1 Now it happened that, when Solomon had perfected the building of the house of the Lord, and the king’s house, and all that he had desired and had willed to do,
2 the Lord appeared to him a second time, just as he had appeared to him at Gibeon.
3 And the Lord said to him: “I have heard your prayer and your petition, which you prayed before me. I have sanctified this house, which you have built, so that I may place my name there forever, and so that my eyes and my heart will be there for all days.
4 Also, if you will walk before me, just as your father walked, in simplicity of heart and in equity, and you do all that I have instructed to you, and you keep my laws and my judgments,
5 then I will set the throne of your kingdom over Israel forever, just as I promised your father David, saying: ‘A man from your stock shall not be taken away from the throne of Israel.’
6 But if you and your sons, wandering, will have turned away, not following me, and not keeping my commandments and my ceremonies, which I have proposed to you, but instead you go away, and you serve strange gods and adore them,
7 then I will take away Israel from the face of the land, which I have given to them. And the temple, which I have sanctified to my name, I will cast out from my sight. And Israel will be a proverb and a parable among all the peoples.
8 And this house will become an example: anyone who passes by it will be stupefied, and he will hiss and say, ‘Why has the Lord acted in this way to this land and to this house?’
9 And they will respond: ‘Because they abandoned the Lord their God, who led their fathers away from the land of Egypt, and they followed strange gods, and they adored them and served them. For this reason, the Lord led all this evil over them.’ “
10 Then, when twenty years were fulfilled, after Solomon had built the two houses, that is, the house of the Lord, and the house of the king,
11 Hiram, the king of Tyre, having supplied Solomon with cedar wood, and spruce wood, and gold, in accord with all that he needed, then Solomon gave Hiram twenty towns in the land of Galilee.
12 And Hiram went out of Tyre, so that he might view the towns that Solomon had given to him. And they did not please him.
13 And he said, “Are these the cities that you have given to me, brother?” And he called them the land of Cabul, even to this day.
14 And Hiram sent to king Solomon one hundred twenty talents of gold.
15 This is the sum of the expenses that king Solomon offered for the building of the house of the Lord, and his own house, and for Millo, and the wall of Jerusalem, and Hazor, and Megiddo, and Gezer.
16 Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, ascended and seized Gezer, and he burned it with fire. And he put to death the Canaanite who was living in the city, and he gave it as a dowry for his daughter, the wife of Solomon.
17 Therefore, Solomon built up Gezer, and lower Beth-horon,
18 and Baalath, and Palmira in the land of the wilderness.
19 And all the towns which belonged to him, and which were without walls, he walled, along with the cities of the chariots, and the cities of the horsemen, and whatever was pleasing to him that he might build in Jerusalem, and in Lebanon, and in the entire land of his dominion.
20 All the people who had remained of the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, who were not of the sons of Israel,
21 their sons, who had remained in the land, namely, those whom the sons of Israel had not been able to destroy, Solomon made tributary, even to this day.
22 But from the sons of Israel, Solomon did not appoint anyone at all to serve, except the men of war, and his ministers, and leaders, and commanders, and the overseers of the chariots and the horses.
23 Now there were five hundred fifty leaders in the first place over all the works of Solomon, and they had people subject to them, and these were given orders for the appointed works.
24 And the daughter of Pharaoh went up from the city of David to her house, which Solomon had built for her. Then he built up Millo.
25 Also, three times each year, Solomon offered holocausts and victims of peace offerings, upon the altar that he had built to the Lord, and he burned incense before the Lord. And the temple was perfected.
26 And king Solomon made a navy at Ezion Geber, which is beside Eloth, on the shores of the Red Sea, in the land of Idumea.
27 And Hiram sent his servants to that navy, the sailors and those knowledgeable about the sea, with the servants of Solomon.
28 And when they had gone to Ophir, taking from there four hundred twenty talents of gold, they brought it to king Solomon.
1 Then, too, the queen of Sheba, having heard of the fame of Solomon in the name of the Lord, arrived to test him with enigmas.
2 And entering into Jerusalem with a great retinue, and with riches, and with camels carrying aromatics, and with an exceedingly great quantity of gold and precious stones, she went to king Solomon. And she spoke to him all that she held in her heart.
3 And Solomon taught her, in all the words that she had proposed to him. There was not any word which was able to be hidden from the king, or which he did not answer for her.
4 Then, when the queen of Sheba saw all the wisdom of Solomon, and the house that he had built,
5 and the food of his table, and the dwelling places of his servants, and the rows of his ministers, and their apparel, and the cupbearers, and the holocausts that he was offering in the house of the Lord, she had no longer any spirit in her.
6 And she said to the king: “The word is true, which I have heard in my own land,
7 about your words and your wisdom. But I did not believe those who explained it to me, until I went myself and saw it with my own eyes. And I have discovered that the half of it has not been told to me: your wisdom and works are greater than the report that I have heard.
