2 Kings 20
New King James Version
Hezekiah’s Life Extended(A)
20 In (B)those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die, and not live.’ ”
2 Then he turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, saying, 3 (C)“Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a loyal heart, and have done what was good in Your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 And it happened, before Isaiah had gone out into the middle court, that the word of the Lord came to him, saying, 5 “Return and tell Hezekiah (D)the leader of My people, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: (E)“I have heard your prayer, I have seen (F)your tears; surely I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the Lord. 6 And I will add to your days fifteen years. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria; and (G)I will defend this city for My own sake, and for the sake of My servant David.” ’ ”
7 Then (H)Isaiah said, “Take a lump of figs.” So they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered.
8 And Hezekiah said to Isaiah, (I)“What is the sign that the Lord will heal me, and that I shall go up to the house of the Lord the third day?”
9 Then Isaiah said, (J)“This is the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do the thing which He has spoken: shall the shadow go forward ten degrees or go backward ten degrees?”
10 And Hezekiah answered, “It is an easy thing for the shadow to go down ten [a]degrees; no, but let the shadow go backward ten degrees.”
11 So Isaiah the prophet cried out to the Lord, and (K)He brought the shadow ten [b]degrees backward, by which it had gone down on the sundial of Ahaz.
The Babylonian Envoys(L)
12 (M)At that time [c]Berodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that Hezekiah had been sick. 13 And (N)Hezekiah was attentive to them, and showed them all the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and [d]all [e]his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
14 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?”
So Hezekiah said, “They came from a far country, from Babylon.”
15 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?”
So Hezekiah answered, (O)“They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”
16 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord: 17 ‘Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, (P)shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. 18 ‘And (Q)they shall take away some of your sons who will [f]descend from you, whom you will beget; (R)and they shall be (S)eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”
19 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, (T)“The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “Will there not be peace and truth at least in my days?”
Death of Hezekiah(U)
20 (V)Now the rest of the acts of Hezekiah—all his might, and how he (W)made a (X)pool and a [g]tunnel and (Y)brought water into the city—are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Judah? 21 So (Z)Hezekiah [h]rested with his fathers. Then Manasseh his son reigned in his place.
Footnotes
- 2 Kings 20:10 Lit. steps
- 2 Kings 20:11 Lit. steps
- 2 Kings 20:12 Merodach-Baladan, Is. 39:1
- 2 Kings 20:13 So with many Heb. mss., Syr., Tg.; MT omits all
- 2 Kings 20:13 Lit. the house of his armor
- 2 Kings 20:18 be born from
- 2 Kings 20:20 aqueduct
- 2 Kings 20:21 Died and joined his ancestors
Isaiah 38-39
New King James Version
Hezekiah’s Life Extended(A)
38 In (B)those days Hezekiah was sick and near death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, went to him and said to him, “Thus says the Lord: (C)‘Set your house in order, for you shall die and not live.’ ”
2 Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord, 3 and said, (D)“Remember now, O Lord, I pray, how I have walked before You in truth and with a [a]loyal heart, and have done what is good in Your (E)sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
4 And the word of the Lord came to Isaiah, saying, 5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘Thus says the Lord, the God of David your father: “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; surely I will add to your days fifteen years. 6 I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and (F)I will defend this city.” ’ 7 And this is (G)the sign to you from the Lord, that the Lord will do this thing which He has spoken: 8 Behold, I will bring the shadow on the sundial, which has gone down with the sun on the sundial of Ahaz, ten degrees backward.” So the sun returned ten degrees on the dial by which it had gone down.
9 This is the writing of Hezekiah king of Judah, when he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10 I said,
“In the prime of my life
I shall go to the gates of Sheol;
I am deprived of the remainder of my years.”
11 I said,
“I shall not see [b]Yah,
The Lord (H)in the land of the living;
I shall observe man no more [c]among the inhabitants of [d]the world.
12 (I)My life span is gone,
Taken from me like a shepherd’s tent;
I have cut off my life like a weaver.
He cuts me off from the loom;
From day until night You make an end of me.
13 I have considered until morning—
Like a lion,
So He breaks all my bones;
From day until night You make an end of me.
14 Like a crane or a swallow, so I chattered;
(J)I mourned like a dove;
My eyes fail from looking upward.
O [e]Lord, I am oppressed;
[f]Undertake for me!
15 “What shall I say?
[g]He has both spoken to me,
And He Himself has done it.
I shall walk carefully all my years
(K)In the bitterness of my soul.
16 O Lord, by these things men live;
And in all these things is the life of my spirit;
So You will restore me and make me live.
17 Indeed it was for my own peace
That I had great bitterness;
But You have lovingly delivered my soul from the pit of corruption,
For You have cast all my sins behind Your back.
18 For (L)Sheol cannot thank You,
Death cannot praise You;
Those who go down to the pit cannot hope for Your truth.
19 The living, the living man, he shall praise You,
As I do this day;
(M)The father shall make known Your truth to the children.
20 “The Lord was ready to save me;
Therefore we will sing my songs with stringed instruments
All the days of our life, in the house of the Lord.”
