'Presence' in the Bible

Look! You are driving me off the land today, and I must hide from your presence. I will be a homeless wanderer on the earth; whoever finds me will kill me."

So Cain went out from the presence of the Lord and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

"No, my lord! Hear me out. I sell you both the field and the cave that is in it. In the presence of my people I sell it to you. Bury your dead."

as his property in the presence of the sons of Heth before all who entered the gate of Ephron's city.

Bring me some wild game and prepare for me some tasty food. Then I will eat it and bless you in the presence of the Lord before I die.'

Isaac had just finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely left his father's presence, when his brother Esau returned from the hunt.

Whoever has taken your gods will be put to death! In the presence of our relatives identify whatever is yours and take it." (Now Jacob did not know that Rachel had stolen them.)

Rachel said to her father, "Don't be angry, my lord. I cannot stand up in your presence because I am having my period." So he searched thoroughly, but did not find the idols.

Joseph was no longer able to control himself before all his attendants, so he cried out, "Make everyone go out from my presence!" No one remained with Joseph when he made himself known to his brothers.

Then Jacob blessed Pharaoh and went out from his presence.

No! Go, you men only, and serve the Lord, for that is what you want." Then Moses and Aaron were driven out of Pharaoh's presence.

You are to set the Bread of the Presence on the table before me continually.

And the Lord said, "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest."

And Moses said to him, "If your presence does not go with us, do not take us up from here.

the table with its poles and all its vessels, and the Bread of the Presence;

So the whole community of the Israelites went out from the presence of Moses.

the table, all its utensils, and the Bread of the Presence;

Then fire went out from the presence of the Lord and consumed the burnt offering and the fat parts on the altar, and all the people saw it, so they shouted loudly and fell down with their faces to the ground.

So fire went out from the presence of the Lord and consumed them so that they died before the Lord.

Moses then said to Aaron, "This is what the Lord spoke: 'Among the ones close to me I will show myself holy, and in the presence of all the people I will be honored.'" So Aaron kept silent.

The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron's two sons when they approached the presence of the Lord and died,

You must stand up in the presence of the aged, honor the presence of an elder, and fear your God. I am the Lord.

Nadab and Abihu died before the Lord when they offered strange fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. So Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests in the presence of Aaron their father.

"On the table of the presence they must spread a blue cloth, and put on it the dishes, the pans, the bowls, and the pitchers for pouring, and the Bread of the Presence must be on it continually.

So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting. They then threw themselves down with their faces to the ground, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

and if all your armed men cross the Jordan before the Lord until he drives out his enemies from his presence

but your servants will cross over, every man armed for war, to do battle in the Lord's presence, just as my lord says."

Moses said to them: "If the Gadites and the Reubenites cross the Jordan with you, each one equipped for battle in the Lord's presence, and you conquer the land, then you must allot them the territory of Gilead as their possession.

We will cross armed in the Lord's presence into the land of Canaan, and then the possession of our inheritance that we inherit will be ours on this side of the Jordan River."

You must not tremble in their presence, for the Lord your God, who is present among you, is a great and awesome God.

You shall rejoice in the presence of the Lord your God, along with your sons, daughters, male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages (since they have no allotment or inheritance with you).

Only in the presence of the Lord your God may you eat these, in the place he chooses. This applies to you, your son, your daughter, your male and female servants, and the Levites in your villages. In that place you will rejoice before the Lord your God in all the output of your labor.

After they have been destroyed from your presence, be careful not to be ensnared like they are; do not pursue their gods and say, "How do these nations serve their gods? I will do the same."

In the presence of the Lord your God you must eat from the tithe of your grain, your new wine, your olive oil, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks in the place he chooses to locate his name, so that you may learn to revere the Lord your God always.

Then you may spend the money however you wish for cattle, sheep, wine, beer, or whatever you desire. You and your household may eat there in the presence of the Lord your God and enjoy it.

Then, if the guilty person is sentenced to a beating, the judge shall force him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with the number of blows his wicked behavior deserves.

Then Moses called out to Joshua in the presence of all Israel, "Be strong and courageous, for you will accompany these people to the land that the Lord promised to give their ancestors, and you will enable them to inherit it.

