# verses

text:
At that time five of the cities of Egypt will follow the Lord Almighty and will begin to speak the Hebrew language. One of these will be Heliopolis, "The City of the Sun."


text:
And there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt in those days and a monument to the Lord at its border.


text:
This will be for a sign of loyalty to the Lord Almighty; then when they cry to the Lord for help against those who oppress them, he will send them a Savior--and he shall deliver them.


text:
In that day the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians. Yes, they will know the Lord and give their sacrifices and offerings to him; they will make promises to God and keep them.


text:
The Lord will smite Egypt and then restore her! For the Egyptians will turn to the Lord and he will listen to their plea and heal them.


text:
In that day Egypt and Iraq will be connected by a highway, and the Egyptians and the Iraqi will move freely back and forth between their lands, and they shall worship the same God.


text:
For the Lord will bless Egypt and Iraq because of their friendship with Israel. He will say, "Blessed be Egypt, my people; blessed be Iraq, the land I have made; blessed be Israel, my inheritance!"


text:
In the year when Sargon, king of Assyria, sent the commander-in-chief of his army against the Philistine city of Ashdod and captured it,


text:
the Lord told Isaiah, the son of Amoz, to take off his clothing, including his shoes, and to walk around naked and barefoot. And Isaiah did as he was told.


text:
Then the Lord said, "My servant Isaiah, who has been walking naked and barefoot for the last three years, is a symbol of the terrible troubles I will bring upon Egypt and Ethiopia.


text:
For the king of Assyria will take away the Egyptians and Ethiopians as prisoners, making them walk naked and barefoot, both young and old, their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt.


text:
Then how dismayed the Philistines will be, who counted on 'Ethiopia's power' and their 'glorious ally,' Egypt! And they will say, 'If this can happen to Egypt, what chance have we?' "


text:
This is God's message concerning Babylon: Disaster is roaring down upon you from the terrible desert, like a whirlwind sweeping from the Negeb.


text:
I see an awesome vision: oh, the horror of it all! God is telling me what he is going to do. I see you plundered and destroyed. Elamites and Medes will take part in the siege. Babylon will fall, and the groaning of all the nations she enslaved will end.


text:
My stomach constricts and burns with pain; sharp pangs of horror are upon me, like the pangs of a woman giving birth to a child. I faint when I hear what God is planning; I am terrified, blinded with dismay.


text:
My mind reels; my heart races; I am gripped by awful fear. All rest at night--so pleasant once--is gone; I lie awake, trembling.


text:
Look! They are preparing a great banquet! They load the tables with food; they pull up their chairs to eat. . . . Quick, quick, grab your shields and prepare for battle! You are being attacked!


text:
Meanwhile (in my vision) the Lord had told me, "Put a watchman on the city wall to shout out what he sees.


text:
So I put the watchman on the wall, and at last he shouted, "Sir, day after day and night after night I have been here at my post.


text:
Now at last--look! Here come riders in pairs!" Then I heard a Voice shout out, "Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the idols of Babylon lie broken on the ground."


text:
O my people, threshed and winnowed, I have told you all that the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, has said.


text:
This is God's message to Edom: Someone from among you keeps calling, calling to me: "Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? How much time is left?"


text:
The watchman replies, "Your judgment day is dawning now. Turn again to God, so that I can give you better news. Seek for him, then come and ask again!"


text:
This is God's message concerning Arabia: O caravans from Dedan, you will hide in the deserts of Arabia.


text:
"But a long year from now," says the Lord, "the great power of their enemy, the mighty tribe of Kedar, will end.


text:
This is God's message concerning Jerusalem: What is happening? Where is everyone going? Why are they running to the rooftops? What are they looking at?


text:
The whole city is in terrible uproar. What's the trouble in this busy, happy city? Bodies! Lying everywhere, slain by plague and not by sword.


text:
All your leaders flee; they surrender without resistance. The people slip away but they are captured too.


text:
Let me alone to weep. Don't try to comfort me--let me cry for my people as I watch them being destroyed.


text:
Oh, what a day of crushing trouble! What a day of confusion and terror from the Lord God of heaven's armies! The walls of Jerusalem are breached, and the cry of death echoes from the mountainsides.


text:
Elamites are the archers; Syrians drive the chariots; the men of Kir hold up the shields. They fill your choicest valleys and crowd against your gates.


text:
Between the city walls, you build a reservoir for water from the lower pool! But all your feverish plans will not avail, for you never ask for help from God, who lets this come upon you. He is the one who planned it long ago.


text:
The Lord God called you to repent, to weep and mourn, to shave your heads in sorrow for your sins, and to wear clothes made of sackcloth to show your remorse.


text:
But instead, you sing and dance and play, and feast and drink. "Let us eat, drink, and be merry," you say: "What's the difference, for tomorrow we die."


text:
The Lord Almighty has revealed to me that this sin will never be forgiven you until the day you die.


text:
Furthermore, the same Lord God of the armies of heaven has told me this: Go and say to Shebna, the palace administrator:


text:
For the Lord who allowed you to be clothed so gorgeously will hurl you away, sending you into captivity, O strong man!


text:
He will wad you up in his hands like a ball and toss you away into a distant, barren land; there you will die, O glorious one--you who disgrace your nation!


text:
He shall have your uniform and title and authority, and he will be a father to the people of Jerusalem and all Judah.


text:
I will give him responsibility over all my people; whatever he says will be done; none will be able to stop him.


text:
I will make of him a strong and steady peg to support my people; they will load him with responsibility, and he will be an honor to his family name."


text:
But the Lord will pull out that other peg that seems to be so firmly fastened to the wall! It will come out and fall to the ground, and everything it supports will fall with it, for the Lord has spoken.


text:
This is God's message to Tyre: Weep, O ships of Tyre, returning home from distant lands! Weep for your harbor, for it is gone! The rumors that you heard in Cyprus are all true.


text:
Deathly silence is everywhere. Stillness reigns where once your hustling port was full of ships from Sidon, bringing merchandise from far across the ocean, from Egypt and along the Nile. You were the merchandise mart of the world.


text:
This silent ruin is all that's left of your once joyous land. What a history was yours! Think of all the colonists you sent to distant lands!


text:
The Commander of the armies of heaven has done it to destroy your pride and show his contempt for all the greatness of mankind.


text:
The Lord holds out his hand over the seas; he shakes the kingdoms of the earth; he has spoken out against this great merchant city, to destroy its strength.


text:
He says, "Never again, O dishonored virgin, daughter of Sidon, will you rejoice, will you be strong. Even if you flee to Cyprus, you will find no rest."


text:
It will be the Babylonians, not the Assyrians, who consign Tyre to the wild beasts. They will lay siege to it, raze its palaces, and make it a heap of ruins.


text:
For seventy years Tyre will be forgotten. Then, in the days of another king, the city will come back to life again;


text:
she will sing sweet songs as a harlot sings who, long absent from her lovers, walks the streets to look for them again and is remembered.


text:
Yes, after seventy years, the Lord will revive Tyre, but she will be no different than she was before; she will return again to all her evil ways around the world.


text:
Yet  the distant time will come when her businesses will give their profits to the Lord! They will not be hoarded but used for good food and fine clothes for the priests of the Lord!


text:
Look! The Lord is overturning the land of Judah and making it a vast wasteland of destruction. See how he is emptying out all its people and scattering them over the face of the earth.


text:
Priests and people, servants and masters, slave girls and mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, bankers and debtors--none will be spared.


text:
The land suffers for the sins of its people. The earth languishes, the crops wither, the skies refuse their rain.


text:
The land is defiled by crime; the people have twisted the laws of God and broken his everlasting commands.


text:
Therefore the curse of God is upon them; they are left desolate, destroyed by the drought. Few will be left alive.


text:
All the joys of life will go: the grape harvest will fail, the wine will be gone, the merrymakers will sigh and mourn.


text:
Mobs form in the streets, crying for wine; joy has reached its lowest ebb; gladness has been banished from the land.


text:
and those in the east will respond with praise. Hear them singing to the Lord from the ends of the earth,


text:
singing glory to the Righteous One! But my heart is heavy with grief, for evil still prevails and treachery is everywhere.


text:
When you flee in terror, you will fall into a pit, and if you escape from the pit, you will step into a trap, for destruction falls from the heavens upon you; the world is shaken beneath you.


text:
The world staggers like a drunkard; it shakes like a tent in a storm. It falls and will not rise again, for the sins of the earth are very great.


text:
On that day the Lord will punish the fallen angels in the heavens and the proud rulers of the nations on earth.


text:
They will be rounded up like prisoners and imprisoned in a dungeon until they are tried and condemned.


text:
Then the Lord of heaven's armies will mount his throne in Zion and rule gloriously in Jerusalem, in the sight of all the elders of his people. Such glory there will be that all the brightness of the sun and moon will seem to fade away.


text:
O Lord, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God; you do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them, just as you said!


text:
You turn mighty cities into heaps of ruins. The strongest forts are turned to rubble. Beautiful palaces in distant lands disappear and will never be rebuilt.


text:
Therefore strong nations will shake with fear before you; ruthless nations will obey and glorify your name.


text:
But to the poor, O Lord, you are a refuge from the storm, a shadow from the heat, a shelter from merciless men who are like a driving rain that melts down an earthen wall.


text:
Here on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, the Lord Almighty will spread a wondrous feast for everyone around the world--a delicious feast of good food, with clear, well-aged wine and choice beef.


text:
he will swallow up death forever. The Lord God will wipe away all tears and take away forever all insults and mockery against his land and people. The Lord has spoken--he will surely do it!


text:
In that day the people will proclaim, "This is our God in whom we trust, for whom we waited. Now at last he is here." What a day of rejoicing!


text:
For the Lord's good hand will rest upon Jerusalem, and Moab will be crushed as straw beneath his feet and left to rot.


text:
God will push them down just as a swimmer pushes down the water with his hands. He will end their pride and all their evil works.


text:
Listen to them singing! In that day the whole land of Judah will sing this song: "Our city is strong! We are surrounded by the walls of his salvation!"


text:
But for good men the path is not uphill and rough! God does not give them a rough and treacherous path, but smooths the road before them.


text:
All night long I search for you; earnestly I seek for God; for only when you come in judgment on the earth to punish it will people turn away from wickedness and do what is right.


text:
Your kindness to the wicked doesn't make them good; they keep on doing wrong and take no notice of your majesty.


text:
They do not listen when you threaten; they will not look to see your upraised fist. Show them how much you love your people. Perhaps then they will be ashamed! Yes, let them be burned up by the fire reserved for your enemies.


text:
Those we served before are dead and gone; never again will they return. You came against them and destroyed them, and they are long forgotten.


text:
Lord, in their distress they sought for you. When your punishment was on them, they poured forth a whispered prayer.


text:
How we missed your presence, Lord! We suffered as a woman giving birth who cries and writhes in pain.


text:
Yet we have this assurance: Those who belong to God shall live again. Their bodies shall rise again! Those who dwell in the dust shall awake and sing for joy! For God's light of life will fall like dew upon them!


text:
Go home, my people, and lock the doors! Hide for a little while until the Lord's wrath against your enemies has passed.


text:
Look! The Lord is coming from the heavens to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The earth will no longer hide the murderers. The guilty will be found.


text:
In that day the Lord will take his terrible, swift sword and punish leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent, the dragon of the sea.


text:
"Israel is my vineyard; I, the Lord, will tend the fruitful vines; every day I'll water them, and day and night I'll watch to keep all enemies away.


text:
My anger against Israel is gone. If I find thorns and briars bothering her, I will burn them up, unless these enemies of mine surrender and beg for peace and my protection."


text:
The time will come when Israel will take root and bud and blossom and fill the whole earth with her fruit!


text:
Has God punished Israel as much as he has punished her enemies? No, for he has devastated her enemies,


text:
while he has punished Israel but a little, exiling her far from her own land as though blown away in a storm from the east.


text:
And why did God do it? It was to purge away her sins, to rid her of all her idol altars and her idols. They will never be worshiped again.


text:
Her walled cities will be silent and empty, houses abandoned, streets grown up with grass, cows grazing through the city munching on twigs and branches.


text:
My people are like the dead branches of a tree, broken off and used to burn beneath the pots. They are a foolish nation, a witless, stupid people, for they turn away from God. Therefore, he who made them will not have pity on them or show them his mercy.


text:
Yet the time will come when the Lord will gather them together one by one like handpicked grain, selecting them here and there from his great threshing floor that reaches all the way from the Euphrates River to the Egyptian boundary.


text:
In that day the great trumpet will be blown, and many about to perish among their enemies, Assyria and Egypt, will be rescued and brought back to Jerusalem to worship the Lord in his holy mountain.


text:
Woe to the city of Samaria, surrounded by her rich valley--Samaria, the pride and delight of the drunkards of Israel! Woe to her fading beauty, the crowning glory of a nation of men lying drunk in the streets!


text:
For the Lord will send a mighty army (the Assyrians) against you; like a mighty hailstorm he will burst upon you and dash you to the ground.


text:
The proud city of Samaria--yes, the joy and delight of the drunkards of Israel--will be hurled to the ground and trampled beneath the enemies' feet.


text:
Once glorious, her fading beauty surrounded by a fertile valley will suddenly be gone, greedily snatched away as an early fig is hungrily snatched and gobbled up!


text:
Then at last the Lord Almighty himself will be their crowning glory, the diadem of beauty to his people who are left.


text:
He will give a longing for justice to your judges and great courage to your soldiers who are battling to the last before your gates.


text:
But Jerusalem is now led by drunks! Her priests and prophets reel and stagger, making stupid errors and mistakes.


text:
"Who does Isaiah think he is," the people say, "to speak to us like this! Are we little children, barely old enough to talk?


text:
But they won't listen; the only language they can understand is punishment! So God will punish them by sending against them foreigners who speak strange gibberish! Only then will they listen to him!


text:
They could have rest in their own land if they would obey him, if they were kind and good. He told them that, but they wouldn't listen to him.


text:
So the Lord will spell it out for them again, repeating it over and over in simple words whenever he can; yet over this simple, straightforward message they will stumble and fall and be broken, trapped and captured.


text:
You have struck a bargain with Death, you say, and sold yourselves to the devil in exchange for his protection against the Assyrians. "They can never touch us," you say, "for we are under the care of one who will deceive and fool them."


text:
But the Lord God says, "See, I am placing a Foundation Stone in Zion--a firm, tested, precious Cornerstone that is safe to build on. He who believes need never run away again.


text:
I will take the line and plummet of justice to check the foundation wall you built; it looks so fine, but it is so weak a storm of hail will knock it down! The enemy will come like a flood and sweep it away, and you will be drowned.


text:
I will cancel your agreement of compromise with Death and the devil, so when the terrible enemy floods in, you will be trampled into the ground.


text:
Again and again that flood will come and carry you off, until at last the unmixed horror of the truth of my warnings will finally dawn on you."


text:
The Lord will come suddenly and in anger, as at Mount Perazim and Gibeon, to do a strange, unusual thing--to destroy his own people!


text:
So scoff no more, lest your punishment be made even greater, for the Lord God has plainly told me that he is determined to crush you.


text:
Listen to me, listen as I plead: Does a farmer always plow and never sow? Is he forever harrowing the soil and never planting it?


text:
He doesn't thresh all grains the same. A sledge is never used on dill, but it is beaten with a stick. A threshing wheel is never rolled on cummin, but it is beaten softly with a flail.


text:
but I will send heavy judgment upon you, and there will be weeping and sorrow. For Jerusalem shall become as her name "Ariel" means--an altar covered with blood.


text:
I will be your enemy. I will surround Jerusalem and lay siege against it, and build forts around it to destroy it.


text:
In an instant, I, the Lord of Hosts, will come upon them with thunder, earthquake, whirlwind, and fire.


text:
As a hungry man dreams of eating but is still hungry, and as a thirsty man dreams of drinking but is still faint from thirst when he wakes up, so your enemies will dream of victorious conquest, but all to no avail.


text:
You are amazed, incredulous? You don't believe it? Then go ahead and be blind if you must! You are stupid--and not from drinking, either! Stagger, and not from wine!


text:
For the Lord has poured out upon you a spirit of deep sleep. He has closed the eyes of your prophets and seers,


text:
so all of these future events are a sealed book to them. When you give it to one who can read, he says, "I can't, for it's sealed."


text:
And so the Lord says, "Since these people say they are mine but they do not obey me, and since their worship amounts to mere words learned by rote,


text:
therefore I will take awesome vengeance on these hypocrites and make their wisest counselors as fools."


text:
Woe to those who try to hide their plans from God, who try to keep him in the dark concerning what they do! "God can't see us," they say to themselves. "He doesn't know what is going on!"


text:
How stupid can they be! Isn't he, the Potter, greater than you, the jars he makes? Will you say to him, "He didn't make us"? Does a machine call its inventor dumb?


text:
Soon--and it will not be very long--the wilderness of Lebanon will be a fruitful field again, a lush and fertile forest.


text:
In that day the deaf will hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the blind will see my plans.


text:
The meek will be filled with fresh joy from the Lord, and the poor shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.


text:
the violent man who fights at the drop of a hat, the man who waits in hiding to beat up the judge who sentenced him, and the men who use any excuse to be unfair.


text:
That is why the Lord who redeemed Abraham says: "My people will no longer pale with fear or be ashamed.


text:
For when they see the surging birth rate and the expanding economy, then they will fear and rejoice in my name; they will praise the Holy One of Israel and stand in awe of him.


text:
"Woe to my rebellious children," says the Lord; "you ask advice from everyone but me and decide to do what I don't want you to do. You yoke yourselves with unbelievers, thus piling up your sins.


text:
For without consulting me you have gone down to Egypt to find aid and have put your trust in Pharaoh for his protection.


text:
But in trusting Pharaoh, you will be disappointed, humiliated and disgraced, for he can't deliver on his promises to save you.


text:
See them moving slowly across the terrible desert to Egypt--donkeys and camels laden down with treasure to pay for Egypt's aid. On through the badlands they go, where lions and swift venomous snakes live--and Egypt will give you nothing in return!


text:
Now go and write down this word of mine concerning Egypt, so that it will stand until the end of time, forever and forever, as an indictment of Israel's unbelief.


text:
For if you don't write it, they will claim I never warned them. "Oh no," they'll say, "you never told us that!" For they are stubborn rebels.


text:
They tell my prophets, "Shut up--we don't want any more of your reports!" Or they say, "Don't tell us the truth; tell us nice things; tell us lies.


text:
Forget all this gloom; we've heard more than enough about your 'Holy One of Israel' and all he says."


text:
This is the reply of the Holy One of Israel: "Because you despise what I tell you and trust instead in frauds and lies and won't repent,


text:
therefore calamity will come upon you suddenly, as upon a bulging wall that bursts and falls; in one moment it comes crashing down.


text:
God will smash you like a broken dish; he will not act sparingly. Not a piece will be left large enough to use for carrying coals from the hearth, or a little water from the well."


text:
For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, says: "Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved; in quietness and confidence is your strength"; but you'll have none of this.


text:
"No," you say. "We will get our help from Egypt; they will give us swift horses for riding to battle." But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you!


text:
One of them will chase a thousand of you! Five of them will scatter you until not two of you are left together. You will be like lonely trees on the distant mountaintops.


text:
Yet the Lord still waits for you to come to him so he can show you his love; he will conquer you to bless you, just as he said. For the Lord is faithful to his promises. Blessed are all those who wait for him to help them.


text:
O my people in Jerusalem, you shall weep no more, for he will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. He will answer you.


text:
Though he give you the bread of adversity and water of affliction, yet he will be with you to teach you--with your own eyes you will see your Teacher.


text:
And if you leave God's paths and go astray, you will hear a Voice behind you say, "No, this is the way; walk here."


text:
And you will destroy all your silver idols and gold images and cast them out like filthy things you hate to touch. "Ugh!" you'll say to them. "Be gone!"


text:
Then God will bless you with rain at planting time and with wonderful harvests and with ample pastures for your cows.


text:
In that day when God steps in to destroy your enemies, he will give you streams of water flowing down each mountain and every hill.


text:
The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sunlight brighter than seven days! So it will be when the Lord begins to heal his people and to cure the wounds he gave them.


text:
See, the Lord comes from afar, aflame with wrath, surrounded by thick rising smoke. His lips are filled with fury; his words consume like fire.


text:
His wrath pours out like floods upon them all, to sweep them all away. He will sift out the proud nations and bridle them and lead them off to their doom.


text:
But the people of God will sing a song of solemn joy, like songs in the night when holy feasts are held; his people will have gladness of heart, as when a flutist leads a pilgrim band to Jerusalem to the Mountain of the Lord, the Rock of Israel.


text:
And the Lord shall cause his majestic voice to be heard and shall crush down his mighty arm upon his enemies with angry indignation and devouring flames, with tornados, terrible storms, and huge hailstones.


text:
The funeral pyre has long been ready, prepared for Molech, the Assyrian god; it is piled high with wood. The breath of the Lord, like fire from a volcano, will set it all on fire.


text:
Woe to those who run to Egypt for help, trusting their mighty cavalry and chariots instead of looking to the Holy One of Israel and consulting him.


text:
In his wisdom, he will send great evil on his people and will not change his mind. He will rise against them for the evil they have done and crush their allies too.


text:
For these Egyptians are mere men, not God! Their horses are puny flesh, not mighty spirits! When the Lord clenches his fist against them, they will stumble and fall among those they are trying to help. All will fail together.


text:
But the Lord has told me this: "When a lion, even a young one, kills a sheep, he pays no attention to the shepherd's shouts and noise. He goes right on and eats. In such manner the Lord will come and fight upon Mount Zion. He will not be frightened away!


text:
He, the Lord Almighty, will hover over Jerusalem as birds hover round their nests, and he will defend the city and deliver it."


text:
I know the glorious day will come when every one of you will throw away his gold idols and silver images--which in your sinfulness you have made.


text:
"The Assyrians will be destroyed, but not by swords of men. The 'sword of God' will smite them. They will panic and flee, and the strong young Assyrians will be taken away as slaves.


text:
Even their generals will quake with terror and flee when they see the battle flags of Israel," says the Lord. For the flame of God burns brightly in Jerusalem.


text:
He will shelter Israel from the storm and wind. He will refresh her as a river in the desert and as the cooling shadow of a mighty rock within a hot and weary land.


text:
Even the hotheads among them will be full of sense and understanding, and those who stammer in uncertainty will speak out plainly.


text:
In those days the ungodly, the atheists, will not be heroes! Wealthy cheaters will not be spoken of as generous, outstanding men!


text:
Everyone will recognize an evil man when he sees him, and hypocrites will fool no one at all. Their lies about God and their cheating of the hungry will be plain for all to see.


text:
The smooth tricks of evil men will be exposed, as will all the lies they use to oppress the poor in the courts.


text:
In a short time--in just a little more than a year--suddenly you'll care, O careless ones. For the crops of fruit will fail; the harvest will not take place.


text:
Tremble, O women of ease; throw off your unconcern. Strip off your pretty clothes--wear sackcloth for your grief.


text:
Beat your breasts in sorrow for those bountiful farms of yours that will soon be gone, and for those fruitful vines of other years.


text:
Palaces and mansions will all be deserted, the crowded cities empty. Wild herds of donkeys and goats will graze upon the mountains where the watchtowers are,


text:
until at last the Spirit is poured down on us from heaven. Then once again enormous crops will come.


text:
And God will greatly bless his people. Wherever they plant, bountiful crops will spring up, and their flocks and herds will graze in green pastures.


text:
Woe to you, Assyrians, who have destroyed everything around you but have never felt destruction for yourselves. You expect others to respect their promises to you, while you betray them! Now you, too, will be betrayed and destroyed.


text:
But to us, O Lord, be merciful, for we have waited for you. Be our strength each day and our salvation in the time of trouble.


text:
The Lord is very great and lives in heaven. He will make Jerusalem the home of justice and goodness and righteousness.


text:
An abundance of salvation is stored up for Judah in a safe place, along with wisdom and knowledge and reverence for God.


text:
But now your ambassadors weep in bitter disappointment, for Assyria has refused their cry for peace.


text:
Your roads lie in ruins; travelers detour on back roads. The Assyrians have broken their peace pact and care nothing for the promises they made in the presence of witnesses--they have no respect for anyone.


text:
All the land of Israel is in trouble; Lebanon has been destroyed; Sharon has become a wilderness; Bashan and Carmel are plundered.


text:
You Assyrians will gain nothing by all your efforts. Your own breath will turn to fire and kill you.


text:
The sinners among my people shake with fear. "Which one of us," they cry, "can live here in the presence of this all-consuming, Everlasting Fire?"


text:
I will tell you who can live here: All who are honest and fair, who reject making profit by fraud, who hold back their hands from taking bribes, who refuse to listen to those who plot murder, who shut their eyes to all enticement to do wrong.


text:
Such as these shall dwell on high. The rocks of the mountains will be their fortress of safety; food will be supplied to them, and they will have all the water they need.


text:
Your mind will think back to this time of terror when the Assyrian officers outside your walls are counting your towers and estimating how much they will get from your fallen city.


text:
But soon they will all be gone. These fierce, violent people with a strange, jabbering language you can't understand will disappear.


text:
The enemies' sails hang loose on broken masts with useless tackle. Their treasure will be divided by the people of God; even the lame will win their share.


text:
The people of Israel will no longer say, "We are sick and helpless," for the Lord will forgive them their sins and bless them.


text:
For the Lord is enraged against the nations; his fury is against their armies. He will utterly destroy them and deliver them to slaughter.


text:
Their dead will be left unburied, and the stench of rotting bodies will fill the land; the mountains will flow with their blood.


text:
At that time the heavens above will melt away and disappear just like a rolled-up scroll, and the stars will fall as leaves, as ripe fruit from the trees.


text:
And when my sword has finished its work in the heavens, then watch, for it will fall upon Edom, the people I have doomed.


text:
The sword of the Lord is sated with blood; it is gorged with flesh as though used for slaying lambs and goats for sacrifice. For the Lord will slay a great sacrifice in Edom and make a mighty slaughter there.


text:
The strongest will perish, young boys and veterans too. The land will be soaked with blood, and the soil made rich with fat.


text:
This judgment on Edom will never end. Its smoke will rise up forever. The land will lie deserted from generation to generation; no one will live there anymore.


text:
There the hawks and porcupines will live, and owls and ravens. For God will observe that land and find it worthy of destruction. He will test its nobles and find them worthy of death.


text:
Thorns will overrun the palaces, nettles will grow in its forts, and it will become the haunt of jackals and a home for ostriches.


text:
The wild animals of the desert will mingle there with wolves and hyenas. Their howls will fill the night. There the night-monsters will scream at each other, and the demons will come there to rest.


text:
There the owl will make her nest and lay her eggs; she will hatch her young and nestle them beneath her wings, and the kites will come, each one with its mate.


text:
Search the book of the Lord and see all that he will do; not one detail will he miss; not one kite will be there without a mate, for the Lord has said it, and his Spirit will make it all come true.


text:
He has surveyed and subdivided the land and deeded it to those doleful creatures; they shall possess it forever, from generation to generation.


text:
Yes, there will be an abundance of flowers and singing and joy! The deserts will become as green as the Lebanon mountains, as lovely as Mount Carmel's pastures and Sharon's meadows; for the Lord will display his glory there, the excellency of our God.


text:
Encourage those who are afraid. Tell them, "Be strong, fear not, for your God is coming to destroy your enemies. He is coming to save you."


text:
The lame man will leap up like a deer, and those who could not speak will shout and sing! Springs will burst forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert.


text:
The parched ground will become a pool, with springs of water in the thirsty land. Where desert jackals lived, there will be reeds and rushes!


text:
And a main road will go through that once-deserted land; it will be named "The Holy Highway." No evil-hearted men may walk upon it. God will walk there with you; even the most stupid cannot miss the way.


text:
No lion will lurk along its course, nor will there be any other dangers; only the redeemed will travel there.


text:
These, the ransomed of the Lord, will go home along that road to Zion, singing the songs of everlasting joy. For them all sorrow and all sighing will be gone forever; only joy and gladness will be there.


text:
So in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah's reign, Sennacherib, king of Assyria, came to fight against the walled cities of Judah and conquered them.


text:
Then he sent his personal representative with a great army from Lachish to confer with King Hezekiah in Jerusalem. He camped near the outlet of the upper pool, along the road going past the field where cloth is bleached.


text:
Then Eliakim, Hilkiah's son, who was the prime minister of Israel, and Shebna, the king's scribe, and Joah, Asaph's son, the royal secretary, formed a truce team and went out of the city to meet with him.


text:
The Assyrian ambassador told them to go and say to Hezekiah, "The mighty king of Assyria says you are a fool to think that the king of Egypt will help you.


text:
What are the Pharaoh's promises worth? Mere words won't substitute for strength, yet you rely on him for help and have rebelled against me!


text:
Egypt is a dangerous ally. She is a sharpened stick that will pierce your hand if you lean on it. That is the experience of everyone who has ever looked to her for help.


text:
But perhaps you say, 'We are trusting in the Lord our God!' Oh? Isn't he the one your king insulted, tearing down his temples and altars in the hills and making everyone in Judah worship only at the altars here in Jerusalem?


text:
My master, the king of Assyria, wants to make a little bet with you!--that you don't have 2,000 men left in your entire army!


text:
If you do, he will give you 2,000 horses for them to ride on! With that tiny army, how can you think of proceeding against even the smallest and worst contingent of my master's troops? For you'll get no help from Egypt.


text:
What's more, do you think I have come here without the Lord's telling me to take this land? The Lord said to me, 'Go and destroy it!' "


text:
Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah said to him, "Please talk to us in Aramaic, for we understand it quite well. Don't speak in Hebrew, for the people on the wall will hear."


text:
But he replied, "My master wants everyone in Jerusalem to hear this, not just you. He wants them to know that if you don't surrender, this city will be put under siege until everyone is so hungry and thirsty that he will eat his own dung and drink his own urine."


text:
Then he shouted in Hebrew to the Jews listening on the wall, "Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria:


text:
Don't let him talk you into trusting in the Lord by telling you the Lord won't let you be conquered by the king of Assyria.


text:
Don't listen to Hezekiah, for here is the king of Assyria's offer to you: Give me a present as a token of surrender; open the gates and come out, and I will let you each have your own farm and garden and water,


text:
until I can arrange to take you to a country very similar to this one--a country where there are bountiful harvests of grain and grapes, a land of plenty.


text:
Don't let Hezekiah deprive you of all this by saying the Lord will deliver you from my armies. Have any other nation's gods ever gained victory over the armies of the king of Assyria?


text:
Don't you remember what I did to Hamath and Arpad? Did their gods save them? And what about Sepharvaim and Samaria? Where are their gods now?


text:
Of all the gods of these lands, which one has ever delivered their people from my power? Name just one! And do you think this God of yours can deliver Jerusalem from me? Don't be ridiculous!"


text:
But the people were silent and answered not a word, for Hezekiah had told them to say nothing in reply.


text:
Then Eliakim (son of Hilkiah), the prime minister, and Shebna, the royal scribe, and Joah (son of Asaph), the royal secretary, went back to Hezekiah with clothes ripped to shreds as a sign of their despair and told him all that had happened.


text:
When King Hezekiah heard the results of the meeting, he tore his robes and wound himself in coarse cloth used for making sacks, as a sign of humility and mourning, and went over to the Temple to pray.


text:
Meanwhile he sent Eliakim his prime minister, and Shebna his royal scribe, and the older priests--all dressed in sackcloth--to Isaiah the prophet, son of Amoz.


text:
They brought him this message from Hezekiah: "This is a day of trouble and frustration and blasphemy; it is a serious time, as when a woman is in heavy labor trying to give birth and the child does not come.


text:
But perhaps the Lord your God heard the blasphemy of the king of Assyria's representative as he scoffed at the living God. Surely God won't let him get away with this. Surely God will rebuke him for those words. Oh, Isaiah, pray for us who are left!"


text:
Then Isaiah replied, "Tell King Hezekiah that the Lord says, Don't be disturbed by this speech from the servant of the king of Assyria and his blasphemy.


text:
For a report from Assyria will reach the king that he is needed at home at once, and he will return to his own land, where I will have him killed."


text:
Now the Assyrian envoy left Jerusalem and went to consult his king, who had left Lachish and was besieging Libnah.


text:
But at this point the Assyrian king received word that Tirhakah, crown prince of Ethiopia, was leading an army against him  from the south. Upon hearing this, he sent messengers back to Jerusalem to Hezekiah with this message:


text:
"Don't let this God you trust in fool you by promising that Jerusalem will not be captured by the king of Assyria!


text:
Just remember what has happened wherever the kings of Assyria have gone, for they have crushed everyone who has opposed them. Do you think you will be any different?


text:
Did their gods save the cities of Gozan, Haran, or Rezeph, or the people of Eden in Telassar? No, the Assyrian kings completely destroyed them!


text:
And don't forget what happened to the king of Hamath, to the king of Arpad, and to the kings of the cities of Sepharvaim, Hena, and Ivvah."


text:
As soon as King Hezekiah had read this letter, he went over to the Temple and spread it out before the Lord


text:
"O Lord, Almighty God of Israel enthroned between the Guardian Angels, you alone are God of all the kingdoms of the earth. You alone made heaven and earth.


text:
Listen as I plead; see me as I pray. Look at this letter from King Sennacherib, for he has mocked the living God.


text:
It is true, O Lord, that the kings of Assyria have destroyed all those nations, just as the letter says,


text:
and thrown their gods into the fire; for they weren't gods at all but merely idols, carved by men from wood and stone. Of course the Assyrians could destroy them.


text:
O Lord our God, save us so that all the kingdoms of the earth will know that you are God, and you alone."


text:
Then Isaiah, the son of Amoz, sent this message to King Hezekiah: "The Lord God of Israel says, 'This is my answer to your prayer against Sennacherib, Assyria's king.


text:
'The Lord says to him: My people--the helpless virgin daughter of Zion--laughs at you and scoffs and shakes her head at you in scorn.


text:
Who is it you scoffed against and mocked? Whom did you revile? At whom did you direct your violence and pride? It was against the Holy One of Israel!


text:
You have sent your messengers to mock the Lord. You boast, "I came with my mighty army against the nations of the west. I cut down the tallest cedars and choicest cypress trees. I conquered their highest mountains and destroyed their thickest forests."


text:
'You boast of wells you've dug in many a conquered land, and Egypt with all its armies is no obstacle to you!


text:
But do you not yet know that it was I who decided all this long ago? That it was I who gave you all this power from ancient times? I have caused all this to happen as I planned--that you should crush walled cities into ruined heaps.


text:
That's why their people had so little power and were such easy prey for you. They were as helpless as the grass, as tender plants you trample down beneath your feet, as grass upon the housetops, burnt yellow by the sun.


text:
Because of your anger against the Lord--and I heard it all!--I have put a hook in your nose and a bit in your mouth and led you back to your own land by the same road you came.' "


text:
Then God said to Hezekiah, "Here is the proof that I am the one who is delivering this city from the king of Assyria: This year he will abandon his siege. Although it is too late now to plant your crops, and you will have only volunteer grain this fall, still it will give you enough seed for a small harvest next year, and two years from now you will be living in luxury again.


text:
For a remnant shall go out from Jerusalem to repopulate the land; the power of the Lord Almighty will cause all this to come to pass.


text:
"As for the king of Assyria, his armies shall not enter Jerusalem, nor shoot their arrows there, nor march outside its gates, nor build up an earthen bank against its walls.


text:
He will return to his own country by the road he came on and will not enter this city, says the Lord.


text:
That night the Angel of the Lord went out to the camp of the Assyrians and killed 185,000 soldiers; when the living wakened the next morning, all these lay dead before them.


text:
And one day while he was worshiping in the temple of Nisroch his god, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer killed him with their swords; then they escaped into the land of Ararat, and Esar-haddon his son became king.


text:
It was just before all this that Hezekiah became deathly sick, and Isaiah the prophet (Amoz' son) went to visit him and gave him this message from the Lord: "Set your affairs in order, for you are going to die; you will not recover from this illness."


text:
"O Lord, don't you remember how true I've been to you and how I've always tried to obey you in everything you said?" Then he broke down with great sobs.


text:
"Go and tell Hezekiah that the Lord God of your forefather David hears you praying and sees your tears and will let you live fifteen more years.


text:
I will send the sun backwards ten degrees as measured on Ahaz' sundial!" So the sun retraced ten degrees that it had gone down!


text:
"My life is but half done and I must leave it all. I am robbed of my normal years, and now I must enter the gates of Sheol.


text:
Never again will I see the Lord in the land of the living. Never again will I see my friends in this world.


text:
My life is blown away like a shepherd's tent; it is cut short as when a weaver stops his working at the loom. In one short day my life hangs by a thread.


text:
Delirious, I chattered like a swallow and mourned like a dove; my eyes grew weary of looking up for help. 'O God,' I cried, 'I am in trouble--help me.'


text:
But what can I say? For he himself has sent this sickness. All my sleep has fled because of my soul's bitterness.


text:
"Yes, now I see it all--it was good for me to undergo this bitterness, for you have lovingly delivered me from death; you have forgiven all my sins.


text:
The living, only the living, can praise you as I do today. One generation makes known your faithfulness to the next.


text:
Think of it! The Lord healed me! Every day of my life from now on I will sing my songs of praise in the Temple, accompanied by the orchestra."


text:
(For Isaiah had told Hezekiah's servants, "Make an ointment of figs and spread it over the boil, and he will get well again."


text:
Soon afterwards, the king of Babylon (Merodach-baladan, the son of Baladan) sent Hezekiah a present and his best wishes, for he had heard that Hezekiah had been very sick and now was well again.


text:
Hezekiah appreciated this and took the envoys from Babylon on a tour of the palace, showing them his treasure house full of silver, gold, spices, and perfumes. He took them into his jewel rooms, too, and opened to them all his treasures--everything.


text:
Then Isaiah the prophet came to the king and said, "What did they say? Where are they from?" "From far away in Babylon," Hezekiah replied.


text:
"How much have they seen?" asked Isaiah. And Hezekiah replied, "I showed them everything I own, all my priceless treasures."


text:
"The time is coming when everything you have--all the treasures stored up by your fathers--will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left.


text:
"All right," Hezekiah replied. "Whatever the Lord says is good. At least there will be peace during my lifetime!"


text:
"Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and tell her that her sad days are gone. Her sins are pardoned, and I have punished her in full for all her sins."


text:
Listen! I hear the voice of someone shouting, "Make a road for the Lord through the wilderness; make him a straight, smooth road through the desert.


text:
Fill the valleys; level the hills; straighten out the crooked paths, and smooth off the rough spots in the road.


text:
The voice says, "Shout!" "What shall I shout?" I asked. "Shout that man is like the grass that dies away, and all his beauty fades like dying flowers.


text:
O Crier of good news, shout to Jerusalem from the mountaintops! Shout louder--don't be afraid--tell the cities of Judah, "Your God is coming!"


text:
Yes, the Lord God is coming with mighty power; he will rule with awesome strength. See, his reward is with him, to each as he has done.


text:
He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will carry the lambs in his arms and gently lead the ewes with young.


text:
Who else has held the oceans in his hands and measured off the heavens with his ruler? Who else knows the weight of all the earth and weighs the mountains and the hills?


text:
No, for all the peoples of the world are nothing in comparison with him--they are but a drop in the bucket, dust on the scales. He picks up the islands as though they had no weight at all.


text:
All of Lebanon's forests do not contain sufficient fuel to consume a sacrifice large enough to honor him, nor are all its animals enough to offer to our God.


