Kings and queens will serve you and care for all your needs. They will bow to the earth before you and lick the dust from your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Those who trust in me will never be put to shame.”

列王必作你的养父；王后必作你的乳母。他们必将脸伏地，向你下拜，并舔你脚上的尘土。你便知道我是耶和华；等候我的必不致羞愧。”

列王必作你的养父，王后必作你的乳母。他们必以脸伏地，向你下拜，并舔你脚上的尘土。你就知道我是耶和华，等候我的必不致羞愧。”

列王必作你的养父，王后必作你的乳母。他们必以脸伏地，向你下拜，并舔你脚上的尘土。你就知道我是耶和华，等候我的必不致羞愧。”

列王必做你的养父，王后必做你的褓姆。他们必向你俯伏下拜，舔你脚上的尘土。那时你便知道我是耶和华，信靠我的必不致失望。”

列国的君王要作你的养父，他们的王后必作你的保姆；他们必脸伏于地向你下拜，舐你脚上的尘土。那么，你就知道我是耶和华，那些仰望我的决不会羞愧。”

君王们必作你儿女的抚养人，王后们必作你儿女的乳母；他们必脸伏于地，向你下拜，舔你脚上的尘土。那时，你就知道：我是耶和华，等候我的必不致蒙羞。”

列王必作你的養父；王后必作你的乳母。他們必將臉伏地，向你下拜，並舔你腳上的塵土。你便知道我是耶和華；等候我的必不致羞愧。

列王必作你的養父，王后必作你的乳母。他們必以臉伏地，向你下拜，並舔你腳上的塵土。你就知道我是耶和華，等候我的必不致羞愧。」

列王必作你的養父，王后必作你的乳母。他們必以臉伏地，向你下拜，並舔你腳上的塵土。你就知道我是耶和華，等候我的必不致羞愧。」

列王必做你的養父，王后必做你的褓姆。他們必向你俯伏下拜，舔你腳上的塵土。那時你便知道我是耶和華，信靠我的必不致失望。」

列國的君王要作你的養父，他們的王后必作你的保姆；他們必臉伏於地向你下拜，舐你腳上的塵土。那麼，你就知道我是耶和華，那些仰望我的決不會羞愧。”

列王必做你的養父，他們的王后必做你的奶媽；他們必將臉伏地，向你下拜，餂你腳上的塵土；你便知道我乃是永恆主，等候我的必不至於失望。』

君王們必作你兒女的撫養人，王后們必作你兒女的乳母；他們必臉伏於地，向你下拜，舔你腳上的塵土。那時，你就知道：我是耶和華，等候我的必不致蒙羞。」

王為養父、后為乳母、面伏於地、拜於爾前、舐爾足塵、爾則知我乃耶和華、凡仰望我者、不致愧怍、

王為父、后為母、撫育爾子、俯伏拜跪爾前、舐爾足塵、使爾知我乃耶和華、凡恃我者、永不愧怍。

君王必為爾為養父、后妃必為爾為乳母、俯伏在地、拜於爾前、餂爾足塵、使爾知我乃主、凡仰望我者、不至羞愧、

Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed.”

Their kings will become like fathers to you. Their queens will be like mothers who nurse you. They will bow down to you with their faces toward the ground. They will kiss the dust at your feet to show you their respect. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Those who put their hope in me will not be ashamed.”

Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. With their faces to the ground they shall bow down to you, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who wait for me shall not be put to shame.”

Kings will be your guardians and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground and lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the LORD; those who put their hope in me will not be put to shame.

Kings will be your guardians, And their princesses your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground And lick the dust from your feet; And you will know that I am the Lord; Those who hopefully wait for Me will not be put to shame.

Kings shall be your foster fathers, And their queens your nursing mothers; They shall bow down to you with their faces to the earth, And lick up the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord, For they shall not be ashamed who wait for Me.”

And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah; and they that wait for me shall not be put to shame.

Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground, and lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am Yahweh; those who put their hope in Me will not be put to shame.

And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with[ their] face toward the earth, and lick up the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I[ am] the LORD: for they shall not be ashamed that wait for me.

Kings will be your children’s guardians; their princesses will nurse your children. With their faces to the ground they will bow down to you and they will lick the dirt on your feet. Then you will recognize that I am the LORD; those who wait patiently for me are not put to shame.

Kings shall be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down to you with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of your feet. Then you will know that I am Yahweh; and those who wait for me shall not be disappointed.”

“ Foreigners will come to rebuild your towns, and their kings will serve you. For though I have destroyed you in my anger, I will now have mercy on you through my grace.Your gates will stay open day and night to receive the wealth of many lands. The kings of the world will be led as captives in a victory procession.

