Now when they told Jotham, he went and stood on top of Mount Gerizim, and lifted his voice and cried out. And he said to them: "Listen to me, you men of Shechem, That God may listen to you!

But the olive tree said to them, 'Should I cease giving my oil, With which they honor God and men, And go to sway over trees?'

But the fig tree said to them, 'Should I cease my sweetness and my good fruit, And go to sway over trees?'

But the vine said to them, 'Should I cease my new wine, Which cheers [both] God and men, And go to sway over trees?'

And the bramble said to the trees, 'If in truth you anoint me as king over you, [Then] come [and] take shelter in my shade; But if not, let fire come out of the bramble And devour the cedars of Lebanon!'

"for my father fought for you, risked his life, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian;

"if then you have acted in truth and sincerity with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, [then] rejoice in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you.

Then the LORD sent Nathan to David. And he came to him, and said to him: "There were two men in one city, one rich and the other poor.

"But the poor [man] had nothing, except one little ewe lamb which he had bought and nourished; and it grew up together with him and with his children. It ate of his own food and drank from his own cup and lay in his bosom; and it was like a daughter to him.

So David's anger was greatly aroused against the man, and he said to Nathan, "[As] the LORD lives, the man who has done this shall surely die!

Then Nathan said to David, "You [are] the man! Thus says the LORD God of Israel: 'I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul.

Then the king said to her, "What troubles you?" And she answered, "Indeed I [am] a widow, my husband is dead.

"And now the whole family has risen up against your maidservant, and they said, 'Deliver him who struck his brother, that we may execute him for the life of his brother whom he killed; and we will destroy the heir also.' So they would extinguish my ember that is left, and leave to my husband [neither] name nor remnant on the earth."

Then He began to speak to them in parables: "A man planted a vineyard and set a hedge around [it,] dug [a place for] the wine vat and built a tower. And he leased it to vinedressers and went into a far country.

"And they took [him] and beat him and sent [him] away empty-handed.

"And again he sent another, and him they killed; and many others, beating some and killing some.

"But those vinedressers said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.'

"Therefore what will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the vinedressers, and give the vineyard to others.

This was the LORD's doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes'?"

Then he said to him, "Thus says the LORD: 'Because you have let slip out of [your] hand a man whom I appointed to utter destruction, therefore your life shall go for his life, and your people for his people.' "

So they went in to offer sacrifices and burnt offerings. Now Jehu had appointed for himself eighty men on the outside, and had said, "[If] any of the men whom I have brought into your hands escapes, [whoever lets him escape, it shall be] his life for the life of the other."

"If there is imposed on him a sum of money, then he shall pay to redeem his life, whatever is imposed on him.

Because [there is] wrath, [beware] lest He take you away with [one] blow; For a large ransom would not help you avoid [it.]

None [of them] can by any means redeem [his] brother, Nor give to God a ransom for him --

He will accept no recompense, Nor will he be appeased though you give many gifts.

The ransom of a man's life [is] his riches, But the poor does not hear rebuke.

knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, [like] silver or gold, from your aimless conduct [received] by tradition from your fathers,

but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.