Naomi then said to her daughter-in-law Ruth, “It is good, my daughter, that you should go out to work with his female servants. ¹  That way you will not be harmed, which could happen in another field.” ² 

Now the boy Samuel continued serving the Lord under Eli’s supervision. ¹  Word from the Lord was rare in those days; revelatory visions were infrequent.

As they were going up the ascent to the town, they met some girls coming out to draw water. They said to them, “Is this where the seer is?”

So Saul said to the army that was with him, “Muster the troops and see who is no longer with us.” When they mustered the troops, ¹  Jonathan and his armor bearer were not there.

Then Abigail quickly went and mounted her donkey, with five of her female servants accompanying her. ¹  She followed David’s messengers and became his wife.

I am willing to shame and humiliate myself even more than this! ¹  But with the slave girls whom you mentioned let me be distinguished!”

Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah with this warning, ¹  “May the gods judge me severely ²  if by this time tomorrow I do not take your life as you did theirs!” ³ 

Elisha said, “As certainly as the Lord who rules over all ¹  lives (whom I serve), ²  if I did not respect King Jehoshaphat of Judah, ³  I would not pay attention to you or acknowledge you. ⁴ 

She called to her husband, “Send me one of the servants and one of the donkeys, so I can go see the prophet quickly and then return.”

They said to him, “If you are fair to these people, grant their request, and are cordial to them, they will be your servants from this time forward.” ¹ 

Now the messenger who went to summon Micaiah said to him, “Look, the prophets are in complete agreement that the king will succeed. ¹  Your words must agree with theirs; you must predict success!” ² 

(Wicked Athaliah and her sons had broken into God’s temple and used all the holy items of the Lord’s temple in their worship of the Baals.)

He rebuilt the high places that his father Hezekiah had destroyed; he set up altars for the Baals and made Asherah poles. He bowed down to all the stars in the sky ¹  and worshiped ²  them.

He did evil in the sight of ¹  the Lord, just like his father Manasseh had done. He offered sacrifices to all the idols his father Manasseh had made, and worshiped ²  them.

I will favor the honest people of the land, ¹  and allow them to live with me. ²  Those who walk in the way of integrity will attend me. ³ 

He threatened ¹  to destroy them, but ²  Moses, his chosen one, interceded with him ³  and turned back his destructive anger. ⁴ 

You did not buy me aromatic reeds; ¹  you did not present to me ²  the fat of your sacrifices. Yet you burdened me with your sins; you made me weary with your evil deeds. ³ 

The sovereign Lord has given me the capacity to be his spokesman, ¹  so that I know how to help the weary. ²  He wakes me up every morning; he makes me alert so I can listen attentively as disciples do. ³ 

You will lose your hold on the land ¹  which I gave to you as a permanent possession. I will make you serve your enemies in a land that you know nothing about. For you have made my anger burn like a fire that will never be put out.” ² 

Things will go better for the nation that submits to the yoke of servitude to ¹  the king of Babylon and is subject to him. I will leave that nation ²  in its native land. Its people can continue to farm it and live in it. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’” ³