O Lord of hosts,
How blessed and greatly favored is the man who trusts in You [believing in You, relying on You, and committing himself to You with confident hope and expectation].

“Shall God’s retribution [for your sins] be on your terms, because you refuse to accept it?
For you must do the choosing, and not I;
Therefore say what you [truthfully] know.

He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him swear allegiance by God. He stiffened his neck and hardened his heart against turning to the Lord God of Israel.

Let my verdict of vindication come from Your presence;
May Your eyes look with equity and behold things that are just.

Azariah the high priest of the house of Zadok answered him, “Since the people began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat with plenty left over, for the Lord has blessed His people, and this great quantity is left over.”

the sons of Asnah, Meunim, Nephisim,

But I am not silenced by the darkness [of these woes that fell on me],
Nor by the thick darkness which covers my face.

In the cities of Manasseh, Ephraim, Simeon, and as far as Naphtali, in their surrounding ruins,

Asa also removed the [idolatrous] high places and the incense altars from all the cities of Judah. The kingdom was at rest and undisturbed under his reign.

of the Ephraimites, Hoshea the son of Azaziah; of the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joel the son of Pedaiah;

David said to Gad, “I am in great distress; please let me fall into the hands of the Lord, for His mercies are very great; but do not let me fall into the hand of man.”

the eighth to Jeshaiah, his sons and his relatives, twelve;

Then they sent word to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned to death.”

The sons of Jehieli, Zetham and his brother Joel, were in charge of the treasuries of the house of the Lord.

the thirteenth to Huppah, the fourteenth to Jeshebeab,

nor let Hezekiah make you trust in and rely on the Lord, saying, “The Lord will certainly rescue us, and this city [of Jerusalem] will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.”

Hepher the Mecherathite, Ahijah the Pelonite,

the son of Michael, the son of Baaseiah, the son of Malchijah,

Forgive Your people Israel whom You have redeemed, O Lord, and do not put the guilt of innocent blood among Your people Israel.’ And the guilt of blood shall be forgiven them.

These things Benaiah the son of Jehoiada did, and gained a reputation beside the three mighty men.

Micah said to him, “Where do you come from?” And he said to him, “I am a Levite from Bethlehem in Judah, and I am going to stay wherever I can find a place.”

So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents.

But if her husband absolutely annuls them on the day he heard them, then whatever proceeds from her lips concerning her vows or concerning her pledge shall not stand. Her husband has annulled them, and the Lord will forgive her.

The rest of the sons of Kohath received ten cities by lot from the families of the tribe of Ephraim and from the tribe of Dan and from the half-tribe of Manasseh.

The inheritance of the sons of Simeon was taken from the portion of the sons of Judah, for the share of the sons of Judah was too large for them; so the sons of Simeon received an inheritance within Judah’s inheritance.

We will cross over armed before the Lord into the land of Canaan, so that the possession of our inheritance on [the east] side of the Jordan may be ours.”

And one male goat as a sin offering to the Lord; it shall be offered with its drink offering in addition to the continual burnt offering.

For the width of the court on the west side there shall be curtains of fifty cubits, with ten pillars (support poles) and ten sockets.

This is the law of the burnt offering, the grain offering, the sin offering, the guilt offering, the consecration (ordination) offering, and the sacrifice of peace offerings,

For I have taken the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the heave offering from the Israelites, from the sacrifices of their peace offerings, and I have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons as their perpetual portion from the Israelites.

Balaam answered, “Must I not be obedient and careful to speak what the Lord has put in my mouth?”

You shall make a rim of a hand width around it; you shall make a gold border for the rim around it.

Then you will know [with confidence] that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves and made you come up out of your graves, My people.

So Jacob set out from Beersheba; and the sons of Israel carried their father Jacob and their children and their wives in the wagons that Pharaoh had sent to carry him.

For in fact I was taken (stolen) from the land of the Hebrews by [unlawful] force, and even here I have done nothing for which they should put me in the dungeon.”

Then Joseph put them all in prison for three days.

But Hamor conferred with them, saying, “The soul of my son Shechem [deeply] longs for your daughter [and sister]. Please give her to him as his wife.

The mighty warriors of Babylon have ceased to fight;
They remain in their strongholds.
Their strength and power have failed;
They are becoming [weak and helpless] like women.
Their dwelling places are set on fire;
The bars on her gates are broken.

‘Thus says the Lord,
“Those who uphold and support Egypt will fall
And the pride of her power will come down;
From Migdol [in the north] to Syene [in the south]
They will fall within her by the sword,”
Says the Lord God.

then you shall say, ‘They are your servant Jacob’s; they are a gift sent to my lord Esau. And he also is behind us.’”

“See, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan against the enduring habitation [of Babylon] and its watered pastures; for in an instant I will make Babylon run from his land. I will appoint over Babylon the one whom I choose. For who is like Me, and who will summon Me [into court] and prosecute Me [for this]? Who is the [earthly] shepherd who can stand [defiantly] before Me?”

It will come to pass at the end of seventy years that the Lord will remember Tyre. Then she will return to her prostitute’s wages and will play the [role of a] prostitute [by trading] with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.

It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the Rabshakeh [the commander], whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to taunt and defy the living God, and will avenge the words which the Lord your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer for the remnant [of His people] that is left.’”

For the Lord God says this, “My people went down at the first into Egypt to live there; and [many years later Sennacherib] the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.

At this I (Jeremiah) awoke and looked, and my [trancelike] sleep was sweet [in the assurance it gave] to me.

It is like the dew of [Mount] Hermon
Coming down on the hills of Zion;
For there the Lord has commanded the blessing: life forevermore.

You are the [awesome] God who works [powerful] wonders;
You have demonstrated Your power among the people.

Deal with them as [You did] with Midian,
As with Sisera and Jabin at the brook of Kishon,

He gives great triumphs to His king,
And shows steadfast love and mercy to His anointed,
To David and his descendants forever.

