest upon the mountain in the field,

I will give thy substance and all thy treasures for a spoil,

And thy high places, because of sin, throughout all thy borders.

4 And thou, even of thyself, shalt discontinue from thy heritage

That I gave thee;

And I will cause thee to serve thine enemies

In the land which thou knowest not;

For ye have kindled a fire in My nostril,

Which shall burn for ever.

5 Thus saith the LORD:

Cursed is the man that trusteth in man,

And maketh flesh his arm,

And whose heart departeth from the LORD.

6 For he shall be like a tamarisk in the desert,

And shall not see when good cometh;

But shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness,

A salt land and not inhabited.

7 Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD,

And whose trust the LORD is.

8 For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters,

And that spreadeth out its roots by the river,

And shall not see when heat cometh,

But its foliage shall be luxuriant;

And shall not be anxious in the year of drought,

Neither shall cease from yielding fruit.

9 The heart is deceitful above all things,

And it is exceeding weak-who can know it?

10 I the LORD search the heart,

I try the reins,

Even to give every man according to his ways,

According to the fruit of his doings.

11 As the partridge that broodeth over young which she hath not brought forth,

So is he that getteth riches, and not by right;

In the midst of his days he shall leave them,

And at his end he shall be a fool.

12 Thou throne of glory, on high from the beginning,

Thou place of our sanctuary,

13 Thou hope of Israel, the LORD!

All that forsake Thee shall be ashamed;

They that depart from Thee shall be written in the earth,

Because they have forsaken the LORD,

The fountain of living waters.

14 Heal me, O LORD, and I shall be healed;

Save me, and I shall be saved;

For Thou art my praise.

15 Behold, they say unto me:

'Where is the word of the LORD? let it come now.'

16 As for me, I have not hastened from being a shepherd after Thee;

Neither have I desired the woeful day; Thou knowest it;

That which came out of my lips was manifest before Thee.

17 Be not a ruin unto me;

Thou art my refuge in the day of evil.

18 Let them be ashamed that persecute me, but let not me be ashamed;

Let them be dismayed, but let not me be dismayed;

Bring upon them the day of evil,

And destroy them with double destruction.

19 Thus said the LORD unto me: Go, and stand in the gate of the children of the people, whereby the kings of Judah come in, and by which they go out, and in all the gates of Jerusalem; 20 and say unto them:

Hear ye the word of the LORD, ye kings of Judah, and all Judah, and all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, that enter in by these gates; 21 thus saith the LORD: Take heed for the sake of your souls, and bear no burden on the sabbath day, nor bring it in by the gates of Jerusalem; 22 neither carry forth a burden out of your houses on the sabbath day, neither do ye any work; but hallow ye the sabbath day, as I commanded your fathers; 23 but they hearkened not, neither inclined their ear, but made their neck stiff, that they might not hear, nor receive instruction. 24 And it shall come to pass, if ye diligently hearken unto Me, saith the LORD, to bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the sabbath day, but to hallow the sabbath day, to do no work therein; 25 then shall there enter in by the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their princes, the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and this city shall be inhabited for ever. 26 And they shall come from the cities of Judah, and from the places round about Jerusalem, and from the land of Benjamin, and from the Lowland, and from the mountains, and from the South, bringing burnt-offerings, and sacrifices, and meal-offerings, and frankincense, and bringing sacrifices of thanksgiving, unto the house of the LORD. 27 But if ye will not hearken unto Me to hallow the sabbath day, and not to bear a burden and enter in at the gates of Jerusalem on the sabbath day; then will I kindle a fire in the gates thereof, and it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem, and it shall not be quenched.

JEREMIAH 18 — 1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 'Arise, and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause thee to hear My words.' 3 Then I went down to the potter's house, and, behold, he was at his work on the wheels. 4 And whensoever the vessel that he made of the clay was marred in the hand of the potter, he made it again another vessel, as seemed good to the potter to make it.

5 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 6 'O house of Israel, cannot I do with you as this potter? saith the LORD. Behold, as the clay in the potter's hand, so are ye in My hand, O house of Israel. 7 At one instant I may speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to pluck up and to break down and to destroy it; 8 but if that nation turn from their evil, because of which I have spoken against it, I repent of the evil that I thought to do unto it. 9 And at one instant I may speak concerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to build and to plant it; 10 but if it do evil in My sight, that it hearken not to My voice, then I repent of the good, wherewith I said I would benefit it. 11 Now therefore do thou speak to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I frame evil against you, and devise a device against you; return ye now every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your doings. 12 But they say: There is no hope; but we will walk after our own devices, and we will do every one after the stubbornness of his evil heart.'

13 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

Ask ye now among the nations,

Who hath heard such things;

The virgin of Israel hath done

A very horrible thing.

14 Doth the snow of Lebanon fail

From the rock of the field?

Or are the strange cold flowing waters

Plucked up?

15 For My people hath forgotten Me,

They offer unto vanity;

And they have been made to stumble in their ways,

In the ancient paths,

To walk in bypaths,

In a way not cast up;

16 To make their land an astonishment,

And a perpetual hissing;

Every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished,

And shake his head.

17 I will scatter them as with an east wind

Before the enemy;

I will look upon their back, and not their face,

In the day of their calamity.

18 Then said they:

'Come, and let us devise devices against Jeremiah;

For instruction shall not perish from the priest,

Nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet.

Come, and let us smite him with the tongue,

And let us not give heed to any of his words.'

19 Give heed to me, O LORD,

And hearken to the voice of them that contend with me.

20 Shall evil be recompensed for good?

For they have digged a pit for my soul.

Remember how I stood before Thee

To speak good for them,

To turn away Thy wrath from them.

21 Therefore deliver up their children to the famine,

And hurl them to the power of the sword;

And let their wives be bereaved of their children, and widows;

And let their men be slain of death,

And their young men smitten of the sword in battle.

22 Let a cry be heard from their houses,

When thou shalt bring a troop suddenly upon them;

For they have digged a pit to take me,

And hid snares for my feet.

23 Yet, LORD, Thou knowest

All their counsel against me to slay me;

Forgive not their iniquity,

Neither blot out their sin from Thy sight;

But let them be made to stumble before Thee;

Deal Thou with them in the time of Thine anger.

JEREMIAH 19 — 1 Thus said the LORD: Go, and get a potter's earthen bottle, and take of the elders of the people, and of the elders of the priests; 2 and go forth unto the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is by the entry of the gate Harsith, and proclaim there the words that I shall tell thee; 3 and say: Hear ye the word of the LORD, O kings of Judah, and inhabitants of Jerusalem; thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Behold, I will bring evil upon this place, which whosoever heareth, his ears shall tingle; 4 because they have forsaken Me, and have estranged this place, and have offered in it unto other gods, whom neither they nor their fathers have known, nor the kings of Judah; and have filled this place with the blood of innocents; 5 and have built the high places of Baal, to burn their sons in the fire for burnt-offerings unto Baal; which I commanded not, nor spoke it, neither came it into My mind. 6 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that this place shall no more be called Topheth, nor The valley of the son of Hinnom, but The valley of slaughter; 7 and I will make void the counsel of Judah and Jerusalem in this place; and I will cause them to fall by the sword before their enemies, and by the hand of them that seek their life; and their carcasses will I give to be food for the fowls of the heaven, and for the beasts of the earth; 8 and I will make this city an astonishment, and a hissing; every one that passeth thereby shall be astonished and hiss because of all the plagues thereof; 9 and I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend, in the siege and in the straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their life, shall straiten them. 10 Then shalt thou break the bottle in the sight of the men that go with thee, 11 and shalt say unto them: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Even so will I break this people and this city, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, that cannot be made whole again; and they shall bury in Topheth, for want of room to bury. 12 Thus will I do unto this place, saith the LORD, and to the inhabitants thereof, even making this city as Topheth; 13 and the houses of Jerusalem, and the houses of the kings of Judah, which are defiled, shall be as the place of Topheth, even all the houses upon whose roofs they have offered unto all the host of heaven, and have poured out drink-offerings unto other gods.

14 Then came Jeremiah from Topheth, whither the LORD had sent him to prophesy; and he stood in the court of the LORD'S house, and said to all the people: 15 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring upon this city and upon all her towns all the evil that I have pronounced against it; because they have made their neck stiff, that they might not hear My words.'

JEREMIAH 20 — 1 Now Pashhur the son of Immer the priest, who was chief officer in the house of the LORD, heard Jeremiah prophesying these things. 2 Then Pashhur smote Jeremiah the prophet, and put him in the stocks that were in the upper gate of Benjamin, which was in the house of the LORD. 3 And it came to pass on the morrow, that Pashhur brought forth Jeremiah out of the stocks. Then said Jeremiah unto him: 'The LORD hath not called thy name Pashhur, but Magormissabib. 4 For thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will make thee a terror to thyself, and to all thy friends; and they shall fall by the sword of their enemies, and thine eyes shall behold it; and I will give all Judah into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall carry them captive to Babylon, and shall slay them with the sword. 5 Moreover I will give all the store of this city, and all the gains thereof, and all the wealth thereof, yea, all the treasures of the kings of Judah will I give into the hand of their enemies, who shall spoil them, and take them, and carry them to Babylon. 6 And thou, Pashhur, and all that dwell in thy house shall go into captivity; and thou shalt come to Babylon, and there thou shalt die, and there shalt thou be buried, thou, and all thy friends, to whom thou hast prophesied falsely.'

7 O LORD, Thou hast enticed me, and I was enticed,

Thou hast overcome me, and hast prevailed;

I am become a laughing-stock all the day,

Every one mocketh me.

8 For as often as I speak, I cry out,

I cry: 'Violence and spoil';

Because the word of the LORD is made

A reproach unto me, and a derision, all the day.

9 And if I say: 'I will not make mention of Him,

Nor speak any more in His name',

Then there is in my heart as it were a burning fire

Shut up in my bones,

And I weary myself to hold it in,

But cannot.

10 For I have heard the whispering of many,

Terror on every side:

'Denounce, and we will denounce him';

Even of all my familiar friends,

Them that watch for my halting:

'Peradventure he will be enticed, and we shall prevail against him,

And we shall take our revenge on him.'

11 But the LORD is with me as a mighty warrior;

Therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail;

They shall be greatly ashamed, because they have not prospered,

Even with an everlasting confusion which shall never be forgotten.

12 But, O LORD of hosts, that triest the righteous,

That seest the reins and the heart,

Let me see Thy vengeance on them;

For unto Thee have I revealed my cause.

13 Sing unto the LORD,

Praise ye the LORD;

For He hath delivered the soul of the needy

From the hand of evil-doers.

14 Cursed be the day

Wherein I was born;

The day wherein my mother bore me,

Let it not be blessed.

15 Cursed be the man who brought tidings

To my father, saying:

'A man-child is born unto thee';

Making him very glad.

16 And let that man be as the cities

Which the LORD overthrew, and repented not;

And let him hear a cry in the morning,

And an alarm at noontide;

17 Because He slew me not from the womb;

And so my mother would have been my grave,

And her womb always great.

18 Wherefore came I forth out of the womb

To see labour and sorrow,

That my days should be consumed in shame?

JEREMIAH 21 — 1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when king Zedekiah sent unto him Pashhur the son of Malchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, saying: 2 'Inquire, I pray thee, of the LORD for us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us; peradventure the LORD will deal with us according to all His wondrous works, that he may go up from us.'

3 Then said Jeremiah unto them: Thus shall ye say to Zedekiah: 4 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel:

Behold, I will turn back the weapons of war that are in your hands, wherewith ye fight against the king of Babylon, and against the Chaldeans, that besiege you without the walls, and I will gather them into the midst of this city. 5 And I myself will fight against you with an outstretched hand and with a strong arm, even in anger, and in fury, and in great wrath. 6 And I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence. 7 And afterward, saith the LORD, I will deliver Zedekiah king of Judah, and his servants, and the people, and such as are left in this city from the pestilence, from the sword, and from the famine, into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those that seek their life; and he shall smite them with the edge of the sword; he shall not spare them, neither have pity, nor have compassion.

8 And unto this people thou shalt say: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I set before you the way of life and the way of death. 9 He that abideth in this city shall die by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence; but he that goeth out, and falleth away to the Chaldeans that besiege you, he shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey. 10 For I have set My face against this city for evil, and not for good, saith the LORD; it shall be given into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire.

11 And unto the house of the king of Judah: Hear ye the word of the LORD; 12 O house of David, thus saith the LORD:

Execute justice in the morning,

And deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor,

Lest My fury go forth like fire,

And burn that none can quench it,

Because of the evil of your doings.

13 Behold, I am against thee, O inhabitant of the valley,

And rock of the plain, saith the LORD;

Ye that say: 'Who shall come down against us?

Or who shall enter into our habitations?'

14 And I will punish you according to the fruit of your doings,

Saith the LORD;

And I will kindle a fire in her forest,

And it shall devour all that is round about her.

JEREMIAH 22 — 1 Thus said the LORD: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word, 2 and say: Hear the word of the LORD, O king of Judah, that sittest upon the throne of David, thou, and thy servants, and thy people that enter in by these gates. 3 Thus saith the LORD:

Execute ye justice and righteousness, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; and do no wrong, do no violence, to the stranger, the fatherless, nor the widow, neither shed innocent blood in this place. 4 For if ye do this thing indeed, then shall there enter in by the gates of this house kings sitting upon the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, he, and his servants, and his people. 5 But if ye will not hear these words, I swear by Myself, saith the LORD, that this house shall become a desolation. 6 For thus saith the LORD concerning the house of the king of Judah:

Thou art Gilead unto Me,

The head of Lebanon;

Yet surely I will make thee a wilderness,

Cities which are not inhabited.

7 And I will prepare destroyers against thee,

Every one with his weapons;

And they shall cut down thy choice cedars,

And cast them into the fire.

8 And many nations shall pass by this city, and they shall say every man to his neighbour: 'Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this great city?' 9 Then they shall answer: 'Because they forsook the covenant of the LORD their God, and worshipped other gods, and served them.'

10 Weep ye not for the dead,

Neither bemoan him;

But weep sore for him that goeth away,

For he shall return no more,

Nor see his native country.

11 For thus saith the LORD touching Shallum the son of Josiah, king of Judah, who reigned instead of Josiah his father, and who went forth out of this place: He shall not return thither any more; 12 but in the place whither they have led him captive, there shall he die, and he shall see this land no more.

13 Woe unto him that buildeth his house by unrighteousness,

And his chambers by injustice;

Tthat useth his neighbour's service without wages,

And giveth him not his hire;

14 That saith: 'I will build me a wide house

And spacious chambers',

And cutteth him out windows,

And it is ceiled with cedar, and painted with vermilion.

15 Shalt thou reign, because thou strivest to excel in cedar?

Did not thy father eat and drink, and do justice and righteousness?

Then it was well with him.

16 He judged the cause of the poor and needy;

Then it was well.

Is not this to know Me? saith the LORD.

17 But thine eyes and thy heart

Are not but for thy covetousness,

And for shedding innocent blood,

And for oppression, and for violence, to do it.

18 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah:

They shall not lament for him:

'Ah my brother!' or: 'Ah sister!'

They shall not lament for him:

'Ah lord!' or: 'Ah his glory!'

19 He shall be buried with the burial of an ass,

Drawn and cast forth beyond the gates of Jerusalem.

20 Go up to Lebanon, and cry,

And lift up thy voice in Bashan;

And cry from Abarim,

For all thy lovers are destroyed.

21 I spoke unto thee in thy prosperity,

But thou saidst: 'I will not hear.'

This hath been thy manner from thy youth,

That thou hearkenedst not to My voice.

22 The wind shall feed upon all thy shepherds,

And thy lovers shall go into captivity;

Surely then shalt thou be ashamed and confounded

For all thy wickedness.

23 O inhabitant of Lebanon,

That art nestled in the cedars,

How gracious shalt thou be when pangs come upon thee,

The pain as of a woman in travail!

24 As I live, saith the LORD, though Coniah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah were the signet upon My right hand, yet would I pluck thee thence; 25 and I will give thee into the hand of them that seek thy life, and into the hand of them of whom thou art afraid, even into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of the Chaldeans. 26 And I will cast thee out, and thy mother that bore thee, into another country, where ye were not born; and there shall ye die. 27 But to the land whereunto they long to return, thither shall they not return.

28 Is this man Coniah a despised, broken image?

Is he a vessel wherein is no pleasure?

Wherefore are they cast out, he and his seed,

And are cast into the land which they know not? 29 O land, land, land,

Hear the word of the LORD.

30 Thus saith the LORD:

Write ye this man childless,

A man that shall not prosper in his days;

For no man of his seed shall prosper,

Sitting upon the throne of David,

And ruling any more in Judah.

JEREMIAH 23 — 1 Woe unto the shepherds that destroy and scatter

The sheep of My pasture! saith the LORD.

2 Therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, against the shepherds that feed My people: Ye have scattered My flock, and driven them away, and have not taken care of them; behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD. 3 And I will gather the remnant of My flock out of all the countries whither I have driven them, and will bring them back to their folds; and they shall be fruitful and multiply. 4 And I will set up shepherds over them, who shall feed them; and they shall fear no more, nor be dismayed, neither shall any be lacking, saith the LORD.

5 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD,

That I will raise unto David a righteous shoot,

And he shall reign as king and prosper,

And shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

6 In his days Judah shall be saved,

And Israel shall dwell safely;

And this is his name whereby he shall be called,

The LORD is our righteousness.

7 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that they shall no more say: 'As the LORD liveth, that brought up the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt'; 8 but: 'As the LORD liveth, that brought up and that led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north country, and from all the countries whither I had driven them'; and they shall dwell in their own land.

9 Concerning the prophets.

My heart within me is broken,

All my bones shake;

I am like a drunken man,

And like a man whom wine hath overcome;

Because of the LORD,

And because of His holy words.

10 For the land is full of adulterers;

For because of swearing the land mourneth,

The pastures of the wilderness are dried up;

And their course is evil,

And their force is not right.

11 For both prophet and priest are ungodly;

Yea, in My house have I found their wickedness,

Saith the LORD.

12 Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery places in the darkness,

They shall be thrust, and fall therein;

For I will bring evil upon them,

Even the year of their visitation,

Saith the LORD.

13 And I have seen unseemliness in the prophets of Samaria:

They prophesied by Baal,

And caused My people Israel to err.

14 But in the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing:

They commit adultery, and walk in lies,

And they strengthen the hands of evil-doers,

That none doth return from his wickedness;

They are all of them become unto Me as Sodom,

And the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.

15 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the prophets:

Behold, I will feed them with wormwood,

And make them drink the water of gall;

For from the prophets of Jerusalem

Is ungodliness gone forth into all the land.

16 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you,

They lead you unto vanity;

They speak a vision of their own heart,

And not out of the mouth of the LORD.

17 They say continually unto them that despise Me:

'The LORD hath said: Ye shall have peace';

And unto every one that walketh in the stubbornness of his own heart they say:

'No evil shall come upon you';

18 For who hath stood in the council of the LORD,

That he should perceive and hear His word?

Who hath attended to His word, and heard it?

19 Behold, a storm of the LORD is gone forth in fury,

Yea, a whirling storm;

It shall whirl upon the head of the wicked.

20 The anger of the LORD shall not return,

Until He have executed, and till He have performed the purposes of His heart;

In the end of days ye shall consider it perfectly.

21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran;

I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.

22 But if they have stood in My council,

Then let them cause My people to hear My words,

And turn them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.

23 Am I a God near at hand, saith the LORD,

And not a God afar off?

24 Can any hide himself in secret places

That I shall not see him? saith the LORD.

Do not I fill heaven and earth?

Saith the LORD.

25 I have heard what the prophets have said,

That prophesy lies in My name, saying:

'I have dreamed, I have dreamed.'

26 How long shall this be?

Is it in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies,

And the prophets of the deceit of their own heart?

27 That think to cause My people to forget My name

By their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour,

As their fathers forgot My name for Baal.

28 The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream;

And he that hath My word; let him speak My word faithfully.

What hath the straw to do with the wheat?

Saith the LORD.

29 Is not My word like as fire?

Saith the LORD;

And like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?

30 Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that steal My words every one from his neighbour. 31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the LORD, that use there tongues and say: 'He saith.' 32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy lying dreams, saith the LORD, and do tell them, and cause My people to err by their lies, and by their wantonness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them; neither can they profit this people at all, saith the LORD.

33 And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying: 'What is the burden of the LORD?' then shalt thou say unto them: 'What burden! I will cast you off, saith the LORD.' 34 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say: 'The burden of the LORD', I will even punish that man and his house. 35 Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother: 'What hath the LORD answered?' and: 'What hath the LORD spoken?' 36 And the burden of the LORD shall ye mention no more; for every man's own word shall be his burden; and would ye pervert the words of the living God, of the LORD of hosts our God? 37 Thus shalt thou say to the prophet: 'What hath the LORD answered thee?' and: 'What hath the LORD spoken?' 38 But if ye say: 'The burden of the LORD'; therefore thus saith the LORD: Because ye say this word: 'The burden of the LORD', and I have sent unto you, saying: 'Ye shall not say: The burden of the LORD'; 39 therefore, behold, I will utterly tear you out, and I will cast you off, and the city that I gave unto you and to your fathers, away from My presence; 40 and I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten

JEREMIAH 24 — 1 The LORD showed me, and behold two baskets of figs set before the temple of the LORD; after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon. 2 One basket had very good figs, like the figs that are first-ripe; and the other basket had very bad figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad. 3 Then said the LORD unto me: 'What seest thou, Jeremiah?' And I said: 'Figs; the good figs, very good; and the bad, very bad, that cannot be eaten, they are so bad.' 4 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 5 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Like these good figs, so will I regard the captives of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans, for good. 6 And I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back to this land; and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up. 7 And I will give them a heart to know Me, that I am the LORD; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God; for they shall return unto Me with their whole heart. 8 And as the bad figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so bad; surely thus saith the LORD: So will I make Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt; 9 I will even make them a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth for evil; a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them. 10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.'

JEREMIAH 25 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; 2 which Jeremiah the prophet spoke unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying:

3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah, even unto this day, these three and twenty years, the word of the LORD hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, speaking betimes and often; but ye have not hearkened. 4 And the LORD hath sent unto you all His servants the prophets, sending them betimes and often-but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear-5 saying: 'Return ye now every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that the LORD hath given unto you and to your fathers, for ever and ever; 6 and go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke Me not with the work of your hands, and I will do you no hurt.' 7 Yet ye have not hearkened unto Me, saith the LORD; that ye might provoke Me with the work of your hands to your own hurt. 8 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts: Because ye have not heard My words, 9 behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the LORD, and I will send unto Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about; and I will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and a hissing, and perpetual desolations. 10 Moreover I will cause to cease from among them the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the lamp. 11 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and a waste; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years. 12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the LORD, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans; and I will make it perpetual desolations. 13 And I will bring upon that land all My words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations. 14 For many nations and great kings shall make bondmen of them also; and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the work of their own hands.

15 For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto me: Take this cup of the wine of fury at My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send thee, to drink it. 16 And they shall drink, and reel to and fro, and be like madmen, because of the sword that I will send among them.-17 Then took I the cup of the LORD'S hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom the LORD had sent me: 18 Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, and the princes thereof, to make them an appalment, an astonishment, a hissing, and a curse; as it is this day; 19 Pharaoh king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people; 20 and all the mingled people; and all the kings of the land of Uz, and all the kings of the land of the Philistines, and Ashkelon, and Gaza, and Ekron, and the remnant of Ashdod; 21 Edom, and Moab, and the children of Ammon; 22 and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isle which is beyond the sea; 23 Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that have the corners of their hair polled; 24 and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the mingled people that dwell in the wilderness; 25 and all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of the Medes; 26 and all the kings of the north, far and near, one with another; and all the kingdoms of the world, which are upon the face of the earth. -And the king of Sheshach shall drink after them. 27 And thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Drink ye, and be drunken, and spew, and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword which I will send among you. 28 And it shall be, if they refuse to take the cup at thy hand to drink, then shalt thou say unto them: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Ye shall surely drink. 29 For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city whereupon My name is called, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished; for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of hosts.

30 Therefore prophesy thou against them all these words, and say unto them:

The LORD doth roar from on high,

And utter His voice from His holy habitation;

He doth mightily roar because of His fold;

He giveth a shout, as they that tread the grapes,

Against all the inhabitants of the earth.

31 A noise is come even to the end of the earth;

For the LORD hath a controversy with the nations,

He doth plead with all flesh;

As for the wicked, He hath given them to the sword,

Saith the LORD.

32 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Behold, evil shall go forth

From nation to nation,

And a great storm shall be raised up

From the uttermost parts of the earth.

33 And the slain of the LORD shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; they shall not be lamented, neither gathered, nor buried; they shall be dung upon the face of the ground.

34 Wail, ye shepherds, and cry;

And wallow yourselves in the dust, ye leaders of the flock;

For the days of your slaughter are fully come,

And I will break you in pieces,

And ye shall fall like a precious vessel.

35 And the shepherds shall have no way to flee,

Nor the leaders of the flock to escape.

36 Hark! the cry of the shepherds,

And the wailing of the leaders of the flock!

For the LORD despoileth their pasture.

37 And the peaceable folds are brought to silence

Because of the fierce anger of the LORD.

38 He hath forsaken His covert, as the lion;

For their land is become a waste

Because of the fierceness of the oppressing sword,

And because of His fierce anger.

JEREMIAH 26 — 1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word from the LORD, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD: Stand in the court of the LORD'S house, and speak unto all the cities of Judah, which come to worship in the LORD'S house, all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word. 3 It may be they will hearken, and turn every man from his evil way; that I may repent Me of the evil, which I purpose to do unto them because of the evil of their doings. 4 And thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith the LORD: If ye will not hearken to Me, to walk in My law, which I have set before you, 5 to hearken to the words of My servants the prophets, whom I send unto you, even sending them betimes and often, but ye have not hearkened; 6 then will I make this house like Shiloh, and will make this city a curse to all the nations of the earth.'

7 So the priests and the prophets and all the people heard Jeremiah speaking these words in the house of the LORD. 8 Now it came to pass, when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking all that the LORD had commanded him to speak unto all the people, that the priests and the prophets and all the people laid hold on him, saying: 'Thou shalt surely die. 9 Why hast thou prophesied in the name of the LORD, saying: This house shall be like Shiloh, and this city shall be desolate, without an inhabitant?' And all the people were gathered against Jeremiah in the house of the LORD.

10 When the princes of Judah heard these things, they came up from the king's house unto the house of the LORD; and they sat in the entry of the new gate of the LORD'S house. 11 Then spoke the priests and the prophets unto the princes and to all the people, saying: 'This man is worthy of death; for he hath prophesied against this city, as ye have heard with your ears.' 12 Then spoke Jeremiah unto all the princes and to all the people, saying: 'The LORD sent me to prophesy against this house and against this city all the words that ye have heard. 13 Therefore now amend your ways and your doings, and hearken to the voice of the LORD your God; and the LORD will repent Him of the evil that He hath pronounced against you. 14 But as for me, behold, I am in your hand; do with me as is good and right in your eyes. 15 Only know ye for certain that, if ye put me to death, ye will bring innocent blood upon yourselves, and upon this city, and upon the inhabitants thereof; for of a truth the LORD hath sent me unto you to speak all these words in your ears.'

16 Then said the princes and all the people unto the priests and to the prophets: 'This man is not worthy of death; for he hath spoken to us in the name of the LORD our God.' 17 Then rose up certain of the elders of the land, and spoke to all the assembly of the people, saying: 18 'Micah the Morashtite prophesied in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah; and he spoke to all the people of Judah, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Zion shall be plowed as a field,

And Jerusalem shall become heaps,

And the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.

19 Did Hezekiah king of Judah and all Judah put him at all to death? did he not fear the LORD, and entreat the favour of the LORD, and the LORD repented Him of the evil which He had pronounced against them? Thus might we procure great evil against our own souls.'

20 And there was also a man that prophesied in the name of the LORD, Uriah the son of Shemaiah of Kiriath-jearim; and he prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah; 21 and when Jehoiakim the king, with all his mighty men, and all the princes, heard his words, the king sought to put him to death; but when Uriah heard it, he was afraid, and fled, and went into Egypt; 22 and Jehoiakim the king sent men into Egypt, Elnathan the son of Achbor, and certain men with him, into Egypt; 23 and they fetched forth Uriah out of Egypt, and brought him unto Jehoiakim the king; who slew him with the sword, and cast his dead body into the graves of the children of the people. 24 Nevertheless the hand of Ahikam the son of Shaphan was with Jeremiah, that they should not give him into the hand of the people to put him to death.

JEREMIAH 27 — 1 In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, came this word unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD to me: Make thee bands and bars, and put them upon thy neck; 3 and send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the children of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers that come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah; 4 and give them a charge unto their masters, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Thus shall ye say unto your masters: 5 I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the face of the earth, by My great power and by My outstretched arm; and I give it unto whom it seemeth right unto Me. 6 And now have I given all these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, My servant; and the beasts of the field also have I given him to serve him. 7 And all the nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the time of his own land come; and then many nations and great kings shall make him their bondman. 8 And it shall come to pass, that the nation and the kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I visit, saith the LORD, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand. 9 But as for you, hearken ye not to your prophets, nor to your diviners, nor to your dreams, nor to your soothsayers, nor to your sorcerers, that speak unto you, saying: Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon; 10 for they prophesy a lie unto you, to remove you far from your land; and that I should drive you out and ye should perish. 11 But the nation that shall bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, that nation will I let remain in their own land, saith the LORD; and they shall till it, and dwell therein.'

12 And I spoke to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying: 'Bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live. 13 Why will ye die, thou and thy people, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, as the LORD hath spoken concerning the nation that will not serve the king of Babylon? 14 And hearken not unto the words of the prophets that speak unto you, saying: Ye shall not serve the king of Babylon, for they prophesy a lie unto you. 15 For I have not sent them, saith the LORD, and they prophesy falsely in My name; that I might drive you out, and that ye might perish, ye, and the prophets that prophesy unto you.'

16 Also I spoke to the priests and to all this people, saying: 'Thus saith the LORD: Hearken not to the words of your prophets that prophesy unto you, saying: Behold, the vessels of the LORD'S house shall now shortly be brought back from Babylon; for they prophesy a lie unto you. 17 Hearken not unto them; serve the king of Babylon, and live; wherefore should this city become desolate? 18 But if they be prophets, and if the word of the LORD be with them, let them now make intercession to the LORD of hosts, that the vessels which are left in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem, go not to Babylon. 19 For thus saith the LORD of hosts concerning the pillars, and concerning the sea, and concerning the bases, and concerning the residue of the vessels that remain in this city, 20 which Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took not, when he carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, from Jerusalem to Babylon, and all the nobles of Judah and Jerusalem; 21 yea, thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning the vessels that remain in the house of the LORD, and in the house of the king of Judah, and at Jerusalem: 22 They shall be carried to Babylon, and there shall they be, until the day that I remember them, saith the LORD, and bring them up, and restore them to this place.'

JEREMIAH 28 — 1 And it came to pass the same year, in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the fourth year, in the fifth month, that Hananiah the son of Azzur the prophet, who was of Gibeon, spoke unto me in the house of the LORD, in the presence of the priests and of all the people, saying: 2 'Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: I have broken the yoke of the king of Babylon. 3 Within two full years will I bring back into this place all the vessels of the LORD'S house, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon took away from this place, and carried them to Babylon; 4 and I will bring back to this place Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, with all the captives of Judah, that went to Babylon, saith the LORD; for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.' 5 Then the prophet Jeremiah said unto the prophet Hananiah in the presence of the priests, and in the presence of all the people that stood in the house of the LORD, 6 even the prophet Jeremiah said: 'Amen! the LORD do so! the LORD perform thy words which thou hast prophesied, to bring back the vessels of the LORD'S house, and all them that are carried away captive, from Babylon unto this place! 7 Nevertheless hear thou now this word that I speak in thine ears, and in the ears of all the people: 8 The prophets that have been before me and before thee of old prophesied against many countries, and against great kingdoms, of war, and of evil, and of pestilence. 9 The prophet that prophesieth of peace, when the word of the prophet shall come to pass, then shall the prophet be known, that the LORD hath truly sent him.'

10 Then Hananiah the prophet took the bar from off the prophet Jeremiah's neck, and broke it. 11 And Hananiah spoke in the presence of all the people, saying: 'Thus saith the LORD: Even so will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon from off the neck of all the nations within two full years.' And the prophet Jeremiah went his way. 12 Then the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, after that Hananiah the prophet had broken the bar from off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, saying: 13 'Go, and tell Hananiah, saying: Thus saith the LORD: Thou hast broken the bars of wood; but thou shalt make in their stead bars of iron. 14 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: I have put a yoke of iron upon the neck of all these nations, that they may serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon; and they shall serve him; and I have given him the beasts of the field also.' 15 Then said the prophet Jeremiah unto Hananiah the prophet: 'Hear now, Hananiah; the LORD hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie. 16 'Therefore thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will send thee away from off the face of the earth; this year thou shalt die, because thou hast spoken perversion against the LORD.' 17 So Hananiah the prophet died the same year in the seventh month.

JEREMIAH 29 — 1 Now these are the words of the letter that Jeremiah the prophet sent from Jerusalem unto the residue of the elders of the captivity, and to the priests, and to the prophets, and to all the people, whom Nebuchadnezzar had carried away captive from Jerusalem to Babylon, 2 after that Jeconiah the king, and the queen-mother, and the officers, and the princes of Judah and Jerusalem, and the craftsmen, and the smiths, were departed from Jerusalem; 3 by the hand of Elasah the son of Shaphan, and Gemariah the son of Hilkiah, whom Zedekiah king of Judah sent unto Babylon to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, saying:

4 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, unto all the captivity, whom I have caused to be carried away captive from Jerusalem unto Babylon:

5 Build ye houses, and dwell in them, and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them; 6 take ye wives, and beget sons and daughters; and take wives for your sons, and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply ye there, and be not diminished. 7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captive, and pray unto the LORD for it; for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.

8 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Let not your prophets that are in the midst of you, and your diviners, beguile you, neither hearken ye to your dreams which ye cause to be dreamed. 9 For they prophesy falsely unto you in My name; I have not sent them, saith the LORD.

10 For thus saith the LORD: After seventy years are accomplished for Babylon, I will remember you, and perform My good word toward you, in causing you to return to this place. 11 For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 And ye shall call upon Me, and go, and pray unto Me, and I will hearken unto you. 13 And ye shall seek Me, and find Me, when ye shall search for Me with all your heart. 14 And I will be found of you, saith the LORD, and I will turn your captivity, and gather you from all the nations, and from all the places whither I have driven you, saith the LORD; and I will bring you back unto the place whence I caused you to be carried away captive. 15 For ye have said: 'The LORD hath raised us up prophets in Babylon.' 16 For thus saith the LORD concerning the king that sitteth upon the throne of David, and concerning all the people that dwell in this city, your brethren that are not gone forth with you into captivity; 17 thus saith the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten, they are so bad. 18 And I will pursue after them with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, and will make them a horror unto all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse, and an astonishment, and a hissing, and a reproach, among all the nations whither I have driven them; 19 because they have not hearkened to My words, saith the LORD, wherewith I sent unto them My servants the prophets, sending them betimes and often; but ye would not hear, saith the LORD. 20 Hear ye therefore the word of the LORD, all ye of the captivity, whom I have sent away from Jerusalem to Babylon: 21 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, concerning Ahab the son of Kolaiah, and concerning Zedekiah the son of Maaseiah, who prophesy a lie unto you in My name: Behold, I will deliver them into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall slay them before your eyes; 22 and of them shall be taken up a curse by all the captivity of Judah that are in Babylon, saying: 'The LORD make thee like Zedekiah and like Ahab, whom the king of Babylon roasted in the fire'; 23 because they have wrought vile deeds in Israel, and have committed adultery with their neighbours' wives, and have spoken words in My name falsely, which I commanded them not; but I am He that knoweth, and am witness, saith the LORD.

24 And concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite thou shalt speak, saying: 25 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: Because thou hast sent letters in thine own name unto all the people that are at Jerusalem, and to Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, and to all the priests, saying: 26 'The LORD hath made thee priest in the stead of Jehoiada the priest, that there should be officers in the house of the LORD for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in the stocks and in the collar. 27 Now therefore, why hast thou not rebuked Jeremiah of Anathoth, who maketh himself a prophet to you, 28 forasmuch as he hath sent unto us in Babylon, saying: The captivity is long; build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them?' 29 And Zephaniah the priest read this letter in the ears of Jeremiah the prophet. 30 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying: 31 Send to all them of the captivity, saying: Thus saith the LORD concerning Shemaiah the Nehelamite: Because that Shemaiah hath prophesied unto you, and I sent him not, and he hath caused you to trust in a lie; 32 therefore thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will punish Shemaiah the Nehelamite, and his seed; he shall not have a man to dwell among this people, neither shall he behold the good that I will do unto My people, saith the LORD; because he hath spoken perversion against the LORD.

JEREMIAH 30 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 'Thus speaketh the LORD, the God of Israel, saying: Write thee all the words that I have spoken unto thee in a book. 3 For, lo, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will turn the captivity of My people Israel and Judah, saith the LORD; and I will cause them to return to the land that I gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.' 4 And these are the words that the LORD spoke concerning Israel and concerning Judah. 5 For thus saith the LORD:

We have heard a voice of trembling,

Of fear, and not of peace.

6 Ask ye now, and see

Whether a man doth travail with child;

Wherefore do I see every man

With his hands on his loins, as a woman in travail,

And all faces are turned into paleness?

7 Alas! for that day is great,

So that none is like it;

And it is a time of trouble unto Jacob,

But out of it shall he be saved.

8 And it shall come to pass in that day,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

That I will break his yoke from off thy neck,

And will burst thy bands;

And strangers shall no more make him their bondman;

9 But they shall serve the LORD their God,

And David their king,

Whom I will raise up unto them.

10 Therefore fear thou not, O Jacob My servant, saith the LORD;

Neither be dismayed, O Israel;

For, lo, I will save thee from afar,

And thy seed from the land of their captivity;

And Jacob shall again be quiet and at ease,

And none shall make him afraid.

11 For I am with thee, saith the LORD, to save thee;

For I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have scattered thee,

But I will not make a full end of thee;

For I will correct thee in measure,

And will not utterly destroy thee.

12 For thus saith the LORD:

Thy hurt is incurable,

And thy wound is grievous.

13 None deemeth of thy wound that it may be bound up;

Thou hast no healing medicines.

14 All thy lovers have forgotten thee,

They seek thee not;

For I have wounded thee with the wound of an enemy,

With the chastisement of a cruel one;

For the greatness of thine iniquity,

Because thy sins were increased.

15 Why criest thou for thy hurt,

That thy pain is incurable?

For the greatness of thine iniquity, because thy sins were increased,

I have done these things unto thee.

16 Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured,

And all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity;

And they that spoil thee shall be a spoil,

And all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.

17 For I will restore health unto thee,

And I will heal thee of thy wounds, saith the LORD;

Because they have called thee an outcast:

'She is Zion, there is none that careth for her.'

18 Thus saith the LORD:

Behold, I will turn the captivity of Jacob's tents,

And have compassion on his dwelling-places;

And the city shall be builded upon her own mound,

And the palace shall be inhabited upon its wonted place.

19 And out of them shall proceed thanksgiving

And the voice of them that make merry;

And I will multiply them, and they shall not be diminished,

I will also increase them, and they shall not dwindle away.

20 Their children also shall be as aforetime,

And their congregation shall be established before Me,

And I will punish all that oppress them.

21 And their prince shall be of themselves,

And their ruler shall proceed from the midst of them;

And I will cause him to draw near,

And he shall approach unto Me;

For who is he that hath pledged his heart

To approach unto Me? saith the LORD.

22 And ye shall be My people,

And I will be your God.

23 Behold, a storm of the LORD is gone forth in fury,

A sweeping storm;

It shall whirl upon the head of the wicked.

24 The fierce anger of the LORD shall not return,

Until He have executed, and till He have performed

The purposes of His heart;

In the end of days ye shall consider it.

JEREMIAH 31 — 1 At that time, saith the LORD,

Will I be the God of all the families of Israel,

And they shall be My people.

2 Thus saith the LORD:

The people that were left of the sword

Have found grace in the wilderness,

Even Israel, when I go to cause him to rest.

3 'From afar the LORD appeared unto me.'

'Yea, I have loved thee with an everlasting love;

Therefore with affection have I drawn thee.

4 Again will I build thee, and thou shalt be built,

O virgin of Israel;

Again shalt thou be adorned with thy tabrets,

And shalt go forth in the dances of them that make merry.

5 Again shalt thou plant vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria;

The planters shall plant, and shall have the use thereof.

6 For there shall be a day,

That the watchmen shall call upon the mount Ephraim:

Arise ye, and let us go up to Zion,

Unto the LORD our God.'

7 For thus saith the LORD:

Sing with gladness for Jacob,

And shout at the head of the nations;

Announce ye, praise ye, and say:

'O LORD, save Thy people,

The remnant of Israel.'

8 Behold, I will bring them from the north country,

And gather them from the uttermost parts of the earth,

And with them the blind and the lame,

The woman with child and her that travaileth with child together;

A great company shall they return hither.

9 They shall come with weeping,

And with supplications will I lead them;

I will cause them to walk by rivers of waters,

In a straight way wherein they shall not stumble;

For I am become a father to Israel,

And Ephraim is My first-born.

10 Hear the word of the LORD, O ye nations,

And declare it in the isles afar off, and say:

'He that scattered Israel doth gather him,

And keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock.'

11 For the LORD hath ransomed Jacob,

And He redeemeth him from the hand of him that is stronger than he.

12 And they shall come and sing in the height of Zion,

And shall flow unto the goodness of the LORD,

To the corn, and to the wine, and to the oil,

And to the young of the flock and of the herd;

And their soul shall be as a watered garden,

And they shall not pine any more at all.

13 Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance,

And the young men and the old together;

For I will turn their mourning into joy,

And will comfort them,

And make them rejoice from their sorrow.

14 And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness,

And My people shall be satisfied with My goodness,

Saith the LORD.

15 Thus saith the LORD:

A voice is heard in Ramah,

Lamentation, and bitter weeping,

Rachel weeping for her children;

She refuseth to be comforted for her children,

Because they are not.

16 Thus saith the LORD:

Refrain thy voice from weeping,

And thine eyes from tears;

For thy work shall be rewarded, saith the LORD;

And they shall come back from the land of the enemy.

17 And there is hope for thy future, saith the LORD;

And thy children shall return to their own border.

18 I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself:

'Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised,

As a calf untrained;

Turn thou me, and I shall be turned,

For Thou art the LORD my God.

19 Surely after that I was turned, I repented,

And after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh;

I was ashamed, yea, even confounded,

Because I did bear the reproach of my youth.'

20 Is Ephraim a darling son unto Me?

Is he a child that is dandled?

For as often as I speak of him,

I do earnestly remember him still;

Therefore My heart yearneth for him,

I will surely have compassion upon him, saith the LORD.

21 Set thee up waymarks,

Make thee guide-posts;

Set thy heart toward the high-way,

Even the way by which thou wentest;

Return, O virgin of Israel,

Return to these thy cities.

22 How long wilt thou turn away coyly,

O thou backsliding daughter?

For the LORD hath created a new thing in the earth:

A woman shall court a man.

23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Yet again shall they use this speech

In the land of Judah and in the cities thereof,

When I shall turn their captivity: 'The LORD bless thee,

O habitation of righteousness, O mountain of holiness.'

24 And Judah and all the cities thereof

Shall dwell therein together:

The husbandmen, and they that go forth with flocks.

25 For I have satiated the weary soul,

And every pining soul have I replenished.

26 Upon this I awaked, and beheld;

And my sleep was sweet unto me.

27 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast. 28 And it shall come to pass, that like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down, and to overthrow and to destroy, and to afflict; so will I watch over them to build and to plant, saith the LORD.

29 In those days they shall say no more:

'The fathers have eaten sour grapes,

And the children's teeth are set on edge.'

30 But every one shall die for his own iniquity; every man that eateth the sour grapes, his teeth shall be set on edge.

31 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah; 32 not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; forasmuch as they broke My covenant, although I was a lord over them, saith the LORD. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the LORD, I will put My law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people; 34 and they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying: 'Know the LORD'; for they shall all know Me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more.

35 Thus saith the LORD,

Who giveth the sun for a light by day,

And the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night,

Who stirreth up the sea, that the waves thereof roar,

The LORD of hosts is His name:

36 If these ordinances depart from before Me,

Saith the LORD,

Then the seed of Israel also shall cease

From being a nation before Me for ever.

37 Thus saith the LORD:

If heaven above can be measured,

And the foundations of the earth searched out beneath,

Then will I also cast off all the seed of Israel

For all that they have done, saith the LORD.

38 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that the city shall be built to the LORD from the tower of Hananel unto the gate of the corner. 39 And the measuring line shall yet go out straight forward unto the hill Gareb, and shall turn about unto Goah. 40 And the whole valley of the dead bodies, and of the ashes, and all the fields unto the brook Kidron, unto the corner of the horse gate toward the east, shall be holy unto the LORD; it shall not be plucked up, nor thrown down any more for ever.

JEREMIAH 32 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD in the tenth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar. 2 Now at that time the king of Babylon's army was besieging Jerusalem; and Jeremiah the prophet was shut up in the court of the guard, which was in the king of Judah's house. 3 For Zedekiah king of Judah had shut him up, saying: 'Wherefore dost thou prophesy, and say: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it; 4 and Zedekiah king of Judah shall not escape out of the hand of the Chaldeans, but shall surely be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon, and shall speak with him mouth to mouth, and his eyes shall behold his eyes; 5 and he shall lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and there shall he be until I remember him, saith the LORD; though ye fight with the Chaldeans, ye shall not prosper?'

6 And Jeremiah said: 'The word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 7 Behold, Hanamel, the son of Shallum thine uncle, shall come unto thee, saying: Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth; for the right of redemption is thine to buy it.' 8 So Hanamel mine uncle's son came to me in the court of the guard according to the word of the LORD, and said unto me: 'Buy my field, I pray thee, that is in Anathoth, which is in the land of Benjamin; for the right of inheritance is thine, and the redemption is thine; buy it for thyself.' Then I knew that this was the word of the LORD. 9 And I bought the field that was in Anathoth of Hanamel mine uncle's son, and weighed him the money, even seventeen shekels of silver. 10 And I subscribed the deed, and sealed it, and called witnesses, and weighed him the money in the balances. 11 So I took the deed of the purchase, both that which was sealed, containing the terms and conditions, and that which was open; 12 and I delivered the deed of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, in the presence of Hanamel mine uncle 's son, and in the presence of the witnesses that subscribed the deed of the purchase, before all the Jews that sat in the court of the guard. 13 And I charged Baruch before them, saying: 14 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Take these deeds, this deed of the purchase, both that which is sealed, and this deed which is open, and put them in an earthen vessel; that they may continue many days. 15 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Houses and fields and vineyards shall yet again be bought in this land.'

