1 Chronicles 13-15
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 13
Transfer of the Ark. 1 (A)After David had taken counsel with his commanders of thousands and of hundreds, that is, with every leader, 2 he said to the whole assembly of Israel: “If it seems good to you, and is so decreed by the Lord our God, let us send to the rest of our kindred from all the districts of Israel, and also the priests and the Levites from their cities with pasture lands, that they may join us;(B) 3 and let us bring the ark of our God here among us, for in the days of Saul we did not consult it.” 4 And the whole assembly agreed to do it, for it seemed right in the eyes of all the people.
5 Then David assembled all Israel, from Shihor of Egypt[a] to Lebo-hamath, to bring the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim.(C) 6 David and all Israel went up to Baalah, that is, to Kiriath-jearim, of Judah, to bring up from there the ark of God, which was known by the name “Lord enthroned upon the cherubim.”(D) 7 They transported the ark of God on a new cart from the house of Abinadab; Uzzah and Ahio were guiding the cart, 8 while David and all Israel danced before God with all their might, with singing, and with lyres, harps, tambourines, cymbals, and trumpets.
9 As they reached the threshing floor of Chidon,[b] Uzzah stretched out his hand to steady the ark, for the oxen were tipping it. 10 Then the Lord became angry with Uzzah and struck him, because he had laid his hand on the ark; he died there in God’s presence. 11 David was angry because the Lord’s anger had broken out against Uzzah. Therefore that place has been called Perez-uzzah[c] even to this day.
12 David was afraid of God that day, and he said, “How can I bring in the ark of God to me?” 13 Therefore he did not take the ark with him into the City of David, but deposited it instead at the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. 14 The ark of God remained in the house of Obed-edom with his family for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom’s household and all that he possessed.(E)
Chapter 14
David in Jerusalem. 1 (F)Hiram, king of Tyre, sent envoys to David along with cedar wood, and masons and carpenters to build him a house.[d](G) 2 David now knew[e] that the Lord had truly established him as king over Israel, for his kingdom was greatly exalted for the sake of his people Israel. 3 David took other wives in Jerusalem and became the father of more sons and daughters. 4 These are the names of those who were born to him in Jerusalem: Shammua, Shobab, Nathan, Solomon, 5 Ibhar, Elishua, Elpelet, 6 Nogah, Nepheg, Japhia, 7 Elishama, Beeliada, and Eliphelet.(H)
The Philistine Wars. 8 When the Philistines had heard that David was anointed king over all Israel, they marched out in force looking for him. But when David heard of this, he went out against them. 9 Meanwhile the Philistines had come and raided the valley of Rephaim.(I) 10 David inquired of God, “Shall I attack the Philistines, and will you deliver them into my power?” The Lord answered him, “Attack, for I have delivered them into your power.” 11 So they attacked, at Baal-perazim, and David defeated them there. Then David said, “By my hand God has broken through my enemies just as water breaks through a dam.” Therefore that place was called Baal-perazim.[f] 12 The Philistines abandoned their gods there, and David ordered them to be burnt.(J)
13 Once again the Philistines raided the valley, 14 and again David inquired of God. But God answered him: Do not try to pursue them, but go around them and come against them near the balsam trees. 15 When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, then go forth to battle, for God has already gone before you to strike the army of the Philistines. 16 David did as God commanded him, and they routed the Philistine army from Gibeon to Gezer.
17 Thus David’s fame was spread abroad through every land, and the Lord put the fear of him on all the nations.
Chapter 15
Preparations for Moving the Ark. 1 David built houses for himself in the City of David and prepared a place for the ark of God, pitching a tent for it there. 2 At that time he said, “No one may carry the ark of God except the Levites, for the Lord chose them to carry the ark of the Lord and to minister to him forever.”(K) 3 Then David assembled all Israel to Jerusalem to bring up the ark of the Lord to its place, which he had prepared for it.(L) 4 David also convened the sons of Aaron and the Levites: 5 of the sons of Kohath, Uriel, their chief, and one hundred and twenty of his brothers; 6 of the sons of Merari, Asaiah, their chief, and two hundred and twenty of his brothers; 7 of the sons of Gershon, Joel, their chief, and one hundred and thirty of his brothers; 8 of the sons of Elizaphan, Shemaiah, their chief, and two hundred of his brothers; 9 of the sons of Hebron, Eliel, their chief, and eighty of his brothers; 10 of the sons of Uzziel, Amminadab, their chief, and one hundred and twelve of his brothers.
