&#8220;Ask the following questions to<n id="1" /> Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak,<n id="2" /> and the remnant of the people:

<t /><p class="bodytext">On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month of Darius&#8217; second year,<n id="1" /> the <sc>Lordsc> spoke again to the prophet Haggai:<n id="2" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">In the eighth month of Darius&#8217;<n id="1" /> second year,<n id="2" /> the word of the <sc>Lordsc> came to the prophet Zechariah,<n id="3" /> son of Berechiah son of Iddo, as follows:p>

Turning to me, the messenger then said, &#8220;Cry out that the <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all says, &#8216;I am very much moved<n id="1" /> for Jerusalem and for Zion.

and said to him, &#8220;Hurry, speak to this young man<n id="1" /> as follows: &#8216;Jerusalem will no longer be enclosed by walls<n id="2" /> because of the multitude of people and animals there.

Then he cried out to me, &#8220;Look! The ones going to the northland have brought me<n id="1" /> peace about the northland.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

&#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all said, &#8216;Exercise true judgment and show brotherhood and compassion to each other.

Absalom said to Joab, &#8220;Look, I sent a message to you saying, &#8216;Come here so that I can send you to the king with this message:<n id="1" /> &#8220;Why have I come from Geshur? It would be better for me if I were still there.&#8221;&#8217; Let me now see the face of the king. If I am at fault, let him put me to death!&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">Then King David sent a message to Zadok and Abiathar the priests saying, &#8220;Tell the elders of Judah, &#8216;Why should you delay any further in bringing the king back to his palace,<n id="1" /> when everything Israel is saying has come to the king&#8217;s attention.<n id="2" />

King Jehoash of Israel sent this message back to King Amaziah of Judah, &#8220;A thornbush in Lebanon sent this message to a cedar in Lebanon, &#8216;Give your daughter to my son as a wife.&#8217; Then a wild animal<n id="1" /> of Lebanon came by and trampled down the thorn.<n id="2" />

King Joash of Israel sent this message back to King Amaziah of Judah, &#8220;A thorn bush in Lebanon sent this message to a cedar in Lebanon, &#8216;Give your daughter to my son as a wife.&#8217; Then a wild animal of Lebanon came by and trampled down the thorn bush.<n id="1" />

<p class="bodytext">I also told the priests and all the people, &#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> says, &#8216;Do not listen to what your prophets are saying. They are prophesying to you that<n id="1" /> the valuable articles taken from the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple will be brought back from Babylon very soon.<n id="2" /> But they are prophesying a lie to you.

The <sc>Lordsc> God of Israel who rules over all says, &#8216;You women<n id="1" /> have confirmed by your actions what you vowed with your lips! You said, &#8220;We will certainly carry out our vows to sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven.&#8221; Well, then fulfill your vows! Carry them out!&#8217;<n id="2" />

<p class="poetry">But to Adam<n id="1" /> he said,p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Because you obeyed<n id="2" /> your wifep> <p class="poetry">and ate from the tree about which I commanded you,p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;You must not eat from it,&#8217;p> <p class="poetry">cursed is the ground<n id="3" /> thanks to you;<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">in painful toil you will eat<n id="5" /> of it all the days of your life.p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">After these things the word of the <sc>Lordsc> came to Abram in a vision: &#8220;Fear not, Abram! I am your shield<n id="1" /> and the one who will reward you in great abundance.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

That day the <sc>Lordsc> made a covenant<n id="1" /> with Abram: &#8220;To your descendants I give<n id="2" /> this land, from the river of Egypt<n id="3" /> to the great river, the Euphrates River &#8211;

<p class="bodytext">At dawn<n id="1" /> the angels hurried Lot along, saying, &#8220;Get going! Take your wife and your two daughters who are here,<n id="2" /> or else you will be destroyed when the city is judged!&#8221;<n id="3" />

and said to Ephron in their hearing, &#8220;Hear me, if you will. I pay<n id="1" /> to you the price<n id="2" /> of the field. Take it from me so that I may<n id="3" /> bury my dead there.&#8221;p>

&#8220;The <sc>Lordsc>, the God of heaven, who took me from my father&#8217;s house and the land of my relatives,<n id="1" /> promised me with a solemn oath,<n id="2" /> &#8216;To your descendants I will give this land.&#8217; He will send his angel<n id="3" /> before you so that you may find<n id="4" /> a wife for my son from there.

When he saw the bracelets on his sister&#8217;s wrists and the nose ring<n id="1" /> and heard his sister Rebekah say,<n id="2" /> &#8220;This is what the man said to me,&#8221; he went out to meet the man. There he was, standing<n id="3" /> by the camels near the spring.