21 Now (N)Isaiah had said, “Let them take a lump of figs, and apply it as a poultice on the boil, and he shall recover.”
22 And (O)Hezekiah had said, “What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?”
The Babylonian Envoys(P)
39 At (Q)that time [h]Merodach-Baladan the son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had recovered. 2 (R)And Hezekiah was pleased with them, and showed them the house of his treasures—the silver and gold, the spices and precious ointment, and all his armory—all that was found among his treasures. There was nothing in his house or in all his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah, and said to him, “What did these men say, and from where did they come to you?”
So Hezekiah said, “They came to me from a (S)far country, from Babylon.”
4 And he said, “What have they seen in your house?”
So Hezekiah answered, “They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasures that I have not shown them.”
5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word of the Lord of hosts: 6 ‘Behold, the days are coming (T)when all that is in your house, and what your fathers have accumulated until this day, shall be carried to Babylon; nothing shall be left,’ says the Lord. 7 ‘And they shall take away some of your (U)sons who will descend from you, whom you will beget; and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ ”
8 So Hezekiah said to Isaiah, (V)“The word of the Lord which you have spoken is good!” For he said, “At least there will be peace and truth in my days.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 38:3 whole or peaceful
- Isaiah 38:11 Heb. Yah, Yah
- Isaiah 38:11 LXX omits among the inhabitants of the world
- Isaiah 38:11 So with some Heb. mss.; MT, Vg. rest; Tg. land
- Isaiah 38:14 So with Bg.; MT, DSS Lord
- Isaiah 38:14 Be my surety
- Isaiah 38:15 So with MT, Vg.; DSS, Tg. And shall I say to Him; LXX omits first half of this verse
- Isaiah 39:1 Berodach-Baladan, 2 Kin. 20:12
Psalm 75
New King James Version
Thanksgiving for God’s Righteous Judgment
To the Chief Musician. Set to (A)“Do[a] Not Destroy.” A Psalm of Asaph. A Song.
75 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks!
For Your wondrous works declare that Your name is near.
2 “When I choose the [b]proper time,
I will judge uprightly.
3 The earth and all its inhabitants are dissolved;
I set up its pillars firmly. Selah
4 “I said to the boastful, ‘Do not deal boastfully,’
And to the wicked, (B)‘Do not [c]lift up the horn.
5 Do not lift up your horn on high;
Do not speak with [d]a stiff neck.’ ”
6 For exaltation comes neither from the east
Nor from the west nor from the south.
7 But (C)God is the Judge:
(D)He puts down one,
And exalts another.
8 For (E)in the hand of the Lord there is a cup,
And the wine is red;
It is fully mixed, and He pours it out;
Surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth
Drain and drink down.
9 But I will declare forever,
I will sing praises to the God of Jacob.
10 “All(F) the [e]horns of the wicked I will also cut off,
But (G)the horns of the righteous shall be (H)exalted.”
Footnotes
- Psalm 75:1 Heb. Al Tashcheth
- Psalm 75:2 appointed
- Psalm 75:4 Raise the head proudly like a horned animal
- Psalm 75:5 Insolent pride
- Psalm 75:10 Strength
1 Peter 2
New King James Version
Our Inheritance Through Christ’s Blood
2 Therefore, (A)laying aside all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all evil speaking, 2 (B)as newborn babes, desire the pure (C)milk of the word, that you may grow [a]thereby, 3 if indeed you have (D)tasted that the Lord is gracious.
The Chosen Stone and His Chosen People(E)
4 Coming to Him as to a living stone, (F)rejected indeed by men, but chosen by God and precious, 5 you also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 Therefore it is also contained in the Scripture,
(G)“Behold, I lay in Zion
A chief cornerstone, elect, precious,
And he who believes on Him will by no means be put to shame.”
7 Therefore, to you who believe, He is precious; but to those who [b]are disobedient,
(H)“The stone which the builders rejected
Has become the chief cornerstone,”
8 and
(I)“A stone of stumbling
And a rock of offense.”
(J)They stumble, being disobedient to the word, (K)to which they also were appointed.
9 But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of (L)darkness into His marvelous light; 10 (M)who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.
Living Before the World
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts (N)which war against the soul, 12 (O)having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, (P)they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.
Submission to Government(Q)
13 (R)Therefore submit yourselves to every [c]ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, 14 or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. 15 For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— 16 (S)as free, yet not (T)using liberty as a cloak for [d]vice, but as bondservants of God. 17 Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear (U)God. Honor the king.
Submission to Masters(V)
18 (W)Servants, be submissive to your masters with all fear, not only to the good and gentle, but also to the harsh. 19 For this is (X)commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. 20 For (Y)what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. 21 For (Z)to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for [e]us, (AA)leaving [f]us an example, that you should follow His steps:
22 “Who(AB) committed no sin,
Nor was deceit found in His mouth”;
23 (AC)who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but (AD)committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24 (AE)who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, (AF)that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—(AG)by whose [g]stripes you were healed. 25 For (AH)you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned (AI)to the Shepherd and [h]Overseer of your souls.
Footnotes
- 1 Peter 2:2 NU adds up to salvation
- 1 Peter 2:7 NU disbelieve
- 1 Peter 2:13 institution
- 1 Peter 2:16 wickedness
- 1 Peter 2:21 NU you
- 1 Peter 2:21 NU, M you
- 1 Peter 2:24 wounds
- 1 Peter 2:25 Gr. Episkopos
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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