God’s Second Appearance to Solomon^(A)

9 And ^(B)it came to pass, when Solomon had finished building the house of the Lord ^(C)and the king’s house, and ^(D)all Solomon’s desire which he wanted to do, ² that the Lord appeared to Solomon the second time, ^(E)as He had appeared to him at Gibeon. ³ And the Lord said to him: ^(F)“I have heard your prayer and your supplication that you have made before Me; I have consecrated this house which you have built ^(G)to put My name there forever, ^(H)and My eyes and My heart will be there perpetually. ⁴ Now if you ^(I)walk before Me ^(J)as your father David walked, in integrity of heart and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded you, and if you ^(K)keep My statutes and My judgments, ⁵ then I will establish the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, ^(L)as I promised David your father, saying, ‘You shall not fail to have a man on the throne of Israel.’ ^6 (M)But if you or your sons at all ^[a]turn from following Me, and do not keep My commandments and My statutes which I have set before you, but go and serve other gods and worship them, ^7 (N)then I will ^[b]cut off Israel from the land which I have given them; and this house which I have consecrated ^(O)for My name I will cast out of My sight. ^(P)Israel will be a proverb and a byword among all peoples. ⁸ And as for ^(Q)this house, which is exalted, everyone who passes by it will be astonished and will hiss, and say, ^(R)‘Why has the Lord done thus to this land and to this house?’ ⁹ Then they will answer, ‘Because they forsook the Lord their God, who brought their fathers out of the land of Egypt, and have embraced other gods, and worshiped them and served them; therefore the Lord has brought all this ^(S)calamity on them.’ ”

Solomon and Hiram Exchange Gifts

¹⁰ Now ^(T)it happened at the end of twenty years, when Solomon had built the two houses, the house of the Lord and the king’s house ^11 (U)(Hiram the king of Tyre had supplied Solomon with cedar and cypress and gold, as much as he desired), that King Solomon then gave Hiram twenty cities in the land of Galilee. ¹² Then Hiram went from Tyre to see the cities which Solomon had given him, but they did not please him. ¹³ So he said, “What kind of cities are these which you have given me, my brother?” ^(V)And he called them the land of ^[c]Cabul, as they are to this day. ¹⁴ Then Hiram sent the king one hundred and twenty talents of gold.

Prophecy and Tongues

14 Pursue love, and ^(A)desire spiritual gifts, ^(B)but especially that you may prophesy. ² For he who ^(C)speaks in a tongue does not speak to men but to God, for no one understands him; however, in the spirit he speaks mysteries. ³ But he who prophesies speaks ^(D)edification and ^(E)exhortation and comfort to men. ⁴ He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. ⁵ I wish you all spoke with tongues, but even more that you prophesied; ^[a]for he who prophesies is greater than he who speaks with tongues, unless indeed he interprets, that the church may receive edification.

Tongues Must Be Interpreted

⁶ But now, brethren, if I come to you speaking with tongues, what shall I profit you unless I speak to you either by ^(F)revelation, by knowledge, by prophesying, or by teaching? ⁷ Even things without life, whether flute or harp, when they make a sound, unless they make a distinction in the sounds, how will it be known what is piped or played? ⁸ For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle? ⁹ So likewise you, unless you utter by the tongue words easy to understand, how will it be known what is spoken? For you will be speaking into the air. ¹⁰ There are, it may be, so many kinds of languages in the world, and none of them is without ^[b]significance. ¹¹ Therefore, if I do not know the meaning of the language, I shall be a ^[c]foreigner to him who speaks, and he who speaks will be a foreigner to me. ¹² Even so you, since you are ^[d]zealous for spiritual gifts, let it be for the ^[e]edification of the church that you seek to excel.

¹³ Therefore let him who speaks in a tongue pray that he may ^(G)interpret. ¹⁴ For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit prays, but my understanding is unfruitful. ¹⁵ What is the conclusion then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. ^(H)I will sing with the spirit, and I will also sing ^(I)with the understanding. ¹⁶ Otherwise, if you bless with the spirit, how will he who occupies the place of the uninformed say “Amen” ^(J)at your giving of thanks, since he does not understand what you say? ¹⁷ For you indeed give thanks well, but the other is not edified.

¹⁸ I thank my God I speak with tongues more than you all; ¹⁹ yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.

Tongues a Sign to Unbelievers

²⁰ Brethren, ^(K)do not be children in understanding; however, in malice ^(L)be babes, but in understanding be mature.

^21 (M)In the law it is written:

says the Lord.

⁵ She bore a male Child ^(A)who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was ^(B)caught up to God and His throne. ⁶ Then ^(C)the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there ^(D)one thousand two hundred and sixty days.

Satan Thrown Out of Heaven

⁷ And war broke out in heaven: ^(E)Michael and his angels fought ^(F)with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, ⁸ but they ^[a]did not prevail, nor was a place found for ^[b]them in heaven any longer. ⁹ So ^(G)the great dragon was cast out, ^(H)that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, ^(I)who deceives the whole world; ^(J)he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

¹⁰ Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, ^(K)“Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, ^(L)who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. ¹¹ And ^(M)they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, ^(N)and they did not love their lives to the death.