There, in the presence of the Israelites, Joshua inscribed on the stones a duplicate of the law written by Moses.

but as a reminder to us and you, and to our descendants who follow us, that we will honor the Lord in his very presence with burnt offerings, sacrifices, and tokens of peace. Then in the future your descendants will not be able to say to our descendants, 'You have no right to worship the Lord.'

That entire generation passed away; a new generation grew up that had not personally experienced the Lord's presence or seen what he had done for Israel.

So all the people went to Gilgal, where they established Saul as king in the Lord's presence. They offered up peace offerings there in the Lord's presence. Saul and all the Israelites were very happy.

So Samuel took the horn full of olive oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers. The Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day onward. Then Samuel got up and went to Ramah.

When all the men of Israel saw this man, they retreated from his presence and were very afraid.

Saul removed David from his presence and made him a commanding officer. David led the army out to battle and back.

Saul tried to nail David to the wall with the spear, but he escaped from Saul's presence and the spear drove into the wall. David escaped quickly that night.

So the priest gave him holy bread, for there was no bread there other than the bread of the Presence. It had been removed from before the Lord in order to replace it with hot bread on the day it had been taken away.

He altered his behavior in their presence. Since he was in their power, he pretended to be insane, making marks on the doors of the gate and letting his saliva run down his beard.

So David took the spear and the jug of water by Saul's head, and they got out of there. No one saw them or was aware of their presence or woke up. All of them were asleep, for the Lord had caused a deep sleep to fall on them.

Now don't let my blood fall to the ground away from the Lord's presence, for the king of Israel has gone out to look for a flea the way one looks for a partridge in the hill country."

But David said to Achish, "What have I done? What have you found in your servant from the day that I first came into your presence until the present time, that I shouldn't go and fight the enemies of my lord the king?"

So Abner spoke again to Asahel, "Turn aside from following me! I do not want to strike you to the ground. How then could I show my face in the presence of Joab your brother?"

The man replied to Joab, "Even if I were receiving a thousand pieces of silver, I would not strike the king's son! In our very presence the king gave this order to you and Abishai and Ittai, 'Protect the young man Absalom for my sake.'

But the king's edict stood, despite the objections of Joab and the leaders of the army. So Joab and the leaders of the army left the king's presence in order to muster the Israelite army.

For today he has gone down and sacrificed many cattle, steers, and sheep and has invited all the king's sons, the army commanders, and Abiathar the priest. At this moment they are having a feast in his presence, and they have declared, 'Long live King Adonijah!'

and the Lord will fulfill his promise to me, 'If your descendants watch their step and live faithfully in my presence with all their heart and being, then,' he promised, 'you will not fail to have a successor on the throne of Israel.'

Solomon also made all these items for the Lord's temple: the gold altar, the gold table on which was kept the Bread of the Presence,

then I will remove Israel from the land I have given them, I will abandon this temple I have consecrated with my presence, and Israel will be mocked and ridiculed among all the nations.

She told her mistress, "If only my master were in the presence of the prophet who is in Samaria! Then he would cure him of his skin disease."

Therefore Naaman's skin disease will afflict you and your descendants forever!" When Gehazi went out from his presence, his skin was as white as snow.

But the Lord had mercy on them and felt pity for them. He extended his favor to them because of the promise he had made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has been unwilling to destroy them or remove them from his presence to this very day.

He moved the bronze altar that stood in the Lord's presence from the front of the temple (between the altar and the Lord's temple) and put it on the north side of the new altar.

So the Lord rejected all of Israel's descendants; he humiliated them and handed them over to robbers, until he had thrown them from his presence.

What follows is a record of what happened to Jerusalem and Judah because of the Lord's anger; he finally threw them out of his presence. Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.

Jehoiachin took off his prison clothes and ate daily in the king's presence for the rest of his life.

These were the men who joined David in Ziklag, when he was banished from the presence of Saul son of Kish. (They were among the warriors who assisted him in battle.

Seek the Lord and the strength he gives! Seek his presence continually!