text:
All the nations are as nothing to him; in his eyes they are less than nothing--mere emptiness and froth.


text:
The man too poor to buy expensive gods like that will find a tree free from rot and hire a man to carve a face on it, and that's his god--a god that cannot even move!


text:
Are you so ignorant? Are you so deaf to the words of God--the words he gave before the world began? Have you never heard nor understood?


text:
It is God who sits above the circle of the earth. (The people below must seem to him like grasshoppers!) He is the one who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them.


text:
They hardly get started, barely take root, when he blows on them and their work withers, and the wind carries them off like straw.


text:
Look up into the heavens! Who created all these stars? As a shepherd leads his sheep, calling each by its pet name, and counts them to see that none are lost or strayed, so God does with stars and planets!


text:
Don't you yet understand? Don't you know by now that the everlasting God, the Creator of the farthest parts of the earth, never grows faint or weary? No one can fathom the depths of his understanding.


text:
But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.


text:
"Listen in silence before me, O lands beyond the sea. Bring your strongest arguments. Come now and speak. The court is ready for your case.


text:
"Who has stirred up this one from the east, whom victory meets at every step? Who, indeed, but the Lord? God has given him victory over many nations and permitted him to trample kings underfoot and to put entire armies to the sword.


text:
Who has done such mighty deeds, directing the affairs of generations of mankind as they march by? It is I, the Lord, the First and Last; I alone am he."


text:
The lands beyond the sea watch in fear and wait for word of Cyrus' new campaigns. Remote lands tremble and mobilize for war.


text:
The craftsmen encourage each other as they rush to make new idols to protect them. The carver hurries the goldsmith, and the molder helps at the anvil. "Good," they say. "It's coming along fine. Now we can solder on the arms." Carefully they join the parts together and then fasten the thing in place so it won't fall over!


text:
"But as for you, O Israel, you are mine, my chosen ones; for you are Abraham's family, and he was my friend.


text:
I have called you back from the ends of the earth and said that you must serve but me alone, for I have chosen you and will not throw you away.


text:
Fear not, for I am with you. Do not be dismayed. I am your God. I will strengthen you; I will help you; I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.


text:
I am holding you by your right hand--I, the Lord your God--and I say to you, Don't be afraid; I am here to help you.


text:
Despised though you are, fear not, O Israel; for I will help you. I am the Lord, your Redeemer; I am the Holy One of Israel.


text:
You shall be a new and sharp-toothed threshing instrument to tear all enemies apart, making chaff of mountains.


text:
You shall toss them in the air; the wind shall blow them all away; whirlwinds shall scatter them. And the joy of the Lord shall fill you full; you shall glory in the God of Israel.


text:
"When the poor and needy seek water and there is none, and their tongues are parched from thirst, then I will answer when they cry to me. I, Israel's God, will not ever forsake them.


text:
I will open up rivers for them on high plateaus! I will give them fountains of water in the valleys! In the deserts will be pools of water, and rivers fed by springs shall flow across the dry, parched ground.


text:
"Can your idols make such claims as these? Let them come and show what they can do! says God, the King of Israel.


text:
Yes, that's it! If you are gods, tell what will happen in the days ahead! Or do some mighty miracle that makes us stare, amazed.


text:
But no! You are less than nothing and can do nothing at all. Anyone who chooses you needs to have his head examined!


text:
"But I have stirred up (Cyrus) from the north and east; he will come against the nations and call on my name, and I will give him victory over kings and princes. He will tread them as a potter tramples clay.


text:
"Who but I have told you this would happen? Who else predicted this, making you admit that he was right? No one else! None other said one word!


text:
"See my servant, whom I uphold; my Chosen One in whom I delight. I have put my Spirit upon him; he will reveal justice to the nations of the world.


text:
He will not break the bruised reed, nor quench the dimly burning flame. He will encourage the fainthearted, those tempted to despair. He will see full justice given to all who have been wronged.


text:
He won't be satisfied until truth and righteousness prevail throughout the earth, nor until even distant lands beyond the seas have put their trust in him."


text:
The Lord God who created the heavens and stretched them out, who created the earth and everything in it, who gives life and breath and spirit to everyone in all the world, he is the one who says  to his Servant, the Messiah,


text:
"I the Lord have called you to demonstrate my righteousness. I will guard and support you, for I have given you to my people as the personal confirmation of my covenant with them. You shall also be a light to guide the nations unto me.


text:
I am the Lord! That is my name, and I will not give my glory to anyone else; I will not share my praise with carved idols.


text:
Everything I prophesied came true, and now I will prophesy again. I will tell you the future before it happens."


text:
Sing a new song to the Lord; sing his praises, all you who live in earth's remotest corners! Sing, O sea! Sing, all you who live in distant lands beyond the sea!


text:
The Lord will be a mighty warrior, full of fury toward his foes. He will give a great shout and prevail.


text:
Long has he been silent; he has restrained himself. But now he will give full vent to his wrath; he will groan and cry like a woman delivering her child.


text:
He will level the mountains and hills and blight their greenery. He will dry up the rivers and pools.


text:
He will bring blind Israel along a path they have not seen before. He will make the darkness bright before them and smooth and straighten out the road ahead. He will not forsake them.


text:
But those who trust in idols and call them gods will be greatly disappointed; they will be turned away.


text:
Who in all the world is as blind as my own people, who are designed to be my messengers of truth? Who is so blind as my "dedicated one," the "servant of the Lord"?


text:
The Lord has magnified his law and made it truly glorious. Through it he had planned to show the world that he is righteous.


text:
But what a sight his people are--these who were to demonstrate to all the world the glory of his law; for they are robbed, enslaved, imprisoned, trapped, fair game for all, with no one to protect them.


text:
Who let Israel be robbed and hurt? Did not the Lord? It is the Lord they sinned against, for they would not go where he sent them nor listen to his laws.


text:
That is why God poured out such fury and wrath on his people and destroyed them in battle. Yet, though set on fire and burned, they will not understand the reason why--that it is God, wanting them to repent.


text:
But now the Lord who created you, O Israel, says, "Don't be afraid, for I have ransomed you; I have called you by name; you are mine.


text:
When you go through deep waters and great trouble, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown! When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up--the flames will not consume you.


text:
For I am the Lord your God, your Savior, the Holy One of Israel. I gave Egypt and Ethiopia and Seba  to Cyrus in exchange for your freedom, as your ransom.


text:
Others died that you might live; I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me and honored, and I love you.


text:
from north and south. I will bring my sons and daughters back to Israel from the farthest corners of the earth.


text:
Gather the nations together! Which of all their idols ever has foretold such things? Which can predict a single day ahead? Where are the witnesses of anything they said? If there are no witnesses, then they must confess that only God can prophesy.


text:
"But I have witnesses, O Israel," says the Lord! "You are my witnesses and my servants, chosen to know and to believe me and to understand that I alone am God. There is no other God; there never was and never will be.


text:
Whenever you have thrown away your idols, I have shown you my power. With one word I have saved you. You have seen me do it; you are my witnesses that it is true.


text:
The Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says: "For your sakes I will send an invading army against Babylon that will walk in, almost unscathed. The boasts of the Babylonians will turn to cries of fear.


text:
I called forth the mighty army of Egypt with all its chariots and horses, to lie beneath the waves, dead, their lives snuffed out like candlewicks.


text:
For I'm going to do a brand new thing. See, I have already begun! Don't you see it? I will make a road through the wilderness of the world for my people to go home, and create rivers for them in the desert!


text:
The wild animals in the fields will thank me, the jackals and ostriches too, for giving them water in the wilderness, yes, springs in the desert, so that my people, my chosen ones, can be refreshed.


text:
You have not brought me the lambs for burnt offerings; you have not honored me with sacrifices. Yet my requests for offerings and incense have been very few! I have not treated you as slaves.


text:
You have brought me no sweet-smelling incense nor pleased me with the sacrificial fat. No, you have presented me only with sins and wearied me with all your faults.


text:
Oh, remind me of this promise of forgiveness, for we must talk about your sins. Plead your case for my forgiving you.


text:
"The Lord who made you, who will help you, says, O servant of mine, don't be afraid. O Jerusalem, my chosen ones, don't be afraid.


text:
For I will give you abundant water for your thirst and for your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit and my blessings on your children.


text:
'I am the Lord's,' they'll proudly say, or, "I am a Jew," and tattoo upon their hands the name of God or the honored name of Israel.


text:
"The Lord, the King of Israel, says--yes, it is Israel's Redeemer, the Lord Almighty, who says it--I am the First and Last; there is no other God.


text:
Who else can tell you what is going to happen in the days ahead? Let them tell you if they can and prove their power. Let them do as I have done since ancient times.


text:
Don't, don't be afraid. Haven't I proclaimed from ages past  that I would save you? You are my witnesses--is there any other God? No! None that I know about! There is no other Rock!"


text:
What fools they are who manufacture idols for their gods. Their hopes remain unanswered. They themselves are witnesses that this is so, for their idols neither see nor know. No wonder those who worship them are so ashamed.


text:
All that worship these will stand before the Lord in shame, along with all these carpenters--mere men--who claim that they have made a god. Together they will stand in terror.


text:
The metalsmith stands at his forge to make an axe, pounding on it with all his might. He grows hungry and thirsty, weak and faint.


text:
Then the woodcarver takes the axe and uses it to make an idol. He measures and marks out a block of wood and carves the figure of a man. Now he has a wonderful idol that can't so much as move from where it is placed.


text:
He cuts down cedars, he selects the cypress and the oak, he plants the ash in the forest to be nourished by the rain.


text:
And after his care, he uses part of the wood to make a fire to warm himself and bake his bread, and then--he really does--he takes the rest of it and makes himself a god--a god for men to worship! An idol to fall down before and praise!


text:
and with what's left he makes his god: a carved idol! He falls down before it and worships it and prays to it. "Deliver me," he says. "You are my god!"


text:
Such stupidity and ignorance! God has shut their eyes so that they cannot see and closed their minds from understanding.


text:
The man never stops to think or figure out, "Why, it's just a block of wood! I've burned it for heat and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat. How can the rest of it be a god? Should I fall down before a chunk of wood?"


text:
The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes; he is trusting what can never give him any help at all. Yet he cannot bring himself to ask, "Is this thing, this idol that I'm holding in my hand, a lie?"


text:
I've blotted out your sins; they are gone like morning mist at noon! Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free."


text:
Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done this wondrous thing. Shout, O earth; break forth into song, O mountains and forests, yes, and every tree; for the Lord redeemed Jacob and is glorified in Israel!


text:
The Lord, your Redeemer who made you, says, "All things were made by me; I alone stretched out the heavens. By myself I made the earth and everything in it.


text:
"I am the one who shows what liars all false prophets are, by causing something else to happen than the things they say. I make wise men give opposite advice to what they should and make them into fools.


text:
But what my prophets say, I do; when they say Jerusalem will be delivered and the cities of Judah lived in once again--it shall be done!


text:
When I say of Cyrus, 'He is my shepherd,' he will certainly do as I say; and Jerusalem will be rebuilt and the Temple restored, for I have spoken it."


text:
This is Jehovah's message to Cyrus, God's anointed, whom he has chosen to conquer many lands. God shall empower his right hand, and he shall crush the strength of mighty kings. God shall open the gates of Babylon to him; the gates shall not be shut against him any more.


text:
"I will go before you, Cyrus, and level the mountains and smash down the city gates of brass and iron bars.


text:
And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness, secret riches; and you will know that I am doing this--I, the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by your name.


text:
"And why have I named you for this work? For the sake of Jacob, my servant--Israel, my chosen. I called you by name when you didn't know me.


text:
I am Jehovah; there is no other God. I will strengthen you and send you out to victory even though you don't know me,


text:
and all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am Jehovah and there is no one else. I alone am God.


text:
I form the light and make the dark. I send good times and bad. I, Jehovah, am he who does these things.


text:
Open up, O heavens. Let the skies pour out their righteousness. Let salvation and righteousness sprout up together from the earth. I, Jehovah, created them.


text:
"Woe to the man who fights with his Creator. Does the pot argue with its maker? Does the clay dispute with him who forms it, saying, 'Stop, you're doing it wrong!' or the pot exclaim, 'How clumsy can you be!'?


text:
Woe to the baby just being born who squalls to his father and mother, 'Why have you produced me? Can't you do anything right at all?' "


text:
Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, Israel's Creator, says: "What right have you to question what I do? Who are you to command me concerning the work of my hands?


text:
I have made the earth and created man upon it. With my hands I have stretched out the heavens and commanded all the vast myriads of stars.


text:
I have raised up Cyrus to fulfill my righteous purpose, and I will direct all his paths. He shall restore my city and free my captive people--and not for a reward!"


text:
Jehovah says: "The Egyptians, Ethiopians, and Sabeans shall be subject to you. They shall come to you with all their merchandise, and it shall all be yours. They shall follow you as prisoners in chains and fall down on their knees before you and say, 'The only God there is, is your God!' "


text:
But Israel shall be saved by Jehovah with eternal salvation; they shall never be disappointed in their God through all eternity.


text:
For Jehovah created the heavens and earth and put everything in place, and he made the world to be lived in, not to be an empty chaos. "I am Jehovah," he says, "and there is no other!


text:
I publicly proclaim bold promises; I do not whisper obscurities in some dark corner so that no one can know what I mean. And I didn't tell Israel to ask me for what I didn't plan to give! No, for I, Jehovah, speak only truth and righteousness.


text:
"Gather together and come, you nations that escape from Cyrus' hand. What fools they are who carry around the wooden idols and pray to gods that cannot save!


text:
Consult together, argue your case and state your proofs that idol-worship pays! Who but God has said that these things concerning Cyrus would come true? What idol ever told you they would happen? For there is no other God but me--a just God and a Savior--no, not one!


text:
I have sworn by myself, and I will never go back on my word, for it is true--that every knee in all the world shall bow to me, and every tongue shall swear allegiance to my name."


text:
"In Jehovah is all my righteousness and strength," the people shall declare. And all who were angry with him shall come to him and be ashamed.


text:
The idols of Babylon, Bel and Nebo, are being hauled away on ox carts! But look! The beasts are stumbling!


text:
The cart is turning over! The gods are falling out onto the ground! Is that the best that they can do? If they cannot even save themselves from such a fall, how can they save their worshipers from Cyrus?


text:
I will be your God through all your lifetime, yes, even when your hair is white with age. I made you and I will care for you. I will carry you along and be your Savior.


text:
Will you compare me with an idol made lavishly with silver and with gold? They hire a goldsmith to take your wealth and make a god from it! Then they fall down and worship it!


text:
They carry it around on their shoulders, and when they set it down, it stays there, for it cannot move! And when someone prays to it, there is no answer, for it cannot get him out of his trouble.


text:
And don't forget the many times I clearly told you what was going to happen in the future. For I am God--I only--and there is no other like me


text:
I will call that swift bird of prey from the east--that man Cyrus from far away. And he will come and do my bidding. I have said I would do it and I will.


text:
For I am offering you my deliverance; not in the distant future, but right now! I am ready to save you, and I will restore Jerusalem and Israel, who is my glory.


text:
"O Babylon, the unconquered, come sit in the dust; for your days of glory, pomp, and honor are ended. O daughter of Chaldea, never again will you be the lovely princess, tender and delicate.


text:
Take heavy millstones and grind the corn; remove your veil; strip off your robe; expose yourself to public view.


text:
So speaks our Redeemer, who will save Israel from Babylon's mighty power; the Lord Almighty is his name, the Holy One of Israel.


text:
For I was angry with my people Israel and began to punish them a little by letting them fall into your hands, O Babylon. But you showed them no mercy. You have made even the old folks carry heavy burdens.


text:
You thought your reign would never end, Queen Kingdom of the world. You didn't care a whit about my people or think about the fate of those who do them harm.


text:
"O pleasure-mad kingdom, living at ease, bragging as the greatest in the world--listen to the sentence of my court upon your sins. You say, 'I alone am God! I'll never be a widow; I'll never lose my children.'


text:
Well, those two things shall come upon you in one moment, in full measure in one day: widowhood and the loss of your children, despite all your witchcraft and magic.


text:
"You felt secure in all your wickedness. 'No one sees me,' you said. Your 'wisdom' and 'knowledge' have caused you to turn away from me and claim that you yourself are Jehovah.


text:
That is why disaster shall overtake you suddenly--so suddenly that you won't know where it comes from. And there will be no atonement then to cleanse away your sins.


text:
"Call out the demon hordes you've worshiped all these years. Call on them to help you strike deep terror into many hearts again.


text:
You have advisors by the ton--your astrologers and stargazers, who try to tell you what the future holds.


text:
But they are as useless as dried grass burning in the fire. They cannot even deliver themselves! You'll get no help from them at all. Theirs is no fire to sit beside to make you warm!


text:
"Hear me, my people: you swear allegiance to the Lord without meaning a word of it when you boast of living in the Holy City and brag about depending on the God of Israel.


text:
Time and again I told you what was going to happen in the future. My words were scarcely spoken when suddenly I did just what I said.


text:
I knew how hard and obstinate you are. Your necks are as unbending as iron; you are as hardheaded as brass.


text:
That is why I told you ahead of time what I was going to do, so that you could never say, 'My idol did it; my carved image commanded it to happen!'


text:
You have heard my predictions and seen them fulfilled, but you refuse to agree it is so. Now I will tell you new things I haven't mentioned before, secrets you haven't heard.


text:
"Yes, I'll tell you things entirely new, for I know so well what traitors you are, rebels from earliest childhood, rotten through and through.


text:
I refined you in the furnace of affliction, but found no silver there. You are worthless, with nothing good in you at all.


text:
Yet for my own sake--yes, for my own sake--I will save you from my anger and not destroy you lest the heathen say their gods have conquered me. I will not let them have my glory.


text:
It was my hand that laid the foundations of the earth; the palm of my right hand spread out the heavens above; I spoke and they came into being.


text:
"Come, all of you, and listen. Among all your idols, which one has ever told you this: 'The Lord loves Cyrus. He will use him to put an end to the empire of Babylonia. He will utterly rout the armies of the Chaldeans'?


text:
"Come closer and listen. I have always told you plainly what would happen, so that you could clearly understand." And now the Lord God and his Spirit have sent me (with this message):


text:
The Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, says, "I am the Lord your God, who punishes you for your own good and leads you along the paths that you should follow.


text:
"Oh, that you had listened to my laws! Then you would have had peace flowing like a gentle river, and great waves of righteousness.


text:
Then you would have become as numerous as the sands along the seashores of the world, too many to count, and there would have been no need for your destruction."


text:
Yet even now, be free from your captivity! Leave Babylon, singing as you go; shout to the ends of the earth that the Lord has redeemed his servants, the Jews.


text:
They were not thirsty when he led them through the deserts; he divided the rock, and water gushed out for them to drink.


text:
Listen to me, all of you in far-off lands: The Lord called me before my birth. From within the womb he called me by my name.


text:
God will make my words of judgment sharp as swords. He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand; I am like a sharp arrow in his quiver.


text:
I replied, "But my work for them seems all in vain; I have spent my strength for them without response. Yet I leave it all with God for my reward."


text:
"And now," said the Lord--the Lord who formed me from my mother's womb to serve him who commissioned me to restore to him his people Israel, who has given me the strength to perform this task and honored me for doing it!--


text:
"you shall do more than restore Israel to me. I will make you a Light to the nations of the world to bring my salvation to them too."


text:
The Lord, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, says to the One who is despised, rejected by mankind, and kept beneath the heel of the world's rulers: "Kings shall stand at attention when you pass by; princes shall bow low because the Lord has chosen you; he, the faithful Lord, the Holy One of Israel, chooses you."


text:
The Lord says, "Your request has come at a favorable time. I will keep you from harm and give you as a token and pledge to Israel, proof that I will reestablish the land of Israel and reassign it to its own people again.


text:
Through you I am saying to the prisoners of darkness, 'Come out! I am giving you your freedom!' They will be my sheep, grazing in green pastures and on the grassy hills.


text:
They shall neither hunger nor thirst; the searing sun and scorching desert winds will not reach them any more. For the Lord in his mercy will lead them beside the cool waters.


text:
And I will make my mountains into level paths for them; the highways shall be raised above the valleys.


text:
Sing for joy, O heavens; shout, O earth. Break forth with song, O mountains, for the Lord has comforted his people and will have compassion upon them in their sorrow.


text:
"Never! Can a mother forget her little child and not have love for her own son? Yet even if that should be, I will not forget you.


text:
See, I have tattooed your name upon my palm, and ever before me is a picture of Jerusalem's walls in ruins.


text:
Look and see, for the Lord has vowed that all your enemies shall come and be your slaves. They will be as jewels to display, as bridal ornaments.


text:
"Even the most desolate parts of your abandoned land shall soon be crowded with your people, and your enemies who enslaved you shall be far away.


text:
Then you will think to yourself, 'Who has given me all these? For most of my children were killed, and the rest were carried away into exile, leaving me here alone. Who bore these? Who raised them for me?' "


text:
The Lord God says, "See, I will give a signal to the Gentiles, and they shall carry your little sons back to you in their arms, and your daughters on their shoulders.


text:
Kings and queens shall serve you; they shall care for all your needs. They shall bow to the earth before you and lick the dust from off your feet; then you shall know I am the Lord. Those who wait for me shall never be ashamed."


text:
Who can snatch the prey from the hands of a mighty man? Who can demand that a tyrant let his captives go?


text:
But the Lord says, "Even the captives of the most mighty and most terrible shall all be freed; for I will fight those who fight you, and I will save your children.


text:
I will feed your enemies with their own flesh, and they shall be drunk with rivers of their own blood. All the world shall know that I, the Lord, am your Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel."


text:
The Lord asks, "Did I sell you to my creditors? Is that why you aren't here? Is your mother gone because I divorced her and sent her away? No, you went away as captives because of your sins. And your mother, too, was taken in payment for your sins.


text:
Was I too weak to save you? Is that why the house is silent and empty when I come home? Have I no longer power to deliver? No, that is not the reason! For I can rebuke the sea and make it dry! I can turn the rivers into deserts, covered with dying fish.


text:
The Lord God has given me his words of wisdom so that I may know what I should say to all these weary ones. Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will.


text:
I give my back to the whip, and my cheeks to those who pull out the beard. I do not hide from shame--they spit in my face.


text:
Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be dismayed; therefore, I have set my face like flint to do his will, and I know that I will triumph.


text:
He who gives me justice is near. Who will dare to fight against me now? Where are my enemies? Let them appear!


text:
See, the Lord God is for me! Who shall declare me guilty? All my enemies shall be destroyed like old clothes eaten up by moths!


text:
Who among you fears the Lord and obeys his Servant? If such men walk in darkness, without one ray of light, let them trust the Lord, let them rely upon their God.


text:
But see here, you who live in your own light and warm yourselves from your own fires and not from God's; you will live among sorrows.


text:
"Listen to me, all who hope for deliverance, who seek the Lord! Consider the quarry from which you were mined, the rock from which you were cut!


text:
Yes, think about your ancestors Abraham and Sarah, from whom you came. You worry at being so small and few, but Abraham was only one when I called him. But when I blessed him, he became a great nation."


text:
And the Lord will bless Israel again, and make her deserts blossom; her barren wilderness will become as beautiful as the Garden of Eden. Joy and gladness will be found there, thanksgiving and lovely songs.


text:
My mercy and justice are coming soon; your salvation is on the way. I will rule the nations; they shall wait for me and long for me to come.


text:
Look high in the skies and watch the earth beneath, for the skies shall disappear like smoke, the earth shall wear out like a garment, and the people of the earth shall die like flies. But my salvation lasts forever; my righteous rule will never die nor end.


text:
"Listen to me, you who know the right from wrong and cherish my laws in your hearts: don't be afraid of people's scorn or their slanderous talk.


text:
For the moth shall destroy them like garments; the worm shall eat them like wool; but my justice and mercy shall last forever, and my salvation from generation to generation."


text:
Awake, O Lord! Rise up and robe yourself with strength. Rouse yourself as in the days of old when you slew Egypt, the dragon of the Nile.


text:
Are you not the same today, the mighty God who dried up the sea, making a path right through it for your ransomed ones?


text:
The time will come when God's redeemed will all come home again. They shall come with singing to Jerusalem, filled with joy and everlasting gladness; sorrow and mourning will all disappear.


text:
"I, even I, am he who comforts you and gives you all this joy. So what right have you to fear mere mortal men, who wither like the grass and disappear?


text:
And yet you have no fear of God, your Maker--you have forgotten him, the one who spread the stars throughout the skies and made the earth. Will you be in constant dread of men's oppression, and fear their anger all day long?


text:
For I am the Lord your God, the Lord Almighty, who dried a path for you right through the sea, between the roaring waves.


text:
And I have put my words in your mouth and hidden you safe within my hand. I planted the stars in place and molded all the earth. I am the one who says to Israel, 'You are mine.' "


text:
Wake up, wake up, Jerusalem! You have drunk enough from the cup of the fury of the Lord. You have drunk to the dregs the cup of terror and squeezed out the last drops.


text:
These two things have been your lot: desolation and destruction. Yes, famine and the sword. And who is left to sympathize? Who is left to comfort you?


text:
For your sons have fainted and lie in the streets, helpless as wild goats caught in a net. The Lord has poured out his fury and rebuke upon them.


text:
But listen now to this, afflicted ones--full of troubles and in a stupor (but not from being drunk)--


text:
this is what the Lord says, the Lord your God who cares for his people: "See, I take from your hands the terrible cup; you shall drink no more of my fury; it is gone at last.


text:
But I will put that terrible cup into the hands of those who tormented you and trampled your souls to the dust and walked upon your backs."


text:
Wake up, wake up, Jerusalem, and clothe yourselves with strength  from God. Put on your beautiful clothes, O Zion, Holy City; for sinners--those who turn from God--will no longer enter your gates.


text:
For the Lord says, "When I sold you into exile, I asked no fee from your oppressors; now I can take you back again and owe them not a cent!


text:
"And now, what is this?" asks the Lord. "Why are my people enslaved again and oppressed without excuse? Those who rule them shout in exultation, and my name is constantly blasphemed day by day.


text:
Therefore I will reveal my name to my people, and they shall know the power in that name. Then at last they will recognize that it is I, yes, I, who speaks to them."


text:
How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of those who bring the happy news of peace and salvation, the news that the God of Israel reigns.


text:
The watchmen shout and sing with joy, for right before their eyes they see the Lord God bring his people home again.


text:
Let the ruins of Jerusalem break into joyous song, for the Lord has comforted his people; he has redeemed Jerusalem.


text:
The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all the nations; the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.


text:
Go now, leave your bonds and slavery. Put Babylon and all it represents far behind you--it is unclean to you. You are the holy people of the Lord; purify yourselves, all you who carry home the vessels of the Lord.


text:
You shall not leave in haste, running for your lives; for the Lord will go ahead of you, and he, the God of Israel, will protect you from behind.


text:
Yet many shall be amazed when they see him--yes, even far-off foreign nations and their kings; they shall stand dumbfounded, speechless in his presence. For they shall see and understand what they had not been told before.


text:
They shall see my Servant beaten and bloodied, so disfigured one would scarcely know it was a person standing there. So shall he cleanse many nations.


text:
In God's eyes he was like a tender green shoot, sprouting from a root in dry and sterile ground. But in our eyes there was no attractiveness at all, nothing to make us want him.


text:
We despised him and rejected him--a man of sorrows, acquainted with bitterest grief. We turned our backs on him and looked the other way when he went by. He was despised, and we didn't care.


text:
Yet it was our grief he bore, our sorrows that weighed him down. And we thought his troubles were a punishment from God, for his own sins!


text:
But he was wounded and bruised for our sins. He was beaten that we might have peace; he was lashed--and we were healed!


text:
We--every one of us--have strayed away like sheep! We, who left God's paths to follow our own. Yet God laid on him the guilt and sins of every one of us!


text:
He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he never said a word. He was brought as a lamb to the slaughter; and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he stood silent before the ones condemning him.


text:
From prison and trial they led him away to his death. But who among the people of that day realized it was their sins that he was dying for--that he was suffering their punishment?


text:
He was buried like a criminal, but in a rich man's grave; but he had done no wrong and had never spoken an evil word.


text:
But it was the Lord's good plan to bruise him and fill him with grief. However, when his soul has been made an offering for sin, then he shall have a multitude of children, many heirs. He shall live again, and God's program shall prosper in his hands.


text:
And when he sees all that is accomplished by the anguish of his soul, he shall be satisfied; and because of what he has experienced, my righteous Servant shall make many to be counted righteous before God, for he shall bear all their sins.


text:
Therefore, I will give him the honors of one who is mighty and great because he has poured out his soul unto death. He was counted as a sinner, and he bore the sins of many, and he pled with God for sinners.


text:
"Sing, O childless woman! Break out into loud and joyful song, Jerusalem, for she who was abandoned has more blessings now than she whose husband stayed!


text:
For you will soon be bursting at the seams! And your descendants will possess the cities left behind during the exile and rule the nations that took their lands.


text:
Fear not; you will no longer live in shame. The shame of your youth and the sorrows of widowhood will be remembered no more,


text:
for your Creator will be your "husband." The Lord Almighty is his name; he is your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of all the earth.


text:
In a moment of anger I turned my face a little while; but with everlasting love I will have pity on you," says the Lord, your Redeemer.


text:
"Just as in the time of Noah I swore that I would never again permit the waters of a flood to cover the earth and destroy its life, so now I swear that I will never again pour out my anger on you.


text:
For the mountains may depart and the hills disappear, but my kindness shall not leave you. My promise of peace for you will never be broken," says the Lord who has mercy upon you.


text:
"O my afflicted people, tempest-tossed and troubled, I will rebuild you on a foundation of sapphires and make the walls of your houses from precious jewels.


text:
You will live under a government that is just and fair. Your enemies will stay far away; you will live in peace. Terror shall not come near.


text:
If any nation comes to fight you, it will not be sent by me to punish you. Therefore, it will be routed, for I am on your side.


text:
I have created the smith who blows the coals beneath the forge and makes the weapons of destruction. And I have created the armies that destroy.


text:
But in that coming day, no weapon turned against you shall succeed, and you will have justice against every courtroom lie. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord. This is the blessing I have given you," says the Lord.


text:
"Say there! Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink--even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine and milk--it's all free!


text:
Why spend your money on food that doesn't give you strength? Why pay for groceries that do you no good? Listen and I'll tell you where to get good food that fattens up the soul!


text:
"Come to me with your ears wide open. Listen, for the life of your soul is at stake. I am ready to make an everlasting covenant with you, to give you all the unfailing mercies and love that I had for King David.


text:
You also will command the nations, and they will come running to obey, not because of your own power or virtue, but because I, the Lord your God, have glorified you."


text:
Let men cast off their wicked deeds; let them banish from their minds the very thought of doing wrong! Let them turn to the Lord that he may have mercy upon them, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon!


text:
For just as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than yours, and my thoughts than yours.


text:
"As the rain and snow come down from heaven and stay upon the ground to water the earth, and cause the grain to grow and to produce seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry,


text:
so also is my Word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It shall accomplish all I want it to and prosper everywhere I send it.


text:
You will live in joy and peace. The mountains and hills, the trees of the field--all the world around you--will rejoice.


text:
Where once were thorns, fir trees will grow; where briars grew, the myrtle trees will sprout up. This miracle will make the Lord's name very great and be an everlasting sign  of God's power and love.


text:
"Be just and fair to all," the Lord God says. "Do what's right and good, for I am coming soon to rescue you.


text:
Blessed is the man who refuses to work during my Sabbath days of rest, but honors them; and blessed is the man who checks himself from doing wrong.


text:
"And my blessings are for Gentiles, too, when they accept the Lord; don't let them think that I will make them second-class citizens. And this is for the eunuchs too. They can be as much mine as anyone.


text:
For I say this to the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths holy, who choose the things that please me and obey my laws:


text:
I will give them--in my house, within my walls--a name far greater than the honor they would receive from having sons and daughters. For the name that I will give them is an everlasting one; it will never disappear.


text:
"As for the Gentiles, the outsiders who join the people of the Lord and serve him and love his name, who are his servants and don't desecrate the Sabbath, and have accepted his covenant and promises,


text:
I will bring them also to my holy mountain of Jerusalem and make them full of joy within my House of Prayer. "I will accept their sacrifices and offerings, for my Temple shall be called 'A House of Prayer for All People'!"


text:
For the Lord God who brings back the outcasts of Israel says, "I will bring others too besides my people Israel."


text:
Come, wild animals of the field; come, tear apart the sheep; come, wild animals of the forest, devour my people.


text:
For the leaders of my people--the Lord's watchmen, his shepherds--are all blind to every danger. They are featherbrained and give no warning when danger comes. They love to lie there, love to sleep, to dream.


text:
And they are as greedy as dogs, never satisfied; they are stupid shepherds who only look after their own interest, each trying to get as much as he can for himself from every possible source.


text:
"Come," they say. "We'll get some wine and have a party; let's all get drunk. This is really living; let it go on and on, and tomorrow will be even better!"


text:
The good men perish; the godly die before their time, and no one seems to care or wonder why. No one seems to realize that God is taking them away from evil days ahead.


text:
You worship your idols with great zeal beneath the shade of every tree and slay your children as human sacrifices down in the valleys, under overhanging rocks.


text:
Your gods are the smooth stones in the valleys. You worship them, and they, not I, are your inheritance. Does all this make me happy?


text:
You have committed adultery on the tops of the mountains, for you worship idols there, deserting me.


text:
Behind closed doors you set your idols up and worship someone other than me. This is adultery, for you are giving these idols your love instead of loving me.


text:
You have taken pleasant incense and perfume to Molech as your gift. You have traveled far, even to hell itself, to find new gods to love.


text:
Why were you more afraid of them than of me? How is it that you gave not even a second thought to me? Is it because I've been too gentle that you have no fear of me?


text:
Let's see if the whole collection of your idols can help you when you cry to them to save you! They are so weak that the wind can carry them off! A breath can puff them away. But he who trusts in me shall possess the land and inherit my Holy Mountain.


text:
I will say, 'Rebuild the road! Clear away the rocks and stones. Prepare a glorious highway for my people's return from captivity.' "


text:
"The high and lofty One who inhabits eternity, the Holy One, says this: I live in that high and holy place where those with contrite, humble spirits dwell; and I refresh the humble and give new courage to those with repentant hearts.


text:
For I will not fight against you forever, nor always show my wrath; if I did, all mankind would perish--the very souls that I have made.


text:
I was angry and smote these greedy men. But they went right on sinning, doing everything their evil hearts desired.


text:
I have seen what they do, but I will heal them anyway! I will lead them and comfort them, helping them to mourn and to confess their sins.


text:
But those who still reject me are like the restless sea, which is never still, but always churns up mire and dirt.


text:
Yet they act so pious! They come to the Temple every day and are so delighted to hear the reading of my laws--just as though they would obey them--just as though they don't despise the commandments of their God! How anxious they are to worship correctly; oh, how they love the Temple services!


text:
'We have fasted before you,' they say. 'Why aren't you impressed? Why don't you see our sacrifices? Why don't you hear our prayers? We have done much penance, and you don't even notice it!' I'll tell you why! Because you are living in evil pleasure even while you are fasting, and you keep right on oppressing your workers.


text:
Look, what good is fasting when you keep on fighting and quarreling? This kind of fasting will never get you anywhere with me.


text:
Is this what I want--this doing of penance and bowing like reeds in the wind, putting on sackcloth and covering yourselves with ashes? Is this what you call fasting?


text:
"No, the kind of fast I want is that you stop oppressing those who work for you and treat them fairly and give them what they earn.


text:
I want you to share your food with the hungry and bring right into your own homes those who are helpless, poor, and destitute. Clothe those who are cold, and don't hide from relatives who need your help.


text:
"If you do these things, God will shed his own glorious light upon you. He will heal you; your godliness will lead you forward, goodness will be a shield before you, and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.


text:
Then, when you call, the Lord will answer. 'Yes, I am here,' he will quickly reply. All you need to do is to stop oppressing the weak and stop making false accusations and spreading vicious rumors!


text:
"Feed the hungry! Help those in trouble! Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you shall be as bright as day.


text:
And the Lord will guide you continually, and satisfy you with all good things, and keep you healthy too; and you will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.


text:
Your sons will rebuild the long-deserted ruins of your cities, and you will be known as 'The People Who Rebuild Their Walls and Cities.'


text:
"If you keep the Sabbath holy, not having your own fun and business on that day, but enjoying the Sabbath, speaking of it with delight as the Lord's holy day, and honoring the Lord in what you do, not following your own desires and pleasure nor talking idly--


text:
then the Lord will be your delight, and I will see to it that you ride high and get your full share of the blessings I promised to Jacob, your father." The Lord has spoken.


text:
Listen now! The Lord isn't too weak to save you. And he isn't getting deaf! He can hear you when you call!


text:
But the trouble is that your sins have cut you off from God. Because of sin he has turned his face away from you and will not listen anymore.


text:
For your hands are those of murderers and your fingers are filthy with sin. You lie and grumble and oppose the good.


text:
No one cares about being fair and true. Your lawsuits are based on lies; you spend your time plotting evil deeds and doing them.


text:
You cheat and shortchange everyone. Everything you do is filled with sin; violence is your trademark.


text:
Your feet run to do evil and rush to murder; your thoughts are only of sinning, and wherever you go you leave behind a trail of misery and death.


text:
You don't know what true peace is, nor what it means to be just and good; you continually do wrong and those who follow you won't experience any peace either.


text:
It is because of all this evil that you aren't finding God's blessings; that's why he doesn't punish those who injure you. No wonder you are in darkness when you expected light. No wonder you are walking in the gloom.


text:
No wonder you grope like blind men and stumble along in broad daylight, yes, even at brightest noontime, as though it were the darkest night! No wonder you are like corpses when compared with vigorous young men!


text:
You roar like hungry bears; you moan with mournful cries like doves. You look for God to keep you, but he doesn't. He has turned away.


text:
For your sins keep piling up before the righteous God and testify against you. Yes, we know what sinners we are.


text:
We know our disobedience; we have denied the Lord our God. We know what rebels we are and how unfair we are, for we carefully plan our lies.


text:
Our courts oppose the righteous man; fairness is unknown. Truth falls dead in the streets, and justice is outlawed.


text:
Yes, truth is gone, and anyone who tries a better life is soon attacked. The Lord saw all the evil and was displeased to find no steps taken against sin.


text:
He saw no one was helping you and wondered that no one intervened. Therefore he himself stepped in to save you through his mighty power and justice.


text:
He put on righteousness as armor and the helmet of salvation on his head. He clothed himself with robes of vengeance and of godly fury.


text:
Then at last they will reverence and glorify the name of God from west to east. For he will come like a flood tide driven by Jehovah's breath.


text:
"As for me, this is my promise to them," says the Lord: "My Holy Spirit shall not leave them, and they shall want the good and hate the wrong--they and their children and their children's children forever.


text:
"Arise, my people! Let your light shine for all the nations to see! For the glory of the Lord is streaming from you.


text:
Darkness as black as night shall cover all the peoples of the earth, but the glory of the Lord will shine from you.


text:
Your eyes will shine with joy, your hearts will thrill, for merchants from around the world will flow to you, bringing you the wealth of many lands.


text:
Vast droves of camels will converge upon you, dromedaries from Midian and Sheba and Ephah too, bringing gold and incense to add to the praise of God.


text:
The flocks of Kedar shall be given you, and the rams of Nabaioth for my altars, and I will glorify my glorious Temple in that day.


