Hezekiah said to Isaiah, "The Lord's word which you have announced is appropriate." Then he added, "At least there will be peace and stability during my lifetime."

He built altars in the Lord's temple, about which the Lord had said, "Jerusalem will be my home."

He put an idol of Asherah he had made in the temple, about which the Lord had said to David and to his son Solomon, "This temple in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all the tribes of Israel, will be my permanent home.

I will not make Israel again leave the land I gave to their ancestors, provided that they carefully obey all I commanded them, the whole law my servant Moses ordered them to obey."

So this is what the Lord God of Israel says, 'I am about to bring disaster on Jerusalem and Judah. The news will reverberate in the ears of those who hear about it.

I will destroy Jerusalem the same way I did Samaria and the dynasty of Ahab. I will wipe Jerusalem clean, just as one wipes a plate on both sides.

I will abandon this last remaining tribe among my people and hand them over to their enemies; they will be plundered and robbed by all their enemies,

This will happen because they have abandoned me and offered sacrifices to other gods, angering me with all the idols they have made. My anger will ignite against this place and will not be extinguished!'"

Therefore I will allow you to die and be buried in peace. You will not have to witness all the disaster I will bring on this place.'"'" Then they reported back to the king.

The Lord announced, "I will also spurn Judah, just as I spurned Israel. I will reject this city that I chose -- both Jerusalem and the temple, about which I said, "I will live there."

Gedaliah took an oath so as to give them and their troops some assurance of safety. He said, "You don't need to be afraid to submit to the Babylonian officials. Settle down in the land and submit to the king of Babylon. Then things will go well for you."

Saul told his armor bearer, "Draw your sword and stab me with it. Otherwise these uncircumcised people will come and torture me." But his armor bearer refused to do it, because he was very afraid. So Saul took the sword and fell on it.

In the past, even when Saul was king, you were Israel's commanding general. The Lord your God said to you, 'You will shepherd my people Israel; you will rule over my people Israel.'"

David said, "Whoever attacks the Jebusites first will become commanding general!" So Joab son of Zeruiah attacked first and became commander.

David went out to meet them and said, "If you come to me in peace and want to help me, then I will make an alliance with you. But if you come to betray me to my enemies when I have not harmed you, may the God of our ancestors take notice and judge!"

Let's move the ark of our God back here, for we did not seek his will throughout Saul's reign."

David was afraid of God that day and said, "How will I ever be able to bring the ark of God up here?"

David asked God, "Should I march up against the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me?" The Lord said to him, "March up! I will hand them over to you!"

saying, "To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion of your inheritance."

Say this prayer: "Deliver us, O God who delivers us! Gather us! Rescue us from the nations! Then we will give thanks to your holy name, and boast about your praiseworthy deeds."

I was with you wherever you went and I defeated all your enemies before you. Now I will make you as famous as the great men of the earth.

I will establish a place for my people Israel and settle them there; they will live there and not be disturbed anymore. Violent men will not oppress them again, as they did in the beginning

and during the time when I appointed judges to lead my people Israel. I will subdue all your enemies. "'"I declare to you that the Lord will build a dynastic house for you!

When the time comes for you to die, I will raise up your descendant, one of your own sons, to succeed you, and I will establish his kingdom.

He will build me a house, and I will make his dynasty permanent.

I will become his father and he will become my son. I will never withhold my loyal love from him, as I withheld it from the one who ruled before you.

I will put him in permanent charge of my house and my kingdom; his dynasty will be permanent."'"

O Lord, for the sake of your servant and according to your will, you have done this great thing in order to reveal your greatness.

so it may become a reality and you may gain lasting fame, as people say, 'The Lord who commands armies is the God of Israel.' David's dynasty will be established before you,

for you, my God, have revealed to your servant that you will build a dynasty for him. That is why your servant has had the courage to pray to you.

Now you are willing to bless your servant's dynasty so that it may stand permanently before you, for you, O Lord, have blessed it and it will be blessed from now on into the future."

David said, "I will express my loyalty to Hanun son of Nahash, for his father was loyal to me." So David sent messengers to express his sympathy over his father's death. When David's servants entered Ammonite territory to visit Hanun and express the king's sympathy,

Joab said, "If the Arameans start to overpower me, you come to my rescue. If the Ammonites start to overpower you, I will come to your rescue.

Be strong! Let's fight bravely for the sake of our people and the cities of our God! The Lord will do what he decides is best!"

three years of famine, or three months being chased by your enemies and struck down by their swords, or three days being struck down by the Lord, during which a plague will invade the land and the Lord's messenger will destroy throughout Israel's territory.' Now, decide what I should tell the one who sent me."

