# verses

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 Tell my rebellious people this parable that I, the Sovereign LORD, have for them: Set the pot on the fire and fill it up with water.


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 Put in the best pieces of meat--- the shoulders and the legs--- fill it with choice bony pieces too.


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 Use the meat of the finest sheep; pile the wood under the pot. Let the water boil; boil the bones and the meat."


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 This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: "The city of murderers is doomed! It is like a corroded pot that is never cleaned. Piece after piece of meat is taken out, and not one is left.


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 There was murder in the city, but the blood was not spilled on the ground where the dust could hide it; it was spilled on a bare rock.


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 This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: "The city of murderers is doomed! I myself will pile up the firewood.


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 Now set the empty bronze pot on the coals and let it get red-hot. Then the pot will be ritually pure again after the corrosion is burned off,


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 Jerusalem, your immoral actions have defiled you. Although I tried to purify you, you remained defiled. You will not be pure again until you have felt the full force of my anger.


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 I, the LORD, have spoken. The time has come for me to act. I will not ignore your sins or show pity or be merciful. You will be punished for what you have done." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "with one blow I am going to take away the person you love most. You are not to complain or cry or shed any tears.


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 Don't let your sobbing be heard. Do not go bareheaded or barefoot as a sign of mourning. Don't cover your face or eat the food that mourners eat."


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 Early in the day I was talking with the people. That evening my wife died, and the next day I did as I had been told.


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 to give you Israelites this message: You are proud of the strength of the Temple. You like to look at it and to visit it, but the LORD is going to profane it. And the younger members of your families who are left in Jerusalem will be killed in war.


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 Then you will do what I have done. You will not cover your faces or eat the food that mourners eat.


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 You will not go bareheaded or barefoot or mourn or cry. You will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan to one another.


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 Then I will be a sign to you; you will do everything I have done. The LORD says that when this happens, you will know that he is the Sovereign LORD."


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 The LORD said, "Now, mortal man, I will take away from them the strong Temple that was their pride and joy, which they liked to look at and to visit. And I will take away their sons and daughters.


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 That same day you will get back the power of speech which you had lost, and you will talk with them. In this way you will be a sign to the people, and they will know that I am the LORD."


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 Tell them to listen to what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: You were delighted to see my Temple profaned, to see the land of Israel devastated, to see the people of Judah go into exile.


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 Because you were glad, I will let the tribes from the eastern desert conquer you. They will set up their camps in your country and settle there. They will eat the fruit and drink the milk that should have been yours.


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 I will turn the city of Rabbah into a place to keep camels, and the whole country of Ammon will become a place to keep sheep, so that you will know I am the LORD.


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 "This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: You clapped your hands and jumped for joy. You despised the land of Israel.


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 Because you did, I will hand you over to other nations who will rob you and plunder you. I will destroy you so completely that you will not be a nation any more or have a country of your own. Then you will know that I am the LORD."


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 I will let the cities that defend the border of Moab be attacked, including even the finest cities---Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon, and Kiriathaim.


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 I will let the tribes of the eastern desert conquer Moab, together with Ammon, so that Moab will no longer be a nation.


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 The Sovereign LORD said, "The people of Edom took cruel revenge on Judah, and that revenge has brought lasting guilt on Edom.


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 Now I announce that I will punish Edom and kill every person and animal there. I will make it a wasteland, from the city of Teman to the city of Dedan, and the people will be killed in battle.


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 My people Israel will take revenge on Edom for me, and they will make Edom feel my furious anger. Edom will know what it means to be the object of my revenge." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


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 The Sovereign LORD said, "The Philistines have taken cruel revenge on their agelong enemies and destroyed them in their hate.


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 And so I am announcing that I will attack the Philistines and wipe them out. I will destroy everyone left living there on the Philistine Plain.


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 I will punish them severely and take full revenge on them. They will feel my anger. Then they will know that I am the LORD."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "this is what the people in the city of Tyre are cheering about. They shout, 'Jerusalem is shattered! Her commercial power is gone! She won't be our rival any more!'


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 "Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: I am your enemy, city of Tyre. I will bring many nations to attack you, and they will come like the waves of the sea.


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 They will destroy your city walls and tear down your towers. Then I will sweep away all the dust and leave only a bare rock.


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 Fishermen will dry their nets on it, there where it stands in the sea. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken. The nations will plunder Tyre,


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 and with their swords they will kill those who live in her towns on the mainland. Then Tyre will know that I am the LORD."


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 The Sovereign LORD says, "I am going to bring the greatest king of all---King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia---to attack Tyre. He will come from the north with a huge army, with horses and chariots and with cavalry.


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 Those who live in the towns on the mainland will be killed in the fighting. The enemy will dig trenches, build earthworks, and make a solid wall of shields against you.


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 The clouds of dust raised by their horses will cover you. The noise of their horses pulling wagons and chariots will shake your walls as they pass through the gates of the ruined city.


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 Their cavalry will storm through your streets, killing your people with their swords. Your mighty pillars will be thrown to the ground.


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 Your enemies will help themselves to your wealth and merchandise. They will pull down your walls and shatter your luxurious houses. They will take the stones and wood and all the rubble, and dump them into the sea.


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 I will leave only a bare rock where fishermen can dry their nets. The city will never be rebuilt. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


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 The Sovereign LORD has this to say to the city of Tyre: "When you are being conquered, the people who live along the coast will be terrified at the screams of those who are slaughtered.


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 All the kings of the seafaring nations will come down from their thrones. They will take off their robes and their embroidered clothes and sit trembling on the ground. They will be so terrified at your fate that they will not be able to stop trembling.


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 They will sing this funeral song for you: The famous city is destroyed! Her ships have been swept from the seas. The people of this city ruled the seas And terrified all who lived on the coast.


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 Now, on the day it has fallen, The islands are trembling, And their people are shocked at such destruction."


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 The Sovereign LORD says: "I will make you as desolate as ruined cities where no one lives. I will cover you with the water of the ocean depths.


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 I will send you down to the world of the dead to join the people who lived in ancient times. I will make you stay in that underground world among eternal ruins, keeping company with the dead. As a result you will never again be inhabited and take your place in the land of the living.


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 I will make you a terrifying example, and that will be the end of you. People may look for you, but you will never be found." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


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 that city which stands at the edge of the sea and does business with the people living on every seacoast. Tell her what the Sovereign LORD is saying: "Tyre, you boasted of your perfect beauty.


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 They took oak trees from Bashan to make oars; They made your deck out of pine from Cyprus And inlaid it with ivory.


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 Your sails were made of linen, Embroidered linen from Egypt, Easily recognized from afar. Your awnings were made of finest cloth, Of purple from the island of Cyprus.


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 The ship's carpenters Were well-trained men from Byblos. Sailors from every seagoing ship Did business in your shops.


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 "Soldiers from Persia, Lydia, and Libya served in your army. They hung their shields and their helmets in your barracks. They are the men who won glory for you.


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 Soldiers from Arvad guarded your walls, and troops from Gamad guarded your towers. They hung their shields on your walls. They are the ones who made you beautiful.


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 "You did business in Spain and took silver, iron, tin, and lead in payment for your abundant goods.


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 You did business in Greece, Tubal, and Meshech and traded your goods for slaves and for articles of bronze.


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 The people of Rhodes traded with you; people of many coastal lands gave you ivory and ebony in exchange for your goods.


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 The people of Syria bought your merchandise and your many products. They gave emeralds, purple cloth, embroidery, fine linen, coral, and rubies in payment for your wares.


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 The people of Damascus bought your merchandise and your products, paying for them with wine from Helbon and wool from Sahar. They traded wrought iron and spices for your goods.


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 The Arabians and the rulers of the land of Kedar paid for your merchandise with lambs, sheep, and goats.


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 The cities of Haran, Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, the cities of Asshur and Chilmad---they all traded with you.


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 They sold you luxurious clothing, purple cloth, and embroidery, brightly colored carpets, and well-made cords and ropes.


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 Your merchandise was carried in fleets of the largest cargo ships. "You were like a ship at sea Loaded with heavy cargo.


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 All your wealth of merchandise, All the sailors in your crew, Your ship's carpenters and your merchants, Every soldier on board the ship--- All, all were lost at sea When your ship was wrecked.


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 They shave their heads for you And dress themselves in sackcloth. Their hearts are bitter as they weep.


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 When your merchandise went overseas, You filled the needs of every nation. Kings were made rich By the wealth of your goods.


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 Now you are wrecked in the sea; You have sunk to the ocean depths. Your goods and all who worked for you Have vanished with you in the sea.'


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 "Everyone who lives along the coast is shocked at your fate. Even their kings are terrified, and fear is written on their faces.


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 You are gone, gone forever, and merchants all over the world are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "tell the ruler of Tyre what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to him: Puffed up with pride, you claim to be a god. You say that like a god you sit on a throne, surrounded by the seas. You may pretend to be a god, but, no, you are mortal, not divine.


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 "Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: Because you think you are as wise as a god,


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 I will bring ruthless enemies to attack you. They will destroy all the beautiful things you have acquired by skill and wisdom.


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 When they come to kill you, will you still claim that you are a god? When you face your murderers, you will be mortal and not at all divine.


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 You will die like a dog at the hand of godless foreigners. I, the Sovereign LORD, have given the command."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "grieve for the fate that is waiting for the king of Tyre. Tell him what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: You were once an example of perfection. How wise and handsome you were!


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 You lived in Eden, the garden of God, and wore gems of every kind: rubies and diamonds; topaz, beryl, carnelian, and jasper; sapphires, emeralds, and garnets. You had ornaments of gold. They were made for you on the day you were created.


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 I put a terrifying angel there to guard you. You lived on my holy mountain and walked among sparkling gems.


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 You were busy buying and selling, and this led you to violence and sin. So I forced you to leave my holy mountain, and the angel who guarded you drove you away from the sparkling gems.


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 You were proud of being handsome, and your fame made you act like a fool. Because of this I hurled you to the ground and left you as a warning to other kings.


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 You did such evil in buying and selling that your places of worship were corrupted. So I set fire to the city and burned it to the ground. All who look at you now see you reduced to ashes.


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 You are gone, gone forever, and all the nations that had come to know you are terrified, afraid that they will share your fate."


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 Tell the people there what I, the Sovereign LORD, say about them: I am your enemy, Sidon; people will praise me because of what I do to you. They will know that I am the LORD, when I show how holy I am by punishing those who live in you.


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 I will send diseases on you and make blood flow in your streets. You will be attacked from every side, and your people will be killed. Then you will know that I am the LORD."


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 The LORD said, "None of the surrounding nations that treated Israel with scorn will ever again be like thorns and briers to hurt Israel. And they will know that I am the Sovereign LORD."


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 The Sovereign LORD said, "I will bring back the people of Israel from the nations where I scattered them, and all the nations will know that I am holy. The people of Israel will live in their own land, the land that I gave to my servant Jacob.


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 They will live there in safety. They will build houses and plant vineyards. I will punish all their neighbors who treated them with scorn, and Israel will be secure. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "denounce the king of Egypt. Tell him how he and all the land of Egypt will be punished.


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 Say that this is what the Sovereign LORD is telling the king of Egypt: I am your enemy, you monster crocodile, lying in the river. You say that the Nile is yours and that you made it.


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 I am going to put a hook through your jaw and make the fish in your river stick fast to you. Then I will pull you up out of the Nile, with all the fish sticking to you.


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 I will throw you and all those fish into the desert. Your body will fall on the ground and be left unburied. I will give it to the birds and animals for food.


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 Then all the people of Egypt will know that I am the LORD." The LORD says, "The Israelites relied on you Egyptians for support, but you were no better than a weak stick.


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 Now then, I, the Sovereign LORD, am telling you that I will have troops attack you with swords, and they will kill your people and your animals.


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 Egypt will become an empty wasteland. Then you will know that I am the LORD. "Because you said that the Nile is yours and you made it,


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 I am your enemy and the enemy of your Nile. I will make all of Egypt an empty wasteland, from the city of Migdol in the north to the city of Aswan in the south, all the way to the Ethiopian border.


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 I will make Egypt the most desolate country in the world. For forty years the cities of Egypt will lie in ruins, ruins worse than those of any other city. I will make the Egyptians refugees. They will flee to every country and live among other peoples."


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 The Sovereign LORD says, "After forty years I will bring the Egyptians back from the nations where I have scattered them,


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 and I will let them live in southern Egypt, their original home. There they will be a weak kingdom,


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 the weakest kingdom of all, and they will never again rule other nations. I will make them so unimportant that they will not be able to bend any other nation to their will.


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 Israel will never again depend on them for help. Egypt's fate will remind Israel how wrong it was to rely on them. Then Israel will know that I am the Sovereign LORD."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia launched an attack on Tyre. He made his soldiers carry such heavy loads that their heads were rubbed bald and their shoulders were worn raw, but neither the king nor his army got anything for all their trouble.


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 So now this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: I am giving the land of Egypt to King Nebuchadnezzar. He will loot and plunder it and carry off all the wealth of Egypt as his army's pay.


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 I am giving him Egypt in payment for his services, because his army was working for me. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


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 "When that happens, I will make the people of Israel strong and let you, Ezekiel, speak out where everyone can hear you, so that they will know that I am the LORD."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "prophesy and announce what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying. You are to shout these words: A day of terror is coming!


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 There will be war in Egypt And great distress in Ethiopia. Many in Egypt will be killed; The country will be plundered And left in ruins.


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 "That war will also kill the soldiers hired from Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, Arabia, Kub, and even from among my own people."


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 The LORD says, "From Migdol in the north to Aswan in the south, all Egypt's defenders will be killed in battle. Egypt's proud army will be destroyed. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


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 "When that day comes and Egypt is destroyed, I will send messengers in ships to arouse the unsuspecting people of Ethiopia, and they will be terrified. That day is coming!"


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 The Sovereign LORD says, "I will use King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia to put an end to Egypt's wealth.


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 He and his ruthless army will come to devastate the land. They will attack Egypt with swords, and the land will be full of corpses.


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 I will dry up the Nile and put Egypt under the power of evil people. Foreigners will devastate the whole country. I, the LORD, have spoken."


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 The Sovereign LORD says, "I will destroy the idols and the false gods in Memphis. There will be no one to rule Egypt, and I will terrify all the people.


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 I will make southern Egypt desolate and set fire to the city of Zoan in the north. I will punish the capital city of Thebes.


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 I will let the city of Pelusium, Egypt's great fortress, feel my fury. I will destroy the wealth of Thebes.


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 I will set fire to Egypt, and Pelusium will be in agony. The walls of Thebes will be broken down, and the city will be flooded.


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 The young men of the cities of Heliopolis and Bubastis will die in the war, and the other people will be taken prisoner.


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 Darkness will fall on Tahpanhes when I break the power of Egypt and put an end to the strength they were so proud of. A cloud will cover Egypt, and the people of all her cities will be taken prisoner.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "I have broken the arm of the king of Egypt. No one has bandaged it or put it in a sling so that it could heal and be strong enough to hold a sword again.


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 Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, say: I am the enemy of the king of Egypt. I am going to break both his arms---the good one and the one already broken---and the sword will fall from his hand.


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 Then I will make the arms of the king of Babylonia strong and put my sword in his hands. But I will break the arms of the king of Egypt, and he will groan and die in front of his enemy.


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 Yes, I will weaken him and strengthen the king of Babylonia. When I give him my sword and he points it toward Egypt, everyone will know that I am the LORD.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "say to the king of Egypt and all his people: How powerful you are! What can I compare you to?


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 You are like a cedar in Lebanon, With beautiful, shady branches, A tree so tall it reaches the clouds.


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 There was water to make it grow, And underground rivers to feed it. They watered the place where the tree was growing And sent streams to all the trees of the forest.


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 Every kind of bird built nests in its branches; The wild animals bore their young in its shelter; The nations of the world rested in its shade.


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 How beautiful the tree was--- So tall, with such long branches. Its roots reached down to the deep-flowing streams.


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 No cedar in God's garden could compare with it. No fir tree ever had such branches, And no plane tree such limbs. No tree in God's own garden was so beautiful.


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 I made it beautiful, with spreading branches. It was the envy of every tree in Eden, the garden of God.


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 "Now then, I, the Sovereign LORD, will tell you what is going to happen to that tree that grew until it reached the clouds. As it grew taller it grew proud;


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 so I have rejected it and will let a foreign ruler have it. He will give that tree what it deserves for its wickedness.


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 Ruthless foreigners will cut it down and leave it. Its branches and broken limbs will fall on every mountain and valley in the country. All the nations that have been living in its shade will go away.


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 The birds will come and perch on the fallen tree, and the wild animals will walk over its branches.


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 And so from now on, no tree, no matter how well-watered it is, will grow that tall again or push its top through the clouds and reach such a height. All of them are doomed to die like mortals, doomed to join those who go down to the world of the dead."


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 This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "On the day when the tree goes to the world of the dead, I will make the underground waters cover it as a sign of mourning. I will hold back the rivers and not let the many streams flow out. Because the tree has died, I will bring darkness over the Lebanon Mountains and make all the trees of the forest wither.


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 When I send it down to the world of the dead, the noise of its downfall will shake the nations. All the trees of Eden and all the choice, well-watered trees of Lebanon who have gone to the world below will be pleased at its downfall.


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 They will go with it to the world of the dead to join those that have already fallen. And all who live under its shadow will be scattered among the nations.


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 "The tree is the king of Egypt and all his people. Not even the trees in Eden were so tall and impressive. But now, like the trees of Eden, it will go down to the world of the dead and join the ungodly and those killed in battle. I have spoken," says the Sovereign LORD.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "give a solemn warning to the king of Egypt. Give him this message from me: You act like a lion among the nations, but you are more like a crocodile splashing through a river. You muddy the water with your feet and pollute the rivers.


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 I will throw you out on the ground and bring all the birds and animals of the world to feed on you.


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 When I destroy you, I will cover the sky and blot out the stars. The sun will hide behind the clouds, and the moon will give no light.


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 I will put out all the lights of heaven and plunge your world into darkness. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


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 "Many nations will be troubled when I spread the news of your destruction through countries you never heard of.


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 What I do to you will shock many nations. When I swing my sword, kings will shudder with fright. On the day you fall, all of them will tremble in fear for their own lives."


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 I will let soldiers from cruel nations draw their swords and kill all your people. All your people and everything else that you are proud of will be destroyed.


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 I will slaughter your cattle at every water hole. There will be no people or cattle to muddy the water any more.


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 I will let your waters settle and become clear and let your rivers run calm. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


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 When I make Egypt a desolate wasteland and destroy all who live there, they will know that I am the LORD.


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 This solemn warning will become a funeral song. The women of the nations will sing it to mourn for Egypt and all its people. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


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 "Mortal man," he said, "mourn for all the many people of Egypt. Send them down with the other powerful nations to the world of the dead.


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 Say to them: "Do you think you are more beautiful than anyone else? You will go down to the world of the dead and lie there among the ungodly.


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 "The people of Egypt will fall with those who are killed in battle. A sword is ready to kill them all.


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 The greatest heroes and those who fought on the Egyptian side welcome the Egyptians to the world of the dead. They shout: 'The ungodly who were killed in battle have come down here, and here they lie!'


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 and their graves are in the deepest parts of the world of the dead. All her soldiers fell in battle, and their graves surround her tomb. Yet once they terrified the land of the living.


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 "Elam is there, with the graves of her soldiers all around. They were all killed in battle, and they went down, uncircumcised, to the world of the dead. In life they spread terror, but now they lie dead and disgraced.


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 Elam lies down among those killed in battle, and the graves of her soldiers are all around her. They are all uncircumcised, all killed in battle. In life they spread terror, but now they lie dead and disgraced, sharing the fate of those killed in battle.


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 "Meshech and Tubal are there, with the graves of their soldiers all around. They are all uncircumcised, all killed in battle. Yet once they terrified the living.


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 They were not given honorable burial like the heroes of ancient times, who went fully armed to the world of the dead, their swords placed under their heads and their shields over their bodies. These heroes were once powerful enough to terrify the living.


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 "Edom is there with her kings and rulers. They were powerful soldiers, but now they lie in the world of the dead with the uncircumcised who were killed in battle.


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 "All the princes of the north are there, and so are the Sidonians. Their power once spread terror, but now they go down in disgrace with those killed in battle and are laid to rest, uncircumcised. They share the disgrace of those who go down to the world of the dead.


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 "The sight of all these who were killed in battle will be a comfort to the king of Egypt and his army," says the Sovereign LORD.


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 "I caused the king of Egypt to terrorize the living, but he and all his army will be killed and laid to rest with all the uncircumcised who die in battle." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "tell your people what happens when I bring war to a land. The people of that country choose one of their number to be a lookout.


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 If someone hears it but pays no attention and the enemy comes and kills him, then he is to blame for his own death.


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 His death is his own fault, because he paid no attention to the warning. If he had paid attention, he could have escaped.


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 If, however, the lookout sees the enemy coming and does not sound the alarm, the enemy will come and kill those sinners, but I will hold the lookout responsible for their death.


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 "Now, mortal man, I am making you a lookout for the nation of Israel. You must pass on to them the warnings I give you.


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 If I announce that an evil person is going to die but you do not warn him to change his ways so that he can save his life, then he will die, still a sinner, and I will hold you responsible for his death.


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 If you do warn an evil person and he doesn't stop sinning, he will die, still a sinner, but your life will be spared."


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 The LORD spoke to me. "Mortal man," he said, "repeat to the Israelites what they are saying: 'We are burdened with our sins and the wrongs we have done. We are wasting away. How can we live?'


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 Tell them that as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God, I do not enjoy seeing sinners die. I would rather see them stop sinning and live. Israel, stop the evil you are doing. Why do you want to die?


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 "Now, mortal man, tell the Israelites that when someone good sins, the good he has done will not save him. If an evil person stops doing evil, he won't be punished, and if a good man starts sinning, his life will not be spared.


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 I may promise life to someone good, but if he starts thinking that his past goodness is enough and begins to sin, I will not remember any of the good he did. He will die because of his sins.


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 I may warn someone evil that he is going to die, but if he stops sinning and does what is right and good---


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 for example, if he returns the security he took for a loan or gives back what he stole---if he stops sinning and follows the laws that give life, he will not die, but live.


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 I will forgive the sins he has committed, and he will live because he has done what is right and good.


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 On the fifth day of the tenth month of the twelfth year of our exile, someone who had escaped from Jerusalem came and told me that the city had fallen.


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 The evening before he came, I had felt the powerful presence of the LORD. When the man arrived the next morning, the LORD gave me back the power of speech.


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 "Mortal man," he said, "the people who are living in the ruined cities of the land of Israel are saying: 'Abraham was only one man, and he was given the whole land. There are many of us, so now the land is ours.'


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 "Tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: You eat meat with the blood still in it. You worship idols. You commit murder. What makes you think that the land belongs to you?


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 You rely on your swords. Your actions are disgusting. Everyone commits adultery. What makes you think that the land is yours?


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 "Tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, warn them that as surely as I am the living God, the people who live in the ruined cities will be killed. Those living in the country will be eaten by wild animals. Those hiding in the mountains and in caves will die of disease.


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 I will make the country a desolate wasteland, and the power they were so proud of will come to an end. The mountains of Israel will be so wild that no one will be able to travel through them.


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 When I punish the people for their sins and make the country a wasteland, then they will know that I am the LORD."


