men of valor

¹²the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and he said: “The Lord is with you, most valiant of men.”

¹Then the Lord said to Joshua: “You should not fear, and you should not dread. Take with you the entire multitude of fighters, and rising up, ascend to the town of Ai. Behold, I have delivered into your hand its king and people, and the city and the land. ²And you shall do to the city of Ai, and to its king, just as you did to Jericho, and to its king. Yet truly, the spoils, and all the living things, you shall plunder for yourselves. Set an ambush against the city behind it.” ³And Joshua rose up, and the entire army of warriors with him, so that they might ascend against Ai. And he sent thirty thousand elect strong men in the night. ⁴And he instructed them, saying: “Set an ambush behind the city. You shall withdraw not far away, and let everyone be prepared. ⁵But I and the remainder of the multitude that is with me will approach from the opposite side of the city. And when they come out against us, we will flee and turn our backs, just as we did before, ⁶until, pursuing us, they are drawn away from the city. For they will think that we are fleeing as before.

⁷Similarly, you husbands should live with them in accord with knowledge, bestowing honor on the female as the weaker vessel and as co-heirs of the life of grace, so that your prayers may not be hindered.

⁸Then too, from Gad, there went over to David, when he was hiding in the desert, very robust men, who were excellent fighters, taking hold of shield and spear; their faces were like the faces of a lion, and they were swift like the roe deer upon the mountains.

⁹But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, an acquired people, so that you may announce the virtues of him who has called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. ¹⁰Though in past times you were not a people, yet now you are the people of God. Though you had not obtained mercy, yet now you have obtained mercy.

¹At that time, there was a Gileadite, Jephthah, a very strong man and a fighter, the son of a kept woman, and he was born of Gilead. ²Now Gilead had a wife, from whom he received sons. And they, after growing up, cast out Jephthah, saying, “You cannot inherit in the house of our father, because you were born of another mother.” ³And so, fleeing and avoiding them, he lived in the land of Tob. And men who were indigent and robbers joined with him, and they followed him as their leader. ⁴In those days, the sons of Ammon fought against Israel. ⁵And being steadfastly attacked, the elders of Gilead traveled so that they might obtain for their assistance Jephthah, from the land of Tob. ⁶And they said to him, “Come and be our leader, and fight against the sons of Ammon.”

¹“If you go out to battle against your enemies, and you see horsemen and chariots, and that the multitude of your adversary’s army is greater than your own, you shall not fear them. For the Lord your God, who led you away from the land of Egypt, is with you. ²Then, as the battle now draws near, the priest shall stand before the front ranks, and he shall speak to the people in this manner: ³‘Listen, O Israel! Today you engage in a battle against your enemies. Do not let your heart be overwhelmed with fear. Do not be apprehensive. Do not yield. You should have no dread of them. ⁴For the Lord your God is in your midst, and he will contend against your enemies on your behalf, so that he may rescue you from peril.’

¹A Psalm of David versus Goliath. Blessed is the Lord, my God, who trains my hands for the battle and my fingers for the war.

⁷And there was a great battle in heaven. Michael and his Angels were battling with the dragon, and the dragon was fighting, and so were his angels. ⁸But they did not prevail, and a place for them was no longer found in heaven. ⁹And he was thrown out, that great dragon, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, who seduces the whole world. And he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were cast down with him. ¹⁰And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying: “Now have arrived salvation and virtue and the kingdom of our God and the power of his Christ. For the accuser of our brothers has been cast down, he who accused them before our God day and night. ¹¹And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of his testimony. And they loved not their own lives, even unto death.

⁵And then Amaziah gathered together Judah, and he organized them by families, and tribunes, and centurions, throughout all of Judah and Benjamin. And he numbered them from twenty years old and upward. And he found three hundred thousand young men, who could go forth to battle, and who could hold spear and shield. ⁶Also, he hired for pay from Israel one hundred thousand experienced men, for one hundred talents of silver.

¹In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. ²He was with God in the beginning. ³All things were made through Him, and nothing that was made was made without Him. ⁴Life was in Him, and Life was the light of men. ⁵And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. ⁶There was a man sent by God, whose name was John.