text:
I have reserved the ships of many lands, the very best, to bring the sons of Israel home again from far away, bringing their wealth with them. For the Holy One of Israel, known around the world, has glorified you in the eyes of all.


text:
"Foreigners will come and build your cities. Presidents and kings will send you aid. For though I destroyed you in my anger, I will have mercy on you through my grace.


text:
Your gates will stay wide open around the clock to receive the wealth of many lands. The kings of the world will cater to you.


text:
The glory of Lebanon will be yours--the forests of firs, pines, and box trees--to beautify my sanctuary. My Temple will be glorious.


text:
"The sons of anti-Semites will come and bow before you! They will kiss your feet! They will call Jerusalem 'The City of the Lord' and 'The Glorious Mountain of the Holy One of Israel.'


text:
"Though once despised and hated and rebuffed by all, you will be beautiful forever, a joy for all the generations of the world, for I will make you so.


text:
Powerful kings and mighty nations shall provide you with the choicest of their goods to satisfy your every need, and you will know at last and really understand that I, the Lord, am your Savior and Redeemer, the Mighty One of Israel.


text:
I will exchange your brass for gold, your iron for silver, your wood for brass, your stones for iron. Peace and righteousness shall be your taskmasters!


text:
Violence will disappear out of your land--all war will end. Your walls will be 'Salvation' and your gates 'Praise.'


text:
"No longer will you need the sun or moon to give you light, for the Lord your God will be your everlasting light, and he will be your glory.


text:
Your sun shall never set; the moon shall not go down--for the Lord will be your everlasting light; your days of mourning all will end.


text:
All your people will be good. They will possess their land forever, for I will plant them there with my own hands; this will bring me glory.


text:
The smallest family shall multiply into a clan; the tiny group shall be a mighty nation. I, the Lord, will bring it all to pass when it is time."


text:
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the suffering and afflicted. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted, to announce liberty to captives, and to open the eyes of the blind.


text:
He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of God's favor to them has come, and the day of his wrath to their enemies.


text:
To all who mourn in Israel he will give: Beauty for ashes; Joy instead of mourning; Praise instead of heaviness. For God has planted them like strong and graceful oaks for his own glory.


text:
And they shall rebuild the ancient ruins, repairing cities long ago destroyed, reviving them though they have lain there many generations.


text:
Foreigners shall be your servants; they shall feed your flocks and plow your fields and tend your vineyards.


text:
You shall be called priests of the Lord, ministers of our God. You shall be fed with the treasures of the nations and shall glory in their riches.


text:
"For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrong. I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering and make an everlasting covenant with them.


text:
Their descendants shall be known and honored among the nations; all shall realize that they are a people God has blessed."


text:
Let me tell you how happy God has made me! For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and draped about me the robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom in his wedding suit or a bride with her jewels.


text:
The Lord will show the nations of the world his justice; all will praise him. His righteousness shall be like a budding tree, or like a garden in early spring, full of young plants springing up everywhere.


text:
Because I love Zion, because my heart yearns for Jerusalem, I will not cease to pray for her or to cry out to God on her behalf until she shines forth in his righteousness and is glorious in his salvation.


text:
The nations shall see your righteousness. Kings shall be blinded by your glory; and God will confer on you a new name.


text:
Never again shall you be called "The God-forsaken Land" or the "Land That God Forgot." Your new name will be "The Land of God's Delight" and "The Bride," for the Lord delights in you and will claim you as his own.


text:
Your children will care for you, O Jerusalem, with joy like that of a young man who marries a virgin; and God will rejoice over you as a bridegroom with his bride.


text:
O Jerusalem, I have set intercessors on your walls who shall cry to God all day and all night for the fulfillment of his promises. Take no rest, all you who pray,


text:
and give God no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes her respected and admired throughout the earth.


text:
The Lord has sworn to Jerusalem with all his integrity: "I will never again give you to your enemies; never again shall foreign soldiers come and take away your grain and wine.


text:
You raised it; you shall keep it, praising God. Within the Temple courts you yourselves shall drink the wine you pressed."


text:
Go out! Go out! Prepare the roadway for my people to return! Build the roads, pull out the boulders, raise the flag of Israel.


text:
See, the Lord has sent his messengers to every land and said, "Tell my people, I, the Lord your God, am coming to save you and will bring you many gifts."


text:
And they shall be called "The Holy People" and "The Lord's Redeemed," and Jerusalem shall be called "The Land of Desire" and "The City God Has Blessed."


text:
Who is this who comes from Edom, from the city of Bozrah, with his magnificent garments of crimson? Who is this in royal robes, marching in the greatness of his strength? "It is I, the Lord, announcing your salvation; I, the Lord, the one who is mighty to save!"


text:
"I have trodden the winepress alone. No one was there to help me. In my wrath I have trodden my enemies like grapes. In my fury I trampled my foes. It is their blood you see upon my clothes.


text:
For the time has come for me to avenge my people, to redeem them from the hands of their oppressors.


text:
I looked but no one came to help them; I was amazed and appalled. So I executed vengeance alone; unaided, I meted out judgment.


text:
I will tell of the loving-kindnesses of God. I will praise him for all he has done; I will rejoice in his great goodness to Israel, which he has granted in accordance with his mercy and love.


text:
In all their affliction he was afflicted, and he personally saved them. In his love and pity he redeemed them and lifted them up and carried them through all the years.


text:
But they rebelled against him and grieved his Holy Spirit. That is why he became their enemy and personally fought against them.


text:
Then they remembered those days of old when Moses, God's servant, led his people out of Egypt, and they cried out, "Where is the One who brought Israel through the sea, with Moses as their shepherd? Where is the God who sent his Holy Spirit to be among his people?


text:
Where is he whose mighty power divided the sea before them when Moses lifted up his hand, and established his reputation forever?


text:
Who led them through the bottom of the sea? Like fine stallions racing through the desert, they never stumbled.


text:
Like cattle grazing in the valleys, so the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest. Thus he gave himself a magnificent reputation."


text:
O Lord, look down from heaven and see us from your holy, glorious home; where is the love for us you used to show--your power, your mercy, and your compassion? Where are they now?


text:
Surely you are still our Father! Even if Abraham and Jacob would disown us, still you would be our Father, our Redeemer from ages past.


text:
O Lord, why have you hardened our hearts and made us sin and turn against you? Return and help us, for we who belong to you need you so.


text:
O God, why do you treat us as though we weren't your people, as though we were a heathen nation that never called you "Lord"?


text:
Oh, that you would burst forth from the skies and come down! How the mountains would quake in your presence!


text:
The consuming fire of your glory would burn down the forests and boil the oceans dry. The nations would tremble before you; then your enemies would learn the reason for your fame!


text:
So it was before when you came down, for you did awesome things beyond our highest expectations, and how the mountains quaked!


text:
For since the world began no one has seen or heard of such a God as ours, who works for those who wait for him!


text:
You welcome those who cheerfully do good, who follow godly ways. But we are not godly; we are constant sinners and have been all our lives. Therefore your wrath is heavy on us. How can such as we be saved?


text:
We are all infected and impure with sin. When we put on our prized robes of righteousness, we find they are but filthy rags. Like autumn leaves we fade, wither and fall. And our sins, like the wind, sweep us away.


text:
Yet no one calls upon your name or pleads with you for mercy. Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins.


text:
And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay and you are the Potter. We are all formed by your hand.


text:
Oh, be not so angry with us, Lord, nor forever remember our sins. Oh, look and see that we are all your people.


text:
Our holy, beautiful Temple where our fathers praised you is burned down, and all the things of beauty are destroyed.


text:
After all of this, must you still refuse to help us, Lord? Will you stand silent and still punish us?


text:
The Lord says, "People who never before inquired about me are now seeking me out. Nations who never before searched for me are finding me.


text:
"But my own people--though I have been spreading out my arms to welcome them all day long--have rebelled; they follow their own evil paths and thoughts.


text:
All day long they insult me to my face by worshiping idols in many gardens and burning incense on the rooftops of their homes.


text:
At night they go out among the graves and caves to worship evil spirits, and they eat pork and other forbidden foods.


text:
Yet they say to one another, 'Don't come too close, you'll defile me! For I am holier than you!' They stifle me. Day in and day out they infuriate me.


text:
"See, here is my decree all written out before me: I will not stand silent; I will repay. Yes, I will repay them--


text:
not only for their own sins but for those of their fathers too,' says the Lord, 'for they also burned incense on the mountains and insulted me upon the hills. I will pay them back in full.


text:
"But I will not destroy them all," says the Lord; "for just as good grapes are found among a cluster of bad ones (and someone will say, 'Don't throw them all away--there are some good grapes there!') so I will not destroy all Israel, for I have true servants there.


text:
I will preserve a remnant of my people to possess the land of Israel; those I select will inherit it and serve me there.


text:
As for my people who have sought me, the plains of Sharon shall again be filled with flocks, and the valley of Achor shall be a place to pasture herds.


text:
"But because the rest of you have forsaken the Lord and his Temple and worship gods of 'Fate' and 'Destiny,' "


text:
therefore I will 'destine' you to the sword, and your 'fate' shall be a dark one; for when I called, you didn't answer; when I spoke, you wouldn't listen. You deliberately sinned before my very eyes, choosing to do what you know I despise."


text:
Therefore, the Lord God says, "You shall starve, but my servants shall eat; you shall be thirsty while they drink; you shall be sad and ashamed, but they shall rejoice.


text:
Your name shall be a curse word among my people, for the Lord God will slay you and call his true servants by another name.


text:
"And yet, the days will come when all who invoke a blessing or take an oath shall swear by the God of Truth; for I will put aside my anger and forget the evil that you did.


text:
For see, I am creating new heavens and a new earth--so wonderful that no one will even think about the old ones anymore.


text:
Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation. Look! I will recreate Jerusalem as a place of happiness, and her people shall be a joy!


text:
And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and in my people; and the voice of weeping and crying shall not be heard there any more.


text:
"No longer will babies die when only a few days old; no longer will men be considered old at 100! Only sinners will die that young!


text:
In those days, when a man builds a house, he will keep on living in it--it will not be destroyed by invading armies as in the past. My people will plant vineyards and eat the fruit themselves--


text:
their enemies will not confiscate it. For my people will live as long as trees and will long enjoy their hard-won gains.


text:
Their harvests will not be eaten by their enemies; their children will not be born to be cannon fodder. For they are the children of those the Lord has blessed; and their children, too, shall be blessed.


text:
I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking to me about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers!


text:
The wolf and lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw as the ox does, and poisonous snakes shall strike no more! In those days nothing and no one shall be hurt or destroyed in all my Holy Mountain," says the Lord.


text:
"Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool: What Temple can you build for me as good as that?


text:
My hand has made both earth and skies, and they are mine. Yet I will look with pity on the man who has a humble and a contrite heart, who trembles at my word.


text:
"But those who choose their own ways, delighting in their sins, are cursed. God will not accept their offerings. When such men sacrifice an ox on the altar of God, it is no more acceptable to him than human sacrifice. If they sacrifice a lamb or bring an offering of grain, it is as loathsome to God as putting a dog or the blood of a swine on his altar! When they burn incense to him, he counts it the same as though they blessed an idol.


text:
I will send great troubles upon them--all the things they feared, for when I called them, they refused to answer, and when I spoke to them, they would not hear. Instead, they did wrong before my eyes and chose what they knew I despised."


text:
Hear the words of God, all you who fear him, and tremble at his words: "Your brethren hate you and cast you out for being loyal to my name. 'Glory to God,' they scoff. 'Be happy in the Lord!' But they shall be put to shame.


text:
"What is all the commotion in the city? What is that terrible noise from the Temple? It is the voice of the Lord taking vengeance upon his enemies.


text:
"Who has heard or seen anything as strange as this? For in one day, suddenly, a nation, Israel, shall be born, even before the birth pains come.


text:
Prosperity shall overflow Jerusalem like a river," says the Lord, "for I will send it; the riches of the Gentiles will flow to her. Her children shall be nursed at her breasts, carried on her hips and dandled on her knees.


text:
When you see Jerusalem, your heart will rejoice; vigorous health will be yours. All the world will see the good hand of God upon his people and his wrath upon his enemies.


text:
For see, the Lord will come with fire and with swift chariots of doom to pour out the fury of his anger and his hot rebuke with flames of fire.


text:
For the Lord will punish the world by fire and by his sword, and the slain of the Lord shall be many!


text:
"Those who worship idols that are hidden behind a tree in the garden, feasting there on pork and mouse and all forbidden meat--they will come to an evil end," says Jehovah.


text:
"I see full well what they are doing; I know what they are thinking, so I will gather together all nations and people against Jerusalem, where they shall see my glory.


text:
I will perform a mighty miracle against them, and I will send those who escape, as missionaries to the nations--to Tarshish, Put, Lud, Meshech, Rosh, Tubal, Javan, and to the lands beyond the sea that have not heard my fame nor seen my glory. There they shall declare my glory to the Gentiles.


text:
And they shall bring back all your brethren from every nation as a gift to the Lord, transporting them gently on horses and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules and camels, to my holy mountain, to Jerusalem," says the Lord. "It will be like offerings flowing into the Temple of the Lord at harvesttime, carried in vessels consecrated to the Lord.


text:
"As surely as my new heavens and earth shall remain, so surely shall you always be my people, with a name that shall never disappear.


text:
And they shall go out and look at the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me, for their worm shall never die; their fire shall not be quenched; and they shall be a disgusting sight to all mankind."


text:
These are God's messages to Jeremiah the priest (the son of Hilkiah) who lived in the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin.


text:
The first of these messages came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Amon's son Josiah, king of Judah.


text:
Others came during the reign of Josiah's son Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and at various other times until July of the eleventh year of the reign of Josiah's son Zedekiah, king of Judah, when Jerusalem was captured and the people were taken away as slaves.


text:
"I knew you before you were formed within your mother's womb; before you were born I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world."


text:
"Don't say that," he replied, "for you will go wherever I send you and speak whatever I tell you to.


text:
Today your work begins, to warn the nations and the kingdoms of the world. In accord with my words spoken through your mouth I will tear down some and destroy them, and plant others, nurture them, and make them strong and great."


text:
Then the Lord said to me, "Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?" And I replied, "I see a whip made from the branch of an almond tree."


text:
And the Lord replied, "That's right, and it means that I will surely carry out my threats of punishment."


text:
Then the Lord asked me, "What do you see now?" And I replied, "I see a pot of boiling water, tipping southward, spilling over Judah."


text:
I am calling the armies of the kingdoms of the north to come to Jerusalem and set their thrones at the gates of the city and all along its walls, and in all the other cities of Judah.


text:
This is the way I will punish my people for deserting me and for worshiping other gods--yes, idols they themselves have made!


text:
Get up and dress and go out and tell them whatever I tell you to say. Don't be afraid of them, or else I will make a fool of you in front of them.


text:
For see, today I have made you impervious to their attacks. They cannot harm you. You are strong like a fortified city that cannot be captured, like an iron pillar and heavy gates of brass. All the kings of Judah, its officers, priests, and people will not be able to prevail against you.


text:
"Go and shout this in Jerusalem's streets: The Lord says, 'I remember how eager you were to please me as a young bride long ago, how you loved me and followed me even through the barren deserts.


text:
In those days Israel was a holy people, the first of my children. All who harmed them were counted deeply guilty, and great evil fell on anyone who touched them.'


text:
"O Israel," says the Lord, "why did your fathers desert me? What sin did they find in me that turned them away and changed them into fools who worship idols?


text:
They ignore the fact that it was I, the Lord, who brought them safely out of Egypt and led them through the barren wilderness, a land of deserts and rocks, of drought and death, where no one lives or even travels.


text:
And I brought them into a fruitful land, to eat of its bounty and goodness, but they made it into a land of sin and corruption and turned my inheritance into an evil thing.


text:
Even their priests cared nothing for the Lord, and their judges ignored me; their rulers turned against me, and their prophets worshiped Baal and wasted their time on nonsense.


text:
"But I will not give you up--I will plead for you to return to me and will keep on pleading; yes, even with your children's children in the years to come!


text:
"Look around you and see if you can find another nation anywhere that has traded in its old gods for new ones--even though their gods are nothing.


text:
Send to the west to the island of Cyprus; send to the east to the deserts of Kedar. See if anyone there has ever heard so strange a thing as this. And yet my people have given up their glorious God for silly idols!


text:
For my people have done two evil things: They have forsaken me, the Fountain of Life-giving Water; and they have built for themselves broken cisterns that can't hold water!


text:
"I see great armies marching on Jerusalem with mighty shouts to destroy her and leave her cities in ruins, burned and desolate.


text:
I see the armies of Egypt rising against her, marching from their cities of Memphis and Tahpanhes to utterly destroy Israel's glory and power.


text:
And you have brought this on yourselves by rebelling against the Lord your God when he wanted to lead you and show you the way!


text:
Your own wickedness will punish you. You will see what an evil, bitter thing it is to rebel against the Lord your God, fearlessly forsaking him," says the Lord Almighty.


text:
"Long ago you shook off my yoke and broke away from my ties. Defiant, you would not obey me. On every hill and under every tree you've bowed low before idols.


text:
"How could this happen? How could this be? For when I planted you, I chose my seed so carefully--the very best. Why have you become this degenerate race of evil men?


text:
No amount of soap or lye can make you clean. You are stained with guilt that cannot ever be washed away. I see it always before me, the Lord God says.


text:
You say it isn't so, that you haven't worshiped idols? How can you say a thing like that? Go and look in any valley in the land! Face the awful sins that you have done, O restless female camel, seeking for a male!


text:
You are a wild donkey, sniffing the wind at mating time. (Who can restrain your lust?) Any jack wanting you need not search, for you come running to him!


text:
Why don't you turn from all this weary running after other gods? But you say, 'Don't waste your breath. I've fallen in love with these strangers and I can't stop loving them now!'


text:
"Like a thief, the only shame that Israel knows is getting caught. Kings, princes, priests, and prophets--all are alike in this.


text:
They call a carved-up wooden post their father, and for their mother they have an idol chiseled out from stone. Yet in time of trouble they cry to me to save them!


text:
Why don't you call on these gods you have made? When danger comes, let them go out and save you if they can! For you have as many gods as there are cities in Judah.


text:
I have punished your children, but it did them no good; they still will not obey. And you yourselves have killed my prophets as a lion kills its prey.


text:
"O my people, listen to the words of God: Have I been unjust to Israel? Have I been to them a land of darkness and of evil? Why then do my people say, 'At last we are free from God; we won't have anything to do with him again!'


text:
How can you disown your God like that? Can a girl forget her jewels? What bride will seek to hide her wedding dress? Yet for years on end my people have forgotten me--the most precious of their treasures.


text:
"How you plot and scheme to win your lovers. The most experienced harlot could learn a lot from you!


text:
Your clothing is stained with the blood of the innocent and the poor. Brazenly you murder without a cause.


text:
And yet you say, 'I haven't done a thing to anger God. I'm sure he isn't angry!' I will punish you severely because you say, "I haven't sinned!"


text:
"First here, then there, you flit about, going from one ally to another for their help; but it's all no good--your new friends in Egypt will forsake you as Assyria did before.


text:
You will be left in despair and cover your face with your hands, for the Lord has rejected the ones that you trust. You will not succeed despite their aid.


text:
"There is a law that if a man divorces a woman who then remarries, he is not to take her back again, for she has become corrupted. But though you have left me and married many lovers, yet I have invited you to come to me again," the Lord says.


text:
"Is there a single spot in all the land where you haven't been defiled by your adulteries--your worshiping these other gods? You sit like a prostitute beside the road waiting for a client! You sit alone like a Bedouin in the desert. You have polluted the land with your vile prostitution.


text:
That is why even the springtime rains have failed. For you are a prostitute and completely unashamed.


text:
surely you won't be angry about such a little thing! Surely you will just forget it?' So you talk and keep right on doing all the evil that you can.


text:
This message from the Lord came to me during the reign of King Josiah: "Have you seen what Israel does? Like a wanton wife who gives herself to other men at every chance, so Israel has worshiped other gods on every hill, beneath every shady tree.


text:
I thought that someday she would return to me and once again be mine; but she didn't come back. And her faithless sister Judah saw the continued rebellion of Israel.


text:
Yet she paid no attention, even though she saw that I divorced faithless Israel. But now Judah too has left me and given herself to prostitution, for she has gone to other gods to worship them.


text:
She treated it all so lightly--to her it was nothing at all that she should worship idols made of wood and stone. And so the land was greatly polluted and defiled.


text:
Then, afterwards, this faithless one "returned" to me, but her 'sorrow' was only faked" the Lord God says.


text:
"Therefore, go and say to Israel, 'O Israel, my sinful people, come home to me again, for I am merciful; I will not be forever angry with you.


text:
Only acknowledge your guilt; admit that you rebelled against the Lord your God and committed adultery against him by worshiping idols under every tree; confess that you refused to follow me.'


text:
O sinful children, come home, for I am your Master, and I will bring you again to the land of Israel--one from here and two from there, wherever you are scattered.


text:
"Then, when your land is once more filled with people," says the Lord, you will no longer wish for 'the good old days of long ago' when you possessed the Ark of God's covenant. Those days will not be missed or even thought about, and the Ark will not be reconstructed, for the Lord himself will be among you.


text:
The whole city of Jerusalem will be known as the throne of the Lord; all nations will come to him there and no longer stubbornly follow their evil desires.


text:
At that time the people of Judah and of Israel will return together from their exile in the north, to the land I gave their fathers as an inheritance forever.


text:
And I thought how wonderful it would be for you to be here among my children. I planned to give you part of this beautiful land, the finest in the world. I looked forward to your calling me 'Father' and thought that you would never turn away from me again.


text:
But you have betrayed me; you have gone off and given yourself to a host of foreign gods; you have been like a faithless wife who leaves her husband."


text:
I hear a voice high upon the windswept mountains, crying, crying. It is the sons of Israel who have turned their backs on God and wandered far away.


text:
"O my rebellious children, come back to me again and I will heal you from your sins." And they reply, "Yes, we will come, for you are the Lord our God.


text:
We are weary of worshiping idols on the hills and of having orgies on the mountains. It is all a farce. Only in the Lord our God can Israel ever find her help and her salvation.


text:
From our childhood we have seen everything our fathers had--flocks and herds and sons and daughters--squandered on priests and idols.


text:
We lie in shame and in dishonor, for we and our fathers have sinned from childhood against the Lord our God; we have not obeyed him."


text:
and if you will swear by me alone, the living God, and begin to live good, honest, clean lives, then you will be a testimony to the nations of the world, and they will come to me and glorify my name."


text:
The Lord is saying to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, "Plow up the hardness of your hearts; otherwise the good seed will be wasted among the thorns.


text:
Cleanse your minds and hearts, not just your bodies, or else my anger will burn you to a crisp because of all your sins. And no one will be able to put the fire out.


text:
"Shout to Jerusalem and to all Judea, telling them to sound the alarm throughout the land. 'Run for your lives! Flee to the fortified cities!'


text:
Send a signal from Jerusalem: 'Flee now, don't delay!' For I the Lord am bringing vast destruction on you from the north."


text:
A lion--a destroyer of nations--stalks from his lair; and he is headed for your land. Your cities will lie in ruin without inhabitant.


text:
Put on clothes of mourning and weep with broken hearts, for the fierce anger of the Lord has not stopped yet.


text:
"In that day," says the Lord, "the king and the princes will tremble in fear; and the priests and the prophets will be stricken with horror."


text:
(Then I said, "But Lord, the people have been deceived by what you said, for you promised great blessings on Jerusalem. Yet the sword is even now poised to strike them dead!")


text:
At that time he will send a burning wind from the desert upon them--not in little gusts but in a roaring blast--and he will pronounce their doom.


text:
The enemy shall roll down upon us like a storm wind; his chariots are like a whirlwind; his steeds are swifter than eagles. Woe, woe upon us, for we are doomed.


text:
O Jerusalem, cleanse your hearts while there is time. You can yet be saved by casting out your evil thoughts.


text:
Warn the other nations that the enemy is coming from a distant land, and they shout against Jerusalem and the cities of Judah.


text:
They surround Jerusalem like shepherds moving in on some wild animal! For my people have rebelled against me, says the Lord.


text:
Your ways have brought this down upon you; it is a bitter dose of your own medicine, striking deep within your hearts.


text:
My heart, my heart--I writhe in pain; my heart pounds within me. I cannot be still because I have heard, O my soul, the blast of the enemies' trumpets and the enemies' battle cries.


text:
Wave upon wave of destruction rolls over the land, until it lies in utter ruin; suddenly, in a moment, every house is crushed.


text:
"Until my people leave their foolishness, for they refuse to listen to me; they are dull, retarded children who have no understanding. They are smart enough at doing wrong, but for doing right they have no talent, none at all."


text:
I looked down upon their land, and as far as I could see in all directions everything was ruins. And all the heavens were dark.


text:
The fertile valleys were wilderness, and all the cities were broken down before the presence of the Lord, crushed by his fierce anger.


text:
The Lord's decree of desolation covers all the land. "Yet," he says, "there will be a little remnant of my people left.


text:
The earth shall mourn, the heavens shall be draped with black, because of my decree against my people; I have made up my mind and will not change it."


text:
All the cities flee in terror at the noise of marching armies coming near. The people hide in the bushes and flee to the mountains. All the cities are abandoned--all have fled in terror.


text:
Why do you put on your most beautiful clothing and jewelry and brighten your eyes with mascara? It will do you no good! Your allies despise you and will kill you.


text:
I have heard great crying like that of a woman giving birth to her first child; it is the cry of my people gasping for breath, pleading for help, prostrate before their murderers.


text:
"Run up and down through every street in all Jerusalem; search high and low and see if you can find even one person who is fair and honest! Search every square, and if you find just one, I'll not destroy the city!


text:
O Lord, you are looking for faithfulness. You have tried to get them to be honest, for you have punished them, but they won't change! You have destroyed them, but they refuse to turn from their sins. They are determined, with faces hard as rock, not to repent.


text:
Then I said, "But what can we expect from the poor and ignorant? They don't know the ways of God. How can they obey him?"


text:
I will go now to their leaders, the men of importance, and speak to them, for they know the ways of the Lord and the judgment that follows sin. But they too had utterly rejected their God.


text:
So I will send upon them the wild fury of the "lion from the forest"; the "desert wolves" shall pounce upon them, and a "leopard" shall lurk around their cities so that all who go out shall be torn apart. For their sins are very many; their rebellion against me is great.


text:
"How can I pardon you? For even your children have turned away and worship gods that are not gods at all. I fed my people until they were fully satisfied, and their thanks was to commit adultery wholesale and to gang up at the city's brothels.


text:
Go down the rows of the vineyards and destroy them! But leave a scattered few to live. Strip the branches from each vine, for they are not the Lord's.


text:
They have lied and said, "He won't bother us! No evil will come upon us! There will be neither famine nor war!


text:
God's prophets," they say, "are windbags full of words with no divine authority. Their claims of doom will fall upon themselves, not us!"


text:
Therefore, this is what the Lord God of Hosts says to his prophets: "Because of talk like this, I'll take your words and prophecies and turn them into raging fire and burn up these people like kindling wood.


text:
See, I will bring a distant nation against you, O Israel," says the Lord. "It is a mighty nation, an ancient nation whose language you don't understand.


text:
And they shall eat your harvest and your children's bread, your flocks of sheep and herds of cattle, yes, and your grapes and figs; and they shall sack your walled cities that you think are safe.


text:
"And when your people ask, 'Why is it that the Lord is doing this to us?' then you shall say, 'You rejected him and gave yourselves to other gods while in your land; now you must be slaves to foreigners in their lands.'


text:
'Listen, O foolish, senseless people--you with the eyes that do not see and the ears that do not listen--


text:
have you no respect at all for me?' the Lord God asks. 'How can it be that you don't even tremble in my presence? I set the shorelines of the world by perpetual decrees, so that the oceans, though they toss and roar, can never pass those bounds. Isn't such a God to be feared and worshiped?'


text:
Though I am the one who gives them rain each year in spring and fall and sends the harvesttimes, yet they have no respect or fear for me.


text:
And so I have taken away these wondrous blessings from them. This sin has robbed them of all of these good things.


text:
"Among my people are wicked men who lurk for victims like a hunter hiding in a blind. They set their traps for men.


text:
Like a coop full of chickens their homes are full of evil plots. And the result? Now they are great and rich,


text:
they are well fed and well groomed, and there is no limit to their wicked deeds. They refuse justice to orphans and the rights of the poor.


text:
Should I sit back and act as though nothing is going on?" the Lord God asks. "Shouldn't I punish a nation such as this?


text:
"Run, people of Benjamin, run for your lives! Flee from Jerusalem! Sound the alarm in Tekoa; send up a smoke signal at Beth-haccherem; warn everyone that a powerful army is on the way from the north, coming to destroy this nation!


text:
Evil shepherds shall surround you. They shall set up camp around the city and divide your pastures for their flocks.


text:
See them prepare for battle. At noon it has begun. All afternoon it rages until the evening shadows fall.


text:
For the Lord Almighty has said to them, "Cut down her trees for battering rams; smash down the walls of Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished, for she is vile through and through.


text:
She spouts evil like a fountain! Her streets echo with the sounds of violence; her sickness and wounds are ever before me.


text:
Disaster on disaster shall befall you. Even the few who remain in Israel shall be gleaned again," the Lord Almighty has said; "for as a grape-gatherer checks each vine to pick what he has missed, so the remnant of my people shall be destroyed again."


text:
But who will listen when I warn them? Their ears are closed, and they refuse to hear. The word of God has angered them; they don't want it at all.


text:
For all this I am full of the wrath of God against them. I am weary of holding it in. "I will pour it out over Jerusalem, even upon the children playing in the streets, upon the gatherings of young men, and on husbands and wives and grandparents.


text:
Their enemies shall live in their homes and take their fields and wives. For I will punish the people of this land," the Lord has said.


text:
"They are swindlers and liars, from the least of them right to the top! Yes, even my prophets and priests!


text:
You can't heal a wound by saying it's not there! Yet the priests and prophets give assurances of peace when all is war.


text:
Were my people ashamed when they worshiped idols? No, not at all--they didn't even blush. Therefore they shall lie among the slain. They shall die beneath my anger."


text:
Yet the Lord pleads with you still: "Ask where the good road is, the godly paths you used to walk in, in the days of long ago. Travel there, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, 'No, that is not the road we want!'


text:
I set watchmen over you who warned you: 'Listen for the sound of the trumpet! It will let you know when trouble comes.' But you said, 'No! We won't pay any attention!'


text:
"This, then, is my decree against my people: (Listen to it, distant lands; listen to it, O my people in Jerusalem;


text:
listen to it, all the earth!) I will bring evil upon this people; it will be the fruit of their own sin because they will not listen to me. They reject my law.


text:
There is no use now in burning sweet incense from Sheba before me! Keep your expensive perfumes! I cannot accept your offerings; they have no sweet fragrance for me.


text:
I will make an obstacle course of the pathway of my people; fathers and sons shall be frustrated; neighbors and friends shall collapse together."


text:
They are a cruel, merciless people, fully armed, mounted for war. The noise of their army is like a roaring sea."


text:
We have heard the fame of their armies, and we are weak with fright. Fright and pain have gripped us like that of women in travail.


text:
Don't go out to the fields! Don't travel the roads! For the enemy is everywhere, ready to kill; we are terrorized at every turn.


text:
O Jerusalem, pride of my people, put on mourning clothes and sit in ashes; weep bitterly as for an only son. For suddenly the destroying armies will be upon you.


text:
"Jeremiah, I have made you an assayer of metals that you may test this my people and determine their value. Listen to what they are saying and watch what they are doing.


text:
Are they not the worst of rebels, full of evil talk against the Lord? They are insolent as brass, hard and cruel as iron.


text:
The bellows blow fiercely; the refining fire grows hotter, but it can never cleanse them, for there is no pureness in them to bring out. Why continue the process longer? All is dross. No matter how hot the fire, they continue in their wicked ways.


text:
"Go over to the entrance of the Temple of the Lord and give this message to the people: 'O Judah, listen to this message from God. Listen to it, all of you who worship here.' "


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel says: "Even yet, if you quit your evil ways, I will let you stay in your own land.


text:
But don't be fooled by those who lie to you and say that since the Temple of the Lord is here, God will never let Jerusalem be destroyed.


text:
You may remain under these conditions only: If you stop your wicked thoughts and deeds and are fair to others;


text:
if you stop exploiting orphans, widows, and foreigners, and stop your murdering; if you stop worshiping idols as you do now to your hurt,


text:
Do you really think that you can steal, murder, commit adultery, lie, and worship Baal and all of those new gods of yours,


text:
and then come here and stand before me in my Temple and chant, 'We are saved!'--only to go right back to all these evil things again?


text:
"Go to Shiloh, the city I first honored with my name, and see what I did to her because of all the wickedness of my people Israel.


text:
And now," says the Lord, "I will do the same thing here because of all this evil you have done. Again and again I spoke to you about it, rising up early and calling, but you refused to hear or answer.


text:
Yes, I will destroy this Temple, as I did in Shiloh--this Temple called by my name, which you trust for help, and this place I gave to you and to your fathers.


text:
"Pray no more for these people, Jeremiah. Neither weep for them nor pray nor beg that I should help them, for I will not listen.


text:
No wonder my anger is great! Watch how the children gather wood and the fathers build fires, and the women knead dough and make cakes to offer to The Queen of Heaven and to their other idol-gods!


text:
Am I the one that they are hurting?" asks the Lord. "Most of all they hurt themselves, to their own shame."


text:
So the Lord God says, "I will pour out my anger, yes, my fury on this place--people, animals, trees, and plants will be consumed by the unquenchable fire of my anger."


text:
It wasn't offerings and sacrifices I wanted from your fathers when I led them out of Egypt. That was not the point of my command.


text:
But what I told them was: Obey me, and I will be your God and you shall be my people; only do as I say, and all shall be well!


text:
"But they wouldn't listen; they kept on doing whatever they wanted to, following their own stubborn, evil thoughts. They went backward instead of forward.


text:
Ever since the day your fathers left Egypt until now, I have kept on sending them my prophets, day after day.


text:
But they wouldn't listen to them or even try to hear. They are hard and stubborn and rebellious--worse even than their fathers were.


text:
"Tell them everything that I will do to them, but don't expect them to listen. Cry out your warnings, but don't expect them to respond.


text:
Say to them: 'This is the nation that refuses to obey the Lord its God and refuses to be taught. She continues to live a lie.


text:
'O Jerusalem, shave your head in shame and weep alone upon the mountains; for the Lord has rejected and forsaken this people of his wrath.'


text:
For the people of Judah have sinned before my very eyes," says the Lord. "They have set up their idols right in my own Temple, polluting it.


text:
They have built the altar called Topheth in the Valley of Ben-hinnom, and there they burn to death their little sons and daughters as sacrifices to their gods--a deed so horrible I've never even thought of it, let alone commanded it to be done.


text:
The time is coming," says the Lord, "when that valley's name will be changed from Topheth, or the Valley of Ben-hinnom, to the Valley of Slaughter; for there will be so many slain to bury that there won't be room enough for all the graves, and they will dump the bodies in that valley.


text:
"The bodies of my people shall be food for the birds and animals, and no one shall be left to scare them away.


text:
I will end the happy singing and laughter and the joyous voices of the bridegrooms and brides in the streets of Jerusalem and in the cities of Judah. For the land shall lie in desolation.


text:
"Then," says the Lord, "the enemy shall break open the graves of the kings of Judah and of the princes, and the graves of the priests, prophets, and people,


text:
and dig out their bones and spread them out on the ground before the sun and moon and stars--the gods of my people!--whom they have loved and worshiped. Their bones shall not be gathered up again nor buried but shall be scattered like dung upon the ground.


text:
And those of this evil nation who are still left alive shall long to die rather than live where I will scatter them," says the Lord Almighty.


text:
"Once again give them this message from the Lord: 'When a person falls, he jumps up again; when he is on the wrong road and discovers his mistake, he goes back to the fork where he made the wrong turn.


text:
I listen to their conversation and what do I hear? Is anyone sorry for sin? Does anyone say, "What a terrible thing I have done?" No, all are rushing pell-mell down the path of sin as swiftly as a horse rushing to the battle!


text:
The stork knows the time of her migration, as does the turtledove, the crane, and the swallow. They all return at God's appointed time each year; but not my people! They don't accept the laws of God.


text:
'How can you say, "We understand his laws," when your teachers have twisted them up to mean a thing I never said?


text:
These wise teachers of yours will be shamed by exile for this sin, for they have rejected the word of the Lord. Are they then so wise?


text:
I will give their wives and their farms to others; for all of them, great and small, prophet and priest, have one purpose in mind--to get what isn't theirs.


text:
They give useless medicine for my people's grievous wounds, for they assure them all is well when that isn't so at all!


text:
Are they ashamed because they worship idols? No, not in the least; they don't even know how to blush! That is why I will see to it that they lie among the fallen. I will visit them with death.


text:
Their figs and grapes will disappear, their fruit trees will die, and all the good things I prepared for them will soon be gone.' "


text:
Then the people will say, "Why should we wait here to die? Come, let us go to the walled cities and perish there. For the Lord our God has decreed our doom and given us a cup of poison to drink because of all our sins.


text:
The noise of war resounds from the northern border. The whole land trembles at the approach of the terrible army, for the enemy is coming and is devouring the land and everything in it--the cities and people alike.


text:
"For I will send these enemy troops among you like poisonous snakes that you cannot charm. No matter what you do, they will bite you and you shall die."


text:
Listen to the weeping of my people all across the land. "Where is the Lord?" they ask. "Has God deserted us?" "Oh, why have they angered me with their carved idols and strange evil rites?" the Lord replies.


text:
Is there no medicine in Gilead? Is there no physician there? Why doesn't God do something? Why doesn't he help?


text:
Oh, that my eyes were a fountain of tears; I would weep forever; I would sob day and night for the slain of my people!


text:
Oh, that I could go away and forget them and live in some wayside shack in the desert, for they are all adulterous, treacherous men.


text:
"They bend their tongues like bows to shoot their arrows of untruth. They care nothing for right and go from bad to worse; they care nothing for me," says the Lord.


text:
"Beware of your neighbor! Beware of your brother! All take advantage of one another and spread their slanderous lies.


text:
With practiced tongues they fool and defraud each other; they wear themselves out with all their sinning.


text:
Therefore, the Lord Almighty says this: "See, I will melt them in a crucible of affliction. I will refine them and test them like metal. What else can I do with them?


text:
For their tongues aim lies like poisoned spears. They speak cleverly to their neighbors while planning to kill them.


text:
Should not I punish them for such things as this?" asks the Lord. "Shall not my soul be avenged on such a nation as this?"


text:
Sobbing and weeping, I point to their mountains and pastures, for now they are desolate, without a living soul. Gone is the lowing of cattle, gone the birds and wild animals. All have fled.


text:
"And I will turn Jerusalem into heaps of ruined houses where only jackals have their dens. The cities of Judah shall be ghost towns, with no one living in them."


text:
Who is wise enough to understand all this? Where is the Lord's messenger to explain it? Why is the land a wilderness so that no one dares even to travel through?


text:
Instead, they have done whatever they pleased and worshiped the idols of Baal, as their fathers told them to."


text:
Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: "Look! I will feed them with bitterness and give them poison to drink.


text:
I will scatter them around the world, to be strangers in distant lands; and even there the sword of destruction shall chase them until I have utterly destroyed them."


