A herald loudly proclaimed, "People of every nation and language, you are commanded:

But whoever does not fall down and worship will immediately be thrown into a furnace of blazing fire."

So they approached the king and asked about his edict: "Didn't you sign an edict that for 30 days any man who petitions any god or man except you, the king, will be thrown into the lions' den?" The king answered, "As a law of the Medes and Persians, the order stands and is irrevocable."

"When you help the Hebrew women give birth, observe them as they deliver. If the child is a son, kill him, but if it's a daughter, she may live."

Pharaoh then commanded all his people: "You must throw every son born to the Hebrews into the Nile, but let every daughter live."

The royal scribes were summoned on the thirteenth day of the first month, and the order was written exactly as Haman commanded. [It was intended for] the royal satraps, the governors of each of the provinces, and the officials of each ethnic group and written for each province in its own script and to each ethnic group in its own language. It was written in the name of King Ahasuerus and sealed with the royal signet ring.

A copy of the text, issued as law throughout every province, was distributed to all the peoples so that they might get ready for that day.

Can a corrupt throne-- one that creates trouble by law-- become Your ally?

I also observed under the sun: there is wickedness at the place of judgment and there is wickedness at the place of righteousness.

Woe to those enacting crooked statutes and writing oppressive laws

The chief priests and the Pharisees had given orders that if anyone knew where He was, he should report it so they could arrest Him.

And he requires everyone-- small and great, rich and poor, free and slave-- to be given a mark on his right hand or on his forehead,

so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark: the beast's name or the number of his name.

Then Miriam the prophetess, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand, and all the women followed her with tambourines and dancing.

Miriam sang to them: Sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted; He has thrown the horse and its rider into the sea.

But Moses replied: It's not the sound of a victory cry and not the sound of a cry of defeat; I hear the sound of singing!

As he approached the camp and saw the calf and the dancing, Moses became enraged and threw the tablets out of his hands, smashing them at the base of the mountain.

Then David told the leaders of the Levites to appoint their relatives as singers and to have them raise their voices with joy accompanied by musical instruments-- harps, lyres, and cymbals.

So all Israel was bringing the ark of the covenant of the LORD up with shouts, the sound of the ram's horn, trumpets, and cymbals, and the playing of harps and lyres.

Asaph was the chief and Zechariah was second to him. Jeiel, Shemiramoth, Jehiel, Mattithiah, Eliab, Benaiah, Obed-edom, and Jeiel played the harps and lyres, while Asaph [sounded] the cymbals

and the priests Benaiah and Jahaziel [blew] the trumpets regularly before the ark of the covenant of God.

David and the officers of the army also set apart some of the sons of Asaph, Heman, and Jeduthun, who were to prophesy accompanied by lyres, harps, and cymbals. This is the list of the men who performed their service:

From Jeduthun: Jeduthun's sons: Gedaliah, Zeri, Jeshaiah, Shimei, Hashabiah, and Mattithiah-- six-- under the authority of their father Jeduthun, prophesying to the accompaniment of lyres, giving thanks and praise to the LORD.

All these sons of Heman, the king's seer, were [given] by the promises of God to exalt him, for God had given Heman fourteen sons and three daughters.

Hezekiah stationed the Levites in the LORD's temple with cymbals, harps, and lyres according to the command of David, Gad the king's seer, and Nathan the prophet. For the command was from the LORD through His prophets.

[For the choir director: on the Gittith. Of Asaph.] Sing for joy to God our strength; shout in triumph to the God of Jacob.

Blow the horn during the new moon and during the full moon, on the day of our feast.

[A psalm. A song for the Sabbath day.] It is good to praise the LORD, to sing praise to Your name, Most High,

with a ten-stringed harp and the music of a lyre.

Let them praise His name with dancing and make music to Him with tambourine and lyre.

For the LORD takes pleasure in His people; He adorns the humble with salvation.

Praise Him with trumpet blast; praise Him with harp and lyre.

Praise Him with resounding cymbals; praise Him with clashing cymbals.

They improvise songs to the sound of the harp and invent their own musical instruments like David.