Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered. ¹ 

Now King Solomon and all the Israelites who had assembled with him went on ahead of the ark and sacrificed more sheep and cattle than could be counted or numbered. ¹ 

Even by saying ¹  these things, they scarcely persuaded ²  the crowds not to offer sacrifice to them.

Now the people were offering sacrifices at the high places, ¹  because in those days a temple had not yet been built to honor the Lord. ² 

Jeroboam inaugurated a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, ¹  like the festival celebrated in Judah. ²  On the altar in Bethel he offered sacrifices to the calves he had made. ³  In Bethel he also appointed priests for the high places he had made.

But the more I summoned ¹  them, the farther they departed from me. ²  They sacrificed to the Baal idols and burned incense to images.

Even before they burned the fat, the priest’s attendant would come and say to the person who was making the sacrifice, “Hand over some meat for the priest to roast! He won’t take boiled meat from you, but only raw.” ¹ 

These people continually and blatantly offend me ¹  as they sacrifice in their sacred orchards ²  and burn incense on brick altars. ³ 

you slaughtered my children and sacrificed them to the idols. ¹ 

they came to Zerubbabel and the leaders ¹  and said to them, “Let us help you build, ²  for like you we seek your God and we have been sacrificing to him ³  from the time ⁴  of King Esarhaddon ⁵  of Assyria, who brought us here.” ⁶ 

Then he said to me: “Son of man, this is what the sovereign Lord says: These are the statutes of the altar: On the day it is built to offer up burnt offerings on it and to sprinkle blood on it, ¹ 

This is so that ¹  the Israelites will bring their sacrifices that they are sacrificing in the open field ²  to the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent to the priest and sacrifice them there as peace offering sacrifices to the Lord.

As Samuel was offering burnt offerings, the Philistines approached to do battle with Israel. ¹  But on that day the Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines. He caused them to panic, and they were defeated by ²  Israel.

Then those living in the towns of Judah and in Jerusalem will ¹  go and cry out for help to the gods to whom they have been sacrificing. However, those gods will by no means ²  be able to save them when disaster strikes them.

But ever since we stopped sacrificing and pouring out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven, we have been in great need. Our people have died in wars or of starvation.” ¹ 

Once the bull had been slaughtered, they brought the boy to Eli.

He built high places for all his foreign wives so they could burn incense and make sacrifices to their gods. ¹ 

But the high places were not eliminated; the people continued to offer sacrifices and burn incense on the high places.

That will please the Lord more than an ox or a bull with horns and hooves.

Hezekiah expressed his appreciation to all the Levites, ¹  who demonstrated great skill in serving the Lord. ²  They feasted for the seven days of the festival, ³  and were making peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God of their ancestors.