2 Chronicles 29 Cross References - LEB

¹ Hezekiah became king when he was twenty-five years old, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. And the name of his mother was Abijah the daughter of Zechariah. ² And he did that which was right in the eyes of Yahweh, according to all that David his father had done. ³ In the first year of his kingship, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of Yahweh and strengthened them. ⁴ And he brought in the priests and the Levites, and he gathered them into the eastern square. ⁵ And he said to them, "Hear me, O Levites! Sanctify yourselves now, and sanctify the house of Yahweh, the God of your ancestors,* and bring out the defilement from the sanctuary. ⁶ For our ancestors* acted unfaithfully and did evil in the sight of Yahweh our God, and have forsaken him and turned away their faces from the dwelling place of Yahweh. _⌊They have turned their backs_⌋* on it. ⁷ They also shut the doors of the portico and extinguished the lamps. And they did not burn incense or offer burnt offerings in the sanctuary to the God of Israel. ⁸ And the wrath of Yahweh was upon Judah and Jerusalem. And he made them as an abhorrence, as a desolation and an object of scorn, as you see with your own eyes. ⁹ Now behold, our fathers have fallen by the sword, and our sons and our daughters and our wives are in captivity on account of this. ¹⁰ Now _⌊it is in my heart_⌋* to _⌊make_⌋* a covenant with Yahweh, the God of Israel, so that his fierce anger might turn away from him. ¹¹ Now, my sons, do not be negligent, for Yahweh has chosen you to stand before him to serve him and to be his servants and incense burners." ¹² Then the Levites arose—Mahath the son of Amasai and Joel the son of Azariah, from the Kohathites; and Kish the son of Abdi and Azariah the son of Jehallelel from the Merarites; and Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah, from the Gershonites. ¹³ And from the descendants* of Elizaphan: Shimri and Jeiel; and from the descendants* of Asaph: Zechariah and Mattaniah; ¹⁴ and from the descendants* of Heman: Jeiel and Shimei; and from the descendants* of Jeduthun: Shemaiah and Uzziel— ¹⁵ and they gathered their brothers and sanctified themselves, and they went in according to the command of the king because of the words of Yahweh, to purify the house of Yahweh. ¹⁶ And the priests went into the inner part of the house of Yahweh to purify it. And they brought out all the impurity that they found in the temple of Yahweh out to the courtyard of the house of Yahweh. And the Levites took them to bring them outside to the Wadi* Kidron. ¹⁷ And they began to sanctify themselves on the first day of the first month. And on the eighth day of the month they came to the portico of Yahweh. And they sanctified the house of Yahweh for eight days, and on the sixteenth day of the first month they finished. ¹⁸ And they went into the inner part to King Hezekiah and said, "We have cleansed all the house of Yahweh: the altar of burnt offering, all its objects, the table of the rows of bread and all its objects, ¹⁹ and all the objects that King Ahaz discarded in his reign when he sinned, we have prepared and sanctified. Look, they are before the altar of Yahweh." ²⁰ Then King Hezekiah rose early and gathered the officials of the city, and he went up to the house of Yahweh. ²¹ And they brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats as a purification offering for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, and for Judah. And he commanded the descendants* of Aaron, the priests, to offer them on the altar of Yahweh. ²² And they slaughtered the cattle, and the priests received the blood and threw it toward the altar. Then they slaughtered the rams and threw the blood toward the altar, and then they slaughtered the lambs and threw the blood toward the altar. ²³ Then they brought the goats of the sin offering before the king and the assembly, and they laid hands upon them. ²⁴ And the priest killed them and offered their blood against the altar to make atonement for all Israel, for the king had commanded the burnt offering and the sin offering for all Israel. ²⁵ And he stood the Levites in the house of Yahweh with cymbals, harps, and lyres, according to the command of David and Gad, the seer of the king, and Nathan the prophet, for the command was by the hand of Yahweh by the hand of his prophets. ²⁶ When the Levites stood with the objects of David and the priests with the trumpets, ²⁷ Hezekiah commanded to offer the burnt offering upon the altar. And at the time the burnt offering began, the song of Yahweh began, and also the trumpets, at the hands of the instruments of David king of Israel. ²⁸ Then all the assembly bowed down, and the song was sung, and the trumpeters trumpeted—all together until the end of the burnt offering. ²⁹ And when the offering was finished, the king and all who were found with him knelt down and bowed themselves. ³⁰ Then King Hezekiah and the princes commanded the Levites to praise Yahweh with the words of David and Asaph the seer. So they offered praise with joy, and they bowed down and worshiped. ³¹ Then Hezekiah answered and said, "Now _⌊you have consecrated yourselves_⌋* to Yahweh. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of Yahweh!" And the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all who were willing in heart brought burnt offerings. ³² And the number of burnt offerings that the assembly brought was seventy cattle, one hundred rams, two hundred lambs—all these were to offer to Yahweh. ³³ And the consecrated offerings of cattle were six hundred cattle and three thousand sheep. ³⁴ But the priests were too few, and they were not able to offer all the burnt offerings, so their brothers, the Levites, strengthened them to finish the work, and until the rest of the priests consecrated themselves. (For the Levites were _⌊more conscientious_⌋* to sanctify themselves than the priests.) ³⁵ And beside the many burnt offerings was the fat of the peace offerings and the libations for the burnt offerings. So the service of the house of Yahweh was established. ³⁶ And Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had established with the people, for the matter happened suddenly.

¹ It happened in the third year of Hoshea the son of Elah king of Israel, that Hezekiah the son of Ahaz king of Judah became king. ² He was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. The name of his mother was Abi, the daughter of Zechariah. ³ He did right in the eyes of Yahweh according to all that David his ancestor* had done.

¹³ Ahaz was his son, Hezekiah was his son, Manasseh was his son,

⁵ And he began to seek* God in the days of Zechariah who was teaching in visions of God. And _⌊whenever_⌋* he sought Yahweh God made him have success.

¹ The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

² And I will require reliable witnesses as a witness for me: Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah."

¹ The word of Yahweh that came to Hosea son of Beeri, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah, and in the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

¹ The word of Yahweh that came to Micah the Morashtite in the days of Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, the kings of Judah, that he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem:

⁹ and Uzziah became the father of Jotham, and Jotham became the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz became the father of Hezekiah, ¹⁰ and Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh became the father of Amon,* and Amon became the father of Josiah,

¹ Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what is right in the eyes of Yahweh like David his ancestor.*

² And he did what was right in the eyes of Yahweh, and he walked in the ways of David his ancestor* and did not deviate to the right or to the left.

¹⁴ Now the bronze altar which was before Yahweh, he brought over from the front of the temple, from between his altar and the temple of Yahweh, and he placed it at the side of his altar to the north. ¹⁵ Then King Ahaz commanded Uriah the priest, saying, "On the great altar burn the morning burnt offering and the grain offering of the evening, the burnt offering of the king and his grain offering, the burnt offering of all of the people of the land, their offerings, their libations, and all of the blood of the burnt offerings, the blood of the sacrifices you must dash on it. But the bronze altar shall be for me to inquire by." ¹⁶ So Uriah the priest did according to all that King Ahaz commanded. ¹⁷ Then King Ahaz cut off the side panels of the water carts and removed from upon them the basin, and the sea he took down from the bronze oxen that were under it and put it on a stone base. ¹⁸ The covering for the Sabbath which they had built in the palace and in the entrance of the king to the outside, he removed from the temple of Yahweh because of the presence of the king of Assyria.

²⁴ Then Ahaz gathered the objects of the house of God, and he cut the objects of the house of God to pieces. And he shut the doors of the house of Yahweh and made for himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem.

⁷ They also shut the doors of the portico and extinguished the lamps. And they did not burn incense or offer burnt offerings in the sanctuary to the God of Israel.

³ In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a boy, he began to seek the God of David his ancestor.* And in the twelfth year he began to cleanse Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherahs, the idols, and the images.

³ I will not set before my eyes any wicked thing. I hate the work of those who fall away;* it will not cling to me.

¹⁰ Whatever your hand finds to do—do it with all your might; for in Sheol—where you are going—no one works, plans, knows, or thinks about anything.

³³ But seek first his kingdom and righteousness,* and all these things will be added to you.

¹⁶ to reveal his Son in me in order that I would proclaim the gospel about him among the Gentiles, immediately I did not consult with flesh and blood,

⁶ And he appointed commanders for battle over the people and gathered them to himself into the public square of the gate of the city. And he spoke to their hearts, saying,

²⁹ After them Zadok son of Immer repaired opposite his house. After him Shemaiah son of Shecaniah, keeper of the East Gate, repaired.

² and go out to the Valley of Ben Hinnom, which is at the entrance of the Gate of the Potsherd, and proclaim there the words that I speak to you.

¹⁰ And Yahweh said to Moses, "Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow. They must wash their clothes,

¹⁵ And he said to the people, "Be ready _⌊for the third day_⌋.* Do not go near to a woman."

¹² And he said to them, "You are the heads of the _⌊families_⌋* for the Levites. Sanctify yourselves and your brothers and bring up the ark of Yahweh, the God of Israel, to the place I have established for it.

¹⁵ and they gathered their brothers and sanctified themselves, and they went in according to the command of the king because of the words of Yahweh, to purify the house of Yahweh. ¹⁶ And the priests went into the inner part of the house of Yahweh to purify it. And they brought out all the impurity that they found in the temple of Yahweh out to the courtyard of the house of Yahweh. And the Levites took them to bring them outside to the Wadi* Kidron.

³⁴ But the priests were too few, and they were not able to offer all the burnt offerings, so their brothers, the Levites, strengthened them to finish the work, and until the rest of the priests consecrated themselves. (For the Levites were _⌊more conscientious_⌋* to sanctify themselves than the priests.)