King David replied to Ornan, "No, I insist on buying it for top price. I will not offer to the Lord what belongs to you or offer a burnt sacrifice that cost me nothing.

But David could not go before it to seek God's will, for he was afraid of the sword of the Lord's messenger.

David then said, "This is the place where the temple of the Lord God will be, along with the altar for burnt sacrifices for Israel."

David said, "My son Solomon is just an inexperienced young man, and the temple to be built for the Lord must be especially magnificent so it will become famous and be considered splendid by all the nations. Therefore I will make preparations for its construction." So David made extensive preparations before he died.

Look, you will have a son, who will be a peaceful man. I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side. Indeed, Solomon will be his name; I will give Israel peace and quiet during his reign.

He will build a temple to honor me; he will become my son, and I will become his father. I will grant to his dynasty permanent rule over Israel.'

Then you will succeed, if you carefully obey the rules and regulations which the Lord ordered Moses to give to Israel. Be strong and brave! Don't be afraid and don't panic!

He said to me, 'Solomon your son is the one who will build my temple and my courts, for I have chosen him to become my son and I will become his father.

I will establish his kingdom permanently, if he remains committed to obeying my commands and regulations, as you are doing this day.'

"And you, Solomon my son, obey the God of your father and serve him with a submissive attitude and a willing spirit, for the Lord examines all minds and understands every motive of one's thoughts. If you seek him, he will let you find him, but if you abandon him, he will reject you permanently.

David said to his son Solomon: "Be strong and brave! Do it! Don't be afraid and don't panic! For the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not leave you or abandon you before all the work for the service of the Lord's temple is finished.

Here are the divisions of the priests and Levites who will perform all the service of God's temple. All the willing and skilled men are ready to assist you in all the work and perform their service. The officials and all the people are ready to follow your instructions."

I will build a great temple, for our God is greater than all gods.

Of course, who can really build a temple for him, since the sky and the highest heavens cannot contain him? Who am I that I should build him a temple! It will really be only a place to offer sacrifices before him.

"Now send me a man who is skilled in working with gold, silver, bronze, and iron, as well as purple, crimson, and violet colored fabrics, and who knows how to engrave. He will work with my skilled craftsmen here in Jerusalem and Judah, whom my father David provided.

Send me cedars, evergreens, and algum trees from Lebanon, for I know your servants are adept at cutting down trees in Lebanon. My servants will work with your servants

Look, I will pay your servants who cut the timber 20,000 kors of ground wheat, 20,000 kors of barley, 120,000 gallons of wine, and 120,000 gallons of olive oil."

Huram also said, "Worthy of praise is the Lord God of Israel, who made the sky and the earth! He has given David a wise son who has discernment and insight and will build a temple for the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself.

whose mother is a Danite and whose father is a Tyrian. He knows how to work with gold, silver, bronze, iron, stones, and wood, as well as purple, violet, white, and crimson fabrics. He knows how to do all kinds of engraving and understands any design given to him. He will work with your skilled craftsmen and the skilled craftsmen of my lord David your father.

we will get all the timber you need from Lebanon and bring it in raft-like bundles by sea to Joppa. You can then haul it on up to Jerusalem."

But you will not build the temple; your very own son will build the temple for my honor.'

Now, O Lord God of Israel, keep the promise you made to your servant, my father David, when you said, 'You will never fail to have a successor ruling before me on the throne of Israel, provided that your descendants watch their step and obey my law as you have done.'

"The time will come when the skies are shut up tightly and no rain falls because your people sinned against you. When they direct their prayers toward this place, renew their allegiance to you, and turn away from their sin because you punish them,

then listen from heaven and forgive the sin of your servants, your people Israel. Certainly you will then teach them the right way to live and send rain on your land that you have given your people to possess.

"The time will come when the land suffers from a famine, a plague, blight, and disease, or a locust invasion, or when their enemy lays siege to the cities of the land, or when some other type of plague or epidemic occurs.

Then they will honor you by obeying you throughout their lifetimes as they live on the land you gave to our ancestors.

"Foreigners, who do not belong to your people Israel, will come from a distant land because of your great reputation and your ability to accomplish mighty deeds; they will come and direct their prayers toward this temple.

Then listen from your heavenly dwelling place and answer all the prayers of the foreigners. Then all the nations of the earth will acknowledge your reputation, obey you like your people Israel do, and recognize that this temple I built belongs to you.

"The time will come when your people will sin against you (for there is no one who is sinless!) and you will be angry at them and deliver them over to their enemies, who will take them as prisoners to their land, whether far away or close by.

When your people come to their senses in the land where they are held prisoner, they will repent and beg for your mercy in the land of their imprisonment, admitting, 'We have sinned and gone astray, we have done evil!'

if my people, who belong to me, humble themselves, pray, seek to please me, and repudiate their sinful practices, then I will respond from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.

