Blessed be the LORD thy God which had lust to thee, to make thee king on his seat, unto the LORD thy God. Because thy God loved Israel, to make them continue ever, therefore made he the king over them to do right and equity."

"Thy father made us a grievous yoke: but remit thou somewhat of the grievous service of thy father and of his heavy yoke that he put upon us, and we will serve thee."

And they told him saying, "If thou shalt be kind to this people and please them and shalt speak loving words to them, they will be thy servants forever."

and said to them, "What advice give ye that I may answer this people which have communed with me, saying, 'Abate somewhat of the yoke which thy father did put upon us?'"

And the young men that were nursed up with him talked with him, saying, "Thus answer the people that spake to thee, saying, 'Thy father made our yoke heavy: But make thou our yoke somewhat lighter.' Thus wise answer them: 'My little finger shall be heavier than thy father's loins.

At that same time, Hanani the seer came to Asa king of Judah and said to him, "Because thou trustedest in the king of Syria, and trustest not in the LORD thy God, therefore is the host of the king of Syria escaped out of thine hand.

And the messenger that went to call Micaiah, spake to him saying, "Behold, the words of the Prophets are pleasant to the king with one assent, let thy words, I pray thee, be like one of theirs, and speak that which is pleasant."

And now behold the LORD hath put a lying spirit in the mouths of all these thy prophets, and yet the LORD hath spoken evil against thee."

Art not thou our God which didst cast out the inhabiters of this land before thy people Israel, and gavest it to the seed of Abraham thy lover forever?

And they dwelt therein and have built thee a temple therein unto thy name, and said,

'When evil cometh upon us, as the sword of judgment, pestilence or hunger: then if we stand before this house and before thee - for thy name is in this house - and shall cry unto thee in our tribulation, thou shalt hear and help.'

And see, how they reward us, to come for to cast us out of thy possession which thou hast possessed us with all.

And Eliezer the son of Dodavahu of Mareshah prophesied against Jehoshaphat, saying, "Because thou hast joined thyself with Ahaziah, the LORD hath broken thy works." And the ships were broken that they were not able to go to Tarshish.

And there came a writing to him from Elijah the prophet, of this tenor: "Thus sayeth the LORD God of David thy father: 'Because thou walkedst not in the ways of Jehoshaphat thy father and in the ways of Asa king of Judah,

but walkedst in the ways of Asa king of Israel and hast made Judah and the dwellers of Jerusalem go a-whoring, like to the whoring of the house of Ahab, and hast thereto slain thy brethren that were thy father's house, which were better than thou:

Therefore, behold, the LORD will smite thee with a mighty plague in thy folk, in thy children, in thy wives and in thy goods.

And thou shalt have much disease through infirmity in thy bowels, until thy bowels fall out by reason of thy sickness, day by day.'"

And Joash king of Israel sent again to Amaziah king of Judah, saying, "A thistle in Lebanon sent to a Cedar tree of Lebanon saying, 'Give thy daughter to my son to wife.' But there came the wild beasts of Lebanon and trod down the thistle.

And Shaphan carried the book to the king, and brought the king word again, saying, "All that was committed to thy servants, that do they:

Because thine heart did melt and thou didst meek thyself before God, when thou heardest his words against this place and against the inhabiters thereof, and humblest thyself before me, and tarest thy clothes and weepest before me, that have I heard also, sayeth the LORD.

Behold, I will take thee to thy fathers and thou shalt be put in thy grave in peace, and thine eyes shall not see all the mischief that I will bring upon this place and upon the inhabiters of the same.'" And they brought the king word again.

And this is the sum of the letter that they sent: "Unto king Artaxerxes: Thy servants, the men that are now on this side the water.

That it may be sought in the Chronicles of thy progenitors, and so shalt thou find in the same Chronicles, and perceive, that this city is seditious and noisome unto kings and lands, and that they cause others also to rebel of the old, and for the same cause was this city destroyed.

and said unto him, 'Take these vessels, go thy way, and bring them unto the temple at Jerusalem, and let the house of God be builded in his place.'

and therefore art thou sent of the king and of the seven lords of the counsel, to visit Judah and Jerusalem, according to the law of God, which is in thy hand;

And look: what it liketh thee and thy brethren to do with the remnant of the money, that do after the will of your God.

And the vessels that are given thee for the ministration in the house of thy God, those deliver thou before God at Jerusalem.

And whatsoever thing more shall be needful for the house of thy God, which is necessary for thee to spend, let the same be given out of the king's chamber.

But thou Ezra - after the wisdom of thy God that is in thy hand - set thou judges and arbiters, to judge all the people that is beyond the Jordan, even all such as know the law of thy God: and them that know it not, those see that ye teach.