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 The LORD said, "Mortal man, your people are talking about you when they meet by the city walls or in the doorways of their houses. They say to one another, 'Let's go and hear what word has come from the LORD now.'


text:
 So my people crowd in to hear what you have to say, but they don't do what you tell them to do. Loving words are on their lips, but they continue their greedy ways.


text:
 To them you are nothing more than an entertainer singing love songs or playing a harp. They listen to all your words and don't obey a single one of them.


text:
 But when all your words come true---and they will come true---then they will know that a prophet has been among them."


text:
 "Mortal man," he said, "denounce the rulers of Israel. Prophesy to them, and tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, say to them: You are doomed, you shepherds of Israel! You take care of yourselves, but never tend the sheep.


text:
 You drink the milk, wear clothes made from the wool, and kill and eat the finest sheep. But you never tend the sheep.


text:
 You have not taken care of the weak ones, healed the ones that are sick, bandaged the ones that are hurt, brought back the ones that wandered off, or looked for the ones that were lost. Instead, you treated them cruelly.


text:
 So my sheep wandered over the high hills and the mountains. They were scattered over the face of the earth, and no one looked for them or tried to find them.


text:
 As surely as I am the living God, you had better listen to me. My sheep have been attacked by wild animals that killed and ate them because there was no shepherd. My shepherds did not try to find the sheep. They were taking care of themselves and not the sheep.


text:
 I, the Sovereign LORD, declare that I am your enemy. I will take my sheep away from you and never again let you be their shepherds; never again will I let you take care only of yourselves. I will rescue my sheep from you and not let you eat them.


text:
 in the same way as shepherds take care of their sheep that were scattered and are brought together again. I will bring them back from all the places where they were scattered on that dark, disastrous day.


text:
 I will take them out of foreign countries, gather them together, and bring them back to their own land. I will lead them back to the mountains and the streams of Israel and will feed them in pleasant pastures.


text:
 I will let them graze in safety in the mountain meadows and the valleys and in all the green pastures of the land of Israel.


text:
 I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will find them a place to rest. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 "I will look for those that are lost, bring back those that wander off, bandage those that are hurt, and heal those that are sick; but those that are fat and strong I will destroy, because I am a shepherd who does what is right.


text:
 "Now then, my flock, I, the Sovereign LORD, tell you that I will judge each of you and separate the good from the bad, the sheep from the goats.


text:
 Some of you are not satisfied with eating the best grass; you even trample down what you don't eat! You drink the clear water and muddy what you don't drink!


text:
 "So now, I, the Sovereign LORD, tell you that I will judge between you strong sheep and the weak sheep.


text:
 But I will rescue my sheep and not let them be mistreated any more. I will judge each of my sheep and separate the good from the bad.


text:
 I will give them a king like my servant David to be their one shepherd, and he will take care of them.


text:
 I, the LORD, will be their God, and a king like my servant David will be their ruler. I have spoken.


text:
 I will make a covenant with them that guarantees their security. I will get rid of all the dangerous animals in the land, so that my sheep can live safely in the fields and sleep in the forests.


text:
 "I will bless them and let them live around my sacred hill. There I will bless them with showers of rain when they need it.


text:
 The trees will bear fruit, the fields will produce crops, and everyone will live in safety on his own land. When I break my people's chains and set them free from those who made them slaves, then they will know that I am the LORD.


text:
 The heathen nations will not plunder them any more, and the wild animals will not kill and eat them. They will live in safety, and no one will terrify them.


text:
 I will give them fertile fields and put an end to hunger in the land. The other nations will not sneer at them any more.


text:
 Everyone will know that I protect Israel and that they are my people. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 Tell the people what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: "I am your enemy, mountains of Edom! I will make you a desolate wasteland.


text:
 "You were Israel's constant enemy and let her people be slaughtered in the time of her disaster, the time of final punishment for her sins.


text:
 So then---as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God---death is your fate, and you cannot escape it. You are guilty of murder, and murder will follow you.


text:
 I will cover the mountains with corpses, and the bodies of those who are killed in battle will cover the hills and valleys.


text:
 I will make you desolate forever, and no one will live in your cities again. Then you will know that I am the LORD.


text:
 "You said that the two nations, Judah and Israel, together with their lands, belonged to you and that you would possess them, even though I, the LORD, was their God.


text:
 So then, as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God, I will pay you back for your anger, your jealousy, and your hate toward my people. They will know that I am punishing you for what you did to them.


text:
 Then you will know that I, the LORD, heard you say with contempt that the mountains of Israel were desolate and that they were yours to devour.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "I will make you so desolate that the whole world will rejoice at your downfall,


text:
 just as you rejoiced at the devastation of Israel, my own possession. The mountains of Seir, yes, all the land of Edom, will be desolate. Then everyone will know that I am the LORD."


text:
 The LORD said, "Mortal man, speak to the mountains of Israel and tell them to listen to the message which I,


text:
 the Sovereign LORD, have for them: Israel's enemies gloated and said, 'Now those ancient hills are ours!'


text:
 "Prophesy, then, and announce what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying. When the neighboring nations captured and plundered the mountains of Israel, everyone made fun of Israel.


text:
 So now listen to what I, the Sovereign LORD, say to you mountains and hills, to you brooks and valleys, to you places that were left in ruins, and to you deserted cities which were plundered and mocked by all the surrounding nations.


text:
 "I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken out in the heat of my anger against the surrounding nations, and especially against Edom. With glee and contempt they captured my land and took possession of its pastures.


text:
 "So prophesy to the land of Israel; tell the mountains, hills, brooks, and valleys what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying in jealous anger because of the way the nations have insulted and humiliated them.


text:
 But on the mountains of Israel the trees will again grow leaves and bear fruit for you, my people Israel. You are going to come home soon.


text:
 I am on your side, and I will make sure that your land is plowed again and crops are planted on it.


text:
 I will make your population grow. You will live in the cities and rebuild everything that was left in ruins.


text:
 I will make people and cattle increase in number. There will be more of you than ever before, and you will have many children. I will let you live there as you used to live, and I will make you more prosperous than ever. Then you will know that I am the LORD.


text:
 I will bring you, my people Israel, back to live again in the land. It will be your own land, and it will never again let your children starve.


text:
 "I, the Sovereign LORD, say: It is true that people say that the land eats people and that it robs the nation of its children.


text:
 But from now on it will no longer eat people and rob you of your children. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 The land will no longer have to listen to the nations making fun of it or see the peoples sneer at it. The land will no longer rob the nation of its children. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 "Mortal man," he said, "when the Israelites were living in their land, they defiled it by the way they lived and acted. I regarded their behavior as being as ritually unclean as a woman is during her monthly period.


text:
 I let them feel the force of my anger because of the murders they had committed in the land and because of the idols by which they had defiled it.


text:
 Wherever they went, they brought disgrace on my holy name, because people would say, 'These are the people of the LORD, but they had to leave his land.'


text:
 That made me concerned for my holy name, since the Israelites brought disgrace on it everywhere they went.


text:
 "Now then, give the Israelites the message that I, the Sovereign LORD, have for them: What I am going to do is not for the sake of you Israelites, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have disgraced in every country where you have gone.


text:
 When I demonstrate to the nations the holiness of my great name---the name you disgraced among them---then they will know that I am the LORD. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken. I will use you to show the nations that I am holy.


text:
 I will sprinkle clean water on you and make you clean from all your idols and everything else that has defiled you.


text:
 I will give you a new heart and a new mind. I will take away your stubborn heart of stone and give you an obedient heart.


text:
 I will put my spirit in you and will see to it that you follow my laws and keep all the commands I have given you.


text:
 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors. You will be my people, and I will be your God.


text:
 I will save you from everything that defiles you. I will command the grain to be plentiful, so that you will not have any more famines.


text:
 I will increase the yield of your fruit trees and your fields, so that there will be no more famines to disgrace you among the nations.


text:
 You will remember your evil conduct and the wrongs that you committed, and you will be disgusted with yourselves because of your sins and your iniquities.


text:
 Israel, I want you to know that I am not doing all this for your sake. I want you to feel the shame and disgrace of what you are doing. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "When I make you clean from all your sins, I will let you live in your cities again and let you rebuild the ruins.


text:
 Everyone who used to walk by your fields saw how overgrown and wild they were, but I will let you farm them again.


text:
 Everyone will talk about how this land, which was once a wilderness, has become like the Garden of Eden, and how the cities which were torn down, looted, and left in ruins, are now inhabited and fortified.


text:
 Then the neighboring nations that have survived will know that I, the LORD, rebuild ruined cities and replant waste fields. I, the LORD, have promised that I would do this---and I will."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "I will once again let the Israelites ask me for help, and I will let them increase in numbers like a flock of sheep.


text:
 The cities that are now in ruins will then be as full of people as Jerusalem was once full of the sheep which were offered as sacrifices at a festival. Then they will know that I am the LORD."


text:
 I felt the powerful presence of the LORD, and his spirit took me and set me down in a valley where the ground was covered with bones.


text:
 He led me all around the valley, and I could see that there were very many bones and that they were very dry.


text:
 He said to me, "Mortal man, can these bones come back to life?" I replied, "Sovereign LORD, only you can answer that!"


text:
 Tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them: I am going to put breath into you and bring you back to life.


text:
 I will give you sinews and muscles, and cover you with skin. I will put breath into you and bring you back to life. Then you will know that I am the LORD."


text:
 So I prophesied as I had been told. While I was speaking, I heard a rattling noise, and the bones began to join together.


text:
 While I watched, the bones were covered with sinews and muscles, and then with skin. But there was no breath in the bodies.


text:
 God said to me, "Mortal man, prophesy to the wind. Tell the wind that the Sovereign LORD commands it to come from every direction, to breathe into these dead bodies, and to bring them back to life."


text:
 So I prophesied as I had been told. Breath entered the bodies, and they came to life and stood up. There were enough of them to form an army.


text:
 God said to me, "Mortal man, the people of Israel are like these bones. They say that they are dried up, without any hope and with no future.


text:
 So prophesy to my people Israel and tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am going to open their graves. I am going to take them out and bring them back to the land of Israel.


text:
 When I open the graves where my people are buried and bring them out, they will know that I am the LORD.


text:
 I will put my breath in them, bring them back to life, and let them live in their own land. Then they will know that I am the LORD. I have promised that I would do this---and I will. I, the LORD, have spoken."


text:
 "Mortal man," he said, "take a wooden stick and write on it the words, 'The kingdom of Judah.' Then take another stick and write on it the words, 'The kingdom of Israel.'


text:
 tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am going to take the stick representing Israel and put it with the one that represents Judah. Out of the two I will make one stick and hold it in my hand.


text:
 Then tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am going to take all my people out of the nations where they have gone, gather them together, and bring them back to their own land.


text:
 I will unite them into one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. They will have one king to rule over them, and they will no longer be divided into two nations or split into two kingdoms.


text:
 They will not defile themselves with disgusting idols any more or corrupt themselves with sin. I will free them from all the ways in which they sin and betray me. I will purify them; they will be my people, and I will be their God.


text:
 A king like my servant David will be their king. They will all be united under one ruler and will obey my laws faithfully.


text:
 They will live on the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land where their ancestors lived. They will live there forever, and so will their children and all their descendants. A king like my servant David will rule them forever.


text:
 I will make a covenant with them that guarantees their security forever. I will establish them and increase their population, and will see to it that my Temple stands forever in their land.


text:
 When I place my Temple there to be among them forever, then the nations will know that I, the LORD, have chosen Israel to be my own people."


text:
 "Mortal man," he said, "denounce Gog, chief ruler of the nations of Meshech and Tubal in the land of Magog. Denounce him


text:
 I will turn him around, put hooks in his jaws, and drag him and all his troops away. His army, with its horses and uniformed riders, is enormous, and every soldier carries a shield and is armed with a sword.


text:
 All the fighting men of the lands of Gomer and Beth Togarmah in the north are with him, and so are men from many other nations.


text:
 After many years I will order him to invade a country where the people were brought back together from many nations and have lived without fear of war. He will invade the mountains of Israel, which were desolate and deserted so long, but where all the people now live in safety.


text:
 He and his army and the many nations with him will attack like a storm and cover the land like a cloud."


text:
 This is what the Sovereign LORD says to Gog: "When that time comes, you will start thinking up an evil plan.


text:
 You will decide to invade a helpless country where the people live in peace and security in unwalled towns that have no defenses.


text:
 You will plunder and loot the people who live in cities that were once in ruins. They have been gathered from the nations, and now they have livestock and property and live at the crossroads of the world.


text:
 The people of Sheba and Dedan and the merchants from the towns of Spain will ask you, 'Have you assembled your army and attacked in order to loot and plunder? Do you intend to get silver and gold, livestock and property, and march off with all those spoils?' "


text:
 So the Sovereign LORD sent me to tell Gog what he was saying to him: "Now while my people Israel live in security, you will set out


text:
 to come from your place in the far north, leading a large, powerful army of soldiers from many nations, all of them on horseback.


text:
 You will attack my people Israel like a storm moving across the land. When the time comes, I will send you to invade my land in order to show the nations who I am, to show my holiness by what I do through you.


text:
 You are the one I was talking about long ago, when I announced through my servants, the prophets of Israel, that in days to come I would bring someone to attack Israel." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


text:
 I declare in the heat of my anger that on that day there will be a severe earthquake in the land of Israel.


text:
 Every fish and bird, every animal large and small, and every human being on the face of the earth will tremble for fear of me. Mountains will fall, cliffs will crumble, and every wall will collapse.


text:
 I will terrify Gog with all sorts of calamities. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken. His men will turn their swords against one another.


text:
 I will punish him with disease and bloodshed. Torrents of rain and hail, together with fire and sulfur, will pour down on him and his army and on the many nations that are on his side.


text:
 In this way I will show all the nations that I am great and that I am holy. They will know then that I am the LORD."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "Mortal man, denounce Gog, the chief ruler of the nations of Meshech and Tubal, and tell him that I am his enemy.


text:
 I will turn him in a new direction and lead him out of the far north until he comes to the mountains of Israel.


text:
 Gog and his army and his allies will fall dead on the mountains of Israel, and I will let their bodies be food for all the birds and wild animals.


text:
 I will start a fire in the land of Magog and along all the seacoasts where people live undisturbed, and everyone will know that I am the LORD.


text:
 I will make sure that my people Israel know my holy name, and I will not let my name be disgraced any more. Then the nations will know that I, the LORD, am the holy God of Israel."


text:
 The people who live in the cities of Israel will go out and collect the abandoned weapons for firewood. They will build fires with the shields, bows, arrows, spears, and clubs, and have enough to last for seven years.


text:
 They will not have to gather firewood in the fields or cut down trees in the forest, because they will have the abandoned weapons to burn. They will loot and plunder those who looted and plundered them." The Sovereign LORD has spoken.


text:
 The LORD said, "When all this happens, I will give Gog a burial ground there in Israel, in Travelers' Valley, east of the Dead Sea. Gog and all his army will be buried there, and the valley will be called 'The Valley of Gog's Army.'


text:
 Everyone in the land will help bury them, and they will be honored for this on the day of my victory. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 After the seven months are over, men will be chosen to travel through the land in order to find and bury those bodies remaining on the ground, so that they can make the land clean.


text:
 As they go up and down the country, every time they find a human bone, they will put a marker beside it so that the gravediggers can come and bury it in the Valley of Gog's Army.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said to me, "Mortal man, call all the birds and animals to come from all around to eat the sacrifice I am preparing for them. It will be a huge feast on the mountains of Israel, where they can eat meat and drink blood.


text:
 They are to eat the bodies of soldiers and drink the blood of the rulers of the earth, all of whom will be killed like rams or lambs or goats or fat bulls.


text:
 When I kill these people like sacrifices, the birds and animals are to eat all the fat they can hold and to drink blood until they are drunk.


text:
 At my table they will eat all they can hold of horses and their riders and of soldiers and fighting men. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 The LORD said, "I will let the nations see my glory and show them how I use my power to carry out my just decisions.


text:
 And the nations will know that the Israelites went into exile because of the sins which they committed against me. I turned away from them and let their enemies defeat them and kill them in battle.


text:
 I gave them what they deserved for their uncleanness and their wickedness, and I turned away from them."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "But now I will be merciful to Jacob's descendants, the people of Israel, and make them prosperous again. I will protect my holy name.


text:
 When they are once more living in safety in their own land, with no one to threaten them, they will be able to forget how they were disgraced for having betrayed me.


text:
 In order to show to the many nations that I am holy, I will bring my people back from all the countries where their enemies live.


text:
 Then my people will know that I am the LORD their God. They will know this, because I sent them into captivity and now gather them and bring them back into their own land, not leaving even one of them behind.


text:
 I will pour out my spirit on the people of Israel and never again turn away from them. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 It was the tenth day of the new year, which was the twenty-fifth year after we had been taken into exile and the fourteenth year after Jerusalem was captured. On that day I felt the powerful presence of the LORD, and he carried me away.


text:
 In a vision God took me to the land of Israel and put me on a high mountain. I saw in front of me a group of buildings that looked like a city.


text:
 He took me closer, and I saw a man who shone like bronze. He was holding a linen tape measure and a measuring rod and was standing by a gateway.


text:
 He said to me, "Watch, mortal man. Listen carefully and pay close attention to everything I show you, because this is why you were brought here. You are to tell the people of Israel everything you see."


text:
 What I saw was the Temple, and there was a wall around it. The man took his measuring rod, which was 10 feet long, and measured the wall. It was 10 feet high and 10 feet thick.


text:
 Then he went to the gateway that faced east. He went up the steps, and at the top he measured the entrance; it was 10 feet deep.


text:
 Beyond it there was a passageway, which had three guardrooms on each side. Each of the rooms was square, 10 feet on each side, and the walls between them were 8 feet thick. Beyond the guardrooms there was a passageway 10 feet long that led to an entrance room which faced the Temple.


text:
 He measured this room and found it was 14 feet deep. It formed that end of the gateway which was nearest the Temple, and at its far end the walls were 4 feet thick.


text:
 (These guardrooms on each side of the passageway were all the same size, and the walls between them were all of the same thickness.)


text:
 Next, the man measured the width of the passageway in the gateway. It was 22 feet altogether, and the space between the open gates was 16 feet.


text:
 In front of each of the guardrooms there was a low wall 20 inches high and 20 inches thick. (The rooms were 10 feet square.)


text:
 Then he measured the distance from the back wall of one room to the back wall of the room across the passageway from it, and it was 42 feet.


text:
 The room at the far end led out to a courtyard. He measured that room and found it was 34 feet wide.


text:
 The total length of the gateway from the outside wall of the gate to the far side of the last room was 84 feet.


text:
 There were small openings in the outside walls of all the rooms and also in the inner walls between the rooms. There were palm trees carved on the inner walls that faced the passageway.


text:
 The man took me through the gateway into the courtyard. There were thirty rooms built against the outer wall, and in front of them there was an area paved with stones,


text:
 which extended around the courtyard. This outer courtyard was at a lower level than the inner courtyard.


text:
 There was a gateway at a higher level that led to the inner courtyard. The man measured the distance between the two gateways, and it was 168 feet.


text:
 The three guardrooms on each side of the passageway, the walls between them, and the entrance room all had the same measurements as those in the east gateway. The total length of the gateway was 84 feet and the width 42 feet.


text:
 The entrance room, the windows, and the carved palm trees were like those in the east gate. Here seven steps led up to the gate, and the entrance room was at the end facing the courtyard.


text:
 Across the courtyard from this north gateway was another gateway leading to the inner courtyard, just as there was on the east side. The man measured the distance between these two gateways, and it was 168 feet.


text:
 Next, the man took me to the south side, and there we saw another gateway. He measured its inner walls and its entrance room, and they were the same as the others.


text:
 There were windows in the rooms of this gateway just as in the others. The total length of the gateway was 84 feet and the width 42 feet.


text:
 Seven steps led up to it, and its entrance room was also at the end facing the courtyard. There were palm trees carved on the inner walls that faced the passageway.


text:
 Here, too, there was a gateway leading to the inner courtyard. The man measured the distance to this second gateway, and it was 168 feet.


text:
 The man took me through the south gateway into the inner courtyard. He measured the gateway, and it was the same size as the gateways in the outer wall.


text:
 Its guardrooms, its entrance room, and its inner walls were the same size as those in the other gateways. There were also windows in the rooms of this gateway. The total length was 84 feet and the width 42 feet.


text:
 Its entrance room faced the other courtyard, and palm trees were carved on the walls along the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.


text:
 The man took me through the east gateway into the inner courtyard. He measured the gateway, and it was the same size as the others.


text:
 Its guardrooms, its entrance room, and its inner walls measured the same as those in the other gateways. There were windows all around, and in the entrance room also. The total length was 84 feet and the width 42 feet.


text:
 The entrance room faced the outer courtyard. Palm trees were carved on the walls along the passageway. Eight steps led up to this gate.


text:
 Like them, it also had guardrooms, decorated inner walls, an entrance room, and windows all around. Its total length was 84 feet and its width 42 feet.


text:
 In the outer courtyard there was an annex attached to the inner gateway on the north side. It opened into the entrance room that faced the courtyard, and there they washed the carcasses of the animals to be burned whole as sacrifices.


text:
 In this entrance room there were four tables, two on each side of the room. It was on these tables that they killed the animals to be offered as sacrifices, either to be burned whole or to be sacrifices for sin or as repayment offerings.


text:
 Outside the room there were four similar tables, two on either side of the entrance of the north gate.


text:
 Altogether there were eight tables on which the animals to be sacrificed were killed: four inside the room and four out in the courtyard.


text:
 The four tables in the annex, used to prepare the offerings to be burned whole, were of cut stone. They were 20 inches high, and their tops were 30 inches square. All the equipment used in killing the sacrificial animals was kept on these tables.


text:
 Ledges 3 inches wide ran around the edge of the tables. All the meat to be offered in sacrifice was placed on the tables.


text:
 Then he brought me into the inner court. There were two rooms opening on the inner court, one facing south beside the north gateway and the other facing north beside the south gateway.


text:
 and the room which faced north was for the priests who served at the altar. All the priests are descended from Zadok; they are the only members of the tribe of Levi who are permitted to go into the LORD's presence to serve him.


text:
 The man measured the inner courtyard, and it was 168 feet square. The Temple was on the west side, and in front of it was an altar.


text:
 Then he took me into the entrance room of the Temple. He measured the entranceway: it was 9 feet deep and 24 feet wide, with walls 5 feet thick on either side.


text:
 Steps led up to the entrance room, which was 34 feet wide and 20 feet deep. There were two columns, one on each side of the entrance.


text:
 Next, the man took me into the central room, the Holy Place. He measured the passageway into it: it was 10 feet deep


text:
 and 18 feet wide, with walls 8 feet thick on either side. He measured the room itself: it was 68 feet long and 34 feet wide.


text:
 Then he went to the innermost room. He measured the passageway into it: it was 3 feet deep and 10 feet wide, with walls on either side 12 feet thick.


text:
 He measured the room itself, and it was 34 feet square. This room was beyond the central room. Then he said to me, "This is the Most Holy Place."


text:
 The man measured the thickness of the inner wall of the Temple building, and it was 10 feet. Against this wall, all around the Temple, was a series of small rooms 7 feet wide.


text:
 These rooms were in three stories, with thirty rooms on each floor. The Temple's outer wall on each floor was thinner than on the floor below, so that the rooms could rest on the wall without being anchored into it.


text:
 And so the Temple walls, when seen from the outside, seemed to have the same thickness all the way to the top. Against the Temple's outer wall, on the outside of the rooms, two wide stairways were built, so that it was possible to go from the lower story to the middle and the upper stories.


text:
 The outside wall of these rooms was 8 feet thick; there was one door into the rooms on the north side of the Temple, and one into those on the south side. I saw that there was a terrace 8 feet wide around the Temple; it was 10 feet above the ground and it was level with the foundation of the rooms by the Temple walls. Between the terrace and the buildings used by the priests there was an open space 34 feet across, along the sides of the Temple.


text:
 At the far end of the open space on the west side of the Temple there was a building 150 feet long and 116 feet wide; its walls were 9 feet thick all around.


text:
 The man measured the outside of the Temple, and it was 168 feet long. And from the back of the Temple, across the open space to the far side of the building to the west, the distance was also 168 feet.


text:
 The distance across the front of the Temple, including the open space on either side, was also 168 feet.


text:
 He measured the length of the building to the west, including its galleries on both sides, and it was also 168 feet. The entrance room of the Temple, the Holy Place, and the Most Holy Place


text:
 The inside walls of the Temple, up as high as above the doors, were completely covered with carvings


text:
 of palm trees and winged creatures. Palm trees alternated with creatures, one following the other, all the way around the room. Each creature had two faces:


text:
 a human face that was turned toward the palm tree on one side, and a lion's face that was turned toward the tree on the other side. It was like this all around the wall,


text:
 The doorposts of the Holy Place were square. In front of the entrance of the Most Holy Place there was something that looked like


text:
 a wooden altar. It was 5 feet high and 4 feet wide. Its corner posts, its base, and its sides were all made of wood. The man said to me, "This is the table which stands in the presence of the LORD."


text:
 There was a door at the end of the passageway to the Holy Place and one also at the end of the passageway to the Most Holy Place.


text:
 There were palm trees and winged creatures carved on the doors of the Holy Place, just as there were on the walls. And there was a wooden covering over the outside of the doorway of the entrance room.


text:
 Then the man took me into the outer courtyard and led me to a building on the north side of the Temple, not far from the building at the west end of the Temple.


text:
 On one side it faced the space 34 feet wide which was alongside the Temple, and on the other side it faced the pavement of the outer courtyard. It was built on three levels, each one set further back than the one below it.


text:
 Along the north side of this building was a passageway 16 feet wide and 168 feet long, with entrances on that side.


text:
 The rooms at the upper level of the building were narrower than those at the middle and lower levels because they were set further back.


text:
 The rooms at all three levels were on terraces and were not supported by columns like the other buildings in the courtyard.


text:
 At the lower level the outer wall of the building was solid for 84 feet, half its length; and there were rooms in the remaining 84 feet. At the top level there were rooms in the entire length of the building.


text:
 Below these rooms at the east end of the building, where the wall of the courtyard began, there was an entrance into the outer courtyard. At the south side of the Temple there was an identical building not far from the building at the west end of the Temple.


text:
 In front of the rooms there was a passageway just like the one on the north side. It had the same measurements, the same design, and the same kind of entrances.


text:
 There was a door under the rooms on the south side of the building, at the east end where the wall began.


text:
 The man said to me, "Both these buildings are holy. In them the priests who enter the LORD's presence eat the holiest offerings. Because the rooms are holy, the priests will place the holiest offerings there: the offerings of grain and the sacrifices offered for sin or as repayment offerings.


text:
 When priests have been in the Temple and want to go to the outer courtyard, they must leave in these rooms the holy clothing they wore while serving the LORD. They must put on other clothes before going out to the area where the people gather."


text:
 When the man had finished measuring inside the Temple area, he took me out through the east gate and then measured the outside of the area.


text:
 Then he measured the north side, the south side, and the west side; each side had the same length, 840 feet,


text:
 so that the wall enclosed a square 840 feet on each side. The wall served to separate what was holy from what was not.


text:
 and there I saw coming from the east the dazzling light of the presence of the God of Israel. God's voice sounded like the roar of the sea, and the earth shone with the dazzling light.


text:
 This vision was like the one I had seen when God came to destroy Jerusalem, and the one I saw by the Chebar River. Then I threw myself face downward on the ground.


text:
 The LORD's spirit lifted me up and took me into the inner courtyard, where I saw that the Temple was filled with the glory of the LORD.


text:
 "Mortal man, here is my throne. I will live here among the people of Israel and rule them forever. Neither the people of Israel nor their kings will ever again disgrace my holy name by worshiping other gods or by burying the corpses of their dead kings.


text:
 The kings built the doorsills and doorposts of their palace right against the doorsills and doorposts of my Temple, so that there was only a wall between us. They disgraced my holy name by all the disgusting things they did, and so in my anger I destroyed them.


text:
 Now they must stop worshiping other gods and remove the corpses of their kings. If they do, I will live among them forever."


text:
 And the LORD continued, "Mortal man, tell the people of Israel about the Temple, and let them study its plan. Make them ashamed of their sinful actions.


text:
 Then if they are ashamed of what they have done, explain the plan of the Temple to them: its design, its entrances and exits, its shape, the arrangement of everything, and all its rules and regulations. Write all this down for them so that they can see how everything is arranged and can carry out all the rules.


text:
 This is the law of the Temple: All the area surrounding it on the top of the mountain is sacred and holy."


text:
 These are the measurements of the altar, using the same unit of measure as in measuring the Temple. All around the base of the altar there was a gutter 20 inches deep and 20 inches wide, with a rim at the outside edge 10 inches high.


text:
 The lowest section of the altar, from the top of the base, was 4 feet high. The next section was set back from the edge 20 inches all around, and was 7 feet high. The section after that was also set back from the edge 20 inches all around.


text:
 This top section, on which the sacrifices were burned, was also 7 feet high. The projections on the four corners were higher than the rest of the top.


text:
 The middle section was also a square, 24 feet on each side, with a rim at the outside edge 10 inches high. (The gutter was 20 inches wide.) The steps going up the altar were on the east side.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said to me, "Mortal man, listen to what I tell you. When the altar is built, you are to dedicate it by burning sacrifices on it and by sprinkling on it the blood of the animals that were sacrificed.


text:
 Those priests belonging to the tribe of Levi who are descended from Zadok are the only ones who are to come into my presence to serve me. I, the Sovereign LORD, command this. You will give them a young bull to offer as a sacrifice for sin.


text:
 You are to take some of its blood and put it on the projections on the top corners of the altar, on the corners of the middle section of the altar, and all around its edges. In this way you will purify the altar and consecrate it.


text:
 You are to take the bull that is offered as a sacrifice for sin and burn it at the specified place outside the Temple area.


text:
 The next day you are to take a male goat without any defects and offer it as a sacrifice for sin. Purify the altar with its blood the same way you did with the bull.


text:
 When you have finished doing that, take a young bull and a young ram, both of them without any defects,


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 Each day for seven days you are to offer a goat, a bull, and a ram as sacrifices for sin. All of them must be without any defects.


text:
 When the week is over, the priests are to begin offering on the altar the burnt offerings and the fellowship offerings of the people. Then I will be pleased with all of you. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 and the LORD said to me, "This gate will stay closed and will never be opened. No human being is allowed to use it, because I, the LORD God of Israel, have entered through it. It is to remain closed.


text:
 The ruling prince, however, may go there to eat a holy meal in my presence. He is to enter and leave the gateway through the entrance room at the inner end."


text:
 Then the man took me through the north gate to the front of the Temple. As I looked, I saw that the Temple of the LORD was filled with the dazzling light of his presence. I threw myself face downward on the ground,


text:
 and the LORD said to me, "Mortal man, pay attention to everything you see and hear. I am going to tell you the rules and regulations for the Temple. Note carefully which persons are allowed to go in and out of the Temple, and which persons are not allowed.


text:
 "Tell those rebellious people of Israel that I, the Sovereign LORD, will no longer tolerate the disgusting things that they have been doing.


text:
 They have profaned my Temple by letting uncircumcised foreigners, people who do not obey me, enter the Temple when the fat and the blood of the sacrifices are being offered to me. So my people have broken my covenant by all the disgusting things they have done.


text:
 They have not taken charge of the sacred rituals in my Temple, but instead have put foreigners in charge.


text:
 "I, the Sovereign LORD, declare that no uncircumcised foreigner, no one who disobeys me, will enter my Temple, not even a foreigner who lives among the people of Israel."


text:
 The LORD said to me, "I am punishing those Levites who, together with the rest of the people of Israel, deserted me and worshiped idols.


text:
 They may serve me in the Temple by taking charge of the gates and by performing the work of the Temple. They may kill the animals which the people offer for burnt offerings and for sacrifices, and they are to be on duty to serve the people.


text:
 But because they conducted the worship of idols for the people of Israel and in this way led the people into sin, I, the Sovereign LORD, solemnly swear that they must be punished.


text:
 They are not to serve me as priests or to go near anything that is holy to me or to enter the Most Holy Place. This is the punishment for the disgusting things they have done.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "Those priests belonging to the tribe of Levi who are descended from Zadok, however, continued to serve me faithfully in the Temple when the rest of the people of Israel turned away from me. So now they are the ones who are to serve me and come into my presence to offer me the fat and the blood of the sacrifices.


text:
 When they enter the gateway to the inner courtyard of the Temple, they are to put on linen clothing. They must not wear anything made of wool when they are on duty in the inner courtyard or in the Temple.


text:
 Before they go to the outer courtyard where the people are, they must first take off the clothes they wore on duty in the Temple and leave them in the holy rooms. They are to put on other clothing in order to keep their sacred clothing from harming the people.


text:
 "Priests must neither shave their heads nor let their hair grow long. They are to keep it a proper length.


