King David was very old; even when they covered him with blankets, he could not get warm.

Solomon made an alliance by marriage with Pharaoh, king of Egypt; he married Pharaoh's daughter. He brought her to the City of David until he could finish building his residence and the temple of the Lord and the wall around Jerusalem.

He prepared the inner sanctuary inside the temple so that the ark of the covenant of the Lord could be placed there.

It was four fingers thick and its rim was like that of a cup shaped like a lily blossom. It could hold about 12,000 gallons.

He also made ten bronze basins, each of which could hold about 240 gallons. Each basin was six feet in diameter; there was one basin for each stand.

Then Solomon convened in Jerusalem Israel's elders, all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families, so they could witness the transferal of the ark of the Lord's covenant from the city of David (that is, Zion).

Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered.

The poles were so long their ends were visible from the holy place in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from beyond that point. They have remained there to this very day.

The priests could not carry out their duties because of the cloud; the Lord's glory filled his temple.

May the Lord your God be praised because he favored you by placing you on the throne of Israel! Because of the Lord's eternal love for Israel, he made you king so you could make just and right decisions."

He built high places for all his foreign wives so they could burn incense and make sacrifices to their gods.

Jeroboam then thought to himself: "Now the Davidic dynasty could regain the kingdom.

If these people go up to offer sacrifices in the Lord's temple in Jerusalem, their loyalty could shift to their former master, King Rehoboam of Judah. They might kill me and return to King Rehoboam of Judah."

When the king heard what the prophet cried out against the altar in Bethel, Jeroboam, standing at the altar, extended his hand and ordered, "Seize him!" The hand he had extended shriveled up and he could not pull it back.

But the prophet said to the king, "Even if you were to give me half your possessions, I could not go with you and eat and drink in this place.

Jeroboam's wife did as she was told. She went to Shiloh and visited Ahijah. Now Ahijah could not see; he had lost his eyesight in his old age.

After this the son of the woman who owned the house got sick. His illness was so severe he could no longer breathe.

As certainly as the Lord your God lives, my master has sent to every nation and kingdom in an effort to find you. When they say, 'He's not here,' he makes them swear an oath that they could not find you.

While Elisha was watching, he was crying out, "My father, my father! The chariot and horsemen of Israel!" Then he could no longer see him. He grabbed his clothes and tore them in two.

But they were so insistent, he became embarrassed. So he said, "Send them out." They sent the fifty men out and they looked for three days, but could not find Elijah.

The stew was poured out for the men to eat. When they ate some of the stew, they cried out, "Death is in the pot, O prophet!" They could not eat it.

The rivers of Damascus, the Abana and Pharpar, are better than any of the waters of Israel! Could I not wash in them and be healed?" So he turned around and went away angry.

When the king heard what the woman said, he tore his clothes. As he was passing by on the wall, the people could see he was wearing sackcloth under his clothes.

An officer who was the king's right-hand man responded to the prophet, "Look, even if the Lord made it rain by opening holes in the sky, could this happen so soon?" Elisha said, "Look, you will see it happen with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of the food!"

But the officer replied to the prophet, "Look, even if the Lord made it rain by opening holes in the sky, could this happen so soon?" Elisha said, "Look, you will see it happen with your own eyes, but you will not eat any of the food!"

Hazael said, "How could your servant, who is as insignificant as a dog, accomplish this great military victory?" Elisha answered, "The Lord has revealed to me that you will be the king of Syria."

They were absolutely terrified and said, "Look, two kings could not stop him! How can we?"

So now, bring to me all the prophets of Baal, as well as all his servants and priests. None of them must be absent, for I am offering a great sacrifice to Baal. Any of them who fail to appear will lose their lives." But Jehu was tricking them so he could destroy the servants of Baal.

King Jehoash of Judah collected all the sacred items that his ancestors Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, and Ahaziah, kings of Judah, had consecrated, as well as his own sacred items and all the gold that could be found in the treasuries of the Lord's temple and the royal palace. He sent it all to King Hazael of Syria, who then withdrew from Jerusalem.

They have burned the gods of the nations, for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them.

The king ruined Topheth in the Valley of Ben Hinnom so that no one could pass his son or his daughter through the fire to Molech.

