2 KINGS 9

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Jehu Anointed King of Israel  9:1 Then Elisha the prophet called one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Tie up your garments, and take this flask of oil in your hand, and go to Ramoth-gilead. 2 And when you arrive, look there for Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat, son of Nimshi. And go in and have him rise from among his fellows, and lead him to an inner chamber. 3 Then take the flask of oil and pour it on his head and say, ‘Thus says the Lord, I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and flee; do not linger.”
    4 So the young man, the servant of the prophet, went to Ramoth-gilead. 5 And when he came, behold, the commanders of the army were in council. And he said, “I have a word for you, O commander.” And Jehu said, “To which of us all?” And he said, “To you, O commander.” 6 So he arose and went into the house. And the young man poured the oil on his head, saying to him, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, I anoint you king over the people of the Lord, over Israel. 7 And you shall strike down the house of Ahab your master, so that I may avenge on Jezebel the blood of my servants the prophets, and the blood of all the servants of the Lord. 8 For the whole house of Ahab shall perish, and I will cut off from Ahab every male, bond or free, in Israel. 9 And I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and like the house of Baasha the son of Ahijah. 10 And the dogs shall eat Jezebel in the territory of Jezreel, and none shall bury her.” Then he opened the door and fled.
    11 When Jehu came out to the servants of his master, they said to him, “Is all well? Why did this mad fellow come to you?” And he said to them, “You know the fellow and his talk.” 12 And they said, “That is not true; tell us now.” And he said, “Thus and so he spoke to me, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord, I anoint you king over Israel.’” 13 Then in haste every man of them took his garment and put it under him on the bare steps, and they blew the trumpet and proclaimed, “Jehu is king.” Jehu Assassinates Joram and Ahaziah14 Thus Jehu the son of Jehoshaphat the son of Nimshi conspired against Joram. (Now Joram with all Israel had been on guard at Ramoth-gilead against Hazael king of Syria, 15 but King Joram had returned to be healed in Jezreel of the wounds that the Syrians had given him, when he fought with Hazael king of Syria.) So Jehu said, “If this is your decision, then let no one slip out of the city to go and tell the news in Jezreel.” 16 Then Jehu mounted his chariot and went to Jezreel, for Joram lay there. And Ahaziah king of Judah had come down to visit Joram.
    17 Now the watchman was standing on the tower in Jezreel, and he saw the company of Jehu as he came and said, “I see a company.” And Joram said, “Take a horseman and send to meet them, and let him say, ‘Is it peace?’” 18 So a man on horseback went to meet him and said, “Thus says the king, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu said, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” And the watchman reported, saying, “The messenger reached them, but he is not coming back.” 19 Then he sent out a second horseman, who came to them and said, “Thus the king has said, ‘Is it peace?’” And Jehu answered, “What do you have to do with peace? Turn around and ride behind me.” 20 Again the watchman reported, “He reached them, but he is not coming back. And the driving is like the driving of Jehu the son of Nimshi, for he drives furiously.”
    21 Joram said, “Make ready.” And they made ready his chariot. Then Joram king of Israel and Ahaziah king of Judah set out, each in his chariot, and went to meet Jehu, and met him at the property of Naboth the Jezreelite. 22 And when Joram saw Jehu, he said, “Is it peace, Jehu?” He answered, “What peace can there be, so long as the whorings and the sorceries of your mother Jezebel are so many?” 23 Then Joram reined about and fled, saying to Ahaziah, “Treachery, O Ahaziah!” 24 And Jehu drew his bow with his full strength, and shot Joram between the shoulders, so that the arrow pierced his heart, and he sank in his chariot. 25 Jehu said to Bidkar his aide, “Take him up and throw him on the plot of ground belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. For remember, when you and I rode side by side behind Ahab his father, how the Lord made this pronouncement against him: 26 ‘As surely as I saw yesterday the blood of Naboth and the blood of his sons—declares the Lord—I will repay you on this plot of ground.’ Now therefore take him up and throw him on the plot of ground, in accordance with the word of the Lord.”
    27 When Ahaziah the king of Judah saw this, he fled in the direction of Beth-haggan. And Jehu pursued him and said, “Shoot him also.” And they shot him in the chariot at the ascent of Gur, which is by Ibleam. And he fled to Megiddo and died there. 28 His servants carried him in a chariot to Jerusalem, and buried him in his tomb with his fathers in the city of David.
    29 In the eleventh year of Joram the son of Ahab, Ahaziah began to reign over Judah. Jehu Executes Jezebel30 When Jehu came to Jezreel, Jezebel heard of it. And she painted her eyes and adorned her head and looked out of the window. 31 And as Jehu entered the gate, she said, “Is it peace, you Zimri, murderer of your master?” 32 And he lifted up his face to the window and said, “Who is on my side? Who?” Two or three eunuchs looked out at him. 33 He said, “Throw her down.” So they threw her down. And some of her blood spattered on the wall and on the horses, and they trampled on her. 34 Then he went in and ate and drank. And he said, “See now to this cursed woman and bury her, for she is a king’s daughter.” 35 But when they went to bury her, they found no more of her than the skull and the feet and the palms of her hands. 36 When they came back and told him, he said, “This is the word of the Lord, which he spoke by his servant Elijah the Tishbite: ‘In the territory of Jezreel the dogs shall eat the flesh of Jezebel, 37 and the corpse of Jezebel shall be as dung on the face of the field in the territory of Jezreel, so that no one can say, This is Jezebel.’”

