and who brought you through the great, fearful desert of venomous serpents ¹  and scorpions, an arid place with no water. He made water flow ²  from a flint rock and

When all the Israelites who had hidden themselves in the hill country of Ephraim heard that the Philistines had fled, they too pursued them in battle.

The young man who was telling him this ¹  said, “I just happened to be on Mount Gilboa and came across Saul leaning on his spear for support. The chariots and leaders of the horsemen were in hot pursuit of him.

But Amnon became frustrated because he was so lovesick ¹  over his sister Tamar. For she was a virgin, and to Amnon it seemed out of the question to do anything to her.

I have received a distressing message: ¹  “The deceiver deceives, the destroyer destroys. Attack, you Elamites! Lay siege, you Medes! I will put an end to all the groaning!” ² 

After looking around ¹  at them in anger, grieved by the hardness of their hearts, ²  he said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. ³ 

But I will harden ¹  Pharaoh’s heart, and although I will multiply ²  my signs and my wonders in the land of Egypt,

But when Pharaoh saw that there was relief, ¹  he hardened ²  his heart and did not listen to them, just as the Lord had predicted. ³ 

When Pharaoh saw ¹  that the rain and hail and thunder ceased, he sinned again: ²  both he and his servants hardened ³  their hearts.

But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he chased after the Israelites. Now the Israelites were going out defiantly. ¹ 

“If you lend money to any of ¹  my people who are needy among you, do not be like a moneylender ²  to him; do not charge ³  him interest. ⁴ 

“This commandment I am giving ¹  you today is not too difficult for you, nor is it too remote.

Solomon answered all her questions; there was no question too complex for the king. ¹ 

So I loathed all the fruit of ¹  my effort, ²  for which I worked so hard ³  on earth, ⁴  because ⁵  I must leave it ⁶  behind ⁷  in the hands of my successor. ⁸ 

What does a man acquire from all his labor and from the anxiety that accompanies his toil on earth? ¹ 

The sleep of the laborer is pleasant – whether he eats little or much – but the wealth of the rich will not allow him to sleep.

He said, “Go and tell these people: ‘Listen continually, but don’t understand! Look continually, but don’t perceive!’

“Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. ¹  Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.

Yes, ¹  the Lord has this to say to the people of Judah and Jerusalem: “Like a farmer breaking up hard unplowed ground, you must break your rebellious will and make a new beginning; just as a farmer must clear away thorns lest the seed is wasted, you must get rid of the sin that is ruining your lives. ² 

I see ¹  one destruction after another taking place, so that the whole land lies in ruins. I see our ²  tents suddenly destroyed, their ³  curtains torn down in a mere instant. ⁴