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 No priest may marry a divorced woman; he is to marry only an Israelite virgin or the widow of another priest.


text:
 "The priests are to teach my people the difference between what is holy and what is not, and between what is ritually clean and what is not.


text:
 When a legal dispute arises, the priests are to decide the case according to my laws. They are to keep the religious festivals according to my rules and regulations, and they are to keep the Sabbaths holy.


text:
 "A priest is not to become ritually unclean by touching a corpse, unless it is one of his parents, one of his children or a brother or an unmarried sister.


text:
 and then go into the inner courtyard of the Temple and offer a sacrifice for his purification, so that he can serve in the Temple again. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 "The priests have the priesthood as their share of what I have given Israel to be handed down from one generation to another. They are not to hold property in Israel; I am all they need.


text:
 The grain offerings, the sin offerings, and the repayment offerings will be the priests' food, and they are to receive everything in Israel that is set apart for me.


text:
 The priests are to have the best of all the first harvest and of everything else that is offered to me. Each time the people bake bread, they are to give the priests the first loaf as an offering, and my blessing will rest on their homes.


text:
 The priests must not eat any bird or animal that dies a natural death or is killed by another animal."


text:
 When the land is divided to give each tribe a share, one part is to be dedicated to the LORD. It is to be 10 miles long by 8 miles wide. The entire area will be holy.


text:
 In this area there is to be a square plot of land for the Temple, 840 feet on each side, entirely surrounded by an open space 84 feet wide.


text:
 Half of this area, a section 10 miles by 4 miles, is to be measured off; it will contain the Temple, the holiest place of all.


text:
 It will be a holy part of the country, set aside for the priests who serve the LORD in his Temple. It will contain their houses and the section of land for the Temple.


text:
 The other half of the area is to be set aside as the possession of the Levites, who do the work in the Temple. There will be towns there for them to live in.


text:
 Next to the holy area, another section, 10 miles long and 2 miles wide, is to be set aside for a city where any of the people of Israel may live.


text:
 Land is also to be set aside for the ruling prince. From the west boundary of the holy area it will extend west to the Mediterranean Sea; and from the east boundary it will extend to the eastern border of the country, so that its length will be the same as the length of one of the areas allotted to the tribes of Israel.


text:
 This area will be the share the ruling prince will have in the land of Israel, so that he will no longer oppress the people, but will let the rest of the country belong to the tribes of Israel.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "You have sinned too long, you rulers of Israel! Stop your violence and oppression. Do what is right and just. You must never again drive my people off their land. I, the Sovereign LORD, am telling you this.


text:
 "The <i>ephah</i> for dry measure is to be equal to the <i>bath</i> for liquid measure. The standard is the <i>homer</i>. The resulting measures are as follows: 1 <i>homer</i> = 10 <i>ephahs</i> = 10 <i>baths</i>


text:
 "Your weights are to be as follows: 20 <i>gerahs</i> = 1 <i>shekel</i> 60 <i>shekels</i> = 1 <i>mina</i>


text:
 "This is the basis on which you are to make your offerings: Wheat: 1/60th of your harvest Barley: 1/60th of your harvest Olive oil: 1/100th of the yield of your trees (Measure it by the <i>bath</i>: 10 <i>baths</i> = 1 <i>homer</i> = 1 <i>kor</i>.) Sheep: 1 sheep out of every 200 from the meadows of Israel "You are to bring grain offerings, animals to be burned whole, and animals for fellowship offerings, so that your sins will be forgiven. I, the Sovereign LORD, command it.


text:
 It will be his duty to provide the animals to be burned whole, the grain offerings, and the wine offerings for the whole nation of Israel at the New Moon Festivals, the Sabbaths, and the other festivals. He is to provide the sin offerings, the grain offerings, the offerings to be burned whole, and the fellowship offerings, to take away the sins of the people of Israel."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "On the first day of the first month you are to sacrifice a bull without any defects and purify the Temple.


text:
 The priest will take some of the blood of this sin offering and put it on the doorposts of the Temple, on the four corners of the altar, and on the posts of the gateways to the inner courtyard.


text:
 On the seventh day of the month you are to do the same thing on behalf of anyone who sins unintentionally or through ignorance. In this way you will keep the Temple holy.


text:
 "On the fourteenth day of the first month you will begin the celebration of the Passover Festival. For seven days everyone will eat bread made without yeast.


text:
 On the first day of the festival the ruling prince must offer a bull as a sacrifice for his sins and for those of all the people.


text:
 On each of the seven days of the festival he is to sacrifice to the LORD seven bulls and seven rams without any defects and burn them whole. He is also to sacrifice a male goat each day as a sin offering.


text:
 For each bull and each ram that is sacrificed, there is to be an offering of half a bushel of grain and three quarts of olive oil.


text:
 "For the Festival of Shelters, which begins on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, the prince will offer on each of the seven days the same sacrifice for sin, the same offerings to be burned whole, and the same offerings of grain and olive oil."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "The east gateway to the inner courtyard must be kept closed during the six working days, but it is to be opened on the Sabbath and at the New Moon Festival.


text:
 The ruling prince will go from the outer courtyard into the entrance room of the gateway and stand beside the posts of the gate while the priests burn his sacrifices whole and offer his fellowship offerings. There at the gate he must worship and then go back out. The gate must not be shut until evening.


text:
 Each Sabbath and each New Moon Festival all the people are also to bow down and worship the LORD in front of the gate.


text:
 On the Sabbath the prince is to bring to the LORD, as sacrifices to be burned whole, six lambs and one ram, all without any defects.


text:
 With each ram he is to bring an offering of half a bushel of grain, and with each lamb he is to bring whatever he wants to give. For each half-bushel of grain offering he is to bring three quarts of olive oil.


text:
 At the New Moon Festival he will offer a young bull, six lambs, and a ram, all without any defects.


text:
 With each bull and each ram the offering is to be half a bushel of grain, and with each lamb the offering is to be whatever the prince wants to give. Three quarts of olive oil are to be offered with each half-bushel of grain.


text:
 "When the people come to worship the LORD at any festival, those who enter by the north gate are to leave by the south gate after they have worshiped, and those who enter by the south gate are to leave by the north gate. No one may go out by the same way he entered, but must leave by the opposite gate.


text:
 On the feast days and at the festivals the grain offering will be half a bushel with each bull or ram, and whatever the worshiper wants to give with each lamb. Three quarts of olive oil are to be offered with each half-bushel of grain.


text:
 "When the ruling prince wants to make a voluntary offering to the LORD, either an offering to be burned whole or a fellowship offering, the east gate to the inner courtyard will be opened for him. He is to make the offering in the same way he does on the Sabbath, and the gate is to be closed after he goes back out."


text:
 The LORD says, "Every morning a one-year-old lamb without any defects is to be burned whole as an offering to the LORD. This offering must be made every day.


text:
 Also an offering of five pounds of flour is to be made every morning, along with one quart of olive oil for mixing with the flour. The rules for this offering to the LORD are to be in force forever.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD commands: "If the ruling prince gives any of the land he owns to one of his sons as a present, it will belong to that son as a part of his family property.


text:
 But if the ruling prince gives any of his land to anyone who is in his service, it will become the prince's property again when the Year of Restoration comes. It belongs to him, and only he and his sons can own it permanently.


text:
 The ruling prince must not take any of the people's property away from them. Any land he gives to his sons must be from the land that is assigned to him, so that he will not oppress any of my people by taking their land."


text:
 Then the man took me to the entrance of the rooms facing north near the gate on the south side of the inner courtyard. These are holy rooms for the priests. He pointed out a place on the west side of the rooms


text:
 and said, "This is the place where the priests are to boil the meat offered as sacrifices for sin or as repayment offerings, and to bake the offerings of flour, so that nothing holy is carried to the outer courtyard, where it might harm the people."


text:
 Then he led me to the outer courtyard and showed me that in each of its four corners there was a smaller courtyard, 68 feet long and 48 feet wide.


text:
 The man told me, "These are the kitchens where the Temple servants are to boil the sacrifices the people offer."


text:
 The man led me back to the entrance of the Temple. Water was coming out from under the entrance and flowing east, the direction the Temple faced. It was flowing down from under the south part of the Temple past the south side of the altar.


text:
 The man then took me out of the Temple area by way of the north gate and led me around to the gate that faces east. A small stream of water was flowing out at the south side of the gate.


text:
 With his measuring rod the man measured 560 yards downstream to the east and told me to wade through the stream there. The water came only to my ankles.


text:
 Then he measured another 560 yards, and the water came up to my knees. Another 560 yards farther down, the water was up to my waist.


text:
 He measured 560 yards more, and there the stream was so deep I could not wade through it. It was too deep to cross except by swimming.


text:
 He said to me, "This water flows through the land to the east and down into the Jordan Valley and to the Dead Sea. When it flows into the Dead Sea, it replaces the salt water of that sea with fresh water.


text:
 Wherever the stream flows, there will be all kinds of animals and fish. The stream will make the water of the Dead Sea fresh, and wherever it flows, it will bring life.


text:
 From the Springs of Engedi all the way to the Springs of Eneglaim, there will be fishermen on the shore of the sea, and they will spread out their nets there to dry. There will be as many different kinds of fish there as there are in the Mediterranean Sea.


text:
 But the water in the marshes and ponds along the shore will not be made fresh. They will remain there as a source of salt.


text:
 On each bank of the stream all kinds of trees will grow to provide food. Their leaves will never wither, and they will never stop bearing fruit. They will have fresh fruit every month, because they are watered by the stream that flows from the Temple. The trees will provide food, and their leaves will be used for healing people."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "These are the boundaries of the land that is to be divided among the twelve tribes, with the tribe of Joseph receiving two sections.


text:
 I solemnly promised your ancestors that I would give them possession of this land; now divide it equally among you.


text:
 "The northern boundary runs eastward from the Mediterranean Sea to the city of Hethlon, to Hamath Pass, to the city of Zedad,


text:
 to the cities of Berothah and Sibraim (they are located between the territory of the kingdom of Damascus and that of the kingdom of Hamath), and to the city of Ticon (located by the border of the district of Hauran).


text:
 So the northern boundary runs from the Mediterranean eastward to Enon City, with the border regions of Damascus and Hamath to the north of it.


text:
 "The eastern boundary runs south from a point between the territory of Damascus and that of Hauran, with the Jordan River forming the boundary between the land of Israel on the west and Gilead on the east, as far as Tamar on the Dead Sea.


text:
 "The southern boundary runs southwest from Tamar to the oasis of Kadesh Meribah and then northwest along the Egyptian border to the Mediterranean Sea.


text:
 "The western boundary is formed by the Mediterranean and runs north to a point west of Hamath Pass.


text:
 it is to be your permanent possession. The foreigners who are living among you and who have had children born here are also to receive their share of the land when you divide it. They are to be treated like full Israelite citizens and are to draw lots for shares of the land along with the tribes of Israel.


text:
 All foreign residents will receive their share with the people of the tribe among whom they are living. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken."


text:
 The northern boundary of the land runs eastward from the Mediterranean Sea to the city of Hethlon, to Hamath Pass, to Enon City, to the boundary between the kingdoms of Damascus and Hamath. Each tribe is to receive one section of land extending from the eastern boundary west to the Mediterranean Sea, in the following order from north to south: Dan Asher Naphtali Manasseh Ephraim Reuben Judah


text:
 The next section of the land is to be set apart for special use. It is to be 10 miles wide from north to south, and the same length from east to west as the sections given to the tribes. The Temple will be located within this section.


text:
 The priests are to have a portion of this holy area. From east to west their portion is to measure 10 miles, and from north to south, 4 miles. The Temple of the LORD is to be located in the middle of this area.


text:
 This holy area is to be for the priests who are descendants of Zadok. They served me faithfully and did not join the rest of the Israelites in doing wrong, as the other members of the tribe of Levi did.


text:
 So they are to have a special area next to the area belonging to the Levites, and it will be the holiest of all.


text:
 The Levites also are to have a special area, south of that of the priests. It too is to be 10 miles from east to west, by 4 miles from north to south.


text:
 The area dedicated to the LORD is the best part of all the land, and none of it may be sold or exchanged or transferred to anyone else. It is holy and belongs to the LORD.


text:
 The part of the special area that is left, 10 miles by 2 miles, is not holy, but is for the general use of the people. They may live there and use the land. The city is to be in the center of it,


text:
 The land that is left after the city has been built in the area immediately to the south of the holy area---4 miles by 2 miles on the east and 4 miles by 2 miles on the west---is to be used as farmland by the people who live in the city.


text:
 And so the total area in the center of the section which was set apart will be a square measuring 10 miles on each side, and it will include the area occupied by the city.


text:
 To the east and to the west of this area which contains the Temple, the priests' land, the Levites' land, and the city, the remaining land belongs to the ruling prince. It reaches east to the eastern boundary and west to the Mediterranean Sea, and is bounded on the north by the section belonging to Judah and on the south by the one belonging to Benjamin.


text:
 South of this special section, each of the remaining tribes is to receive one section of land running from the eastern boundary west to the Mediterranean Sea, in the following order from north to south: Benjamin Simeon Issachar Zebulun Gad


text:
 On the south side of the portion given to the tribe of Gad, the boundary runs southwest from Tamar to the oasis of Kadesh, and then northwest along the Egyptian border to the Mediterranean Sea.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD said, "That is the way the land is to be divided into sections for the tribes of Israel to possess."


text:
 There are twelve entrances to the city of Jerusalem. Each of the four walls measures 2,520 yards and has three gates in it, each named for one of the tribes. The gates in the north wall are named for Reuben, Judah, and Levi; those in the east wall, for Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan; those in the south wall, for Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun; and those in the west wall are named for Gad, Asher, and Naphtali.


text:
 The total length of the wall on all four sides of the city is 10,080 yards. The name of the city from now on will be "The- LORD -Is-Here!"


text:
 In the third year that Jehoiakim was king of Judah, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylonia attacked Jerusalem and surrounded the city.


text:
 The Lord let him capture King Jehoiakim and seize some of the Temple treasures. He took some prisoners back with him to the temple of his gods in Babylon, and put the captured treasures in the temple storerooms.


text:
 The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief official, to select from among the Israelite exiles some young men of the royal family and of the noble families.


text:
 They had to be handsome, intelligent, well-trained, quick to learn, and free from physical defects, so that they would be qualified to serve in the royal court. Ashpenaz was to teach them to read and write the Babylonian language.


text:
 The king also gave orders that every day they were to be given the same food and wine as the members of the royal court. After three years of this training they were to appear before the king.


text:
 Among those chosen were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah, all of whom were from the tribe of Judah.


text:
 Daniel made up his mind not to let himself become ritually unclean by eating the food and drinking the wine of the royal court, so he asked Ashpenaz to help him,


text:
 Ashpenaz, however, was afraid of the king, so he said to Daniel, "The king has decided what you are to eat and drink, and if you don't look as fit as the other young men, he may kill me."


text:
 Then compare us with the young men who are eating the food of the royal court, and base your decision on how we look."


text:
 When the time was up, they looked healthier and stronger than all those who had been eating the royal food.


text:
 God gave the four young men knowledge and skill in literature and philosophy. In addition, he gave Daniel skill in interpreting visions and dreams.


text:
 The king talked with them all, and Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah impressed him more than any of the others. So they became members of the king's court.


text:
 No matter what question the king asked or what problem he raised, these four knew ten times more than any fortuneteller or magician in his whole kingdom.


text:
 In the second year that Nebuchadnezzar was king, he had a dream. It worried him so much that he couldn't sleep,


text:
 so he sent for his fortunetellers, magicians, sorcerers, and wizards to come and explain the dream to him. When they came and stood before the king,


text:
 They answered the king in Aramaic, "May Your Majesty live forever! Tell us your dream, and we will explain it to you."


text:
 The king said to them, "I have made up my mind that you must tell me the dream and then tell me what it means. If you can't, I'll have you torn limb from limb and make your houses a pile of ruins.


text:
 But if you can tell me both the dream and its meaning, I will reward you with gifts and great honor. Now then, tell me what the dream was and what it means."


text:
 They answered the king again, "If Your Majesty will only tell us what the dream was, we will explain it."


text:
 At that, the king exclaimed, "Just as I thought! You are trying to gain time, because you see that I have made up my mind


text:
 to give all of you the same punishment if you don't tell me the dream. You have agreed among yourselves to go on telling me lies because you hope that in time things will change. Tell me what the dream was, and then I will know that you can also tell me what it means."


text:
 The advisers replied, "There is no one on the face of the earth who can tell Your Majesty what you want to know. No king, not even the greatest and most powerful, has ever made such a demand of his fortunetellers, magicians, and wizards.


text:
 What Your Majesty is asking for is so difficult that no one can do it for you except the gods, and they do not live among human beings."


text:
 Then Daniel went to Arioch, commander of the king's bodyguard, who had been ordered to carry out the execution. Choosing his words carefully,


text:
 he asked Arioch why the king had issued such a harsh order. So Arioch told Daniel what had happened.


text:
 Daniel went at once and obtained royal permission for more time, so that he could tell the king what the dream meant.


text:
 He told them to pray to the God of heaven for mercy and to ask him to explain the mystery to them so that they would not be killed along with the other advisers in Babylon.


text:
 Then that same night the mystery was revealed to Daniel in a vision, and he praised the God of heaven:


text:
 He controls the times and the seasons; he makes and unmakes kings; it is he who gives wisdom and understanding.


text:
 He reveals things that are deep and secret; he knows what is hidden in darkness, and he himself is surrounded by light.


text:
 I praise you and honor you, God of my ancestors. You have given me wisdom and strength; you have answered my prayer and shown us what to tell the king."


text:
 So Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had commanded to execute the royal advisers. He said to him, "Don't put them to death. Take me to the king, and I will tell him what his dream means."


text:
 At once Arioch took Daniel into King Nebuchadnezzar's presence and told the king, "I have found one of the Jewish exiles who can tell Your Majesty the meaning of your dream."


text:
 The king said to Daniel (who was also called Belteshazzar), "Can you tell me what I dreamed and what it means?"


text:
 Daniel replied, "Your Majesty, there is no wizard, magician, fortuneteller, or astrologer who can tell you that.


text:
 But there is a God in heaven, who reveals mysteries. He has informed Your Majesty what will happen in the future. Now I will tell you the dream, the vision you had while you were asleep.


text:
 "While Your Majesty was sleeping, you dreamed about the future; and God, who reveals mysteries, showed you what is going to happen.


text:
 Now, this mystery was revealed to me, not because I am wiser than anyone else, but so that Your Majesty may learn the meaning of your dream and understand the thoughts that have come to you.


text:
 "Your Majesty, in your vision you saw standing before you a giant statue, bright and shining, and terrifying to look at.


text:
 Its head was made of the finest gold; its chest and arms were made of silver; its waist and hips of bronze,


text:
 While you were looking at it, a great stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it, struck the iron and clay feet of the statue, and shattered them.


text:
 At once the iron, clay, bronze, silver, and gold crumbled and became like the dust on a threshing place in summer. The wind carried it all away, leaving not a trace. But the stone grew to be a mountain that covered the whole earth.


text:
 Your Majesty, you are the greatest of all kings. The God of heaven has made you emperor and given you power, might, and honor.


text:
 He has made you ruler of all the inhabited earth and ruler over all the animals and birds. You are the head of gold.


text:
 After you there will be another empire, not as great as yours, and after that a third, an empire of bronze, which will rule the whole earth.


text:
 And then there will be a fourth empire, as strong as iron, which shatters and breaks everything. And just as iron shatters everything, it will shatter and crush all the earlier empires.


text:
 You also saw that the feet and the toes were partly clay and partly iron. This means that it will be a divided empire. It will have something of the strength of iron, because there was iron mixed with the clay.


text:
 The toes---partly iron and partly clay---mean that part of the empire will be strong and part of it weak.


text:
 You also saw that the iron was mixed with the clay. This means that the rulers of that empire will try to unite their families by intermarriage, but they will not be able to, any more than iron can mix with clay.


text:
 At the time of those rulers the God of heaven will establish a kingdom that will never end. It will never be conquered, but will completely destroy all those empires and then last forever.


text:
 You saw how a stone broke loose from a cliff without anyone touching it and how it struck the statue made of iron, bronze, clay, silver, and gold. The great God is telling Your Majesty what will happen in the future. I have told you exactly what you dreamed, and have given you its true meaning."


text:
 Then King Nebuchadnezzar bowed to the ground and gave orders for sacrifices and offerings to be made to Daniel.


text:
 The king said, "Your God is the greatest of all gods, the Lord over kings, and the one who reveals mysteries. I know this because you have been able to explain this mystery."


text:
 Then he gave Daniel a high position, presented him with many splendid gifts, put him in charge of the province of Babylon, and made him the head of all the royal advisers.


text:
 At Daniel's request the king put Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in charge of the affairs of the province of Babylon; Daniel, however, remained at the royal court.


text:
 King Nebuchadnezzar had a gold statue made, ninety feet high and nine feet wide, and he had it set up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.


text:
 Then the king gave orders for all his officials to come together---the princes, governors, lieutenant governors, commissioners, treasurers, judges, magistrates, and all the other officials of the provinces. They were to attend the dedication of the statue which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.


text:
 You will hear the sound of the trumpets, followed by the playing of oboes, lyres, zithers, and harps; and then all the other instruments will join in. As soon as the music starts, you are to bow down and worship the gold statue that King Nebuchadnezzar has set up.


text:
 And so, as soon as they heard the sound of the instruments, the people of all the nations, races, and languages bowed down and worshiped the gold statue which King Nebuchadnezzar had set up.


text:
 Your Majesty has issued an order that as soon as the music starts, everyone is to bow down and worship the gold statue,


text:
 There are some Jews whom you put in charge of the province of Babylon---Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego---who are disobeying Your Majesty's orders. They do not worship your god or bow down to the statue you set up."


text:
 He said to them, "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, is it true that you refuse to worship my god and to bow down to the gold statue I have set up?


text:
 Now then, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpets, oboes, lyres, zithers, harps, and all the other instruments, bow down and worship the statue. If you do not, you will immediately be thrown into a blazing furnace. Do you think there is any god who can save you?"


text:
 If the God whom we serve is able to save us from the blazing furnace and from your power, then he will.


text:
 But even if he doesn't, Your Majesty may be sure that we will not worship your god, and we will not bow down to the gold statue that you have set up."


text:
 Then Nebuchadnezzar lost his temper, and his face turned red with anger at Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. So he ordered the furnace to be heated seven times hotter than usual.


