1 Samuel 15 Cross References - NSB

¹¹ »I am sorry that I made Saul king. He has turned away from me and disobeyed my commands.« Samuel was angry. All night long he pleaded with Jehovah. ¹² Early the following morning he went off to find Saul. He heard that Saul had gone to the town of Carmel. There in Carmel he built a monument to himself. Then he went to Gilgal. ¹³ Samuel went up to Saul. Saul said: »Jehovah bless you, Samuel! I have obeyed Jehovah’s command.« ¹⁴ Samuel asked: »Why do I hear the sound of cows and sheep?« ¹⁵ Saul answered: »The army brought them from the Amalekites. They spared the best sheep and cows to sacrifice to Jehovah your God. But the rest they claimed for God and destroyed them.« ¹⁶ »Be quiet,« Samuel told Saul, »Let me tell you what Jehovah told me last night.« »Speak,« Saul replied. ¹⁷ Samuel said to Saul: »You are little in your own eyes. Even though you are a leader of all of the tribes of Israel that Jehovah anointed king over Israel. ¹⁸ »Jehovah sent you on a mission. He said: Go and destroy those sinners, the Amalekites. Fight against them until every one is dead. ¹⁹ »Why then did you not obey the voice of Jehovah? Why did you pounce on the plunder? Why did you do evil in the sight of Jehovah?« ²⁰ Then Saul said to Samuel: »I did obey the voice of Jehovah. I went on the mission Jehovah sent me. I brought back Agag the king of Amalek. I have utterly destroyed the Amalekites. » ²¹ The people took from the plunder of the flock the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in Gilgal. ²² Samuel said: »What is more pleasing to Jehovah, burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Obeying is better than sacrifice. To pay attention is better than the fat of rams. ²³ »The sin of divination is rebellion. Wickedness and idolatry are arrogance. They are evil. Because you rejected the word of Jehovah, he rejects you as king.« ²⁴ Then Saul told Samuel: »I have sinned by not following Jehovah’s command or your instructions. I was afraid of the people and listened to them. ²⁵ »But now I beg you, forgive my sin and return with me, so that I can worship Jehovah.« ²⁶ »I will not return with you,« Samuel answered. »You rejected Jehovah’s command. He has rejected you as king of Israel.« ²⁷ Samuel turned to leave, but Saul caught hold of his cloak, and it tore. ²⁸ Samuel said to him: »Jehovah has torn the kingdom of Israel away from you today. He gave it to someone who is a better man than you. ²⁹ »The Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind. He is not a mortal who changes his mind.« ³⁰ Saul replied: »I have sinned! Now please honor me in front of the elders of my people and in front of Israel. Come back with me. Let me worship Jehovah your God!« ³¹ Then Samuel turned and followed Saul. Saul worshiped Jehovah. ³² »Bring me King Agag of the Amalekites,« Samuel said. Agag came to him trembling. »Surely, the bitterness of death is past,« Agag said. ³³ But Samuel said: »As your sword made women childless, so your mother will be made childless among women.« Samuel cut Agag in pieces in the presence of Jehovah at Gilgal. ³⁴ Samuel went to Ramah. Saul went up to his house in Gibeah, in the land of Saul. ³⁵ Samuel never saw Saul again until the day of his death. Samuel went into mourning for Saul. It was no longer Jehovah’s pleasure for Saul to be king over Israel. ¹ Samuel told Saul: »Jehovah sent me to anoint you king of his people Israel. Now listen to Jehovah’s words: ² ‘The Israelites were on their way out of Egypt when the nation of Amalek attacked them. I am Jehovah All-Powerful. I am going to make Amalek pay for what he did to Israel! ³ »‘Go and attack the Amalekites! Destroy them and all their possessions. Do not have any pity. Kill their men, women, children, and even their babies. Slaughter their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.’« ⁴ Saul called his forces together and inspected them at Telem. There were two hundred thousand soldiers from Israel and ten thousand from Judah. ⁵ Then he and his men went to the city of Amalek. They waited in ambush in a dry riverbed. ⁶ He sent a warning to the Kenites, a people whose ancestors had been kind to the Israelites when they came from Egypt: »Go away and leave the Amalekites. That way I will not kill you along with them.« So the Kenites left. ⁷ Saul defeated the Amalekites. He fought all the way from Havilah to Shur, east of Egypt. ⁸ He captured King Agag of Amalek alive and with the sword he killed all the people. ⁹ Saul and his men spared Agag’s life and did not kill the best sheep and cattle, the best calves and lambs, or anything else that was good. They destroyed only what was useless or worthless. ¹⁰ Jehovah spoke to Samuel:

¹¹ The name of the first river is the Pishon. It winds through the entire land of Havilah, where there is gold.

¹² Adam said: »The woman you put here with me gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.«

¹² Adam said: »The woman you put here with me gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.« ¹³ Then Jehovah God said to the Eve: »What is this you have done?« The woman answered: »The serpent deceived me, and I ate.«

¹³ Then Jehovah God said to the Eve: »What is this you have done?« The woman answered: »The serpent deceived me, and I ate.«

¹⁷ He said to Adam: »Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life.

¹⁷ He said to Adam: »Because you listened to your wife and ate from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. ¹⁸ »It will produce thorns and thistles for you. You will eat the plants of the field.

⁶ Jehovah was grieved that he had made man on the earth. His heart was grieved with pain.

⁶ »Whoever sheds the blood of man will have his blood shed by man. For man was made in the image of God.

¹³ The men of Sodom were wicked and sinned greatly against Jehovah.

¹⁹ He blessed him and said: »Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth.

¹⁶ »They shall come back here in the fourth generation. The iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.«

⁷ The angel of Jehovah found Hagar near a spring in the desert. It was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.

²⁵ »Surely you would not do that! Would you slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be as the wicked? Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?«

¹² »Do you have any other relatives here in the city?« The angels asked. »Get them out of this place, sons-in-law, sons, daughters, or anyone else. ¹³ »We will destroy the city completely. The stench of the place has reached Jehovah. He has sent us to destroy it.« ¹⁴ Lot rushed out to tell his sons-in-law: »Hurry! Get out of the city! Jehovah is going to destroy it.« But the young men thought he was only joking. ¹⁵ At dawn the next morning the angels became insistent. They said to Lot: »Hurry! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here. Get out of here right now, or you will be caught in the destruction of the city.« ¹⁶ Lot still hesitated. So the angels seized his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters and rushed them to safety outside the city, for Jehovah was merciful.

¹⁸ His descendants lived as nomads from the region of Havilah to Shur. This is near Egypt, in the direction of Assyria. He died in the presence of all his brothers.

¹⁹ When Laban went to shear his sheep, Rachel stole her father’s household idols.

³⁴ Rachel took the images. She put them in the camels’ basket and was seated on them. Laban searched through the tent and did not find them.