The descendants of your tormentors will come and bow before you. Those who despised you will kiss your feet. They will call you the City of the Lord, and Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Powerful kings and mighty nations will satisfy your every need, as though you were a child nursing at the breast of a queen. You will know at last that I, the Lord, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel.

All nations will come to your light; mighty kings will come to see your radiance.

Like snakes crawling from their holes, they will come out to meet the Lord our God. They will fear him greatly, trembling in terror at his presence.

As the Scriptures tell us,“ Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”

This is what the Lord says:“ You will rule the Egyptians, the Ethiopians, and the Sabeans. They will come to you with all their merchandise, and it will all be yours. They will follow you as prisoners in chains. They will fall to their knees in front of you and say,‘ God is with you, and he is the only God. There is no other.’”

No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.

In that day the people will proclaim,“ This is our God! We trusted in him, and he saved us! This is the Lord, in whom we trusted. Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!”

But the Lord will redeem those who serve him. No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

On that same day King Xerxes gave the property of Haman, the enemy of the Jews, to Queen Esther. Then Mordecai was brought before the king, for Esther had told the king how they were related.The king took off his signet ring— which he had taken back from Haman— and gave it to Mordecai. And Esther appointed Mordecai to be in charge of Haman’s property.Then Esther went again before the king, falling down at his feet and begging him with tears to stop the evil plot devised by Haman the Agagite against the Jews.Again the king held out the gold scepter to Esther. So she rose and stood before him.Esther said,“ If it please the king, and if I have found favor with him, and if he thinks it is right, and if I am pleasing to him, let there be a decree that reverses the orders of Haman son of Hammedatha the Agagite, who ordered that Jews throughout all the king’s provinces should be destroyed.For how can I endure to see my people and my family slaughtered and destroyed?”Then King Xerxes said to Queen Esther and Mordecai the Jew,“ I have given Esther the property of Haman, and he has been impaled on a pole because he tried to destroy the Jews.Now go ahead and send a message to the Jews in the king’s name, telling them whatever you want, and seal it with the king’s signet ring. But remember that whatever has already been written in the king’s name and sealed with his signet ring can never be revoked.”So on June 25 the king’s secretaries were summoned, and a decree was written exactly as Mordecai dictated. It was sent to the Jews and to the highest officers, the governors, and the nobles of all the 127 provinces stretching from India to Ethiopia. The decree was written in the scripts and languages of all the peoples of the empire, including that of the Jews.The decree was written in the name of King Xerxes and sealed with the king’s signet ring. Mordecai sent the dispatches by swift messengers, who rode fast horses especially bred for the king’s service.

For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!

Desert nomads will bow before him; his enemies will fall before him in the dust.The western kings of Tarshish and other distant lands will bring him tribute. The eastern kings of Sheba and Seba will bring him gifts.All kings will bow before him, and all nations will serve him.

Look, I will force those who belong to Satan’s synagogue— those liars who say they are Jews but are not— to come and bow down at your feet. They will acknowledge that you are the ones I love.

Let Egypt come with gifts of precious metals; let Ethiopia bring tribute to God.

Then you will know that I am among my people Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and there is no other. Never again will my people be disgraced.

Don’t let those who trust in you be ashamed because of me, O Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Don’t let me cause them to be humiliated, O God of Israel.

The Lord, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, says to the one who is despised and rejected by the nations, to the one who is the servant of rulers:“ Kings will stand at attention when you pass by. Princes will also bow low because of the Lord, the faithful one, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

Did I give birth to them? Did I bring them into the world? Why did you tell me to carry them in my arms like a mother carries a nursing baby? How can I carry them to the land you swore to give their ancestors?

Do not disturb the construction of the Temple of God. Let it be rebuilt on its original site, and do not hinder the governor of Judah and the elders of the Jews in their work.“ Moreover, I hereby decree that you are to help these elders of the Jews as they rebuild this Temple of God. You must pay the full construction costs, without delay, from my taxes collected in the province west of the Euphrates River so that the work will not be interrupted.“ Give the priests in Jerusalem whatever is needed in the way of young bulls, rams, and male lambs for the burnt offerings presented to the God of heaven. And without fail, provide them with as much wheat, salt, wine, and olive oil as they need each day.Then they will be able to offer acceptable sacrifices to the God of heaven and pray for the welfare of the king and his sons.“ Those who violate this decree in any way will have a beam pulled from their house. Then they will be lifted up and impaled on it, and their house will be reduced to a pile of rubble.May the God who has chosen the city of Jerusalem as the place to honor his name destroy any king or nation that violates this command and destroys this Temple.“ I, Darius, have issued this decree. Let it be obeyed with all diligence.”