text:
 And he commanded the strongest men in his army to tie the three men up and throw them into the blazing furnace.


text:
 So they tied them up, fully dressed---shirts, robes, caps, and all---and threw them into the blazing furnace.


text:
 Now because the king had given strict orders for the furnace to be made extremely hot, the flames burned up the guards who took the men to the furnace.


text:
 Suddenly Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement. He asked his officials, "Didn't we tie up three men and throw them into the blazing furnace?" They answered, "Yes, we did, Your Majesty."


text:
 "Then why do I see four men walking around in the fire?" he asked. "They are not tied up, and they show no sign of being hurt---and the fourth one looks like an angel."


text:
 So Nebuchadnezzar went up to the door of the blazing furnace and called out, "Shadrach! Meshach! Abednego! Servants of the Supreme God! Come out!" And they came out at once.


text:
 All the princes, governors, lieutenant governors, and other officials of the king gathered to look at the three men, who had not been harmed by the fire. Their hair was not singed, their clothes were not burned, and there was no smell of smoke on them.


text:
 The king said, "Praise the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego! He sent his angel and rescued these men who serve and trust him. They disobeyed my orders and risked their lives rather than bow down and worship any god except their own.


text:
 "And now I command that if anyone of any nation, race, or language speaks disrespectfully of the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, he is to be torn limb from limb, and his house is to be made a pile of ruins. There is no other god who can rescue like this."


text:
 And the king promoted Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego to higher positions in the province of Babylon.


text:
 King Nebuchadnezzar sent the following message to the people of all nations, races, and languages in the world: "Greetings!


text:
 "How great are the wonders God shows us! How powerful are the miracles he performs! God is king forever; he will rule for all time.


text:
 I ordered all the royal advisers in Babylon to be brought to me so that they could tell me what the dream meant.


text:
 Then all the fortunetellers, magicians, wizards, and astrologers were brought in, and I told them my dream, but they could not explain it to me.


text:
 Then Daniel came in. (He is also called Belteshazzar, after the name of my god.) The spirit of the holy gods is in him, so I told him what I had dreamed. I said to him:


text:
 Belteshazzar, chief of the fortunetellers, I know that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that you understand all mysteries. This is my dream. Tell me what it means.


text:
 Its leaves were beautiful, and it was loaded down with fruit---enough for the whole world to eat. Wild animals rested in its shade, birds built nests in its branches, and every kind of living being ate its fruit.


text:
 "While I was thinking about the vision, I saw coming down from heaven an angel, alert and watchful.


text:
 He proclaimed in a loud voice, 'Cut the tree down and chop off its branches; strip off its leaves and scatter its fruit. Drive the animals from under it and the birds out of its branches.


text:
 But leave the stump in the ground with a band of iron and bronze around it. Leave it there in the field with the grass. " 'Now let the dew fall on this man, and let him live with the animals and the plants.


text:
 This is the decision of the alert and watchful angels. So then, let all people everywhere know that the Supreme God has power over human kingdoms and that he can give them to anyone he chooses---even to those who are least important.'


text:
 "This is the dream I had," said King Nebuchadnezzar. "Now, Belteshazzar, tell me what it means. None of my royal advisers could tell me, but you can, because the spirit of the holy gods is in you."


text:
 At this, Daniel, who is also called Belteshazzar, was so alarmed that he could not say anything. The king said to him, "Belteshazzar, don't let the dream and its message alarm you." Belteshazzar replied, "Your Majesty, I wish that the dream and its explanation applied to your enemies and not to you.


text:
 Its leaves were beautiful, and it had enough fruit on it to feed the whole world. Wild animals rested under it, and birds made their nests in its branches.


text:
 "Your Majesty, you are the tree, tall and strong. You have grown so great that you reach the sky, and your power extends over the whole world.


text:
 While Your Majesty was watching, an angel came down from heaven and said, 'Cut the tree down and destroy it, but leave the stump in the ground. Wrap a band of iron and bronze around it, and leave it there in the field with the grass. Let the dew fall on this man, and let him live there with the animals for seven years.'


text:
 "This, then, is what it means, Your Majesty, and this is what the Supreme God has declared will happen to you.


text:
 You will be driven away from human society and will live with wild animals. For seven years you will eat grass like an ox and sleep in the open air, where the dew will fall on you. Then you will admit that the Supreme God controls all human kingdoms and that he can give them to anyone he chooses.


text:
 The angel ordered the stump to be left in the ground. This means that you will become king again when you acknowledge that God rules all the world.


text:
 So then, Your Majesty, follow my advice. Stop sinning, do what is right, and be merciful to the poor. Then you will continue to be prosperous."


text:
 he said, "Look how great Babylon is! I built it as my capital city to display my power and might, my glory and majesty."


text:
 Before the words were out of his mouth, a voice spoke from heaven, "King Nebuchadnezzar, listen to what I say! Your royal power is now taken away from you.


text:
 You will be driven away from human society, live with wild animals, and eat grass like an ox for seven years. Then you will acknowledge that the Supreme God has power over human kingdoms and that he can give them to anyone he chooses."


text:
 The words came true immediately. Nebuchadnezzar was driven out of human society and ate grass like an ox. The dew fell on his body, and his hair grew as long as eagle feathers and his nails as long as bird claws.


text:
 "When the seven years had passed," said the king, "I looked up at the sky, and my sanity returned. I praised the Supreme God and gave honor and glory to the one who lives forever. "He will rule forever, and his kingdom will last for all time.


text:
 He looks on the people of the earth as nothing; angels in heaven and people on earth are under his control. No one can oppose his will or question what he does.


text:
 "When my sanity returned, my honor, my majesty, and the glory of my kingdom were given back to me. My officials and my noblemen welcomed me, and I was given back my royal power with even greater honor than before.


text:
 "And now, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, honor, and glorify the King of Heaven. Everything he does is right and just, and he can humble anyone who acts proudly."


text:
 One night King Belshazzar invited a thousand noblemen to a great banquet, and they drank wine together.


text:
 While they were drinking, Belshazzar gave orders to bring in the gold and silver cups and bowls which his father Nebuchadnezzar had carried off from the Temple in Jerusalem. The king sent for them so that he, his noblemen, his wives, and his concubines could drink out of them.


text:
 Suddenly a human hand appeared and began writing on the plaster wall of the palace, where the light from the lamps was shining most brightly. And the king saw the hand as it was writing.


text:
 He shouted for someone to bring in the magicians, wizards, and astrologers. When they came in, the king said to them, "Anyone who can read this writing and tell me what it means will be dressed in robes of royal purple, wear a gold chain of honor around his neck, and be the third in power in the kingdom."


text:
 The royal advisers came forward, but none of them could read the writing or tell the king what it meant.


text:
 The queen mother heard the noise made by the king and his noblemen and entered the banquet hall. She said, "May Your Majesty live forever! Please do not be so disturbed and look so pale.


text:
 There is a man in your kingdom who has the spirit of the holy gods in him. When your father was king, this man showed good sense, knowledge, and wisdom like the wisdom of the gods. And King Nebuchadnezzar, your father, made him chief of the fortunetellers, magicians, wizards, and astrologers.


text:
 He has unusual ability and is wise and skillful in interpreting dreams, solving riddles, and explaining mysteries; so send for this man Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar, and he will tell you what all this means."


text:
 Daniel was brought at once into the king's presence, and the king said to him, "Are you Daniel, that Jewish exile whom my father the king brought here from Judah?


text:
 I have heard that the spirit of the holy gods is in you and that you are skillful and have knowledge and wisdom.


text:
 The advisers and magicians were brought in to read this writing and tell me what it means, but they could not discover the meaning.


text:
 Now I have heard that you can find hidden meanings and explain mysteries. If you can read this writing and tell me what it means, you will be dressed in robes of royal purple, wear a gold chain of honor around your neck, and be the third in power in the kingdom."


text:
 Daniel replied, "Keep your gifts for yourself or give them to someone else. I will read for Your Majesty what has been written and tell you what it means.


text:
 He was so great that people of all nations, races, and languages were afraid of him and trembled. If he wanted to kill someone, he did; if he wanted to keep someone alive, he did. He honored or disgraced anyone he wanted to.


text:
 But because he became proud, stubborn, and cruel, he was removed from his royal throne and lost his place of honor.


text:
 He was driven away from human society, and his mind became like that of an animal. He lived with wild donkeys, ate grass like an ox, and slept in the open air with nothing to protect him from the dew. Finally he admitted that the Supreme God controls all human kingdoms and can give them to anyone he chooses.


text:
 You acted against the Lord of heaven and brought in the cups and bowls taken from his Temple. You, your noblemen, your wives, and your concubines drank wine out of them and praised gods made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone---gods that cannot see or hear and that do not know anything. But you did not honor the God who determines whether you live or die and who controls everything you do.


text:
 And this is what it means: <i>number,</i> God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought it to an end;


text:
 Immediately Belshazzar ordered his servants to dress Daniel in a robe of royal purple and to hang a gold chain of honor around his neck. And he made him the third in power in the kingdom.


text:
 In addition, he chose Daniel and two others to supervise the governors and to look after the king's interests.


text:
 Daniel soon showed that he could do better work than the other supervisors or the governors. Because he was so outstanding, the king considered putting him in charge of the whole empire.


text:
 Then the other supervisors and the governors tried to find something wrong with the way Daniel administered the empire, but they couldn't, because Daniel was reliable and did not do anything wrong or dishonest.


text:
 They said to each other, "We are not going to find anything of which to accuse Daniel unless it is something in connection with his religion."


text:
 All of us who administer your empire---the supervisors, the governors, the lieutenant governors, and the other officials---have agreed that Your Majesty should issue an order and enforce it strictly. Give orders that for thirty days no one be permitted to request anything from any god or from any human being except from Your Majesty. Anyone who violates this order is to be thrown into a pit filled with lions.


text:
 So let Your Majesty issue this order and sign it, and it will be in force, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed."


text:
 When Daniel learned that the order had been signed, he went home. In an upstairs room of his house there were windows that faced toward Jerusalem. There, just as he had always done, he knelt down at the open windows and prayed to God three times a day.


text:
 all of them went together to the king to accuse Daniel. They said, "Your Majesty, you signed an order that for the next thirty days anyone who requested anything from any god or from any human being except you, would be thrown into a pit filled with lions." The king replied, "Yes, that is a strict order, a law of the Medes and Persians, which cannot be changed."


text:
 Then they said to the king, "Daniel, one of the exiles from Judah, does not respect Your Majesty or obey the order you issued. He prays regularly three times a day."


text:
 When the king heard this, he was upset and did his best to find some way to rescue Daniel. He kept trying until sunset.


text:
 Then Daniel's enemies came back to the king and said to him, "Your Majesty knows that according to the laws of the Medes and Persians no order which the king issues can be changed."


text:
 So the king gave orders for Daniel to be taken and thrown into the pit filled with lions. He said to Daniel, "May your God, whom you serve so loyally, rescue you."


text:
 A stone was put over the mouth of the pit, and the king placed his own royal seal and the seal of his noblemen on the stone, so that no one could rescue Daniel.


text:
 Then the king returned to the palace and spent a sleepless night, without food or any form of entertainment.


text:
 When he got there, he called out anxiously, "Daniel, servant of the living God! Was the God you serve so loyally able to save you from the lions?"


text:
 God sent his angel to shut the mouths of the lions so that they would not hurt me. He did this because he knew that I was innocent and because I have not wronged you, Your Majesty."


text:
 The king was overjoyed and gave orders for Daniel to be pulled up out of the pit. So they pulled him up and saw that he had not been hurt at all, for he trusted God.


text:
 Then the king gave orders to arrest all those who had accused Daniel, and he had them thrown, together with their wives and children, into the pit filled with lions. Before they even reached the bottom of the pit, the lions pounced on them and broke all their bones.


text:
 I command that throughout my empire everyone should fear and respect Daniel's God. "He is a living God, and he will rule forever. His kingdom will never be destroyed, and his power will never come to an end.


text:
 He saves and rescues; he performs wonders and miracles in heaven and on earth. He saved Daniel from being killed by the lions."


text:
 In the first year that Belshazzar was king of Babylonia, I had a dream and saw a vision in the night. I wrote the dream down, and this is the record


text:
 of what I saw that night: Winds were blowing from all directions and lashing the surface of the ocean.


text:
 The first one looked like a lion, but had wings like an eagle. While I was watching, the wings were torn off. The beast was lifted up and made to stand up straight. And then a human mind was given to it.


text:
 The second beast looked like a bear standing on its hind legs. It was holding three ribs between its teeth, and a voice said to it, "Go on, eat as much meat as you can!"


text:
 While I was watching, another beast appeared. It looked like a leopard, but on its back there were four wings, like the wings of a bird, and it had four heads. It had a look of authority about it.


text:
 As I was watching, a fourth beast appeared. It was powerful, horrible, terrifying. With its huge iron teeth it crushed its victims, and then it trampled on them. Unlike the other beasts, it had ten horns.


text:
 While I was staring at the horns, I saw a little horn coming up among the others. It tore out three of the horns that were already there. This horn had human eyes and a mouth that was boasting proudly.


text:
 While I was looking, thrones were put in place. One who had been living forever sat down on one of the thrones. His clothes were white as snow, and his hair was like pure wool. His throne, mounted on fiery wheels, was blazing with fire,


text:
 and a stream of fire was pouring out from it. There were many thousands of people there to serve him, and millions of people stood before him. The court began its session, and the books were opened.


text:
 While I was looking, I could still hear the little horn bragging and boasting. As I watched, the fourth beast was killed, and its body was thrown into the flames and destroyed.


text:
 The other beasts had their power taken away, but they were permitted to go on living for a limited time.


text:
 During this vision in the night, I saw what looked like a human being. He was approaching me, surrounded by clouds, and he went to the one who had been living forever and was presented to him.


text:
 He was given authority, honor, and royal power, so that the people of all nations, races, and languages would serve him. His authority would last forever, and his kingdom would never end.


text:
 I went up to one of those standing there and asked him to explain it all. So he told me the meaning.


text:
 Then I wanted to know more about the fourth beast, which was not like any of the others---the terrifying beast which crushed its victims with its bronze claws and iron teeth and then trampled on them.


text:
 And I wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and the horn that had come up afterward and had made three of the horns fall. It had eyes and a mouth and was boasting proudly. It was more terrifying than any of the others.


text:
 Then the one who had been living forever came and pronounced judgment in favor of the people of the Supreme God. The time had arrived for God's people to receive royal power.


text:
 This is the explanation I was given: "The fourth beast is a fourth empire that will be on the earth and will be different from all other empires. It will crush the whole earth and trample it down.


text:
 The ten horns are ten kings who will rule that empire. Then another king will appear; he will be very different from the earlier ones and will overthrow three kings.


text:
 He will speak against the Supreme God and oppress God's people. He will try to change their religious laws and festivals, and God's people will be under his power for three and a half years.


text:
 The power and greatness of all the kingdoms on earth will be given to the people of the Supreme God. Their royal power will never end, and all rulers on earth will serve and obey them."


text:
 This is the end of the account. I was so frightened that I turned pale, and I kept everything to myself.


text:
 In the vision I suddenly found myself in the walled city of Susa in the province of Elam. I was standing by the Ulai River,


text:
 and there beside the river I saw a ram that had two long horns, one of which was longer and newer than the other.


text:
 I watched the ram butting with his horns to the west, the north, and the south. No animal could stop him or escape his power. He did as he pleased and grew arrogant.


text:
 While I was wondering what this meant, a goat came rushing out of the west, moving so fast that his feet didn't touch the ground. He had one prominent horn between his eyes.


text:
 He came toward the ram, which I had seen standing beside the river, and rushed at him with all his force.


text:
 I watched him attack the ram. He was so angry that he smashed into him and broke the two horns. The ram had no strength to resist. He was thrown to the ground and trampled on, and there was no one who could save him.


text:
 The goat grew more and more arrogant, but at the height of his power his horn was broken. In its place four prominent horns came up, each pointing in a different direction.


text:
 Out of one of these four horns grew a little horn, whose power extended toward the south and the east and toward the Promised Land.


text:
 It grew strong enough to attack the army of heaven, the stars themselves, and it threw some of them to the ground and trampled on them.


text:
 It even defied the Prince of the heavenly army, stopped the daily sacrifices offered to him, and ruined the Temple.


text:
 People sinned there instead of offering the proper daily sacrifices, and true religion was thrown to the ground. The horn was successful in everything it did.


text:
 Then I heard one angel ask another, "How long will these things that were seen in the vision continue? How long will an awful sin replace the daily sacrifices? How long will the army of heaven and the Temple be trampled on?"


text:
 I heard the other angel answer, "It will continue for 2,300 evenings and mornings, during which sacrifices will not be offered. Then the Temple will be restored."


text:
 I was trying to understand what the vision meant, when suddenly someone was standing in front of me.


text:
 I heard a voice call out over the Ulai River, "Gabriel, explain to him the meaning of what he saw."


text:
 Gabriel came and stood beside me, and I was so terrified that I fell to the ground. He said to me, "Mortal man, understand the meaning. The vision has to do with the end of the world."


text:
 While he was talking, I fell to the ground unconscious. But he took hold of me, raised me to my feet,


text:
 and said, "I am showing you what the result of God's anger will be. The vision refers to the time of the end.


text:
 The goat represents the kingdom of Greece, and the prominent horn between his eyes is the first king.


text:
 The four horns that came up when the first horn was broken represent the four kingdoms into which that nation will be divided and which will not be as strong as the first kingdom.


text:
 "When the end of those kingdoms is near and they have become so wicked that they must be punished, there will be a stubborn, vicious, and deceitful king.


text:
 He will grow strong---but not by his own power. He will cause terrible destruction and be successful in everything he does. He will bring destruction on powerful men and on God's own people.


text:
 Because he is cunning, he will succeed in his deceitful ways. He will be proud of himself and destroy many people without warning. He will even defy the greatest King of all, but he will be destroyed without the use of any human power.


text:
 This vision about the evening and morning sacrifices which has been explained to you will come true. But keep it secret now, because it will be a long time before it does come true."


text:
 I was depressed and ill for several days. Then I got up and went back to the work that the king had assigned to me, but I was puzzled by the vision and could not understand it.


text:
 In the first year of his reign I was studying the sacred books and thinking about the seventy years that Jerusalem would be in ruins, according to what the LORD had told the prophet Jeremiah.


text:
 And I prayed earnestly to the Lord God, pleading with him, fasting, wearing sackcloth, and sitting in ashes.


text:
 I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed the sins of my people. I said, "Lord God, you are great, and we honor you. You are faithful to your covenant and show constant love to those who love you and do what you command.


text:
 "We have sinned, we have been evil, we have done wrong. We have rejected what you commanded us to do and have turned away from what you showed us was right.


text:
 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our rulers, our ancestors, and our whole nation.


text:
 You, Lord, always do what is right, but we have always brought disgrace on ourselves. This is true of all of us who live in Judea and in Jerusalem and of all the Israelites whom you scattered in countries near and far because they were unfaithful to you.


text:
 We did not listen to you, O LORD our God, when you told us to live according to the laws which you gave us through your servants the prophets.


text:
 All Israel broke your laws and refused to listen to what you said. We sinned against you, and so you brought on us the curses that are written in the Law of Moses, your servant.


text:
 You did what you said you would do to us and our rulers. You punished Jerusalem more severely than any other city on earth,


text:
 giving us all the punishment described in the Law of Moses. But even now, O LORD our God, we have not tried to please you by turning from our sins or by following your truth.


text:
 You, O LORD our God, were prepared to punish us, and you did, because you always do what is right, and we did not listen to you.


text:
 "O Lord our God, you showed your power by bringing your people out of Egypt, and your power is still remembered. We have sinned; we have done wrong.


text:
 You have defended us in the past, so do not be angry with Jerusalem any longer. It is your city, your sacred hill. All the people in the neighboring countries look down on Jerusalem and on your people because of our sins and the evil our ancestors did.


text:
 O God, hear my prayer and pleading. Restore your Temple, which has been destroyed; restore it so that everyone will know that you are God.


text:
 Listen to us, O God; look at us and see the trouble we are in and the suffering of the city that bears your name. We are praying to you because you are merciful, not because we have done right.


text:
 Lord, hear us. Lord, forgive us. Lord, listen to us, and act! In order that everyone will know that you are God, do not delay! This city and these people are yours."


text:
 I went on praying, confessing my sins and the sins of my people Israel and pleading with the LORD my God to restore his holy Temple.


text:
 While I was praying, Gabriel, whom I had seen in the earlier vision, came flying down to where I was. It was the time for the evening sacrifice to be offered.


text:
 When you began to plead with God, he answered you. He loves you, and so I have come to tell you the answer. Now pay attention while I explain the vision.


text:
 "Seven times seventy years is the length of time God has set for freeing your people and your holy city from sin and evil. Sin will be forgiven and eternal justice established, so that the vision and the prophecy will come true, and the holy Temple will be rededicated.


text:
 Note this and understand it: From the time the command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until God's chosen leader comes, seven times seven years will pass. Jerusalem will be rebuilt with streets and strong defenses, and will stand for seven times sixty-two years, but this will be a time of troubles.


text:
 And at the end of that time God's chosen leader will be killed unjustly. The city and the Temple will be destroyed by the invading army of a powerful ruler. The end will come like a flood, bringing the war and destruction which God has prepared.


text:
 That ruler will have a firm agreement with many people for seven years, and when half this time is past, he will put an end to sacrifices and offerings. The Awful Horror will be placed on the highest point of the Temple and will remain there until the one who put it there meets the end which God has prepared for him."


text:
 In the third year that Cyrus was emperor of Persia, a message was revealed to Daniel, who is also called Belteshazzar. The message was true but extremely hard to understand. It was explained to him in a vision.


text:
 I did not eat any rich food or any meat, drink any wine, or comb my hair until the three weeks were past.


text:
 On the twenty-fourth day of the first month of the year I was standing on the bank of the mighty Tigris River.


text:
 His body shone like a jewel. His face was as bright as a flash of lightning, and his eyes blazed like fire. His arms and legs shone like polished bronze, and his voice sounded like the roar of a great crowd.


text:
 I was the only one who saw the vision. Those who were with me did not see anything, but they were terrified and ran and hid.


text:
 I was left there alone, watching this amazing vision. I had no strength left, and my face was so changed that no one could have recognized me.


text:
 The angel said to me, "Daniel, God loves you. Stand up and listen carefully to what I am going to say. I have been sent to you." When he had said this, I stood up, still trembling.


text:
 Then he said, "Daniel, don't be afraid. God has heard your prayers ever since the first day you decided to humble yourself in order to gain understanding. I have come in answer to your prayer.


text:
 The angel prince of the kingdom of Persia opposed me for twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief angels, came to help me, because I had been left there alone in Persia.


text:
 I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the future. This is a vision about the future."


text:
 Then the angel, who looked like a human being, reached out and touched my lips. I said to him, "Sir, this vision makes me so weak that I can't stop trembling.


text:
 I am like a slave standing before his master. How can I talk to you? I have no strength or breath left in me."


text:
 He said, "God loves you, so don't let anything worry you or frighten you." When he had said this, I felt even stronger and said, "Sir, tell me what you have to say. You have made me feel better."


text:
 He said, "Do you know why I came to you? It is to reveal to you what is written in the Book of Truth. Now I have to go back and fight the guardian angel of Persia. After that the guardian angel of Greece will appear. There is no one to help me except Michael, Israel's guardian angel.


text:
 And what I am now going to tell you is true." The angel said, "Three more kings will rule over Persia, followed by a fourth, who will be richer than all the others. At the height of his power and wealth he will challenge the kingdom of Greece.


text:
 But at the height of his power his empire will break up and be divided into four parts. Kings not descended from him will rule in his place, but they will not have the power that he had.


text:
 "The king of Egypt will be strong. One of his generals, however, will be even stronger and rule a greater kingdom.


text:
 After a number of years the king of Egypt will make an alliance with the king of Syria and give him his daughter in marriage. But the alliance will not last, and she, her husband, her child, and the servants who went with her will all be killed.


text:
 Soon afterward one of her relatives will become king. He will attack the army of the king of Syria, enter their fortress, and defeat them.


text:
 He will carry back to Egypt the images of their gods and the articles of gold and silver dedicated to those gods. After several years of peace


text:
 "The sons of the king of Syria will prepare for war and gather a large army. One of them will sweep on like a flood and attack an enemy fortress.


text:
 He will be proud of his victory and of the many soldiers he has killed, but he will not continue to be victorious.


text:
 "The king of Syria will go back and gather a larger army than he had before. When the proper time comes, he will return with a large, well-equipped army.


text:
 Then many people will rebel against the king of Egypt. And some violent people from your nation, Daniel, will rebel because of a vision they have seen, but they will be defeated.


text:
 So the king of Syria will lay siege to a fortified city and capture it. The soldiers of Egypt will not continue to fight; even the best of them will not have enough strength.


text:
 The Syrian invader will do with them as he pleases, without opposition. He will stand in the Promised Land and have it completely in his power.


text:
 "The king of Syria will plan an expedition, using his whole army. Then, in order to destroy his enemy's kingdom, he will make an alliance with him and offer him his daughter in marriage; but his plan will not succeed.


text:
 After that he will attack the nations by the sea and conquer many of them. But a foreign leader will defeat him and put an end to his arrogance; indeed he will turn the arrogance of Syria's king back on him.


text:
 The king will return to the fortresses of his own land, but he will be defeated, and that will be the end of him.


text:
 "He will be followed by another king, who will send an officer to oppress the people with taxes in order to increase the wealth of his kingdom. In a short time that king will be killed, but not publicly and not in battle."


text:
 The angel went on to explain: "The next king of Syria will be an evil man who has no right to be king, but he will come unexpectedly and seize power by trickery.


text:
 By making treaties, he will deceive other nations, and he will grow stronger and stronger, even though he rules only a small nation.


text:
 He will invade a wealthy province without warning and will do things that none of his ancestors ever did. Then he will divide among his followers the goods and property he has captured in war. He will make plans to attack fortresses, but his time will soon run out.


text:
 "He will boldly raise a large army to attack the king of Egypt, who will prepare to fight back with a huge and powerful army. But the king of Egypt will be deceived and will not be successful.


text:
 His closest advisers will ruin him. Many of his soldiers will be killed, and his army will be wiped out.


