“ Ask the Lord to help us. Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is attacking us. In the past the Lord did wonderful things for us. Maybe he’ll do them again. Then Nebuchadnezzar will pull his armies back from us.”

“请你为我们求问耶和华；因为巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒来攻击我们，或者耶和华照他一切奇妙的作为待我们，使巴比伦王离开我们上去。”

“请你为我们求问耶和华，因为巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒前来攻击我们；或者耶和华照他一切奇妙的作为待我们，使巴比伦王离开我们而去。”

“请你为我们求问耶和华，因为巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒前来攻击我们；或者耶和华照他一切奇妙的作为待我们，使巴比伦王离开我们而去。”

“请你为我们求问耶和华，因为巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒来攻打我们，或许耶和华会像以往一样行神迹，使敌人撤军。”

“请你替我们求问耶和华，因为巴比伦王尼布甲尼撒来攻击我们；也许耶和华会为我们行奇事，使尼布甲尼撒离开我们回去。”

「請你為我們求問耶和華；因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒來攻擊我們，或者耶和華照他一切奇妙的作為待我們，使巴比倫王離開我們上去。」

「請你為我們求問耶和華，因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒前來攻擊我們；或者耶和華照他一切奇妙的作為待我們，使巴比倫王離開我們而去。」

「請你為我們求問耶和華，因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒前來攻擊我們；或者耶和華照他一切奇妙的作為待我們，使巴比倫王離開我們而去。」

「請你為我們求問耶和華，因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒來攻打我們，或許耶和華會像以往一樣行神蹟，使敵人撤軍。」

“請你替我們求問耶和華，因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒來攻擊我們；也許耶和華會為我們行奇事，使尼布甲尼撒離開我們回去。”

『請為我們求問永恆主，因為巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒來攻擊我們；或者永恆主照他一切奇妙的作為來待我們，使巴比倫王撤圍離開我們而上去、也不一定。』那時有話語出於永恆主，而傳與耶利米。

巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒將與我戰、求爾為我詢於耶和華、或耶和華依其奇行待我、使彼離我而去、

巴比倫王尼布甲尼撒攻我、爾為我禱耶和華、庶幾耶和華仍顯異跡、俾不攻予、時耶利米奉耶和華命、

“ Inquire now of the Lord for us because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is attacking us. Perhaps the Lord will perform wonders for us as in times past so that he will withdraw from us.”

“ Inquire of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all his wonderful deeds and will make him withdraw from us.”

“ Please speak to the Lord for us and ask him to help us. King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is attacking Judah. Perhaps the Lord will be gracious and do a mighty miracle as he has done in the past. Perhaps he will force Nebuchadnezzar to withdraw his armies.”

“ Inquire of the LORD on our behalf, since King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the LORD will perform for us something like all his past wondrous works so that Nebuchadnezzar will withdraw from us.”

“ Please inquire of the Lord in our behalf, because Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us; perhaps the Lord will deal with us in accordance with all His wonderful acts, so that the enemy will withdraw from us.”

“ Please inquire of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all His wonderful works, that the king may go away from us.”

Inquire, I pray thee, of Jehovah for us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us: peradventure Jehovah will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us.

“ Ask the Lord on our behalf, since Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon is making war against us. Perhaps the Lord will perform for us something like all His past wonderful works so that Nebuchadnezzar will withdraw from us.”

Enquire, I pray thee, of the LORD for us; for Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon maketh war against us; if so be that the LORD will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may go up from us.

“ Please ask the LORD to come and help us, because King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon is attacking us. Maybe the LORD will perform one of his miracles as in times past and make him stop attacking us and leave.”

“ Please inquire of Yahweh for us; for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps Yahweh will deal with us according to all his wondrous works, that he may withdraw from us.”

But King Zedekiah sent Jehukal to Jeremiah the prophet. Zedekiah sent Zephaniah the priest along with him. Jehukal was the son of Shelemiah. Zephaniah was the son of Maaseiah. Jehukal and Zephaniah brought the king’s message to Jeremiah. It said,“ Please pray to the Lord our God for us.”

