Bible Verses About Inner Beauty

“You are altogether beautiful, my darling; in you there is no flaw.”

“Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.”

“But the LORD said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or height, for I have rejected him; the LORD does not see as man does. For man sees the outward appearance, but the LORD sees the heart.”

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.”

“She is more precious than rubies; nothing you desire compares with her. Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor. All her ways are pleasant, and all her paths are peaceful. She is a tree of life to those who embrace her, and those who lay hold of her are blessed.”

“Those who look to Him are radiant with joy; their faces shall never be ashamed.”

“He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men, yet they cannot fathom the work that God has done from beginning to end.”

“And why do you worry about clothes? Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin.”

“Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit.”

“Likewise, I want the women to adorn themselves with respectable apparel, with modesty, and with self-control, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, as is proper for women who profess to worship God.”

“But who are you, O man, to talk back to God? Shall what is formed say to Him who formed it, “Why did You make me like this?”

“Your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, for it was perfect in the splendor I bestowed on you, declares the Lord GOD.”

“Like a lily among the thorns is my darling among the maidens.”

“Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or set foot on the path of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the Law of the LORD, and on His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, yielding its fruit in season, whose leaf does not wither, and who prospers in all he does. Not so the wicked! For they are like chaff driven off by the wind. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD guards the path of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.”

“I have hidden Your word in my heart that I might not sin against You.”

“But now, this is what the LORD says— He who created you, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel: “Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name; you are Mine!”

“I am a rose of Sharon, a lily of the valley.”

“For physical exercise is of limited value, but godliness is valuable in every way, holding promise for the present life and for the one to come.”

“As water reflects the face, so the heart reflects the true man.”

“I am dark, yet lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon. Do not stare because I am dark, for the sun has gazed upon me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me a keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have neglected.”

“For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. What matters is faith expressing itself through love.”

“On my bed at night I sought the one I love; I sought him, but did not find him. I will arise now and go about the city, through the streets and squares. I will seek the one I love. So I sought him but did not find him. I encountered the watchmen on their rounds of the city: “Have you seen the one I love?” I had just passed them when I found the one I love. I held him and would not let go until I had brought him to my mother’s house, to the chamber of the one who conceived me. O daughters of Jerusalem, I adjure you by the gazelles and does of the field: Do not arouse or awaken love until the time is right. Who is this coming up from the wilderness like a column of smoke, scented with myrrh and frankincense from all the spices of the merchant? Behold, it is Solomon’s carriage, escorted by sixty of the mightiest men of Israel. All are skilled with the sword, experienced in warfare. Each has his sword at his side prepared for the terror of the night. King Solomon has made his carriage out of the timber of Lebanon. He has made its posts of silver, its base of gold, its seat of purple fabric. Its interior is inlaid with love by the daughters of Jerusalem. Come out, O daughters of Zion, and gaze at King Solomon, wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on the day of his wedding— the day of his heart’s rejoicing.”

“Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and our brother Sosthenes, To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I always thank my God for you because of the grace He has given you in Christ Jesus. For in Him you have been enriched in every way, in all speech and all knowledge, because our testimony about Christ was confirmed in you. Therefore you do not lack any spiritual gift as you eagerly await the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will sustain you to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful. I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree together, so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be united in mind and conviction. My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: Individuals among you are saying, “I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos,” “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Were you baptized into the name of Paul? I thank God that I did not baptize any of you except Crispus and Gaius, so no one can say that you were baptized into my name. Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas; beyond that I do not remember if I baptized anyone else. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with words of wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power. For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written: “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise; the intelligence of the intelligent I will frustrate.” Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the philosopher of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not know Him, God was pleased through the foolishness of what was preached to save those who believe. Jews demand signs and Greeks search for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than man’s strength. Brothers, consider the time of your calling: Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were powerful; not many were of noble birth. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly and despised things of the world, and the things that are not, to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast in His presence. It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: “Let him who boasts boast in the Lord.”

“Now there was not a man in all Israel as handsome and highly praised as Absalom. From the sole of his foot to the top of his head, he did not have a single flaw.”