16 Now after I had delivered the deed of the purchase unto Baruch the son of Neriah, I prayed unto the LORD, saying: 17 'Ah Lord GOD! behold, Thou hast made the heaven and the earth by Thy great power and by Thy outstretched arm; there is nothing too hard for Thee; 18 who showest mercy unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children after them; the great, the mighty God, the LORD of hosts is His name; 19 great in counsel, and mighty in work; whose eyes are open upon all the ways of the sons of men, to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings; 20 who didst set signs and wonders in the land of Egypt, even unto this day, and in Israel and among other men; and madest Thee a name, as at this day; 21 and didst bring forth Thy people Israel out of the land of Egypt with signs, and with wonders, and with a strong hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terror; 22 and gavest them this land, which Thou didst swear to their fathers to give them, a land flowing with milk and honey; 23 and they came in, and possessed it; but they hearkened not to Thy voice, neither walked in Thy law; they have done nothing of all that Thou commandedst them to do; therefore Thou hast caused all this evil to befall them; 24 behold the mounds, they are come unto the city to take it; and the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans that fight against it, because of the sword, and of the famine, and of the pestilence; and what Thou hast spoken is come to pass; and, behold, Thou seest it. 25 Yet Thou hast said unto me, O Lord GOD: Buy thee the field for money, and call witnesses; whereas the city is given into the hand of the Chaldeans.'

26 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying: 27 'Behold, I am the LORD, the God of all flesh; is there any thing too hard for Me? 28 Therefore thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the Chaldeans, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and he shall take it; 29 and the Chaldeans, that fight against this city, shall come and set this city on fire, and burn it, with the houses, upon whose roofs they have offered unto Baal, and poured out drink-offerings unto other gods, to provoke Me. 30 For the children of Israel and the children of Judah have only done that which was evil in My sight from their youth; for the children of Israel have only provoked Me with the work of their hands, saith the LORD. 31 For this city hath been to Me a provocation of Mine anger and of My fury from the day that they built it even unto this day, that I should remove it from before My face; 32 because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah, which they have done to provoke Me, they, their kings, their princes, their priests, and their prophets, and the men of Judah, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 33 And they have turned unto Me the back, and not the face; and though I taught them, teaching them betimes and often, yet they have not hearkened to receive instruction. 34 But they set their abominations in the house whereupon My name is called, to defile it. 35 And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to set apart their sons and their daughters unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into My mind, that they should do this abomination; to cause Judah to sin. 36 And now therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning this city, whereof ye say: It is given into the hand of the king of Babylon by the sword, and by the famine, and by the pestilence: 37 Behold, I will gather them out of all the countries, whither I have driven them in Mine anger, and in My fury, and in great wrath; and I will bring them back unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely; 38 and they shall be My people, and I will be their God; 39 and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear Me for ever; for the good of them, and of their children after them; 40 and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from them, to do them good; and I will put My fear in their hearts, that they shall not depart from Me. 41 Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land in truth with My whole heart and with My whole soul. 42 For thus saith the LORD: Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them. 43 And fields shall be bought in this land, whereof ye say: It is desolate, without man or beast; it is given into the hand of the Chaldeans. 44 Men shall buy fields for money, and subscribe the deeds, and seal them, and call witnesses, in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, and in the cities of the hill-country, and in the cities of the Lowland, and in the cities of the South; for I will cause their captivity to return, saith the LORD.'

JEREMIAH 33 — 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah the second time, while he was yet shut up in the court of the guard, saying:

2 Thus saith the LORD the Maker thereof,

The LORD that formed it to establish it,

The LORD is His name:

3 Call unto Me, and I will answer thee,

And will tell thee great things, and hidden, which thou knowest not.

4 For thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city, and concerning the houses of the kings of Judah, which are broken down for mounds, and for ramparts; 5 whereon they come to fight with the Chaldeans, even to fill them with the dead bodies of men, whom I have slain in Mine anger and in My fury, and for all whose wickedness I have hid My face from this city: 6 Behold, I will bring it healing and cure, and I will cure them; and I will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth. 7 And I will cause the captivity of Judah and the captivity of Israel to return, and will build them, as at the first. 8 And I will cleanse them from all their iniquity, whereby they have sinned against Me; and I will pardon all their iniquities, whereby they have sinned against Me, and whereby they have transgressed against Me. 9 And this city shall be to Me for a name of joy, for a praise and for a glory, before all the nations of the earth, which shall hear all the good that I do unto them, and shall fear and tremble for all the good and for all the peace that I procure unto it.

10 Thus saith the LORD: Yet again there shall be heard in this place, whereof ye say: It is waste, without man and without beast, even in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that are desolate, without man and without inhabitant and without beast, 11 the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of them that say: 'Give thanks to the LORD of hosts, for the LORD is good, for His mercy endureth for ever', even of them that bring offerings of thanksgiving into the house of the LORD. For I will cause the captivity of the land to return as at the first, saith the LORD.

12 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Yet again shall there be in this place, which is waste, without man and without beast, and in all the cities thereof, a habitation of shepherds causing their flocks to lie down. 13 In the cities of the hill-country, in the cities of the Lowland, and in the cities of the South, and in the land of Benjamin, and in the places about Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, shall the flocks again pass under the hands of him that counteth them, saith the LORD.

14 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will perform that good word which I have spoken concerning the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah. 15 In those days, and at that time,

Will I cause a shoot of righteousness to grow up unto David;

And he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.

16 In those days shall Judah be saved,

And Jerusalem shall dwell safely;

And this is the name whereby she shall be called,

The LORD is our righteousness.

17 For thus saith the LORD: There shall not be cut off unto David a man to sit upon the throne of the house of Israel; 18 neither shall there be cut off unto the priests the Levites a man before Me to offer burnt-offerings, and to burn meal-offerings, and to do sacrifice continually.

19 And the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, saying: 20 Thus saith the LORD:

If ye can break My covenant with the day,

And My covenant with the night,

So that there should not be day and night in their season;

21 Then may also My covenant be broken with David My servant,

That he should not have a son to reign upon his throne;

And with the Levites the priests, My ministers.

22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered,

Neither the sand of the sea measured;

So will I multiply the seed of David My servant,

And the Levites that minister unto Me.

23 And the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, saying: 24 'Considerest thou not what this people have spoken, saying: The two families which the LORD did choose, He hath cast them off? and they contemn My people, that they should be no more a nation before them. 25 Thus saith the LORD: If My covenant be not with day and night, if I have not appointed the ordinances of heaven and earth; 26 then will I also cast away the seed of Jacob, and of David My servant, so that I will not take of his seed to be rulers over the seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; for I will cause their captivity to return, and will have compassion on them.'

JEREMIAH 34 — 1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and all his army, and all the kingdoms of the land of his dominion, and all the peoples, fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities thereof, saying:

2 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Go, and speak to Zedekiah king of Judah, and tell him: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will give this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall burn it with fire; 3 and thou shalt not escape out of his hand, but shalt surely be taken, and delivered into his hand; and thine eyes shall behold the eyes of the king of Babylon, and he shall speak with thee mouth to mouth, and thou shalt go to Babylon. 4 Yet hear the word of the LORD, O Zedekiah king of Judah: Thus saith the LORD concerning thee: Thou shalt not die by the sword; 5 thou shalt die in peace; and with the burnings of thy fathers, the former kings that were before thee, so shall they make a burning for thee; and they shall lament thee: 'Ah lord!' for I have spoken the word, saith the LORD.

6 Then Jeremiah the prophet spoke all these words unto Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem, 7 when the king of Babylon's army fought against Jerusalem, and against all the cities of Judah that were left, against Lachish and against Azekah; for these alone remained of the cities of Judah as fortified cities.

8 The word that came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, after that the king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people that were at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty unto them; 9 that every man should let his manservant, and every man his maidservant, being a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman, go free; that none should make bondmen of them, even of a Jew his brother; 10 and all the princes and all the people hearkened, that had entered into the covenant to let every one his man-servant, and every one his maid-servant, go free, and not to make bondmen of them any more; they hearkened, and let them go; 11 but afterwards they turned, and caused the servants and the handmaids, whom they had let go free, to return, and brought them into subjection for servants and for handmaids; 12 therefore the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying:

13 Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, saying: 14 'At the end of seven years ye shall let go every man his brother that is a Hebrew, that hath been sold unto thee, and hath served thee six years, thou shalt let him go free from thee'; but your fathers hearkened not unto Me, neither inclined their ear. 15 And ye were now turned, and had done that which is right in Mine eyes, in proclaiming liberty every man to his neighbour; and ye had made a covenant before Me in the house whereon My name is called; 16 but ye turned and profaned My name, and caused every man his servant, and every man his handmaid, whom ye had let go free at their pleasure, to return; and ye brought them into subjection, to be unto you for servants and for handmaids. 17 Therefore thus saith the LORD: Ye have not hearkened unto Me, to proclaim liberty, every man to his brother, and every man to his neighbour; behold, I proclaim for you a liberty, saith the LORD, unto the sword, unto the pestilence, and unto the famine; and I will make you a horror unto all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 And I will give the men that have transgressed My covenant, that have not performed the words of the covenant which they made before Me, when they cut the calf in twain and passed between the parts thereof; 19 the princes of Judah, and the princes of Jerusalem, the officers, and the priests, and all the people of the land, that passed between the parts of the calf; 20 I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life; and their dead bodies shall be for food unto the fowls of the heaven, and to the beasts of the earth. 21 And Zedekiah king of Judah and his princes will I give into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of them that seek their life, and into the hand of the king of Babylon's army, that are gone up from you. 22 Behold, I will command, saith the LORD, and cause them to return to this city; and they shall fight against it, and take it, and burn it with fire; and I will make the cities of Judah a desolation, without inhabitant.

JEREMIAH 35 — 1 The word which came unto Jeremiah from the LORD in the days of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying: 2 'Go unto the house of the Rechabites, and speak unto them, and bring them into the house of the LORD, into one of the chambers, and give them wine to drink.' 3 Then I took Jaazaniah the son of Jeremiah, the son of Habazziniah, and his brethren, and all his sons, and the whole house of the Rechabites; 4 and I brought them into the house of the LORD, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was by the chamber of the princes, which was above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum, the keeper of the door; 5 and I set before the sons of the house of the Rechabites goblets full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them: 'Drink ye wine.' 6 But they said: 'We will drink no wine; for Jonadab the son of Rechab our father commanded us, saying: Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye, nor your sons, for ever; 7 neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any; but all your days ye shall dwell in tents, that ye may live many days in the land wherein ye sojourn. 8 And we have hearkened to the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters; 9 nor to build houses for us to dwell in, neither to have vineyard, or field, or seed; 10 but we have dwelt in tents, and have hearkened, and done according to all that Jonadab our father commanded us. 11 But it came to pass, when Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came up against the land, that we said: Come, and let us go to Jerusalem for fear of the army of the Chaldeans, and for fear of the army of the Arameans; so we dwell at Jerusalem.'

12 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah, saying: 13 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Go, and say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: Will ye not receive instruction to hearken to My words? saith the LORD. 14 The words of Jonadab the son of Rechab, that he commanded his sons, not to drink wine, are performed, and unto this day they drink none, for they hearken to their father's commandment; but I have spoken unto you, speaking betimes and often, and ye have not hearkened unto Me. 15 I have sent also unto you all My servants the prophets, sending them betimes and often, saying: Return ye now every man from his evil way, and amend your doings, and go not after other gods to serve them, and ye shall dwell in the land which I have given to you and to your fathers; but ye have not inclined your ear, nor hearkened unto Me. 16 Because the sons of Jonadab the son of Rechab have performed the commandment of their father which he commanded them, but this people hath not hearkened unto Me; 17 therefore thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring upon Judah and upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem all the evil that I have pronounced against them; because I have spoken unto them, but they have not heard, and I have called unto them, but they have not answered.'

18 And unto the house of the Rechabites Jeremiah said: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Because ye have hearkened to the commandment of Jonadab your father, and kept all his precepts, and done according unto all that he commanded you; 19 therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: There shall not be cut off unto Jonadab the son of Rechab a man to stand before Me for ever.'

JEREMIAH 36 — 1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, that this word came unto Jeremiah from the LORD, saying: 2 'Take thee a roll of a book, and write therein all the words that I have spoken unto thee against Israel, and against Judah, and against all the nations, from the day I spoke unto thee, from the days of Josiah, even unto this day. 3 It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the evil which I purpose to do unto them; that they may return every man from his evil way, and I may forgive their iniquity and their sin.'

4 Then Jeremiah called Baruch the son of Neriah; and Baruch wrote from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the LORD, which He had spoken unto him, upon a roll of a book. 5 And Jeremiah commanded Baruch, saying: 'I am detained, I cannot go into the house of the LORD; 6 therefore go thou, and read in the roll, which thou hast written from my mouth, the words of the LORD in the ears of the people in the LORD'S house upon a fast-day; and also thou shalt read them in the ears of all Judah that come out of their cities. 7 It may be they will present their supplication before the LORD, and will return every one from his evil way; for great is the anger and the fury that the LORD hath pronounced against this people.' 8 And Baruch the son of Neriah did according to all that Jeremiah the prophet commanded him, reading in the book the words of the LORD in the LORD'S house.

9 Now it came to pass in the fifth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, in the ninth month, that they proclaimed a fast before the LORD, all the people in Jerusalem, and all the people that came from the cities of Judah unto Jerusalem. 10 Then did Baruch read in the book the words of Jeremiah in the house of the LORD, in the chamber of Gemariah the son of Shaphan the scribe, in the upper court, at the entry of the new gate of the LORD'S house, in the ears of all the people. 11 And when Micaiah the son of Gemariah, the son of Shaphan, had heard out of the book all the words of the LORD, 12 he went down into the king's house, into the scribe's chamber; and, lo, all the princes sat there, even Elishama the scribe, and Delaiah the son of Shemaiah, and Elnathan the son of Achbor, and Gemariah the son of Shaphan, and Zedekiah the son of Hananiah, and all the princes. 13 Then Micaiah declared unto them all the words that he had heard, when Baruch read the book in the ears of the people. 14 Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, unto Baruch, saying: 'Take in thy hand the roll wherein thou hast read in the ears of the people, and come.' So Baruch the son of Neriah took the roll in his hand, and came unto them. 15 And they said unto him: 'Sit down now, and read it in our ears.' So Baruch read it in their ears. 16 Now it came to pass, when they had heard all the words, they turned in fear one toward another, and said unto Baruch: 'We will surely tell the king of all these words.' 17 And they asked Baruch, saying: 'Tell us now: How didst thou write all these words at his mouth?' 18 Then Baruch answered them: 'He pronounced all these words unto me with his mouth, and I wrote them with ink in the book.' 19 Then said the princes unto Baruch: 'Go, hide thee, thou and Jeremiah, and let no man know where ye are.' 20 And they went in to the king into the court; but they had deposited the roll in the chamber of Elishama the scribe; and they told all the words in the ears of the king. 21 So the king sent Jehudi to fetch the roll; and he took it out of the chamber of Elishama the scribe. And Jehudi read it in the ears of the king, and in the ears of all the princes that stood beside the king. 22 Now the king was sitting in the winter-house in the ninth month; and the brazier was burning before him. 23 And it came to pass, when Jehudi had read three or four columns, that he cut it with the penknife, and cast it into the fire that was in the brazier, until all the roll was consumed in the fire that was in the brazier. 24 Yet they were not afraid, nor rent their garments, neither the king, nor any of his servants that heard all these words. 25 Moreover Elnathan and Delaiah and Gemariah had entreated the king not to burn the roll; but he would not hear them. 26 And the king commanded Jerahmeel the king's son, and Seraiah the son of Azriel, and Shelemiah the son of Abdeel, to take Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet; but the LORD hid them.

27 Then the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah, after that the king had burned the roll, and the words which Baruch wrote at the mouth of Jeremiah, saying: 28 'Take thee again another roll, and write in it all the former words that were in the first roll, which Jehoiakim the king of Judah hath burned. 29 And concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah thou shalt say: Thus saith the LORD: Thou hast burned this roll, saying: Why hast thou written therein, saying: The king of Babylon shall certainly come and destroy this land, and shall cause to cease from thence man and beast? 30 Therefore thus saith the LORD concerning Jehoiakim king of Judah: He shall have none to sit upon the throne of David; and his dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost. 31 And I will visit upon him and his seed and his servants their iniquity; and I will bring upon them, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and upon the men of Judah, all the evil that I have pronounced against them, but they hearkened not.'

32 Then took Jeremiah another roll, and gave it to Baruch the scribe, the son of Neriah; who wrote therein from the mouth of Jeremiah all the words of the book which Jehoiakim king of Judah had burned in the fire; and there were added besides unto them many like words.

JEREMIAH 37 — 1 And Zedekiah the son of Josiah reigned as king, instead of Coniah the son of Jehoiakim, whom Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon made king in the land of Judah. 2 But neither he, nor his servants, nor the people of the land, did hearken unto the words of the LORD, which He spoke by the prophet Jeremiah.

3 And Zedekiah the king sent Jehucal the son of Shelemiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah the priest, to the prophet Jeremiah, saying: 'Pray now unto the LORD our God for us.' 4 Now Jeremiah came in and went out among the people; for they had not put him into prison. 5 And Pharaoh's army was come forth out of Egypt; and when the Chaldeans that besieged Jerusalem heard tidings of them, they broke up from Jerusalem. 6 Then came the word of the LORD unto the prophet Jeremiah, saying: 7 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel: Thus shall ye say to the king of Judah, that sent you unto Me to inquire of Me: Behold, Pharaoh's army, which is come forth to help you, shall return to Egypt into their own land. 8 And the Chaldeans shall return, and fight against this city; and they shall take it, and burn it with fire. 9 Thus saith the LORD: Deceive not yourselves, saying: The Chaldeans shall surely depart from us; for they shall not depart. 10 For though ye had smitten the whole army of the Chaldeans that fight against you, and there remained but wounded men among them, yet would they rise up every man in his tent, and burn this city with fire.'

11 And it came to pass, that when the army of the Chaldeans was broken up from Jerusalem for fear of Pharaoh's army, 12 then Jeremiah went forth out of Jerusalem to go into the land of Benjamin, to receive his portion there, in the midst of the people. 13 And when he was in the gate of Benjamin, a captain of the ward was there, whose name was Irijah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Hananiah; and he laid hold on Jeremiah the prophet, saying: 'Thou fallest away to the Chaldeans.' 14 Then said Jeremiah: 'It is false; I fall not away to the Chaldeans'; but he hearkened not to him; so Irijah laid hold on Jeremiah, and brought him to the princes. 15 And the princes were wroth with Jeremiah, and smote him, and put him in prison in the house of Jonathan the scribe; for they had made that the prison.

16 When Jeremiah was come into the dungeon-house, and into the cells, and Jeremiah had remained there many days; 17 then Zedekiah the king sent, and fetched him; and the king asked him secretly in his house, and said: 'Is there any word from the LORD?' And Jeremiah said: 'There is.' He said also: 'Thou shalt be delivered into the hand of the king of Babylon.' 18 Moreover Jeremiah said unto king Zedekiah: 'Wherein have I sinned against thee, or against thy servants, or against this people, that ye have put me in prison? 19 Where now are your prophets that prophesied unto you, saying: The king of Babylon shall not come against you, nor against this land? 20 And now hear, I pray thee, O my lord the king: let my supplication, I pray thee, be presented before thee; that thou cause me not to return to the house of Jonathan the scribe, lest I die there.' 21 Then Zedekiah the king commanded, and they committed Jeremiah into the court of the guard, and they gave him daily a loaf of bread out of the bakers' street, until all the bread in the city was spent. Thus Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

JEREMIAH 38 — 1 And Shephatiah the son of Mattan, and Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, and Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malchiah, heard the words that Jeremiah spoke unto all the people, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD: He that remaineth in this city shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; but he that goeth forth to the Chaldeans shall live, and his life shall be unto him for a prey, and he shall live. 3 Thus saith the LORD: This city shall surely be given into the hand of the army of the king of Babylon, and he shall take it.' 4 Then the princes said unto the king: 'Let this man, we pray thee, be put to death; forasmuch as he weakeneth the hands of the men of war that remain in this city, and the hands of all the people, in speaking such words unto them; for this man seeketh not the welfare of this people, but the hurt.' 5 Then Zedekiah the king said: 'Behold, he is in your hand; for the king is not he that can do any thing against you.' 6 Then took they Jeremiah, and cast him into the pit of Malchiah the king's son, that was in the court of the guard; and they let down Jeremiah with cords. And in the pit there was no water, but mire; and Jeremiah sank in the mire.

7 Now when Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, an officer, who was in the king's house, heard that they had put Jeremiah in the pit; the king then sitting in the gate of Benjamin; 8 Ebed-melech went forth out of the king's house, and spoke to the king, saying: 9 'My lord the king, these men have done evil in all that they have done to Jeremiah the prophet, whom they have cast into the pit; and he is like to die in the place where he is because of the famine; for there is no more bread in the city.' 10 Then the king commanded Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying: 'Take from hence thirty men with thee, and take up Jeremiah the prophet out of the pit, before he die.' 11 So Ebed-melech took the men with him, and went into the house of the king under the treasury, and took thence worn clouts and worn rags, and let them down by cords into the pit to Jeremiah. 12 And Ebed-melech the Ethiopian said unto Jeremiah: 'Put now these worn clouts and rags under thine armholes under the cords.' And Jeremiah did so. 13 So they drew up Jeremiah with the cords, and took him up out of the pit; and Jeremiah remained in the court of the guard.

14 Then Zedekiah the king sent, and took Jeremiah the prophet unto him into the third entry that was in the house of the LORD; and the king said unto Jeremiah: 'I will ask thee a thing; hide nothing from me.' 15 Then Jeremiah said unto Zedekiah: 'If I declare it unto thee, wilt thou not surely put me to death? and if I give thee counsel, thou wilt not hearken unto me.' 16 So Zedekiah the king swore secretly unto Jeremiah, saying: 'As the LORD liveth, that made us this soul, I will not put thee to death, neither will I give thee into the hand of these men that seek thy life.'

17 Then said Jeremiah unto Zedekiah: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: If thou wilt go forth unto the king of Babylon's princes, then thy soul shall live, and this city shall not be burned with fire; and thou shalt live, thou, and thy house; 18 but if thou wilt not go forth to the king of Babylon's princes, then shall this city be given into the hand of the Chaldeans, and they shall burn it with fire, and thou shalt not escape out of their hand.' 19 And Zedekiah the king said unto Jeremiah: 'I am afraid of the Jews that are fallen away to the Chaldeans, lest they deliver me into their hand, and they mock me.' 20 But Jeremiah said: 'They shall not deliver thee. Hearken, I beseech thee, to the voice of the LORD, in that which I speak unto thee; so it shall be well with thee, and thy soul shall live. 21 But if thou refuse to go forth, this is the word that the LORD hath shown me: 22 Behold, all the women that are left in the king of Judah's house shall be brought forth to the king of Babylon's princes, and those women shall say:

Thy familiar friends have set thee on,

And have prevailed over thee;

Thy feet are sunk in the mire,

And they are turned away back.

23 And they shall bring out all thy wives and thy children to the Chaldeans; and thou shalt not escape out of their hand, but shalt be taken by the hand of the king of Babylon; and thou shalt cause this city to be burned with fire.'

24 Then said Zedekiah unto Jeremiah: 'Let no man know of these words, and thou shalt not die. 25 But if the princes hear that I have talked with thee, and they come unto thee, and say unto thee: Declare unto us now what thou hast said unto the king; hide it not from us, and we will not put thee to death; also what the king said unto thee; 26 then thou shalt say unto them: I presented my supplication before the king, that he would not cause me to return to Jonathan's house, to die there.' 27 Then came all the princes unto Jeremiah, and asked him; and he told them according to all these words that the king had commanded. So they left off speaking with him; for the matter was not reported. 28 So Jeremiah abode in the court of the guard until the day that Jerusalem was taken.

And it came to pass, when Jerusalem was taken- JEREMIAH 39 — 1 in the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, came Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon and all his army against Jerusalem, and besieged it; 2 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, the ninth day of the month, a breach was made in the city-3 that all the princes of the king of Babylon came in, and sat in the middle gate, even Nergal-sarezer, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim Rab-saris, Nergal-sarezer Rab-mag, with all the residue of the princes of the king of Babylon. 4 And it came to pass, that when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, then they fled, and went forth out of the city by night, by the way of the king's garden, by the gate betwixt the two walls; and he went out the way of the Arabah. 5 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after them, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and when they had taken him, they brought him up to Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath, and he gave judgment upon him. 6 Then the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah in Riblah before his eyes; also the king of Babylon slew all the nobles of Judah. 7 Moreover he put out Zedekiah's eyes, and bound him in fetters, to carry him to Babylon. 8 And the Chaldeans burned the king's house, and the house of the people, with fire, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive into Babylon the remnant of the people that remained in the city, the deserters also, that fell away to him, with the rest of the people that remained. 10 But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poor of the people, that had nothing, in the land of Judah, and gave them vineyards and fields in that day. 11 Now Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon gave charge concerning Jeremiah to Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, saying: 12 'Take him, and look well to him, and do him no harm; but do unto him even as he shall say unto thee.' 13 So Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard sent, and Nebushazban Rab-saris, and Nergal-sarezer Rab-mag, and all the chief officers of the king of Babylon; 14 they sent, and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guard, and committed him unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, that he should carry him home; so he dwelt among the people.

15 Now the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah, while he was shut up in the court of the guard, saying: 16 'Go, and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will bring My words upon this city for evil, and not for good; and they shall be accomplished before thee in that day. 17 But I will deliver thee in that day, saith the LORD; and thou shalt not be given into the hand of the men of whom thou art afraid. 18 For I will surely deliver thee, and thou shalt not fall by the sword, but thy life shall be for a prey unto thee; because thou hast put thy trust in Me, saith the LORD.'

JEREMIAH 40 — 1 The word which came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had let him go from Ramah, when he had taken him being bound in chains among all the captives of Jerusalem and Judah, that were carried away captive unto Babylon. 2 And the captain of the guard took Jeremiah, and said unto him: 'The LORD thy God pronounced this evil upon this place; 3 and the LORD hath brought it, and done according as He spoke; because ye have sinned against the LORD, and have not hearkened to His voice, therefore this thing is come upon you. 4 And now, behold, I loose thee this day from the chains which are upon thy hand. If it seem good unto thee to come with me into Babylon, come, and I will look well unto thee; but if it seem ill unto thee to come with me into Babylon, forbear; behold, all the land is before thee; whither it seemeth good and right unto thee to go, thither go.-5 Yet he would not go back.-Go back then to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, whom the king of Babylon hath made governor over the cities of Judah, and dwell with him among the people; or go wheresoever it seemeth right unto thee to go.' So the captain of the guard gave him an allowance and a present, and let him go. 6 Then went Jeremiah unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah, and dwelt with him among the people that were left in the land.

7 Now when all the captains of the forces that were in the fields, even they and their men, heard that the king of Babylon had made Gedaliah the son of Ahikam governor in the land, and had committed unto him men, and women, and children, and of the poorest of the land, of them that were not carried away captive to Babylon; 8 then they came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, even Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and Johanan and Jonathan the sons of Kareah, and Seraiah the son of Tanhumeth, and the sons of Ephai the Netophathite, and Jezaniah the son of the Maacathite, they and their men. 9 And Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan swore unto them and to their men, saying: 'Fear not to serve the Chaldeans; dwell in the land, and serve the king of Babylon, and it shall be well with you. 10 As for me, behold, I will dwell at Mizpah, to stand before the Chaldeans that may come unto us; but ye, gather ye wine and summer fruits and oil, and put them in your vessels, and dwell in your cities that ye have taken.' 11 Likewise when all the Jews that were in Moab, and among the children of Ammon, and in Edom, and that were in all the countries, heard that the king of Babylon had left a remnant of Judah, and that he had set over them Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan; 12 then all the Jews returned out of all places whither they were driven, and came to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah, unto Mizpah, and gathered wine and summer fruits in great abundance.

13 Moreover Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were in the fields, came to Gedaliah to Mizpah, 14 and said unto him: 'Dost thou know that Baalis the king of the children of Ammon hath sent Ishmael the son of Nethaniah to take thy life?' But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam believed them not. 15 Then Johanan the son of Kareah spoke to Gedaliah in Mizpah secretly, saying: 'Let me go, I pray thee, and I will slay Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and no man shall know it; wherefore should he take thy life, that all the Jews that are gathered unto thee should be scattered, and the remnant of Judah perish?' 16 But Gedaliah the son of Ahikam said unto Johanan the son of Kareah: 'Thou shalt not do this thing; for thou speakest falsely of Ishmael.'

JEREMIAH 41 — 1 Now it came to pass in the seventh month, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, the son of Elishama, of the seed royal, and one of the chief officers of the king, and ten men with him, came unto Gedaliah the son of Ahikam to Mizpah; and there they did eat bread together in Mizpah. 2 Then arose Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and the ten men that were with him, and smote Gedaliah the son of Ahikam the son of Shaphan with the sword, and slew him, whom the king of Babylon had made governor over the land. 3 Ishmael also slew all the Jews that were with him, even with Gedaliah, at Mizpah, and the Chaldeans that were found there, even the men of war.

4 And it came to pass the second day after he had slain Gedaliah, and no man knew it, 5 that there came certain men from Shechem, from Shiloh, and from Samaria, even fourscore men, having their beards shaven and their clothes rent, and having cut themselves, with meal-offerings and frankincense in their hand to bring them to the house of the LORD. 6 And Ishmael the son of Nethaniah went forth from Mizpah to meet them, weeping all along as he went; and it came to pass, as he met them, he said unto them: 'Come to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam.' 7 And it was so, when they came into the midst of the city, that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah slew them, and cast them into the midst of the pit, he, and the men that were with him. 8 But ten men were found among them that said unto Ishmael: 'Slay us not; for we have stores hidden in the field, of wheat, and of barley, and of oil, and of honey.' So he forbore, and slew them not among their brethren. 9 Now the pit wherein Ishmael cast all the dead bodies of the men whom he had slain by the side of Gedaliah was that which Asa the king had made for fear of Baasa king of Israel; the same Ishmael the son of Nethaniah filled with them that were slain. 10 Then Ishmael carried away captive all the residue of the people that were in Mizpah, even the king's daughters, and all the people that remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had committed to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam; Ishmael the son of Nethaniah carried them away captive, and departed to go over to the children of Ammon.

11 But when Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, heard of all the evil that Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had done, 12 then they took all the men, and went to fight with Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, and found him by the great waters that are in Gibeon. 13 Now it came to pass, that when all the people that were with Ishmael saw Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, then they were glad. 14 So all the people that Ishmael had carried away captive from Mizpah cast about and returned, and went unto Johanan the son of Kareah. 15 But Ishmael the son of Nethaniah escaped from Johanan with eight men, and went to the children of Ammon.

16 Then took Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, all the remnant of the people whom he had recovered from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, from Mizpah, after that he had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the men, even the men of war, and the women, and the children, and the officers, whom he had brought back from Gibeon; 17 and they departed, and dwelt in Geruth Chimham, which is by Beth-lehem, to go to enter into Egypt, 18 because of the Chaldeans; for they were afraid of them, because Ishmael the son of Nethaniah had slain Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, whom the king of Babylon made governor over the land.

JEREMIAH 42 — 1 Then all the captains of the forces, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and Jezaniah the son of Hoshaiah, and all the people from the least even unto the greatest, came near, 2 and said unto Jeremiah the prophet: 'Let, we pray thee, our supplication be accepted before thee, and pray for us unto the LORD thy God, even for all this remnant; for we are left but a few of many, as thine eyes do behold us; 3 that the LORD thy God may tell us the way wherein we should walk, and the thing that we should do.' 4 Then Jeremiah the prophet said unto them: 'I have heard you; behold, I will pray unto the LORD your God according to your words; and it shall come to pass, that whatsoever thing the LORD shall answer you, I will declare it unto you; I will keep nothing back from you.' 5 Then they said to Jeremiah: 'The LORD be a true and faithful witness against us, if we do not even according to all the word wherewith the LORD thy God shall send thee to us. 6 Whether it be good, or whether it be evil, we will hearken to the voice of the LORD our God, to whom we send thee; that it may be well with us, when we hearken to the voice of the LORD our God.'

7 And it came to pass after ten days, that the word of the LORD came unto Jeremiah. 8 Then called he Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces that were with him, and all the people from the least even to the greatest, 9 and said unto them: 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, unto whom ye sent me to present your supplication before Him: 10 If ye will still abide in this land, then will I build you, and not pull you down, and I will plant you, and not pluck you up; for I repent Me of the evil that I have done unto you. 11 Be not afraid of the king of Babylon, of whom ye are afraid; be not afraid of him, saith the LORD; for I am with you to save you, and to deliver you from his hand. 12 And I will grant you compassion, that he may have compassion upon you, and cause you to return to your own land. 13 But if ye say: We will not abide in this land; so that ye hearken not to the voice of the LORD your God; 14 saying: No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, nor hear the sound of the horn, nor have hunger of bread; and there will we abide; 15 now therefore hear ye the word of the LORD, O remnant of Judah: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and go to sojourn there; 16 then it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye fear, shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye are afraid, shall follow hard after you there in Egypt; and there ye shall die. 17 So shall it be with all the men that set their faces to go into Egypt to sojourn there; they shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; and none of them shall remain or escape from the evil that I will bring upon them. 18 For thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: As Mine anger and My fury hath been poured forth upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so shall My fury be poured forth upon you, when ye shall enter into Egypt; and ye shall be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach; and ye shall see this place no more. 19 The LORD hath spoken concerning you, O remnant of Judah: Go ye not into Egypt; know certainly that I have forewarned you this day. 20 For ye have dealt deceitfully against your own souls; for ye sent me unto the LORD your God, saying: Pray for us unto the LORD our God; and according unto all that the LORD our God shall say, so declare unto us, and we will do it; 21 and I have this day declared it to you; but ye have not hearkened to the voice of the LORD your God in any thing for which He hath sent me unto you. 22 Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye desire to go to sojourn there.'

JEREMIAH 43 — 1 And it came to pass, that when Jeremiah had made an end of speaking unto all the people all the words of the LORD their God, wherewith the LORD their God had sent him to them, even all these words, 2 then spoke Azariah the son of Hoshaiah, and Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the proud men, saying unto Jeremiah: 'Thou speakest falsely; the LORD our God hath not sent thee to say: Ye shall not go into Egypt to sojourn there; 3 but Baruch the son of Neriah setteth thee on against us, to deliver us into the hand of the Chaldeans, that they may put us to death, and carry us away captives to Babylon.' 4 So Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, and all the people, hearkened not to the voice of the LORD, to dwell in the land of Judah. 5 But Johanan the son of Kareah, and all the captains of the forces, took all the remnant of Judah, that were returned from all the nations whither they had been driven to sojourn in the land of Judah: 6 the men, and the women, and the children, and the king's daughters, and every person that Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard had left with Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, and Jeremiah the prophet, and Baruch the son of Neriah; 7 and they came into the land of Egypt; for they hearkened not to the voice of the LORD; and they came even to Tahpanhes.

8 Then came the word of the LORD unto Jeremiah in Tahpanhes, saying: 9 'Take great stones in thy hand, and hide them in the mortar in the framework, which is at the entry of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes, in the sight of the men of Judah; 10 and say unto them: Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will send and take Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, My servant, and will set his throne upon these stones that I have hid; and he shall spread his royal pavilion over them. 11 And he shall come, and shall smite the land of Egypt; such as are for death to death, and such as are for captivity to captivity, and such as are for the sword to the sword. 12 And I will kindle a fire in the houses of the gods of Egypt; and he shall burn them, and carry them away captives; and he shall fold up the land of Egypt, as a shepherd foldeth up his garment; and he shall go forth from thence in peace. 13 He shall also break the pillars of Beth-shemesh, that is in the land of Egypt; and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire.'

JEREMIAH 44 — 1 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews that dwelt in the land of Egypt, that dwelt at Migdol, and at Tahpanhes, and at Noph, and in the country of Pathros, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Ye have seen all the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, and upon all the cities of Judah; and, behold, this day they are a desolation, and no man dwelleth therein; 3 because of their wickedness which they have committed to provoke Me, in that they went to offer, and to serve other gods, whom they knew not, neither they, nor ye, nor your fathers. 4 Howbeit I sent unto you all My servants the prophets, sending them betimes and often, saying: Oh, do not this abominable thing that I hate. 5 But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear to turn from their wickedness, to forbear offering unto other gods. 6 Wherefore My fury and Mine anger was poured forth, and was kindled in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; and they are wasted and desolate, as at this day. 7 Therefore now thus saith the LORD, the God of hosts, the God of Israel: Wherefore commit ye this great evil against your own souls, to cut off from you man and woman, infant and suckling, out of the midst of Judah, to leave you none remaining; 8 in that ye provoke Me with the works of your hands, offering unto other gods in the land of Egypt, whither ye are gone to sojourn; that ye may be cut off, and that ye may be a curse and a reproach among all the nations of the earth? 9 Have ye forgotten the wicked deeds of your fathers, and the wicked deeds of the kings of Judah, and the wicked deeds of their wives, and your own wicked deeds, and the wicked deeds of your wives, which they committed in the land of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem? 10 They are not humbled even unto this day, neither have they feared, nor walked in My law, nor in My statutes, that I set before you and before your fathers. 11 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will set My face against you for evil, even to cut off all Judah. 12 And I will take the remnant of Judah, that have set their faces to go into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, and they shall all be consumed; in the land of Egypt shall they fall; they shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine; they shall die, from the least even unto the greatest, by the sword and by the famine; and they shall be an execration, and an astonishment, and a curse, and a reproach. 13 For I will punish them that dwell in the land of Egypt, as I have punished Jerusalem, by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; 14 so that none of the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall escape or remain, that they should return into the land of Judah, to which they have a desire to return to dwell there; for none shall return save such as shall escape.'

15 Then all the men who knew that their wives offered unto other gods, and all the women that stood by, a great assembly, even all the people that dwelt in the land of Egypt, in Pathros, answered Jeremiah, saying: 16 'As for the word that thou hast spoken unto us in the name of the LORD, we will not hearken unto thee. 17 But we will certainly perform every word that is gone forth out of our mouth, to offer unto the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her, as we have done, we and our fathers, our kings and our princes, in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem; for then had we plenty of food, and were well, and saw no evil. 18 But since we let off to offer to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her, we have wanted all things, and have been consumed by the sword and by the famine. 19 And is it we that offer to the queen of heaven, and pour out drink-offerings unto her? did we make her cakes in her image, and pour out drink-offerings unto her, without our husbands?'

20 Then Jeremiah said unto all the people, to the men, and to the women, even to all the people that had given him that answer, saying: 21 'The offering that ye offered in the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, ye and your fathers, your kings and your princes, and the people of the land, did not the LORD remember them, and came it not into His mind? 22 So that the LORD could no longer bear, because of the evil of your doings, and because of the abominations which ye have committed; therefore is your land become a desolation, and an astonishment, and a curse, without an inhabitant, as at this day. 23 Because ye have offered, and because ye have sinned against the LORD, and have not hearkened to the voice of the LORD, nor walked in His law, nor in His statutes, nor in His testimonies; therefore this evil is happened unto you, as at this day.'

24 Moreover Jeremiah said unto all the people, and to all the women: 'Hear the word of the LORD, all Judah that are in the land of Egypt: 25 Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saying: Ye and your wives have both spoken with your mouths, and with your hands have fulfilled it, saying: We will surely perform our vows that we have vowed, to offer to the queen of heaven, and to pour out drink-offerings unto her; ye shall surely establish your vows, and surely perform your vows. 26 Therefore hear ye the word of the LORD, all Judah that dwell in the land of Egypt: Behold, I have sworn by My great name, saith the LORD, that My name shall no more be named in the mouth of any man of Judah in all the land of Egypt saying: As the Lord GOD liveth. 27 Behold, I watch over them for evil, and not for good; and all the men of Judah that are in the land of Egypt shall be consumed by the sword and by the famine, until there be an end of them. 28 And they that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into the land of Judah, few in number; and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn there, shall know whose word shall stand, Mine, or theirs. 29 And this shall be the sign unto you, saith the LORD, that I will punish you in this place, that ye may know that My words shall surely stand against you for evil; 30 thus saith the LORD: Behold, I will give Pharaoh Hophra king of Egypt into the hand of his enemies, and into the hand of them that seek his life; as I gave Zedekiah king of Judah into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, his enemy, and that sought his life.'

JEREMIAH 45 — 1 The word that Jeremiah the prophet spoke unto Baruch the son of Neriah, when he wrote these words in a book at the mouth of Jeremiah, in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD, the God of Israel, concerning thee, O Baruch: Thou didst say:

3 Woe is me now!

For the LORD hath added sorrow to my pain;

I am weary with my groaning,

And I find no rest.

4 Thus shalt thou say unto him:

Thus saith the LORD:

Behold, that which I have built will I break down,

And that which I have planted I will pluck up;

And this in the whole land.

5 And seekest thou great things for thyself?

Seek them not;

for, behold, I will bring evil upon all flesh, saith the LORD; but thy life will I give unto thee for a prey in all places whither thou goest.'

JEREMIAH 46 — 1 The word of the LORD which came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the nations.

2 Of Egypt: concerning the army of Pharaoh-neco king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates in Carchemish, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah, king of Judah.

3 Make ready buckler and shield,

And draw near to battle.

4 Harness the horses, and mount, ye horsemen,

And stand forth with your helmets;

Furbish the spears, put on the coats of mail.

5 Wherefore do I see them dismayed and turned backward?

And their mighty ones are beaten down,

And they are fled apace, and look not back;

Terror is on every side, saith the LORD.

6 The swift cannot flee away,

Nor the mighty man escape;

In the north by the river Euphrates

Have they stumbled and fallen.

7 Who is this like the Nile that riseth up,

Like the rivers whose waters toss themselves?

8 Egypt is like the Nile that riseth up,

And like the rivers whose waters toss themselves;

And he saith: 'I will rise up, I will cover the earth,

I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof.'

9 Prance, ye horses, and rush madly, ye chariots;

And let the mighty men go forth:

Cush and Put, that handle the shield,

And the Ludim, that handle and bend the bow.

10 For the Lord GOD of hosts shall have on that day

A day of vengeance, that He may avenge Him of His adversaries;

And the sword shall devour and be satiate,

And shall be made drunk with their blood;

For the Lord GOD of hosts hath a sacrifice

In the north country by the river Euphrates.

11 Go up into Gilead, and take balm,

O virgin daughter of Egypt;

In vain dost thou use many medicines;

There is no cure for thee.

12 The nations have heard of thy shame,

And the earth is full of thy cry;

For the mighty man hath stumbled against the mighty,

They are fallen both of them together.

13 The word that the LORD spoke to Jeremiah the prophet, how that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon should come and smite the land of Egypt.

14 Declare ye in Egypt, and announce in Migdol,

And announce in Noph and in Tahpanhes;

Say ye: 'Stand forth, and prepare thee,

For the sword hath devoured round about thee.'

15 Why is thy strong one overthrown?

He stood not, because the LORD did thrust him down.

16 He made many to stumble;

Yea, they fell one upon another,

And said: 'Arise, and let us return to our own people,

And to the land of our birth,

From the oppressing sword.'

17 They cried there: 'Pharaoh king of Egypt is but a noise;

He hath let the appointed time pass by.'

18 As I live, saith the King,

Whose name is the LORD of hosts,

Surely like Tabor among the mountains,

And like Carmel by the sea, so shall he come.

19 O thou daughter that dwellest in Egypt,

Furnish thyself to go into captivity;

For Noph shall become a desolation,

And shall be laid waste, without inhabitant.

20 Egypt is a very fair heifer;

But the gadfly out of the north is come, it is come.

21 Also her mercenaries in the midst of her

Are like calves of the stall,

For they also are turned back, they are fled away together,

They did not stand;

For the day of their calamity is come upon them,

The time of their visitation.

22 The sound thereof shall go like the serpent's;

For they march with an army,

And come against her with axes,

As hewers of wood.

23 They cut down her forest, saith the LORD,

Though it cannot be searched;

Because they are more than the locusts,

And are innumerable.

24 The daughter of Egypt is put to shame;

She is delivered into the hand of the people of the north.

25 The LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, saith: Behold, I will punish Amon of No, and Pharaoh, and Egypt, with her gods, and her kings; even Pharaoh, and them that trust in him; 26 and I will deliver them into the hand of those that seek their lives, and into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, and into the hand of his servants; and afterwards it shall be inhabited, as in the days of old, saith the LORD.

27 But fear not thou, O Jacob My servant,

Neither be dismayed, O Israel;

For, lo, I will save thee from afar,

And thy seed from the land of their captivity;

And Jacob shall again be quiet and at ease,

And none shall make him afraid.

28 Fear not thou, O Jacob My servant, saith the LORD,

For I am with thee;

For I will make a full end of all the nations whither I have driven thee,

But I will not make a full end of thee;

And I will correct thee in measure,

But will not utterly destroy thee.

JEREMIAH 47 — 1 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning the Philistines, before that Pharaoh smote Gaza.

2 Thus saith the LORD:

Behold, waters rise up out of the north,

And shall become an overflowing stream,

And they shall overflow the land and all that is therein,

The city and them that dwell therein;

And the men shall cry,

And all the inhabitants of the land shall wail.

3 At the noise of the stamping of the hoofs of his strong ones,

At the rushing of his chariots, at the rumbling of his wheels,

The fathers look not back to their children

For feebleness of hands;

4 Because of the day that cometh

To spoil all the Philistines,

To cut off from Tyre and Zidon

Every helper that remaineth;

For the LORD will spoil the Philistines,

The remnant of the isle of Caphtor.

5 Baldness is come upon Gaza,

Ashkelon is brought to nought, the remnant of their valley;

How long wilt thou cut thyself?

6 O thou sword of the LORD,

How long will it be ere thou be quiet?

Put up thyself into thy scabbard,

Rest, and be still.

7 How canst thou be quiet?

For the LORD hath given it a charge;

Against Ashkelon, and against the sea-shore,

There hath He appointed it.

JEREMIAH 48 — 1 Of Moab.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Woe unto Nebo! for it is spoiled;

Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken;

Misgab is put to shame and dismayed.