³ In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still a boy, he began to seek the God of David his ancestor.* And in the twelfth year he began to cleanse Judah and Jerusalem of the high places, the Asherahs, the idols, and the images. ⁴ And he destroyed before him the altars for the Baals, and he cut down the incense stands above them. And the Asherahs, the idols, and the images he smashed. And he ground them to powder and sprinkled the dust over the burial sites of those who sacrificed to them. ⁵ And he burned the bones of the priests on the altars and cleansed Judah and Jerusalem. ⁶ And in the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, in their ruins all around, ⁷ he broke down the altars and the Asherahs and crushed the idols, grinding them to dust, and he cut down all the incense stands in all the land of Israel. Then he returned to Jerusalem. ⁸ Now in the eighteenth year of his reign after he purged the land and the house, he sent Shaphan the son of Azaliah, Maaseiah the commander of the city, and Joah the son of Joahaz, the recorder, to repair the house of Yahweh his God.

⁶ And slaughter the Passover lamb and consecrate yourself and prepare for your brothers to do according to the word of Yahweh by the hand of Moses.

³ And he sent out the form of a hand, and he took me by a lock of hair of my head, and the Spirit lifted me between earth and heaven, and it brought me to Jerusalem in visions of God to the doorway of the inner gate _⌊that faced north_⌋,* at which there was the seat of the image of jealousy, which was making jealous.

⁹ And he said to me, "Come and see the detestable things, the evil that they are doing* here. ¹⁰ And I came, and I saw, and look, all kinds of creatures* and detestable beasts;* and all of the idols of the house of Israel were carved on the wall _⌊all around_⌋.* ¹¹ And seventy men from the elders of the house of Israel, and Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, was standing in the midst of them, and they were standing _⌊before them_⌋.* Each one had his censer in his hand, and the fragrance of the cloud of the incense was going up. ¹² And he said to me, "Have you seen, son of man,* what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in the inner rooms of his idol, for they are saying, 'Yahweh is not seeing us; Yahweh has abandoned the land.'" ¹³ And he said to me, "Still _⌊you will see again_⌋* greater detestable things that they are doing." ¹⁴ And he brought me to the doorway of the gate of the house of Yahweh that is toward the north, and look! There were the women sitting weeping for Tammuz. ¹⁵ And he said to me, "Have you seen, son of man?* Still _⌊you will see again_⌋* greater detestable things than these." ¹⁶ And he brought me to the inner courtyard of the house of Yahweh, and look, at the doorway of the temple of Yahweh, between the portico and the altar, there were about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple of Yahweh and their faces toward the east, and they were bowing down toward the east before the sun. ¹⁷ And he said to me, "Have you seen, son of man?* _⌊Was it too small a thing_⌋* for the house of Judah _⌊to do_⌋* the detestable things that they did here? For they filled up the land with violence, and _⌊they provoked me to anger again_⌋,* and look! They are putting the branch to their nose. ¹⁸ And so I will act in rage, and my eye will not take pity, and I will not have compassion, and they will cry in my ear with a loud voice, and I will not hear them."

²⁵ And I will sprinkle on you pure water, and you will be clean from all of your uncleanness, and I will cleanse you from all of your idols.

¹² And Jesus entered the temple courts* and drove out all those who were selling and buying in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those who were selling doves. ¹³ And he said to them, "It is written, 'My house will be called a house of prayer,'* but you have made it a cave of robbers!"

¹⁶ Do you not know that you are God's temple and the Spirit of God dwells in you? ¹⁷ If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy this one. For God's temple is holy, which you are.

¹⁶ And what agreement does the temple of God have with idols? For we are the temple of the living God, just as God said,
"I will live in* them and will walk about among them, and I will be their God and they will be my people."*

¹ Therefore since we* have these promises, dear friends, let us cleanse ourselves from all defilement of body and spirit, accomplishing holiness in the fear of God.

²⁶ in order that he might sanctify her by cleansing her* with the washing of water by the word; ²⁷ in order that he might present to himself the church glorious, not having a spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she may be holy and blameless.

² But he walked in the ways of the kings of Israel and also made molten idols for the Baals. ³ And he himself burned incense in the valley of Ben-Hinnom and burned his sons in the fire, according to the detestable practices of the nations whom Yahweh drove out before the Israelites. ⁴ And he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places, on the hilltops, and under every flourishing tree.

²³ He sacrificed to the gods of Damascus that had defeated him and said, "Because the gods of the king of Aram* helped them, I will sacrifice to them so that they will help me." But they were _⌊a disaster_⌋* to him and to all Israel. ²⁴ Then Ahaz gathered the objects of the house of God, and he cut the objects of the house of God to pieces. And he shut the doors of the house of Yahweh and made for himself altars in every corner of Jerusalem. ²⁵ And _⌊in every city_⌋* of Judah he made high places to burn incense to other gods, and he provoked Yahweh, the God of his ancestors,* to anger.

²¹ "Go! Seek Yahweh on my behalf and on behalf of those remaining in Israel and Judah concerning the words of the scroll that was found, for the anger of Yahweh that was poured out on us is great, because our ancestors* have not kept the word of Yahweh, to do all that is written in this scroll."

¹² But because our ancestors* angered the God of heaven, he gave them into the hand of the Chaldean King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. He destroyed this house and carried away the people to Babylonia.

⁷ From the days of our ancestors* until this day we have been in great guilt, and because of our sins we ourselves, our kings, and our priests have been handed into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plunder, and to utter shame, as it is this day.

¹⁶ "But they and our ancestors* acted arrogantly and stiffened their neck and did not listen to your commandments.

³² "And now our God, the great, mighty, and awesome God who keeps his covenant and loyal love, do not belittle in your presence all of the hardship that is found in us, our kings, our officials, our priests, our prophets, our ancestors,* and all of our people, from the days of the kings of Assyria until this day.

¹³ "For my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the source* of living water, to hew out for themselves cisterns, cracked cisterns that can hold no water.

¹⁷ Did you not do this to yourself, by forsaking Yahweh, your God, at the time of your leading in the way?

²⁷ Those who say to the tree, 'You are my father,' and to the stone, 'You gave birth to me.' For they have turned their _⌊backs_⌋* to me, and not their faces. But in the time of their trouble they say, 'Arise and save us.'

¹⁹ O Yahweh, my strength, and my stronghold, and my refuge in the day of distress, to you the nations will come from the ends of the earth, and they will say, "Our ancestors* have inherited only lies,* vanity, and there is no profit in them.

²¹ "The offering that you made, smoke offerings in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, you, and your ancestors,* your kings, and your officials, and the people of the land, did not Yahweh remember them, and did it not come to his _⌊mind_⌋?*

⁷ Our fathers have sinned, they are no more; we bear their iniquity.

¹⁶ And he brought me to the inner courtyard of the house of Yahweh, and look, at the doorway of the temple of Yahweh, between the portico and the altar, there were about twenty-five men with their backs to the temple of Yahweh and their faces toward the east, and they were bowing down toward the east before the sun.

¹⁶ Lord, according to all your righteousness, please let your anger and your rage turn away from your city Jerusalem, _⌊your holy mountain_⌋,* because through our sins and through the iniquities of our ancestors* Jerusalem and your people have become an object of mockery among all of our neighbors.

³⁷ The one who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and the one who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.

³⁰ and you say, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in the blood of the prophets!' ³¹ Thus you testify against yourselves that you are descendants of those who murdered the prophets! ³² And you—fill up the measure of your fathers!

² "Command the _⌊Israelites_⌋* that* they should bring pure olive oil from beaten olives for the light to _⌊present_⌋* a lamp continually. ³ Aaron shall arrange for it _⌊outside_⌋* the curtain of the testimony in the tent of assembly from evening until morning _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh continually; it shall be a _⌊lasting statute_⌋* throughout your generations. ⁴ On the pure golden* lampstand he shall arrange for the lamps _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh continually. ⁵ "And you shall take finely milled flour, and you shall bake with it twelve ring-shaped bread cakes: each one shall be two-tenths of an ephah. ⁶ And you shall place them in two rows, six to the row, on the pure gold* table _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh. ⁷ And you shall put pure frankincense on each* row so that* it shall be for the bread as a memorial offering, an offering made by fire for Yahweh. ⁸ _⌊On every Sabbath_⌋* he shall arrange it in rows _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh continually; they are from the _⌊Israelites_⌋* as an everlasting* covenant.

³ In the first year of his kingship, in the first month, he opened the doors of the house of Yahweh and strengthened them.

¹⁰ "Who also among you will shut the temple doors so that you will not kindle fire in vain on my altar? I take no pleasure in you," says Yahweh of hosts, "and _⌊I will not accept_⌋* an offering from your hand.

³² And I myself* will lay waste the land, and your enemies who are living in it shall be appalled over it.

¹⁵ "_⌊And then_⌋* if you do not listen to the voice of Yahweh your God _⌊by diligently observing_⌋* all of his commandments and his statutes that I am commanding you _⌊today_⌋,* then all of these curses shall come upon you, and they shall overtake you: ¹⁶ "You shall* be cursed in the city, and you shall be cursed in the field. ¹⁷ "Your basket shall be cursed and your kneading trough. ¹⁸ "The fruit of your womb shall be cursed and the fruit of you ground, the calves of your cattle and the lambs of your flock. ¹⁹ "You shall be cursed _⌊when you come in_⌋,* and you shall be cursed _⌊when you go out_⌋.* ²⁰ "Yahweh will send upon you* the curse,* the panic,* and the threat* _⌊in everything that you undertake_⌋,* _⌊until you are destroyed and until you perish quickly_⌋* _⌊because of_⌋* the evil of your deeds in that* you have forsaken me.

