|
strength
/ strengthen / strong related
links
|
The two angels reached Sodom in the evening, as Lot was sitting
at the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he got up to greet them;
and bowing down with his face to the ground, he said,
"Please, gentlemen, come aside into your servant's house for
the night, and bathe your feet; you can get up early to continue
your journey." But they replied, "No, we shall pass the
night in the town square." He urged them so strongly,
however, that they turned aside to his place and entered his
house. He prepared a meal for them, baking cakes without leaven,
and they dined. [GEN 19:1-3]
Since he was strongly attracted to Dinah, daughter of Jacob,
indeed was really in love with the girl, he endeavored to win her
affection. [GEN 34:3]
When Jacob was told, "Your son Joseph has come to
you," he rallied his strength and sat up in bed. [GEN 48:2]
"You, Reuben, my first-born, my strength and the first fruit of my manhood, excelling in rank and excelling in power! Unruly as water, you shall no longer excel, for you climbed into your father's bed and defiled my couch to my sorrow."
[GEN 49:3-4]
Now Joseph and all his brothers and that whole generation died.
But the Israelites were fruitful and prolific. They became so numerous and strong that the land was filled with them. [EX
1:6-7]
The midwives, however, feared God; they did not do as the king
of Egypt had ordered them, but let the boys live. So the king
summoned the midwives and asked them, "Why have you acted
thus, allowing the boys to live?" The midwives answered
Pharaoh, "The Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women.
They are robust and give birth before the midwife arrives."
Therefore God dealt well with the midwives. The people, too,
increased and grew strong. And because the midwives feared God, he
built up families for them. [EX 1:17-20]
When Moses left the presence of Pharaoh, he prayed to the LORD,
and the LORD changed the wind to a very strong west wind, which took up the locusts and hurled them into the Red Sea. But though not a single locust remained within the confines of Egypt, the LORD made Pharaoh obstinate, and he would not let the Israelites go.
[EX 10:18-20]
Moses said to the people, "Remember this day on which you
came out of Egypt, that place of slavery. It was with a strong
hand that the LORD brought you away. Nothing made with leaven must
be eaten." [EX 13:3]
It shall be as a sign on your hand and as a reminder on your
forehead; thus the law of the LORD will ever be on your lips,
because with a strong hand the LORD brought you out of Egypt. [EX
13:9]
"Let this, then, be as a sign on your hand and as a pendant on
your forehead: with a strong hand the LORD brought us out of
Egypt." [EX 13:16]
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD swept the sea with a strong east wind throughout the night and so turned it into dry land. When the water was thus divided, the Israelites marched into the midst of the sea on dry land, with the water like a wall to their right and to their left.
[EX 14:21-22]
My strength and my courage is the LORD, and he has been my
savior. He is my God, I praise him; the God of my father, I extol
him. [EX 15:2]
In your mercy you led the people you redeemed; in your strength
you guided them to your holy dwelling. [EX 15:13]
"I see how stiff-necked this people is," continued the LORD
to Moses. "Let me alone, then, that my wrath may blaze up
against them to consume them. Then I will make of you a great
nation." But Moses implored the LORD, his God, saying,
"Why, O LORD, should your wrath blaze up against your own
people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with such great
power and with so strong a hand? Why should the Egyptians say,
'With evil intent he brought them out, that he might kill them in
the mountains and exterminate them from the face of the earth'?
Let your blazing wrath die down; relent in punishing your people.
Remember your servants Abraham, Isaac and Israel, and how you
swore to them by your own self, saying, 'I will make your
descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky; and all this land
that I promised, I will give your descendants as their perpetual
heritage.'" So the LORD relented in the punishment he had
threatened to inflict on his people. [EX 32:9-14]
The LORD said to Aaron, "When you are to go to the meeting
tent, you and your sons are forbidden under pain of death, by a
perpetual ordinance throughout your generations, to drink any wine
or strong drink. You must be able to distinguish between what is
sacred and what is profane, between what is clean and what is
unclean; you must teach the Israelites all the laws that the LORD
has given them through Moses." [LEV 10:8-11]
"If even after this you do not obey me, I will increase the chastisement for your sins sevenfold, to break your haughty confidence. I will make the sky above you as hard as iron, and your soil as hard as bronze,
so that your strength will be spent in vain; your land will bear no crops, and its trees no fruit." [LEV
26:18-20]
In sending them to reconnoiter the land of Canaan, Moses said
to them, "Go up here in the Negeb, up into the highlands, and
see what kind of land it is. Are the people living there strong or
weak, few or many? Is the country in which they live good or bad?
Are the towns in which they dwell open or fortified? Is the soil
fertile or barren, wooded or clear? And do your best to get some
of the fruit of the land." It was then the season for early
grapes. [NUM 13:17-20]
After reconnoitering the land for forty days they returned, met
Moses and Aaron and the whole community of the Israelites in the
desert of Paran at Kadesh, made a report to them all, and showed
them the fruit of the country. They told Moses: "We went into
the land to which you sent us. It does indeed flow with milk and
honey, and here is its fruit. However, the people who are living
in the land are fierce, and the towns are fortified and very
strong. Besides, we saw descendants of the Anakim there.