It was the seventh year since King Jehoiachin had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. On the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to ask the Lord for advice. They sat down with me.Then a message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said,“ Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel. Tell them,‘ The Lord and King says,“ Have you come to ask me for advice? I will not let you do that,” announces the Lord and King.“ And that is just as sure as I am alive.” ’

The Lord is the God of Israel. He says,“ The king of Judah has sent you to ask me for advice. Tell him,‘ Pharaoh’s army has marched out to help you. But it will go back to its own land. It will return to Egypt.

“ I’ve heard you,” Jeremiah the prophet replied.“ I’ll certainly pray to the Lord your God. I’ll do what you have asked me to do. In fact, I’ll tell you everything the Lord says. I won’t keep anything back from you.”Then they said to Jeremiah,“ We’ll do everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us to do. If we don’t, may he be a true and faithful witness against us.It doesn’t matter whether what you say is in our favor or not. We’re asking you to pray to the Lord our God. And we’ll obey him. Things will go well with us. That’s because we will obey the Lord our God.”

Samuel said to Saul,“ Why have you troubled me by bringing me up from the dead?”“ I’m having big problems,” Saul said.“ The Philistines are fighting against me. God has left me. He doesn’t answer me anymore. He doesn’t speak to me through prophets or dreams. So I’ve called on you to tell me what to do.”

He asked the Lord for advice. But the Lord didn’t answer him through dreams or prophets. He didn’t answer him when Saul had the priest cast lots by using the Urim.

Again the Israelites spoke to the Lord. In those days the ark of the covenant of God was there.

God, we have heard what you did. Those who came before us have told us what you did in their days, in days long ago.By your power you drove out the nations. You gave our people homes in the land. You crushed the people who were there. And you made our people do well.They didn’t win the land with their swords. They didn’t gain success by their own power. Your powerful right hand and your mighty arm gave them victory. You gave them success because you loved them.You are my King and my God. You give victories to the people of Jacob.

Jeroboam said to his wife,“ Go. Put on some different clothes. Then no one will recognize you as my wife. Go to Shiloh. That’s where Ahijah the prophet is. He told me I would be king over the Israelites.Take ten loaves of bread with you. Take some cakes and a jar of honey. Go to him. He’ll tell you what will happen to our son.”

After Ehud died, the Israelites once again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.So the Lord handed them over to the power of Jabin. He was a king in Canaan. He ruled in Hazor. The commander of his army was Sisera. He lived in Harosheth Haggoyim.Jabin used 900 chariots that had some iron parts. He treated the Israelites very badly for 20 years. So they cried out to the Lord for help.Deborah was a prophet. She was the wife of Lappidoth. She was leading Israel at that time.Under the Palm Tree of Deborah she served the people as their judge. That place was between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim. The Israelites went up to her there. They came to have her decide cases for them. She settled matters between them.

They needed more help from the Lord. So they asked him,“ Has the man come here yet?” The Lord said,“ Yes. He has hidden himself among the supplies.”

Many kings joined forces. They entered Israel together.But when they saw Mount Zion, they were amazed. They ran away in terror.Trembling took hold of them. They felt pain like a woman giving birth.Lord, you destroyed them like ships of Tarshish that were torn apart by an east wind.What we heard we have also seen. We have seen it in the city of the Lord who rules over all. We have seen it in the city of our God. We have heard and seen that God makes it secure forever.

But the angel of the Lord spoke to Elijah, who was from Tishbe. The angel said,“ Go up to see the messengers of Ahaziah, the king of Samaria. Tell them,‘ You are on your way to ask Baal- Zebub for advice. He is the god of Ekron. Are you going there to pray to that god? Do you think there is no God in Israel?’

People of Israel, the Lord’ s arm is not too weak to save you. His ears aren’t too deaf to hear your cry for help.But your sins have separated you from your God. They have caused him to turn his face away from you. So he won’t listen to you.

