2 Chronicles 15; 2 Chronicles 16; John 12:27-50

1 And the spirit of God came upon Azarias the son of Oded,

2 And he went out to meet Asa, and said to him: Hear ye me, Asa, and all Juda and Benjamin: The Lord is with you, because you have been with him. If you seek him, you shall find: but if you forsake him, he will forsake you.

3 And many days shall pass in Israel, without the true God, and without a priest a teacher, and without the law.

4 And when in their distress they shall return to the Lord the God of Israel, and shall seek him, they shall find him.

5 At that time there shall be no peace to him that goeth out and cometh in, but terrors on every side among all the inhabitants of the earth.

6 For nation shall fight against nation, and city against city, for the Lord will trouble them with all distress.

7 Do you therefore take courage, and let not your hands be weakened: for there shall be a reward for your work.

8 And when Asa had heard the words, and the prophecy of Azarias the son of Oded the prophet, he took courage, and took away the idols out of all the land of Juda, and out of Benjamin, and out of the cities of mount Ephraim, which he had taken, and he dedicated the altar of the Lord, which was before the porch of the Lord.

9 And he gathered together all Juda and Benjamin, and the strangers with them of Ephraim, and Manasses, and Simeon: for many were come over to him out of Israel, seeing that the Lord his God was with him.

10 And when they were come to Jerusalem in the third month, in the fifteenth year of the reign of Asa,

11 They sacrificed to the Lord in that day of the spoils, and of the prey, that they had brought, seven hundred oxen, and seven thousand rams.

12 And he went in to confirm as usual the covenant, that they should seek the Lord the God of their fathers with all their heart, and with all their soul.

13 And if any one, said he, seek not the Lord the God of Israel, let him die, whether little or great, man or woman.

14 And they swore to the Lord with a loud voice with joyful shouting, and with sound of trumpet, and sound of cornets,

15 All that were in Juda with a curse: for with all their heart they swore, and with all their will they sought him, and they found him, and the Lord gave them rest round about.

16 Moreover Maacha the mother of king Asa he deposed from the royal authority, because she had made in a grove an idol of Priapus: and he entirely destroyed it, and breaking it into pieces, burnt it at the torrent Cedron.

17 But high places were left in Israel: nevertheless the heart of Asa was perfect all his days.

18 And the things which his father had vowed, and he himself had vowed, he brought into the house of the Lord, gold and silver, and vessels of divers uses.

19 And there was no war unto the five and thirtieth year of the kingdom of Asa.

1 And in the six and thirtieth year of his kingdom, Baasa the king of Israel came up against Juda, and built a wall about Rama, that no one might safely go out or come in of the kingdom of Asa.

2 Then Asa brought out silver and gold out of the treasures of the house of the Lord, and of the king’s treasures, and sent to Benadad king of Syria, who dwelt in Damascus, saying:

3 There is a league between me and thee, as there was between my father and thy father, wherefore I have sent thee silver and gold, that thou mayst break thy league with Baasa king of Israel, and make him depart from me.

4 And when Benadad heard this, he sent the captains of his armies against the cities of Israel: and they took Ahion, and Dan, and Abelmaim, and all the walled cities of Nephtali.

5 And when Baasa heard of it, he left off the building of Rama, and interrupted his work.

6 Then king Asa took all Juda, and they carried away from Rama the stones, and the timber that Baasa had prepared for the building: and he built with them Gabaa, and Maspha.

7 At that time Hanani the prophet came to Asa king of Juda, and said to him: Because thou hast had confidence in the king of Syria, and not in the Lord thy God, therefore hath the army of the king of Syria escaped out of thy hand.

8 Were not the Ethiopians, and the Libyans much more numerous in chariots, and horsemen, and an exceeding great multitude: yet because thou trustedst in the Lord, he delivered them into thy hand?

9 For the eyes of the Lord behold all the earth, and give strength to those who with a perfect heart trust in him. Wherefore thou hast done foolishly, and for this cause from this time wars shall arise against thee.

10 And Asa was angry with the seer, and commanded him to be put in prison: for he was greatly enraged because of this thing: and he put to death many of the people at that time.

11 But the works of Asa the first and last are written in the book of the kings of Juda and Israel.

12 And Asa fell sick in the nine and thirtieth year of his reign, of a most violent pain in his feet, and yet in his illness he did not seek the Lord, but rather trusted in the skill of physicians.

13 And he slept with his fathers: and he died in the one and fortieth year of his reign.

14 And they buried him in his own sepulchre, which he had made for himself in the city of David: and they laid him on his bed full of spices and odoriferous ointments, which were made by the art of the perfumers, and they burnt them over him with very great pomp.

27 Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour. But for this cause I came unto this hour.

28 Father, glorify thy name. A voice therefore came from heaven: I have both glorified it and will glorify it again.

29 The multitude therefore that stood and heard said that it thundered. Others said: An angel spoke to him.

30 Jesus answered and said: This voice came not because of me, but for your sakes.

31 Now is the judgment of the world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.

32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all things to myself.

33 (Now this he said, signifying what death he should die.)

34 The multitude answered him: We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever. And how sayest thou: The Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man?

35 Jesus therefore said to them: Yet a little while, the light is among you. Walk whilst you have the light, and the darkness overtake you not. And he that walketh in darkness knoweth not whither be goeth.

36 Whilst you have the light, believe in the light, that you may be the children of light. These things Jesus spoke: and he went away and hid himself from them.

37 And whereas he had done so many miracles before them, they believed not in him:

38 That the saying of Isaias the prophet might be fulfilled, which he said: Lord, who hath believed our hearing? And to whom hath the arm of the Lord been revealed?

39 Therefore they could not believe, because Isaias said again:

40 He hath blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, that they should not see with their eyes, nor understand with their heart and be converted: and I should heal them.

41 These things said Isaias, when he saw his glory, and spoke of him.

42 However, many of the chief men also believed in him: but because of the Pharisees they did not confess him, that they might not be cast out of the synagogue.

43 For they loved the glory of men more than the glory of God.

44 But Jesus cried and said: He that believeth in me doth not believe in me, but in him that sent me.

45 And he that seeth me, seeth him that sent me.

46 I am come, a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in me may not remain in darkness.

47 And if any man hear my words and keep them not, I do not judge him for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

48 He that despiseth me and receiveth not my words hath one that judgeth him. The word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

49 For I have not spoken of myself: but the Father who sent me, he gave me commandment what I should say and what I should speak.

50 And I know that his commandment is life everlasting. The things therefore that I speak, even as the Father said unto me, so do I speak.