“Be silent before Me, O islands, and let the peoples renew their strength. Let them come forward and testify; let us together draw near for judgment. Who has aroused one from the east and called him to his feet in righteousness? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings before him. He turns them to dust with his sword, to windblown chaff with his bow. He pursues them, going on safely, hardly touching the path with his feet. Who has performed this and carried it out, calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the LORD — the first and the last— I am He.” The islands see and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They approach and come forward. Each one helps the other and says to his brother, “Be strong!” The craftsman encourages the goldsmith, and he who wields the hammer cheers him who strikes the anvil, saying of the welding, “It is good.” He nails it down so it will not be toppled. “But you, O Israel, My servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, descendant of Abraham My friend— I brought you from the ends of the earth and called you from its farthest corners. I said, ‘You are My servant.’ I have chosen and not rejected you. Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be afraid, for I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will surely help you; I will uphold you with My righteous right hand. Behold, all who rage against you will be ashamed and disgraced; those who contend with you will be reduced to nothing and will perish. You will seek them but will not find them. Those who wage war against you will come to nothing. For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand and tells you: Do not fear, I will help you. Do not fear, O Jacob, you worm, O few men of Israel. I will help you,” declares the LORD. “Your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel. Behold, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff. You will winnow them, and a wind will carry them away; a gale will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the LORD; you will glory in the Holy One of Israel. The poor and needy seek water, but there is none; their tongues are parched with thirst. I, the LORD, will answer them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the barren heights, and fountains in the middle of the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water, and the dry land into flowing springs. I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and olive trees. I will set cypresses in the desert, elms and boxwood together, so that all may see and know, may consider and understand, that the hand of the LORD has done this and the Holy One of Israel has created it.” “Present your case,” says the LORD. “Submit your arguments,” says the King of Jacob. “Let them come and tell us what will happen. Tell the former things, so that we may reflect on them and know the outcome. Or announce to us what is coming. Tell us the things that are to come, so that we may know that you are gods. Yes, do something good or evil, that we may look on together in dismay. Behold, you are nothing and your work is of no value. Anyone who chooses you is detestable. I have raised up one from the north, and he has come — one from the east who calls on My name. He will march over rulers as if they were mortar, like a potter who treads the clay. Who has declared this from the beginning, so that we may know, and from times past, so that we may say: ‘He was right’? No one announced it, no one foretold it, no one heard your words. I was the first to tell Zion: ‘Look, here they are!’ And I gave to Jerusalem a herald of good news. When I look, there is no one; there is no counselor among them; when I ask them, they have nothing to say. See, they are all a delusion; their works amount to nothing; their images are as empty as the wind.[’]”

“Your heart grew proud of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor; so I cast you to the earth; I made you a spectacle before kings.”

“But Ruth replied: “Do not urge me to leave you or to turn from following you. For wherever you go, I will go, and wherever you live, I will live; your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD punish me, and ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me.”

“Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no stately form or majesty to attract us, no beauty that we should desire Him. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief. Like one from whom men hide their faces, He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. We all like sheep have gone astray, each one has turned to his own way; and the LORD has laid upon Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away, and who can recount His descendants? For He was cut off from the land of the living; He was stricken for the transgression of My people. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, nor was any deceit in His mouth. Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand. After the anguish of His soul, He will see the light of life and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant will justify many, and He will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoils with the strong, because He has poured out His life unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors. Yet He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.”

“When the disciples saw this, they were indignant and asked, “Why this waste? This perfume could have been sold at a high price, and the money given to the poor.” Aware of this, Jesus asked, “Why are you bothering this woman? She has done a beautiful deed to Me.”

“For the choirmaster. With stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph. A song. God is known in Judah; His name is great in Israel. His tent is in Salem, His dwelling place in Zion. There He shattered the flaming arrows, the shield and sword and weapons of war. Selah You are resplendent with light, more majestic than mountains filled with game. The valiant lie plundered; they sleep their last sleep. No men of might could lift a hand. At Your rebuke, O God of Jacob, both horse and rider lie stunned. You alone are to be feared. When You are angry, who can stand before You? From heaven You pronounced judgment, and the earth feared and was still when God rose up to judge, to save all the lowly of the earth. Selah Even the wrath of man shall praise You; with the survivors of wrath You will clothe Yourself. Make and fulfill your vows to the LORD your God; let all the neighboring lands bring tribute to Him who is to be feared. He breaks the spirits of princes; He is feared by the kings of the earth.”