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, marched out against Jerusalem. He came with all his armies and attacked it. It was in the ninth year that Zedekiah was king of Judah. It was in the tenth month.The city wall was broken through. It happened on the ninth day of the fourth month. It was in the 11th year of Zedekiah’s rule.

Then King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah the prophet. The king had him brought to the third entrance to the Lord’ s temple.“ I want to ask you something,” the king said to Jeremiah.“ Don’t hide anything from me.”Jeremiah said to Zedekiah,“ Suppose I give you an answer. You will kill me, won’t you? Suppose I give you good advice. You won’t listen to me, will you?”But King Zedekiah promised Jeremiah secretly,“ I won’t kill you. And I won’t hand you over to those who want to kill you. That’s just as sure as the Lord is alive. He’s the one who has given us breath.”So Jeremiah said to Zedekiah,“ The Lord God who rules over all is the God of Israel. He says,‘ Give yourself up to the officers of the king of Babylon. Then your life will be spared. And this city will not be burned down. You and your family will remain alive.But what if you do not give yourself up to them? Then this city will be handed over to the Babylonians. They will burn it down. And you yourself will not escape from them.’ ”King Zedekiah said to Jeremiah,“ I’m afraid of some of the Jews. They are the ones who have gone over to the side of the Babylonians. The Babylonians might hand me over to them. And those Jews will treat me badly.”“ They won’t hand you over to them,” Jeremiah replied.“ Obey the Lord. Do what I tell you to do. Then things will go well with you. Your life will be spared.Don’t refuse to give yourself up. The Lord has shown me what will happen if you do.All the women who are left in your palace will be brought out. They’ll be given to the officials of the king of Babylon. Those women will say to you,“‘ Your trusted friends have tricked you. They have gotten the best of you. Your feet are sunk down in the mud. Your friends have deserted you.’“ All your wives and children will be brought out to the Babylonians. You yourself won’t escape from them. You will be captured by the king of Babylon. And this city will be burned down.”Then Zedekiah said to Jeremiah,“ Don’t let anyone know about the talk we’ve had. If you do, you might die.Suppose the officials find out that I’ve talked with you. And suppose they come to you and say,‘ Tell us what you said to the king. Tell us what the king said to you. Don’t hide it from us. If you do, we’ll kill you.’Then tell them,‘ I was begging the king not to send me back to Jonathan’s house. I don’t want to die there.’ ”All the officials came to Jeremiah. And they questioned him. He told them everything the king had ordered him to say. None of them had heard what he told the king. So they didn’t say anything else to him.

“ Son of man, these men have thought about nothing but other gods. They have fallen into the evil trap of worshiping them. Should I let these men ask me for any advice?Speak to them. Tell them,‘ The Lord and King says,“ Suppose any of the Israelites think about other gods. And they fall into the evil trap of worshiping them. Then they go to a prophet to ask for advice. If they do, I myself will tell the prophet to answer them in keeping with their worship of many gods.I will win back the hearts of the people of Israel. All of them have deserted me for their other gods.” ’“ So speak to the people of Israel. Tell them,‘ The Lord and King says,“ Turn away from your sins! Also turn away from your gods. Give up all the evil things you have done. I hate them.“‘ “Suppose any of the Israelites or any outsiders who live in Israel separate themselves from me. And they think about other gods. They fall into the evil trap of worshiping them. Then they go to a prophet to ask me for advice. If they do, I myself will tell the prophet to answer them.