³⁸ Jacob replied: »My son will not go with you. His brother is dead, and he is the only one left. If any harm comes to him on the trip you are taking, the grief would drive this gray-haired old man to his grave!«

¹¹ Their father Israel said: »If that is the way it has to be, then take the man a gift. Put some of the best products of the land in your bags. Take a little balm, a little honey, gum, myrrh, pistachio nuts, and almonds. ¹² »Take twice as much money with you, because you must take back the money that was returned in the top of your sacks. Maybe it was a mistake. ¹³ »Take your brother and return at once. ¹⁴ »May God Almighty cause the man to have pity on you, so that he will give Benjamin and your other brother back to you. As for me, if I must lose my children, I must lose them.«

²⁷ The king sent for Moses and Aaron and said: »This time I have sinned. Jehovah is in the right. My people and I are in the wrong.

¹⁶ Pharaoh quickly called for Moses and Aaron and said: »I have sinned against Jehovah your God and against you. ¹⁷ »Please forgive my sin one more time. Pray to Jehovah your God to take this deadly plague away from me.«

²² Moses led Israel away from the Red Sea into the desert of Shur. For three days they traveled in the desert without finding water.

⁸ The Amalekites fought Israel at Rephidim. ⁹ Moses said to Joshua: »Choose some of our men. Then fight the Amalekites. Tomorrow I will stand on top of the hill. I will hold in my hand the staff God told me to take along.« ¹⁰ Joshua did as Moses told him. They fought the Amalekites, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went to the top of the hill. ¹¹ As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel would win, but as soon as he put his hands down, the Amalekites would start to win.

¹¹ As long as Moses held up his hands, Israel would win, but as soon as he put his hands down, the Amalekites would start to win. ¹² Finally, Moses was so tired that Aaron and Hur got a rock for him to sit on. They stood beside him and supported his arms in the same position until sunset. ¹³ That is how Joshua defeated the Amalekites. ¹⁴ After the fight Jehovah said to Moses: »Write an account of this victory and read it to Joshua. I want the Amalekites to be forgotten forever.« ¹⁵ Moses built an altar. He named it: »Jehovah Gives Me Victory.« ¹⁶ Then Moses explained: »This is because I depended on Jehovah. But in future generations, Jehovah will have to fight the Amalekites again.«

⁹ Jethro rejoiced over all the goodness Jehovah had done to Israel, in delivering them from the hand of the Egyptians. ¹⁰ Jethro said: »Blessed be Jehovah who delivered you from the hand of the Egyptians and from the hand of Pharaoh. He delivered the people from under the domination of the Egyptians.

¹⁹ »Listen to the advice I give you. May God be with you! You must be the people’s representative to God and bring their disagreements to him.

⁵ ‘If you will obey me and are faithful to the terms of my covenant, then out of all the nations you will be my own special possession, for all the earth is mine.

⁵ »Do not worship them or serve them. I, Jehovah your God, am a God demanding exclusive devotion. (I do not tolerate rivals.) I will not share your affection with any other god. I punish children for their parents’ sins to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me.

¹⁸ »Never allow a witch to live.

² »Do not follow the majority to do wrong. Do not give testimony that perverts justice.

²² Aaron said, »Do not be angry with me. You know the people as well as I do. They are determined to do evil. ²³ »They said to me: ‘That man Moses led us out of Egypt, but now we do not know what has happened to him. Make us a god to lead us.’«

⁶ »‘If any of you go for advice to people who consult the spirits of the dead, I will turn against you and will no longer consider you one of my people.

²⁷ »‘If you claim to receive messages from the dead, you will be put to death by stoning, just as you deserve.

²⁸ »‘However, everything dedicated to Jehovah for destruction, a person, an animal, or a field that belongs to you, must not be sold or bought back. Everything dedicated in that way is very holy. It belongs to Jehovah. ²⁹ »‘People dedicated this way may not be bought back. They must be put to death.

²⁹ Moses said to his brother-in-law Hobab son of Jethro the Midianite: We are about to start out for the place Jehovah said he would give us. He promised to make Israel prosperous, so come with us, and we will share our prosperity with you. ³⁰ Hobab answered: »No, I am going back to my native land.« ³¹ »Please do not leave us,« Moses said. »You know where we can camp in the desert. You can be our guide. ³² »If you come with us, we will share with you all the blessings that Jehovah gives us.«

²⁶ He said to the congregation: »Move away from the tents of these wicked men. Do not touch anything that belongs to them, or you’ll be swept away because of all their sins.«

³⁴ Balaam replied: »I have sinned. I did not know that you were standing in the road to oppose me. Now if you think it is wrong for me to go on I will return home.«

¹⁷ »So kill all the Midianite boys and every Midianite woman who has gone to bed with a man.

⁹ »Do not rebel against Jehovah. Do not be afraid of the people who live there. We will conquer them easily. Jehovah is with us and has defeated the gods who protected them. Do not be afraid.«

²⁸ »Therefore tell them: ‘As I live, declares Jehovah, I solemnly swear I will do everything to you that you said I would do. ²⁹ »‘Your bodies will drop dead in this desert. All of you who are at least twenty years old, who were registered and listed, and who complained about me will die.

⁴⁵ The Amalekites and Canaanites who lived there came down from those mountains, attacked the Israelites, and defeated them at Hormah.

²⁷ So they moved away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram. Dathan and Abiram came out and were standing at the entrances to their tents with their wives and children.

³⁴ All the Israelites around them ran away when they heard their screams. They thought the ground would swallow them, also.

³⁸ »The incense burners of these men who sinned and lost their lives are holy, because they were offered to Jehovah. Hammer them into thin metal sheets to cover the altar. This will be a sign to the Israelites.«

¹⁹ »God is a not man that he should lie. He is not a son of man who changes his mind. Does he ever promise and not fulfill? Does he ever speak and not act?

⁷ »Water will flow from his buckets and his seed will be by many waters. His king shall be higher than Agag. And his kingdom shall be exalted.

²⁰ He looked at Amalek and continued his discourse. He said: Amalek was the first of the nations but he will end in destruction. ²¹ And he looked at the Kenite and continued his discourse. He said: »Your dwelling place is enduring and your nest is set in the cliff. ²² »Nevertheless Kain will be consumed! How long will Asshur keep you captive?«

⁷ Phinehas, son of Eleazar and grandson of the priest Aaron, saw this. He left the assembly and grabbed a spear in his hand. ⁸ He went into the tent after the Israelite man. He drove the spear through the man and into the woman’s body. Because of this, the plague that the Israelites were experiencing stopped.

⁷ »Never forget how you made Jehovah your God angry in the desert. You rebelled against Jehovah from the day you left Egypt until you came here.

²⁴ »You have rebelled against Jehovah from the day I knew you.