²⁵ "Yahweh shall cause you to be defeated _⌊before_⌋* your enemies; on one road you shall go _⌊against_⌋* them,* but you will flee on seven roads _⌊before_⌋* them,* and you shall become a thing of horror to all of the kingdoms of the earth.

⁵⁹ then Yahweh shall overwhelm you with your plagues and the plagues of your offspring, severe plagues and lasting illnesses, grievous and enduring.

⁸ This house shall become a heap of ruins; all those passing by will be appalled by it and hiss, and they will say, 'On what account did Yahweh do this to this land and to this house?'

¹⁸ And they forsook the house of Yahweh, the God of their ancestors* and served the Asherahs and the idols. And wrath came upon Judah and Jerusalem on account of this guilt.

²⁴ "Thus says Yahweh: 'Behold, I am bringing disaster upon this place and upon its inhabitants—all the curses written in the scroll that were read before the king of Judah— ²⁵ because they have abandoned me and burned incense to other gods so as to provoke me to anger with all the works of their hands. And my wrath will be poured out on this place and it will not be quenched.'

¹⁴ All the leaders of the priests and the people likewise increased in unfaithfulness according to all the detestable things of the nations. And they polluted the house of Yahweh that he had consecrated in Jerusalem. ¹⁵ And Yahweh, the God of their ancestors,* had repeatedly and persistently sent to them by the hand of his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. ¹⁶ But they were mocking the messengers of God and despising his words and scoffing at his prophets until the wrath of Yahweh rose against his people until there was no remedy.

¹⁵ But my people have forgotten me. They make smoke offerings to the idols,* and they caused them to stumble in their ways, the ancient ways, to go into _⌊bypaths_⌋,* not one that is built up. ¹⁶ To make their land a horror, an object of whistling for eternity. All who pass by it will be appalled, and he will shake his head.

⁸ And I will make this city a horror, and an object of hissing, everyone who passes by it will be appalled, and will hiss because of all its wounds.

⁹ look, I am going to send and take all the clans* of the north,' _⌊declares_⌋* Yahweh, 'and I will send* to Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and I will bring them against this land, and against its inhabitants, and against all these nations all around, and I will destroy them, and I will make them a horror, and an object of hissing, and _⌊everlasting ruins_⌋.*

¹⁸ Jerusalem and the towns of Judah, and its kings, and its officials, to make them a site of ruins, a horror, an object of hissing, and a curse, as it is this day;

¹⁸ And I will pursue them with the sword, with the famine, and with the plague, and I will make them a terror to all the kingdoms of the earth, a curse, and a horror, and an object of hissing, and a disgrace among all the nations to which I have driven them,

¹⁷ And I will set my face against you, and you shall be defeated _⌊before_⌋* your enemies; and your haters shall rule over you, and you shall flee away, but* there shall not be _⌊anybody who is pursuing_⌋* you.

⁵ Then Yahweh his God gave him into the hand of the king of Aram* who defeated him and captured many captives from him and brought them to Damascus. Moreover, he was also given into the hand of the king of Israel, and he defeated him by a great attack. ⁶ And Pekah, the son of Remaliah, killed in one day one hundred and twenty thousand in Judah, all men of strength, because they forsook Yahweh the God of their ancestors.* ⁷ And Zikri, a mighty warrior of Ephraim, killed Maaseiah the son of the king, Azrikam the commander of the house, and Elkanah the second to the king. ⁸ And the Israelites captured two hundred thousand of their brothers, women, sons, and daughters. And they also plundered much booty from them and brought the booty to Samaria.

¹⁷ since again the Edomites came and struck against Judah and took captives.

³ Then the king stood by the pillar, and he _⌊made_⌋* a covenant before Yahweh, to go after Yahweh and to keep his commands and his warnings and his statutes, with all of his heart and with his all of his soul, to keep the words of this covenant written on this scroll. Then all of the people _⌊joined_⌋* in the covenant.

²⁶ However, Yahweh did not turn from the fierceness of his great anger which was kindled against Judah because of all of the provocations with which Manasseh had provoked him.

⁷ Now, it was in the heart of David my father to build a house for the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel. ⁸ But Yahweh said to David my father, 'Because it was in your heart to build a house for my name, you did well that it was in your heart,

¹² And they entered into a covenant to seek Yahweh, the God of their ancestors,* with all their heart and with all their inmost being,* ¹³ but all who will not seek Yahweh the God of Israel should be killed, from young to old, from men to women.

¹⁶ And Jehoiada _⌊made_⌋* a covenant between himself and all the people and the king, that they should be Yahweh's people.

³⁰ And the king went up to the house of Yahweh with all the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, with the priests and the Levites—all the people from great to small—and they read in their ears all the words of the scroll of the covenant that was found in the house of Yahweh. ³¹ And the king stood at his position. And he made the covenant before Yahweh, to walk after Yahweh and to keep his commands and statutes and regulations with all his heart and with all his soul, to do the words of the covenant that were written on this scroll. ³² Then he obligated* all who were found in Jerusalem and in Benjamin, that the inhabitants of Jerusalem would do according to the covenant of God, the God of their ancestors.*

³ So now let us make a covenant with our God to send away all of these women and their offspring, according to the advice of my lord and those who tremble at the commandment of our God. Let it be done according to the law.

³⁸ * "Now because of all of this we make a binding written agreement and are writing on the sealed documents the names of our commanders, our Levites, and our priests."

³⁸ And the priest, the descendant* of Aaron, will be with the Levites during the tithe the Levites receive. The Levites will bring up a tithe of the tithes for the house of our God to the chambers of the storehouse. ³⁹ For the _⌊Israelites_⌋* and the _⌊Levites_⌋* will bring to the storerooms the offering of grain, new wine, and olive oil. These are the objects of the sanctuary and the priests who minister and the gatekeepers and singers. We will not neglect the house of our God."

¹⁵ And you turned back _⌊recently_⌋* and you did right in my eyes, to proclaim release each one to his neighbor, and you _⌊made_⌋* a covenant _⌊before me_⌋* in the house that is called _⌊by_⌋* my name.

¹⁸ And I will make the men who transgressed my covenant, who have not kept the words of the covenant that they _⌊made_⌋* _⌊before me_⌋,* like the calf which they cut in two and they passed between its parts—

⁵ They will ask the way to Zion, turning their faces there. They will come and join themselves to Yahweh by _⌊an everlasting covenant_⌋* that will not be forgotten.

⁵ and not just as we had hoped, but they gave themselves first to the Lord and then to us, by the will of God.

⁶ "Bring near the tribe of Levi, and _⌊set the tribe_⌋* _⌊before Aaron_⌋* the priest, and they will minister to him. ⁷ They shall observe his duties and the duties of the entire community before the tent of assembly, to do the work of the tabernacle. ⁸ And they will keep all the vessels of the tent of assembly and the responsibilities of the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* to do the work* of the tabernacle. ⁹ You will give the Levites to Aaron and to his descendants; they are surely assigned to him from among the _⌊Israelites_⌋.*

⁶ "Take the Levites from the midst of the _⌊Israelites_⌋* and purify them. ⁷ So you will do to them, to purify them: sprinkle on them waters of purification, and _⌊they will shave their whole body_⌋* and wash their garments. ⁸ And they will take a _⌊young bull_⌋* and its grain offering of finely milled flour mixed with oil, and you will take a second _⌊young bull_⌋* as a sin offering. ⁹ You will bring the Levites _⌊before_⌋* the tent of assembly, and you will summon the entire community of the _⌊Israelites_⌋.* ¹⁰ And you will bring the Levites _⌊before Yahweh_⌋,* and the _⌊Israelites_⌋* will lay their hands on the Levites, ¹¹ and _⌊Aaron will offer_⌋* the Levites as a wave offering _⌊before Yahweh_⌋* from the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* and they will do the work of Yahweh. ¹² And the Levites will lay their hands on the head of the one bull and offer it as a sin offering and the other one as a burnt offering to Yahweh, to make atonement for the Levites. ¹³ And you will present the Levites _⌊before_⌋* Aaron and _⌊before_⌋* his sons, and he _⌊will offer_⌋* them as a wave offering to Yahweh. ¹⁴ "And you will separate the Levites from the midst of the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* and the Levites will be for me.

³⁵ And fire went out from Yahweh, and it consumed the two hundred and fifty men presenting the incense. ³⁶ * And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁷ "Say to Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, '_⌊Take out_⌋* the censers from among the place of burning because they are sacred, and scatter the fire outside. ³⁸ The censers of these _⌊who have sinned_⌋* at the cost of their lives, let them be made into gilded leafing plating for the altar; because they presented them _⌊before Yahweh_⌋,* they are holy; and they will be a sign for the _⌊Israelites_⌋.'"* ³⁹ Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers that the ones who were burned presented, and they hammered them out thinly as plating for the altar; ⁴⁰ it was a memorial for the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* so that _⌊no strange man_⌋* who is not from _⌊the offspring_⌋* of Aaron should approach the presence of Yahweh to burn a smoke offering;* he will not be like Korah and his company, just as Yahweh had spoken to him by the hand of Moses.*

² Moreover, bring your brothers with you, the tribe of Levi the tribe of your father, that they may be joined to you and minister to you, you and your sons with you before the tent of testimony. ³ They will keep your responsibility and the responsibility of all the tent, only they may not come near the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, so both you and they will not die. ⁴ They will be joined to you, and they will keep the responsibility of the tent of assembly for the entire service of the tent; a stranger may not come near you. ⁵ You will keep the responsibility of the sanctuary and the responsibility of the altar, and there will no longer be wrath on the _⌊Israelites_⌋.* ⁶ Look, I myself have chosen your brothers the Levites from the midst of the children. They are a gift to you given from Yahweh to perform the work of the tent of assembly. ⁷ But you with your sons will keep your priesthood to perform your priestly duties for everything at the altar* and for _⌊the area behind the curtain_⌋.* I give you the priesthood as a gift, but the stranger who approaches will be put to death."

