Then Amaziah gathered Judah and assembled them according to ancestral house, according to commanders of thousands, and according to commanders of hundreds. He numbered those 20 years old or more for all Judah and Benjamin. He found there to be 300,000 choice men who could serve in the army, bearing spear and shield.

So some men who were leaders of the Ephraimites—Azariah son of Jehohanan, Berechiah son of Meshillemoth, Jehizkiah son of Shallum, and Amasa son of Hadlai—stood in opposition to those coming from the war.

When the burnt offerings were completed, the king and all those present with him bowed down and worshiped.

Hezekiah concluded, “Now you are consecrated to the Lord. Come near and bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the Lord’s temple.” So the congregation brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all those with willing hearts brought burnt offerings.

So the couriers went throughout Israel and Judah with letters from the hand of the king and his officials, and according to the king’s command, saying, “Israelites, return to Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel so that He may return to those of you who remain, who have escaped from the grasp of the kings of Assyria.

Then the whole assembly of Judah with the priests and Levites, the whole assembly that came from Israel, the foreigners who came from the land of Israel, and those who were living in Judah, rejoiced.

They distributed also to those recorded by genealogy of the priests by their ancestral families and the Levites 20 years old and above, by their responsibilities in their divisions;

to those registered by genealogy—with all their infants, wives, sons, and daughters—of the whole assembly (for they had faithfully consecrated themselves as holy);

After this, while Sennacherib king of Assyria with all his armed forces besieged Lachish, he sent his servants to Jerusalem against King Hezekiah of Judah and against all those of Judah who were in Jerusalem, saying,

In those days Hezekiah became sick to the point of death, so he prayed to the Lord, and He spoke to him and gave him a miraculous sign.

Then the common people executed all those who conspired against King Amon and made his son Josiah king in his place.

Then in his presence the altars of the Baals were torn down, and he chopped down the incense altars that were above them. He shattered the Asherah poles, the carved images, and the cast images, crushed them to dust, and scattered them over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them.

They put it into the hands of those doing the work—those who oversaw the Lord’s temple. They gave it to the workmen who were working in the Lord’s temple, to repair and restore the temple;

They were also over the porters and were supervising all those doing the work task by task. Some of the Levites were secretaries, officers, and gatekeepers.

They have emptied out the money that was found in the Lord’s temple and have put it into the hand of the overseers and the hand of those doing the work.”

“Go. Ask Yahweh for me and for those remaining in Israel and Judah, concerning the words of the book that was found. For great is the Lord’s wrath that is poured out on us because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord in order to do everything written in this book.”

So Hilkiah and those the king had designated went to the prophetess Huldah, the wife of Shallum son of Tokhath, son of Hasrah, keeper of the wardrobe. She lived in Jerusalem in the Second District. They spoke with her about this.

He had all those present in Jerusalem and Benjamin agree to it. So all the inhabitants of Jerusalem carried out the covenant of God, the God of their ancestors.

He deported those who escaped from the sword to Babylon, and they became servants to him and his sons until the rise of the Persian kingdom.

These now are the people of the province who came from those captive exiles King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon had deported to Babylon. They returned to Jerusalem and Judah, each to his own town.

The following are those who came from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addan, and Immer but were unable to prove that their families and ancestry were Israelite:

Jeshua with his sons and brothers, Kadmiel with his sons, and the sons of Judah and of Henadad, with their sons and brothers, the Levites, joined together to supervise those working on the house of God.

These are the family leaders and the genealogical records of those who returned with me from Babylon during the reign of King Artaxerxes:

After these things had been done, the leaders approached me and said: “The people of Israel, the priests, and the Levites have not separated themselves from the surrounding peoples whose detestable practices are like those of the Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Jebusites, Ammonites, Moabites, Egyptians, and Amorites.

Let us therefore make a covenant before our God to send away all the foreign wives and their children, according to the counsel of my lord and of those who tremble at the command of our God. Let it be done according to the law.

Let our leaders represent the entire assembly. Then let all those in our towns who have married foreign women come at appointed times, together with the elders and judges of each town, in order to avert the fierce anger of our God concerning this matter.”

I said,

Yahweh, the God of heaven, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps His gracious covenant with those who love Him and keep His commands,

The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, for I had not yet told the Jews, priests, nobles, officials, or the rest of those who would be doing the work.

During those days, the nobles of Judah sent many letters to Tobiah, and Tobiah’s letters came to them.

Then my God put it into my mind to assemble the nobles, the officials, and the people to be registered by genealogy. I found the genealogical record of those who came back first, and I found the following written in it:

The following are those who came from Tel-melah, Tel-harsha, Cherub, Addon, and Immer, but were unable to prove that their families and ancestors were Israelite:

While he was facing the square in front of the Water Gate, he read out of it from daybreak until noon before the men, the women, and those who could understand. All the people listened attentively to the book of the law.

Then he said to them, “Go and eat what is rich, drink what is sweet, and send portions to those who have nothing prepared, since today is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, because the joy of the Lord is your stronghold.”

Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the guilt of their fathers.

Those whose seals were on the document were:

Nehemiah the governor, son of Hacaliah, and Zedekiah,

When they heard the law, they separated all those of mixed descent from Israel.

Once or twice the merchants and those who sell all kinds of goods camped outside Jerusalem,

In those days I also saw Jews who had married women from Ashdod, Ammon, and Moab.

In those days King Ahasuerus reigned from his royal throne in the fortress at Susa.

During those days while Mordecai was sitting at the King’s Gate, Bigthan and Teresh, two eunuchs who guarded the king’s entrance, became infuriated and planned to assassinate King Ahasuerus.

