Now then, speak thus to my servant David, Thus says the Lord of hosts: I took you from the pasture, from following the flock, to become ruler over my people Israel. 9 I was with you wherever you went, and I cut down all your enemies before you. And I will make your name like that of the greatest on earth. 10 I will assign a place for my people Israel and I will plant them in it to dwell there; they will never again be disturbed, nor shall the wicked ever again oppress them, as they did at the beginning, 11 and from the day when I appointed judges over my people Israel. I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord also declares to you that the Lord will make a house for you: 12 when your days have been completed and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, sprung from your loins, and I will establish his kingdom. 13 He it is who shall build a house for my name, and I will establish his royal throne forever. 14 I will be a father to him, a...

With his shield-bearer marching before him, the Philistine advanced closer and closer to David. 42 When he sized David up and saw that he was youthful, ruddy, and handsome in appearance, he began to deride him. 43 He said to David, “Am I a dog that you come against me with a staff?” Then the Philistine cursed David by his gods 44 and said to him, “Come here to me, and I will feed your flesh to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field.” 45 David answered him: “You come against me with sword and spear and scimitar, but I come against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel whom you have insulted. 46 Today the Lord shall deliver you into my hand; I will strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will feed your dead body and the dead bodies of the Philistine army to the birds of the air and the beasts of the field; thus the whole land shall learn that Israel has a God. 47 All this multitude, too, shall learn that it is not by sword or spear...

When the rest of that generation were also gathered to their ancestors, and a later generation arose that did not know the Lord or the work he had done for Israel, 11 the Israelites did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. They served the Baals, 12 and abandoned the Lord, the God of their ancestors, the one who had brought them out of the land of Egypt. They followed other gods, the gods of the peoples around them, and bowed down to them, and provoked the Lord. 13 Because they had abandoned the Lord and served Baal and the Astartes, 14 the anger of the Lord flared up against Israel, and he delivered them into the power of plunderers who despoiled them. He sold them into the power of the enemies around them, and they were no longer able to withstand their enemies. 15 Whenever they marched out, the hand of the Lord turned against them, as the Lord had said, and as the Lord had sworn to them; and they were in great distress. 16 But the Lord raised up judges to save them from the power ...

Thus says the Lord: Cursed is the man who trusts in human beings, who makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord. 6 He is like a barren bush in the wasteland that enjoys no change of season, But stands in lava beds in the wilderness, a land, salty and uninhabited. 7 Blessed are those who trust in the Lord; the Lord will be their trust. 8 They are like a tree planted beside the waters that stretches out its roots to the stream: It does not fear heat when it comes, its leaves stay green; In the year of drought it shows no distress, but still produces fruit. 9 More tortuous than anything is the human heart, beyond remedy; who can understand it? 10 I, the Lord, explore the mind and test the heart, Giving to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their deeds. This passage contrasts the fate of those who place their trust in human strength with those who trust in God.  The former is likened to a barren bush in the desert, dwelling in desolation (vv. 5-...

After Moses, the servant of the Lord, had died, the Lord said to Moses’ aide Joshua, son of Nun: 2  Moses my servant is dead. So now, you and the whole people with you, prepare to cross the Jordan to the land that I will give the Israelites. 3 Every place where you set foot I have given you, as I promised Moses. 4 All the land of the Hittites, from the wilderness and the Lebanon east to the great river Euphrates and west to the Great Sea, will be your territory. 5 No one can withstand you as long as you live. As I was with Moses, I will be with you: I will not leave you nor forsake you. 6 Be strong and steadfast, so that you may give this people possession of the land I swore to their ancestors that I would give them. 7 Only be strong and steadfast, being careful to observe the entire law which Moses my servant enjoined on you. Do not swerve from it either to the right or to the left, that you may succeed wherever you go. 8 Do not let this book of the law depart from your lips. Rec...

Wash yourselves clean! Put away your misdeeds from before my eyes; cease doing evil; 17 learn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow. 18 Come now, let us set things right, says the Lord: Though your sins be like scarlet, they may become white as snow; Though they be red like crimson, they may become white as wool. 19 If you are willing, and obey, you shall eat the good things of the land; 20 But if you refuse and resist, you shall be eaten by the sword: for the mouth of the Lord has spoken! In this passage, Isaiah calls the people of Judah to repentance and moral conversion.  The prophet urges them to " wash " themselves clean, symbolizing interior purification (v. 16; cf. Ps 51:4, 9).  This cleansing is not merely ritual but entails actively turning away from evil and doing good—seeking justice, aiding the oppressed, defending the orphan, and pleading for the widow (v. 17).  These ethical imperatives reflect the c...

