But now ¹  don’t treat him as if he were innocent. You are a wise man and you know how to handle him; ²  make sure he has a bloody death.” ³ 

Now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in my father David’s place, even though I am only a young man and am inexperienced. ¹ 

Huram also said, “Worthy of praise is the Lord God of Israel, who made the sky and the earth! He has given David a wise son who has discernment and insight and will build a temple for the Lord, as well as a royal palace for himself. ¹ 

He wisely placed some of his many sons throughout the regions of Judah and Benjamin in the various fortified cities. ¹  He supplied them with abundant provisions and acquired many wives for them. ² 

“Now the rest of the people – the priests, the Levites, the gatekeepers, the singers, the temple attendants, and all those who have separated themselves from the neighboring peoples ¹  because of the law of God, along with their wives, their sons, and their daughters, all of whom are able to understand –

I have asked the Lord for one thing – this is what I desire! I want to live ¹  in the Lord’s house ²  all the days of my life, so I can gaze at the splendor ³  of the Lord and contemplate in his temple.

For no one knows what is best for a person during his life ¹  – during the few days of his fleeting life – for ²  they pass away ³  like a shadow. Nor can anyone tell him what the future will hold for him on earth. ⁴ 

Yet he too is wise ¹  and he will bring disaster; he does not retract his decree. ²  He will attack the wicked nation, ³  and the nation that helps ⁴  those who commit sin. ⁵ 

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 

The dogs have big appetites; they are never full. ¹  They are shepherds who have no understanding; they all go their own way, each one looking for monetary gain. ² 

If people want to boast, they should boast about this: They should boast that they understand and know me. They should boast that they know and understand that I, the Lord, act out of faithfulness, fairness, and justice in the earth and that I desire people to do these things,” ¹  says the Lord.

Even some of the wise will stumble, resulting in their refinement, purification, and cleansing until the time of the end, for it is still for the appointed time.

When Paul ¹  had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, ²  saying, “We have experienced a lengthy time ³  of peace through your rule, ⁴  and reforms ⁵  are being made in this nation ⁶  through your foresight. ⁷ 

For though ¹  I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit, rejoicing to see ²  your morale ³  and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Be careful not to allow anyone to captivate you ¹  through an empty, deceitful philosophy ²  that is according to human traditions and the elemental spirits ³  of the world, and not according to Christ.

For from you the message of the Lord ¹  has echoed forth not just in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place reports of your faith in God have spread, ²  so that we do not need to say anything.

I recall ¹  your sincere faith ²  that was alive first in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice, and I am sure ³  is in you.

For we had good news proclaimed to us just as they did. But the message they heard did them no good, since they did not join in ¹  with those who heard it in faith. ² 

let us draw near with a sincere heart in the assurance that faith brings, ¹  because we have had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience ²  and our bodies washed in pure water.

When ¹  the woman saw that the tree produced fruit that was good for food, ²  was attractive ³  to the eye, and was desirable for making one wise, ⁴  she took some of its fruit and ate it. ⁵  She also gave some of it to her husband who was with her, and he ate it. ⁶