8 Blessed are your men, and blessed are your servants, who stand before you always, and who hear your wisdom.
9 Blessed is the Lord your God, whom you have greatly pleased, and who has placed you upon the throne of Israel. For the Lord loves Israel forever, and he has appointed you as king, so that you may accomplish judgment and justice.”
10 Then she gave the king one hundred twenty talents of gold, and an exceedingly great amount of aromatics and precious stones. No greater quantity of aromatics was ever again brought forth as these, which the queen of Sheba gave to king Solomon.
11 Then, too, the navy of Hiram, which carried gold from Ophir, brought an exceedingly great quantity of thyine wood and precious stones from Ophir.
12 And the king made, from the thyine wood, the posts of the house of the Lord, and of the house of the king, and citharas and lyres for the musicians. No thyine trees of this kind were ever again brought forth or seen, even to the present day.
13 Then king Solomon gave the queen of Sheba all that she desired and requested of him, aside from what he himself had offered to her from his royal bounty. And she returned and went away to her own land, with her servants.
14 Now the weight of the gold that was brought to Solomon each year was six hundred sixty-six talents of gold,
15 aside from what was brought to him by the men who were over the tributes, and by the merchants, and by those selling every kind of small item, and by all the kings of Arabia, and by the rulers of the land.
16 Also, king Solomon made two hundred large shields from the purest gold. He dispensed six hundred shekels of gold for the layers of one shield.
17 And for the three hundred crescent-shaped shields of tested gold, there were three hundred minas of gold covering one shield. And the king placed these in the house of the forest of Lebanon.
18 Also, king Solomon made a great throne from ivory. And he clothed it with a great quantity of red gold.
19 The throne had six steps, and the summit of the throne was rounded in the back section. And there were two hands, on one side and the other, holding the seat. And two lions were standing beside each hand,
20 with twelve little lions standing upon the six steps, on one side and the other. No similar work has been made, ever in any kingdom.
21 Moreover, all the vessels from which king Solomon would drink were of gold. And all the items in the house of the forest of Lebanon were of the purest gold. There was no silver, nor was any accounting made of silver in the days of Solomon.
22 For the navy of the king, once every three years, went with the navy of Hiram by sea to Tarshish, bringing from there gold, and silver, and elephant tusks, and primates, and peacocks.
23 And so, king Solomon was magnified above all the kings of the earth in riches and in wisdom.
24 And all the earth desired to see the face of Solomon, so as to hear his wisdom, which God had granted to his heart.
25 And each one brought him gifts, vessels of silver and of gold, clothing and weapons of war, as well as aromatics, and horses, and mules, throughout each year.
26 And Solomon gathered together the chariots and horsemen. And he had one thousand four hundred chariots, and twelve thousand horsemen. And he placed them in the walled cities, and with the king at Jerusalem.
27 And he caused silver to be as abundant in Jerusalem as stones, and he supplied a multitude of cedars like the sycamores that grow in the plains.
28 And horses were brought for Solomon from Egypt and from Kue. For the merchants of the king were buying these from Kue. And they paid out the established price.
29 Now a four-horse chariot would be sent from Egypt for six hundred shekels of silver, and a horse for one hundred and fifty. And in this manner, all the kings of the Hittites and of Syria were selling horses.
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1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
2 Son of man, prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord God: Wail: ‘Woe, woe to the day!’
3 For the day is near, and the day of the Lord is approaching! It is a day of gloom; it will be the time of the Gentiles.
4 And the sword will come to Egypt. And there will be dread in Ethiopia, when the wounded will have fallen in Egypt, and its multitude will have been taken away, and its foundations will have been destroyed.
5 Ethiopia, and Libya, and Lydia, and all the rest of the common people, and Chub, and the sons of the land of the covenant, will fall with them by the sword.
6 Thus says the Lord God: And those who prop up Egypt will fall, and the arrogance of its reign will be brought down. They will fall in it by the sword, before the tower of Syene, says the Lord, the God of hosts.
7 And they will be scattered into the midst of desolate lands, and its cities will be in the midst of cities that have been deserted.
8 And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have brought a fire into Egypt, and when all its helpers will have been worn away.
9 In that day, messengers will go forth from my face in Greek warships, in order to crush the confidence of Ethiopia. And there will be dread among them in the day of Egypt; for without doubt, it will happen.
10 Thus says the Lord God: By the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, I will cause the multitude of Egypt to cease.
11 He, and his people with him, the strongest of the Gentiles, will be brought forth in order to destroy the land. And they will draw their swords over Egypt. And they will fill the land with the slain.
12 And I will cause the channels of the rivers to dry up. And I will deliver the land into the hand of the most wicked. And by the hands of foreigners, I will utterly destroy the land and its plenitude. I, the Lord, have spoken.
13 Thus says the Lord God: And I will destroy the graven images, and I will cause the idols of Memphis to cease. And there will no longer be a commander of the land of Egypt. And I will send terror upon the land of Egypt.
