The Ark Brought to Jerusalem

6 ^(A)David again gathered all the chosen men of Israel, thirty thousand. ² And David arose and went with all the people who were with him from ^(B)Baale-judah ^(C)to bring up from there the ark of God, which is called by the name of the Lord of hosts ^(D)who sits enthroned on the cherubim. ³ And they carried the ark of God ^(E)on a new cart and brought it ^(F)out of the house of Abinadab, which was on the hill. And Uzzah and Ahio,^[a] the sons of Abinadab, were driving the new cart, ⁴ with the ark of God,^[b] and Ahio went before the ark.

Uzzah and the Ark

⁵ And David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord, with ^(G)songs^[c] and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals. ⁶ And when they came to the threshing floor of ^(H)Nacon, Uzzah ^(I)put out his hand to the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen stumbled. ⁷ And the anger of the Lord was kindled against Uzzah, and ^(J)God struck him down there because of his error, and he died there beside the ark of God. ⁸ And David was angry because the Lord had broken out against Uzzah. And that place is called Perez-uzzah^[d] to this day. ⁹ And David was afraid of the Lord that day, and he said, “How can the ark of the Lord come to me?” ¹⁰ So David was not willing to take the ark of the Lord into the city of David. But David took it aside ^(K)to the house of Obed-edom the Gittite. ¹¹ And the ark of the Lord remained in the house of Obed-edom the Gittite three months, ^(L)and the Lord blessed Obed-edom and all his household.

¹² And it was told King David, “The Lord has blessed the household of Obed-edom and all that belongs to him, because of the ark of God.” ^(M)So David went and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-edom ^(N)to the city of David with rejoicing. ¹³ And when ^(O)those who bore the ark of the Lord had gone six steps, ^(P)he sacrificed an ox and a fattened animal. ¹⁴ And David ^(Q)danced before the Lord with all his might. And David was ^(R)wearing a linen ephod. ¹⁵ So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouting and with the sound of the horn.

David and Michal

¹⁶ As the ark of the Lord came into the city of David, Michal the daughter of Saul looked out of the window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord, and she despised him in her heart. ¹⁷ And they brought in the ark of the Lord and set it ^(S)in its place, inside the tent that David had pitched for it. ^(T)And David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the Lord. ¹⁸ And when David had finished offering the burnt offerings and the peace offerings, ^(U)he blessed the people in the name of the Lord of hosts ¹⁹ and distributed among all the people, the whole multitude of Israel, both men and women, a cake of bread, a portion of meat,^[e] and a cake of raisins to each one. ^(V)Then all the people departed, each to his house.

²⁰ And David returned to bless his household. But Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David and said, “How the king of Israel honored himself today, ^(W)uncovering himself today before the eyes of his servants' female servants, as one of the ^(X)vulgar fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!” ²¹ And David said to Michal, “It was before the Lord, ^(Y)who chose me above your father and above all his house, to appoint me as prince^[f] over Israel, the people of the Lord—and I will celebrate before the Lord. ²² I will make myself yet more contemptible than this, and I will be abased in your^[g] eyes. But by the female servants of whom you have spoken, by them I shall be held in honor.” ²³ And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child to the day of her death.

The Lord's Covenant with David

7 ^(Z)Now when the king lived in his house and the Lord ^(AA)had given him rest from all his surrounding enemies, ² the king said to ^(AB)Nathan the prophet, “See now, I dwell ^(AC)in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells ^(AD)in a tent.” ³ And Nathan said to the king, ^(AE)“Go, do all that is in your heart, for the Lord is with you.”