Give thanks to the Lord, because he is good. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the greatest God of all. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the most powerful Lord of all. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the only one who can do great miracles. His faithful love continues forever.By his understanding he made the heavens. His faithful love continues forever.He spread out the earth on the waters. His faithful love continues forever.He made the great lights in the sky. His faithful love continues forever.He made the sun to rule over the day. His faithful love continues forever.He made the moon and stars to rule over the night. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the God who killed the oldest son of each family in Egypt. His faithful love continues forever.He brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. His faithful love continues forever.He did it by reaching out his mighty hand and powerful arm. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the God who parted the waters of the Red Sea. His faithful love continues forever.He brought Israel through the middle of it. His faithful love continues forever.But he swept Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the God who led his people through the desert. His faithful love continues forever.He killed great kings. His faithful love continues forever.He struck down mighty kings. His faithful love continues forever.He killed Sihon, the king of the Amorites. His faithful love continues forever.He killed Og, the king of Bashan. His faithful love continues forever.He gave their land as a gift. His faithful love continues forever.He gave it as a gift to his servant Israel. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the God who remembered us when things were going badly. His faithful love continues forever.He set us free from our enemies. His faithful love continues forever.He gives food to every creature. His faithful love continues forever.Give thanks to the God of heaven. His faithful love continues forever.

Remember the wonderful things he has done. Remember his miracles and how he judged our enemies.Remember what he has done, you children of his servant Abraham. Remember it, you people of Jacob, God’s chosen ones.He is the Lord our God. He judges the whole earth.He will keep his covenant forever. He will keep his promise for all time to come.He will keep the covenant he made with Abraham. He will keep the promise he made to Isaac.He made it stand as a law for Jacob. He made it stand as a covenant for Israel that will last forever.He said,“ I will give you the land of Canaan. It will belong to you.”At first there weren’t very many of God’s people. There were only a few, and they were strangers in the land.They wandered from nation to nation. They wandered from one kingdom to another.But God didn’t allow anyone to treat them badly. To keep them safe, he gave a command to kings.He said to them,“ Do not touch my anointed ones. Do not harm my prophets.”He made the people in the land go hungry. He destroyed all their food supplies.He sent a man ahead of them into Egypt. That man was Joseph. He had been sold as a slave.The Egyptians put his feet in chains. They put an iron collar around his neck.He was in prison until what he said would happen came true. The word of the Lord proved that he was right.The king of Egypt sent for Joseph and let him out of prison. The ruler of many nations set him free.He put Joseph in charge of his palace. He made him ruler over everything he owned.Joseph was in charge of teaching the princes. He taught the elders how to think and live wisely.Then the rest of Jacob’s family went to Egypt. The people of Israel lived as outsiders in the land of Ham.The Lord gave his people so many children that there were too many of them for their enemies.He made the Egyptians hate his people. The Egyptians made evil plans against them.The Lord sent his servant Moses to the king of Egypt. He sent Aaron, his chosen one, along with him.The Lord gave them the power to do signs among the Egyptians. They did his wonders in the land of Ham.The Lord sent darkness over the land. He did it because the Egyptians had refused to obey his words.He turned their rivers and streams into blood. He caused the fish in them to die.Their land was covered with frogs. Frogs even went into the bedrooms of the rulers.The Lord spoke, and large numbers of flies came. Gnats filled the whole country.He turned their rain into hail. Lightning flashed all through their land.He destroyed their vines and fig trees. He broke down the trees in Egypt.He spoke, and the locusts came. There were so many of them they couldn’t be counted.They ate up every green thing in the land. They ate up what the land produced.Then he killed the oldest son of every family in Egypt. He struck down the oldest of all their sons.He brought the people of Israel out of Egypt. The Egyptians loaded them down with silver and gold. From among the tribes of Israel no one got tired or fell down.The Egyptians were glad when the people of Israel left. They were terrified because of Israel.The Lord spread out a cloud to cover his people. He gave them a fire to light up the night.They asked for meat, and he brought them quail. He fed them well with manna, the bread of heaven.He broke open a rock, and streams of water poured out. They flowed like a river in the desert.He remembered the holy promise he had made to his servant Abraham.His chosen people shouted for joy as he brought them out of Egypt.He gave them the lands of other nations. He let them take over what others had worked for.He did it so they might obey his rules and follow his laws. Praise the Lord.