Amalekites live in the region of the Negeb; Hittites, Jebusites
and Amorites dwell in the highlands, and Canaanites along the
seacoast and the banks of the Jordan." Caleb, however, to
quiet the people toward Moses, said, "We ought to go up and
seize the land, for we can certainly do so." But the men who
had gone up with him said, "We cannot attack these people;
they are too strong for us." So they spread discouraging
reports among the Israelites about the land they had scouted,
saying, "The land that we explored is a country that consumes
its inhabitants. And all the people we saw there are huge men,
veritable giants (the Anakim were a race of giants); we felt like
mere grasshoppers, and so we must have seemed to them." [NUM
13:25-33]
"Please come and curse this people for us; they are stronger
than we are. We may then be able to defeat them and drive them out
of the country. For I know that whoever you bless is blessed and
whoever you curse is cursed." [NUM 22:6]
"But you refused to go up, and after defying the command
of the LORD, your God, you set to murmuring in your tents, 'Out of
hatred for us the LORD has brought us up out of the land of Egypt,
to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites and destroy us. What
shall we meet with up there? Our kinsmen have made us fainthearted
by reporting that the people are stronger and taller than we, and
their cities are large and fortified to the sky; besides, they saw
the Anakim there.' But I said to you, 'Have no dread or fear
of them. The LORD, your God, who goes before you, will himself
fight for you, just as he took your part before your very eyes in
Egypt, as well as in the desert, where you saw how the LORD, your
God, carried you, as a man carries his child, all along your
journey until you arrived at this place.' Despite this, you would
not trust the LORD, your God, who journeys before you to find you
a resting place - by day in the cloud, and by night in the fire, to
show the way you must go. When the LORD heard your words, he was
angry; and he swore, 'Not one man of this evil generation shall
look upon the good land I swore to give to your fathers, except
Caleb, son of Jephunneh; he shall see it. For to him and to his
sons I will give the land he trod upon, because he has followed
the LORD unreservedly.'" [DEUT 1:26-36]
'Commission Joshua, and encourage and strengthen him, for he
shall cross at the head of this people and shall put them in
possession of the land you are to see.' [DEUT 3:28]
"Ask now of the days of old, before your time, ever since
God created man upon the earth; ask from one end of the sky to the
other: Did anything so great ever happen before? Was it ever heard
of? Did a people ever hear the voice of God speaking from the
midst of fire, as you did, and live? Or did any god venture to go
and take a nation for himself from the midst of another nation, by
testings, by signs and wonders, by war, with his strong hand and
outstretched arm, and by great terrors, all of which the LORD,
your God, did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? All this you
were allowed to see that you might know the LORD is God and there
is no other." [DEUT 4:32-35]
For remember that you too were once slaves in Egypt, and the
LORD, your God, brought you from there with his strong hand and
outstretched arm. That is why the LORD, your God, has commanded
you to observe the sabbath day. [DEUT 5:15]
"Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone! Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength."
[DEUT 6:4-5]
"Later on, when your son asks you what these ordinances,
statutes and decrees mean which the LORD, our God, has enjoined on
you, you shall say to your son, 'We were once slaves of Pharaoh in
Egypt, but the LORD brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand
and wrought before our eyes signs and wonders, great and dire,
against Egypt and against Pharaoh and his whole house. He brought
us from there to lead us into the land he promised on oath to our
fathers, and to give it to us. Therefore, the LORD commanded us to
observe all these statutes in fear of the LORD, our God, that we
may always have as prosperous and happy a life as we have today;
and our justice before the LORD, our God, is to consist in
carefully observing all these commandments he has enjoined on us.'"
[DEUT 6:20-25]
It was because the LORD loved you and because of his fidelity
to the oath he had sworn to your fathers, that he brought you out
with his strong hand from the place of slavery, and ransomed you
from the hand of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. [DEUT 7:8]
Perhaps you will say to yourselves, 'These nations are greater
than we. How can we dispossess them?' But do not be afraid of
them. Rather, call to mind what the LORD, your God, did to Pharaoh
and to all Egypt: the great testings which your own eyes have
seen, the signs and wonders, his strong hand and outstretched arm
with which the LORD, your God, brought you out. The same also will
he do to all the nations of whom you are now afraid. [DEUT 7:17-19]
Otherwise, you might say to yourselves, 'It is my own power and
the strength of my own hand that has obtained for me this wealth.'
Remember then, it is the LORD, your God, who gives you the power
to acquire wealth, by fulfilling, as he has now done, the covenant
which he swore to your fathers. But if you forget the LORD, your
God, and follow other gods, serving and worshiping them, I
forewarn you this day that you will perish utterly. Like the
nations which the LORD destroys before you, so shall you too
perish for not heeding the voice of the LORD, your God. [DEUT 8:17-20]
"Hear, O Israel! You are now about to cross the Jordan to
enter in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than
yourselves, having large cities fortified to the sky, the Anakim,
a people great and tall. You know of them and have heard it said
of them, 'Who can stand up against the Anakim?' Understand, then,
today that it is the LORD, your God, who will cross over before
you as a consuming fire; he it is who will reduce them to nothing
and subdue them before you, so that you can drive them out and
destroy them quickly, as the LORD promised you. After the LORD,
your God, has thrust them out of your way, do not say to
yourselves, 'It is because of my merits that the LORD has brought
me in to possess this land'; for it is really because of the
wickedness of these nations that the LORD is driving them out
before you. No, it is not because of your merits or the integrity
of your heart that you are going in to take possession of their
land; but the LORD, your God, is driving these nations out before
you on account of their wickedness and in order to keep the
promise which he made on oath to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Understand this, therefore: it is not because of your
merits that the LORD, your God, is giving you this good land to
possess, for you are a stiff-necked people." [DEUT 9:1-6]
"Those forty days, then, and forty nights, I lay prostrate
before the LORD, because he had threatened to destroy you. This
was my prayer to him: O Lord GOD, destroy not your people, the
heritage which your majesty has ransomed and brought out of Egypt
with your strong hand. Remember your servants, Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Look not upon the stubbornness of this people nor upon
their wickedness and sin, lest the people from whose land you have
brought us say, 'The LORD was not able to bring them into the land
he promised them'; or 'Out of hatred for them, he brought them out
to slay them in the desert.' They are, after all, your people and
your heritage, whom you have brought out by your great power and
with your outstretched arm." [DEUT 9:25-29]
Your ancestors went down to Egypt seventy strong, and now the
LORD, your God, has made you as numerous as the stars of the sky.