2 The praise of Moab is no more;

In Heshbon they have devised evil against her:

'Come, and let us cut her off from being a nation.'

Thou also, O Madmen, shalt be brought to silence;

The sword shall pursue thee.

3 Hark! a cry from Horonaim,

Spoiling and great destruction!

4 Moab is destroyed;

Her little ones have caused a cry to be heard.

5 For by the ascent of Luhith

With continual weeping shall they go up;

For in the going down of Horonaim

They have heard the distressing cry of destruction.

6 Flee, save your lives,

And be like a tamarisk in the wilderness.

7 For, because thou hast trusted

In thy works and in thy treasures,

Thou also shalt be taken;

And Chemosh shall go forth into captivity,

His priests and his princes together.

8 And the spoiler shall come upon every city,

And no city shall escape;

The valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed;

As the LORD hath spoken.

9 Give wings unto Moab,

For she must fly and get away;

And her cities shall become a desolation,

Without any to dwell therein.

10 Cursed be he that doeth the work of the LORD with a slack hand,

And cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood.

11 Moab hath been at ease from his youth,

And he hath settled on his lees,

And hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel,

Neither hath he gone into captivity;

Therefore his taste remaineth in him,

And his scent is not changed.

12 Therefore, behold, the days come,

Saith the LORD,

That I will send unto him them that tilt up,

And they shall tilt him up;

And they shall empty his vessels,

And break their bottles in pieces.

13 And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh,

As the house of Israel was ashamed

Of Beth-el their confidence.

14 How say ye: 'We are mighty men,

And valiant men for the war'?

15 Moab is spoiled, and they are gone up into her cities,

And his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter,

Saith the King,

Whose name is the LORD of hosts.

16 The calamity of Moab is near to come,

And his affliction hasteth fast.

17 Bemoan him, all ye that are round about him,

And all ye that know his name;

Say: 'How is the strong staff broken,

The beautiful rod!'

18 O thou daughter that dwellest in Dibon,

Come down from thy glory, and sit in thirst;

For the spoiler of Moab is come up against thee,

He hath destroyed thy strongholds.

19 O inhabitant of Aroer,

Stand by the way, and watch;

Ask him that fleeth, and her that escapeth;

Say: 'What hath been done?'

20 Moab is put to shame, for it is dismayed;

Wail and cry;

Tell ye it in Arnon,

That Moab is spoiled.

21 And judgment is come upon the country of the Plain; upon Holon, and upon Jahzah, and upon Mephaath; 22 and upon Dibon, and upon Nebo, and upon Beth-diblathaim; 23 and upon Kiriathaim, and upon Beth-gamul, and upon Beth-meon; 24 and upon Kerioth, and upon Bozrah, and upon all the cities of the land of Moab, far or near.

25 The horn of Moab is cut off,

And his arm is broken,

Saith the LORD.

26 Make ye him drunken,

For he magnified himself against the LORD;

And Moab shall wallow in his vomit,

And he also shall be in derision.

27 For was not Israel a derision unto thee?

Was he found among thieves?

For as often as thou speakest of him,

Thou waggest the head.

28 O ye that dwell in Moab,

Leave the cities, and dwell in the rock;

And be like the dove that maketh her nest

In the sides of the pit's mouth.

29 We have heard of the pride of Moab;

He is very proud;

His loftiness, and his pride, and his haughtiness,

And the assumption of his heart.

30 I know his arrogancy, saith the LORD,

That it is ill-founded;

His boastings have wrought nothing well-founded.

31 Therefore will I wail for Moab;

Yea, I will cry out for all Moab;

For the men of Kir-heres shall my heart moan.

32 With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for thee,

O vine of Sibmah;

Thy branches passed over the sea,

They reached even to the sea of Jazer;

Upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage

The spoiler is fallen.

33 And gladness and joy is taken away

From the fruitful field, and from the land of Moab;

And I have caused wine to cease from the winepresses;

None shall tread with shouting;

The shouting shall be no shouting.

34 From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh,

Even unto Jahaz have they uttered their voice,

From Zoar even unto Horonaim,

A heifer of three years old;

For the Waters of Nimrim also

Shall be desolate.

35 Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab,

Saith the LORD,

Him that offereth in the high place,

And him that offereth to his gods.

36 Therefore my heart moaneth for Moab like pipes,

And my heart moaneth like pipes for the men of Kir-heres;

Therefore the abundance that he hath gotten is perished.

37 For every head is bald,

And every beard clipped;

Upon all the hands are cuttings,

And upon the loins sackcloth.

38 On all the housetops of Moab and in the broad places thereof

There is lamentation every where;

For I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein is no pleasure,

Saith the LORD.

39 'How is it broken down!' wail ye!

'How hath Moab turned the back with shame!'

So shall Moab become a derision and a dismay

To all that are round about him.

40 For thus saith the LORD:

Behold, he shall swoop as a vulture,

And shall spread out his wings against Moab.

41 The cities are taken,

And the strongholds are seized,

And the heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day

Shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

42 And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people,

Because he hath magnified himself against the LORD.

43 Terror, and the pit, and the trap,

Are upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab,

Saith the LORD.

44 He that fleeth from the terror

Shall fall into the pit;

And he that getteth up out of the pit

Shall be taken in the trap;

For I will bring upon her, even upon Moab,

The year of their visitation, saith the LORD.

45 In the shadow of Heshbon the fugitives

Stand without strength;

For a fire is gone forth out of Heshbon,

And a flame from the midst of Sihon,

And it devoureth the corner of Moab,

And the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones.

46 Woe unto thee, O Moab!

The people of Chemosh is undone;

For thy sons are taken away captive,

And thy daughters into captivity.

47 Yet will I turn the captivity of Moab

In the end of days, saith the LORD.

Thus far is the judgment of Moab.

JEREMIAH 49 — 1 Of the children of Ammon.

Thus saith the LORD:

Hath Israel no sons?

Hath he no heir?

Why then doth Malcam take possession of Gad,

And his people dwell in the cities thereof?

2 Therefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD,

That I will cause an alarm of war to be heard

Against Rabbah of the children of Ammon;

And it shall become a desolate mound,

And her daughters shall be burned with fire;

Then shall Israel dispossess them that did dispossess him,

Saith the LORD.

3 Wail, O Heshbon, for Ai is undone;

Cry, ye daughters of Rabbah, gird you with sackcloth;

Lament, and run to and fro among the folds;

For Malcam shall go into captivity,

His priests and his princes together.

4 Wherefore gloriest thou in the valleys,

Thy flowing valley, O backsliding daughter?

That didst trust in thy treasures:

'Who shall come unto me?'

5 Behold, I will bring a terror upon thee,

Saith the Lord GOD of hosts,

From all that are round about thee;

And ye shall be driven out every man right forth,

And there shall be none to gather up him that wandereth.

6 But afterward I will bring back the captivity of the children of Ammon,

Saith the LORD.

7 Of Edom.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Is wisdom no more in Teman?

Is counsel perished from the prudent?

Is their wisdom vanished?

8 Flee ye, turn back, dwell deep,

O inhabitants of Dedan;

For I do bring the calamity of Esau upon him,

The time that I shall punish him.

9 If grape-gatherers came to thee,

Would they not leave some gleaning grapes?

If thieves by night,

Would they not destroy till they had enough?

10 But I have made Esau bare,

I have uncovered his secret places,

And he shall not be able to hide himself;

His seed is spoiled, and his brethren,

And his neighbours, and he is not.

11 Leave thy fatherless children, I will rear them,

And let thy widows trust in Me.

12 For thus saith the LORD: Behold, they to whom it pertained not to drink of the cup shall assuredly drink; and art thou he that shall altogether go unpunished? thou shalt not go unpunished, but thou shalt surely drink. 13 For I have sworn by Myself, saith the LORD, that Bozrah shall become an astonishment, a reproach, a waste, and a curse; and all the cities thereof shall be perpetual wastes.

14 I have heard a message from the LORD,

And an ambassador is sent among the nations:

'Gather yourselves together, and come against her,

And rise up to the battle.'

15 For, behold, I make thee small among the nations,

And despised among men.

16 Thy terribleness hath deceived thee,

Even the pride of thy heart,

O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock,

That holdest the height of the hill;

Though thou shouldest make thy nest as high as the eagle,

I will bring thee down from thence, saith the LORD.

17 And Edom shall become an astonishment;

Every one that passeth by it

Shall be astonished and shall hiss at all the plagues thereof.

18 As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah

And the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD,

No man shall abide there,

Neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

19 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan

Against the strong habitation;

For I will suddenly make him run away from it,

And whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over it;

For who is like Me? and who will appoint Me a time?

And who is that shepherd that will stand before Me?

20 Therefore hear ye the counsel of the LORD,

That He hath taken against Edom;

And His purposes, that He hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman:

Surely the least of the flock shall drag them away,

Surely their habitation shall be appalled at them.

21 The earth quaketh at the noise of their fall;

There is a cry, the noise whereof is heard in the Red Sea.

22 Behold, he shall come up and swoop down as the vulture,

And spread out his wings against Bozrah;

And the heart of the mighty men of Edom at that day

Shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs.

23 Of Damascus.

Hamath is ashamed, and Arpad;

For they have heard evil tidings, they are melted away;

There is trouble in the sea;

It cannot be quiet.

24 Damascus is waxed feeble, she turneth herself to flee,

And trembling hath seized on her;

Anguish and pangs have taken hold of her, as of a woman in travail.

25 'How is the city of praise left unrepaired,

The city of my joy?'

26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her broad places,

And all the men of war shall be brought to silence in that day,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

27 And I will kindle a fire in the wall of Damascus,

And it shall devour the palaces of Ben-hadad.

28 Of Kedar, and of the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon smote.

Thus saith the LORD:

Arise ye, go up against Kedar,

And spoil the children of the east.

29 Their tents and their flocks shall they take,

They shall carry away for themselves their curtains,

And all their vessels, and their camels;

And they shall proclaim against them a terror on every side.

30 Flee ye, flit far off, dwell deep,

O ye inhabitants of Hazor, saith the LORD;

For Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath taken counsel against you,

And hath conceived a purpose against you.

31 Arise, get you up against a nation that is at ease,

That dwelleth without care, saith the LORD;

That have neither gates nor bars,

That dwell alone.

32 And their camels shall be a booty,

And the multitude of their cattle a spoil;

And I will scatter unto all winds them that have the corners polled;

And I will bring their calamity from every side of them, saith the LORD.

33 And Hazor shall be a dwelling-place of jackals,

A desolation for ever;

No man shall abide there,

Neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

34 The word of the LORD that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying:

35 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Behold, I will break the bow of Elam

The chief of their might.

36 And I will bring against Elam the four winds

From the four quarters of heaven,

And will scatter them toward all those winds;

And there shall be no nation whither the dispersed of Elam shall not come.

37 And I will cause Elam to be dismayed before their enemies,

And before them that seek their life;

And I will bring evil upon them,

Even My fierce anger, saith the LORD;

And I will send the sword after them,

Till I have consumed them;

38 And I will set My throne in Elam,

And will destroy from thence king and princes, saith the LORD.

39 But it shall come to pass in the end of days,

That I will bring back the captivity of Elam, saith the LORD.

JEREMIAH 50 — 1 The word that the LORD spoke concerning Babylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, by Jeremiah the prophet.

2 Declare ye among the nations and announce,

And set up a standard;

Announce, and conceal not;

Say: 'Babylon is taken,

Bel is put to shame, Merodach is dismayed;

Her images are put to shame, her idols are dismayed.'

3 For out of the north there cometh up a nation against her,

Which shall make her land desolate,

And none shall dwell therein;

They are fled, they are gone, both man and beast.

4 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD,

The children of Israel shall come,

They and the children of Judah together;

They shall go on their way weeping,

And shall seek the LORD their God.

5 They shall inquire concerning Zion

With their faces hitherward:

'Come ye, and join yourselves to the LORD

In an everlasting covenant that shall not be forgotten.'

6 My people hath been lost sheep;

Their shepherds have caused them to go astray,

They have turned them away on the mountains;

They have gone from mountain to hill,

They have forgotten their resting-place.

7 All that found them have devoured them;

And their adversaries said: 'We are not guilty';

Because they have sinned against the LORD, the habitation of justice,

Even the LORD, the hope of their fathers.

8 Flee out of the midst of Babylon,

And go forth out of the land of the Chaldeans,

And be as the he-goats before the flocks.

9 For, lo, I will stir up and cause to come up against Babylon

An assembly of great nations from the north country;

And they shall set themselves in array against her,

From thence she shall be taken;

Their arrows shall be as of a mighty man that maketh childless;

None shall return in vain.

10 And Chaldea shall be a spoil;

All that spoil her shall be satisfied, saith the LORD.

11 Because ye are glad, because ye rejoice,

O ye that plunder My heritage,

Because ye gambol as a heifer at grass,

And neigh as strong horses;

12 Your mother shall be sore ashamed,

She that bore you shall be confounded;

Behold, the hindermost of the nations

Shall be a wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.

13 Because of the wrath of the LORD it shall not be inhabited,

But it shall be wholly desolate;

Every one that goeth by Babylon

Shall be appalled and hiss at all her plagues.

14 Set yourselves in array against Babylon round about,

All ye that bend the bow,

Shoot at her, spare no arrows;

For she hath sinned against the LORD.

15 Shout against her round about, she hath submitted herself;

Her buttresses are fallen, her walls are thrown down;

For it is the vengeance of the LORD, take vengeance upon her;

As she hath done, do unto her.

16 Cut off the sower from Babylon,

And him that handleth the sickle in the time of harvest;

For fear of the oppressing sword they shall turn every one to his people,

And they shall flee every one to his own land.

17 Israel is a scattered sheep,

The lions have driven him away;

First the king of Assyria hath devoured him,

And last this Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.

18 Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land,

As I have punished the king of Assyria.

19 And I will bring Israel back to his pasture,

And he shall feed on Carmel and Bashan,

And his soul shall be satisfied upon the hills of Ephraim and in Gilead.

20 In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD,

The iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none,

And the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found;

For I will pardon them whom I leave as a remnant.

21 Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it,

And against the inhabitants of Pekod;

Waste and utterly destroy after them, saith the LORD,

And do according to all that I have commanded thee.

22 Hark! battle is in the land,

And great destruction.

23 How is the hammer of the whole earth

Cut asunder and broken!

How is Babylon become

A desolation among the nations!

24 I have laid a snare for thee, and thou art also taken, O Babylon,

And thou wast not aware;

Thou art found, and also caught,

Because thou hast striven against the LORD.

25 The LORD hath opened His armoury,

And hath brought forth the weapons of His indignation;

For it is a work that the Lord GOD of hosts

Hath to do in the land of the Chaldeans.

26 Come against her from every quarter, open her granaries,

Cast her up as heaps, and destroy her utterly;

Let nothing of her be left.

27 Slay all her bullocks, let them go down to the slaughter;

Woe unto them! for their day is come,

The time of their visitation.

28 Hark! they flee and escape out of the land of Babylon,

To declare in Zion the vengeance of the LORD our God,

The vengeance of His temple.

29 Call together the archers against Babylon,

All them that bend the bow;

Encamp against her round about,

Let none thereof escape;

Recompense her according to her work,

According to all that she hath done, do unto her:

For she hath been arrogant against the LORD,

Against the Holy One of Israel.

30 Therefore shall her young men fall in her broad places,

And all her men of war shall be brought to silence in that day,

Saith the LORD.

31 Behold, I am against thee, O thou most arrogant,

Saith the Lord GOD of hosts;

For thy day is come,

The time that I will punish thee.

32 And the most arrogant shall stumble and fall,

And none shall raise him up;

And I will kindle a fire in his cities,

And it shall devour all that are round about him.

33 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together;

And all that took them captives hold them fast;

They refuse to let them go.

34 Their Redeemer is strong,

The LORD of hosts is His name;

He will thoroughly plead their cause,

That He may give rest to the earth,

And disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.

35 A sword is upon the Chaldeans, saith the LORD,

And upon the inhabitants of Babylon, and upon her princes, and upon her wise men.

36 A sword is upon the boasters, and they shall become fools;

A sword is upon her mighty men, and they shall be dismayed.

37 A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots,

And upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her,

And they shall become as women;

A sword is upon her treasures, and they shall be robbed.

38 A drought is upon her waters, and they shall be dried up;

For it is a land of graven images,

And they are mad upon things of horror.

39 Therefore the wild-cats with the jackals shall dwell there,

And the ostriches shall dwell therein;

And it shall be no more inhabited for ever,

Neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation.

40 As when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah

And the neighbour cities thereof, saith the LORD;

So shall no man abide there,

Neither shall any son of man dwell therein.

41 Behold, a people cometh from the north,

And a great nation, and many kings

Shall be roused from the uttermost parts of the earth.

42 They lay hold on bow and spear,

They are cruel, and have no compassion;

Their voice is like the roaring sea,

And they ride upon horses;

Set in array, as a man for war,

Against thee, O daughter of Babylon.

43 The king of Babylon hath heard the fame of them,

And his hands wax feeble;

Anguish hath taken hold of him,

And pain, as of a woman in travail.

44 Behold, he shall come up like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan

Against the strong habitation;

For I will suddenly make them run away from it,

And whoso is chosen, him will I appoint over it;

For who is like Me? and who will appoint Me a time?

And who is that shepherd that will stand before Me?

45 Therefore hear ye the counsel of the LORD,

That He hath taken against Babylon,

And His purposes, that He hath purposed against the land of the Chaldeans:

Surely the least of the flock shall drag them away,

Surely their habitation shall be appalled at them.

46 At the noise of the taking of Babylon the earth quaketh,

And the cry is heard among the nations.

JEREMIAH 51 — 1 Thus saith the LORD:

Behold, I will raise up against Babylon,

And against them that dwell in Leb-kamai, a destroying wind.

2 And I will send unto Babylon strangers, that shall fan her,

And they shall empty her land;

For in the day of trouble they shall be against her round about.

3 Let the archer bend his bow against her,

And let him lift himself up against her in his coat of mail;

And spare ye not her young men,

Destroy ye utterly all her host.

4 And they shall fall down slain in the land of the Chaldeans,

And thrust through in her streets.

5 For Israel is not widowed, nor Judah,

Of his God, of the LORD of hosts;

For their land is full of guilt

Against the Holy One of Israel.

6 Flee out of the midst of Babylon,

And save every man his life,

Be not cut off in her iniquity;

For it is the time of the LORD'S vengeance;

He will render unto her a recompense.

7 Babylon hath been a golden cup in LORD'S hand,

That made all the earth drunken;

The nations have drunk of her wine,

Therefore the nations are mad.

8 Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed,

Wail for her;

Take balm for her pain,

If so be she may be healed.

9 We would have healed Babylon, but she is not healed;

Forsake her, and let us go every one into his own country;

For her judgment reacheth unto heaven,

And is lifted up even to the skies.

10 The LORD hath brought forth our victory;

Come, and let us declare in Zion

The work of the LORD our God.

11 Make bright the arrows,

Fill the quivers,

The LORD hath roused the spirit of the kings of the Medes;

Because His device is against Babylon, to destroy it;

For it is the vengeance of the LORD,

The vengeance of His temple.

12 Set up a standard against the walls of Babylon,

Make the watch strong,

Set the watchmen, prepare the ambushes;

For the LORD hath both devised and done

That which He spoke concerning the inhabitants of Babylon.

13 O thou that dwellest upon many waters,

Abundant in treasures,

Thine end is come,

The measure of thy covetousness.

14 The LORD of hosts hath sworn by Himself:

Surely I will fill thee with men, as with the canker-worm,

And they shall lift up a shout against thee.

15 He that hath made the earth by His power,

That hath established the world by His wisdom,

And hath stretched out the heavens by His discernment;

16 At the sound of His giving a multitude of waters in the heavens,

He causeth the vapours to ascend from the ends of the earth;

He maketh lightnings at the time of the rain,

And bringeth forth the wind out of His treasuries;

17 Every man is proved to be brutish, for the knowledge-

Every goldsmith is put to shame by the graven image-

That his molten image is falsehood, and there is no breath in them.

18 They are vanity, a work of delusion;

In the time of their visitation they shall perish,

19 The portion of Jacob is not like these;

For He is the former of all things,

And [Israel] is the tribe of His inheritance;

The LORD of hosts is His name.

20 Thou art My maul and weapons of war,

And with thee will I shatter the nations,

And with thee will I destroy kingdoms;

21 And with thee will I shatter the horse and his rider,

And with thee will I shatter the chariot and him that rideth therein;

22 And with thee will I shatter man and woman,

And with thee will I shatter the old man and the youth,

And with thee will I shatter the young man and the maid;

23 And with thee will I shatter the shepherd and his flock,

And with thee will I shatter the husbandman and his yoke of oxen,

And with thee will I shatter governors and deputies.

24 And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea

All their evil that they have done in Zion, in your sight;

Saith the LORD.

25 Behold, I am against thee,

O destroying mountain, saith the LORD,

Which destroyest all the earth;

And I will stretch out My hand upon thee,

And roll thee down from the rocks,

And will make thee a burnt mountain.

26 And they shall not take of thee a stone for a corner,

Nor a stone for foundations;

But thou shalt be desolate for ever, saith the LORD.

27 Set ye up a standard in the land,

Blow the horn among the nations,

Prepare the nations against her,

Call together against her the kingdoms of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz;

Appoint a marshal against her;

Cause the horses to come up as the rough canker-worm.

28 Prepare against her the nations, the kings of the Medes,

The governors thereof, and all the deputies thereof,

And all the land of his dominion.

29 And the land quaketh and is in pain;

For the purposes of the LORD are performed against Babylon,

To make the land of Babylon a desolation, without inhabitant.

30 The mighty men of Babylon have forborne to fight,

They remain in their strongholds;

Their might hath failed, they are become as women;

Her dwelling-places are set on fire;

Her bars are broken.

31 One post runneth to meet another,

And one messenger to meet an other,

To tell the king of Babylon

That his city is taken on every quarter;

32 And the fords are seized,

And the castles they have burned with fire,

And the men of war are affrighted.

33 For thus saith the LORD of hosts,

The God of Israel:

The daughter of Babylon is like a threshing-floor

At the time when it is trodden;

Yet a little while, and the time of harvest

Shall come for her.

34 Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon hath devoured me,

He hath crushed me,

He hath set me down as an empty vessel,

He hath swallowed me up like a dragon,

He hath filled his maw with my delicacies;

He hath washed me clean.

35 'The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon,'

Shall the inhabitant of Zion say;

And: 'My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea',

Shall Jerusalem say.

36 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

Behold, I will plead thy cause,

And take vengeance for thee;

And I will dry up her sea,

And make her fountain dry.

37 And Babylon shall become heaps,

A dwelling-place for jackals,

An astonishment, and a hissing,

Without inhabitant.

38 They shall roar together like young lions;

They shall growl as lions' whelps.

39 With their poison I will prepare their feast,

And I will make them drunken, that they may be convulsed,

And sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake,

Saith the LORD.

40 I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter,

Like rams with he-goats.

41 How is Sheshach taken!

And the praise of the whole earth seized!

How is Babylon become an astonishment

Among the nations!

42 The sea is come up upon Babylon;

She is covered with the multitude of the waves thereof.

43 Her cities are become a desolation,

A dry land, and a desert,

A land wherein no man dwelleth,

Neither doth any son of man pass thereby.

44 And I will punish Bel in Babylon,

And I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up,

And the nations shall not flow any more unto him;

Yea, the wall of Babylon shall fall.

45 My people, go ye out of the midst of her,

And save yourselves every man

From the fierce anger of the LORD.

46 And let not your heart faint, neither fear ye,

For the rumour that shall be heard in the land;

For a rumour shall come one year,

And after that in another year a rumour,

And violence in the land, ruler against ruler.

47 Therefore behold, the days come,

That I will do judgment upon the graven images of Babylon,

And her whole land shall be ashamed;

And all her slain shall fall in the midst of her.

48 Then the heaven and the earth, and all that is therein,

Shall sing for joy over Babylon;

For the spoilers shall come unto her

From the north, saith the LORD.

49 As Babylon hath caused the slain of Israel to fall,

So at Babylon shall fall the slain of all the land.

50 Ye that have escaped the sword,

Go ye, stand not still;

Remember the LORD from afar,

And let Jerusalem come into your mind.

51 'We are ashamed, because we have heard reproach,

Confusion hath covered our faces;

For strangers are come

Into the sanctuaries of the LORD'S house.'

52 Wherefore, behold, the days come, saith the LORD,

That I will do judgment upon her graven images;

And through all her land the wounded shall groan.

53 Though Babylon should mount up to heaven,

And though she should fortify the height of her strength,

Yet from Me shall spoilers come unto her, saith the LORD.

54 Hark! a cry from Babylon,

And great destruction from the land of the Chaldeans!

55 For the LORD spoileth Babylon,

And destroyeth out of her the great voice;

And their waves roar like many waters,

The noise of their voice is uttered;

56 For the spoiler is come upon her, even upon Babylon,

And her mighty men are taken,

Their bows are shattered;

For the LORD is a God of recompenses,

He will surely requite.

57 And I will make drunk her princes and her wise men,

Her governors and her deputies, and her mighty men;

And they shall sleep a perpetual sleep, and not wake,

Saith the King, whose name is the LORD of hosts.

58 Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

The broad walls of Babylon shall be utterly overthrown,

And her high gates shall be burned with fire;

And the peoples shall labour for vanity,

And the nations for the fire;

And they shall be weary.

59 The word which Jeremiah the prophet commanded Seraiah the son of Neriah, the son of Mahseiah, when he went with Zedekiah the king of Judah to Babylon in the fourth year of his reign. Now Seraiah was quartermaster. 60 And Jeremiah wrote in one book all the evil that should come upon Babylon, even all these words that are written concerning Babylon. 61 And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: 'When thou comest to Babylon, then see that thou read all these words, 62 and say: O LORD, Thou hast spoken concerning this place, to cut it off, that none shall dwell therein, neither man nor beast, but that it shall be desolate for ever. 63 And it shall be, when thou hast made an end of reading this book, that thou shalt bind a stone to it, and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates; 64 and thou shalt say: Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise again because of the evil that I will bring upon her; and they shall be weary.'

Thus far are the words of Jeremiah.

JEREMIAH 52 — 1 Zedekiah was one and twenty years old when he began to reign; and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem; and his mother's name was Hamutal the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah. 2 And he did that which was evil in the sight of the LORD, according to all that Jehoiakim had done. 3 For through the anger of the LORD did it come to pass in Jerusalem and Judah, until He had cast them out from His presence. And Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon. 4 And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon came, he and all his army, against Jerusalem, and encamped against it; and they built forts against it round about. 5 So the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. 6 In the fourth month, in the ninth day of the month, the famine was sore in the city, so that there was no bread for the people of the land. 7 Then a breach was made in the city, and all the men of war fled, and went forth out of the city by night by the way of the gate between the two walls, which was by the king's garden-now the Chaldeans were against the city round about-and they went by the way of the Arabah. 8 But the army of the Chaldeans pursued after the king, and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho; and all his army was scattered from him. 9 Then they took the king, and carried him up unto the king of Babylon to Riblah in the land of Hamath; and he gave judgment upon him. 10 And the king of Babylon slew the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; he slew also all the princes of Judah in Riblah. 11 And he put out the eyes of Zedekiah; and the king of Babylon bound him in fetters, and carried him to Babylon, and put him in prison till the day of his death.

12 Now in the fifth month, in the tenth day of the month, which was the nineteenth year of king Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon, came Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard, who stood before the king of Babylon, into Jerusalem; 13 and he burned the house of the LORD, and the king's house; and all the houses of Jerusalem, even every great man's house, burned he with fire. 14 And all the army of the Chaldeans, that were with the captain of the guard, broke down all the walls of Jerusalem round about. 15 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the poorest sort of the people, and the residue of the people that remained in the city, and those that fell away, that fell to the king of Babylon, and the residue of the multitude. 16 But Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard left of the poorest of the land to be vinedressers and husbandmen. 17 And the pillars of brass that were in the house of the LORD, and the bases and the brazen sea that were in the house of the LORD, did the Chaldeans break in pieces, and carried all the brass of them to Babylon. 18 The pots also, and the shovels, and the snuffers, and the basins, and the pans, and all the vessels of brass wherewith they ministered, took they away. 19 And the cups, and the fire-pans, and the basins, and the pots, and the candlesticks, and the pans, and the bowls-that which was of gold, in gold, and that which was of silver, in silver-the captain of the guard took away. 20 The two pillars, the one sea, and the twelve brazen bulls that were under the bases, which king Solomon had made for the house of the LORD-the brass of all these vessels was without weight. 21 And as for the pillars, the height of the one pillar was eighteen cubits; and a line of twelve cubits did compass it; and the thickness thereof was four fingers; it was hollow. 22 And a capital of brass was upon it; and the height of the one capital was five cubits, with network and pomegranates upon the capital round about, all of brass; and the second pillar also had like unto these, and pomegranates. 23 And there were ninety and six pomegranates on the outside; all the pomegranates were a hundred upon the network round about.

24 And the captain of the guard took Seraiah the chief priest, and Zephaniah the second priest, and the three keepers of the door; 25 and out of the city he took an officer that was set over the men of war; and seven men of them that saw the king's face, who were found in the city; and the scribe of the captain of the host, who mustered the people of the land; and threescore men of the people of the land, that were found in the midst of the city. 26 And Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard took them, and brought them to the king of Babylon to Riblah. 27 And the king of Babylon smote them, and put them to death at Riblah in the land of Hamath. So Judah was carried away captive out of his land.

28 This is the people whom Nebuchadrezzar carried away captive: in the seventh year three thousand Jews and three and twenty; 29 in the eighteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar, from Jerusalem, eight hundred thirty and two persons; 30 in the three and twentieth year of Nebuchadrezzar Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive of the Jews seven hundred forty and five persons; all the persons were four thousand and six hundred.

31 And it came to pass in the seven and thirtieth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin king of Judah, in the twelfth month, in the five and twentieth day of the month, that Evil-merodach king of Babylon, in the first year of his reign, lifted up the head of Jehoiachin king of Judah, and brought him forth out of prison. 32 And he spoke kindly to him, and set his throne above the throne of the kings that were with him in Babylon. 33 And he changed his prison garments, and did eat bread before him continually all the days of his life. 34 And for his allowance, there was a continual allowance given him of the king of Babylon, every day a portion until the day of his death, all the days of his life.

Ezekiel

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EZEKIEL 1 — 1 Now it came to pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river Chebar that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. 2 In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity, 3 the word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the LORD was there upon him.

4 And I looked, and, behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, a great cloud, with a fire flashing up, so that a brightness was round about it; and out of the midst thereof as the colour of electrum, out of the midst of the fire. 5 And out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man. 6 And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings. 7 And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot; and they sparkled like the colour of burnished brass. 8 And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and as for the faces and wings of them four, 9 their wings were joined one to another; they turned not when they went; they went every one straight forward. 10 As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and they four had the face of a lion on the right side; and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four had also the face of an eagle. 11 Thus were their faces; and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of every one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies. 12 And they went every one straight forward; whither the spirit was to go, they went; they turned not when they went. 13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like coals of fire, burning like the appearance of torches; it flashed up and down among the living creatures; and there was brightness to the fire, and out of the fire went forth lightning. 14 And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15 Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold one wheel at the bottom hard by the living creatures, at the four faces thereof. 16 The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a beryl; and they four had one likeness; and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel within a wheel. 17 When they went, they went toward their four sides; they turned not when they went. 18 As for their rings, they were high and they were dreadful; and they four had their rings full of eyes round about. 19 And when the living creatures went, the wheels went hard by them; and when the living creatures were lifted up from the bottom, the wheels were lifted up. 20 Whithersoever the spirit was to go, as the spirit was to go thither, so they went; and the wheels were lifted up beside them; for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels. 21 When those went, these went, and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up beside them; for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

22 And over the heads of the living creatures there was the likeness of a firmament, like the colour of the terrible ice, stretched forth over their heads above. 23 And under the firmament were their wings conformable the one to the other; this one of them had two which covered, and that one of them had two which covered, their bodies. 24 And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings like the noise of great waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a noise of tumult like the noise of a host; when they stood, they let down their wings. 25 For, when there was a voice above the firmament that was over their heads, as they stood, they let down their wings.

26 And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was a likeness as the appearance of a man upon it above. 27 And I saw as the colour of electrum, as the appearance of fire round about enclosing it, from the appearance of his loins and upward; and from the appearance of his loins and downward I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness round about him. 28 As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spoke.

EZEKIEL 2 — 1 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak with thee.' 2 And spirit entered into me when He spoke unto me, and set me upon my feet; and I heard Him that spoke unto me.

3 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to rebellious nations, that have rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me, even unto this very day; 4 and the children are brazen-faced and stiff-hearted, I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD. 5 And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear-for they are a rebellious house-yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.

6 And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though defiers and despisers be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions; be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. 7 And thou shalt speak My words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear; for they are most rebellious.

8 And thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee: be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house; open thy mouth, and eat that which I give thee.' 9 And when I looked, behold, a hand was put forth unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein; 10 and He spread it before me, and it was written within and without; and there was written therein lamentations, and moaning, and woe.

EZEKIEL 3 — 1 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, eat that which thou findest; eat this roll, and go, speak unto the house of Israel.' 2 So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that roll. 3 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee.' Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.

4 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with My words unto them. 5 For thou art not sent to a people of an unintelligible speech and of a slow tongue, but to the house of Israel; 6 not to many peoples of an unintelligible speech and of a slow tongue, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, if I sent thee to them, they would hearken unto thee. 7 But the house of Israel will not consent to hearken unto thee; for they consent not to hearken unto Me; for all the house of Israel are of a hard forehead and of a stiff heart. 8 Behold, I have made thy face hard against their faces, and thy forehead hard against their foreheads. 9 As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead; fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house.'

10 Moreover He said unto me: 'Son of man, all My words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thy heart, and hear with thine ears. 11 And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them: Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.'

12 Then a spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great rushing: 'Blessed be the glory of the LORD from His place'; 13 also the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, even the noise of a great rushing. 14 So a spirit lifted me up, and took me away; and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of the LORD was strong upon me. 15 Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river Chebar, and I sat where they sat; and I remained there appalled among them seven days.

16 And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 17 'Son of man, I have appointed thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; and when thou shalt hear a word at My mouth, thou shalt give them warning from Me. 18 When I say unto the wicked: Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thy hand. 19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. 20 Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, I will lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die; because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand. 21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning; and thou hast delivered thy soul.'

22 And the hand of the LORD came there upon me; and He said unto me: 'Arise, go forth into the plain, and I will there speak with thee.' 23 Then I arose, and went forth into the plain; and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face. 24 Then spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet; and He spoke with me, and said unto me: 'Go, shut thyself within thy house. 25 But thou, son of man, behold, bands shall be put upon thee, and thou shalt be bound with them, and thou shalt not go out among them; 26 and I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD; he that heareth, let him hear, and he that forbeareth, let him forbear; for they are a rebellious house.

EZEKIEL 4 — 1 Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and trace upon it a city, even Jerusalem; 2 and lay siege against it, and build forts against it, and cast up a mound against it; set camps also against it, and set battering rams against it round about. 3 And take thou unto thee an iron griddle, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city; and set thy face toward it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.

4 Moreover lie thou upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it, thou shalt bear their iniquity. 5 For I have appointed the years of their iniquity to be unto thee a number of days, even three hundred and ninety days; so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. 6 And again, when thou hast accomplished these, thou shalt lie on thy right side, and shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah; forty days, each day for a year, have I appointed it unto thee. 7 And thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, with thine arm uncovered; and thou shalt prophesy against it. 8 And, behold, I lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast accomplished the days of thy siege. 9 Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, even three hundred and ninety days, shalt thou eat thereof. 10 And thy food which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time shalt thou eat it. 11 Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of a hin; from time to time shalt thou drink. 12 And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it in their sight with dung that cometh out of man.'

13 And the LORD said: 'Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their bread unclean, among the nations whither I will drive them.' 14 Then said I: 'Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted; for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn of beasts; neither came there abhorred flesh into my mouth.' 15 Then He said unto me: 'See, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread thereon.' 16 Moreover He said unto me: 'Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem, and they shall eat bread by weight, and with anxiety; and they shall drink water by measure, and in appalment; 17 that they may want bread and water, and be appalled one with another, and pine away in their iniquity.

EZEKIEL 5 — 1 And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp sword, as a barber's razor shalt thou take it unto thee, and cause it to pass upon thy head and upon thy beard; then take thee balances to weigh, and divide the hair. 2 A third part shalt thou burn in the fire in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled; and thou shalt take a third part, and smite it with the sword round about her; and a third part thou shalt scatter to the wind, and I will draw out a sword after them. 3 Thou shalt also take thereof a few by number, and bind them in thy skirts. 4 And of them again shalt thou take, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; therefrom shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.

5 Thus saith the Lord GOD: This is Jerusalem! I have set her in the midst of the nations, and countries are round about her. 6 And she hath rebelled against Mine ordinances in doing wickedness more than the nations, and against My statutes more than the countries that are round about her; for they have rejected Mine ordinances, and as for My statutes, they have not walked in them. 7 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because ye have outdone the nations that are round about you, in that ye have not walked in My statutes, neither have kept Mine ordinances, neither have done after the ordinances of the nations that are round about you; 8 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and I will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations. 9 And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations. 10 Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter unto all the winds. 11 Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely, because thou hast defiled My sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall Mine eye spare, and I also will have no pity. 12 A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee; and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and a third part I will scatter unto all the winds, and will draw out a sword after them. 13 Thus shall Mine anger spend itself, and I will satisfy My fury upon them, and I will be eased; and they shall know that I the LORD have spoken in My zeal, when I have spent My fury upon them. 14 Moreover I will make thee an amazement and a reproach, among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of all that pass by. 15 So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment, unto the nations that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and in fury, and in furious rebukes; I the LORD have spoken it; 16 when I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, that are for destruction, which I will send to destroy you; and I will increase the famine upon you, and will break your staff of bread; 17 and I will send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.'

EZEKIEL 6 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them, 3 and say: Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the mountains and concerning the hills, concerning the ravines and concerning the valleys: Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places. 4 And your altars shall become desolate, and your sun-images shall be broken; and I will cast down your slain men before your idols. 5 And I will lay the carcasses of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars. 6 In all your dwelling-places the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your sun-images may be hewn down, and your works may be blotted out. 7 And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 8 Yet will I leave a remnant, in that ye shall have some that escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries. 9 And they that escape of you shall remember Me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, how that I have been anguished with their straying heart, which hath departed from Me, and with their eyes, which are gone astray after their idols; and they shall loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations. 10 And they shall know that I am the LORD; I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them. 11 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Smite with thy hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say: Alas! because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel; for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence. 12 He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is besieged shall die by the famine; thus will I spend My fury upon them. 13 And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when their slain men shall be among their idols round about their altars, upon every high hill, in all the tops of the mountains, and under every leafy tree, and under every thick terebinth, the place where they did offer sweet savour to all their idols. 14 And I will stretch out My hand upon them, and make the land desolate and waste, more than the wilderness of Diblah, throughout all their habitations; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 7 — 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'And thou, son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the land of Israel: An end! the end is come upon the four corners of the land. 3 Now is the end upon thee, and I will send Mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways; and I will bring upon thee all thine abominations. 4 And Mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity; but I will bring thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

5 Thus saith the Lord GOD: An evil, a singular evil, behold, it cometh. 6 An end is come, the end is come, it awaketh against thee; behold, it cometh. 7 The turn is come unto thee, O inhabitant of the land; the time is come, the day of tumult is near, and not of joyful shouting upon the mountains. 8 Now will I shortly pour out My fury upon thee, and spend Mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways; and I will bring upon thee all thine abominations. 9 And Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; I will bring upon thee according to thy ways, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I the LORD do smite. 10 Behold the day; behold, it cometh; the turn is come forth; the rod hath blossomed, arrogancy hath budded. 11 Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness; nought cometh from them, nor from their tumult, nor from their turmoil, neither is there eminency among them. 12 The time is come, the day draweth near; let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof. 13 For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they be yet alive; for the vision is touching the whole multitude thereof, which shall not return; neither shall any stand possessed of the iniquity of his life. 14 They have blown the horn, and have made all ready, but none goeth to the battle; for My wrath is upon all the multitude thereof. 15 The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within; he that is in the field shall die with the sword, and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him. 16 But they that shall at all escape of them, shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them moaning, every one in his iniquity. 17 All hands shall be slack, and all knees shall drip with water. 18 They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be upon all faces, and baldness upon all their heads. 19 They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be as an unclean thing; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD; they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels; because it hath been the stumblingblock of their iniquity. 20 And as for the beauty of their ornament, which was set for a pride, they made the images of their abominations and their detestable things thereof; therefore have I made it unto them as an unclean thing. 21 And I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall profane it. 22 I will also turn My face from them, and they shall profane My secret place; and robbers shall enter into it, and profane it.

23 Make the chain; for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence. 24 Wherefore I will bring the worst of the nations, and they shall possess their houses; I will also make the pride of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be profaned. 25 Horror cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none. 26 Calamity shall come upon calamity, and rumour shall be upon rumour; and they shall seek a vision of the prophet, and instruction shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the elders. 27 The king shall mourn, and the prince shall be clothed with appalment, and the hands of the people of the land shall be enfeebled; I will do unto them after their way, and according to their deserts will I judge them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 8 — 1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell there upon me. 2 Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the colour of electrum. 3 And the form of a hand was put forth, and I was taken by a lock of my head; and a spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the gate of the inner court that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy. 4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain. 5 Then said He unto me: 'Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north.' So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold northward of the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.

6 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from My sanctuary? but thou shalt again see yet greater abominations.' 7 And He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall. 8 Then said He unto me: 'Son of man, dig now in the wall'; and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door. 9 And He said unto me: 'Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they do here.' 10 So I went in and saw; and behold every detestable form of creeping things and beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about. 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up. 12 Then said He unto me: 'Son of man, hast thou seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his chambers of imagery? for they say: The LORD seeth us not, the LORD hath forsaken the land.' 13 He said also unto me: 'Thou shalt again see yet greater abominations which they do.' 14 Then He brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD'S house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat the women weeping for Tammuz. 15 Then said He unto me: 'Hast thou seen this, O son of man? thou shalt again see yet greater abominations than these.' 16 And He brought me into the inner court of the LORD'S house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. 17 Then He said unto me: 'Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here in that they fill the land with violence, and provoke Me still more, and, lo, they put the branch to their nose? 18 Therefore will I also deal in fury; Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in Mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.'

EZEKIEL 9 — 1 Then he called in mine ears with a loud voice, saying: 'Cause ye them that have charge over the city to draw near, every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.' 2 And, behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lieth toward the north, every man with his weapon of destruction in his hand; and one man in the midst of them clothed in linen, with a writer's inkhorn on his side. And they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. 3 And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon it was, to the threshold of the house; and He called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writer's inkhorn on his side. 4 And the LORD said unto him: 'Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that are done in the midst thereof.' 5 And to the others He said in my hearing: 'Go ye through the city after him, and smite; let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity; 6 slay utterly the old man, the young man and the maiden, and little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at My sanctuary.' Then they began at the elders that were before the house. 7 And He said unto them: 'Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain; go ye forth.' And they went forth, and smote in the city. 8 And it came to pass, while they were smiting, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said: 'Ah Lord GOD! wilt Thou destroy all the residue of Israel in Thy pouring out of Thy fury upon Jerusalem?' 9 Then said He unto me: 'The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of wresting of judgment; for they say: The LORD hath forsaken the land, and the LORD seeth not. 10 And as for Me also, Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will bring their way upon their head.' 11 And, behold, the man clothed in linen, who had the inkhorn on his side, reported, saying: 'I have done according to all that Thou hast commanded me.'

EZEKIEL 10 — 1 Then I looked, and, behold, upon the firmament that was over the head of the cherubim, there appeared above them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne. 2 And He spoke unto the man clothed in linen, and said: 'Go in between the wheelwork, even under the cherub, and fill both thy hands with coals of fire from between the cherubim, and dash them against the city.' And he went in in my sight. 3 Now the cherubim stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court. 4 And the glory of the LORD mounted up from the cherub to the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the LORD'S glory. 5 And the sound of the wings of the cherubim was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of God Almighty when He speaketh. 6 And it came to pass, when He commanded the man clothed in linen, saying: 'Take fire from between the wheelwork, from between the cherubim', that he went in, and stood beside a wheel. 7 And the cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubim unto the fire that was between the cherubim, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed in linen, who took it and went out. 8 And there appeared in the cherubim the form of a man's hand under their wings. 9 And I looked, and behold four wheels beside the cherubim, one wheel beside one cherub, and another wheel beside another cherub; and the appearance of the wheels was as the colour of a beryl stone. 10 And as for their appearance, they four had one likeness, as if a wheel had been within a wheel. 11 When they went, they went toward their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went. 12 And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had. 13 As for the wheels, they were called in my hearing The wheelwork. 14 And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of the cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 15 And the cherubim mounted up-this is the living creature that I saw by the river Chebar. 16 And when the cherubim went, the wheels went beside them; and when the cherubim lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels also turned not from beside them. 17 When they stood, these stood, and when they mounted up, these mounted up with them; for the spirit of the living creature was in them. 18 And the glory of the LORD went forth from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubim. 19 And the cherubim lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight when they went forth, and the wheels beside them; and they stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD'S house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. 20 This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river Chebar; and I knew that they were cherubim. 21 Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings. 22 And as for the likeness of their faces, they were the faces which I saw by the river Chebar, their appearances and themselves; they went every one straight forward.

EZEKIEL 11 — 1 Then a spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of the LORD'S house, which looketh eastward; and behold at the door of the gate five and twenty men; and I saw in the midst of them Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people. 2 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, these are the men that devise iniquity, and that give wicked counsel in this city; 3 that say: The time is not near to build houses! this city is the caldron, and we are the flesh. 4 Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.' 5 And the spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and He said unto me: 'Speak: Thus saith the LORD: Thus have ye said, O house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind. 6 Ye have multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain. 7 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city is the caldron; but ye shall be brought forth out of the midst of it. 8 Ye have feared the sword; and the sword will I bring upon you, saith the Lord GOD. 9 And I will bring you forth out of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you. 10 Ye shall fall by the sword: I will judge you upon the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 11 Though this city shall not be your caldron, ye shall be the flesh in the midst thereof; I will judge you upon the border of Israel; 12 and ye shall know that I am the LORD; for ye have not walked in My statutes, neither have ye executed Mine ordinances, but have done after the ordinances of the nations that are round about you.' 13 And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said: 'Ah Lord GOD! wilt Thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?'