Truth springs from the earth,
And righteousness looks down from heaven.

He rescued me from my strong enemy,
And from those who hated me, for they were too strong for me.

Which I have reserved for the time of trouble,
For the day of battle and war?

God has ascended amid shouting,
The Lord with the sound of a trumpet.

“Because your heart was gentle and penitent and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and its inhabitants, and humbled yourself before Me, and tore your clothes and wept before Me, I also have heard you,” declares the Lord.

The entire congregation worshiped, the singers also sang, and the trumpets sounded; all this continued until the burnt offering was finished.

“But you [Job] were full of judgment on the wicked,
Judgment and justice take hold of you.

At the Fountain Gate they went directly up the steps of the City of David by the stairway of the wall above David’s house to the Water Gate on the east.

This is what you shall do: a third of you, of the priests and Levites who are resuming service on the Sabbath, shall be gatekeepers,

behold, the Lord is going to strike your people, your sons, your wives, and all your possessions with a great disaster;

Ezri the son of Chelub was in charge of those who did the work of the field, tilling the soil.

The son of Gershom: Shebuel the chief.

When the servants of Hadadezer saw that they had been defeated by Israel, they made peace with David and became subject to and served him. And the Arameans (Syrians) were not willing to help the Ammonites anymore.

He put military outposts in Edom, and all the Edomites became David’s servants. Thus the Lord helped David wherever he went.

When this was told to David, he gathered all Israel and crossed the Jordan, and came upon them and drew up in formation against them. So when David drew up in battle array against the Arameans, they fought against him.

These were heads of fathers’ households of the Levites according to their generations, chief men, who lived in Jerusalem.

‘Cursed is he who is intimate with any animal.’ And all the people shall say, ‘Amen.’

and from the tribe of Benjamin: Geba, Alemeth, and Anathoth, with their pasture lands. All their cities throughout their families were thirteen cities.

the son of Elkanah [I], the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah,

So Hushai, David’s friend, returned to the city, and [at about the same time] Absalom came into Jerusalem.

Now the rest of the acts of Jehoahaz, everything that he did and his might, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

When Saul saw that he was prospering greatly, he was afraid of him.

only the gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead,

The people said to Joshua, “No, but we will serve [only] the Lord.”

And you will chase your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword.

also his virgin sister, who is near to him because she has had no husband; for her he may become unclean.

Then Joseph said to him, “This is the interpretation of it: the three branches represent three days;

Then the elders of the congregation said, “What shall we do for wives for those [men] who are left, since the women of Benjamin have been destroyed?”

She did not give up the acts of prostitution that originated during her time in Egypt; for in her youth men had lain with her, and they handled her virgin bosom and poured out their depravity on her.

But he said, “Are you really my son Esau?” Jacob answered, “I am.”

And the man [Isaac] became great and gained more and more until he became very wealthy and extremely distinguished;

He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus [so that he might bury Him], and Pilate ordered that it be given to him.

Who covers the heavens with clouds,
Who provides rain for the earth,
Who makes grass grow on the mountains.

It was carved with [figures of] cherubim and palm trees; so that a palm decoration was between cherub and cherub, and every cherub had two faces,

Dedan traded with you in saddle blankets for riding.

Then the nations that are left around you will know that I the Lord have rebuilt the ruined places and planted that which was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and will do it.”

As I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘surely in the country of the king (Nebuchadnezzar) who made Zedekiah [the vassal] king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, in Babylon Zedekiah shall die.

Though it is planted, will it thrive and grow? Will it not completely wither when the east wind touches it? It will wither in the beds where it grew.”’”

because they rejected My ordinances, and as for My statutes, they did not walk in them; they even profaned My Sabbaths, for their heart continually went after their [worthless] idols.

“How the hammer of the whole earth
Is crushed and broken!
How Babylon has become
A horror [of desolation] among the nations!

“If grape gatherers came to you,
Would they not leave some ungleaned grapes [on the vines]?
If thieves came by night,
Would they not destroy [only] what is enough [for them]?

I have declared them to you long ago;
Before they came to pass I announced them to you,
So that you could not say, ‘My idol has done them,
And my carved image and my cast image have commanded them.’

For all the tables are full of filthy vomit, so that there is no place [that is clean.]

They made a calf in Horeb (Sinai)
And worshiped a cast image.

May he come down like rain on the mown grass,
Like showers that water the earth.

Then Ishmael took captive all the rest of the people who were in Mizpah—even the king’s daughters (ladies of the court) and all the people who remained in Mizpah, whom Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard had put under the charge of Gedaliah the son of Ahikam. Ishmael the son of Nethaniah took them captive and crossed over [the Jordan] to [meet his allies] the Ammonites.

They provoked Him to anger at the waters of Meribah,
So that it went hard with Moses on their account;

My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness
And of Your [deeds of] salvation all day long,
For their number is more than I know.

Every one of them has turned aside and fallen away;
Together they have become filthy and corrupt;
There is no one who does good, no, not even one.

For he flatters and deceives himself in his own eyes
Thinking that his sinfulness will not be discovered and hated [by God].

To satisfy the barren and desolate ground
And to make the seeds of grass to sprout?

Through God we will have victory,
For He will trample down our enemies.

“I will accept no young bull from your house
Nor male goat from your folds.

All the temple servants and the sons of Solomon’s servants totaled 392.

As David came to Ornan, Ornan looked and saw him, and went out from the threshing floor and bowed down before David with his face to the ground.

But David did not count those twenty years of age and under, for the Lord had said he would multiply Israel as the stars of heaven.

the sons of Hashem the Gizonite, Jonathan the son of Shagee the Hararite,

They went to bury her, but they found nothing left of her except the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands.

The young men of the governors of the districts went out first; and Ben-hadad sent men out and they told him, saying, “Men have come out of Samaria.”