text:
 Then the two kings will sit down to eat at the same table, but their motives will be evil, and they will lie to each other. They will not get what they want, because the time for it has not yet come.


text:
 The king of Syria will return home with all the loot he has captured, determined to destroy the religion of God's people. He will do as he pleases and then return to his own land.


text:
 The Romans will come in ships and oppose him, and he will be frightened. "Then he will turn back in a rage and try to destroy the religion of God's people. He will follow the advice of those who have abandoned that religion.


text:
 Some of his soldiers will make the Temple ritually unclean. They will stop the daily sacrifices and set up The Awful Horror.


text:
 By deceit the king will win the support of those who have already abandoned their religion, but those who follow God will fight back.


text:
 Wise leaders of the people will share their wisdom with many others. But for a while some of them will be killed in battle or be burned to death, and some will be robbed and made prisoners.


text:
 While the killing is going on, God's people will receive a little help, even though many who join them will do so for selfish reasons.


text:
 Some of those wise leaders will be killed, but as a result of this the people will be purified. This will continue until the end comes, the time that God has set.


text:
 "The king of Syria will do as he pleases. He will boast that he is greater than any god, superior even to the Supreme God. He will be able to do this until the time when God punishes him. God will do exactly what he has planned.


text:
 The king will ignore the god his ancestors served, and also the god that women love. In fact, he will ignore every god, because he will think he is greater than any of them.


text:
 Instead, he will honor the god who protects fortresses. He will offer gold, silver, jewels, and other rich gifts to a god his ancestors never worshiped.


text:
 To defend his fortresses, he will use people who worship a foreign god. He will give great honor to those who accept him as ruler, put them into high offices, and give them land as a reward.


text:
 "When the king of Syria's final hour has almost come, the king of Egypt will attack him, and the king of Syria will fight back with all his power, using chariots, horses, and many ships. He will invade many countries, like the waters of a flood.


text:
 He will even invade the Promised Land and kill tens of thousands, but the countries of Edom, Moab, and what is left of Ammon will escape.


text:
 He will take away Egypt's hidden treasures of gold and silver and its other prized possessions. He will conquer Libya and Ethiopia.


text:
 Then news that comes from the east and the north will frighten him, and he will fight furiously, killing many people.


text:
 He will even set up his huge royal tents between the sea and the mountain on which the Temple stands. But he will die, with no one there to help him."


text:
 The angel wearing linen clothes said, "At that time the great angel Michael, who guards your people, will appear. Then there will be a time of troubles, the worst since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, all the people of your nation whose names are written in God's book will be saved.


text:
 Many of those who have already died will live again: some will enjoy eternal life, and some will suffer eternal disgrace.


text:
 The wise leaders will shine with all the brightness of the sky. And those who have taught many people to do what is right will shine like the stars forever."


text:
 He said to me, "And now, Daniel, close the book and put a seal on it until the end of the world. Meanwhile, many people will waste their efforts trying to understand what is happening."


text:
 One of them asked the angel who was standing further upstream, "How long will it be until these amazing events come to an end?"


text:
 The angel raised both hands toward the sky and made a solemn promise in the name of the Eternal God. I heard him say, "It will be three and a half years. When the persecution of God's people ends, all these things will have happened."


text:
 He answered, "You must go now, Daniel, because these words are to be kept secret and hidden until the end comes.


text:
 Many people will be purified. Those who are wicked will not understand but will go on being wicked; only those who are wise will understand.


text:
 "From the time the daily sacrifices are stopped, that is, from the time of The Awful Horror, 1,290 days will pass.


text:
 "And you, Daniel, be faithful to the end. Then you will die, but you will rise to receive your reward at the end of time."


text:
 This is the message which the LORD gave Hosea son of Beeri during the time that Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah, and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel.


text:
 When the LORD first spoke to Israel through Hosea, he said to Hosea, "Go and get married; your wife will be unfaithful, and your children will be just like her. In the same way my people have left me and become unfaithful."


text:
 So Hosea married a woman named Gomer, the daughter of Diblaim. After the birth of their first child, a son,


text:
 the LORD said to Hosea, "Name him 'Jezreel,' because it will not be long before I punish the king of Israel for the murders that his ancestor Jehu committed at Jezreel. I am going to put an end to Jehu's dynasty.


text:
 Gomer had a second child---this time it was a daughter. The LORD said to Hosea, "Name her 'Unloved,' because I will no longer show love to the people of Israel or forgive them.


text:
 But to the people of Judah I will show love. I, the LORD their God, will save them, but I will not do it by war---with swords or bows and arrows or with horses and horsemen."


text:
 The LORD said to Hosea, "Name him 'Not-My-People,' because the people of Israel are not my people, and I am not their God."


text:
 The people of Israel will become like the sand of the sea, more than can be counted or measured. Now God says to them, "You are not my people," but the day is coming when he will say to them, "You are the children of the living God!"


text:
 The people of Judah and the people of Israel will be reunited. They will choose for themselves a single leader, and once again they will grow and prosper in their land. Yes, the day of Jezreel will be a great day!


text:
 My children, plead with your mother---though she is no longer a wife to me, and I am no longer her husband. Plead with her to stop her adultery and prostitution.


text:
 If she does not, I will strip her as naked as she was on the day she was born. I will make her like a dry and barren land, and she will die of thirst.


text:
 I will not show mercy to her children; they are the children of a shameless prostitute. She herself said, "I will go to my lovers---they give me food and water, wool and linen, olive oil and wine."


text:
 She will run after her lovers but will not catch them. She will look for them but will not find them. Then she will say, "I am going back to my first husband---I was better off then than I am now."


text:
 She would never acknowledge that I am the one who gave her the grain, the wine, the olive oil, and all the silver and gold that she used in the worship of Baal.


text:
 So at harvest time I will take back my gifts of grain and wine, and will take away the wool and the linen I gave her for clothing.


text:
 I will put an end to all her festivities---her annual and monthly festivals and her Sabbath celebrations---all her religious meetings.


text:
 I will destroy her grapevines and her fig trees, which she said her lovers gave her for serving them. I will turn her vineyards and orchards into a wilderness; wild animals will destroy them.


text:
 I will punish her for the times that she forgot me, when she burned incense to Baal and put on her jewelry to go chasing after her lovers. The LORD has spoken.


text:
 I will give back to her the vineyards she had and make Trouble Valley a door of hope. She will respond to me there as she did when she was young, when she came from Egypt.


text:
 At that time I will make a covenant with all the wild animals and birds, so that they will not harm my people. I will also remove all weapons of war from the land, all swords and bows, and will let my people live in peace and safety.


text:
 Israel, I will make you my wife; I will be true and faithful; I will show you constant love and mercy and make you mine forever.


text:
 At that time I will answer the prayers of my people Israel. I will make rain fall on the earth, and the earth will produce grain and grapes and olives.


text:
 I will establish my people in the land and make them prosper. I will show love to those who were called "Unloved," and to those who were called "Not-My-People" I will say, "You are my people," and they will answer, "You are our God."


text:
 The LORD said to me, "Go again and show your love for a woman who is committing adultery with a lover. You must love her just as I still love the people of Israel, even though they turn to other gods and like to take offerings of raisins to idols."


text:
 I told her that for a long time she would have to wait for me without being a prostitute or committing adultery; and during this time I would wait for her.


text:
 In just this way the people of Israel will have to live for a long time without kings or leaders, without sacrifices or sacred stone pillars, without idols or images to use for divination.


text:
 But the time will come when the people of Israel will once again turn to the LORD their God and to a descendant of David their king. Then they will fear the LORD and will receive his good gifts.


text:
 The LORD has an accusation to bring against the people who live in this land. Listen, Israel, to what he says: "There is no faithfulness or love in the land, and the people do not acknowledge me as God.


text:
 They make promises and break them; they lie, murder, steal, and commit adultery. Crimes increase, and there is one murder after another.


text:
 And so the land will dry up, and everything that lives on it will die. All the animals and birds, and even the fish, will die."


text:
 The LORD says, "Let no one accuse the people or reprimand them---my complaint is against you priests.


text:
 Night and day you blunder on, and the prophets do no better than you. I am going to destroy Israel, your mother.


text:
 My people are doomed because they do not acknowledge me. You priests have refused to acknowledge me and have rejected my teaching, and so I reject you and will not acknowledge your sons as my priests.


text:
 "The more of you priests there are, the more you sin against me, and so I will turn your honor into disgrace.


text:
 You will suffer the same punishment as the people! I will punish you and make you pay for the evil you do.


text:
 You will eat your share of the sacrifices, but still be hungry. You will worship the fertility gods, but still have no children, because you have turned away from me to follow other gods."


text:
 They ask for revelations from a piece of wood! A stick tells them what they want to know! They have left me. Like a woman who becomes a prostitute, they have given themselves to other gods.


text:
 At sacred places on the mountaintops they offer sacrifices, and on the hills they burn incense under tall, spreading trees, because the shade is so pleasant! "As a result, your daughters serve as prostitutes, and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.


text:
 Yet I will not punish them for this, because you yourselves go off with temple prostitutes, and together with them you offer pagan sacrifices. As the proverb says, 'A people without sense will be ruined.'


text:
 "Even though you people of Israel are unfaithful to me, may Judah not be guilty of the same thing. Don't worship at Gilgal or Bethaven, or make promises there in the name of the living LORD.


text:
 "Listen to this, you priests! Pay attention, people of Israel! Listen, you that belong to the royal family! You are supposed to judge with justice---so judgment will fall on you! You have become a trap at Mizpah, a net spread on Mount Tabor,


text:
 I know what Israel is like---she cannot hide from me. She has been unfaithful, and her people are unfit to worship me."


text:
 The evil that the people have done keeps them from returning to their God. Idolatry has a powerful hold on them, and they do not acknowledge the LORD.


text:
 The arrogance of the people of Israel cries out against them. Their sins make them stumble and fall, and the people of Judah fall with them.


text:
 They take their sheep and cattle to offer as sacrifices to the LORD, but it does them no good. They cannot find him, for he has left them.


text:
 They have been unfaithful to the LORD; their children do not belong to him. So now they and their lands will soon be destroyed.


text:
 Blow the war trumpets in Gibeah! Sound the alarm in Ramah! Raise the war cry at Bethaven! Into battle, men of Benjamin!


text:
 The day of punishment is coming, and Israel will be ruined. People of Israel, this will surely happen!


text:
 The LORD says, "I am angry because the leaders of Judah have invaded Israel and stolen land from her. So I will pour out punishment on them like a flood.


text:
 Israel is suffering oppression; she has lost land that was rightfully hers, because she insisted on going for help to those who had none to give.


text:
 "When Israel saw how sick she was and when Judah saw her own wounds, then Israel went to Assyria to ask the great emperor for help, but he could not cure them or heal their wounds.


text:
 I will attack the people of Israel and Judah like a lion. I myself will tear them to pieces and then leave them. When I drag them off, no one will be able to save them.


text:
 "I will abandon my people until they have suffered enough for their sins and come looking for me. Perhaps in their suffering they will try to find me."


text:
 The people say, "Let's return to the LORD! He has hurt us, but he will be sure to heal us; he has wounded us, but he will bandage our wounds, won't he?


text:
 Let us try to know the LORD. He will come to us as surely as the day dawns, as surely as the spring rains fall upon the earth."


text:
 But the LORD says, "Israel and Judah, what am I going to do with you? Your love for me disappears as quickly as morning mist; it is like dew, that vanishes early in the day.


text:
 That is why I have sent my prophets to you with my message of judgment and destruction. What I want from you is plain and clear:


text:
 I want your constant love, not your animal sacrifices. I would rather have my people know me than burn offerings to me.


text:
 The priests are like a gang of robbers who wait in ambush for someone. Even on the road to the holy place at Shechem they commit murder. And they do all this evil deliberately!


text:
 "Whenever I want to heal my people Israel and make them prosperous again, all I can see is their wickedness and the evil they do. They cheat one another; they break into houses and steal; they rob people in the streets.


text:
 It never enters their heads that I will remember all this evil; but their sins surround them, and I cannot avoid seeing them."


text:
 They are all treacherous and disloyal. Their hatred smolders like the fire in an oven, which is not stirred by the baker until the dough is ready to bake.


text:
 On the day of the king's celebration they made the king and his officials drunk and foolish with wine.


text:
 Yes, they burned like an oven with their plotting. All night their anger smoldered, and in the morning it burst into flames.


text:
 "In the heat of their anger they murdered their rulers. Their kings have been assassinated one after another, but no one prays to me for help."


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Israel are like a half-baked loaf of bread. They rely on the nations around them


text:
 and do not realize that this reliance on foreigners has robbed them of their strength. Their days are numbered, but they don't even know it.


text:
 The arrogance of the people of Israel cries out against them. In spite of everything that has happened, they have not returned to me, the LORD their God.


text:
 Israel flits around like a silly pigeon; first her people call on Egypt for help, and then they run to Assyria!


text:
 But I will spread out a net and catch them like birds as they go by. I will punish them for the evil they have done.


text:
 "They are doomed! They have left me and rebelled against me. They will be destroyed. I wanted to save them, but their worship of me was false.


text:
 They have not prayed to me sincerely, but instead they throw themselves down and wail as the heathen do. When they pray for grain and wine, they gash themselves like pagans. What rebels they are!


text:
 They keep on turning away from me to a god that is powerless. They are as unreliable as a crooked bow. Because their leaders talk arrogantly, they will die a violent death, and the Egyptians will laugh."


text:
 The LORD says, "Sound the alarm! Enemies are swooping down on my land like eagles! My people have broken the covenant I made with them and have rebelled against my teaching.


text:
 "My people chose kings, but they did it on their own. They appointed leaders, but without my approval. They took their silver and gold and made idols---for their own destruction.


text:
 I hate the gold bull worshiped by the people of the city of Samaria. I am furious with them. How long will it be before they give up their idolatry?


text:
 An Israelite craftsman made the idol, and it is not a god at all! The gold bull worshiped in Samaria will be smashed to pieces!


text:
 When they sow the wind, they will reap a storm! A field of grain that doesn't ripen can never produce any bread. But even if it did, foreigners would eat it up.


text:
 Stubborn as wild donkeys, the people of Israel go their own way. They have gone off to seek help from Assyria and have paid other nations to protect them.


text:
 But now I am going to gather them together and punish them. Soon they will writhe in pain when the emperor of Assyria oppresses them.


text:
 "The more altars the people of Israel build for removing sin, the more places they have for sinning!


text:
 They offer sacrifices to me and eat the meat of the sacrifices. But I, the LORD, am not pleased with them, and now I will remember their sin and punish them for it; I will send them back to Egypt!


text:
 "The people of Israel have built palaces, but they have forgotten their own Maker. The people of Judah have built fortified cities. But I will send fire that will burn down their palaces and their cities."


text:
 People of Israel, stop celebrating your festivals like pagans. You have turned away from your God and have been unfaithful to him. All over the land you have sold yourselves like prostitutes to the god Baal and have loved the grain you thought he paid you with!


text:
 The people of Israel will not remain in the LORD's land, but will have to go back to Egypt and will have to eat forbidden food in Assyria.


text:
 In those foreign lands they will not be able to make wine offerings to the LORD or bring their sacrifices to him. Their food will defile everyone who eats it, like food eaten at funerals. It will be used only to satisfy their hunger; none of it will be taken as an offering to the LORD's Temple.


text:
 When the disaster comes and the people are scattered, the Egyptians will gather them up---gather them for burial there at Memphis! Their treasures of silver and the places where their homes once stood will be overgrown with weeds and thorn bushes.


text:
 The time for punishment has come, the time when people will get what they deserve. When that happens, Israel will know it! "This prophet," you say, "is a fool. This inspired man is insane." You people hate me so much because your sin is so great.


text:
 God has sent me as a prophet to warn his people Israel. Yet wherever I go, you try to trap me like a bird. Even in God's Temple the people are the prophet's enemies.


text:
 They are hopelessly evil in what they do, just as they were at Gibeah. God will remember their sin and punish them for it.


text:
 The LORD says, "When I first found Israel, it was like finding grapes growing in the desert. When I first saw your ancestors, it was like seeing the first ripe figs of the season. But when they came to Mount Peor, they began to worship Baal and soon became as disgusting as the gods they loved.


text:
 Israel's greatness will fly away like a bird, and there will be no more children born to them, no more women pregnant, no more children conceived.


text:
 But even if they did bring up children, I would take them away and not leave one alive. When I abandon these people, terrible things will happen to them."


text:
 What shall I ask you to do to these people? Make their women barren! Make them unable to nurse their babies!


text:
 The LORD says, "All their evildoing began in Gilgal. It was there that I began to hate them. And because of the evil they have done, I will drive them out of my land. I will not love them any more; all their leaders have rebelled against me.


text:
 The people of Israel are like a plant whose roots have dried up and which bears no fruit. They will have no children, but even if they did, I would kill the children so dear to them."


text:
 The God I serve will reject his people, because they have not listened to him. They will become wanderers among the nations.


text:
 The people of Israel were like a grapevine that was full of grapes. The more prosperous they were, the more altars they built. The more productive their land was, the more beautiful they made the sacred stone pillars they worship.


text:
 The people whose hearts are deceitful must now suffer for their sins. God will break down their altars and destroy their sacred pillars.


text:
 These people will soon be saying, "We have no king because we did not fear the LORD. But what could a king do for us anyway?"


text:
 They utter empty words and make false promises and useless treaties. Justice has become injustice, growing like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.


text:
 The people who live in the city of Samaria will be afraid and will mourn the loss of the gold bull at Bethaven. They and the priests who serve the idol will weep over it. They will wail when it is stripped of its golden splendor.


text:
 The idol will be carried off to Assyria as tribute to the great emperor. The people of Israel will be disgraced and put to shame because of the advice they followed.


text:
 The hilltop shrines of Aven, where the people of Israel worship idols, will be destroyed. Thorns and weeds will grow up over their altars. The people will call out to the mountains, "Hide us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!"


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Israel have not stopped sinning against me since the time of their sin at Gibeah. So at Gibeah war will catch up with them.


text:
 I will attack this sinful people and punish them. Nations will join together against them, and they will be punished for their many sins.


text:
 "Israel was once like a well-trained young cow, ready and willing to thresh grain. But I decided to put a yoke on her beautiful neck and to harness her for harder work. I made Judah pull the plow and Israel pull the harrow.


text:
 I said, 'Plow new ground for yourselves, plant righteousness, and reap the blessings that your devotion to me will produce. It is time for you to turn to me, your LORD, and I will come and pour out blessings upon you.'


text:
 But instead you planted evil and reaped its harvest. You have eaten the fruit produced by your lies. "Because you trusted in your chariots and in the large number of your soldiers,


text:
 war will come to your people, and all your fortresses will be destroyed. It will be like the day when King Shalman destroyed the city of Betharbel in battle, and mothers and their children were crushed to death.


text:
 That is what will happen to you, people of Bethel, because of the terrible evil that you have done. As soon as the battle begins, the king of Israel will die."


text:
 But the more I called to him, the more he turned away from me. My people sacrificed to Baal; they burned incense to idols.


text:
 Yet I was the one who taught Israel to walk. I took my people up in my arms, but they did not acknowledge that I took care of them.


text:
 I drew them to me with affection and love. I picked them up and held them to my cheek; I bent down to them and fed them.


text:
 War will sweep through their cities and break down the city gates. It will destroy my people because they do what they themselves think best.


text:
 They insist on turning away from me. They will cry out because of the yoke that is on them, but no one will lift it from them.


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 "How can I give you up, Israel? How can I abandon you? Could I ever destroy you as I did Admah, or treat you as I did Zeboiim? My heart will not let me do it! My love for you is too strong.


text:
 I will not punish you in my anger; I will not destroy Israel again. For I am God and not a mere human being. I, the Holy One, am with you. I will not come to you in anger.


text:
 "My people will follow me when I roar like a lion at their enemies. They will hurry to me from the west.


text:
 They will come from Egypt, as swiftly as birds, and from Assyria, like doves. I will bring them to their homes again. I, the LORD, have spoken."


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Israel have surrounded me with lies and deceit, and the people of Judah are still rebelling against me, the faithful and holy God.


text:
 Everything that the people of Israel do from morning to night is useless and destructive. Treachery and acts of violence increase among them. They make treaties with Assyria and do business with Egypt."


text:
 The LORD has an accusation to bring against the people of Judah; he is also going to punish Israel for the way her people act. He will pay them back for what they have done.


text:
 Their ancestor Jacob struggled with his twin brother Esau while the two of them were still in their mother's womb; when Jacob grew up, he fought against God---


text:
 he fought against an angel and won. He wept and asked for a blessing. And at Bethel God came to our ancestor Jacob and spoke with him.


text:
 So now, descendants of Jacob, trust in your God and return to him. Be loyal and just, and wait patiently for your God to act.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Israel are as dishonest as the Canaanites; they love to cheat their customers with false scales.


text:
 'We are rich,' they say. 'We've made a fortune. And no one can accuse us of getting rich dishonestly.'


text:
 But I, the LORD your God who led you out of Egypt, I will make you live in tents again, as you did when I came to you in the desert.


text:
 "I spoke to the prophets and gave them many visions, and through the prophets I gave my people warnings.


text:
 Yet idols are worshiped in Gilead, and those who worship them will die. Bulls are sacrificed in Gilgal, and the altars there will become piles of stone in the open fields."


text:
 Our ancestor Jacob had to flee to Mesopotamia, where, in order to get a wife, he worked for another man and took care of his sheep.


text:
 The LORD sent a prophet to rescue the people of Israel from slavery in Egypt and to take care of them.


text:
 The people of Israel have made the LORD bitterly angry; they deserve death for their crimes. Their Lord will punish them for the disgrace they have brought on him.


text:
 In the past, when the tribe of Ephraim spoke, the other tribes of Israel were afraid; they looked up to Ephraim. But the people sinned by worshiping Baal, and for this they will die.


text:
 They still keep on sinning by making metal images to worship---idols of silver, designed by human minds, made by human hands. And then they say, "Offer sacrifices to them!" How can anyone kiss those idols---idols in the shape of bulls!


text:
 And so these people will disappear like morning mist, like the dew that vanishes early in the day. They will be like chaff which the wind blows from the threshing place, like smoke from a chimney.


text:
 The LORD says, "I am the LORD your God, who led you out of Egypt. You have no God but me. I alone am your savior.


text:
 But when you entered the good land, you became full and satisfied, and then you grew proud and forgot me.


text:
 I will attack you like a bear that has lost her cubs, and I will tear you open. Like a lion I will devour you on the spot, and will tear you to pieces like a wild animal.


text:
 Israel has a chance to live, but is too foolish to take it---like a child about to be born, who refuses to come out of the womb.


text:
 I will not save this people from the world of the dead or rescue them from the power of death. Bring on your plagues, death! Bring on your destruction, world of the dead! I will no longer have pity for this people.


text:
 Even though Israel flourishes like weeds, I will send a hot east wind from the desert, and it will dry up their springs and wells. It will take away everything of value.


text:
 Samaria must be punished for rebelling against me. Her people will die in war; babies will be dashed to the ground, and pregnant women will be ripped open."


text:
 Return to the LORD, and let this prayer be your offering to him: "Forgive all our sins and accept our prayer, and we will praise you as we have promised.


text:
 Assyria can never save us, and war horses cannot protect us. We will never again say to our idols that they are our God. O LORD, you show mercy to those who have no one else to turn to."


text:
 The LORD says, "I will bring my people back to me. I will love them with all my heart; no longer am I angry with them.


text:
 I will be to the people of Israel like rain in a dry land. They will blossom like flowers; they will be firmly rooted like the trees of Lebanon.


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 They will be alive with new growth, and beautiful like olive trees. They will be fragrant like the cedars of Lebanon.


text:
 Once again they will live under my protection. They will grow crops of grain and be fruitful like a vineyard. They will be as famous as the wine of Lebanon.


text:
 The people of Israel will have nothing more to do with idols; I will answer their prayers and take care of them. Like an evergreen tree I will shelter them; I am the source of all their blessings."


text:
 May those who are wise understand what is written here, and may they take it to heart. The LORD's ways are right, and righteous people live by following them, but sinners stumble and fall because they ignore them.


text:
 Pay attention, you older people; everyone in Judah, listen. Has anything like this ever happened in your time or the time of your ancestors?


text:
 Tell your children about it; they will tell their children, who in turn will tell the next generation.


text:
 Wake up and weep, you drunkards; cry, you wine-drinkers; the grapes for making new wine have been destroyed.


text:
 An army of locusts has attacked our land; they are powerful and too many to count; their teeth are as sharp as those of a lion.


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 They have destroyed our grapevines and chewed up our fig trees. They have stripped off the bark, till the branches are white.


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 There is no grain or wine to offer in the Temple; the priests mourn because they have no offerings for the LORD.


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 The fields are bare; the ground mourns because the grain is destroyed, the grapes are dried up, and the olive trees are withered.


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 Grieve, you farmers; cry, you that take care of the vineyards, because the wheat, the barley, yes all the crops are destroyed.


text:
 The grapevines and fig trees have withered; all the fruit trees have wilted and died. The joy of the people is gone.


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 Put on sackcloth and weep, you priests who serve at the altar! Go into the Temple and mourn all night! There is no grain or wine to offer your God.


text:
 Give orders for a fast; call an assembly! Gather the leaders and all the people of Judah into the Temple of the LORD your God and cry out to him!


text:
 The day of the LORD is near, the day when the Almighty brings destruction. What terror that day will bring!


text:
 The seeds die in the dry earth. There is no grain to be stored, and so the empty granaries are in ruins.


text:
 The cattle are bellowing in distress because there is no pasture for them; the flocks of sheep also suffer.


text:
 I cry out to you, LORD, because the pastures and trees are dried up, as though a fire had burned them.


text:
 Blow the trumpet; sound the alarm on Zion, God's sacred hill. Tremble, people of Judah! The day of the LORD is coming soon.


text:
 It will be a dark and gloomy day, a black and cloudy day. The great army of locusts advances like darkness spreading over the mountains. There has never been anything like it, and there never will be again.


text:
 Like fire they eat up the plants. In front of them the land is like the Garden of Eden, but behind them it is a barren desert. Nothing escapes them.


text:
 As they leap on the tops of the mountains, they rattle like chariots; they crackle like dry grass on fire. They are lined up like a great army ready for battle.


text:
 They attack like warriors; they climb the walls like soldiers. They all keep marching straight ahead and do not change direction


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 They rush against the city; they run over the walls; they climb up the houses and go in through the windows like thieves.