Every king in all the earth will thank you, Lord, for all of them will hear your words.

God warned them of this in the Scriptures when he said,“ I am placing a stone in Jerusalem that makes people stumble, a rock that makes them fall. But anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”

The nations will walk in its light, and the kings of the world will enter the city in all their glory.Its gates will never be closed at the end of day because there is no night there.And all the nations will bring their glory and honor into the city.

As the Scriptures say,“ I am placing a cornerstone in Jerusalem, chosen for great honor, and anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.”

Now then, you kings, act wisely! Be warned, you rulers of the earth!Serve the Lord with reverent fear, and rejoice with trembling.Submit to God’s royal son, or he will become angry, and you will be destroyed in the midst of all your activities— for his anger flares up in an instant. But what joy for all who take refuge in him!

The nations will see your righteousness. World leaders will be blinded by your glory. And you will be given a new name by the Lord’s own mouth.

And he will startle many nations. Kings will stand speechless in his presence. For they will see what they had not been told; they will understand what they had not heard about.

When Joseph came home, they gave him the gifts they had brought him, then bowed low to the ground before him.

“ This is what King Cyrus of Persia says:“ The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.Any of you who are his people may go to Jerusalem in Judah to rebuild this Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives in Jerusalem. And may your God be with you!Wherever this Jewish remnant is found, let their neighbors contribute toward their expenses by giving them silver and gold, supplies for the journey, and livestock, as well as a voluntary offering for the Temple of God in Jerusalem.”

King Artaxerxes had given a copy of the following letter to Ezra, the priest and scribe who studied and taught the commands and decrees of the Lord to Israel:“ From Artaxerxes, the king of kings, to Ezra the priest, the teacher of the law of the God of heaven. Greetings.“ I decree that any of the people of Israel in my kingdom, including the priests and Levites, may volunteer to return to Jerusalem with you.I and my council of seven hereby instruct you to conduct an inquiry into the situation in Judah and Jerusalem, based on your God’s law, which is in your hand.We also commission you to take with you silver and gold, which we are freely presenting as an offering to the God of Israel who lives in Jerusalem.“ Furthermore, you are to take any silver and gold that you may obtain from the province of Babylon, as well as the voluntary offerings of the people and the priests that are presented for the Temple of their God in Jerusalem.These donations are to be used specifically for the purchase of bulls, rams, male lambs, and the appropriate grain offerings and liquid offerings, all of which will be offered on the altar of the Temple of your God in Jerusalem.Any silver and gold that is left over may be used in whatever way you and your colleagues feel is the will of your God.“ But as for the cups we are entrusting to you for the service of the Temple of your God, deliver them all to the God of Jerusalem.If you need anything else for your God’s Temple or for any similar needs, you may take it from the royal treasury.“ I, Artaxerxes the king, hereby send this decree to all the treasurers in the province west of the Euphrates River:‘ You are to give Ezra, the priest and teacher of the law of the God of heaven, whatever he requests of you.You are to give him up to 7,500 pounds of silver, 500 bushels of wheat, 550 gallons of wine, 550 gallons of olive oil, and an unlimited supply of salt.Be careful to provide whatever the God of heaven demands for his Temple, for why should we risk bringing God’s anger against the realm of the king and his sons?I also decree that no priest, Levite, singer, gatekeeper, Temple servant, or other worker in this Temple of God will be required to pay tribute, customs, or tolls of any kind.’“ And you, Ezra, are to use the wisdom your God has given you to appoint magistrates and judges who know your God’s laws to govern all the people in the province west of the Euphrates River. Teach the law to anyone who does not know it.Anyone who refuses to obey the law of your God and the law of the king will be punished immediately, either by death, banishment, confiscation of goods, or imprisonment.”Praise the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who made the king want to beautify the Temple of the Lord in Jerusalem!And praise him for demonstrating such unfailing love to me by honoring me before the king, his council, and all his mighty nobles! I felt encouraged because the gracious hand of the Lord my God was on me. And I gathered some of the leaders of Israel to return with me to Jerusalem.

The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked,“ How long will you be gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the king agreed to my request.I also said to the king,“ If it please the king, let me have letters addressed to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah.And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.” And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was on me.When I came to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, I delivered the king’s letters to them. The king, I should add, had sent along army officers and horsemen to protect me.But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard of my arrival, they were very displeased that someone had come to help the people of Israel.