1 Kings 3
English Standard Version
Solomon's Prayer for Wisdom
3 (A)Solomon made a marriage alliance with Pharaoh king of Egypt. He took Pharaoh's daughter and brought her into (B)the city of David until he had finished (C)building his own house (D)and the house of the Lord (E)and the wall around Jerusalem. 2 (F)The people were sacrificing at the high places, however, because no house had yet been built for the name of the Lord.
3 Solomon (G)loved the Lord, (H)walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places. 4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, (I)for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 (J)At Gibeon (K)the Lord appeared to Solomon (L)in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.” 6 And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because (M)he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you. And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and (N)have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. 7 And now, O Lord my God, (O)you have made your servant king in place of David my father, (P)although I am but a little child. I do not know (Q)how to go out or come in. 8 (R)And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, (S)too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. 9 (T)Give your servant therefore an understanding mind (U)to govern your people, that I may (V)discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?”
10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11 And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12 behold, (W)I now do according to your word. Behold, (X)I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. 13 (Y)I give you also what you have not asked, (Z)both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. 14 And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, (AA)as your father David walked, then (AB)I will lengthen your days.”
15 And Solomon (AC)awoke, and behold, it was a dream. Then he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lord, and offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants.
Solomon's Wisdom
16 Then two prostitutes came to the king (AD)and stood before him. 17 The one woman said, “Oh, my lord, this woman and I live in the same house, and I gave birth to a child while she was in the house. 18 Then on the third day after I gave birth, this woman also gave birth. And we were alone. There was no one else with us in the house; only we two were in the house. 19 And this woman's son died in the night, because she lay on him. 20 And she arose at midnight and took my son from beside me, while your servant slept, and laid him at her breast, and laid her dead son at my breast. 21 When I rose in the morning to nurse my child, behold, he was dead. But when I looked at him closely in the morning, behold, he was not the child that I had borne.” 22 But the other woman said, “No, the living child is mine, and the dead child is yours.” The first said, “No, the dead child is yours, and the living child is mine.” Thus they spoke before the king.
23 Then the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son that is alive, and your son is dead’; and the other says, ‘No; but your son is dead, and my son is the living one.’” 24 And the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So a sword was brought before the king. 25 And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.” 26 Then the woman whose son was alive said to the king, because (AE)her heart yearned for her son, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him.” 27 Then the king answered and said, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no means put him to death; she is his mother.” 28 And all Israel heard of the judgment that the king had rendered, and they stood in awe of the king, because they perceived that (AF)the wisdom of God was in him to do justice.
2 Chronicles 1
English Standard Version
Solomon Worships at Gibeon
1 (A)Solomon the son of David established himself in his kingdom, (B)and the Lord his God was with him and made him exceedingly great.
2 Solomon spoke to all Israel, to the (C)commanders of thousands and of hundreds, to the judges, and to all the leaders in all Israel, the heads of fathers' houses. 3 And Solomon, and all the assembly with him, went to (D)the high place that was at Gibeon, (E)for (F)the tent of meeting of God, which Moses the servant of the Lord had made in the wilderness, was there. 4 (G)(But David had brought up the ark of God from Kiriath-jearim to the place that David had prepared for it, for he had pitched a tent for it in Jerusalem.) 5 Moreover, (H)the bronze altar that (I)Bezalel the son of Uri, son of Hur, had made, was there before the tabernacle of the Lord. And Solomon and the assembly (J)sought it[a] out. 6 And Solomon went up there to the bronze altar before the Lord, which was at the tent of meeting, (K)and offered a thousand burnt offerings on it.
Solomon Prays for Wisdom
7 (L)In that night God appeared to Solomon, and said to him, “Ask what I shall give you.” 8 And Solomon said to God, “You have shown great and steadfast love to David my father, (M)and have made me king in his place. 9 O Lord God, (N)let your word to David my father be now fulfilled, for you have made me king over a people as numerous (O)as the dust of the earth. 10 Give me now wisdom and knowledge to (P)go out and come in before this people, for who can govern this people of yours, which is so great?” 11 God answered Solomon, “Because this was in your heart, and you have not asked for (Q)possessions, wealth, honor, or the life of those who hate you, and have not even asked for long life, but have asked for wisdom and knowledge for yourself that you may govern my people over whom I have made you king, 12 wisdom and knowledge are granted to you. I will also give you (R)riches, possessions, and honor, (S)such as none of the kings had who were before you, and none after you shall have the like.” 13 So Solomon came from[b] the (T)high place at Gibeon, from before (U)the tent of meeting, to Jerusalem. And he reigned over Israel.