[DEUT 10:22]
"Love the LORD, your God, therefore, and always heed his
charge: his statutes, decrees and commandments. It is not your
children, who have not known it from experience, but you
yourselves who must now understand the discipline of the LORD,
your God; his majesty, his strong hand and outstretched arm; the
signs and deeds he wrought among the Egyptians, on Pharaoh, king
of Egypt, and on all his land... With your own eyes you have seen
all these great deeds that the LORD has done. Keep all the
commandments, then, which I enjoin on you today, that you may be
strong enough to enter in and take possession of the land into
which you are crossing, and that you may have long life on the
land which the LORD swore to your fathers he would give to them
and their descendants, a land flowing with milk and honey." [DEUT 11:1-3,7-9]
"When you have come into the land which the LORD, your
God, is giving you as a heritage, and have occupied it and settled
in it, you shall take some first fruits of the various products of
the soil which you harvest from the land which the LORD, your God,
gives you, and putting them in a basket, you shall go to the place
which the LORD, your God, chooses for the dwelling place of his
name. There you shall go to the priest in office at that time and
say to him, 'Today I acknowledge to the LORD, my God, that I have
indeed come into the land which he swore to our fathers he would
give us.' The priest shall then receive the basket from you and
shall set it in front of the altar of the LORD, your God. Then you
shall declare before the LORD, your God, 'My father was a
wandering Aramean who went down to Egypt with a small household
and lived there as an alien. But there he became a nation great,
strong and numerous. When the Egyptians maltreated and oppressed
us, imposing hard labor upon us, we cried to the LORD, the God of
our fathers, and he heard our cry and saw our affliction, our toil
and our oppression. He brought us out of Egypt with his strong
hand and outstretched arm, with terrifying power, with signs and
wonders; and bringing us into this country, he gave us this land
flowing with milk and honey. Therefore, I have now brought you the
first fruits of the products of the soil which you, O LORD, have
given me.' And having set them before the LORD, your God, you
shall bow down in his presence. Then you and your family, together
with the Levite and the aliens who live among you, shall make
merry over all these good things which the LORD, your God, has
given you." [DEUT 26:1-11]
Surely, the LORD shall do justice for his people; on his servants he shall have pity. When he sees their strength failing, and their protected and unprotected alike disappearing,
He will say, "Where are their gods whom they relied on as their 'rock'?"
[DEUT 32:36-37]
Of Asher he said: "More blessed than the other sons be Asher!
May he be the favorite among his brothers, as the oil of his olive trees runs over his feet!
May your bolts be of iron and bronze; may your strength endure through all your days!"
[DEUT 33:24-25]
"On that occasion Moses swore this oath, 'The land where you
have set foot shall become your heritage and that of your
descendants forever, because you have been completely loyal to the
LORD, my God.' Now, as he promised, the LORD has preserved me
while Israel was journeying through the desert, for the forty-five
years since the LORD spoke thus to Moses; and although I am now
eighty-five years old, I am still as strong today as I was the day
Moses sent me forth, with no less vigor whether for war or for
ordinary tasks. Give me, therefore, this mountain region which the
LORD promised me that day, as you yourself heard. True, the Anakim
are there, with large fortified cities, but if the LORD is with me
I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD promised."
Joshua blessed Caleb, son of Jephunneh, and gave him Hebron as his
heritage. [JOSH 14:9-13]
When the Israelites grew stronger they impressed the Canaanites
as laborers, but they did not drive them out. [JOSH 17:13]
Joshua therefore said to Ephraim and Manasseh, the house of Joseph, "You are a numerous people and very strong. You shall have not merely one share, for the mountain region which is now forest shall be yours when you clear it. Its adjacent land shall also be yours if, despite their strength and iron chariots, you drive out the Canaanites."
[JOSH 17:17-18]
At your approach the LORD has driven out large and strong
nations, and to this day no one has withstood you. One of you puts
to flight a thousand, because it is the LORD, your God, himself
who fights for you, as he promised you. Take great care, however,
to love the LORD, your God. For if you ever abandon him and ally
yourselves with the remnant of these nations while they survive
among you, by intermarrying and intermingling with them, know for
certain that the LORD, your God, will no longer drive these
nations out of your way. Instead they will be a snare and a trap
for you, a scourge for your sides and thorns for your eyes, until
you perish from this good land which the LORD, your God, has given
you. [JOSH 23:9-13]
Again the Israelites offended the LORD, who because of this
offense strengthened Eglon, king of Moab, against Israel. [JUDG
3:12]
During their delay Ehud made good his escape and, passing the
idols, took refuge in Seirah. On his arrival he sounded the horn
in the mountain region of Ephraim, and the Israelites went down
from the mountains with him as their leader. "Follow
me," he said to them, "for the LORD has delivered your
enemies the Moabites into your power." So they followed him
down and seized the fords of the Jordan leading to Moab,
permitting no one to cross. On that occasion they slew about ten
thousand Moabites, all of them strong and valiant men. Not a man
escaped. Thus was Moab brought under the power of Israel at that
time; and the land had rest for eighty years. [JUDG 3:26-30]
Awake, awake, Deborah! awake, awake, strike up a song.
Strength! arise, Barak, make despoilers your spoil, son of Abinoam.
[JUDG 5:12]
The LORD turned to him and said, "Go with the strength you
have and save Israel from the power of Midian. It is I who send
you." But he answered him, "Please, my lord, how can I
save Israel? My family is the meanest in Manasseh, and I am the
most insignificant in my father's house." "I shall be
with you," the LORD said to him, "and you will cut down
Midian to the last man."
[JUDG 6:14-16]
Zebah and Zalmunna said, "Come, kill us yourself, for a
man's strength is like the man." So Gideon stepped forward
and killed Zebah and Zalmunna. He also took the crescents that
were on the necks of their camels. [JUDG 8:21]
Now there was a strong tower in the middle of the city, and all
the men and women, in a word all the citizens of the city, fled
there, shutting themselves in and going up to the roof of the
tower. [JUDG 9:51]
An angel of the LORD appeared to the woman and said to her,
"Though you are barren and have had no children, yet you will
conceive and bear a son. Now, then, be careful to take no wine or
strong drink and to eat nothing unclean. As for the son you will
conceive and bear, no razor shall touch his head, for this boy is
to be consecrated to God from the womb. It is he who will begin
the deliverance of Israel from the power of the Philistines."
