¹⁵ In the twenty-seventh year of Asa king of Judah, Zimri reigned for seven days in Tirzah. Now the people were camped against ^(A)Gibbethon, which belonged to the Philistines. ¹⁶ And the people who were camped heard ^[a]it being said, “Zimri has conspired and has also struck and killed the king!” Therefore all Israel made Omri, the commander of the army, king over Israel that day in the camp. ¹⁷ Then Omri and all Israel with him went up from Gibbethon and besieged Tirzah. ¹⁸ When Zimri saw that the city was taken, he went into the citadel of the king’s house and burned the king’s house over himself with fire, and ^(B)died, ¹⁹ because of his sins which he ^[b]committed, doing evil in the sight of the Lord, ^(C)walking in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin which he committed, misleading Israel into sin. ^20 (D)Now as for the rest of the acts of Zimri and his conspiracy which he ^[c]carried out, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel?

²¹ Then the people of Israel were divided into two parts: half of the people followed Tibni the son of Ginath, to make him king; the other half followed Omri. ²² But the people who followed Omri prevailed over the people who followed Tibni the son of Ginath. And Tibni died and Omri became king. ²³ In the thirty-first year of Asa king of Judah, Omri became king over Israel and reigned for twelve years; he reigned for six years at ^(E)Tirzah. ²⁴ And he purchased the hill ^[d]Samaria from Shemer for ^[e]two talents of silver; and he built on the hill, and named the city which he built ^[f](F)Samaria, after the name of Shemer, the owner of the hill.

²⁵ Now ^(G)Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord, and ^(H)acted more wickedly than all who were before him. ²⁶ For he ^(I)walked ^[g]entirely in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat and in his sins into which he misled Israel, provoking the Lord God of Israel to anger with their ^[h]idols. ²⁷ Now as for the rest of the acts of Omri which he did and his might which he ^[i]displayed, are they not written in the Book of the Chronicles of the Kings of Israel? ²⁸ And Omri ^[j]lay down with his fathers and was buried in Samaria; and his son Ahab became king in his place.

²⁹ Now Ahab the son of Omri became king over Israel in the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria for twenty-two years. ³⁰ Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord ^(J)more than all who were before him.

³¹ And as though it had been a trivial thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, ^(K)he married Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the ^(L)Sidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshiped him. ³² So he erected an altar for Baal at ^(M)the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. ³³ Ahab also made ^(N)the ^[k]Asherah. So ^(O)Ahab did more to provoke the Lord God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him. ^34 (P)In his days Hiel the Bethelite rebuilt Jericho; he laid its foundations with the loss of Abiram his firstborn, and set up its gates with the loss of his youngest son Segub, in accordance with the word of the Lord, which He spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

²⁰ Therefore, we are ^(A)ambassadors for Christ, ^(B)as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be ^(C)reconciled to God. ²¹ He made Him who ^(D)knew no sin to be ^[a](E)sin in our behalf, so that we might become the ^(F)righteousness of God in Him.

Their Ministry Commended

6 And ^(G)working together with Him, ^(H)we also urge you not to receive ^(I)the grace of God in vain— ² for He says,

Behold, now is “a favorable time,” behold, now is “a day of salvation”— ^3 (K)giving no reason for taking offense in anything, so that the ministry will not be discredited, ⁴ but in everything ^(L)commending ourselves as ^[b](M)servants of God, ^(N)in much endurance, in afflictions, in hardships, in difficulties, ⁵ in ^(O)beatings, in imprisonments, in ^(P)[c]mob attacks, in labors, in sleeplessness, in ^(Q)hunger, ⁶ in purity, in ^(R)knowledge, in ^(S)patience, in kindness, in the ^(T)Holy Spirit, in ^(U)genuine love, ⁷ in ^(V)the word of truth, and in ^(W)the power of God; by ^(X)the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and the left, ⁸ by glory and ^(Y)dishonor, by ^(Z)evil report and good report; regarded as ^(AA)deceivers and yet ^(AB)true; ⁹ as unknown and yet well known, as ^(AC)dying and yet behold, ^(AD)we are alive; as ^[d]punished and yet not put to death, ¹⁰ as ^(AE)sorrowful yet always ^(AF)rejoicing, as ^(AG)poor yet making many rich, as ^(AH)having nothing and yet possessing ^(AI)all things.