14 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 15 'Son of man, as for thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel, all of them, concerning whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: Get you far from the LORD! unto us is this land given for a possession; 16 therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Although I have removed them far off among the nations, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet have I been to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they are come; 17 therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even gather you from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. 18 And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. 19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh; 20 that they may walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD.'

22 Then did the cherubim lift up their wings, and the wheels were beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. 23 And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city. 24 And a spirit lifted me up, and brought me in the vision by the spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from Me. 25 Then I spoke unto them of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shown me.

EZEKIEL 12 — 1 The word of the LORD also came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of the rebellious house, that have eyes to see, and see not, that have ears to hear, and hear not; for they are a rebellious house. 3 Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for exile, and remove as though for exile by day in their sight; and thou shalt remove from thy place to another place in their sight; it may be they will perceive, for they are a rebellious house. 4 And thou shalt bring forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for exile; and thou shalt go forth thyself at even in their sight, as when men go forth into exile. 5 Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry out thereby. 6 In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulder, and carry it forth in the darkness; thou shalt cover thy face, that thou see not the ground; for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel.' 7 And I did so as I was commanded: I brought forth my stuff by day, as stuff for exile, and in the even I digged through the wall with my hand; I carried out in the darkness, and bore it upon my shoulder in their sight.

8 And in the morning came the word of the LORD unto me, saying: 9 'Son of man, hath not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee: What doest thou? 10 Say thou unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Concerning the prince, even this burden, in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel among whom they are, 11 say: I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them-they shall go into exile, into captivity. 12 And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his shoulder, and go forth in the darkness; they shall dig through the wall to carry out thereby; he shall cover his face, that he see not the ground with his eyes. 13 My net also will I spread upon him, and he shall be taken in My snare; and I will bring him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he shall die there. 14 And I will disperse toward every wind all that are round about him to help him, and all his troops; and I will draw out the sword after them. 15 And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the countries. 16 But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their abominations among the nations whither they come; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

17 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 18 'Son of man, eat thy bread with quaking, and drink thy water with trembling and with anxiety; 19 and say unto the people of the land: Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the land of Israel. They shall eat their bread with anxiety, and drink their water with appalment, that her land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein. 20 And the cities that are inhabited shall be laid waste, and the land shall be desolate; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.'

21 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 22 'Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying: The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth? 23 Tell them therefore: Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will make this proverb to cease, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them: The days are at hand, and the word of every vision. 24 For there shall be no more any vain vision nor smooth divination within the house of Israel. 25 For I am the LORD; I will speak, what word soever it be that I shall speak, and it shall be performed; it shall be no more delayed; for in your days, O rebellious house, will I speak the word, and will perform it, saith the Lord GOD.'

26 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 27 'Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel say: The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of times that are far off. 28 Therefore say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: There shall none of My words be delayed any more, but the word which I shall speak shall be performed, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 13 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own heart: Hear ye the word of the LORD: 3 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe unto the vile prophets, that follow their own spirit, and things which they have not seen! 4 O Israel, thy prophets have been like foxes in ruins. 5 Ye have not gone up into the breaches, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel, to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD. 6 They have seen vanity and lying divination, that say: The LORD saith; and the LORD hath not sent them, yet they hope that the word would be confirmed! 7 Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say: The LORD saith; albeit I have not spoken?

8 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD. 9 And My hand shall be against the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies; they shall not be in the council of My people, neither shall they be written in the register of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD. 10 Because, even because they have led My people astray, saying: Peace, and there is no peace; and when it buildeth up a slight wall, behold, they daub it with whited plaster; 11 say unto them that daub it with whited plaster, that it shall fall; there shall be an overflowing shower, and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall, and a stormy wind shall break forth, 12 and, lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you: Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it? 13 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even cause a stormy wind to break forth in My fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in Mine anger, and great hailstones in fury to consume it. 14 So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with whited plaster, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be uncovered; and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 15 Thus will I spend My fury upon the wall, and upon them that have daubed it with whited plaster; and I will say unto you: The wall is no more, neither they that daubed it; 16 to wit, the prophets of Israel that prophesy concerning Jerusalem, and that see visions of peace for her, and there is no peace, saith the Lord GOD.

17 And thou, son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, that prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them, 18 and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe to the women that sew cushions upon all elbows, and make pads for the head of persons of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of My people, and save souls alive for yourselves? 19 And ye have profaned Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for crumbs of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to My people that hearken unto lies. 20 Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against your cushions, wherewith ye hunt the souls as birds, and I will tear them from your arms; and I will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt as birds. 21 Your pads also will I tear, and deliver My people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 22 Because with lies ye have cowed the heart of the righteous, when I have not grieved him; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, that he be saved alive; 23 therefore ye shall no more see vanity, nor divine divinations; and I will deliver My people out of your hand; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 14 — 1 Then came certain of the elders of Israel unto me, and sat before me. 2 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 3 'Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their mind, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face; should I be inquired of at all by them? 4 Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his mind, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet-I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols; 5 that I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all turned away from Me through their idols.

6 Therefore say unto the house of Israel: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Return ye, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations. 7 For every one of the house of Israel, or of the strangers that sojourn in Israel, that separateth himself from Me, and taketh his idols into his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet, that he inquire for him of Me-I the LORD will answer him by Myself, 8 and I will set My face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of My people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 9 And when the prophet is enticed and speaketh a word, I the LORD have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out My hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of My people Israel. 10 And they shall bear their iniquity; the iniquity of the prophet shall be even as the iniquity of him that inquireth; 11 that the house of Israel may go no more astray from Me, neither defile themselves any more with all their transgressions; but that they may be My people, and I may be their God, saith the Lord GOD.'

12 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 13 'Son of man, when a land sinneth against Me by trespassing grievously, and I stretch out My hand upon it, and break the staff of the bread thereof, and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man and beast; 14 though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord GOD. 15 If I cause evil beasts to pass through the land, and they bereave it, and it be desolate, so that no man may pass through because of the beasts; 16 though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate. 17 Or if I bring a sword upon that land, and say: Let the sword go through the land, so that I cut off from it man and beast; 18 though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only shall be delivered themselves. 19 Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out My fury upon it in blood, to cut off from it man and beast; 20 though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither son nor daughter; they shall but deliver their own souls by their righteousness. 21 For thus saith the Lord GOD: How much more when I send My four sore judgments against Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the evil beasts, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast. 22 And, behold, though there be left a remnant therein that shall be brought forth, both sons and daughters; behold, when they come forth unto you, and ye see their way and their doings, then ye shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought upon Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought upon it; 23 and they shall comfort you, when ye see their way and their doings, and ye shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 15 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, what is the vine-tree more than any tree, the vine branch which grew up among the trees of the forest? 3 Shall wood be taken thereof to make any work? or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon? 4 Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire hath devoured both the ends of it, and the midst of it is singed; is it profitable for any work? 5 Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work; how much less, when the fire hath devoured it, and it is singed, shall it yet be meet for any work? 6 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: As the vine-tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so do I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 7 And I will set My face against them; out of the fire are they come forth, and the fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set My face against them. 8 And I will make the land desolate, because they have acted treacherously, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 16 — 1 Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, 3 and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem: Thine origin and thy nativity is of the land of the Canaanite; the Amorite was thy father, and thy mother was a Hittite. 4 And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water for cleansing; thou was not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. 5 No eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field in the loathsomeness of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. 6 And when I passed by thee, and saw thee wallowing in thy blood, I said unto thee: In thy blood, live; yea, I said unto thee: In thy blood, live; 7 I cause thee to increase, even as the growth of the field. And thou didst increase and grow up, and thou camest to excellent beauty: thy breasts were fashioned, and thy hair was grown; yet thou wast naked and bare. 8 Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, and, behold, thy time was the time of love, I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness; yea, I swore unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest Mine. 9 Then washed I thee with water; yea, I cleansed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. 10 I clothed thee also with richly woven work, and shod thee with sealskin, and I wound fine linen about thy head, and covered thee with silk. 11 I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. 12 And I put a ring upon thy nose, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thy head. 13 Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and richly woven work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil; and thou didst wax exceeding beautiful, and thou wast meet for royal estate. 14 And thy renown went forth among the nations for thy beauty; for it was perfect, through My splendour which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord GOD.

15 But thou didst trust in thy beauty and play the harlot because of thy renown, and didst pour out thy harlotries on every one that passed by; his it was. 16 And thou didst take of thy garments, and didst make for thee high places decked with divers colours, and didst play the harlot upon them; the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so. 17 Thou didst also take thy fair jewels of My gold and of My silver, which I had given thee, and madest for thee images of men, and didst play the harlot with them; 18 and thou didst take thy richly woven garments and cover them, and didst set Mine oil and Mine incense before them. 19 My bread also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou didst even set it before them for a sweet savour, and thus it was; saith the Lord GOD. 20 Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto Me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Were thy harlotries a small matter, 21 that thou hast slain My children, and delivered them up, in setting them apart unto them? 22 And in all thine abominations and thy harlotries thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast wallowing in thy blood.

23 And it came to pass after all thy wickedness-woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord GOD-24 that thou hast built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee a lofty place in every street. 25 Thou hast built thy lofty place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty an abomination, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy harlotries. 26 Thou hast also played the harlot with the Egyptians, thy neighbours, great of flesh; and hast multiplied thy harlotry, to provoke Me. 27 Behold, therefore I have stretched out My hand over thee, and have diminished thine allowance, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, that are ashamed of thy lewd way. 28 Thou hast played the harlot also with the Assyrians, without having enough; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet thou wast not satisfied. 29 Thou hast moreover multiplied thy harlotry with the land of traffic, even with Chaldea; and yet thou didst not have enough herewith. 30 How weak is thy heart, saith the Lord GOD, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of a wanton harlot; 31 in that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thy lofty place in every street; and hast not been as a harlot that enhanceth her hire. 32 Thou wife that committest adultery, that takest strangers instead of thy husband- 33 to all harlots gifts are given; but thou hast given thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hast bribed them to come unto thee from every side in thy harlotries. 34 And the contrary is in thee from other women, in that thou didst solicit to harlotry, and wast not solicited; and in that thou givest hire, and no hire is given unto thee, thus thou art contrary.

35 Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the LORD! 36 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness uncovered through thy harlotries with thy lovers; and because of all the idols of thy abominations, and for the blood of thy children, that thou didst give unto them; 37 therefore behold, I will gather all thy lovers, unto whom thou hast been pleasant, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them against thee from every side, and will uncover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness. 38 And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will bring upon thee the blood of fury and jealousy. 39 I will also give thee into their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and break down thy lofty places; and they shall strip thee of thy clothes, and take thy fair jewels; and they shall leave thee naked and bare. 40 They shall also bring up an assembly against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swords. 41 And they shall burn thy houses with fire, and execute judgments upon thee in the sight of many women; and I will cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou shalt also give no hire any more. 42 So will I satisfy My fury upon thee, and My jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry. 43 Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, but hast fretted Me in all these things; lo, therefore I also will bring thy way upon thy head, saith the Lord GOD; or hast thou not committed this lewdness above all thine abominations?

44 Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying: As the mother, so her daughter. 45 Thou art thy mother's daughter, that loatheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, who loathed their husbands and their children; your mother was a Hittite, and your father an Amorite. 46 And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters. 47 Yet hast thou not walked in their ways, nor done after their abominations; but in a very little while thou didst deal more corruptly than they in all thy ways. 48 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. 49 Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom: pride, fulness of bread, and careless ease was in her and in her daughters; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty, and committed abomination before Me; therefore I removed them when I saw it. 51 Neither hath Samaria committed even half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters by all thine abominations which thou hast done. 52 Thou also, bear thine own shame, in that thou hast given judgment for thy sisters; through thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they, they are more righteous than thou; yea, be thou also confounded, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters.

53 And I will turn their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, and the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them; 54 that thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be ashamed because of all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them. 55 And thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, and thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate. 56 For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride; 57 before thy wickedness was uncovered, as at the time of the taunt of the daughters of Aram, and of all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, that have thee in disdain round about. 58 Thou hast borne thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the LORD.

59 For thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, who hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant. 60 Nevertheless I will remember My covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. 61 Then shalt thou remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder sisters and thy younger; and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not because of thy covenant. 62 And I will establish My covenant with thee, and thou shalt know that I am the LORD; 63 that thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more, because of thy shame; when I have forgiven thee all that thou hast done, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 17 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel, 3 and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

A great eagle with great wings

And long pinions,

Full of feathers, which had divers colours,

Came unto Lebanon,

And took the top of the cedar;

4 He cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof,

And carried it into a land of traffic;

He set it in a city of merchants.

5 He took also of the seed of the land,

And planted it in a fruitful soil;

He placed it beside many waters,

He set it as a slip.

6 And it grew, and became a spreading vine

Of low stature,

Whose tendrils might turn toward him,

And the roots thereof be under him;

So it became a vine, and brought forth branches,

And shot forth sprigs.

7 There was also another great eagle with great wings

And many feathers;

And, behold, this vine did bend

Its roots toward him,

And shot forth its branches toward him, from the beds of its plantation,

That he might water it.

8 It was planted in a good soil

By many waters,

That it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit,

That it might be a stately vine.

9 Say thou: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Shall it prosper?

Shall he not pull up the roots thereof,

And cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither,

Yea, wither in all its sprouting leaves?

Neither shall great power or much people be at hand

When it is plucked up by the roots thereof.

10 Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prosper?

Shall it not utterly wither, when the east wind toucheth it?

In the beds where it grew it shall wither.'

11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 12 'Say now to the rebellious house: Know ye not what these things mean? tell them: Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and brought them to him to Babylon; 13 and he took of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him, and brought him under an oath, and the mighty of the land he took away; 14 that his might be a lowly kingdom, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand. 15 But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? shall he break the covenant, and yet escape? 16 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he broke, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. 17 Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company succour him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many souls; 18 seeing he hath despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things, he shall not escape. 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: As I live, surely Mine oath that he hath despised, and My covenant that he hath broken, I will even bring it upon his own head. 20 And I will spread My net upon him, and he shall be taken in My snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will plead with him there for his treachery that he hath committed against Me. 21 And all his mighty men in all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be scattered toward every wind; and ye shall know that I the LORD have spoken it. 22 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Moreover I will take, even I, of the lofty top of the cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I will plant it upon a high mountain and eminent; 23 in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it; and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a stately cedar; and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing, in the shadow of the branches thereof shall they dwell. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I the LORD have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish; I the LORD have spoken and have done it.'

EZEKIEL 18 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'What mean ye, that ye use this proverb in the land of Israel, saying:

The fathers have eaten sour grapes,

And the children's teeth are set on edge?

3 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel. 4 Behold, all souls are Mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is Mine; the soul that sinneth, it shall die.

5 But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right, 6 and hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbour's wife, neither hath come near to a woman in her impurity; 7 and hath not wronged any, but hath restored his pledge for a debt, hath taken nought by robbery, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment; 8 he that hath not given forth upon interest, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true justice between man and man, 9 hath walked in My statutes, and hath kept Mine ordinances, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord GOD.

10 If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth to a brother any of these things, 11 whereas he himself had not done any of these things, for he hath even eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbour's wife, 12 hath wronged the poor and needy, hath taken by robbery, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination, 13 hath given forth upon interest, and hath taken increase; shall he then live? he shall not live-he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely be put to death, his blood shall be upon him.

14 Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father's sins, which he hath done, and considereth, and doeth not such like, 15 that hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbour's wife, 16 neither hath wronged any, hath not taken aught to pledge, neither hath taken by robbery, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment, 17 that hath withdrawn his hand from the poor, that hath not received interest nor increase, hath executed Mine ordinances, hath walked in My statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live. 18 As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, committed robbery on his brother, and did that which is not good among his people, behold, he dieth for his iniquity. 19 Yet say ye: Why doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father with him? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all My statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live. 20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die; the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father with him, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son with him; the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him.

21 But if the wicked turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all My statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 22 None of his transgressions that he hath committed shall be remembered against him; for his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. 23 Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord GOD; and not rather that he should return from his ways, and live?

24 But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? None of his righteous deeds that he hath done shall be remembered; for his trespass that he trespassed, and for his sin that he hath sinned, for them shall he die. 25 Yet ye say: The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel: Is it My way that is not equal? is it not your ways that are unequal? 26 When the righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, he shall die therefor; for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. 27 Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. 28 Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. 29 Yet saith the house of Israel: The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, is it My ways that are not equal? is it not your ways that are unequal? 30 Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord GOD. Return ye, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so shall they not be a stumblingblock of iniquity unto you. 31 Cast away from you all your transgressions, wherein ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit; for why will ye die, O house of Israel? 32 For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord GOD; wherefore turn yourselves, and live.

EZEKIEL 19 — 1 Moreover, take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, 2 and say:

How was thy mother a lioness;

Among lions she couched,

In the midst of the young lions

She reared her whelps!

3 And she brought up one of her whelps,

He became a young lion;

And he learned to catch the prey,

He devoured men.

4 Then the nations assembled against him,

He was taken in their pit;

And they brought him with hooks

Unto the land of Egypt.

5 Now when she saw that she was disappointed,

And her hope was lost,

Then she took another of her whelps,

And made him a young lion.

6 And he went up and down among the lions,

He became a young lion;

And he learned to catch the prey,

He devoured men.

7 And he knew their castles,

And laid waste their cities;

And the land was desolate, and the fulness thereof,

Because of the noise of his roaring.

8 Then the nations cried out against him

On every side from the provinces;

And they spread their net over him,

He was taken in their pit.

9 And they put him in a cage with hooks,

And brought him to the king of Babylon;

That they might bring him into strongholds,

So that his voice should no more be heard

Upon the mountains of Israel.

10 Thy mother was like a vine, in thy likeness,

Planted by the waters;

She was fruitful and full of branches

By reason of many waters.

11 And she had strong rods

To be sceptres for them that bore rule;

And her stature was exalted

Among the thick branches,

And she was seen in her height

With the multitude of her tendrils.

12 But she was plucked up in fury,

She was cast down to the ground,

And the east wind dried up her fruit;

Her strong rods were broken off and withered,

The fire consumed her.

13 And now she is planted in the wilderness,

In a dry and thirsty ground.

14 And fire is gone out of the rod of her branches,

It hath devoured her fruit,

So that there is in her no strong rod

To be a sceptre to rule.'

This is a lamentation, and it was for a lamentation.

EZEKIEL 20 — 1 And it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and sat before me. 2 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 3 'Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Are ye come to inquire of Me? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be inquired of by you. 4 Wilt thou judge them, son of man, wilt thou judge them? cause them to know the abominations of their fathers; 5 and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up My hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made Myself known unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up My hand unto them, saying: I am the LORD your God; 6 in that day I lifted up My hand unto them, to bring them forth out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had sought out for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the beauty of all lands; 7 and I said unto them: Cast ye away every man the detestable things of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am the LORD your God. 8 But they rebelled against Me, and would not hearken unto Me; they did not every man cast away the detestable things of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt; then I said I would pour out My fury upon them, to spend My anger upon them in the midst of the land of Egypt. 9 But I wrought for My name's sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, among whom they were, in whose sight I made Myself known unto them, so as to bring them forth out of the land of Egypt. 10 So I caused them to go forth out of the land of Egypt, and brought them into the wilderness. 11 And I gave them My statutes, and taught them Mine ordinances, which if a man do, he shall live by them. 12 Moreover also I gave them My sabbaths, to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know that I am the LORD that sanctify them. 13 But the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness; they walked not in My statutes, and they rejected Mine ordinances, which if a man do, he shall live by them, and My sabbaths they greatly profaned; then I said I would pour out My fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them. 14 But I wrought for My name's sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, in whose sight I brought them out. 15 Yet also I lifted up My hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the beauty of all lands; 16 because they rejected Mine ordinances, and walked not in My statutes, and profaned My sabbaths-for their heart went after their idols. 17 Nevertheless Mine eye spared them from destroying them, neither did I make a full end of them in the wilderness. 18 And I said unto their children in the wilderness: Walk ye not in the statutes of your fathers, neither observe their ordinances, nor defile yourselves with their idols; 19 I am the LORD your God; walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them; 20 and hallow My sabbaths, and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God. 21 But the children rebelled against Me; they walked not in My statutes, neither kept Mine ordinances to do them, which if a man do, he shall live by them; they profaned My sabbaths; then I said I would pour out My fury upon them, to spend My anger upon them in the wilderness. 22 Nevertheless I withdrew My hand, and wrought for My name's sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations, in whose sight I brought them forth. 23 I lifted up My hand unto them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the nations, and disperse them through the countries; 24 because they had not executed Mine ordinances, but had rejected My statutes, and had profaned My sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols. 25 Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and ordinances whereby they should not live; 26 and I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they set apart all that openeth the womb, that I might destroy them, to the end that they might know that I am the LORD.

27 Therefore, son of man, speak unto the house of Israel, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: In this moreover have your fathers blasphemed Me, in that they dealt treacherously with Me. 28 For when I had brought them into the land, which I lifted up My hand to give unto them, then they saw every high hill, and every thick tree, and they offered there their sacrifices, and there they presented the provocation of their offering, there also they made their sweet savour, and there they poured out their drink-offerings. 29 Then I said unto them: What meaneth the high place whereunto ye go? So the name thereof is called Bamah unto this day.

30 Wherefore say unto the house of Israel: Thus saith the Lord GOD: When ye pollute yourselves after the manner of your fathers, and go after their abominations, 31 and when, in offering your gifts, in making your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, unto this day; shall I then be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be inquired of by you; 32 and that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all; in that ye say: We will be as the nations, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone. 33 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out, will I be king over you; 34 and I will bring you out from the peoples, and will gather you out of the countries wherein ye are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with fury poured out; 35 and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there will I plead with you face to face. 36 Like as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I plead with you, saith the Lord GOD. 37 And I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; 38 and I will purge out from among you the rebels, and them that transgress against Me; I will bring them forth out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 39 As for you, O house of Israel, thus saith the Lord GOD: Go ye, serve every one his idols, even because ye will not hearken unto Me; but My holy name shall ye no more profane with your gifts, and with your idols. 40 For in My holy mountain, in the mountain of the height of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, there shall all the house of Israel, all of them, serve Me in the land; there will I accept them, and there will I require your heave-offerings, and the first of your gifts, with all your holy things. 41 With your sweet savour will I accept you, when I bring you out from the peoples, and gather you out of the countries wherein ye have been scattered; and I will be sanctified in you in the sight of the nations. 42 And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall bring you into the land of Israel, into the country which I lifted up My hand to give unto your fathers. 43 And there shall ye remember your ways, and all your doings, wherein ye have polluted yourselves; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for all your evils that ye have committed. 44 And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have wrought with you for My name's sake, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt doings, O ye house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 21 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face toward the South, and preach toward the South, and prophesy against the forest of the field in the South; 3 and say to the forest of the South: Hear the word of the LORD: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree, it shall not be quenched, even a flaming flame; and all faces from the south to the north shall be seared thereby. 4 And all flesh shall see that I the LORD have kindled it; it shall not be quenched.' 5 Then said I: 'Ah Lord GOD! they say of me: Is he not a maker of parables?'

6 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 7 'Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and preach toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel; 8 and say to the land of Israel: Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth My sword out of its sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked. 9 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall My sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north; 10 and all flesh shall know that I the LORD have drawn forth My sword out of its sheath; it shall not return any more. 11 Sigh therefore, thou son of man; with the breaking of thy loins and with bitterness shalt thou sigh before their eyes. 12 And it shall be, when they say unto thee: Wherefore sighest thou? that thou shalt say: Because of the tidings, for it cometh; and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be slack, and every spirit shall be faint, and all knees shall drip with water; behold, it cometh, and it shall be done, saith the Lord GOD.'

13 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 14 'Son of man, prophesy, and say: Thus saith the LORD: Say:

A sword, a sword, it is sharpened,

And also furbished:

15 It is sharpened that it may make a sore slaughter,

It is furbished that it may glitter-

Or shall we make mirth? -

Against the rod of My son, contemning every tree.

16 And it is given to be furbished,

That it may be handled;

The sword, it is sharpened,

Yea, it is furbished,

To give it into the hand of the slayer.

17 Cry and wail, son of man; for it is upon My people, it is upon all the princes of Israel; they are thrust down to the sword with My people; smite therefore upon thy thigh. 18 For there is a trial; and what if it contemn even the rod? It shall be no more, saith the Lord GOD. 19 Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of those to be slain; it is the sword of the great one that is to be slain, which compasseth them about. 20 I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may melt, and their stumblings be multiplied; ah! it is made glittering, it is sharpened for slaughter. 21 Go thee one way to the right, or direct thyself to the left; whither is thy face set? 22 I will also smite My hands together, and I will satisfy My fury; I the LORD have spoken it.'

23 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 24 'Now, thou son of man, make thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come; they twain shall come forth out of one land; and mark a signpost, mark it clear at the head of the way to the city. 25 Thou shalt make a way, that the sword may come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah in Jerusalem the fortified. 26 For the king of Babylon standeth at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shaketh the arrows to and fro, he inquireth of the teraphim, he looketh in the liver. 27 In his right hand is the lot Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth for the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounds, to build forts. 28 And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, who have weeks upon weeks! but it bringeth iniquity to remembrance, that they may be taken.

29 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that your sins do appear in all your doings; because that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand. 30 And thou, O wicked one, that art to be slain, the prince of Israel, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end; 31 thus saith the Lord GOD: The mitre shall be removed, and the crown taken off; this shall be no more the same: that which is low shall be exalted, and that which is high abased. 32 A ruin, a ruin, a ruin, will I make it; this also shall be no more, until he come whose right it is, and I will give it him.

33 And thou, son of man, prophesy, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their taunt; and say thou:

O sword, O sword keen-edged,

Furbished for the slaughter,

To the uttermost, because of the glitterings;

34 While they see falsehood unto thee,

While they divine lies unto thee,

To lay thee upon the necks of the wicked that are to be slain,

Whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end!-

35 Cause it to return into its sheath! -

In the place where thou wast created, in the land of thine origin,

Will I judge thee.

36 And I will pour out My indignation upon thee,

I will blow upon thee with the fire of My wrath;

And I will deliver thee into the hand of brutish men,

Skilful to destroy.

37 Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire;

Thy blood shall be in the midst of the land,

Thou shalt be no more remembered;

For I the LORD have spoken it.'

EZEKIEL 22 — 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Now, thou, son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? then cause her to know all her abominations. 3 And thou shalt say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: O city that sheddest blood in the midst of thee, that thy time may come, and that makest idols unto thyself to defile thee; 4 thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed, and art defiled in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years; therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the nations, and a mocking to all the countries! 5 Those that are near, and those that are far from thee, shall mock thee, thou defiled of name and full of tumult.

6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one according to his might, have been in thee to shed blood. 7 In thee have they made light of father and mother; in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger; in thee have they wronged the fatherless and the widow. 8 Thou hast despised My holy things, and hast profaned My sabbaths. 9 In thee have been talebearers to shed blood; and in thee they have eaten upon the mountains; in the midst of thee they have committed lewdness. 10 In thee have they uncovered their fathers' nakedness; in thee have they humbled her that was unclean in her impurity. 11 And each hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and each hath lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law; and each in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter. 12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken interest and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by oppression, and hast forgotten Me, saith the Lord GOD.

13 Behold, therefore, I have smitten My hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee. 14 Can thy heart endure, or can thy hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the LORD have spoken it, and will do it. 15 And I will scatter thee among the nations, and disperse thee through the countries; and I will consume thy filthiness out of thee. 16 And thou shalt be profaned in thyself, in the sight of the nations; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.'

17 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 18 'Son of man, the house of Israel is become dross unto Me; all of them are brass and tin and iron and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are the dross of silver. 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because ye are all become dross, therefore, behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20 As they gather silver and brass and iron and lead and tin into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in Mine anger and in My fury, and I will cast you in, and melt you. 21 Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you with the fire of My wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. 22 As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD have poured out My fury upon you.'

23 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 24 'Son of man, say unto her: Thou art a land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation. 25 There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls, they take treasure and precious things, they have made her widows many in the midst thereof. 26 Her priests have done violence to My law, and have profaned My holy things; they have put no difference between the holy and the common, neither have they taught difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from My sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. 27 Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey: to shed blood, and to destroy souls, so as to get dishonest gain. 28 And her prophets have daubed for them with whited plaster, seeing falsehood, and divining lies unto them, saying: Thus saith the Lord GOD, when the LORD hath not spoken. 29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have wronged the poor and needy, and have oppressed the stranger unlawfully. 30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the breach before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none. 31 Therefore have I poured out Mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their own way have I brought upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 23 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, there were two women, the daughters of one mother; 3 and they committed harlotries in Egypt; they committed harlotries in their youth; there were their bosoms pressed, and there their virgin breasts were bruised. 4 And the names of them were Oholah the elder, and Oholibah her sister; and they became Mine, and they bore sons and daughters. And as for their names, Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem Oholibah.

5 And Oholah played the harlot when she was Mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians, warriors, 6 clothed with blue, governors and rulers, handsome young men all of them, horsemen riding upon horses. 7 And she bestowed her harlotries upon them, the choicest men of Assyria all of them; and on whomsoever she doted, with all their idols she defiled herself. 8 Neither hath she left her harlotries brought from Egypt; for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised her virgin breasts; and they poured out their lust upon her. 9 Wherefore I delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted. 10 These uncovered her nakedness; they took her sons and her daughters, and her they slew with the sword; and she became a byword among women, for judgments were executed upon her.

11 And her sister Oholibah saw this, yet was she more corrupt in her doting than she, and in her harlotries more than her sister in her harlotries. 12 She doted upon the Assyrians, governors and rulers, warriors, clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them handsome young men. 13 And I saw that she was defiled; they both took one way. 14 And she increased her harlotries; for she saw men portrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans portrayed with vermilion, 15 girded with girdles upon their loins, with pendant turbans upon their heads, all of them captains to look upon, the likeness of the sons of Babylon, even of Chaldea, the land of their nativity. 16 And as soon as she saw them she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea. 17 And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their lust; and she was polluted with them, and her soul was alienated from them. 18 So she uncovered her harlotries, and uncovered her nakedness; then My soul was alienated from her, like as My soul was alienated from her sister. 19 Yet she multiplied her harlotries, remembering the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt. 20 And she doted upon concubinage with them, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses. 21 Thus thou didst call to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, when they from Egypt bruised thy breasts for the bosom of thy youth.

22 Therefore, O Oholibah, thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy soul is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side: 23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, handsome young men, governors and rulers all of them, captains and councillors, all of them riding upon horses. 24 And they shall come against thee with hosts, chariots, and wheels, and with an assembly of peoples; they shall set themselves in array against thee with buckler and shield and helmet round about; and I will commit the judgment unto them, and they shall judge thee according to their judgments. 25 And I will set My jealousy against thee, and they shall deal with thee in fury; they shall take away thy nose and thine ears, and thy residue shall fall by the sword; they shall take thy sons and thy daughters, and thy residue shall be devoured by the fire. 26 They shall also strip thee of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels. 27 Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy harlotry brought from the land of Egypt, so that thou shalt not lift up thine eyes unto them, nor remember Egypt any more.

28 For thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thy soul is alienated; 29 and they shall deal with thee in hatred, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leave thee naked and bare; and the nakedness of thy harlotries shall be uncovered, both thy lewdness and thy harlotries. 30 These things shall be done unto thee, for that thou hast gone astray after the nations, and because thou art polluted with their idols. 31 In the way of thy sister hast thou walked; therefore will I give her cup into thy hand. 32 Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Thou shalt drink of thy sister's cup,

Which is deep and large;

Thou shalt be for a scorn and a derision;

It is full to the uttermost.

33 Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,

With the cup of astonishment and appalment,

With the cup of thy sister Samaria.

34 Thou shalt even drink it and drain it,

And thou shalt craunch the sherds thereof,

And shalt tear thy breasts;

For I have spoken it,

Saith the Lord GOD.

35 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thou hast forgotten Me, and cast Me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy harlotries.'

36 The LORD said moreover unto me: 'Son of man, wilt thou judge Oholah and Oholibah? then declare unto them their abominations. 37 For they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery; and their sons, whom they bore unto Me, they have also set apart unto them to be devoured. 38 Moreover this they have done unto Me: they have defiled My sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned My sabbaths. 39 For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into My sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of My house. 40 And furthermore ye have sent for men that come from far; unto whom a messenger was sent, and, lo, they came; for whom thou didst wash thyself, paint thine eyes, and deck thyself with ornaments; 41 and sattest upon a stately bed, with a table prepared before it, whereupon thou didst set Mine incense and Mine oil. 42 And the voice of a multitude being at ease was therein; and for the sake of men, they were so many, brought drunken from the wilderness, they put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads. 43 Then said I of her that was worn out by adulteries: Still they commit harlotries with her, even her. 44 For every one went in unto her, as men go in unto a harlot; so went they in unto Oholah and unto Oholibah, the lewd women. 45 But righteous men, they shall judge them as adulteresses are judged, and as women that shed blood are judged; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

46 For thus saith the Lord GOD: An assembly shall be brought up against them, and they shall be made a horror and a spoil. 47 And the assembly shall stone them with stones, and despatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire. 48 Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness. 49 And your lewdness shall be recompensed upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 24 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, saying: 2 'Son of man, write thee the name of the day, even of this selfsame day; this selfsame day the king of Babylon hath invested Jerusalem. 3 And utter a parable concerning the rebellious house, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Set on the pot, set it on,

And also pour water into it;

4 Gather into it the pieces belonging to it,

Even every good piece, the thigh, and the shoulder;

Fill it with the choice bones.

5 Take the choice of the flock,

And pile also the bones under it;

Make it boil well,

That the bones thereof may also be seethed in the midst of it.

6 Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose filth is therein, and whose filth is not gone out of it! bring it out piece by piece; no lot is fallen upon it. 7 For her blood is in the midst of her; she set it upon the bare rock; she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust; 8 that it might cause fury to come up, that vengeance might be taken, I have set her blood upon the bare rock, that it should not be covered. 9 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city! I also will make the pile great, 10 heaping on the wood, kindling the fire, that the flesh may be consumed; and preparing the mixture, that the bones also may be burned; 11 then will I set it empty upon the coals thereof, that it may be hot, and the bottom thereof may burn, and that the impurity of it may be molten in it, that the filth of it may be consumed 12 It hath wearied itself with toil; yet its great filth goeth not forth out of it, yea, its noisome filth. 13 Because of thy filthy lewdness, because I have purged thee and thou wast not purged, thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any more, till I have satisfied My fury upon thee. 14 I the LORD have spoken it; it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord GOD.'

15 Also the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 16 'Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke; yet neither shalt thou make lamentation nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down. 17 Sigh in silence; make no mourning for the dead, bind thy headtire upon thee, and put thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thine upper lip, and eat not the bread of men.' 18 So I spoke unto the people in the morning, and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded. 19 And the people said unto me: 'Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?' 20 Then I said unto them: 'The word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 21 Speak unto the house of Israel: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will profane My sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and the longing of your soul; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left behind shall fall by the sword. 22 And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your upper lips, nor eat the bread of men; 23 and your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet; ye shall not make lamentation nor weep; but ye shall pine away in your iniquities, and moan one toward another. 24 Thus shall Ezekiel be unto you a sign; according to all that he hath done shall ye do; when this cometh, then shall ye know that I am the Lord GOD.

25 And thou, son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their stronghold, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and the yearning of their soul, their sons and their daughters, 26 that in that day he that escapeth shall come unto thee, to cause thee to hear it with thine ears? 27 In that day shall thy mouth be opened together with him that is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb; so shalt thou be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 25 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face toward the children of Ammon, and prophesy against them; 3 and say unto the children of Ammon: Hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thou saidst: Aha! against My sanctuary, when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel, when it was made desolate, and against the house of Judah, when they went into captivity; 4 therefore, behold, I will deliver thee to the children of the east for a possession, and they shall set their encampments in thee, and make their dwellings in thee; they shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk. 5 And I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels, and the children of Ammon a couching-place for flocks; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 6 For thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thou hast clapped thy hands, and stamped with the feet, and rejoiced with all the disdain of thy soul against the land of Israel; 7 therefore, behold, I stretch out My hand upon thee, and will deliver thee for a spoil to the nations; and I will cut thee off from the peoples, and I will cause thee to perish out of the countries; I will destroy thee, and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.

8 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because that Moab and Seir do say: Behold, the house of Judah is like unto all the nations, 9 therefore, behold, I will open the flank of Moab on the side of the cities, on the side of his cities which are on his frontiers, the beauteous country of Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim, 10 together with the children of Ammon, unto the children of the east, and I will give them for a possession, that the children of Ammon may not be remembered among the nations; 11 and I will execute judgments upon Moab; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

12 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because that Edom hath dealt against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and hath greatly offended, and revenged himself upon them; 13 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: I will stretch out My hand upon Edom, and will cut off man and beast from it; and I will make it desolate from Teman, even unto Dedan shall they fall by the sword. 14 And I will lay My vengeance upon Edom by the hand of My people Israel; and they shall do in Edom according to Mine anger and according to My fury; and they shall know my vengeance, saith the Lord GOD.

15 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because the Philistines have dealt by revenge, and have taken vengeance with disdain of soul to destroy, for the old hatred; 16 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will stretch out My hand upon the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites, and destroy the remnant of the sea-coast. 17 And I will execute great vengeance upon them with furious rebukes; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall lay My vengeance upon them.'

EZEKIEL 26 — 1 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, because that Tyre hath said against Jerusalem:

Aha, she is broken that was the gate of the peoples;

She is turned unto me;

I shall be filled with her that is laid waste;

3 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, I am against thee, O Tyre,

And will cause many nations to come up against thee,

As the sea causeth its waves to come up.

4 And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre,

And break down her towers;

I will also scrape her dust from her,

And make her a bare rock.

5 She shall be a place for the spreading of nets

In the midst of the sea;

For I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD;

And she shall become a spoil to the nations.

6 And her daughters that are in the field

Shall be slain with the sword;

And they shall know that I am the LORD.

7 For thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring upon Tyre Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, from the north, with horses, and with chariots, and with horsemen, and a company, and much people.

8 He shall slay with the sword

Thy daughters in the field;

And he shall make forts against thee,

And cast up a mound against thee,

And set up bucklers against thee.

9 And he shall set his battering engines

Against thy walls,

And with his axes

He shall break down thy towers.

10 By reason of the abundance of his horses

Their dust shall cover thee;

At the noise of the horsemen,

And of the wheels, and of the chariots,

Thy walls shall shake,

When he shall enter into thy gates,

As men enter into a city

Wherein is made a breach.

11 With the hoofs of his horses

Shall he tread down all thy streets;

He shall slay thy people with the sword,

And the pillars of thy strength

Shall go down to the ground.

12 And they shall make a spoil of thy riches,

And make a prey of thy merchandise;

And they shall break down thy walls,

And destroy the houses of thy delight;

And thy stones and thy timber and thy dust

Shall they lay in the midst of the waters.

13 And I will cause the noise of thy songs to cease,

And the sound of thy harps shall be no more heard.

14 And I will make thee a bare rock;

Thou shalt be a place for the spreading of nets,

Thou shalt be built no more;

For I the LORD have spoken,

Saith the Lord GOD.

15 Thus saith the Lord GOD to Tyre: Shall not the isles shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded groan, when the slaughter is made in the midst of thee? 16 Then all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and lay away their robes, and strip off their richly woven garments; they shall clothe themselves with trembling; they shall sit upon the ground, and shall tremble every moment, and be appalled at thee. 17 And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee:

How art thou destroyed, that wast peopled from the seas,

The renowned city,

That wast strong in the sea,

Thou and thy inhabitants,

That caused your terror to be

On all that inhabit the earth!

18 Now shall the isles tremble

In the day of thy fall;

Yea, the isles that are in the sea

Shall be affrighted at thy going out.

19 For thus saith the Lord GOD: When I shall make thee a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall bring up the deep upon thee, and the great waters shall cover thee; 20 then will I bring thee down with them that descend into the pit, to the people of old time, and will make thee to dwell in the nether parts of the earth, like the places that are desolate of old, with them that go down to the pit, that thou be not inhabited; and I will set glory in the land of the living; 21 I will make thee a terror, and thou shalt be no more; though thou be sought for, yet shalt thou never be found again, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 27 — 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'And thou, son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyre, 3 and say unto Tyre, that dwelleth at the entry of the sea, that is the merchant of the peoples unto many isles: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Thou, O Tyre, hast said:

I am of perfect beauty.

4 Thy borders are in the heart of the seas,

Thy builders have perfected thy beauty.

5 Of cypress-trees from Senir have they fashioned

All thy planks;

They have taken cedars from Lebanon

To make masts for thee.

6 Of the oaks of Bashan

Have they made thine oars;

Thy deck have they made of ivory inlaid in larch,

From the isles of the Kittites.

7 Of fine linen with richly woven work from Egypt

Was thy sail,

That it might be to thee for an ensign;

Blue and purple from the isles of Elishah

Was thine awning.

8 The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad

Were thy rowers;

Thy wise men, O Tyre, were in thee,

They were thy pilots.

9 The elders of Gebal and the wise men thereof

Were in thee thy calkers;

All the ships of the sea with their mariners were in thee

To exchange thy merchandise.

10 Persia and Lud and Put were in thine army,

Thy men of war;

They hanged the shield and helmet in thee,

They set forth thy comeliness.

11 The men of Arvad and Helech were upon thy walls round about, and the Gammadim were in thy towers; they hanged their shields upon thy walls round about; they have perfected thy beauty. 12 Tarshish was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of all kinds of riches; with silver, iron, tin, and lead, they traded for thy wares. 13 Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy traffickers; they traded the persons of men and vessels of brass for thy merchandise. 14 They of the house of Togarmah traded for thy wares with horses and horsemen and mules. 15 The men of Dedan were thy traffickers; many isles were the mart of thy hand; they brought thee as tribute horns of ivory and ebony. 16 Aram was thy merchant by reason of the multitude of thy wealth; they traded for thy wares with carbuncles, purple, and richly woven work, and fine linen, and coral, and rubies. 17 Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy traffickers; they traded for thy merchandise wheat of Minnith, and balsam, and honey, and oil, and balm. 18 Damascus was thy merchant for the multitude of thy wealth, by reason of the multitude of all riches, with the wine of Helbon, and white wool. 19 Vedan and Javan traded with yarn for thy wares; massive iron, cassia, and calamus, were among thy merchandise. 20 Dedan was thy trafficker in precious cloths for riding. 21 Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar, they were the merchants of thy hand; in lambs, and rams, and goats, in these were they thy merchants. 22 The traffickers of Sheba and Raamah, they were thy traffickers; they traded for thy wares with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold. 23 Haran and Canneh and Eden, the traffickers of Sheba, Asshur was as thine apprentice in traffic. 24 These were thy traffickers in gorgeous fabrics, in wrappings of blue and richly woven work, and in chests of rich apparel, bound with cords and cedar-lined, among thy merchandise. 25 The ships of Tarshish brought thee tribute for thy merchandise;

So wast thou replenished, and made very heavy

In the heart of the seas.

26 Thy rowers have brought thee

Into great waters;

The east wind hath broken thee

In the heart of the seas.

27 Thy riches, and thy wares, thy merchandise,

Thy mariners, and thy pilots,

Thy calkers, and the exchangers of thy merchandise,

And all thy men of war, that are in thee,

With all thy company which is in the midst of thee,

Shall fall into the heart of the seas

In the day of thy ruin.

28 At the sound of the cry of thy pilots

The waves shall shake.

29 And all that handle the oar,

The mariners, and all the pilots of the sea,

Shall come down from their ships,

They shall stand upon the land,

30 And shall cause their voice to be heard over thee,

And shall cry bitterly,

And shall cast up dust upon their heads,

They shall roll themselves in the ashes;

31 And they shall make themselves utterly bald for thee,

And gird them with sackcloth,

And they shall weep for thee in bitterness of soul

With bitter lamentation.

32 And in their wailing they shall take up a lamentation for thee,

And lament over thee:

Who was there like Tyre, fortified

In the midst of the sea?

33 When thy wares came forth out of the seas,

Thou didst fill many peoples;

With the multitude of thy riches and of thy merchandise

Didst thou enrich the kings of the earth.

34 Now that thou art broken by the seas

In the depths of the waters,

And thy merchandise and all thy company

Are fallen in the midst of thee,

35 All the inhabitants of the isles

Are appalled at thee,

And their kings are horribly afraid,

They are troubled in their countenance;

36 The merchants among the peoples hiss at thee;

Thou art become a terror,

And never shalt be any more.'

EZEKIEL 28 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, say unto the prince of Tyre: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Because thy heart is lifted up,

And thou hast said: I am a god,

I sit in the seat of God,

In the heart of the seas;

Yet thou art man, and not God,

Though thou didst set thy heart as the heart of God-

3 Behold, thou art wiser than Daniel!

There is no secret that they can hide from thee!

4 By thy wisdom and by thy discernment

Thou hast gotten thee riches,

And hast gotten gold and silver

Into thy treasures;

5 In thy great wisdom by thy traffic

Hast thou increased thy riches,

And thy heart is lifted up because of thy riches-

6 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD:

Because thou hast set thy heart

As the heart of God;

7 Therefore, behold, I will bring strangers upon thee,

The terrible of the nations;

And they shall draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom,

And they shall defile thy brightness.

8 They shall bring thee down to the pit;

And thou shalt die the deaths of them that are slain,

In the heart of the seas.

9 Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee:

I am God?

But thou art man, and not God,

In the hand of them that defile thee.

10 Thou shalt die the deaths of the uncircumcised

By the hand of strangers;

For I have spoken, saith the Lord GOD.'

11 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 12 'Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say unto him: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Thou seal most accurate, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty, 13 thou wast in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the carnelian, the topaz, and the emerald, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the carbuncle, and the smaragd, and gold; the workmanship of thy settings and of thy sockets was in thee, in the day that thou wast created they were prepared. 14 Thou wast the far-covering cherub; and I set thee, so that thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of stones of fire. 15 Thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till unrighteousness was found in thee. 16 By the multitude of thy traffic they filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned; therefore have I cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God; and I have destroyed thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. 17 Thy heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness; I have cast thee to the ground, I have laid thee before kings, that they may gaze upon thee. 18 By the multitude of thine iniquities, in the unrighteousness of thy traffic, thou hast profaned thy sanctuaries; therefore have I brought forth a fire from the midst of thee, it hath devoured thee, and I have turned thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 19 All they that know thee among the peoples shall be appalled at thee; thou art become a terror, and thou shalt never be any more.'

20 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 21 'Son of man, set thy face toward Zidon, and prophesy against it, 22 and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, I am against thee, O Zidon,

And I will be glorified in the midst of thee;

And they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall have executed judgments in her, and shall be sanctified in her.