[JUDG 13:3-5]
After that he fell in love with a woman in the Wadi Sorek whose
name was Delilah. The lords of the Philistines came to her and
said, "Beguile him and find out the secret of his great
strength, and how we may overcome and bind him so as to keep him
helpless. We will each give you eleven hundred shekels of
silver." So Delilah said to Samson, "Tell me the secret
of your great strength and how you may be bound so as to be kept
helpless." "If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings
which have not dried," Samson answered her, "I shall be
as weak as any other man." So the lords of the Philistines
brought her seven fresh bowstrings which had not dried, and she
bound him with them. She had men lying in wait in the chamber and
so she said to him, "The Philistines are upon you,
Samson!" But he snapped the strings as a thread of tow is
severed by a whiff of flame; and the secret of his strength
remained unknown. Delilah said to Samson, "You have mocked me
and told me lies. Now tell me how you may be bound." "If
they bind me tight with new ropes, with which no work has been
done," he answered her, "I shall be as weak as any other
man." So Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them. Then
she said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!"
For there were men lying in wait in the chamber. But he snapped
them off his arms like thread. Delilah said to Samson again,
"Up to now you have mocked me and told me lies. Tell me how
you may be bound." He said to her, "If you weave my
seven locks of hair into the web and fasten them with the pin, I
shall be as weak as any other man." So while he slept,
Delilah wove his seven locks of hair into the web, and fastened
them in with the pin. Then she said, "The Philistines are
upon you, Samson!" Awakening from his sleep, he pulled out
both the weaver's pin and the web. Then she said to him, "How
can you say that you love me when you do not confide in me? Three
times already you have mocked me, and not told me the secret of
your great strength!" She importuned him continually and
vexed him with her complaints till he was deathly weary of them.
So he took her completely into his confidence and told her,
"No razor has touched my head, for I have been consecrated to
God from my mother's womb. If I am shaved, my strength will leave
me, and I shall be as weak as any other man." When Delilah
saw that he had taken her completely into his confidence, she
summoned the lords of the Philistines, saying, "Come up this
time, for he has opened his heart to me." So the lords of the
Philistines came and brought up the money with them. She had him
sleep on her lap, and called for a man who shaved off his seven
locks of hair. Then she began to mistreat him, for his strength
had left him. When she said, "The Philistines are upon you,
Samson!", and he woke from his sleep, he thought he could
make good his escape as he had done time and again, for he did not
realize that the LORD had left him. [JUDG 16:4-20]
When their spirits were high, they said, "Call Samson that
he may amuse us." So they called Samson from the prison, and
he played the buffoon before them. When the people saw him, they
praised their god. For they said, "Our god has
delivered into our power our enemy, the ravager of our
land, the one who has multiplied our slain." Then
they stationed him between the columns. Samson said to the
attendant who was holding his hand, "Put me where I may touch
the columns that support the temple and may rest against
them." The temple was full of men and women: all the lords of
the Philistines were there, and from the roof about three thousand
men and women looked on as Samson provided amusement. Samson cried
out to the LORD and said, "O Lord GOD, remember me!
Strengthen me, O God, this last time that for my two eyes I may
avenge myself once and for all on the Philistines." Samson
grasped the two middle columns on which the temple rested and
braced himself against them, one at his right hand, the other at
his left. And Samson said, "Let me die with the
Philistines!" He pushed hard, and the temple fell upon the
lords and all the people who were in it. Those he killed at his
death were more than those he had killed during his lifetime. [JUDG
16:25-30]
The Danites said to him, "Let us hear no further sound from you, lest fierce men fall upon you and you and your family lose your lives." The Danites then went on their way, and Micah, seeing that they were stronger than he, returned home.
[JUDG 18:25-26]
The bows of the mighty are broken, while the tottering gird on
strength. [1SAM 2:4]
"The LORD puts to death and gives life; he casts down
to the nether world; he raises up again. The LORD makes poor and
makes rich, he humbles, he also exalts. He raises the needy
from the dust; from the ash heap he lifts up the
poor, To seat them with nobles and make a glorious
throne their heritage. He gives to the vower his
vow, and blesses the sleep of the just. For the
pillars of the earth are the LORD'S, and he has set the world
upon them. He will guard the footsteps of his faithful
ones, but the wicked shall perish in the darkness. For
not by strength does man prevail; the LORD'S foes shall be
shattered. The Most High in heaven thunders; The LORD
judges the ends of the earth, Now may he give strength to his
king, and exalt the horn of his anointed!" [1SAM 2:6-10]
"This, therefore, is the oracle of the LORD, the God of Israel:
'I said in the past that your family and your father's family
should minister in my presence forever. But now,' the LORD
declares, 'away with this! for I will honor those who honor me,
but those who spurn me shall be accursed. Yes, the time is coming
when I will break your strength and the strength of your father's
family, so that no man in your family shall reach old age. You
shall witness as a disappointed rival all the benefits enjoyed by
Israel, but there shall never be an old man in your family. I will
permit some of your family to remain at my altar, to wear out
their eyes in consuming greed; but the rest of the men of your
family shall die by the sword. You shall have a sign in what will
happen to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas: both shall die on
the same day. I will choose a faithful priest who shall do what I
have in heart and mind. I will establish a lasting house for him
which shall function in the presence of my anointed forever. Then
whoever is left of your family will come to grovel before him for
a piece of silver or a loaf of bread, and will say: Appoint me, I
beg you, to a priestly function, that I may have a morsel of bread
to eat.'" [1SAM 2:30-36]
An unremitting war was waged against the Philistines during
Saul's lifetime. When Saul saw any strong or brave man, he took
him into his service. [1SAM 14:52]
Saul's son, Jonathan, came down there to David and strengthened his resolve in the LORD.
He said to him: "Have no fear, my father Saul shall not lay a hand to you. You shall be king of Israel and I shall be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this."
[1SAM 23:16-17]
Immediately Saul fell full length on the ground, for he was
badly shaken by Samuel's message. Moreover, he had no bodily
strength left, since he had eaten nothing all that day and night.
Then the woman came to Saul, and seeing that he was quite
terror-stricken, said to him: "Remember, your maidservant
obeyed you: I took my life in my hands and fulfilled the request
you made of me. Now you, in turn, please listen to your
maidservant. Let me set something before you to eat, so that you
may have strength when you go on your way." But he refused,
saying, "I will not eat." However, when his servants
joined the woman in urging him, he listened to their entreaties,
got up from the ground, and sat on a couch. [1SAM 28:20-23]
Saul and Jonathan, beloved and cherished, separated neither in
life nor in death, swifter than eagles, stronger than lions! [2SAM
1:23]
There followed a long war between the house of Saul and that of
David, in which David grew stronger, but the house of Saul weaker.