“If the Lord your God enlarges your border, as He has sworn to your fathers to do, and gives you all the land which He promised to give to your fathers—

All the elders and all the people said to him, “Do not listen or consent [to this additional demand].”

and Me-jarkon and Rakkon, with the territory opposite Joppa.

and Shaaraim and Adithaim and Gederah and Gederothaim; fourteen cities with their villages.

This was the inheritance of the sons of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.

Joshua captured all these kings and their land at one time, because the Lord, the God of Israel, fought for Israel.

“O Lord, bless Levi’s substance (ability),
And accept and take pleasure in the work of his hands;
Crush and shatter the loins of those who rise up against him,
And of those who hate him, so that they do not rise again.”

If his father has no brothers, then you shall give his inheritance to his nearest relative in his own family, and he shall take possession of it. It shall be a statute and ordinance to the Israelites, just as the Lord has commanded Moses.’”

how he met you along the road and attacked all the stragglers at your rear when you were tired and weary; and he did not fear God.

All the women whose heart stirred with a skill spun the goats’ hair.

of Ozni, the family of the Oznites; of Eri, the family of the Erites;

So in all the country that you possess, you are to provide for the redemption of the land [in the Year of Jubilee].

This is the law regarding the animal and the bird and every living thing that moves in the waters and everything that swarms on the earth,

onyx stones and setting stones for the [priest’s] ephod and for the breastpiece.

My flock wandered through all the mountains and on every high hill; My flock was scattered over all the face of the earth and no one searched or sought them.”’”

The two and a half tribes have received their inheritance across the Jordan [River] opposite Jericho, eastward toward the sunrise.”

Reuben answered them, “Did I not tell you, ‘Do not sin against the boy’; and you would not listen? Now the accounting for his blood is required [of us for we are guilty of his death].”

But his mother said to him, “May your curse be on me, my son; only listen and obey me, and go, bring the young goats to me.”

Then all the princes of the sea will go down from their thrones and remove their robes and take off their embroidered garments. They will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground, tremble again and again, and be appalled at you.

and the sons of Bilhah, Rachel’s maid: Dan and Naphtali;

So the gift [of the herds of livestock] went on ahead of him, and he himself spent that night back in the camp.

Thus says the Lord of hosts,

“The broad wall of Babylon will be completely overthrown and the foundations razed
And her high gates will be set on fire;
The peoples will labor in vain,
And the nations become exhausted [only] for fire [that will destroy their work].”

So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And the next morning I did as I was commanded.

“Nevertheless, I will restore them [again] from their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters (outlying cities), the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, and along with them [I will restore you from] your own captivity [in the day of the Lord God],

Because he did not kill me before my birth,
So that my mother might have been my grave,
And her womb always pregnant.

“As for the word (message) that you have spoken to us in the name of the Lord, we are not going to listen to you.

Then Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, swore to them and their men, saying, “Do not be afraid to serve the Chaldeans; stay in this land and serve the king of Babylon, that it may go well with you.

“Have you not noticed what this people have spoken, saying, ‘The two families [Israel the northern kingdom, and Judah the southern kingdom] which the Lord chose, He has rejected’? Thus they despise My [chosen] people, no longer are they [considered] as a nation in their sight.

“Your nakedness will be uncovered,
Your shame will also be exposed;
I will take vengeance and will spare no man.”

And they brought Uriah [God’s spokesman] from Egypt and led him to King Jehoiakim, who executed him with a sword and threw his dead body among the graves of the common people.

“Remind Me [of your merits with a thorough report], let us plead and argue our case together;
State your position, that you may be proved right.

“Now in that day the [former] glory of Jacob [Israel—his might, his population, his prosperity] will fade,
And the fatness of his flesh will become lean.

The locusts have no king,
Yet all of them go out in groups;

For you shall eat the fruit of [the labor of] your hands,
You will be happy and blessed and it will be well with you.

“You have not brought Me your sheep or goats for your burnt offerings,
Nor honored Me with your sacrifices.
I have not burdened you with offerings,
Nor wearied you with [demands for offerings of] incense.

Every day I will bless You and lovingly praise You;
Yes, [with awe-inspired reverence] I will praise Your name forever and ever.

But You, O Lord, are enthroned forever [ruling eternally as sovereign];
And [the fame and glory of] Your name [endures] to all generations.

“But I would feed Israel with the finest of the wheat;
And with honey from the rock I would satisfy you.”

And in Your majesty ride on triumphantly
For the cause of truth and humility and righteousness;
Let Your right hand guide You to awesome things.

I have not concealed Your righteousness within my heart;
I have proclaimed Your faithfulness and Your salvation.
I have not concealed Your lovingkindness and Your truth from the great assembly.

Show us Your lovingkindness, O Lord,
And grant us Your salvation.

The floods have lifted up, O Lord,
The floods have lifted up their voice;
The floods lift up their pounding waves.

Men of low degree are only a breath (emptiness), and men of [high] rank are a lie (delusion).
In the balances they go up [because they have no measurable weight or value];
They are together lighter than a breath.

When David was told how the men were treated, he sent messengers to meet them, for they were very humiliated and ashamed [to return]. So the king said, “Stay in Jericho until your beards grow [back], and then return.”

if they return to You with all their heart and with all their soul in the land of their enemies who have taken them captive, and they pray to You toward their land [of Israel] which You gave to their fathers, the city [of Jerusalem] which You have chosen, and the house which I have built for Your Name and Presence;

Moreover, he built cities in the hill country of Judah, and in the forests he built fortresses and towers.

“Therefore I say, ‘Listen to me;
I also will give you my opinion [about Job’s situation] and tell you plainly what I think.’

Now then, do not let my blood fall to the ground away from the presence of the Lord; for the king of Israel has come out to search for a single flea, just as when one hunts a [defenseless] partridge in the mountains.”

But the troops whom Amaziah sent back, those not allowed to go with him to battle, attacked and raided the cities of Judah, from Samaria to Beth-horon, and struck down 3,000 men and took a large amount of spoil.

The covenant which He made with Abraham,
And His oath (sworn promise) to Isaac.