⁸ At that time Yahweh set apart the tribe of Levi to carry the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to stand _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh, to serve him and to bless the people in his name until this day.

⁷ Do not be deceived: God is not to be mocked, for whatever a person sows, this he will also reap, ⁸ because the one who sows to his own flesh will reap corruption from the flesh, but the one who sows to the Spirit will reap eternal life from the Spirit.

¹⁶ And these are the names of the sons of Levi according to their genealogies:* Gershon and Kohath and Merari, and the years of the life of Levi were _⌊one hundred and thirty-seven years_⌋.* ¹⁷ The sons of Gershon are Libni and Shimei according to their clans. ¹⁸ And the sons of Kohath are Amram and Izhar and Hebron and Uzziel, and the years of the life of Kohath were _⌊one hundred and thirty-three years_⌋.* ¹⁹ And the sons of Merari are Mahli and Mushi. These are clans of the Levites according to their genealogies.* ²⁰ And Amram took Jochebed his aunt for himself as a wife, and she bore for him Aaron and Moses, and the years of the life of Amram were _⌊one hundred and thirty-seven years_⌋.* ²¹ And the sons of Izhar are Korah and Nepheg and Zikri. ²² And the sons of Uzziel are Mishael and Elzaphan and Sithri. ²³ And Aaron took Elisheba the daughter of Amminadab, the sister of Nahshon, for himself as a wife, and she bore for him Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. ²⁴ And the sons of Korah are Assir and Elkanah and Abiasaph. These are the clans of the Korahites. ²⁵ And Eleazar the son of Aaron took for himself one from the daughters of Putiel as a wife, and she bore for him Phinehas. These are the heads of the _⌊families_⌋* of the Levites according to their clans.

¹⁷ These were the sons of Levi according to their names: Gershon, Kohath, and Merari.

¹⁹ And the sons of Kohath according to their clans: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ²⁰ The sons of Merari according to their tribes: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of the Levites according to _⌊their families_⌋.*

² "_⌊Take a census_⌋* of the descendants* of Kohath from the midst of the descendants* of Levi, according to their clans and _⌊their families_⌋,* ³ from _⌊thirty years old_⌋* and above, up to _⌊fifty years old_⌋,* everyone who comes to the service to do the work in the tent of assembly. ⁴ This is the work of the descendants* of Kohath in the tent of assembly, concerning the holiness of the sanctuary: ⁵ When setting out the camp, Aaron and his sons will go and lower the curtain of the covering and cover with it the ark of the testimony.* ⁶ They will put on it a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋,* and they will spread a cloth of perfect blue over it, and they will place its poles. ⁷ And over the table of the presence they will spread out a blue cloth and put on it the plates, dishes, and libation bowls, and the pitchers of the libation; and the bread of continuity will be on it. ⁸ They will spread over it a scarlet cloth, and they will cover it with a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋,* and they will place its poles. ⁹ They will take a blue cloth and cover the lampstand for the light source, its lamps, a pair of its tongs, its small pans, and all the vessels of its oil with which they attend to it. ¹⁰ They will put it and all its vessels inside a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋* and put it on the carrying frame. ¹¹ Over the altar of gold they will spread a blue cloth, and they will cover it with a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋* and place its poles. ¹² They will take all the vessels of the cultic service with which they serve in the sanctuary and put them on a blue cloth, and they will cover them with a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋;* and they will put them on the carrying frame. ¹³ They will remove the fat-soaked ashes from the altar and spread a purple cloth over it; ¹⁴ they will put on it all the vessels with which they serve, the fire pans, forks, shovels, and bowls—all the vessels of the altar. They will spread on it a covering of _⌊fine leather_⌋;* and they will place its poles. ¹⁵ And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the vessels of the sanctuary when the camp sets out, the descendants* of Kohath will come after to carry these, but they must not touch the sanctuary, or they will die. These are the load of the descendants* of Kohath in the tent of assembly. ¹⁶ "Eleazar son of Aaron the priest is to supervise the oil of the light source, the incense, _⌊the regular grain offering_⌋,* the oil of anointment, the supervision of all the tabernacle and all that is in it, in the sanctuary and in its vessels." ¹⁷ Yahweh spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, ¹⁸ "You must not cut off the tribe of the clan of the Kohathites* from the midst of the Levites. ¹⁹ Do this to them and they will live and not die when they come near the most holy things. Aaron and his sons will go and appoint them, each one to his task and burden. ²⁰ But they must not go and look _⌊for a moment_⌋* at the holy objects."

¹⁶ The sons of Levi: Gershom, Kohath, and Merari. ¹⁷ Now these are the names of the sons of Gershom: Libni and Shimei. ¹⁸ The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel. ¹⁹ The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. Now these are the families of the Levites according to their ancestors.* ²⁰ Of Gershom: Libni his son, Jahath his son, Zimmah his son, ²¹ Joah his son, Iddo his son, Zerah his son, Jeatherai his son.

⁴⁴ On the left were their brothers, the sons of Merari: Ethan the son of Kishi, son of Abdi, son of Malluch,

⁵ Of the sons of Kohath: Uriel the chief and one hundred and twenty of his brothers. ⁶ Of the sons of Merari: Asaiah the chief and two hundred and twenty of his brothers. ⁷ Of the sons of Gershom: Joel the chief and one hundred and thirty of his brothers.

⁷ For the Gershonites were Ladan and Shimei. ⁸ The sons of Ladan: Jehiel the chief and Zetham and Joel, three. ⁹ The sons of Shimei: Shelomoth, Haziel, and Haran, three. These were the heads of the _⌊families_⌋* of Ladan. ¹⁰ And the sons of Shimei: Jahath, Zina, Jeush, and Beriah; these four were the sons of Shimei. ¹¹ And Jahath was the chief, and Zizah the second, but Jeush and Beriah did not have many sons. They were enrolled as one for the house of a father. ¹² The sons of Kohath: Amram, Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel, four. ¹³ The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. And Aaron was set apart to consecrate the most holy things. He and his sons were to burn offerings forever before Yahweh to serve him and to bless in his name forever. ¹⁴ But Moses the man of God and his sons were reckoned among the tribe of Levi. ¹⁵ The sons of Moses: Gershom and Eliezer. ¹⁶ The sons of Gershom: Shebuel the chief. ¹⁷ And the sons of Eliezer were Rehabiah, the head. And Eliezer had no other sons, but the sons of Rehabiah were very many. ¹⁸ The sons of Izhar: Shelomith the chief. ¹⁹ The sons of Hebron: Jeriah the chief, Amariah the second, Jahaziel the third, and Jekameam the fourth. ²⁰ The sons of Uzziel: Micah the chief and Isshiah the second. ²¹ The sons of Merari: Mahli and Mushi. The sons of Mahli: Eleazar and Kish. ²² And Eleazar died, and he did not have sons, but only daughters. And the sons of Kish, their relatives, married them. ²³ The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth, three.

¹³ And Jehiel, Azaziah, Nathan, Asahel, Jerimoth, Jozabad, Eliel, Ismachiah, Mahath, and Benaiah were chief officers under the hand of Conaniah and Shimei, his brother, by appointment of King Hezekiah. And Azaraiah was leader of the house of God.

⁴ Then* Moses summoned Mishael and Elzaphan the sons of Uzziel, Aaron's uncle, and he said to them, "Come forward.* Carry your brothers from _⌊the front of_⌋* the sanctuary to _⌊outside the camp_⌋."*

³⁹ and his brother Asaph, who stood on his right namely, Asaph the son of Berechiah, son of Shimea,

⁸ Of the sons of Elizaphan: Shemaiah the chief and two hundred of his brothers.

¹⁷ So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel, and from his brothers, Asaph the son of Berekiah, and from the sons of Merari, their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah;

² for the sons of Asaph: Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asarelah, sons of Asaph, under the hand* of Asaph, who prophesied under the hands* of the king.

³³ Now these are those who served and their sons. Of the sons of the Kohathites: Heman the singer, the son of Joel, son of Samuel,

¹⁹ Now the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were to sound bronze cymbals;

¹ And David and the commanders of the army set apart for the service the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who prophesied with stringed instruments, with harps, and with cymbals. And their inventory of the men of the work and for their duty was:

³ Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah,* Heshabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands* of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with the stringed instrument with thanksgiving and praise to Yahweh.

⁶ All these were under the _⌊direction_⌋* of their father in the music of the house of Yahweh, with cymbals, harps, and stringed instruments for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the _⌊direction_⌋* of the king.

²⁸ For their station was _⌊to assist_⌋* the sons of Aaron with the service of the house of Yahweh, over the courtyards, over the chambers, and over the cleansing of all the sanctified objects, and with the work of the service of the house of God,

⁵ And he said to them, "Hear me, O Levites! Sanctify yourselves now, and sanctify the house of Yahweh, the God of your ancestors,* and bring out the defilement from the sanctuary.

¹² The hand of God was also upon Judah, to give them one heart to obey the command of the king and the princes concerning the word of Yahweh.

