"Should I hide from Abraham what I'm about to do," the LORD asked,

and addressed them, "If you are willing that I should bury my dead out of my sight, listen to me and make a request of Zohar's son Ephron on my behalf.

Give me the cave of Machpelah that belongs to him, at the end of his field. He should sell it to me in your presence at full price for a burial site."

"What if the woman doesn't want to come back with me to this land?" the servant asked. "Shouldn't I have your son go to the land from which you came?"

After that happens and he has forgotten what you've done to him, I'll send for you so you can return from there. Why should I be bereaved of you both in one day?"

Later, Laban asked Jacob, "Should you serve me for free, just because you're my nephew? Let's talk about what your wages should be."

Just then Jacob's sons arrived from the field. When they heard what had happened, they were distraught with grief and livid with anger toward Shechem, because he had committed a disgraceful deed in Israel by forcing Jacob's daughter to have sex, an act that never should have happened.

Shouldn't all their cattle, acquisitions, and animals belong to us? So, let's give our consent to them, and then they'll live with us."

"Should he have treated our sister like a whore?" they asked in response.

Then Pharaoh's senior security advisor spoke up. "Maybe I should make a confession.

But Jacob replied, "My son isn't going back with you, since his brother is dead and he's the only one left. If something should harm him as you travel, then it'll be death for me and my sad, gray hair!"

After all the money had been spent throughout Egypt and Canaan, all the Egyptians came to Joseph and demanded, "Give us food! Why should we die right in front of you? Our money is spent!"

So why should we and our land die right in front of you? Buy us and our land in exchange for food, and we and our land will be slaves to Pharaoh. Give us seed, so we can survive and not die, and so the land won't stay desolate."

So Joseph crafted a statute concerning Egypt that remains valid to this day that Pharaoh should own a fifth of the produce, excluding the land belonging to the priests, which remained outside of Pharaoh's control.

Moses told God, "Look! When I go to the Israelis and tell them, "The God of your ancestors sent me to you,' they'll say to me, "What is his name?' What should I say to them?"

Pharaoh said, "Who is the LORD that I should listen to him and let Israel go? I don't know about the LORD, nor will I let Israel go!"

"Go, speak to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, that he should let the Israelis go out of his land."

Moses told Pharaoh, "You decide when I should plead for you, your servants, and your people to remove the frogs from you and your household. They'll remain only in the Nile River."

You are to speak to all who are skilled, whom I've endowed with talent, that they should make Aaron's garments for consecrating him to serve me as priest.

Why should the Egyptians say, "He brought them out with an evil intention to kill them in the mountains and to destroy them from the face of the earth'? Turn from your anger and change your mind about the calamity against your people.

All the work on the Tent of Meeting was completed, and the Israelis had crafted it according to everything that the LORD had commanded Moses, as they should have.

"Speak to the Israelis and tell them that if a person inadvertently sins with respect to any of the LORD's commands that should not be violated, but nevertheless he disobeys one of them,

"If the whole congregation of Israel goes astray, and if the sin is hidden from the eyes of the assembly, and if they go astray from one of the LORD's commands that should not be violated, then they will stand guilty.

"When a ruler inadvertently sins, disobeying any one of the commands of the LORD his God that should not be violated, he will be guilty.

"If any of the common people of the land inadvertently sins by disobeying one of the LORD's commands that should not be violated, he will be guilty.

Then they confined him until it could be declared what should be done to him.

But in response, Balaam asked, "Shouldn't I be careful to communicate only what the LORD puts in my mouth?"

who walked ahead of you along the way to scout a place for you to pitch camp by fire at night and cloud by day to lead you on the way you should go."

Now therefore, why should we die? This great fire will consume us. If we continue to listen to the voice of the LORD our God any longer, we'll die.

"If there should be a poor man among your relatives in one of the cities of the land that the LORD your God is about to give you, don't be hard-hearted or tight-fisted toward your poor relative.

"Should that slave say to you, "I won't leave you,' because he loves you and your household, and it was good for him to be with you,

and this second husband dislikes her, he, also, must draw up divorce papers, hand them to her, and then send her away from his house. Should the second husband die,

returned to Joshua. "Not all of the people need to go up," they reported. "Only about two or three thousand men should attack Ai. Since they are so few, don't make all of the army work hard up there."

However, on that very day Joshua made them become wood cutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the LORD's altar in the place that he should choose, and this tradition continues to this day.

In response, the people said, "Far be it from us that we should abandon the LORD to serve other gods,

But the officials of Succoth replied, "Do you have Zebah and Zalmunna in custody already, so that we should give food to your army?"

