Obey Authorities for God’s Sake

² I say, “Keep the king’s commandment ^(A)for the sake of your oath to God.

⁴³ Why then have you not kept the oath of the Lord and the commandment that I gave you?”

Submission to Government^(A)

^13 (B)Therefore submit yourselves to every ^[a]ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, ¹⁴ or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— ^16 (C)as free, yet not ^(D)using liberty as a cloak for ^[b]vice, but as bondservants of God. ¹⁷ Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear ^(E)God. Honor the king.

Graces of the Heirs of Grace

3 Remind them ^(A)to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, ^(B)to be ready for every good work,

Submit to Government

13 Let every soul be ^(A)subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. ² Therefore whoever resists ^(B)the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will ^[a]bring judgment on themselves. ³ For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? ^(C)Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. ⁴ For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil. ⁵ Therefore ^(D)you must be subject, not only because of wrath ^(E)but also for conscience’ sake.

^13 (A)And he took the king’s offspring, made a covenant with him, ^(B)and put him under oath. He also took away the mighty of the land, ¹⁴ that the kingdom might be ^(C)brought low and not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand. ¹⁵ But ^(D)he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, ^(E)that they might give him horses and many people. ^(F)Will he prosper? Will he who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and still be delivered?

¹⁶ ‘As I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘surely ^(G)in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke—with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. ^17 (H)Nor will Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company do anything in the war, ^(I)when they heap up a siege mound and build a ^[a]wall to cut off many persons. ¹⁸ Since he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, and in fact ^(J)gave^[b] his hand and still did all these things, he shall not escape.’ ”

¹⁹ Therefore thus says the Lord God: “As I live, surely My oath which he despised, and My covenant which he broke, I will recompense on his own head. ²⁰ I will ^(K)spread My net over him, and he shall be taken in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon and ^(L)try him there for the ^[c]treason which he committed against Me.

²⁴ All the leaders and the mighty men, and also all the sons of King David, ^(A)submitted^[a] themselves to King Solomon.

⁷ But the king spared ^(A)Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, because of ^(B)the Lord’s oath that was between them, between David and Jonathan the son of Saul.