22After I had spoken, they wouldn't speak again. After all, my words fell gently on them. 23They were as eager to hear me as they were for rain. They opened their mouths wide as if waiting for a spring shower. 24When I smiled at them, they could hardly believe it, but the expression on my face did not change. 25I decided how they should live. I sat as their leader. I lived like a king among his troops, like one who comforts mourners.
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