text:
The Lord Almighty says: "Send for the mourners! Quick! Begin your crying! Let the tears flow from your eyes.


text:
Hear Jerusalem weeping in despair. 'We are ruined! Disaster has befallen us! We must leave our land and homes!' "


text:
For death has crept in through your windows into your homes. He has killed off the flower of your youth. Children no longer play in the streets; the young men gather no more in the squares.


text:
"Tell them this," says the Lord: 'Bodies shall be scattered across the fields like manure, like sheaves after the mower, and no one will bury them.' "


text:
The Lord says: "Let not the wise man bask in his wisdom, nor the mighty man in his might, nor the rich man in his riches.


text:
Let them boast in this alone: That they truly know me, and understand that I am the Lord of justice and of righteousness whose love is steadfast; and that I love to be this way.


text:
"A time is coming," says the Lord, "when I will punish all those who are circumcised in body but not in spirit--


text:
the Egyptians, Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, Arabs, and yes, even you people of Judah. For all these pagan nations also circumcise themselves. Unless you circumcise your hearts by loving me, your circumcision is only a heathen rite like theirs, and nothing more."


text:
Don't be frightened by predictions such as theirs, for it is all a pack of lies. Their ways are futile and foolish. They cut down a tree and carve an idol;


text:
they decorate it with gold and silver and fasten it securely in place with hammer and nails so that it won't fall over.


text:
And there stands their god like a helpless scarecrow in a garden! It cannot speak, and it must be carried, for it cannot walk. Don't be afraid of such a god, for it can neither harm nor help nor do you any good."


text:
Who would not fear you, O King of nations? (And that title belongs to you alone!) Among all the wise men of the earth and in all the kingdoms of the world there isn't anyone like you.


text:
They bring beaten sheets of silver from Tarshish and gold from Uphaz and give them to skillful goldsmiths who make their idols; then they clothe these gods in royal purple robes that expert tailors make.


text:
But the Lord is the only true God, the living God, the everlasting King. The whole earth shall tremble at his anger; the world shall hide before his displeasure.


text:
Say this to those who worship other gods: "Your so-called gods, who have not made the heavens and earth, shall vanish from the earth."


text:
But our God formed the earth by his power and wisdom, and by his intelligence he hung the stars in space and stretched out the heavens.


text:
It is his voice that echoes in the thunder of the storm clouds. He causes mist to rise upon the earth; he sends the lightning and brings the rain, and from his treasuries he brings the wind.


text:
But foolish men without knowledge of God bow before their idols. It is a shameful business that these men are in, for what they make are frauds, gods without life or power in them.


text:
But the God of Jacob is not like these foolish idols. He is the Creator of all, and Israel is his chosen nation. The Lord Almighty is his name.


text:
"For suddenly I'll fling you from this land and pour great troubles down; at last you shall feel my wrath."


text:
My home is gone; my children have been taken away, and I will never see them again. There is no one left to help me rebuild my home.


text:
The shepherds of my people have lost their senses; they no longer follow God nor ask his will. Therefore they perish, and their flocks are scattered.


text:
Listen! Hear the terrible sound of great armies coming from the north. The cities of Judah shall become dens of jackals.


text:
Pour out your fury on the nations who don't obey the Lord, for they have destroyed Israel and made a wasteland of this entire country.


text:
"Remind the men of Judah and all the people of Jerusalem that I made a contract with their fathers--and


text:
For I told them at the time I brought them out of slavery in Egypt that if they would obey me and do whatever I commanded them, then they and all their children would be mine and I would be their God.


text:
And now, Israel, obey me," says the Lord, "so that I can do for you the wonderful things I swore I would if you obeyed. I want to give you a land that 'flows with milk and honey,' as it is today." Then I replied, "So be it, Lord!"


text:
Then the Lord said: "Broadcast this message in Jerusalem's streets--go from city to city throughout the land and say, Remember this agreement that your fathers made with God, and do all the things they promised him they would.


text:
For I solemnly said to your fathers when I brought them out of Egypt--and have kept on saying it over and over again until this day: 'Obey my every command!'


text:
But your fathers didn't do it. They wouldn't even listen. Each followed his own stubborn will and his proud heart. Because they refused to obey, I did to them all the evils stated in the contract."


text:
Again the Lord spoke to me and said: "I have discovered a conspiracy against me among the men of Judah and Jerusalem.


text:
They have returned to the sins of their fathers, refusing to listen to me and worshiping idols. The agreement I made with their fathers is broken and canceled."


text:
Therefore, the Lord says, "I am going to bring calamity down upon them, and they shall not escape. Though they cry for mercy, I will not listen to their pleas.


text:
Then they will pray to their idols and burn incense before them, but that cannot save them from their time of anguish and despair.


text:
O my people, you have as many gods as there are cities, and your altars of shame (your altars to burn incense to Baal) are along every street in Jerusalem.


text:
"Therefore, Jeremiah, pray no longer for this people, neither weep nor plead for them; for I will not listen to them when they are finally desperate enough to beg me for help.


text:
What right do my beloved people have to come any more to my Temple? For you have been unfaithful and worshiped other gods. Can promises and sacrifices now avert your doom and give you life and joy again?"


text:
The Lord used to call you his green olive tree, beautiful to see and full of good fruit; but now he has sent the fury of your enemies to burn you up and leave you broken and charred.


text:
It is because of the wickedness of Israel and Judah in offering incense to Baal that the Lord Almighty who planted the tree has ordered it destroyed.


text:
I had been as unsuspecting as a lamb or ox on the way to slaughter. I didn't know that they were planning to kill me! "Let's destroy this man and all his messages," they said. "Let's kill him so that his name will be forever forgotten."


text:
O Lord Almighty, you are just. See the hearts and motives of these men. Repay them for all that they have planned! I look to you for justice.


text:
And the Lord replied, "The men of the city of Anathoth shall be punished for planning to kill you. They will tell you not to prophesy in God's name on pain of death.


text:
Not one of these plotters of Anathoth shall survive, for I will bring a great disaster upon them. Their time has come."


text:
O Lord, you always give me justice when I bring a case before you to decide. Now let me bring you this complaint: Why are the wicked so prosperous? Why are evil men so happy?


text:
You plant them. They take root and their business grows. Their profits multiply, and they are rich. They say, "Thank God!" But in their hearts they give no credit to you.


text:
But as for me--Lord, you know my heart--you know how much it longs for you. (And I am poor, O Lord!) Lord, drag them off like helpless sheep to the slaughter. Judge them, O God!


text:
How long must this land of yours put up with all their goings on? Even the grass of the field groans and weeps over their wicked deeds! The wild animals and birds have moved away, leaving the land deserted. Yet the people say, "God won't bring judgment on us. We're perfectly safe!"


text:
The Lord replied to me: "If racing with mere men--these men of Anathoth--has wearied you, how will you race against horses, against the king, his court and all his evil priests? If you stumble and fall on open ground, what will you do in Jordan's jungles?


text:
Even your own brothers, your own family, have turned against you. They have plotted to call for a mob to lynch you. Don't trust them, no matter how pleasantly they speak. Don't believe them."


text:
Then the Lord said: "I have abandoned my people, my inheritance; I have surrendered my dearest ones to their enemies.


text:
My people have roared at me like a lion of the forest, so I have treated them as though I hated them.


text:
My people have fallen. I will bring upon them swarms of vultures and wild animals to pick the flesh from their corpses.


text:
"Many foreign rulers have ravaged my vineyard, trampling down the vines, and turning all its beauty into barren wilderness.


text:
Destroying armies plunder the land; the sword of the Lord devours from one end of the nation to the other; nothing shall escape.


text:
My people have sown wheat but reaped thorns; they have worked hard, but it does them no good. They shall harvest a crop of shame, for the fierce anger of the Lord is upon them."


text:
And now the Lord says this to the evil nations, the nations surrounding the land God gave his people Israel: "See, I will force you from your land just as Judah will be forced from hers;


text:
but afterwards I will return and have compassion on all of you and will bring you home to your own land again, each man to his inheritance.


text:
And if these heathen nations quickly learn my people's ways and claim me as their God instead of Baal (whom they taught my people to worship), then they shall be strong among my people.


text:
The Lord said to me, "Go and buy a linen loincloth and wear it, but don't wash it--don't put it in water at all."


text:
And I did; I dug it out of the hole where I had hidden it. But now it was mildewed and falling apart. It was utterly useless!


text:
This evil nation refuses to listen to me and follows its own evil desires, and worships idols; therefore, it shall become as this loincloth--good for nothing.


text:
Even as a loincloth clings to a man's loins, so I made Judah and Israel to cling to me," says the Lord. "They were my people, an honor to my name. But then they turned away.


text:
"Tell them this: 'The Lord God of Israel says, "All your wine jugs will be full of wine.' And they will reply, 'Of course, you don't need to tell us how prosperous we will be!'


text:
Then tell them: ' "That's not what I mean. I mean that I will fill everyone living in this land with helpless bewilderment--from the king sitting on David's throne, and the priests and the prophets right on down to all the people.


text:
And I will smash fathers and sons against each other," says the Lord. "I will not let pity nor mercy spare them from utter destruction.' "


text:
Give glory to the Lord your God before it is too late, before he causes deep, impenetrable darkness to fall upon you so that you stumble and fall upon the dark mountains; then, when you look for light, you will find only terrible darkness.


text:
Do you still refuse to listen? Then in loneliness my breaking heart shall mourn because of your pride. My eyes will overflow with tears because the Lord's flock shall be carried away as slaves.


text:
Say to the king and queen-mother, "Come down from your thrones and sit in the dust, for your glorious crowns are removed from your heads. They are no longer yours."


text:
The cities of the Negeb to the south of Jerusalem have closed their gates against the enemy. They must defend themselves, for Jerusalem cannot help; and all Judah shall be taken away as slaves.


text:
See the armies marching from the north! Where is your flock, Jerusalem, your beautiful flock he gave you to take care of?


text:
How will you feel when he sets your allies over you as your rulers? You will writhe in pain like a woman having a child.


text:
And if you ask yourself, "Why is all this happening to me?" it is because of the grossness of your sins; that is why you have been raped and destroyed by the invading army.


text:
Can the Ethiopian change the color of his skin? or a leopard take away his spots? Nor can you who are so used to doing evil now start being good.


text:
"Because you have put me out of your mind and put your trust in false gods, I will scatter you as chaff is scattered by the fierce winds off the desert.


text:
I am keenly aware of your apostasy, your faithlessness to me, and your abominable idol worship in the fields and on the hills. Woe upon you, O Jerusalem! How long before you will be pure?"


text:
"Judah mourns; business has ground to a halt; all the people prostrate themselves to the earth, and a great cry rises from Jerusalem.


text:
The nobles send servants for water from the wells, but the wells are dry. The servants return, baffled and desperate, and cover their heads in grief.


text:
The wild donkeys stand upon the bare hills panting like thirsty jackals. They strain their eyes looking for grass to eat, but there is none to be found."


text:
O Hope of Israel, our Savior in times of trouble, why are you as a stranger to us, as one passing through the land who is merely stopping for the night?


text:
Are you also baffled? Are you helpless to save us? O Lord, you are right here among us, and we carry your name; we are known as your people. O Lord, don't desert us now!


text:
But the Lord replies: "You have loved to wander far from me and have not tried to follow in my paths. Now I will no longer accept you as my people; now I will remember all the evil you have done and punish your sins."


text:
When they fast, I will not pay any attention; when they present their offerings and sacrifices to me, I will not accept them. What I will give them in return is war and famine and disease."


text:
Then I said, "O Lord God, their prophets are telling them that all is well--that no war or famine will come. They tell the people you will surely send them peace, that you will bless them."


text:
Then the Lord said: "The prophets are telling lies in my name. I didn't send them or tell them to speak or give them any message. They prophesy of visions and revelations they have never seen nor heard; they speak foolishness concocted out of their own lying hearts.


text:
Therefore, the Lord says, I will punish these lying prophets who have spoken in my name though I did not send them, who say no war shall come nor famine. By war and famine they themselves shall die!


text:
And the people to whom they prophesy--their bodies shall be thrown out into the streets of Jerusalem, victims of famine and war; there shall be no one to bury them. Husbands, wives, sons, and daughters--all will be gone. For I will pour out terrible punishment upon them for their sins.


text:
"Therefore, tell them this: 'Night and day my eyes shall overflow with tears; I cannot stop my crying, for my people have been run through with a sword and lie mortally wounded on the ground.


text:
If I go out in the fields, there lie the bodies of those the sword has killed; and if I walk in the streets, there lie those dead from starvation and disease. And yet the prophets and priests alike have made it their business to travel through the whole country, reassuring everyone that all is well, speaking of things they know nothing about.' "


text:
"O Lord," the people will cry, "have you completely rejected Judah? Do you abhor Jerusalem? Even after punishment, will there be no peace? We thought, 'Now at last he will heal us and bind our wounds.' But no peace has come, and there is only trouble and terror everywhere.


text:
Do not hate us, Lord, for the sake of your own name. Do not disgrace yourself and the throne of your glory by forsaking your promise to bless us!


text:
What heathen god can give us rain? Who but you alone, O Lord our God, can do such things as this? Therefore we will wait for you to help us."


text:
Then the Lord said to me, "Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, even then I wouldn't help them--away with them! Get them out of my sight!


text:
And if they say to you, 'But where can we go?' tell them the Lord says: 'Those who are destined for death, to death; those who must die by the sword, to the sword; those doomed to starvation, to famine; and those for captivity, to captivity.'


text:
I will appoint over them four kinds of destroyers," says the Lord: "the sword to kill, the dogs to tear, and the vultures and wild animals to finish up what's left.


text:
Because of the wicked things Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, did in Jerusalem, I will punish you so severely that your fate will horrify the peoples of the world.


text:
"Who will feel sorry for you, Jerusalem? Who will weep for you? Who will even bother to ask how you are?


text:
You have forsaken me and turned your backs upon me. Therefore, I will clench my fists against you to destroy you. I am tired of always giving you another chance.


text:
I will sift you at the gates of your cities and take from you all that you hold dear, and I will destroy my own people because they refuse to turn back to me from all their evil ways.


text:
There shall be countless widows; at noontime I will bring death to the young men and sorrow to their mothers. I will cause anguish and terror to fall upon them suddenly.


text:
The mother of seven sickens and faints, for all her sons are dead. Her sun is gone down while it is yet day. She sits childless now, disgraced, for all her children have been killed."


text:
Then Jeremiah said, "What sadness is mine, my mother; oh, that I had died at birth. For I am hated everywhere I go. I am neither a creditor soon to foreclose nor a debtor refusing to pay--yet they all curse me.


text:
Well, let them curse! Lord, you know how I have pled with you on their behalf--how I have begged you to spare these enemies of mine."


text:
This people's stubborn will can't be broken either. So, because of all your sins against me, I will deliver your wealth and treasures as loot to the enemy.


text:
I will have your enemies take you as slaves to a land where you have never been before, for my anger burns like fire, and it shall consume you."


text:
Then Jeremiah replied, "Lord, you know it is for your sake that I am suffering. They are persecuting me because I have proclaimed your word to them. Don't let them kill me! Rescue me from their clutches, and give them what they deserve!


text:
Your words are what sustain me; they are food to my hungry soul. They bring joy to my sorrowing heart and delight me. How proud I am to bear your name, O Lord.


text:
I have not joined the people in their merry feasts. I sit alone beneath the hand of God. I burst with indignation at their sins.


text:
Yet you have failed me in my time of need! You have let them keep right on with all their persecutions. Will they never stop hurting me? Your help is as uncertain as a seasonal mountain brook--sometimes a flood, sometimes as dry as a bone."


text:
The Lord replied: "Stop this foolishness and talk some sense! Only if you return to trusting me will I let you continue as my spokesman. You are to influence them, not let them influence you!


text:
They will fight against you like a besieging army against a high city wall. But they will not conquer you, for I am with you to protect and deliver you," says the Lord.


text:
shall die from terrible diseases. No one shall mourn for them or bury them, but their bodies shall lie on the ground to rot and fertilize the soil. They shall die from war and famine, and their bodies shall be picked apart by vultures and wild animals.


text:
Do not mourn or weep for them, for I have removed my protection and my peace from them--taken away my loving-kindness and my mercies.


text:
Both great and small shall die in this land, unburied and unmourned, and their friends shall not cut themselves nor shave their heads as signs of sorrow (as is their heathen custom).


text:
No one shall comfort the mourners with a meal nor send them a cup of wine expressing grief for their parents' death.


text:
"As a sign to them of these sad days ahead, don't you join them any more in their feasts and parties--don't even eat a meal with them."


text:
For the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "In your own lifetime, before your very eyes, I will end all laughter in this land--the happy songs, the marriage feasts, the songs of bridegrooms and of brides.


text:
"And when you tell the people all these things and they ask, 'Why has the Lord decreed such terrible things against us? What have we done to merit such treatment? What is our sin against the Lord our God?'


text:
tell them the Lord's reply is this: 'Because your fathers forsook me.' They worshiped other gods and served them; they did not keep my laws,


text:
and you have been worse than your fathers were! You follow evil to your hearts' content and refuse to listen to me.


text:
Therefore, I will throw you out of this land and chase you into a foreign land where neither you nor your fathers have been before, and there you can go ahead and worship your idols all you like--and I will grant you no favors!


text:
"But there will come a glorious day," says the Lord, "when the whole topic of conversation will be that God is bringing his people home from a nation in the north, and from many other lands where he had scattered them.


text:
You will look back no longer to the time when I rescued you from your slavery in Egypt. That mighty miracle will scarcely be mentioned any more. Yes, I will bring you back again," says the Lord, "to this same land I gave your fathers.


text:
"Now I am sending for many fishermen to fish you from the deeps where you are hiding from my wrath. I am sending for hunters to chase you down like deer in the forests or mountain goats on inaccessible crags. Wherever you run to escape my judgment, I will find you and punish you.


text:
"And I will punish you doubly for all your sins because you have defiled my land with your detestable idols and filled it up with all your evil deeds."


text:
O Lord, my Strength and Fortress, my Refuge in the day of trouble, nations from around the world will come to you saying, "Our fathers have been foolish, for they have worshiped worthless idols!


text:
"And when they come in that spirit, I will show them my power and might and make them understand at last that I alone am God.


text:
"My people sin as though commanded to, as though their evil were laws chiseled with an iron pen or diamond point upon their stony hearts or on the corners of their altars.


text:
Their youths do not forget to sin, worshiping idols beneath each tree, high in the mountains or in the open country down below.


text:
And so I will give all your treasures to your enemies as the price that you must pay for all your sins.


text:
And the wonderful heritage I reserved for you will slip out of your hand, and I will send you away as slaves to your enemies in distant lands. For you have kindled a fire of my anger that shall burn forever."


text:
The Lord says: "Cursed is the man who puts his trust in mortal man and turns his heart away from God.


text:
He is like a stunted shrub in the desert, with no hope for the future; he lives on the salt-encrusted plains in the barren wilderness; good times pass him by forever.


text:
He is like a tree planted along a riverbank, with its roots reaching deep into the water--a tree not bothered by the heat nor worried by long months of drought. Its leaves stay green, and it goes right on producing all its luscious fruit.


text:
"The heart is the most deceitful thing there is and desperately wicked. No one can really know how bad it is!


text:
Only the Lord knows! He searches all hearts and examines deepest motives so he can give to each person his right reward, according to his deeds--how he has lived.


text:
"Like a bird that fills her nest with young she has not hatched and which will soon desert her and fly away, so is the man who gets his wealth by unjust means. Sooner or later he will lose his riches and at the end of his life become a poor old fool."


text:
O Lord, the Hope of Israel, all who turn away from you shall be disgraced and shamed; they are registered for earth and not for glory, for they have forsaken the Lord, the Fountain of living waters.


text:
Men scoff at me and say, "What is this word of the Lord you keep talking about? If these threats of yours are really from God, why don't they come true?"


text:
Lord, I don't want the people crushed by terrible calamity. The plan is yours, not mine. It is your message I've given them, not my own. I don't want them doomed!


text:
Bring confusion and trouble on all who persecute me, but give me peace. Yes, bring double destruction upon them!


text:
Then the Lord said to me, "Go and stand in the gates of Jerusalem, first at the gate where the king goes out, and then at each of the other gates,


text:
and say to all the people: 'Hear the word of the Lord, kings of Judah and all the people of this nation, and all you citizens of Jerusalem.


text:
The Lord says: Take warning and live; do no unnecessary work on the Sabbath day, but make it a holy day. I gave this commandment to your fathers,


text:
'But if you obey me,' says the Lord, 'and refuse to work on the Sabbath day and keep it separate, special and holy,


text:
then this nation shall continue forever. There shall always be descendants of David sitting on the throne here in Jerusalem; there shall always be kings and princes riding in pomp and splendor among the people, and this city shall remain forever.


text:
And from all around Jerusalem and from the cities of Judah and Benjamin, from the Negeb and from the lowlands west of Judah, the people shall come with their burnt offerings and grain offerings and incense, bringing their sacrifices to praise the Lord in his Temple.


text:
'But if you will not listen to me, if you refuse to keep the Sabbath holy, if on the Sabbath you bring in loads of merchandise through these gates of Jerusalem, just as on other days, then I will set fire to these gates. The fire shall spread to the palaces and utterly destroy them, and no one shall be able to put out the raging flames.' "


text:
But the jar that he was forming didn't turn out as he wished, so he kneaded it into a lump and started again.


text:
"O Israel, can't I do to you as this potter has done to his clay? As the clay is in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand.


text:
but then that nation changes its mind, turns to evil, and refuses to obey me, then I, too, will change my mind and not bless that nation as I had said I would.


text:
"Therefore, go and warn all Judah and Jerusalem, saying: 'Hear the word of the Lord. I am planning evil against you now instead of good; turn back from your evil paths and do what is right.' "


text:
But they replied, "Don't waste your breath. We have no intention whatever of doing what God says. We will continue to live as we want to, free from any restraint, full of stubbornness and wickedness!"


text:
Then the Lord said: "Even among the heathen, no one has ever heard of such a thing! My people have done something too horrible to understand.


text:
The snow never melts high up in the Lebanon mountains. The cold, flowing streams from the crags of Mount Hermon never run dry.


text:
These can be counted on. But not my people! For they have deserted me and turned to foolish idols. They have turned away from the ancient highways of good and walk the muddy paths of sin.


text:
Therefore, their land shall become desolate, so that all who pass by will gasp and shake their heads in amazement at its utter desolation.


text:
I will scatter my people before their enemies as the east wind scatters dust; and in all their trouble I will turn my back on them and refuse to notice their distress."


text:
Then the people said, "Come, let's get rid of Jeremiah. We have our own priests and wise men and prophets--we don't need his advice. Let's silence him that he may speak no more against us, nor bother us again."


text:
Should they repay evil for good? They have set a trap to kill me, yet I spoke well of them to you and tried to defend them from your anger.


text:
Now, Lord, let their children starve to death and let the sword pour out their blood! Let their wives be widows and be bereft of all their children! Let their men die in epidemics and their youths die in battle!


text:
Let screaming be heard from their homes as troops of soldiers come suddenly upon them, for they have dug a pit for me to fall in, and they have hidden traps along my path.


text:
Lord, you know all their murderous plots against me. Don't forgive them, don't blot out their sin, but let them perish before you; deal with them in your anger.


text:
The Lord said, "Buy a clay jar and take it out into the valley of Ben-hinnom by the east gate of the city.


text:
Take some of the elders of the people and some of the older priests with you, and speak to them whatever words I give you."


text:
Then the Lord spoke to them and said: "Listen to the word of the Lord, kings of Judah and citizens of Jerusalem! The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says, 'I will bring terrible evil upon this place, so terrible that the ears of those who hear it will prickle.


text:
For Israel has forsaken me and turned this valley into a place of shame and wickedness. The people burn incense to idols--idols that neither this generation nor their forefathers nor the kings of Judah have worshiped before--and they have filled this place with the blood of innocent children.


text:
They have built high altars to Baal, and there they burn their sons in sacrifice--a thing I never commanded them nor even thought of!


text:
'The day is coming, says the Lord, when this valley shall no longer be called Topheth or Ben-hinnom Valley, but The Valley of Slaughter.


text:
For I will upset the battle plans of Judah and Jerusalem, and I will let invading armies kill you here and leave your dead bodies for vultures and wild animals to feed upon.


text:
And I will wipe Jerusalem off the earth, so that everyone going by will gasp with astonishment at all that I have done to her.


text:
I will see to it that your enemies lay siege to the city until all food is gone and those trapped inside begin to eat their own children and friends.'


text:
and say to them, 'This is the message to you from the Lord Almighty: "As this jar lies shattered, so I will shatter the people of Jerusalem; and as this jar cannot be mended, neither can they. The slaughter shall be so great that there won't be room enough for decent burial anywhere, and their bodies shall be heaped in this valley.


text:
And as it will be in this valley, so it will be in Jerusalem. For I will fill Jerusalem with dead bodies too.


text:
And I will defile all the homes in Jerusalem, including the palace of the kings of Judah--wherever incense has been burned upon the roofs to your stargods, and libations poured out to them.' "


text:
As Jeremiah returned from Topheth where he had delivered this message, he stopped in front of the Temple of the Lord and said to all the people,


text:
"The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'I will bring upon this city and her surrounding towns all the evil I have promised because you have stubbornly refused to listen to the Lord.' "


text:
Now when Pashhur (son of Immer), the priest in charge of the Temple of the Lord, heard what Jeremiah was saying,


text:
He left him there all night. The next day when Pashhur finally released him, Jeremiah said, "Pashhur, the Lord has changed your name. He says from now on to call you 'The Man Who Lives in Terror.'


text:
For the Lord will send terror on you and all your friends, and you will see them die by the swords of their enemies. 'I will hand over Judah to the king of Babylon,' says the Lord, 'and he shall take away these people as slaves to Babylon and kill them.


text:
And I will let your enemies loot Jerusalem. All the famed treasures of the city, with the precious jewels and gold and silver of your kings, shall be carried off to Babylon.


text:
And as for you, Pashhur, you and all your family and household shall become slaves in Babylon and die there--you and those to whom you lied when you prophesied that everything would be all right.' "


text:
O Lord, you deceived me when you promised me your help. I have to give them your messages because you are stronger than I am, but now I am the laughingstock of the city, mocked by all.


text:
You have never once let me speak a word of kindness to them; always it is disaster and horror and destruction. No wonder they scoff and mock and make my name a household joke.


text:
And I can't quit! For if I say I'll never again mention the Lord--never more speak in his name--then his word in my heart is like fire that burns in my bones, and I can't hold it in any longer.


text:
Yet on every side I hear their whispered threats and am afraid. "We will report," they say. Even those who were my friends are watching me, waiting for a fatal slip. "He will trap himself," they say, "and then we will get our revenge on him."


text:
But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior, and before him, the Mighty, Terrible One, they shall stumble. They cannot defeat me; they shall be shamed and thoroughly humiliated, and they shall have a stigma upon them forever.


text:
O Lord Almighty, who knows those who are righteous and examines the deepest thoughts of hearts and minds, let me see your vengeance on them. For I have committed my cause to you.


text:
Therefore, I will sing out in thanks to the Lord! Praise him! For he has delivered me, poor and needy, from my oppressors.


text:
Let that messenger be destroyed like the cities of old which God overthrew without mercy. Terrify him all day long with battle shouts


text:
because he did not kill me at my birth! Oh, that I had died within my mother's womb, that it had been my grave!


text:
Then King Zedekiah sent Pashhur (son of Malchiah) and Zephaniah the priest (son of Maaseiah) to Jeremiah and begged, "Ask the Lord to help us, for Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has declared war on us!


text:
Perhaps the Lord will be gracious to us and do a mighty miracle as in olden times and force Nebuchadnezzar to withdraw his forces."


text:
the Lord God of Israel says, 'I will make all your weapons useless against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans besieging you. In fact, I will bring your enemies right into the heart of this city,


text:
And finally I will deliver King Zedekiah himself and all the remnant left in the city into the hands of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, to slaughter them without pity or mercy.'


text:
Stay here in Jerusalem and die--slaughtered by your enemies, killed by starvation and disease--or go out and surrender to the Chaldean army and live.


text:
For I have set my face against this city; I will be its enemy and not its friend," says the Lord. It shall be captured by the king of Babylon and he shall reduce it to ashes.'


text:
'I am ready to judge you because of all the evil you are doing. Quick! Give justice to these you judge! Begin doing what is right before my burning fury flashes out upon you like a fire no man can quench.


text:
And I myself will destroy you for your sinfulness, says the Lord. I will light a fire in the forests that will burn up everything in its path.' "


text:
'Listen to this message from God, O king of Judah, sitting on David's throne; and let your servants and your people listen too.


text:
'The Lord says: "Be fair-minded. Do what is right! Help those in need of justice! Quit your evil deeds! Protect the rights of aliens and immigrants, orphans and widows; stop murdering the innocent!


text:
If you put an end to all these terrible deeds you are doing, then I will deliver this nation and once more give kings to sit on David's throne, and there shall be prosperity for all.


text:
But if you refuse to pay attention to this warning, I swear by my own name," says the Lord, "that this palace shall become a shambles.' "


text:
For this is the Lord's message concerning the palace: "You are as beloved to me as fruitful Gilead and the green forests of Lebanon; but I will destroy you and leave you deserted and uninhabited.


text:
I will call for a wrecking crew to bring out its tools to dismantle you. They will tear out all of your fine cedar beams and throw them on the fire.


text:
Men from many nations will pass by the ruins of this city and say to one another, 'Why did the Lord do it? Why did he destroy such a great city?'


text:
And the answer will be, 'Because the people living here forgot the Lord their God and violated his agreement with them, for they worshiped idols.'


text:
Don't weep for the dead! Instead weep for the captives led away! For they will never return to see their native land again.


text:
For the Lord says this about Jehoahaz who succeeded his father King Josiah and was taken away as a captive:


text:
"And woe to you, King Jehoiakim, for you are building your great palace with forced labor. By not paying wages you are building injustice into its walls and oppression into its doorframes and ceilings.


text:
You say, 'I will build a magnificent palace with huge rooms and many windows, paneled throughout with fragrant cedar and painted a lovely red.'


text:
But a beautiful palace does not make a great king! Why did your father Josiah reign so long? Because he was just and fair in all his dealings. That is why God blessed him.


text:
He saw to it that justice and help were given the poor and the needy and all went well for him. This is how a man lives close to God.


text:
But you! You are full of selfish greed and all dishonesty! You murder the innocent, oppress the poor, and reign with ruthlessness.'


text:
Therefore this is God's decree of punishment against King Jehoiakim, who succeeded his father Josiah on the throne: "His family will not weep for him when he dies. His subjects will not even care that he is dead.


text:
He shall be buried like a dead donkey--dragged out of Jerusalem and thrown on the garbage dump beyond the gate!


text:
Weep, for your allies are gone. Search for them in Lebanon; shout for them at Bashan; seek them at the fording points of Jordan. See, they are all destroyed. Not one is left to help you!


text:
When you were prosperous I warned you, but you replied, 'Don't bother me.' Since childhood you have been that way--you just won't listen!


text:
And now all your allies have disappeared with a puff of wind; all your friends are taken off as slaves. Surely at last you will see your wickedness and be ashamed.


text:
It's very nice to live graciously in a beautiful palace among the cedars of Lebanon, but soon you will cry and groan in anguish--anguish as of a woman in labor.


text:
"And as for you, Coniah, son of Jehoiakim king of Judah--even if you were the signet ring on my right hand, I would pull you off


text:
and give you to those who seek to kill you, of whom you are so desperately afraid--to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and his mighty army.


text:
This man Coniah is like a discarded, broken dish. He and his children will be exiled to distant lands.


text:
The Lord says: 'Record this man Coniah as childless, for none of his children shall ever sit upon the throne of David or rule in Judah. His life will amount to nothing.' "


text:
The Lord declares: "I will send disaster upon the leaders of my people--the shepherds of my sheep--for they have destroyed and scattered the very ones they were to care for.


text:
Instead of leading my flock to safety, you have deserted them and driven them to destruction. And now I will pour out judgment upon you for the evil you have done to them.


text:
And I will gather together the remnant of my flock from wherever I have sent them and bring them back into their own fold, and they shall be fruitful and increase.


text:
And I will appoint responsible shepherds to care for them, and they shall not need to be afraid again; all of them shall be accounted for continually.


text:
"For the time is coming," says the Lord, "when I will place a righteous Branch upon King David's throne.


text:
He shall be a King who shall rule with wisdom and justice and cause righteousness to prevail everywhere throughout the earth. And this is his name: The Lord Our Righteousness. At that time Judah will be saved and Israel will live in peace.


text:
"In that day people will no longer say when taking an oath, 'As the Lord lives who rescued the people of Israel from the land of Egypt,'


text:
but they will say, 'As the Lord lives who brought the Jews back to their own land of Israel from the countries to which he had exiled them.'


text:
My heart is broken for the false prophets, full of deceit. I awake with fear and stagger as a drunkard does from wine because of the awful fate awaiting them, for God has decreed holy words of judgment against them.


text:
For the land is full of adultery, and the curse of God is on it. The land itself is mourning--the pastures are dried up--for the prophets do evil, and their power is used wrongly.


text:
"The priests are like the prophets, all ungodly, wicked men. I have seen their despicable acts right here in my own Temple," says the Lord.


text:
"Therefore, their paths will be dark and slippery; they will be chased down dark and treacherous trails and fall. For I will bring evil upon them and see to it, when their time has come, that they pay their penalty in full for all their sins.


text:
"I knew the prophets of Samaria were unbelievably evil, for they prophesied by Baal and led my people Israel into sin;


text:
but the prophets of Jerusalem are even worse! The things they do are horrible; they commit adultery and love dishonesty. They encourage and compliment those who are doing evil instead of turning them back from their sins. These prophets are as thoroughly depraved as the men of Sodom and Gomorrah were."


text:
Therefore the Lord Almighty says: "I will feed them with bitterness and give them poison to drink. For it is because of them that wickedness fills this land.


text:
This is my warning to my people," says the Lord Almighty. "Don't listen to these false prophets when they prophesy to you, filling you with futile hopes. They are making up everything they say. They do not speak for me!


text:
They keep saying to these rebels who despise me, 'Don't worry! All is well!'; and to those who live the way they want to, 'The Lord has said you shall have peace!'


text:
"But can you name even one of these prophets who lives close enough to God to hear what he is saying? Has even one of them cared enough to listen?


text:
The terrible anger of the Lord will not abate until it has carried out the full penalty he decrees against them. Later, when Jerusalem has fallen, you will see what I mean.


text:
"I have not sent these prophets, yet they claim to speak for me; I gave them no message, yet they say their words are mine.


text:
'Listen to the dream I had from God last night,' " they say. And then they proceed to lie in my name.


text:
How long will this continue? If they are 'prophets,' they are prophets of deceit, inventing everything they say.


text:
By telling these false dreams they are trying to get my people to forget me in the same way as their fathers did, who turned away to the idols of Baal.


text:
Let these false prophets tell their dreams and let my true messengers faithfully proclaim my every word. There is a difference between chaff and wheat!


text:
Does not my word burn like fire?" asks the Lord. "Is it not like a mighty hammer that smashed the rock to pieces?


text:
So I stand against these 'prophets' who get their messages from each other--these smooth-tongued 'prophets' who say, 'This message is from God!'


text:
Their made-up dreams are flagrant lies that lead my people into sin. I did not send them, and they have no message at all for my people," says the Lord.


text:
"When one of the people or one of their 'prophets' or priests asks you, 'Well, Jeremiah, what is the sad news from the Lord today?' you shall reply, 'What sad news? You are the sad news, for the Lord has cast you away!'


text:
And as for the false prophets and priests and people who joke about 'today's sad news from God,' I will punish them and their families for saying this.


text:
But stop using this term, 'God's sad news.' For what is sad is you and your lying. You are twisting my words and inventing 'messages from God' that I didn't speak.


text:
then I, the Lord God, will unburden myself of the burden you are to me. I will cast you out of my presence, you and this city I gave to you and your fathers.


text:
After Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had captured and enslaved Jeconiah (son of Jehoiakim), king of Judah, and exiled him to Babylon along with the princes of Judah and the skilled tradesmen--the carpenters and blacksmiths--the Lord gave me this vision.


text:
I saw two baskets of figs placed in front of the Temple in Jerusalem. In one basket there were fresh, just-ripened figs, but in the other the figs were spoiled and moldy--too rotten to eat.


text:
Then the Lord said to me, "What do you see, Jeremiah?" I replied, "Figs, some very good and some very bad."


text:
Then the Lord said: "The good figs represent the exiles sent to Babylon. I have done it for their good.


text:
I will see that they are well treated, and I will bring them back here again. I will help them and not hurt them; I will plant them and not pull them up.


text:
I will give them hearts that respond to me. They shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with great joy.


text:
"But the rotten figs represent Zedekiah, king of Judah, his officials, and all the others of Jerusalem left here in this land; those too who live in Egypt. I will treat them like spoiled figs, too bad to use.


text:
I will make them repulsive to every nation of the earth, and they shall be mocked and taunted and cursed wherever I compel them to go.


text:
And I will send massacre and famine and disease among them until they are destroyed from the land of Israel, which I gave to them and to their fathers."


text:
This message for all the people of Judah came from the Lord to Jeremiah during the fourth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah (son of Josiah). This was the year Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, began his reign.


text:
"For the past twenty-three years," Jeremiah said, "from the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah (son of Amon) king of Judah, until now, God has been sending me his messages. I have faithfully passed them on to you, but you haven't listened.


text:
Again and again down through the years, God has sent you his prophets, but you have refused to hear.


text:
Each time the message was this: 'Turn from the evil road you are traveling and from the evil things you are doing. Only then can you continue to live here in this land which the Lord gave to you and to your ancestors forever.


text:
But you won't listen; you have gone ahead and made me furious with your idols. So you have brought upon yourselves all the evil that has come your way.'


text:
I will gather together all the armies of the north under Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon (I have appointed him as my deputy), and I will bring them all against this land and its people and against the other nations near you, and I will utterly destroy you and make you a byword of contempt forever.


text:
I will take away your joy, your gladness, and your wedding feasts; your businesses shall fail, and all your homes shall lie in silent darkness.


text:
This entire land shall become a desolate wasteland; all the world will be shocked at the disaster that befalls you. Israel and her neighboring lands shall serve the king of Babylon for seventy years.


text:
"Then, after these years of slavery are ended, I will punish the king of Babylon and his people for their sins; I will make the land of Chaldea an everlasting waste.


text:
I will bring upon them all the terrors I have promised in this book--all the penalties announced by Jeremiah against the nations.


text:
For many nations and great kings shall enslave the Chaldeans, just as they enslaved my people; I will punish them in proportion to their treatment of my people."


text:
For the Lord God said to me: "Take from my hand this wine cup filled to the brim with my fury, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink from it.


text:
So I took the cup of fury from the Lord and made all the nations drink from it--every nation God had sent me to;


text:
I went to Jerusalem and to the cities of Judah, and their kings and princes drank of the cup so that from that day until this they have been desolate, hated and cursed, just as they are today.


text:
I went to Egypt, and Pharaoh, his servants, the princes, and the people--they too drank from that terrible cup,


text:
along with all the foreign population living in his land. So did all the kings of the land of Uz and the kings of the Philistine cities: Ashkelon, Gaza, Ekron, and what remains of Ashdod,


text:
and all the kings of the northern countries, far and near, one after the other; and all the kingdoms of the world. And finally, the king of Babylon himself drank from this cup of God's wrath.