“Then you will call upon Me and come and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”

“And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god. Behold, you are wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you! By your wisdom and understanding you have gained your wealth and amassed gold and silver for your treasuries. By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, but your heart has grown proud because of it. Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Because you regard your heart as the heart of a god, behold, I will bring foreigners against you, the most ruthless of nations. They will draw their swords against the beauty of your wisdom and will defile your splendor. They will bring you down to the Pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the seas. Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’ in the presence of those who slay you? You will be only a man, not a god, in the hands of those who wound you. You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of foreigners. For I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.” Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, take up a lament for the king of Tyre and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God. Every kind of precious stone adorned you: ruby, topaz, and diamond, beryl, onyx, and jasper, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald. Your mountings and settings were crafted in gold, prepared on the day of your creation. You were anointed as a guardian cherub, for I had ordained you. You were on the holy mountain of God; you walked among the fiery stones. From the day you were created you were blameless in your ways— until wickedness was found in you. By the vastness of your trade, you were filled with violence, and you sinned. So I drove you in disgrace from the mountain of God, and I banished you, O guardian cherub, from among the fiery stones. Your heart grew proud of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor; so I cast you to the earth; I made you a spectacle before kings. By the multitude of your iniquities and the dishonesty of your trading you have profaned your sanctuaries. So I made fire come from within you, and it consumed you. I reduced you to ashes on the ground in the eyes of all who saw you. All the nations who know you are appalled over you. You have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’” Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face against Sidon and prophesy against her. And you are to declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I am against you, O Sidon, and I will be glorified within you. They will know that I am the LORD when I execute judgments against her and demonstrate My holiness through her. I will send a plague against her and shed blood in her streets; the slain will fall within her, while the sword is against her on every side. Then they will know that I am the LORD. For the people of Israel will no longer face a pricking brier or a painful thorn from all around them who treat them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD.’ This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they have been scattered, I will show Myself holy among them in the sight of the nations. Then they will dwell in their own land, which I have given to My servant Jacob. And there they will dwell securely, build houses, and plant vineyards. They will dwell securely when I execute judgments against all those around them who treat them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God.’”

“You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.”

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

“Then Job answered: “I have heard many things like these; miserable comforters are you all. Is there no end to your long-winded speeches? What provokes you to continue testifying? I could also speak like you if you were in my place; I could heap up words against you and shake my head at you. But I would encourage you with my mouth, and the consolation of my lips would bring relief. Even if I speak, my pain is not relieved, and if I hold back, how will it go away? Surely He has now exhausted me; You have devastated all my family. You have bound me, and it has become a witness; my frailty rises up and testifies against me. His anger has torn me and opposed me; He gnashes His teeth at me. My adversary pierces me with His eyes. They open their mouths against me and strike my cheeks with contempt; they join together against me. God has delivered me to unjust men; He has thrown me to the clutches of the wicked. I was at ease, but He shattered me; He seized me by the neck and crushed me. He has set me up as His target; His archers surround me. He pierces my kidneys without mercy and spills my gall on the ground. He breaks me with wound upon wound; He rushes me like a mighty warrior. I have sewn sackcloth over my skin; I have buried my horn in the dust. My face is red with weeping, and deep shadows ring my eyes; yet my hands are free of violence and my prayer is pure. O earth, do not cover my blood; may my cry for help never be laid to rest. Even now my witness is in heaven, and my advocate is on high. My friends are my scoffers as my eyes pour out tears to God. Oh, that a man might plead with God as he pleads with his neighbor!”

“And I find more bitter than death the woman who is a snare, whose heart is a net, and whose hands are chains. The man who pleases God escapes her, but the sinner is ensnared.”