[2SAM 3:1]
David again assembled all the picked men of Israel, thirty
thousand in number. Then David and all the people who were with
him set out for Baala of Judah to bring up from there the ark of
God, which bears the name of the LORD of hosts enthroned above the
cherubim. The ark of God was placed on a new cart and taken away
from the house of Abinadab on the hill. Uzzah and Ahio, sons of
Abinadab, guided the cart, with Ahio walking before it, while
David and all the Israelites made merry before the LORD with all
their strength, with singing and with citharas, harps,
tambourines, sistrums and cymbals. When they came to the threshing
floor of Nodan, Uzzah reached out his hand to the ark of God and
steadied it, for the oxen were making it tip. But the LORD was
angry with Uzzah; God struck him on that spot, and he died there
before God. [2SAM 6:1-7]
When Joab saw the battle lines drawn up against him, both front
and rear, he made a selection from all the picked troops of Israel
and arrayed them against the Arameans. He placed the rest of the
soldiers under the command of his brother Abishai, who arrayed
them against the Ammonites. Joab said, "If the Arameans are
stronger than I, you shall help me. But if the Ammonites are
stronger than you, I will come to help you. Be brave; let us prove
our valor for the sake of our people and the cities of our God;
the LORD will do what he judges best." [2SAM 10:9-12]
The next morning David wrote a letter to Joab which he sent by
Uriah. In it he directed: "Place Uriah up front, where the
fighting is fierce. Then pull back and leave him to be struck down
dead." So while Joab was besieging the city, he assigned
Uriah to a place where he knew the defenders were strong. When the
men of the city made a sortie against Joab, some officers of
David's army fell, and among them Uriah the Hittite died. [2SAM
11:14-17]
David said to the messenger: "This is what you shall
convey to Joab: 'Do not be chagrined at this, for the sword
devours now here and now there. Strengthen your attack on the city
and destroy it.' Encourage him." [2SAM 11:25]
So the conspiracy gained
strength, and the people with Absalom increased in numbers. [Taken
from 2SAM
15:12]
"For who is God except the LORD? Who is a rock save
our God? The God who girded me with strength and kept my way
unerring; Who made my feet swift as those of hinds and set me
on the heights; Who trained my hands for war till my arms
could bend a bow of brass." [2SAM 22:32-35]
"You girded me with strength for war; you subdued my
adversaries beneath me." [2SAM 22:40]
Now David had a strong craving and said, "Oh, that someone
would give me a drink of water from the cistern that is by the
gate of Bethlehem!" So the Three warriors broke through the
Philistine camp and drew water from the cistern that is by the
gate of Bethlehem. But when they brought it to David he refused to
drink it, and instead poured it out to the LORD, saying: "The
LORD forbid that I do this! Can I drink the blood of these men who
went at the risk of their lives?" So he refused to drink it. [2SAM
23:15-17]
Elijah was afraid and fled for his life, going to Beer-sheba of
Judah. He left his servant there and went a day's journey into the
desert, until he came to a broom tree and sat beneath it. He
prayed for death: "This is enough, O LORD! Take my life, for
I am no better than my fathers." He lay down and fell asleep
under the broom tree, but then an angel touched him and ordered
him to get up and eat. He looked and there at his head was a
hearth cake and a jug of water. After he ate and drank, he lay
down again, but the angel of the LORD came back a second time,
touched him, and ordered, "Get up and eat, else the journey
will be too long for you!" He got up, ate and drank; then
strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights
to the mountain of God, Horeb. There he came to a cave, where he
took shelter. But the word of the LORD came to him, "Why are
you here, Elijah?" He answered: "I have been most
zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts, but the Israelites have
forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your
prophets to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my
life." Then the LORD said, "Go outside and stand on the
mountain before the LORD; the LORD will be passing by." A
strong and heavy wind was rending the mountains and crushing rocks
before the LORD - but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind
there was an earthquake - but the LORD was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake there was fire - but the LORD was not in the
fire. After the fire there was a tiny whispering sound. When he
heard this, Elijah hid his face in his cloak and went and stood at
the entrance of the cave. A voice said to him, "Elijah, why
are you here?" He replied, "I have been most zealous for
the LORD, the God of hosts. But the Israelites have forsaken your
covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets to the
sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life."
"Go, take the road back to the desert near Damascus,"
the LORD said to him. "When you arrive, you shall anoint
Hazael as king of Aram. Then you shall anoint Jehu, son of Nimshi,
as king of Israel, and Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah, as
prophet to succeed you. If anyone escapes the sword of Hazael,
Jehu will kill him. If he escapes the sword if Jehu, Elisha will
kill him. Yet I will leave seven thousand men in Israel - all those
who have not knelt to Baal or kissed him." [1KGS 19:3-18]
Greatly disturbed over this, the king of Aram called together
his officers. "Will you not tell me," he asked them,
"who among us is for the king of Israel?" "No one,
my lord king," answered one of the officers. "The
Israelite prophet Elisha can tell the king of Israel the very
words you speak in your bedroom." "Go, find out where he
is," he said, "so that I may take him captive."
Informed that Elisha was in Dothan, he sent there a strong force
with horses and chariots. They arrived by night and surrounded the
city. [2KGS 6:11-14]
Pul, king of Assyria, invaded the land, and Menahem gave him a
thousand talents of silver to have his assistance in strengthening
his hold on the kingdom. [2KGS 15:19]
"Thus says Hezekiah: 'This is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace. Children are at the point of birth, but there is no strength to bring them forth. Perhaps the LORD, your God, will hear all the words of the commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, sent to taunt the living God, and will rebuke him for the words which the LORD, your God, has heard. So send up a prayer for the remnant that is here.'"
