Pray for us, for we are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to conduct ourselves rightly in every respect.

You ought to say instead, ¹  “If the Lord is willing, then we will live and do this or that.”

For it is time for judgment to begin, starting with the house ¹  of God. And if it starts with us, what will be the fate ²  of those who are disobedient to the gospel of God?

and the life was revealed, and we have seen and testify and announce ¹  to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us). ² 

But whoever obeys his ¹  word, truly in this person ²  the love of God has been perfected. By this we know that we are in him.

By this ¹  we know that we reside in God ²  and he in us: in that he has given us of his Spirit. ³ 

By this ¹  love is perfected with ²  us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment, because just as Jesus ³  is, so also are we in this world.

And if we know ¹  that he hears us in regard to whatever we ask, then we know that we have the requests that we have asked from him.

Dear friend, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul. ¹ 

But a spirit ¹  empowered ²  Amasai, the leader of the thirty warriors, and he said: ³  “We are yours, O David! We support ⁴  you, O son of Jesse! May you greatly prosper! ⁵  May those who help you prosper! ⁶  Indeed ⁷  your God helps you!” So David accepted them and made them leaders of raiding bands.

Then Judah said to his father Israel, “Send the boy with me and we will go immediately. ¹  Then we will live ²  and not die – we and you and our little ones.

Moses said, “We will go with our young and our old, with our sons and our daughters, and with our sheep and our cattle we will go, because we are to hold ¹  a pilgrim feast for the Lord.”

Isn’t this what we told you ¹  in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians, ²  because it is better for us to serve ³  the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’” ⁴ 

For how will it be known then that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not by your going with us, so that we will be distinguished, I and your people, from all the people who are on the face of the earth?” ¹ 

Moreover, ¹  you have not brought us into a land that flows with milk and honey, nor given us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Do you think you can blind ²  these men? We will not come up.”

Then the Israelites said to him, “We will go along the highway, and if we ¹  or our cattle drink any of your water, we will pay for it. We will only pass through on our feet, without doing anything else.”

“Let us ¹  pass through your land; ²  we will not turn aside into the fields or into the vineyards, nor will we drink water from any well, but we will go along the King’s Highway until we pass your borders.”

Our leaders and all who live in our land told us, ‘Take provisions for your journey and go meet them. Tell them, “We are willing to be your subjects. ¹  Make a treaty with us.”’

the Israelites counterattacked. ¹  Benjamin had begun to strike down the Israelites; ²  they struck down ³  about thirty men. They said, “There’s no doubt about it! They are totally defeated as in the earlier battle.”

At this very moment he is hiding out in one of the caves or in some other similar place. If it should turn out that he attacks our troops first, ¹  whoever hears about it will say, ‘Absalom’s army has been slaughtered!’