They were armed with bows and could shoot arrows or sling stones right or left-handed. They were fellow tribesmen of Saul from Benjamin.) These were:

Some of the Gadites joined David at the stronghold in the desert. They were warriors who were trained for battle; they carried shields and spears. They were as fierce as lions and could run as quickly as gazelles across the hills.

The priests and Levites consecrated themselves so they could bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel.

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 supplied a large amount of iron for the nails of the doors of the gates and for braces, more bronze than could be weighed,

and more cedar logs than could be counted. (The Sidonians and Tyrians had brought a large amount of cedar logs to David.)

King David rose to his feet and said: "Listen to me, my brothers and my people. I wanted to build a temple where the ark of the Lord's covenant could be placed as a footstool for our God. I have made the preparations for building it.

It was four fingers thick and its rim was like that of a cup shaped like a lily blossom. It could hold 18,000 gallons.

Then Solomon convened Israel's elders -- all the leaders of the Israelite tribes and families -- in Jerusalem, so they could witness the transferal of the ark of the covenant of the Lord from the City of David (that is, Zion).

Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered.

The poles were so long their ends extending out from the ark were visible from in front of the inner sanctuary, but they could not be seen from beyond that point. They have remained there to this very day.

The priests could not carry out their duties because of the cloud; the Lord's splendor filled God's temple.

May the Lord your God be praised because he favored you by placing you on his throne as the one ruling on his behalf! Because of your God's love for Israel and his lasting commitment to them, he made you king over them so you could make just and right decisions."

Lawless good-for-nothing men gathered around him and conspired against Rehoboam son of Solomon, when Rehoboam was an inexperienced young man and could not resist them.

In those days no one could travel safely, for total chaos had overtaken all the people of the surrounding lands.

Jehoshaphat and his men went to gather the plunder; they found a huge amount of supplies, clothing and valuable items. They carried away everything they could. There was so much plunder, it took them three days to haul it off.

So Jehoshabeath, the daughter of King Jehoram, took Ahaziah's son Joash and sneaked him away from the rest of the royal descendants who were to be executed. She hid him and his nurse in the room where the bed covers were stored. So Jehoshabeath the daughter of King Jehoram, wife of Jehoiada the priest and sister of Ahaziah, hid him from Athaliah so she could not execute him.

He posted guards at the gates of the Lord's temple, so no one who was ceremonially unclean in any way could enter.

The Lord was angry at Amaziah and sent a prophet to him, who said, "Why are you following these gods that could not deliver their own people from your power?"

Men were assigned to take the prisoners and find clothes among the plunder for those who were naked. So they clothed them, supplied them with sandals, gave them food and drink, and provided them with oil to rub on their skin. They put the ones who couldn't walk on donkeys. They brought them back to their brothers at Jericho, the city of the date palm trees, and then returned to Samaria.

But there were not enough priests to skin all the animals, so their brothers, the Levites, helped them until the work was finished and the priests could consecrate themselves. (The Levites had been more conscientious about consecrating themselves than the priests.)

Because many in the assembly had not consecrated themselves, the Levites slaughtered the Passover lambs of all who were ceremonially unclean and could not consecrate their sacrifice to the Lord.

He wrote letters mocking the Lord God of Israel and insulting him with these words: "The gods of the surrounding nations could not rescue their people from my power. Neither can Hezekiah's god rescue his people from my power."

They called out loudly in the Judahite dialect to the people of Jerusalem who were on the wall, trying to scare and terrify them so they could seize the city.

But they mocked God's messengers, despised his warnings, and ridiculed his prophets. Finally the Lord got very angry at his people and there was no one who could prevent his judgment.

The governor instructed them not to eat any of the sacred food until there was a priest who could consult the Urim and Thummim.

Then Jeshua the son of Jozadak and his priestly colleagues and Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and his colleagues started to build the altar of the God of Israel so they could offer burnt offerings on it as required by the law of Moses the man of God.

But God was watching over the elders of Judah, and they were not stopped until a report could be dispatched to Darius and a letter could be sent back concerning this.

I said to them, "To the extent possible we have bought back our fellow Jews who had been sold to the Gentiles. But now you yourselves want to sell your own countrymen, so that we can then buy them back!" They were utterly silent, and could find nothing to say.

My God placed it on my heart to gather the leaders, the officials, and the ordinary people so they could be enrolled on the basis of genealogy. I found the genealogical records of those who had formerly returned. Here is what I found written in that record:

The governor instructed them not to eat any of the sacred food until there was a priest who could consult the Urim and Thummim.