¹⁵ strike the inhabitants of that city with the edge of the sword, utterly destroying it and all that is in it and its cattle with the edge of the sword. ¹⁶ »Gather all its treasure into the middle of its open square and burn the city and all its treasure with fire as a whole burnt offering to Jehovah your God. It shall be a ruin forever. It shall never be rebuilt.

¹⁶ »Do not spare anyone's life in the cities of these nations Jehovah your God is giving you as your property. ¹⁷ »You must capture the Hittites, Amorites, Canaanites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites for Jehovah and completely destroy them. Jehovah your God commands you. ¹⁸ »Otherwise, they will teach you to do all the disgusting things they do for their gods. You will sin against Jehovah your God.

¹⁷ »Remember what Amalek did to you along the way when you came out from Egypt. ¹⁸ »He met you along the way and attacked among you all the stragglers at your rear when you were faint and weary. He did not respect God. ¹⁹ »When Jehovah your God has given you rest from all your surrounding enemies, in the land Jehovah your God gives you as an inheritance to possess. You will blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget.

²⁷ »The eternal God is a dwelling place. Underneath are the everlasting arms. He drove out the enemy from before you, and said: ‘Destroy!’

¹⁰ »Do not sacrifice your children in the fires on your altars. Do not let your people practice divination or look for omens or use spells or charms. ¹¹ »Do not allow them to consult the spirits of the dead.

⁸ The children of Israel did as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the middle of the Jordan. This was just as Jehovah spoke to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel. They carried them to the place where they lodged and laid them down there. ⁹ Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan River, in the place where the feet of the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant stood, and they are there to this day.

³⁹ He took it, and the king and all the cities there. They killed them with the edge of the sword, and utterly destroyed all people there. He left none remaining: as he had done to Hebron, so he did to Debir, and to the king as he had done also to Libnah, and to her king.

¹² Joshua took all the cities and all the kings and struck them with the edge of the sword. He utterly destroyed them. Just as Moses the servant of Jehovah commanded.

²⁴ Ziph, and Telem, and Bealoth,

⁵⁵ Maon, Carmel, and Ziph, and Juttah,

¹⁷ »The city and everything in it will be destroyed. It belongs to Jehovah. Only Rahab the harlot and all who are with her in her house will live. Because she hid the messengers we sent. ¹⁸ »You people must stay away from anything devoted to destruction. You should not take things from the city. You will cause trouble for the camp of Israel is you take of the accursed things. ¹⁹ »All the silver, and gold, and vessels of brass and iron, are consecrated to Jehovah. They must come into the treasury of Jehovah.« ²⁰ So the people shouted when the priests blew the trumpets. When the people heard the sound of the trumpet, and the people shouted with a great shout, the wall fell down flat. The people went into the city, every man straight ahead. They captured the city. ²¹ They utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.

²¹ »When I saw among the spoils a quality Babylonish garment, and two hundred shekels of silver, and a wedge of gold of fifty shekels weight, then I coveted them, and took them. I hid them in the earth in the middle of my tent.«

¹⁶ Speaking for the whole assembly of Jehovah’s people they said: »Why have you done this evil thing against the God of Israel? You have rebelled against Jehovah by building this altar for yourselves! You are no longer following him!

¹⁶ Speaking for the whole assembly of Jehovah’s people they said: »Why have you done this evil thing against the God of Israel? You have rebelled against Jehovah by building this altar for yourselves! You are no longer following him! ¹⁷ »Do you remember our sin at Peor, when Jehovah punished his own people with an epidemic? We are still suffering because of that. Was that not enough sin? ¹⁸ »Are you going to refuse to follow him now? If you rebel against Jehovah now, he will be angry with everyone in Israel. ¹⁹ »If your land is not fit to worship in, come over into Jehovah’s land, where his Tabernacle is. Claim some land among us. But do not rebel against Jehovah or make rebels out of us by building an altar in addition to the altar of Jehovah our God.

⁷ And Adoni-bezek said: »Seventy kings with their big toes cut off have gathered food scrapes under my table. God has repaid me for what I have done.« So they brought him to Jerusalem where he died.

¹⁶ The children of the Kenite, Moses’ father-in-law, went up out of the city of palm trees with the children of Judah to the wilderness of Judah, which lies in the south of Arad to live with the people.

¹¹ Now Heber the Kenite, which was of the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, had severed himself from the Kenites, and pitched his tent at the plain of Zaanaim, which is by Kedesh.

²⁴ »Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, is the most blessed of women. The most blessed of women who live in tents.

¹⁵ Gideon replied: »But Jehovah, how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the tribe of Manasseh. I am the least important member of my family.«

² He said to his mother: »When someone stole those eleven hundred pieces of silver from you, you put a curse on the robber. I heard you do it. Look, I have the money. I am the one who took it.« His mother said: »Jehovah blesses you.«

¹⁰ He said: »You are blessed of Jehovah, my daughter: for this kindness is greater than what you showed earlier. You have not pursued younger men, whether poor or rich.

¹² Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He said: »Jehovah helped us all the way.« He named it: »Stone of Help.«

¹⁷ Then he returned home to Ramah where he judged Israel. And in Ramah he built an altar to Jehovah.

¹⁶ »This time tomorrow I will send you a man from the territory of Benjamin. Anoint him to be ruler of my people Israel. He will save my people from the Philistines. I have seen my people suffering and their cry has reached me.«

²¹ Saul replied: »I am a man from the tribe of Benjamin. It is the smallest tribe of Israel. My family is the most insignificant of all the families of the tribe of Benjamin. Why are you saying such things to me?«

²⁷ As they traveled toward the city limits, Samuel told Saul: »Have the servant go ahead of you.« He went ahead. »You stay here, and I will tell you God’s word.«

¹ Samuel took a flask of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s head. He kissed him and said: »Jehovah has anointed you to be ruler of his people Israel. You will rule his people. You will save them from all their enemies. This will be the sign that Jehovah has anointed you to be ruler of his people.

⁷ »Jehovah takes away and He gives riches. He brings low and lifts up high. ⁸ »He raises the poor from the dust. He lifts up the needy from the dunghill to set them among the princes. He causes them to inherit a throne of glory (honor). The pillars of the earth are Jehovah’s. He sets the world on them.

²⁹ »‘Why do you kick at my sacrifice and my offering, which I have commanded in my house? Do you honor your sons above me, to make yourselves fat with the best of all the offerings of Israel my people?’ ³⁰ »Jehovah, the God of Israel says: ‘I said indeed that your house and the house of your father should walk before me all the days of your life.’« Now Jehovah says: »Far be it from me. I will honor those who honor me. I will not regard those who think little of me.

²² They asked Jehovah again: »Has he arrived here yet?« Jehovah answered: »He’s hiding among the baggage.«

⁴ The messengers arrived at Gibeah where Saul lived. When they told the news, the people started crying in despair.