⁴ But that same night the word of the Lord came to Nathan, ⁵ “Go and tell my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord: ^(AF)Would you build me a house to dwell in? ⁶ I have not lived in a house ^(AG)since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about ^(AH)in a tent for my dwelling. ⁷ In all places where ^(AI)I have moved with all the people of Israel, did I speak a word with ^(AJ)any of the judges^[h] of Israel, whom I commanded ^(AK)to shepherd my people Israel, saying, “Why have you not built me a house of cedar?”’ ⁸ Now, therefore, thus you shall say to my servant David, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, ^(AL)I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, that you should be prince^[i] over my people Israel. ^9 (AM)And I have been with you wherever you went and have cut off all your enemies from before you. And I will make for you a great name, like the name of the great ones of the earth. ¹⁰ And I will appoint a place for my people Israel ^(AN)and will plant them, so that they may dwell in their own place ^(AO)and be disturbed no more. ^(AP)And violent men shall afflict them no more, as formerly, ^11 (AQ)from the time that I appointed judges over my people Israel. And ^(AR)I will give you rest from all your enemies. Moreover, the Lord declares to you that ^(AS)the Lord will make you a house. ^12 (AT)When your days are fulfilled and ^(AU)you lie down with your fathers, ^(AV)I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom. ^13 (AW)He shall build a house for my name, and ^(AX)I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. ^14 (AY)I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son. When he commits iniquity, ^(AZ)I will discipline him with the rod of men, with the stripes of the sons of men, ^15 (BA)but my steadfast love will not depart from him, ^(BB)as I took it from Saul, whom I put away from before you. ^16 (BC)And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me.^{[j] (BD)}Your throne shall be established forever.’” ¹⁷ In accordance with all these words, and in accordance with all this vision, Nathan spoke to David.

David's Prayer of Gratitude

¹⁸ Then King David went in and sat before the Lord and said, ^(BE)“Who am I, O Lord God, and what is my house, that you have brought me thus far? ¹⁹ And yet this was a small thing in your eyes, O Lord God. ^(BF)You have spoken also of your servant's house for a great while to come, and this is instruction for mankind, O Lord God! ²⁰ And what more can David say to you? ^(BG)For you know your servant, O Lord God! ²¹ Because of your promise, and according to your own heart, you have brought about all this greatness, to make your servant know it. ^22 (BH)Therefore you are great, O Lord God. ^(BI)For there is none like you, and there is no God besides you, according to all that we have heard with our ears. ^23 (BJ)And who is like your people Israel, the one nation on earth whom God went to redeem to be his people, making himself a name ^(BK)and doing for them^[k] great and awesome things by driving out before your people,^[l] whom ^(BL)you redeemed for yourself from Egypt, a nation and its gods? ^24 (BM)And you established for yourself your people Israel to be your people forever. And you, O Lord, became their God. ²⁵ And now, O Lord God, confirm forever the word that you have spoken concerning your servant and concerning his house, and do as you have spoken. ²⁶ And your name will be magnified forever, saying, ‘The Lord of hosts is God over Israel,’ and the house of your servant David will be established before you. ²⁷ For you, O Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, have made this revelation to your servant, saying, ‘I will build you a house.’ Therefore your servant has found courage to pray this prayer to you. ²⁸ And now, O Lord God, you are God, and ^(BN)your words are true, and you have promised this good thing to your servant. ²⁹ Now therefore may it please you to bless the house of your servant, so that it may continue forever before you. For you, O Lord God, have spoken, ^(BO)and with your blessing shall the house of your servant be blessed forever.”

David's Victories

8 ^(BP)After this David defeated the Philistines and subdued them, and David took ^(BQ)Metheg-ammah out of the hand of the Philistines.

^2 (BR)And he defeated Moab and he measured them with a line, making them lie down on the ground. Two lines he measured to be put to death, and one full line to be spared. And the Moabites ^(BS)became servants to David and ^(BT)brought tribute.

