¹Now Solomon made a treaty with Pharaoh king of Egypt, and married Pharaoh’s daughter; then he brought her to the City of David until he had finished building his own house, and the house of the Lᴏʀᴅ, and the wall all around Jerusalem. ²Meanwhile the people sacrificed at the high places, because there was no house built for the name of the Lᴏʀᴅ until those days. ³And Solomon loved the Lᴏʀᴅ, walking in the statutes of his father David, except that he sacrificed and burned incense at the high places. ⁴Now the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place: Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. ⁵At Gibeon the Lᴏʀᴅ appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask! What shall I give you?” ⁶And Solomon said: “You have shown great mercy to Your servant David my father, because he walked before You in truth, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart with You; You have continued this great kindness for him, and You have given him a son to sit on his throne, as it is this day. ⁷Now, O Lᴏʀᴅ my God, You have made Your servant king instead of my father David, but I am a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in. ⁸And Your servant is in the midst of Your people whom You have chosen, a great people, too numerous to be numbered or counted. ⁹Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this great people of Yours?” ¹⁰The speech pleased the Lᴏʀᴅ, that Solomon had asked this thing. ¹¹Then God said to him: “Because you have asked this thing, and have not asked long life for yourself, nor have asked riches for yourself, nor have asked the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern justice, ¹²behold, I have done according to your words; see, I have given you a wise and understanding heart, so that there has not been anyone like you before you, nor shall any like you arise after you. ¹³And I have also given you what you have not asked: both riches and honor, so that there shall not be anyone like you among the kings all your days. ¹⁴So if you walk in My ways, to keep My statutes and My commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.” ¹⁵Then Solomon awoke; and indeed it had been a dream. And he came to Jerusalem and stood before the ark of the covenant of the Lᴏʀᴅ, offered up burnt offerings, offered peace offerings, and made a feast for all his servants. ¹⁶Now two women who were harlots came to the king, and stood before him. ¹⁷And one woman said, “O my lord, this woman and I dwell in the same house; and I gave birth while she was in the house. ¹⁸Then it happened, the third day after I had given birth, that this woman also gave birth. And we were together; no one was with us in the house, except the two of us in the house. ¹⁹And this woman’s son died in the night, because she lay on him. ²⁰So she arose in the middle of the night and took my son from my side, while your maidservant slept, and laid him in her bosom, and laid her dead child in my bosom. ²¹And when I rose in the morning to nurse my son, there he was, dead. But when I had examined him in the morning, indeed, he was not my son whom I had borne.” ²²Then the other woman said, “No! But the living one is my son, and the dead one is your son.” And the first woman said, “No! But the dead one is your son, and the living one is my son.” Thus they spoke before the king. ²³And the king said, “The one says, ‘This is my son, who lives, and your son is the dead one’; and the other says, ‘No! But your son is the dead one, and my son is the living one.’ ” ²⁴Then the king said, “Bring me a sword.” So they brought a sword before the king. ²⁵And the king said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to one, and half to the other.” ²⁶Then the woman whose son was living spoke to the king, for she yearned with compassion for her son; and she said, “O my lord, give her the living child, and by no means kill him!” But the other said, “Let him be neither mine nor yours, but divide him.” ²⁷So the king answered and said, “Give the first woman the living child, and by no means kill him; she is his mother.” ²⁸And all Israel heard of the judgment which the king had rendered; and they feared the king, for they saw that the wisdom of God was in him to administer justice.

¹Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, To the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus: ²Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. ³Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, ⁴just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, ⁵having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, ⁶to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. ⁷In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace ⁸which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence, ⁹having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, ¹⁰that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth—in Him. ¹¹In Him also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestined according to the purpose of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, ¹²that we who first trusted in Christ should be to the praise of His glory. ¹³In Him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, ¹⁴who is the guarantee of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, to the praise of His glory. ¹⁵Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, ¹⁶do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers: ¹⁷that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him, ¹⁸the eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that you may know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, ¹⁹and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power ²⁰which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, ²¹far above all principality and power and might and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. ²²And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, ²³which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