Kneeling at his feet she said, “My lord, let the blame and guilt be on me alone. And please let your maidservant speak to you, and listen to the words of your maidservant.

Of the Gershonites: Ladan (Libni) and Shimei.

The woman of Tekoa said to the king, “My lord, O king, the guilt is on me and on my father’s house, but the king and his throne are guiltless.”

Now the five men who had gone to scout the land went up and entered the house and took the image [of silver-plated wood], the ephod, the teraphim, and the cast image [of solid silver], while the priest stood by the entrance of the gate with the six hundred men armed with weapons of war.

The one who burns the heifer shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and shall be unclean until evening.

So they said to him, “No, we will [only] bind you securely and place you into their hands; but we certainly will not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock [of Etam].

You shall certainly restore the pledge (security deposit) to him at sunset, so that he may sleep in his garment and bless you; and it will be credited to you as righteousness (right standing) before the Lord your God.

Saul answered, “May God do so [to me], and more also [if I do not keep my word], for you shall most certainly die, Jonathan.”

nor did they show kindness to the family of Jerubbaal (that is, Gideon) in return for all the good that he had done for Israel.

‘You shall present these to the Lord at your appointed times, in addition the offerings you have vowed and your freewill offerings, as your burnt offerings, grain offerings, drink offerings, and as your peace offerings.’”

But if the person is too poor to pay your valuation, then he shall be placed before the priest, and the priest shall value him; according to the ability of the one who vowed, the priest shall value him.

He shall tear down the house—its stones and its timber and all the plaster of the house—and shall take everything outside the city to an unclean place.

When you have seen it, you too will be gathered to your people [in death], just as Aaron your brother was gathered;

The men who were numbered of the sons of Merari, by their families (clans), by their fathers’ households,

“But if the scab spreads farther on the skin after he has shown himself to the priest for his [ceremonial] cleansing, he shall show himself to the priest again.

from thirty years and upward even to fifty years old, everyone who enters the service to do the work in the Tent of Meeting (tabernacle);

“A sword against their horses and against their chariots
And against all the foreign troops that are in her midst,
And they will become [as weak and defenseless as] women!
A sword against her treasures, and they will be plundered!

He measured the east side with the measuring rod, five hundred rods by the measuring rod.

Thus says the Lord God, “Because the enemy has said of you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The ancient heights have become our property,’

“They will not take from you [even] a stone for a cornerstone
Nor any rock for a foundation,
But you will be desolate forever,” says the Lord.

“Son of man, those [back in Palestine] who inhabit these ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was [only] one man and he took possession of the land, but we are many; the land has [most certainly] been given to us [to possess] as property.’

And I will bring Israel [home] again to his pasture and he will graze on [the most fertile lands of] Carmel [in the west] and Bashan [in the east], and his soul will be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and Gilead.

Ishmael the son of Nethaniah and the ten men who were with him got up and struck down Gedaliah the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, with the sword and killed the one whom the king of Babylon had appointed [governor] over the land.

It will be that as I have watched over them to uproot and to break down, to overthrow, destroy, and afflict with disaster, so I will watch over them to build and to plant [with good],” says the Lord.

He will fulfill the desire of those who fear and worship Him [with awe-inspired reverence and obedience];
He also will hear their cry and will save them.

It may be that the house of Judah will hear all the disaster which I plan to bring on them, so that each one will turn from his evil way, that I may forgive their wickedness and their sin.”

Even those who trust in and rely on their wealth
And boast of the abundance of their riches?

because of all the evil of the children of Israel and of the children of Judah which they have done to provoke Me to anger—they, their kings, their princes, their priests, their prophets, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

For thus says the Lord in regard to the house of the king of Judah:

“You are [as valuable] to Me as [the green pastures of] Gilead [east of the Jordan]
Or as the [plentiful] summit of Lebanon [west of the Jordan],
Yet most certainly [if you will not listen to Me] I will make you a wilderness,
And uninhabited cities.

“Indeed, My servants will shout for joy from a happy heart,
But you will cry out with a heavy heart,
And you shall wail and howl from a broken spirit.

The singers as well as the players of flutes will say,
“All my springs and sources of joy are in you [Jerusalem, city of God].”

And roll you up tightly like a ball
And toss you into a vast country;
There you will die
And there your splendid chariots will be,
You shame of your master’s house.’

I have sunk in deep mire, where there is no foothold;
I have come into deep waters, where a flood overwhelms me.

Lord, all my desire is before You;
And my sighing is not hidden from You.

May all those who seek You [as life’s first priority] rejoice and be glad in You;
May those who love Your salvation say continually,
“Let God be magnified!”

Be not afraid when [an ungodly] man becomes rich,
When the wealth and glory of his house are increased;

Or speak to the earth [with its many forms of life], and it will teach you;
And let the fish of the sea declare [this truth] to you.

The fourth, for the fourth month was Asahel the brother of Joab, and Zebadiah his son after him; and in his division were 24,000.

Then let me plant and [let] another eat [from the results of my labor],
And let my crops be uprooted and ruined.

“Behold, I will not make you afraid or terrified of me [for I am only mortal and not God],
Nor should any pressure from me weigh heavily upon you.

Then David [and his men] struck them down [in battle] from twilight until the evening of the next day; and not a man of them escaped, except four hundred young men who rode camels and fled.

of the sons of Merari, Asaiah the chief, with 220 of his relatives;

And ten young men, Joab’s armor bearers, surrounded and struck Absalom and killed him.

According to all these words and according to all this vision, so Nathan spoke to David.

David heard in the wilderness that Nabal was shearing his sheep.

“The request of the daughters of Zelophehad is justified. You shall certainly give them a possession as an inheritance among their father’s brothers, and you shall transfer their father’s inheritance to them.

and Nibshan and the City of Salt and Engedi; six cities with their villages.

Then the tribes of Israel sent men through the entire tribe of Benjamin, saying, “What is this evil thing that has been done among you?