“How the gold has become tarnished, the pure gold has become dull! The gems of the temple lie scattered on every street corner. How the precious sons of Zion, once worth their weight in pure gold, are now esteemed as jars of clay, the work of a potter’s hands! Even jackals offer their breasts to nurse their young, but the daughter of my people has become cruel, like an ostrich in the wilderness. The nursing infant’s tongue clings in thirst to the roof of his mouth. Little children beg for bread, but no one gives them any. Those who once ate delicacies are destitute in the streets; those brought up in crimson huddle in ash heaps. The punishment of the daughter of my people is greater than that of Sodom, which was overthrown in an instant without a hand turned to help her. Her dignitaries were brighter than snow, whiter than milk; their bodies were more ruddy than rubies, their appearance like sapphires. But now their appearance is blacker than soot; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it has become as dry as a stick. Those slain by the sword are better off than those who die of hunger, who waste away, pierced with pain because the fields lack produce. The hands of compassionate women have cooked their own children, who became their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people. The LORD has exhausted His wrath; He has poured out His fierce anger; He has kindled a fire in Zion, and it has consumed her foundations. The kings of the earth did not believe, nor any people of the world, that an enemy or a foe could enter the gates of Jerusalem. But this was for the sins of her prophets and the guilt of her priests, who shed the blood of the righteous in her midst. They wandered blind in the streets, defiled by this blood, so that no one dared to touch their garments. “Go away! Unclean!” men shouted at them. “Away, away! Do not touch us!” So they fled and wandered. Among the nations it was said, “They can stay here no longer.” The presence of the LORD has scattered them; He regards them no more. The priests are shown no honor; the elders find no favor. All the while our eyes were failing as we looked in vain for help. We watched from our towers for a nation that could not save us. They stalked our every step, so that we could not walk in our streets. Our end drew near, our time ran out, for our end had come! Those who chased us were swifter than the eagles in the sky; they pursued us over the mountains and ambushed us in the wilderness. The LORD’s anointed, the breath of our life, was captured in their pits. We had said of him, “Under his shadow we will live among the nations.” So rejoice and be glad, O Daughter of Edom, you who dwell in the land of Uz. Yet the cup will pass to you as well; you will get drunk and expose yourself. O Daughter of Zion, your punishment is complete; He will not prolong your exile. But He will punish your iniquity, O Daughter of Edom; He will expose your sins.”

“I hope you will put up with a little of my foolishness, but you are already doing that. I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. For I promised you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ. I am afraid, however, that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may be led astray from your simple and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims a Jesus other than the One we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit than the One you received, or a different gospel than the one you accepted, you put up with it very easily. I consider myself in no way inferior to those “super-apostles.” Although I am not a polished speaker, I am certainly not lacking in knowledge. We have made this clear to you in every way possible. Was it a sin for me to humble myself in order to exalt you, because I preached the gospel of God to you free of charge? I robbed other churches by accepting their support in order to serve you. And when I was with you and in need, I was not a burden to anyone; for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied my needs. I have refrained from being a burden to you in any way, and I will continue to do so. As surely as the truth of Christ is in me, this boasting of mine will not be silenced in the regions of Achaia. Why? Because I do not love you? God knows I do! But I will keep on doing what I am doing, in order to undercut those who want an opportunity to be regarded as our equals in the things of which they boast. For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions. I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little. In this confident boasting of mine, I am not speaking as the Lord would, but as a fool. Since many are boasting according to the flesh, I too will boast. For you gladly put up with fools, since you are so wise. In fact, you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or exalts himself or strikes you in the face. To my shame I concede that we were too weak for that! Speaking as a fool, however, I can match what anyone else dares to boast about. Are they Hebrews? So am I. Are they Israelites? So am I. Are they descendants of Abraham? So am I. Are they servants of Christ? (I am speaking as if I were out of my mind.) I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. In my frequent journeys, I have been in danger from rivers and from bandits, in danger from my countrymen and from the Gentiles, in danger in the city and in the country, in danger on the sea and among false brothers, in labor and toil and often without sleep, in hunger and thirst and often without food, in cold and exposure. Apart from these external trials, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches. Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is led into sin, and I do not burn with grief? If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness. The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, who is forever worthy of praise, knows that I am not lying. In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas secured the city of the Damascenes in order to arrest me. But I was lowered in a basket through a window in the wall and escaped his grasp.”

“Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.”