[2KGS 19:3-4]
Further, Josiah did away with the consultation of ghosts and
spirits, with the household gods, idols, and all the other horrors
to be seen in the land of Judah and in Jerusalem, so that he might
carry out the stipulations of the law written in the book that the
priest Hilkiah had found in the temple of the LORD. Before him
there had been no king who turned to the LORD as he did, with his
whole heart, his whole soul, and his whole strength, in accord
with the entire law of Moses; nor could any after him compare with
him. Yet, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had given,
the LORD did not desist from his fiercely burning anger against
Judah. [2KGS 23:24-26]
Look to the LORD in his strength; seek to serve him constantly.
[1CHRON 16:11]
Then David blessed the LORD in the presence of the whole
assembly, praying in these words: "Blessed may you be, O
LORD, God of Israel our father, from eternity to
eternity. Yours, O LORD, are grandeur and
power, majesty, splendor, and glory. For all in heaven
and on earth is yours; yours, O LORD, is the
sovereignty; you are exalted as head over all. Riches and
honor are from you, and you have dominion over all. In
your hand are power and might; it is yours to give grandeur
and strength to all. Therefore, our God, we give you
thanks and we praise the majesty of your name." [Taken from 1CHRON
29:10-13]
Solomon, son of David, strengthened his hold on the kingdom,
for the LORD, his God, was with him, constantly making him more
renowned. [2CHRON 1:1]
Rehoboam took up residence in Jerusalem and built fortified
cities in Judah. He built up Bethlehem, Etam, Tekoa, Beth-zur,
Soco, Adullam, Gath, Mareshah, Ziph, Adoraim, Lachish, Azekah,
Zorah, Aijalon, and Hebron; these were fortified cities in Judah
and Benjamin. Then he strengthened the fortifications and put
commanders in them, with supplies of food, oil and wine. In every
city were shields and spears, and he made them very strong. Thus
Judah and Benjamin remained his. [2CHRON 11:5-12]
Thus they strengthened the kingdom of Judah and made Rehoboam,
son of Solomon, prevail for three years; for they walked in the
way of David and Solomon three years. [2CHRON 11:17]
Abijah pursued Jeroboam and took cities from him: Bethel and
its dependencies, Jeshanah and its dependencies, and Ephron and
its dependencies. Jeroboam did not regain power during the time of
Abijah; the LORD struck him down and he died, while Abijah
continued to grow stronger. [Taken from 2CHRON 13:19-21]
Asa called upon the LORD, his God, praying: "O LORD, there is none like you to help the powerless against the strong. Help us, O LORD, our God, for we rely on you, and in your name we have come against this multitude. You are the LORD, our God; let no man prevail against you."
And so the LORD defeated the Ethiopians before Asa and Judah, and they fled.
[2CHRON 14:10-11]
Upon Azariah, son of Oded, came the spirit of God. He went
forth to meet Asa and said to him: "Hear me, Asa and all
Judah and Benjamin! The LORD is with you when you are with him,
and if you seek him he will be present to you; but if you abandon
him, he will abandon you. For a long time Israel had no true God,
no priest-teacher and no law, but when in their distress they
turned to the LORD, the God of Israel, and sought him, he was
present to them. In that former time there was no peace for anyone
to go or come, but there were many terrors upon the inhabitants of
the lands. Nation crushed nation and city crushed city, for God
destroyed them by every kind of adversity. But as for you, be
strong and do not relax, for your work shall be rewarded." [2CHRON
15:1-7]
His son Jehoshaphat succeeded him as king and strengthened his
hold against Israel. [2CHRON 17:1]
Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he
reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. His mother, named
Jehoaddan, was from Jerusalem. He did what was pleasing in the
sight of the LORD, though not wholeheartedly. After he had
strengthened his hold on the kingdom, he slew those of his
servants who had killed the king, his father; but he did not put
their children to death, for he acted according to what is written
in the law, in the Book of Moses, as the LORD commanded:
"Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor
children for their fathers; but only for his own guilt shall a man
be put to death." Amaziah mustered Judah and placed them, out
of all Judah and Benjamin according to their ancestral houses,
under leaders of thousands and of hundreds. When he had counted
those of twenty years and over, he found them to be three hundred
thousand picked men fit for war, capable of handling lance and
shield. He also hired a hundred thousand valiant warriors from
Israel for a hundred talents of silver. But a man of God came to
him and said: "O king, let not the army of Israel go with
you, for the LORD is not with Israel, with any Ephraimite.
Instead, go on your own, strongly prepared for the conflict;
otherwise the LORD will defeat you in the face of the enemy. It is
God who has the power to reinforce or to defeat." Amaziah
answered the man of God, "But what is to be done about the
hundred talents that I paid for the troops of Israel?" The
man of God replied, "The LORD can give you much more than
that." Amaziah then disbanded the troops that had come to him
from Ephraim, and sent them home. They, however, became furiously
angry with Judah, and returned home blazing with resentment. [2CHRON
25:1-10]
The Ammonites paid tribute to Uzziah and his fame spread as far
as Egypt, for he grew stronger and stronger. [2CHRON 26:8]
But after he had become strong, he became proud to his own
destruction and broke faith with the LORD, his God. He entered the
temple of the LORD to make an offering on the altar of incense.