Then Gideon approached the men of Succoth and announced, "Here are Zebah and Zalmunna. You criticized me about them when you said, "Do you have Zebah and Zalmunna in custody already, so that we should give food to your weary army?'"

But the olive tree asked them, "Should I stop producing my rich oils by which both God and men are honored and go take dominion over trees?'

But the fig tree asked them, "Should I leave my sweet, good fruit and go take dominion over trees?'

But the grape vine asked them, "Should I leave my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go take dominion over trees?'

Then Ebed's son Gaal remarked, "Who is this Abimelech? And who is Shechem? Should we serve him? Isn't he Jerubbaal's son? Isn't Zebul his lieutenant? Serve the men of Hamor, Shechem's ancestor but why are we serving him?

So Zebul replied, "Right... So where's your boasting now? You said, "Who is Abimelech? Should we serve him?' Isn't this the army that you insulted? So go out right now and fight them!"

So Samson's wife cried in front of him and accused him, "You only hate me. You don't love me. You've told a riddle to my relatives, but you haven't told the solution to me." Samson responded, "Look, I haven't told my parents, either. Why should I tell you?"

They replied, "Let's get going and attack them. We've scouted out the land and look! it's a very good one. Why should we sit still? We can't wait to go back, invade, and take over the land.

From there the Israelis went up and wept in the LORD's presence until evening. Then they asked the LORD, "Should we attack the descendants of Benjamin again?" The LORD replied, "Attack them."

while Eleazar's son Phinehas, a descendant of Aaron, served before it in those days. They asked, "Should we go out to war again against the descendants of our relative Benjamin, or shall we cease?" And the LORD answered, "Go out, and tomorrow I will deliver them into your control."

Ruth's mother-in-law Naomi, told her, "My daughter, should I not make inquiries about your financial security, so you'll be better off in life?

So she lay down at his feet until dawn approached, then got up while it was still difficult for anyone to be recognized. Then he told her, "It shouldn't be known that a woman has come to the threshing floor."

The Philistines summoned the priests and diviners and asked, "What should we do about the Ark of the LORD? Tell us how we should send it back to its place."

They asked, "What is the guilt offering that we should send back to him?"

Why should you harden your hearts just as the Egyptians and Pharaoh hardened their hearts? Isn't it true that after God toyed with them, they let Israel go, and off they went?

Now as for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by ceasing to pray for you. I'll also instruct you in the way that is good and right.

Moreover, the Glory of Israel does not lie or change his mind, for he's not a man that he should change his mind."

He stood still and called out to the ranks of Israel, "Why should you move into position for battle? Am I not a Philistine and you Saul's servants? Choose a man for yourselves to come down against me.

David asked the men who were standing by him, "What will be done for the man who kills this Philistine and takes away the reproach from Israel? Indeed, who is this uncircumcised Philistine that he should defy the armies of the living God?"

David told Saul, "Who am I and what is my life or my father's family in Israel that I should be the king's son-in-law?"

Jonathan spoke to his father Saul favorably about David. "The king shouldn't wrong his servant David because he has not wronged you and because what he has done has been very beneficial for you.

Jonathan told him, "Far from it! You won't die. Look, my father never does anything, great or small, without telling me; so why should my father hide this thing from me? It's not like that!"

Now, show gracious kindness to your servant because you have entered into a sacred covenant with your servant. If there is iniquity in me, then kill me yourself why should you bring me to your father?"

Jonathan asked his father Saul, "Why should he be killed? What did he do?"

Is today the first time I inquired of God for him? Absolutely not! The king shouldn't accuse his servant, or any of my father's family of anything, because your servant didn't know anything at all about this."

He told his men, "God forbid that I should do this thing to your majesty, the LORD's anointed, by stretching out my hand against him, since he's the LORD's anointed."

Should I take my food, my water, and my meat that I've slaughtered for my shearers and give it to men who came from who knows where?"

Now, be aware of this and consider what you should do. Calamity is being planned against our master and against his entire household. He's such a worthless person that no one can talk to him."

If anyone should arise to pursue you and seek your life, may the life of your majesty be bound up with the LORD your God in a bundle of the living, and may he sling out the lives of your enemies from the pocket of a sling.

this shouldn't be an obstacle or stumbling block for your majesty's conscience, that he poured out blood without cause or that your majesty delivered himself. When the LORD does good things for your majesty, remember your servant."

The LORD forbid that I should raise my hand against the LORD's anointed. Now take the spear that is at his head and the jug of water, and let's go."

David told Achish, "If it pleases you, give me a place in one of the outlying towns, so I may live there. Why should your servant live with you in the royal city?"

Samuel told Saul, "Why did you disturb me by bringing me up?" Saul said, "I'm in great distress. The Philistines are waging war against me. God has departed from me and won't answer me anymore, either by messages written by the hand of the prophets or by dreams. So I've summoned you to tell me what I should do."