⁸ When Saul counted them at Bezek, there were three hundred thousand troops from Israel and thirty thousand troops from Judah.

⁷ »Now stand where you are. I will judge you before Jehovah by reminding you of all the mighty actions Jehovah did to save you and your ancestors.

¹⁴ »All will go well with you if you honor Jehovah your God, serve him, listen to him, and obey his commands. If you and your king follow Jehovah all will be well.

¹⁴ »All will go well with you if you honor Jehovah your God, serve him, listen to him, and obey his commands. If you and your king follow Jehovah all will be well. ¹⁵ »But if you do not listen to Jehovah but disobey his commands, he will be against you and your king. He was against your fathers because they disobeyed.

²³ »As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against Jehovah by no longer praying for you. Instead, I will teach you what is good and right for you to do.

¹⁰ and just as he was placing it on the altar, Samuel arrived. So Saul went out to welcome him.

¹³ »You did a foolish thing,« Samuel told Saul. »You did not follow the command of Jehovah your God. If you had, Jehovah would have established your kingdom over Israel from generation to generation (for a very long time). ¹⁴ »Your kingdom will not last. Jehovah searched for a man after his own heart. Jehovah appointed him as ruler of his people. This is because you did not follow the command of Jehovah.« ¹⁵ Samuel left Gilgal. The rest of the people followed Saul to meet the soldiers. They went from Gilgal to Gibeah in Benjamin. Saul counted the troops who were still with him. There were about six hundred men.

¹¹ »I am sorry that I made Saul king. He has turned away from me and disobeyed my commands.« Samuel was angry. All night long he pleaded with Jehovah.

¹³ Samuel went up to Saul. Saul said: »Jehovah bless you, Samuel! I have obeyed Jehovah’s command.«

¹⁵ Saul answered: »The army brought them from the Amalekites. They spared the best sheep and cows to sacrifice to Jehovah your God. But the rest they claimed for God and destroyed them.« ¹⁶ »Be quiet,« Samuel told Saul, »Let me tell you what Jehovah told me last night.« »Speak,« Saul replied. ¹⁷ Samuel said to Saul: »You are little in your own eyes. Even though you are a leader of all of the tribes of Israel that Jehovah anointed king over Israel. ¹⁸ »Jehovah sent you on a mission. He said: Go and destroy those sinners, the Amalekites. Fight against them until every one is dead. ¹⁹ »Why then did you not obey the voice of Jehovah? Why did you pounce on the plunder? Why did you do evil in the sight of Jehovah?«

²¹ The people took from the plunder of the flock the best of the sheep and cattle to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in Gilgal.

²³ »The sin of divination is rebellion. Wickedness and idolatry are arrogance. They are evil. Because you rejected the word of Jehovah, he rejects you as king.«

³⁰ Saul replied: »I have sinned! Now please honor me in front of the elders of my people and in front of Israel. Come back with me. Let me worship Jehovah your God!« ³¹ Then Samuel turned and followed Saul. Saul worshiped Jehovah.

³⁵ Samuel never saw Saul again until the day of his death. Samuel went into mourning for Saul. It was no longer Jehovah’s pleasure for Saul to be king over Israel.

¹ Jehovah said to Samuel: »How long will you mourn for Saul? After all I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Take oil in your vessel and go. I will send you to Jesse, the Beth-lehemite. I have a king from among his sons.«

¹² Jesse sent for him. He was a handsome, healthy young man, and his eyes sparkled. Jehovah said to Samuel: »This is the one. Anoint him!«

²⁴ He even took off his clothes as he prophesied in front of Samuel. He lay there naked all day and all night. The saying: »Is Saul one of the prophets?« came from there.

² There was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. He was a very rich man. He had three thousand sheep and one thousand goats. He sheared his sheep in Carmel.

⁸ David and his men raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. Their territory extends from Telaim to Shur and Egypt.

⁸ David and his men raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites. Their territory extends from Telaim to Shur and Egypt. ⁹ David attacked the territory and left no man or woman alive. He also took sheep, cattle, donkeys, camels, and clothing and returned to Achish. ¹⁰ Achish would ask: »Whom did you raid today?« David would answer: »The south country (Negev) in Judah, or the south country of the Jerahmeelites, or the south country of the Kenites.«

¹⁷ »Jehovah did to you what he told you through me. He took the kingdom away from you and gave it to David instead. ¹⁸ »You disobeyed Jehovah’s command and did not completely destroy the Amalekites. That is why Jehovah is doing this to you.

¹ Two days later David and his men came to Ziklag. The Amalekites raided the south country (Negev) including Ziklag. They attacked Ziklag and burned it.

¹³ When those who carried the Ark of Jehovah walked six steps, David sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf.

³² They grabbed the food they had captured from the Philistines and started eating. They even killed sheep and cows and calves right on the ground and ate the meat without draining the blood.

⁴⁸ He fought heroically and defeated even the people of Amalek. He saved the Israelites from all attacks.

¹ Samuel told Saul: »Jehovah sent me to anoint you king of his people Israel. Now listen to Jehovah’s words: ² ‘The Israelites were on their way out of Egypt when the nation of Amalek attacked them. I am Jehovah All-Powerful. I am going to make Amalek pay for what he did to Israel! ³ »‘Go and attack the Amalekites! Destroy them and all their possessions. Do not have any pity. Kill their men, women, children, and even their babies. Slaughter their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.’«

³ »‘Go and attack the Amalekites! Destroy them and all their possessions. Do not have any pity. Kill their men, women, children, and even their babies. Slaughter their cattle, sheep, camels, and donkeys.’«

⁸ He captured King Agag of Amalek alive and with the sword he killed all the people. ⁹ Saul and his men spared Agag’s life and did not kill the best sheep and cattle, the best calves and lambs, or anything else that was good. They destroyed only what was useless or worthless.

¹⁹ He also killed the people of Nob, the city of the priests. Using his sword, he killed men and women, children and infants, cows, donkeys, and sheep.

¹³ David said to Nathan: »I have sinned against Jehovah.« Nathan replied: »Jehovah has taken away your sin. You will not die.

¹⁸ During his lifetime Absalom built a monument for himself in King’s Valley. He had no son to keep his name alive. So he named it after himself. To this day it is known as Absalom’s Monument.

² »The Spirit of Jehovah spoke through me. His word was on my tongue. ³ »The God of Israel has spoken. The protector of Israel said to me: ‘The king who rules with justice, who rules in obedience to God.

¹⁶ When the angel stretched out his arm to destroy Jerusalem, Jehovah changed his mind about the disaster. »Enough!« He said to the angel who was destroying the people. »Put down your weapon.« The angel of Jehovah was at the threshing floor of Araunah the Jebusite.