11 David summoned the priests Zadok and Abiathar, and the Levites Uriel, Asaiah, Joel, Shemaiah, Eliel, and Amminadab,(M) 12 and said to them: “You heads of the levitical houses, sanctify yourselves along with your brothers to bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel, to the place which I have prepared for it.(N) 13 Because you were not with us the first time, the Lord our God broke out against us, for we did not seek him aright.”(O) 14 Accordingly, the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord, the God of Israel. 15 The Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with poles, as Moses had commanded according to the word of the Lord.(P)
16 David commanded the commanders of the Levites to appoint their brothers as singers and to play on musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals, to make a loud sound of rejoicing.(Q) 17 Therefore the Levites appointed Heman, son of Joel, and, among his brothers, Asaph, son of Berechiah; and among the sons of Merari, their brothers, Ethan, son of Kushaiah;(R) 18 and, together with these, their brothers of the second rank: the gatekeepers Zechariah, Uzziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Benaiah, Maaseiah, Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel. 19 The singers, Heman, Asaph, and Ethan, sounded brass cymbals. 20 Zechariah, Uzziel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Unni, Eliab, Maaseiah, and Benaiah played on harps set to “Alamoth.”[g] 21 But Mattithiah, Eliphelehu, Mikneiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel led the song on lyres set to “sheminith.” 22 Chenaniah was the chief of the Levites in the singing; he directed the singing, for he was skillful.(S) 23 Berechiah and Elkanah were gatekeepers before the ark. 24 The priests, Shebaniah, Joshaphat, Nethanel, Amasai, Zechariah, Benaiah, and Eliezer, sounded the trumpets before the ark of God.(T) Obed-edom and Jeiel were also gatekeepers before the ark.
The Ark Comes to Jerusalem. 25 (U)Thus David, the elders of Israel, and the commanders of thousands went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with joy from the house of Obed-edom. 26 While God helped the Levites to carry the ark of the covenant of the Lord, they sacrificed seven bulls and seven rams.(V) 27 David was vested in a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who carried the ark, the singers, and Chenaniah, the leader of song; David was also wearing a linen ephod.(W) 28 Thus all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord with joyful shouting, to the sound of horns, trumpets, and cymbals, and the music of harps and lyres. 29 But as the ark of the covenant of the Lord was entering the City of David, Michal, daughter of Saul, looked down from her window, and when she saw King David leaping and dancing, she despised him in her heart.(X)
Footnotes
- 13:5 Shihor of Egypt: the eastern branch of the Nile delta. Lebo-hamath: in southern Syria.
- 13:9 Chidon: in 2 Sm 6:6 the name is Nodan (variant: Nacon).
- 13:11 Perez-uzzah: this Hebrew phrase means “the breaking out against Uzza.”
- 14:1 The Chronicler’s account of David’s establishment as king and his victories over the Philistines follows 2 Sm 5:11–25, but makes David’s rule even more prominent.
- 14:2 David now knew: see note on 2 Sm 5:12.
- 14:11 See note on 2 Sm 5:20.
- 15:20–21 Alamoth…sheminith: musical terms of uncertain meaning. Alamoth, lit., “young women,” occurs in the superscription to Ps 46. The term sheminith, in v. 21, might mean “bass” or “octave”; cf. Ps 6:1; 12:1.
Proverbs 14:1-17
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 14
1 Wisdom builds her house,
but Folly tears hers down with her own hands.[a]
2 Those who walk uprightly fear the Lord,
but those who are devious in their ways spurn him.
3 In the mouth of the fool is a rod for pride,
but the lips of the wise preserve them.
4 Where there are no oxen, the crib is clean;
but abundant crops come through the strength of the bull.[b]
5 A trustworthy witness does not lie,
but one who spouts lies makes a lying witness.[c](A)
6 The scoffer seeks wisdom in vain,
but knowledge is easy for the intelligent.
7 Go from the face of the fool;
you get no knowledge from such lips.
8 The wisdom of the shrewd enlightens their way,
but the folly of fools is deceit.[d]
9 The wicked scorn a guilt offering,
but the upright find acceptance.
10 The heart knows its own bitterness,
and its joy no stranger shares.[e]
11 The house of the wicked will be destroyed,
but the tent of the upright will flourish.[f](B)
12 Sometimes a way seems right,
but the end of it leads to death!(C)
13 Even in laughter the heart may be sad,
and the end of joy may be sorrow.
14 From their own ways turncoats are sated,
from their own actions, the loyal.
15 The naive believe everything,
but the shrewd watch their steps.[g]
16 The wise person is cautious and turns from evil;
the fool is reckless and gets embroiled.
17 The quick-tempered make fools of themselves,
and schemers are hated.
Footnotes
- 14:1 The relationship between Wisdom, personified as a woman, and building a house is a constant theme. As elsewhere, the book here warns against the wrong woman and praises the right woman.
- 14:4 If one has no animals, one does not have the burden of keeping the crib full, but without them one will have no crops to fill the barn. Colon B reverses the sense of colon A and also reverses the consonants of bar (“clean”) to rab (“abundant”).