“When Samuel died, all Israel gathered to mourn for him; and they buried him at his home in Ramah. Then David set out and went down to the Wilderness of Paran. Now there was a man in Maon whose business was in Carmel. He was a very wealthy man with a thousand goats and three thousand sheep, which he was shearing in Carmel. His name was Nabal, and his wife’s name was Abigail. She was an intelligent and beautiful woman, but her husband, a Calebite, was harsh and evil in his dealings. While David was in the wilderness, he heard that Nabal was shearing sheep. So David sent ten young men and instructed them, “Go up to Nabal at Carmel. Greet him in my name and say to him, ‘Long life to you, and peace to you and to your house and to all that belongs to you. Now I hear that it is time for shearing. When your shepherds were with us, we did not harass them, and nothing of theirs was missing the whole time they were in Carmel. Ask your young men, and they will tell you. So let my young men find favor with you, for we have come on the day of a feast. Please give whatever you can spare to your servants and to your son David.’” When David’s young men arrived, they relayed all these words to Nabal on behalf of David. Then they waited. But Nabal asked them, “Who is David? Who is this son of Jesse? Many servants these days are breaking away from their masters. Why should I take my bread and water and the meat I have slaughtered for my shearers, and give them to these men whose origin I do not know?” So David’s men turned around and went back, and they relayed to him all these words. And David said to his men, “Strap on your swords!” So David and all his men strapped on their swords, and about four hundred men followed David, while two hundred stayed with the supplies. Meanwhile, one of Nabal’s young men informed Nabal’s wife Abigail, “Look, David sent messengers from the wilderness to greet our master, but he screamed at them. Yet these men were very good to us. When we were in the field, we were not harassed, and nothing of ours went missing the whole time we lived among them. They were a wall around us, both day and night, the whole time we were herding our sheep near them. Now consider carefully what you must do, because disaster looms over our master and all his household. For he is such a scoundrel that nobody can speak to him!” Then Abigail hurried and took two hundred loaves of bread, two skins of wine, five butchered sheep, five seahs of roasted grain, a hundred clusters of raisins, and two hundred cakes of figs. She loaded them on donkeys and said to her young men, “Go ahead of me. I will be right behind you.” But she did not tell her husband Nabal. As Abigail came riding her donkey into a mountain ravine, she saw David and his men coming down toward her, and she met them. Now David had just said, “In vain I have protected all that belonged to this man in the wilderness. Nothing that belongs to him has gone missing, yet he has paid me back evil for good. May God punish David, and ever so severely, if I let one male belonging to Nabal survive until morning.” When Abigail saw David, she quickly got off the donkey, fell facedown, and bowed before him. She fell at his feet and said, “My lord, may the blame be on me alone, but please let your servant speak to you; hear the words of your servant. My lord should pay no attention to this scoundrel Nabal, for he lives up to his name: His name means Fool, and folly accompanies him. I, your servant, did not see my lord’s young men whom you sent. Now, my lord, as surely as the LORD lives and you yourself live, since the LORD has held you back from bloodshed and from avenging yourself with your own hand, may your enemies and those who seek harm for my lord be like Nabal. Now let this gift your servant has brought to my lord be given to the young men who follow you. Please forgive your servant’s offense, for the LORD will surely make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because he fights the LORD’s battles. May no evil be found in you as long as you live. And should someone pursue you and seek your life, then the life of my lord will be bound securely by the LORD your God in the bundle of the living. But He shall fling away the lives of your enemies like stones from a sling. When the LORD has done for my lord all the good He promised, and when He has appointed you ruler over Israel, then my lord will have no remorse or guilt of conscience over needless bloodshed and revenge. And when the LORD has dealt well with my lord, may you remember your servant.” Then David said to Abigail, “Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, who sent you to meet me this day! Blessed is your discernment, and blessed are you, because today you kept me from bloodshed and from avenging myself by my own hand. Otherwise, as surely as the LORD, the God of Israel, lives, who has restrained me from harming you, if you had not come quickly to meet me, then surely no male belonging to Nabal would have been left alive by morning light.” Then David accepted from her hand what she had brought him, and he said to her, “Go home in peace. See, I have heeded your voice and granted your request.” When Abigail returned to Nabal, there he was in the house, holding a feast fit for a king, in high spirits and very drunk. So she told him nothing until morning light. In the morning when Nabal was sober, his wife told him about these events, and his heart failed within him, and he became like a stone. About ten days later, the LORD struck Nabal dead. On hearing that Nabal was dead, David said, “Blessed be the LORD, who has upheld my cause against the reproach of Nabal and has restrained His servant from evil. For the LORD has brought the wickedness of Nabal down upon his own head.” Then David sent word to Abigail, asking her to become his wife. When his servants came to Abigail at Carmel, they said, “David has sent us to take you as his wife.” She arose, bowed facedown, and said, “Here is your servant, ready to serve and to wash the feet of my lord’s servants.” So Abigail hurried and got on a donkey, and attended by five of her maidens, she followed David’s messengers and became his wife. David had also married Ahinoam of Jezreel. So she and Abigail were both his wives. But Saul had given his daughter Michal, David’s wife, to Palti son of Laish, who was from Gallim.”

“When David returned home to bless his own household, Saul’s daughter Michal came out to meet him. “How the king of Israel has distinguished himself today!” she said. “He has uncovered himself today in the sight of the maidservants of his subjects, like a vulgar person would do.”