³³ And you will put the curtain under the clasps, and you will bring the ark of the testimony there inside the curtain, and the curtain will separate for you between the holy and the _⌊most holy place_⌋.* ³⁴ And you will put the atonement cover on the ark of the testimony in the _⌊most holy place_⌋.*

²³ All of the land was weeping with a loud voice as all the people were passing by and the king was crossing through the Wadi Kidron, and all the people were passing _⌊on the road to the wilderness_⌋.*

¹⁹ Now in the inner sanctuary in the middle of the temple* he prepared the inside to place the ark of the covenant of Yahweh there. ²⁰ In front, the inner sanctuary was twenty cubits long and twenty cubits wide and twenty cubits high, and he overlaid it with pure gold and covered the altar with cedar.

⁴ Then the _⌊king_⌋* commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the second priests, and the keepers of the threshold, to bring out of the temple of Yahweh all of the objects made for Baal and for the Asherah and for all the host of heaven, and he burned them outside of Jerusalem in the fields of the Kidron, and then he carried their ashes to Bethel. ⁵ He removed the priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places at the cities of Judah and around Jerusalem and who offered incense to, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven. ⁶ He brought out the Asherah image from the temple of Yahweh outside of Jerusalem to the Wadi of the Kidron and burnt it _⌊there_⌋;* then he pulverized it to dust and threw its dust upon the tombs of the children of the people.

⁸ Then he made _⌊the most holy place_⌋.* Its length _⌊was equal to_⌋* the width of the house: twenty cubits. And its breadth was twenty cubits. And he overlaid it with six hundred talents of fine gold.

⁷ Then the priests brought up the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to its place in the inner sanctuary of the house, into _⌊the most holy place_⌋, underneath the wings of the cherubim.

¹⁶ And also Maacah, the mother of Asa, the king removed her from being queen, because she had made a repulsive image for Asherah. And Asa cut down her repulsive image, and he crushed and burned it at the Wadi* Kidron.

²⁹ And I will save you from all of your uncleanness, and I will call to the grain, and I will cause it to increase, and I will not bring famine upon you.

²⁷ "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees—hypocrites!—because you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and of everything unclean!

¹ When* Jesus had said these things, he went out with his disciples to the other side of the ravine of the Kidron, where there was a garden into which he and his disciples entered.

² For a tent was prepared, the first one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the presentation of the loaves, which is called the holy place. ³ And after the second curtain was a tent called the holy of holies, ⁴ containing the golden incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered on all sides with gold, in which were a golden jar containing the manna and the rod of Aaron that budded and the tablets of the covenant. ⁵ And above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat, about which it is not now possible to speak in detail. ⁶ Now these things having been prepared in this way, the priests enter into the first tent _⌊continually_⌋* as they* accomplish their service, ⁷ but only the high priest enters into the second tent once a year, not without blood, which he offers on behalf of himself and the sins of the people committed in ignorance. ⁸ The Holy Spirit was making this clear, that the way into the holy place was not yet revealed, while* the first tent was still in existence,

²³ Therefore it was necessary for the sketches of the things in heaven to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves to be purified with better sacrifices than these. ²⁴ For Christ did not enter into a sanctuary made by hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf,

² "This month will be the beginning of months; it will be for you the first of the months of the year. ³ Speak to all the community of Israel, saying, 'On the tenth of this month, they will each take for themselves _⌊a lamb for the family_⌋,* a lamb for the household. ⁴ And if the household is too small for a lamb, he and the neighbor nearest to his house will take one according to the number of persons;* you will count out portions of the lamb _⌊according to how much each one can eat_⌋.* ⁵ The lamb for you must be a male, without defect, in its first year; you will take it from the sheep or from the goats. ⁶ "_⌊You will keep it_⌋* until the fourteenth day of this month, and all the assembly of the community of Israel will slaughter it _⌊at twilight_⌋.* ⁷ And they will take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel on the houses in which they eat it. ⁸ And they will eat the meat on this night; they will eat it fire-roasted and with unleavened bread on _⌊bitter herbs_⌋.*

³ The vestibule on the face of the main hall of the temple* was twenty cubits in its length, and the width of the temple* was ten cubits wide on the face of the temple.*

¹¹ Then David gave to Solomon his son the plan of the vestibule and of its houses, its treasuries, its upper rooms, its inner chambers, and of the house of the lid of the ark,

⁴ _⌊The length of the portico that was in front was the same as the front of the width of the house_⌋:* twenty cubits. And its height was one hundred and twenty cubits. And he overlaid it on the inside with pure gold.

¹ And he made an altar of bronze, twenty cubits was its length, and twenty cubits was its width, and ten cubits was its height.

⁷ And he made ten golden lampstands according to their custom, and he set them in the temple, five on the south and five on the north. ⁸ And he made ten tables and placed them in the temple, five on the south and five on the north. And he made a hundred drinking bowls of gold.

¹¹ They offer burnt offerings to Yahweh _⌊every morning_⌋* and _⌊every evening_⌋,* sweet spices of incense, and the rows of bread upon the pure table. And the golden lampstand with its lamps they keep kindled _⌊every evening_⌋,* for we are keeping the requirement of Yahweh our God, but you yourselves have forsaken him.

³ And Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey. And he took two of his servants with him, and Isaac his son. And he chopped wood for a burnt offering. And he got up and went to the place which God had told him.

⁴ And Moses wrote all the words of Yahweh, and he rose early in the morning, and he built an altar at the base of the mountain and set up twelve memorial stones for the twelve tribes of Israel.

¹² Then Joshua got up early in the morning, and the priests took up the ark of Yahweh.

⁴ And though Yahweh has sent all his servants the prophets to you _⌊over and over again_⌋* you have not listened, and you have not inclined your ear to hear,

³ if the anointed priest sins, _⌊bringing guilt on the people_⌋,* then,* concerning the sin that he has _⌊committed_⌋,* he shall bring _⌊a young bull_⌋* without defect for Yahweh as a sin offering. ⁴ He shall bring* the bull to the tent of assembly's entrance before Yahweh, place* his hand on the bull's head, and slaughter the bull before Yahweh. ⁵ The anointed priest* shall take _⌊some of_⌋* the bull's blood and shall bring it to the tent of assembly, ⁶ and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and shall spatter _⌊some of_⌋* the blood seven times before Yahweh in front of the sanctuary's curtain. ⁷ The priest* shall put _⌊some of_⌋* the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before Yahweh, which is in the tent of assembly, and all the rest* of the bull's blood he must pour out on the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the entrance of the tent of assembly. ⁸ " 'He must remove* all the fat from the bull of the sin offering: the fat that covers the inner parts* and all of the fat that is on the inner parts,* ⁹ the two* kidneys and the fat that is on them, and the liver's lobe that he must remove in addition to the kidneys— ¹⁰ just as it is removed from the ox of the fellowship offerings' sacrifice—and the priest shall turn them into smoke on the altar of the burnt offering. ¹¹ But* the bull's skin and its meat, in addition to its head, _⌊its lower leg bones_⌋,* its* inner parts,* and its offal— ¹² he shall carry* all of the bull _⌊outside the camp_⌋* to a ceremonially clean place, to the fatty ashes' dump, and he shall burn it on wood in the fire; it must be burned up on the fatty ashes' dump. ¹³ " 'If* Israel's whole assembly did wrong unintentionally and the matter* was concealed from the assembly's eyes, and they acted* against _⌊any of_⌋* Yahweh's commands that should not be _⌊violated_⌋,* so that* they incur guilt, ¹⁴ when* the sin that they have _⌊committed_⌋* against that command* becomes known, the assembly* shall present _⌊a young bull_⌋* as a sin offering, and they shall bring it before the tent of assembly.

²² " 'But if you go astray and you do not follow* all these commandments that Yahweh commanded to Moses, ²³ all that Yahweh commanded you by the hand of Moses* from the day that Yahweh commanded and beyond, throughout your generations,* ²⁴ and if it was done unintentionally _⌊without the knowledge_⌋* of the community, then the entire community must prepare one _⌊young bull_⌋* as a burnt offering, as a fragrance of appeasement for Yahweh, and its grain offering and its libation, according to the stipulation, and one male goat as a sin offering.

¹ Balaam said to Balak, "Build for me this: seven altars. And prepare for me this: seven bulls and seven rams."

¹⁴ So he took him to the field of Zophim to the top of Pisgah, and he built seven altars, and he offered a bull and a ram on each altar.

²⁹ And Balaam said to Balak, "Build for me these seven altars, and prepare for me these seven bulls and seven rams."

²⁶ And it happened that when God helped the Levites carrying the ark of the covenant of Yahweh, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams.

³⁵ The exiles that returned from captivity offered burnt offerings to the God of Israel; twelve bulls for all Israel, ninety-six rams, seventy-seven lambs, and twelve goats as a sin offering. All was a burnt offering to Yahweh.

⁸ _⌊So then_⌋,* take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, and go to my servant Job and offer a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job will pray for you,* for _⌊I will certainly accept his prayer_⌋,* so that it will not be done with you* according to your folly, for you* have not spoken to me what is right as my servant Job has."

²³ And during the seven days of the religious feast he shall provide as a burnt offering to Yahweh seven bulls and seven rams without defect for each of the seven days, and as a sin offering a he-goat for each day.

²¹ He made the one who did not know sin to be sin on our behalf, in order that we could become the righteousness of God in him.

⁵ He* must slaughter _⌊the young bull_⌋* _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh, then* Aaron's sons, the priests, will present the blood and sprinkle the blood all around the altar that is at the door of the tent of assembly.

⁷ The priest* shall put _⌊some of_⌋* the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense before Yahweh, which is in the tent of assembly, and all the rest* of the bull's blood he must pour out on the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the entrance of the tent of assembly.

¹⁸ He must put* _⌊some of_⌋* the blood on the altar's horns before Yahweh _⌊in the tent of assembly_⌋,* and all the rest* of the blood he must pour out on the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the tent of assembly's entrance.