Ascribe to the Lord the splendor he deserves! Bring an offering and enter his presence! Worship the Lord in holy attire!

For we are resident foreigners and nomads in your presence, like all our ancestors; our days are like a shadow on the earth, without security.

Solomon also made these items for God's temple: the gold altar, the tables on which the Bread of the Presence was kept,

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.

They offer burnt sacrifices to the Lord every morning and every evening, along with fragrant incense. They arrange the Bread of the Presence on a ritually clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. Certainly we are observing the Lord our God's regulations, but you have rejected him.

My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to serve in his presence and offer sacrifices."

They went to King Hezekiah and said: "We have purified the entire temple of the Lord, including the altar of burnt sacrifice and all its equipment, and the table for the Bread of the Presence and all its equipment.

The letter you sent to us has been translated and read in my presence.

Then, as soon as the copy of the letter from King Artaxerxes was read in the presence of Rehum, Shimshai the scribe, and their colleagues, they proceeded promptly to the Jews in Jerusalem and stopped them with threat of armed force.

Please, O Lord, listen attentively to the prayer of your servant and to the prayer of your servants who take pleasure in showing respect to your name. Grant your servant success today and show compassion to me in the presence of this man." Now I was cupbearer for the king.

Then in the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought to me, I took the wine and gave it to the king. Previously I had not been depressed in the king's presence.

and in the presence of his colleagues and the army of Samaria he said, "What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they be left to themselves? Will they again offer sacrifice? Will they finish this in a day? Can they bring these burnt stones to life again from piles of dust?"

to bring Queen Vashti into the king's presence wearing her royal high turban. He wanted to show the people and the officials her beauty, for she was very attractive.

For the matter concerning the queen will spread to all the women, leading them to treat their husbands with contempt, saying, 'When King Ahasuerus gave orders to bring Queen Vashti into his presence, she would not come.'

If the king is so inclined, let a royal edict go forth from him, and let it be written in the laws of Persia and Media that cannot be repealed, that Vashti may not come into the presence of King Ahasuerus, and let the king convey her royalty to another who is more deserving than she.

The king then had the matter investigated and, finding it to be so, had the two conspirators hanged on a gallows. It was then recorded in the daily chronicles in the king's presence.

Now Haman went forth that day pleased and very much encouraged. But when Haman saw Mordecai at the king's gate, and he did not rise nor tremble in his presence, Haman was filled with rage toward Mordecai.

Throughout that night the king was unable to sleep, so he asked for the book containing the historical records to be brought. As the records were being read in the king's presence,

Esther replied, "The oppressor and enemy is this evil Haman!" Then Haman became terrified in the presence of the king and queen.

Now Mordecai went out from the king's presence in purple and white royal attire, with a large golden crown and a purple linen mantle. The city of Susa shouted with joy.

So the Lord said to Satan, "All right then, everything he has is in your power. Only do not extend your hand against the man himself!" So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord.

So Satan went out from the presence of the Lord, and he afflicted Job with a malignant ulcer from the sole of his feet to the top of his head.

Their children are firmly established in their presence, their offspring before their eyes.

That is why I am terrified in his presence; when I consider, I am afraid because of him.

Because God has untied my tent cord and afflicted me, people throw off all restraint in my presence.

Arrogant people cannot stand in your presence; you hate all who behave wickedly.

Rise up, Lord! Don't let men be defiant! May the nations be judged in your presence!

You lead me in the path of life; I experience absolute joy in your presence; you always give me sheer delight.

For you grant him lasting blessings; you give him great joy by allowing him into your presence.

I jumped to conclusions and said, "I am cut off from your presence!" But you heard my plea for mercy when I cried out to you for help.

For the music director, Jeduthun; a psalm of David. I decided, "I will watch what I say and make sure I do not sin with my tongue. I will put a muzzle over my mouth while in the presence of an evil man."

As for me, you uphold me because of my integrity; you allow me permanent access to your presence.

I thirst for God, for the living God. I say, "When will I be able to go and appear in God's presence?"

But as for me, God's presence is all I need. I have made the sovereign Lord my shelter, as I declare all the things you have done.