Come and see what the Lord has done. See the places he has destroyed on the earth.He makes wars stop from one end of the earth to the other. He breaks every bow. He snaps every spear. He burns every shield with fire.He says,“ Be still, and know that I am God. I will be honored among the nations. I will be honored in the earth.”The Lord who rules over all is with us. The God of Jacob is like a fort to us.

Nebuchadnezzar was king of Babylon. He marched out against Jerusalem. His whole army went with him. It was in the ninth year of the rule of Zedekiah. It was on the tenth day of the tenth month. Nebuchadnezzar set up camp outside the city. He brought in war machines all around it.It was surrounded until the 11th year of King Zedekiah’s rule.

David said to Goliath,“ You are coming to fight against me with a sword, a spear and a javelin. But I’m coming against you in the name of the Lord who rules over all. He is the God of the armies of Israel. He’s the one you have dared to fight against.This day the Lord will give me the victory over you. I’ll strike you down. I’ll cut your head off. This day I’ll feed the bodies of the Philistine army to the birds and wild animals. Then the whole world will know there is a God in Israel.The Lord doesn’t rescue people by using a sword or a spear. And everyone here will know it. The battle belongs to the Lord. He will hand all of you over to us.”As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly to the battle line to meet him.He reached into his bag. He took out a stone. He put it in his sling. He slung it at Goliath. The stone hit him on the forehead and sank into it. He fell to the ground on his face.So David won the fight against Goliath with a sling and a stone. He struck down the Philistine and killed him. He did it without even using a sword.

“ ‘ Lord and King, you have reached out your great and powerful arm. You have made the heavens and the earth. Nothing is too hard for you.

Jonathan spoke to the young man carrying his armor. He said,“ Come on. Let’s go over to the camp of those fellows who aren’t circumcised. Perhaps the Lord will help us. If he does, it won’t matter how many or how few of us there are. That won’t keep the Lord from saving us.”“ Go ahead,” the young man said.“ Do everything you have in mind. I’m with you all the way.”Jonathan said,“ Come on, then. We’ll go across the pass toward the Philistines and let them see us.Suppose they say to us,‘ Wait there until we come to you.’ Then we’ll stay where we are. We won’t go up to them.But suppose they say,‘ Come up to us.’ Then we’ll climb up. That will show us that the Lord has handed them over to us.”So Jonathan and the young man let the soldiers in the Philistine camp see them.“ Look!” said the Philistines.“ Some of the Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in.”The men in the Philistine camp shouted to Jonathan and the young man carrying his armor. They said,“ Come on up here. We’ll teach you a thing or two.” So Jonathan said to the young man,“ Climb up after me. The Lord has handed them over to Israel.”Using his hands and feet, Jonathan climbed up. The young man was right behind him. Jonathan struck down the Philistines. The young man followed him and killed those who were still alive.In that first attack, Jonathan and the young man killed about 20 men. They did it in an area of about half an acre.

“ Go. Ask the Lord for advice. Ask him about what is written in this book that has been found. Do it for me. Also do it for the people and the whole nation of Judah. The Lord is very angry with us. That’s because our people who have lived before us didn’t obey the words of this book. They didn’t do everything written there about us.”Hilkiah the priest went to speak to Huldah the prophet. So did Ahikam, Akbor, Shaphan and Asaiah. Huldah was the wife of Shallum. Shallum was the son of Tikvah. Tikvah was the son of Harhas. Shallum took care of the sacred robes. Huldah lived in the New Quarter of Jerusalem.