Solomon Given Wealth
14 (V)Solomon gathered together chariots and horsemen. (W)He had 1,400 chariots and 12,000 horsemen, whom he stationed (X)in the chariot cities and with the king in Jerusalem. 15 And the king made silver and gold as common in Jerusalem as stone, and he made cedar as plentiful as the sycamore of the Shephelah. 16 And Solomon's import of horses was from Egypt and Kue, and the king's traders would buy them from Kue for a price. 17 They imported a chariot from Egypt for 600 shekels[c] of silver, and a horse for 150. Likewise through them these were exported to all the kings of the Hittites and the kings of Syria.
Footnotes
- 2 Chronicles 1:5 Or him
- 2 Chronicles 1:13 Septuagint, Vulgate; Hebrew to
- 2 Chronicles 1:17 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
Psalm 78
English Standard Version
Tell the Coming Generation
A Maskil[a] of (A)Asaph.
78 (B)Give ear, O my people, to my teaching;
incline your ears to the words of my mouth!
2 (C)I will open my mouth (D)in a parable;
I will utter dark sayings from of old,
3 things that we have heard and known,
that our (E)fathers have told us.
4 We will not (F)hide them from their children,
but (G)tell to the coming generation
the glorious deeds of the Lord, and his might,
and (H)the wonders that he has done.
5 He established (I)a testimony in (J)Jacob
and appointed a law in (K)Israel,
which he commanded our fathers
to teach to their children,
6 that (L)the next generation might know them,
the children yet unborn,
and arise and tell them to their children,
7 so that they should set their hope in God
and not forget (M)the works of God,
but (N)keep his commandments;
8 and that they should not be (O)like their fathers,
(P)a stubborn and rebellious generation,
a generation (Q)whose heart was not steadfast,
whose spirit was not faithful to God.
9 The Ephraimites, armed with[b] the bow,
(R)turned back on the day of battle.
10 They (S)did not keep God's covenant,
but refused to walk according to his law.
11 They (T)forgot his works
and (U)the wonders that he had shown them.
12 In the sight of their fathers (V)he performed wonders
in the land of Egypt, in (W)the fields of Zoan.
13 He (X)divided the sea and let them pass through it,
and made the waters (Y)stand like a heap.
14 (Z)In the daytime he led them with a cloud,
and all the night with a fiery light.
15 He (AA)split rocks in the wilderness
and gave them drink abundantly as from the deep.
16 He made streams come out of (AB)the rock
and caused waters to flow down like rivers.
17 Yet they sinned still more against him,
(AC)rebelling against the Most High in the desert.
18 They (AD)tested God in their heart
by demanding the food they craved.
19 They spoke against God, saying,
(AE)“Can God (AF)spread a table in the wilderness?
20 (AG)He struck the rock so that water gushed out
and streams overflowed.
Can he also give bread
or provide meat for his people?”
21 Therefore, when the Lord heard, he was full of wrath;
(AH)a fire was kindled against Jacob;
his anger rose against Israel,
22 because they (AI)did not believe in God
and did not trust his saving power.
23 Yet he commanded the skies above
and (AJ)opened the doors of heaven,
24 and he (AK)rained down on them manna to eat
and gave them (AL)the grain of heaven.
25 Man ate of the bread of (AM)the angels;
he sent them food (AN)in abundance.
26 He (AO)caused the east wind to blow in the heavens,
and by his power he led out the south wind;
27 he rained meat on them like (AP)dust,
winged birds like (AQ)the sand of the seas;
28 he (AR)let them fall in the midst of their camp,
all around their dwellings.
29 And they (AS)ate and were well filled,
for he gave them what they (AT)craved.
30 But before they had satisfied their craving,
(AU)while the food was still in their mouths,
31 the anger of God rose against them,
and he killed (AV)the strongest of them
and laid low (AW)the young men of Israel.
32 In spite of all this, they (AX)still sinned;
(AY)despite his wonders, they did not believe.
33 So he made (AZ)their days (BA)vanish like[c] a breath,[d]
and their years in terror.
34 When he killed them, they (BB)sought him;
they repented and sought God earnestly.
35 They remembered that God was their (BC)rock,
the Most High God their (BD)redeemer.
36 But they (BE)flattered him with their mouths;
they (BF)lied to him with their tongues.
37 Their (BG)heart was not (BH)steadfast toward him;
they were not faithful to his covenant.
38 Yet he, being (BI)compassionate,
(BJ)atoned for their iniquity
and did not destroy them;
he restrained his anger often
and did not stir up all his wrath.
39 He (BK)remembered that they were but (BL)flesh,
(BM)a wind that passes and comes not again.
40 How often they (BN)rebelled against him in the wilderness
and (BO)grieved him in (BP)the desert!
41 They (BQ)tested God again and again
and provoked (BR)the Holy One of Israel.