“For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. Without speech or language, without a sound to be heard, their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens He has pitched a tent for the sun. Like a bridegroom emerging from his chamber, like a champion rejoicing to run his course, it rises at one end of the heavens and runs its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived of its warmth. The Law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is trustworthy, making wise the simple. The precepts of the LORD are right, bringing joy to the heart; the commandments of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true, being altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. By them indeed Your servant is warned; in keeping them is great reward. Who can discern his own errors? Cleanse me from my hidden faults. Keep Your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then I will be blameless and cleansed of great transgression. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”

“Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— whom shall I dread? When the wicked came upon me to devour my flesh, my enemies and foes stumbled and fell. Though an army encamps around me, my heart will not fear; though a war breaks out against me, I will keep my trust. One thing I have asked of the LORD; this is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and seek Him in His temple. For in the day of trouble He will hide me in His shelter; He will conceal me under the cover of His tent; He will set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be held high above my enemies around me. At His tabernacle I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the LORD. Hear, O LORD, my voice when I call; be merciful and answer me. My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek. Hide not Your face from me, nor turn away Your servant in anger. You have been my helper; do not leave me or forsake me, O God of my salvation. Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me. Teach me Your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path, because of my oppressors. Do not hand me over to the will of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, breathing out violence. Still I am certain to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. Wait patiently for the LORD; be strong and courageous. Wait patiently for the LORD!”

“For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Lilies.” A Maskil of the sons of Korah. A love song. My heart is stirred by a noble theme as I recite my verses to the king; my tongue is the pen of a skillful writer. You are the most handsome of men; grace has anointed your lips; therefore God has blessed you forever. Strap your sword at your side, O mighty warrior; appear in your majesty and splendor. In your splendor ride forth in victory on behalf of truth and humility and justice; may your right hand show your awesome deeds. Your arrows pierce the hearts of the king’s foes; the nations fall beneath your feet. Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever, and justice is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you above your companions with the oil of joy. All your garments are fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia; from palaces of ivory the harps make you glad. The daughters of kings are among your honored women; the queen stands at your right hand, adorned with the gold of Ophir. Listen, O daughter! Consider and incline your ear: Forget your people and your father’s house, and the king will desire your beauty; bow to him, for he is your lord. The Daughter of Tyre will come with a gift; men of wealth will seek your favor. All glorious is the princess in her chamber; her gown is embroidered with gold. In colorful garments she is led to the king; her virgin companions are brought before you. They are led in with joy and gladness; they enter the palace of the king. Your sons will succeed your fathers; you will make them princes throughout the land. I will commemorate your name through all generations; therefore the nations will praise you forever and ever.”

“For the choirmaster. To the tune of “The Lily of the Covenant.” A Miktam of David for instruction. When he fought Aram-naharaim and Aram-zobah, and Joab returned and struck down 12,000 Edomites in the Valley of Salt. You have rejected us, O God; You have broken us; You have been angry; restore us! You have shaken the land and torn it open. Heal its fractures, for it is quaking. You have shown Your people hardship; we are staggered from the wine You made us drink. You have raised a banner for those who fear You, that they may flee the bow. Selah Respond and save us with Your right hand, that Your beloved may be delivered. God has spoken from His sanctuary: “I will triumph! I will parcel out Shechem and apportion the Valley of Succoth. Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim is My helmet, Judah is My scepter. Moab is My washbasin; upon Edom I toss My sandal; over Philistia I shout in triumph.” Who will bring me to the fortified city? Who will lead me to Edom? Have You not rejected us, O God? Will You no longer march out, O God, with our armies? Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless. With God we will perform with valor, and He will trample our enemies.”

“My son, pay attention to my wisdom; incline your ear to my insight, that you may maintain discretion and your lips may preserve knowledge. Though the lips of the forbidden woman drip honey and her speech is smoother than oil, in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a double-edged sword. Her feet go down to death; her steps lead straight to Sheol. She does not consider the path of life; she does not know that her ways are unstable. So now, my sons, listen to me, and do not turn aside from the words of my mouth. Keep your path far from her; do not go near the door of her house, lest you concede your vigor to others, and your years to one who is cruel; lest strangers feast on your wealth, and your labors enrich the house of a foreigner. At the end of your life you will groan when your flesh and your body are spent, and you will say, “How I hated discipline, and my heart despised reproof! I did not listen to the voice of my teachers or incline my ear to my mentors. I am on the brink of utter ruin in the midst of the whole assembly.” Drink water from your own cistern, and running water from your own well. Why should your springs flow in the streets, your streams of water in the public squares? Let them be yours alone, never to be shared with strangers. May your fountain be blessed, and may you rejoice in the wife of your youth: A loving doe, a graceful fawn— may her breasts satisfy you always; may you be captivated by her love forever. Why be captivated, my son, by an adulteress, or embrace the bosom of a stranger? For a man’s ways are before the eyes of the LORD, and the LORD examines all his paths. The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him. He dies for lack of discipline, led astray by his own great folly.”

