Saul replied to David, &#8220;May you be rewarded,<n id="1" /> my son David! You will without question be successful!&#8221;<n id="2" /> So David went on his way, and Saul returned to his place.p>

So David sent messengers to the people of Jabesh Gilead and told them, &#8220;May you be blessed by the <sc>Lordsc> because you have shown this kindness<n id="1" /> to your lord Saul by burying him.

David was told,<n id="1" /> &#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> has blessed the family of Obed-Edom and everything he owns because of the ark of God.&#8221; So David went and joyfully brought the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David.

When David went home to pronounce a blessing on his own house,<n id="1" /> Michal, Saul&#8217;s daughter, came out to meet him.<n id="2" /> She said, &#8220;How the king of Israel has distinguished<n id="3" /> himself this day! He has exposed himself today before his servants&#8217; slave girls the way a vulgar fool<n id="4" /> might do!&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">But the king said to Absalom, &#8220;No, my son. We shouldn&#8217;t all go. We shouldn&#8217;t burden you in that way.&#8221; Though Absalom<n id="1" /> pressed<n id="2" /> him, the king<n id="3" /> was not willing to go. Instead, David<n id="4" /> blessed him.p>

Then Joab bowed down with his face toward the ground and thanked<n id="1" /> the king. Joab said, &#8220;Today your servant knows that I have found favor in your sight, my lord the king, because the king has granted the request of your<n id="2" /> servant!&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">Then Ahimaaz called out and said to the king, &#8220;Greetings!&#8221;<n id="1" /> He bowed down before the king with his face toward the ground and said, &#8220;May the <sc>Lordsc> your God be praised because he has defeated<n id="2" /> the men who opposed<n id="3" /> my lord the king!&#8221;p>

The king&#8217;s servants have even come to congratulate<n id="1" /> our master<n id="2" /> King David, saying, &#8216;May your God<n id="3" /> make Solomon more famous than you and make him an even greater king than you!&#8217;<n id="4" /> Then the king leaned<n id="5" /> on the bed

<p class="bodytext">When Hiram heard Solomon&#8217;s message, he was very happy. He said, &#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> is worthy of praise today because he<n id="1" /> has given David a wise son to rule over this great nation.&#8221;

&#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> is worthy of praise because he has made Israel his people secure<n id="1" /> just as he promised! Not one of all the faithful promises he made through his servant Moses is left unfulfilled!<n id="2" />

On the fifteenth day after the festival started,<n id="1" /> he dismissed the people. They asked God to empower the king<n id="2" /> and then went to their homes, happy and content<n id="3" /> because of all the good the <sc>Lordsc> had done for his servant David and his people Israel.p>

May the <sc>Lordsc> your God be praised because he favored<n id="1" /> you by placing you on the throne of Israel! Because of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s eternal love for Israel, he made you king so you could make just and right decisions.&#8221;<n id="2" />

The two villains arrived and sat opposite him. Then the villains testified against Naboth right before the people, saying, &#8220;Naboth cursed God and the king.&#8221; So they dragged him<n id="1" /> outside the city and stoned him to death.<n id="2" />

The ark of God remained in Obed-Edom&#8217;s house for three months; the <sc>Lordsc> blessed Obed-Edom&#8217;s family and everything that belonged to him.p>

he sent his son Hadoram<n id="1" /> to King David to extend his best wishes<n id="2" /> and to pronounce a blessing on him for his victory over Hadadezer, for Tou had been at war with Hadadezer.<n id="3" /> He also sent various items made of gold, silver, and bronze.<n id="4" />

<p class="bodytext">The sons of Amram:p> <p class="bodytext">Aaron and Moses.p> <p class="bodytext">Aaron and his descendants were chosen on a permanent basis to consecrate the most holy items, to offer sacrifices before the <sc>Lordsc>, to serve him, and to praise his name.<n id="1" />

Huram also said, &#8220;Worthy of praise is the <sc>Lordsc> God of Israel, who made the sky and the earth! He has given David a wise son who has discernment and insight and will build a temple for the <sc>Lordsc>, as well as a royal palace for himself.<n id="1" />

Solomon had made a bronze platform and had placed it in the middle of the enclosure. It was seven and one-half feet<n id="1" /> long, seven and one-half feet<n id="2" /> wide, and four and one-half feet<n id="3" /> high. He stood on it and then got down on his knees in front of the entire assembly of Israel. He spread out his hands toward the sky,

May the <sc>Lordsc> your God be praised because he favored<n id="1" /> you by placing you on his throne as the one ruling on his behalf!<n id="2" /> Because of your God&#8217;s love for Israel and his lasting commitment to them,<n id="3" /> he made you king over them so you could make just and right decisions.&#8221;<n id="4" />

<p class="bodytext">On the fourth day they assembled in the Valley of Berachah, where<n id="1" /> they praised the <sc>Lordsc>. So that place is called the Valley of Berachah<n id="2" /> to this very day.