³⁴ The priest* shall take _⌊some of_⌋* the sin offering's blood with his finger, and he shall put it on the horns of the altar of the burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest* of its blood on the altar's base.

¹⁴ Then* he brought forth the bull of the sin offering, and Aaron and his sons placed their hands on the head of the bull of the sin offering, ¹⁵ and he slaughtered it, and Moses took the blood and put* it with his finger on the altar's horns all around and purified the altar; then* he poured the blood out on the altar's base—thus* he consecrated it in order to make atonement for it.*

¹⁹ and he slaughtered it. Then* Moses sprinkled the blood on the altar all around.

²⁴ Then* he brought Aaron's sons near, and Moses put _⌊some of_⌋* the blood on their right ear lobe and on their right hand's thumb and on their right foot's big toe, and Moses sprinkled the blood on the altar all around.

²¹ And likewise he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the utensils of service with the blood. ²² Indeed, nearly everything is purified with blood according to the law, and apart from the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

⁴ " 'He* must lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering and it will be accepted* for him in order to make atonement for him.

¹⁵ And the elders of the community shall place their hands on the bull's head before Yahweh, and he* shall slaughter the bull before Yahweh.

²⁴ He shall place* his hand on the he-goat's head and slaughter it in the place where he slaughtered the burnt offering before Yahweh; it is a sin offering.

¹³ " 'If* Israel's whole assembly did wrong unintentionally and the matter* was concealed from the assembly's eyes, and they acted* against _⌊any of_⌋* Yahweh's commands that should not be _⌊violated_⌋,* so that* they incur guilt, ¹⁴ when* the sin that they have _⌊committed_⌋* against that command* becomes known, the assembly* shall present _⌊a young bull_⌋* as a sin offering, and they shall bring it before the tent of assembly. ¹⁵ And the elders of the community shall place their hands on the bull's head before Yahweh, and he* shall slaughter the bull before Yahweh. ¹⁶ Then the anointed priest shall bring _⌊some of_⌋* the bull's blood to the tent of assembly, ¹⁷ and the priest shall dip his finger in* the blood and shall spatter it seven times before Yahweh in front of the curtain. ¹⁸ He must put* _⌊some of_⌋* the blood on the altar's horns before Yahweh _⌊in the tent of assembly_⌋,* and all the rest* of the blood he must pour out on the base of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the tent of assembly's entrance. ¹⁹ He must remove* all its fat from it, and he shall turn it into smoke on the altar. ²⁰ He shall do* to the bull _⌊just as_⌋* he did to the sin offering's bull, so he must do to it. The priest* shall make atonement for them, and _⌊they will be forgiven_⌋.* ²¹ He shall bring* the rest of* the bull _⌊outside the camp_⌋,* and he shall burn it _⌊just as_⌋* he burned the first bull; it is the sin offering for the assembly. ²² " 'When a leader sins and commits* an unintentional wrong against _⌊any of_⌋* the commands of Yahweh his God that should not be _⌊violated_⌋,* so that* he incurs guilt, ²³ or his sin he has _⌊committed_⌋* is made known to him, he shall bring* _⌊a male goat_⌋* without defect as his offering. ²⁴ He shall place* his hand on the he-goat's head and slaughter it in the place where he slaughtered the burnt offering before Yahweh; it is a sin offering. ²⁵ The priest* shall take _⌊some of_⌋* the sin offering's blood with his finger, and he shall put it on the horns of the altar of the burnt offering, and he must pour out the rest of* its blood on the base of the altar of the burnt offering. ²⁶ He* must turn all of its fat into smoke on the altar like the fat of the fellowship offerings' sacrifice, and the priest shall make atonement for him _⌊because of_⌋* his sin, and _⌊he will be forgiven_⌋.* ²⁷ " 'If* _⌊anyone_⌋* of the people of the land sins by an unintentional wrong by _⌊violating_⌋* one of Yahweh's commands that should not be _⌊violated_⌋,* so that* he incurs guilt, ²⁸ or his sin he has _⌊committed_⌋* is made known to him, he shall bring* as his offering _⌊a female goat without defect_⌋* as his offering for his sin that he _⌊committed_⌋.* ²⁹ He shall place* his hand on the sin offering's head and slaughter the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering. ³⁰ The priest* shall take _⌊some of_⌋* its blood with his finger, and he shall put it on the horns of the altar of the burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest of* its blood on the altar's base. ³¹ He* must remove all of its fat _⌊just as_⌋* the fat was removed from* the fellowship offerings' sacrifice, and the priest shall turn it into smoke on the altar as an appeasing fragrance for Yahweh. The priest* shall make atonement for him, and _⌊he will be forgiven_⌋.* ³² " 'But* if he brings a lamb as his offering for a sin offering, he must bring a female without defect. ³³ He shall place* his hand on the sin offering's head, and he shall slaughter it as a sin offering in the place where he slaughtered the burnt offering. ³⁴ The priest* shall take _⌊some of_⌋* the sin offering's blood with his finger, and he shall put it on the horns of the altar of the burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest* of its blood on the altar's base. ³⁵ He must remove* all of its fat _⌊just as_⌋* the lamb's fat from the fellowship offerings' sacrifice was removed, and the priest shall turn them into smoke on the altar upon Yahweh's offerings made by fire; and the priest shall make atonement for him because of* his sin that he _⌊committed_⌋,* and _⌊he will be forgiven_⌋.'"*

³⁰ But* any sin offering from which _⌊some of_⌋* its blood is brought to the tent of assembly to make atonement in the sanctuary must not be eaten; it must be burned in the fire.'"

¹⁵ and he slaughtered it, and Moses took the blood and put* it with his finger on the altar's horns all around and purified the altar; then* he poured the blood out on the altar's base—thus* he consecrated it in order to make atonement for it.*

²⁰ Then* the priest shall offer the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar, and the priest shall make atonement for him, and so he shall be clean.

¹⁵ And one* sheep from the flock from among two hundred from the pastures of Israel will be taken as a grain offering and as a burnt offering and as a fellowship offering to make atonement for them," _⌊declares_⌋* the Lord Yahweh.

¹⁷ "But on the prince shall be the responsibility for the burnt offerings, and the grain offering, and the libation at the feasts, and at the New Moon festivals, and at* the Sabbaths at all of the assemblies of the house of Israel; he shall provide the sin offering, and the grain offering, and the burnt offering, and the fellowship offering to make atonement for the house of Israel.

²⁴ "Seventy weeks is decreed for your people and _⌊for your holy city_⌋,* to put an end to the transgression and to seal up sin* and to make atonement for guilt and to bring in everlasting righteousness and to seal vision and prophet and to anoint _⌊the most holy place_⌋.*

¹⁰ For if, while we* were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, by much more, having been reconciled, we will be saved by his life. ¹¹ And not only this, but also we are boasting in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.

¹⁸ And all these things are from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ, and who has given us the ministry of reconciliation, ¹⁹ namely, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. ²⁰ Therefore we are ambassadors on behalf of Christ, as if* God were imploring you through us. We beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. ²¹ He made the one who did not know sin to be sin on our behalf, in order that we could become the righteousness of God in him.

²⁰ and through him to reconcile all things to himself, by* making peace through the blood of his cross, through him, whether things on earth or things in heaven. ²¹ And _⌊although you were formerly alienated_⌋** and enemies in attitude, because of your evil deeds,

¹⁷ Therefore he was obligated to be made like his brothers in all respects, in order that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in the things relating to God, in order to make atonement for the sins of the people.

² And the king said to Nathan the prophet, "Look, please, I am living in a house of cedar, but the ark of God is staying in the middle of the tent." ³ Nathan said to the king, "Go and do all that is in your heart, for Yahweh is with you." ⁴ But it happened _⌊that night_⌋,* the word of Yahweh came* to Nathan, saying,

¹ So Yahweh sent Nathan to David, and he came to him and said, "Two men were in a certain city; one was rich and the other was poor. ² The rich man had very many flocks and herds, ³ but the poor man had nothing except for one small ewe lamb which he had bought. He had nurtured her, and she grew up with him and with his children together. She used to eat from his morsel and drink from his cup, and she used to lie in his lap and became like a daughter for him. ⁴ And a visitor came to the rich man, but he _⌊was reluctant_⌋* to take from his flocks or from his herds to prepare a meal for the traveler when he came to him. So he took the ewe lamb of the poor man and prepared it for the man who had come to him." ⁵ Then _⌊the anger of David was kindled_⌋* against the man, and he said to Nathan, "_⌊As Yahweh lives_⌋,* the man who has done this _⌊deserves to die_⌋!* ⁶ He shall restore the ewe lamb fourfold because he has done this thing, and because he had no pity." ⁷ Then Nathan said to him, "You are the man! Thus says Yahweh the God of Israel: 'I anointed you as king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

¹¹ When David got up in the morning, the word of Yahweh came to Gad the prophet, the seer of David, saying,

³³ Now these were the singers; the heads of the _⌊families_⌋* of the Levites were in the chambers free from other service, for day and night they were over them on the service.

¹⁶ Then David ordered the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers with instruments of song, musical instruments, stringed instruments, and cymbals, _⌊raising their voices for joy_⌋.* ¹⁷ So the Levites appointed Heman son of Joel, and from his brothers, Asaph the son of Berekiah, and from the sons of Merari, their brothers, Ethan the son of Kushaiah; ¹⁸ and with them their brothers of the second rank, Zechariah the son, Jaaziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, and the gatekeepers Obed-Edom and Jeiel. ¹⁹ Now the singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, were to sound bronze cymbals; ²⁰ Zechariah, Aziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah were to play on harps according to Alamoth; ²¹ and Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-Edom, Jeiel, and Azaziah were to play lyres, directing according to the Sheminith. ²² And Kenaniah, chief of the Levites in singing, was to be an instructor in singing because he understood.