After that, the Moabites, Ammonites and some Meunites went to war against Jehoshaphat.Some people came and told him,“ A huge army is coming from Edom to fight against you. They have come across the Dead Sea. They are already in Hazezon Tamar.” Hazezon Tamar is also called En Gedi.Jehoshaphat was alarmed. So he decided to ask the Lord for advice. He told all the people of Judah to go without eating.The people came together to ask the Lord for help. In fact, they came from every town in Judah to pray to him.Then Jehoshaphat stood up among the people of Judah and Jerusalem. He was in front of the new courtyard at the Lord’ s temple.He said,“ Lord, you are the God of our people who lived long ago. You are the God who is in heaven. You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. You are strong and powerful. No one can fight against you and win.Our God, you drove out the people who lived in this land. You drove them out to make room for your people Israel. You gave this land forever to those who belong to the family line of your friend Abraham.They have lived in this land. They’ve built a temple here for your Name. They have said,‘ Suppose trouble comes on us. It doesn’t matter whether it’s a punishing sword, or plague or hunger. We’ll serve you. We’ll stand in front of this temple where your Name is. We’ll cry out to you when we’re in trouble. Then you will hear us. You will save us.’“ But here are men from Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. You wouldn’t allow Israel to march in and attack their territory when the Israelites came from Egypt. So Israel turned away from them. They didn’t destroy them.See how they are paying us back. They are coming to drive us out. They want to take over the land you gave us as our share.Our God, won’t you please judge them? We don’t have the power to face this huge army that’s attacking us. We don’t know what to do. But we’re looking to you to help us.”All the men of Judah stood there in front of the Lord. Their wives, children and little ones were with them.Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel. He was standing among the people of Israel. He was the son of Zechariah. Zechariah was the son of Benaiah. Benaiah was the son of Jeiel. Jeiel was the son of Mattaniah. Jahaziel was a Levite. He was from the family line of Asaph.Jahaziel said,“ King Jehoshaphat, listen! All you who live in Judah and Jerusalem, listen! The Lord says to you,‘ Do not be afraid. Do not lose hope because of this huge army. The battle is not yours. It is God’s.Tomorrow march down against them. They will be climbing up by the Pass of Ziz. You will find them at the end of the valley in the Desert of Jeruel.You will not have to fight this battle. Take your positions. Stand firm. You will see how the Lord will save you. Judah and Jerusalem, do not be afraid. Do not lose hope. Go out and face them tomorrow. The Lord will be with you.’ ”Jehoshaphat bowed down with his face toward the ground. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem also bowed down. They worshiped the Lord.Then some Levites from the families of Kohath and Korah stood up. They praised the Lord, the God of Israel. They praised him with very loud voices.Early in the morning all the people left for the Desert of Tekoa. As they started out, Jehoshaphat stood up. He said,“ Judah, listen to me! People of Jerusalem, listen to me! Have faith in the Lord your God. He’ll take good care of you. Have faith in his prophets. Then you will have success.”Jehoshaphat asked the people for advice. Then he appointed men to sing to the Lord. He wanted them to praise the Lord because of his glory and holiness. They marched out in front of the army. They said,“ Give thanks to the Lord. His faithful love continues forever.”They began to sing and praise him. Then the Lord hid some men and told them to wait. He wanted them to attack the people of Ammon, Moab and Mount Seir. They had gone into Judah and attacked it. But they lost the battle.The Ammonites and Moabites rose up against the men from Mount Seir. They destroyed them. They put an end to them. When they finished killing the men from Seir, they destroyed one another.The men of Judah came to the place that looks out over the desert. They turned to look down at the huge army. But all they saw was dead bodies lying there on the ground. No one had escaped.So Jehoshaphat and his men went down there to carry off anything of value. Among the dead bodies they found a large amount of supplies, clothes and other things of value. There was more than they could take away. There was so much it took three days to collect all of it.On the fourth day they gathered together in the Valley of Berakah. There they praised the Lord. That’s why it’s called the Valley of Berakah to this day.Then all the men of Judah and Jerusalem returned to Jerusalem. They were filled with joy. Jehoshaphat led them. The Lord had made them happy because all their enemies were dead.They entered Jerusalem and went to the Lord’ s temple. They were playing harps, lyres and trumpets.All the surrounding kingdoms began to have respect for God. They had heard how the Lord had fought against Israel’s enemies.The kingdom of Jehoshaphat was at peace. His God had given him peace and rest on every side.