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 The earth shakes as they advance; the sky trembles. The sun and the moon grow dark, and the stars no longer shine.


text:
 The LORD thunders commands to his army. The troops that obey him are many and mighty. How terrible is the day of the LORD! Who will survive it?


text:
 "But even now," says the LORD, "repent sincerely and return to me with fasting and weeping and mourning.


text:
 Let your broken heart show your sorrow; tearing your clothes is not enough." Come back to the LORD your God. He is kind and full of mercy; he is patient and keeps his promise; he is always ready to forgive and not punish.


text:
 Perhaps the LORD your God will change his mind and bless you with abundant crops. Then you can offer him grain and wine.


text:
 Gather the people together; prepare them for a sacred meeting; bring the old people; gather the children and the babies too. Even newly married couples must leave their homes and come.


text:
 The priests, serving the LORD between the altar and the entrance of the Temple, must weep and pray: "Have pity on your people, LORD. Do not let other nations despise us and mock us by saying, 'Where is your God?' "


text:
 He answered them: "Now I am going to give you grain and wine and olive oil, and you will be satisfied. Other nations will no longer despise you.


text:
 I will remove the locust army that came from the north and will drive some of them into the desert. Their front ranks will be driven into the Dead Sea, their rear ranks into the Mediterranean. Their dead bodies will stink. I will destroy them because of all they have done to you.


text:
 Animals, don't be afraid. The pastures are green; the trees bear their fruit, and there are plenty of figs and grapes.


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 "Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice at what the LORD your God has done for you. He has given you the right amount of autumn rain; he has poured down the winter rain for you and the spring rain as before.


text:
 The threshing places will be full of grain; the pits beside the presses will overflow with wine and olive oil.


text:
 I will give you back what you lost in the years when swarms of locusts ate your crops. It was I who sent this army against you.


text:
 Now you will have plenty to eat, and be satisfied. You will praise the LORD your God, who has done wonderful things for you. My people will never be despised again.


text:
 Then, Israel, you will know that I am among you and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is no other. My people will never be despised again.


text:
 "Afterward I will pour out my Spirit on everyone: your sons and daughters will proclaim my message; your old people will have dreams, and your young people will see visions.


text:
 "I will give warnings of that day in the sky and on the earth; there will be bloodshed, fire, and clouds of smoke.


text:
 The sun will be darkened, and the moon will turn red as blood before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.


text:
 But all who ask the LORD for help will be saved. As the LORD has said, 'Some in Jerusalem will escape; those whom I choose will survive.' "


text:
 I will gather all the nations and bring them to the Valley of Judgment. There I will judge them for all they have done to my people. They have scattered the Israelites in foreign countries and divided Israel, my land.


text:
 They threw dice to decide who would get the captives. They sold boys and girls into slavery to pay for prostitutes and wine.


text:
 "What are you trying to do to me, Tyre, Sidon, and all of Philistia? Are you trying to pay me back for something? If you are, I will quickly pay you back!


text:
 You have taken the people of Judah and Jerusalem far from their own country and sold them to the Greeks.


text:
 Now I am going to bring them out of the places to which you have sold them. I will do to you what you have done to them.


text:
 I will let your sons and daughters be sold to the people of Judah; they will sell them to the far-off Sabeans. I, the LORD, have spoken.


text:
 "Make this announcement among the nations: 'Prepare for war; call your warriors; gather all your soldiers and march!


text:
 Hammer the points of your plows into swords and your pruning knives into spears. Even the weak must fight.


text:
 Hurry and come, all you surrounding nations, and gather in the valley.' " Send down, O LORD, your army to attack them!


text:
 "The nations must get ready and come to the Valley of Judgment. There I, the LORD, will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.


text:
 They are very wicked; cut them down like grain at harvest time; crush them as grapes are crushed in a full wine press until the wine runs over."


text:
 Thousands and thousands are in the Valley of Judgment. It is there that the day of the LORD will soon come.


text:
 The LORD roars from Mount Zion; his voice thunders from Jerusalem; earth and sky tremble. But he will defend his people.


text:
 "Then, Israel, you will know that I am the LORD your God. I live on Zion, my sacred hill. Jerusalem will be a sacred city; foreigners will never conquer it again.


text:
 At that time the mountains will be covered with vineyards, and cattle will be found on every hill; there will be plenty of water for all of Judah. A stream will flow from the Temple of the LORD, and it will water Acacia Valley.


text:
 "Egypt will become a desert, and Edom a ruined waste, because they attacked the land of Judah and killed its innocent people.


text:
 I will avenge those who were killed; I will not spare the guilty. But Judah and Jerusalem will be inhabited forever, and I, the LORD, will live on Mount Zion."


text:
 These are the words of Amos, a shepherd from the town of Tekoa. Two years before the earthquake, when Uzziah was king of Judah and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel, God revealed to Amos all these things about Israel.


text:
 Amos said, "The LORD roars from Mount Zion; his voice thunders from Jerusalem. The pastures dry up, and the grass on Mount Carmel turns brown."


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Damascus have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They treated the people of Gilead with savage cruelty.


text:
 So I will send fire upon the palace built by King Hazael and I will burn down the fortresses of King Benhadad.


text:
 I will smash the city gates of Damascus and remove the inhabitants of Aven Valley and the ruler of Betheden. The people of Syria will be taken away as prisoners to the land of Kir."


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Gaza have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They carried off a whole nation and sold them as slaves to the people of Edom.


text:
 I will remove the rulers of the cities of Ashdod and Ashkelon. I will punish the city of Ekron, and all the Philistines who are left will die."


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Tyre have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They carried off a whole nation into exile in the land of Edom, and did not keep the treaty of friendship they had made.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Edom have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They hunted down their relatives, the Israelites, and showed them no mercy. Their anger had no limits, and they never let it die.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Ammon have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. In their wars for more territory they even ripped open pregnant women in Gilead.


text:
 So I will send fire upon the city walls of Rabbah and burn down its fortresses. Then there will be shouts on the day of battle, and the fighting will rage like a storm.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Moab have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They dishonored the bones of the king of Edom by burning them to ashes.


text:
 I will send fire upon the land of Moab and burn down the fortresses of Kerioth. The people of Moab will die in the noise of battle while soldiers are shouting and trumpets are sounding.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Judah have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They have despised my teachings and have not kept my commands. They have been led astray by the same false gods that their ancestors served.


text:
 The LORD says, "The people of Israel have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They sell into slavery honest people who cannot pay their debts, the poor who cannot repay even the price of a pair of sandals.


text:
 They trample down the weak and helpless and push the poor out of the way. A man and his father have intercourse with the same slave woman, and so profane my holy name.


text:
 At every place of worship people sleep on clothing that they have taken from the poor as security for debts. In the temple of their God they drink wine which they have taken from those who owe them money.


text:
 "And yet, my people, it was for your sake that I totally destroyed the Amorites, who were as tall as cedar trees and as strong as oaks.


text:
 I brought you out of Egypt, led you through the desert for forty years, and gave you the land of the Amorites to be your own.


text:
 I chose some of your sons to be prophets and some of your young men to be nazirites. Isn't this true, people of Israel? I, the LORD, have spoken.


text:
 Not even fast runners will escape; strong men will lose their strength, and soldiers will not be able to save their own lives.


text:
 Archers will not stand their ground, fast runners will not get away, and men on horses will not escape with their lives.


text:
 People of Israel, listen to this message which the LORD has spoken about you, the entire nation that he brought out of Egypt:


text:
 "Of all the nations on earth, you are the only one I have known and cared for. That is what makes your sins so terrible, and that is why I must punish you for them."


text:
 Does a lion roar in the forest unless he has found a victim? Does a young lion growl in his den unless he has caught something?


text:
 Does a bird get caught in a trap if the trap has not been baited? Does a trap spring unless something sets it off ?


text:
 Does the war trumpet sound in a city without making the people afraid? Does disaster strike a city unless the LORD sends it?


text:
 When a lion roars, who can keep from being afraid? When the Sovereign LORD speaks, who can keep from proclaiming his message?


text:
 Announce to those who live in the palaces of Egypt and Ashdod: "Gather together in the hills around Samaria and see the great disorder and the crimes being committed there."


text:
 The LORD says, "These people fill their mansions with things taken by crime and violence. They don't even know how to be honest.


text:
 The LORD says, "As a shepherd recovers only two legs or an ear of a sheep that a lion has eaten, so only a few will survive of Samaria's people, who now recline on luxurious couches.


text:
 "On the day when I punish the people of Israel for their sins, I will destroy the altars of Bethel. The corners of every altar will be broken off and will fall to the ground.


text:
 I will destroy winter houses and summer houses. The houses decorated with ivory will fall in ruins; every large house will be destroyed."


text:
 Listen to this, you women of Samaria, who grow fat like the well-fed cows of Bashan, who mistreat the weak, oppress the poor, and demand that your husbands keep you supplied with liquor!


text:
 As the Sovereign LORD is holy, he has promised, "The days will come when they will drag you away with hooks; every one of you will be like a fish on a hook.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "People of Israel, go to the holy place in Bethel and sin, if you must! Go to Gilgal and sin with all your might! Go ahead and bring animals to be sacrificed morning after morning, and bring your tithes every third day.


text:
 Go on and offer your bread in thanksgiving to God, and brag about the extra offerings you bring! This is the kind of thing you love to do.


text:
 I kept it from raining when your crops needed it most. I sent rain on one city, but not on another. Rain fell on one field, but another field dried up.


text:
 Weak with thirst, the people of several cities went to a city where they hoped to find water, but there was not enough to drink. Still you did not come back to me.


text:
 "I sent a scorching wind to dry up your crops. The locusts ate up all your gardens and vineyards, your fig trees and olive trees. Still you did not come back to me.


text:
 "I sent a plague on you like the one I sent on Egypt. I killed your young men in battle and took your horses away. I filled your nostrils with the stink of dead bodies in your camps. Still you did not come back to me.


text:
 "I destroyed some of you as I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Those of you who survived were like a burning stick saved from a fire. Still you did not come back to me," says the LORD.


text:
 "So then, people of Israel, I am going to punish you. And because I am going to do this, get ready to face my judgment!"


text:
 God is the one who made the mountains and created the winds. He makes his thoughts known to people; he changes day into night. He walks on the heights of the earth. This is his name: the LORD God Almighty!


text:
 Virgin Israel has fallen, Never to rise again! She lies abandoned on the ground, And no one helps her up.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD says, "A city in Israel sends out a thousand soldiers, but only a hundred return; another city sends out a hundred, but only ten come back."


text:
 Do not go to Beersheba to worship. Do not try to find me at Bethel---Bethel will come to nothing. Do not go to Gilgal---her people are doomed to exile."


text:
 Go to the LORD, and you will live. If you do not go, he will sweep down like fire on the people of Israel. The fire will burn up the people of Bethel, and no one will be able to put it out.


text:
 The LORD made the stars, the Pleiades and Orion. He turns darkness into daylight and day into night. He calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the earth. His name is the LORD.


text:
 You have oppressed the poor and robbed them of their grain. And so you will not live in the fine stone houses you build or drink wine from the beautiful vineyards you plant.


text:
 I know how terrible your sins are and how many crimes you have committed. You persecute good people, take bribes, and prevent the poor from getting justice in the courts.


text:
 Make it your aim to do what is right, not what is evil, so that you may live. Then the LORD God Almighty really will be with you, as you claim he is.


text:
 Hate what is evil, love what is right, and see that justice prevails in the courts. Perhaps the LORD will be merciful to the people of this nation who are still left alive.


text:
 And so the Sovereign LORD Almighty says, "There will be wailing and cries of sorrow in the city streets. Even farmers will be called to mourn the dead along with those who are paid to mourn.


text:
 There will be wailing in all the vineyards. All this will take place because I am coming to punish you." The LORD has spoken.


text:
 How terrible it will be for you who long for the day of the LORD! What good will that day do you? For you it will be a day of darkness and not of light.


text:
 It will be like someone who runs from a lion and meets a bear! Or like someone who comes home and puts his hand on the wall---only to be bitten by a snake!


text:
 The day of the LORD will bring darkness and not light; it will be a day of gloom, without any brightness.


text:
 When you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; I will not accept the animals you have fattened to bring me as offerings.


text:
 "People of Israel, I did not demand sacrifices and offerings during those forty years that I led you through the desert.


text:
 But now, because you have worshiped images of Sakkuth, your king god, and of Kaiwan, your star god, you will have to carry those images


text:
 How terrible it will be for you that have such an easy life in Zion and for you that feel safe in Samaria---you great leaders of this great nation Israel, you to whom the people go for help!


text:
 Go and look at the city of Calneh. Then go on to the great city of Hamath and on down to the Philistine city of Gath. Were they any better than the kingdoms of Judah and Israel? Was their territory larger than yours?


text:
 How terrible it will be for you that stretch out on your luxurious couches, feasting on veal and lamb!


text:
 You drink wine by the bowlful and use the finest perfumes, but you do not mourn over the ruin of Israel.


text:
 The Sovereign LORD Almighty has given this solemn warning: "I hate the pride of the people of Israel; I despise their luxurious mansions. I will give their capital city and everything in it to the enemy."


text:
 The dead man's relative, the one in charge of the funeral, will take the body out of the house. The relative will call to whoever is still left in the house, "Is anyone else there with you?" The person will answer, "No!" Then the relative will say, "Be quiet! We must be careful not even to mention the LORD's name."


text:
 Do horses gallop on rocks? Does anyone plow the sea with oxen? Yet you have turned justice into poison, and right into wrong.


text:
 The LORD God Almighty himself says, "People of Israel, I am going to send a foreign army to occupy your country. It will oppress you from Hamath Pass in the north to the Brook of the Arabah in the south."


text:
 I had a vision from the Sovereign LORD. In it I saw him create a swarm of locusts just after the king's share of the hay had been cut and the grass was starting to grow again.


text:
 In my vision I saw the locusts eat up every green thing in the land, and then I said, "Sovereign LORD, forgive your people! How can they survive? They are so small and weak!"


text:
 I had another vision from the Sovereign LORD. In it I saw him preparing to punish his people with fire. The fire burned up the great ocean under the earth and started to burn up the land.


text:
 I had another vision from the LORD. In it I saw him standing beside a wall that had been built with the use of a plumb line, and there was a plumb line in his hand.


text:
 He asked me, "Amos, what do you see?" "A plumb line," I answered. Then he said, "I am using it to show that my people are like a wall that is out of line. I will not change my mind again about punishing them.


text:
 The places where Isaac's descendants worship will be destroyed. The holy places of Israel will be left in ruins. I will bring the dynasty of King Jeroboam to an end."


text:
 Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, then sent a report to King Jeroboam of Israel: "Amos is plotting against you among the people. His speeches will destroy the country.


text:
 This is what he says: 'Jeroboam will die in battle, and the people of Israel will be taken away from their land into exile.' "


text:
 Amaziah then said to Amos, "That's enough, prophet! Go on back to Judah and do your preaching there. Let <i>them</i> pay you for it.


text:
 Amos answered, "I am not the kind of prophet who prophesies for pay. I am a herdsman, and I take care of fig trees.


text:
 But the LORD took me from my work as a shepherd and ordered me to come and prophesy to his people Israel.


text:
 So now listen to what the LORD says. You tell me to stop prophesying, to stop raving against the people of Israel.


text:
 And so, Amaziah, the LORD says to you, 'Your wife will become a prostitute in the city, and your children will be killed in war. Your land will be divided up and given to others, and you yourself will die in a heathen country. And the people of Israel will certainly be taken away from their own land into exile.' "


text:
 The LORD asked, "Amos, what do you see?" "A basket of fruit," I answered. The LORD said to me, "The end has come for my people Israel. I will not change my mind again about punishing them.


text:
 On that day the songs in the palace will become cries of mourning. There will be dead bodies everywhere. They will be cast out in silence."


text:
 You say to yourselves, "We can hardly wait for the holy days to be over so that we can sell our grain. When will the Sabbath end, so that we can start selling again? Then we can overcharge, use false measures, and fix the scales to cheat our customers.


text:
 We can sell worthless wheat at a high price. We'll find someone poor who can't pay his debts, not even the price of a pair of sandals, and we'll buy him as a slave."


text:
 And so the earth will quake, and everyone in the land will be in distress. The whole country will be shaken; it will rise and fall like the Nile River.


text:
 The time is coming when I will make the sun go down at noon and the earth grow dark in daytime. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 I will turn your festivals into funerals and change your glad songs into cries of grief. I will make you shave your heads and wear sackcloth, and you will be like parents mourning for their only child. That day will be bitter to the end.


text:
 "The time is coming when I will send famine on the land. People will be hungry, but not for bread; they will be thirsty, but not for water. They will hunger and thirst for a message from the LORD. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken.


text:
 People will wander from the Dead Sea to the Mediterranean and then on around from the north to the east. They will look everywhere for a message from the LORD, but they will not find it.


text:
 Those who swear by the idols of Samaria, who say, 'By the god of Dan' or 'By the god of Beersheba'---those people will fall and not rise again."


text:
 I saw the Lord standing by the altar. He gave the command: "Strike the tops of the Temple columns so hard that the foundation will shake. Break them off and let them fall on the heads of the people. I will kill the rest of the people in war. No one will get away; not one will escape.


text:
 Even if they dig their way down to the world of the dead, I will catch them. Even if they climb up to heaven, I will bring them down.


text:
 If they hide on the top of Mount Carmel, I will search for them and catch them. If they hide from me at the bottom of the sea, I will command the sea monster to bite them.


text:
 If they are taken away into captivity by their enemies, I will order them to be put to death. I am determined to destroy them, not to help them."


text:
 The Sovereign LORD Almighty touches the earth, and it quakes; all who live there mourn. The whole world rises and falls like the Nile River.


text:
 The LORD builds his home in the heavens, and over the earth he puts the dome of the sky. He calls for the waters of the sea and pours them out on the earth. His name is the LORD!


text:
 The LORD says, "People of Israel, I think as much of the people of Ethiopia as I do of you. I brought the Philistines from Crete and the Syrians from Kir, just as I brought you from Egypt.


text:
 I, the Sovereign LORD, am watching this sinful kingdom of Israel, and I will destroy it from the face of the earth. But I will not destroy all the descendants of Jacob.


text:
 "I will give the command and shake the people of Israel like grain in a sieve. I will shake them among the nations to remove all who are worthless.


text:
 The sinners among my people will be killed in war---all those who say, 'God will not let any harm come near us.' "


text:
 The LORD says, "A day is coming when I will restore the kingdom of David, which is like a house fallen into ruins. I will repair its walls and restore it. I will rebuild it and make it as it was long ago.


text:
 And so the people of Israel will conquer what is left of the land of Edom and all the nations that were once mine," says the LORD, who will cause this to happen.


text:
 "The days are coming," says the LORD, "when grain will grow faster than it can be harvested, and grapes will grow faster than the wine can be made. The mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with it.


text:
 I will bring my people back to their land. They will rebuild their ruined cities and live there; they will plant vineyards and drink the wine; they will plant gardens and eat what they grow.


text:
 I will plant my people on the land I gave them, and they will not be pulled up again." The LORD your God has spoken.


text:
 This is the prophecy of Obadiah---what the Sovereign LORD said about the nation of Edom. The LORD has sent his messenger to the nations, and we have heard his message: "Get ready! Let us go to war against Edom!"


text:
 Your pride has deceived you. Your capital is a fortress of solid rock; your home is high in the mountains, and so you say to yourself, 'Who can ever pull me down?'


text:
 Even though you make your home as high as an eagle's nest, so that it seems to be among the stars, yet I will pull you down.


text:
 "When thieves come at night, they take only what they want. When people gather grapes, they always leave a few. But your enemies have wiped you out completely.


text:
 Your allies have deceived you; they have driven you from your country. People who were at peace with you have now conquered you. Those friends who ate with you have laid a trap for you; they say of you, 'Where is all that cleverness he had?'


text:
 "Because you robbed and killed your relatives, the descendants of Jacob, you will be destroyed and dishonored forever.


text:
 You stood aside on that day when enemies broke down their gates. You were as bad as those strangers who carried off Jerusalem's wealth and divided it among themselves.


text:
 You should not have gloated over the misfortune of your relatives in Judah. You should not have been glad on the day of their ruin. You should not have laughed at them in their distress.


text:
 You should not have entered the city of my people to gloat over their suffering and to seize their riches on the day of their disaster.


text:
 You should not have stood at the crossroads to catch those trying to escape. You should not have handed them over to the enemy on the day of their distress.


text:
 "The day is near when I, the LORD, will judge all nations. Edom, what you have done will be done to you. You will get back what you have given.


text:
 My people have drunk a bitter cup of punishment on my sacred hill. But all the surrounding nations will drink a still more bitter cup of punishment; they will drink it all and vanish away.


text:
 "But on Mount Zion some will escape, and it will be a sacred place. The people of Jacob will possess the land that is theirs by right.


text:
 The people of Jacob and of Joseph will be like fire; they will destroy the people of Esau as fire burns stubble. No descendant of Esau will survive. I, the LORD, have spoken.


text:
 "People from southern Judah will occupy Edom; those from the western foothills will capture Philistia. Israelites will possess the territory of Ephraim and Samaria; the people of Benjamin will take Gilead.


text:
 The army of exiles from northern Israel will return and conquer Phoenicia as far north as Zarephath. The exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sardis will capture the towns of southern Judah.


text:
 The victorious men of Jerusalem will attack Edom and rule over it. And the LORD himself will be king."


text:
 He said, "Go to Nineveh, that great city, and speak out against it; I am aware of how wicked its people are."


text:
 Jonah, however, set out in the opposite direction in order to get away from the LORD. He went to Joppa, where he found a ship about to go to Spain. He paid his fare and went aboard with the crew to sail to Spain, where he would be away from the LORD.


text:
 But the LORD sent a strong wind on the sea, and the storm was so violent that the ship was in danger of breaking up.


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 The sailors were terrified and cried out for help, each one to his own god. Then, in order to lessen the danger, they threw the cargo overboard. Meanwhile, Jonah had gone below and was lying in the ship's hold, sound asleep.


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 The captain found him there and said to him, "What are you doing asleep? Get up and pray to your god for help. Maybe he will feel sorry for us and spare our lives."


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 The sailors said to each other, "Let's draw lots and find out who is to blame for getting us into this danger." They did so, and Jonah's name was drawn.


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 So they said to him, "Now, then, tell us! Who is to blame for this? What are you doing here? What country do you come from? What is your nationality?"


text:
 Jonah went on to tell them that he was running away from the LORD. The sailors were terrified, and said to him, "That was an awful thing to do!"


text:
 The storm was getting worse all the time, so the sailors asked him, "What should we do to you to stop the storm?"


text:
 Jonah answered, "Throw me into the sea, and it will calm down. I know it is my fault that you are caught in this violent storm."


text:
 Instead, the sailors tried to get the ship to shore, rowing with all their might. But the storm was becoming worse and worse, and they got nowhere.


text:
 So they cried out to the LORD, "O LORD, we pray, don't punish us with death for taking this man's life! You, O LORD, are responsible for all this; it is your doing."


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 This made the sailors so afraid of the LORD that they offered a sacrifice and promised to serve him.


text:
 At the LORD's command a large fish swallowed Jonah, and he was inside the fish for three days and three nights.


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 "In my distress, O LORD, I called to you, and you answered me. From deep in the world of the dead I cried for help, and you heard me.


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 You threw me down into the depths, to the very bottom of the sea, where the waters were all around me, and all your mighty waves rolled over me.


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 The water came over me and choked me; the sea covered me completely, and seaweed wrapped around my head.


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 I went down to the very roots of the mountains, into the land whose gates lock shut forever. But you, O LORD my God, brought me back from the depths alive.


text:
 When I felt my life slipping away, then, O LORD, I prayed to you, and in your holy Temple you heard me.


text:
 But I will sing praises to you; I will offer you a sacrifice and do what I have promised. Salvation comes from the LORD!"


text:
 He said, "Go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to the people the message I have given you."


text:
 So Jonah obeyed the LORD and went to Nineveh, a city so large that it took three days to walk through it.


text:
 Jonah started through the city, and after walking a whole day, he proclaimed, "In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed!"


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 The people of Nineveh believed God's message. So they decided that everyone should fast, and all the people, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth to show that they had repented.


text:
 When the king of Nineveh heard about it, he got up from his throne, took off his robe, put on sackcloth, and sat down in ashes.


text:
 He sent out a proclamation to the people of Nineveh: "This is an order from the king and his officials: No one is to eat anything; all persons, cattle, and sheep are forbidden to eat or drink.


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 All persons and animals must wear sackcloth. Everyone must pray earnestly to God and must give up their wicked behavior and their evil actions.


text:
 God saw what they did; he saw that they had given up their wicked behavior. So he changed his mind and did not punish them as he had said he would.


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 So he prayed, " LORD, didn't I say before I left home that this is just what you would do? That's why I did my best to run away to Spain! I knew that you are a loving and merciful God, always patient, always kind, and always ready to change your mind and not punish.


text:
 Jonah went out east of the city and sat down. He made a shelter for himself and sat in its shade, waiting to see what would happen to Nineveh.


text:
 Then the LORD God made a plant grow up over Jonah to give him some shade, so that he would be more comfortable. Jonah was extremely pleased with the plant.


text:
 After the sun had risen, God sent a hot east wind, and Jonah was about to faint from the heat of the sun beating down on his head. So he wished he were dead. "I am better off dead than alive," he said.


