As an example of suffering and patience, brothers and sisters, ¹  take the prophets who spoke in the Lord’s name.

by casting ¹  all your cares ²  on him because he cares for you.

“To ¹  the angel of the church in Smyrna write the following: ²  “This is the solemn pronouncement of ³  the one who is the first and the last, the one who was dead, but ⁴  came to life:

The foreigner who resides with you must be to you like a native citizen among you; so ¹  you must love him as yourself, because you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.

Abishai son of Zeruiah, the brother of Joab, was head of the three. ¹  He killed three hundred men with his spear and gained fame among the three. ² 

One day some men ¹  were burying a man when they spotted ²  a raiding party. So they threw the dead man ³  into Elisha’s tomb. When the body ⁴  touched Elisha’s bones, the dead man ⁵  came to life and stood on his feet.

“I have been inactive ¹  for a long time; I kept quiet and held back. Like a woman in labor I groan; I pant and gasp. ² 

But they must make sure you learn to follow the religious practices of my people. ¹  Once they taught my people to swear their oaths using the name of the god Baal. ²  But then, they must swear oaths using my name, saying, “As surely as the Lord lives, I swear.” ³  If they do these things, ⁴  then they will be included among the people I call my own. ⁵ 

“I, the Lord who rules over all, say: ¹  ‘This place will indeed lie in ruins. There will be no people or animals in it. But there will again be in it and in its towns sheepfolds where shepherds can rest their sheep.

I, the Lord, say that shepherds will once again count their sheep as they pass into the fold. ¹  They will do this in all the towns in the southern hill country, the western foothills, the southern hill country, the territory of Benjamin, the villages surrounding Jerusalem, and the towns of Judah.’ ² 

telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. ¹  Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me.

After they had passed the first and second guards, ¹  they came to the iron ²  gate leading into the city. It ³  opened for them by itself, ⁴  and they went outside and walked down one narrow street, ⁵  when at once the angel left him.

But now we have been released from the law, because we have died ¹  to what controlled us, so that we may serve in the new life of the Spirit and not under the old written code. ² 

when I go to Spain. For I hope to visit you when I pass through and that you will help me ¹  on my journey there, after I have enjoyed your company for a while.

Some of you once lived this way. ¹  But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ ²  and by the Spirit of our God.

They had not gone very far from the city ¹  when Joseph said ²  to the servant who was over his household, “Pursue the men at once! ³  When you overtake ⁴  them, say to them, ‘Why have you repaid good with evil?

And he said to me, “Get up, go down at once from here because your people whom you brought out of Egypt have sinned! They have quickly turned from the way I commanded them and have made for themselves a cast metal image.” ¹ 

When you enter the town, you can find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. The people won’t eat until he arrives, for he must bless the sacrifice. Once that happens, those who have been invited will eat. Now go on up, for ¹  this is the time when you can find him!”

These are the names of David’s warriors: Josheb-Basshebeth, a Tahkemonite, was head of the officers. ¹  He killed eight hundred men with his spear in one battle. ² 

Then they said to one another, “It’s not right what we’re doing! This is a day to celebrate, but we haven’t told anyone. ¹  If we wait until dawn, ²  we’ll be punished. ³  So come on, let’s go and inform the royal palace.”