⁶ »But if you turn from my ways, you or your children, and do not keep my orders and my laws which I have put before you, but go and make yourselves servants to other gods and give them worship: ⁷ »I will have Israel cut off from the land I gave them. I will abandon this house even though I have made it holy for myself. I will put you out of my sight. Israel will be a public example, and a word of shame among all peoples.

³⁰ Ahijah took his new robe in his hands and tore it into twelve pieces. ³¹ He said to Jeroboam: »Take ten of the parts, for this is what Jehovah said: ‘I will take the kingdom away from Solomon by force. I will give ten tribes to you.

⁴⁰ Elijah said to them: »Take the prophets of Baal. Do not let one of them get away.« So they took them, and Elijah made them go down to the stream Kishon, and executed them there.

⁴² So Ahab went up to have food and drink. Elijah went up to the top of Carmel. He bowed down to the earth and put his face between his knees.

³⁰ The rest went in flight to Aphek, into the town, where a wall came down on the twenty-seven thousand who were still living. Benhadad went in flight into the town, into an inner room.

³⁴ Benhadad said: »The towns my father took from your father I will give back. You may name streets for yourself in Damascus as my father did in Samaria.« As for me, at the price of this agreement you will let me go. So he made an agreement with him and let him go. ³⁵ A man of the sons of the prophets said to his neighbors by the word of Jehovah: »Give me a wound.« But the man would not. ³⁶ Then he said: »Because you have not listened to the voice of Jehovah, immediately after you leave me a lion will kill you.« When he went away a lion came rushing at him and killed him. ³⁷ Then he came across another man, and said: »Give me a wound.« And the man gave him a blow wounding him. ³⁸ So the prophet went away, and pulling his headband over his eyes to keep his face covered. He took his place by the road waiting for the king. ³⁹ When the king went by he cried out to him: »Your servant went out into the fight. A man came to me. He brought a man to me and said: ‘guard this man. Do not let him get away. Your life is the price of his life or you will have to give a talent of silver in payment.’ ⁴⁰ »But while your servant was turning this way and that, he was gone. Then the king of Israel said to him: ‘You are responsible; you have given the decision against yourself.’« ⁴¹ He quickly took the headband from his eyes. The king of Israel saw that he was one of the prophets. ⁴² He said to him: »These are the words of Jehovah: ‘Because you have let go from your hands the man whom I had put to the curse, your life will be taken for his life, and your people for his people.’«

¹⁶ But Ahab replied: »Tell the truth when you speak to me in the name of Jehovah! How many times do I have to tell you that?«

¹⁵ They refused to obey his instructions. They did not keep the covenant he made with their ancestors. They disregarded his warnings. They worshiped worthless idols and became worthless themselves. They followed the customs of the surrounding nations, disobeying Jehovah’s command not to imitate them. ¹⁶ They broke all the laws of Jehovah their God. They made two metal bull-calves to worship. They also made an image of the goddess Asherah. Also they worshiped the stars and served the god Baal. ¹⁷ They caused their sons and their daughters to go through the fire to be sacrificed. They made use of secret arts and unnatural powers, and gave themselves up to doing evil in the eyes of Jehovah, till they provoked him to anger. ¹⁸ Jehovah was very angry with Israel. He removed them from his sight. Only the tribe of Judah kept its place. ¹⁹ But even Judah did not obey the commands of Jehovah their God. They were guided by the rules Israel made. ²⁰ So Jehovah would have nothing to do with all the offspring of Israel. He caused trouble for them. He gave them up into the hands of their attackers, till he had sent them away from before his face.

⁵⁵ and the clans of scribes who lived at Jabez: the Tirathites, Shimeathites and Sucathites. These are the Kenites who came from Hammath, the father of the house of Recab. Ram was the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, the leader of the people of Judah.

¹² »May Jehovah give you discretion and understanding when he puts you in command over Israel, so that you may keep the law of Jehovah your God. ¹³ »You will have success if you are careful to observe the decrees and laws that Jehovah gave Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.

⁹ »You my son Solomon, learn to know your father’s God. Serve Jehovah wholeheartedly and willingly because he searches every heart and understands every thought we have. If you dedicate your life to serving him, he will accept you. On the other hand if you abandon him, he will reject you from then on.

¹¹ »You are great and powerful, glorious, splendid, and majestic. Everything in heaven and earth is yours, and you, O Jehovah, are king, supreme ruler over all.

¹² He did what Jehovah his God considered evil. He did not humble himself in front of the prophet Jeremiah, who spoke Jehovah’s word.

² He did what Jehovah considered evil by copying the disgusting things done by the nations that Jehovah dispossessed from before the Israelites.

⁶ He burned his son as a sacrifice in the valley of Ben Hinnom, he consulted fortunetellers, and he cast evil spells. He also practiced witchcraft, and appointed royal mediums and psychics. He did many things that made Jehovah furious.

¹ The king ordered that Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, was lifted up and given a position of honor and a higher place than all the other captains who were with him.

³⁰ »They say the wicked are spared in the day of calamity, and are rescued in the day of wrath?

³ »Is it not ruin for the wicked, disaster for those who do wrong?

³³ »If I have concealed my transgressions as others do (like Adam), by hiding my iniquity in my bosom, ³⁴ because I stood in great fear of the multitude, and the contempt of families terrified me, so that I kept silent and did not go out of doors.

⁹ »I am pure and without sin! I am clean and free from guilt.

⁸ »Would you undo my justice? Would you condemn me so that you can be righteous?

⁵ »Job has said: ‘I am innocent, and God has taken away my right.

³⁷ »To his sins he adds rebellion and in front of us all he mocks God.

² »Do you think this to be just? You say: ‘I am in the right before God.’

¹⁰ Listen you kings, be wise (show discernment) and be warned you rulers of the earth. ¹¹ Serve Jehovah with deep respect and rejoice with trembling.

¹¹ Jehovah will give power (strength) to his people. Jehovah will bless his people with peace (prosperity) (health) (safety).

² He flatters himself and does not hate or even recognize his sin. ³ The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit and he ceased to be wise and do good.

³⁵ God, the God of Israel, is awe-inspiring in his holy place. He gives strength and power to his people. Praise God!

⁶ You have not desired sacrifice and meal offering. You have opened my ears. Burnt offering and sin offering you have not required. ⁷ Then I said: »Here I come! In the scroll of the book it is written about me. (Luke 3:21) ⁸ »I am pleased to do your will, O my God; Your Law is within my heart.

⁸ »I do not reprove you for your sacrifices or burnt offerings, which are constantly (always) in front of me. ⁹ »But I will not accept another young bull from your household or a single male goat from your pens.

