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King Josiah 640 BC to 608 BC, king of Judah
48. 2 Kings 23:27 Josiah abolished all idolatry throughout Judah but the LORD said: "Even Judah will I put out of My sight as I did Israel. I will reject this city, Jerusalem, which I chose, and the temple of which I said, 'There shall My Name be.'

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Entering into the Books of Chronicles. There are book 1 and book 2 of Chronicles. They are books that list events from the time of King Saul up to the time the Jews returned to Israel after their exile. You will read entries that have been presented before from the book of Samuel or the book of Kings because Chronicles are another source of information for us that has been compiled into the Bible.

49. 1 Chronicles 13:6 David and all Israel went up to baalah, that is, to Kiriath-jearim, of Judah, to bring back the ark of God, which was known by the Name "LORD enthroned upon the cherubim."

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50. 1 Chronicles Chapter 16 verses 2-3, 7-10, 28-30, and 34-36.
verses 2-3 When David had finished offering up the holocausts and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the Name of the LORD, and distributed to every Israelite, to every man and to every woman, a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a raisin cake.
verses 7-10 Then, on that same day, David appointed Asaph and his brethren to sing for the first time these praises of the LORD: Give thanks to the LORD, invoke His Name; make known among the nations His deeds. Sing to Him, sing His praise, proclaim all His wondrous deeds. Glory in His holy Name; rejoice, O hearts that seek the LORD!
verses 28-30 Give to the LORD, you families of nations, give to the LORD glory and praise; Give to the LORD the glory due His Name! Bring gifts, and enter His presence; worship the LORD in holy attire. Tremble before Him, all the earth; He has made the world firm, not to be moved.
verses 34-36 Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good, and His kindness endures forever; and say, "Save us, O God, our Savior, gather us and deliver us from the nations, That we may give thanks to Your Holy Name and glory in praising You. Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel, through all eternity! Let all the people say Amen! Alleluia.

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52. 1 Chronicles 21:18-19 Then the angel of the LORD commanded Gad (a prophet) to tell David to go up and erect an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor of Ornan the Jebusite. David went up at Gad's command, given in the Name of the LORD.

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53. 1 Chronicles 23:13 The sons of Amram were Aaron and Moses. Aaron was set apart to be consecrated as most holy, he and his sons forever, to offer sacrifice before the LORD, to minister to Him, and to Bless His Name forever.

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54. 1 Chronicles 29:13, 29:16 part of David's prayer in preparation for building the temple "Therefore, our God, we give You thanks and we praise the majesty of Your Name." verse 16 "O LORD, our God, all this wealth that we have brought together to build You a house in honor of Your holy Name comes from You and is entirely Yours."

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Parts of Solomon's prayer to God at the dedication of the temple
55. 2 Chronicles 6:24-25, 32-33
verses 24-25 "When Your people Israel have sinned against You and are defeated by the enemy, but afterward they return and praise Your Name, and they pray to You and entreat You in this temple, listen from heaven and forgive the sin of Your people Israel, and bring them back to the land which You gave them and their fathers. When the sky is closed so that there is no rain, because they have sinned against You, but then they pray toward this place and praise Your Name, and they withdraw from sin because You afflict them, listen in heaven and forgive the sin of Your servants and of Your people Israel. But teach them the right way to live, and send rain upon Your land which You gave Your people as their heritage."
verses 32-33 "For the foreigner, too, who is not of Your people Israel, when he comes from a distant land to honor Your great Name, Your mighty Power, and Your outstretched Arm, when they come in prayer to this temple, listen from Your heavenly dwelling place, and do whatever the foreigner entreats You, that all the peoples of the earth may know Your Name, fearing You as do Your people Israel, and knowing that this house which I have built is dedicated to Your honor."

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God's response to Solomon's prayer at the dedication of the temple
56. 2 Chronicles 7:13-14, 16
Verses 13-14 "If I close heaven so that there is no rain, if I command the locust to devour the land, if I send pestilence among My people, and if My people, upon whom My Name has been pronounced, humble themselves and pray, and seek My presence and turn from their evil ways, I will hear them from heaven and pardon their sins and revive their land."
verse 16 "And now I have chosen and consecrated this house that My Name may be there forever; My Eyes and My Heart also shall be there always."

