Old/New Testament

6 ^1-2 Then David mobilized thirty thousand special troops and led them to Baal-judah to bring home the Ark of the Lord of heaven who is enthroned above the Guardian Angels. ³ The Ark was placed upon a new cart and taken from the hillside home of Abinadab. It was driven by Abinadab’s sons, Uzzah and Ahio. ⁴ Ahio was walking in front ⁵ and was followed by David and the other leaders of Israel, who were joyously waving branches of juniper trees and playing every sort of musical instrument before the Lord—lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets, and cymbals.

⁶ But when they arrived at the threshing floor of Nacon, the oxen stumbled and Uzzah put out his hand to steady the Ark. ⁷ Then the anger of the Lord flared out against Uzzah and he killed him for doing this, so he died there beside the Ark. ⁸ David was angry at what the Lord had done, and named the spot “The Place of Wrath upon Uzzah” (which it is still called to this day).

⁹ David was now afraid of the Lord and asked, “How can I ever bring the Ark home?” ¹⁰ So he decided against taking it into the City of David, but carried it instead to the home of Obed-edom, who had come from Gath. ¹¹ It remained there for three months, and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

¹² When David heard this, he brought the Ark to the City of David with a great celebration. ¹³ After the men who were carrying it had gone six paces, they stopped and waited so that he could sacrifice an ox and a fat lamb. ¹⁴ And David danced before the Lord with all his might and was wearing priests’ clothing.^{[a] 15} So Israel brought home the Ark of the Lord with much shouting and blowing of trumpets.

¹⁶ (But as the procession came into the city, Michal, Saul’s daughter, watched from a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord; and she was filled with contempt for him.)

¹⁷ The Ark was placed inside the tent that David had prepared for it; and he sacrificed burnt offerings and peace offerings to the Lord. ¹⁸ Then he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of heaven ¹⁹ and gave a present to everyone—men and women alike—of a loaf of bread, some wine, and a cake of raisins. When it was all over, and everyone had gone home, ²⁰ David returned to bless his family.

But Michal came out to meet him and exclaimed in disgust, “How glorious the king of Israel looked today! He exposed himself to the girls along the street like a common pervert!”

²¹ David retorted, “I was dancing before the Lord who chose me above your father and his family and who appointed me as leader of Israel, the people of the Lord! So I am willing to act like a fool in order to show my joy in the Lord. ²² Yes, and I am willing to look even more foolish than this, but I will be respected by the girls of whom you spoke!”

²³ So Michal was childless throughout her life.

7 When the Lord finally sent peace upon the land, and Israel was no longer at war with the surrounding nations, ² David said to Nathan the prophet, “Look! Here I am living in this beautiful cedar palace while the Ark of God is out in a tent!”

³ “Go ahead with what you have in mind,” Nathan replied, “for the Lord is with you.”

⁴ But that night the Lord said to Nathan, ⁵ “Tell my servant David not to do it!^{[b] 6} For I have never lived in a temple. My home has been a tent ever since the time I brought Israel out of Egypt. ⁷ And I have never once complained to Israel’s leaders, the shepherds of my people. Have I ever asked them, ‘Why haven’t you built me a beautiful cedar temple?’

⁸ “Now go and give this message to David from the Lord of heaven: ‘I chose you to be the leader of my people Israel when you were a mere shepherd, tending your sheep in the pastureland. ⁹ I have been with you wherever you have gone and have destroyed your enemies. And I will make your name greater yet, so that you will be one of the most famous men in the world! ^10-11 I have selected a homeland for my people from which they will never have to move. It will be their own land where the heathen nations won’t bother them as they did when the judges ruled my people. There will be no more wars against you; and your descendants shall rule this land for generations to come! ¹² For when you die, I will put one of your sons upon your throne, and I will make his kingdom strong. ¹³ He is the one who shall build me a temple. And I will continue his kingdom into eternity. ¹⁴ I will be his father and he shall be my son. If he sins, I will use other nations to punish him, ¹⁵ but my love and kindness shall not leave him as I took it from Saul, your predecessor. ¹⁶ Your family shall rule my kingdom forever.’”

¹⁷ So Nathan went back to David and told him everything the Lord had said.