And whosoever will not diligently fulfill the law of thy God, and the king's law, shall have his judgment for the deed, whether it be unto death, or to be banished, or to be condemned in goods, or to be put in prison."

And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken thy commandments,

which thou hast commanded by thy servants the Prophets, and said, 'The land unto which ye go to possess it, is an unclean land through the filthiness of the people of the lands, in their abominations wherewith they have made it full of uncleanness on every side.

As for us, we have turned back, and have let go thy commandments, to make contract with the people of these abominations. Wilt thou then be wroth at us, till we be utterly consumed, so that nothing remain, and there be no deliverance?

O LORD God of Israel, thou art righteous, for we remain yet escaped, as it is this day. Behold, in thy presence are we in our trespass: for because of it is there no standing before thee."

and said, "O LORD God of heaven, thou great and terrible God, thou that keepest covenant and mercy for them that love thee and observe thy commandments:

Let thine ears mark and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray now before thee day and night for the children of Israel thy servants, and knowledge the sins of the children of Israel, which we have committed against thee. And I and my father's house have sinned also.

We have been corrupt unto thee, in that we have not kept the commandments, statutes, and laws which thou commandedst thy servant Moses.

Yet call to remembrance the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, and saidest, 'If ye transgress, then will I scatter you abroad among the nations.

They are thy servants, and thy people whom thou hast delivered through thy great power and mighty hand.

O LORD, let thine ears mark the prayer of thy servant, and the prayer of thy servants, whose desire is to fear thy name; and let thy servant prosper this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's butler."

Then said the king unto me, "What, then, is thy request?" Then made I my prayer to the God of heaven,

and said unto the king, "If it please the king, and if thy servant be favoured in thy sight, I beseech thee: send me in to Judah unto the city of my fathers' burial, that I may build it."

And the king said unto me, the queen his wife sitting by him, "How long shall thy journey continue, and when wilt thou come again?" And it pleased the king to send me, and I set him a time,

Cover not their wickedness, and let not their sin be put out from thy presence: for they have provoked the builders.

And the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, "Stand up praise the LORD your God forever: and let thanks be given unto the name of thy glory, which exceedeth all thanksgiving and praise.

and foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give unto his seed the land of the Cananites, Hittites, Amorites, Perezites, Jebusites, and Girgashites - and hast made good thy words: for thou art righteous,

and declared unto them thy holy Sabbath, and commandedst them precepts, ordinances, and laws, by Moses thy servant:

But our fathers were proud, and hard necked, so that they followed not thy commandments,

And though they made a molten calf, and said 'This is thy God, that brought thee out of the land of Egypt,' and did great blasphemies,

yet thou forsookest them not in the wilderness, according to thy great mercy. And the cloudy pillar departed not from them in the daytime to lead them the way, neither the pillar of fire in the night season, to show them light in the way that they went.

And thou gavest them thy good spirit to inform them, and withheldest not thy manna from their mouth, and gavest them water when they were thirsty.

And they won their strong cities, and a fat land, and took possession of houses that were full of all manner goods, wells digged out, vineyards, olive gardens, and many fruitful trees: and they ate and were filled, and became fat, and lived in wealth through thy great goodness.

Nevertheless they were disobedient, and rebelled against thee, and cast thy law behind their backs, and slew thy prophets, which exhorted them so earnestly, that they should convert unto thee, and did great blasphemies.

Therefore gavest thou them over into the hand of their enemies that vexed them. And in the time of their trouble they cried unto thee, and thou heardest them from heaven and through thy great mercy thou gavest them saviours, which helped them out of the hand of their enemies.

But when they came to rest, they turned back again to do evil before thee: therefore leftest thou them in the hand of their enemies, so that they had the dominion over them. So they converted, and cried unto thee, and thou heardest them from heaven; and many times hast thou delivered them according to thy great mercy,

and testified unto them, that they should turn again unto thy law. Notwithstanding, they were proud, and hearkened not unto thy commandments, but sinned in thy laws, which a man should do and live in them, and turned the shoulder away, and were stiff-necked, and would not hear.

And many years didst thou forbear them, and testified unto them through thy spirit, even by the office of thy prophets, and yet would they not hear. Therefore gavest thou them into the hand of the nations in the lands.

But for thy great mercies' sake thou hast not utterly consumed them, neither forsaken them: for thou art a gracious and merciful God.

Now our God, thou great God, mighty and terrible, thou that keepest covenant and mercy, regard not a little all the travail that hath happened unto us, and our kings, princes, priests, prophets, fathers and all thy people, since the time of the kings of Assyria unto this day.