⁴ Then he appointed some of the Levites as ministers before the ark of Yahweh, to invoke, thank, and praise Yahweh the God of Israel. ⁵ Asaph was chief, and his second was Zechariah; Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-Edom, and Jeiel were on harps and lyres. And Asaph played on the cymbals.

⁴² And Heman and Jeduthun with them had trumpets and cymbals for making music, along with instruments for the song of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were at the gate.

⁹ Then Yahweh spoke to Gad the seer of David, saying,

⁵ four thousand gatekeepers, and four thousand offering praise with the instruments that I have made for praise."

¹ And David and the commanders of the army set apart for the service the sons of Asaph, of Heman, and of Jeduthun, who prophesied with stringed instruments, with harps, and with cymbals. And their inventory of the men of the work and for their duty was: ² for the sons of Asaph: Zakkur, Joseph, Nethaniah, and Asarelah, sons of Asaph, under the hand* of Asaph, who prophesied under the hands* of the king. ³ Of Jeduthun, the sons of Jeduthun: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah,* Heshabiah, and Mattithiah, six, under the hands* of their father Jeduthun, who prophesied with the stringed instrument with thanksgiving and praise to Yahweh. ⁴ Of Heman, the sons of Heman: Bukkiah, Mattaniah, Uzziel, Shebuel and Jerimoth, Hananiah, Hanani, Eliathah, Giddalti and Romamti-ezer, Joshbekashah, Mallothi, Hothir, Mahazioth. ⁵ All these were sons to Heman, the seer of the king, according to the words of God to raise a horn.* And God had given to Heman fourteen sons and three daughters. ⁶ All these were under the _⌊direction_⌋* of their father in the music of the house of Yahweh, with cymbals, harps, and stringed instruments for the service of the house of God. Asaph, Jeduthun, and Heman were under the _⌊direction_⌋* of the king. ⁷ And their number, along with their brothers, trained singers, all the skilled people for Yahweh, were two hundred and eighty-eight.

¹² and the plan of all _⌊that he had in mind_⌋* for the courtyards of the house of Yahweh and for all the surrounding storage rooms, the treasuries of the house of God, and the treasuries for sanctified objects,

¹⁹ "All this I give you in writing; from the hand of Yahweh he instructed me about all the workings of this plan."

²⁹ Now the words of King David, from the first to the last, see, they are written among the words of Samuel the seer, and among the words of Nathan the prophet, and among the words of Gad the seer,

¹⁴ And in accord with the ordinance of David his father he appointed working groups of priests for their service, Levites for their responsibilities for praise and cultic service before the priests _⌊according to the daily requirement_⌋,* and the gatekeepers in their working groups, gate by gate. For thus David the man of God had commanded.

¹⁵ And the singers, the descendants* of Asaph, were at their stations according to the decree* of David and Asaph and Heman and Jeduthun, the seer of the king. And the gatekeepers were at _⌊each gate_⌋.* They did not need to depart from their service, for their brothers the Levites had made preparations for them.

⁸ The sons of Aaron, the priests, will blow on the trumpets; this will be an eternal decree for your generations.

¹⁰ "And on the day of your joy and in your appointed times, at the beginning of your months, you will blow on the trumpets in addition to your burnt offerings and in addition to the sacrifices of your fellowship offerings. And they will be as a memorial for you _⌊before_⌋* your God; I am Yahweh your God."

⁴ And seven priests will bear seven trumpets of rams' horns before the ark. On the seventh day you will march around the city seven times, and the priests will blow on the trumpets. ⁵ And when they blow long on the horn of the ram, when you hear the sound of the trumpet, all the people will shout with a great war cry, and the wall of the city will fall flat,* and _⌊the people will charge, each one straight ahead_⌋."* ⁶ So Joshua son of Nun summoned the priests and said to them, "Take up the ark of the covenant, and let seven priests carry the trumpets of the rams' horns before the ark of Yahweh." ⁷ And he said* to the people, "Go forward and march around the city, and let the armed men pass before the ark of Yahweh. ⁸ _⌊And when Joshua spoke_⌋* to the people, the seven priests carrying the seven trumpets of rams' horns before the presence of Yahweh went forward and they blew the trumpets; and the ark of the covenant of Yahweh followed behind them. ⁹ And the armed men went before the priests who blew the trumpets, and the rear guard came after the ark, while they were blowing the trumpets.

²⁴ And Shebaniah, Jehoshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Elizezer the priests _⌊sounded the trumpets_⌋* before the ark of God. And Obed-Edom and Jehiah were gatekeepers for the ark.

⁶ And Benaiah and Jahaziel the priests blew on the trumpets continually before the ark of the covenant of God.

¹² and all the Levitical singers—Asaph, Heman, Jeduthun, their sons, their brothers, dressed in fine linen, with cymbals, harps, and stringed instruments—they were standing to the east of the altar. And with them outside were one hundred and twenty priests who were trumpet blowers. ¹³ And it was the primary duty of the trumpeters and singers to make themselves heard with one voice, to praise and give thanks to Yahweh. And when a sound from the trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments of song was raised to Yahweh—for he is good, because his loyal love is everlasting—then the house, the house of Yahweh, was filled with a cloud.

³ Blow the horn at new moon, at full moon, for our feast day,

⁷ And while dancing, singers will sing, "All my springs are in you."

⁵ Sing praises to Yahweh with lyre, with lyre and melodious sound. ⁶ With trumpets and sound of horn, shout joyfully before the king, Yahweh.

³ Praise him with blast of horn; praise him with harp and lyre. ⁴ Praise him with tambourine and dancing; praise him with strings and flute. ⁵ Praise him with sounding cymbals; praise him with clashing cymbals.

²⁰ Yahweh, save me, and we will play my music on stringed instruments all the days of our lives at the temple* of Yahweh."

⁵ Alas for those who sing to the tune of the harp; like David they improvise on instruments of music.

³ When all the _⌊Israelites_⌋* saw the fire come down and the glory of Yahweh upon the house, they knelt down with their faces to the ground on the pavement and worshiped and gave thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loyal love is everlasting.

²¹ And when he had taken counsel with the people, he appointed singers to Yahweh who were giving praise to the splendor of his holiness when they went out before the army. And they said, "Give thanks to Yahweh, for his loyal love is everlasting!"

¹⁸ And Jehoiada placed appointees at the house of Yahweh under the hand of the Levitical priests whom David had allotted to the house of Yahweh to offer burnt offerings to Yahweh as was written in the law of Moses, with joy and with song, according to the _⌊order of David_⌋.*

¹ Give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good, for his loyal love endures forever.

³ For there our captors asked of us words of a song, and our tormentors* asked of us jubilation, "Sing for us from a song of Zion." ⁴ How could we sing the song of Yahweh in _⌊a foreign land_⌋?*

²⁴ They have seen your processions, O God, the processions of my God, my king, distinctive in victory.* ²⁵ Singers went up front, those playing stringed instruments last, between them young women playing tambourines. ²⁶ Bless God in the assemblies, Yahweh from the fountain of Israel.

¹⁵ Blessed are the people who know the joyful shout; O Yahweh, they walk about in the light of your countenance.

⁸ And when he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one of whom had a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. ⁹ And they were singing a new song, saying,
"You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slaughtered, and bought people for God by your blood from every tribe and language and people and nation, ¹⁰ and made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign on the earth." ¹¹ And I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and of the living creatures and of the elders, and their number was ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands times thousands, ¹² saying with a loud voice,
"Worthy is the Lamb who was slaughtered to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" ¹³ And I heard every creature that is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and in the sea and everything in them saying,
"To the one who is seated on the throne and to the Lamb be praise and honor and glory and power* _⌊forever and ever_⌋*." ¹⁴ And the four living creatures were saying, "Amen!" and the elders fell down and worshiped.

²⁰ And David said to all the assembly, "Bless Yahweh your God!" And all the assembly blessed Yahweh, the God of their ancestors.* And they bowed down and prostrated themselves before Yahweh and the king.

¹⁸ Then Jehoshaphat bowed his face* down to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell before Yahweh to worship Yahweh.

¹¹ and let all kings bow down to him. Let all nations serve him.

¹¹ For it is written,
"As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will praise God."*

¹⁰ so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven and of those on earth and of those under the earth, ¹¹ and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

¹ These are the last words of David, the declaration of David the son of Jesse, and the declaration of the man exalted by the Most High, the anointed one of the God of Jacob and the darling of the songs of Israel. ² "The spirit of Yahweh speaks through me, and his word is upon my tongue.