14 And I will destroy the land of Pathros, and I will send a fire upon Tahpanhes, and I will execute judgments in Alexandria.
15 And I will pour out my indignation upon Pelusium, the strength of Egypt, and I will kill the multitude of Alexandria.
16 And I will send a fire upon Egypt. Pelusium will be in pain, like a woman giving birth. And Alexandria will be utterly destroyed. And in Memphis, there will be anguish every day.
17 The young men of Heliopolis and Pibeseth will fall by the sword, and the young women will be led into captivity.
18 And in Tahpanhes, the day will grow black, when, in that place, I will break the scepters of Egypt. And the arrogance of her authority will fail within her; a gloom will cover her. Then her daughters will be led into captivity.
19 And I will execute judgments in Egypt. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
20 And it happened that, in the eleventh year, in the first month, on the seventh of the month, the word of the Lord came, me, saying:
21 Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. And behold, it has not been wrapped, so that it might be restored to health; it has not been bound with cloths, or bandaged with linen, so that, having recovered strength, it would be able to hold the sword.
22 Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, and I will shatter his strong arm, which has already been broken. And I will cast the sword away from his hand.
23 And I will disperse Egypt among the nations, and I will scatter them among the lands.
24 And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. And I will put my sword into his hand. And I will break the arms of Pharaoh. And they will groan acutely, when they are slain before his face.
25 And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon. And the arms of Pharaoh will fall. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have given my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and when he will have extended it over the land of Egypt.
26 And I will disperse Egypt among the nations, and I will scatter them among the lands. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”
1 A psalm for Asaph. O God, the heathens are come into thy inheritance, they have defiled thy holy temple: they have made Jerusalem as a place to keep fruit.
2 They have given the dead bodies of thy servants to be meat for the fowls of the air: the flesh of thy saints for the beasts of the earth.
3 They have poured out their blood as water, round about Jerusalem and there was none to bury them.
4 We are become a reproach to our neighbours: a scorn and derision to them that are round about us.
5 How long, O Lord, wilt thou be angry for ever: shall thy zeal be kindled like a fire?
6 Pour out thy wrath upon the nations that have not known thee: and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name.
7 Because they have devoured Jacob; and have laid waste his place.
8 Remember not our former iniquities: let thy mercies speedily prevent us, for we are become exceeding poor.
1 Now Saul, still breathing threats and beatings against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest,
2 and he petitioned him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that, if he found any men or women belonging to this Way, he could lead them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
3 And as he made the journey, it happened that he was approaching Damascus. And suddenly, a light from heaven shone around him.
4 And falling to the ground, he heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”
5 And he said, “Who are you, Lord?” And he: “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goad.”
6 And he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do you want me to do?”
7 And the Lord said to him, “Rise up and go into the city, and there you will be told what you ought to do.” Now the men who were accompanying him were standing stupefied, hearing indeed a voice, but seeing no one.
8 Then Saul rose up from the ground. And upon opening his eyes, he saw nothing. So leading him by the hand, they brought him into Damascus.
9 And in that place, he was without sight for three days, and he neither ate nor drank.
10 Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus, named Ananias. And the Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias!” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”
11 And the Lord said to him: “Rise up and go into the street that is called Straight, and seek, in the house of Judas, the one named Saul of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying.”
12 (And Paul saw a man named Ananias entering and imposing hands upon him, so that he might receive his sight.)
13 But Ananias responded: “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.
14 And he has authority here from the leaders of the priests to bind all who invoke your name.”
15 Then the Lord said to him: “Go, for this one is an instrument chosen by me to convey my name before nations and kings and the sons of Israel.
16 For I will reveal to him how much he must suffer on behalf of my name.”
17 And Ananias departed. And he entered the house. And laying his hands upon him, he said: “Brother Saul, the Lord Jesus, he who appeared to you on the way by which you arrived, sent me so that you would receive your sight and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
18 And immediately, it was as if scales had fallen from his eyes, and he received his sight. And rising up, he was baptized.
19 And when he had taken a meal, he was strengthened. Now he was with the disciples who were at Damascus for some days.
20 And he was continuously preaching Jesus in the synagogues: that he is the Son of God.
21 And all who heard him were astonished, and they said, “Is this not the one who, in Jerusalem, was fighting against those invoking this name, and who came here for this: so that he might lead them away to the leaders of the priests?”
22 But Saul was increasing to a greater extent in ability, and so he was confounding the Jews who lived at Damascus, by affirming that he is the Christ.
23 And when many days were completed, the Jews took counsel as one, so that they might put him to death.
24 But their treachery became known to Saul. Now they were also watching the gates, day and night, so that they might put him to death.
25 But the disciples, taking him away by night, sent him over the wall by letting him down in a basket.
26 And when he had arrived in Jerusalem, he attempted to join himself to the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.