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The third king after Solomon in the kingdom of Judah was Asa the reformer from 911 BC to 870 BC
57. 2 Chronicles 14:10 Asa called upon the LORD, his God, praying: "O LORD, there is none like You to help the powerless against the strong. Help us, O LORD, our God, for we rely on You, and in Your Name we have come against this multitude (Ethiopians invading Judah). You are the LORD, our God; let no man prevail against You."

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The king of Judah and the king of Israel conspired to fight the Arameans. Before the fight, they consulted a group of 400 prophets whether they should attack or not. All the prophets were in agreement that they should attack and that they would be victorious. Micaiah the prophet, spoke to Ahab (king of Israel):
58. 2 Chronicles 18:13-16 "As the LORD lives," Micaiah answered, "I will say what my God tells me." When he came to the king, the king said to him, "Micaiah, shall we go to fight against Ramoth-gilead, or shall I refrain?" "Go up," he (Micaiah) answered, "and succeed; they will be delivered into your power." But the king said to him, "How many times must I adjure you to tell me nothing but the truth in the Name of the LORD?" Then Micaiah answered: "I see all Israel scattered on the mountains, like sheep without a shepherd, and the LORD saying, 'These have no master! Let each of them go back home in peace.'"

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59. 2 Chronicles 19:8 In Jerusalem also, Jehoshaphat ( 4th king of Judah 870 BC to 848 BC) appointed some Levites and priests and some of the family heads of Israel to judge in the Name of the LORD and to settle quarrels among the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

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part of the prayer of the king of Judah, Jehoshaphat, 4th king of Judah 870 BC to 848 BC
60. 2 Chronicles 20:9 'When evil comes upon us, the sword of judgment, or pestilence, or famine, we will stand before this house and before You, for Your Name is in this house, and we will cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save!'

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Manasseh 14th king of Judah
61. 2 Chronicles 33: 4, 7, and 18
verse 4 He (Manasseh) even built altars (for false gods) in the temple of the LORD, of which the LORD had said, "In Jerusalem shall My Name be forever"
verse 7 He (Manasseh) placed an idol that he had carved in the house of God, of which God had said to David and his son Solomon: "In this house and in Jerusalem which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel I shall place My Name forever..."
Manasseh was taken prisoner by invading Assyrians. Manasseh prayed and asked God to forgive him. He was released and restored to being king of Judah. Manasseh removed all the idolatrous objects from the temple and all the other surrounding areas were cleared of idols and altars to false gods.
verse 18 The rest of the acts of Manasseh, his prayer to his God, and the words of the seers who spoke to him in the Name of the LORD, the God of Israel, can be found written in the chronicles of the kings of Israel.

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The next two books of the Bible are the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. The events in these books take place after the Babylonian exile of the Jews and when they were allowed back into Judah and Israel. This was the time of restoration of their worship to God and the rebuilding of their communities.
62. Ezra 5:1 Then the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, son of Iddo, began to prophesy to the Jews in Jerusalem in the Name of the God of Israel (to begin rebuilding the temple).

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As the Jews were allowed to go back to Israel, the Persian King Darius (521 BC -485 BC) made an official decree for rebuilding the temple. This is part of the decree:
63. Ezra 6:12 "And may the God who causes His Name to dwell there overthrow every king or people who may undertake to alter this or to destroy this house of God in Jerusalem. I, Darius, have issued this decree; let it be carefully executed."

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64. Nehemiah 1:7-9, 11
Nehemiah's prayer to God to be able to go back to Jerusalem from service to the king of Babylon
verses 7-9 "Grieviously have we offended You, not keeping the commandments, the statues, and the ordinances which You committed to Your servant Moses. But remember, I pray, the promise which You gave through Moses, Your servant, when You said: 'Should you prove faithless, I will scatter you among the nations; but should you return to Me and carefully keep My commandments, even though your outcasts have been driven to the farthest corner of the world, I will gather them from there, and bring them back to the place which I have chosen as the dwelling place for My Name.'
verse 11 O LORD, may Your Ear be attentive to my prayer and that of all Your willing servants who revere Your Name. Grant success to Your servant this day, and let him find favor with this man" - for I was cupbearer to the king.