text:
"Tell them, 'The Lord of heaven's armies, the God of Israel, says, "Drink from this cup of my wrath until you are drunk and vomit and fall to rise no more, for I am sending terrible wars upon you.'


text:
And if they refuse to accept the cup, tell them, 'The Lord of heaven's armies says you must drink it! You cannot escape!


text:
I have begun to punish my own people, so should you go free? No, you shall not evade punishment. I will call for war against all the peoples of the earth.'


text:
"Therefore prophesy against them. Tell them the Lord will shout against his own from his holy temple in heaven and against all those living on the earth. He will shout as the harvesters do who tread the juice from the grapes.


text:
That cry of judgment will reach the farthest ends of the earth, for the Lord has a case against all the nations--all mankind. He will slaughter all the wicked.


text:
'See,' declares the Lord Almighty, 'the punishment shall go from nation to nation--a great whirlwind of wrath shall rise against the farthest corners of the earth.'


text:
On that day those the Lord has slain shall fill the earth from one end to the other. No one shall mourn for them nor gather up the bodies to bury them; they shall fertilize the earth."


text:
Weep and moan, O evil shepherds; let the leaders of mankind beat their heads upon the stones, for their time has come to be slaughtered and scattered; they shall fall like fragile women.


text:
Listen to the frantic cries of the shepherds and to the leaders shouting in despair, for the Lord has spoiled their pastures.


text:
He has left his lair like a lion seeking prey; their land has been laid waste by warring armies--because of the fierce anger of the Lord.


text:
This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord during the first year of the reign of Jehoiakim (son of Josiah), king of Judah:


text:
"Stand out in front of the Temple of the Lord and make an announcement to all the people who have come there to worship from many parts of Judah. Give them the entire message; don't leave out one word of all I have for them to hear.


text:
For perhaps they will listen and turn from their evil ways, and then I can withhold all the punishment I am ready to pour out upon them because of their evil deeds.


text:
and if you will not listen to my servants, the prophets--for I sent them again and again to warn you, but you would not listen to them--


text:
then I will destroy this Temple as I destroyed the Tabernacle at Shiloh, and I will make Jerusalem a curse word in every nation of the earth.' "


text:
When Jeremiah had finished his message, saying everything the Lord had told him to, the priests and false prophets and all the people in the Temple mobbed him, shouting, "Kill him! Kill him!


text:
What right do you have to say the Lord will destroy this Temple like the one at Shiloh?" they yelled. "What do you mean--Jerusalem destroyed and not one survivor?"


text:
When the high officials of Judah heard what was going on, they rushed over from the palace and sat down at the door of the Temple to hold court.


text:
Then the priests and the false prophets presented their accusations to the officials and the people. "This man should die!" they said. "You have heard with your own ears what a traitor he is, for he has prophesied against this city."


text:
Then Jeremiah spoke in his defense. "The Lord sent me," he said, "to prophesy against this Temple and this city. He gave me every word of all that I have spoken.


text:
But if you stop your sinning and begin obeying the Lord your God, he will cancel all the punishment he has announced against you.


text:
But there is one thing sure, if you kill me, you will be killing an innocent man, and the responsibility will lie upon you and upon this city and upon every person living in it; for it is absolutely true that the Lord sent me to speak every word that you have heard from me."


text:
Then the officials and people said to the priests and false prophets, "This man does not deserve the death sentence, for he has spoken to us in the name of the Lord our God."


text:
"The decision is right; for back in the days when Micah the Morasthite prophesied in the days of King Hezekiah of Judah, he told the people that God said: 'This hill shall be plowed like an open field and this city of Jerusalem razed into heaps of stone, and a forest shall grow at the top where the great Temple now stands!'


text:
But did King Hezekiah and the people kill him for saying this? No, they turned from their wickedness and worshiped the Lord and begged the Lord to have mercy upon them; and the Lord held back the terrible punishment he had pronounced against them. If we kill Jeremiah for giving us the messages of God, who knows what God will do to us!"


text:
Another true prophet of the Lord, Uriah (son of Shemaiah) from Kiriathjearim, was also denouncing the city and the nation at the same time as Jeremiah was.


text:
But when King Jehoiakim and the army officers and officials heard what he was saying, the king sent to kill him. Uriah heard about it and fled to Egypt.


text:
Then King Jehoiakim sent Elnathan (son of Achbor) to Egypt along with several other men to capture Uriah.


text:
They took him prisoner and brought him back to King Jehoiakim, who butchered him with a sword and had him buried in an unmarked grave.


text:
But Ahikam (son of Shaphan), the royal secretary, stood with Jeremiah and persuaded the court not to turn him over to the mob to kill him.


text:
This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim (son of Josiah), king of Judah:


text:
Then send messages to the kings of Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon, through their ambassadors in Jerusalem,


text:
' "By my great power I have made the earth and all mankind and every animal; and I give these things of mine to anyone I want to.


text:
So now I have given all your countries to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, who is my deputy. And I have handed over to him all your cattle for his use.


text:
All the nations shall serve him and his son and his grandson until his time is up, and then many nations and great kings shall conquer Babylon and make him their slave.


text:
Submit to him and serve him--put your neck under Babylon's yoke! I will punish any nation refusing to be his slave; I will send war, famine, and disease upon that nation until he has conquered it.


text:
' "Do not listen to your false prophets, fortune-tellers, dreamers, mediums, and magicians who say the king of Babylon will not enslave you.


text:
For they are all liars, and if you follow their advice and refuse to submit to the king of Babylon, I will drive you out of your land and send you far away to perish.


text:
But the people of any nation submitting to the king of Babylon will be permitted to stay in their own country and farm the land as usual.' "


text:
Jeremiah repeated all these prophecies to Zedekiah, king of Judah. "If you want to live, submit to the king of Babylon," he said.


text:
"Why do you insist on dying--you and your people? Why should you choose war and famine and disease, which the Lord has promised to every nation that will not submit to Babylon's king?


text:
Don't listen to the false prophets who keep telling you the king of Babylon will not conquer you, for they are liars.


text:
'I have not sent them,' says the Lord, 'and they are telling you lies in my name. If you insist on heeding them, I must drive you from this land to die--you and all these "prophets" too.' "


text:
I spoke again and again to the priests and all the people and told them: "The Lord says, 'Don't listen to your prophets who are telling you that soon the gold dishes taken from the Temple will be returned from Babylon. It is all a lie.


text:
Don't listen to them. Surrender to the king of Babylon and live, for otherwise this whole city will be destroyed.


text:
If they are really God's prophets, then let them pray to the Lord Almighty that the gold dishes still here in the Temple, left from before; and that those in the palace of the king of Judah and in the palaces in Jerusalem will not be carried away with you to Babylon!'


text:
"For the Lord Almighty says, 'The pillars of bronze standing before the Temple, the great bronze basin in the Temple court, the metal stands, and all the other ceremonial articles left here


text:
by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, when he exiled all the important people of Judah and Jerusalem to Babylon, along with Jeconiah (son of Jehoiakim), king of Judah,


text:
will all yet be carried away to Babylon and will stay there until I send for them. Then I will bring them all back to Jerusalem again.' "


text:
On a December day in that same year--the fourth year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah--Hananiah (son of Azzur), a false prophet from Gibeon, addressed me publicly in the Temple while all the priests and people listened. He said:


text:
"The Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, declares: 'I have removed the yoke of the king of Babylon from your necks.


text:
Within two years I will bring back all the Temple treasures that Nebuchadnezzar carried off to Babylon,


text:
and I will bring back King Jeconiah, son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and all the other captives exiled to Babylon,' says the Lord. 'I will surely remove the yoke put on your necks by the king of Babylon.' "


text:
"Amen! May your prophecies come true! I hope the Lord will do everything you say and bring back from Babylon the treasures of this Temple, with all our loved ones.


text:
The ancient prophets who preceded you and me spoke against many nations, always warning of war, famine, and plague.


text:
So a prophet who foretells peace has the burden of proof on him to prove that God has really sent him. Only when his message comes true can it be known that he really is from God."


text:
And Hananiah said again to the crowd that had gathered, "The Lord has promised that within two years he will release all the nations now in slavery to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon." At that point Jeremiah walked out.


text:
"Go and tell Hananiah that the Lord says, 'You have broken a wooden yoke, but these people have yokes of iron on their necks.'


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'I have put a yoke of iron on the necks of all these nations, forcing them into slavery to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. And nothing will change this decree, for I have even given him all your flocks and herds.' "


text:
Then Jeremiah said to Hananiah, the false prophet, "Listen, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, and the people are believing your lies.


text:
Therefore the Lord says you must die. This very year your life will end because you have rebelled against the Lord."


text:
After Jeconiah the king, the queen-mother, the court officials, the tribal officers, and craftsmen had been deported to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar,


text:
Jeremiah wrote them a letter from Jerusalem, addressing it to the Jewish elders, priests, prophets, and to all the people.


text:
He sent the letter with Elasah (son of Shaphan) and Gemariah (son of Hilkiah) when they went to Babylon as King Zedekiah's ambassadors to Nebuchadnezzar. And this is what the letter said:


text:
The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, sends this message to all the captives he has exiled to Babylon from Jerusalem:


text:
Marry and have children, and then find mates for them and have many grandchildren. Multiply! Don't dwindle away!


text:
And work for the peace and prosperity of Babylon. Pray for her, for if Babylon has peace, so will you."


text:
The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "Don't let the false prophets and mediums who are there among you fool you. Don't listen to the dreams that they invent,


text:
"The truth is this: You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised and bring you home again.


text:
For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. "They are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.


text:
"Yes," says the Lord, "I will be found by you, and I will end your slavery and restore your fortunes; I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and bring you back home again to your own land.


text:
I will send war, famine, and plague upon the people left here in Jerusalem--on your relatives who were not exiled to Babylon, and on the king who sits on David's throne--and make them like rotting figs, too bad to eat.


text:
And I will scatter them around the world. And in every nation where I place them they will be cursed and hissed and mocked,


text:
The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says this about your false prophets, Ahab (son of Kolaiah) and Zedekiah (son of Maaseiah), who are declaring lies to you in my name: "Look, I am turning them over to Nebuchadnezzar to execute publicly.


text:
Their fate shall become proverbial of all evil, so that whenever anyone wants to curse someone he will say, 'The Lord make you like Zedekiah and Ahab whom the king of Babylon burned alive!'


text:
For these men have done a terrible thing among my people. They have committed adultery with their neighbors' wives and have lied in my name. I know, for I have seen everything they do," says the Lord.


text:
"The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'You have written a letter to Zephaniah (son of Maaseiah) the priest, and sent copies to all the other priests and to everyone in Jerusalem.


text:
And in this letter you have said to Zephaniah, "The Lord has appointed you to replace Jehoiada as priest in Jerusalem. And it is your responsibility to arrest any madman who claims to be a prophet and to put him in the stocks and collar.


text:
For he has written to us here in Babylon saying that our captivity will be long; that we should build permanent homes and plan to stay many years; that we should plant fruit trees, for we will be here to eat the fruit from them for a long time to come.' "


text:
"Send an open letter to all the exiles in Babylon and tell them this: 'The Lord says that because Shemaiah the Nehelamite has "prophesied" to you when I didn't send him and has fooled you into believing his lies,


text:
I will punish him and his family. None of his descendants shall see the good I have waiting for my people, for he has taught you to rebel against the Lord.' "


text:
For the time is coming when I will restore the fortunes of my people, Israel and Judah, and I will bring them home to this land that I gave to their fathers; they shall possess it and live here again.'


text:
Do men give birth? Then why do they stand there, ashen-faced, hands pressed against their sides like women in labor?


text:
"Alas, in all history when has there ever been a time of terror such as in that coming day? It is a time of trouble for my people--for Jacob--such as they have never known before. Yet God will rescue them!


text:
For on that day," says the Lord Almighty, "I will break the yoke from their necks and snap their chains, and foreigners shall no longer be their masters!


text:
For they shall serve the Lord their God, and David their King, whom I will raise up for them," says the Lord.


text:
"So don't be afraid, O Jacob my servant; don't be dismayed, O Israel; for I will bring you home again from distant lands, and your children from their exile. They shall have rest and quiet in their own land, and no one shall make them afraid.


text:
For I am with you and I will save you," says the Lord. "Even if I utterly destroy the nations where I scatter you, I will not exterminate you; I will punish you, yes--you will not go unpunished.


text:
All your lovers have left you and don't care anything about you any more; for I have wounded you cruelly, as though I were your enemy; mercilessly, as though I were an implacable foe; for your sins are so many, your guilt is so great.


text:
"Why do you protest your punishment? Your sin is so scandalous that your sorrow should never end! It is because your guilt is great that I have had to punish you so much.


text:
"But in that coming day, all who are destroying you shall be destroyed, and all your enemies shall be slaves. Those who rob you shall be robbed; and those attacking you shall be attacked.


text:
I will give you back your health again and heal your wounds. Now you are called 'The Outcast' and 'Jerusalem, the Place Nobody Wants.'


text:
"But," says the Lord, "when I bring you home again from your captivity and restore your fortunes, Jerusalem will be rebuilt upon her ruins; the palace will be reconstructed as it was before.


text:
The cities will be filled with joy and great thanksgiving, and I will multiply my people and make of them a great and honored nation.


text:
Their children shall prosper as in David's reign; their nations shall be established before me, and I will punish anyone who hurts them.


text:
They will have their own ruler again. He will not be a foreigner. And I will invite him to be a priest at my altars, and he shall approach me, for who would dare to come unless invited.


text:
Suddenly the devastating whirlwind of the Lord roars with fury; it shall burst upon the heads of the wicked.


text:
The Lord will not call off the fierceness of his wrath until it has finished all the terrible destruction he has planned. Later on you will understand what I am telling you.


text:
"At that time," says the Lord, "all the families of Israel shall recognize me as the Lord; they shall act like my people.


text:
I will care for them as I did those who escaped from Egypt, to whom I showed my mercies in the wilderness, when Israel sought for rest."


text:
For long ago the Lord had said to Israel: "I have loved you, O my people, with an everlasting love; with loving-kindness I have drawn you to me.


text:
I will rebuild your nation, O virgin of Israel. You will again be happy and dance merrily with the timbrels.


text:
Again you will plant your vineyards upon the mountains of Samaria and eat from your own gardens there.


text:
"The day shall come when watchmen on the hills of Ephraim will call out and say, 'Arise, and let us go up to Zion to the Lord our God.' "


text:
For the Lord says, "Sing with joy for all that I will do for Israel, the greatest of the nations! Shout out with praise and joy: 'The Lord has saved his people, the remnant of Israel.'


text:
For I will bring them from the north and from earth's farthest ends, not forgetting their blind and lame, young mothers with their little ones, those ready to give birth. It will be a great company who comes.


text:
Tears of joy shall stream down their faces, and I will lead them home with great care. They shall walk beside the quiet streams and not stumble. For I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is my oldest child."


text:
Listen to this message from the Lord, you nations of the world, and publish it abroad: "The Lord who scattered his people will gather them back together again and watch over them as a shepherd does his flock.


text:
They shall come home and sing songs of joy upon the hills of Zion and shall be radiant over the goodness of the Lord--the good crops, the wheat, the wine, and the oil, and the healthy flocks and herds. Their life shall be like a watered garden, and all their sorrows shall be gone.


text:
The young girls will dance for joy, and menfolk--old and young--will take their part in all the fun; for I will turn their mourning into joy, and I will comfort them and make them rejoice, for their captivity with all its sorrows will be behind them.


text:
I will feast the priests with the abundance of offerings brought to them at the Temple; I will satisfy my people with my bounty, says the Lord."


text:
The Lord spoke to me again, saying: "In Ramah there is bitter weeping--Rachel weeping for her children and cannot be comforted, for they are gone."


text:
But the Lord says: "Don't cry any longer, for I have heard your prayers and you will see them again; they will come back to you from the distant land of the enemy.


text:
There is hope for your future," says the Lord, "and your children will come again to their own land.


text:
"I have heard Ephraim's groans: 'You have punished me greatly; but I needed it all, as a calf must be trained for the yoke. Turn me again to you and restore me, for you alone are the Lord, my God.


text:
I turned away from God, but I was sorry afterwards. I kicked myself for my stupidity. I was thoroughly ashamed of all I did in younger days.' "


text:
And the Lord replies: "Ephraim is still my son, my darling child. I had to punish him, but I still love him. I long for him and surely will have mercy on him.


text:
"As you travel into exile, set up road signs pointing back to Israel. Mark your pathway well. For you shall return again, O virgin Israel, to your cities here.


text:
How long will you vacillate, O wayward daughter? For the Lord will cause something new and different to happen--Israel will search for God."


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel, says: "When I bring them back again, they shall say in Judah and her cities, 'The Lord bless you, O center of righteousness, O holy hill!'


text:
The Lord says: "The time will come when I will greatly increase the population and multiply the number of cattle here in Israel.


text:
For everyone shall die for his own sins--the person eating sour grapes is the one whose teeth are set on edge.


text:
"The day will come," says the Lord, "when I will make a new contract with the people of Israel and Judah.


text:
It won't be like the one I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt--a contract they broke, forcing me to reject them," says the Lord.


text:
"But this is the new contract I will make with them: I will inscribe my laws upon their hearts, so that they shall want to honor me; then they shall truly be my people and I will be their God.


text:
At that time it will no longer be necessary to admonish one another to know the Lord. For everyone, both great and small, shall really know me then," says the Lord, "and I will forgive and forget their sins.


text:
The Lord who gives us sunlight in the daytime and the moon and stars to light the night, and who stirs the sea to make the roaring waves--his name is Lord Almighty--says this:


text:
Not until the heavens can be measured and the foundations of the earth explored, will I consider casting them away forever for their sins!


text:
"For the time is coming," says the Lord, "when all Jerusalem shall be rebuilt for the Lord, from the Tower of Hananel at the northeast corner,


text:
to the Corner Gate at the northwest; and from the Hill of Gareb at the southwest, across to Goah on the southeast.


text:
And the entire city, including the graveyard and ash dump in the valley, and all the fields out to the brook of Kidron, and from there to the Horse Gate on the east side of the city, all shall be holy to the Lord; it shall never again be captured or destroyed."


text:
The following message came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the tenth year of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah (which was the eighteenth year of Nebuchadnezzar's reign).


text:
At this time Jeremiah was imprisoned in the dungeon beneath the palace, while the Babylonian army was besieging Jerusalem.


text:
King Zedekiah had put him there for continuing to prophesy that the city would be conquered by the king of Babylon,


text:
and that King Zedekiah would be caught and taken as a prisoner before the king of Babylon for trial and sentencing.


text:
"He shall take you to Babylon and imprison you there for many years until you die. Why fight the facts? You can't win! Surrender now!" Jeremiah had told him again and again.


text:
"Your cousin Hanamel (son of Shallum) will soon arrive to ask you to buy the farm he owns in Anathoth, for by law you have a chance to buy before it is offered to anyone else."


text:
So Hanamel came, as the Lord had said he would, and visited me in the prison. "Buy my field in Anathoth, in the land of Benjamin," he said, "for the law gives you the first right to purchase it." Then I knew for sure that the message I had heard was really from the Lord.


text:
and publicly, in the presence of my cousin Hanamel and the witnesses who had signed the deed, and as the prison guards watched, I handed the papers to Baruch (son of Neriah, who was the son of Mahseiah).


text:
"The Lord, God of Israel, says: 'Take both this sealed deed and the copy and put them into a pottery jar to preserve them for a long time.'


text:
For the Lord, God of Israel, says, 'In the future these papers will be valuable. Someday people will again own property here in this country and will be buying and selling houses and vineyards and fields.' "


text:
You are loving and kind to thousands, yet children suffer for their fathers' sins; you are the great and mighty God, the Lord Almighty.


text:
You have all wisdom and do great and mighty miracles; for your eyes are open to all the ways of men, and you reward everyone according to his life and deeds.


text:
You have done incredible things in the land of Egypt--things still remembered to this day. And you have continued to do great miracles in Israel and all around the world. You have made your name very great, as it is today.


text:
You gave Israel this land that you promised their fathers long ago--a wonderful land that 'flows with milk and honey.'


text:
Our fathers came and conquered it and lived in it, but they refused to obey you or to follow your laws; they have hardly done one thing you told them to. That is why you have sent all this terrible evil upon them.


text:
See how the siege mounds have been built against the city walls, and the Babylonians shall conquer the city by sword, famine, and disease. Everything has happened just as you said--as you determined it should!


text:
And yet you say to buy the field--paying good money for it before these witnesses--even though the city will belong to our enemies."


text:
Yes, I will give this city to the Babylonians and to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon; he shall conquer it.


text:
And the Babylonians outside the walls shall come in and set fire to the city and burn down all these houses, where the roofs have been used to offer incense to Baal and to pour out libations to other gods, causing my fury to rise!


text:
For Israel and Judah have done nothing but wrong since their earliest days; they have infuriated me with all their evil deeds.


text:
From the time this city was built until now it has done nothing but anger me; so I am determined to be rid of it.


text:
"The sins of Israel and Judah--the sins of the people, of their kings, officers, priests and prophets--stir me up.


text:
They have turned their backs upon me and refused to return; day after day, year after year, I taught them right from wrong, but they would not listen or obey.


text:
And they have built high altars to Baal in the Valley of Hinnom. There they have burnt their children as sacrifices to Molech--something I never commanded and cannot imagine suggesting. What an incredible evil, causing Judah to sin so greatly!


text:
"Now therefore the Lord God of Israel says concerning this city that it will fall to the king of Babylon through warfare, famine, and disease,


text:
but I will bring my people back again from all the countries where in my fury I will scatter them. I will bring them back to this very city and make them live in peace and safety.


text:
And I will give them one heart and mind to worship me forever, for their own good and for the good of all their descendants.


text:
"And I will make an everlasting covenant with them, promising never again to desert them but only to do them good. I will put a desire into their hearts to worship me, and they shall never leave me.


text:
Just as I have sent all these terrors and evils upon them, so will I do all the good I have promised them.


text:
"Fields will again be bought and sold in this land now ravaged by the Babylonians, where men and animals alike have disappeared.


text:
Yes, fields shall once again be bought and sold--deeds signed and sealed and witnessed--in the country of Benjamin and here in Jerusalem, in the cities of Judah and in the hill country, in the Philistine plain and in the Negeb too, for some day I will restore prosperity to them."


text:
For though you have torn down the houses of this city, and the king's palace too, for materials to strengthen the walls against the siege weapons of the enemy,


text:
yet the Babylonians will enter, and the men of this city are already as good as dead, for I have determined to destroy them in my furious anger. I have abandoned them because of all their wickedness, and I will not pity them when they cry for help.'


text:
"Nevertheless the time will come when I will heal Jerusalem's damage and give her prosperity and peace.


text:
Then this city will be an honor to me, and it will give me joy and be a source of praise and glory to me before all the nations of the earth! The people of the world will see the good I do for my people and will tremble with awe!


text:
"The Lord declares that the happy voices of bridegrooms and of brides and the joyous song of those bringing thanksgiving offerings to the Lord will be heard again in this doomed land. The people will sing: 'Praise the Lord! For he is good and his mercy endures forever!' For I will make this land happier and more prosperous than it has ever been before.


text:
This land--though every man and animal and city is doomed--will once more see shepherds leading sheep and lambs.


text:
Once again their flocks will prosper in the mountain villages and in the cities east of the Philistine plain, in all the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, in the vicinity of Jerusalem, and in all the cities of Judah.


text:
Yes, the day will come," says the Lord, "when I will do for Israel and Judah all the good I promised them.


text:
In that day the people of Judah and Jerusalem shall live in safety and their motto will be, 'The Lord is our righteousness!'


text:
For the Lord declares that from then on, David shall forever have an heir sitting on the throne of Israel.


text:
And there shall always be Levites to offer burnt offerings and meal offerings and sacrifices to the Lord."


text:
"If you can break my covenant with the day and with the night so that day and night don't come on their usual schedule,


text:
only then will my covenant with David, my servant, be broken so that he shall not have a son to reign upon his throne; and my covenant with the Levite priests, my ministers, is noncancelable.


text:
And as the stars cannot be counted nor the sand upon the seashores measured, so the descendants of David my servant and the line of the Levites who minister to me will be multiplied."


text:
"Have you heard what people are saying?--that the Lord chose Judah and Israel and then abandoned them! They are sneering and saying that Israel isn't worthy to be counted as a nation.


text:
But this is the Lord's reply: 'I would no more reject my people than I would change my laws of night and day, of earth and sky.


text:
I will never abandon the Jews, or David my servant, or change the plan that his child will someday rule these descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Instead I will restore their prosperity and have mercy on them.' "


text:
This is the message that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and all his armies from all the kingdoms he ruled, came and fought against Jerusalem and the cities of Judah:


text:
"Go tell Zedekiah, king of Judah, that the Lord says this: 'I will give this city to the king of Babylon and he shall burn it.


text:
You shall not escape; you shall be captured and taken before the king of Babylon; he shall pronounce sentence against you and you shall be exiled to Babylon.


text:
but that you will die quietly among your people, and they will burn incense in your memory, just as they did for your fathers. They will weep for you and say, "Alas, our king is dead!" This I have decreed, says the Lord.' "


text:
At this time the Babylonian army was besieging Jerusalem, Lachish, and Azekah--the only walled cities of Judah still standing.


text:
This is the message that came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah of Judah had freed all the slaves in Jerusalem--


text:
(for King Zedekiah had ordered everyone to free his Hebrew slaves, both men and women. He had said that no Jew should be the master of another Jew for all were brothers.


text:
The princes and all the people had obeyed the king's command and freed their slaves, but the action was only temporary.


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel, says: "I made a covenant with your fathers long ago when I brought them from their slavery in Egypt.


text:
Recently you began doing what was right, as I commanded you, and freed your slaves. You had solemnly promised me in my Temple that you would do it.


text:
But now you refuse and have defiled my name by shrugging off your oath and have made them slaves again.


text:
"Therefore," says the Lord, "because you will not listen to me and release them, I will release you to the power of death by war and famine and disease. And I will scatter you over all the world as exiles.


text:
Because you have refused the terms of our contract, I will cut you apart just as you cut apart the calf when you walked between its halves to solemnize your vows.


text:
Yes, I will butcher you, whether you are princes, court officials, priests, or people--for you have broken your oath.


text:
I will give you to your enemies, and they shall kill you. I will feed your dead bodies to the vultures and wild animals.


text:
And I will surrender Zedekiah, king of Judah, and his officials to the army of the king of Babylon, though he has departed from the city for a little while.


text:
I will summon the Babylonian armies back again, and they will fight against it and capture this city and burn it. And I will see to it that the cities of Judah are completely destroyed and left desolate without a living soul."


text:
"Go to the settlement where the families of the Rechabites live and invite them to the Temple. Take them into one of the inner rooms and offer them a drink of wine."


text:
So I went over to see Jaazaniah (son of Jeremiah, who was the son of Habazziniah) and brought him and all his brothers and sons--representing all the Rechab families--


text:
to the Temple, into the room assigned for the use of the sons of Hanan the prophet (the son of Igdaliah). This room was located next to the one used by the palace official, directly above the room of Maaseiah (son of Shallum), who was the temple doorman.


text:
but they refused. "No," they said. "We don't drink, for Jonadab our father (son of Rechab) commanded that none of us should ever drink, neither we nor our children forever.


text:
He also told us not to build houses or plant crops or vineyards and not to own farms, but always to live in tents; and that if we obeyed, we would live long, good lives in our own land.


text:
And we have obeyed him in all these things. We have never had a drink of wine since then, nor have our wives or our sons or daughters either.


text:
But when Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, arrived in this country, we were afraid and decided to move to Jerusalem. That's why we are here."


text:
"The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Go and say to Judah and Jerusalem, Won't you learn a lesson from the families of Rechab?


text:
They don't drink because their father told them not to. But I have spoken to you again and again, and you won't listen or obey.


text:
I have sent you prophet after prophet to tell you to turn back from your wicked ways and to stop worshiping other gods, and that if you obeyed, then I would let you live in peace here in the land I gave to you and your fathers. But you wouldn't listen or obey.


text:
Therefore, the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: "Because you refuse to listen or answer when I call, I will send upon Judah and Jerusalem all the evil I have ever threatened.' "


text:
Then Jeremiah turned to the Rechabites and said: "The Lord, the God of Israel, says that because you have obeyed your father in every respect, he shall always have descendants who will worship me."


text:
In the fourth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah (son of Josiah) the Lord gave this message to Jeremiah:


text:
"Get a scroll and write down all my messages against Israel, Judah, and the other nations. Begin with the first message back in the days of Josiah, and write down every one of them.


text:
Perhaps when the people of Judah see in writing all the terrible things I will do to them, they will repent. And then I can forgive them."


text:
So Jeremiah sent for Baruch (son of Neriah), and as Jeremiah dictated, Baruch wrote down all the prophecies.


text:
you read the scroll in the Temple on the next day of fasting, for on that day people will be there from all over Judah.


text:
Perhaps even yet they will turn from their evil ways and ask the Lord to forgive them before it is too late, even though these curses of God have been pronounced upon them."


text:
This occurred on the day of fasting held in December of the fifth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim (son of Josiah). People came from all over Judah to attend the services at the Temple that day.


text:
Baruch went to the office of Gemariah the Scribe (son of Shaphan) to read the scroll. (This room was just off the upper assembly hall of the Temple, near the door of the New Gate.)


text:
he went down to the palace to the conference room where the administrative officials were meeting. Elishama (the scribe) was there, as well as Delaiah (son of Shamaiah), Elnathan (son of Achbor), Gemariah (son of Shaphan), Zedekiah (son of Hananiah), and all the others with similar responsibilities.


text:
the officials sent Jehudi (son of Nethaniah, son of Shelemiah, son of Cushi) to ask Baruch to come and read the messages to them too, and Baruch did.


text:
So Baruch explained that Jeremiah had dictated them to him word by word, and he had written them down in ink upon the scroll.


text:
The king sent Jehudi to get the scroll. Jehudi brought it from Elishama the scribe and read it to the king as all his officials stood by.


text:
The king was in a winterized part of the palace at the time, sitting in front of a fireplace, for it was December and cold.


text:
And whenever Jehudi finished reading three or four columns, the king would take his knife, slit off the section, and throw it into the fire, until the whole scroll was destroyed.


text:
And no one protested except Elnathan, Delaiah, and Gemariah. They pled with the king not to burn the scroll, but he wouldn't listen to them. Not another of the king's officials showed any signs of fear or anger at what he had done.


text:
Then the king commanded Jerahmeel (a member of the royal family) and Seraiah (son of Azriel) and Shelemiah (son of Abdeel) to arrest Baruch and Jeremiah. But the Lord hid them!


text:
and say this to the king: 'The Lord says, You burned the scroll because it said the king of Babylon would destroy this country and everything in it.


text:
And now the Lord adds this concerning you, Jehoiakim, king of Judah: He shall have no one to sit upon the throne of David. His dead body shall be thrown out to the hot sun and frosty nights,


text:
and I will punish him and his family and his officials because of their sins. I will pour out upon them all the evil I promised--upon them and upon all the people of Judah and Jerusalem, for they wouldn't listen to my warnings.' "


text:
Then Jeremiah took another scroll and dictated again to Baruch all he had written before, only this time the Lord added a lot more!


text:
Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, did not appoint Coniah (King Jehoiakim's son) to be the new king of Judah. Instead he chose Zedekiah (son of Josiah).


text:
But neither King Zedekiah nor his officials nor the people who were left in the land listened to what the Lord said through Jeremiah.


text:
Nevertheless, King Zedekiah sent Jehucal (son of Shelemiah) and Zephaniah the priest (son of Maaseiah) to ask Jeremiah to pray for them.


text:
When the army of Pharaoh Hophra of Egypt appeared at the southern border of Judah to relieve the besieged city of Jerusalem, the Babylonian army withdrew from Jerusalem to fight the Egyptians.


text:
"The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Tell the king of Judah, who sent you to ask me what is going to happen, that Pharaoh's army, though it came here to help you, is about to return in flight to Egypt! The Babylonians shall defeat them and send them scurrying home.


text:
Even if you destroyed the entire Babylonian army until there was only a handful of survivors and they lay wounded in their tents, yet they would stagger out and defeat you and put this city to the torch!' "


text:
Jeremiah started to leave the city to go to the land of Benjamin, to see the property he had bought.


text:
But as he was walking through the Benjamin Gate, a sentry arrested him as a traitor, claiming he was defecting to the Babylonians. The guard making the arrest was Irijah (son of Shelemiah, grandson of Hananiah).


text:
"That's not true," Jeremiah said. "I have no intention whatever of doing any such thing!" But Irijah wouldn't listen; he took Jeremiah before the city officials.


text:
They were incensed with Jeremiah and had him flogged and put into the dungeon under the house of Jonathan the scribe, which had been converted into a prison.


text:
but eventually King Zedekiah sent for him to come to the palace secretly. The king asked him if there was any recent message from the Lord. "Yes," said Jeremiah, "there is! You shall be defeated by the king of Babylon!"


text:
Then Jeremiah broached the subject of his imprisonment. "What have I ever done to deserve this?" he asked the king. "What crime have I committed? Tell me what I have done against you or your officials or the people?


text:
Then King Zedekiah commanded that Jeremiah not be returned to the dungeon but be placed in the palace prison instead, and that he be given a small loaf of fresh bread every day as long as there was any left in the city. So Jeremiah was kept in the palace prison.


text:
But when Shephatiah (son of Mattan) and Gedaliah (son of Pashhur) and Jucal (son of Shelemiah) and Pashhur (son of Malchiah) heard what Jeremiah had been telling the people--


text:
that everyone remaining in Jerusalem would die by sword, starvation, or disease, but anyone surrendering to the Babylonians would live,


text:
they went to the king and said: "Sir, this fellow must die. That kind of talk will undermine the morale of the few soldiers we have left, and of all the people too. This man is a traitor."


text:
They took Jeremiah from his cell and lowered him by ropes into an empty cistern in the prison yard. (It belonged to Malchiah, a member of the royal family.) There was no water in it, but there was a thick layer of mire at the bottom, and Jeremiah sank down into it.


text:
When Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, an important palace official, heard that Jeremiah was in the cistern,


text:
"My lord the king," he said, "these men have done a very evil thing in putting Jeremiah into the cistern. He will die of hunger, for almost all the bread in the city is gone."


text:
Then the king commanded Ebed-melech to take thirty men with him and pull Jeremiah out before he died.


text:
So Ebed-melech took thirty men and went to a palace depot for discarded supplies where used clothing was kept. There he found some old rags and discarded garments which he took to the cistern and lowered to Jeremiah on a rope.


text:
Ebed-melech called down to Jeremiah, "Use these rags under your armpits to protect you from the ropes." Then, when Jeremiah was ready,


text:
One day King Zedekiah sent for Jeremiah to meet him at the side entrance of the Temple. "I want to ask you something," the king said, "and don't try to hide the truth."


text:
So King Zedekiah swore before Almighty God his Creator that he would not kill Jeremiah or give him to the men who were after his life.


text:
Then Jeremiah said to Zedekiah, "The Almighty Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'If you will surrender to Babylon, you and your family shall live and the city will not be burned.


text:
If you refuse to surrender, this city shall be set afire by the Babylonian army and you will not escape.' "


text:
"But I am afraid to surrender," the king said, "for the Babylonians will hand me over to the Jews who have defected to them, and who knows what they will do to me?"


text:
Jeremiah replied, "You won't get into their hands if only you will obey the Lord; your life will be spared, and all will go well for you.


text:
that all the women left in your palace will be brought out and given to the officers of the Babylonian army; and these women will taunt you with bitterness. 'Fine friends you have,' they'll say, 'those Egyptians. They have betrayed you and left you to your fate!'


text:
All your wives and children will be led out to the Babylonians, and you will not escape. You will be seized by the king of Babylon, and this city will be burned."


text:
And if my officials hear that I talked with you and they threaten you with death unless you tell them what we discussed,


text:
just say that you begged me not to send you back to the dungeon in Jonathan's house, for you would die there."


text:
And sure enough, it wasn't long before all the city officials came to Jeremiah and asked him why the king had called for him. So he said what the king had told him to, and they left without finding out the truth, for the conversation had not been overheard by anyone.


text:
It was in January of the ninth year of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah that King Nebuchadnezzar and all his army came against Jerusalem again and besieged it.


text:
and all the officers of the Babylonian army came in and sat in triumph at the middle gate. Nergal-sharezer was there, Samgar-nebo, Sarsechim, Nergal-sharezer the king's chief assistant, and many others.


text:
When King Zedekiah and his soldiers realized that the city was lost, they fled during the night, going out through the gate between the two walls back of the palace garden and across the fields toward the Jordan valley.


text:
But the Babylonians chased the king and caught him on the plains of Jericho and brought him to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon who was at Riblah, in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment upon him.


text:
Then Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, and his men sent the remnant of the population and all those who had defected to him to Babylon.


text:
But throughout the land of Judah he left a few people, the very poor, and gave them fields and vineyards.


text:
So Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, and Nebushazban, the chief of the eunuchs, and Nergal-sharezer, the king's advisor, and all the officials took steps to do as the king had commanded.


text:
They sent soldiers to bring Jeremiah out of the prison, and put him into the care of Gedaliah (son of Ahikam, son of Shaphan), to take him back to his home. And Jeremiah lived there among his people who were left in the land.


text:
The Lord gave the following message to Jeremiah before the Babylonians arrived, while he was still in prison:


text:
"Send this word to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian: 'The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I will do to this city everything I threatened; I will destroy it before your eyes,


text:
Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, took Jeremiah to Ramah along with all the exiled people of Jerusalem and Judah who were being sent to Babylon, but then released him.


text:
The captain called for Jeremiah and said, "The Lord your God has brought this disaster on this land,


text:
Now I am going to take off your chains and let you go. If you want to come with me to Babylon, fine; I will see that you are well cared for. But if you don't want to come, don't. The world is before you--go where you like.


text:
If you decide to stay, then return to Gedaliah, who has been appointed as governor of Judah by the king of Babylon, and stay with the remnant he rules. But it's up to you; go where you like." Then Nebuzaradan gave Jeremiah some food and money and let him go.


text:
Now when the leaders of the Jewish guerrilla bands in the countryside heard that the king of Babylon had appointed Gedaliah as governor over the poor of the land who were left behind, and had not exiled everyone to Babylon,


text:
they came to see Gedaliah at Mizpah, where his headquarters were. These are the names of the leaders who came: Ishmael (son of Nethaniah), Johanan and Jonathan (sons of Kareah), Seraiah (son of Tanhumeth), the sons of Ephai (the Netophathite), Jezaniah (son of a Maacathite), and their men.


text:
And Gedaliah assured them that it would be safe to surrender to the Babylonians. "Stay here and serve the king of Babylon," he said, "and all will go well for you.


text:
As for me, I will stay at Mizpah and intercede for you with the Babylonians who will come here to oversee my administration. Settle in any city you wish and live off the land. Harvest the grapes and summer fruits and olives and store them away."


text:
When the Jews in Moab and among the Ammonites and in Edom and the other nearby countries heard that a few people were still left in Judah, and that the king of Babylon had not taken them all away, and that Gedaliah was the governor,


text:
they all began to return to Judah from the many places to which they had fled. They stopped at Mizpah to discuss their plans with Gedaliah and then went out to the deserted farms and gathered a great harvest of wine grapes and other crops.


