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42 If I whet my glittering sword, and mine hand take hold on judgement, I will render vengeance to mine enemies, and will reward them that hate

me.

43 I will make mine arrows drunk with blood, and my sword shall devour flesh; and that with the blood of the slain and of the captives, from the beginning of revenges upon the ene

my.

44 Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people: for he will avenge the blood of his servants, and will render vengeance to his adversaries, and will be merciful unto his land and to his people.

¶45 And Moses came and spake all the words of this song in the ears of the people.

LESSON CXXXVIII.

Balaam's Prophecy.

AND Balaam lifted up his eyes, and he saw Israel abiding in his tents according to their tribes; and the spirit of God came upon him.

2 And he took up his parable, and said; Balaam the son of Beor hath said, and the man whose eyes are open hath said:

3 He hath said which heard the words of God, which saw the vision of the Almighty :

¶4 How goodly are thy tents, O Jacob! and thy tabernacles, O Israel!

5 As the valleys are they spread forth, as gardens by the river's side, as the trees of lign aloes which the Lord hath

planted, and as cedar-trees beside the waters.

6 He shall pour the water out of his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters, and his kingdom shall be exalted.

7 God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn: he shall eat up the nations his enemies, and shall break their bones, and pierce them through with his

arrows.

8 He couched, he lay down as a lion, and as a great lion; who shall stir him up? Blessed is he that blesseth thee, and cursed is he that curseth thee.

9 I shall see him, but not now I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Seth.

10 And Edom shall be a possession, Seir also shall be a possession for his enemies ; and Israel shall do valiantly.

11 Out of Jacob shall come he that shall have dominion, and shall destroy him that remaineth of the city.

12 And when he looked on Amalek, he took up his parable, and said; Amalek was the first of the nations; but his latter end shall be that he perish for ever.

13 And he looked on the Kenites, and took up his parable, and said; Strong is thy dwelling-place, and thou puttest thy nest in a rock:

14 Nevertheless the Kenite

shall be wasted, until Asshur and go to be promoted over the

shall carry thee away captive.

15 And he took up his parable, and said; Alas, who shall live when God doeth this?

16 And ships shall come from the coast of Chittim, and shall afflict Asshur, and shall afflict Eber, and he also shall perish for ever.

17 And Balaam rose up, and went and returned to his place.

LESSON CXXXIX.

Jotham's Fable.

AND Jotham went and stood in the top of mount Gerizim, and lifted up his voice, and cried :

2 Hearken unto me, ye men of Shechem, that God may hearken unto you.

3 The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olivetree, Reign thou over us.

4 But the olive-tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?

5 And the trees said to the fig-tree, Come thou, and reign

over us.

6 But the fig-tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees?

7 Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign

over us.

8 And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man,

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LESSON CXL.

Song of Deborah and Barak. THEN Sang Deborah, and Barak the son of Abinoam, on that day, saying,

¶2 Praise ye the Lord for the avenging of Israel, when the people willingly offered them. selves.

3 Hear, O ye kings; give ear, O ye princes: I, even I, will sing unto the Lord; I will sing praise to the Lord God of Israel.

4 Lord, when thou wentest out of Seir, when thou marchedst out of the field of Edom, the earth trembled, and the heavens dropped, the clouds also dropped water.

5 The mountains melted from before the Lord, even that Sinai from before the Lord God of Israel.

6 In the days of Shamgar the son of Anath, in the days of Jael, the high-ways were unoccupied, and the travellers walked through by-ways.

7 The inhabitants of the villages ceased; they ceased in Israel, until that I, Deborah,

arose, that I arose a mother in Israel.

8 They chose new gods; then was war in the gates: was there a shield or spear seen among forty thousand in Israel? 9 My heart is toward the governors of Israel, that offered themselves willingly among the people. Bless ye the Lord.

10 Speak, ye that ride on white asses, ye that sit in judge ment, and walk by the way.

11 They that are delivered from the noise of archers in the places of drawing water; there shall they rehearse the righteous acts of the Lord, even the righteous acts toward the inhabitants of his villages in Israel: then shall the people of the Lord go down to the gates, 12 Awake, awake, Deborah: awake, awake, utter a song: arise, Barak, and lead thy captivity captive, thou son of Abi

noam.

13 Then he made him that remaineth have dominion over the nobles among the people: the Lord made me have dominion over the mighty.

14 Out of Ephraim was there a root of them against Amalek; after thee, Benjamin, among thy people out of Machir came down governors, and out of Zebulun they that handle the pen of the writer.

15 And the princes of Issachar were with Deborah; even Issachar, and also Barak: he was sent on foot into the valley: for the divisions of Reuben there were great thoughts of heart.

16 Why abodest thou among the sheepfolds, to hear the bleatings of the flocks? for the divisions of Reuben there were great searchings of heart.