Then Abimelech stayed at Arumah, and Zebul drove out Gaal and his relatives so that they could not remain in Shechem.

Assemble before me all the elders of your tribes and your officers, so that I may speak these words in their hearing and call heaven and earth as witnesses against them.

This is the law for a leprous disease in a garment of wool or linen, either in the warp or woof, or on anything made of leather, to pronounce it clean or unclean.

He recognized it and said, “It is my son’s tunic. A wild animal has devoured him; Joseph is without doubt torn in pieces!”

from the firstborn of the Israelites he took the money in terms of the sanctuary shekel, 1,365 shekels.

the finely worked garments, the holy garments for Aaron the [high] priest and the garments for his sons to minister as priests,

When Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them, but [hiding his identity] he treated them as strangers and spoke harshly to them. He said to them, “Where have you come from?” And they said, “From the land of Canaan, to buy food.”

No one remembers, nor has knowledge and understanding [enough] to say [to himself], “I have burned half of this log in the fire, and also baked bread on its coals and have roasted meat and eaten it. Then I make the rest of it into an repulsive thing [to God]; I bow down [to worship] before a block of wood!”

You shall remain day and night for seven days at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting, doing what the Lord has required you to do, so that you will not die; for so I (Moses) have been commanded.”

He told it to his father as well as to his brothers; but his father rebuked him and said to him [in disbelief], “What is [the meaning of] this dream that you have dreamed? Shall I and your mother and your brothers actually come to bow down to the ground [in respect] before you?”

for the material they had was sufficient and more than enough to do all the work.

Laban said, “It is better that I give her [in marriage] to you than give her to another man. Stay and work with me.”

‘But the vine was uprooted in [godly] wrath [by His representative]
And it was thrown down to the ground;
The east wind dried up its fruit.
Its strong branch was broken off
So that it withered;
The fire [of God’s judgment] consumed it.

But Judah said to him, “The man [representing Pharaoh] solemnly and sternly warned us, saying, ‘You will not see my face [again] unless your brother is with you.’

“The land which I gave Abraham and Isaac
I will give to you,
and to your descendants after you I will give the land.”

Who has made a god or cast an idol which is profitable for nothing?

“So joy and gladness are taken away
From the fruitful field and from the land of Moab.
And I have made the wine cease from the wine presses;
No one treads the grapes with shouting.
Their shouting is not joyful shouting [but is instead, a battle cry].

therefore, behold, I will deprive the flank of Moab of its cities which are on its frontiers, the glory of the land, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon and Kiriathaim.

so that the kingdom would be in subjection, unable to restore itself and rise again, but that by keeping his covenant it might continue.

in the twenty-third year of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuzaradan the captain of the [Babylonian] guard took captive 745 Jewish people; there were 4,600 persons in all.

and he will lead Zedekiah to Babylon, and he will be there until I visit him [for evaluation and judgment],” says the Lord. “If you fight against the Chaldeans, you will not succeed”’?”

So they entered the land of Egypt (for they did not obey the voice of the Lord) and they went in as far as Tahpanhes.

Then the word of the Lord came to me a second time, saying,

If Your law had not been my delight,
Then I would have perished in my time of trouble.

The words of his mouth were smoother than butter,
But his heart was hostile;
His words were softer than oil,
Yet they were drawn swords.

“My lovingkindness I will keep for him forevermore,
And My covenant will be confirmed to him.

When its branches are dry, they are broken off;
The women come and make a fire with them.
For they are not a people of understanding,
Therefore He who made them will not have compassion on them,
And He who created them will not be gracious to them.

My mouth is filled with Your praise
And with Your glory all day long.

Awake! Why do You sleep, O Lord?
Awaken, do not reject us forever.

O Lord, where are Your former lovingkindnesses [so abundant in the days of David and Solomon],
Which You swore to David in Your faithfulness?

O God, when You went out before Your people,
When You marched through the wilderness, Selah.

My heart was hot within me.
While I was musing the fire burned;
Then I spoke with my tongue:

He shall receive a blessing from the Lord,
And righteousness from the God of his salvation.

For those blessed by God will [at last] inherit the land,
But those cursed by Him will be cut off.

From men with Your hand, O Lord,
From men of the world [these moths of the night] whose portion [of enjoyment] is in this life—idle and vain,
And whose belly You fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And they leave what they have left [of wealth] to their children.

You will make them as [if in] a blazing oven in the time of your anger;
The Lord will swallow them up in His wrath,
And the fire will devour them.

Then he set the carved image of the idol which he had made in the house of God, of which God had said to David and to Solomon his son, “In this house and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel, I will put My Name [and the symbol of my Presence] forever;

the sons of Giddel, Gahar, Reaiah,

Hezekiah also appointed the king’s [personal] portion of his goods: for the morning and evening burnt offerings, and the burnt offerings for the Sabbaths and for the New Moons and for the appointed feasts, as it is written in the Law of the Lord.

he decided, together with his officers and his soldiers, to stop up the water [supply] from the springs which were outside the city [by enclosing them with masonry and concealing them], and they helped him.

So Edom revolted against the rule of Judah to this day. Then Libnah revolted at the same time against Jehoram’s rule, because he had abandoned (turned away from) the Lord God of his fathers.

So Asa slept with his fathers [in death], dying in the forty-first year of his reign.

The two pillars, the one sea (large basin), and the bases which Solomon had made for the house of the Lord, the bronze of all these articles was incalculable.

On that same day the king consecrated the middle of the courtyard that was in front of the house (temple) of the Lord; for he offered there the burnt offerings, the grain offerings, and the fat of the peace offerings, because the bronze altar that was before the Lord was too small to hold [all] the burnt offerings, the grain offerings and the fat of the peace offerings.

He said to her, “What is his appearance?” And she said, “An old man is coming up, wrapped in a robe.” Then Saul knew that it was Samuel, and he bowed with his face to the ground and paid respect [to him].

They were a wall [of protection] to us both night and day, all the time that we were with them tending the sheep.

