Then they prayed, ¹  “Lord, you know the hearts of all. Show us which one of these two you have chosen

So they were sent on their way by the church, and as they passed through both Phoenicia ¹  and Samaria, they were relating at length ²  the conversion of the Gentiles and bringing great joy ³  to all the brothers.

I wish that everyone was as I am. But each has his own gift from God, one this way, another that.

For since I am free from all I can make myself a slave to all, in order to gain even more people. ¹ 

Command and teach these things.

(Look! I am coming soon, and my reward is with me to pay ¹  each one according to what he has done!

May peoples serve you and nations bow down to you. You will be ¹  lord ²  over your brothers, and the sons of your mother will bow down to you. ³  May those who curse you be cursed, and those who bless you be blessed.”

but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, ¹  now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, ²  so that by God’s grace he would experience ³  death on behalf of everyone.

The majority of the many people from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun were ceremonially unclean, yet they ate the Passover in violation of what is prescribed in the law. ¹  For Hezekiah prayed for them, saying: “May the Lord, who is good, forgive ² 

Then the leaders ¹  of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and the Levites – all those whose mind God had stirred – got ready ²  to go up in order to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. ³ 

Your officials are rebels, ¹  they associate with ²  thieves. All of them love bribery, and look for ³  payoffs. ⁴  They do not take up the cause of the orphan, ⁵  or defend the rights of the widow. ⁶ 

“Hey, ¹  all who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come! Buy and eat! Come! Buy wine and milk without money and without cost! ² 

I have listened to them very carefully, ¹  but they do not speak honestly. None of them regrets the evil he has done. None of them says, “I have done wrong!” ²  All of them persist in their own wayward course ³  like a horse charging recklessly into battle.

Say, ‘Listen to what the Lord says, you kings of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem! ¹  The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ²  says, “I will bring a disaster on this place ³  that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it ring! ⁴ 

They continually say ¹  to those who reject what the Lord has said, ²  ‘Things will go well for you!’ ³  They say to all those who follow the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts, ‘Nothing bad will happen to you!’

You have issued an edict, O king, that everyone must bow down and pay homage to the golden statue when they hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, trigon, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music.

From this point on, Pilate tried ¹  to release him. But the Jewish leaders ²  shouted out, ³  “If you release this man, ⁴  you are no friend of Caesar! ⁵  Everyone who claims to be a king ⁶  opposes Caesar!”

This saying ¹  is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on such truths, ²  so that those who have placed their faith in God may be intent on engaging in good works. These things are good and beneficial for all people.

They ¹  captured it, its king, and all its surrounding cities and put the sword to them. They annihilated everyone who lived there; they ²  left no survivors. They ³  did to Debir and its king what they ⁴  had done to Libnah and its king and to Hebron. ⁵ 

So like a lion from the thicket their enemies will kill them. Like a wolf from the desert they will destroy them. Like a leopard they will lie in wait outside their cities and totally destroy anyone who ventures out. ¹  For they have rebelled so much and done so many unfaithful things. ²