text:
But soon afterwards Johanan (son of Kareah) and the other guerrilla leaders came to Mizpah to warn Gedaliah


text:
that Baalis, king of the Ammonites, had sent Ishmael (son of Nethaniah) to assassinate him. But Gedaliah wouldn't believe them.


text:
Then Johanan had a private conference with Gedaliah. Johanan volunteered to kill Ishmael secretly. "Why should we let him come and murder you?" Johanan asked. "What will happen then to the Jews who have returned? Why should this remnant be scattered and lost?"


text:
But in October, Ishmael (son of Nethaniah, son of Elishama), who was a member of the royal family and one of the king's top officials, arrived in Mizpah, accompanied by ten men. Gedaliah invited them to dinner.


text:
While they were eating, Ishmael and the ten men in league with him suddenly jumped up, pulled out their swords, and killed Gedaliah.


text:
Then they went out and slaughtered all the Jewish officials and Babylonian soldiers who were in Mizpah with Gedaliah.


text:
eighty men approached Mizpah from Shechem, Shiloh, and Samaria, to worship at the Temple of the Lord. They had shaved off their beards, torn their clothes, and cut themselves, and were bringing offerings and incense.


text:
Ishmael went out from the city to meet them, crying as he went. When he faced them he said, "Oh, come and see what has happened to Gedaliah!"


text:
Then, when they were all inside the city, Ishmael and his men killed all but ten of them and threw their bodies into a cistern.


text:
The ten had talked Ishmael into letting them go by promising to bring him their treasures of wheat, barley, oil, and honey they had hidden away.


text:
The cistern where Ishmael dumped the bodies of the men he murdered was the large one constructed by King Asa when he fortified Mizpah to protect himself against Baasha, king of Israel.


text:
Ishmael made captives of the king's daughters and of the people who had been left under Gedaliah's care in Mizpah by Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard. Soon after, he took them with him when he headed toward the country of the Ammonites.


text:
Then Johanan and his men went to the village of Geruth Chimham, near Bethlehem, taking with them all those they had rescued--soldiers, women, children, and eunuchs, to prepare to leave for Egypt.


text:
For they were afraid of what the Babylonians would do when the news reached them that Ishmael had killed Gedaliah the governor, for he had been chosen and appointed by the Babylonian emperor.


text:
and said, "Please pray for us to the Lord your God, for as you know so well, we are only a tiny remnant of what we were before.


text:
"All right," Jeremiah replied. "I will ask him and I will tell you what he says. I will hide nothing from you."


text:
Then they said to Jeremiah, "May the curse of God be on us if we refuse to obey whatever he says we should do!


text:
Whether we like it or not, we will obey the Lord our God, to whom we send you with our plea. For if we obey him, everything will turn out well for us."


text:
and said to them: "You sent me to the Lord, the God of Israel, with your request, and this is his reply:


text:
'Stay here in this land. If you do, I will bless you, and no one will harm you. For I am sorry for all the punishment I have had to give to you.


text:
Don't fear the king of Babylon any more, for I am with you to save you and to deliver you from his hand.


text:
And I will be merciful to you by making him kind so that he will not kill you or make slaves of you but will let you stay here in your land.'


text:
"But if you refuse to obey the Lord and say, 'We will not stay here,'--and insist on going to Egypt where you think you will be free from war and hunger and alarms,


text:
then this is what the Lord replies, O remnant of Judah: 'The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: If you insist on going to Egypt,


text:
That is the fate awaiting every one of you who insists on going to live in Egypt. Yes, you will die from sword, famine, and disease. None of you will escape from the evil I will bring upon you there.'


text:
"For the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Just as my anger and fury were poured out upon the people of Jerusalem, so it will be poured out on you when you enter Egypt. You will be received with disgust and with hatred--you will be cursed and reviled. And you will never again see your own land.'


text:
For the Lord has said: 'O remnant of Judah, do not go to Egypt!' " Jeremiah concluded: "Never forget the warning I have given you today.


text:
If you go, it will be at the cost of your lives. For you were deceitful when you sent me to pray for you and said, 'Just tell us what God says and we will do it!'


text:
And today I have told you exactly what he said, but you will not obey any more now than you did the other times.


text:
Therefore know for a certainty that you will die by sword, famine, and disease in Egypt, where you insist on going."


text:
Azariah (son of Hoshaiah) and Johanan (son of Kareah) and all the other proud men, said to Jeremiah, "You lie! The Lord our God hasn't told you to tell us not to go to Egypt!


text:
Baruch (son of Neriah) has plotted against us and told you to say this so that we will stay here and be killed by the Babylonians or carried off to Babylon as slaves."


text:
So Johanan and all the guerrilla leaders and all the people refused to obey the Lord and stay in Judah.


text:
All of them, including all those who had returned from the nearby countries where they had fled, now started off for Egypt with Johanan and the other captains in command.


text:
In the crowd were men, women and children, the king's daughters, and all those whom Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, had left with Gedaliah. They even forced Jeremiah and Baruch to go with them too.


text:
"Call together the men of Judah and, as they watch you, bury large rocks between the pavement stones at the entrance of Pharaoh's palace here in Tahpanhes,


text:
and tell the men of Judah this: 'The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will surely bring Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, here to Egypt, for he is my servant. I will set his throne upon these stones that I have hidden. He shall spread his royal canopy over them.


text:
And when he comes, he shall destroy the land of Egypt, killing all those I want killed and capturing those I want captured, and many shall die of plague.


text:
He will set fire to the temples of the gods of Egypt and burn the idols and carry off the people as his captives. And he shall plunder the land of Egypt as a shepherd picks fleas from his cloak! And he himself shall leave unharmed.


text:
And he shall break down the obelisks standing in the city of Heliopolis and burn down the temples of the gods of Egypt.' "


text:
This is the message God gave to Jeremiah concerning all the Jews who were living in the north of Egypt in the cities of Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis, and throughout southern Egypt as well:


text:
"The Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'You saw what I did to Jerusalem and to all the cities of Judah.


text:
Because of all their wickedness they lie in heaps and ashes, without a living soul. For my anger rose high against them for worshiping other gods--"gods" that neither they nor you nor any of your fathers have ever known.


text:
'I sent my servants, the prophets, to protest over and over again and to plead with them not to do this horrible thing I hate,


text:
but they wouldn't listen and wouldn't turn back from their wicked ways; they have kept right on with their sacrifices to these "gods."


text:
And so my fury and anger boiled over and fell as fire upon the cities of Judah and into the streets of Jerusalem, and there is desolation until this day.'


text:
"And now the Lord, the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, asks you: 'Why are you destroying yourselves? For not one of you shall live--not a man, woman or child among you who has come here from Judah, not even the babies in arms.


text:
For you are rousing my anger with the idols you have made and worshiped here in Egypt, burning incense to them, and causing me to destroy you completely and to make you a curse and a stench in the nostrils of all the nations of the earth.


text:
Have you forgotten the sins of your fathers, the sins of the kings and queens of Judah, your own sins, and the sins of your wives in Judah and Jerusalem?


text:
And even until this very hour there has been no apology; no one has wanted to return to me or follow the laws I gave you and your fathers before you.'


text:
"Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'There is fury in my face and I will destroy every one of you!


text:
I will take this remnant of Judah that insisted on coming here to Egypt, and I will consume them. They shall fall here in Egypt, killed by famine and sword; all shall die, from the least important to the greatest. They shall be despised and loathed, cursed and hated.


text:
Not one of them shall escape from my wrath except those who repent of their coming and escape from the others by returning again to their own land.' "


text:
Then all the women present and all the men who knew that their wives had burned incense to idols (it was a great crowd of all the Jews in southern Egypt) answered Jeremiah:


text:
We will do whatever we want to. We will burn incense to the Queen of Heaven and sacrifice to her just as much as we like--just as we and our fathers before us, and our kings and princes have always done in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; for in those days we had plenty to eat, and we were well off and happy!


text:
But ever since we quit burning incense to the Queen of Heaven and stopped worshiping her, we have been in great trouble and have been destroyed by sword and famine."


text:
"And," the women added, "do you suppose that we were worshiping the Queen of Heaven and pouring out our libations to her and making cakes for her with her image on them, without our husbands knowing it and helping us? Of course not!"


text:
"Do you think the Lord didn't know that you and your fathers, your kings and princes, and all the people were burning incense to idols in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem?


text:
It was because he could no longer bear all the evil things you were doing that he made your land desolate, an incredible ruin, cursed, without an inhabitant, as it is today.


text:
The very reason all these terrible things have befallen you is because you have burned incense and sinned against the Lord and refused to obey him."


text:
Then Jeremiah said to them all, including the women: "Listen to the word of the Lord, all you citizens of Judah who are here in Egypt!


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel, says: 'Both you and your wives have said that you will never give up your devotion and sacrifices to the Queen of Heaven, and you have proved it by your actions. Then go ahead and carry out your promises and vows to her!'


text:
But listen to the word of the Lord, all you Jews who are living in the land of Egypt: 'I have sworn by my great name,' says the Lord, 'that it will do you no good to seek my help and blessing any more, saying, "O Lord our God, help us!"


text:
For I will watch over you, but not for good! I will see to it that evil befalls you, and you shall be destroyed by war and famine until all of you are dead.


text:
'Only those who return to Judah (it will be but a tiny remnant) shall escape my wrath, but all who refuse to go back--who insist on living in Egypt--shall find out who tells the truth, I or they!


text:
And this is the proof I give you that all I have threatened will happen to you and that I will punish you here:


text:
I will turn Pharaoh Hophra, king of Egypt, over to those who seek his life, just as I turned Zedekiah, king of Judah, over to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.' "


text:
This is the message Jeremiah gave to Baruch in the fourth year of the reign of King Jehoiakim (son of Josiah), after Baruch had written down all God's messages as Jeremiah was dictating them to him:


text:
'You have said, "Woe is me! Don't I have troubles enough already? And now the Lord has added more! I am weary of my own sighing and I find no rest.'


text:
But tell Baruch this, 'The Lord says: "I will destroy this nation that I built; I will wipe out what I established.


text:
Are you seeking great things for yourself? Don't do it! For though I will bring great evil upon all these people, I will protect you wherever you go, as your reward.' "


text:
This message was given against Egypt at the occasion of the battle of Carchemish when Pharaoh Necho, king of Egypt, and his army were defeated beside the Euphrates River by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, in the fourth year of the reign of Jehoiakim (son of Josiah), king of Judah:


text:
Harness the horses and prepare to mount them--don your helmets, sharpen your spears, put on your armor.


text:
But look! The Egyptian army flees in terror; the mightiest of its soldiers run without a backward glance. Yes, terror shall surround them on every side," says the Lord.


text:
"The swift will not escape, nor the mightiest of warriors. In the north, by the river Euphrates, they have stumbled and fallen.


text:
Then come, O horses and chariots and mighty soldiers of Egypt! Come, all of you from Cush and Put and Lud who handle the shield and bend the bow!


text:
For this is the day of the Lord, the Lord Almighty, a day of vengeance upon his enemies. The sword shall devour until it is sated, yes, drunk with your blood, for the Lord, the Lord Almighty will receive a sacrifice today in the north country beside the river Euphrates!


text:
Go up to Gilead for medicine, O virgin daughter of Egypt! Yet there is no cure for your wounds. Though you have used many medicines, there is no healing for you.


text:
The nations have heard of your shame. The earth is filled with your cry of despair and defeat; your mightiest soldiers will stumble across each other and fall together."


text:
Then God gave Jeremiah this message concerning the coming of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, to attack Egypt:


text:
"Shout it out in Egypt; publish it in the cities of Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes! Mobilize for battle, for the sword of destruction shall devour all around you.


text:
Vast multitudes fall in heaps. (Then the remnant of the Jews will say, 'Come, let us return again to Judah where we were born and get away from all this slaughter here!')


text:
"As I live," says the King, the Lord of Hosts, "one is coming against Egypt who is as tall as Mount Tabor or Mount Carmel by the sea!


text:
Pack up; get ready to leave for exile, you citizens of Egypt, for the city of Memphis shall be utterly destroyed and left without a soul alive.


text:
Even her famed mercenaries have become like frightened calves. They turn and run, for it is the day of great calamity for Egypt, a time of great punishment.


text:
Silent as a serpent gliding away, Egypt flees; the invading army marches in. The numberless soldiers cut down your people like woodsmen who clear a forest of its trees.


text:
The Lord, the God of Israel, says: "I will punish Amon, god of Thebes, and all the other gods of Egypt. I will punish Pharaoh too, and all who trust in him.


text:
I will deliver them into the hands of those who want them killed--into the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and his army. But afterwards the land shall recover from the ravages of war.


text:
"But don't you be afraid, O my people who return to your own land, don't be dismayed; for I will save you from far away and bring your children from a distant land. Yes, Israel shall return and be at rest, and nothing shall make her afraid.


text:
Fear not, O Jacob, my servant," says the Lord, "for I am with you. I will destroy all the nations to which I have exiled you, but I will not destroy you. I will punish you, but only enough to correct you."


text:
The Philistines This is God's message to Jeremiah concerning the Philistines of Gaza, before the city was captured by the Egyptian army:


text:
"The Lord says: 'A flood is coming from the north to overflow the land of the Philistines; it will destroy their cities and everything in them. Strong men will scream in terror, and all the land will weep.


text:
Hear the clattering hoofs and rumbling wheels as the chariots go rushing by; fathers flee without a backward glance at their helpless children,


text:
for the time has come when all the Philistines and their allies from Tyre and Sidon will be destroyed. For the Lord is destroying the Philistines, those colonists from Caphtor.


text:
The cities of Gaza and Ashkelon will be razed to the ground and lie in ruins. O descendants of the Anakim, how you will lament and mourn!


text:
'O sword of the Lord, when will you be at rest again? Go back into your scabbard; rest and be still!


text:
But how can it be still when the Lord has sent it on an errand? For the city of Ashkelon and those living along the sea must be destroyed.' "


text:
The Moabites This is the message of the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, against Moab: "Woe to the city of Nebo, for it shall lie in ruins. The city of Kiriathaim and its forts are overwhelmed and captured.


text:
No one will ever brag about Moab any more, for there is a plot against her life. In Heshbon plans have been completed to destroy her. 'Come,' they say, 'we will cut her off from being a nation.' In Madmen all is silent.


text:
Her refugees will climb the hills of Luhith, weeping bitterly, while cries of terror rise from the city below.


text:
For you trusted in your wealth and skill; therefore, you shall perish. Your god Chemosh, with his priests and princes, shall be taken away to distant lands!


text:
"All the villages and cities, whether they be on the plateaus or in the valleys, shall be destroyed, for the Lord has said it.


text:
Cursed be those withholding their swords from your blood, refusing to do the work that God has given them!


text:
"From her earliest history Moab has lived there undisturbed from all invasions. She is like wine that has not been poured from flask to flask and is fragrant and smooth. But now she shall have the pouring out of exile!


text:
The time is coming soon," the Lord has said, "when he will send troublemakers to spill her out from jar to jar and then shatter the jars!


text:
But now Moab is to be destroyed; her destroyer is on the way; her choicest youth are doomed to slaughter," says the King, the Lord Almighty.


text:
Come down from your glory and sit in the dust, O people of Dibon, for those destroying Moab shall shatter Dibon too, and tear down all her towers.


text:
Those in Aroer stand anxiously beside the road to watch, and shout to those who flee from Moab, 'What has happened there?'


text:
"And they reply, 'Moab lies in ruins; weep and wail. Tell it by the banks of the Arnon, that Moab is destroyed.'


text:
"All the cities of the tableland lie in ruins too, for God's judgment has been poured out upon them all--on Holon and Jahzah and Mephaath,


text:
Let her stagger and fall like a drunkard, for she has rebelled against the Lord. Moab shall wallow in her vomit, scorned by all.


text:
"O people of Moab, flee from your cities and live in the caves like doves that nest in the clefts of the rocks.


text:
We have all heard of the pride of Moab, for it is very great. We know your loftiness, your arrogance, and your haughty heart.


text:
"O men of Sibmah, rich in vineyards, I weep for you even more than for Jazer. For the destroyer has cut off your spreading tendrils and harvested your grapes and summer fruits. He has plucked you bare!


text:
Joy and gladness are gone from fruitful Moab. The presses yield no wine; no one treads the grapes with shouts of joy. There is shouting, yes, but not the shouting of joy.


text:
Instead the awful cries of terror and pain rise from all over the land--from Heshbon clear across to Elealeh and to Jahaz; from Zoar to Horonaim and to Eglath-shelishiyah. The pastures of Nimrim are deserted now."


text:
They shave their heads and beards in anguish; they slash their hands and put on clothes of sackcloth.


text:
Crying and sorrow will be in every Moabite home and on the streets; for I have smashed and shattered Moab like an old, unwanted bottle.


text:
How it is broken! Hear the wails! See the shame of Moab! For she is a sign of horror and of scoffing to her neighbors now.


text:
"Her cities are fallen; her strongholds are seized. The hearts of her mightiest warriors fail with fear like women in the pains of giving birth.


text:
"He who flees shall fall in a trap, and he who escapes from the trap shall run into a snare. I will see to it that you do not get away, for the time of your judgment has come.


text:
They flee to Heshbon, unable to go farther. But a fire comes from Heshbon--Sihon's ancestral home--and devours the land from end to end with all its rebellious people.


text:
"Woe to you, O Moab; the people of the god Chemosh are destroyed, and your sons and daughters are taken away as slaves.


text:
But in the latter days," says the Lord, "I will reestablish Moab." (Here the prophecy concerning Moab ends.)


text:
The Ammonites "What is this you are doing? Why are you living in the cities of the Jews? Aren't there Jews enough to fill them up? Didn't they inherit them from me? Why then have you, who worship Milcom, taken over Gad and all its cities?


text:
I will punish you for this," the Lord declares, "by destroying your city of Rabbah. It shall become a desolate heap, and the neighboring towns shall be burned. Then Israel shall come and take back her land from you again. She shall dispossess those who dispossessed her," says the Lord.


text:
"Cry out, O Heshbon, for Ai is destroyed! Weep, daughter of Rabbah! Put on garments of mourning; weep and wail, hiding in the hedges, for your god Milcom shall be exiled along with his princes and priests.


text:
You are proud of your fertile valleys, but they will soon be ruined. O wicked daughter, you trusted in your wealth and thought no one could ever harm you.


text:
But see, I will bring terror upon you," says the Lord, the Lord Almighty. "For all your neighbors shall drive you from your land and none shall help your exiles as they flee.


text:
Flee to the remotest parts of the desert, O people of Dedan; for when I punish Edom, I will punish you!


text:
but I will strip bare the land of Esau, and there will be no place to hide. Her children, her brothers, her neighbors--all will be destroyed--and she herself will perish too.


text:
The Lord says to Edom: "If the innocent must suffer, how much more must you! You shall not go unpunished! You must drink this cup of judgment!


text:
For I have sworn by my own name," says the Lord, "that Bozrah shall become heaps of ruins, cursed and mocked; and her cities shall be eternal wastes."


text:
I have heard this message from the Lord: "I have sent a messenger to call the nations to form a coalition against Edom and destroy her.


text:
"You have been fooled by your fame and your pride, living there in the mountains of Petra, in the clefts of the rocks. But though you live among the peaks with the eagles, I will bring you down," says the Lord.


text:
Your cities will become as silent as Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns," says the Lord. "No one will live there anymore.


text:
I will send against them one who will come like a lion from the wilds of Jordan stalking the sheep in the fold. Suddenly Edom shall be destroyed, and I will appoint over the Edomites the person of my choice. For who is like me, and who can call me to account? What shepherd can defy me?"


text:
Take note: The Lord will certainly do this to Edom and also the people of Teman--even little children will be dragged away as slaves! It will be a shocking thing to see.


text:
The earth shakes with the noise of Edom's fall; the cry of the people is heard as far away as the Red Sea.


text:
The one who will come will fly as swift as a vulture and will spread his wings against Bozrah. Then the courage of the mightiest warriors will disappear like that of women in labor. Damascus


text:
"The cities of Hamath and Arpad are stricken with fear, for they have heard the news of their doom. Their hearts are troubled like a wild sea in a raging storm.


text:
Damascus has become feeble, and all her people turn to flee. Fear, anguish, and sorrow have gripped her as they do women in labor.


text:
Your young men lie dead in the streets; your entire army shall be destroyed in one day," says the Lord Almighty.


text:
"And I will start a fire at the edge of Damascus that shall burn up the palaces of Benhadad." Kedar and Hazor


text:
This prophecy is about Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor that are going to be destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, for the Lord will send him to destroy them:


text:
"Their flocks and their tents will be captured," says the Lord, "with all their household goods. Their camels will be taken away, and all around will be the shouts of panic, 'We are surrounded and doomed!'


text:
Flee for your lives," says the Lord. "Go deep into the deserts, O people of Hazor, for Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has plotted against you and is preparing to destroy you.


text:
"Go," said the Lord to King Nebuchadnezzar. "Attack those wealthy Bedouin tribes living alone in the desert without a care in the world, boasting that they are self-sufficient--that they need neither walls nor gates.


text:
Their camels and cattle shall all be yours, and I will scatter these heathen to the winds. From all directions I will bring calamity upon them.


text:
"Hazor shall be a home for wild animals of the desert. No one shall ever live there again. It shall be desolate forever." Elam


text:
God's message against Elam came to Jeremiah in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah, king of Judah:


text:
and I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds; they shall be exiled to countries throughout the world.


text:
My fierce anger will bring great evil upon Elam,' says the Lord, 'and I will cause her enemies to wipe her out.


text:
Babylon This is the message from the Lord against Babylon and the Chaldeans, spoken by Jeremiah the prophet:


text:
For a nation shall come down upon her from the north with such destruction that no one shall live in her again; all shall be gone--both men and animals shall flee.


text:
They shall ask the way to Zion and start back home again. 'Come,' they will say, 'let us be united to the Lord with an eternal pledge that will never be broken again.'


text:
"My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds led them astray and then turned them loose in the mountains. They lost their way and didn't remember how to get back to the fold.


text:
All who found them devoured them and said, 'We are permitted to attack them freely, for they have sinned against the Lord, the God of justice, the hope of their fathers.'


text:
For see, I am raising up an army of great nations from the north, and I will bring them against Babylon to attack her, and she shall be destroyed. The enemies' arrows go straight to the mark; they do not miss!


text:
"Though you were glad, O Chaldeans, plunderers of my people, and are fat as cows that feed in lush pastures, and neigh like stallions,


text:
yet your mother shall be overwhelmed with shame, for you shall become the least of the nations--a wilderness, a dry and desert land.


text:
Because of the anger of the Lord, Babylon shall become deserted wasteland, and all who pass by shall be appalled and shall mock at her for all her wounds.


text:
"Yes, prepare to fight with Babylon, all you nations round about; let the archers shoot at her; spare no arrows, for she has sinned against the Lord.


text:
Shout against her from every side. Look! She surrenders! Her walls have fallen. The Lord has taken vengeance. Do to her as she has done!


text:
"The Israelites are like sheep the lions chase. First the king of Assyria ate them up; then Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, crunched their bones."


text:
Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, says: "Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land as I punished the king of Assyria.


text:
And I will bring Israel home again to her own land, to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan and to be happy once more on Mount Ephraim and Mount Gilead.


text:
In those days," says the Lord, "no sin shall be found in Israel or in Judah, for I will pardon the remnant I preserve.


text:
"Go up, O my warriors, against the land of Merathaim and against the people of Pekod. Yes, march against Babylon, the land of rebels, a land that I will judge! Annihilate them, as I have commanded you.


text:
Babylon, the mightiest hammer in all the earth, lies broken and shattered. Babylon is desolate among the nations!


text:
"The Lord has opened his armory and brought out weapons to explode his wrath upon his enemies. The terror that befalls Babylon will be the work of the Lord God.


text:
Yes, come against her from distant lands; break open her granaries; knock down her walls and houses into heaps of ruins and utterly destroy her; let nothing be left.


text:
Not even her cattle--woe to them too! Kill them all! For the time has come for Babylon to be devastated.


text:
"But my people will flee; they will escape back to their own country to tell how the Lord their God has broken forth in fury upon those who destroyed his Temple.


text:
"Send out a call for archers to come to Babylon; surround the city so that none can escape. Do to her as she has done to others, for she has haughtily defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.


text:
Land of pride, you will stumble and fall, and no one will raise you up; for the Lord will light a fire in the cities of Babylon that will burn everything around them."


text:
"The Lord says: The people of Israel and Judah have been wronged. Their captors hold them and refuse to let them go.


text:
But their Redeemer is strong. His name is the Lord Almighty. He will plead for them and see that they are freed to live again in quietness in Israel. "As for the people of Babylon--there is no rest for them!


text:
The sword of destruction shall smite the Chaldeans," says the Lord. "It shall smite the people of Babylon--her princes and wise men too.


text:
War shall devour her horses and chariots, and her allies from other lands shall become as weak as women. Her treasures shall all be robbed;


text:
even her water supply will fail. And why? Because the whole land is full of images, and the people are madly in love with their idols.


text:
"Therefore this city of Babylon shall become inhabited by ostriches and jackals; it shall be a home for the wild animals of the desert. Never again shall it be lived in by human beings; it shall lie desolate forever.


text:
The Lord declares that he will destroy Babylon just as he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns. No one has lived in them since, and no one will live again in Babylon.


text:
"See them coming! A great army from the north! It is accompanied by many kings called by God from many lands.


text:
They are fully armed for slaughter; they are cruel and show no mercy; their battle cry roars like the surf against the shoreline. O Babylon, they ride against you fully ready for the battle."


text:
When the king of Babylon received the dispatch, his hands fell helpless at his sides; pangs of terror gripped him like the pangs of a woman in labor.


text:
"I will send against them an invader who will come upon them suddenly, like a lion from the jungles of Jordan that leaps upon the grazing sheep. I will put her defenders to flight and appoint over them whomsoever I please. For who is like me? What ruler can oppose my will? Who can call me to account?"


text:
Listen to the plan of the Lord against Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans. For even little children shall be dragged away as slaves; oh, the horror; oh, the terror.


text:
The whole earth shall shake at Babylon's fall, and her cry of despair shall be heard around the world.


text:
The Lord says: "I will stir up a destroyer against Babylon, against that whole land of the Chaldeans, and destroy it.


text:
Winnowers shall come and winnow her and blow her away; they shall come from every side to rise against her in her day of trouble.


text:
The arrows of the enemy shall strike down the bowmen of Babylon and pierce her warriors in their coats of mail. No one shall be spared; both young and old alike shall be destroyed.


text:
For the Lord Almighty has not forsaken Israel and Judah. He is still their God, but the land of the Chaldeans is filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel."


text:
Flee from Babylon! Save yourselves! Don't get trapped! If you stay, you will be destroyed when God takes his vengeance on all of Babylon's sins.


text:
Babylon has been as a gold cup in the Lord's hands, a cup from which he made the whole earth drink and go mad.


text:
But now, suddenly Babylon too has fallen. Weep for her; give her medicine; perhaps she can yet be healed.


text:
We would help her if we could, but nothing can save her now. Let her go. Abandon her and return to your own land, for God is judging her from heaven.


text:
Sharpen the arrows! Lift up the shields! For the Lord has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes to march on Babylon and destroy her. This is his vengeance on those who wronged his people and desecrated his Temple.


text:
Prepare your defenses, Babylon! Set many watchmen on your walls; send out an ambush, for the Lord will do all he has said he would concerning Babylon.


text:
The Lord Almighty has taken this vow and sworn to it in his own name: "Your cities shall be filled with enemies, like fields filled with locusts in a plague, and they shall lift to the skies their mighty shouts of victory."


text:
When he speaks there is thunder in the heavens, and he causes the vapors to rise around the world; he brings the lightning with the rain and the winds from his treasuries.


text:
Compared to him, all men are stupid beasts. They have no wisdom--none at all! The silversmith is dulled by the images he makes, for in making them he lies; for he calls them gods when there is not a breath of life in them at all!


text:
Idols are nothing! They are lies! And the time is coming when God will come and see, and shall destroy them all.


text:
But the God of Israel is no idol! For he made everything there is, and Israel is his nation; the Lord Almighty is his name.


text:
"Cyrus is God's battleaxe and sword. I will use you," says the Lord, "to break nations in pieces and to destroy many kingdoms.


text:
before your eyes I will repay Babylon and all the Chaldeans for all the evil they have done to my people," says the Lord.


text:
"For see, I am against you, O mighty mountain, Babylon, destroyer of the earth! I will lift my hand against you, roll you down from your heights, and leave you, a burnt-out mountain.


text:
You shall be desolate forever; even your stones shall never be used for building again. You shall be completely wiped out."


text:
Signal many nations to mobilize for war on Babylon. Sound the battle cry; bring out the armies of Ararat, Minni, and Ashkenaz. Appoint a leader; bring a multitude of horses!


text:
Bring against her the armies of the kings of the Medes and their generals, and the armies of all the countries they rule.


text:
Babylon trembles and writhes in pain, for all that the Lord has planned against her stands unchanged. Babylon will be left desolate without a living soul.


text:
Her mightiest soldiers no longer fight; they stay in their barracks. Their courage is gone; they have become as women. The invaders have burned the houses and broken down the city gates.


text:
"For the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Babylon is like the wheat upon a threshing floor; in just a little while the flailing will begin."


text:
The Jews in Babylon say, "Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has eaten and crushed us and emptied out our strength; he has swallowed us like a great monster and filled his belly with our riches; he has cast us out of our own country.


text:
May Babylon be repaid for all she did to us! May she be paid in full for all our blood she spilled!"


text:
And the Lord replies: "I will be your lawyer; I will plead your case; I will avenge you. I will dry up her river, her water supply,


text:
and Babylon shall become a heap of ruins, haunted by jackals, a land horrible to see, incredible, without a living soul.


text:
And while they lie inflamed with all their wine, I will prepare a different kind of feast for them and make them drink until they fall unconscious to the floor, to sleep forever, never to waken again," says the Lord.


text:
"How Babylon is fallen--great Babylon, lauded by all the earth! The world can scarcely believe its eyes at Babylon's fall!


text:
And I will punish Bel, the god of Babylon, and pull from his mouth what he has taken. The nations shall no longer come and worship him; the wall of Babylon has fallen.


text:
But don't panic when you hear the first rumor of approaching forces. For rumors will keep coming year by year. Then there will be a time of civil war as the governors of Babylon fight against each other.


text:
For the time is surely coming when I will punish this great city and all her idols; her dead shall lie in the streets.


text:
Heaven and earth shall rejoice, for out of the north shall come destroying armies against Babylon," says the Lord.


text:
Go, you who escaped the sword! Don't stand and watch--flee while you can! Remember the Lord and return to Jerusalem far away!"


text:
"Yes," says the Lord. "But the time is coming for the destruction of the idols of Babylon. All through the land will be heard the groans of the wounded.


text:
Though Babylon be as powerful as heaven, though she increase her strength immeasurably, she shall die," says the Lord.


text:
Destroying armies come and slay her mighty men; all her weapons break in her hands, for the Lord God gives just punishment and is giving Babylon all her due.


text:
I will make drunk her princes, wise men, rulers, captains, warriors. They shall sleep and not wake up again!" So says the King, the Lord Almighty.


text:
"For the wide walls of Babylon shall be leveled to the ground, and her high gates shall be burned; the builders from many lands have worked in vain--their work shall be destroyed by fire!"


text:
During the fourth year of Zedekiah's reign, this message came to Jeremiah to give to Seraiah (son of Neriah, son of Mahseiah), concerning Seraiah's capture and exile to Babylon along with Zedekiah, king of Judah. (Seraiah was quartermaster of Zedekiah's army.)


text:
Jeremiah wrote on a scroll all the terrible things God had scheduled against Babylon--all the words written above--


text:
and say, 'Lord, you have said that you will destroy Babylon so that not a living creature will remain, and it will be abandoned forever.'


text:
Then, when you have finished reading the scroll, tie a rock to it, and throw it into the Euphrates River,


text:
and say, 'So shall Babylon sink, never more to rise, because of the evil I am bringing upon her.' " (This ends Jeremiah's messages.)


text:
(Events told about in chapter 39.) Zedekiah was twenty-one years old when he became king, and he reigned eleven years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Hamutal (daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah).


text:
Things became so bad at last that the Lord, in his anger, saw to it that Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon until he and the people of Israel were ejected from the Lord's presence in Jerusalem and Judah, and were taken away as captives to Babylon.


text:
In the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, came with all his army against Jerusalem and built forts around it,


text:
Then finally, on the ninth day of the fourth month, when the famine in the city was very serious, with the last of the food entirely gone,


text:
the people in the city tore a hole in the city wall and all the soldiers fled from the city during the night, going out by the gate between the two walls near the king's gardens (for the city was surrounded by the Chaldeans), and made a dash for it across the fields, toward Arabah.


text:
But the Chaldean soldiers chased them and caught King Zedekiah in some fields near Jericho--for all his army was scattered from him.


text:
They brought him to the king of Babylon who was staying in the city of Riblah in the kingdom of Hamath, and there judgment was passed upon him.


text:
Then his eyes were gouged out, and he was taken in chains to Babylon and put in prison for the rest of his life.


text:
On the tenth day of the fifth month during the nineteenth year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, arrived in Jerusalem,


text:
Then he took to Babylon, as captives, some of the poorest of the people--along with those who survived the city's destruction, and those who had deserted Zedekiah and had come over to the Babylonian army, and the tradesmen who were left.


text:
The Babylonians dismantled the two large bronze pillars that stood at the entrance of the Temple, and the bronze laver and bronze bulls on which it stood, and carted them off to Babylon.


text:
And he took along all the bronze pots and kettles, the ash shovels used at the altar, the snuffers, spoons, bowls, and all the other items used in the Temple.


text:
The weight of the two enormous pillars, the laver, and twelve bulls was tremendous. They had no way of estimating it. (They had been made in the days of King Solomon.)


text:
The captain of the guard took along with him as his prisoners: Seraiah the chief priest, Zephaniah his assistant, the three chief Temple guards,


text:
one of the commanding officers of the army, seven of the king's special counselors discovered in the city, the secretary of the general-in-chief of the Jewish army (who was in charge of recruitment), and sixty other men of importance found hiding.


text:
five years after that he sent Nebuzaradan, his captain of the guard, and took 745--a total of 4,600 captives in all.


text:
On February 25 of the thirty-seventh year of the imprisonment in Babylon of Jehoiachin, king of Judah, Evil-merodach, who became king of Babylon that year, was kind to King Jehoiachin and brought him out of prison.


text:
Jerusalem's streets, once thronged with people, are silent now. Like a widow broken with grief, she sits alone in her mourning. She, once queen of nations, is now a slave.


text:
She sobs through the night; tears run down her cheeks. Among all her lovers, there is none to help her. All her friends are now her enemies.


text:
Why is Judah led away, a slave? Because of all the wrong she did to others, making them her slaves. Now she sits in exile far away. There is no rest, for those she persecuted have turned and conquered her.


text:
The roads to Zion mourn, no longer filled with joyous throngs who come to celebrate the Temple feasts; the city gates are silent, her priests groan, her virgins have been dragged away. Bitterly she weeps.


text:
Her enemies prosper, for the Lord has punished Jerusalem for all her many sins; her young children are captured and taken far away as slaves.


text:
All her beauty and her majesty are gone; her princes are like starving deer that search for pasture--helpless game too weak to keep on running from their foes.


text:
And now in the midst of all Jerusalem's sadness she remembers happy bygone days. She thinks of all the precious joys she had before her mocking enemy struck her down--and there was no one to give her aid.


text:
For Jerusalem sinned so horribly; therefore, she is tossed away like dirty rags. All who honored her despise her now, for they have seen her stripped naked and humiliated. She groans and hides her face.


text:
She indulged herself in immorality and refused to face the fact that punishment was sure to come. Now she lies in the gutter with no one left to lift her out. "O Lord," she cries, "see my plight. The enemy has triumphed."


text:
Her enemies have plundered her completely, taking everything precious she owns. She has seen foreign nations violate her sacred Temple--foreigners you had forbidden even to enter.


text:
Her people groan and cry for bread; they have sold all they have for food to give a little strength. "Look, O Lord," she prays, "and see how I'm despised."


text:
Is it nothing to you, all you who pass by? Look and see if there is any sorrow like my sorrow because of all the Lord has done to me in the day of his fierce wrath.


text:
He has sent fire from heaven that burns within my bones; he has placed a pitfall in my path and turned me back. He has left me sick and desolate the whole day through.


text:
He wove my sins into ropes to hitch me to a yoke of slavery. He sapped my strength and gave me to my enemies; I am helpless in their hands.


text:
The Lord has trampled all my mighty men. A great army has come at his command to crush the noblest youth. The Lord has trampled his beloved city as grapes in a winepress.


text:
For all these things I weep; tears flow down my cheeks. My Comforter is far away--he who alone could help me. My children have no future; we are a conquered land.


text:
Jerusalem pleads for help, but no one comforts her. For the Lord has spoken: "Let her neighbors be her foes! Let her be thrown out like filthy rags!"


text:
And the Lord is right, for we rebelled. And yet, O people everywhere, behold and see my anguish and despair, for my sons and daughters are taken far away as slaves to distant lands.


text:
I begged my allies for their help. False hope--they could not help at all. Nor could my priests and elders--they were starving in the streets while searching through the garbage dumps for bread.


text:
See, O Lord, my anguish; my heart is broken and my soul despairs, for I have terribly rebelled. In the streets the sword awaits me; at home, disease and death.


text:
Hear my groans! And there is no one anywhere to help. All my enemies have heard my troubles, and they are glad to see what you have done. And yet, O Lord, the time will surely come--for you have promised it--when you will do to them as you have done to me.


text:
Look also on their sins, O Lord, and punish them as you have punished me, for my sighs are many and my heart is faint.


text:
A cloud of anger from the Lord has overcast Jerusalem; the fairest city of Israel lies in the dust of the earth, cast from the heights of heaven at his command. In his day of awesome fury he has shown no mercy even to his Temple.


text:
The Lord without mercy has destroyed every home in Israel. In his wrath he has broken every fortress, every wall. He has brought the kingdom to dust, with all its rulers.


text:
All the strength of Israel vanishes beneath his wrath. He has withdrawn his protection as the enemy attacks. God burns across the land of Israel like a raging fire.


text:
He bends his bow against his people as though he were an enemy. His strength is used against them to kill their finest youth. His fury is poured out like fire upon them.


text:
Yes, the Lord has vanquished Israel like an enemy. He has destroyed her forts and palaces. Sorrows and tears are his portion for Jerusalem.


text:
He has violently broken down his Temple as though it were a booth of leaves and branches in a garden! No longer can the people celebrate their holy feasts and Sabbaths. Kings and priests together fall before his wrath.


text:
The Lord has rejected his own altar, for he despises the false "worship" of his people; he has given their palaces to their enemies, who carouse in the Temple as Israel used to do on days of holy feasts!


text:
The Lord determined to destroy Jerusalem. He laid out an unalterable line of destruction. Therefore the ramparts and walls fell down before him.


text:
Jerusalem's gates are useless. All their locks and bars are broken, for he has crushed them. Her kings and princes are enslaved in far-off lands, without a temple, without a divine law to govern them or prophetic vision to guide them.


text:
The elders of Jerusalem sit upon the ground in silence, clothed in sackcloth; they throw dust upon their heads in sorrow and despair. The virgins of Jerusalem hang their heads in shame.