- 14:5 On discerning the truthfulness of witnesses; see 12:17.
- 14:8 Wisdom enables the shrewd to know their path is right but folly leads fools on the wrong path (“deceit”), which calls down retribution.
- 14:10 The heart in Proverbs is where a person’s sense impressions are stored and reflected upon. It is thus one’s most personal and individual part. One’s sorrows and joys (= the full range of emotions) cannot be shared fully with another. Verse 13 expresses the same individuality of the human person.
- 14:11 The traditional fixed pair “house” and “tent” is used to express the paradox that a house can be less secure than a tent if there is no justice.
- 14:15 The naive gullibly rely on others’ words whereas the shrewd watch their own steps.
2 Corinthians 12
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 12
1 I[a] must boast; not that it is profitable, but I will go on to visions and revelations of the Lord. 2 I know someone in Christ who, fourteen years ago (whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows), was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know that this person (whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows) 4 was caught up into Paradise and heard ineffable things, which no one may utter.(A) 5 About this person[b] I will boast, but about myself I will not boast, except about my weaknesses. 6 Although if I should wish to boast, I would not be foolish, for I would be telling the truth. But I refrain, so that no one may think more of me than what he sees in me or hears from me 7 because of the abundance of the revelations. Therefore, that I might not become too elated,[c] a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.(B) 8 Three times[d] I begged the Lord about this, that it might leave me,(C) 9 [e]but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” I will rather boast most gladly of my weaknesses,[f] in order that the power of Christ may dwell with me.(D) 10 Therefore, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ;(E) for when I am weak, then I am strong.[g]
Selfless Concern for the Church.[h] 11 I have been foolish. You compelled me, for I ought to have been commended by you. For I am in no way inferior to these “superapostles,”(F) even though I am nothing. 12 [i]The signs of an apostle were performed among you with all endurance, signs and wonders, and mighty deeds.(G) 13 [j]In what way were you less privileged than the rest of the churches, except that on my part I did not burden you? Forgive me this wrong!(H)
14 Now I am ready to come to you this third time. And I will not be a burden, for I want not what is yours, but you. Children ought not to save for their parents, but parents for their children. 15 I will most gladly spend and be utterly spent for your sakes. If I love you more, am I to be loved less? 16 But granted that I myself did not burden you, yet I was crafty and got the better of you by deceit.(I) 17 Did I take advantage of you through any of those I sent to you? 18 I urged Titus to go and sent the brother with him. Did Titus take advantage of you? Did we not walk in the same spirit? And in the same steps?(J)
Final Warnings and Appeals.[k] 19 Have you been thinking all along that we are defending[l] ourselves before you? In the sight of God we are speaking in Christ, and all for building you up, beloved. 20 For I fear that[m] when I come I may find you not such as I wish, and that you may find me not as you wish; that there may be rivalry, jealousy, fury, selfishness, slander, gossip, conceit, and disorder.(K) 21 I fear that when I come again[n] my God may humiliate me before you, and I may have to mourn over many of those who sinned earlier and have not repented of the impurity, immorality, and licentiousness they practiced.
Footnotes
- 12:1–4 In the body or out of the body: he seemed no longer confined to bodily conditions, but he does not claim to understand the mechanics of the experience. Caught up: i.e., in ecstasy. The third heaven…Paradise: ancient cosmologies depicted a multitiered universe. Jewish intertestamental literature contains much speculation about the number of heavens. Seven is the number usually mentioned, but the Testament of Levi (2:7–10; 3:1–4) speaks of three; God himself dwelt in the third of these. Without giving us any clear picture of the cosmos, Paul indicates a mental journey to a nonearthly space, set apart by God, in which secrets were revealed to him. Ineffable things: i.e., privileged knowledge, which it was not possible or permitted to divulge.
- 12:5–7 This person: the indirect way of referring to himself has the effect of emphasizing the distance between that experience and his everyday life, just as the indirect someone in Christ (2 Cor 12:2) and all the passive verbs emphasize his passivity and receptivity in the experience. The revelations were not a personal achievement, nor were they meant to draw attention to any quality of his own.
- 12:7 That I might not become too elated: God assures that there is a negative component to his experience, so that he cannot lose proper perspective; cf. 2 Cor 1:9; 4:7–11. A thorn in the flesh: variously interpreted as a sickness or physical disability, a temptation, or a handicap connected with his apostolic activity. But since Hebrew “thorn in the flesh,” like English “thorn in my side,” refers to persons (cf. Nm 33:55; Ez 28:24), Paul may be referring to some especially persistent and obnoxious opponent. The language of 2 Cor 12:7–8 permits this interpretation. If this is correct, the frequent appearance of singular pronouns in depicting the opposition may not be merely a stylistic variation; the singular may be provoked and accompanied by the image of one individual in whom criticism of Paul’s preaching, way of life, and apostolic consciousness is concentrated, and who embodies all the qualities Paul attributes to the group. An angel of Satan: a personal messenger from Satan; cf. the satanic language already applied to the opponents in 2 Cor 11:3, 13–15, 20.