David told Achish, "What have I done, and what have you found in your servant from the time I came before you until this very moment, that I shouldn't go out and fight the enemies of your majesty?"

so Abner told Asahel again, "Stop following me. Why should I strike you down? How could I show my face to your brother Joab?"

The king composed this mourning song for Abner: "Should Abner's death be like a fool's?

How much worse will it be, then, when evil men kill an innocent man on his own bed in his own house! Shouldn't I avenge his blood which you are responsible for shedding by removing you from the earth?"

Uriah replied, "The ark, along with Israel and Judah, are encamped in tents, while my commanding officer Joab and my master's staff members are camping out in the open fields. Should I go home, eat, drink, and have sex with my wife? Not on your life! I won't do something like this, will I?"

So Absalom responded, "If you aren't coming, please allow my brother Amnon to accompany us." The king asked, "Why should he go with you?"

Then the king suggested to Ittai the Gittite, "Why should you have to go with us? Return and stay with the new king, since you're a foreigner and exile. Stay where you want to stay.

It seems only yesterday that you arrived, so should I make you wander around with us while I go wherever I can? Go back, and take your brothers with you. May gracious love and truth accompany you!"

But if he should say something like "I'm not pleased with you,' well then, here I am let him do to me whatever seems right to him."

At this point, Zeruiah's son Abishai asked the king, "Why should this dead dog be cursing your majesty the king? May I have permission to go over and cut off his head?"

Besides, who else should I be serving? Why not the son? The same way I served your father, I'll serve you."

So Absalom asked Ahithophel, "What's your advice? What should we do?"

When Hushai approached Absalom, Absalom asked him, "Here's what Ahithophel had to advise. Should we do what he says? Or if not, say so!"

But Zeruiah's son Abishai asked, "Why shouldn't Shimei be put to death for this? After all, he cursed the LORD's anointed!"

David replied, "What do you sons of Zeruiah have in common with me? You've become my enemies today! Should anyone be executed in Israel today? Don't you know that I've been reinstated as king over Israel today?"

"How many more years do I have to live," Barzillai replied to the king, "that I should move to Jerusalem with the king?

I'm now 80 years old! I can hardly tell the difference between what tastes good or bad! I can't tell what I eat or drink! I can't hear the voice of men and women when they sing! So why should your servant be an added burden to your majesty the king?

Your servant will cross the Jordan River with the king for a short distance, but why should the king offer me this reward?

So he replied, "You know that the kingdom should have come to me, and that everyone in Israel intended to place me as the next king. However, the kingdom has turned around and now belongs to my brother, because it went to him from the LORD.

"If a man should sin against his neighbor and he is required to take an oath, and he then comes to take an oath in front of your altar in this Temple,

while King Rehoboam conferred with his advisors who had worked for his father Solomon during his administration. He asked them, "What is your advice as to how I should respond to these people?"

"This is what you should tell these people who asked you "Your father made our burden heavy, but you must make it lighter for us!'" the young men who grew up with Rehoboam replied. "Tell them, "My little finger will be thicker than my father's whole body!

But the king of Israel replied, "Tell him, "The one who is starting to strap on his battle armor should never brag like the one who is taking it off.'"

So the king of Israel called in about 400 prophets and asked them, "Should we go attack Ramoth-gilead, or should I call off the attack?" "Go attack them," they all said, "because the Lord will drop them right into the king's hand!"

"There is still one man left by whom we could ask the LORD what to do," the king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, "but I hate him because he never prophesies anything good about me. Instead, he prophesies evil. He is Imla's son Micaiah." But Jehoshaphat rebuked Ahab, "Kings should never talk like that."

When Micaiah approached the king, the king asked him, "Micaiah, should we go to war against Ramoth-gilead, or should I not?" "Go to war," Micaiah replied, "and you will be successful, because the LORD will hand it over to the king!"

While he was still talking with them, the messenger arrived to see him and delivered the king's message to Elisha, "Look! This evil has come from the LORD! Why should I wait for the LORD anymore?"

But Hazael responded, "What? Who am I, your servant, that I should do such a horrible thing?" But Elisha answered, "The LORD has shown me that you will be king over Aram."

At this, the man of God became angry at him and told him, "You should have struck five or six times! Then you would have attacked Aram until you would have destroyed it! But as it is now, you'll defeat Aram only three times!"

Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered their land from my control, so that the LORD should deliver Jerusalem from me?'"

The tribe of Issachar supplied 200 leaders, along with all of their relatives under their command. They kept up-to-date in their understanding of the times and knew what Israel should do.