Adoni- Zedek was the king of Jerusalem. He heard that Joshua had captured Ai. He found out that the city had been set apart to the Lord in a special way to be destroyed. He heard that Joshua had done to Ai and its king the same thing he had done to Jericho and its king. Adoni- Zedek heard that the people of Gibeon had made a peace treaty with Israel. He also found out that they were living among the Israelites.The things he heard alarmed him and his people very much. That’s because Gibeon was an important city. It was like one of the royal cities. It was larger than Ai. All its men were good soldiers.So Adoni- Zedek, the king of Jerusalem, made an appeal to Hoham, the king of Hebron. He appealed to Piram, the king of Jarmuth. He appealed to Japhia, the king of Lachish. He also made an appeal to Debir, the king of Eglon.“ Come up and help me attack Gibeon,” he said.“ Its people have made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.”Then the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish and Eglon gathered their armies together. Those five Amorite kings moved all their troops into position to fight against Gibeon. Then they attacked it.Joshua was in the camp at Gilgal. The people of Gibeon sent a message to him there. They said,“ Don’t desert us. We serve you. Come up to us quickly! Save us! Help us! All the Amorite kings from the central hill country have gathered their armies together to fight against us.”So Joshua marched up from Gilgal with his whole army. The army included all his best fighting men.The Lord said to Joshua,“ Do not be afraid of them. I have handed them over to you. Not one of them will be able to fight against you and win.”Joshua marched all night from Gilgal. He took the Amorite armies by surprise.The Lord threw them into a panic as Israel marched toward them. Then Joshua and the Israelites won a complete victory over them at Gibeon. The Israelites chased them along the road that goes up to Beth Horon. They struck them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah.The Amorites tried to escape as Israel marched toward them. They ran down the road from Beth Horon to Azekah. Then the Lord threw large hailstones down on them. The hailstones killed more of them than the swords of the Israelites did.

Zerah marched out against them. He was from Cush. He had a huge army of thousands. He also had 300 chariots. They came all the way to Mareshah.Asa went out to meet Zerah in battle. They took up their positions in the Valley of Zephathah. It’s near Mareshah.Then Asa called out to the Lord his God. He said,“ Lord, there isn’t anyone like you. You help the weak against the strong. Lord our God, help us. We trust in you. In your name we have come out to fight against this huge army. Lord, you are our God. Don’t let mere human beings win the battle over you.”The Lord struck down the men of Cush for Asa and Judah. The Cushites ran away.Asa and his army chased them all the way to Gerar. A large number of Cushites fell down wounded or dead. So they couldn’t fight back. The Lord and his army crushed them. The men of Judah carried off a large amount of goods.

The Philistines came near to attack Israel. At that time Samuel was sacrificing the burnt offering. But that day the Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines. He threw them into such a panic that the Israelites were able to chase them away.The men of Israel rushed out of Mizpah. They chased the Philistines all the way to a point below Beth Kar. They killed them all along the way.Then Samuel got a big stone. He set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer. He said,“ The Lord has helped us every step of the way.”

