'Rather' in the Bible

and said, "Look, my lords! Please come inside your servant's house, wash your feet, and spend the night. Then you can get up early and be on your way." But they responded, "No, we would rather spend the night in the town square."

Leah looked rather plain, but Rachel was lovely in form and appearance.

Moses also said, "When the LORD gives you meat to eat in the evening, and bread in the morning to satisfy you, the LORD will hear your complaints directed against him. Who are we? Your complaints aren't against us, but rather against the LORD."

If you see your enemy's donkey lying helpless under its load, you must not abandon it; rather, you are certainly to return it to him.

Rather, you are to tear down their altars, you are to smash their sacred pillars, and you are to cut down their sacred poles

"That's also why we said, "It may be if they say these things to us and to our descendants in the future, so we will respond, "Look at this replica of the altar of the LORD that our ancestors made, not for burnt offerings or sacrifice, but rather as a reminder between us and you.

Don't consider your maid servant a worthless woman. Rather, all this time I've been speaking because I'm very anxious and distressed."

They said, "If you send the Ark of the God of Israel back, don't send it empty, but rather be sure to send back to him a guilt offering. Then you will be healed and will know why his oppression has not been removed from you."

The LORD told Samuel, "Listen to the people in all that they say to you. In fact, it's not you they have rejected, but rather they have rejected me from being their king.

The Philistine leaders said, "What are these Hebrews doing here?" Achish asked the Philistine leaders, "Isn't this David, the servant of King Saul of Israel, who has been with me these days, or rather these years? I've found no fault in him from the day he deserted until now."

You love those who hate you and hate those who love you! You've made it abundantly clear today that your officers and the men under them mean nothing to you! I've learned today that you would rather have Absalom alive today and all the rest of us dead!

So Benaiah went into the LORD's tent and told Joab, "The king orders you to come out!" "No," Joab said, "I'd rather die here!" So Benaiah went and informed the king, "This is how Joab answered me."

Ahab addressed Naboth and asked him, "I would like to plant a vegetable garden near my house. Please exchange your vineyard with a better one from me, or if you'd rather have cash, I'll buy it for its full value."

throwing their gods into the fire, since they weren't gods but rather were the product of men's handiwork wood and stone. And so they destroyed them.

Then Memucan replied in the presence of the king and his officials, "It is not the king alone whom Vashti has wronged, but rather all of the officials and all of the people who are in the provinces of King Ahasuerus.

I would rather die by strangulation than continue living.

You love justice and hate wickedness. That is why God, even your God, has anointed you rather than your companions with the oil of gladness.

You love evil rather than good, falsehood rather than speaking uprightly. Interlude

for a day in your Temple courts is better than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather stand at the entrance of God's house than live in the tent of wickedness.

A fool finds no satisfaction in trying to understand, for he would rather express his own opinion.

The softly spoken words of the wise are to be heard rather than the shouts of a ruler of fools.

and have thrown their gods into the fire but they are not gods, but rather the products of human hands, mere wood and stone. So the Assyrians destroyed them.

Yet in all this her treacherous sister Judah didn't return to me with her whole heart, but rather deceptively," declares the LORD.

but rather, truly change your ways and your deeds. If you truly practice justice between each person and his neighbor,

They use their tongues like a bow. Lies rather than truth fly throughout the land. They progress from one evil to another, and they don't know me," declares the LORD.

Rather, let the one who boasts, boast in this: that he understands and knows me, for I am the LORD who acts with gracious love, justice, and righteousness in the land. I delight in these things," declares the LORD.

Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD, look! The prophets are saying to them, "You won't see the sword and you won't experience famine. Rather, I'll give you lasting peace in this place.'"

Rather it will be said, "As surely as the LORD lives, who brought the Israelis up from the land of the north and from all the lands to which the LORD had banished them.' I'll bring them back to their land, which I gave to their ancestors.

"""Therefore, days are coming," declares the LORD, "when this place will no longer be called Topheth, or the Valley of Hinnom, but rather the Valley of Slaughter.

The next day, Pashhur released Jeremiah from the stocks, and Jeremiah told him, "The LORD has not named you Pashhur, but rather Magor-missabib.

Rather, carefully obey this message, and then kings sitting for David on his throne and riding in chariots and on horses will enter the gates of this house. The king will enter along with his officials and his people.

"Am I a God who is near," declares the LORD, "rather than a God who is far away?

Rather, they will serve the LORD their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them.

"Rather, this is the covenant that I'll make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD. "I'll put my Law within them and will write it on their hearts. I'll be their God and they will be my people.

They have turned their backs to me rather than their faces. Even though I taught them, teaching them again and again, they didn't listen to accept correction.

Then the officials told the king, "Let this man be put to death because he's undermining the efforts of the soldiers who remain in this city and that of all the people by speaking words like these to them. Indeed, this man is not seeking the well-being of this people, but rather their harm."

"Take him, look after him, and don't do anything to harm him. Rather, do for him whatever he tells you."

"Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian: "This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel, says: "Look, I'm going to fulfill my promise against this city for disaster rather than for good, and on that day it will happen before your eyes.

Rather, we will keep doing everything that we said we would by offering sacrifices to the Queen of Heaven and by pouring out liquid offerings to her just as we, our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders did in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. Then we had plenty of bread, things went well for us, and we didn't experience disaster.

""Look, I'm watching over them to bring disaster rather than good. Every person of Judah in the land of Egypt will be brought to an end by the sword and by famine until they're completely gone.

"I don't take delight in the death of the wicked, do I?" asks the Lord GOD. "Shouldn't I rather delight when he turns from his wicked ways and lives?

"Look! The days are coming," declares the Lord GOD, "when I will send a famine throughout the land not a famine of food or a thirst for water but rather a famine of hearing the words of the LORD.