³ David also defeated ^(BU)Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of ^(BV)Zobah, as he went to restore his power at the river Euphrates. ^4 (BW)And David took from him 1,700 horsemen, and 20,000 foot soldiers. And David ^(BX)hamstrung all the chariot horses but left enough for 100 chariots. ^5 (BY)And when the ^(BZ)Syrians of Damascus came to help ^(CA)Hadadezer king of ^(CB)Zobah, David struck down 22,000 men of the Syrians. ⁶ Then David put garrisons in Aram of Damascus, and the Syrians ^(CC)became servants to David and brought tribute. ^(CD)And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went. ⁷ And David took ^(CE)the shields of gold that were carried by the servants of Hadadezer and brought them to Jerusalem. ⁸ And from Betah and from Berothai, cities of Hadadezer, King David took very much bronze.

⁹ When Toi king of ^(CF)Hamath heard that David had defeated the whole army of Hadadezer, ¹⁰ Toi sent his son Joram to King David, to ask about his health and to bless him because he had fought against Hadadezer and defeated him, for Hadadezer had often been at war with Toi. And Joram brought with him articles of silver, of gold, and of bronze. ^11 (CG)These also King David dedicated to the Lord, together with the silver and gold that he dedicated from all the nations he subdued, ¹² from Edom, ^(CH)Moab, ^(CI)the Ammonites, ^(CJ)the Philistines, ^(CK)Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadadezer the son of Rehob, king of ^(CL)Zobah.

¹³ And David made a name for himself when he returned from striking down 18,000 Edomites in ^(CM)the Valley of Salt. ¹⁴ Then he put garrisons in Edom; throughout all Edom he put garrisons, ^(CN)and all the Edomites became David's servants. And the Lord gave victory to David wherever he went.

David's Officials

¹⁵ So David reigned over all Israel. And David administered justice and equity to all his people. ^16 (CO)Joab the son of Zeruiah was over the army, and ^(CP)Jehoshaphat the son of Ahilud was recorder, ¹⁷ and ^(CQ)Zadok the son of Ahitub and Ahimelech the son of Abiathar were priests, and ^(CR)Seraiah was secretary, ¹⁸ and ^(CS)Benaiah the son of Jehoiada was over^[m] the ^(CT)Cherethites and the Pelethites, and David's sons were priests.

David's Kindness to Mephibosheth

9 And David said, “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may ^(CU)show him kindness for Jonathan's sake?” ² Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was ^(CV)Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” ³ And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show ^(CW)the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of ^(CX)Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” ⁴ The king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “He is in the house of ^(CY)Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.” ⁵ Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. ⁶ And ^(CZ)Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” ⁷ And David said to him, “Do not fear, ^(DA)for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and ^(DB)you shall eat at my table always.” ⁸ And he paid homage and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for ^(DC)a dead dog such as I?”

⁹ Then the king called Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master's grandson. ¹⁰ And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master's grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master's grandson ^(DD)shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had ^(DE)fifteen sons and twenty servants. ¹¹ Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your servant do.” So Mephibosheth ^(DF)ate at David's^[n] table, like one of the king's sons. ¹² And Mephibosheth had a young son, ^(DG)whose name was Mica. And all who lived in Ziba's house became Mephibosheth's servants. ¹³ So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for ^(DH)he ate always at the king's table. Now ^(DI)he was lame in both his feet.

Jesus Foretells Destruction of the Temple

24 ^(A)Jesus left the temple and was going away, when his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. ² But he answered them, “You see all these, do you not? Truly, I say to you, ^(B)there will not be left here one stone upon another that will not be thrown down.”

Signs of the End of the Age

³ As he sat on ^(C)the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him ^(D)privately, saying, “Tell us, ^(E)when will these things be, and what will be the sign of your ^(F)coming and of ^(G)the end of the age?” ⁴ And Jesus answered them, ^(H)“See that no one leads you astray. ⁵ For ^(I)many will come in my name, saying, ‘I am ^(J)the Christ,’ and they will lead many astray. ⁶ And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you ^(K)are not alarmed, for this ^(L)must take place, but the end is not yet. ⁷ For ^(M)nation will rise against nation, and ^(N)kingdom against kingdom, and there will be ^(O)famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸ All these are but the beginning of ^(P)the birth pains.