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Ezra led a gathering of people to confess to the LORD.
65. Nehemiah 9:5, 10
verse 5 "Arise, bless the LORD, your God from eternity to eternity!" The Israelites answered with the blessing, "Blessed is Your glorious Name, and exalted above all blessing and praise."
verse 10 "You worked signs and wonders against Pharaoh, against all his servants and the people of his land, Because You knew of their insolence toward them; thus You made for Yourself a Name even to this day."

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I highly recommend reading the whole book of Tobit as it is a beautiful love story on many levels: father and son, son and bride, the archangel Raphael and man, and God and man. Tobiah, goes on a mission to collect a debt for his father, Tobit, who is blind and falling into despair. On the journey he is accompanied by an angel. The angel facilitates Tobit meeting his bride, Sarah, whom has been cursed.

This is part of Sarah's prayer that she makes as she is falling into despair about her situation.
66. Tobit 3:11 "Blessed are You, O LORD, merciful God! Forever blessed and honored is Your holy Name; may all Your works forever bless You."

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Sarah and Tobiah marry
67. Tobit 8: 5-8 She got up, and they started to pray and beg that deliverance might be theirs. He began with these words: "Blessed are You, O God of our fathers; praised be Your Name forever and ever. Let the heavens and all Your creation praise You forever. You made Adam and You gave him his wife Eve to be his help and support; and from these two the human race descended. You said, 'It is not good for the man to be alone; let us make him a partner like himself.' Now, LORD, you know that I take this wife of mine not because of lust, but for a noble purpose. Call down Your mercy on me and on her, and allow us to live together to a happy old age." They said together, "Amen, amen," and went to bed for the night.

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Tobit and Tobiah are reunited. Tobit used fish gall for his cataracts and he began to see.
68. Tobit 11:14-15 When Tobit saw his son, he threw his arms around him and wept. He exclaimed, "I can see you, son, the light of my eyes!" Then he said, "Blessed be God and praised be His great Name, and blessed be all His holy angels. May His holy Name be praised throughout all the ages, because it was He who scourged me, and it is He who has had mercy on me. Behold, I now see my son Tobiah!"

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69. Tobit 12:6 Raphael called the two men aside privately and said to them: "Thank God! Give Him the praise and the glory. Before all the living, acknowledge the many good things He has done for you, by blessing and extolling His Name in song. Before all men, honor and proclaim God's deeds, and do not be slack in praising Him."

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70. part of Tobit's song of praise Tobit 13:11,18
verse 11 A bright light will shine to all parts of the earth; many nations shall come to You from afar, and the inhabitants of all the limits of the earth drawn to You by the Name of the LORD God, bearing in their hands their gifts for the King of heaven. Every generation shall give joyful praise in You, and shall call You the chosen One, through all ages forever.
verse 18 The gates of Jerusalem shall sing hymns of gladness, and all her houses shall cry out, "Alleluia!" "Blessed be God who has raised you up! May He be blessed for all ages!" For in you they shall praise His holy Name forever. The end of Tobit's hymn of praise.

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71. part of Tobit's advice before he died Tobit 14:9 "Now, children, I give you this command: serve God faithfully and do what is right before Him; you must tell your children to do what is upright and to give alms, to be mindful of God and at all times to bless His Name sincerely and with all their strength."

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The book of Judith tells of a devout widow that plans to save the Jews from Assyrian aggression. She devises a plan and prays for its success.
72. part of Judith's prayer Judith 9:7-9 "Here are the Assyrians, a vast force, priding themselves on horse and rider, boasting of the power of their infantry, trusting in shield and spear, bow and sling. They do not know that 'You, the LORD, crush warfare; LORD is Your Name.' Shatter their strength in Your might, and crush their force in Your wrath; for they have resolved to profane Your sanctuary, to defile the tent where Your glorious Name resides, and to overthrow with iron the horns of Your altar. See their pride, and send forth Your wrath upon their heads. Give me, a widow, the strong hand to execute my plan."

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73. after Judith's victory she praises God Judith 16:1-2 "Strike up the instruments, a song to my God with timbrels, chant to the LORD with cymbals; Sing to Him a new song, exalt and acclaim His Name. For the LORD is God; He crushes warfare, and sets His encampment among His people; He snatched me from the hands of my persecutors."