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 But God said to him, "What right do you have to be angry about the plant?" Jonah replied, "I have every right to be angry---angry enough to die!"


text:
 The LORD said to him, "This plant grew up in one night and disappeared the next; you didn't do anything for it and you didn't make it grow---yet you feel sorry for it!


text:
 How much more, then, should I have pity on Nineveh, that great city. After all, it has more than 120,000 innocent children in it, as well as many animals!"


text:
 During the time that Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah, the LORD gave this message to Micah, who was from the town of Moresheth. The LORD revealed to Micah all these things about Samaria and Jerusalem.


text:
 Hear this, all you nations; listen to this, all who live on earth! The Sovereign LORD will testify against you. Listen! He speaks from his heavenly temple.


text:
 Then the mountains will melt under him like wax in a fire; they will pour down into the valleys like water pouring down a hill.


text:
 All this will happen because the people of Israel have sinned and rebelled against God. Who is to blame for Israel's rebellion? Samaria, the capital city itself ! Who is guilty of idolatry in Judah? Jerusalem itself !


text:
 So the LORD says, "I will make Samaria a pile of ruins in the open country, a place for planting grapevines. I will pour the rubble of the city down into the valley, and will lay bare the city's foundations.


text:
 All its precious idols will be smashed to pieces, everything given to its temple prostitutes will be destroyed by fire, and all its images will become a desolate heap. Samaria acquired these things for its fertility rites, and now her enemies will carry them off for temple prostitutes elsewhere."


text:
 Then Micah said, "Because of this I will mourn and lament. To show my sorrow, I will walk around barefoot and naked. I will howl like a jackal and wail like an ostrich.


text:
 Samaria's wounds cannot be healed, and Judah is about to suffer in the same way; destruction has reached the gates of Jerusalem itself, where my people live."


text:
 Don't tell our enemies in Gath about our defeat; don't let them see you weeping. People of Beth Leaphrah, show your despair by rolling in the dust!


text:
 You people of Shaphir, go into exile, naked and ashamed. Those who live in Zaanan do not dare to come out of their city. When you hear the people of Bethezel mourn, you will know that there is no refuge there.


text:
 The people of Maroth anxiously wait for relief, because the LORD has brought disaster close to Jerusalem.


text:
 You that live in Lachish, hitch the horses to the chariots. You imitated the sins of Israel and so caused Jerusalem to sin.


text:
 And now, people of Judah, say good-bye to the town of Moresheth Gath. The kings of Israel will get no help from the town of Achzib.


text:
 People of Mareshah, the LORD will hand you over to an enemy, who is going to capture your town. The leaders of Israel will go and hide in the cave at Adullam.


text:
 People of Judah, cut off your hair in mourning for the children you love. Make yourselves as bald as vultures, because your children will be taken away from you into exile.


text:
 How terrible it will be for those who lie awake and plan evil! When morning comes, as soon as they have the chance, they do the evil they planned.


text:
 When they want fields, they seize them; when they want houses, they take them. No one's family or property is safe.


text:
 And so the LORD says, "I am planning to bring disaster on you, and you will not be able to escape it. You are going to find yourselves in trouble, and then you will not walk so proudly any more.


text:
 When that time comes, people will use the story about you as an example of disaster, and they will sing this song of despair about your experience: We are completely ruined! The LORD has taken our land away And given it to those who took us captive."


text:
 So then, when the time comes for the land to be given back to the LORD's people, there will be no share for any of you.


text:
 The people preach at me and say, "Don't preach at us. Don't preach about all that. God is not going to disgrace us.


text:
 Do you think the people of Israel are under a curse? Has the LORD lost his patience? Would he really do such things? Doesn't he speak kindly to those who do right?"


text:
 The LORD replies, "You attack my people like enemies. Men return from battle, thinking they are safe at home, but there you are, waiting to steal the coats off their backs.


text:
 You drive the women of my people out of the homes they love, and you have robbed their children of my blessings forever.


text:
 "These people want the kind of prophet who goes around full of lies and deceit and says, 'I prophesy that wine and liquor will flow for you.'


text:
 "But I will gather you together, all you people of Israel that are left. I will bring you together like sheep returning to the fold. Like a pasture full of sheep, your land will once again be filled with many people."


text:
 God will open the way for them and lead them out of exile. They will break out of the city gates and go free. Their king, the LORD himself, will lead them out.


text:
 yet you hate what is good and you love what is evil. You skin my people alive and tear the flesh off their bones.


text:
 You eat my people up. You strip off their skin, break their bones, and chop them up like meat for the pot.


text:
 The time is coming when you will cry out to the LORD, but he will not answer you. He will not listen to your prayers, for you have done evil.


text:
 My people are deceived by prophets who promise peace to those who pay them, but threaten war for those who don't. To these prophets the LORD says,


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 "Prophets, your day is almost over; the sun is going down on you. Because you mislead my people, you will have no more prophetic visions, and you will not be able to predict anything."


text:
 Those who predict the future will be disgraced by their failure. They will all be humiliated because God does not answer them.


text:
 But as for me, the LORD fills me with his spirit and power, and gives me a sense of justice and the courage to tell the people of Israel what their sins are.


text:
 The city's rulers govern for bribes, the priests interpret the Law for pay, the prophets give their revelations for money---and they all claim that the LORD is with them. "No harm will come to us," they say. "The LORD is with us."


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 And so, because of you, Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem will become a pile of ruins, and the Temple hill will become a forest.


text:
 He will settle disputes among the nations, among the great powers near and far. They will hammer their swords into plows and their spears into pruning knives. Nations will never again go to war, never prepare for battle again.


text:
 Everyone will live in peace among their own vineyards and fig trees, and no one will make them afraid. The LORD Almighty has promised this.


text:
 Each nation worships and obeys its own god, but we will worship and obey the LORD our God forever and ever.


text:
 "The time is coming," says the LORD, "when I will gather together the people I punished, those who have suffered in exile.


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 They are crippled and far from home, but I will make a new beginning with those who are left, and they will become a great nation. I will rule over them on Mount Zion from that time on and forever."


text:
 And you, Jerusalem, where God, like a shepherd from his lookout tower, watches over his people, will once again be the capital of the kingdom that was yours.


text:
 Why do you cry out so loudly? Why are you suffering like a woman in labor? Is it because you have no king, and your counselors are dead?


text:
 Twist and groan, people of Jerusalem, like a woman giving birth, for now you will have to leave the city and live in the open country. You will have to go to Babylon, but there the LORD will save you from your enemies.


text:
 Many nations have gathered to attack you. They say, "Jerusalem must be destroyed! We will see this city in ruins!"


text:
 But these nations do not know what is in the LORD's mind. They do not realize that they have been gathered together to be punished in the same way that grain is brought in to be threshed.


text:
 The LORD says, "People of Jerusalem, go and punish your enemies! I will make you as strong as a bull with iron horns and bronze hoofs. You will crush many nations, and the wealth they got by violence you will present to me, the Lord of the whole world."


text:
 The LORD says, "Bethlehem Ephrathah, you are one of the smallest towns in Judah, but out of you I will bring a ruler for Israel, whose family line goes back to ancient times."


text:
 So the LORD will abandon his people to their enemies until the woman who is to give birth has her son. Then those Israelites who are in exile will be reunited with their own people.


text:
 When he comes, he will rule his people with the strength that comes from the LORD and with the majesty of the LORD God himself. His people will live in safety because people all over the earth will acknowledge his greatness,


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 and he will bring peace. When the Assyrians invade our country and break through our defenses, we will send our strongest leaders to fight them.


text:
 By force of arms they will conquer Assyria, the land of Nimrod, and they will save us from the Assyrians when they invade our territory.


text:
 The people of Israel who survive will be like refreshing dew sent by the LORD for many nations, like showers on growing plants. They will depend on God, not people.


text:
 Those who are left among the nations will be like a lion hunting for food in a forest or a pasture: it gets in among the sheep, pounces on them, and tears them to pieces---and there is no hope of rescue.


text:
 I will destroy your idols and sacred stone pillars; no longer will you worship the things that you yourselves have made.


text:
 Listen to the LORD's case against Israel. Arise, O LORD, and present your case; let the mountains and the hills hear what you say.


text:
 You mountains, you everlasting foundations of the earth, listen to the LORD's case! The LORD has a case against his people. He is going to bring an accusation against Israel.


text:
 I brought you out of Egypt; I rescued you from slavery; I sent Moses, Aaron, and Miriam to lead you.


text:
 My people, remember what King Balak of Moab planned to do to you and how Balaam son of Beor answered him. Remember the things that happened on the way from the camp at Acacia to Gilgal. Remember these things and you will realize what I did in order to save you."


text:
 What shall I bring to the LORD, the God of heaven, when I come to worship him? Shall I bring the best calves to burn as offerings to him?


text:
 Will the LORD be pleased if I bring him thousands of sheep or endless streams of olive oil? Shall I offer him my first-born child to pay for my sins?


text:
 No, the LORD has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.


text:
 In the houses of evil people are treasures which they got dishonestly. They use false measures, a thing that I hate.


text:
 You will eat, but not be satisfied---in fact you will still be hungry. You will carry things off, but you will not be able to save them; anything you do save I will destroy in war.


text:
 You will sow grain, but not harvest the crop. You will press oil from olives, but never get to use it. You will make wine, but never drink it.


text:
 This will happen because you have followed the evil practices of King Omri and of his son, King Ahab. You have continued their policies, and so I will bring you to ruin, and everyone will despise you. People everywhere will treat you with contempt."


text:
 It's hopeless! I am like a hungry person who finds no fruit left on the trees and no grapes on the vines. All the grapes and all the tasty figs have been picked.


text:
 There is not an honest person left in the land, no one loyal to God. Everyone is waiting for a chance to commit murder. Everyone hunts down their own people.


text:
 They are all experts at doing evil. Officials and judges ask for bribes. The influential people tell them what they want, and so they scheme together.


text:
 Even the best and most honest of them are as worthless as weeds. The day has come when God will punish the people, as he warned them through their watchmen, the prophets. Now they are in confusion.


text:
 Don't believe your neighbor or trust your friend. Be careful what you say even to your husband or wife.


text:
 In these times sons treat their fathers like fools, daughters oppose their mothers, and young women quarrel with their mothers-in-law; your enemies are the members of your own family.


text:
 But I will watch for the LORD; I will wait confidently for God, who will save me. My God will hear me.


text:
 Our enemies have no reason to gloat over us. We have fallen, but we will rise again. We are in darkness now, but the LORD will give us light.


text:
 We have sinned against the LORD, so now we must endure his anger for a while. But in the end he will defend us and right the wrongs that have been done to us. He will bring us out to the light; we will live to see him save us.


text:
 Then our enemies will see this and be disgraced---the same enemies who taunted us by asking, "Where is the LORD your God?" We will see them defeated, trampled down like mud in the streets.


text:
 People of Jerusalem, the time to rebuild the city walls is coming. At that time your territory will be enlarged.


text:
 Your people will return to you from everywhere---from Assyria in the east, from Egypt in the south, from the region of the Euphrates River, from distant seas and far-off mountains.


text:
 Be a shepherd to your people, LORD, the people you have chosen. Although they live apart in the wilderness, there is fertile land around them. Let them go and feed in the rich pastures of Bashan and Gilead, as they did long ago.


text:
 The nations will see this and be frustrated in spite of all their strength. In dismay they will close their mouths and cover their ears.


text:
 They will crawl in the dust like snakes; they will come from their fortresses, trembling and afraid. They will turn in fear to the LORD our God.


text:
 There is no other god like you, O LORD; you forgive the sins of your people who have survived. You do not stay angry forever, but you take pleasure in showing us your constant love.


text:
 You will be merciful to us once again. You will trample our sins underfoot and send them to the bottom of the sea!


text:
 You will show your faithfulness and constant love to your people, the descendants of Abraham and of Jacob, as you promised our ancestors long ago.


text:
 The LORD God tolerates no rivals; he punishes those who oppose him. In his anger he pays them back.


text:
 The LORD does not easily become angry, but he is powerful and never lets the guilty go unpunished. Where the LORD walks, storms arise; the clouds are the dust raised by his feet!


text:
 He commands the sea, and it dries up! He makes the rivers go dry. The fields of Bashan wither, Mount Carmel turns brown, and the flowers of Lebanon fade.


text:
 Mountains quake in the presence of the LORD; hills melt before him. The earth shakes when the LORD appears; the world and all its people tremble.


text:
 When he is angry, who can survive? Who can survive his terrible fury? He pours out his flaming anger; rocks crumble to dust before him.


text:
 The LORD is good; he protects his people in times of trouble; he takes care of those who turn to him.


text:
 Like a great rushing flood he completely destroys his enemies; he sends to their death those who oppose him.


text:
 This is what the LORD says to his people Israel: "Even though the Assyrians are strong and numerous, they will be destroyed and disappear. My people, I made you suffer, but I will not do it again.


text:
 This is what the LORD has decreed about the Assyrians: "They will have no descendants to carry on their name. I will destroy the idols that are in the temples of their gods. I am preparing a grave for the Assyrians---they don't deserve to live!"


text:
 Look, a messenger is coming over the mountains with good news! He is on his way to announce the victory! People of Judah, celebrate your festivals and give God what you solemnly promised him. The wicked will never invade your land again. They have been totally destroyed!


text:
 Nineveh, you are under attack! The power that will shatter you has come. Prepare the defenses! Guard the road! Prepare for battle!


text:
 The enemy soldiers carry red shields and wear uniforms of red. They are preparing to attack! Their chariots flash like fire! Their horses prance!


text:
 Chariots dash wildly through the streets, rushing back and forth in the city squares. They flash like torches and dart about like lightning.


text:
 The officers are summoned; they stumble as they press forward. The attackers rush to the wall and set up the shield for the battering ram.


text:
 Like water from a broken dam the people rush from Nineveh! "Stop! Stop!" the cry rings out--- but no one turns back.


text:
 Nineveh is destroyed, deserted, desolate! Hearts melt with fear; knees tremble, strength is gone; faces grow pale.


text:
 Where now is the city that was like a den of lions, the place where young lions were fed, where the lion and the lioness would go and their cubs would be safe?


text:
 The lion killed his prey and tore it to pieces for his mate and her cubs; he filled his den with torn flesh.


text:
 "I am your enemy!" says the LORD Almighty. "I will burn up your chariots. Your soldiers will be killed in war, and I will take away everything that you took from others. The demands of your envoys will no longer be heard."


text:
 Listen! The crack of the whip, the rattle of wheels, the gallop of horses, the jolting of chariots!


text:
 Cavalry troops charge, swords flash, spears gleam! Corpses are piled high, dead bodies without number--- men stumble over them!


text:
 Nineveh the whore is being punished. Attractive and full of deadly charms, she enchanted nations and enslaved them.


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "I will punish you, Nineveh! I will strip you naked and let the nations see you, see you in all your shame.


text:
 All who see you will shrink back. They will say, 'Nineveh lies in ruins! Who has any sympathy for her? Who will want to comfort her?' "


text:
 Nineveh, are you any better than Thebes, the capital of Egypt? She too had a river to protect her like a wall---the Nile was her defense.


text:
 Yet the people of Thebes were carried off into exile. At every street corner their children were beaten to death. Their leading men were carried off in chains and divided among their captors.


text:
 All your fortresses will be like fig trees with ripe figs: shake the trees, and the fruit falls right into your mouth!


text:
 Your soldiers are helpless, and your country stands defenseless before your enemies. Fire will destroy the bars across your gates.


text:
 Draw water to prepare for a siege, and strengthen your fortresses! Trample the clay to make bricks, and get the brick molds ready!


text:
 No matter what you do, you will still be burned to death or killed in battle. You will be wiped out like crops eaten up by locusts. You multiplied like locusts!


text:
 You produced more merchants than there are stars in the sky! But now they are gone, like locusts that spread their wings and fly away.


text:
 Your officials are like a swarm of locusts that stay in the walls on a cold day. But when the sun comes out, they fly away, and no one knows where they have gone!


text:
 Emperor of Assyria, your governors are dead, and your noblemen are asleep forever! Your people are scattered on the mountains, and there is no one to bring them home again.


text:
 There is no remedy for your injuries, and your wounds cannot be healed. All those who hear the news of your destruction clap their hands for joy. Did anyone escape your endless cruelty?


text:
 Why do you make me see such trouble? How can you stand to look on such wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are all around me, and there is fighting and quarreling everywhere.


text:
 The law is weak and useless, and justice is never done. Evil people get the better of the righteous, and so justice is perverted.


text:
 Then the LORD said to his people, "Keep watching the nations around you, and you will be astonished at what you see. I am going to do something that you will not believe when you hear about it.


text:
 I am bringing the Babylonians to power, those fierce, restless people. They are marching out across the world to conquer other lands.


text:
 "Their horses are faster than leopards, fiercer than hungry wolves. Their cavalry troops come riding from distant lands; their horses paw the ground. They come swooping down like eagles attacking their prey.


text:
 "Their armies advance in violent conquest, and everyone is terrified as they approach. Their captives are as numerous as grains of sand.


text:
 They treat kings with contempt and laugh at high officials. No fortress can stop them---they pile up earth against it and capture it.


text:
 LORD, from the very beginning you are God. You are my God, holy and eternal. LORD, my God and protector, you have chosen the Babylonians and made them strong so that they can punish us.


text:
 But how can you stand these treacherous, evil men? Your eyes are too holy to look at evil, and you cannot stand the sight of people doing wrong. So why are you silent while they destroy people who are more righteous than they are?


text:
 The Babylonians catch people with hooks, as though they were fish. They drag them off in nets and shout for joy over their catch!


text:
 They even worship their nets and offer sacrifices to them, because their nets provide them with the best of everything.


text:
 I will climb my watchtower and wait to see what the LORD will tell me to say and what answer he will give to my complaint.


text:
 The LORD gave me this answer: "Write down clearly on tablets what I reveal to you, so that it can be read at a glance.


text:
 Put it in writing, because it is not yet time for it to come true. But the time is coming quickly, and what I show you will come true. It may seem slow in coming, but wait for it; it will certainly take place, and it will not be delayed.


text:
 And this is the message: 'Those who are evil will not survive, but those who are righteous will live because they are faithful to God.' "


text:
 Wealth is deceitful. Greedy people are proud and restless---like death itself they are never satisfied. That is why they conquer nation after nation for themselves.


text:
 The conquered people will taunt their conquerors and show their scorn for them. They will say, "You take what isn't yours, but you are doomed! How long will you go on getting rich by forcing your debtors to pay up?"


text:
 But before you know it, you that have conquered others will be in debt yourselves and be forced to pay interest. Enemies will come and make you tremble. They will plunder you!


text:
 You have plundered the people of many nations, but now those who have survived will plunder you because of the murders you have committed and because of your violence against the people of the world and its cities.


text:
 You are doomed! You have made your family rich with what you took by violence, and have tried to make your own home safe from harm and danger!


text:
 But your schemes have brought shame on your family; by destroying many nations you have only brought ruin on yourself.


text:
 The nations you conquered wore themselves out in useless labor, and all they have built goes up in flames. The LORD Almighty has done this.


text:
 You are doomed! In your fury you humiliated and disgraced your neighbors; you made them stagger as though they were drunk.


text:
 You in turn will be covered with shame instead of honor. You yourself will drink and stagger. The LORD will make you drink your own cup of punishment, and your honor will be turned to disgrace.


text:
 You have cut down the forests of Lebanon; now you will be cut down. You killed its animals; now animals will terrify you. This will happen because of the murders you have committed and because of your violence against the people of the world and its cities.


text:
 What's the use of an idol? It is only something that a human being has made, and it tells you nothing but lies. What good does it do for its maker to trust it---a god that can't even talk!


text:
 You are doomed! You say to a piece of wood, "Wake up!" or to a block of stone, "Get up!" Can an idol reveal anything to you? It may be covered with silver and gold, but there is no life in it.


text:
 O LORD, I have heard of what you have done, and I am filled with awe. Now do again in our times the great deeds you used to do. Be merciful, even when you are angry.


text:
 God is coming again from Edom; the holy God is coming from the hills of Paran. His splendor covers the heavens, and the earth is full of his praise.


text:
 He comes with the brightness of lightning; light flashes from his hand, there where his power is hidden.


text:
 When he stops, the earth shakes; at his glance the nations tremble. The eternal mountains are shattered; the everlasting hills sink down, the hills where he walked in ancient times.


text:
 Was it the rivers that made you angry, LORD? Was it the sea that made you furious? You rode upon the clouds; the storm cloud was your chariot, as you brought victory to your people.


text:
 When the mountains saw you, they trembled; water poured down from the skies. The waters under the earth roared, and their waves rose high.


text:
 At the flash of your speeding arrows and the gleam of your shining spear, the sun and the moon stood still.


text:
 You went out to save your people, to save your chosen king. You struck down the leader of the wicked and completely destroyed his followers.


text:
 Your arrows pierced the commander of his army when it came like a storm to scatter us, gloating like those who secretly oppress the poor.


text:
 I hear all this, and I tremble; my lips quiver with fear. My body goes limp, and my feet stumble beneath me. I will quietly wait for the time to come when God will punish those who attack us.


text:
 Even though the fig trees have no fruit and no grapes grow on the vines, even though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no grain, even though the sheep all die and the cattle stalls are empty,


text:
 The Sovereign LORD gives me strength. He makes me sure-footed as a deer and keeps me safe on the mountains.


text:
 This is the message that the LORD gave to Zephaniah during the time that Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah. (Zephaniah was descended from King Hezekiah through Amariah, Gedaliah, and Cushi.)


text:
 all human beings and animals, birds and fish. I will bring about the downfall of the wicked. I will destroy everyone, and no survivors will be left. I, the LORD, have spoken.


text:
 "I will punish the people of Jerusalem and of all Judah. I will destroy the last trace of the worship of Baal there, and no one will even remember the pagan priests who serve him.


text:
 I will destroy anyone who goes up on the roof and worships the sun, the moon, and the stars. I will also destroy those who worship me and swear loyalty to me, but then take oaths in the name of the god Molech.


text:
 I will destroy those who have turned back and no longer follow me, those who do not come to me or ask me to guide them."


text:
 The day is near when the LORD will sit in judgment; so be silent in his presence. The LORD is preparing to sacrifice his people and has invited enemies to plunder Judah.


text:
 "On that day of slaughter," says the LORD, "I will punish the officials, the king's sons, and all who practice foreign customs.


text:
 I will punish all who worship like pagans and who steal and kill in order to fill their master's house with loot.


text:
 "On that day," says the LORD, "you will hear the sound of crying at the Fish Gate in Jerusalem. You will hear wailing in the newer part of the city and a great crashing sound in the hills.


text:
 Wail and cry when you hear this, you that live in the lower part of the city, because all the merchants will be dead!


text:
 "At that time I will take a lamp and search Jerusalem. I will punish the people who are self-satisfied and confident, who say to themselves, 'The LORD never does anything, one way or the other.'


text:
 Their wealth will be looted and their houses destroyed. They will never live in the houses they are building or drink wine from the vineyards they are planting."


text:
 The great day of the LORD is near---very near and coming fast! That day will be bitter, for even the bravest soldiers will cry out in despair!


text:
 It will be a day of fury, a day of trouble and distress, a day of ruin and destruction, a day of darkness and gloom, a black and cloudy day,


text:
 a day filled with the sound of war trumpets and the battle cry of soldiers attacking fortified cities and high towers.


text:
 The LORD says, "I will bring such disasters on the human race that everyone will grope about like someone blind. They have sinned against me, and now their blood will be poured out like water, and their dead bodies will lie rotting on the ground."


text:
 On the day when the LORD shows his fury, not even all their silver and gold will save them. The whole earth will be destroyed by the fire of his anger. He will put an end---a sudden end---to everyone who lives on earth.


text:
 before you are driven away like chaff blown by the wind, before the burning anger of the LORD comes upon you, before the day when he shows his fury.


text:
 Turn to the LORD, all you humble people of the land, who obey his commands. Do what is right, and humble yourselves before the LORD. Perhaps you will escape punishment on the day when the LORD shows his anger.


text:
 No one will be left in the city of Gaza. Ashkelon will be deserted. The people of Ashdod will be driven out in half a day, and the people of Ekron will be driven from their city.


text:
 You Philistines are doomed, you people who live along the coast. The LORD has passed sentence on you. He will destroy you, and not one of you will be left.


text:
 The people of Judah who survive will occupy your land. They will pasture their flocks there and sleep in the houses of Ashkelon. The LORD their God will be with them and make them prosper again.