But Azariah the priest, and with him eighty other priests of the
LORD, courageous men, followed him. They opposed King Uzziah,
saying to him: "It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to
the LORD, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who have been
consecrated for this purpose. Leave the sanctuary, for you have
broken faith and no longer have a part in the glory that comes
from the LORD God." Uzziah, who was holding a censer for
burning the incense, became angry, but at the moment he showed his
anger to the priests, while they were looking at him in the house
of the LORD beside the altar of incense, leprosy broke out on his
forehead. Azariah the chief priest and all the other priests
examined him, and when they saw that his forehead was leprous,
they expelled him from the temple. He himself fled willingly, for
the LORD had afflicted him. King Uzziah remained a leper to the
day of his death. As a leper he dwelt in a segregated house, for
he was excluded from the house of the LORD. Therefore his son
Jotham was regent of the palace and ruled the people of the land. [2CHRON
26:16-21]
Thus Jotham continued to grow strong because he lived
resolutely in the presence of the LORD, his God. [2CHRON 27:6]
Thus the Israelites who were in Jerusalem celebrated the feast
of Unleavened Bread with great rejoicing for seven days, and the
Levites and the priests sang the praises of the LORD day after day
with all their strength. [2CHRON 30:21]
When Hezekiah saw that Sennacherib was coming with the
intention of attacking Jerusalem, he decided in counsel with his
princes and warriors to stop the waters of the springs outside the
city. When they had pledged him their support, a large crowd was
gathered which stopped all the springs and also the running stream
in the valley nearby. For they said, "Why should the kings of
Assyria come and find an abundance of water?" He then looked
to his defenses: he rebuilt the wall where it was broken down,
raised towers upon it, and built another wall outside. He
strengthened the Millo of the City of David and had a great number
of spears and shields prepared. Then he appointed army commanders
over the people. He gathered them together in his presence in the
open space at the gate of the city and encouraged them with these
words: "Be brave and steadfast; do not be afraid or dismayed
because of the king of Assyria and all the throng that is coming
with him, for there is more with us than with him. For he has only
an arm of flesh, but we have the LORD, our God, to help us and to
fight our battles." And the people took confidence from the
words of King Hezekiah of Judah. [2CHRON 32:2-8]
"And now, but a short time ago, mercy came to us from the
LORD, our God, who left us a remnant and gave us a stake in his
holy place; thus our God has brightened our eyes and given us
relief in our servitude. For slaves we are, but in our servitude
our God has not abandoned us; rather, he has turned the good will
of the kings of Persia toward us. Thus he has given us new life to
raise again the house of our God and restore its ruins, and has
granted us a fence in Judah and Jerusalem. But now, O our God,
what can we say after all this? For we have abandoned your
commandments, which you gave through your servants the prophets:
the land which you are entering to take as your possession is a
land unclean with the filth of the peoples of the land, with the
abominations with which they have filled it from one end to the
other in their uncleanness. Do not, then, give your daughters to
their sons in marriage, and do not take their daughters for your
sons. Never promote their peace and prosperity; thus you will grow
strong, enjoy the produce of the land, and leave it as an
inheritance to your children forever. After all that has come upon
us for our evil deeds and our great guilt-though you, our God,
have made less of our sinfulness than it deserved and have allowed
us to survive as we do - shall we again violate your commandments
by intermarrying with these abominable peoples? Would you not
become so angered with us as to destroy us without remnant or
survivor? O LORD, God of Israel, you are just; yet we have been
spared, the remnant we are today. Here we are before you in our
sins. Because of all this, we can no longer stand in your
presence." [EZRA 9:8-15]
When I heard this report, I began to weep and continued
mourning for several days; I fasted and prayed before the God of
heaven. I prayed: "O LORD, God of heaven, great and awesome
God, you who preserve your covenant of mercy toward those who love
you and keep your commandments, may your ear be attentive, and
your eyes open, to heed the prayer which I, your servant, now
offer in your presence day and night for your servants the
Israelites, confessing the sins which we of Israel have committed
against you, I and my father's house included. Grievously have we
offended you, not keeping the commandments, the statutes, and the
ordinances which you committed to your servant Moses. But
remember, I pray, the promise which you gave through Moses, your
servant, when you said: 'Should you prove faithless, I will
scatter you among the nations; but should you return to me and
carefully keep my commandments, even though your outcasts have
been driven to the farthest corner of the world, I will gather
them from there, and bring them back to the place which I have
chosen as the dwelling place for my name.' They are your servants,
your people, whom you freed by your great might and your strong
hand. O Lord, may your ear be attentive to my prayer and that of
all your willing servants who revere your name. Grant success to
your servant this day, and let him find favor with this
man"-for I was cupbearer to the king. [NEH 1:4-11]
Meanwhile the Judahites were saying: "Slackened is the
bearers' strength, there is no end to the rubbish; Never shall we
be able the wall to rebuild." [NEH 4:4]
He said further: "Go, eat rich foods and drink sweet
drinks, and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared; for
today is holy to our LORD. Do not be saddened this day, for
rejoicing in the LORD must be your strength!" [NEH 8:10]
"Now, children, I give you this command: serve God
faithfully and do what is right before him; you must tell your
children to do what is upright and to give alms, to be mindful of
God and at all times to bless his name sincerely and with all
their strength." [TOBIT 14:9]
For as I live, and by the strength of my kingdom, what I have
spoken I will accomplish by my power. [JDTH 2:12]
With ashes upon their turbans, they cried to the Lord with all
their strength to look with favor on the whole house of Israel. [JDTH
4:15]
"We are not afraid of the Israelites," they said, "for they are a powerless people, incapable of a strong defense. Let us therefore attack them; your great army, Lord Holofernes, will swallow them up."
[JDTH 5:23-24]
Their children fainted away, and the women and youths were
consumed with thirst and were collapsing in the streets and
gateways of the city, with no strength left in them. [JDTH 7:22]
"O God, my God, hear me also, a widow. It is you who were
the author of those events and of what preceded and followed them.
The present, also, and the future you have planned. Whatever you
devise comes into being; the things you decide on come forward and
say, 'Here we are!' All your ways are in readiness, and your
judgment is made with foreknowledge. Here are the Assyrians,
a vast force, priding themselves on horse and rider, boasting of
the power of their infantry, trusting in shield and spear, bow and
sling. They do not know that 'You, the Lord, crush warfare;
Lord is your name'. Shatter their strength in your might, and crush
their force in your wrath; for they have resolved to profane your
sanctuary, to defile the tent where your glorious name resides,
and to overthrow with iron the horns of your altar. See their
pride, and send forth your wrath upon their heads. Give me, a
widow, the strong hand to execute my plan. With the guile of my
lips, smite the slave together with the ruler, the ruler together
with his servant; crush their pride by the hand of a woman. Your strength is not in numbers, nor does your power depend
upon stalwart men; but you are the God of the lowly, the helper of
the oppressed, the supporter of the weak, the protector of the
forsaken, the savior of those without hope. Please, please,
God of my forefather, God of the heritage of Israel, Lord of
heaven and earth, Creator of the waters, King of all you have
created, hear my prayer! Let my guileful speech bring wound and
wale on those who have planned dire things against your covenant,
your holy temple, Mount Zion, and the homes your children have
inherited. Let your whole nation and all the tribes know clearly
that you are the god of all power and might, and that there is no
other who protects the people of Israel but you alone." [Taken
from JDTH 9:5-14]
She went to the bedpost near the head of Holofernes, and taking his sword from it, drew close to the bed, grasped the hair of his head, and said, "Strengthen me this day, O God of Israel!"
