while he went a day&#8217;s journey into the desert. He went and sat down under a shrub<n id="1" /> and asked the <sc>Lordsc> to take his life:<n id="2" /> &#8220;I&#8217;ve had enough! Now, O <sc>Lordsc>, take my life. After all, I&#8217;m no better than my ancestors.&#8221;<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">When they had crossed over, Elijah said to Elisha, &#8220;What can I do for you,<n id="1" /> before I am taken away from you?&#8221; Elisha answered, &#8220;May I receive a double portion of the prophetic spirit that energizes you.&#8221;<n id="2" />

The king asked the woman about it, and she gave him the details.<n id="1" /> The king assigned a eunuch to take care of her request and ordered him,<n id="2" /> &#8220;Give her back everything she owns, as well as the amount of crops her field produced from the day she left the land until now.&#8221;p>

Jabez called out to the God of Israel, &#8220;If only<n id="1" /> you would greatly bless me and expand my territory! May your hand be with me! Keep me from harm so I might not endure pain!&#8221;<n id="2" /> God answered his prayer.<n id="3" />p>

King Solomon gave the queen of Sheba everything she requested, more than what she had brought him.<n id="1" /> Then she left and returned<n id="2" /> to her homeland with her attendants.p>

I was embarrassed to request soldiers and horsemen from the king to protect us from the enemy<n id="1" /> along the way, because we had said to the king, &#8220;The good hand of our God is on everyone who is seeking him, but his great anger<n id="2" /> is against everyone who forsakes him.&#8221;

<p class="bodytext">During all this time I was not in Jerusalem,<n id="1" /> for in the thirty-second year of King Artaxerxes of Babylon, I had gone back to the king. After some time<n id="2" /> I had requested leave of the king,

<p class="poetry">I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">So all my accomplishments gave me joy;<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">this was my reward for all my effort.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">They seek me day after day;p> <p class="poetry">they want to know my requirements,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">like a nation that does what is rightp> <p class="poetry">and does not reject the law of their God.p> <p class="poetry">They ask me for just decrees;p> <p class="poetry">they want to be near God.p>

<p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> said to his people:<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;You are standing at the crossroads. So consider your path.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Ask where the old, reliable paths<n id="3" /> are.p> <p class="poetry">Ask where the path is that leads to blessing<n id="4" /> and follow it.p> <p class="poetry">If you do, you will find rest for your souls.&#8221;p> <p class="poetry">But they said, &#8220;We will not follow it!&#8221;p>

<p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> said to me, &#8220;Jeremiah,<n id="1" /> when one of these people, or a prophet, or a priest asks you, &#8216;What burdensome message<n id="2" /> do you have from the <sc>Lordsc>?&#8217; Tell them, &#8216;You are the burden,<n id="3" /> and I will cast you away.<n id="4" /> I, the <sc>Lordsc>, affirm it!<n id="5" />

Then King Zedekiah had him brought to the palace. There he questioned him privately and asked him,<n id="1" /> &#8220;Is there any message from the <sc>Lordsc>?&#8221; Jeremiah answered, &#8220;Yes, there is.&#8221; Then he announced,<n id="2" /> &#8220;You will be handed over to the king of Babylon.&#8221;<n id="3" />

<t /><p class="bodytext">Some time later<n id="1" /> Zedekiah sent and had Jeremiah brought to him at the third entrance<n id="2" /> of the <sc>Lordsc>&#8217;s temple. The king said to Jeremiah, &#8220;I would like to ask you a question. Do not hide anything from me when you answer.&#8221;<n id="3" />

All the officials did indeed come and question Jeremiah.<n id="1" /> He told them exactly what the king had instructed him to say.<n id="2" /> They stopped questioning him any further because no one had actually heard their conversation.<n id="3" />

For the king of Babylon stands at the fork<n id="1" /> in the road at the head of the two routes. He looks for omens:<n id="2" /> He shakes arrows, he consults idols,<n id="3" /> he examines<n id="4" /> animal livers.<n id="5" />

When the sun began to shine, God sent<n id="1" /> a hot<n id="2" /> east wind. So the sun beat down<n id="3" /> on Jonah&#8217;s head, and he grew faint. So he despaired of life,<n id="4" /> and said, &#8220;I would rather die than live!&#8221;<n id="5" />

he<n id="1" /> sent his son Joram<n id="2" /> to King David to extend his best wishes<n id="3" /> and to pronounce a blessing on him for his victory over Hadadezer, for Toi had been at war with Hadadezer.<n id="4" /> He brought with him various items made of silver, gold, and bronze.<n id="5" />