^11 (AJ)Our mouth ^[e]has spoken freely to you, you Corinthians, our ^(AK)heart is opened wide. ¹² You are not restrained ^[f]by us, but ^(AL)you are restrained in your own ^[g]affections. ¹³ Now in the same way in ^(AM)exchange—I am speaking as to ^(AN)children—open wide your hearts to us, you as well.

^14 (AO)Do not be ^[h]mismatched with ^(AP)unbelievers; for what do righteousness and lawlessness ^(AQ)share together, or what does light have in common with darkness? ¹⁵ Or what ^(AR)harmony does Christ have with ^[i]Belial, or ^[j]what does a ^(AS)believer share with an ^(AT)unbeliever? ¹⁶ Or ^(AU)what agreement does ^[k]the temple of God have with idols? For we are ^[l](AV)the temple of ^(AW)the living God; just as God said,

Paul Reveals His Heart

7 Therefore, having these promises, ^(BE)beloved, ^(BF)let’s cleanse ourselves from all defilement of flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.

Elijah Predicts Drought

17 Now Elijah the Tishbite, who was of ^[a](A)the settlers of Gilead, said to Ahab, “^(B)As the Lord, the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, ^(C)there shall certainly be neither dew nor rain during these years, except by my word.” ² Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ³ “Go away from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, which is ^[b]east of the Jordan. ⁴ And it shall be that you will drink from the brook, and ^(D)I have commanded the ravens to provide food for you there.” ⁵ So he went and did everything according to the word of the Lord, for he went and lived by the brook Cherith, which is ^[c]east of the Jordan. ⁶ And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning and bread and meat in the evening, and he would drink from the brook. ⁷ But it happened after a while that the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

⁸ Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ⁹ “Arise, go to ^(E)Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and stay there; behold, ^(F)I have commanded a widow there to provide food for you.” ¹⁰ So he arose and went to Zarephath, and when he came to the entrance of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and ^(G)he called to her and said, “Please get me a little water in a ^[d]cup, so that I may drink.” ¹¹ As she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a piece of bread in your hand.” ¹² But she said, “^(H)As the Lord your God lives, ^(I)I have no food, only a handful of flour in the ^[e]bowl and a little oil in the jar; and behold, I am gathering ^[f]a few sticks so that I may go in and prepare it for me and my son, so that we may ^[g]eat it and ^(J)die.” ¹³ However, Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go, do as you have said. Just make me a little bread loaf from ^[h]it first and bring it out to me, and afterward you may make one for yourself and for your son. ¹⁴ For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel says: ‘The ^[i]bowl of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil become empty, until the day that the Lord provides rain on the face of the earth.’” ¹⁵ So she went and did everything in accordance with the word of Elijah, and she and he and her household ate for many days. ¹⁶ The ^[j]bowl of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil become empty, in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke through Elijah.

Elijah Raises the Widow’s Son

¹⁷ Now it happened after these things that the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became sick; and his ^[k]condition became very grave, until at the end ^[l]he was no longer breathing. ¹⁸ So she said to Elijah, “^[m](K)Why is my business any of yours, you ^(L)man of God? Yet you have come to me to bring my wrongdoing to remembrance, and to put my son to death!” ¹⁹ But he said to her, “Give me your son.” Then he took him from her ^[n]arms and carried him up to the upstairs room where he was living, and laid him on his own bed. ²⁰ And he called to the Lord and said, “Lord, my God, have You also brought catastrophe upon the widow with whom I am ^[o]staying, by causing her son to die?” ^21 (M)Then he stretched himself out over the boy three times, and called to the Lord and said, “Lord, my God, please, let this boy’s life return ^[p]to him.” ²² And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah, ^(N)and the life of the boy returned ^[q]to him and he revived. ²³ Elijah then took the boy and brought him down from the upstairs room into the house and gave him to his mother; and Elijah said, “See, your son is alive.” ²⁴ Then the woman said to Elijah, “^(O)Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