So he read it before the plaza in front of the Water Gate from dawn till noon before the men and women and those children who could understand. All the people were eager to hear the book of the law.

And on that day they offered great sacrifices and rejoiced, for God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard from far away.

When the evening shadows began to fall on the gates of Jerusalem before the Sabbath, I ordered the doors to be closed. I further directed that they were not to be opened until after the Sabbath. I positioned some of my young men at the gates so that no load could enter on the Sabbath day.

When Esther's female attendants and her eunuchs came and informed her about Mordecai's behavior, the queen was overcome with anguish. Although she sent garments for Mordecai to put on so that he could remove his sackcloth, he would not accept them.

He also gave him a written copy of the law that had been disseminated in Susa for their destruction so that he could show it to Esther and talk to her about it. He also gave instructions that she should go to the king to implore him and petition him on behalf of her people.

"Oh, if only my grief could be weighed, and my misfortune laid on the scales too!

Although I am innocent, I could not answer him; I could only plead with my judge for mercy.

I also could speak like you, if you were in my place; I could pile up words against you and I could shake my head at you.

O that I knew where I might find him, that I could come to his place of residence!

There an upright person could present his case before him, and I would be delivered forever from my judge.

"O that I could be as I was in the months now gone, in the days when God watched over me,

"I made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I entertain thoughts against a virgin?

With Job's three friends he was also angry, because they could not find an answer, and so declared Job guilty.

"Indeed, I am completely unworthy -- how could I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth to silence myself.

Will it make a pact with you, so you could take it as your slave for life?

Nowhere in all the land could women be found who were as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance alongside their brothers.

But then one passes by, and suddenly they have disappeared! I looked for them, but they could not be found.

Indeed, it is not an enemy who insults me, or else I could bear it; it is not one who hates me who arrogantly taunts me, or else I could hide from him.

Remember your people whom you acquired in ancient times, whom you rescued so they could be your very own nation, as well as Mount Zion, where you dwell!

You held my eyelids open; I was troubled and could not speak.

He turned their rivers into blood, and they could not drink from their streams.

You set up a boundary for them that they could not cross, so that they would not cover the earth again.

If you, O Lord, were to keep track of sins, O Lord, who could stand before you?

However, a poor but wise man lived in the city, and he could have delivered the city by his wisdom, but no one listened to that poor man.

Do not stare at me because I am dark, for the sun has burned my skin. My brothers were angry with me; they made me the keeper of the vineyards. Alas, my own vineyard I could not keep!

The Beloved to Her Lover: Oh, how I wish you were my little brother, nursing at my mother's breasts; if I saw you outside, I could kiss you -- surely no one would despise me!

Is this the one who made the world like a desert, who ruined its cities, and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?"'

You counted the houses in Jerusalem, and demolished houses so you could have material to reinforce the wall.

I am not angry. I wish I could confront some thorns and briers! Then I would march against them for battle; I would set them all on fire,

They have burned the gods of the nations, for they are not really gods, but only the product of human hands manufactured from wood and stone. That is why the Assyrians could destroy them.

Not even Lebanon could supply enough firewood for a sacrifice; its wild animals would not provide enough burnt offerings.

Who decreed this from the beginning, so we could know? Who announced it ahead of time, so we could say, 'He's correct'? Indeed, none of them decreed it! Indeed, none of them announced it! Indeed, no one heard you say anything!

I announced them to you beforehand; before they happened, I predicted them for you, so you could never say, 'My image did these things, my idol, my cast image, decreed them.'

Now they come into being, not in the past; before today you did not hear about them, so you could not say, 'Yes, I know about them.'

Can a woman forget her baby who nurses at her breast? Can she withhold compassion from the child she has borne? Even if mothers were to forget, I could never forget you!

Did you not dry up the sea, the waters of the great deep? Did you not make a path through the depths of the sea, so those delivered from bondage could cross over?

This is what the Lord says: "What fault could your ancestors have possibly found in me that they strayed so far from me? They paid allegiance to worthless idols, and so became worthless to me.

I brought you into a fertile land so you could enjoy its fruits and its rich bounty. But when you entered my land, you defiled it; you made the land I call my own loathsome to me.