¹⁸ Then David went into the Tabernacle and sat before the Lord and prayed, “O Lord God, why have you showered your blessings on such an insignificant person as I am? ¹⁹ And now, in addition to everything else, you speak of giving me an eternal dynasty! Such generosity is far beyond any human standard! O Lord God! ²⁰ What can I say? For you know what I am like! ²¹ You are doing all these things just because you promised to and because you want to! ²² How great you are, Lord God! We have never heard of any other God like you. And there is no other God. ²³ What other nation in all the earth has received such blessings as Israel, your people? For you have rescued your chosen nation in order to bring glory to your name. You have done great miracles to destroy Egypt and its gods. ²⁴ You chose Israel to be your people forever, and you became our God.

²⁵ “And now, Lord God, do as you have promised concerning me and my family. ²⁶ And may you be eternally honored when you have established Israel as your people and have established my dynasty before you. ²⁷ For you have revealed to me, O Lord of heaven, God of Israel, that I am the first of a dynasty which will rule your people forever; that is why I have been bold enough to pray this prayer of acceptance. ²⁸ For you are indeed God, and your words are truth; and you have promised me these good things— ²⁹ so do as you have promised! Bless me and my family forever! May our dynasty continue on and on before you; for you, Lord God, have promised it.”

8 After this David subdued and humbled the Philistines by conquering Gath, their largest city. ² He also devastated the land of Moab. He divided his victims by making them lie down side by side in rows. Two-thirds of each row, as measured with a tape, were butchered, and one-third were spared to become David’s servants—they paid him tribute each year.

³ He also destroyed the forces of King Hadadezer (son of Rehob) of Zobah in a battle at the Euphrates River, for Hadadezer had attempted to regain his power. ⁴ David captured seventeen hundred cavalry and twenty thousand infantry; then he lamed all of the chariot horses except for one hundred teams. ⁵ He also slaughtered twenty-two thousand Syrians from Damascus when they came to help Hadadezer. ⁶ David placed several army garrisons in Damascus, and the Syrians became David’s subjects and brought him annual tribute money. So the Lord gave him victories wherever he turned. ⁷ David brought the gold shields to Jerusalem which King Hadadezer’s officers had used. ⁸ He also carried back to Jerusalem a very large amount of bronze from Hadadezer’s cities of Betah and Berothai.

⁹ When King Toi of Hamath heard about David’s victory over the army of Hadadezer, ¹⁰ he sent his son Joram to congratulate him, for Hadadezer and Toi were enemies. He gave David presents made from silver, gold, and bronze. ^11-12 David dedicated all of these to the Lord, along with the silver and gold he had taken from Syria, Moab, Ammon, the Philistines, Amalek, and King Hadadezer.

¹³ So David became very famous. After his return he destroyed eighteen thousand Edomites^[c] in Salt Valley, ¹⁴ and then placed garrisons throughout Edom, so that the entire nation was forced to pay tribute to Israel—another example of the way the Lord made him victorious wherever he went.

¹⁵ David reigned with justice over Israel and was fair to everyone. ¹⁶ The general of his army was Joab (son of Zeruiah), and his secretary of state was Jehoshaphat (son of Ahilud). ¹⁷ Zadok (son of Ahitub) and Ahimelech (son of Abiathar) were the High Priests, and Seraiah was the king’s private secretary. ¹⁸ Benaiah (son of Jehoiada) was captain of his bodyguard,^[d] and David’s sons were his assistants.

15 Dishonest tax collectors and other notorious sinners often came to listen to Jesus’ sermons; ² but this caused complaints from the Jewish religious leaders and the experts on Jewish law because he was associating with such despicable people—even eating with them!

^3-4 So Jesus used this illustration: “If you had a hundred sheep and one of them strayed away and was lost in the wilderness, wouldn’t you leave the ninety-nine others to go and search for the lost one until you found it? ⁵ And then you would joyfully carry it home on your shoulders. ⁶ When you arrived you would call together your friends and neighbors to rejoice with you because your lost sheep was found.

⁷ “Well, in the same way heaven will be happier over one lost sinner who returns to God than over ninety-nine others who haven’t strayed away!

⁸ “Or take another illustration: A woman has ten valuable silver coins and loses one. Won’t she light a lamp and look in every corner of the house and sweep every nook and cranny until she finds it? ⁹ And then won’t she call in her friends and neighbors to rejoice with her? ¹⁰ In the same way there is joy in the presence of the angels of God when one sinner repents.”