1 Kings 20:39

²⁴So they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had appointed for himself eighty men outside, and said, “If any of the men whom I bring into your hands escape, he who lets him go, his life shall be for the life of him.”

¹⁸knowing that you were redeemed, not with corruptible things like silver or gold, from the useless way of life handed down from your fathers, ¹⁹but with precious blood, as of a lamb without blemish or spot, the blood of Christ,

¹He began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a pit for the wine press, built a tower, rented it out to a farmer, and went into another country. ²When it was time, he sent a servant to the farmer to get from the farmer his share of the fruit of the vineyard. ³They took him, beat him, and sent him away empty. ⁴Again, he sent another servant to them; and they threw stones at him, wounded him in the head, and sent him away shamefully treated. ⁵Again he sent another, and they killed him, and many others, beating some, and killing some. ⁶Therefore still having one, his beloved son, he sent him last to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ ⁷But those farmers said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ ⁸They took him, killed him, and cast him out of the vineyard. ⁹What therefore will the lord of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the farmers, and will give the vineyard to others. ¹⁰Haven’t you even read this Scripture: ‘The stone which the builders rejected was made the head of the corner. ¹¹This was from the Lord. It is marvelous in our eyes’?”

¹²They tried to seize him, but they feared the multitude; for they perceived that he spoke the parable against them. They left him and went away.

⁷When they told it to Jotham, he went and stood on the top of Mount Gerizim and lifted up his voice, cried out, and said to them, “Listen to me, you men of Shechem, that God may listen to you. ⁸The trees set out to anoint a king over themselves. They said to the olive tree, ‘Reign over us.’

⁹“But the olive tree said to them, ‘Should I stop producing my oil, with which they honor God and man by me, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

¹⁰“The trees said to the fig tree, ‘Come and reign over us.’

¹¹“But the fig tree said to them, ‘Should I leave my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

¹²“The trees said to the vine, ‘Come and reign over us.’

¹³“The vine said to them, ‘Should I leave my new wine, which cheers God and man, and go to wave back and forth over the trees?’

¹⁴“Then all the trees said to the bramble, ‘Come and reign over us.’

¹⁵“The bramble said to the trees, ‘If in truth you anoint me king over you, then come and take refuge in my shade; and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon.’

¹⁶“Now therefore, if you have dealt truly and righteously, in that you have made Abimelech king, and if you have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done to him according to the deserving of his hands ¹⁷(for my father fought for you, risked his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian; ¹⁸and you have risen up against my father’s house today and have slain his sons, seventy persons, on one stone, and have made Abimelech, the son of his female servant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother); ¹⁹if you then have dealt truly and righteously with Jerubbaal and with his house today, then rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you; ²⁰but if not, let fire come out from Abimelech and devour the men of Shechem and the house of Millo; and let fire come out from the men of Shechem and from the house of Millo and devour Abimelech.”

³⁰If a ransom is imposed on him, then he shall give for the redemption of his life whatever is imposed.

¹⁸Don’t let riches entice you to wrath, neither let the great size of a bribe turn you aside.

⁵The king said to her, “What ails you?” She answered, “Truly I am a widow, and my husband is dead.

⁶Your servant had two sons; and they both fought together in the field, and there was no one to part them, but the one struck the other and killed him. ⁷Behold, the whole family has risen against your servant, and they say, ‘Deliver him who struck his brother, that we may kill him for the life of his brother whom he killed, and so destroy the heir also.’ Thus they would quench my coal which is left, and would leave to my husband neither name nor remainder on the surface of the earth.”

³⁵He won’t regard any ransom, neither will he rest content, though you give many gifts.

¹The LORD sent Nathan to David. He came to him, and said to him, “There were two men in one city: the one rich, and the other poor. ²The rich man had very many flocks and herds, ³but the poor man had nothing, except one little ewe lamb, which he had bought and raised. It grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food, drank of his own cup, and lay in his bosom, and was like a daughter to him. ⁴A traveler came to the rich man, and he didn’t want to take of his own flock and of his own herd to prepare for the wayfaring man who had come to him, but took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.”

⁵David’s anger burned hot against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the LORD lives, the man who has done this deserves to die! ⁶He must restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing and because he had no pity!”

⁷Nathan said to David, “You are the man! This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul.

⁸The ransom of a man’s life is his riches, but the poor hear no threats.