As for us: we have been ungodly, and our kings, princes, priests, and fathers have not done after thy law, nor regarded thy commandments, and thy earnest exhortations wherewith thou hast exhorted them,

and have not served thee in their kingdom, and in thy great goods that thou gavest them, and in the large and plenteous land which thou gavest them; and have not converted from their wicked works.

And I said unto the Levites which were clean, that they should come and keep the gates, to hallow the Sabbath day. Think upon me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to thy great mercy!

for if thou holdest thy peace at this time, then shall the Jews have help and deliverance out of another place, and thou and thy father's house shall be destroyed. And who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom, for this time's sake?"

'Go thou thy way then, and gather together all the Jews that are found at Susa, and fast ye for me, that ye eat not and drink not in three days, neither day nor night. I and my damsels will fast likewise, and so will I go in to the king contrary to the commandment: if I perish, I perish.'"

the king said unto Esther, when he had drunken wine, "Esther what is thy petition? And it shall be given thee. And what requirest thou? Even the half of the empire, it shall be done."

the king said unto Esther on the second day, when he had drunken wine, "What is thy petition queen Esther, that it may be given thee? And what requirest thou? Yea, ask even half of the empire, and it shall be done."

Esther the queen answered and said: If I have found grace in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, then grant me my life at my desire and my people for my petition's sake:

And the king said unto queen Esther, "The Jews have slain and destroyed five hundred men at the castle of Susa, and the ten sons of Haman: What shall they do in the other lands of the king? What is thy petition, that it may be given thee? And what requirest thou more to be done?"

But lay thine hand upon him a little, touch once all that he hath, and, I hold, he shall curse thee to thy face."

And the LORD said unto Satan, "Lo, all that he hath, be in thy power: only upon himself see that thou lay not thine hand." Then went Satan forth from the LORD.

the Sabeans came in violently, and took them all away: yea, they have slain thy servants with the sword, and I only ran my way, to tell thee."

And while he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, "The fire of God is fallen from heaven, it hath consumed, and burnt up all thy sheep and servants: and I only ran my way, to tell thee."

In the mean season while he was yet speaking, there came another, and said, "The Chaldeans made three armies, and fell upon thy camels, which they have carried away: yea, and slain thy servants with the sword, and I only am gotten away, to tell thee."

While he was speaking, there came yet another, and said, "Thy sons and daughters were eating and drinking wine in their eldest brother's house,

and suddenly there came a mighty great wind out of the South, and smote the four corners of the house: which fell upon thy children, so that they are dead, and I alone am gotten away, to tell thee."

But lay thine hand upon him, touch him once upon the bone and flesh, and, I hold, he shall curse thee to thy face."

Then said the LORD unto Satan, "Lo, there hast thou him in thy power, but spare his life."

Then said his wife unto him, "Dost thou yet continue in thy perfectness? Curse God, and die."

Thy words have set up those that were fallen, thou hast refreshed the weak knees.

Where is now thy fear of God, thy steadfastness, thy patience, and the perfectness of thy ways?

Yea, thou shalt know that thy dwelling place shall be in rest: thou shalt behold thy substance, and be no more punished for sin.

Thou shalt see also, that thy seed shall increase, and that thy posterity shall be as the grass upon the earth.

Thou shalt come to thy grave in a fair age, like as the corn sheaves are brought in to the barn in due season.

"What is man, that thou dost magnify him? And that thou settest thy heart upon him?

I have offended; what shall I do unto thee, O thou preserver of men? Why hast thou made me to stand in thy way, and am so heavy a burden unto myself?

"How long wilt thou talk of such things? How long shall thy mouth speak so proud words?

When thy sons sinned against him, did not he punish them for their wickedness?

If thou wouldest now resort unto God betimes, and make thy humble prayer to the Almighty;

"Enquire, I pray thee, of them that have been before thee; and search diligently among thy forefathers.

Thy mouth shall be full with laughing, and thy lips with gladness.

Are thy days as the days of man, and thy years as man's years,

"Thy hands have made me, and fashioned me altogether round about. Wilt thou then destroy me suddenly?

Thou bringest fresh witnesses against me, and thy wrath increasest thou upon me; very many are the plagues that I am in.

Wilt thou say unto God, 'The thing that I take in hand is perfect, and I am clean in thy sight'?

that he might show thee out of his secret wisdom how manifold his law is! Then shouldest thou know that God had forgotten thee, because of thy sins.

"Wilt thou find out God with thy seeking? Wilt thou attain to the perfectness of the Almighty?

if thou wouldst put away the wickedness which thou hast in hand, so that no ungodliness dwelt in thy house;

Then mightest thou lift up thy face without shame! Then shouldest thou be sure, and have no need to fear.

Then shouldest thou forget thy misery, and think no more upon it, than upon the waters that run by.

Then should the residue of thy life be as clear as the noon day, and spring forth as the morning.