Then the Lord spoke to Moses.He said,“ Tell the people of Israel to turn back. Have them camp near Pi Hahiroth between Migdol and the Red Sea. They must camp by the sea, right across from Baal Zephon.Pharaoh will think,‘ The Israelites are wandering around the land. They don’t know which way to go. The desert is all around them.’I will make Pharaoh stubborn. He will chase them. But I will gain glory for myself because of what will happen to Pharaoh and his whole army. And the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites camped by the Red Sea.The king of Egypt was told that the people had escaped. Then Pharaoh and his officials changed their minds about them. They said,“ What have we done? We’ve let the people of Israel go! We’ve lost our slaves and all the work they used to do for us!”So he had his chariot made ready. He took his army with him.He took 600 of the best chariots in Egypt. He also took along all the other chariots. Officers were in charge of all of them.The Lord made Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, stubborn. So he chased the Israelites as they were marching out boldly.The Egyptians went after the Israelites. All Pharaoh’s horses and chariots and horsemen and troops chased them. They caught up with the Israelites as they camped by the sea. The Israelites were near Pi Hahiroth, across from Baal Zephon.As Pharaoh approached, the Israelites looked back. There were the Egyptians marching after them! The Israelites were terrified. They cried out to the Lord.They said to Moses,“ Why did you bring us to the desert to die? Weren’t there any graves in Egypt? What have you done to us by bringing us out of Egypt?We told you in Egypt,‘ Leave us alone. Let us serve the Egyptians.’ It would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die here in the desert!”Moses answered the people. He said,“ Don’t be afraid. Stand firm. You will see how the Lord will save you today. Do you see those Egyptians? You will never see them again.The Lord will fight for you. Just be still.”Then the Lord spoke to Moses. He said,“ Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people of Israel to move on.

“‘ See how ramps are built up against Jerusalem’s walls to attack it. The city will be handed over to the armies of Babylon. They are attacking it. It will fall because of war, hunger and plague. What you said would happen is now happening, as you can see.

The king of Israel had spoken to his officials. He had said,“ Don’t you know that Ramoth Gilead belongs to us? And we aren’t even doing anything to take it back from the king of Aram.”So Ahab asked Jehoshaphat,“ Will you go with me to fight against Ramoth Gilead?” Jehoshaphat replied to the king of Israel,“ Yes. I’ll go with you. My men will go with you. My horses will also go with you.”Jehoshaphat continued,“ First ask the Lord for advice.”So the king of Israel brought about 400 prophets together. He asked them,“ Should I go to war against Ramoth Gilead? Or should I stay here?”“ Go,” they answered.“ The Lord will hand it over to you.”But Jehoshaphat asked,“ Is there no longer a prophet of the Lord here? If there is, ask him what we should do.”The king of Israel answered Jehoshaphat. He said,“ There is still one other man we can go to. We can ask the Lord for advice through him. But I hate him. He never prophesies anything good about me. He only prophesies bad things. His name is Micaiah. He’s the son of Imlah.”“ You shouldn’t say bad things about him,” Jehoshaphat replied.

The enemies of Jerusalem and Judah attacked them because the Lord was angry. In the end he threw them out of his land. Zedekiah refused to obey the king of Babylon.Nebuchadnezzar was the king of Babylon. He marched out against Jerusalem. All his armies went with him. It was in the ninth year of the rule of Zedekiah. It was on the tenth day of the tenth month. The armies set up camp outside the city. They set up ladders and built ramps and towers all around it.It was surrounded until the 11th year of King Zedekiah’s rule.By the ninth day of the fourth month, there wasn’t any food left in the city. So the people didn’t have anything to eat.

But Jehoshaphat asked,“ Isn’t there a prophet of the Lord here? Can’t we ask the Lord for advice through him?” An officer of the king of Israel answered,“ Elisha is here. He’s the son of Shaphat. Elisha used to serve Elijah.”Jehoshaphat said,“ The Lord speaks through him.” So the king of Israel went down to see Elisha. Jehoshaphat and the king of Edom also went there.Elisha said to the king of Israel,“ Why do you want to come to me? Go to your father’s prophets. Go to your mother’s prophets.”“ No,” the king of Israel answered.“ The Lord called us three kings together. He did it to hand us over to Moab.”Elisha said,“ I serve the Lord who rules over all. You can be sure that he lives. And you can be just as sure that I have respect for Jehoshaphat, the king of Judah. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t pay any attention to you.

The Lord sent an angel. The angel wiped out all the enemy’s fighting men, commanders and officers. He put an end to them right there in the camp of the Assyrian king. So Sennacherib went back to his own land in shame. He went into the temple of his god. There some of his own sons, the people closest to him, killed him with their swords.