Joshua and Caleb

¹Joshua, Nun’s son,

was powerful in battle,

As his name suggests,

he was mighty

to deliver the Lord’s chosen ones,

²How glorious he was

when he raised his hands

and when he extended his sword

against cities!

³Who among those who came before

stood as he did?

Indeed, he fought the Lord’s wars.

⁴Wasn’t the sun restrained by his hand,

and one day lasted for two?

⁵He called upon the Most High,

the mighty one,

when his enemies pressed in on him

from every side,

⁶He rushed headlong against a nation

in battle,

and on a hill he destroyed those

who opposed him,

because his war was fought

in the Lord’s presence.

Indeed, he was a follower

of the mighty one.

⁷In the days of Moses

he performed acts of mercy,

he and Caleb, Jephunneh’s son.

They opposed the congregation,

restrained the people from sin,

and put an end

to their wicked grumbling.

⁸So out of six hundred thousand soldiers,

⁹The Lord gave Caleb strength,

and it remained with him

until he was old,

so that he went up to the highlands,

and his descendants had it

as an inheritance.

¹⁰In this way, all the Israelites

could see that it is a good thing

to follow the Lord.

Judges

¹¹May the memories of the judges

bring blessings,

each with their own name,

whose hearts remained faithful

¹²May their bones send forth new shoots of life from their burial places,

and their names,

honored by all humanity,

continue in their descendants.

Samuel

¹³Samuel was dearly loved by his Lord.

As a prophet from the Lord,

he established a kingdom

and anointed rulers over his people.

¹⁴He judged the congregation

by the Lord’s law,

and the Lord watched over Jacob.

¹⁵He proved to be a reliable prophet

because of his faithfulness,

and through his words

he became known as a trustworthy seer.

¹⁶He called upon the Lord, the mighty one,

with an offering of a nursing lamb

when his enemies pressed on him

from every side.

¹⁷The Lord thundered from heaven,

and he made his voice loudly heard.

¹⁸He destroyed the leaders

of the people of Tyre

and all the rulers of the Philistines.

¹⁹Before the time of his eternal sleep,

Samuel testified

before the Lord and his anointed one,

“No property, not even a pair of sandals,

have I taken from anyone!

²⁰Samuel prophesied

after he had fallen asleep,

and he showed the king

what his end would be.

He made his voice heard from the ground