The sons of Mushi: Mahli, Eder, and Jeremoth—three in all.

The sons of Hebron: Korah, Tappuah, Rekem, and Shema.

She came and fell at his feet, bowing herself to the ground [in respect and gratitude]. Then she picked up her son and left.

But Amasa was wallowing in his blood in the middle of the highway. And when the man saw that all the people who came by stopped [to look], he moved Amasa from the highway into the field and threw a garment over him when he saw that everyone who came by Amasa stopped.

Then Abishai said to David, “God has given your enemy into your hand this day; now then, please let me strike him with the spear driving it to the ground with one stroke, and I will not strike him the second time.”

Then the Philistine lords brought her seven fresh cords that had not been dried, and she bound him with them.

For the battle there was spread out over the surface of the entire countryside, and the [hazards of the] forest devoured more men that day than did the sword.

And Saul built an altar to the Lord; it was the first altar that he built to the Lord.

the Philistine commanders [having noticed David] said, “What are these Hebrews doing here?” Achish said to the Philistine commanders, “Is this not David, the servant of Saul king of Israel, who has been with me these days and years, and I have found no fault in him from the day he deserted to me to this day?”

So Abimelech came to the tower and fought against it, and approached the entrance of the tower to burn it down with fire.

but afterward seven years of famine and hunger will come, and [there will be such desperate need that] all the great abundance [of the previous years] will be forgotten in the land of Egypt [as if it never happened], and famine and destitution will ravage and destroy the land.

Or if the person is a female, then your valuation shall be thirty shekels.

and Beth-lebaoth and Sharuhen; thirteen cities with their villages;

He said to them, “Please listen to [the details of] this dream which I have dreamed;

The Israelites did just as the Lord had commanded Moses, and they divided the land.

the great trials [of Pharaoh] which your eyes have seen, the signs and those great wonders.

They moved out from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah.

So she conceived and gave birth to a son; and she said, “God has taken away my disgrace and humiliation.”

But Nebuzaradan the [Babylonian] captain of the bodyguard left behind in the land of Judah some of the poor people who had nothing, and gave them vineyards and fields at that time.

‘And the fire [of Zedekiah’s rebellion] has gone out from its branch;
It has consumed the vine’s shoots and fruit,
So that it has in it no [longer a] strong branch
As a scepter to rule.’”

This is a dirge (funeral poem to be sung), and has become a dirge.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel:

“The Daughter of Babylon is like a threshing floor
At the time it is being trampled and prepared;
Yet in a little while the time of harvest will come for her.”

‘Thus says the Lord God, “On the day when Assyria went down to Sheol (the place of the dead) I caused mourning; I closed the deep [subterranean waters] over it and restrained its rivers. And the many waters [that contributed to its prosperity] were held back; and I made [the heart of] Lebanon mourn for it, and all the trees of the field wilted away because of it.

So you go to the Lord’s house on a day of fasting and read from the scroll the words of the Lord to the people which you have written as I dictated. And also you shall read them to all the people of Judah who come from their cities.

Then Johanan the son of Kareah and all the commanders of the forces that were with him took from Mizpah all the people whom he had rescued from Ishmael the son of Nethaniah, after Ishmael had killed Gedaliah the son of Ahikam: the soldiers, the women, the children, and the high officials whom Johanan had brought back from Gibeon.

Now look, their brave men shout outside;
The ambassadors [seeking a treaty] of peace weep bitterly.

For the waters of Nimrim are desolate.
Indeed the grass is withered, the new growth dies;
There is no green thing.

The poor man and the oppressor have this in common:
The Lord gives light to the eyes of both.

“Behold, He spreads His lightning around Him [against the dark clouds],
And He covers the depths of the sea.

Cross over to Tarshish [to seek safety as exiles];
Wail, O inhabitants of the coastland [of Tyre].

Hezekiah spoke encouragingly to all the Levites who showed good understanding in the things of the Lord. So the people ate for the appointed seven days, sacrificing peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God of their fathers.

O Lord, truly I am Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your handmaid;
You have unfastened my chains.

“Who has appointed God His way,
And who can say [to Him], ‘You have done wrong’?

The priests slaughtered them and cleansed the altar from sin with their blood to atone for all Israel, because the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering be made for all Israel.

Machnadebai, Shashai, Sharai,

Therefore the wrath of the Lord has been against Judah and Jerusalem, and He has made them an object of terror, of horror, and of hissing, just as you see with your own eyes.

Now the rest of the acts of Jotham, and all his wars and his ways, behold, they are written in the Book of the Kings of Israel and Judah.

They came to the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh, in the land of Gilead, and they said to them,

But a man of God came to him, saying, “O king, do not let this army of Israel go with you, for the Lord is not with Israel nor with any of the sons of Ephraim.

On the top of the stand there was a circular piece half a cubit high, and on the top of the stand its supports and borders were part of it.

but sought the God of his father, and walked in (obeyed) His commandments, and did not act as Israel did.

Azel had six sons, and these are their names: Azrikam, Bocheru, Ishmael, Sheariah, Obadiah, and Hanan. These were the sons of Azel.

“They came upon me in the day of my calamity,
But the Lord was my support.

and we will take ten men out of a hundred throughout the tribes of Israel, and a hundred out of a thousand, and a thousand out of ten thousand to bring provisions for the men, so that when they come to Gibeah of Benjamin, they may punish them for all the despicable acts which they have committed in Israel.”

and Goshen and Holon and Giloh; eleven cities with their villages.

and they brought the multicolored tunic to their father, saying, “We have found this; please examine it and decide whether or not it is your son’s tunic.”

Zenan and Hadashah and Migdal-gad,

So the anger of the Lord burned against this land, bringing on it every curse that is written in this book;

You shall inherit the land by lot according to your families; to the large tribe you shall give a larger inheritance, and to the small tribe you shall give a smaller inheritance. Wherever the lot falls to any man, that shall be [the location of] his [inheritance]. According to the tribes of your fathers (ancestors) you shall inherit.

and the priest shall value it as either good or bad; it shall be as you, the priest, value it.