text:
I have cried until the tears no longer come; my heart is broken, my spirit poured out, as I see what has happened to my people; little children and tiny babies are fainting and dying in the streets.


text:
"Mama, Mama, we want food," they cry, and then collapse upon their mothers' shrunken breasts. Their lives ebb away like those wounded in battle.


text:
In all the world has there ever been such sorrow? O Jerusalem, what can I compare your anguish to? How can I comfort you? For your wound is deep as the sea. Who can heal you?


text:
Your "prophets" have said so many foolish things, false to the core. They have not tried to hold you back from slavery by pointing out your sins. They lied and said that all was well.


text:
All who pass by scoff and shake their heads and say, "Is this the city called 'Most Beautiful in All the World,' and 'Joy of All the Earth'?"


text:
All your enemies deride you. They hiss and grind their teeth and say, "We have destroyed her at last! Long have we waited for this hour, and it is finally here! With our own eyes we've seen her fall."


text:
But it is the Lord who did it, just as he had warned. He has fulfilled the promises of doom he made so long ago. He has destroyed Jerusalem without mercy and caused her enemies to rejoice over her and boast of their power.


text:
Then the people wept before the Lord. O walls of Jerusalem, let tears fall down upon you like a river; give yourselves no rest from weeping day or night.


text:
Rise in the night and cry to your God. Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord; lift up your hands to him; plead for your children as they faint with hunger in the streets.


text:
O Lord, think! These are your own people to whom you are doing this. Shall mothers eat their little children, those they bounced upon their knees? Shall priests and prophets die within the Temple of the Lord?


text:
See them lying in the streets--old and young, boys and girls, killed by the enemies' swords. You have killed them, Lord, in your anger; you have killed them without mercy.


text:
You have deliberately called for this destruction; in the day of your anger none escaped or remained. All my little children lie dead upon the streets before the enemy.


text:
O Lord, all peace and all prosperity have long since gone, for you have taken them away. I have forgotten what enjoyment is.


text:
his compassion never ends. It is only the Lord's mercies that have kept us from complete destruction.


text:
Although God gives him grief, yet he will show compassion too, according to the greatness of his loving-kindness.


text:
My eyes flow day and night with never-ending streams of tears because of the destruction of my people.


text:
Even the jackals feed their young, but not my people, Israel. They are like cruel desert ostriches, heedless of their babies' cries.


text:
The children's tongues stick to the roofs of their mouths for thirst, for there is not a drop of water left. Babies cry for bread, but no one can give them any.


text:
Those who used to eat fastidiously are begging in the streets for anything at all. Those brought up in palaces now scratch in garbage pits for food.


text:
For the sin of my people is greater than that of Sodom, where utter disaster struck in a moment without the hand of man.


text:
but now their faces are as black as soot. No one can recognize them. Their skin sticks to their bones; it is dry and hard and withered.


text:
But now at last the anger of the Lord is satisfied; his fiercest anger has been poured out. He started a fire in Jerusalem that burned it down to its foundations.


text:
Not a king in all the earth--no one in all the world--would have believed an enemy could enter through Jerusalem's gates!


text:
Yet God permitted it because of the sins of her prophets and priests, who defiled the city by shedding innocent blood.


text:
Now these same men are blindly staggering through the streets, covered with blood, defiling everything they touch.


text:
"Get away!" the people shout at them. "You are defiled!" They flee to distant lands and wander there among the foreigners; but none will let them stay.


text:
The Lord himself has dealt with them; he no longer helps them, for they persecuted the priests and elders who stayed true to God.


text:
We look for our allies to come and save us, but we look in vain. The nation we expected most to help us makes no move at all.


text:
We can't go into the streets without danger to our lives. Our end is near--our days are numbered. We are doomed.


text:
Our enemies are swifter than the eagles; if we flee to the mountains they find us. If we hide in the wilderness, they are waiting for us there.


text:
Our king--the life of our life, the Lord's anointed--was captured in their snares. Yes, even our mighty king, about whom we had boasted that under his protection we could hold our own against any nation on earth!


text:
Do you rejoice, O people of Edom, in the land of Uz? But you, too, will feel the awful anger of the Lord.


text:
Our fathers sinned but died before the hand of judgment fell. We have borne the blow that they deserved!


text:
They take away the young men to grind their grain, and the little children stagger beneath their heavy loads.


text:
Jerusalem and the Temple of the Lord are desolate, deserted by all but wild animals lurking in the ruins.


text:
Turn us around and bring us back to you again! That is our only hope! Give us back the joys we used to have!


text:
Ezekiel was a priest (the son of Buzi) who lived with the Jewish exiles beside the Chebar Canal in Babylon.


text:
One day late in June, when I was thirty years old, the heavens were suddenly opened to me and I saw visions from God.


text:
I saw, in this vision, a great storm coming toward me from the north, driving before it a huge cloud glowing with fire, with a mass of fire inside that flashed continually; and in the fire there was something that shone like polished brass.


text:
Their legs were like those of men, but their feet were cloven like calves' feet, and shone like burnished brass.


text:
Each had the face of a man  in front, with a lion's face on the right side  of his head, and the face of an ox on the left side, and the face of an eagle at the back!


text:
Each had two pairs of wings spreading out from the middle of his back. One pair stretched out to attach to the wings of the living beings on each side, and the other pair covered his body.


text:
Going up and down among them were other forms that glowed like bright coals of fire or brilliant torches, and it was from these the lightning flashed.


text:
As I stared at all of this, I saw four wheels on the ground beneath them, one wheel belonging to each.


text:
The wheels looked as if they were made of polished amber, and each wheel was constructed with a second wheel crosswise inside.


text:
When the four living beings flew forward, the wheels moved forward with them. When they flew upwards, the wheels went up too.


text:
When the living beings stopped, the wheels stopped. For the spirit of the four living beings was in the wheels; so wherever their spirit went, the wheels and the living beings went there too.


text:
The sky spreading out above them looked as though it were made of crystal; it was inexpressibly beautiful.


text:
The wings of each stretched straight out to touch the others' wings, and each had two wings covering his body.


text:
And as they flew, their wings roared like waves against the shore, or like the voice of God, or like the shouting of a mighty army. When they stopped, they let down their wings.


text:
For high in the sky above them was what looked like a throne made of beautiful blue sapphire stones, and upon it sat someone who appeared to be a Man.


text:
From his waist up, he seemed to be all glowing bronze, dazzling like fire; and from his waist down he seemed to be entirely flame, and there was a glowing halo


text:
like a rainbow all around him. That was the way the glory of the Lord appeared to me. And when I saw it, I fell face downward on the ground and heard the voice of someone speaking to me:


text:
"Son of dust," he said, "I am sending you to the nation of Israel, to a nation rebelling against me. They and their fathers have kept on sinning against me until this very hour.


text:
For they are a hardhearted, stiff-necked people. But I am sending you to give them my messages--the messages of the Lord God.


text:
And whether they listen or not (for remember, they are rebels), they will at least know they have had a prophet among them.


text:
"Son of dust, don't be afraid of them; don't be frightened even though their threats are sharp and barbed and sting like scorpions. Don't be dismayed by their dark scowls. For remember, they are rebels!


text:
You must give them my messages whether they listen or not (but they won't, for they are utter rebels).


text:
Listen, son of dust, to what I say to you. Don't you be a rebel too! Open your mouth and eat what I give you."


text:
with writing on both sides. He unrolled it, and I saw that it was full of warnings and sorrows and pronouncements of doom.


text:
And he said to me: "Son of dust, eat what I am giving you--eat this scroll! Then go and give its message to the people of Israel."


text:
I am sending you to the people of Israel, and they won't listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard, impudent, and stubborn.


text:
I have made your forehead as hard as rock. So don't be afraid of them, or fear their sullen, angry looks, even though they are such rebels."


text:
Then he added: "Son of dust, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first; listen to them carefully for yourself.


text:
Then, afterward, go to your people in exile, and whether or not they will listen, tell them: 'This is what the Lord God says!' "


text:
Then the Spirit lifted me up, and the glory of the Lord began to move away, accompanied by the sound of a great earthquake.


text:
It was the noise of the wings of the living beings as they touched against each other, and the sound of their wheels beside them.


text:
The Spirit lifted me up, and took me away to Tel Abib, another colony of Jewish exiles beside the Chebar River. I went in bitterness and anger, but the hand of the Lord was strong upon me. And I sat among them, overwhelmed, for seven days.


text:
"Son of dust, I have appointed you as a watchman for Israel; whenever I send my people a warning, pass it on to them at once.


text:
If you refuse to warn the wicked when I want you to tell them, "You are under the penalty of death; therefore repent and save your life," they will die in their sins, but I will punish you. I will demand your blood for theirs.


text:
But if you warn them, and they keep on sinning and refuse to repent, they will die in their sins, but you are blameless--you have done all you could.


text:
And if a good man becomes bad, and you refuse to warn him of the consequences, and the Lord destroys him, his previous good deeds won't help him--he shall die in his sin. But I will hold you responsible for his death and punish you.


text:
I was helpless in the hand of God, and when he said to me, "Go out into the valley and I will talk to you there"--


text:
I arose and went, and oh, I saw the glory of the Lord there, just as in my first vision! And I fell to the ground on my face.


text:
Then the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet. He talked to me and said: "Go, imprison yourself in your house,


text:
and I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you can't reprove them; for they are rebels.


text:
But whenever I give you a message, then I will loosen your tongue and let you speak, and you shall say to them: 'The Lord God says.' Let anyone listen who wants to, and let anyone refuse who wants to, for they are rebels.


text:
"And now, son of dust, take a large brick and lay it before you and draw a map of the city of Jerusalem on it.


text:
Draw a picture of siege mounds being built against the city, put enemy camps around it and battering rams surrounding the walls.


text:
And put an iron plate between you and the city, like a wall of iron. Demonstrate how an enemy army will capture Jerusalem! "There is special meaning in each detail of what I have told you to do. For it is a warning to the people of Israel.


text:
"Now lie on your left side for 390 days, to show that Israel will be punished for 390 years by captivity and doom. Each day you lie there represents a year of punishment ahead for Israel.


text:
Afterwards, turn over and lie on your right side for forty days, to signify the years of Judah's punishment. Each day will represent one year.


text:
"Meanwhile continue your demonstration of the siege of Jerusalem; lie there with your arm bared  to signify great strength and power in the attack against her. This will prophesy her doom.


text:
And I will paralyze you so that you can't turn over from one side to the other until you have completed all the days of your siege.


text:
"During the first 390 days eat bread made of flour mixed from wheat, barley, beans, lentils, and spelt. Mix the various kinds of flour together in a jar.


text:
Each day take flour from the barrel and prepare it as you would barley cakes. While all the people are watching, bake it over a fire, using dried human dung as fuel, and eat it.


text:
Then I said, "O Lord God, must I be defiled by using dung? For I have never been defiled before in all my life. From the time I was a child until now I have never eaten any animal that died of sickness or that I found injured or dead; and I have never eaten any of the kinds of animals our law forbids."


text:
Then he told me, "Son of dust, bread will be tightly rationed in Jerusalem. It will be weighed out with great care and eaten fearfully. And the water will be portioned out in driblets, and the people will drink it with dismay.


text:
I will cause the people to lack both bread and water; they will look at one another in frantic terror and waste away beneath their punishment.


text:
"Son of dust, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber's razor to shave your head and beard; use balances to weigh the hair into three equal parts.


text:
Place a third of it at the center of your map of Jerusalem. After your siege, burn it there. Scatter another third across your map and slash at it with a knife. Scatter the last third to the wind, for I will chase my people with the sword.


text:
then take a few hairs out and throw them into the fire, for a fire shall come from this remnant and destroy all Israel."


text:
The Lord God says, "This illustrates what will happen to Jerusalem, for she has turned away from my laws and has been even more wicked than the nations surrounding her."


text:
Therefore the Lord God says, I, even I, am against you and will punish you publicly while all the nations watch.


text:
Because of the terrible sins you have committed, I will punish you more terribly than I have ever done before or ever will again.


text:
Fathers will eat their own sons, and sons will eat their fathers; and those who survive will be scattered into all the world.


text:
"For I promise you: Because you have defiled my Temple with idols and evil sacrifices, therefore I will not spare you nor pity you at all.


text:
One-third of you will die from famine and disease; one-third will be slaughtered by the enemy; and one-third I will scatter to the winds, sending the sword of the enemy chasing after you.


text:
"So I will make a public example of you before all the surrounding nations and before everyone traveling past the ruins of your land.


text:
You will become a laughingstock to the world and an awesome example to everyone, for all to see what happens when the Lord turns against an entire nation in furious rebuke. I, the Lord, have spoken it!


text:
"I will shower you with deadly arrows of famine to destroy you. The famine will become more and more serious until every bit of bread is gone.


text:
And not only famine will come, but wild animals will attack and kill you and your families; disease and war will stalk your land, and the sword of the enemy will slay you; I, the Lord, have spoken it!"


text:
Say to them, 'O mountains of Israel, hear the message of the Lord God against you and against the rivers and valleys. I, even I the Lord, will bring war upon you to destroy your idols.


text:
All your cities will be smashed and burned, and the idol altars abandoned. Your gods will be shattered;


text:
the bones of their worshipers will lie scattered among the altars. Then at last you will know I am the Lord.


text:
Then when they are exiled among the nations, they will remember me, for I will take away their adulterous hearts--their love of idols--and I will blind their lecherous eyes that long for other gods. Then at last they will loathe themselves for all this wickedness.


text:
They will realize that I alone am God and that I wasn't fooling when I told them that all this would happen to them.' "


text:
The Lord God says: "Raise your hands in horror and shake your head with deep remorse and say, 'Alas for all the evil we have done!' For you are going to perish from war and famine and disease.


text:
Disease will strike down those in exile; war will destroy those in the land of Israel; and any who remain will die by famine and siege. So at last I will expend my fury on you.


text:
When your slain lie scattered among your idols and altars on every hill and mountain and under every green tree and great oak where they offered incense to their gods--you will realize that I alone am God.


text:
I will crush you and make your cities desolate from the wilderness in the south to Riblah in the north. Then you will know I am the Lord.' "


text:
I will turn my eyes away and show no pity; I will repay you in full, and you shall know I am the Lord.' "


text:
The Lord God says: "With one blow after another I will finish you. The end has come; your final doom is waiting.


text:
O Israel, the day of your damnation dawns; the time has come; the day of trouble nears. It is a day of shouts of anguish, not shouts of joy!


text:
for your wickedness and pride have run their course and reached their climax--none of these rich and wicked men of pride shall live. All your boasting will die away, and no one will be left to bewail your fate.


text:
"Yes, the time has come; the day draws near. There will be nothing to buy or sell, for the wrath of God is on the land.


text:
And even if a merchant lives, his business will be gone, for God has spoken against all the people of Israel; all will be destroyed. Not one of those whose lives are filled with sin will recover.


text:
If you go outside the walls, there stands the enemy to kill you. If you stay inside, famine and disease will devour you.


text:
You shall clothe yourselves with sackcloth, and horror and shame shall cover you; you shall shave your heads in sorrow and remorse.


text:
"Throw away your money! Toss it out like worthless rubbish, for it will have no value in that day of wrath. It will neither satisfy nor feed you, for your love of money is the reason for your sin.


text:
I gave you gold to use in decorating the Temple, and you used it instead to make idols! Therefore, I will take it all away from you.


text:
I will not look when they defile it, nor will I stop them. Like robbers, they will loot the treasures and leave the Temple in ruins.


text:
"Prepare chains for my people, for the land is full of bloody crimes. Jerusalem is filled with violence, so I will enslave her people.


text:
I will crush your pride by bringing to Jerusalem the worst of the nations to occupy your homes, break down your fortifications you are so proud of, and defile your Temple.


text:
Calamity upon calamity will befall you; woe upon woe, disaster upon disaster! You will long for a prophet to guide you, but the priests and elders


text:
and the kings and princes will stand helpless, weeping in despair. The people will tremble with fear, for I will do to them the evil they have done and give them all their just deserts. They shall learn that I am the Lord."


text:
Then, late in August of the sixth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, as I was talking with the elders of Judah in my home, the power of the Lord God fell upon me.


text:
I saw what appeared to be a Man; from his waist down, he was made of fire; from his waist up, he was all amber-colored brightness.


text:
He put out what seemed to be a hand and took me by the hair. And the Spirit lifted me up into the sky and seemed to transport me to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate, where the large idol was that had made the Lord so angry.


text:
He said to me, "Son of dust, look toward the north." So I looked and, sure enough, north of the altar gate in the entrance stood the idol.


text:
And he said: "Son of dust, do you see what they are doing? Do you see what great sins the people of Israel are doing here, to push me from my Temple? But come, and I will show you greater sins than these!"


text:
So I went in. The walls were covered with pictures of all kinds of snakes, lizards, and hideous creatures, besides all the various idols worshiped by the people of Israel.


text:
Seventy elders of Israel were standing there along with Ja-azaniah (son of Shaphan) worshiping the pictures. Each of them held a censer of burning incense, so there was a thick cloud of smoke above their heads.


text:
Then the Lord said to me: "Son of dust, have you seen what the elders of Israel are doing in their minds? For they say, 'The Lord doesn't see us; he has gone away!' "


text:
Then he brought me into the inner court of the Temple, and there at the door, between the porch and the bronze altar, were about twenty-five men standing with their backs to the Temple of the Lord, facing east, worshiping the sun!


text:
"Have you seen this?" he asked. "Is it nothing to the people of Judah that they commit these terrible sins, leading the whole nation into idolatry, thumbing their noses at me and arousing my fury against them?


text:
Therefore, I will deal with them in fury. I will neither pity nor spare. And though they scream for mercy, I will not listen."


text:
Then he thundered, "Call those to whom I have given the city! Tell them to bring their weapons with them!"


text:
Six men appeared at his call, coming from the upper north gate, each one with his sword. One of them wore linen clothing and carried a writer's case strapped to his side. They all went into the Temple and stood beside the bronze altar.


text:
And the glory of the God of Israel rose from between the Guardian Angels where it had rested and stood above the entrance to the Temple. And the Lord called to the man with the writer's case


text:
and said to him, "Walk through the streets of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who weep and sigh because of all the sins they see around them."


text:
Then I heard the Lord tell the other men: "Follow him through the city and kill everyone whose forehead isn't marked. Spare not nor pity them--


text:
kill them all--old and young, girls, women and little children; but don't touch anyone with the mark. And begin right here at the Temple." And so they began by killing the seventy elders.


text:
And he said, "Defile the Temple! Fill its courts with the bodies of those you kill! Go!" And they went out through the city and did as they were told.


text:
While they were fulfilling their orders, I was alone. I fell to the ground on my face and cried out: "O Lord God! Will your fury against Jerusalem wipe out everyone left in Israel?"


text:
But he said to me, "The sins of the people of Israel and Judah are very great and all the land is full of murder and injustice, for they say, 'The Lord doesn't see it! He has gone away!'


text:
And so I will not spare them nor have any pity on them, and I will fully repay them for all that they have done."


text:
Just then the man in linen clothing, carrying the writer's case, reported back and said, "I have finished the work you gave me to do."


text:
Suddenly a throne of beautiful blue sapphire appeared in the sky above the heads of the Guardian Angels.


text:
Then the Lord spoke to the man in linen clothing and said: "Go in between the whirling wheels beneath the Guardian Angels, and take a handful of glowing coals and scatter them over the city." He did so while I watched.


text:
The Guardian Angels were standing at the south end of the Temple when the man went in. And the cloud of glory filled the inner court.


text:
Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the Guardian Angels and went over to the door of the Temple. The Temple was filled with the cloud of glory, and the court of the Temple was filled with the brightness of the glory of the Lord.


text:
And the sound of the wings of the Guardian Angels was as the voice of Almighty God when he speaks and could be heard clear out in the outer court.


text:
When the Lord told the man in linen clothing to go between the Guardian Angels and take some burning coals from between the wheels, the man went in and stood beside one of the wheels,


text:
and one of the Guardian Angels reached out his hand (for each of the mighty angels had, beneath his wings, what looked like human hands) and took some live coals from the flames between the Angels and put them into the hands of the man in linen clothes, who took them and went out.


text:
Each of the four Guardian Angels had a wheel beside him--"The Whirl-Wheels," as I heard them called, for each one had a second wheel crosswise within--sparkling like chrysolite, giving off a greenish-yellow glow.


text:
Because of the construction of these wheels, the Angels could go straight forward in each of four directions; they did not turn when they changed direction but could go in any of the four ways their faces looked.


text:
Each of the four Guardian Angels had four faces--the first was that of an ox; the second, a man's; the third, a lion's; and the fourth, an eagle's.


text:
These were the same beings I had seen beside the Chebar Canal, and when they rose into the air, the wheels rose with them and stayed beside them as they flew.


text:
When the Guardian Angels stood still, so did the wheels, for the spirit of the Guardian Angels was in the wheels.


text:
And as I watched, the Guardian Angels flew with their wheels beside them to the east gate of the Temple. And the glory of the God of Israel was above them.


text:
These were the living beings I had seen beneath the God of Israel beside the Chebar Canal. I knew they were the same,


text:
Their faces too were identical to the faces of those I had seen at the Canal, and they traveled straight ahead, just as the others did.


text:
Then the Spirit lifted me and brought me over to the east gate of the Temple, where I saw twenty-five of the most prominent men of the city, including two officers, Jaazaniah (son of Azzur) and Pelatiah (son of Benaiah).


text:
Then the Spirit said to me, "Son of dust, these are the men who are responsible for all of the wicked counsel being given out in this city.


text:
For they say to the people, 'It is time to rebuild Jerusalem, for our city is an iron shield and will protect us from all harm.'


text:
Then the Spirit of the Lord came upon me and told me to say: "The Lord says to the people of Israel: Is that what you are saying? Yes, I know it is, for I know everything you think--every thought that comes into your minds.


text:
Therefore the Lord God says: "You think this city is an iron shield? No, it isn't! It will not protect you. Your slain will lie within it, but you will be dragged out and slaughtered.


text:
and I will take you from Jerusalem and hand you over to foreigners who will carry out my judgments against you.


text:
No, this city will not be an iron shield for you, and you safe within. I will chase you even to the borders of Israel,


text:
and you will know I am the Lord--you who have not obeyed me but rather have copied the nations all around you."


text:
While I was still speaking and telling them this, Pelatiah (son of Benaiah) suddenly died. Then I fell to the ground on my face and cried out: "O Lord God, are you going to kill everyone in all Israel?"


text:
"Son of dust, the remnant left in Jerusalem are saying about your brother exiles: 'It is because they were so wicked that the Lord has deported them. Now the Lord has given us their land!'


text:
"But tell the exiles that the Lord God says: Although I have scattered you in the countries of the world, yet I will be a sanctuary to you for the time that you are there,


text:
and I will gather you back from the nations where you are scattered and give you the land of Israel again.


text:
I will give you one heart and a new spirit; I will take from you your hearts of stone and give you tender hearts of love for God,


text:
But as for those now in Jerusalem who long for idols, I will repay them fully for their sins," the Lord God says.


text:
Then the Guardian Angels lifted their wings and rose into the air with their wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel stood above them.


text:
Afterwards the Spirit of God carried me back again to Babylon, to the Jews in exile there. And so ended the vision of my visit to Jerusalem.


text:
"Son of dust," he said, "you live among rebels who could know the truth if they wanted to, but they don't want to; they could hear me if they would listen, but they won't,


text:
for they are rebels. So now put on a demonstration to show them what being exiled will be like. Pack whatever you can carry on your back and leave your home--go somewhere else. Go in the daylight so they can see, for perhaps even yet they will consider what this means, even though they are such rebels.


text:
Bring your baggage outside your house during the daylight so they can watch. Then leave the house at night, just as captives do when they begin their long march to distant lands.


text:
Dig a tunnel through the city wall while they are observing and carry your possessions out through the hole.


text:
As they watch, lift your pack to your shoulders and walk away into the night; muffle your face and don't gaze around. All this is a sign to the people of Israel of the evil that will come upon Jerusalem."


text:
So I did as I was told. I brought my pack outside in the daylight--all I could take into exile--and in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands. I went out into the darkness with my pack on my shoulder while the people looked on.


text:
Tell them the Lord God says it is a message to King Zedekiah in Jerusalem and to all the people of Israel.


text:
Explain that what you did was a demonstration of what is going to happen to them, for they shall be driven out of their homes and sent away into exile.


text:
"Even King Zedekiah shall go out at night through a hole in the wall, taking only what he can carry with him, with muffled face, for he won't be able to see.


text:
I will capture him in my net and bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; but he shall not see it, and he shall die there.


text:
But I will spare a few of them from death by war and famine and disease. I will save them to confess to the nations how wicked they have been, and they shall know I am the Lord."


text:
and say to the people, the Lord God says that the people of Israel and Jerusalem shall ration their food with utmost care and sip their tiny portions of water in utter despair because of all their sins.


text:
"Son of dust, what is that proverb they quote in Israel--'The days as they pass make liars out of every prophet.'


text:
The Lord God says, I will put an end to this proverb and they will soon stop saying it. Give them this one instead: 'The time has come for all these prophecies to be fulfilled.'


text:
For I am the Lord! What I threaten always happens. There will be no more delays, O rebels of Israel! I will do it in your own lifetime!" says the Lord God.


text:
"Son of dust, prophesy against the false prophets of Israel who are inventing their own visions and claiming to have messages from me when I have never told them anything at all. Woe upon them!


text:
O evil prophets, what have you ever done to strengthen the walls of Israel against her enemies--by strengthening Israel in the Lord?


text:
Instead you have lied when you said, 'My message is from God!' God did not send you. And yet you expect him to fulfill your prophecies.


text:
Can you deny that you have claimed to see 'visions' you never saw, and that you have said, 'This message is from God,' when I never spoke to you at all?"


text:
My hand shall be against you, and you shall be cut off from among the leaders of Israel; I will blot out your names, and you will never see your own country again. And you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
For these evil men deceive my people by saying, 'God will send peace,' when that is not my plan at all! My people build a flimsy wall, and these prophets praise them for it--and cover it with whitewash!


text:
"Tell these evil builders that their wall will fall. A heavy rainstorm will undermine it; great hailstones and mighty winds will knock it down.


text:
And when the wall falls, the people will cry out, 'Why didn't you tell us that it wasn't good enough? Why did you whitewash it and cover up its faults?'


text:
Yes, it will surely fall." The Lord God says: "I will sweep it away with a storm of indignation, with a great flood of anger, and with hailstones of wrath.


text:
I will break down your whitewashed wall; it will fall on you and crush you, and you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
Then at last my wrath against the wall will be completed; and concerning those who praised it, I will say: The wall and its builders both are gone.


text:
For they were lying prophets, claiming Jerusalem will have peace when there is no peace," says the Lord God.


text:
"Son of dust, speak out against the women prophets too who pretend the Lord has given them his messages.


text:
Tell them, "The Lord God says: Woe to these women who are damning the souls of my people, of both young and old alike, by tying magic charms on their wrists, furnishing them with magic veils, and selling them indulgences. They refuse to even offer help unless they get a profit from it.


text:
For the sake of a few paltry handfuls of barley or a piece of bread will you turn away my people from me? You have led those to death who should not die! And you have promised life to those who should not live by lying to my people--and how they love it!' "


text:
And so the Lord says: "I will crush you because you hunt my people's souls with all your magic charms. I will tear off the charms and set my people free like birds from cages.


text:
I will tear off the magic veils and save my people from you; they will no longer be your victims, and you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
Your lies have discouraged the righteous when I didn't want it so. And you have encouraged the wicked by promising life, though they continue in their sins.


text:
But you will lie no more; no longer will you talk of seeing 'visions' that you never saw nor practice your magic, for I will deliver my people out of your hands by destroying you, and you shall know I am the Lord."


text:
Tell them, 'The Lord God says: I the Lord will personally deal with anyone in Israel who worships idols and then comes to ask my help.


text:
"Therefore, warn them that the Lord God says: 'Repent and destroy your idols, and stop worshiping them in your hearts.


text:
I the Lord will personally punish everyone, whether people of Israel or the foreigners living among you, who rejects me for idols and then comes to a prophet to ask for my help and advice.


text:
I will turn upon him and make a terrible example of him, destroying him; and you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
And if one of the false prophets gives him a message anyway, it is a lie. His prophecy will not come true, and I will stand against that 'prophet' and destroy him from among my people Israel.


text:
False prophets and hypocrites--evil people who say they want my words--all will be punished for their sins,


text:
so that the people of Israel will learn not to desert me and not to be polluted any longer with sin. They will be my people and I their God.' So says the Lord."


text:
"Son of dust, if the people of a land sin against me, then I will crush them with my fist, break off their food supply, and send famine to destroy both man and beast.


text:
Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, they alone would be saved by their righteousness, and I would destroy the remainder of Israel," says the Lord God.


text:
even if these three men were there, the Lord God swears that it would do no good--it would not save the people from their doom. Those three only would be saved, but the land would be devastated.


text:
"Or if I bring war against that land and tell the armies of the enemy to come and destroy everything,


text:
"And if I pour out my fury by sending an epidemic of disease into the land, and the plague kills man and beast alike,


text:
though Noah, Daniel, and Job were living there, the Lord God says that only they would be saved because of their righteousness."


text:
And the Lord says: "Four great punishments await Jerusalem to destroy all life: war, famine, ferocious beasts, plague.


text:
If there are survivors and they come here to join you as exiles in Babylon, you will see with your own eyes how wicked they are, and you will know it was right for me to destroy Jerusalem.


text:
You will agree, when you meet them, that it is not without cause that all these things are being done to Israel."


text:
"Son of dust, what good are vines from the forest? Are they as useful as trees? Are they even as valuable as a single branch?


text:
"This is what I mean," the Lord God says: "The people of Jerusalem are like the vines of the forest--useless before being burned and certainly useless afterwards!


text:
And I will set myself against them to see to it that if they escape from one fire, they will fall into another; and then you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
Tell her, 'The Lord God says: You are no better than the people of Canaan--your father must have been an Amorite and your mother a Hittite!


text:
When you were born, no one cared for you. When I first saw you, your umbilical cord was uncut, and you had been neither washed nor rubbed with salt nor clothed.


text:
No one had the slightest interest in you; no one pitied you or cared for you. On that day when you were born, you were dumped out into a field and left to die, unwanted.


text:
Thrive like a plant in the field!' And you did! You grew up and became tall, slender and supple, a jewel among jewels. And when you reached the age of maidenhood, your breasts were full-formed and your pubic hair had grown; yet you were naked.


text:
'Later, when I passed by and saw you again, you were old enough for marriage; and I wrapped my cloak around you to legally declare my marriage vow. I signed a covenant with you, and you became mine.


text:
Then, when the marriage had taken place, I gave you beautiful clothes of linens and silk, embroidered, and sandals made of dolphin hide.


text:
And so you were made beautiful with gold and silver, and your clothes were silk and linen and beautifully embroidered. You ate the finest foods and became more beautiful than ever. You looked like a queen, and so you were!


text:
Your reputation was great among the nations for your beauty; it was perfect because of all the gifts I gave you,' " says the Lord God.


text:
'But you thought you could get along without me--you trusted in your beauty instead; and you gave yourself as a prostitute to every man who came along. Your beauty was his for the asking.


text:
You used the lovely things I gave you for making idol shrines and to decorate your bed of prostitution. Unbelievable! There has never been anything like it before!


text:
You took the very jewels and gold and silver ornaments I gave to you and made statues of men and worshiped them, which is adultery against me.


text:
You used the beautifully embroidered clothes I gave you--to cover your idols! And used my oil and incense to worship them!


text:
And you took my sons and daughters you had borne to me and sacrificed them to your gods; and they are gone. Wasn't it enough that you should be a prostitute?


text:
'And in all these years of adultery and sin you have not thought of those days long ago when you were naked and covered with blood.


text:
'Therefore I have crushed you with my fist; I have reduced your boundaries and delivered you into the hands of those who hate you--the Philistines--and even they are ashamed of you.


text:
'You have committed adultery with the Assyrians too  by making them your allies and worshiping their gods; it seems that you can never find enough new gods. After your adultery there, you still weren't satisfied,


text:
What a filthy heart you have, says the Lord God, to do such things as these; you are a brazen prostitute,


text:
building your idol altars, your brothels, on every street. You have been worse than a prostitute, so eager for sin that you have not even charged for your love!


text:
Prostitutes charge for their services--men pay with many gifts. But not you, you give them gifts, bribing them to come to you!


text:
The Lord God says: Because I see your filthy sins, your adultery with your lovers--your worshiping of idols--and the slaying of your children as sacrifices to your gods,


text:
this is what I am going to do: I will gather together all your allies--these lovers of yours you have sinned with, both those you loved and those you hated--and I will make you naked before them that they may see you.


text:
I will give you to your lovers--these many nations--to destroy, and they will knock down your brothels and idol altars. They will strip you, take your beautiful jewels, and leave you naked and ashamed.


text:
They will burn your homes, punishing you before the eyes of many women. And I will see to it that you stop your adulteries with other gods and end your payments to your allies for their love.


text:
'Then at last my fury against you will die away; my jealousy against you will end, and I will be quiet and not be angry with you anymore.


text:
But first, because you have not remembered your youth but have angered me by all these evil things you do, I will fully repay you for all of your sins,' " says the Lord. 'For you are thankless in addition to all your other faults.


text:
For your mother loathed her husband and her children, and you do too. And you are exactly like your sisters, for they despised their husbands and their children. Truly, your mother must have been a Hittite and your father an Amorite.


text:
'Your older sister is Samaria, living with her daughters north of you; your younger sister is Sodom and her daughters, in the south.


text:
You have not merely sinned as they do--no, that was nothing to you; in a very short time you far surpassed them.


text:
'As I live, the Lord God says, Sodom and her daughters have never been as wicked as you and your daughters.


text:
Your sister Sodom's sins were pride, laziness, and too much food, while the poor and needy suffered outside her door.


text:
'Even Samaria has not committed half your sins. You have worshiped idols far more than your sisters have; they seem almost righteous in comparison with you!


text:
Don't be surprised then by the lighter punishment they get. For your sins are so awful that in comparison with you, your sisters seem innocent!


text:
'Yes, your sisters, Sodom and Samaria, and all their people will be restored again, and Judah, too, will prosper in that day.


text:
But now your greater wickedness has been exposed to all the world, and you are the one who is scorned--by Edom and all her neighbors and by all the Philistines.


text:
For the Lord God says: "I will repay you for your broken promises. You lightly broke your solemn vows to me,


text:
yet I will keep the pledge I made to you when you were young. I will establish an everlasting covenant with you forever,


text:
and you will remember with shame all the evil you have done; and you will be overcome by my favor when I take your sisters, Samaria and Sodom, and make them your daughters, for you to rule over. You will know you don't deserve this gracious act, for you did not keep my covenant.


text:
Despite all you have done, I will be kind to you again; you will cover your mouth in silence and in shame when I forgive you all that you have done," says the Lord God.


text:
and plucked off the shoot at the top of the tallest cedar tree and carried it into a city filled with merchants.


text:
There he planted it in fertile ground beside a broad river, where it would grow as quickly as a willow tree.


text:
It took root and grew and became a low but spreading vine that turned toward the eagle and produced strong branches and luxuriant leaves.


text:
But when another great, broad-winged, full-feathered eagle came along, this tree sent its roots and branches out toward him instead,


text:
even though it was already in good soil with plenty of water to become a splendid vine, producing leaves and fruit.


text:
The Lord God asks: "Shall I let this tree grow and prosper? No! I will pull it out, roots and all! I will cut off its branches and let its leaves wither and die. It will pull out easily enough--it won't take a big crew or a lot of equipment to do that.


text:
Though the vine began so well, will it thrive? No, it will wither away completely when the east wind touches it, dying in the same choice soil where it had grown so well."


text:
"Ask these rebels of Israel: Don't you understand what this riddle of the eagles means? I will tell you. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon  the first of the two eagles, came to Jerusalem, took away her king and princes  her topmost buds and shoots, and brought them to Babylon.


text:
Nebuchadnezzar made a covenant with a member of the royal family  Zedekiah, and made him take an oath of loyalty. He took a seedling and planted it in fertile ground beside a broad river. He also exiled the top men of Israel's government,


text:
so that Israel would not be strong again and revolt. But by keeping her promises, Israel could be respected and maintain her identity.


text:
"Nevertheless, Zedekiah rebelled against Babylon, sending ambassadors to Egypt to seek for a great army and many horses to fight against Nebuchadnezzar. But will Israel prosper after breaking all her promises like that? Will she succeed?


text:
No! For as I live," says the Lord, "the king of Israel shall die. (Nebuchadnezzar will pull out the tree, roots and all!) Zedekiah shall die in Babylon, where the king lives who gave him his power, and whose covenant he despised and broke.


text:
Pharaoh and all his mighty army shall fail to help Israel when the king of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem again and slaughters many lives.


text:
The Lord God says: "As I live, surely I will punish him for despising the solemn oath he made in my name.


text:
I will throw my net over him, and he shall be captured in my snare; I will bring him to Babylon and deal with him there for this treason against me.


text:
And all the best soldiers of Israel will be killed by the sword, and those remaining in the city will be scattered to the four winds. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken these words."


text:
The Lord God says: "I will take a tender sprout from the top of a tall cedar, and I will plant it on the top of Israel's highest mountain.


text:
It shall become a noble cedar, bringing forth branches and bearing seed. Animals of every sort will gather under it; its branches will shelter every kind of bird.


text:
And everyone shall know that it is I, the Lord, who cuts down the high trees and exalts the low, that I make the green tree wither and the dead tree grow. I, the Lord, have said that I would do it, and I will."


text:
"Why do people use this proverb about the land of Israel: The children are punished for their fathers' sins?


text:
for all souls are mine to judge--fathers and sons alike--and my rule is this: It is for a man's own sins that he will die.


text:
and has not gone out to the mountains to feast before the idols of Israel and worship them, and does not commit adultery nor lie with any woman during the time of her menstruation;


text:
if he is a merciful creditor, not holding onto the items given to him in pledge by poor debtors, and is no robber but gives food to the hungry and clothes to those in need;


text:
and if he grants loans without interest, stays away from sin, is honest and fair when judging others,


text:
"But if that man has a son who is a robber or murderer and who fulfills none of his responsibilities,


text:
oppresses the poor and helpless, robs his debtors by refusing to let them redeem what they have given him in pledge, loves idols and worships them,


text:
and loans out his money at interest --shall that man live? No! He shall surely die, and it is his own fault.


text:
"But if this sinful man has, in turn, a son who sees all his father's wickedness, so that he fears God and decides against that kind of life;


text:
he doesn't go up on the mountains to feast before the idols and worship them and does not commit adultery;


text:
he is fair to those who borrow from him and doesn't rob them, but feeds the hungry, clothes the needy,


text:
helps the poor, does not loan money at interest, and obeys my laws--he shall not die because of his father's sins; he shall surely live.


text:
'What?' you ask. 'Doesn't the son pay for his father's sins?' No! For if the son does what is right and keeps my laws, he shall surely live.


text:
The one who sins is the one who dies. The son shall not be punished for his father's sins, nor the father for his son's. The righteous person will be rewarded for his own goodness and the wicked person for his wickedness.


text:
But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins and begins to obey my laws and do what is just and right, he shall surely live and not die.


text:
"Do you think I like to see the wicked die?" asks the Lord. "Of course not! I only want him to turn from his wicked ways and live.


text:
However, if a righteous person turns to sinning and acts like any other sinner, should he be allowed to live? No, of course not. All his previous goodness will be forgotten and he shall die for his sins.