^5 (A)And while some were talking about the temple, that it was decorated with beautiful stones and ^[a]vowed gifts, He said, ⁶ “As for these things which you are observing, the days will come when ^(B)there will not be left one stone upon ^[b]another, which will not be torn down.”

⁷ They asked Him questions, saying, “Teacher, when therefore will these things happen? And what will be the ^[c]sign when these things are about to take place?” ⁸ And He said, “See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘^(C)I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ ^(D)Do not go after them. ⁹ And when you hear of wars and revolts, do not be alarmed; for these things must take place first, but the end will not follow immediately.”

Things to Come

¹⁰ Then He continued by saying to them, “Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, ¹¹ and there will be ^[d]massive earthquakes, and in various places plagues and famines; and there will be terrible sights and great ^[e]signs from heaven.

¹² “But before all these things, ^(E)they will lay their hands on you and persecute you, turning you over to the synagogues and prisons, ^[f]bringing you before kings and governors on account of My name. ^13 (F)It will lead to ^[g]an opportunity for your testimony. ^14 (G)So ^[h]make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves; ¹⁵ for ^(H)I will provide you ^[i]eloquence and wisdom which none of your adversaries will be able to oppose or refute. ¹⁶ But you will be betrayed even by parents, brothers and sisters, other relatives, and friends, and they will put some of you to death, ¹⁷ and you will be hated by all people because of My name. ¹⁸ And yet ^(I)not a hair of your head will perish. ^19 (J)By your endurance you will gain your ^[j]lives.

²⁰ “But when you see Jerusalem ^(K)surrounded by armies, then ^[k]recognize that her desolation is near. ²¹ Then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains, and those who are inside ^[l]the city must leave, and ^(L)those who are in the country must not enter ^[m]the city; ²² because these are ^(M)days of punishment, so that all things which have been written will be fulfilled. ²³ Woe to those women who are pregnant, and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for ^(N)there will be great distress upon the ^[n]land, and wrath to this people; ²⁴ and they will fall by ^(O)the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and ^(P)Jerusalem will be ^(Q)trampled underfoot by the Gentiles until ^(R)the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

The Return of Christ

²⁵ “There will be ^[o]signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, ²⁶ people fainting from fear and the expectation of the things that are coming upon the ^[p]world; for the powers of ^[q]the heavens will be shaken. ²⁷ And ^(S)then they will see ^(T)the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. ²⁸ But when these things begin to take place, straighten up and lift up your heads, because ^(U)your redemption is drawing near.”

²⁹ And He told them a parable: “Look at the fig tree and all the trees: ³⁰ as soon as they put forth leaves, you see for yourselves and ^(V)know that summer is now near. ³¹ So you too, when you see these things happening, ^[r]recognize that ^(W)the kingdom of God is near. ³² Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all things take place. ^33 (X)Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.

³⁴ “But ^(Y)be on your guard, so that your hearts will not be weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of life, and that ^[s]this day will not come on you suddenly, like a trap; ³⁵ for it will come upon all those who live on the face of all the earth. ³⁶ But ^(Z)stay alert at all times, praying that you will have strength to escape all these things that are going to take place, and to ^(AA)stand before the Son of Man.”

³⁷ Now ^[t]during the day He was ^(AB)teaching in the temple, but ^[u](AC)at evening He would go out and spend the night on ^(AD)the ^[v]mountain that is called ^[w]Olivet. ³⁸ And all the people would get up ^(AE)very early in the morning to come to Him in the temple to listen to Him.