<p class="poetry">Praise the <sc>Lordsc>, you angels of his,p> <p class="poetry">you powerful warriors who carry out his decreesp> <p class="poetry">and obey his orders!<n id="1" />p>

The <sc>Lordsc> then said to me, &#8220;What they have said is good.

<p class="poetry">They are calloused;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">they speak arrogantly.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">He sent them an assuring word<n id="1" /> and healed them;p> <p class="poetry">he rescued them from the pits where they were trapped.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">He proclaims his word to Jacob,p> <p class="poetry">his statutes and regulations to Israel.p>

<p class="poetry">Yet which of them has ever stood in the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s inner circle<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">so they<n id="2" /> could see and hear what he has to say?<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">Which of them have ever paid attention or listened to what he has said?p>

<p class="poetry">until the time when his prediction<n id="1" /> came true.p> <p class="poetry">The <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s word<n id="2" /> proved him right.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">He made it dark;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">they did not disobey his orders.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">He<n id="1" /> sends his command through the earth;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">swiftly his order reaches its destination.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">He then orders it all to melt;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he breathes on it,<n id="2" /> and the water flows.p>

<p class="poetry">O fire and hail, snow and clouds,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">O stormy wind that carries out his orders,<n id="2" />p>

He kissed all his brothers and wept over them. After this his brothers talked with him.p>

Now if you say to yourselves,<n id="1" /> &#8216;How can we tell that a message is not from the <sc>Lordsc>?&#8217;<n id="2" /> &#8211;

The king of Israel replied, &#8220;Tell him the one who puts on his battle gear should not boast like one who is taking it off.&#8221;<n id="1" />

<p class="bodytext">Sennacherib&#8217;s<n id="1" /> servants further insulted<n id="2" /> the <sc>Lordsc> God and his servant Hezekiah.

<p class="poetry">Those who seek my life try to entrap me;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">those who want to harm me speak destructive words;p> <p class="poetry">all day long they say deceitful things.p>

<p class="poetry">In God &#8211; I boast in his promise<n id="1" /> &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">in God I trust, I am not afraid.p> <p class="poetry">What can mere men<n id="2" /> do to me?<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">For they say cruel and deceptive things to me;p> <p class="poetry">they lie to me.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted!p> <p class="poetry">Issue your orders, but they will not be executed!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">For God is with us!<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">For your hands are stained with bloodp> <p class="poetry">and your fingers with sin;p> <p class="poetry">your lips speak lies,p> <p class="poetry">your tongue utters malicious words.p>