“Like a gold ring in a pig’s snout is a beautiful woman who lacks discretion. The desire of the righteous leads only to good, but the hope of the wicked brings wrath. One gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what is right, only to become poor. A generous soul will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. The people will curse the hoarder of grain, but blessing will crown the one who sells it. He who searches out good finds favor, but evil will come to him who seeks it.”

“Futility of futilities,” says the Teacher, “futility of futilities! Everything is futile!”

“This is Solomon’s Song of Songs. Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is more delightful than wine. The fragrance of your perfume is pleasing; your name is like perfume poured out. No wonder the maidens adore you. Take me away with you— let us hurry! May the king bring me to his chambers. We will rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine. It is only right that they adore you. I am dark, yet lovely, O daughters of Jerusalem, like the tents of Kedar, like the curtains of Solomon. Do not stare because I am dark, for the sun has gazed upon me. My mother’s sons were angry with me; they made me a keeper of the vineyards, but my own vineyard I have neglected. Tell me, O one I love, where do you pasture your sheep? Where do you rest them at midday? Why should I be like a veiled woman beside the flocks of your companions? If you do not know, O fairest of women, follow the tracks of the flock, and graze your young goats near the tents of the shepherds. I compare you, my darling, to a mare among Pharaoh’s chariots. Your cheeks are beautiful with ornaments, your neck with strings of jewels. We will make you ornaments of gold, studded with beads of silver. While the king was at his table, my perfume spread its fragrance. My beloved is to me a sachet of myrrh resting between my breasts. My beloved is to me a cluster of henna blossoms in the vineyards of En-gedi. How beautiful you are, my darling! Oh, how very beautiful! Your eyes are like doves. How handsome you are, my beloved! Oh, how delightful! The soft grass is our bed. The beams of our house are cedars; our rafters are fragrant firs.”

“A voice of one calling: “Prepare the way for the LORD in the wilderness; make a straight highway for our God in the desert. Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground will become smooth, and the rugged land a plain. And the glory of the LORD will be revealed, and all humanity together will see it.” For the mouth of the LORD has spoken. A voice says, “Cry out!” And I asked, “What should I cry out?” “All flesh is like grass, and all its glory like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall when the breath of the LORD blows on them; indeed, the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.” Go up on a high mountain, O Zion, herald of good news. Raise your voice loudly, O Jerusalem, herald of good news. Lift it up, do not be afraid! Say to the cities of Judah, “Here is your God!” Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might, and His arm establishes His rule. His reward is with Him, and His recompense accompanies Him. He tends His flock like a shepherd; He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart. He gently leads the nursing ewes. Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or marked off the heavens with the span of his hand? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on a scale and the hills with a balance? Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, or informed Him as His counselor? Whom did He consult to enlighten Him, and who taught Him the paths of justice? Who imparted knowledge to Him and showed Him the way of understanding? Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are considered a speck of dust on the scales; He lifts up the islands like fine dust. Lebanon is not sufficient for fuel, nor its animals enough for a burnt offering. All the nations are as nothing before Him; He regards them as nothingness and emptiness. To whom will you liken God? To what image will you compare Him? To an idol that a craftsman casts and a metalworker overlays with gold and fits with silver chains? One lacking such an offering chooses wood that will not rot. He seeks a skilled craftsman to set up an idol that will not topple. Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood since the foundation of the earth? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth; its dwellers are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a curtain, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He brings the princes to nothing and makes the rulers of the earth meaningless. No sooner are they planted, no sooner are they sown, no sooner have their stems taken root in the ground, than He blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like stubble. “To whom will you liken Me, or who is My equal?” asks the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He leads forth the starry host by number; He calls each one by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing. Why do you say, O Jacob, and why do you assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, and my claim is ignored by my God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary; His understanding is beyond searching out.”