He said this about Judah: Lord, hear Judah’s cry and bring him to his people. He fights for his cause with his own hands, but may you be a help against his foes.
Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over Israel’s young men and has no compassion on its fatherless and widows, for everyone is a godless evildoer, and every mouth speaks folly. In all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is still raised to strike.
Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are small among the clans of Judah; one will come from you to be ruler over Israel for me. His origin is from antiquity, from ancient times.
When you hear the sound of marching in the tops of the balsam trees, act decisively, for then the Lord will have gone out ahead of you to strike down the army of the Philistines.’
Then David enquired of the Lord: ‘Should I attack the Philistines? Will you hand them over to me? ’ The Lord replied to David, ‘Attack, for I will certainly hand the Philistines over to you.’
‘See, I am going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way before me. Then the Lord you seek will suddenly come to his temple, the Messenger of the covenant you delight in #– #see, he is coming,’ says the Lord of Armies.