“Tell Eleazar the son of Aaron, the priest, that he is to pick up the censers from the midst of the blaze for they are holy; and you scatter the burning coals abroad.

They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts.
He made the waters flow out of the rock for them;
He split the rock and the waters flowed.

When the days of weeping and public mourning for him were past, Joseph spoke to [the nobles of] the house of Pharaoh, saying, “If now I have found favor in your sight, please speak to Pharaoh, saying,

“Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God,

“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’

Then they seized the king and brought him to the king of Babylon at Riblah in the [Syrian] land of Hamath [on the northern border of Israel], where he pronounced sentence on him.

O that You would kill the wicked, O God;
Go away from me, therefore, men of bloodshed.

You have despised and scorned My sacred things and have profaned My Sabbaths.

“My dwelling (body) is pulled up and removed from me like a shepherd’s tent;
I have rolled up my life as a weaver [rolls up the finished web].
He cuts me free from the warp [of the loom];
From day to night You bring me to an end.

I rise before dawn and cry [in prayer] for help;
I wait for Your word.

Then Jeremiah went to Gedaliah the son of Ahikam at Mizpah and stayed with him among the people who were left in the land.

But there the mighty and magnificent Lord will be for us
A place of broad rivers and streams,
Where no oar-driven boat will go,
And on which no mighty and stately ship will pass.

For all our days pass away in Your wrath;
We have finished our years like a whispered sigh.

For the ransom of his soul is too costly,
And he should cease trying forever—

But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord, at an acceptable and opportune time;
O God, in the greatness of Your favor and in the abundance of Your lovingkindness,
Answer me with truth [that is, the faithfulness of Your salvation].

You have crushed Rahab (Egypt) like one who is slain;
You have scattered Your enemies with Your mighty arm.

The Lord of hosts is with us;
The God of Jacob is our stronghold [our refuge, our high tower]. Selah.

Between the upper room of the corner and the Sheep Gate the goldsmiths and merchants carried out repairs.

If the Lord had not been my help,
I would soon have dwelt in [the land of] silence.

They swore an oath to the Lord with a loud voice, with [jubilant] shouting, with trumpets, and with horns.

Be exalted, Lord, in Your strength;
We will sing and praise Your power.

Then Josiah contributed to the lay people, to all who were present, flocks of lambs and young goats numbering 30,000, all as Passover offerings, and 3,000 bulls—these were from the king’s property.

that He may guide our hearts to Himself, to walk in all His ways [following Him] and to keep His commandments, His statutes, and His precepts which He commanded our fathers.

But David’s men were very good to us, and we were not harmed or treated badly, nor did we miss anything as long as we were with them, when we were in the fields.

He shall live in that city until he has stood before the congregation for judgment [and if acquitted of murder he must stay there], until the death of the one who is the high priest in those days. Then the offender (manslayer) shall return to his own city and his own house from which he fled.’”

the fifteenth to Bilgah, the sixteenth to Immer,

So David reigned over all Israel and administered justice and righteousness for all his people.

The Lord will make the rain of your land powder and dust; from heaven it will come down on you until you are destroyed.

The sons of his brother Helem (Hotham): Zophah, Imna, Shelesh, and Amal.

And the king sang a dirge (funeral song) over Abner and said,“Should Abner [the great warrior] die as a fool dies?

Their relatives the sons of Merari stood at the left hand: Ethan the son of Kishi, the son of Abdi, the son of Malluch,

“Your basket and your kneading bowl will be cursed.

“You will be cursed in the city and cursed in the field.

So the men set out and passed through the land, and described it by cities in seven divisions in a book; and they came back to Joshua to the camp at Shiloh.

And Jonathan called out after the boy, “Hurry, be quick, do not stay!” So Jonathan’s boy picked up the arrow and came back to his master.

And the sons of Israel felt sorry [and had compassion] for their brother Benjamin and said, “One tribe has been cut off from Israel today.

Their meat shall be yours, like the breast of a wave offering and like the right thigh.

You shall not defile the land in which you live, in the midst of which I live, for I, the Lord, live among the people of Israel.’”

You will eat the old supply of [abundant] produce, and clear out the old [to make room] for the new.

I will go down with you to Egypt, and I will also surely bring you (your people) up again; and Joseph will put his hand on your eyes [to close them at the time of your death].”

For I will give you a very great honor and I will do whatever you tell me; so please come, curse these people [of Israel] for me.’”

and the sash of fine twisted linen, and blue, purple, and scarlet fabric, the work of an embroiderer, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

he is a leprous man; he is unclean; the priest shall most certainly pronounce him unclean; his disease is on his head.

Then the steward brought the men into Joseph’s house and gave them water, and they washed [the dust off] their feet; and he gave their donkeys feed.

You will eat the flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, as though they were rams, lambs, goats, and bulls, all of them fatlings of Bashan [east of the Jordan].

He put the maids and their children in front, Leah and her children after them, and Rachel and Joseph last of all.

For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.

and I brought them into the house of the Lord, into the chamber of the sons of Hanan the son of Igdaliah, the man of God, which was near the chamber of the princes, above the chamber of Maaseiah the son of Shallum the doorkeeper.

“Because you [descendants of Esau] have said, ‘These two nations [Israel and Judah] and these two lands shall be mine, and we will take possession of them,’ although the Lord was there,

“Though you are glad, though you rejoice,
O you who plunder My heritage,
Though you are wanton and skip about like a heifer in the grass
And neigh like stallions,

“Therefore says the Lord, ‘You have not obeyed Me; you have not proclaimed liberty to your brother and your countryman. Behold (listen very carefully), I am proclaiming liberty to you—[liberty to be put] to the sword, [liberty] to [be ravaged by] the virulent disease, and [liberty] to [be decimated by] famine,’ says the Lord; ‘and I will make you a horror and a warning to all the kingdoms of the earth.