⁹ “Then ^(Q)they will deliver you up ^(R)to tribulation and ^(S)put you to death, and ^(T)you will be hated by all nations for my name's sake. ¹⁰ And then many will fall away^[a] and ^(U)betray one another and hate one another. ¹¹ And many ^(V)false prophets will arise ^(W)and lead many astray. ¹² And because lawlessness will be increased, ^(X)the love of many will grow cold. ^13 (Y)But the one who endures to the end will be saved. ¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom ^(Z)will be proclaimed throughout the whole world ^(AA)as a testimony ^(AB)to all nations, and ^(AC)then the end will come.

The Abomination of Desolation

¹⁵ “So when you see the abomination of desolation ^(AD)spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in ^(AE)the holy place (^(AF)let the reader understand), ¹⁶ then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ^17 (AG)Let the one who is on ^(AH)the housetop not go down to take what is in his house, ¹⁸ and let the one who is in the field not turn back to take his cloak. ¹⁹ And ^(AI)alas for women who are pregnant and for those who are nursing infants in those days! ²⁰ Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a Sabbath. ²¹ For then there will be ^(AJ)great tribulation, ^(AK)such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. ²² And if those days had not been cut short, no human being would be saved. But for ^(AL)the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. ^23 (AM)Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There he is!’ do not believe it. ²⁴ For ^(AN)false christs and ^(AO)false prophets will arise and ^(AP)perform great signs and wonders, ^(AQ)so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. ²⁵ See, ^(AR)I have told you beforehand. ²⁶ So, if they say to you, ‘Look, ^(AS)he is in the wilderness,’ do not go out. If they say, ‘Look, he is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it. ^27 (AT)For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be ^(AU)the coming of the Son of Man. ^28 (AV)Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

The Coming of the Son of Man

²⁹ “Immediately after ^(AW)the tribulation of those days ^(AX)the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and ^(AY)the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. ³⁰ Then ^(AZ)will appear in heaven ^(BA)the sign of the Son of Man, and then ^(BB)all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and ^(BC)they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven ^(BD)with power and great glory. ³¹ And ^(BE)he will send out his angels with a loud ^(BF)trumpet call, and they will ^(BG)gather ^(BH)his elect from ^(BI)the four winds, ^(BJ)from one end of heaven to the other.

The Lesson of the Fig Tree

³² “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. ³³ So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, ^(BK)at the very gates. ^34 (BL)Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place. ^35 (BM)Heaven and earth will pass away, but ^(BN)my words will not pass away.

No One Knows That Day and Hour

³⁶ “But concerning that day and hour ^(BO)no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, ^(BP)nor the Son,^{[b] (BQ)}but the Father only. ^37 (BR)For as were the days of Noah, ^(BS)so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ^38 (BT)For as in those days before the flood they were eating and drinking, ^(BU)marrying and giving in marriage, until ^(BV)the day when Noah entered the ark, ³⁹ and they were unaware until the flood came and swept them all away, ^(BW)so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ⁴⁰ Then two men will be in the field; one will be taken and one left. ^41 (BX)Two women will be grinding ^(BY)at the mill; one will be taken and one left. ⁴² Therefore, ^(BZ)stay awake, for you do not know on what day ^(CA)your Lord is coming. ^43 (CB)But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what part of the night ^(CC)the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁴ Therefore you also must be ^(CD)ready, for ^(CE)the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.

⁴⁵ “Who then is ^(CF)the faithful and ^(CG)wise servant,^[c] whom his master has set over his household, to give them their food at the proper time? ^46 (CH)Blessed is that servant whom his master will find so doing when he comes. ⁴⁷ Truly, I say to you, ^(CI)he will set him over all his possessions. ⁴⁸ But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master ^(CJ)is delayed,’ ⁴⁹ and begins to beat his fellow servants^[d] and eats and drinks with ^(CK)drunkards, ⁵⁰ the master of that servant will come ^(CL)on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know ⁵¹ and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place ^(CM)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.