Now I will be attentive and responsive to the prayers offered in this place.

Now I have chosen and consecrated this temple by making it my permanent home; I will be constantly present there.

Then I will establish your dynasty, just as I promised your father David, 'You will not fail to have a successor ruling over Israel.'

then I will remove you from my land I have given you, I will abandon this temple I have consecrated with my presence, and I will make you an object of mockery and ridicule among all the nations.

As for this temple, which was once majestic, everyone who passes by it will be shocked and say, 'Why did the Lord do this to this land and this temple?'

Others will then answer, 'Because they abandoned the Lord God of their ancestors, who led them out of Egypt. They embraced other gods whom they worshiped and served. That is why he brought all this disaster down on them.'"

"Your father made us work too hard! Now if you lighten the demands he made and don't make us work as hard, we will serve you."

They said to him, "If you are fair to these people, grant their request, and are cordial to them, they will be your servants from this time forward."

My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh.'"

and followed the advice of the younger ones. He said, "My father imposed heavy demands on you; I will make them even heavier. My father punished you with ordinary whips; I will punish you with whips that really sting your flesh."

Shemaiah the prophet visited Rehoboam and the leaders of Judah who were assembled in Jerusalem because of Shishak. He said to them, "This is what the Lord says: 'You have rejected me, so I have rejected you and will hand you over to Shishak.'"

When the Lord saw that they humbled themselves, he gave this message to Shemaiah: "They have humbled themselves, so I will not destroy them. I will deliver them soon. My anger will not be unleashed against Jerusalem through Shishak.

Yet they will become his subjects, so they can experience how serving me differs from serving the surrounding nations."

Now you are declaring that you will resist the Lord's rule through the Davidic dynasty. You have a huge army, and bring with you the gold calves that Jeroboam made for you as gods.

Now look, God is with us as our leader. His priests are ready to blow the trumpets to signal the attack against you. You Israelites, don't fight against the Lord God of your ancestors, for you will not win!"

He met Asa and told him, "Listen to me, Asa and all Judah and Benjamin! The Lord is with you when you are loyal to him. If you seek him, he will respond to you, but if you reject him, he will reject you.

But as for you, be strong and don't get discouraged, for your work will be rewarded."

"I want to make a treaty with you, like the one our fathers made. See, I have sent you silver and gold. Break your treaty with King Baasha of Israel, so he will retreat from my land."

Certainly the Lord watches the whole earth carefully and is ready to strengthen those who are devoted to him. You have acted foolishly in this matter; from now on you will have war.

King Ahab of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "Will you go with me to attack Ramoth Gilead?" Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel, "I will support you; my army is at your disposal and will support you in battle."

So the king of Israel assembled 400 prophets and asked them, "Should we attack Ramoth Gilead or not?" They said, "Attack! God will hand it over to the king."

The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat, "There is still one man through whom we can seek the Lord's will. But I despise him because he does not prophesy prosperity for me, but always disaster. His name is Micaiah son of Imlah. Jehoshaphat said, "The king should not say such things!"

Zedekiah son of Kenaanah made iron horns and said, "This is what the Lord says, 'With these you will gore Syria until they are destroyed!'"

All the prophets were prophesying the same, saying, "Attack Ramoth Gilead! You will succeed; the Lord will hand it over to the king!"

Now the messenger who went to summon Micaiah said to him, "Look, the prophets are in complete agreement that the king will succeed. Your words must agree with theirs; you must predict success!"

But Micaiah said, "As certainly as the Lord lives, I will say what my God tells me to say!"

Micaiah came before the king and the king asked him, "Micaiah, should we attack Ramoth Gilead or not?" He answered him, "Attack! You will succeed; they will be handed over to you."

The Lord said, 'Who will deceive King Ahab of Israel, so he will attack Ramoth Gilead and die there?' One said this and another that.

Then a spirit stepped forward and stood before the Lord. He said, 'I will deceive him.' The Lord asked him, 'How?'

He replied, 'I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets.' The Lord said, 'Deceive and overpower him. Go out and do as you have proposed.'

Micaiah replied, "Look, you will see in the day when you go into an inner room to hide."

The king of Israel said to Jehoshaphat, "I will disguise myself and then enter the battle; but you wear your royal attire." So the king of Israel disguised himself and they entered the battle.

He told the judges, "Be careful what you do, for you are not judging for men, but for the Lord, who will be with you when you make judicial decisions.

Whenever your countrymen who live in the cities bring a case before you (whether it involves a violent crime or other matters related to the law, commandments, rules, and regulations), warn them that they must not sin against the Lord. If you fail to do so, God will be angry with you and your colleagues; but if you obey, you will be free of guilt.