23 For I will send into her pestilence

And blood in her streets;

And the wounded shall fall in the midst of her

By the sword upon her on every side; and they shall know that I am the LORD. 24 And there shall be no more a pricking brier unto the house of Israel, nor a piercing thorn of any that are round about them, that did have them in disdain; and they shall know that I am the Lord GOD.

25 Thus saith the Lord GOD: When I shall have gathered the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they are scattered, and shall be sanctified in them in the sight of the nations, then shall they dwell in their own land which I gave to My servant Jacob. 26 And they shall dwell safely therein, and shall build houses, and plant vineyards; yea, they shall dwell safely; when I have executed judgments upon all those that have them in disdain round about them; and they shall know that I am the LORD their God.'

EZEKIEL 29 — 1 In the tenth year, in the tenth month, in the twelfth day of the month, the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and against all Egypt; 3 speak, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh

King of Egypt,

The great dragon that lieth

In the midst of his rivers,

That hath said: My river is mine own,

And I have made it for myself.

4 And I will put hooks in thy jaws, and I will cause the fish of thy rivers to stick unto thy scales; and I will bring thee up out of the midst of thy rivers, and all the fish of thy rivers shall stick unto thy scales. 5 And I will cast thee into the wilderness,

Thee and all the fish of thy rivers;

Thou shalt fall upon the open field;

Thou shalt not be brought together, nor gathered;

To the beasts of the earth and to the fowls of the heaven

Have I given thee for food.

6 And all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know

That I am the LORD,

Because they have been a staff of reed

To the house of Israel.

7 When they take hold of thee with the hand, thou dost break,

And rend all their shoulders;

And when they lean upon thee, thou breakest,

And makest all their loins to be at a stand.

8 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and will cut off from thee man and beast. 9 And the land of Egypt shall be desolate and waste, and they shall know that I am the LORD; because he hath said: The river is mine, and I have made it. 10 Therefore, behold, I am against thee, and against thy rivers, and I will make the land of Egypt utterly waste and desolate, from Migdol to Syene even unto the border of Ethiopia. 11 No foot of man shall pass through it, nor foot of beast shall pass through it, neither shall it be inhabited forty years. 12 And I will make the land of Egypt desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate, and her cities among the cities that are laid waste shall be desolate forty years; and I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries.

13 For thus saith the Lord GOD: At the end of forty years will I gather the Egyptians from the peoples whither they were scattered; 14 and I will turn the captivity of Egypt, and will cause them to return into the land of Pathros, into the land of their origin; and they shall be there a lowly kingdom. 15 It shall be the lowliest of the kingdoms, neither shall it any more lift itself up above the nations; and I will diminish them, that they shall no more rule over the nations. 16 And it shall be no more the confidence of the house of Israel, bringing iniquity to remembrance, when they turn after them; and they shall know that I am the Lord GOD.'

17 And it came to pass in the seven and twentieth year, in the first month, in the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 18 'Son of man, Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon caused his army to serve a great service against Tyre; every head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled; yet had he no wages, nor his army, from Tyre, for the service that he had served against it; 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will give the land of Egypt unto Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon; and he shall carry off her abundance, and take her spoil, and take her prey; and it shall be the wages for his army. 20 I have given him the land of Egypt as his hire for which he served, because they wrought for Me, saith the Lord GOD.

21 In that day will I cause a horn to shoot up unto the house of Israel, and I will give thee the opening of the mouth in the midst of them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 30 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, prophesy, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD:

Wail ye: Woe worth the day!

3 For the day is near,

Even the day of the LORD is near,

A day of clouds, it shall be the time of the nations.

4 And a sword shall come upon Egypt,

And convulsion shall be in Ethiopia,

When the slain shall fall in Egypt;

And they shall take away her abundance,

And her foundation shall be broken down.

5 Ethiopia, and Put, and Lud, and all the mingled people, and Cub, and the children of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.

6 Thus saith the LORD:

They also that uphold Egypt shall fall,

And the pride of her power shall come down;

From Migdol to Syene shall they fall in it by the sword,

Saith the Lord GOD.

7 And they shall be desolate in the midst of the countries that are desolate,

And her cities shall be in the midst of the cities that are wasted.

8 And they shall know that I am the LORD,

When I have set a fire in Egypt,

And all her helpers are destroyed.

9 In that day shall messengers go forth from before Me in ships

To make the confident Ethiopians afraid;

And there shall come convulsion upon them in the day of Egypt;

For, lo, it cometh.

10 Thus saith the Lord GOD:

I will also make the multitude of Egypt to cease,

By the hand of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon.

11 He and his people with him, the terrible of the nations,

Shall be brought in to destroy the land;

And they shall draw their swords against Egypt,

And fill the land with the slain.

12 And I will make the rivers dry,

And will give the land over into the hand of evil men;

And I will make the land desolate,

And all that is therein, by the hand of strangers;

I the LORD have spoken it.

13 Thus saith the Lord GOD:

I will also destroy the idols,

And I will cause the things of nought to cease from Noph;

And there shall be no more a prince out of the land of Egypt;

And I will put a fear in the land of Egypt.

14 And I will make Pathros desolate,

And will set a fire in Zoan,

And will execute judgments in No.

15 And I will pour My fury upon Sin, the stronghold of Egypt;

And I will cut off the multitude of No.

16 And I will set a fire in Egypt;

Sin shall be in great convulsion,

And No shall be rent asunder;

And in Noph shall come adversaries in the day-time.

17 The young men of Aven and of Pi-beseth shall fall by the sword;

And these cities shall go into captivity.

18 At Tehaphnehes also the day shall withdraw itself,

When I shall break there the yokes of Egypt,

And the pride of her power shall cease in her;

As for her, a cloud shall cover her,

And her daughters shall go into captivity.

19 Thus will I execute judgments in Egypt;

And they shall know that I am the LORD.'

20 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, in the seventh day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 21 'Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt; and, lo, it hath not been bound up to be healed, to put a roller, that it be bound up and wax strong, that it hold the sword. 22 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and will break his arms, the strong, and that which was broken; and I will cause the sword to fall out of his hand. 23 And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and will disperse them through the countries. 24 And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and put My sword in his hand; but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he shall groan before him with the groanings of a deadly wounded man. 25 And I will hold up the arms of the king of Babylon, and the arms of Pharaoh shall fall down; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I shall put My sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he shall stretch it out upon the land of Egypt. 26 And I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations, and disperse them through the countries; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 31 — 1 And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, say unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to his multitude:

Whom art thou like in thy greatness?

3 Behold, the Assyrian was a cedar in Lebanon,

With fair branches, and with a shadowing shroud,

And of a high stature;

And its top was among the thick boughs.

4 The waters nourished it,

The deep made it to grow;

Her rivers ran round

About her plantation,

And she sent out her conduits

Unto all the trees of the field.

5 Therefore its stature was exalted

Above all the trees of the field;

And its boughs were multiplied,

And its branches became long,

Because of the multitude of waters, when it shot them forth.

6 All the fowls of heaven made

Their nests in its boughs,

And all the beasts of the field did bring forth their young

Under its branches,

And under its shadow dwelt

All great nations.

7 Thus was it fair in its greatness,

In the length of its branches;

For its root was

By many waters.

8 The cedars in the garden of God

Could not hide it;

The cypress-trees were not

Like its boughs,

And the plane-trees were not

As its branches;

Nor was any tree in the garden of God

Like unto it in its beauty.

9 I made it fair

By the multitude of its branches;

So that all the trees of Eden,

That were in the garden of God, envied it.

10 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because thou art exalted in stature, and he hath set his top among the thick boughs, and his heart is lifted up in his height; 11 I do even deliver him into the hand of the mighty one of the nations; he shall surely deal with him; I do drive him out according to his wickedness. 12 And strangers, the terrible of the nations, do cut him off, and cast him down; upon the mountains and in all the valleys his branches are fallen, and his boughs lie broken in all the channels of the land; and all the peoples of the earth do go down from his shadow, and do leave him. 13 Upon his carcass all the fowls of the heaven do dwell, and upon his branches are all the beasts of the field; 14 to the end that none of all the trees by the waters exalt themselves in their stature, neither set their top among the thick boughs, nor that their mighty ones stand up in their height, even all that drink water; for they are all delivered unto death, to the nether parts of the earth, in the midst of the children of men, with them that go down to the pit.

15 Thus saith the Lord GOD: In the day when he went down to the nether-world I caused the deep to mourn and cover itself for him, and I restrained the rivers thereof, and the great waters were stayed; and I caused Lebanon to mourn for him, and all the trees of the field fainted for him. 16 I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to the nether-world with them that descend into the pit; and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, were comforted in the nether parts of the earth. 17 They also went down into the nether-world with him unto them that are slain by the sword; yea, they that were in his arm, that dwelt under his shadow in the midst of the nations.

18 To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? yet shall thou be brought down with the trees of Eden unto the nether parts of the earth; thou shalt lie in the midst of the uncircumcised, with them that are slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 32 — 1 And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him:

Thou didst liken thyself unto a young lion of the nations;

Whereas thou art as a dragon in the seas;

And thou didst gush forth with thy rivers,

And didst trouble the waters with thy feet,

And foul their rivers.

3 Thus saith the Lord GOD:

I will therefore spread out My net over thee

With a company of many peoples;

And they shall bring thee up in My net.

4 And I will cast thee upon the land,

I will hurl thee upon the open field,

And will cause all the fowls of the heaven to settle upon thee,

And I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee.

5 And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains,

And fill the valleys with thy foulness.

6 I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou swimmest, even to the mountains;

And the channels shall be full of thee.

7 And when I shall extinguish thee, I will cover the heaven,

And make the stars thereof black;

I will cover the sun with a cloud,

And the moon shall not give her light.

8 All the bright lights of heaven

Will I make black over thee,

And set darkness upon thy land,

Saith the Lord GOD.

9 I will also vex the hearts of many peoples, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known. 10 Yea, I will make many peoples appalled at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish My sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.

11 For thus saith the Lord GOD: The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon thee. 12 By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall;

The terrible of the nations are they all;

And they shall spoil the pride of Egypt,

And all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed.

13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof

From beside many waters;

Neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more,

Nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them.

14 Then will I make their waters to settle,

And cause their rivers to run like oil,

Saith the Lord GOD.

15 When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate and waste,

A land destitute of that whereof it was full,

When I shall smite all them that dwell therein,

Then shall they know that I am the LORD.

16 This is the lamentation wherewith they shall lament;

The daughters of the nations shall lament therewith;

For Egypt, and for all her multitude, shall they lament therewith,

Saith the Lord GOD.'

17 It came to pass also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 18 'Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, with the daughters of the mighty nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.

19 Whom dost thou pass in beauty?

Go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised.

20 They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword; she is delivered to the sword; draw her down and all her multitudes. 21 The strong among the mighty shall speak of him out of the midst of the nether-world with them that helped him; they are gone down, they lie still, even the uncircumcised, slain by the sword. 22 Asshur is there and all her company; their graves are round about them; all of them slain, fallen by the sword; 23 whose graves are set in the uttermost parts of the pit, and her company is round about her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who caused terror in the land of the living. 24 There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave; all of them slain, fallen by the sword, who are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, who caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit. 25 They have set her a bed in the midst of the slain with all her multitude; her graves are round about them; all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; because their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit; they are put in the midst of them that are slain. 26 There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude; her graves are round about them; all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword; because they caused their terror in the land of the living. 27 And they that are inferior to the uncircumcised shall not lie with the mighty that are gone down to the nether-world with their weapons of war, whose swords are laid under their heads, and whose iniquities are upon their bones; because the terror of the mighty was in the land of the living. 28 But thou, in the midst of the uncircumcised shalt thou be broken and lie, even with them that are slain by the sword. 29 There is Edom, her kings and all her princes, who for all their might are laid with them that are slain by the sword; they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit. 30 There are the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, who are gone down with the slain, ashamed for all the terror which they caused by their might, and they lie uncircumcised with them that are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit. 31 These shall Pharaoh see, and shall be comforted over all his multitude; even Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword, saith the Lord GOD. 32 For I have put My terror in the land of the living; and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised, with them that are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 33 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them: When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man from among them, and set him for their watchman; 3 if, when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the horn, and warn the people; 4 then whosoever heareth the sound of the horn, and taketh not warning, if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head; 5 he heard the sound of the horn, and took not warning, his blood shall be upon him; whereas if he had taken warning, he would have delivered his soul. 6 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the horn, and the people be not warned, and the sword do come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

7 So thou, son of man, I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore, when thou shalt hear the word at My mouth, warn them from Me. 8 When I say unto the wicked: O wicked man, thou shalt surely die, and thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way; that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thy hand. 9 Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, and he turn not from his way; he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul.

10 Therefore, O thou son of man, say unto the house of Israel: Thus ye speak, saying: Our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we pine away in them; how then can we live? 11 Say unto them: As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

12 And thou, son of man, say unto the children of thy people: The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression; and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not stumble thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall he that is righteous be able to live thereby in the day that he sinneth. 13 When I say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his righteousness, and commit iniquity, none of his righteous deeds shall be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, for it shall he die. 14 Again, when I say unto the wicked: Thou shalt surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right; 15 if the wicked restore the pledge, give back that which he had taken by robbery, walk in the statutes of life, committing no iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die. 16 None of his sins that he hath committed shall be remembered against him; he hath done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live. 17 Yet the children of thy people say: The way of the Lord is not equal; but as for them, their way is not equal. 18 When the righteous turneth from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, he shall even die thereby. 19 And when the wicked turneth from his wickedness, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby. 20 Yet ye say: The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, I will judge you every one after his ways.'

21 And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying: 'The city is smitten.' 22 Now the hand of the LORD had been upon me in the evening, before he that was escaped came; and He had opened my mouth against his coming to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb. 23 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 24 'Son of man, they that inhabit those waste places in the land of Israel speak, saying: Abraham was one, and he inherited the land; but we are many; the land is given us for inheritance. 25 Wherefore say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD. Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes unto your idols, and shed blood; and shall ye possess the land? 26 Ye stand upon your sword, ye work abomination, and ye defile every one his neighbour's wife; and shall ye possess the land? 27 Thus shalt thou say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: As I live, surely they that are in the waste places shall fall by the sword, and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured, and they that are in the strongholds and in the caves shall die of the pestilence. 28 And I will make the land most desolate, and the pride of her power shall cease; and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate, so that none shall pass through. 29 Then shall they know that I am the LORD, when I have made the land most desolate, because of all their abominations which they have committed.

30 And as for thee, son of man, the children of thy people that talk of thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying: Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the LORD; 31 and come unto thee as the people cometh, and sit before thee as My people, and hear thy words, but do them not-for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness; 32 and, lo, thou art unto them as a love song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument; so they hear thy words, but they do them not- 33 when this cometh to pass-behold, it cometh-then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them.'

EZEKIEL 34 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say unto them, even to the shepherds: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe unto the shepherds of Israel that have fed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the sheep? 3 Ye did eat the fat, and ye clothed you with the wool, ye killed the fatlings; but ye fed not the sheep. 4 The weak have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought back that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force have ye ruled over them and with rigour. 5 So were they scattered, because there was no shepherd; and they became food to all the beasts of the field, and were scattered. 6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and upon every high hill, yea, upon all the face of the earth were My sheep scattered, and there was none that did search or seek. 7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, surely forasmuch as My sheep became a prey, and My sheep became food to all the beasts of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did My shepherds search for My sheep, but the shepherds fed themselves, and fed not My sheep; 9 therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 10 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My sheep at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the sheep; neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more; and I will deliver My sheep from their mouth, that they may not be food for them.

11 For thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, here am I, and I will search for My sheep, and seek them out. 12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are separated, so will I seek out My sheep; and I will deliver them out of all places whither they have been scattered in the day of clouds and thick darkness. 13 And I will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel, by the streams, and in all the habitable places of the country. 14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be; there shall they lie down in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel. 15 I will feed My sheep, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. 16 I will seek that which was lost, and will bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick; and the fat and the strong I will destroy, I will feed them in justice. 17 And as for you, O My flock, thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, even the rams and the he-goats. 18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have fed upon the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture? and to have drunk of the settled waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet? 19 And as for My sheep, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet, and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet.

20 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD unto them: Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and the lean cattle. 21 Because ye thrust with side and with shoulder, and push all the weak with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; 22 therefore will I save My flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. 23 And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even My servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd. 24 And I the LORD will be their God, and My servant David prince among them; I the LORD have spoken. 25 And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness, and sleep in the woods. 26 And I will make them and the places round about My hill a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come down in its season; there shall be showers of blessing. 27 And the tree of the field shall yield its fruit, and the earth shall yield her produce, and they shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the LORD, when I have broken the bars of their yoke, and have delivered them out of the hand of those that made bondmen of them. 28 And they shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the beast of the earth devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid. 29 And I will raise up unto them a plantation for renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the nations any more. 30 And they shall know that I the LORD their God am with them, and that they, the house of Israel, are My people, saith the Lord GOD. 31 And ye My sheep, the sheep of My pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 35 — 1 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face against mount Seir, and prophesy against it, 3 and say unto it: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against thee, O mount Seir, and I will stretch out My hand against thee, and I will make thee most desolate. 4 I will lay thy cities waste, and thou shalt be desolate; and thou shalt know that I am the LORD. 5 Because thou hast had a hatred of old, and hast hurled the children of Israel unto the power of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time of the iniquity of the end; 6 therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will prepare thee unto blood, and blood shall pursue thee; surely thou hast hated thine own blood, therefore blood shall pursue thee. 7 Thus will I make mount Seir most desolate, and cut off from it him that passeth through and him that returneth. 8 And I will fill his mountains with his slain; in thy hills and in thy valleys and in all thy streams shall they fall that are slain with the sword. 9 I will make thee perpetual desolations, and thy cities shall not return; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 10 Because thou hast said: These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas the LORD was there; 11 therefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will do according to thine anger and according to thine envy, which thou hast used out of thy hatred against them; and I will make Myself known among them, when I shall judge thee. 12 And thou shalt know that I the LORD have heard all thy blasphemies which thou hast spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying: They are laid desolate, they are given us to devour. 13 And ye have magnified yourselves against Me with your mouth, and have multiplied your words against Me; I have heard it. 14 Thus saith the Lord GOD: When the whole earth rejoiceth, I will make thee desolate. 15 As thou didst rejoice over the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do unto thee; thou shalt be desolate, O mount Seir, and all Edom, even all of it; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

EZEKIEL 36 — 1 And thou, son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say: Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD. 2 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because the enemy hath said against you: Aha! even the ancient high places are ours in possession; 3 therefore prophesy, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because, even because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the rest of the nations, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and the evil report of the people; 4 therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains and to the hills, to the streams and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes and to the cities that are forsaken, which are become a prey and derision to the residue of the nations that are round about; 5 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Surely in the fire of My jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the nations, and against all Edom, that have appointed My land unto themselves for a possession with the joy of all their heart, with disdain of soul, to cast it out for a prey; 6 therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains and to the hills, to the streams and to the valleys: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I have spoken in My jealousy and in My fury, because ye have borne the shame of the nations; 7 therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: I have lifted up My hand: Surely the nations that are round about you, they shall bear their shame. 8 But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to My people Israel; for they are at hand to come. 9 For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown; 10 and I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded; 11 and I will multiply upon you man and beast, and they shall increase and be fruitful; and I will cause you to be inhabited after your former estate, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings; and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 12 Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel, and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance; and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of children. 13 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Because they say unto you: Thou land art a devourer of men, and hast been a bereaver of thy nations; 14 therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord GOD; 15 neither will I suffer the shame of the nations any more to be heard against thee, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the peoples any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to stumble any more, saith the Lord GOD.'

16 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 17 'Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their doings; their way before Me was as the uncleanness of a woman in her impurity. 18 Wherefore I poured out My fury upon them for the blood which they had shed upon the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols; 19 and I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries; according to their way and according to their doings I judged them. 20 And when they came unto the nations, whither they came, they profaned My holy name; in that men said of them: These are the people of the LORD, and are gone forth out of His land. 21 But I had pity for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations, whither they came. 22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel: Thus saith the Lord GOD: I do not this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for My holy name, which ye have profaned among the nations, whither ye came. 23 And I will sanctify My great name, which hath been profaned among the nations, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD, saith the Lord GOD, when I shall be sanctified in you before their eyes. 24 For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land. 25 And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean; from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. 26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put My spirit within you, and cause you to walk in My statutes, and ye shall keep Mine ordinances, and do them. 28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 And I will save you from all your uncleannesses; and I will call for the corn, and will increase it, and lay no famine upon you. 30 And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye may receive no more the reproach of famine among the nations. 31 Then shall ye remember your evil ways, and your doings that were not good; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations. 32 Not for your sake do I this, saith the Lord GOD, be it known unto you; be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.

33 Thus saith the Lord GOD: In the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded. 34 And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, whereas it was a desolation in the sight of all that passed by. 35 And they shall say: This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are fortified and inhabited. 36 Then the nations that are left round about you shall know that I the LORD have builded the ruined places, and planted that which was desolate; I the LORD have spoken it, and I will do it.

37 Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will yet for this be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them; I will increase them with men like a flock. 38 As the flock for sacrifice, as the flock of Jerusalem in her appointed seasons, so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men; and they shall know that I am the LORD.'

EZEKIEL 37 — 1 The hand of the LORD was upon me, and the LORD carried me out in a spirit, and set me down in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones; 2 and He caused me to pass by them round about, and, behold, there were very many in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry. 3 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, can these bones live?' And I answered: 'O Lord GOD, Thou knowest.' 4 Then He said unto me: 'Prophesy over these bones, and say unto them: O ye dry bones, hear the word of the LORD: 5 Thus saith the Lord GOD unto these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter into you, and ye shall live. 6 And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.' 7 So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a noise, and behold a commotion, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. 8 And I beheld, and, lo, there were sinews upon them, and flesh came up, and skin covered them above; but there was no breath in them. 9 Then said He unto me: 'Prophesy unto the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.' 10 So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great host. 11 Then He said unto me: 'Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel; behold, they say: Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off. 12 Therefore prophesy, and say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, O My people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 And ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I have opened your graves, and caused you to come up out of your graves, O My people. 14 And I will put My spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land; and ye shall know that I the LORD have spoken, and performed it, saith the LORD.'

15 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 16 'And thou, son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it: For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions; then take another stick, and write upon it: For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel his companions; 17 and join them for thee one to another into one stick, that they may become one in thy hand. 18 And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying: Wilt thou not tell us what thou meanest by these? 19 say into them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them unto him together with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in My hand. 20 And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thy hand before their eyes. 21 And say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, whither they are gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land; 22 and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all; 23 neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them; so shall they be My people, and I will be their God. 24 And My servant David shall be king over them, and they all shall have one shepherd; they shall also walk in Mine ordinances, and observe My statutes, and do them. 25 And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob My servant, wherein your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children's children, for ever; and David My servant shall be their prince for ever. 26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them-it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will establish them, and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in the midst of them for ever. 27 My dwelling-place also shall be over them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 28 And the nations shall know that I am the LORD that sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for ever.'

EZEKIEL 38 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 2 'Son of man, set thy face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him, 3 and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; 4 and I will turn thee about, and put hooks into thy jaws, and I will bring thee forth, and all thine army, horses and horsemen, all of them clothed most gorgeously, a great company with buckler and shield, all of them handling swords: 5 Persia, Cush, and Put with them, all of them with shield and helmet; 6 Gomer, and all his bands; the house of Togarmah in the uttermost parts of the north, and all his bands; even many peoples with thee. 7 Be thou prepared, and prepare for thyself, thou, and all thy company that are assembled unto thee, and be thou guarded of them. 8 After many days thou shalt be mustered for service, in the latter years thou shalt come against the land that is brought back from the sword, that is gathered out of many peoples, against the mountains of Israel, which have been a continual waste; but it is brought forth out of the peoples, and they dwell safely all of them. 9 And thou shalt ascend, thou shalt come like a storm, thou shalt be like a cloud to cover the land, thou, and all thy bands, and many peoples with thee.

10 Thus saith the Lord GOD: It shall come to pass in that day, that things shall come into thy mind, and thou shalt devise an evil device; 11 and thou shalt say: I will go up against the land of unwalled villages; I will come upon them that are at quiet, that dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates; 12 to take the spoil and to take the prey; to turn thy hand against the waste places that are now inhabited, and against the people that are gathered out of the nations, that have gotten cattle and goods, that dwell in the middle of the earth. 13 Sheba, and Dedan, and the merchants of Tarshish, with all the magnates thereof, shall say unto thee: Comest thou to take the spoil? hast thou assembled thy company to take the prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take great spoil?

14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy, and say unto Gog: Thus saith the Lord GOD: In that day when My people Israel dwelleth safely, shalt thou not know it? 15 And thou shalt come from thy place out of the uttermost parts of the north, thou, and many peoples with thee, all of them riding upon horses, a great company and a mighty army; 16 and thou shalt come up against My people Israel, as a cloud to cover the land; it shall be in the end of days, and I will bring thee against My land, that the nations may know Me, when I shall be sanctified through thee, O Gog, before their eyes.

17 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Art thou he of whom I spoke in old time by My servants the prophets of Israel, that prophesied in those days for many years, that I would bring thee against them? 18 And it shall come to pass in that day, when Gog shall come against the land of Israel, saith the Lord GOD, that My fury shall arise up in My nostrils. 19 For in My jealousy and in the fire of My wrath have I spoken: Surely in that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; 20 so that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field and all creeping things that creep upon the ground, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at My presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground. 21 And I will call for a sword against him throughout all my mountains, saith the Lord GOD; every man's sword shall be against his brother. 22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will cause to rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many peoples that are with him, an overflowing shower, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone. 23 Thus will I magnify Myself, and sanctify Myself, and I will make Myself known in the eyes of many nations; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

EZEKIEL 39 — 1 And thou, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; 2 and I will turn thee about and lead thee on, and will cause thee to come up from the uttermost parts of the north; and I will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel; 3 and I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows to fall out of thy right hand. 4 Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the peoples that are with thee; I will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort and to the beasts of the field, to be devoured. 5 Thou shalt fall upon the open field; for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD. 6 And I will send a fire on Magog, and on them that dwell safely in the isles; and they shall know that I am the LORD. 7 And My holy name will I make known in the midst of My people Israel; neither will I suffer My holy name to be profaned any more; and the nations shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel. 8 Behold, it cometh, and it shall be done, saith the Lord GOD; This is the day whereof I have spoken. 9 And they that dwell in the cities of Israel shall go forth, and shall make fires of the weapons and use them as fuel, both the shields and the bucklers, the bows and the arrows, and the hand-staves, and the spears, and they shall make fires of them seven years; 10 so that they shall take no wood out of the field, neither cut down any out of the forests, for they shall make fires of the weapons; and they shall spoil those that spoiled them, and rob those that robbed them, saith the Lord GOD.

11 And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will give unto Gog a place fit for burial in Israel, the valley of them that pass through on the east of the sea; and it shall stop them that pass through; and there shall they bury Gog and all his multitude; and they shall call it the valley of Hamon-gog. 12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying them, that they may cleanse the land. 13 Yea, all the people of the land shall bury them, and it shall be to them a renown; in the day that I shall be glorified, saith the Lord GOD. 14 And they shall set apart men of continual employment, that shall pass through the land to bury with them that pass through those that remain upon the face of the land, to cleanse it; after the end of seven months shall they search. 15 And when they that pass through shall pass through the land, and any seeth a man's bone, then shall he set up a sign by it, till the buriers have buried it in the valley of Hamon-gog. 16 And Hamonah shall also be the name of a city. Thus shall they cleanse the land.

17 And thou, son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD: Speak unto the birds of every sort, and to every beast of the field: Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to My feast that I do prepare for you, even a great feast, upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh and drink blood. 18 The flesh of the mighty shall ye eat, and the blood of the princes of the earth shall ye drink; rams, lambs, and goats, bullocks, fatlings of Bashan are they all of them. 19 And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of My feast which I have prepared for you. 20 And ye shall be filled at My table with horses and horsemen, with mighty men, and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD. 21 And I will set My glory among the nations, and all the nations shall see My judgment that I have executed, and My hand that I have laid upon them. 22 So the house of Israel shall know that I am the LORD their God, from that day and forward. 23 And the nations shall know that the house of Israel went into captivity for their iniquity, because they broke faith with Me, and I hid My face from them; so I gave them into the hand of their adversaries, and they fell all of them by the sword. 24 According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions did I unto them; and I hid My face from them.

25 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Now will I bring back the captivity of Jacob, and have compassion upon the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name. 26 And they shall bear their shame, and all their breach of faith which they have committed against Me, when they shall dwell safely in their land, and none shall make them afraid; 27 when I have brought them back from the peoples, and gathered them out of their enemies' lands, and am sanctified in them in the sight of many nations. 28 And they shall know that I am the LORD their God, in that I caused them to go into captivity among the nations, and have gathered them unto their own land; and I will leave none of them any more there; 29 neither will I hide My face any more from them; for I have poured out My spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 40 — 1 In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was smitten, in the selfsame day, the hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me thither. 2 In the visions of God brought He me into the land of Israel, and set me down upon a very high mountain, whereon was as it were the frame of a city on the south. 3 And He brought me thither, and, behold, there was a man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate. 4 And the man said unto me: 'Son of man, behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears, and set thy heart upon all that I shall show thee, for to the intent that I might show them unto thee art thou brought thither; declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel.'

5 And behold a wall on the outside of the house round about, and in the man's hand a measuring reed of six cubits long, of a cubit and a hand-breadth each; so he measured the breadth of the building, one reed, and the height, one reed.

6 Then came he unto the gate which looketh toward the east, and went up the steps thereof; and he measured the jamb of the gate, one reed broad, and the other jamb, one reed broad. 7 And every cell was one reed long, and one reed broad; and the space between the cells was five cubits; and the jambs of the gate by the porch of the gate within were one reed. 8 He measured also the porch of the gate toward the house, one reed. 9 Then measured he the porch of the gate, eight cubits; and the posts thereof, two cubits; and the porch of the gate was inward. 10 And the cells of the gate eastward were three on this side, and three on that side; they three were of one measure; and the posts had one measure on this side and on that side. 11 And he measured the breadth of the entry of the gate, ten cubits; and the length of the gate, thirteen cubits; 12 and a border before the cells, one cubit on this side, and a border, one cubit on that side; and the cells, six cubits on this side, and six cubits on that side. 13 And he measured the gate from the roof of the one cell to the roof of the other, a breadth of five and twenty cubits; door against door. 14 He made also posts of threescore cubits; even unto the posts of the court in the gates round about. 15 And from the forefront of the gate of the entrance unto the forefront of the inner porch of the gate were fifty cubits. 16 And there were narrow windows to the cells and to their posts within the gate round about, and likewise to the arches; and windows were round about inward; and upon each post were palm-trees.

17 Then brought he me into the outer court, and, lo, there were chambers and a pavement, made for the court round about; thirty chambers were upon the pavement. 18 And the pavement was by the side of the gates, corresponding unto the length of the gates, even the lower pavement. 19 Then he measured the breadth from the forefront of the lower gate unto the forefront of the inner court without, a hundred cubits, eastward as also northward.

20 And the gate of the outer court that looked toward the north, he measured the length thereof and the breadth thereof. 21 And the cells thereof were three on this side and three on that side; and the posts thereof and the arches thereof were after the measure of the first gate; the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits. 22 And the windows thereof, and the arches thereof, and the palm-trees thereof, were after the measure of the gate that looketh toward the east; and it was ascended by seven steps; and the arches thereof were before them. 23 And there was a gate to the inner court over against the other gate, northward as also eastward; and he measured from gate to gate a hundred cubits.

24 And he led me toward the south, and behold a gate toward the south; and he measured the posts thereof, and the arches thereof according to these measures. 25 And there were windows in it and in the arches thereof round about, like those windows; the length was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits. 26 And there were seven steps to go up to it, and the arches thereof were before them; and it had palm-trees, one on this side, and another on that side, upon the posts thereof. 27 And there was a gate to the inner court toward the south; and he measured from gate to gate toward the south a hundred cubits.

28 Then he brought me to the inner court by the south gate; and he measured the south gate according to these measures; 29 and the cells thereof, and the posts thereof, and the arches thereof, according to these measures; and there were windows in it and in the arches thereof round about; it was fifty cubits long, and five and twenty cubits broad. 30 And there were arches round about, five and twenty cubits long, and five cubits broad. 31 And the arches thereof were toward the outer court; and palm-trees were upon the posts thereof; and the going up to it had eight steps.

32 And he brought me into the inner court toward the east; and he measured the gate according to these measures; 33 and the cells thereof, and the posts thereof, and the arches thereof, according to these measures; and there were windows therein and in the arches thereof round about; it was fifty cubits long, and five and twenty cubits broad. 34 And the arches thereof were toward the outer court; and palm-trees were upon the posts thereof, on this side, and on that side; and the going up to it had eight steps.

35 And he brought me to the north gate; and he measured it according to these measures; 36 the cells thereof, the posts thereof, and the arches thereof; and there were windows therein round about; the length was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits. 37 And the posts thereof were toward the outer court; and palm-trees were upon the posts thereof, on this side, and on that side; and the going up to it had eight steps.

38 And a chamber with the entry thereof was by the posts at the gates; there was the burnt-offering to be washed. 39 And in the porch of the gate were two tables on this side, and two tables on that side, to slay thereon the burnt-offering and the sin-offering and the guilt-offering. 40 And on the one side without, as one goeth up to the entry of the gate toward the north, were two tables; and on the other side of the porch of the gate were two tables. 41 Four tables were on this side, and four tables on that side, by the side of the gate; eight tables, whereupon to slay the sacrifices. 42 Moreover there were four tables for the burnt-offering, of hewn stone, a cubit and a half long, and a cubit and a half broad, and one cubit high, whereupon to lay the instruments wherewith the burnt-offering and the sacrifice are slain. 43 And the slabs, a handbreadth long, were fastened within round about; and upon the tables was to be the flesh of the offering. 44 And without the inner gate were chambers for the guard in the inner court, which was at the side of the north gate, and their prospect was toward the south; one at the side of the east gate having the prospect toward the north. 45 And he said unto me: 'This chamber, whose prospect is toward the south, is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the house. 46 And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the altar; these are the sons of Zadok, who from among the sons of Levi come near to the LORD to minister unto Him.'

47 And he measured the court, a hundred cubits long, and a hundred cubits broad, foursquare; and the altar was before the house.

48 Then he brought me to the porch of the house, and measured each post of the porch, five cubits on this side, and five cubits on that side; and the breadth of the gate was three cubits on this side, and three cubits on that side. 49 The length of the porch was twenty cubits, and the breadth eleven cubits; and it was by steps that it was ascended; and there were pillars by the posts, one on this side, and another on that side.

EZEKIEL 41 — 1 And he brought me to the temple, and measured the posts, six cubits broad on the one side, and six cubits broad on the other side, which was the breadth of the tent. 2 And the breadth of the entrance was ten cubits; and the sides of the entrance were five cubits on the one side, and five cubits on the other side; and he measured the length thereof, forty cubits, and the breadth, twenty cubits.

3 Then went he inward, and measured each post of the entrance, two cubits; and the entrance, six cubits; and the breadth of the entrance, seven cubits. 4 And he measured the length thereof, twenty cubits, and the breadth, twenty cubits, before the temple; and he said unto me: 'This is the most holy place.' 5 Then he measured the wall of the house, six cubits; and the breadth of every side-chamber, four cubits, round about the house on every side. 6 And the side-chambers were one over another, three and thirty times; and there were cornices in the wall which belonged to the house for the side-chambers round about, that they might have hold therein, and not have hold in the wall of the house. 7 And the side-chambers were broader as they wound about higher and higher; for the winding about of the house went higher and higher round about the house; therefore the breadth of the house continued upward; and so one went up from the lowest row to the highest by the middle. 8 I saw also that the house had a raised basement round about; the foundations of the side-chambers were a full reed of six cubits to the joining. 9 The breadth of the outer wall which belonged to the side-chambers was five cubits; and so that which was left by the structure of the side-chambers that belonged to the house. 10 And between the chambers was a breadth of twenty cubits round about the house on every side. 11 And the doors of the side-chambers were toward the place that was left, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south; and the breadth of the place that was left was five cubits round about.

12 And the building that was before the separate place at the side toward the west was seventy cubits broad; and the wall of the building was five cubits thick round about, and the length thereof ninety cubits.

13 And he measured the house, a hundred cubits long; and the separate place, and the building, with the walls thereof, a hundred cubits long; 14 also the breadth of the face of the house and of the separate place toward the east, a hundred cubits. 15 And he measured the length of the building before the separate place which was at the back thereof, and the galleries thereof on the one side and on the other side, a hundred cubits.

Now the temple, and the inner place, and the porches of the court, 16 the jambs, and the narrow windows, and the galleries, that they three had round about, over against the jambs there was a veneering of wood round about, and from the ground up to the windows; and the windows were covered; 17 to the space above the door, even unto the inner house, and without, and on all the wall round about within and without, by measure. 18 And it was made with cherubim and palm-trees; and a palm-tree was between cherub and cherub, and every cherub had two faces; 19 so that there was the face of a man toward the palm-tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm-tree on the other side; thus was it made through all the house round about. 20 From the ground unto above the door were cherubim and palm-trees made; and so on the wall of the temple. 21 As for the temple, the jambs were squared; and the face of the sanctuary had an appearance such as is the appearance.

22 The altar, three cubits high, and the length thereof two cubits, was of wood, and so the corners thereof; the length thereof, and the walls thereof, were also of wood; and he said unto me: 'This is the table that is before the LORD.'

23 And the temple and the sanctuary had two doors. 24 And the doors had two leaves apiece, two turning leaves; two leaves for the one door, and two leaves for the other. 25 And there were made on them, on the doors of the temple, cherubim and palm-trees, like as were made upon the walls; and there were thick beams of wood upon the face of the porch without. 26 And there were narrow windows and palm-trees on the one side and on the other side, on the sides of the porch; there were also the brackets of the house, and the thick beams.

EZEKIEL 42 — 1 Then he brought me forth into the outer court, the way toward the north; and he brought me into the chamber that was over against the separate place, and which was over against the building, toward the north, 2 even to the front of the length of a hundred cubits, with the door on the north, and the breadth of fifty cubits, 3 over against the twenty cubits which belonged to the inner court, and over against the pavement which belonged to the outer court; with gallery against gallery in three stories. 4 And before the chambers was a walk of ten cubits breadth inward, a way of one cubit; and their doors were toward the north. 5 Now the upper chambers were shorter; for the galleries took away from these, more than from the lower and the middlemost, in the building. 6 For they were in three stories, and they had not pillars as the pillars of the courts; therefore room was taken away from the lowest and the middlemost, in comparison with the ground. 7 And the wall that was without by the side of the chambers, toward the outer court in front of the chambers, the length thereof was fifty cubits. 8 For the length of the chambers that were toward the outer court was fifty cubits; and, lo, before the temple were a hundred cubits. 9 And from under these chambers was the entry on the east side, as one goeth into them from the outer court. 10 In the breadth of the wall of the court toward the east, before the separate place, and before the building, there were chambers, 11 with a way before them; like the appearance of the chambers which were toward the north, as long as they, and as broad as they, with all their goings out, and according to their fashions; and as their doors, 12 so were also the doors of the chambers that were toward the south, there was a door in the head of the way, even the way directly before the wall, toward the way from the east, as one entereth into them.

13 Then said he unto me: 'The north chambers and the south chambers, which are before the separate place, they are the holy chambers, where the priests that are near unto the LORD shall eat the most holy things; there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meal-offering, and the sin-offering, and the guilt-offering; for the place is holy. 14 When the priests enter in, then shall they not go out of the holy place into the outer court, but there they shall lay their garments wherein they minister, for they are holy; and they shall put on other garments, and shall approach to that which pertaineth to the people.'

15 Now when he had made an end of measuring the inner house, he brought me forth by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east, and measured it round about. 16 He measured the east side with the measuring reed, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about. 17 He measured the north side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about. 18 He measured the south side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed. 19 He turned about to the west side, and measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed. 20 He measured it by the four sides; it had a wall round about, the length five hundred, and the breadth five hundred, to make a separation between that which was holy and that which was common.

EZEKIEL 43 — 1 Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east; 2 and, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east; and His voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth did shine with His glory. 3 And the appearance of the vision which I saw was like the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city; and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face. 4 And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east. 5 And a spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house. 6 And I heard one speaking unto me out of the house; and a man stood by me. 7 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, this is the place of My throne, and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever; and the house of Israel shall no more defile My holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their harlotry, and by the carcasses of their kings in their high places; 8 in their setting of their threshold by My threshold, and their door-post beside My door-post, and there was but the wall between Me and them; and they have defiled My holy name by their abominations which they have committed; wherefore I have consumed them in Mine anger. 9 Now let them put away their harlotry, and the carcasses of their kings, far from Me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

10 Thou, son of man, show the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure accurately. 11 And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known unto them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof, and write it in their sight; that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.

12 This is the law of the house: upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

13 And these are the measures of the altar by cubits-the cubit is a cubit and a handbreadth: the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about a span; and this shall be the base of the altar. 14 And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower settle shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser settle to the greater settle shall be four cubits, and the breadth a cubit. 15 And the hearth shall be four cubits; and from the hearth and upward there shall be four horns. 16 And the hearth shall be twelve cubits long by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof. 17 And the settle shall be fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and the bottom thereof shall be a cubit about; and the steps thereof shall look toward the east.'

18 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to dash blood against it. 19 Thou shalt give to the priests the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near unto Me, to minister unto Me, saith the Lord GOD, a young bullock for a sin-offering. 20 And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the settle, and upon the border round about; thus shalt thou purify it and make atonement for it. 21 Thou shalt also take the bullock of the sin-offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary. 22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a he-goat without blemish for a sin-offering; and they shall purify the altar, as they did purify it with the bullock. 23 When thou hast made an end of purifying it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish. 24 And thou shalt present them before the LORD, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt-offering unto the LORD. 25 Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin-offering; they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish. 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it; so shall they consecrate it. 27 And when they have accomplished the days, it shall be that upon the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD.'

EZEKIEL 44 — 1 Then he brought me back the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. 2 And the LORD said unto me: 'This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it, for the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it; therefore it shall be shut. 3 As for the prince, being a prince, he shall sit therein to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.'

4 Then he brought me the way of the north gate before the house; and I looked, and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD; and I fell upon my face. 5 And the LORD said unto me: 'Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary. 6 And thou shalt say to the rebellious, even to the house of Israel: Thus saith the Lord GOD: O ye house of Israel, let it suffice you of all your abominations, 7 in that ye have brought in aliens, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary, to profane it, even My house, when ye offer My bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken My covenant, to add unto all your abominations. 8 And ye have not kept the charge of My holy things; but ye have set keepers of My charge in My sanctuary to please yourselves.

9 Thus saith the Lord GOD: No alien, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into My sanctuary, even any alien that is among the children of Israel. 10 But the Levites, that went far from Me, when Israel went astray, that went astray from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity; 11 and they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering in the house: they shall slay the burnt-offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them. 12 Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and became a stumblingblock of iniquity unto the house of Israel; therefore have I lifted up My hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity. 13 And they shall not come near unto Me, to minister unto Me in the priest's office, nor to come near to any of My holy things, unto the things that are most holy; but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed. 14 And I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein.

15 But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near to Me to minister unto Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer unto Me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD; 16 they shall enter into My sanctuary, and they shall come near to My table, to minister unto Me, and they shall keep My charge. 17 And it shall be that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, while they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within. 18 They shall have linen tires upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat. 19 And when they go forth into the outer court, even into the outer court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they minister, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments, that they sanctify not the people with their garments. 20 Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads. 21 Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court. 22 Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away; but they shall take virgins of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that is the widow of a priest. 23 And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the common, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. 24 And in a controversy they shall stand to judge; according to Mine ordinances shall they judge it; and they shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed seasons, and they shall hallow My sabbaths. 25 And they shall come near no dead person to defile themselves; but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that hath had no husband, they may defile themselves. 26 And after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days. 27 And in the day that he goeth into the sanctuary, into the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin-offering, saith the Lord GOD. 28 And it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance; and ye shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession. 29 The meal-offering, and the sin-offering, and the guilt-offering, they, even they, shall eat; and every devoted thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 And the first of all the first-fruits of every thing, and every heave-offering of every thing, of all your offerings, shall be for the priests; ye shall also give unto the priest the first of your dough, to cause a blessing to rest on thy house. 31 The priests shall not eat of any thing that dieth of itself, or is torn, whether it be fowl or beast.

EZEKIEL 45 — 1 Moreover, when ye shall divide by lot the land for inheritance, ye shall set apart an offering unto the LORD, a holy portion of the land; the length shall be the length of five and twenty thousand reeds, and the breadth shall be ten thousand; it shall be holy in all the border thereof round about. 2 Of this there shall be for the holy place five hundred in length by five hundred in breadth, square round about; and fifty cubits for the open land round about it. 3 And of this measure shalt thou measure a length of five and twenty thousand, and a breadth of ten thousand; and in it shall be the sanctuary, which is most holy. 4 It is a holy portion of the land; it shall be for the priests, the ministers of the sanctuary, that come near to minister unto the LORD; and it shall be a place for their houses, and a place consecrated for the sanctuary. 5 And five and twenty thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth, which shall be unto the Levites, the ministers of the house, for a possession unto themselves, for twenty chambers. 6 And ye shall appoint the possession of the city five thousand broad, and five and twenty thousand long, side by side with the offering of the holy portion; it shall be for the whole house of Israel. 7 And for the prince, on the one side and on the other side of the holy offering and of the possession of the city, in front of the holy offering and in front of the possession of the city, on the west side westward, and on the east side eastward; and in length answerable unto one of the portions, from the west border unto the east border 8 of the land; it shall be to him for a possession in Israel, and My princes shall no more wrong My people; but they shall give the land to the house of Israel according to their tribes.

9 Thus saith the Lord GOD: Let it suffice you, O princes of Israel; remove violence and spoil, and execute justice and righteousness; take away your exactions from My people, saith the Lord GOD.

10 Ye shall have just balances, and a just ephah, and a just bath. 11 The ephah and the bath shall be of one measure, that the bath may contain the tenth part of a homer, and the ephah the tenth part of a homer; the measure thereof shall be after the homer. 12 And the shekel shall be twenty gerahs; twenty shekels, five and twenty shekels, ten, and five shekels, shall be your maneh.