- 12:8 Three times: his prayer was insistent, like that of Jesus in Gethsemane, a sign of how intolerable he felt the thorn to be.
- 12:9 But he said to me: Paul’s petition is denied; release and healing are withheld for a higher purpose. The Greek perfect tense indicates that Jesus’ earlier response still holds at the time of writing. My grace is sufficient for you: this is not a statement about the sufficiency of grace in general. Jesus speaks directly to Paul’s situation. Is made perfect: i.e., is given most fully and manifests itself fully.
- 12:9b–10a Paul draws the conclusion from the autobiographical anecdote and integrates it into the subject of this part of the boast. Weaknesses: the apostolic hardships he must endure, including active personal hostility, as specified in a final catalogue (2 Cor 12:10a). That the power of Christ may dwell with me: Paul pinpoints the ground for the paradoxical strategy he has adopted in his self-defense.
- 12:10 When I am weak, then I am strong: Paul recognizes a twofold pattern in the resolution of the weakness-power (and death-life) dialectic, each of which looks to Jesus as the model and is experienced in him. The first is personal, involving a reversal in oneself (Jesus, 2 Cor 13:4a; Paul, 2 Cor 1:9–10; 4:10–11; 6:9). The second is apostolic, involving an effect on others (Jesus, 2 Cor 5:14–15; Paul, 2 Cor 1:6; 4:12; 13:9). The specific kind of “effectiveness in ministry” that Paul promises to demonstrate on his arrival (2 Cor 13:4b; cf. 2 Cor 10:1–11) involves elements of both; this, too, will be modeled on Jesus’ experience and a participation in that experience (2 Cor 9; 13:3b).
- 12:11–18 This brief section forms an epilogue or concluding observation to Paul’s boast, corresponding to the prologue in 2 Cor 11:1–15. A four-step sequence of ideas is common to these two sections: Paul qualifies his boast as folly (2 Cor 11:1; 12:11a), asserts his noninferiority to the “superapostles” (2 Cor 11:5; 12:11b), exemplifies this by allusion to charismatic endowments (2 Cor 11:6; 12:12), and finally denies that he has been a financial burden to the community (2 Cor 11:7–12; 12:13–18).
- 12:12 Despite weakness and affliction (suggested by the mention of endurance), his ministry has been accompanied by demonstrations of power (cf. 1 Cor 2:3–4). Signs of an apostle: visible proof of belonging to Christ and of mediating Christ’s power, which the opponents require as touchstones of apostleship (2 Cor 12:11; cf. 2 Cor 13:3).
- 12:13–18 Paul insists on his intention to continue refusing support from the community (cf. 2 Cor 11:8–12). In defending his practice and his motivation, he once more protests his love (cf. 2 Cor 11:11) and rejects the suggestion of secret self-enrichment. He has recourse here again to language applied to his opponents earlier: “cunning” (2 Cor 11:3), “deceit” (2 Cor 11:13), “got the better of you” (see note on 2 Cor 11:20), “take advantage” (2 Cor 2:11).
- 12:19–13:10 This concludes the development begun in 2 Cor 10. In the chiastic arrangement of the material (see note on 2 Cor 10:1–13:10), this final part corresponds to the opening; there are important similarities of content between the two sections as well.
- 12:19 This verse looks back at the previous chapters and calls them by their proper name, a defense, an apologia (cf. 1 Cor 9:3). Yet Paul insists on an important distinction: he has indeed been speaking for their benefit, but the ultimate judgment to which he submits is God’s (cf. 1 Cor 4:3–5). This verse also leads into the final section, announcing two of its themes: judgment and building up.
- 12:20 I fear that…: earlier Paul expressed fear that the Corinthians were being victimized, exploited, seduced from right thinking by his opponents (2 Cor 11:3–4, 19–21). Here he alludes unexpectedly to moral disorders among the Corinthians themselves. The catalogue suggests the effects of factions that have grown up around rival apostles.
- 12:21 Again: one can also translate, “I fear that when I come my God may again humiliate me.” Paul’s allusion to the humiliation and mourning that may await him recall the mood he described in 2 Cor 2:1–4, but there is no reference here to any individual such as there is in 2 Cor 2:5–11. The crisis of 2 Cor 2 has happily been resolved by integration of the offender and repentance (2 Cor 7:4–16), whereas 2 Cor 12:21 is preoccupied with still unrepentant sinners. The sexual sins recall 1 Cor 5–7.
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