¹⁶ But God says to the wicked: »How dare you quote my decrees and mouth my covenant! ¹⁷ »You hate discipline. You cast (throw) my words behind you. ¹⁸ »When you see a thief, you make friends with him. You keep company with people who commit adultery. ¹⁹ »You let your mouth speak evil. Your tongue plans deceit. ²⁰ »You sit and talk against your own brother. You slander your own mother's son. ²¹ »When you did these things, I remained silent. That made you think I was like you. I will argue my point with you and lay it all out for you to see.

¹⁶ You do not desire sacrifice. Otherwise, I would offer one to you. You are not pleased with burnt offerings. ¹⁷ The sacrifice pleasing to God is a broken spirit. O God, you do not despise a broken and sorrowful (contrite) heart.

⁴¹ They tested God again and again, and they pushed the Holy One of Israel to the limit.

⁵⁷ They were disloyal and treacherous like their ancestors. They were like arrows shot from a defective bow.

¹¹ I swore to them in my anger that they should not enter into my rest.

¹¹ They had rebelled against God's words and had despised the advice given by the Most High.

⁴ In return for my love, they accuse me, but I pray for them.

⁴ Jehovah has taken an oath and will not change his mind: »You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.«

¹³⁶ My eyes shed streams of water, because they do not keep your law.

¹⁵⁸ I behold the treacherous and loathe because they do not keep your word.

⁵ Jehovah will lead those who turn away from their crooked ways with the workers of iniquity. Israel will have peace.

⁶ »Forsake the foolish, and live. Travel in the way of understanding.«

²⁹ The way of Jehovah is a rock (stronghold) to the upright. The workers of iniquity will be destroyed.

²¹ Adversity pursues sinners. The righteous will be repaid with goodness.

³ To practice righteousness and justice is more acceptable to Jehovah than sacrifice.

²⁷ He who is greedy of gain troubles his own house. But he who hates gifts will live.

² Let another man praise you and not your own mouth, a stranger, and not your own lips.

¹³ The man who covers his sins will not be blessed; but whoever confesses and leaves them will have mercy.

²⁵ Fear of man brings a snare (trap). He who trusts in Jehovah will be safe.

¹³ There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! Their eyelids are lifted up.

³¹ Give her of the fruit of her hands. Let her own works praise her in the gates.

¹ Guard your step when you go to the house of God. It is better to go there and listen than to bring the sacrifices fools bring. Fools are not aware that they do evil.

¹³ Things will not go well with the wicked. He will not prolong his days. His days are like a shadow. He does not respect God.

²¹ »Prepare a slaughtering place! The sons of this king will die because of their ancestors' sins. None of them will ever rule the earth or cover it with cities.« ²² Jehovah of Hosts declares: »I will attack Babylon and bring it to ruin. I will leave nothing! There will be no children, no survivors at all. I, Jehovah, have spoken.

³ »The Egyptians will become discouraged. I will bring their plans to nothing. They will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead, the mediums and the spiritists.

¹³ »These people praise me with their words,« said Jehovah, »but they never draw near to me in their hearts (deepest thoughts). Their reverence for me comes from the repetitious tradition of men.

¹¹ Jehovah says: »What do your many animal sacrifices mean to me? I have had enough of your burnt offerings of rams and enough fat from your fattened calves. I am not pleased with the blood of bulls, lambs, or male goats. ¹² »Who requires you to trample on my courtyards when you appear in my presence? ¹³ »Do not bring any more worthless grain offerings. Your incense is disgusting to me! So are your New Moon Festivals, your days of worship, and the assemblies you call. I cannot endure your evil assemblies! ¹⁴ »I hate your New Moon Festivals and your appointed festivals. They are a burden to me. I am tired of putting up with them. ¹⁵ »When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes from you. Even though you offer many prayers, I will not listen because your hands are full of blood. ¹⁶ »Wash yourselves! Become clean! Get your evil deeds out of my sight. Stop doing evil. ¹⁷ »Learn to do good (well) (right). Seek justice. Correct oppressors. Defend orphans. Plead the case of widows.«

¹⁹ People will say to you: »Ask for help from the mediums and the fortunetellers, who whisper and mutter.« Should people ask their God for help instead? Why should they ask the dead to help the living?

⁶ Jehovah’s sword is covered with blood. It is covered with fat, with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of rams' kidneys. Jehovah will receive a sacrifice in Bozrah, a huge slaughter in the land of Edom.

¹² »I, even I, am the one who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men? The sons of men are like grass! ¹³ »You forget Jehovah your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth. Will you live in constant terror of the human oppressor, who is bent on your destruction? Will you fear your enemies from morning until night?

²⁴ »It will be said of me: ‘Certainly, righteousness and strength are found in Jehovah alone. All who are angry with him will come to him and be ashamed.

¹⁸ »Why are you going to Egypt to drink water from the Nile (Shihor) River? You will not gain anything by going to Assyria to drink water from the Euphrates River. ¹⁹ »Your own wickedness will correct you. Your apostasies (unfaithful ways) will punish you! You should know and see how evil and bitter it is for you when you abandon Jehovah your God! You do not respect (reverence) me,« says the Sovereign Lord Jehovah of Hosts.

²² »If you wash with detergent and use a lot of soap, I would still see the stains from your wickedness,« says the Lord Jehovah. ²³ »How can you say, ‘I have not been dishonored and have not gone after the Baal gods?’ »Look how you have behaved in the valley. Acknowledge what you have done. You are like a young camel that swiftly runs here and there.

³⁴ »You have bloodstains from innocent poor people on your clothes. You did not kill them for breaking in to your home. ³⁵ »‘After all this you say: ‘I am innocent. God will turn his anger from me. For I have not sinned.’« ³⁶ »You change your mind so easily. You will be shamed by Egypt as you were shamed by Assyria. ³⁷ »You will also leave this place with your hands over your head, because Jehovah has rejected those you trust. They will not help you.«

¹⁹ »Hear, O earth: behold, I am bringing disaster on this people as the fruit of their plans. This is because they have not listened to my words, and have rejected my law.

¹¹ »Has this house, called by my name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,« declares Jehovah.

²² »For I did not speak to your fathers, or command them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. ²³ »‘I gave them this command: ‘Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and you will be my people. You will walk in all the way that I command you that it may be well with you.’«

¹ Oh that my head were waters and my eyes a fountain of tears. Then I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!

¹ Oh that my head were waters and my eyes a fountain of tears. Then I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people! ² I wish I had a dwelling in the desert. I would abandon my people and go away from them. They are all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men.

¹⁸ Let them hurry and take up a wailing for us. Let our eyes shed tears and our eyelids flow with water.

⁴ »It is the covenant I made with their ancestors when I brought them out of Egypt. Egypt was like an iron smelter (furnace) to them. I told them to obey me and to do everything that I commanded. I told them that if they obeyed, they would be my people and I would be their God.

⁷ »I solemnly warned your fathers in the day that I brought them up from the land of Egypt. Even to this day I persistently warned them, saying: ‘Listen to my voice.’