13 This is the offering that ye shall set apart: the sixth part of an ephah out of a homer of wheat, and ye shall give the sixth part of an ephah out of a homer of barley; 14 and the set portion of oil, the bath of oil, shall be the tithe of the bath out of the cor, which is ten baths, even a homer; for ten baths are a homer; 15 and one lamb of the flock, out of two hundred, from the well-watered pastures of Israel; for a meal-offering, and for a burnt-offering, and for peace-offerings, to make atonement for them, saith the Lord GOD.

16 All the people of the land shall give this offering for the prince in Israel. 17 And it shall be the prince's part to give the burnt-offerings, and the meal-offerings, and the drink-offerings, in the feasts, and in the new moons, and in the sabbaths, in all the appointed seasons of the house of Israel; he shall prepare the sin-offering, and the meal-offering, and the burnt-offering, and the peace-offerings, to make atonement for the house of Israel.

18 Thus saith the Lord GOD: In the first month, in the first day of the month, thou shalt take a young bullock without blemish; and thou shalt purify the sanctuary. 19 And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering, and put it upon the door-posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the settle of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner court. 20 And so thou shalt do on the seventh day of the month for every one that erreth, and for him that is simple; so shall ye make atonement for the house. 21 In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover; a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten. 22 And upon that day shall the prince prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin-offering. 23 And the seven days of the feast he shall prepare a burnt-offering to the LORD, seven bullocks and seven rams without blemish daily the seven days; and a he-goat daily for a sin-offering. 24 And he shall prepare a meal-offering, an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and a hin of oil to an ephah. 25 In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, in the feast, shall he do the like the seven days; to the sin-offering as well as the burnt-offering, and the meal-offering as well as the oil.

EZEKIEL 46 — 1 Thus saith the Lord GOD: The gate of the inner court that looketh toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be opened, and in the day of the new moon it shall be opened. 2 And the prince shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate without, and shall stand by the post of the gate, and the priests shall prepare his burnt-offering and his peace-offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate; then he shall go forth; but the gate shall not be shut until the evening. 3 Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the door of that gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons. 4 And the burnt-offering that the prince shall offer unto the LORD shall be in the sabbath day six lambs without blemish and a ram without blemish; 5 and the meal-offering shall be an ephah for the ram, and the meal-offering for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah. 6 And in the day of the new moon it shall be a young bullock without blemish; and six lambs, and a ram; they shall be without blemish; 7 and he shall prepare a meal-offering, an ephah for the bullock, and an ephah for the ram, and for the lambs according as his means suffice, and a hin of oil to an ephah. 8 And when the prince shall enter, he shall go in by the way of the porch of the gate, and he shall go forth by the way thereof. 9 But when the people of the land shall come before the LORD in the appointed seasons, he that entereth by the way of the north gate to worship shall go forth by the way of the south gate; and he that entereth by the way of the south gate shall go forth by the way of the north gate; he shall not return by the way of the gate whereby he came in, but shall go forth straight before him. 10 And the prince, when they go in, shall go in in the midst of them; and when they go forth, they shall go forth together. 11 And in the feasts and in the appointed seasons the meal-offering shall be an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah.

12 And when the prince shall prepare a freewill-offering, a burnt-offering or peace-offerings as a freewill-offering unto the LORD, one shall open for him the gate that looketh toward the east, and he shall prepare his burnt-offering and his peace-offerings, as he doth on the sabbath day; then he shall go forth; and after his going forth one shall shut the gate.

13 And thou shalt prepare a lamb of the first year without blemish for a burnt-offering unto the LORD daily; morning by morning shalt thou prepare it. 14 And thou shalt prepare a meal-offering with it morning by morning, the sixth part of an ephah, and the third part of a hin of oil, to moisten the fine flour: a meal-offering unto the LORD continually by a perpetual ordinance. 15 Thus shall they prepare the lamb, and the meal-offering, and the oil, morning by morning, for a continual burnt-offering.

16 Thus saith the Lord GOD: If the prince give a gift unto any of his sons, it is his inheritance, it shall belong to his sons; it is their possession by inheritance. 17 But if he give of his inheritance a gift to one of his servants, it shall be his to the year of liberty; then it shall return to the prince; but as for his inheritance, it shall be for his sons. 18 Moreover the prince shall not take of the people's inheritance, to thrust them wrongfully out of their possession; he shall give inheritance to his sons out of his own possession; that My people be not scattered every man from his possession.'

19 Then he brought me through the entry, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy chambers for the priests, which looked toward the north; and, behold, there was a place on the hinder part westward. 20 And he said unto me: 'This is the place where the priests shall boil the guilt-offering and the sin-offering, where they shall bake the meal-offering; that they bring them not forth into the outer court, to sanctify the people.'

21 Then he brought me forth into the outer court, and caused me to pass by the four corners of the court; and, behold, in every corner of the court there was a court. 22 In the four corners of the court there were courts inclosed, forty cubits long and thirty broad; these four in the corners were of one measure. 23 And there was a row of masonry round about in them, round about the four, and it was made with boiling-places under the rows round about. 24 Then said he unto me: 'These are the boiling-places, where the ministers of the house shall boil the sacrifices of the people.'

EZEKIEL 47 — 1 And he brought me back unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward, for the forefront of the house looked toward the east; and the waters came down from under, from the right side of the house, on the south of the altar. 2 Then brought he me out by the way of the gate northward, and led me round by the way without unto the outer gate, by the way of the gate that looketh toward the east; and, behold, there trickled forth waters on the right side.

3 When the man went forth eastward with the line in his hand, he measured a thousand cubits, and he caused me to pass through the waters, waters that were to the ankles. 4 Again he measured a thousand, and caused me to pass through the waters, waters that were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and caused me to pass through waters that were to the loins. 5 Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass through; for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. 6 And he said unto me: 'Hast thou seen this, O son of man?' Then he led me, and caused me to return to the bank of the river.

7 Now when I had been brought back, behold, upon the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other. 8 Then said he unto me: 'These waters issue forth toward the eastern region, and shall go down into the Arabah; and when they shall enter into the sea, into the sea of the putrid waters, the waters shall be healed. 9 And it shall come to pass, that every living creature wherewith it swarmeth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish; for these waters are come thither, that all things be healed and may live whithersoever the river cometh. 10 And it shall come to pass, that fishers shall stand by it from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim; there shall be a place for the spreading of nets; their fish shall be after their kinds, as the fish of the Great Sea, exceeding many. 11 But the miry places thereof, and the marshes thereof, shall not be healed; they shall be given for salt. 12 And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow every tree for food, whose leaf shall not wither, neither shall the fruit thereof fail; it shall bring forth new fruit every month, because the waters thereof issue out of the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for food, and the leaf thereof for healing.'

13 Thus saith the Lord GOD: 'This shall be the border, whereby ye shall divide the land for inheritance according to the twelve tribes of Israel, Joseph receiving two portions. 14 And ye shall inherit it, one as well as another, concerning which I lifted up My hand to give it unto your fathers; and this land shall fall unto you for inheritance. 15 And this shall be the border of the land: on the north side, from the Great Sea, by the way of Hethlon, unto the entrance of Zedad; 16 Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim, which is between the border of Damascus and the border of Hamath; Hazer-hatticon, which is by the border of Hauran. 17 And the border from the sea shall be Hazar-enon at the border of Damascus, and on the north northward is the border of Hamath. This is the north side. 18 And the east side, between Hauran and Damascus and Gilead, and the land of Israel, by the Jordan, from the border unto the east sea shall ye measure. This is the east side. 19 And the south side southward shall be from Tamar as far as the waters of Meriboth-kadesh, to the Brook, unto the Great Sea. This is the south side southward. 20 And the west side shall be the Great Sea, from the border as far as over against the entrance of Hamath. This is the west side.

21 So shall ye divide this land unto you according to the tribes of Israel. 22 And it shall come to pass, that ye shall divide it by lot for an inheritance unto you and to the strangers that sojourn among you, who shall beget children among you; and they shall be unto you as the home-born among the children of Israel; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23 And it shall come to pass, that in what tribe the stranger sojourneth, there shall ye give him his inheritance, saith the Lord GOD.

EZEKIEL 48 — 1 Now these are the names of the tribes: from the north end, beside the way of Hethlon to the entrance of Hamath, Hazar-enan, at the border of Damascus, northward, beside Hamath; and they shall have their sides east and west: Dan, one portion. 2 And by the border of Dan, from the east side unto the west side: Asher, one portion. 3 And by the border of Asher, from the east side even unto the west side: Naphtali, one portion. 4 And by the border of Naphtali, from the east side unto the west side: Manasseh, one portion. 5 And by the border of Manasseh, from the east side unto the west side: Ephraim, one portion. 6 And by the border of Ephraim, from the east side even unto the west side: Reuben, one portion. 7 And by the border of Reuben, from the east side unto the west side: Judah, one portion.

8 And by the border of Judah, from the east side unto the west side, shall be the offering which ye shall set aside, five and twenty thousand reeds in breadth, and in length as one of the portions, from the east side unto the west side; and the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it. 9 The offering that ye shall set apart unto the LORD shall be five and twenty thousand reeds in length, and ten thousand in breadth. 10 And for these, even for the priests, shall be the holy offering; toward the north five and twenty thousand in length, and toward the west ten thousand in breadth, and toward the east ten thousand in breadth, and toward the south five and twenty thousand in length; and the sanctuary of the LORD shall be in the midst thereof. 11 The sanctified portion shall be for the priests of the sons of Zadok, that have kept My charge, that went not astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the Levites went astray. 12 And it shall be unto them a portion set apart from the offering of the land, a thing most holy, by the border of the Levites. 13 And answerable unto the border of the priests, the Levites shall have five and twenty thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth; all the length shall be five and twenty thousand, and the breadth ten thousand. 14 And they shall not sell of it, nor exchange, nor alienate the first portion of the land; for it is holy unto the LORD.

15 And the five thousand that are left in the breadth, in front of the five and twenty thousand, shall be for common use, for the city, for dwelling and for open land; and the city shall be in the midst thereof. 16 And these shall be the measures thereof: the north side four thousand and five hundred, and the south side four thousand and five hundred, and on the east side four thousand and five hundred, and the west side four thousand and five hundred. 17 And the city shall have open land: toward the north two hundred and fifty, and toward the south two hundred and fifty, and toward the east two hundred and fifty, and toward the west two hundred and fifty. 18 And the residue in the length, answerable unto the holy offering, shall be ten thousand eastward, and ten thousand westward; and it shall be answerable unto the holy offering; and the increase thereof shall be for food unto them that serve the city. 19 And they that serve the city, out of all the tribes of Israel, shall till it. 20 All the offering shall be five and twenty thousand by five and twenty thousand; ye shall set apart the holy offering foursquare, with the possession of the city.

21 And the residue shall be for the prince, on the one side and on the other of the holy offering and of the possession of the city, in front of the five and twenty thousand of the offering toward the east border, and westward in front of the five and twenty thousand toward the west border, answerable unto the portions, it shall be for the prince; and the holy offering and the sanctuary of the house shall be in the midst thereof. 22 Thus the possession of the Levites, and the possession of the city, shall be in the midst of that which is the prince's; between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin shall be the prince's.

23 And as for the rest of the tribes: from the east side unto the west side: Benjamin, one portion. 24 And by the border of Benjamin, from the east side unto the west side: Simeon, one portion. 25 And by the border of Simeon, from the east side unto the west side: Issachar, one portion. 26 And by the border of Issachar, from the east side unto the west side: Zebulun, one portion. 27 And by the border of Zebulun, from the east side unto the west side: Gad, one portion. 28 And by the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall be even from Tamar unto the waters of Meribath-kadesh, to the Brook, unto the Great Sea. 29 This is the land which ye shall divide by lot unto the tribes of Israel for inheritance, and these are their portions, saith the Lord GOD.

30 And these are the goings out of the city: on the north side four thousand and five hundred reeds by measure; 31 and the gates of the city shall be after the names of the tribes of Israel; three gates northward: the gate of Reuben, one; the gate of Judah, one; the gate of Levi, one; 32 and at the east side four thousand and five hundred reeds; and three gates: even the gate of Joseph, one; the gate of Benjamin, one; the gate of Dan, one; 33 and at the south side four thousand and five hundred reeds by measure; and three gates: the gate of Simeon, one; the gate of Issachar, one; the gate of Zebulun, one; 34 at the west side four thousand and five hundred reeds, with their three gates: the gate of Gad, one; the gate of Asher, one; the gate of Naphtali, one. 35 It shall be eighteen thousand reeds round about. And the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.'

Hosea

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HOSEA 1 — 1 The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea the son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

2 When the LORD spoke at first with Hosea, the LORD said unto Hosea: 'Go, take unto thee a wife of harlotry and children of harlotry; for the land doth commit great harlotry, departing from the LORD.' 3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; and she conceived, and bore him a son. 4 And the LORD said unto him: 'Call his name Jezreel; for yet a little while, and I will visit the blood of Jezreel upon the house of Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel. 5 And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel.' 6 And she conceived again, and bore a daughter. And He said unto him: 'Call her name Lo-ruhamah; for I will no more have compassion upon the house of Israel, that I should in any wise pardon them. 7 But I will have compassion upon the house of Judah, and will save them by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword, nor by battle, nor by horses, nor by horsemen.' 8 Now when she had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived, and bore a son. 9 And He said: 'Call his name Lo-ammi; for ye are not My people, and I will not be yours.'

HOSEA 2 — 1 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass that, instead of that which was said unto them: 'Ye are not My people', it shall be said unto them: 'Ye are the children of the living God.' 2 And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together, and they shall appoint themselves one head, and shall go up out of the land; for great shall be the day of Jezreel. 3 Say ye unto your brethren: 'Ammi'; and to your sisters, 'Ruhamah.'

4 Plead with your mother, plead;

For she is not My wife, neither am I her husband;

And let her put away her harlotries from her face,

And her adulteries from between her breasts;

5 Lest I strip her naked,

And set her as in the day that she was born,

And make her as a wilderness,

And set her like a dry land,

And slay her with thirst.

6 And I will not have compassion upon her children;

For they are children of harlotry.

7 For their mother hath played the harlot,

She that conceived them hath done shamefully;

For she said: 'I will go after my lovers,

That give me my bread and my water,

My wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.'

8 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns,

And I will make a wall against her,

That she shall not find her paths.

9 And she shall run after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them,

And she shall seek them, but shall not find them;

Then shall she say: 'I will go and return to my first husband;

For then was it better with me than now.'

10 For she did not know that it was I that gave her

The corn, and the wine, and the oil,

And multiplied unto her silver and gold,

Which they used for Baal.

11 Therefore will I take back My corn in the time thereof,

And My wine in the season thereof,

And will snatch away My wool and My flax

Given to cover her nakedness.

12 And now will I uncover her shame in the sight of her lovers,

And none shall deliver her out of My hand.

13 I will also cause all her mirth to cease,

Her feasts, her new moons, and her sabbaths,

And all her appointed seasons.

14 And I will lay waste her vines and her fig-trees,

Whereof she hath said: 'These are my hire

That my lovers have given me';

And I will make them a forest,

And the beasts of the field shall eat them.

15 And I will visit upon her the days of the Baalim,

Wherein she offered unto them,

And decked herself with her ear-rings and her jewels,

And went after her lovers,

And forgot Me, saith the LORD.

16 Therefore, behold, I will allure her,

And bring her into the wilderness,

And speak tenderly unto her.

17 And I will give her her vineyards from thence,

And the valley of Achor for a door of hope;

And she shall respond there, as in the days of her youth,

And as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.

18 And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD,

That thou shalt call Me Ishi,

And shalt call Me no more Baali.

19 For I will take away the names of the Baalim out of her mouth,

And they shall no more be mentioned by their name.

20 And in that day will I make a covenant for them

With the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven,

And with the creeping things of the ground;

And I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the land,

And will make them to lie down safely.

21 And I will betroth thee unto Me for ever;

Yea, I will betroth thee unto Me in righteousness, and in justice,

And in lovingkindness, and in compassion.

22 And I will betroth thee unto Me in faithfulness;

And thou shalt know the LORD.

23 And it shall come to pass in that day,

I will respond, saith the LORD, I will respond to the heavens,

And they shall respond to the earth;

24 And the earth shall respond to the corn, and the wine, and the oil;

And they shall respond to Jezreel.

25 And I will sow her unto Me in the land;

And I will have compassion upon her that had not obtained compassion;

And I will say to them that were not My people: 'Thou art My people';

And they shall say: 'Thou art my God.'

HOSEA 3 — 1 And the LORD said unto me: 'Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend and an adulteress, even as the LORD loveth the children of Israel, though they turn unto other gods, and love cakes of raisins. 2 So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver and a homer of barley, and a half-homer of barley; 3 and I said unto her: 'Thou shalt sit solitary for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be any man's wife; nor will I be thine.' 4 For the children of Israel shall sit solitary many days without king, and without prince, and without sacrifice, and without pillar, and without ephod or teraphim; 5 afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall come trembling unto the LORD and to His goodness in the end of days.

HOSEA 4 — 1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel!

For the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land,

Because there is no truth, nor mercy,

Nor knowledge of God in the land.

2 Swearing and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery!

They break all bounds, and blood toucheth blood.

3 Therefore doth the land mourn,

And every one that dwelleth therein doth languish,

With the beasts of the field, and the fowls of heaven;

Yea, the fishes of the sea also are taken away.

4 Yet let no man strive, neither let any man reprove;

For thy people are as they that strive with the priest.

5 Therefore shalt thou stumble in the day,

And the prophet also shall stumble with thee in the night;

And I will destroy thy mother.

6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge;

Because thou hast rejected knowledge,

I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to Me;

Seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God,

I also will forget thy children.

7 The more they were increased, the more they sinned against Me;

I will change their glory into shame.

8 They feed on the sin of My people,

And set their heart on their iniquity.

9 And it is like people, like priest;

And I will punish him for his ways,

And will recompense him his doings.

10 And they shall eat, and not have enough,

They shall commit harlotry, and shall not increase;

Because they have left off to take heed to the LORD.

11 Harlotry, wine, and new wine take away the heart.

12 My people ask counsel at their stock,

And their staff declareth unto them;

For the spirit of harlotry hath caused them to err,

And they have gone astray from under their God.

13 They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains,

And offer upon the hills,

Under oaks and poplars and terebinths,

Because the shadow thereof is good;

Therefore your daughters commit harlotry,

And your daughters-in-law commit adultery.

14 I will not punish your daughters when they commit harlotry,

Nor your daughters-in-law when they commit adultery;

For they themselves consort with lewd women,

And they sacrifice with harlots;

And the people that is without understanding is distraught.

15 Though thou, Israel, play the harlot,

Yet let not Judah become guilty;

And come not ye unto Gilgal,

Neither go ye up to Beth-aven,

Nor swear: 'As the LORD liveth.'

16 For Israel is stubborn like a stubborn heifer;

Now shall the LORD feed them as a lamb in a large place?

17 Ephraim is joined to idols;

Let him alone.

18 When their carouse is over,

They take to harlotry;

Her rulers deeply love dishonour.

19 The wind hath bound her up in her skirts;

And they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices.

HOSEA 5 — 1 Hear this, O ye priests,

And attend, ye house of Israel,

And give ear, O house of the king,

For unto you pertaineth the judgment;

For ye have been a snare on Mizpah,

And a net spread upon Tabor.

2 And they that fall away are gone deep in making slaughter;

And I am rejected of them all.

3 I, even I, know Ephraim,

And Israel is not hid from Me;

For now, O Ephraim, thou hast committed harlotry,

Israel is defiled.

4 Their doings will not suffer them

To return unto their God;

For the spirit of harlotry is within them,

And they know not the LORD.

5 But the pride of Israel shall testify to his face;

And Israel and Ephraim shall stumble in their iniquity,

Judah also shall stumble with them.

6 With their flocks and with their herds they shall go

To seek the LORD, but they shall not find Him;

He hath withdrawn Himself from them.

7 They have dealt treacherously against the LORD,

For they have begotten strange children;

Now shall the new moon devour them with their portions.

8 Blow ye the horn in Gibeah,

And the trumpet in Ramah;

Sound an alarm at Beth-aven:

'Behind thee, O Benjamin!'

9 Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke;

Among the tribes of Israel do I make known that which shall surely be.

10 The princes of Judah are like them that remove the landmark;

I will pour out My wrath upon them like water.

11 Oppressed is Ephraim, crushed in his right;

Because he willingly walked after filth.

12 Therefore am I unto Ephraim as a moth,

And to the house of Judah as rottenness.

13 And when Ephraim saw his sickness,

And Judah his wound,

Ephraim went to Assyria,

And sent to King Contentious;

But he is not able to heal you,

Neither shall he cure you of your wound.

14 For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion,

And as a young lion to the house of Judah;

I, even I, will tear and go away,

I will take away, and there shall be none to deliver.

15 I will go and return to My place,

Till they acknowledge their guilt, and seek My face;

In their trouble they will seek Me earnestly:

HOSEA 6 — 1 'Come, and let us return unto the LORD;

For He hath torn, and He will heal us,

He hath smitten, and He will bind us up.

2 After two days will He revive us,

On the third day He will raise us up, that we may live in His presence.

3 And let us know, eagerly strive to know the LORD,

His going forth is sure as the morning;

And He shall come unto us as the rain,

As the latter rain that watereth the earth.'

4 O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee?

O Judah, what shall I do unto thee?

For your goodness is as a morning cloud,

And as the dew that early passeth away.

5 Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets,

I have slain them by the words of My mouth;

And thy judgment goeth forth as the light.

6 For I desire mercy, and not sacrifice,

And the knowledge of God rather than burnt-offerings.

7 But they like men have transgressed the covenant;

There have they dealt treacherously against Me.

8 Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity,

It is covered with footprints of blood.

9 And as troops of robbers wait for a man,

So doth the company of priests;

They murder in the way toward Shechem;

Yea, they commit enormity.

10 In the house of Israel I have seen a horrible thing;

There harlotry is found in Ephraim,

Israel is defiled.

11 Also, O Judah, there is a harvest appointed for thee!

When I would turn the captivity of My people,

HOSEA 7 — 1 when I would heal Israel,

Then is the iniquity of Ephraim uncovered,

And the wickedness of Samaria,

For they commit falsehood;

And the thief entereth in,

And the troop of robbers maketh a raid without.

2 And let them not say to their heart-

I remember all their wickedness;

Now their own doings have beset them about,

They are before My face.

3 They make the king glad with their wickedness,

And the princes with their lies.

4 They are all adulterers,

As an oven heated by the baker,

Who ceaseth to stir

From the kneading of the dough until it be leavened.

5 On the day of our king

The princes make him sick with the heat of wine,

He stretcheth out his hand with scorners.

6 For they have made ready their heart like an oven, while they lie in wait;

Their baker sleepeth all the night,

In the morning it burneth as a flaming fire.

7 They are all hot as an oven,

And devour their judges;

All their kings are fallen,

There is none among them that calleth unto Me.

8 Ephraim, he mixeth himself with the peoples;

Ephraim is become a cake not turned.

9 Strangers have devoured his strength,

And he knoweth it not;

Yea, gray hairs are here and there upon him,

And he knoweth it not.

10 And the pride of Israel testifieth to his face;

But they have not returned unto the LORD their God,

Nor sought Him, for all this.

11 And Ephraim is become like a silly dove, without understanding;

They call unto Egypt, they go to Assyria.

12 Even as they go, I will spread My net upon them;

I will bring them down as the fowls of the heaven;

I will chastise them, as their congregation hath been made to hear.

13 Woe unto them! for they have strayed from Me;

Destruction unto them! for they have transgressed against Me;

Shall I then redeem them,

Seeing they have spoken lies against Me?

14 And they have not cried unto Me with their heart,

Though they wail upon their beds;

They assemble themselves for corn and wine, they rebel against Me.

15 Though I have trained and strengthened their arms,

Yet do they devise evil against Me.

16 They return, but not upwards;

They are become like a deceitful bow;

Their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their tongue;

This shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

HOSEA 8 — 1 Set the horn to thy mouth.

As a vulture he cometh against the house of the LORD;

Because they have transgressed My covenant,

And trespassed against My law.

2 Will they cry unto Me:

'My God, we Israel know Thee'?

3 Israel hath cast off that which is good;

The enemy shall pursue him.

4 They have set up kings, but not from Me,

They have made princes, and I knew it not;

Of their silver and their gold have they made them idols,

That they may be cut off.

5 Thy calf, O Samaria, is cast off;

Mine anger is kindled against them;

How long will it be ere they attain to innocency?

6 For from Israel is even this:

The craftsman made it, and it is no God;

Yea, the calf of Samaria shall be broken in shivers.

7 For they sow the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind;

It hath no stalk, the bud that shall yield no meal;

If so be it yield, strangers shall swallow it up.

8 Israel is swallowed up;

Now are they become among the nations

As a vessel wherein is no value.

9 For they are gone up to Assyria,

Like a wild ass alone by himself;

Ephraim hath hired lovers.

10 Yea, though they hire among the nations,

Now will I gather them up;

And they begin to be minished

By reason of the burden of king and princes.

11 For Ephraim hath multiplied altars to sin,

Yea, altars have been unto him to sin.

12 Though I write for him never so many things of My Law,

They are accounted as a stranger's.

13 As for the sacrifices that are made by fire unto Me,

Let them sacrifice flesh and eat it,

For the LORD accepteth them not.

Now will He remember their iniquity, and punish their sins;

They shall return to Egypt.

14 For Israel hath forgotten his Maker,

And builded palaces,

And Judah hath multiplied fortified cities;

But I will send a fire upon his cities,

And it shall devour the castles thereof.

HOSEA 9 — 1 Rejoice not, O Israel, unto exultation, like the peoples,

For thou hast gone astray from thy God,

Thou hast loved a harlot's hire upon every corn-floor.

2 The threshing-floor and the wine-press shall not feed them,

And the new wine shall fail her.

3 They shall not dwell in the LORD'S land;

But Ephraim shall return to Egypt,

And they shall eat unclean food in Assyria.

4 They shall not pour out wine-offerings to the LORD,

Neither shall they be pleasing unto Him;

Their sacrifices shall be unto them as the bread of mourners,

All that eat thereof shall be polluted;

For their bread shall be for their appetite,

It shall not come into the house of the LORD.

5 What will ye do in the day of the appointed season,

And in the day of the feast of the LORD?

6 For, lo, they are gone away from destruction,

Yet Egypt shall gather them up,

Memphis shall bury them;

Their precious treasures of silver, nettles shall possess them,

Thorns shall be in their tents.

7 The days of visitation are come,

The days of recompense are come,

Israel shall know it.

The prophet is a fool, the man of the spirit is mad!

For the multitude of thine iniquity, the enmity is great.

8 Ephraim is a watchman with my God;

As for the prophet, a fowler's snare is in all his ways,

And enmity in the house of his God.

9 They have deeply corrupted themselves,

As in the days of Gibeah;

He will remember their iniquity,

He will punish their sins.

10 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness,

I saw your fathers as the first-ripe in the fig-tree at her first season;

But so soon as they came to Baal-peor,

They separated themselves unto the shameful thing,

And became detestable like that which they loved.

11 As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird;

There shall be no birth, and none with child, and no conception.

12 Yea, though they bring up their children,

Yet will I bereave them, that there be not a man left;

Yea, woe also to them when I depart from them!

13 Ephraim, like as I have seen Tyre, is planted in a pleasant place;

But Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the slayer.

14 Give them, O LORD, whatsoever Thou wilt give;

Give them a miscarrying womb and dry breasts.

15 All their wickedness is in Gilgal,

For there I hated them;

Because of the wickedness of their doings

I will drive them out of My house;

I will love them no more,

All their princes are rebellious.

16 Ephraim is smitten,

Their root is dried up,

They shall bear no fruit;

Yea, though they bring forth,

Yet will I slay the beloved fruit of their womb.

17 My God will cast them away,

Because they did not hearken unto Him;

And they shall be wanderers among the nations.

HOSEA 10 — 1 Israel was a luxuriant vine,

Which put forth fruit freely:

As his fruit increased,

He increased his altars;

The more goodly his land was,

The more goodly were his pillars.

2 Their heart is divided;

Now shall they bear their guilt;

He will break down their altars,

He will spoil their pillars.

3 Surely now shall they say:

'We have no king;

For we feared not the LORD;

And the king, what can he do for us?'

4 They speak words,

They swear falsely, they make covenants;

Thus judgment springeth up as hemlock

In the furrows of the field.

5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall be in dread

For the calves of Beth-aven;

For the people thereof shall mourn over it,

And the priests thereof shall tremble for it,

For its glory, because it is departed from it.

6 It also shall be carried unto Assyria,

For a present to King Contentious;

Ephraim shall receive shame,

And Israel shall be ashamed of his own counsel.

7 As for Samaria, her king is cut off,

As foam upon the water.

8 The high places also of Aven shall be destroyed,

Even the sin of Israel.

The thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars;

And they shall say to the mountains: 'Cover us',

And to the hills: 'Fall on us.'

9 From the days of Gibeah thou hast sinned, O Israel;

There they stood;

No battle was to overtake them in Gibeah,

Nor the children of arrogancy.

10 When it is My desire, I will chastise them;

And the peoples shall be gathered against them,

When they are yoked to their two rings.

11 And Ephraim is a heifer well broken,

That loveth to thresh,

And I have passed over upon her fair neck;

I will make Ephraim to ride, Judah shall plow,

Jacob shall break his clods.

12 Sow to yourselves according to righteousness,

Reap according to mercy,

Break up your fallow ground;

For it is time to seek the LORD,

Till He come and cause righteousness to rain upon you.

13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity,

Ye have eaten the fruit of lies;

For thou didst trust in thy way,

In the multitude of thy mighty men.

14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy hosts,

And all thy fortresses shall be spoiled,

As Shalman spoiled Beth-arbel in the day of battle;

The mother was dashed in pieces with her children.

15 So hath Beth-el done unto you

Because of your great wickedness;

At daybreak is the king of Israel utterly cut off.

HOSEA 11 — 1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him,

And out of Egypt I called My son.

2 The more they called them, the more they went from them;

They sacrificed unto the Baalim,

And offered to graven images.

3 And I, I taught Ephraim to walk,

Taking them by their arms;

But they knew not that I healed them.

4 I drew them with cords of a man,

With bands of love;

And I was to them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws,

And I fed them gently.

5 He shall not return into the land of Egypt,

But the Assyrian shall be his king,

Because they refused to return.

6 And the sword shall fall upon his cities,

And shall consume his bars, and devour them,

Because of their own counsels.

7 And My people are in suspense about returning to Me;

And though they call them upwards,

None at all will lift himself up.

8 How shall I give thee up, Ephraim?

How shall I surrender thee, Israel?

How shall I make thee as Admah?

How shall I set thee as Zeboim?

My heart is turned within Me,

My compassions are kindled together.

9 I will not execute the fierceness of Mine anger,

I will not return to destroy Ephraim;

For I am God, and not man,

The Holy One in the midst of thee;

And I will not come in fury.

10 They shall walk after the LORD,

Who shall roar like a lion;

For He shall roar,

And the children shall come trembling from the west.

11 They shall come trembling as a bird out of Egypt,

And as a dove out of the land of Assyria;

And I will make them to dwell in their houses,

Saith the LORD.

HOSEA 12 — 1 Ephraim compasseth Me about with lies,

And the house of Israel with deceit;

And Judah is yet wayward towards God,

And towards the Holy One who is faithful.

2 Ephraim striveth after wind, and followeth after the east wind;

All the day he multiplieth lies and desolation;

And they make a covenant with Assyria,

And oil is carried into Egypt.

3 The LORD hath also a controversy with Judah,

And will punish Jacob according to his ways,

According to his doings will He recompense him.

4 In the womb he took his brother by the heel,

And by his strength he strove with a godlike being;

5 So he strove with an angel, and prevailed;

He wept, and made supplication unto him;

At Beth-el he would find him,

And there he would speak with us;

6 But the LORD, the God of hosts,

The LORD is His name.

7 Therefore turn thou to thy God;

Keep mercy and justice,

And wait for thy God continually.

8 As for the trafficker, the balances of deceit are in his hand.

He loveth to oppress.

9 And Ephraim said: 'Surely I am become rich,

I have found me wealth;

In all my labours they shall find in me

No iniquity that were sin.'

10 But I am the LORD thy God

From the land of Egypt;

I will yet again make thee to dwell in tents,

As in the days of the appointed season.

11 I have also spoken unto the prophets,

And I have multiplied visions;

And by the ministry of the prophets have I used similitudes.

12 If Gilead be given to iniquity

Becoming altogether vanity,

In Gilgal they sacrifice unto bullocks;

Yea, their altars shall be as heaps

In the furrows of the field.

13 And Jacob fled into the field of Aram,

And Israel served for a wife,

And for a wife he kept sheep.

14 And by a prophet the LORD brought Israel up out of Egypt,

And by a prophet was he kept.

15 Ephraim hath provoked most bitterly;

Therefore shall his blood be cast upon him,

And his reproach shall his Lord return unto him.

HOSEA 13 — 1 When Ephraim spoke, there was trembling,

He exalted himself in Israel;

But when he became guilty through Baal, he died.

2 And now they sin more and more,

And have made them molten images of their silver,

According to their own understanding, even idols,

All of them the work of the craftsmen;

Of them they say:

'They that sacrifice men kiss calves.'

3 Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud,

And as the dew that early passeth away,

As the chaff that is driven with the wind out of the threshing-floor,

And as the smoke out of the window.

4 Yet I am the LORD thy God

From the land of Egypt;

And thou knowest no God but Me,

And beside Me there is no saviour.

5 I did know thee in the wilderness,

In the land of great drought.

6 When they were fed, they became full,

They were filled, and their heart was exalted;

Therefore have they forgotten Me.

7 Therefore am I become unto them as a lion;

As a leopard will I watch by the way;

8 I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps,

And will rend the enclosure of their heart;

And there will I devour them like a lioness;

The wild beast shall tear them.

9 It is thy destruction, O Israel,

That thou art against Me, against thy help.

10 Ho, now, thy king,

That he may save thee in all thy cities!

And thy judges, of whom thou saidst:

'Give me a king and princes!'

11 I give thee a king in Mine anger,

And take him away in My wrath.

12 The iniquity of Ephraim is boun

d up;

His sin is laid up in store.

13 The throes of a travailing woman shall come upon him;

He is an unwise son;

For it is time he should not tarry

In the place of the breaking forth of children.

14 Shall I ransom them from the power of the nether-world?

Shall I redeem them from death?

Ho, thy plagues, O death!

Ho, thy destruction, O netherworld!

Repentance be hid from Mine eyes!

15 For though he be fruitful among the reed-plants,

An east wind shall come, the wind of the LORD coming up from the wilderness,

And his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up;

He shall spoil the treasure of all precious vessels.

HOSEA 14 — 1 Samaria shall bear her guilt,

For she hath rebelled against her God;

They shall fall by the sword;

Their infants shall be dashed in pieces,

And their women with child shall be ripped up.

2 Return, O Israel, unto the LORD thy God;

For thou hast stumbled in thine iniquity.

3 Take with you words,

And return unto the LORD;

Say unto Him: 'Forgive all iniquity,

And accept that which is good;

So will we render for bullocks the offering of our lips.

4 Asshur shall not save us;

We will not ride upon horses;

Neither will we call any more the work of our hands our gods;

For in Thee the fatherless findeth mercy.'

5 I will heal their backsliding,

I will love them freely;

For Mine anger is turned away from him.

6 I will be as the dew unto Israel;

He shall blossom as the lily,

And cast forth his roots as Lebanon.

7 His branches shall spread,

And his beauty shall be as the olive-tree,

And his fragrance as Lebanon.

8 They that dwell under his shadow shall again

Make corn to grow,

And shall blossom as the vine;

The scent thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.

9 Ephraim shall say:

'What have I to do any more with idols?'

As for Me, I respond and look on him;

I am like a leafy cypress-tree;

From Me is thy fruit found.

10 Whoso is wise, let him understand these things,

Whoso is prudent, let him know them.

For the ways of the LORD are right,

And the just do walk in them;

But transgressors do stumble therein.

Joel

[1] [2] [3] [4]

JOEL 1 — 1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

2 Hear this, ye old men,

And give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land.

Hath this been in your days,

Or in the days of your fathers?

3 Tell ye your children of it,

And let your children tell their children,

And their children another generation.

4 That which the palmer-worm hath left hath the locust eaten;

And that which the locust hath left hath the canker-worm eaten;

And that which the canker-worm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.

5 Awake, ye drunkards, and weep,

And wail, all ye drinkers of wine,

Because of the sweet wine,

For it is cut off from your mouth.

6 For a people is come up upon my land,

Mighty, and without number;

His teeth are the teeth of a lion,

And he hath the jaw-teeth of a lioness.

7 He hath laid my vine waste,

And blasted my fig-tree;

He hath made it clean bare, and cast it down,

The branches thereof are made white.

8 Lament like a virgin girded with sackcloth

For the husband of her youth.

9 The meal-offering and the drink-offering is cut off

From the house of the LORD;

The priests mourn,

Even the LORD'S ministers.

10 The field is wasted,

The land mourneth;

For the corn is wasted,

The new wine is dried up,

The oil languisheth.

11 Be ashamed, O ye husbandmen,

Wail, O ye vinedressers,

For the wheat and for the barley;

Because the harvest of the field is perished.

12 The vine is withered,

And the fig-tree languisheth;

The pomegranate-tree, the palm-tree also, and the apple-tree,

Even all the trees of the field, are withered;

For joy is withered away from the sons of men.

13 Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests,

Wail, ye ministers of the altar;

Come, lie all night in sackcloth,

Ye ministers of my God;

For the meal-offering and the drink-offering is withholden

From the house of your God.

14 Sanctify ye a fast,

Call a solemn assembly,

Gather the elders

And all the inhabitants of the land

Unto the house of the LORD your God,

And cry unto the LORD.

15 Alas for the day!

For the day of the LORD is at hand,

And as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.

16 Is not the food cut off

Before our eyes,

Yea, joy and gladness

From the house of our God?

17 The grains shrivel under their hoes;

The garners are laid desolate,

The barns are broken down;

For the corn is withered.

18 How do the beasts groan!

The herds of cattle are perplexed,

Because they have no pasture;

Yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.

19 Unto Thee, O LORD, do I cry;

For the fire hath devoured

The pastures of the wilderness,

And the flame hath set ablaze

All the trees of the field.

20 Yea, the beasts of the field pant unto Thee;

For the water brooks are dried up,

And the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.

JOEL 2 — 1 Blow ye the horn in Zion,

And sound an alarm in My holy mountain;

Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble;

For the day of the LORD cometh,

For it is at hand;

2 A day of darkness and gloominess,

A day of clouds and thick darkness,

As blackness spread upon the mountains;

A great people and a mighty,

There hath not been ever the like,

Neither shall be any more after them,

Even to the years of many generations.

3 A fire devoureth before them,

And behind them a flame blazeth;

The land is as the garden of Eden before them,

And behind them a desolate wilderness;

Yea, and nothing escapeth them.

4 The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses;

And as horsemen, so do they run.

5 Like the noise of chariots,

On the tops of the mountains do they leap,

Like the noise of a flame of fire

That devoureth the stubble,

As a mighty people set in battle array.

6 At their presence the peoples are in anguish;

All faces have gathered blackness.

7 They run like mighty men,

They climb the wall like men of war;

And they move on every one in his ways,

And they entangle not their paths.

8 Neither doth one thrust another,

They march every one in his highway;

And they break through the weapons,

And suffer no harm.

9 They leap upon the city,

They run upon the wall,

They climb up into the houses;

They enter in at the windows like a thief.

10 Before them the earth quaketh,

The heavens tremble;

The sun and the moon are become black,

And the stars withdraw their shining.

11 And the LORD uttereth His voice before His army;

For His camp is very great,

For he is mighty that executeth His word;

For great is the day of the LORD and very terrible;

And who can abide it?

12 Yet even now, saith the LORD,

Turn ye unto Me with all your heart,

And with fasting, and with weeping, and with lamentation;

13 And rend your heart, and not your garments,

And turn unto the LORD your God;

For He is gracious and compassionate,

Long-suffering, and abundant in mercy,

And repenteth Him of the evil.

14 Who knoweth whether He will not turn and repent,

And leave a blessing behind Him,

Even a meal-offering and a drink-offering

Unto the LORD your God?

15 Blow the horn in Zion,

Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly;

16 Gather the people,

Sanctify the congregation,

Assemble the elders,

Gather the children,

And those that suck the breasts;

Let the bridegroom go forth from his chamber,

And the bride out of her pavilion.

17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD,

Weep between the porch and the altar,

And let them say: 'Spare thy people, O LORD,

And give not Thy heritage to reproach,

That the nations should make them a byword:

Wherefore should they say among the peoples:

Where is their God?'

18 Then was the LORD jealous for His land,

And had pity on His people.

19 And the LORD answered and said unto His people:

'Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil,

And ye shall be satisfied therewith;

And I will no more make you a reproach among the nations;

20 But I will remove far off from you the northern one,

And will drive him into a land barren and desolate,

With his face toward the eastern sea,

And his hinder part toward the western sea;

That his foulness may come up, and his ill savour may come up,

Because he hath done great things.'

21 Fear not, O land, be glad and rejoice;

For the LORD hath done great things.

22 Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field;

For the pastures of the wilderness do spring,

For the tree beareth its fruit,

The fig-tree and the vine do yield their strength.

23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice

In the LORD your God;

For He giveth you the former rain in just measure,

And He causeth to come down for you the rain,

The former rain and the latter rain, at the first.

24 And the floors shall be full of corn,

And the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.

25 And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten,

The canker-worm, and the caterpiller, and the palmer-worm,

My great army which I sent among you.

26 And ye shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,

And shall praise the name of the LORD your God,

That hath dealt wondrously with you;

And My people shall never be ashamed.

27 And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,

And that I am the LORD your God, and there is none else;

And My people shall never be ashamed.

JOEL 3 — 1 And it shall come to pass afterward,

That I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh;

And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

Your old men shall dream dreams,

Your young men shall see visions;

2 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids

In those days will I pour out My spirit.

3 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth,

Blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.

4 The sun shall be turned into darkness,

And the moon into blood,

Before the great and terrible day of the LORD come.

5 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD

Shall be delivered;

For in mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those that escape,

As the LORD hath said,

And among the remnant those whom the LORD shall call.

JOEL 4 — 1 For, behold, in those days, and in that time,

When I shall bring back the captivity of Judah and Jerusalem,

2 I will gather all nations,

And will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat;

And I will enter into judgment with them there

For My people and for My heritage Israel,

Whom they have scattered among the nations,

And divided My land.

3 And they have cast lots for My people;

And have given a boy for an harlot,

And sold a girl for wine, and have drunk.

4 And also what are ye to Me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the regions of Philistia? will ye render retribution on My behalf? and if ye render retribution on My behalf, swiftly, speedily will I return your retribution upon your own head. 5 Forasmuch as ye have taken My silver and My gold, and have carried into your temples My goodly treasures; 6 the children also of Judah and the children of Jerusalem have ye sold unto the sons of Jevanim, that ye might remove them far from their border; 7 behold, I will stir them up out of the place whither ye have sold them, and will return your retribution upon your own head; 8 and I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hand of the children of Judah, and they shall sell them to the men of Sheba, to a nation far off; for the LORD hath spoken.

9 Proclaim ye this among the nations,

Prepare war;

Stir up the mighty men;

Let all the men of war draw near,

Let them come up.

10 Beat your plowshares into swords,

And your pruning-hooks into spears;

Let the weak say: 'I am strong.'

11 Haste ye, and come, all ye nations round about,

And gather yourselves together;

Thither cause Thy mighty ones to come down, O LORD!

12 Let the nations be stirred up, and come up

To the valley of Jehoshaphat;

For there will I sit to judge

All the nations round about.

13 Put ye in the sickle,

For the harvest is ripe;

Come, tread ye,

For the winepress is full, the vats overflow;

For their wickedness is great.

14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision!

For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.

15 The sun and the moon are become black,

And the stars withdraw their shining.

16 And the LORD shall roar from Zion,

And utter His voice from Jerusalem,

And the heavens and the earth shall shake;

But the LORD will be a refuge unto His people,

And a stronghold to the children of Israel.

17 So shall ye know that I am the LORD your God,

Dwelling in Zion My holy mountain;

Then shall Jerusalem be holy,

And there shall no strangers pass through her any more.

18 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That the mountains shall drop down sweet wine,

And the hills shall flow with milk,

And all the brooks of Judah shall flow with waters;

And a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD,

And shall water the valley of Shittim.

19 Egypt shall be a desolation,

And Edom shall be a desolate wilderness,

For the violence against the children of Judah,

Because they have shed innocent blood in their land.

20 But Judah shall be inhabited for ever,

And Jerusalem from generation to generation.

21 And I will hold as innocent their blood that I have not held as innocent;

And the LORD dwelleth in Zion.

Amos

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]

AMOS 1 — 1 The words of Amos, who was among the herdmen of Tekoa, which he saw concerning Israel in the days of Uzziah king of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash king of Israel, two years before the earthquake.

2 And he said:

The LORD roareth from Zion,

And uttereth His voice from Jerusalem;

And the pastures of the shepherds shall mourn,

And the top of Carmel shall wither.

3 For thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Damascus,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they have threshed Gilead with sledges of iron.

4 So will I send a fire into the house of Hazael,

And it shall devour the palaces of Ben-hadad;

5 And I will break the bar of Damascus,

And cut off the inhabitant from Bikath-Aven,

And him that holdeth the sceptre from Beth-eden;

And the people of Aram shall go into captivity unto Kir,

Saith the LORD.

6 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Gaza,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they carried away captive a whole captivity,

To deliver them up to Edom.

7 So will I send a fire on the wall of Gaza,

And it shall devour the palaces thereof;

8 And I will cut off the inhabitant from Ashdod,

And him that holdeth the sceptre from Ashkelon;

And I will turn My hand against Ekron,

And the remnant of the Philistines shall perish,

Saith the Lord GOD.

9 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Tyre,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they delivered up a whole captivity to Edom,

And remembered not the brotherly covenant.

10 So will I send a fire on the wall of Tyre,

And it shall devour the palaces thereof.

11 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Edom,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because he did pursue his brother with the sword,

And did cast off all pity,

And his anger did tear perpetually,

And he kept his wrath for ever.

12 So will I send a fire upon Teman,

And it shall devour the palaces of Bozrah.

13 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of the children of Ammon,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they have ripped up the women with child of Gilead,

That they might enlarge their border.

14 So will I kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah,

And it shall devour the palaces thereof,

With shouting in the day of battle,

With a tempest in the day of the whirlwind;

15 And their king shall go into captivity,

He and his princes together,

Saith the LORD.

