However, the war was prolonged between the house of Saul and the house of David. David was becoming steadily stronger, while the house of Saul was becoming increasingly weaker.

I was stone silent; ¹  I held back the urge to speak. ²  My frustration grew; ³ 

From one of them came a small horn. ¹  But it grew to be very big, toward the south and the east and toward the beautiful land. ² 

Abijah’s power grew; he had ¹  fourteen wives and fathered twenty-two sons and sixteen daughters.

When the child grew older ¹  she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. ²  She named him Moses, saying, “Because I drew him from the water.” ³ 

It grew so big it reached the army ¹  of heaven, and it brought about the fall of some of the army and some of the stars ²  to the ground, where it trampled them.

It is like a mustard seed ¹  that a man took and sowed ²  in his garden. It ³  grew and became a tree, ⁴  and the wild birds ⁵  nested in its branches.” ⁶ 

Now the boy Samuel was growing up and finding favor both with the Lord and with people.

The boy grew and one day he went out to see his father who was with the harvest workers. ¹ 

Jehoiada grew old and died at the age of 130. ¹ 

Jotham grew powerful because he was determined to please the Lord his God. ¹ 

But the word of God ¹  kept on increasing ²  and multiplying.

Meanwhile the sky was covered with dark clouds, the wind blew, and there was a heavy rainstorm. Ahab rode toward ¹  Jezreel.

He ¹  did not waver in unbelief about the promise of God but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God.

He sprouted up like a twig before God, ¹  like a root out of parched soil; ²  he had no stately form or majesty that might catch our attention, ³  no special appearance that we should want to follow him. ⁴ 

But the poor man had nothing except for a little lamb he had acquired. He raised it, and it grew up alongside him and his children. ¹  It used to ²  eat his food, ³  drink from his cup, and sleep in his arms. ⁴  It was just like a daughter to him.

It sprouted and became a vine, spreading low to the ground; ¹  its branches turning toward him, ²  its roots were under itself. ³  So it became a vine; it produced shoots and sent out branches.

Consider! It is planted, but will it prosper? Will it not wither completely when the east wind blows on it? Will it not wither in the soil where it sprouted?’”

But ¹  other seed fell on good soil and grew, ²  and it produced a hundred times as much grain.” ³  As he said this, ⁴  he called out, “The one who has ears to hear had better listen!” ⁵ 

Whenever Israel was strong militarily, they forced the Canaanites to do hard labor, but they never totally conquered them.