The Lord said to Moses: 23 Speak to Aaron and his sons and tell them: This is how you shall bless the Israelites. Say to them:  24 The Lord bless you and keep you!  25 The Lord let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you!  26 The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!  27 So shall they invoke my name upon the Israelites, and I will bless them. The threefold repetition of " the LORD " emphasizes the personal nature of God's blessing, reinforcing the covenant relationship (cf. Ex 34:6-7).  Many Church Fathers and theologians have also seen in this threefold invocation a foreshadowing of the Trinity, whose fullness is revealed in Christ (cf. 2 Cor 13:13).  The phrase “ let his face shine upon you ” reflects divine favor, similar to how God's presence was symbolized in the cloud and fire over the Tabernacle (Ex 40:34-38).  The final petition for peace (shalom) refers not just to the absence of conflict but to complete harmony with God and cr...

The elders of Israel assembled and went to Samuel at Ramah 5 and said to him, “Now that you are old, and your sons do not follow your example, appoint a king over us, like all the nations, to rule us.” 6 Samuel was displeased when they said, “Give us a king to rule us.” But he prayed to the Lord. 7 The Lord said: Listen to whatever the people say. You are not the one they are rejecting. They are rejecting me as their king. 8 They are acting toward you just as they have acted from the day I brought them up from Egypt to this very day, deserting me to serve other gods. 9 Now listen to them; but at the same time, give them a solemn warning and inform them of the rights of the king who will rule them.  In 1 Samuel 8:4-9, the elders of Israel demand a king to govern them " like all the nations " (v. 5).  This request displeases Samuel, but God tells him to listen to the people, explaining that they are not rejecting Samuel’s leadership, but rejecting God as their King (v. 7). ...

You shall count seven weeks of years—seven times seven years—such that the seven weeks of years amount to forty-nine years. 9 Then, on the tenth day of the seventh month let the ram’s horn resound; on this, the Day of Atonement, the ram’s horn blast shall resound throughout your land. 10 You shall treat this fiftieth year as sacred. You shall proclaim liberty in the land for all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to your own property, each of you to your own family. Leviticus 25:8-10 outlines the instructions for the Year of Jubilee, a special time occurring every 50 years when debts were forgiven, land was restored to its original owners, and slaves were freed.  This event was rooted in the principle that the land ultimately belongs to God (Lev. 25:23) and that Israel was to reflect divine justice and mercy in its social order.  The passage commands the sounding of the shofar on the Day of Atonement to announce this year of liberty, ...

This day the Lord, your God, is commanding you to observe these statutes and ordinances. Be careful, then, to observe them with your whole heart and with your whole being. 17 Today you have accepted the Lord’s agreement: he will be your God, and you will walk in his ways, observe his statutes, commandments, and ordinances, and obey his voice. 18 And today the Lord has accepted your agreement: you will be a people specially his own, as he promised you, you will keep all his commandments, 19 and he will set you high in praise and renown and glory above all nations he has made, and you will be a people holy to the Lord, your God, as he promised. During Lent, the Church calls believers to repentance, obedience, and renewal of their covenant with God, making Deuteronomy 26:16-19 especially relevant.  This passage marks Israel’s formal commitment to obey God’s commandments and be His holy people, mirroring the Christian journey of conversion and renewal during Lent. It emphasizes Israel’...

If the wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed, if he keeps all my statutes and does what is just and right, he shall surely live. He shall not die! 22 None of the crimes he has committed shall be remembered against him; he shall live because of the justice he has shown. 23 Do I find pleasure in the death of the wicked—oracle of the Lord God? Do I not rejoice when they turn from their evil way and live? 24 And if the just turn from justice and do evil, like all the abominations the wicked do, can they do this evil and still live? None of the justice they did shall be remembered, because they acted treacherously and committed these sins; because of this, they shall die. 25 You say, “The Lord’s way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair? Are not your ways unfair? 26 When the just turn away from justice to do evil and die, on account of the evil they did they must die. 27 But if the wicked turn from the wickedness they did and do what is righ...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, on your own intelligence do not rely; 6 In all your ways be mindful of him, and he will make straight your paths. 7 Do not be wise in your own eyes, fear the Lord and turn away from evil. The Book of Proverbs is a treasury of wisdom, traditionally attributed to Solomon, and serves as a guide for righteous living.  Proverbs 3:5-7 is a well-known passage that calls for absolute trust in God, warns against self-reliance, and urges humility before the Lord.  The phrase " with all your heart " suggests an undivided trust in God's wisdom (cf. Deut. 6:5).  In biblical thought, the heart is not merely the seat of emotions but the center of a person’s entire being—thoughts, will, and moral choices  (Jer. 17:10).  The warning against being " wise in your own eyes " echoes Isaiah 5:21 which condemns self-sufficiency: " Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own view! "  Human understanding, apart fr...