⁷ Then on that day David first appointed to give thanks to Yahweh by the hand of Asaph and his brothers. ⁸ Give thanks to Yahweh; call upon his name; make known his deeds among the nations! ⁹ Sing to him; sing praises to him; tell of his wondrous works! ¹⁰ Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those seeking Yahweh rejoice! ¹¹ Seek Yahweh and his strength; seek his face continually! ¹² Remember his wonderful works that he has done, his wonders and the judgments of his mouth, ¹³ O offspring of Israel, his servant, O sons of Jacob, his chosen ones! ¹⁴ He is Yahweh our God; his judgments are in all the earth. ¹⁵ Remember his covenant forever, the word he commanded for a thousand generations, ¹⁶ that he _⌊made_⌋* with Abraham, his sworn oath to Isaac. ¹⁷ And he confirmed it to Jacob as a statute, an everlasting covenant to Israel, ¹⁸ saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan, the portion of your inheritance." ¹⁹ When you were few in number, little, and sojourners were in it, ²⁰ when they wandered from nation to nation, and from one kingdom to another people, ²¹ he did not allow anyone to oppress them, and he rebuked kings on their account, ²² saying, "You must not touch my anointed nor do harm to my prophets!" ²³ Sing to Yahweh, all the earth! Proclaim his salvation from day to day! ²⁴ Proclaim his glory among the nations, his wondrous works among the peoples! ²⁵ For Yahweh is great and greatly praised, and he is feared among all gods. ²⁶ For all the gods of the nations are idols, but Yahweh made the heavens. ²⁷ Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his place. ²⁸ Ascribe to Yahweh, O clans of the nations, ascribe to Yahweh glory and strength! ²⁹ Ascribe to Yahweh the glory of his name! Lift up an offering and come before him! Bow down to Yahweh in the splendor of holiness! ³⁰ Tremble before him, all the earth; surely the world shall not be shaken. ³¹ Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad, and let them tell the peoples, "Yahweh reigns!" ³² Let the sea roar and its fullness; let the field rejoice and all that is in it. ³³ Then the trees of the forest shall sing for joy before Yahweh, for he comes to judge the earth. ³⁴ Oh give thanks to Yahweh, for he is good; his loyal love is everlasting. ³⁵ Then say, "Save us, O God of our salvation; gather us and rescue us from the nations that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise. ³⁶ Blessed be Yahweh the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting!"
Then all the people said, "Amen!" and praised Yahweh.

¹¹ Be glad in Yahweh and rejoice, you righteous, and shout for joy, all you upright of heart.

¹ Come, let us sing for joy to Yahweh; let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation. ² Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving; with songs let us shout joyfully to him.

⁶ Come in, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before Yahweh, our maker.

¹ A psalm of thanksgiving.*
Shout in triumph to Yahweh, all the earth. ² Serve* Yahweh with joy; come into his presence with exultation.

² Let Israel be glad in its maker; let the children of Zion rejoice in their king.

⁴ Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice.

⁵ 'Take from among you a contribution for Yahweh, anyone willing of heart, let him bring Yahweh's contribution—gold and silver and bronze,

²² And they came, the men in addition to the women, all who were willing of heart; they brought brooches and jewelry rings and signet rings and ornaments—every variety of gold object—every man who waved a wave offering of gold for Yahweh,

¹ Then* Yahweh called to Moses and spoke to him from the tent of assembly, saying, ² "Speak to the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* and say to them, 'When a person* from you presents an offering to Yahweh, you shall present your offering from domestic animals, from the cattle* or from the flock.* ³ If his offering is a burnt offering from the cattle,* then he must present* an unblemished male; he must present it at the door of the tent of assembly for his acceptance _⌊before_⌋* Yahweh.

¹² If he presents it for thanksgiving, in addition to the thanksgiving sacrifice he shall present ring-shaped unleavened bread mixed with oil and unleavened bread wafers smeared with oil and well-mixed ring-shaped bread cakes of finely milled flour mixed with oil.

³⁸ _⌊besides_⌋* Yahweh's Sabbaths and _⌊besides_⌋* your gifts and _⌊besides_⌋* your vows and _⌊besides_⌋* all your freewill offerings that you give to Yahweh.

⁹ Did you not drive out the priests of Yahweh, the sons of Aaron, the Levites? Have you not made for yourselves priests like all the peoples of the lands? All who come _⌊to be consecrated for priestly service_⌋* with a young bull or seven rams becomes a priest of what is not a god.

⁴ And let every survivor, from wherever he _⌊resides_⌋* be assisted by the men of that place with silver and gold, with possessions and domestic animals, and with the freewill offering for the house of God which is in Jerusalem."

⁴ So the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice, for the great high place was there. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar.

⁶³ Solomon sacrificed the fellowship offerings which he offered to Yahweh: twenty-two thousand oxen and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep; and the king and all of the _⌊Israelites_⌋* dedicated the house of Yahweh.

²¹ And they offered sacrifices to Yahweh, and on that next day they offered burnt offerings to Yahweh: one thousand bulls, one thousand rams, one thousand lambs, with their libations and sacrifices in abundance for all Israel.

¹⁷ And they offered during the dedication of this house of God one hundred young bulls, two hundred young rams, four hundred lambs, and twelve male goats as a sin offering for Israel according to the number of the tribes of Israel.

¹⁵ And after this the Levites will come to serve at the tent of assembly, and you will purify them, and you _⌊will offer_⌋* them as a wave offering.

¹⁹ And I have given the Levites; they are given to Aaron and his sons from the midst of the _⌊Israelites_⌋* to do the work of the _⌊Israelites_⌋* in the tent of the assembly and to make atonement for the _⌊Israelites_⌋,* so a plague will not be among the _⌊Israelites_⌋* when the _⌊Israelites_⌋* come near the sanctuary."

³ They will keep your responsibility and the responsibility of all the tent, only they may not come near the vessels of the sanctuary and the altar, so both you and they will not die.

¹⁷ And I know, my God, that you yourself test the heart and are pleased with uprightness. I, in the uprightness of my heart, have willingly offered all these things, and now I have seen your people who are found here willingly offer to you.

³ but they were not able to make it at that time, for the priests had not consecrated themselves _⌊in sufficient numbers_⌋,* and the people had not been assembled in Jerusalem—

¹⁶ Then they stood at their positions according to custom, according to the law of Moses the man of God. The priests were sprinkling the blood from the hand of the Levites. ¹⁷ For there were many in the assembly who did not consecrate themselves, so the Levites were over the killing of the Passover sacrifices for all who were not clean, to consecrate them to Yahweh.

¹¹ And they slaughtered the Passover lamb, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hand, and the Levites flayed the sacrifices.

¹⁰ My shield is with God who saves the upright of heart.

⁶ I will wash my hands in innocence, and I will walk about your altar, O Yahweh,

¹⁵ For judgment will return to righteousness,* and all the upright in heart will follow after it.

¹⁴ And Jacob set up a pillar at the place where God had spoken with him, a pillar of stone. And he poured out a drink offering upon it, and poured oil on it.

¹³ And you will take and turn into smoke on the altar all the fat covering the inner parts and the lobe on the liver and the two kidneys and the fat that is on them.

¹⁵ the two kidneys,* and the fat that is on them, which is on the loins, and he must remove the lobe on the liver in addition to the kidneys. ¹⁶ The priest* shall turn them into smoke on the altar as a food offering;* all the fat is an offering made by fire as an appeasing fragrance for Yahweh.

¹³ And its grain offering shall be two-tenths of an ephah* of finely milled flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire for Yahweh, an appeasing fragrance; and its libation shall be a fourth of a hin* of wine.

⁵ and you will add a fourth of wine for the libation upon the burnt offering, or to the sacrifice for each ram-lamb. ⁶ Or for the ram you will make a grain offering of two-tenths of finely milled flour mixed into a third of a liquid measure of oil. ⁷ You will present a third of the liquid measure of wine for the libation, a fragrance of appeasement for Yahweh. ⁸ When you prepare _⌊a bull_⌋* as a burnt offering or a sacrifice to fulfill a vow or a fellowship offering for Yahweh, ⁹ you will present with _⌊the bull_⌋* a grain offering of three-tenths of finely milled flour mixed with half a liquid measure of oil, ¹⁰ and you will present half a liquid measure of wine as a libation, as an offering made by fire, a fragrance of appeasement for Yahweh.

³⁷ So he* left Asaph and his brothers there before the ark of the covenant of Yahweh to minister before the ark regularly _⌊as each day required_⌋,* ³⁸ and he left Obed-Edom with his sixty-eight brothers. And Obed-Edom, the son of Jeduthun, and Hosah were gatekeepers. ³⁹ And he left Zadok the priest and his brothers the priests before the tabernacle of Yahweh at the high place which was at Gibeon ⁴⁰ to offer burnt offerings regularly to Yahweh on the altar of burnt offering, morning and evening, according to all that was written in the law of Yahweh that he commanded concerning Israel. ⁴¹ And with them were Heman and Jeduthun and the remainder of those chosen, who were designated by name to give thanks to Yahweh, for his loyal love is everlasting. ⁴² And Heman and Jeduthun with them had trumpets and cymbals for making music, along with instruments for the song of God. And the sons of Jeduthun were at the gate.

¹⁸ Then they set the priests in their divisions and the Levites in their sections for the work of God in Jerusalem, as it is written in the book of Moses.

⁴⁰ But let all things be done decently and according to proper procedure.

⁹ And the people rejoiced over their freewill offering, for with a whole heart they had willingly offered to Yahweh, and King David also rejoiced with great joy.

¹⁷ And I know, my God, that you yourself test the heart and are pleased with uprightness. I, in the uprightness of my heart, have willingly offered all these things, and now I have seen your people who are found here willingly offer to you. ¹⁸ O Yahweh, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, our ancestors,* keep this forever as a plan and thoughts of the heart of your people, and establish their heart toward you.

²² With joy they celebrated the festival of unleavened bread for seven days, because Yahweh had made them joyful and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria toward them in order to help them with the work of their hands on the house of the God of Israel.

¹⁷ The longing of the afflicted you have heard, O Yahweh. You will make their heart secure. You will _⌊listen attentively_⌋*

¹ To mortals belong the plans of the heart, but from Yahweh comes the answer of the tongue.

⁴¹ So those who accepted his message were baptized, and on that day about three thousand souls were added.

⁸ because now we live, if you stand firm in the Lord. ⁹ For what thanks can we repay to God concerning you, because of all the joy with which we rejoice because of you before our God,