text:
"Yet you say: 'The Lord isn't being fair!' Listen to me, O people of Israel. Am I the one who is unfair, or is it you?


text:
When a good man turns away from being good, begins sinning, and dies in his sins, he dies for the evil he has done.


text:
And if a wicked person turns away from his wickedness and obeys the law and does right, he shall save his soul,


text:
for he has thought it over and decided to turn from his sins and live a good life. He shall surely live--he shall not die.


text:
"And yet the people of Israel keep saying: 'The Lord is unfair!' O people of Israel, it is you who are unfair, not I.


text:
I will judge each of you, O Israel, and punish or reward each according to his own actions. Oh, turn from your sins while there is yet time.


text:
One of her cubs  King Jehoahaz grew into a strong young lion and learned to catch prey and became a man-eater.


text:
Then the nations called out their hunters; they trapped him in a pit and brought him in chains to Egypt.


text:
"When Israel, the mother lion, saw that all her hopes for him were gone, she took another of her cubs  King Jehoiachin and taught him to be 'king of the beasts.'


text:
He demolished the palaces of the surrounding nations and ruined their cities; their farms were desolated, their crops destroyed; everyone in the land shook with terror when they heard him roar.


text:
Then the armies of the nations surrounded him, coming from every side, and trapped him in a pit and captured him.


text:
They prodded him into a cage and brought him before the king of Babylon. He was held in captivity so that his voice could never again be heard upon the mountains of Israel.


text:
"Your mother was like a vine beside an irrigation ditch, with lush, green foliage because of all the water.


text:
Its strongest branch became a ruler's scepter, and it was very great, towering above the others and noticed from far away.


text:
But the vine was uprooted in fury and thrown down to the ground. Its branches were broken and withered by a strong wind from the east; the fruit was destroyed by fire.


text:
It is decaying from within; no strong branch remains. The fulfillment of this sad prophecy has already begun, and there is more ahead."


text:
Late in July, six years after King Jeconiah was captured, some of the elders of Israel came to ask instructions from the Lord and sat before me awaiting his reply.


text:
"Son of dust, say to the elders of Israel, 'The Lord God says: How dare you come to ask my help? I swear that I will tell you nothing.'


text:
Judge them, son of dust; condemn them; tell them of all the sins of this nation from the times of their fathers until now.


text:
Tell them, 'The Lord God says: When I chose Israel and revealed myself to her in Egypt, I swore to her and her descendants


text:
that I would bring them out of Egypt to a land I had discovered and explored for them--a good land, flowing as it were with milk and honey, the best of all lands anywhere.'


text:
"Then I said to them: 'Get rid of every idol; do not defile yourselves with the Egyptian gods, for I am the Lord your God.'


text:
But they rebelled against me and would not listen. They didn't get rid of their idols nor forsake the gods of Egypt. Then I thought, I will pour out my fury upon them and fulfill my anger against them while they are still in Egypt.


text:
"But I didn't do it, for I acted to protect the honor of my name, lest the Egyptians laugh at Israel's God who couldn't keep them back from harm.


text:
So I brought my people out of Egypt right before the Egyptians' eyes and led them into the wilderness.


text:
And I gave them the Sabbath--a day of rest every seventh day--as a symbol between them and me, to remind them that it is I, the Lord, who sanctifies them--that they are truly my people.


text:
"But Israel rebelled against me. There in the wilderness they refused my laws. They would not obey my rules even though obeying them means life. And they misused my Sabbaths. Then I thought, I will pour out my fury upon them and utterly consume them in the desert.


text:
"But again I refrained in order to protect the honor of my name, lest the nations who saw me bring them out of Egypt would say that it was because I couldn't care for them that I destroyed them.


text:
But I swore to them in the wilderness that I would not bring them into the land I had given them, a land full of milk and honey, the choicest spot on earth,


text:
because they laughed at my laws, ignored my wishes, and violated my Sabbaths--their hearts were with their idols!


text:
"Then I spoke to their children and said: 'Don't follow your fathers' footsteps. Don't defile yourselves with their idols,


text:
hallow my Sabbaths; for they are a symbol of the contract between us to help you remember that I am the Lord your God.'


text:
"But their children, too, rebelled against me. They refused my laws--the laws that if a person keeps them, he will live. And they defiled my Sabbaths. So then I said: 'Now at last I will pour out my fury upon you in the wilderness.'


text:
"Nevertheless, again I withdrew my judgment against them to protect my name among the nations who had seen my power in bringing them out of Egypt.


text:
But I took a solemn oath against them while they were in the wilderness that I would scatter them, dispersing them to the ends of the earth


text:
because they did not obey my laws but scorned them and violated my Sabbaths and longed for their fathers' idols.


text:
I let them adopt customs and laws which were worthless. Through the keeping of them they could not attain life.


text:
In the hope that they would draw back in horror and know that I alone am God, I let them pollute themselves with the very gifts I gave them. They burnt their firstborn children as offerings to their gods!


text:
when I brought them into the land I promised them, for they offered sacrifices and incense on every high hill and under every tree! They roused my fury as they offered up their sacrifices to those "gods." They brought their perfumes and incense and poured out their drink offerings to them!


text:
I said to them: "What is this place of sacrifice where you go?" And so it is still called 'The Place of Sacrifice'--that is how it got its name.


text:
"The Lord God wants to know whether you are going to pollute yourselves just as your fathers did and keep on worshiping idols.


text:
For when you offer gifts to them and give your little sons to be burned to ashes as you do even today, shall I listen to you or help you, Israel? As I live," the Lord God says, "I will not give you any message, though you have come to me to ask.


text:
"What you have in mind will not be done--to be like the nations all around you, serving gods of wood and stone.


text:
And the others--the rebels and all those who sin against me--I will purge from among you. They shall not enter Israel, but I will bring them out of the countries where they are in exile. And when that happens, you will know I am the Lord.


text:
"O Israel," the Lord God says: "If you insist on worshiping your idols, go right ahead, but then don't bring your gifts to me as well! Such desecration of my holy name must stop!


text:
"For at Jerusalem in my holy mountain," says the Lord, "all Israel shall worship me. There I will accept you and require you to bring me your offerings and the finest of your gifts.


text:
You will be to me as an offering of perfumed incense when I bring you back from exile, and the nations will see the great change in your hearts.


text:
Then, when I have brought you home to the land I promised your fathers, you will know I am the Lord.


text:
And when I have honored my name by blessing you despite your wickedness, then, O Israel, you will know I am the Lord."


text:
Prophesy to it and say: 'Hear the word of the Lord. I will set you on fire, O forest, and every tree will die, green and dry alike. The terrible flames will not be quenched, and they will scorch the world.


text:
For the Lord says: 'I am against you, Israel. I will unsheath my sword and destroy your people, good and bad alike--


text:
I will not spare even the righteous. I will make a clean sweep throughout the land from the Negeb to your northern borders.


text:
All the world shall know that it is I, the Lord. His sword is in his hand, and it will not return to its sheath again until its work is finished.'


text:
"Sigh and groan before the people, son of dust, in your bitter anguish; sigh with grief and broken heart.


text:
When they ask you why, tell them: 'Because of the fearsome news that God has given me. When it comes true, the boldest heart will melt with fear; all strength will disappear. Every spirit will faint; strong knees will tremble and become as weak as water.' And the Lord God says: 'Your doom is on the way; my judgments will be fulfilled!' "


text:
for terrible slaughter. Now will you laugh? For those far stronger than you have perished beneath its power. It is ready now to hand to the executioner.'


text:
Son of dust, with sobbing, beat upon your thigh, for that sword shall slay my people and all their leaders. All alike shall die.


text:
"Prophesy to them in this way: Clap your hands vigorously, then take a sword and brandish it twice, thrice, to symbolize the great massacre they face!


text:
Let their hearts melt with terror, for a sword glitters at every gate; it flashes like lightning; it is razor-edged for slaughter.


text:
And you have prophesied with clapping hands that I, the Lord, will smite Jerusalem and satisfy my fury."


text:
one to Jerusalem and the other to Rabbah in Trans-Jordan. And put a signpost at the fork in the road from Babylon.


text:
For the king of Babylon stands at a fork, uncertain whether to attack Jerusalem or Rabbah. He will call his magicians to use divination; they will cast lots by shaking arrows from the quiver; they will sacrifice to idols and inspect the liver of their sacrifice.


text:
They will decide to turn toward Jerusalem! With battering rams they will go against the gates, shouting for the kill; they will build siege towers and make a hill against the walls to reach the top.


text:
Jerusalem won't understand this treachery; how could the diviners make this terrible mistake? For Babylon is Judah's ally and has sworn to defend Jerusalem! But (the king of Babylon) will think only of the times the people rebelled. He will attack and defeat them.


text:
The Lord God says: "Again and again your guilt cries out against you, for your sins are open and unashamed. Wherever you go, whatever you do, all is filled with sin. And now the time of punishment has come.


text:
Take off your jeweled crown," the Lord God says. "The old order changes. Now the poor are exalted and the rich brought very low.


text:
I will overturn, overturn, overturn the kingdom, so that even the new order that emerges will not succeed until the Man appears who has a right to it. And I will give it all to him.


text:
"Son of dust, prophesy to the Ammonites too, for they mocked my people in their woe. Tell them this: 'Against you also my glittering sword is drawn from its sheath; it is sharpened and polished and flashed like lightning.


text:
Your magicians and false prophets have told you lies of safety and success--that your gods will save you from the king of Babylon. Thus they have caused your death along with all the other wicked, for when the day of final reckoning has come, you will be wounded unto death.


text:
Shall I return my sword to its sheath before I deal with you? No, I will destroy you in your own country where you were born.


text:
I will pour out my fury upon you and blow upon the fire of my wrath until it becomes a roaring conflagration, and I will deliver you into the hands of cruel men skilled in destruction.


text:
You are the fuel for the fire; your blood will be spilled in your own country, and you will be utterly wiped out, your memory lost in history. For I, the Lord, have spoken it.' "


text:
you are guilty both of murder and idolatry. Now comes your day of doom. You have reached the limit of your years. I will make you a laughingstock and a reproach to all the nations of the world.


text:
Fathers and mothers are contemptuously ignored; immigrants and visitors are forced to pay you for your 'protection'; orphans and widows are wronged and oppressed.


text:
Prisoners are falsely accused and sent to their death. Every mountaintop is filled with idols; lewdness is everywhere.


text:
Hired murderers, loan racketeers, and extortioners are everywhere. You never even think of me and my commands," the Lord God says.


text:
How strong and courageous will you be then, in my day of reckoning? For I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do all that I have said.


text:
"Son of dust, the people of Israel are the worthless slag left when silver is smelted. They are the dross, compounded from the brass, the tin, the iron and the lead.


text:
Therefore the Lord God says: 'Because you are worthless dross, I will bring you to my crucible in Jerusalem,


text:
and you will melt like silver in fierce heat, and you will know that I, the Lord, have poured my wrath upon you.' "


text:
"Son of dust, say to the people of Israel: 'In the day of my indignation you shall be like an uncleared wilderness or a desert without rain.'


text:
Your 'prophets' have plotted against you like lions stalking prey. They devour many lives; they seize treasures and extort wealth; they multiply the widows in the land.


text:
Your priests have violated my laws and defiled my Temple and my holiness. To them the things of God are no more important than any daily task. They have not taught my people the difference between right and wrong, and they disregard my Sabbaths, so my holy name is greatly defiled among them.


text:
Your 'prophets' describe false visions and speak false messages they claim are from God, when he hasn't spoken one word to them at all. Thus they repair the walls with whitewash!


text:
"I looked in vain for anyone who would build again the wall of righteousness that guards the land, who could stand in the gap and defend you from my just attacks, but I found not one."


text:
And so the Lord God says: "I will pour out my anger upon you; I will consume you with the fire of my wrath. I have heaped upon you the full penalty for all your sins."


text:
"The older girl was named Oholah; her sister was Oholibah. (I am speaking of Samaria and Jerusalem!) I married them, and they bore me sons and daughters. But then Oholah turned to other gods instead of me and gave her love to the Assyrians, her neighbors,


text:
for they were all attractive young men, captains and commanders, in handsome blue, dashing about on their horses.


text:
For when she left Egypt, she did not leave her spirit of prostitution behind, but was still as lewd as in her youth when the Egyptians poured out their lusts upon her and robbed her of her virginity.


text:
They stripped her and killed her and took away her children as their slaves. Her name was known to every woman in the land as a sinner who had received what she deserved.


text:
"But when Oholibah  Jerusalem saw what had happened to her sister she went right ahead in the same way and sinned even more than her sister.


text:
She fawned over her Assyrian neighbors, those handsome young men on fine steeds, those army officers in handsome uniforms--all of them desirable.


text:
"She was in fact more debased than Samaria, for she fell in love with pictures she saw painted on a wall! They were pictures of Babylonian military officers, outfitted in striking red uniforms,


text:
When she saw these paintings, she longed to give herself to the men pictured, so she sent messengers to Chaldea to invite them to come to her.


text:
And they came and committed adultery with her, defiling her in the bed of love, but afterward she hated them and broke off all relations with them.


text:
"And I despised her, just as I despised her sister, because she flaunted herself before them and gave herself to their lust.


text:
But that didn't bother her. She turned to even greater prostitution, sinning with the lustful men she remembered from her youth when she was a prostitute in Egypt.


text:
And thus you celebrated those former days when as a young girl you gave your virginity to those from Egypt.


text:
"And now the Lord God says that he will raise against you, O Oholibah  Jerusalem, those very nations from which you turned away, disgusted.


text:
For the Babylonians will come, and all the Chaldeans from Pekod and Shoa and Koa; and all the Assyrians with them--handsome young men of high rank, riding their steeds.


text:
They will come against you from the north with chariots, wagons, and a great army fully prepared for attack. They will surround you on every side with armored men, and I will let them at you, to do with you as they wish.


text:
And I will send my jealousy against you and deal furiously with you. They will cut off your nose and ears; your survivors will be killed; your children will be taken away as slaves, and everything left will be burned.


text:
"And so I will put a stop to your lewdness and prostitution brought from the land of Egypt; you will no more long for Egypt and her gods."


text:
They will deal with you in hatred and rob you of all you own, leaving you naked and bare. And the shame of your prostitution shall be exposed to all the world.


text:
"You brought all this upon yourself by worshiping the gods of other nations, defiling yourself with all their idols.


text:
You have followed in your sister's footsteps, so I will punish you with the same terrors that destroyed her.


text:
Yes, the terrors that fell upon her will fall upon you--and the cup from which she drank was full and large. And all the world will mock you for your woe.


text:
You will reel like a drunkard beneath the awful blows of sorrow and distress, just as your sister Samaria did.


text:
In deep anguish you will drain that cup of terror to the very bottom and will lick the inside to get every drop. For I have spoken," says the Lord.


text:
"Because you have forgotten me and turned your backs on me, therefore you must bear the consequence of all your sin.


text:
For they have committed both adultery and murder; they have worshiped idols and murdered my children whom they bore to me, burning them as sacrifices on their altars.


text:
for when they had murdered their children in front of their idols, then even that same day they actually came into my Temple to worship! That is how much regard they have for me!


text:
"You even sent away to distant lands for priests to come with other gods for you to serve, and they have come and been welcomed! You bathed yourself, painted your eyelids, and put on your finest jewels for them.


text:
You sat together on a beautifully embroidered bed and put my incense and my oil upon a table spread before you.


text:
From your apartment came the sound of many men carousing--lewd men and drunkards from the wilderness, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns upon your head.


text:
Yet that is what they did. They went in to them--to Samaria and Jerusalem, these shameless harlots--with all the zest of lustful men who visit prostitutes.


text:
But just persons everywhere will judge them for what they really are--adulteresses and murderers. They will mete out to them the sentences the law demands.


text:
For their enemies will stone them and kill them with swords; they will butcher their sons and daughters and burn their homes.


text:
Thus will I make lewdness and idolatry to cease from the land. My judgment will be a lesson against idolatry for all to see.


text:
For you will be fully repaid for all your harlotry, your worshiping of idols. You will suffer the full penalty, and you will know that I alone am God."


text:
One day late in December of the ninth year (of King Jehoiachin's captivity), another message came to me from the Lord.


text:
"Son of dust," he said, "write down this date, for today the king of Babylon has attacked Jerusalem.


text:
And now give this parable to these rebels, Israel; tell them, 'The Lord God says: Put a pot of water on the fire to boil.


text:
Use only the best sheep from the flock, and heap fuel on the fire beneath the pot. Boil the meat well, until the flesh falls off the bones.'


text:
For the Lord God says: "Woe to Jerusalem, City of Murderers; you are a pot that is pitted with rust and with wickedness. So take out the meat chunk by chunk in whatever order it comes--for none is better than any other.


text:
For her wickedness is evident to all--she boldly murders, leaving blood upon the rocks in open view for all to see; she does not even try to cover it.


text:
Heap on the wood; let the fire roar and the pot boil. Cook the meat well, and then empty the pot and burn the bones.


text:
It is the rust and corruption of your filthy lewdness, of worshiping your idols. And now, because I wanted to cleanse you and you refused, remain filthy until my fury has accomplished all its terrors upon you!


text:
"Son of dust, I am going to take away your lovely wife. Suddenly, she will die. Yet you must show no sorrow. Do not weep; let there be no tears.


text:
You may sigh, but only quietly. Let there be no wailing at her grave; don't bare your head nor feet, and don't accept the food brought to you by consoling friends."


text:
I proclaimed this to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did all the Lord had told me to.


text:
'I will destroy my lovely, beautiful Temple, the strength of your nation. And your sons and daughters in Judea will be slaughtered by the sword.


text:
And you will do as I have done; you may not mourn in public or console yourself by eating the food brought to you by sympathetic friends.


text:
Your head and feet shall not be bared; you shall not mourn or weep. But you will sorrow to one another for your sins and mourn privately for all the evil you have done.


text:
Ezekiel is an example to you,' the Lord God says. 'You will do as he has done. And when that time comes, then you will know I am the Lord.' "


text:
"Son of dust, on the day I finish taking from them in Jerusalem the joy of their hearts and their glory and joys--their wives and their sons and their daughters--


text:
on that day a refugee from Jerusalem will start on a journey to come to you in Babylon to tell you what has happened.


text:
And on the day of his arrival, your voice will suddenly return to you so that you can talk with him; and you will be a symbol for these people, and they shall know I am the Lord."


text:
Tell them: 'Listen to what the Lord God says. Because you scoffed when my Temple was destroyed, and mocked Israel in her anguish, and laughed at Judah when she was marched away captive,


text:
therefore I will let the Bedouins from the desert to the east of you overrun your land. They will set up their encampments among you. They will harvest all your fruit and steal your dairy cattle.


text:
And I will turn the city of Rabbah into a pasture for camels and all the country of the Ammonites into a wasteland where flocks of sheep can graze. Then you will know I am the Lord.' "


text:
For the Lord God says: "Because you clapped and stamped and cheered with glee at the destruction of my people,


text:
therefore I will lay my hand heavily upon you, delivering you to many nations for devastation. I will cut you off from being a nation any more. I will destroy you; then you shall know I am the Lord."


text:
And the Lord God says: "Because the Moabites have said that Judah is no better off than any other nation,


text:
therefore I will open up the eastern flank of Moab, wiping out her frontier cities, the glory of the nation--Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon and Kiriathaim.


text:
And Bedouin tribes from the desert to the east will pour in upon her, just as they will upon Ammon. And Moab will no longer be counted among the nations.


text:
And the Lord God says: "Because the people of Edom have sinned so greatly by avenging themselves upon the people of Judah,


text:
I will smash Edom with my fist and wipe out her people, her cattle, and her flocks. The sword will destroy everything from Teman to Dedan.


text:
And the Lord God says: "Because the Philistines have acted against Judah out of revenge and long-standing hatred,


text:
I will shake my fist over the land of the Philistines, and I will wipe out the Cherithites and utterly destroy those along the seacoast.


text:
I will execute terrible vengeance upon them to rebuke them for what they have done. And when all this happens, then they shall know I am the Lord."


text:
Another message came to me from the Lord on the first day of the month, in the eleventh year (after King Jehoiachin was taken away to captivity).


text:
"Son of dust, Tyre has rejoiced over the fall of Jerusalem, saying, 'Ha! She who controlled the lucrative north-south trade routes along the coast and along the course of the Jordan River has been broken, and I have fallen heir! Because she has been laid waste, I shall become wealthy!'


text:
Therefore the Lord God says: "I stand against you, Tyre, and I will bring nations against you like ocean waves.


text:
They will destroy the walls of Tyre and tear down her towers. I will scrape away her soil and make her a bare rock!


text:
Her island shall become uninhabited, a place for fishermen to spread their nets, for I have spoken it," says the Lord God. "Tyre shall become the prey of many nations,


text:
For the Lord God says: "I will bring Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon--the king of kings from the north--against Tyre with a great army and cavalry and chariots.


text:
First he will destroy your suburbs; then he will attack your mainland city by building a siege wall and raising a roof of shields against it.


text:
The hoofs of his cavalry will choke the city with dust, and your walls will shake as the horses gallop through your broken gates, pulling chariots behind them.


text:
Horsemen will occupy every street in the city; they will butcher your people, and your famous, huge pillars will topple.


text:
"They will plunder all your riches and merchandise and break down your walls. They will destroy your lovely homes and dump your stones and timber and even your dust into the sea.


text:
I will make your island a bare rock, a place for fishermen to spread their nets. You will never be rebuilt, for I, the Lord, have spoken it." So says the Lord.


text:
"Then all the seaport rulers shall come down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and beautiful garments and sit on the ground shaking with fear at what they have seen.


text:
And they shall wail for you, singing this dirge: 'O mighty island city, with your naval power that terrorized the mainland, how you have vanished from the seas!


text:
For the Lord God says: "I will destroy Tyre to the ground. You will sink beneath the terrible waves of enemy attack. Great seas shall swallow you.


text:
I will send you to the pit of hell to lie there with those of long ago. Your city will lie in ruins, dead, like the bodies of those in the underworld who entered long ago the nether world of the dead. Never again will you be inhabited or be given beauty here in the land of those who live.


text:
'O mighty seaport city, merchant center of the world, the Lord God speaks. You say, "I am the most beautiful city in all the world."


text:
You are like a ship built of finest fir from Senir. They took a cedar from Lebanon to make a mast for you.


text:
They made your oars from oaks of Bashan. The walls of your cabin are of cypress from the southern coast of Cyprus.


text:
Your sails are made of Egypt's finest linens; you stand beneath awnings bright with purple and scarlet dyes from eastern Cyprus.


text:
Wise old craftsmen from Gebal do the calking. Ships come from every land with all their goods to barter for your trade.


text:
'Your army includes men from far-off Paras, Lud, and Put. They serve you--it is a feather in your cap to have their shields hang upon your walls; it is the ultimate of honor.


text:
Men from Arvad and from Helech are the sentinels upon your walls; your towers are manned by men from Gamad. Their shields hang row on row upon the walls, perfecting your glory.


text:
'Merchants come to you from Rhodes, and many coastlands are your captive markets, giving payment in ebony and ivory.


text:
Edom sends her traders to buy your many wares. They bring emeralds, purple dyes, embroidery, fine linen, and jewelry of coral and agate.


text:
Judah and the cities in what was once the kingdom of Israel send merchants with wheat from Minnith and Pannag, and with honey, oil, and balm.


text:
Damascus comes. She brings wines from Helbon and white Syrian wool to trade for all the rich variety of goods you make.


text:
They bring choice fabrics to trade--blue cloth, embroidery, and many-colored carpets bound with cords and made secure.


text:
'But now your statesmen bring your ship of state into a hurricane! Your mighty vessel flounders in the heavy eastern gale, and you are wrecked in the heart of the seas!


text:
Everything is lost. Your riches and wares, your sailors and pilots, your shipwrights, merchants, and soldiers; and all the people sink into the sea on the day of your vast ruin.


text:
They shave their heads in grief, put on sackcloth, and weep for you with bitterness of heart and deep mourning.


text:
'And this is the song of their sorrow: "Where in all the world was there ever such a wondrous city as Tyre, destroyed in the midst of the sea?


text:
Your merchandise satisfied the desires of many nations. Kings at the ends of the earth rejoiced in the riches you sent them.


text:
All who live along the coastlands watch, incredulous. Their kings are horribly afraid and look on with twisted faces.


text:
The merchants of the nations shake their heads, for your fate is dreadful; you have forever perished.' "


text:
"Son of dust, say to the prince of Tyre, 'The Lord God says: You are so proud you think you are God, sitting on the throne of a god on your island home in the midst of the seas. But you are only a man and not a god, though you boast yourself to be like God.


text:
You have used your wisdom and understanding to get great wealth--gold and silver and many treasures.


text:
an enemy army, the terror of the nations, shall suddenly draw their swords against your marvelous wisdom and defile your splendor!


text:
They will bring you to the pit of hell, and you shall die as those pierced with many wounds, there on your island in the heart of the seas.


text:
"Son of dust, weep for the king of Tyre. Tell him, 'The Lord God says: You were the perfection of wisdom and beauty.


text:
You were in Eden, the garden of God; your clothing was bejeweled with every precious stone--ruby, topaz, diamond, chrysolite, onyx, jasper, sapphire, carbuncle, and emerald--all in beautiful settings of finest gold. They were given to you on the day you were created.


text:
I appointed you to be the anointed Guardian Angel. You had access to the holy mountain of God. You walked among the stones of fire.


text:
'You were perfect in all you did from the day you were created until that time when wrong was found in you.


text:
Your great wealth filled you with internal turmoil, and you sinned. Therefore, I cast you out of the mountain of God like a common sinner. I destroyed you, O Guardian Angel, from the midst of the stones of fire.


text:
Your heart was filled with pride because of all your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. Therefore, I have cast you down to the ground and exposed you helpless before the curious gaze of kings.


text:
You defiled your holiness with lust for gain; therefore, I brought forth fire from your own actions and let it burn you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all those watching you.


text:
All who know you are appalled at your fate; you are an example of horror; you are destroyed forever.' "


text:
'The Lord God says: I am your enemy, O Sidon, and I will reveal my power over you. When I destroy you and show forth my holiness upon you, then all who see shall know I am the Lord.


text:
I will send an epidemic of disease and an army to destroy; the wounded shall be slain in your streets by troops on every side. Then you will know I am the Lord.


text:
No longer shall you and Israel's other neighbor nations prick and tear at Israel like thorns and briars, though they formerly despised her and treated her with great contempt.


text:
'The people of Israel will once more live in their own land, the land I gave their father Jacob. For I will gather them back again from distant lands where I have scattered them, and I will show the nations of the world my holiness among my people.


text:
They will live safely in Israel and build their homes and plant their vineyards. When I punish all the bordering nations that treated them with such contempt, then they shall know I am the Lord their God.' "


text:
Late in December of the tenth year (of the imprisonment of King Jehoiachin), this message came to me from the Lord:


text:
Tell them that the Lord God says: 'I am your enemy, Pharaoh, king of Egypt--mighty dragon lying in the middle of your rivers. For you have said, "The Nile is mine; I have made it for myself!"


text:
And I will leave you and all the fish stranded in the desert to die, and you won't be buried, for I have given you as food to the wild animals and birds.


text:
'Because of the way your might collapsed when Israel called on you for aid  instead of trusting me, all of you shall know I am the Lord.


text:
Israel leaned on you but, like a cracked staff, you snapped beneath her hand and wrenched her shoulder out of joint and made her stagger with the pain.


text:
Therefore the Lord God says: I will bring an army against you, O Egypt, and destroy both men and herds.


text:
The land of Egypt shall become a desolate wasteland, and the Egyptians will know that I, the Lord, have done it.


text:
'Because you said: "The Nile is mine! I made it!" therefore I am against you and your river, and I will utterly destroy the land of Egypt, from Migdol to Syene, as far south as the border of Ethiopia.


text:
For forty years not a soul will pass that way, neither men nor animals. It will be completely uninhabited.


text:
I will make Egypt desolate, surrounded by desolate nations, and her cities will lie as wastelands for forty years. I will exile the Egyptians to other lands.


text:
'But the Lord God says that at the end of the forty years he will bring the Egyptians home again from the nations to which they will be banished.


text:
And I will restore the fortunes of Egypt and bring her people back to the land of Pathros in southern Egypt where they were born, but she will be an unimportant, minor kingdom.


text:
She will be the lowliest of all the nations; never again will she raise herself above the other nations; never again will Egypt be great enough for that.


text:
'Israel will no longer expect any help from Egypt. Whenever she thinks of asking for it, then she will remember her sin in seeking it before. Then Israel will know that I alone am God.' "


text:
In the twenty-seventh year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, around the middle of March, this message came to me from the Lord:


text:
"Son of dust, the army of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon fought hard against Tyre. The soldiers' heads were bald (from carrying heavy basketfuls of earth); their shoulders were raw and blistered (from burdens of stones for the siege). And Nebuchadnezzar received no compensation and could not pay the army for all this work."


text:
Therefore, the Lord God says, "I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and he will carry off her wealth, plundering everything she has, for his army.


text:
Yes, I have given him the land of Egypt for his salary because he was working for me during those thirteen years at Tyre," says the Lord.


text:
"And the day will come when I will cause the ancient glory of Israel to revive, and then at last her words will be respected, and Egypt shall know I am the Lord."


text:
A sword shall fall on Egypt; the slain shall cover the ground. Her wealth is taken away, her foundations destroyed. The land of Cush has been ravished.


text:
For Cush, Put, Lud, Arabia, and Libya, and all the countries leagued with them shall perish in that war.'


text:
For the Lord says: "All Egypt's allies shall fall, and the pride of her power shall end. From Migdol to Syene they shall perish by the sword.


text:
She shall be desolate, surrounded by desolate nations, and her cities shall be in ruins, surrounded by other ruined cities.


text:
At that time I will send swift messengers to bring panic to the Ethiopians; great terror shall befall them at that time of Egypt's doom. This will all come true.


text:
He and his armies--the terror of the nations--are sent to demolish the land. They shall war against Egypt and cover the ground with the slain.


text:
I will dry up the Nile and sell the whole land to wicked men. I will destroy Egypt and everything in it, using foreigners to do it. I, the Lord, have spoken it.


text:
"And I will smash the idols of Egypt and the images at Memphis, and there will be no king in Egypt; anarchy shall reign!


text:
And I will pour out my fury upon Pelusium, the strongest fortress of Egypt, and I will stamp out the people of Thebes.


text:
Yes, I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium will be racked with pain. Thebes will be torn apart; Memphis will be in daily terror.


text:
The young men of Heliopolis and Bubastis shall die by the sword, and the women will be taken away as slaves.


text:
When I come to break the power of Egypt, it will be a dark day for Tahpanhes too; a dark cloud will cover her, and her daughters will be taken away as captives.


text:
A year later, around the middle of March of the eleventh year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, this message came to me:


text:
"Son of dust, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and it has not been set nor put into a cast to make it strong enough to hold a sword again.


text:
For the Lord God says, I am against Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and I will break both his arms--the strong one and the one that was broken before, and I will make his sword clatter to the ground.


text:
And I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon and place my sword in his hand. But I will break the arms of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he shall groan before the king of Babylon as one who has been wounded unto death.


text:
I will strengthen the hands of the king of Babylon, while the arms of Pharaoh fall useless to his sides. Yes, when I place my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he swings it over the land of Egypt, Egypt shall know I am the Lord.


text:
In mid-May of the eleventh year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, this message came to me from the Lord:


text:
"Son of dust, tell Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and all his people: 'You are as Assyria was--a great and mighty nation--


text:
like a cedar of Lebanon, full of thick branches and forest shade, with its head high up among the clouds.


text:
Its roots went deep into the moist earth. It grew luxuriantly and gave streamlets of water to all the trees around.


text:
It towered above all the other trees. It prospered and grew long thick branches because of all the water at its roots.


text:
The birds nested in its branches, and in its shade the flocks and herds gave birth to young. All the great nations of the world lived beneath its shadow.


text:
This tree was taller than any other in the garden of God; no cypress had branches equal to it; none had boughs to compare; none equaled it in beauty.


text:
"But Egypt has become proud and arrogant", the Lord God says. "Therefore because she has set herself so high above the others, reaching to the clouds,


text:
I will deliver her into the hands of a mighty nation, to destroy her as her wickedness deserves. I, myself, will cut her down.


text:
A foreign army (from Babylon)--the terror of the nations--will invade her land and cut her down and leave her fallen on the ground. Her branches will be scattered across the mountains and valleys and rivers of the land. All those who live beneath her shade will go away and leave her lying there.


text:
let no other nation exult with pride for its own prosperity, though it be higher than the clouds, for all are doomed, and they will land in hell along with all the proud men of the world."


text:
The Lord God says: "When she fell, I made the oceans mourn for her and restrained their tides. I clothed Lebanon in black and caused the trees of Lebanon to weep.


text:
I made the nations shake with fear at the sound of her fall, for I threw her down to hell with all the others like her. And all the other proud trees of Eden, the choicest and the best of Lebanon, the ones whose roots went deep into the water, are comforted to find her there with them in hell.


text:
Her allies, too, are all destroyed and perish with her. They went down with her to the nether world--those nations that had lived beneath her shade.


text:
"O Egypt, you are great and glorious among the trees of Eden--the nations of the world. And you will be brought down to the pit of hell with all these other nations. You will be among the nations you despise, killed by the sword. This is the fate of Pharaoh and all his teeming masses," says the Lord.


text:
In mid-February of the twelfth year of King Jehoiachin's captivity, this message came to me from the Lord:


text:
"Son of dust, mourn for Pharaoh, king of Egypt and say to him: 'You think of yourself as a strong young lion among the nations, but you are merely a crocodile along the banks of the Nile, making bubbles and muddying the stream.' "


text:
and leave you stranded on the land to die. And all the birds of the heavens will light upon you, and the wild animals of the whole earth will devour you until they are glutted and full.


text:
And I will drench the earth with your gushing blood, filling the ravines to the tops of the mountains.


text:
I will blot you out, and I will veil the heavens and darken the stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give you her light.


text:
"And when I destroy you, grief will be in many hearts among the distant nations you have never seen.


text:
Yes, terror shall strike in many lands, and their kings shall be terribly afraid because of all I do to you. They shall shudder with terror when I brandish my sword before them. They shall greatly tremble for their lives on the day of your fall.


text:
I will destroy you with Babylon's mighty army--the terror of the nations. It will smash the pride of Egypt and all her people; all will perish.


text:
I will destroy all your flocks and herds that graze beside the streams, and neither man nor animal will disturb those waters any more.


text:
Therefore, the waters of Egypt will be as clear and flow as smoothly as olive oil," the Lord God says.


text:
"And when I destroy Egypt and wipe out everything she has, then she shall know that I, the Lord, have done it.


text:
Yes, cry for the sorrows of Egypt. Let all the nations weep for her and for her people," says the Lord.


text:
"Son of dust, weep for the people of Egypt and for the other mighty nations. Send them down to the nether world among the denizens of death.


text:
What nation is as beautiful as you, O Egypt? Yet your doom is the pit; you will be laid beside the people you despise.


text:
The Egyptians will die with the multitudes slain by the sword, for the sword is drawn against the land of Egypt. She will be drawn down to judgment.


text:
The mighty warriors in the nether world will welcome her as she arrives with all her friends, to lie there beside the nations she despised, all victims of the sword.


text:
"The princes of Assyria lie there surrounded by the graves of all her people, those the sword has slain.


text:
Their graves are in the depths of hell, surrounded by their allies. All these mighty men who once struck terror into the hearts of everyone are now dead at the hands of their foes.


text:
"Great kings of Elam lie there with their people. They scourged the nations while they lived, and now they lie undone in hell; their fate is the same as that of ordinary men.


text:
They have a resting place among the slain, surrounded by the graves of all their people. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame in the pit, slain by the sword.


text:
"The princes of Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their armies--all of them idolaters--who once struck terror to the hearts of all; now they lie dead.


text:
They are buried in a common grave and not as the fallen lords who are buried in great honor with their weapons beside them, with their shields covering them and their swords beneath their heads. They were a terror to all while they lived.


text:
"Edom is there with her kings and her princes; mighty as they were, they too lie among the others whom the sword has slain, with the idolaters who have gone down to the pit.


text:
All the princes of the north are there and the Sidonians, all slain. Once a terror, now they lie in shame; they lie in ignominy with all the other slain who go down to the pit.


text:
"When Pharaoh arrives, he will be comforted to find that he is not alone in having all his army slain," says the Lord God.


text:
"For I have caused my terror to fall upon all the living. And Pharaoh and his army shall lie among the idolaters who are slain by the sword."


text:
"Son of dust, tell your people: 'When I bring an army against a country, and the people of that land choose a watchman,


text:
For he heard the warning and wouldn't listen; the fault is his. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.


text:
But if the watchman sees the enemy coming and doesn't sound the alarm and warn the people, he is responsible for their deaths. They will die in their sins, but I will charge the watchman with their deaths.'


text:
"So with you, son of dust. I have appointed you as a watchman for the people of Israel; therefore, listen to what I say and warn them for me.


text:
When I say to the wicked, 'O wicked man, you will die!' and you don't tell him what I say, so that he does not repent--that wicked person will die in his sins, but I will hold you responsible for his death.


text:
But if you warn him to repent and he doesn't, he will die in his sin, and you will not be responsible.


text:
"O people of Israel, you are saying: 'Our sins are heavy upon us; we pine away with guilt. How can we live?'


text:
Tell them: 'As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; I desire that the wicked turn from his evil ways and live. Turn, turn from your wickedness, for why will you die, O Israel?


text:
For the good works of a righteous man will not save him if he turns to sin; and the sins of an evil man will not destroy him if he repents and turns from his sins.'


text:
"I have said the good man will live. But if he sins, expecting his past goodness to save him, then none of his good deeds will be remembered. I will destroy him for his sins.


text:
And when I tell the wicked he will die, and then he turns from his sins and does what is fair and right--


text:
if he gives back the borrower's pledge, returns what he has stolen, and walks along the paths of right, not doing evil--he shall surely live. He shall not die.


text:
None of his past sins shall be brought up against him, for he has turned to the good and shall surely live.


text:
In the eleventh year of our exile, late in December, one of those who escaped from Jerusalem arrived to tell me, "The city has fallen!"


text:
Now the hand of the Lord had been upon me the previous evening, and he had healed me so that I could speak again by the time the man arrived.


text:
"Son of dust, the scattered remnants of Judah living among the ruined cities keep saying, 'Abraham was only one man and yet he got possession of the whole country! We are many, so we should certainly be able to get it back!'


text:
But the Lord God says: 'You are powerless, for you do evil! You eat meat with the blood, you worship idols, and murder. Do you suppose I'll let you have the land?


text:
"Tell them, 'The Lord God says: As I live, surely those living in the ruins shall die by the sword. Those living in the open fields shall be eaten by wild animals, and those in the forts and caves shall die of disease.


text:
I will desolate the land and her pride, and her power shall come to an end. And the mountain villages of Israel shall be so ruined that no one will even travel through them.


text:
"Son of dust, your people are whispering behind your back. They talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors, saying, 'Come on, let's have some fun! Let's go hear him tell us what the Lord is saying!'


text:
So they come as though they are sincere and sit before you listening. But they have no intention of doing what I tell them to; they talk very sweetly about loving the Lord, but with their hearts they are loving their money.


text:
You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings lovely songs with a beautiful voice or plays well on an instrument. They hear what you say but don't pay any attention to it!