42 They (BS)did not remember his power[e]
or the day when he redeemed them from the foe,
43 (BT)when he performed his (BU)signs in Egypt
and his (BV)marvels in (BW)the fields of Zoan.
44 He (BX)turned their rivers to blood,
so that they could not drink of their streams.
45 He sent among them swarms of (BY)flies, which devoured them,
and (BZ)frogs, which destroyed them.
46 He gave their crops to (CA)the destroying locust
and the fruit of their labor to the locust.
47 He destroyed their vines with (CB)hail
and their sycamores with frost.
48 He gave over their (CC)cattle to the hail
and their flocks to thunderbolts.
49 He let loose on them his burning anger,
wrath, indignation, and distress,
a company of (CD)destroying angels.
50 He made a path for his anger;
he did not spare them from death,
but gave their lives over to the plague.
51 He struck down every (CE)firstborn in Egypt,
the firstfruits of their strength in the tents of (CF)Ham.
52 Then he led out his people (CG)like sheep
and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
53 (CH)He led them in safety, so that they (CI)were not afraid,
but (CJ)the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
54 And he brought them to his (CK)holy land,
(CL)to the mountain which his right hand had (CM)won.
55 He (CN)drove out nations before them;
he (CO)apportioned them for a possession
and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents.
56 Yet they (CP)tested and (CQ)rebelled against the Most High God
and did not keep his testimonies,
57 but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers;
they twisted like (CR)a deceitful bow.
58 For they (CS)provoked him to anger with their (CT)high places;
they (CU)moved him to jealousy with their (CV)idols.
59 When God heard, he was full of (CW)wrath,
and he utterly rejected Israel.
60 He (CX)forsook his dwelling at (CY)Shiloh,
the tent where he dwelt among mankind,
61 and delivered his (CZ)power to captivity,
his (DA)glory to the hand of the foe.
62 He (DB)gave his people over to the sword
and (DC)vented his wrath on his heritage.
63 (DD)Fire devoured their young men,
and their young women had no (DE)marriage song.
64 Their (DF)priests fell by the sword,
and their (DG)widows made no lamentation.
65 Then the Lord (DH)awoke as from sleep,
like a strong man shouting because of wine.
66 And he (DI)put his adversaries to rout;
he put them to everlasting shame.
67 He rejected the tent of (DJ)Joseph;
he did not choose the tribe of Ephraim,
68 but he chose the tribe of Judah,
Mount Zion, which he (DK)loves.
69 He (DL)built his sanctuary like the high heavens,
like the earth, which he has founded forever.
70 He (DM)chose David his servant
and took him from the sheepfolds;
71 from (DN)following the nursing ewes he brought him
to (DO)shepherd Jacob his people,
Israel his (DP)inheritance.
72 With (DQ)upright heart he shepherded them
and (DR)guided them with his skillful hand.
Footnotes
- Psalm 78:1 Probably a musical or liturgical term
- Psalm 78:9 Hebrew armed and shooting
- Psalm 78:33 Hebrew in
- Psalm 78:33 Or vapor
- Psalm 78:42 Hebrew hand
2 Thessalonians 2
English Standard Version
The Man of Lawlessness
2 Now concerning (A)the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our (B)being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers,[a] 2 not to be quickly shaken in mind or (C)alarmed, either (D)by a spirit or a (E)spoken word, or (F)a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that (G)the day of the Lord has come. 3 (H)Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, (I)unless the rebellion comes first, and (J)the man of lawlessness[b] is revealed, (K)the son of destruction,[c] 4 who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, (L)proclaiming himself to be God. 5 Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? 6 And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. 7 For (M)the mystery of lawlessness (N)is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. 8 And then (O)the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus (P)will kill with (Q)the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by (R)the appearance of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan (S)with all power and false signs and wonders, 10 and with all wicked deception for (T)those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 11 Therefore (U)God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe (V)what is false, 12 in order that all may be condemned (W)who did not believe the truth but (X)had pleasure in unrighteousness.
Stand Firm
13 But (Y)we ought always to give thanks to God for you, (Z)brothers beloved by the Lord, because God chose you (AA)as the firstfruits[d] (AB)to be saved, (AC)through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth. 14 To this he called you through (AD)our gospel, (AE)so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. 15 So then, brothers, (AF)stand firm and hold to (AG)the traditions that you were taught by us, either (AH)by our spoken word or by (AI)our letter.
16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, (AJ)who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good (AK)hope through grace, 17 comfort your hearts and (AL)establish them in every good work and word.
Footnotes
- 2 Thessalonians 2:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 13, 15
- 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Some manuscripts sin
- 2 Thessalonians 2:3 Greek the son of perdition (a Hebrew idiom)
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13 Some manuscripts chose you from the beginning
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Bible Gateway Recommends