¹⁷ If you will not listen, I will cry secretly over your arrogance. I will cry bitterly, and my eyes will flow with tears because Jehovah’s flock will be taken captive.

⁷ »At one time I may threaten to tear up, break down, and destroy a nation or a kingdom. ⁸ »However if the nation that I threatened turns away from doing wrong. Then I will change my plans about the disaster I planned to do to it. ⁹ »At another time I may promise to build and plant a nation or a kingdom. ¹⁰ »If that nation does what I consider evil and does not obey me I will change my mind about the good that I promised to do to it.

¹⁶ »Because of this, Jehovah says: ‘I am going to get rid of you. Before this year is over you will die because you have told the people to rebel against Jehovah.’«

³² »Jehovah says: ‘I will punish Shemaiah from Nehelam. I will also punish his descendants. No one from his family will be left alive. He will not see the blessings that I am going to send my people,’ declares Jehovah, ‘because he has encouraged rebellion against Jehovah.’«’«

³⁴ »No longer will each person teach his neighbors or his relatives by saying: ‘Know Jehovah.’ »All of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,« declares Jehovah. »I will forgive their wickedness and I will no longer hold (remember) their sins against them.«

¹³ »You must change the way you are living and the things you are doing. You must obey Jehovah your God. If you do, he will change his mind about the destruction that he said he would bring on you.

⁵ »I used my great strength and my powerful arm to make the earth along with the people and the animals on it. I give it to anyone I please. ⁶ »Now I have handed all these countries over to my servant King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. I have even made wild animals serve him.

⁵ King Zedekiah answered: »Very well, then, do what you want to with him. I cannot stop you.«

¹⁰ »Curse those who do not do Jehovah’s work with all their heart! Curse those who do not slash and kill!

⁴⁴ »‘People will run out of fear, but they will fall into the pits. Those who climb out of the pits will be caught in the traps.’ »I will bring the year of punishment to Moab,« says Jehovah.

⁵ ‘Whether these rebellious people listen or not, they will realize that a prophet has been among them. ⁶ »Son of man, do not be afraid of them or the things they say. Do not be afraid, even though thorns and thistles are around you and you live among scorpions. Do not let the things they say frighten you. Do not be terrified in their presence even though they are rebellious people. ⁷ »Speak my words to them whether they listen or not, because they are rebellious. ⁸ »But you, son of man, listen to what I say. Do not be rebellious like those rebellious people. Open your mouth and eat what I give you.«

¹⁴ ‘»I, Jehovah, have spoken. It is coming and I will act. I will not relent, and I will not pity and I will not be sorry! I will judge you according to your ways and according to your deeds.’ This is a declaration of the Lord Jehovah.«

¹⁷ ‘»The decision is by the decree of the watchers. The sentence by the word of the holy ones! It is to the intent that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever he will, and sets over it the lowest of men.«

³² »You will be driven from men. Your dwelling shall be with the beasts of the field. You will have to eat grass like bulls. Seven times shall pass over you until you know the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever he will.«

⁶ My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you! You will not be a priest to me since you have forgotten the Law of your God. Therefore, I will forget your children.

⁶ »I desire loving-kindness (mercy), not sacrifice, and knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.

² »It never enters their hearts that I will remember all this evil. But their sins surround them, and I cannot avoid seeing them.

¹⁶ »Jehovah will roar from Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem. The heavens and the earth will shake: but Jehovah will be a refuge to his people, and a stronghold to the children of Israel.

²¹ »I hate, I despise (reject) your feasts, and I will take no delight in your solemn assemblies. ²² »Yes, even if you offer me your burnt offerings and meal offerings, I will not accept them. Neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts. ²³ »Take the noise of your songs away from me! I will not listen to the melody of your harps. ²⁴ »Justice should roll down as waters and righteousness as a mighty stream.

³ Jehovah changed his mind about this. »It will not be,« said Jehovah.

⁷ »Jehovah has sworn by the pride of Jacob: I will never forget any of their works.

¹ »When the tribe of Ephraim spoke, people trembled. The people of Ephraim were important in Israel. Then they became guilty of worshiping Baal, so they must die.

¹⁰ God saw their works! That they turned from their evil way. God turned back from the deed that he said he would do to them. He did not do it.

² He prayed to Jehovah: »I pray to you, O Jehovah, was this what I said, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I hurried to flee to Tarshish. Because I knew that you are a gracious God. You are merciful, slow to anger, abundant in loving kindness, and one who takes pity over calamity (tragedy) (catastrophe) (disaster).

⁶ With what shall I come before Jehovah? Shall I bow down before the high God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with year old calves? ⁷ Will Jehovah be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I give my first-born for my transgression, the fruit of my body for my sin? ⁸ He told you, O lowly man, what is good and what Jehovah requires of you. You should display justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with your God!

⁴ »Behold, he is proud. He is not righteous. The righteous will live by faith.

⁹ »He who receives a dishonest profit for his house will have trouble. He may set his nest on high in order to be delivered from the hand of evil! ¹⁰ »You have purposed a shameful thing for your house. You have sinned against yourself by destroying many people. ¹¹ »The stones will cry out from the wall. The beams out of the woodwork will answer it. ¹² »Woe to him who builds a town with bloodshed and establishes a city with iniquity!

⁶ »The same for those who have turned back from following Jehovah, and those who have not sought Jehovah or inquired of Him.«

¹³ »You have said terrible things about me,« said Jehovah of Hosts. »Yet you ask: ‘What have we said about you?’« ¹⁴ »You have said: ‘There is no value to serve God. What is the use of doing what he says or of trying to show Jehovah of Hosts that we are sorry for what we have done?’ ¹⁵ »We call arrogant people happy. Evil people test God’s patience with their wicked deeds. They not only get away with it, they also prosper.«

⁸ He sent them to Bethlehem. He said: »Search diligently for the young child. When you find him, bring me word so I may come and bow down to him also.«

²⁴ »leave your gift at the altar and go make peace with your brother. Then return and make your offering.

⁴⁴ »I say love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you!

² »As you judge, so you will be judged. As you measure, it will be measured to you.

¹³ »You should learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice’; for I came, not to call the righteous, but sinners.«

⁷ »If you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.

⁴ »He who humbles himself to become like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

²⁰ The man said to him: »I have done all these things; what more is there?«

²³ »Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have left undone the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy and faith. You should do both and leave nothing undone.

¹³ »The person who endures to the end will be saved.

⁴ He said: »I have done wrong in giving a righteous man to you.«

³³ »To love him with all the heart, and with all understanding, and with total strength, and to love his neighbor as himself, is much more than all the whole burnt offerings and sacrifices.«

¹² He went to the mountain to pray and he continued all night in prayer to God.

