“Please don't kill my son,” the baby's mother screamed. “Your Majesty, I love him very much, but give him to her. Just don't kill him.” The other woman shouted, “Go ahead and cut him in half. Then neither of us will have the baby.”
Three days later, on the twentieth day of the ninth month, everyone from Judah and Benjamin came to Jerusalem and sat in the temple courtyard. It was a serious meeting, and they sat there, trembling in the rain.
until time for the evening sacrifice. Many of our people were greatly concerned and gathered around me, because the God of Israel had warned us to stay away from foreigners.
I have made everything; that's how it all came to be. I, the LORD, have spoken. The people I treasure most are the humble— they depend only on me and tremble when I speak.
When a woman is about to give birth, she is in great pain. But after it is all over, she forgets the pain and is happy, because she has brought a child into the world.
My dear friends, you always obeyed when I was with you. Now that I am away, you should obey even more. So work with fear and trembling to discover what it really means to be saved.
Be on your guard against any followers who refuse to obey what we have written in this letter. Put them to shame by not having anything to do with them.