[JDTH 13:6-7]
Judith shouted to the guards from a distance: "Open! Open
the gate! God, our God, is with us. Once more he has made manifest
his strength in Israel and his power against our enemies; he has
done it this very day." [JDTH 13:11]
All Israel, too, cried out with all their strength, for death
was staring them in the face. [ESTH C:11]
After Alexander the Macedonian, Philip's son, who came from the
land of Kittim, had defeated Darius, king of the Persians and
Medes, he became king in his place, having first ruled in Greece.
He fought many campaigns, captured fortresses, and put kings to
death. He advanced to the ends of the earth, gathering plunder
from many nations; the earth fell silent before him, and his heart
became proud and arrogant. He collected a very strong army and
conquered provinces, nations, and rulers, and they became his
tributaries. But after all this he took to his bed, realizing that
he was going to die. [1MACC 1:1-5]
When his kingdom seemed secure, Antiochus proposed to become
king of Egypt, so as to rule over both kingdoms. He invaded Egypt
with a strong force, with chariots and elephants, and with a large
fleet, to make war on Ptolemy, king of Egypt. Ptolemy was
frightened at his presence and fled, leaving many casualties. The
fortified cities in the land of Egypt were captured, and Antiochus
plundered the land of Egypt. After Antiochus had defeated Egypt in
the year one hundred and forty-three, he returned and went up to
Israel and to Jerusalem with a strong force. He insolently invaded
the sanctuary and took away the golden altar, the lampstand for
the light with all its fixtures, the offering table, the cups and
the bowls, the golden censers, the curtain, the crowns, and the
golden ornament on the facade of the temple. He stripped off
everything, and took away the gold and silver and the precious
vessels; he also took all the hidden treasures he could find.
Taking all this, he went back to his own country, after he had
spoken with great arrogance and shed much blood. And there was
great mourning for Israel, in every place where they dwelt, and
the rulers and the elders groaned. Virgins and young men
languished, and the beauty of the women was disfigured. Every
bridegroom took up lamentation, she who sat in the bridal chamber
mourned, And the land was shaken on account of its inhabitants,
and all the house of Jacob was covered with shame. Two years
later, the king sent the Mysian commander to the cities of Judah,
and he came to Jerusalem with a strong force. He spoke to them
deceitfully in peaceful terms, and won their trust. Then he
attacked the city suddenly, in a great onslaught, and destroyed
many of the people in Israel. [1MACC 1:16-30]
When the time came for Mattathias to die, he said to his sons: "Arrogance and scorn have now grown strong; it is a time of disaster and violent anger. Therefore, my sons, be zealous for the law and give your lives for the covenant of our fathers."
[Taken from 1MACC 2:49-50]
And so, consider this from generation to generation, that none
who hope in him shall fail in strength. [1MACC 2:61]
Children! be courageous and strong in keeping the law, for by
it you shall be glorified. [1MACC 2:64]
When he reached the ascent of Beth-horon, Judas went out to
meet him with a few men. But when they saw the army coming against
them, they said to Judas: "How can we, few as we are, fight
such a mighty host as this? Besides, we are weak today from
fasting." But Judas said: "It is easy for many to be
overcome by a few; in the sight of Heaven there is no difference
between deliverance by many or by few; for victory in war does not
depend upon the size of the army, but on strength that comes from
Heaven. With great presumption and lawlessness they come against
us to destroy us and our wives and children and to despoil us; but
we are fighting for our lives and our laws. He himself will crush
them before us; so do not be afraid of them." [1MACC 3:16-22]
When Antiochus heard about these events, he was angry; so he ordered a muster of all the forces of his kingdom, a very strong army. He opened his treasure chests, gave his soldiers a year's pay, and commanded them to be prepared for anything.
[1MACC 3:27-28]
But at daybreak Judas appeared in the plain with three thousand
men, who lacked such armor and swords as they would have wished. They saw the army of the Gentiles, strong and breastplated,
flanked with cavalry, and made up of expert soldiers. Judas said
to the men with him: "Do not be afraid of their numbers or
dread their attack. Remember how our fathers were saved in the Red
Sea, when Pharaoh pursued them with an army. So now let us cry to
Heaven in the hope that he will favor us, remember his covenant
with our fathers, and destroy this army before us today. All the
Gentiles shall know that there is One who redeems and delivers
Israel." [1MACC 4:6-11]
They came into Idumea and camped at Beth-zur, and Judas met
them with ten thousand men. Seeing that the army was strong, he
prayed thus: "Blessed are you, O Savior of Israel, who broke
the rush of the mighty one by the hand of your servant David and
delivered the camp of the Philistines into the hand of Jonathan,
the son of Saul, and his armor-bearer. Give this army into the
hands of your people Israel; make them ashamed of their troops and
their cavalry. Strike them with fear, weaken the boldness of their
strength, and let them tremble at their own destruction. Strike
them down by the sword of those who love you, that all who know
your name may hymn your praise." Then they engaged in battle,
and about five thousand of Lysias' men fell in hand-to-hand
fighting. When Lysias saw his ranks beginning to give way, and the
increased boldness of Judas, whose men were ready either to live
or to die bravely, he withdrew to Antioch and began to recruit
mercenaries so as to return to Judea with greater numbers. [1MACC
4:29-35]
Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of
Israel decreed that the days of the dedication of the altar should
be observed with joy and gladness on the anniversary every year
for eight days, from the twenty-fifth day of the month Chislev. At
that time they built high walls and strong towers around Mount
Zion, to prevent the Gentiles from coming and trampling over it as
they had done before. Judas also placed a garrison there to
protect it, and likewise fortified Beth-zur, that the people might
have a stronghold facing Idumea. [1MACC 4:59-61]
This
topic continued on next page - Click here to view
more
alphabetical scripture | more
categorized scripture | top |