²⁹ Desiring to justify himself, he said to Jesus: »Who is my neighbor?«

¹⁰ The same applies to you. When you have done all you have been told to do, you say, we are unworthy servants. We have done what we ought to have done.«

⁹ He then spoke this illustration to some who trusted in themselves. They were very self-righteous. They looked down on others: ¹⁰ »Two men went to the temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a tax collector. ¹¹ »The Pharisee stood and prayed like this: God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.

¹¹ »The Pharisee stood and prayed like this: God, I thank you, that I am not like the rest of men, extortionists, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. ¹² »I fast twice per week. I give tithes of all that I get. ¹³ »But the tax collector stood far away and would not lift up so much as his eyes to heaven. He beat his breast, saying: God, be merciful to me a sinner. ¹⁴ »I tell you the tax collector and not the Pharisee was right with God when he went home. He who exalts himself will be humbled! He who humbles himself will be exalted!«

²² »He said to him: Out of your own mouth I will judge you, you wicked servant. You knew that I am an austere man, taking up that which I did not lay down, and reaping that which I did not sow.

⁴¹ When he came close to the city he wept over it. ⁴² He said: »If you only knew today the things needed to bring peace! But they are hidden from your eyes. ⁴³ »The time is coming when your enemies will surround you and blockade you with a rampart (wall) on all sides. They will close in on you. ⁴⁴ »They will knock you and your children down to the ground. They will not leave one stone upon another. What’s more you do not know when this visit will take place.«

²⁸ They approached the village where they were going and he appeared to be going further. ²⁹ They persuaded him not to go saying, »Abide with us. It is nearly evening and the day is almost gone.« He stayed with them.

²⁰ Pilate spoke to them again desiring to release Jesus. ²¹ But they shouted, »Impale him! Impale him!« ²² A third time he said to them: »Why, what evil has this man done? I have found no reason to put him to death. I will therefore chastise him and release him.« ²³ But they were insistent and spoke in loud voices asking him to impale him. And they prevailed. ²⁴ Pilate pronounced a sentence that what they asked for should be done. ²⁵ He released the man who was in prison for insurrection and murder and he delivered Jesus to their will.

⁴⁴ »How can you believe? You seek praise and glory from one another? Why do you not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

⁴³ They loved the glory from men more than the glory from God.

¹¹ Jesus answered him: »You would have no power against me except it was given you from above. Therefore he that delivered me to you has greater sin.«

⁴⁰ He gave a thorough witness with many words and exhorted them, saying: »Save yourselves from this indecent generation.«

²² »When he removed him, he made David their king. He testified about him when he said: I found David the son of Jesse is a man after my own heart. He will do my will.

²⁰ For the creation was subject to corruption, not by it’s own will but by reason of the one who subjected it on the basis of hope. ²¹ The creation will also be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. ²² For we know that the whole creation groans and is in pain together until now.

¹ I tell the truth in Christ. I do not lie! My conscience bears witness with me in Holy Spirit. ² I have great sorrow and continual grief in my heart. ³ I could wish that I were accursed (separated) (banned) (excommunicated) from Christ for the good of (in behalf of) my countrymen and brothers (the Jews).

³ They are ignorant of God’s righteousness. They seek to establish their own righteousness and have not submitted to the righteousness of God.

¹ Let every person be subject to superior authorities. For there is no authority except by God. God allows the authorities to serve in their positions.

¹⁹ We know that whatever the law says, it speaks to those under the law. Every mouth may be stopped and the entire world may become liable to God for punishment.

⁵ Do not judge anything before the time. Wait until the Lord comes. He will bring to light the hidden things of darkness and make apparent the counsels of the hearts. Then each man’s praise will come from God.

¹⁶ And what agreement does a temple of God have with idols? We are the temple of the living God. God said: I will dwell in them, and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they will be my people. (Leviticus 26:12) (Zechariah 8:8) ¹⁷ Therefore come out from among them and be separate (set off) (severed from them) (excluded from them), said Jehovah. Do not touch the unclean thing and I will receive you. (Isaiah 52:11) (Jeremiah 51:45)

²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, wrath, contentions, divisions, sects,

¹⁸ Many live as enemies of the stake of Christ. I often wept as I told you about them.

¹³ I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

⁹ He told me: »My grace is sufficient for you for my strength is made perfect in weakness.« Most gladly therefore, I would rather glory in my infirmities (frailities), that the power of Christ may rest upon me (cover me like a tent) (descend upon me) (abide with me). (Isaiah 40:29-31)

¹⁰ Do I now seek the favor of men, or of God? Am I striving to please men? If I were still pleasing men, I would not be a servant of Christ.

³ When they say, »Peace and security!« then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come to a pregnant woman. They will not escape.

¹⁶ The Lord grants mercy to the house of Onesiphorus: for he often refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chains.

¹³ If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny himself.

⁵ having a form of godliness, but denying its power. Stay away from people like this!

¹⁰ For Demas forsook me, having loved this present world, and went to Thessalonica. Crescens went to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.

² It is in hope of eternal life, which God, who cannot lie, promised before times eternal.

¹⁸ God did this to offer encouragement so we may rely on the hope offered to us. We have taken refuge in that hope and it is impossible for God to lie. These two things can never be changed.

⁴ It is not possible for the blood of bulls and of goats to take away sins. ⁵ When Christ came into the world he said: »‘Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but you have prepared a body for me. ⁶ »‘You have no pleasure in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin.’ ⁷ »Then I said: ‘I have come in the scroll of the book. It is written about me, to do your will, O God.’« ⁸ Then he said: »You did not want nor did you approve of sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin;« which are offered by the Law. ⁹ He also said: »I come to do your will, O God.« He takes away the first in order to establish the second. ¹⁰ We are sanctified by his »will« through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

³⁸ »My righteous people will live by faith. If any of them turn back, I will not be pleased with them.«

¹³ For judgment is without mercy to him who shows no mercy. And mercy triumphs over judgment.

⁶ »They have shed the blood of the holy ones and prophets. You give them blood to drink for they deserve it.«

⁶ »Render to her even as she rendered to you. Pay back double to her, double according to her works: in the cup that she has filled, fill double for her! ⁷ »To the extent she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to that extent give her much torment and sorrow. She says in her heart: 'I sit a queen, and am no widow, and I shall see no sorrow.'

¹⁴ »The fruits that you desired have departed from you. All things that were dainty and wonderful have departed from you. You will find them no more at all.

⁸ »But the fearful and unbelieving, abominable and murderers, fornicators and those practicing spiritism, idolaters and all liars shall have their part in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur: which is the second death.«

¹¹ He who greets him partakes of his evil works.

¹⁵ »'Outside are the dogs (impure men) and those who practice spiritism, and fornicators, and murderers, and idolaters, and everyone who tells lies.'