AMOS 2 — 1 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Moab,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because he burned the bones of the king of Edom into lime.

2 So will I send a fire upon Moab,

And it shall devour the palaces of Kerioth;

And Moab shall die with tumult,

With shouting, and with the sound of the horn;

3 And I will cut off the judge from the midst thereof,

And will slay all the princes thereof with him,

Saith the LORD.

4 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Judah,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they have rejected the law of the LORD,

And have not kept His statutes,

And their lies have caused them to err,

After which their fathers did walk.

5 So will I send a fire upon Judah,

And it shall devour the palaces of Jerusalem.

6 Thus saith the LORD:

For three transgressions of Israel,

Yea, for four, I will not reverse it:

Because they sell the righteous for silver,

And the needy for a pair of shoes;

7 That pant after the dust of the earth on the head of the poor,

And turn aside the way of the humble;

And a man and his father go unto the same maid,

To profane My holy name;

8 And they lay themselves down beside every altar

Upon clothes taken in pledge,

And in the house of their God they drink

The wine of them that have been fined.

9 Yet destroyed I the Amorite before them,

Whose height was like the height of the cedars,

And he was strong as the oaks;

Yet I destroyed his fruit from above,

And his roots from beneath.

10 Also I brought you up out of the land of Egypt,

And led you forty years in the wilderness,

To possess the land of the Amorites.

11 And I raised up of your sons for prophets,

And of your young men for Nazirites.

Is it not even thus, O ye children of Israel? saith the LORD.

12 But ye gave the Nazirites wine to drink;

And commanded the prophets, saying: 'Prophesy not.'

13 Behold, I will make it creak under you,

As a cart creaketh that is full of sheaves.

14 And flight shall fail the swift,

And the strong shall not exert his strength,

Neither shall the mighty deliver himself;

15 Neither shall he stand that handleth the bow;

And he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself;

Neither shall he that rideth the horse deliver himself;

16 And he that is courageous among the mighty

Shall flee away naked in that day,

Saith the LORD.

AMOS 3 — 1 Hear this word that the LORD hath spoken against you, O children of Israel, against the whole family which I brought up out of the land of Egypt, saying:

2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth;

Therefore I will visit upon you all your iniquities.

3 Will two walk together,

Except they have agreed?

4 Will a lion roar in the forest,

When he hath no prey?

Will a young lion give forth his voice out of his den,

If he have taken nothing?

5 Will a bird fall in a snare upon the earth,

Where there is no lure for it?

Will a snare spring up from the ground,

And have taken nothing at all?

6 Shall the horn be blown in a city,

And the people not tremble?

Shall evil befall a city,

And the LORD hath not done it?

7 For the Lord GOD will do nothing,

But He revealeth His counsel unto His servants the prophets.

8 The lion hath roared,

Who will not fear?

The Lord GOD hath spoken,

Who can but prophesy?

9 Proclaim it upon the palaces at Ashdod,

And upon the palaces in the land of Egypt,

And say: 'Assemble yourselves upon the mountains of Samaria,

And behold the great confusions therein,

And the oppressions in the midst thereof.'

10 For they know not to do right, saith the LORD,

Who store up violence and robbery in their palaces.

11 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD:

An adversary, even round about the land!

And he shall bring down thy strength from thee,

And thy palaces shall be spoiled.

12 Thus saith the LORD:

As the shepherd rescueth out of the mouth of the lion

Two legs, or a piece of an ear,

So shall the children of Israel that dwell in Samaria

Escape with the corner of a couch, and the leg of a bed.

13 Hear ye, and testify against the house of Jacob,

Saith the Lord GOD, the God of hosts.

14 For in the day that I shall visit the transgressions of Israel upon him,

I will also punish the altars of Beth-el,

And the horns of the altar shall be cut off,

And fall to the ground.

15 And I will smite the winter-house with the summer-house;

And the houses of ivory shall perish,

And the great houses shall have an end,

Saith the LORD.

AMOS 4 — 1 Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan,

That are in the mountain of Samaria,

That oppress the poor, that crush the needy,

That say unto their lords: 'Bring, that we may feast.'

2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by His holiness:

Lo, surely the days shall come upon you,

That ye shall be taken away with hooks,

And your residue with fish-hooks.

3 And ye shall go out at the breaches, every one straight before her;

And ye shall be cast into Harmon,

Saith the LORD.

4 Come to Beth-el, and transgress,

To Gilgal, and multiply transgression;

And bring your sacrifices in the morning,

And your tithes after three days;

5 And offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened,

And proclaim freewill-offerings and publish them;

For so ye love to do, O ye children of Israel,

Saith the Lord GOD.

6 And I also have given you

Cleanness of teeth in all your cities,

And want of bread in all your places;

Yet have ye not returned unto Me,

Saith the LORD.

7 And I also have withholden the rain from you,

When there were yet three months to the harvest;

And I caused it to rain upon one city,

And caused it not to rain upon another city;

One piece was rained upon,

And the piece whereupon it rained not withered.

8 So two or three cities wandered unto one city

To drink water, and were not satisfied;

Yet have ye not returned unto Me,

Saith the LORD.

9 I have smitten you with blasting and mildew;

The multitude of your gardens and your vineyards

And your fig-trees and your olive-trees

Hath the palmer-worm devoured;

Yet have ye not returned unto Me,

Saith the LORD.

10 I have sent among you the pestilence in the way of Egypt;

Your young men have I slain with the sword,

And have carried away your horses;

And I have made the stench of your camp to come up even into your nostrils;

Yet have ye not returned unto Me,

Saith the LORD.

11 I have overthrown some of you,

As God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,

And ye were as a brand plucked out of the burning;

Yet have ye not returned unto Me,

Saith the LORD.

12 Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel;

Because I will do this unto thee,

Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.

13 For, lo, He that formeth the mountains, and createth the wind,

And declareth unto man what is his thought,

That maketh the morning darkness,

And treadeth upon the high places of the earth;

The LORD, the God of hosts, is His name.

AMOS 5 — 1 Hear ye this word which I take up for a lamentation over you, O house of Israel:

2 The virgin of Israel is fallen,

She shall no more rise;

She is cast down upon her land,

There is none to raise her up.

3 For thus saith the Lord GOD: The city that went forth a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went forth a hundred shall have ten left, of the house of Israel.

4 For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel:

Seek ye Me, and live;

5 But seek not Beth-el,

Nor enter into Gilgal,

And pass not to Beer-sheba;

For Gilgal shall surely go into captivity,

And Beth-el shall come to nought.

6 Seek the LORD, and live-

Lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph,

And it devour, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el-

7 Ye who turn judgment to wormwood,

And cast righteousness to the ground;

8 Him that maketh the Pleiades and Orion,

And bringeth on the shadow of death in the morning,

And darkeneth the day into night;

That calleth for the waters of the sea,

And poureth them out upon the face of the earth;

The LORD is His name;

9 That causeth destruction to flash upon the strong,

So that destruction cometh upon the fortress.

10 They hate him that reproveth in the gate,

And they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

11 Therefore, because ye trample upon the poor,

And take from him exactions of wheat;

Ye have built houses of hewn stone,

But ye shall not dwell in them,

Ye have planted pleasant vineyards,

But ye shall not drink wine thereof.

12 For I know how manifold are your transgressions,

And how mighty are your sins;

Ye that afflict the just, that take a ransom,

And that turn aside the needy in the gate.

13 Therefore the prudent doth keep silence in such a time;

For it is an evil time.

14 Seek good, and not evil, that ye may live;

And so the LORD, the God of hosts, will be with you, as ye say.

15 Hate the evil, and love the good,

And establish justice in the gate;

It may be that the LORD, the God of hosts,

Will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

16 Therefore thus saith the LORD,

The God of hosts, the Lord:

Lamentation shall be in all the broad places,

And they shall say in all the streets: 'Alas! alas!'

And they shall call the husbandman to mourning,

And proclaim lamentation to such as are skilful of wailing.

17 And in all vineyards shall be lamentation;

For I will pass through the midst of thee,

Saith the LORD.

18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD!

Wherefore would ye have the day of the LORD?

It is darkness, and not light.

19 As if a man did flee from a lion,

And a bear met him;

And went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall,

And a serpent bit him.

20 Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness, and not light?

Even very dark, and no brightness in it?

21 I hate, I despise your feasts,

And I will take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

22 Yea, though ye offer me burnt-offerings and your meal-offerings,

I will not accept them;

Neither will I regard the peace-offerings of your fat beasts.

23 Take thou away from Me the noise of thy songs;

And let Me not hear the melody of thy psalteries.

24 But let justice well up as waters,

And righteousness as a mighty stream.

25 Did ye bring unto Me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel? 26 So shall ye take up Siccuth your king and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves. 27 Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith He, whose name is the LORD God of hosts.

AMOS 6 — 1 Woe to them that are at ease in Zion,

And to them that are secure in the mountain of Samaria,

The notable men of the first of the nations,

To whom the house of Israel come!

2 Pass ye unto Calneh, and see,

And from thence go ye to Hamath the great;

Then go down to Gath of the Philistines;

Are they better than these kingdoms?

Or is their border greater than your border?

3 Ye that put far away the evil day,

And cause the seat of violence to come near;

4 That lie upon beds of ivory,

And stretch themselves upon their couches,

And eat the lambs out of the flock,

And the calves out of the midst of the stall;

5 That thrum on the psaltery,

That devise for themselves instruments of music, like David;

6 That drink wine in bowls,

And anoint themselves with the chief ointments;

But they are not grieved for the hurt of Joseph.

7 Therefore now shall they go captive at the head of them that go captive,

And the revelry of them that stretched themselves shall pass away.

8 The Lord GOD hath sworn by Himself,

Saith the LORD, the God of hosts:

I abhor the pride of Jacob,

And hate his palaces;

And I will deliver up the city with all that is therein.

9 And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die. 10 And when a man's uncle shall take him up, even he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that is in the innermost parts of the house: 'Is there yet any with thee?' and he shall say: 'No'; then shall he say: 'Hold thy peace; for we must not make mention of the name of the LORD.'

11 For, behold, the LORD commandeth,

And the great house shall be smitten into splinters,

And the little house into chips.

12 Do horses run upon the rocks?

Doth one plow there with oxen?

That ye have turned justice into gall,

And the fruit of righteousness into wormwood;

13 Ye that rejoice in a thing of nought,

That say: 'Have we not taken to us horns by our own strength?'

14 For, behold, I will raise up against you a nation, O house of Israel, saith the LORD, the God of hosts; and they shall afflict you from the entrance of Hamath unto the Brook of the Arabah.

AMOS 7 — 1 Thus the Lord GOD showed me; and, behold, He formed locusts in the beginning of the shooting up of the latter growth; and, lo, it was the latter growth after the king's mowings. 2 And if it had come to pass, that when they had made an end of eating the grass of the land-so I said:

O Lord GOD, forgive, I beseech Thee;

How shall Jacob stand? for he is small.

3 The LORD repented concerning this; 'It shall not be', saith the LORD.

4 Thus the Lord GOD showed me; and, behold, the Lord GOD called to contend by fire; and it devoured the great deep, and would have eaten up the land. 5 Then said I:

O Lord GOD, cease, I beseech Thee;

How shall Jacob stand? for he is small.

6 The LORD repented concerning this; 'This also shall not be', saith the Lord GOD.

7 Thus He showed me; and, behold, the Lord stood beside a wall made by a plumbline, with a plumbline in His hand. 8 And the LORD said unto me: 'Amos, what seest thou?' And I said: 'A plumbline.' Then said the Lord:

Behold, I will set a plumbline in the midst of My people Israel;

I will not again pardon them any more;

9 And the high places of Isaac shall be desolate,

And the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste;

And I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword.

10 Then Amaziah the priest of Beth-el sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying: 'Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. 11 For thus Amos saith:

Jeroboam shall die by the sword,

And Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land.'

12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos: 'O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there; 13 but prophesy not again any more at Beth-el, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a royal house.' 14 Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah: 'I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was a herdman, and a dresser of sycamore-trees; 15 and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said unto me: Go, prophesy unto My people Israel. 16 Now therefore hear thou the word of the LORD:

Thou sayest: Prophesy not against Israel,

And preach not against the house of Isaac;

17 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

Thy wife shall be a harlot in the city,

And thy sons and thy daughters shall fall by the sword,

And thy land shall be divided by line;

And thou thyself shalt die in an unclean land,

And Israel shall surely be led away captive out of his land.'

AMOS 8 — 1 Thus the Lord GOD showed me; and behold a basket of summer fruit. 2 And He said: 'Amos, what seest thou?' And I said: 'A basket of summer fruit.' Then said the LORD unto me:

The end is come upon My people Israel;

I will not again pardon them any more.

3 And the songs of the palace shall be wailings in that day,

Saith the Lord GOD;

The dead bodies shall be many;

In every place silence shall be cast.

4 Hear this, O ye that would swallow the needy,

And destroy the poor of the land,

5 Saying: 'When will the new moon be gone, that we may sell grain?

And the sabbath, that we may set forth corn?

Making the ephah small, and the shekel great,

And falsifying the balances of deceit;

6 That we may buy the poor for silver,

And the needy for a pair of shoes,

And sell the refuse of the corn?'

7 The LORD hath sworn by the pride of Jacob:

Surely I will never forget any of their works.

8 Shall not the land tremble for this,

And every one mourn that dwelleth therein?

Yea, it shall rise up wholly like the River;

And it shall be troubled and sink again, like the River of Egypt.

9 And it shall come to pass in that day,

Saith the Lord GOD,

That I will cause the sun to go down at noon,

And I will darken the earth in the clear day.

10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning,

And all your songs into lamentation;

And I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins,

And baldness upon every head;

And I will make it as the mourning for an only son,

And the end thereof as a bitter day.

11 Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD,

That I will send a famine in the land,

Not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water,

But of hearing the words of the LORD.

12 And they shall wander from sea to sea,

And from the north even to the east;

They shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD,

And shall not find it.

13 In that day shall the fair virgins

And the young men faint for thirst.

14 They that swear by the sin of Samaria,

And say: 'As thy God, O Dan, liveth';

And: 'As the way of Beer-sheba liveth';

Even they shall fall, and never rise up again.

AMOS 9 — 1 I saw the Lord standing beside the altar; and He said:

Smite the capitals, that the posts may shake;

And break them in pieces on the head of all of them;

And I will slay the residue of them with the sword;

There shall not one of them flee away,

And there shall not one of them escape.

2 Though they dig into the nether-world,

Thence shall My hand take them;

And though they climb up to heaven,

Thence will I bring them down.

3 And though they hide themselves in the top of Carmel,

I will search and take them out thence;

And though they be hid from My sight in the bottom of the sea,

Thence will I command the serpent, and he shall bite them.

4 And though they go into captivity before their enemies,

Thence will I command the sword, and it shall slay them;

And I will set Mine eyes upon them

For evil, and not for good.

5 For the Lord, the GOD of hosts,

Is He that toucheth the land and it melteth,

And all that dwell therein mourn;

And it riseth up wholly like the River,

And sinketh again, like the River of Egypt;

6 It is He that buildeth His upper chambers in the heaven,

And hath founded His vault upon the earth;

He that calleth for the waters of the sea,

And poureth them out upon the face of the earth;

The LORD is His name.

7 Are ye not as the children of the Ethiopians unto Me,

O children of Israel? saith the LORD.

Have not I brought up Israel out of the land of Egypt,

And the Philistines from Caphtor,

And Aram from Kir?

8 Behold, the eyes of the Lord GOD

Are upon the sinful kingdom,

And I will destroy it from off the face of the earth;

Saving that I will not utterly destroy the house of Jacob,

Saith the LORD.

9 For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all the nations,

Like as corn is sifted in a sieve,

Yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.

10 All the sinners of My people shall die by the sword,

That say: 'The evil shall not overtake nor confront us.'

11 In that day will I raise up

The tabernacle of David that is fallen,

And close up the breaches thereof,

And I will raise up his ruins,

And I will build it as in the days of old;

12 That they may possess the remnant of Edom,

And all the nations, upon whom My name is called,

Saith the LORD that doeth this.

13 Behold, the days come, saith the LORD,

That the plowman shall overtake the reaper,

And the treader of grapes him that soweth seed;

And the mountains shall drop sweet wine,

And all the hills shall melt.

14 And I will turn the captivity of My people Israel,

And they shall build the waste cities, and inhabit them;

And they shall plant vineyards, and drink the wine thereof;

They shall also make gardens, and eat the fruit of them.

15 And I will plant them upon their land,

And they shall no more be plucked up

Out of their land which I have given them,

Saith the LORD thy God.

Obadiah

OBADIAH 1 — 1 The vision of Obadiah.

Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning Edom:

We have heard a message from the LORD,

And an ambassador is sent among the nations:

'Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle.'

2 Behold, I make thee small among the nations;

Thou art greatly despised.

3 The pride of thy heart hath beguiled thee,

O thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock,

Thy habitation on high;

That sayest in thy heart:

'Who shall bring me down to the ground?'

4 Though thou make thy nest as high as the eagle,

And though thou set it among the stars,

I will bring thee down from thence, saith the LORD.

5 If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night-

How art thou cut off!-

Would they not steal till they had enough?

If grape-gatherers came to thee,

Would they not leave some gleaning grapes?

6 How is Esau searched out!

How are his hidden places sought out!

7 All the men of thy confederacy

Have conducted thee to the border;

The men that were at peace with thee

Have beguiled thee, and prevailed against thee;

They that eat thy bread lay a snare under thee,

In whom there is no discernment.

8 Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD,

Destroy the wise men out of Edom,

And discernment out of the mount of Esau?

9 And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed,

To the end that every one may be cut off from the mount of Esau by slaughter.

10 For the violence done to thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee,

And thou shalt be cut off for ever.

11 In the day that thou didst stand aloof,

In the day that strangers carried away his substance,

And foreigners entered into his gates,

And cast lots upon Jerusalem,

Even thou wast as one of them.

12 But thou shouldest not have gazed on the day of thy brother

In the day of his disaster,

Neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah

In the day of their destruction;

Neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly

In the day of distress.

13 Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of My people

In the day of their calamity;

Yea, thou shouldest not have gazed on their affliction

In the day of their calamity,

Nor have laid hands on their substance

In the day of their calamity.

14 Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway,

To cut off those of his that escape;

Neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his

That did remain in the day of distress.

15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations;

As thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee;

Thy dealing shall return upon thine own head.

16 For as ye have drunk upon My holy mountain,

So shall all the nations drink continually,

Yea, they shall drink, and swallow down,

And shall be as though they had not been.

17 But in mount Zion there shall be those that escape,

And it shall be holy;

And the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.

18 And the house of Jacob shall be a fire,

And the house of Joseph a flame,

And the house of Esau for stubble,

And they shall kindle in them, and devour them;

And there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau;

For the LORD hath spoken.

19 And they of the South shall possess the mount of Esau,

And they of the Lowland the Philistines;

And they shall possess the field of Ephraim,

And the field of Samaria;

And Benjamin shall possess Gilead.

20 And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel,

That are among the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath,

And the captivity of Jerusalem, that is in Sepharad,

Shall possess the cities of the South.

21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion

To judge the mount of Esau;

And the kingdom shall be the LORD'S.

Jonah

[1] [2] [3] [4]

JONAH 1 — 1 Now the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the son of Amittai, saying: 2 'Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim against it; for their wickedness is come up before Me.' 3 But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD; and he went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish, from the presence of the LORD.

4 But the LORD hurled a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken. 5 And the mariners were afraid, and cried every man unto his god; and they cast forth the wares that were in the ship into the sea, to lighten it unto them. But Jonah was gone down into the innermost parts of the ship; and he lay, and was fast asleep. 6 So the shipmaster came to him, and said unto him: 'What meanest thou that thou sleepest? arise, call upon thy God, if so be that God will think upon us, that we perish not.'

7 And they said every one to his fellow: 'Come, and let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this evil is upon us.' So they cast lots, and the lot fell upon Jonah. 8 Then said they unto him: 'Tell us, we pray thee, for whose cause this evil is upon us: what is thine occupation? and whence comest thou? what is thy country? and of what people art thou?' 9 And he said unto them: 'I am an Hebrew; and I fear the LORD, the God of heaven, who hath made the sea and the dry land.' 10 Then were the men exceedingly afraid, and said unto him: 'What is this that thou hast done?' For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the LORD, because he had told them.

11 Then said they unto him: 'What shall we do unto thee, that the sea may be calm unto us?' for the sea grew more and more tempestuous. 12 And he said unto them: 'Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you; for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.' 13 Nevertheless the men rowed hard to bring it to the land; but they could not; for the sea grew more and more tempestuous against them. 14 Wherefore they cried unto the LORD, and said: 'We beseech Thee, O LORD, we beseech Thee, let us not perish for this man's life, and lay not upon us innocent blood; for Thou, O LORD, hast done as it pleased Thee.' 15 So they took up Jonah, and cast him forth into the sea; and the sea ceased from its raging. 16 Then the men feared the LORD exceedingly; and they offered a sacrifice unto the LORD, and made vows.

JONAH 2 — 1 And the LORD prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah; and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. 2 Then Jonah prayed unto the LORD his God out of the fish's belly. 3 And he said:

I called out of mine affliction

Unto the LORD, and He answered me;

Out of the belly of the nether-world cried I,

And Thou heardest my voice.

4 For Thou didst cast me into the depth,

In the heart of the seas,

And the flood was round about me;

All Thy waves and Thy billows

Passed over me.

5 And I said: 'I am cast out

From before Thine eyes';

Yet I will look again

Toward Thy holy temple.

6 The waters compassed me about, even to the soul;

The deep was round about me;

The weeds were wrapped about my head.

7 I went down to the bottoms of the mountains;

The earth with her bars closed upon me for ever;

Yet hast Thou brought up my life from the pit,

O LORD my God.

8 When my soul fainted within me,

I remembered the LORD;

And my prayer came in unto Thee,

Into Thy holy temple.

9 They that regard lying vanities

Forsake their own mercy.

10 But I will sacrifice unto Thee

With the voice of thanksgiving;

That which I have vowed I will pay.

Salvation is of the LORD.

11 And the LORD spoke unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land.

JONAH 3 — 1 And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying: 2 'Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and make unto it the proclamation that I bid thee.' 3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city, of three days' journey. 4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he proclaimed, and said: 'Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.'

5 And the people of Nineveh believed God; and they proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them. 6 And the tidings reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying: 'Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing; let them not feed, nor drink water; 8 but let them be covered with sackcloth, both man and beast, and let them cry mightily unto God; yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands. 9 Who knoweth whether God will not turn and repent, and turn away from His fierce anger, that we perish not?'

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, which He said He would do unto them; and He did it not. JONAH 4 — 1 But it displeased Jonah exceedingly, and he was angry. 2 And he prayed unto the LORD, and said: 'I pray Thee, O LORD, was not this my saying, when I was yet in mine own country? Therefore I fled beforehand unto Tarshish; for I knew that Thou art a gracious God, and compassionate, long-suffering, and abundant in mercy, and repentest Thee of the evil. 3 Therefore now, O LORD, take, I beseech Thee, my life from me; for it is better for me to die than to live.' 4 And the LORD said: 'Art thou greatly angry?'

5 Then Jonah went out of the city, and sat on the east side of the city, and there made him a booth, and sat under it in the shadow, till he might see what would become of the city. 6 And the LORD God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his evil. So Jonah was exceeding glad because of the gourd. 7 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd, that it withered. 8 And it came to pass, when the sun arose, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and requested for himself that he might die, and said: 'It is better for me to die than to live.' 9 And God said to Jonah: 'Art thou greatly angry for the gourd?' And he said: 'I am greatly angry, even unto death.' 10 And the LORD said: 'Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow, which came up in a night, and perished in a night; 11 and should not I have pity on Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand, and also much cattle?'

Micah

[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] [7]

MICAH 1 — 1 The word of the LORD that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, which he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.

2 Hear, ye peoples, all of you;

Hearken, O earth, and all that therein is;

And let the Lord GOD be witness against you,

The Lord from His holy temple.

3 For, behold, the LORD cometh forth out of His place,

And will come down, and tread upon the high places of the earth.

4 And the mountains shall be molten under Him,

And the valleys shall be cleft,

As wax before the fire,

As waters that are poured down a steep place.

5 For the transgression of Jacob is all this,

And for the sins of the house of Israel.

What is the transgression of Jacob? is it not Samaria?

And what are the high places of Judah? are they not Jerusalem?

6 Therefore I will make Samaria a heap in the field,

A place for the planting of vineyards;

And I will pour down the stones thereof into the valley,

And I will uncover the foundations thereof.

7 And all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces,

And all her hires shall be burned with fire,

And all her idols will I lay desolate;

For of the hire of a harlot hath she gathered them,

And unto the hire of a harlot shall they return.

8 For this will I wail and howl,

I will go stripped and naked;

I will make a wailing like the jackals,

And a mourning like the ostriches.

9 For her wound is incurable;

For it is come even unto Judah;

It reacheth unto the gate of my people, even to Jerusalem.

10 Tell it not in Gath,

Weep not at all;

At Beth-le-aphrah roll thyself in the dust.

11 Pass ye away, O inhabitant of Saphir, in nakedness and shame;

The inhabitant of Zaanan is not come forth;

The wailing of Beth-ezel shall take from you the standing-place thereof.

12 For the inhabitant of Maroth waiteth anxiously for good;

Because evil is come down from the LORD unto the gate of Jerusalem.

13 Bind the chariots to the swift steeds, O inhabitant of Lachish;

She was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion;

For the transgressions of Israel are found in thee.

14 Therefore shalt thou give a parting gift to Moresheth-gath;

The houses of Achzib shall be a deceitful thing unto the kings of Israel.

15 I will yet bring unto thee, O inhabitant of Mareshah, him that shall possess thee;

The glory of Israel shall come even unto Adullam.

16 Make thee bald, and poll thee for the children of thy delight;

Enlarge thy baldness as the vulture;

For they are gone into captivity from thee.

MICAH 2 — 1 Woe to them that devise iniquity

And work evil upon their beds!

When the morning is light, they execute it,

Because it is in the power of their hand.

2 And they covet fields, and seize them;

And houses, and take them away;

Thus they oppress a man and his house,

Even a man and his heritage.

3 Therefore thus saith the LORD:

Behold, against this family do I devise an evil,

From which ye shall not remove your necks,

Neither shall ye walk upright; for it shall be an evil time.

4 In that day shall they take up a parable against you,

And lament with a doleful lamentation, and say:

'We are utterly ruined;

He changeth the portion of my people;

How doth he remove it from me!

Instead of restoring our fields, he divideth them.'

5 Therefore thou shalt have none that shall cast the line by lot

In the congregation of the LORD.

6 'Preach ye not', they preach;

'They shall not preach of these things,

That they shall not take shame.'

7 Do I change, O house of Jacob?

Is the spirit of the LORD straitened?

Are these His doings?

Do not My words do good to him that walketh uprightly?

8 But of late My people is risen up as an enemy;

With the garment ye strip also the mantle

From them that pass by securely, so that they are as men returning from war.

9 The women of My people ye cast out from their pleasant houses;

From their young children ye take away My glory for ever.

10 Arise ye, and depart; for this is not your resting-place;

Because of the uncleanness thereof, it shall destroy you, even with a sore destruction.

11 If a man walking in wind and falsehood do lie:

'I will preach unto thee of wine and of strong drink';

He shall even be the preacher of this people.

12 I will surely assemble, O Jacob, all of thee;

I will surely gather the remnant of Israel;

I will render them all as sheep in a fold;

As a flock in the midst of their pasture;

They shall make great noise by reason of the multitude of men.

13 The breaker is gone up before them;

They have broken forth and passed on,

By the gate, and are gone out thereat;

And their king is passed on before them,

And the LORD at the head of them.

MICAH 3 — 1 And I said:

Hear, I pray you, ye heads of Jacob,

And rulers of the house of Israel:

Is it not for you to know justice?

2 Who hate the good, and love the evil;

Who rob their skin from off them,

And their flesh from off their bones;

3 Who also eat the flesh of my people,

And flay their skin from off them,

And break their bones;

Yea, they chop them in pieces, as that which is in the pot,

And as flesh within the caldron.

4 Then shall they cry unto the LORD,

But He will not answer them;

Yea, He will hide His face from them at that time,

According as they have wrought evil in their doings.

5 Thus saith the LORD concerning the prophets that make my people to err;

That cry: 'Peace', when their teeth have any thing to bite;

And whoso putteth not into their mouths,

They even prepare war against him:

6 Therefore it shall be night unto you, that ye shall have no vision;

And it shall be dark unto you, that ye shall not divine;

And the sun shall go down upon the prophets,

And the day shall be black over them.

7 And the seers shall be put to shame, and the diviners confounded;

Yea, they shall all cover their upper lips;

For there shall be no answer of God.

8 But I truly am full of power by the spirit of the LORD,

And of justice, and of might,

To declare unto Jacob his transgression,

And to Israel his sin.

9 Hear this, I pray you, ye heads of the house of Jacob,

And rulers of the house of Israel,

That abhor justice, and pervert all equity;

10 That build up Zion with blood,

And Jerusalem with iniquity.

11 The heads thereof judge for reward,

And the priests thereof teach for hire,

And the prophets thereof divine for money;

Yet will they lean upon the LORD, and say:

'Is not the LORD in the midst of us?

No evil shall come upon us'?

12 Therefore shall Zion for your sake be plowed as a field,

And Jerusalem shall become heaps,

And the mountain of the house as the high places of a forest.

MICAH 4 — 1 But in the end of days it shall come to pass,

That the mountain of the LORD'S house shall be established as the top of the mountains,

And it shall be exalted above the hills;

And peoples shall flow unto it.

2 And many nations shall go and say:

'Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,

And to the house of the God of Jacob;

And He will teach us of His ways,

And we will walk in His paths';

For out of Zion shall go forth the law,

And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

3 And He shall judge between many peoples,

And shall decide concerning mighty nations afar off;

And they shall beat their swords into plowshares,

And their spears into pruninghooks;

Nation shall not lift up sword against nation,

Neither shall they learn war any more.

4 But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree;

And none shall make them afraid;

For the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken.

5 For let all the peoples walk each one in the name of its god,

But we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.

6 In that day, saith the LORD, will I assemble her that halteth,

And I will gather her that is driven away,

And her that I have afflicted;

7 And I will make her that halted a remnant,

And her that was cast far off a mighty nation;

And the LORD shall reign over them in mount Zion from thenceforth even for ever.

8 And thou, Migdal-eder, the hill of the daughter of Zion,

Unto thee shall it come;

Yea, the former dominion shall come,

The kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.

9 Now why dost thou cry out aloud?

Is there no King in thee,

Is thy Counsellor perished,

That pangs have taken hold of thee as of a woman in travail?

10 Be in pain, and labour to bring forth, O daughter of Zion,

Like a woman in travail;

For now shalt thou go forth out of the city,

And shalt dwell in the field,

And shalt come even unto Babylon;

There shalt thou be rescued;

There shall the LORD redeem thee from the hand of thine enemies.

11 And now many nations are assembled against thee,

That say: 'Let her be defiled, and let our eye gaze upon Zion.'

12 But they know not the thoughts of the LORD,

Neither understand they His counsel;

For He hath gathered them as the sheaves to the threshing-floor.

13 Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion;

For I will make thy horn iron,

And I will make thy hoofs brass;

And thou shalt beat in pieces many peoples;

And thou shalt devote their gain unto the LORD,

And their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.

14 Now shalt thou gather thyself in troops, O daughter of troops;

They have laid siege against us;

They smite the judge of Israel with a rod upon the cheek.

MICAH 5 — 1 But thou, Beth-lehem Ephrathah,

Which art little to be among the thousands of Judah,

Out of thee shall one come forth unto Me that is to be ruler in Israel;

Whose goings forth are from of old, from ancient days.

2 Therefore will He give them up,

Until the time that she who travaileth hath brought forth;

Then the residue of his brethren shall return with the children of Israel.

3 And he shall stand, and shall feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,

In the majesty of the name of the LORD his God;

And they shall abide, for then shall he be great unto the ends of the earth.

4 And this shall be peace:

When the Assyrian shall come into our land,

And when he shall tread in our palaces,

Then shall we raise against him seven shepherds,

And eight princes among men.

5 And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword,

And the land of Nimrod with the keen-edged sword;

And he shall deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land,

And when he treadeth within our border.

6 And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many peoples,

As dew from the LORD, as showers upon the grass,

That are not looked for from man,

Nor awaited at the hands of the sons of men.

7 And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples,

As a lion among the beasts of the forest,

As a young lion among the flocks of sheep,

Who, if he go through, treadeth down and teareth in pieces,

And there is none to deliver.

8 Let Thy hand be lifted up above Thine adversaries,

And let all Thine enemies be cut off.

9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the LORD,

That I will cut off thy horses out of the midst of thee,

And will destroy thy chariots;

10 And I will cut off the cities of thy land,

And will throw down all thy strongholds;

11 And I will cut off witchcrafts out of thy hand;

And thou shalt have no more soothsayers;

12 And I will cut off thy graven images and thy pillars out of the midst of thee;

And thou shalt no more worship the work of thy hands.

13 And I will pluck up thy Asherim out of the midst of thee;

And I will destroy thine enemies.

14 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the nations,

Because they hearkened not.

MICAH 6 — 1 Hear ye now what the LORD saith:

Arise, contend thou before the mountains,

And let the hills hear thy voice.

2 Hear, O ye mountains, the LORD'S controversy,

And ye enduring rocks, the foundations of the earth;

For the LORD hath a controversy with His people,

And He will plead with Israel.

3 O My people, what have I done unto thee?

And wherein have I wearied thee?

Testify against Me.

4 For I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt,

And redeemed thee out of the house of bondage,

And I sent before thee Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

5 O My people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised,

And what Balaam the son of Beor answered him;

From Shittim unto Gilgal,

That ye may know the righteous acts of the LORD.

6 'Wherewith shall I come before the LORD,

And bow myself before God on high?

Shall I come before Him with burnt-offerings,

With calves of a year old?

7 Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams,

With ten thousands of rivers of oil?

Shall I give my first-born for my transgression,

The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?'

8 It hath been told thee, O man, what is good,

And what the LORD doth require of thee:

Only to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God.

9 Hark! the LORD crieth unto the city-

And it is wisdom to have regard for Thy name-

Hear ye the rod, and who hath appointed it.

10 Are there yet the treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked,

And the scant measure that is abominable?

11 'Shall I be pure with wicked balances,

And with a bag of deceitful weights?'

12 For the rich men thereof are full of violence,

And the inhabitants thereof have spoken lies,

And their tongue is deceitful in their mouth.

13 Therefore I also do smite thee with a grievous wound;

I do make thee desolate because of thy sins.

14 Thou shalt eat, but not be satisfied;

And thy sickness shall be in thine inward parts;

And thou shalt conceive, but shalt not bring forth;

And whomsoever thou bringest forth will I give up to the sword.

15 Thou shalt sow, but shalt not reap;

Thou shalt tread the olives, but shalt not anoint thee with oil;

And the vintage, but shalt not drink wine.

16 For the statutes of Omri are kept,

And all the works of the house of Ahab,

And ye walk in their counsels;

That I may make thee an astonishment,

And the inhabitants thereof a hissing;

And ye shall bear the reproach of My people.

MICAH 7 — 1 Woe is me! for I am as the last of the summer fruits,

As the grape gleanings of the vintage;

There is no cluster to eat;

Nor first-ripe fig which my soul desireth.

2 The godly man is perished out of the earth,

And the upright among men is no more;

They all lie in wait for blood;

They hunt every man his brother with a net.

3 Their hands are upon that which is evil to do it diligently;

The prince asketh, and the judge is ready for a reward;

And the great man, he uttereth the evil desire of his soul;

Thus they weave it together.

4 The best of them is as a brier;

The most upright is worse than a thorn hedge;

The day of thy watchmen, even thy visitation, is come;

Now shall be their perplexity.

5 Trust ye not in a friend,

Put ye not confidence in a familiar friend;

Keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.

6 For the son dishonoureth the father,

The daughter riseth up against her mother,

The daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law;

A man's enemies are the men of his own house.

7 'But as for me, I will look unto the LORD;

I will wait for the God of my salvation;

My God will hear me.

8 Rejoice not against me, O mine enemy;

Though I am fallen, I shall arise;

Though I sit in darkness, the LORD is a light unto me.

9 I will bear the indignation of the LORD,

Because I have sinned against Him;

Until He plead my cause, and execute judgment for me;

He will bring me forth to the light,

And I shall behold His righteousness.

10 Then mine enemy shall see it, and shame shall cover her;

Who said unto me: Where is the LORD thy God?

Mine eyes shall gaze upon her;

Now shall she be trodden down as the mire of the streets.'

11 'The day for building thy walls, even that day, shall be far removed.'

12 There shall be a day when they shall come unto thee,

From Assyria even to the cities of Egypt,

And from Egypt even to the River,

And from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain.

13 And the land shall be desolate for them that dwell therein,

Because of the fruit of their doings.

14 Tend Thy people with Thy staff, the flock of Thy heritage,

That dwell solitarily, as a forest in the midst of the fruitful field;

Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, as in the days of old.

15 'As in the days of thy coming forth out of the land of Egypt

Will I show unto him marvellous things.'

16 The nations shall see and be put to shame for all their might;

They shall lay their hand upon their mouth,

Their ears shall be deaf.

17 They shall lick the dust like a serpent;

Like crawling things of the earth they shall come trembling out of their close places;

They shall come with fear unto the LORD our God,

And shall be afraid because of Thee.

18 Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth the iniquity,

And passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage?

He retaineth not His anger for ever,

Because He delighteth in mercy.

19 He will again have compassion upon us;

He will subdue our iniquities;

And Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.

20 Thou wilt show faithfulness to Jacob, mercy to Abraham,

As Thou hast sworn unto our fathers from the days of old.

Nahum

[1] [2] [3]

NAHUM 1 — 1 The burden of Nineveh. The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

2 The LORD is a jealous and avenging God,

The LORD avengeth and is full of wrath;

The LORD taketh vengeance on His adversaries,

And He reserveth wrath for His enemies.

3 The LORD is long-suffering, and great in power,

And will by no means clear the guilty;

The LORD, in the whirlwind and in the storm is His way,

And the clouds are the dust of His feet.

4 He rebuketh the sea, and maketh it dry,

And drieth up all the rivers;

Bashan languisheth, and Carmel,

And the flower of Lebanon languisheth.

5 The mountains quake at Him,

And the hills melt;

And the earth is upheaved at His presence,

Yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.

6 Who can stand before His indignation?

And who can abide in the fierceness of His anger?

His fury is poured out like fire,

And the rocks are broken asunder before Him.

7 The LORD is good,

A stronghold in the day of trouble;

And He knoweth them that take refuge in Him.

8 But with an overrunning flood

He will make a full end of the place thereof,

And darkness shall pursue His enemies.

9 What do ye devise against the LORD?

He will make a full end;

Trouble shall not rise up the second time.

10 For though they be like tangled thorns,

And be drunken according to their drink,

They shall be devoured as stubble fully dry.

11 Out of thee came he forth,

That deviseth evil against the LORD,

That counselleth wickedness.

12 Thus saith the LORD:

Though they be in full strength, and likewise many,

Even so shall they be cut down, and he shall pass away;

And though I have afflicted thee, I will afflict thee no more.

13 And now will I break his yoke from off thee,

And will burst thy bonds in sunder.

14 And the LORD hath given commandment concerning thee,

That no more of thy name be sown;

Out of the house of thy god will I cut off

The graven image and the molten image;

I will make thy grave; for thou art become worthless.

NAHUM 2 — 1 Behold upon the mountains the feet of him

That bringeth good tidings, that announceth peace!

Keep thy feasts, O Judah,

Perform thy vows;

For the wicked one shall no more pass through thee;

He is utterly cut off.

2 A maul is come up before thy face;

Guard the defences,

Watch the way, make thy loins strong,

Fortify thy power mightily!-

3 For the LORD restoreth the pride of Jacob,

As the pride of Israel;

For the emptiers have emptied them out,

And marred their vine-branches.-

4 The shield of his mighty men is made red,

The valiant men are in scarlet;

The chariots are fire of steel in the day of his preparation,

And the cypress spears are made to quiver.

5 The chariots rush madly in the streets,

They jostle one against another in the broad places;

The appearance of them is like torches,

They run to and fro like the lightnings.

6 He bethinketh himself of his worthies;

They stumble in their march;

They make haste to the wall thereof,

And the mantelet is prepared.

7 The gates of the rivers are opened,

And the palace is dissolved.

8 And the queen is uncovered, she is carried away,

And her handmaids moan as with the voice of doves,

Tabering upon their breasts.

9 But Nineveh hath been from of old like a pool of water;

Yet they flee away;

'Stand, stand';

But none looketh back.

10 Take ye the spoil of silver, take the spoil of gold;

For there is no end of the store,

Rich with all precious vessels.

11 She is empty, and void, and waste;

And the heart melteth, and the knees smite together,

And convulsion is in all loins,

And the faces of them all have gathered blackness.

12 Where is the den of the lions,

Which was the feeding-place of the young lions,

Where the lion and the lioness walked,

And the lion's whelp, and none made them afraid?

13 The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps,

And strangled for his lionesses,

And filled his caves with prey,

And his dens with ravin.

14 Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts,

And I will burn her chariots in the smoke,

And the sword shall devour thy young lions;

And I will cut off thy prey from the earth,

And the voice of thy messengers shall no more be heard.

NAHUM 3 — 1 Woe to the bloody city!

It is all full of lies and rapine;

The prey departeth not.

2 Hark! the whip, and hark! the rattling of the wheels;

And prancing horses, and bounding chariots;

3 The horseman charging,

And the flashing sword, and the glittering spear;

And a multitude of slain, and a heap of carcases;

And there is no end of the corpses,

And they stumble upon their corpses;

4 Because of the multitude of the harlotries of the well-favoured harlot,

The mistress of witchcrafts,

That selleth nations through her harlotries,

And families through her witchcrafts.

5 Behold, I am against thee, saith the LORD of hosts,

And I will uncover thy skirts upon thy face,

And I will shew the nations thy nakedness,

And the kingdoms thy shame.

6 And I will cast detestable things upon thee, and make thee vile,

And will make thee as dung.

7 And it shall come to pass, that all they that look upon thee

Shall flee from thee,

And say: 'Nineveh is laid waste;

Who will bemoan her?

Whence shall I seek comforters for thee?'

8 Art thou better than No-amon,

That was situate among the rivers,

That had the waters round about her;

Whose rampart was the sea, and of the sea her wall?

9 Ethiopia and Egypt were thy strength, and it was infinite;

Put and Lubim were thy helpers.

10 Yet was she carried away,

She went into captivity;

Her young children also were dashed in pieces

At the head of all the streets;

And they cast lots for her honourable men,

And all her great men were bound in chains.

11 Thou also shalt be drunken,

Thou shalt swoon;

Thou also shalt seek a refuge

Because of the enemy.

12 All thy fortresses shall be like fig-trees with the first-ripe figs:

If they be shaken, they fall into the mouth of the eater.

13 Behold, thy people in the midst of thee are women;

The gates of thy land are set wide open unto thine enemies;

The fire hath devoured thy bars.

14 Draw thee water for the siege,

Strengthen thy fortresses;

Go into the clay, and tread the mortar,

Lay hold of the brickmould.

15 There shall the fire devour thee;

The sword shall cut thee off,

It shall devour thee like the canker-worm;

Make thyself many as the canker-worm,

Make thyself many as the locusts.

16 Thou hast multiplied thy merchants

Above the stars of heaven;

The canker-worm spreadeth itself, and flieth away.

17 Thy crowned are as the locusts,

And thy marshals as the swarms of grasshoppers,

Which camp in the walls in the cold day,

But when the sun ariseth they flee away,

And their place is not known where they are.

18 Thy shepherds slumber, O king of Assyria,

Thy worthies are at rest;

Thy people are scattered upon the mountains,

And there is none to gather them.

19 There is no assuaging of thy hurt,

Thy wound is grievous;

All that hear the report of thee

Clap the hands over thee;

For upon whom hath not thy wickedness passed continually?

Habakkuk

[1] [2] [3]

HABAKKUK 1 — 1 The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see.

2 How long, O LORD, shall I cry,

And Thou wilt not hear?

I cry out unto Thee of violence,

And Thou wilt not save.

3 Why dost Thou show me iniquity,

And beholdest mischief?

And why are spoiling and violence before me?

So that there is strife, and contention ariseth.

4 Therefore the law is slacked,

And right doth never go forth;

For the wicked doth beset the righteous;

Therefore right goeth forth perverted.

5 Look ye among the nations, and behold,

And wonder marvellously;

For, behold, a work shall be wrought in your days,

Which ye will not believe though it be told you.

6 For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans,

That bitter and impetuous nation,

That march through the breadth of the earth,

To possess dwelling-places that are not theirs.

7 They are terrible and dreadful;

Their law and their majesty proceed from themselves.

8 Their horses also are swifter than leopards,

And are more fierce than the wolves of the desert;

And their horsemen spread themselves;

Yea, their horsemen come from far,

They fly as a vulture that hasteth to devour.

9 They come all of them for violence;

Their faces are set eagerly as the east wind;

And they gather captives as the sand.

10 And they scoff at kings,

And princes are a derision unto them;

They deride every stronghold,

For they heap up earth, and take it.

11 Then their spirit doth pass over and transgress,

And they become guilty:

Even they who impute their might unto their god.

12 Art not Thou from everlasting,

O LORD my God, my Holy One?

We shall not die.

O LORD, Thou hast ordained them for judgment,

And Thou, O Rock, hast established them for correction.

13 Thou that art of eyes too pure to behold evil,

And that canst not look on mischief,

Wherefore lookest Thou, when they deal treacherously,

And holdest Thy peace, when the wicked swalloweth up

The man that is more righteous than he;

14 And makest men as the fishes of the sea,

As the creeping things, that have no ruler over them?

15 They take up all of them with the angle,

They catch them in their net,

And gather them in their drag;

Therefore they rejoice and exult.

16 Therefore they sacrifice unto their net,

And offer unto their drag;

Because by them their portion is fat,

And their food plenteous.

17 Shall they therefore empty their net,

And not spare to slay the nations continually?

HABAKKUK 2 — 1 I will stand upon my watch,

And set me upon the tower,

And will look out to see what He will speak by me,

And what I shall answer when I am reproved.

2 And the LORD answered me, and said:

'Write the vision,

And make it plain upon tables,

That a man may read it swiftly.

3 For the vision is yet for the appointed time,

And it declareth of the end, and doth not lie;

Though it tarry, wait for it;

Because it will surely come, it will not delay.'