PSALM 134

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Come, Bless the LordA Song of Ascents.
134:1

Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord,

who stand by night in the house of the Lord! 2

Lift up your hands to the holy place

and bless the Lord!
3

May the Lord bless you from Zion,

he who made heaven and earth!

PSALM 135

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Your Name, O Lord, Endures Forever135:1

Praise the Lord!

Praise the name of the Lord,

give praise, O servants of the Lord, 2

who stand in the house of the Lord,

in the courts of the house of our God! 3

Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;

sing to his name, for it is pleasant! 4

For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,

Israel as his own possession.
5

For I know that the Lord is great,

and that our Lord is above all gods. 6

Whatever the Lord pleases, he does,

in heaven and on earth,

in the seas and all deeps. 7

He it is who makes the clouds rise at the end of the earth,

who makes lightnings for the rain

and brings forth the wind from his storehouses.
8

He it was who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,

both of man and of beast; 9

who in your midst, O Egypt,

sent signs and wonders

against Pharaoh and all his servants; 10

who struck down many nations

and killed mighty kings, 11

Sihon, king of the Amorites,

and Og, king of Bashan,

and all the kingdoms of Canaan, 12

and gave their land as a heritage,

a heritage to his people Israel.
13

Your name, O Lord, endures forever,

your renown, O Lord, throughout all ages. 14

For the Lord will vindicate his people

and have compassion on his servants.
15

The idols of the nations are silver and gold,

the work of human hands. 16

They have mouths, but do not speak;

they have eyes, but do not see; 17

they have ears, but do not hear,

nor is there any breath in their mouths. 18

Those who make them become like them,

so do all who trust in them.
19

O house of Israel, bless the Lord!

O house of Aaron, bless the Lord! 20

O house of Levi, bless the Lord!

You who fear the Lord, bless the Lord! 21

Blessed be the Lord from Zion,

he who dwells in Jerusalem!

Praise the Lord!

PROVERBS 20

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20:1

Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler,

and whoever is led astray by it is not wise. 2

The terror of a king is like the growling of a lion;

whoever provokes him to anger forfeits his life. 3

It is an honor for a man to keep aloof from strife,

but every fool will be quarreling. 4

The sluggard does not plow in the autumn;

he will seek at harvest and have nothing. 5

The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water,

but a man of understanding will draw it out. 6

Many a man proclaims his own steadfast love,

but a faithful man who can find? 7

The righteous who walks in his integrity—

blessed are his children after him! 8

A king who sits on the throne of judgment

winnows all evil with his eyes. 9

Who can say, “I have made my heart pure;

I am clean from my sin”? 10

Unequal weights and unequal measures

are both alike an abomination to the Lord. 11

Even a child makes himself known by his acts,

by whether his conduct is pure and upright. 12

The hearing ear and the seeing eye,

the Lord has made them both. 13

Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty;

open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread. 14

“Bad, bad,” says the buyer,

but when he goes away, then he boasts. 15

There is gold and abundance of costly stones,

but the lips of knowledge are a precious jewel. 16

Take a man’s garment when he has put up security for a stranger,

and hold it in pledge when he puts up security for foreigners. 17

Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man,

but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel. 18

Plans are established by counsel;

by wise guidance wage war. 19

Whoever goes about slandering reveals secrets;

therefore do not associate with a simple babbler. 20

If one curses his father or his mother,

his lamp will be put out in utter darkness. 21

An inheritance gained hastily in the beginning

will not be blessed in the end. 22

Do not say, “I will repay evil”;

wait for the Lord, and he will deliver you. 23

Unequal weights are an abomination to the Lord,

and false scales are not good. 24

A man’s steps are from the Lord;

how then can man understand his way? 25

It is a snare to say rashly, “It is holy,”

and to reflect only after making vows. 26

A wise king winnows the wicked

and drives the wheel over them. 27

The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord,

searching all his innermost parts. 28

Steadfast love and faithfulness preserve the king,

and by steadfast love his throne is upheld. 29

The glory of young men is their strength,

but the splendor of old men is their gray hair. 30

Blows that wound cleanse away evil;

strokes make clean the innermost parts.