The king’s command and law went into effect on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, the month Adar. On the day when the Jews’ enemies had hoped to overpower them, just the opposite happened. The Jews overpowered those who hated them.

In each of King Ahasuerus’s provinces the Jews assembled in their cities to attack those who intended to harm them. Not a single person could withstand them; terror of them fell on every nationality.

The Jews put all their enemies to the sword, killing and destroying them. They did what they pleased to those who hated them.

The rest of the Jews in the royal provinces assembled, defended themselves, and got rid of their enemies. They killed 75,000 of those who hated them, but they did not seize any plunder.

because during those days the Jews got rid of their enemies. That was the month when their sorrow was turned into rejoicing and their mourning into a holiday. They were to be days of feasting, rejoicing, and of sending gifts to one another and the poor.

Let those who curse certain days
cast a spell on it,
those who are skilled in rousing Leviathan.

Why is light given to one burdened with grief,
and life to those whose existence is bitter,

In my experience, those who plow injustice
and those who sow trouble reap the same.

how much more those who dwell in clay houses,
whose foundation is in the dust,
who are crushed like a moth!

Isn’t mankind consigned to forced labor on earth?
Are not his days like those of a hired hand?

Are Your days like those of a human,
or Your years like those of a man,

The one who is at ease holds calamity in contempt
and thinks it is prepared for those whose feet are slipping.

The tents of robbers are safe,
and those who provoke God are secure;
God’s power provides this.

For the company of the godless will have no children,
and fire will consume the tents of those who offer bribes.

Those in the west are appalled at his fate,
while those in the east tremble in horror.

All of my best friends despise me,
and those I love have turned against me.

he will vanish forever like his own dung.
Those who know him will ask, “Where is he?”

Have you never consulted those who travel the roads?
Don’t you accept their reports?

The dirt on his grave is sweet to him.
Everyone follows behind him,
and those who go before him are without number.

Why does the Almighty not reserve times for judgment?
Why do those who know Him never see His days?

The wicked are those who rebel against the light.
They do not recognize its ways
or stay on its paths.

As dry ground and heat snatch away the melted snow,
so Sheol steals those who have sinned.

Those who survive him will be buried by the plague,
yet their widows will not weep for them.

He cuts a shaft far from human habitation,
in places unknown to those who walk above ground.
Suspended far away from people,
the miners swing back and forth.

I directed their course and presided as chief.
I lived as a king among his troops,
like one who comforts those who mourn.

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Have I not wept for those who have fallen on hard times?
Has my soul not grieved for the needy?

If only Job were tested to the limit,
because his answers are like those of wicked men.

Those who have a godless heart harbor anger;
even when God binds them, they do not cry for help.

Do you understand how the clouds float,
those wonderful works of Him who has perfect knowledge?

Who can open his jaws,
surrounded by those terrifying teeth?

Pay homage to the Son or He will be angry
and you will perish in your rebellion,
for His anger may ignite at any moment.
All those who take refuge in Him are happy.

You destroy those who tell lies;
the Lord abhors a man of bloodshed and treachery.

But let all who take refuge in You rejoice;
let them shout for joy forever.
May You shelter them,
and may those who love Your name boast about You.

Those who know Your name trust in You
because You have not abandoned
those who seek You, Yahweh.

Be gracious to me, Lord;
consider my affliction at the hands of those who hate me.
Lift me up from the gates of death,

Then they will be filled with terror,
for God is with those who are righteous.

who despises the one rejected by the Lord
but honors those who fear the Lord,
who keeps his word whatever the cost,

The sorrows of those who take another god
for themselves will multiply;
I will not pour out their drink offerings of blood,
and I will not speak their names with my lips.

Display the wonders of Your faithful love,
Savior of all who seek refuge
from those who rebel against Your right hand.

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

For You rescue an afflicted people,
but You humble those with haughty eyes.

You have made my enemies retreat before me;
I annihilate those who hate me.

Your hand will capture all your enemies;
your right hand will seize those who hate you.

I will give praise in the great congregation
because of You;
I will fulfill my vows
before those who fear You.

The humble will eat and be satisfied;
those who seek the Lord will praise Him.
May your hearts live forever!

All who prosper on earth will eat and bow down;
all those who go down to the dust
will kneel before Him—
even the one who cannot preserve his life.

Such is the generation of those who seek Him,
who seek the face of the God of Jacob.Selah

No one who waits for You
will be disgraced;
those who act treacherously without cause
will be disgraced.

All the Lord’s ways show faithful love and truth
to those who keep His covenant and decrees.

The secret counsel of the Lord
is for those who fear Him,
and He reveals His covenant to them.

Davidic.Lord, I call to You;
my rock, do not be deaf to me.
If You remain silent to me,
I will be like those going down to the Pit.

Lord, You brought me up from Sheol;
You spared me from among those
going down to the Pit.

I hate those who are devoted to worthless idols,
but I trust in the Lord.

I am ridiculed by all my adversaries
and even by my neighbors.
I am dreaded by my acquaintances;
those who see me in the street run from me.

How great is Your goodness
that You have stored up for those who fear You
and accomplished in the sight of everyone
for those who take refuge in You.

Now the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him—
those who depend on His faithful love

Those who look to Him are radiant with joy;
their faces will never be ashamed.

The Angel of the Lord encamps
around those who fear Him, and rescues them.

You who are His holy ones, fear Yahweh,
for those who fear Him lack nothing.

Young lions lack food and go hungry,
but those who seek the Lord
will not lack any good thing.