To defraud a man in his lawsuit—
The Lord does not approve of these things.

“Your gates will be open continually;
They shall not be shut day or night,
So that people may bring to you the wealth of the nations—
With their kings led in procession.

In little more than a year
You will tremble [with anxiety], you unsuspecting and complacent women;
For the vintage has ended,
And the harvest will not come.

Therefore all the princes sent Jehudi the son of Nethaniah, the son of Shelemiah, the son of Cushi, to Baruch, saying, “Take in your hand the scroll from which you have read to the people and come [to us].” So Baruch the son of Neriah took the scroll in his hand and went to them.

and listen and follow [carefully] the words of My servants the prophets, whom I have been sending to you repeatedly—though you have not listened—

A thousand of you will flee at the threat of one man;
You will flee at the threat of five,
Until you are left like a flag on the top of a mountain,
And like a signal on a hill.

thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold (listen very carefully), I am sending the sword, famine, and virulent disease (pestilence) on them, and I will make them like rotten figs that are so bad they cannot be eaten.

“Then I will make your enemies bring [you along with] your possessions
Into a land which you do not know [for there you will serve your conquerors];
For a fire has been kindled in My anger,
Which will burn upon you.”

You are near, O Lord,
And all Your commandments are truth.

The king is not saved by the great size of his army;
A warrior is not rescued by his great strength.

“All the earth will [bow down to] worship You [in submissive wonder],
And will sing praises to You;
They will praise Your name in song.” Selah.

Of old I have known from Your testimonies
That You have founded them forever.

A man [who is held] in honor,
Yet who lacks [spiritual] understanding and a teachable heart, is like the beasts that perish.

For innumerable evils have encompassed me;
My sins have overtaken me, so that I am not able to see.
They are more numerous than the hairs of my head,
And my heart has failed me.

Your precepts are fully confirmed and completely reliable;
Holiness adorns Your house,
O Lord, forever.

and the forks, the basins, and the pitchers of pure gold; and for the golden bowls with the weight for each bowl; and for the silver bowls with the weight for each bowl;

the sons of Pashhur, 1,247;

Moreover, we have prepared and consecrated all the utensils which King Ahaz had discarded during his reign in his unfaithfulness; and behold, they are in front of the altar of the Lord.”

“If you have anything to say, answer me;
Speak, for I desire to justify you.

So David and Abishai went to the army during the night, and there was Saul lying asleep inside the circle of the camp with his spear stuck in the ground by his head; and Abner and the people were lying around him.

O seed of Israel His servant,
Children of Jacob, His chosen ones!

The sons of Zophah: Suah, Harnepher, Shual, Beri, Imrah,

So all the men of Israel assembled against the city, united as one man.

These were their villages: Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Tochen, and Ashan—five cities—

Go now, be very persistent and investigate, and see where his haunt is and who has seen him there; for I am told he is very cunning.

six of their names on one stone and the remaining six names on the other stone, arranged in the order of their births.

They said, “Arise, let us go up against them; for we have seen the land, and behold, it is very good (fertile). Will you sit still and do nothing? Do not hesitate to go, to enter, to take possession of the land.

Abimelech chased him, and he fled before him; and many fell wounded as far as the entrance of the gate.

Now look, you [the tribes of Reuben and Gad] have risen up in your fathers’ place, a brood of sinful men, to add still more to the fierce anger of the Lord against Israel.

But in the evening he took Leah his daughter and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob went in to [consummate the marriage with] her.

All the cities of the sons of Aaron, the priests, were thirteen cities with their pasture lands.

and one loaf of bread and one cake of oiled bread and one wafer out of the basket of the unleavened bread that is before the Lord;

from the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon;

As for the Israelites’ half, which Moses separated from that of the warriors—

Now a certain man found Joseph, and saw that he was wandering around and had lost his way in the field; so the man asked him, “What are you looking for?”

From the Israelites’ half [of the spoil] you shall take one out of every fifty of the persons, the oxen, the donkeys, the flocks, and of all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who are in charge of the tabernacle of the Lord.”

Then the maids approached with their children, and they bowed down.

And he asked them, “Is it well with him?” And they said, “He is doing well; look, here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep!”

so that none of the trees by the waters may exalt themselves because of their height, nor set their top among the clouds, nor their well-watered mighty ones stand [arrogantly] in their height. For they have all been handed over to death, to the earth beneath, among the sons of men, with those who go down to the pit (the grave).”

“The princes of the north are there also, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who in spite of the terror resulting from their power, have gone down in shame with the slain. So they lay down uncircumcised with those slain by the sword and bore their disgrace with those who go down to the pit.

Then at Riblah the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes; the king of Babylon also killed all the nobles of Judah.

The Chaldeans who are fighting against this city will come in and set this city on fire and burn it, along with the houses on whose roofs incense has been offered to Baal and drink offerings have been poured out to other gods to provoke Me to anger.

“But I will punish you in accordance with the [appropriate] consequences of your decisions and your actions,” says the Lord.
“I will kindle a fire in your forest,
And it will devour all that is around you.”’”

Therefore this wickedness [this sin, this injustice, this wrongdoing] will be to you
Like a crack [in a wall] about to fall,
A bulge in a high wall,
Whose collapse comes suddenly in an instant,

and said to Jeremiah the prophet, “Please let our petition be presented before you, and pray to the Lord your God for us, that is, for all this remnant [of the people of Judah]; for we were once many, but now [only] a few of us are left, as you see with your own eyes, [so please pray]

As for the rogue, his weapons are evil;
He conceives wicked plans
To ruin the poor with lies,
Even when the plea of the needy one is just and right.

“I will lay waste the mountains and hills
And wither all their vegetation;
I will turn the rivers into coastlands
And dry up the ponds.

It is He who reduces dignitaries to nothing,
Who makes the judges (rulers) of the earth meaningless (useless).

The Lord has disciplined me severely,
But He has not given me over to death.