¹And the word of the Lᴏʀᴅ came to me, saying, ²“Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lᴏʀᴅ God to the shepherds: “Woe to the shepherds of Israel who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks? ³You eat the fat and clothe yourselves with the wool; you slaughter the fatlings, but you do not feed the flock. ⁴The weak you have not strengthened, nor have you healed those who were sick, nor bound up the broken, nor brought back what was driven away, nor sought what was lost; but with force and cruelty you have ruled them. ⁵So they were scattered because there was no shepherd; and they became food for all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. ⁶My sheep wandered through all the mountains, and on every high hill; yes, My flock was scattered over the whole face of the earth, and no one was seeking or searching for them.” ⁷‘Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lᴏʀᴅ: ⁸“as I live,” says the Lᴏʀᴅ God, “surely because My flock became a prey, and My flock became food for every beast of the field, because there was no shepherd, nor did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and did not feed My flock”— ⁹therefore, O shepherds, hear the word of the Lᴏʀᴅ! ¹⁰Thus says the Lᴏʀᴅ God: “Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require My flock at their hand; I will cause them to cease feeding the sheep, and the shepherds shall feed themselves no more; for I will deliver My flock from their mouths, that they may no longer be food for them.” ¹¹‘For thus says the Lᴏʀᴅ God: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. ¹²As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so will I seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day. ¹³And I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land; I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, in the valleys and in all the inhabited places of the country. ¹⁴I will feed them in good pasture, and their fold shall be on the high mountains of Israel. There they shall lie down in a good fold and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. ¹⁵I will feed My flock, and I will make them lie down,” says the Lᴏʀᴅ God. ¹⁶I will seek what was lost and bring back what was driven away, bind up the broken and strengthen what was sick; but I will destroy the fat and the strong, and feed them in judgment.” ¹⁷‘And as for you, O My flock, thus says the Lᴏʀᴅ God: “Behold, I shall judge between sheep and sheep, between rams and goats. ¹⁸Is it too little for you to have eaten up the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the residue of your pasture—and to have drunk of the clear waters, that you must foul the residue with your feet? ¹⁹And as for My flock, they eat what you have trampled with your feet, and they drink what you have fouled with your feet.” ²⁰‘Therefore thus says the Lᴏʀᴅ God to them: “Behold, I Myself will judge between the fat and the lean sheep. ²¹Because you have pushed with side and shoulder, butted all the weak ones with your horns, and scattered them abroad, ²²therefore I will save My flock, and they shall no longer be a prey; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. ²³I will establish one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them—My servant David. He shall feed them and be their shepherd. ²⁴And I, the Lᴏʀᴅ, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them; I, the Lᴏʀᴅ, have spoken. ²⁵“I will make a covenant of peace with them, and cause wild beasts to cease from the land; and they will dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. ²⁶I will make them and the places all around My hill a blessing; and I will cause showers to come down in their season; there shall be showers of blessing. ²⁷Then the trees of the field shall yield their fruit, and the earth shall yield her increase. They shall be safe in their land; and they shall know that I am the Lᴏʀᴅ, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them from the hand of those who enslaved them. ²⁸And they shall no longer be a prey for the nations, nor shall beasts of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and no one shall make them afraid. ²⁹I will raise up for them a garden of renown, and they shall no longer be consumed with hunger in the land, nor bear the shame of the Gentiles anymore. ³⁰Thus they shall know that I, the Lᴏʀᴅ their God, am with them, and they, the house of Israel, are My people,” says the Lᴏʀᴅ God.’ ” ³¹You are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are men, and I am your God,” says the Lᴏʀᴅ God.

¹A Song. A Psalm of Asaph. Do not keep silent, O God! Do not hold Your peace, And do not be still, O God! ²For behold, Your enemies make a tumult; And those who hate You have lifted up their head. ³They have taken crafty counsel against Your people, And consulted together against Your sheltered ones. ⁴They have said, “Come, and let us cut them off from being a nation, That the name of Israel may be remembered no more.” ⁵For they have consulted together with one consent; They form a confederacy against You: ⁶The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites; Moab and the Hagrites; ⁷Gebal, Ammon, and Amalek; Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre; ⁸Assyria also has joined with them; They have helped the children of Lot. Selah ⁹Deal with them as with Midian, As with Sisera, As with Jabin at the Brook Kishon, ¹⁰Who perished at En Dor, Who became as refuse on the earth. ¹¹Make their nobles like Oreb and like Zeeb, Yes, all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna, ¹²Who said, “Let us take for ourselves The pastures of God for a possession.” ¹³O my God, make them like the whirling dust, Like the chaff before the wind! ¹⁴As the fire burns the woods, And as the flame sets the mountains on fire, ¹⁵So pursue them with Your tempest, And frighten them with Your storm. ¹⁶Fill their faces with shame, That they may seek Your name, O Lᴏʀᴅ. ¹⁷Let them be confounded and dismayed forever; Yes, let them be put to shame and perish, ¹⁸That they may know that You, whose name alone is the Lᴏʀᴅ, Are the Most High over all the earth.

¹To the Chief Musician. On an instrument of Gath. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. How lovely is Your tabernacle, O Lᴏʀᴅ of hosts! ²My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lᴏʀᴅ; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. ³Even the sparrow has found a home, And the swallow a nest for herself, Where she may lay her young— Even Your altars, O Lᴏʀᴅ of hosts, My King and my God. ⁴Blessed are those who dwell in Your house; They will still be praising You. Selah ⁵Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, Whose heart is set on pilgrimage. ⁶As they pass through the Valley of Baca, They make it a spring; The rain also covers it with pools. ⁷They go from strength to strength; Each one appears before God in Zion. ⁸O Lᴏʀᴅ God of hosts, hear my prayer; Give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah ⁹O God, behold our shield, And look upon the face of Your anointed. ¹⁰For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness. ¹¹For the Lᴏʀᴅ God is a sun and shield; The Lᴏʀᴅ will give grace and glory; No good thing will He withhold From those who walk uprightly. ¹²O Lᴏʀᴅ of hosts, Blessed is the man who trusts in You!