4 Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not upright in him;

But the righteous shall live by his faith.

5 Yea, moreover, wine is a treacherous dealer;

The haughty man abideth not;

He who enlargeth his desire as the nether-world,

And is as death, and cannot be satisfied,

But gathereth unto him all nations,

And heapeth unto him all peoples.

6 Shall not all these take up a parable against him,

And a taunting riddle against him,

And say: 'Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his!

How long? and that ladeth himself with many pledges!'

7 Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall exact interest of thee,

And awake that shall violently shake thee,

And thou shalt be for booties unto them?

8 Because thou hast spoiled many nations,

All the remnant of the peoples shall spoil thee;

Because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land,

To the city and to all that dwell therein.

9 Woe to him that gaineth evil gains for his house,

That he may set his nest on high,

That he may be delivered from the power of evil!

10 Thou hast devised shame to thy house,

By cutting off many peoples,

And hast forfeited thy life.

11 For the stone shall cry out of the wall,

And the beam out of the timber shall answer it.

12 Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood,

And establisheth a city by iniquity!

13 Behold, is it not of the LORD of hosts

That the peoples labour for the fire,

And the nations weary themselves for vanity?

14 For the earth shall be filled

With the knowledge of the glory of the LORD,

As the waters cover the sea.

15 Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink,

That puttest thy venom thereto, and makest him drunken also,

That thou mayest look on their nakedness!

16 Thou art filled with shame instead of glory,

Drink thou also, and be uncovered;

The cup of the LORD'S right hand shall be turned unto thee,

And filthiness shall be upon thy glory.

17 For the violence done to Lebanon shall cover thee,

And the destruction of the beasts, which made them afraid;

Because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land,

To the city and to all that dwell therein.

18 What profiteth the graven image,

That the maker thereof hath graven it,

Even the molten image, and the teacher of lies;

That the maker of his work trusteth therein,

To make dumb idols?

19 Woe unto him that saith to the wood: 'Awake',

To the dumb stone: 'Arise!'

Can this teach?

Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,

And there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

20 But the LORD is in His holy temple;

Let all the earth keep silence before Him.

HABAKKUK 3 — 1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. Upon Shigionoth.

2 O LORD, I have heard the report of Thee, and am afraid;

O LORD, revive Thy work in the midst of the years,

In the midst of the years make it known;

In wrath remember compassion.

3 God cometh from Teman,

And the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah.

His glory covereth the heavens,

And the earth is full of His praise.

4 And a brightness appeareth as the light;

Rays hath He at His side;

And there is the hiding of His power.

5 Before him goeth the pestilence,

And fiery bolts go forth at His feet.

6 He standeth, and shaketh the earth,

He beholdeth, and maketh the nations to tremble;

And the everlasting mountains are dashed in pieces,

The ancient hills do bow;

His goings are as of old.

7 I see the tents of Cushan in affliction;

The curtains of the land of Midian do tremble.

8 Is it, O LORD, that against the rivers,

Is it that Thine anger is kindled against the rivers,

Or Thy wrath against the sea?

That Thou dost ride upon Thy horses,

Upon Thy chariots of victory?

9 Thy bow is made quite bare;

Sworn are the rods of the word. Selah.

Thou dost cleave the earth with rivers.

10 The mountains have seen Thee, and they tremble;

The tempest of waters floweth over;

The deep uttereth its voice,

And lifteth up its hands on high.

11 The sun and moon stand still in their habitation;

At the light of Thine arrows as they go,

At the shining of Thy glittering spear.

12 Thou marchest through the earth in indignation,

Thou threshest the nations in anger.

13 Thou art come forth for the deliverance of Thy people,

For the deliverance of Thine anointed;

Thou woundest the head out of the house of the wicked,

Uncovering the foundation even unto the neck. Selah.

14 Thou hast stricken through with his own rods the head of his rulers,

That come as a whirlwind to scatter me;

Whose rejoicing is as to devour the poor secretly.

15 Thou hast trodden the sea with Thy horses,

The foaming of mighty waters.

16 When I heard, mine inward parts trembled,

My lips quivered at the voice;

Rottenness entereth into my bones,

And I tremble where I stand;

That I should wait for the day of trouble,

When he cometh up against the people that he invadeth.

17 For though the fig-tree shall not blossom,

Neither shall fruit be in the vines;

The labour of the olive shall fail,

And the fields shall yield no food;

The flock shall be cut off from the fold,

And there shall be no herd in the stalls;

18 Yet I will rejoice in the LORD,

I will exult in the God of my salvation.

19 God, the Lord, is my strength,

And He maketh my feet like hinds' feet,

And He maketh me to walk upon my high places.

For the Leader. With my string-music.

Zephaniah

[1] [2] [3]

ZEPHANIAH 1 — 1 The word of the LORD which came unto Zephaniah the son of Cushi, the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah, the son of Hezekiah, in the days of Josiah the son of Amon, king of Judah.

2 I will utterly consume all things

From off the face of the earth,

Saith the LORD.

3 I will consume man and beast,

I will consume the fowls of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea,

And the stumblingblocks with the wicked;

And I will cut off man from off the face of the earth,

Saith the LORD.

4 And I will stretch out My hand upon Judah,

And upon all the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

And I will cut off the remnant of Baal from this place,

And the name of the idolatrous priests with the priests;

5 And them that worship the host of heaven upon the housetops;

And them that worship, that swear to the LORD

And swear by Malcam;

6 Them also that are turned back from following the LORD;

And those that have not sought the LORD, nor inquired after Him.

7 Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord GOD;

For the day of the LORD is at hand,

For the LORD hath prepared a sacrifice,

He hath consecrated His guests.

8 And it shall come to pass in the day of the LORD'S sacrifice,

That I will punish the princes, and the king's sons,

And all such as are clothed with foreign apparel.

9 In the same day also will I punish all those that leap over the threshold,

That fill their master's house with violence and deceit.

10 And in that day, saith the LORD,

Hark! a cry from the fish gate,

And a wailing from the second quarter,

And a great crashing from the hills.

11 Wail, ye inhabitants of Maktesh,

For all the merchant people are undone;

All they that were laden with silver are cut off.

12 And it shall come to pass at that time,

That I will search Jerusalem with lamps;

And I will punish the men that are settled on their lees,

That say in their heart:

'The LORD will not do good, neither will He do evil.'

13 Therefore their wealth shall become a booty,

And their houses a desolation;

Yea, they shall build houses, but shall not inhabit them,

And they shall plant vineyards, but shall not drink the wine thereof.

14 The great day of the LORD is near,

It is near and hasteth greatly,

Even the voice of the day of the LORD,

Wherein the mighty man crieth bitterly.

15 That day is a day of wrath,

A day of trouble and distress,

A day of wasteness and desolation,

A day of darkness and gloominess,

A day of clouds and thick darkness,

16 A day of the horn and alarm,

Against the fortified cities, and against the high towers.

17 And I will bring distress upon men,

That they shall walk like the blind,

Because they have sinned against the LORD;

And their blood shall be poured out as dust,

And their flesh as dung.

18 Neither their silver nor their gold

Shall be able to deliver them

In the day of the LORD'S wrath;

But the whole earth shall be devoured by the fire of His jealousy;

For He will make and end, yea, a terrible end,

Of all them that dwell in the earth.

ZEPHANIAH 2 — 1 Gather yourselves together, yea, gather together,

O shameless nation;

2 Before the decree bring forth

The day when one passeth as the chaff,

Before the fierce anger of the LORD come upon you,

Before the day of the LORD'S anger come upon you.

3 Seek ye the LORD, all ye humble of the earth,

That have executed His ordinance;

Seek righteousness, seek humility.

It may be ye shall be hid in the day of the LORD'S anger.

4 For Gaza shall be forsaken,

And Ashkelon a desolation;

They shall drive out Ashdod at the noonday,

And Ekron shall be rooted up.

5 Woe unto the inhabitants of the sea-coast,

The nation of the Cherethites!

The word of the LORD is against you,

O Canaan, the land of the Philistines;

I will even destroy thee, that there shall be no inhabitant.

6 And the sea-coast shall be pastures,

Even meadows for shepherds, and folds for flocks.

7 And it shall be a portion for the remnant of the house of Judah,

Whereon they shall feed;

In the houses of Ashkelon shall they lie down in the evening;

For the LORD their God will remember them,

And turn their captivity.

8 I have heard the taunt of Moab,

And the revilings of the children of Ammon,

Wherewith they have taunted My people,

And spoken boastfully concerning their border.

9 Therefore as I live,

Saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel:

Surely Moab shall be as Sodom,

And the children of Ammon as Gomorrah,

Even the breeding-place of nettles, and saltpits,

And a desolation, for ever;

The residue of My people shall spoil them,

And the remnant of My nation shall inherit them.

10 This shall they have for their pride,

Because they have taunted and spoken boastfully

Against the people of the LORD of hosts.

11 The LORD will be terrible unto them;

For He will famish all the gods of the earth;

Then shall all the isles of the nations worship Him,

Every one from its place.

12 Ye Ethiopians also,

Ye shall be slain by My sword.

13 And He will stretch out His hand against the north,

And destroy Assyria;

And will make Nineveh a desolation,

And dry like the wilderness.

14 And all beasts of every kind

Shall lie down in the midst of her in herds;

Both the pelican and the bittern

Shall lodge in the capitals thereof;

Voices shall sing in the windows;

Desolation shall be in the posts;

For the cedar-work thereof shall be uncovered.

15 This is the joyous city

That dwelt without care,

That said in her heart:

'I am, and there is none else beside me';

How is she become a desolation,

A place for beasts to lie down in!

Every one that passeth by her

Shall hiss, and wag his hand.

ZEPHANIAH 3 — 1 Woe to her that is filthy and polluted,

To the oppressing city!

2 She hearkened not the voice,

She received not correction;

She trusted not in the LORD,

She drew not near to her God.

3 Her princes in the midst of her are roaring lions;

Her judges are wolves of the desert,

They leave not a bone for the morrow.

4 Her prophets are wanton

And treacherous persons;

Her priests have profaned that which is holy,

They have done violence to the law.

5 The LORD who is righteous is in the midst of her,

He will not do unrighteousness;

Every morning doth He bring His right to light,

It faileth not;

But the unrighteous knoweth no shame.

6 I have cut off nations,

Their corners are desolate;

I have made their streets waste,

So that none passeth by;

Their cities are destroyed, so that there is no man,

So that there is no inhabitant.

7 I said: 'Surely thou wilt fear Me,

Thou wilt receive correction;

So her dwelling shall not be cut off,

Despite all that I have visited upon her';

But they betimes corrupted all their doings.

8 Therefore wait ye for Me, saith the LORD,

Until the day that I rise up to the prey;

For My determination is to gather the nations,

That I may assemble the kingdoms,

To pour upon them Mine indignation,

Even all My fierce anger;

For all the earth shall be devoured

With the fire of My jealousy.

9 For then will I turn to the peoples

A pure language,

That they may all call upon the name of the LORD,

To serve Him with one consent.

10 From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia

Shall they bring My suppliants,

Even the daughter of My dispersed,

As Mine offering.

11 In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings,

Wherein thou hast transgressed against Me;

For then I will take away out of the midst of thee

Thy proudly exulting ones,

And thou shalt no more be haughty

In My holy mountain.

12 And I will leave in the midst of thee

An afflicted and poor people,

And they shall take refuge in the name of the LORD.

13 The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity,

Nor speak lies,

Neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth;

For they shall feed and lie down,

And none shall make them afraid.

14 Sing, O daughter of Zion,

Shout, O Israel;

Be glad and rejoice with all the heart,

O daughter of Jerusalem.

15 The LORD hath taken away thy judgments,

He hath cast out thine enemy;

The King of Israel, even the LORD, is in the midst of thee;

Thou shalt not fear evil any more.

16 In that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:

'Fear thou not;

O Zion, let not thy hands be slack.

17 The LORD thy God is in the midst of thee,

A Mighty One who will save;

He will rejoice over thee with joy,

He will be silent in His love,

He will joy over thee with singing.'

18 I will gather them that are far from the appointed season, who are of thee,

That hast borne the burden of reproach.

19 Behold, at that time

I will deal with all them that afflict thee;

And I will save her that is lame,

And gather her that was driven away;

And I will make them to be a praise and a name,

Whose shame hath been in all the earth.

20 At that time will I bring you in,

And at that time will I gather you;

For I will make you to be a name and a praise

Among all the peoples of the earth,

When I turn your captivity before your eyes,

Saith the LORD.

Haggai

[1] [2]

HAGGAI 1 — 1 In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, in the first day of the month, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying: 2 'Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying: This people say: The time is not come, the time that the LORD'S house should be built.' 3 Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying: 4 'Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your cieled houses, while this house lieth waste? 5 Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts:

Consider your ways.

6 Ye have sown much, and brought in little,

Ye eat, but ye have not enough,

Ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink,

Ye clothe you, but there is none warm;

And he that earneth wages earneth wages

For a bag with holes.

7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways. 8 Go up to the hill-country, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD. 9 Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of My house that lieth waste, while ye run every man for his own house. 10 Therefore over you the heaven hath kept back, so that there is no dew, and the earth hath kept back her produce. 11 And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.'

12 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, hearkened unto the voice of the LORD their God, and unto the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him; and the people did fear before the LORD. 13 Then spoke Haggai the LORD'S messenger in the LORD'S message unto the people, saying: 'I am with you, saith the LORD.' 14 And the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the LORD of hosts, their God, 15 in the four and twentieth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.

HAGGAI 2 — 1 In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying: 2 'Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, saying: 3 Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory? and how do ye see it now? is not such a one as nothing in your eyes? 4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work; for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts. 5 The word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt have I established, and My spirit abideth among you; fear ye not. 6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts: Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; 7 and I will shake all nations, and the choicest things of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts. 8 Mine is the silver, and Mine the gold, saith the LORD of hosts. 9 The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former, saith the LORD of hosts; and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.'

10 In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying: 11 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Ask now the priests for instruction, saying: 12 If one bear hallowed flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any food, shall it be holy?' And the priests answered and said: 'No.' 13 Then said Haggai: 'If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean?' And the priests answered and said: 'It shall be unclean.' 14 Then answered Haggai, and said: 'So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean. 15 And now, I pray you, consider from this day and forward-before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the LORD, 16 through all that time, when one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten; when one came to the winevat to draw out fifty press-measures, there were but twenty; 17 I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the work of your hands; yet ye turned not to Me, saith the LORD-18 consider, I pray you, from this day and forward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the LORD'S temple was laid, consider it; 19 is the seed yet in the barn? yea, the vine, and the fig-tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive-tree hath not brought forth-from this day will I bless you.'

20 And the word of the LORD came the second time unto Haggai in the four and twentieth day of the month, saying: 21 'Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying: I will shake the heavens and the earth; 22 and I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. 23 In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, My servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet; for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts.'

Zechariah

[01] [02] [03] [04] [05] [06] [07] [08] [09] [10]

[11] [12] [13] [14]

ZECHARIAH 1 — 1 In the eighth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying: 2 'The LORD hath been sore displeased with your fathers. 3 Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Return unto Me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. 4 Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets proclaimed, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Return ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings; but they did not hear, nor attend unto Me, saith the LORD. 5 Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever? 6 But My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? so that they turned and said: Like as the LORD of hosts purposed to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath He dealt with us.'

7 Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Shebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo, the prophet, saying- 8 I saw in the night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle-trees that were in the bottom; and behind him there were horses, red, sorrel, and white. 9 Then said I: 'O my lord, what are these?' And the angel that spoke with me said unto me: 'I will show thee what these are.' 10 And the man that stood among the myrtle-trees answered and said: 'These are they whom the LORD hath sent to walk to and fro through the earth.' 11 And they answered the angel of the LORD that stood among the myrtle-trees, and said: 'We have walked to and fro through the earth, and, behold, all the earth sitteth still, and is at rest.' 12 Then the angel of the LORD spoke and said: 'O LORD of hosts, how long wilt Thou not have compassion on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which Thou hast had indignation these threescore and ten years? 13 And the LORD answered the angel that spoke with me with good words, even comforting words-14 so the angel that spoke with me said unto me: 'Proclaim thou, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy; 15 and I am very sore displeased with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, and they helped for evil. 16 Therefore thus saith the LORD: I return to Jerusalem with compassions: My house shall be built in it, saith the LORD of hosts, and a line shall be stretched forth over Jerusalem. 17 Again, proclaim, saying: Thus saith the LORD of hosts: My cities shall again overflow with prosperity; and the LORD shall yet comfort Zion, and shall yet choose Jerusalem.'

ZECHARIAH 2 — 1 And I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and behold four horns. 2 And I said unto the angel that spoke with me: 'What are these?' And he said unto me: 'These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.'

3 And the LORD showed me four craftsmen. 4 Then said I: 'What come these to do?' And he spoke, saying: 'These-the horns which scattered Judah, so that no man did lift up his head-these then are come to frighten them, to cast down the horns of the nations, which lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.'

5 And I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and behold a man with a measuring line in his hand. 6 Then said I: 'Whither goest thou?' And he said unto me: 'To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, and what is the length thereof.' 7 And, behold, the angel that spoke with me went forth, and another angel went out to meet him, 8 and said unto him: 'Run, speak to this young man, saying: 'Jerusalem shall be inhabited without walls for the multitude of men and cattle therein. 9 For I, saith the LORD, will be unto her a wall of fire round about, and I will be the glory in the midst of her.

10 Ho, ho, flee then from the land of the north, saith the LORD; for I have spread you abroad as the four winds of the heaven, saith the LORD. 11 Ho, Zion, escape, thou that dwellest with the daughter of Babylon.'

12 For thus saith the LORD of hosts who sent me after glory unto the nations which spoiled you: 'Surely, he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye. 13 For, behold, I will shake My hand over them, and they shall be a spoil to those that served them'; and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me.

14 'Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith the LORD. 15 And many nations shall join themselves to the LORD in that day, and shall be My people, and I will dwell in the midst of thee'; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto thee. 16 And the LORD shall inherit Judah as His portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again. 17 Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD; for He is aroused out of His holy habitation.

ZECHARIAH 3 — 1 And he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD, and Satan standing at his right hand to accuse him. 2 And the LORD said unto Satan: 'The LORD rebuke thee, O Satan, yea, the LORD that hath chosen Jerusalem rebuke thee; is not this man a brand plucked out of the fire?' 3 Now Joshua was clothed with filthy garments, and stood before the angel. 4 And he answered and spoke unto those that stood before him, saying: 'Take the filthy garments from off him.' And unto him he said: 'Behold, I cause thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with robes.' 5 And I said: 'Let them set a fair mitre upon his head.' So they set a fair mitre upon his head, and clothed him with garments; and the angel of the LORD stood by. 6 And the angel of the LORD forewarned Joshua, saying: 7 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts: If thou wilt walk in My ways, and if thou wilt keep My charge, and wilt also judge My house, and wilt also keep My courts, then I will give thee free access among these that stand by. 8 Hear now, O Joshua the high priest, thou and thy fellows that sit before thee; for they are men that are a sign; for, behold, I will bring forth My servant the Shoot. 9 For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone are seven facets; behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts: And I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. 10 In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, shall ye call every man his neighbour under the vine and under the fig-tree.

ZECHARIAH 4 — 1 And the angel that spoke with me returned, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep. 2 And he said unto me: 'What seest thou?' And I said: 'I have seen, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and its seven lamps thereon; there are seven pipes, yea, seven, to the lamps, which are upon the top thereof; 3 and two olive-trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.' 4 And I answered and spoke to the angel that spoke with me, saying: 'What are these, my lord?' 5 Then the angel that spoke with me answered and said unto me: 'Knowest thou not what these are?' And I said: 'No, my lord.' 6 Then he answered and spoke unto me, saying: 'This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying: Not by might, nor by power, but by My spirit, saith the LORD of hosts. 7 Who art thou, O great mountain before Zerubbabel? thou shalt become a plain; and he shall bring forth the top stone with shoutings of Grace, grace, unto it.'

8 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 9 'The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. 10 For who hath despised the day of small things? even they shall see with joy the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel, even these seven, which are the eyes of the LORD, that run to and fro through the whole earth.'

11 Then answered I, and said unto him: 'What are these two olive-trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?' 12 And I answered the second time, and said unto him: 'What are these two olive branches, which are beside the two golden spouts, that empty the golden oil out of themselves?' 13 And he answered me and said: 'Knowest thou not what these are?' And I said: 'No, my lord.' 14 Then said he: 'These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.'

ZECHARIAH 5 — 1 Then again I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and behold a flying roll. 2 And he said unto me: 'What seest thou?' And I answered: 'I see a flying roll; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.' 3 Then said he unto me: 'This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole land; for every one that stealeth shall be swept away on the one side like it; and every one that sweareth shall be swept away on the other side like it. 4 I cause it to go forth, saith the LORD of hosts, and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by My name; and it shall abide in the midst of his house, and shall consume it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.'

5 Then the angel that spoke with me went forth, and said unto me: 'Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that goeth forth.' 6 And I said: 'What is it?' And he said: 'This is the measure that goeth forth.' He said moreover: 'This is their eye in all the land-7 and, behold, there was lifted up a round piece of lead-and this is a woman sitting in the midst of the measure.' 8 And he said: 'This is Wickedness.' And he cast her down into the midst of the measure, and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof.

9 Then lifted I up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there came forth two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork; and they lifted up the measure between the earth and the heaven. 10 Then said I to the angel that spoke with me: 'Whither do these bear the measure?' 11 And he said unto me: 'To build her a house in the land of Shinar; and when it is prepared, she shall be set there in her own place.

ZECHARIAH 6 — 1 And again I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there came four chariots out from between the two mountains; and the mountains were mountains of brass. 2 In the first chariot were red horses; and in the second chariot black horses; 3 and in the third chariot white horses; and in the fourth chariot grizzled bay horses. 4 Then I answered and said unto the angel that spoke with me: 'What are these, my lord?' 5 And the angel answered and said unto me: 'These chariots go forth to the four winds of heaven, after presenting themselves before the Lord of all the earth. 6 That wherein are the black horses goeth forth toward the north country; and the white went forth after them; and the grizzled went forth toward the south country; 7 and the bay went forth'. And they sought to go that they might walk to and fro through the earth; and he said: 'Get you hence, walk to and fro through the earth.' So they walked to and fro through the earth. 8 Then cried he upon me, and spoke unto me, saying: 'Behold, they that go toward the north country have eased My spirit in the north country.'

9 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying: 10 'Take of them of the captivity, even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah, that are come from Babylon; and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah; 11 yea, take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set the one upon the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest; 12 and speak unto him, saying: Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying: Behold, a man whose name is the Shoot, and who shall shoot up out of his place, and build the temple of the LORD; 13 even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and there shall be a priest before his throne; and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. 14 And the crowns shall be to Helem, and to Tobijah, and to Jedaiah, and to Hen the son of Zephaniah, as a memorial in the temple of the LORD. 15 And they that are far off shall come and build in the temple of the LORD, and ye shall know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you. And it shall come to pass, if ye will diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD your God-.'

ZECHARIAH 7 — 1 And it came to pass in the fourth year of king Darius, that the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah in the fourth day of the ninth month, even in Chislev; 2 When Bethel-sarezer, and Regem-melech and his men, had sent to entreat the favour of the LORD, 3 and to speak unto the priests of the house of the LORD of hosts, and to the prophets, saying: 'Should I weep in the fifth month, separating myself, as I have done these so many years?' 4 Then came the word of the LORD of hosts unto me, saying: 5 'Speak unto all the people of the land, and to the priests, saying: When ye fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month, even these seventy years, did ye at all fast unto Me, even to Me? 6 And when ye eat, and when ye did drink, are ye not they that eat, and they that drink? 7 Should ye not hearken to the words which the LORD hath proclaimed by the former prophets, when Jerusalem was inhabited and in prosperity, and the cities thereof round about her, and the South and the Lowland were inhabited?'

8 And the word of the LORD came unto Zechariah, saying: 9 'Thus hath the LORD of hosts spoken, saying: Execute true judgment, and show mercy and compassion every man to his brother; 10 and oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you devise evil against his brother in your heart. 11 But they refused to attend, and turned a stubborn shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they might not hear. 12 Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the LORD of hosts had sent by His spirit by the hand of the former prophets; therefore came there great wrath from the LORD of hosts. 13 And it came to pass that, as He called, and they would not hear; so they shall call, and I will not hear, said the LORD of hosts; 14 but I will scatter them with a whirlwind among all the nations whom they have not known. Thus the land was desolate after them, so that no man passed through nor returned; for they laid the pleasant land desolate.'

ZECHARIAH 8 — 1 And the word of the LORD of hosts came, saying: 2 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts: I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great fury.

3 Thus saith the LORD: I return unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and Jerusalem shall be called The city of truth; and the mountain of the LORD of hosts The holy mountain.

4 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: There shall yet old men and old women sit in the broad places of Jerusalem, every man with his staff in his hand for very age. 5 And the broad places of the city shall be full of boys and girls playing in the broad places thereof.

6 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: If it be marvellous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvellous in Mine eyes? saith the LORD of hosts.

7 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Behold, I will save My people from the east country, and from the west country; 8 And I will bring them, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness.

9 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: Let your hands be strong, ye that hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets that were in the day that the foundation of the house of the LORD of hosts was laid, even the temple, that it might be built. 10 For before those days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast; neither was there any peace to him that went out or came in because of the adversary; for I set all men every one against his neighbour. 11 But now I will not be unto the remnant of this people as in the former days, saith the LORD of hosts. 12 For as the seed of peace, the vine shall give her fruit, and the ground shall give her increase, and the heavens shall give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things. 13 And it shall come to pass that, as ye were a curse among the nations, O house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and ye shall be a blessing; fear not, but let your hands be strong. 14 For thus saith the LORD of host: As I purposed to do evil unto you, when your fathers provoked Me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I repented not; 15 so again do I purpose in these days to do good unto Jerusalem and to the house of Judah; fear ye not. 16 These are the things that ye shall do: Speak ye every man the truth with his neighbour; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates; 17 and let none of you devise evil in your hearts against his neighbour; and love no false oath; for all these are things that I hate, saith the LORD.'

18 And the word of the LORD of hosts came unto me, saying: 19 'Thus saith the LORD of hosts: The fast of the fourth month, and the fast of the fifth, and the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth, shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful seasons; therefore love ye truth and peace. 20 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: It shall yet come to pass, that there shall come peoples, and the inhabitants of many cities; 21 and the inhabitants of one city shall go to another, saying: Let us go speedily to entreat the favour of the LORD, and to seek the LORD of hosts; I will go also. 22 Yea, many peoples and mighty nations shall come to seek the LORD of hosts in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favour of the LORD. 23 Thus saith the LORD of hosts: In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, shall even take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying: We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'

ZECHARIAH 9 — 1 The burden of the word of the LORD.

In the land of Hadrach,

And in Damascus shall be His resting-place;

For the LORD'S is the eye of man

And all the tribes of Israel.

2 And Hamath also shall border thereon;

Tyre and Zidon, for she is very wise.

3 And Tyre did build herself a stronghold,

And heaped up silver as the dust,

And fine gold as the mire of the streets.

4 Behold, the Lord will impoverish her,

And He will smite her power into the sea;

And she shall be devoured with fire.

5 Ashkelon shall see it, and fear,

Gaza also, and shall be sore pained,

And Ekron, for her expectation shall be ashamed;

And the king shall perish from Gaza,

And Ashkelon shall not be inhabited.

6 And a bastard shall dwell in Ashdod,

And I will cut off the pride of the Philistines.

7 And I will take away his blood out of his mouth,

And his detestable things from between his teeth,

And he also shall be a remnant for our God;

And he shall be as a chief in Judah,

And Ekron as a Jebusite.

8 And I will encamp about My house against the army,

That none pass through or return;

And no oppressor shall pass through them any more;

For now have I seen with Mine eyes.

9 Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion,

Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem;

Behold, thy king cometh unto thee,

He is triumphant, and victorious,

Lowly, and riding upon an ass,

Even upon a colt the foal of an ass.

10 And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim,

And the horse from Jerusalem,

And the battle bow shall be cut off,

And he shall speak peace unto the nations;

And his dominion shall be from sea to sea,

And from the River to the ends of the earth.

11 As for thee also, because of the blood of thy covenant

I send forth thy prisoners out of the pit

Wherein is no water.

12 Return to the stronghold,

Ye prisoners of hope;

Even to-day do I declare

That I will render double unto thee.

13 For I bend Judah for Me,

I fill the bow with Ephraim;

And I will stir up thy sons, O Zion,

Against thy sons, O Javan,

And will make thee as the sword of a mighty man.

14 And the LORD shall be seen over them,

And His arrow shall go forth as the lightning;

And the Lord GOD will blow the horn,

And will go with whirlwinds of the south.

15 The LORD of hosts will defend them;

And they shall devour, and shall tread down the sling-stones;

And they shall drink, and make a noise as through wine;

And they shall be filled like the basins, like the corners of the altar.

16 And the LORD their God shall save them in that day

As the flock of His people;

For they shall be as the stones of a crown,

Glittering over His land.

17 For how great is their goodness, and how great is their beauty!

Corn shall make the young men flourish,

And new wine the maids.

ZECHARIAH 10 — 1 Ask ye of the LORD rain in the time of the latter rain,

Even of the LORD that maketh lightnings;

And He will give them showers of rain,

To every one grass in the field.

2 For the teraphim have spoken vanity,

And the diviners have seen a lie,

And the dreams speak falsely,

They comfort in vain;

Therefore they go their way like sheep,

They are afflicted, because there is no shepherd.

3 Mine anger is kindled against the shepherds,

And I will punish the he-goats;

For the LORD of hosts hath remembered His flock the house of Judah,

And maketh them as His majestic horse in the battle.

4 Out of them shall come forth the corner-stone,

Out of them the stake,

Out of them the battle bow,

Out of them every master together.

5 And they shall be as mighty men,

Treading down in the mire of the streets in the battle,

And they shall fight, because the LORD is with them;

And the riders on horses shall be confounded.

6 And I will strengthen the house of Judah,

And I will save the house of Joseph,

And I will bring them back, for I have compassion upon them,

And they shall be as though I had not cast them off;

For I am the LORD their God, and I will hear them.

7 And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man,

And their heart shall rejoice as through wine;

Yea, their children shall see it, and rejoice,

Their heart shall be glad in the LORD.

8 I will hiss for them, and gather them,

For I have redeemed them;

And they shall increase as they have increased.

9 And I will sow them among the peoples,

And they shall remember Me in far countries;

And they shall live with their children, and shall return.

10 I will bring them back also out of the land of Egypt,

And gather them out of Assyria;

And I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon;

And place shall not suffice them.

11 And over the sea affliction shall pass,

And the waves shall be smitten in the sea,

And all the depths of the Nile shall dry up;

And the pride of Assyria shall be brought down,

And the sceptre of Egypt shall depart away.

12 And I will strengthen them in the LORD;

And they shall walk up and down in His name,

Saith the LORD.

ZECHARIAH 11 — 1 Open thy doors, O Lebanon,

That the fire may devour thy cedars.

2 Wail, O cypress-tree, for the cedar is fallen;

Because the glorious ones are spoiled;

Wail, O ye oaks of Bashan,

For the strong forest is come down.

3 Hark! the wailing of the shepherds,

For their glory is spoiled;

Hark! the roaring of young lions,

For the thickets of the Jordan are spoiled.

4 Thus said the LORD my God: 'Feed the flock of slaughter; 5 whose buyers slay them, and hold themselves not guilty; and they that sell them say: Blessed be the LORD, for I am rich; and their own shepherds pity them not. 6 For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land, saith the LORD; but, lo, I will deliver the men every one into his neighbour's hand, and into the hand of his king; and they shall smite the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.' 7 So I fed the flock of slaughter, verily the poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Graciousness, and the other I called Binders; and I fed the flock. 8 And I cut off the three shepherds in one month; 'for My soul became impatient of them, and their soul also loathed Me.' 9 Then said I: 'I will not feed you; that which dieth, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let them that are left eat every one the flesh of another.' 10 And I took my staff Graciousness, and cut it asunder, 'that I might break My covenant which I had made with all the peoples.' 11 And it was broken in that day; and the poor of the flock that gave heed unto me knew of a truth that it was the word of the LORD. 12 And I said unto them: 'If ye think good, give me my hire; and if not, forbear.' So they weighed for my hire thirty pieces of silver. 13 And the LORD said unto me: 'Cast it into the treasury, the goodly price that I was prized at of them.' And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them into the treasury, in the house of the LORD. 14 Then I cut asunder mine other staff, even Binders, that the brotherhood between Judah and Israel might be broken.

15 And the LORD said unto me: 'Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd. 16 For, lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who will not think of those that are cut off, neither will seek those that are young, nor heal that which is broken; neither will he feed that which standeth still, but he will eat the flesh of the fat, and will break their hoofs in pieces.'

17 Woe to the worthless shepherd

That leaveth the flock!

The sword shall be upon his arm,

And upon his right eye;

His arm shall be clean dried up,

And his right eye shall be utterly darkened.

ZECHARIAH 12 — 1 The burden of the word of the LORD concerning Israel.

The saying of the LORD, who stretched forth the heavens,

And laid the foundation of the earth,

And formed the spirit of man within him:

2 Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of staggering

Unto all the peoples round about,

And upon Judah also shall it fall to be in the siege against Jerusalem.

3 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That I will make Jerusalem a stone of burden for all the peoples;

All that burden themselves with it shall be sore wounded;

And all the nations of the earth shall be gathered together against it.

4 In that day, saith the LORD,

I will smite every horse with bewilderment,

And his rider with madness;

And I will open Mine eyes upon the house of Judah,

And will smite every horse of the peoples with blindness.

5 And the chiefs of Judah shall say in their heart:

'The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength

Through the LORD of hosts their God.'

6 In that day will I make the chiefs of Judah

Like a pan of fire among the wood,

And like a torch of fire among sheaves;

And they shall devour all the peoples round about,

On the right hand and on the left;

And Jerusalem shall be inhabited again in her own place, even in Jerusalem.

7 The LORD also shall save the tents of Judah first,

That the glory of the house of David

And the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem be not magnified above Judah.

8 In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem;

And he that stumbleth among them at that day shall be as David;

And the house of David shall be as a godlike being,

As the angel of the LORD before them.

9 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That I will seek to destroy all the nations

That come against Jerusalem.

10 And I will pour upon the house of David,

And upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

The spirit of grace and of supplication;

And they shall look unto Me because they have thrust him through;

And they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son,

And shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his first-born.

11 In that day shall there be a great mourning in Jerusalem,

As the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.

12 And the land shall mourn, every family apart:

The family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart;

The family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;

13 The family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart;

The family of the Shimeites apart, and their wives apart;

14 All the families that remain,

Every family apart, and their wives apart.

ZECHARIAH 13 — 1 In that day there shall be a fountain opened

To the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem,

For purification and for sprinkling.

2 And it shall come to pass in that day,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

That I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land,

And they shall no more be remembered;

And also I will cause the prophets

And the unclean spirit to pass out of the land.

3 And it shall come to pass that, when any shall yet prophesy, then his father and his mother that begot him shall say unto him: 'Thou shalt not live, for thou speakest lies in the name of the LORD'; and his father and his mother that begot him shall thrust him through when he prophesieth. 4 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the prophets shall be brought to shame every one through his vision, when he prophesieth; neither shall they wear a hairy mantle to deceive; 5 but he shall say: 'I am no prophet, I am a tiller of the ground; for I have been made a bondman from my youth.' 6 And one shall say unto him: 'What are these wounds between thy hands?' Then he shall answer: 'Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends.'

7 Awake, O sword, against My shepherd,

And against the man that is near unto Me,

Saith the LORD of hosts;

Smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered;

And I will turn My hand upon the little ones.

8 And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the LORD,

Two parts therein shall be cut off and die;

But the third shall be left therein.

9 And I will bring the third part through the fire,

And will refine them as silver is refined,

And will try them as gold is tried;

They shall call on My name,

And I will answer them;

I will say: 'It is My people',

And they shall say: 'The LORD is my God.'

ZECHARIAH 14 — 1 Behold, a day of the LORD cometh,

When thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

2 For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle;

And the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled,

And the women ravished;

And half of the city shall go forth into captivity,

But the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

3 Then shall the LORD go forth,

And fight against those nations,

As when He fighteth in the day of battle.

4 And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives,

Which is before Jerusalem on the east,

And the mount of Olives shall cleft in the midst thereof

Toward the east and toward the west,

So that there shall be a very great valley;

And half of the mountain shall remove toward the north,

And half of it toward the south.

5 And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains;

For the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azel;

Yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake

In the days of Uzziah king of Judah;

And the LORD my God shall come,

And all the holy ones with Thee.

6 And it shall come to pass in that day, that there shall not be light,

But heavy clouds and thick;

7 And there shall be one day

Which shall be known as the LORD'S,

Not day, and not night;

But it shall come to pass, that at evening time there shall be light.

8 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That living waters shall go out from Jerusalem:

Half of them toward the eastern sea,

And half of them toward the western sea;

In summer and in winter shall it be.

9 And the LORD shall be King over all the earth;

In that day shall the LORD be One, and His name one.

10 All the land shall be turned as the Arabah, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem; and she shall be lifted up, and inhabited in her place, from Benjamin's gate unto the place of the first gate, unto the corner gate, and from the tower of Hananel unto the king's winepresses.

11 And men shall dwell therein,

And there shall be no more extermination;

But Jerusalem shall dwell safely.

12 And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite

All the peoples that have warred against Jerusalem:

Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet,

And their eyes shall consume away in their sockets,

And their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.

13 And it shall come to pass in that day,

That a great tumult from the LORD shall be among them;

And they shall lay hold every one on the hand of his neighbour,

And his hand shall rise up against the hand of his neighbour.

14 And Judah also shall fight against Jerusalem;

And the wealth of all the nations round about shall be gathered together,

Gold, and silver, and apparel, in great abundance.

15 And so shall be the plague of the horse,

Of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass,

And of all the beasts that shall be in those camps, as this plague.

16 And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations that came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. 17 And it shall be, that whoso of the families of the earth goeth not up unto Jerusalem to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, upon them there shall be no rain. 18 And if the family of Egypt go not up, and come not, they shall have no overflow; there shall be the plague, wherewith the LORD will smite the nations that go not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. 19 This shall be the punishment of Egypt, and the punishment of all the nations that go not up to keep the feast of tabernacles. 20 In that day shall there be upon the bells of the horses: HOLY UNTO THE LORD; and the pots in the LORD'S house shall be like the basins before the altar. 21 Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holy unto the LORD of hosts; and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein; and in that day there shall be no more a trafficker in the house of the LORD of hosts.

Malachi

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MALACHI 1 — 1 The burden of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi.

2 I have loved you, saith the LORD.

Yet ye say: 'Wherein hast Thou loved us?'

Was not Esau Jacob's brother?

Saith the LORD;

Yet I loved Jacob;

3 But Esau I hated,

And made his mountains a desolation,

And gave his heritage to the jackals of the wilderness.

4 Whereas Edom saith:

'We are beaten down,

But we will return and build the waste places';

Thus saith the LORD of hosts:

They shall build, but I will throw down;

And they shall be called The border of wickedness,

And The people whom the LORD execrateth for ever.

5 And your eyes shall see,

And ye shall say:

'The LORD is great beyond the border of Israel.'

6 A son honoureth his father,

And a servant his master;

If then I be a father,

Where is My honour?

And if I be a master,

Where is My fear?

Saith the LORD of hosts

Unto you, O priests, that despise My name.

And ye say: 'Wherein have we despised Thy name?'

7 Ye offer polluted bread upon Mine altar.

And ye say: 'Wherein have we polluted thee?'

In that ye say: 'The table of the LORD is contemptible.'

8 And when ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it no evil!

And when ye offer the lame and sick, is it no evil!

Present it now unto thy governor;

Will he be pleased with thee?

Or will he accept thy person?

Saith the LORD of hosts.

9 And now, I pray you, entreat the favour of God

That He may be gracious unto us!-

This hath been of your doing.-

Will He accept any of your persons?

Saith the LORD of hosts.

10 Oh that there were even one among you that would shut the doors,

That ye might not kindle fire on Mine altar in vain!

I have no pleasure in you,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

Neither will I accept an offering at your hand.

11 For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same

My name is great among the nations;

And in every place offerings are presented unto My name,

Even pure oblations;

For My name is great among the nations,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

12 But ye profane it,

In that ye say:

'The table of the LORD is polluted,

And the fruit thereof, even the food thereof, is contemptible.'

13 Ye say also:

'Behold, what a weariness is it!'

And ye have snuffed at it,

Saith the LORD of hosts;

And ye have brought that which was taken by violence,

And the lame, and the sick;

Thus ye bring the offering;

Should I accept this of your hand?

Saith the LORD.

14 But cursed be he that dealeth craftily,

Whereas he hath in his flock a male,

And voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a blemished thing;

For I am a great King,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

And My name is feared among the nations.

MALACHI 2 — 1 And now, this commandment

Is for you, O ye priests.

2 If ye will not hearken, and if ye will not lay it to heart,

To give glory unto My name,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

Then will I send the curse upon you,

And I will curse your blessings;

Yea, I curse them,

Because ye do not lay it to heart.

3 Behold, I will rebuke the seed for your hurt,

And will spread dung upon your faces,

Even the dung of your sacrifices;

And ye shall be taken away unto it.

4 Know then that I have sent

This commandment unto you,

That My covenant might be with Levi,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

5 My covenant was with him

Of life and peace, and I gave them to him,

And of fear, and he feared Me,

And was afraid of My name.

6 The law of truth was in his mouth,

And unrighteousness was not found in his lips;

He walked with Me in peace and uprightness,

And did turn many away from iniquity.

7 For the priest's lips should keep knowledge,

And they should seek the law at his mouth;

For he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts.

8 But ye are turned aside out of the way;

Ye have caused many to stumble in the law;

Ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

9 Therefore have I also made you

Contemptible and base before all the people,

According as ye have not kept My ways,

But have had respect of persons in the law.

10 Have we not all one father?

Hath not one God created us?

Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother,

Profaning the covenant of our fathers?

11 Judah hath dealt treacherously,

And an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem;

For Judah hath profaned the holiness of the LORD which He loveth,

And hath married the daughter of a strange god.

12 May the LORD cut off to the man that doeth this,

Him that calleth and him that answereth out of the tents of Jacob,

And him that offereth an offering unto the LORD of hosts.

13 And this further ye do:

Ye cover the altar of the LORD with tears,

With weeping, and with sighing,

Insomuch that He regardeth not the offering any more,

Neither receiveth it with good will at your hand.

14 Yet ye say: 'Wherefore?'

Because the LORD hath been witness

Between thee and the wife of thy youth,

Against whom thou hast dealt treacherously,

Though she is thy companion,

And the wife of thy covenant.

15 And not one hath done so

Who had exuberance of spirit!

For what seeketh the one?

A seed given of God.

Therefore take heed to your spirit,

And let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

16 For I hate putting away,

Saith the LORD, the God of Israel,

And him that covereth his garment with violence,

Saith the LORD of hosts;

Therefore take heed to your spirit,

That ye deal not treacherously.

17 Ye have wearied the LORD with your words.

Yet ye say: 'Wherein have we wearied Him?'

In that ye say: 'Every one that doeth evil

Is good in the sight of the LORD,

And He delighteth in them;

Or where is the God of justice?'

MALACHI 3 — 1 Behold, I send My messenger,

And he shall clear the way before Me;

And the Lord, whom ye seek,

Will suddenly come to His temple,

And the messenger of the covenant,

Whom ye delight in,

Behold, he cometh,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

2 But who may abide the day of his coming?

And who shall stand when he appeareth?

For he is like a refiner's fire,

And like fullers' soap;

3 And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver;

And he shall purify the sons of Levi,

And purge them as gold and silver;

And there shall be they that shall offer unto the LORD

Offerings in righteousness.

4 Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem

Be pleasant unto the LORD,

As in the days of old,

And as in ancient years.

5 And I will come near to you to judgment;

And I will be a swift witness

Against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers,

And against false swearers;

And against those that oppress the hireling in his wages,

The widow, and the fatherless,

And that turn aside the stranger from his right,

And fear not Me,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

6 For I the LORD change not;

And ye, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.

7 From the days of your fathers ye have turned aside

From Mine ordinances, and have not kept them.

Return unto Me, and I will return unto you,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

But ye say: 'Wherein shall we return?'

8 Will a man rob God?

Yet ye rob Me.

But ye say: 'Wherein have we robbed Thee?'

In tithes and heave-offerings.

9 Ye are cursed with the curse,

Yet ye rob Me,

Even this whole nation.

10 Bring ye the whole tithe into the store-house,

That there may be food in My house,

And try Me now herewith,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

If I will not open you the windows of heaven,

And pour you out a blessing,

That there shall be more than sufficiency.

11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your good,

And he shall not destroy the fruits of your land;

Neither shall your vine cast its fruit before the time in the field,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

12 And all nations shall call you happy;

For ye shall be a delightsome land,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

13 Your words have been all too strong against Me,

Saith the LORD.

Yet ye say: 'Wherein have we spoken against thee?'

14 Ye have said: 'It is vain to serve God;

And what profit is it that we have kept His charge,

And that we have walked mournfully

Because of the LORD of hosts?

15 And now we call the proud happy;

Yea, they that work wickedness are built up;

Yea, they try God, and are delivered.'

16 Then they that feared the LORD

Spoke one with another;

And the LORD hearkened, and heard,

And a book of remembrance was written before Him,

For them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon His name.

17 And they shall be Mine, saith the LORD of hosts,

In the day that I do make, even Mine own treasure;

And I will spare them, as a man spareth

His own son that serveth him.

18 Then shall ye again discern between the righteous and the wicked,

Between him that serveth God

And him that serveth Him not.

19 For, behold, the day cometh,

It burneth as a furnace;

And all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble;

And the day that cometh shall set them ablaze,

Saith the LORD of hosts,

That it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

20 But unto you that fear My name

Shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in its wings;

And ye shall go forth, and gambol

As calves of the stall.

21 And ye shall tread down the wicked;

For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet

In the day that I do make,

Saith the LORD of hosts.

22 Remember ye the law of Moses My servant,

Which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel,

Even statutes and ordinances.

23 Behold, I will send you

Elijah the prophet

Before the coming

Of the great and terrible day of the LORD.

24 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children,

And the heart of the children to their fathers;

Lest I come and smite the land with utter destruction.

[Behold, I will send you

Elijah the prophet

Before the coming

Of the great and terrible day of the LORD.]

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3/26/2010