So now swear to me in the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s name<n id="1" /> that you will not kill<n id="2" /> my descendants after me or destroy my name from the house of my father.&#8221;p>

Joab<n id="1" /> said, &#8220;If the Arameans start to overpower me,<n id="2" /> you come to my rescue. If the Ammonites start to overpower you,<n id="3" /> I will come to your rescue.

Solomon said, &#8220;If he is a loyal subject,<n id="1" /> not a hair of his head will be harmed, but if he is found to be a traitor,<n id="2" /> he will die.&#8221;

Elijah<n id="1" /> replied, &#8220;That&#8217;s a difficult request!<n id="2" /> If you see me taken from you, may it be so, but if you don&#8217;t, it will not happen.&#8221;p>

Joab<n id="1" /> said, &#8220;If the Arameans start to overpower me,<n id="2" /> you come to my rescue. If the Ammonites start to overpower you,<n id="3" /> I will come to your rescue.

So I entered a complaint with them. I called down a curse on them, and I struck some of the men and pulled out their hair. I had them swear by God saying, &#8220;You will not marry off<n id="1" /> your daughters to their sons, and you will not take any of their daughters as wives for your sons or for yourselves!

<p class="poetry">Even when an army is deployed against me,p> <p class="poetry">I do not fear.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Even when war is imminent,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">I remain confident.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">May my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth,p> <p class="poetry">if I do not remember you,p> <p class="poetry">and do not give Jerusalem priorityp> <p class="poetry">over whatever gives me the most joy.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">The sleep of the laborer is pleasant &#8211; whether he eats little or much &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">but the wealth of the rich will not allow him to sleep.p>

<p class="poetry">For God will evaluate every deed,<n id="1" />p> <p class="bodytext">including every secret thing, whether good or evil.p>

<p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to the Maidens:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">I adjure you,<n id="1" /> O maidens of Jerusalem,p> <p class="poetry">by the gazelles and by the young does<n id="2" /> of the open fields:<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">Do not awaken or arouse<n id="4" /> love<n id="5" /> until it pleases!<n id="6" />p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to the Maidens:i>b>p><n id="1" /><p class="poetry">I admonish you, O maidens of Jerusalem,p> <p class="poetry">by the gazelles and by the young does of the open fields:p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Do not awake or arouse love until it pleases!&#8221;p>

<p class="poetry">If she is a wall,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">we will build on her a battlement<n id="2" /> of silver;p> <p class="poetry">but if she is a door,p> <p class="poetry">we will barricade<n id="3" /> her with boards<n id="4" /> of cedar.<n id="5" />p>

<n id="1" /><p class="poetry">Come, let&#8217;s consider your options,&#8221;<n id="2" /> says the <sc>Lordsc>.p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Though your sins have stained you like the color red,p> <p class="poetry">you can become<n id="3" /> white like snow;p> <p class="poetry">though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,p> <p class="poetry">you can become<n id="4" /> white like wool.<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;If you, Israel, want to come back,&#8221; says the <sc>Lord,sc>p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;if you want to come back to me<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">you must get those disgusting idols<n id="2" /> out of my sightp> <p class="poetry">and must no longer go astray.<n id="3" />p>

You must change<n id="1" /> the way you have been living and do what is right. You must treat one another fairly.<n id="2" />

<p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> said,p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Jerusalem,<n id="1" /> I will surely send you away for your own good.p> <p class="poetry">I will surely<n id="2" /> bring the enemy upon you in a time of trouble and distress.p>

<p class="poetry">For did not you people of Moab laugh at the people of Israel?p> <p class="poetry">Did you think that they were nothing but thieves,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">that you shook your head in contempt<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">every time you talked about them?<n id="3" />p>

<t /><p class="lamhebrew">&#1512; (<i>Reshi>)p> <p class="poetry">Look, O <sc>Lord!sc> Consider!<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Whom have you ever afflicted<n id="2" /> like this?p> <p class="poetry">Should women eat their offspring,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">their healthy infants?<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">Should priest and prophetp> <p class="poetry">be killed in the Lord&#8217;s<n id="5" /> sanctuary?p>

And as for them,<n id="1" /> whether they listen<n id="2" /> or not &#8211; for they are a rebellious<n id="3" /> house<n id="4" /> &#8211; they will know that a prophet has been among them.