The Lord will force you and your king ¹  whom you will appoint over you to go away to a people whom you and your ancestors have not known, and you will serve other gods of wood and stone there.

instead in hunger, thirst, nakedness, and poverty ¹  you will serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you. They ²  will place an iron yoke on your neck until they have destroyed you.

Now write down for yourselves the following song and teach it to the Israelites. Put it into their very mouths so that this song may serve as my witness against the Israelites!

But carefully obey the commands and instructions Moses the Lord’s servant gave you. Love ¹  the Lord your God, follow all his instructions, ²  obey ³  his commands, be loyal to him, ⁴  and serve him with all your heart and being!” ⁵ 

Zebul said to him, “Where now are your bragging words, ¹  ‘Who is Abimelech that we should serve him?’ Are these not the men ²  you insulted? ³  Go out now and fight them!”

Then I will raise up for myself a faithful priest. He will do what is in my heart and soul. I will build for him a secure dynasty ¹  and he will serve my chosen one for all time. ² 

Then Samuel said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. You have indeed sinned. ¹  However, don’t turn aside from the Lord. Serve the Lord with all your heart.

If he is able to fight with me and strike me down, we will become your servants. But if I prevail against him and strike him down, you will become our servants and will serve us.”

For I made this vow ¹  when I was living in Geshur in Aram: ‘If the Lord really does allow me to return to Jerusalem, ²  I will serve the Lord.’”

Now Adonijah, son of David and Haggith, ¹  was promoting himself, ²  boasting, ³  “I will be king!” He managed to acquire ⁴  chariots and horsemen, as well as fifty men to serve as his royal guard. ⁵ 

“But if you or your sons ever turn away from me, fail to obey the regulations and rules I instructed you to keep, ¹  and decide to serve and worship other gods, ² 

I will leave ¹  his son one tribe so my servant David’s dynasty may continue to serve me ²  in Jerusalem, the city I have chosen as my home. ³ 

Elijah the Tishbite, from Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As certainly as the Lord God of Israel lives (whom I serve), ¹  there will be no dew or rain in the years ahead unless I give the command.” ² 

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 

The Lord made an agreement ¹  with them ²  and instructed them, “You must not worship other gods. Do not bow down to them, serve them, or offer sacrifices to them.

Then David said, “Only the Levites may carry the ark of God, for the Lord chose them to carry the ark of the Lord and to serve before him perpetually.

David ¹  left Asaph and his colleagues there before the ark of the Lord’s covenant to serve before the ark regularly and fulfill each day’s requirements, ² 

Joab replied, “May the Lord make his army ¹  a hundred times larger! My master, O king, do not all of them serve my master? Why does my master want to do this? Why bring judgment on Israel?” ² 

The sons of Amram: Aaron and Moses. Aaron and his descendants were chosen on a permanent basis to consecrate the most holy items, to offer sacrifices before the Lord, to serve him, and to praise his name. ¹ 

and whenever burnt sacrifices were offered to the Lord on the Sabbath and at new moon festivals and assemblies. A designated number were to serve before the Lord regularly in accordance with regulations. ¹