17 Gilead abode beyond Jordan: and why did Dan remain in ships? Asher continued on the sea-shore, and abode in his breaches.

18 Zebulun and Naphtali were a people that jeoparded their lives unto the death in the high places of the field.

19. The kings came and fought, then fought the kings of Canaan in Taanach by the waters of Megiddo: they took no gain of money.

20 They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera.

21 The river of Kishon swept them away, that ancient river, the river Kishon: O my soul, thou hast trodden down strength!

22 Then were the horse-hoofs broken by the means of the prancings, the prancings of their mighty ones.

23 Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be blessed shall she be above women in the tent.

24 He asked water, and she gave him milk; she brought forth butter in a lordly dish.

25 She put her hand to the nail, and her right hand to the workman's hammer: and with the hammer she smote Sisera, she smote off his head, when she had pierced and stricken through his temples.

26 At her feet he bowed, he

:

fell, he lay down at her feet he bowed, he fell where he bowed, there he fell down dead.

27 The mother of Sisera looked out at a window, and cried through the lattice, Why is his chariot so long in coming? why tarry the wheels of his chariots ?

28 Her wise ladies answered her, yea, she returned answer to herself,

29 Have they not sped? have they not divided the prey, to every man a damsel or two? to Sisera a prey of divers colours, a prey of divers colours of needle-work, of divers colours of needle-work on both sides, meet for the necks of them that take the spoil?

30 So let all thine enemies perish, O Lord: but let them that love him be as the sun when he goeth forth in his might.

LESSON CXLI.

David's Lament over Saul and Jonathan.

AND David lamented with this lamentation over Saul and over Jonathan his son:

2 The beauty of Israel is slain upon thy high places: how are the mighty fallen!

3 Tell it not in Gath, publish it not in the streets of Askelon: lest the daughters of the Philistines rejoice, lest the daughters of the uncircumcised triumph.

4 Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew, neither let there be rain upon you, nor fields of offerings: for there the

shield of the mighty is vilely cast away, the shield of Saul, as though he had not been anointed with oil.

5 From the blood of the slain, from the fat of the mighty, the bow of Jonathan turned not back, and the sword of Saul returned not empty.

6 Saul and Jonathan were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death they were not divided: they were swifter than eagles, they were stronger than lions.

7 Ye daughters of Israel, weep over Saul, who clothed you in scarlet, with other de lights, who put on ornaments of gold upon your apparel.

8 How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle! O Jonathan, thou wast slain in thine high places!

9 I am distressed for thee, my brother Jonathan: very pleasant hast thou been unto me: thy love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women.

10 How are the mighty fallen, and the weapons of war perished!

LESSON CXLII. David's Prayer for the building of the Temple.

DAVID blessed the Lord before all the congregation, and said;

¶2 Blessed be thou, Lord God of Israel, our father, for ever and ever.

3 Thine, O Lord, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty; for all that is in the

heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O Lord, and thou art exalted as head above all.

4 Both riches and honour come of thee, and thou reignest over all, and in thine hand is power and might: and in thine hand it is to make great, and to give strength unto all.

5 Now therefore, our God, we thank thee, and praise thy glorious name.

6 But who am I, and what is my people, that we should be able to offer so willingly after this sort? for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.

7 For we are strangers before thee, and sojourners, as were all our fathers; our days on the earth are as a shadow, and there is none abiding.

8 O Lord our God, all this store that we have prepared, to build thee an house for thine holy name, cometh of thine hand, and is all thine own.

9 I know also, my God, that thou triest the heart, and hast pleasure in uprightness. As for me, in the uprightness of mine heart I have willingly offered all these things: and now have I seen with joy thy people which are present here, to offer willingly unto thee.

10 O Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee:

11 And give unto Solomon my son a perfect heart to keep

thy commandments, thy testimonies and thy statutes, and to do all these things, and to build the palace, for the which I have made provision.

12 And David said to all the congregation, Now bless the Lord your God.

13 And all the congregation blessed the Lord God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads and worshiped the Lord.

LESSON CXLIII.

Solomon's Dedication of the Temple.

AND Solomon assembled the elders of Israel, and all the heads of the tribes, the chief of the fathers of the children of Israel, that they might bring up the ark of the covenant of the Lord out of the city of David, which is Zion.

2 So was ended all the work that king Solomon made for the house of the Lord. And Solomon brought in the things which David his father had dedicated; even the silver, and the gold, and the vessels, did he put among the treasures of the house of the Lord.

3 And all the men of Israel assembled themselves unto king Solomon at the feast in the month Ethanim, which is the seventh month.

4 And all the elders of Israel came, and the priests took up the ark.

5 And king Solomon, and all the congregation of Israel, that were assembled unto him, were with him before the ark,

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