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "I have heard the people of Moab and Ammon insulting and taunting my people, and boasting that they would seize their land.


text:
 As surely as I am the living LORD, the God of Israel, I swear that Moab and Ammon are going to be destroyed like Sodom and Gomorrah. They will become a place of salt pits and everlasting ruin, overgrown with weeds. Those of my people who survive will plunder them and take their land."


text:
 That is how the people of Moab and Ammon will be punished for their pride and arrogance and for insulting the people of the LORD Almighty.


text:
 The LORD will terrify them. He will reduce the gods of the earth to nothing, and then every nation will worship him, each in its own land.


text:
 The LORD will use his power to destroy Assyria. He will make the city of Nineveh a deserted ruin, a waterless desert.


text:
 It will be a place where flocks, herds, and animals of every kind will lie down. Owls will live among its ruins and hoot from the windows. Crows will caw on the doorsteps. The cedar wood of her buildings will be stripped away.


text:
 That is what will happen to the city that is so proud of its own power and thinks it is safe. Its people think that their city is the greatest in the world. What a desolate place it will become, a place where wild animals will rest! Everyone who passes by will shrink back in horror.


text:
 It has not listened to the LORD or accepted his discipline. It has not put its trust in the LORD or asked for his help.


text:
 Its officials are like roaring lions; its judges are like hungry wolves, too greedy to leave a bone until morning.


text:
 The prophets are irresponsible and treacherous; the priests defile what is sacred, and twist the law of God to their own advantage.


text:
 But the LORD is still in the city; he does what is right and never what is wrong. Every morning without fail, he brings justice to his people. And yet the unrighteous people there keep on doing wrong and are not ashamed.


text:
 The LORD says, "I have wiped out whole nations; I have destroyed their cities and left their walls and towers in ruins. The cities are deserted; the streets are empty---no one is left.


text:
 I thought that then my people would have reverence for me and accept my discipline, that they would never forget the lesson I taught them. But soon they were behaving as badly as ever.


text:
 "Just wait," the LORD says. "Wait for the day when I rise to accuse the nations. I have made up my mind to gather nations and kingdoms in order to let them feel the force of my anger. The whole earth will be destroyed by the fire of my fury.


text:
 "Then I will change the people of the nations, and they will pray to me alone and not to other gods. They will all obey me.


text:
 At that time you, my people, will no longer need to be ashamed that you rebelled against me. I will remove everyone who is proud and arrogant, and you will never again rebel against me on my sacred hill.


text:
 The people of Israel who survive will do no wrong to anyone, tell no lies, nor try to deceive. They will be prosperous and secure, afraid of no one."


text:
 The LORD has stopped your punishment; he has removed all your enemies. The LORD, the king of Israel, is with you; there is no reason now to be afraid.


text:
 The time is coming when they will say to Jerusalem, "Do not be afraid, city of Zion! Do not let your hands hang limp!


text:
 The LORD your God is with you; his power gives you victory. The LORD will take delight in you, and in his love he will give you new life. He will sing and be joyful over you,


text:
 as joyful as people at a festival." The LORD says, "I have ended the threat of doom and taken away your disgrace.


text:
 The time is coming! I will punish your oppressors; I will rescue all the lame and bring the exiles home. I will turn their shame to honor, and all the world will praise them.


text:
 The time is coming! I will bring your scattered people home; I will make you famous throughout the world and make you prosperous once again." The LORD has spoken.


text:
 During the second year that Darius was emperor of Persia, on the first day of the sixth month, the LORD spoke through the prophet Haggai. The message was for the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and for the High Priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak.


text:
 The LORD Almighty said to Haggai, "These people say that this is not the right time to rebuild the Temple."


text:
 You have planted much grain, but have harvested very little. You have food to eat, but not enough to make you full. You have wine to drink, but not enough to get drunk on! You have clothing, but not enough to keep you warm. And workers cannot earn enough to live on.


text:
 Now go up into the hills, get lumber, and rebuild the Temple; then I will be pleased and will be worshiped as I should be.


text:
 "You hoped for large harvests, but they turned out to be small. And when you brought the harvest home, I blew it away. Why did I do that? Because my Temple lies in ruins while every one of you is busy working on your own house.


text:
 I have brought drought on the land---on its hills, grainfields, vineyards, and olive orchards---on every crop the ground produces, on people and animals, on everything you try to grow."


text:
 Then Zerubbabel and Joshua and all the people who had returned from the exile in Babylonia, did what the LORD their God told them to do. They were afraid and obeyed the prophet Haggai, the LORD's messenger.


text:
 The LORD inspired everyone to work on the Temple: Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah; Joshua, the High Priest, and all the people who had returned from the exile. They began working on the Temple of the LORD Almighty, their God,


text:
 On the twenty-first day of the seventh month of that same year, the LORD spoke again through the prophet Haggai.


text:
 He told Haggai to speak to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah, to Joshua, the High Priest, and to the people, and to say to them,


text:
 "Is there anyone among you who can still remember how splendid the Temple used to be? How does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all.


text:
 When you came out of Egypt, I promised that I would always be with you. I am still with you, so do not be afraid.


text:
 I will overthrow all the nations, and their treasures will be brought here, and the Temple will be filled with wealth.


text:
 The new Temple will be more splendid than the old one, and there I will give my people prosperity and peace." The LORD Almighty has spoken.


text:
 On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month of the second year that Darius was emperor, the LORD Almighty spoke again to the prophet Haggai.


text:
 Suppose someone takes a piece of consecrated meat from a sacrifice and carries it in a fold of his robe. If he then lets his robe touch any bread, cooked food, wine, olive oil, or any kind of food at all, will it make that food consecrated also?" When the question was asked, the priests answered, "No."


text:
 Then Haggai asked, "Suppose someone is defiled because he has touched a dead body. If he then touches any of these foods, will that make them defiled too?" The priests answered, "Yes."


text:
 Then Haggai said, "The LORD says that the same thing applies to the people of this nation and to everything they produce; and so everything they offer on the altar is defiled."


text:
 you would go to a pile of grain expecting to find twenty bushels, but there would be only ten. You would go to draw fifty gallons of wine from a vat, but find only twenty.


text:
 I sent scorching winds and hail to ruin everything you tried to grow, but still you did not repent.


text:
 Today is the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, the day that the foundation of the Temple has been completed. See what is going to happen from now on.


text:
 Although there is no grain left, and the grapevines, fig trees, pomegranates, and olive trees have not yet produced, yet from now on I will bless you."


text:
 and overthrow kingdoms and end their power. I will overturn chariots and their drivers; the horses will die, and their riders will kill one another.


text:
 On that day I will take you, Zerubbabel my servant, and I will appoint you to rule in my name. You are the one I have chosen." The LORD Almighty has spoken.


text:
 In the eighth month of the second year that Darius was emperor of Persia, the LORD gave this message to the prophet Zechariah, the son of Berechiah and grandson of Iddo.


text:
 The LORD Almighty told Zechariah to say to the people, "I, the LORD, was very angry with your ancestors,


text:
 Do not be like your ancestors. Long ago the prophets gave them my message, telling them not to live evil, sinful lives any longer. But they would not listen to me or obey me.


text:
 Through my servants the prophets I gave your ancestors commands and warnings, but they disregarded them and suffered the consequences. Then they repented and acknowledged that I, the LORD Almighty, had punished them as they deserved and as I had determined to do.' "


text:
 In the second year that Darius was emperor, on the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month (the month of Shebat), the LORD gave me a message in a vision at night.


text:
 I saw someone riding a red horse. He had stopped among some myrtle trees in a valley, and behind him were other horses---red, dappled, and white.


text:
 They reported to the angel: "We have been all over the world and have found that the whole world lies helpless and subdued."


text:
 Then the angel said, "Almighty LORD, you have been angry with Jerusalem and the cities of Judah for seventy years now. How much longer will it be before you show them mercy?"


text:
 and the angel told me to proclaim what the LORD Almighty had said: "I have a deep love and concern for Jerusalem, my holy city,


text:
 and I am very angry with the nations that enjoy quiet and peace. For while I was holding back my anger against my people, those nations made the sufferings of my people worse.


text:
 So I have come back to Jerusalem to show mercy to the city. My Temple will be restored, and the city will be rebuilt."


text:
 The angel also told me to proclaim: "The LORD Almighty says that his cities will be prosperous again and that he will once again help Jerusalem and claim the city as his own."


text:
 I asked the angel that had been speaking to me, "What do these horns mean?" He answered, "They stand for the world powers that have scattered the people of Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem."


text:
 I asked, "What have they come to do?" He answered, "They have come to terrify and overthrow the nations that completely crushed the land of Judah and scattered its people."


text:
 "Where are you going?" I asked. "To measure Jerusalem," he answered, "to see how long and how wide it is."


text:
 The first one said to the other, "Run and tell that young man with the measuring line that there are going to be so many people and so much livestock in Jerusalem that it will be too big to have walls.


text:
 The LORD has promised that he himself will be a wall of fire around the city to protect it and that he will live there in all his glory."


text:
 The LORD said to his people, "I scattered you in all directions. But now, you exiles, escape from Babylonia and return to Jerusalem.


text:
 Anyone who strikes you strikes what is most precious to me." So the LORD Almighty sent me with this message for the nations that had plundered his people:


text:
 "The LORD himself will fight against you, and you will be plundered by the people who were once your servants." When this happens, everyone will know that the LORD Almighty sent me.


text:
 At that time many nations will come to the LORD and become his people. He will live among you, and you will know that he has sent me to you.


text:
 Once again Judah will be the special possession of the LORD in his sacred land, and Jerusalem will be the city he loves most of all.


text:
 In another vision the LORD showed me the High Priest Joshua standing before the angel of the LORD. And there beside Joshua stood Satan, ready to bring an accusation against him.


text:
 The angel of the LORD said to Satan, "May the LORD condemn you, Satan! May the LORD, who loves Jerusalem, condemn you. This man is like a stick snatched from the fire."


text:
 The angel said to his heavenly attendants, "Take away the filthy clothes this man is wearing." Then he said to Joshua, "I have taken away your sin and will give you new clothes to wear."


text:
 He commanded the attendants to put a clean turban on Joshua's head. They did so, and then they put the new clothes on him while the angel of the LORD stood there.


text:
 the LORD Almighty had said: "If you obey my laws and perform the duties I have assigned you, then you will continue to be in charge of my Temple and its courts, and I will hear your prayers, just as I hear the prayers of the angels who are in my presence.


text:
 Listen then, Joshua, you who are the High Priest; and listen, you fellow priests of his, you that are the sign of a good future: I will reveal my servant, who is called The Branch!


text:
 I am placing in front of Joshua a single stone with seven facets. I will engrave an inscription on it, and in a single day I will take away the sin of this land.


text:
 When that day comes, each of you will invite your neighbor to come and enjoy peace and security, surrounded by your vineyards and fig trees."


text:
 "What do you see?" he asked. "A lampstand made of gold," I answered. "At the top is a bowl for the oil. On the lampstand are seven lamps, each one with places for seven wicks.


text:
 The angel told me to give Zerubbabel this message from the LORD: "You will succeed, not by military might or by your own strength, but by my spirit.


text:
 Obstacles as great as mountains will disappear before you. You will rebuild the Temple, and as you put the last stone in place, the people will shout, 'Beautiful, beautiful!' "


text:
 He said, "Zerubbabel has laid the foundation of the Temple, and he will finish the building. When this happens, my people will know that it is I who sent you to them.


text:
 They are disappointed because so little progress is being made. But they will see Zerubbabel continuing to build the Temple, and they will be glad." The angel said to me, "The seven lamps are the seven eyes of the LORD, which see all over the earth."


text:
 And what is the meaning of the two olive branches beside the two gold pipes from which the olive oil pours?"


text:
 Then he said, "These are the two men whom God has chosen and anointed to serve him, the Lord of the whole earth."


text:
 The angel asked me what I saw. I answered, "A scroll flying through the air; it is thirty feet long and fifteen feet wide."


text:
 Then he said to me, "On it is written the curse that is to go out over the whole land. On one side of the scroll it says that every thief will be removed from the land; and on the other side it says that everyone who tells lies under oath will also be taken away.


text:
 The LORD Almighty says that he will send this curse out, and it will enter the house of every thief and the house of everyone who tells lies under oath. It will remain in their houses and leave them in ruins."


text:
 The basket had a lid made of lead. As I watched, the lid was raised, and there in the basket sat a woman!


text:
 The angel said, "This represents wickedness." Then he pushed her down into the basket and put the lid back down.


text:
 I looked up and saw two women flying toward me with powerful wings like those of a stork. They picked up the basket and flew off with it.


text:
 He answered, "To Babylonia, where they will build a temple for it. When the temple is finished, the basket will be placed there to be worshiped."


text:
 He answered, "These are the four winds; they have just come from the presence of the Lord of all the earth."


text:
 The chariot pulled by the black horses was going north to Babylonia, the white horses were going to the west, and the dappled horses were going to the country in the south.


text:
 As the dappled horses came out, they were impatient to go and inspect the earth. The angel said, "Go and inspect the earth!"---and they did.


text:
 Then the angel cried out to me, "The horses that went north to Babylonia have quieted the LORD's anger."


text:
 He said, "Take the gifts given by the exiles Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, and go at once to the home of Josiah son of Zephaniah. All of them have returned from exile in Babylonia.


text:
 Make a crown out of the silver and gold they have given, and put it on the head of the High Priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak.


text:
 Tell him that the LORD Almighty says, 'The man who is called The Branch will flourish where he is and rebuild the LORD's Temple.


text:
 He is the one who will build it and receive the honor due a king, and he will rule his people. A priest will stand by his throne, and they will work together in peace and harmony.'


text:
 The crown will be a memorial in the LORD's Temple in honor of Heldai, Tobijah, Jedaiah, and Josiah."


text:
 Men who live far away will come and help to rebuild the Temple of the LORD. And when it is rebuilt, you will know that the LORD Almighty sent me to you. This will all happen if you fully obey the commands of the LORD your God.


text:
 In the fourth year that Darius was emperor, on the fourth day of the ninth month (the month of Kislev), the LORD gave me a message.


text:
 The people of Bethel had sent Sharezer and Regemmelech and their men to the Temple of the LORD Almighty to pray for the LORD's blessing


text:
 and to ask the priests and the prophets this question: "Should we continue to mourn because of the destruction of the Temple, by fasting in the fifth month as we have done for so many years now?"


text:
 He said, "Tell the people of the land and the priests that when they fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months during these seventy years, it was not in honor of me.


text:
 This is what the LORD said through the earlier prophets at the time when Jerusalem was prosperous and filled with people and when there were many people living not only in the towns around the city but also in the southern region and in the western foothills.


text:
 "Long ago I gave these commands to my people: 'You must see that justice is done, and must show kindness and mercy to one another.


text:
 Do not oppress widows, orphans, foreigners who live among you, or anyone else in need. And do not plan ways of harming one another.'


text:
 and made their hearts as hard as rock. Because they would not listen to the teaching which I sent through the prophets who lived long ago, I became very angry.


text:
 Like a storm I swept them away to live in foreign countries. This good land was left a desolate place, with no one living in it."


text:
 "I have longed to help Jerusalem because of my deep love for her people, a love which has made me angry with her enemies.


text:
 I will return to Jerusalem, my holy city, and live there. It will be known as the faithful city, and the hill of the LORD Almighty will be called the sacred hill.


text:
 Once again old men and women, so old that they use canes when they walk, will be sitting in the city squares.


text:
 and will bring them back from east and west to live in Jerusalem. They will be my people, and I will be their God, ruling over them faithfully and justly.


text:
 "Have courage! You are now hearing the same words the prophets spoke at the time the foundation was being laid for rebuilding my Temple.


text:
 Before that time no one could afford to hire either men or animals, and no one was safe from enemies. I turned people against one another.


text:
 They will plant their crops in peace. Their vines will bear grapes, the earth will produce crops, and there will be plenty of rain. I will give all these blessings to the people of my nation who survive.


text:
 People of Judah and Israel! In the past foreigners have cursed one another by saying, 'May the same disasters fall on you that fell on Judah and Israel!' But I will save you, and then those foreigners will say to one another, 'May you receive the same blessings that came to Judah and Israel!' So have courage and don't be afraid."


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "When your ancestors made me angry, I planned disaster for them and did not change my mind, but carried out my plans.


text:
 These are the things you should do: Speak the truth to one another. In the courts give real justice---the kind that brings peace.


text:
 Do not plan ways of harming one another. Do not give false testimony under oath. I hate lying, injustice, and violence."


text:
 "The fasts held in the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will become festivals of joy and gladness for the people of Judah. You must love truth and peace."


text:
 Those from one city will say to those from another, 'We are going to worship the LORD Almighty and pray for his blessing. Come with us!'


text:
 Many peoples and powerful nations will come to Jerusalem to worship the LORD Almighty and to pray for his blessing.


text:
 In those days ten foreigners will come to one Jew and say, 'We want to share in your destiny, because we have heard that God is with you.' "


text:
 This is the LORD's message: He has decreed punishment for the land of Hadrach and for the city of Damascus. Not only the tribes of Israel but also the capital of Syria belong to the LORD.


text:
 Hamath, which borders on Hadrach, also belongs to him, and so do the cities of Tyre and Sidon, with all their skill.


text:
 Tyre has built fortifications for herself and has piled up so much silver and gold that it is as common as dirt!


text:
 But the Lord will take away everything she has. He will throw her wealth into the sea, and the city will be burned to the ground.


text:
 The city of Ashkelon will see this and be afraid. The city of Gaza will see it and suffer great pain. So will Ekron, and her hopes will be shattered. Gaza will lose her king, and Ashkelon will be left deserted.


text:
 People of mixed race will live in Ashdod. The LORD says, "I will humble all these proud Philistines.


text:
 They will no longer eat meat with blood in it, or other forbidden food. All the survivors will become part of my people and be like a clan in the tribe of Judah. Ekron will become part of my people, as the Jebusites did.


text:
 I will guard my land and keep armies from passing through it. I will not allow tyrants to oppress my people any more. I have seen how my people have suffered."


text:
 Rejoice, rejoice, people of Zion! Shout for joy, you people of Jerusalem! Look, your king is coming to you! He comes triumphant and victorious, but humble and riding on a donkey--- on a colt, the foal of a donkey.


text:
 The LORD says, "I will remove the war chariots from Israel and take the horses from Jerusalem; the bows used in battle will be destroyed. Your king will make peace among the nations; he will rule from sea to sea, from the Euphrates River to the ends of the earth."


text:
 The LORD says, "Because of my covenant with you that was sealed by the blood of sacrifices, I will set your people free--- free from the waterless pit of exile.


text:
 Return, you exiles who now have hope; return to your place of safety. Now I tell you that I will repay you twice over with blessing for all you have suffered.


text:
 I will use Judah like a soldier's bow and Israel like the arrows. I will use the men of Zion like a sword, to fight the men of Greece."


text:
 The LORD will appear above his people; he will shoot his arrows like lightning. The Sovereign LORD will sound the trumpet; he will march in the storms from the south.


text:
 The LORD Almighty will protect his people, and they will destroy their enemies. They will shout in battle like drunk men and will shed the blood of their enemies; it will flow like the blood of a sacrifice poured on the altar from a bowl.


text:
 When that day comes, the LORD will save his people, as a shepherd saves his flock from danger. They will shine in his land like the jewels of a crown.


text:
 Ask the LORD for rain in the spring of the year. It is the LORD who sends rain clouds and showers, making the fields green for everyone.


text:
 People consult idols and fortunetellers, but the answers they get are lies and nonsense. Some interpret dreams, but only mislead you; the comfort they give is useless. So the people wander about like lost sheep. They are in trouble because they have no leader.


text:
 The LORD says, "I am angry with those foreigners who rule my people, and I am going to punish them. The people of Judah are mine, and I, the LORD Almighty, will take care of them. They will be my powerful war-horses.


text:
 The people of Judah will be victorious like soldiers who trample their enemies in the mud of the streets. They will fight because the LORD is with them, and they will defeat even the enemy cavalry.


text:
 "I will make the people of Judah strong; I will rescue the people of Israel. I will have compassion on them and bring them all back home. They will be as though I had never rejected them. I am the LORD their God; I will answer their prayers.


text:
 The people of Israel will be strong like soldiers, happy like those who have been drinking wine. Their descendants will remember this victory and be glad because of what the LORD has done.


text:
 "I will call my people and gather them together. I will rescue them and make them as numerous as they used to be.


text:
 Though I have scattered them among the nations, yet in far-off places they will remember me. They and their children will survive and return home together.


text:
 From Egypt and Assyria I will bring them home and settle them in their own country. I will settle them in Gilead and Lebanon also; the whole land will be filled with people.


text:
 When they pass through their sea of trouble, I, the LORD, will strike the waves, and the depths of the Nile will go dry. Proud Assyria will be humbled, and mighty Egypt will lose her power.


text:
 Weep and wail, cypress trees--- the cedars have fallen; those glorious trees have been destroyed! Weep and wail, oaks of Bashan--- the dense forest has been cut down!


text:
 The rulers cry out in grief; their glory is gone! Listen to the roaring of the lions; their forest home along the Jordan is destroyed!


text:
 The LORD my God said to me, "Act the part of the shepherd of a flock of sheep that are going to be butchered.


text:
 Their owners kill them and go unpunished. They sell the meat and say, 'Praise the LORD! We are rich!' Even their own shepherds have no pity on them."


text:
 (The LORD said, "I will no longer pity anyone on earth. I myself will put all the people in the power of their rulers. These rulers will devastate the earth, and I will not save it from their power.")


text:
 Those who bought and sold the sheep hired me, and I became the shepherd of the sheep that were going to be butchered. I took two sticks: one I called "Favor" and the other "Unity." And I took care of the flock.


text:
 I lost patience with three other shepherds, who hated me, and I got rid of them all in a single month.


text:
 Then I said to the flock, "I will not be your shepherd any longer. Let those die who are to die. Let those be destroyed who are to be destroyed. Those who are left will destroy one another."


text:
 Then I took the stick called "Favor" and broke it, to cancel the covenant which the LORD had made with all the nations.


text:
 So the covenant was canceled on that day. Those who bought and sold the sheep were watching me, and they knew that the LORD was speaking through what I did.


text:
 I said to them, "If you are willing, give me my wages. But if not, keep them." So they paid me thirty pieces of silver as my wages.


text:
 The LORD said to me, "Put them in the Temple treasury." So I took the thirty pieces of silver---the magnificent sum they thought I was worth---and put them in the Temple treasury.


text:
 Then I broke the second stick, the one called "Unity," and the unity of Judah and Israel was shattered.


text:
 I have put a shepherd in charge of my flock, but he does not help the sheep that are threatened by destruction; nor does he look for the lost, or heal those that are hurt, or feed the healthy. Instead, he eats the meat of the fattest sheep and tears off their hoofs.


text:
 That worthless shepherd is doomed! He has abandoned his flock. War will totally destroy his power. His arm will wither, and his right eye will go blind."


text:
 This is a message about Israel from the LORD, the LORD who spread out the skies, created the earth, and gave life to man. He says,


text:
 "I will make Jerusalem like a cup of wine; the nations around her will drink and stagger like drunks. And when they besiege Jerusalem, the cities of the rest of Judah will also be besieged.


text:
 But when that time comes, I will make Jerusalem like a heavy stone---any nation that tries to lift it will be hurt. All the nations of the world will join forces to attack her.


text:
 At that time I will terrify all their horses and make all their riders go crazy. I will watch over the people of Judah, but I will make the horses of their enemies blind.


text:
 Then the clans of Judah will say to themselves, 'The LORD God Almighty gives strength to his people who live in Jerusalem.'


text:
 "At that time I will make the clans of Judah like a fire in a forest or in a field of ripe grain---they will destroy all the surrounding nations. The people of Jerusalem will remain safe in the city.


text:
 "I, the LORD, will give victory to the armies of Judah first, so that the honor which the descendants of David and the people of Jerusalem will receive will be no greater than that of the rest of Judah.


text:
 At that time the LORD will protect those who live in Jerusalem, and even the weakest among them will become as strong as David was. The descendants of David will lead them like the angel of the LORD, like God himself.


text:
 "I will fill the descendants of David and the other people of Jerusalem with the spirit of mercy and the spirit of prayer. They will look at the one whom they stabbed to death, and they will mourn for him like those who mourn for an only child. They will mourn bitterly, like those who have lost their first-born son.


text:
 At that time the mourning in Jerusalem will be as great as the mourning for Hadad Rimmon in the plain of Megiddo.


text:
 Each family in the land will mourn by itself: the family descended from David, the family descended from Nathan, the family descended from Levi, the family descended from Shimei, and all the other families. Each family will mourn by itself, and the men of each family will mourn separately from the women.


text:
 "When that time comes," says the LORD Almighty, "a fountain will be opened to purify the descendants of David and the people of Jerusalem from their sin and idolatry.


text:
 At that time I will remove the names of the idols from the land, and no one will remember them any more. I will get rid of anyone who claims to be a prophet and will take away the desire to worship idols.


text:
 Then if anyone still insists on prophesying, his own father and mother will tell him that he must be put to death, because he claimed to speak the LORD's word, but spoke lies instead. When he prophesies, his own father and mother will stab him to death.


text:
 When that time comes, no prophet will be proud of his visions or act like a prophet or wear a prophet's coarse garment in order to deceive people.


text:
 Then if someone asks him, 'What are those wounds on your chest?' he will answer, 'I got them at a friend's house.' "


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "Wake up, sword, and attack the shepherd who works for me! Kill him, and the sheep will be scattered. I will attack my people


text:
 And I will test the third that survives and will purify them as silver is purified by fire. I will test them as gold is tested. Then they will pray to me, and I will answer them. I will tell them that they are my people, and they will confess that I am their God."


text:
 The day when the LORD will sit in judgment is near. Then Jerusalem will be looted, and the loot will be divided up before your eyes.


text:
 The LORD will bring all the nations together to make war on Jerusalem. The city will be taken, the houses looted, and the women raped. Half of the people will go into exile, but the rest of them will not be taken away from the city.


text:
 At that time he will stand on the Mount of Olives, to the east of Jerusalem. Then the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west by a large valley. Half of the mountain will move northward, and half of it southward.


text:
 You will escape through this valley that divides the mountain in two. You will flee as your ancestors did when the earthquake struck in the time of King Uzziah of Judah. The LORD my God will come, bringing all the angels with him.


text:
 nor any darkness. There will always be daylight, even at nighttime. When this will happen is known only to the LORD.


text:
 When that day comes, fresh water will flow from Jerusalem, half of it to the Dead Sea and the other half to the Mediterranean. It will flow all year long, in the dry season as well as the wet.


text:
 Then the LORD will be king over all the earth; everyone will worship him as God and know him by the same name.


text:
 The whole region, from Geba in the north to Rimmon in the south, will be made level. Jerusalem will tower above the land around it; the city will reach from the Benjamin Gate to the Corner Gate, where there had been an earlier gate, and from the Tower of Hananel to the royal wine presses.


text:
 The LORD will bring a terrible disease on all the nations that make war on Jerusalem. Their flesh will rot away while they are still alive; their eyes and their tongues will rot away.


text:
 At that time the LORD will make them so confused and afraid that everyone will seize the man next to him and attack him.


text:
 The men of Judah will fight to defend Jerusalem. They will take as loot the wealth of all the nations---gold, silver, and clothing in great abundance.


text:
 A terrible disease will also fall on the horses, the mules, the camels, and the donkeys---on all the animals in the camps of the enemy.


text:
 Then all of the survivors from the nations that have attacked Jerusalem will go there each year to worship the LORD Almighty as king and to celebrate the Festival of Shelters.


text:
 If any nation refuses to go and worship the LORD Almighty as king, then rain will not fall on their land.


text:
 If the Egyptians refuse to celebrate the Festival of Shelters, then they will be struck by the same disease that the LORD will send on every nation that refuses to go.


text:
 This will be the punishment that will fall on Egypt and on all the other nations if they do not celebrate the Festival of Shelters.


text:
 At that time even the harness bells of the horses will be inscribed with the words "Dedicated to the LORD." The cooking pots in the Temple will be as sacred as the bowls before the altar.


text:
 Every cooking pot in Jerusalem and in all Judah will be set apart for use in the worship of the LORD Almighty. The people who offer sacrifices will use them for boiling the meat of the sacrifices. When that time comes, there will no longer be any merchant in the Temple of the LORD Almighty.


text:
 The LORD says to his people, "I have always loved you." But they reply, "How have you shown your love for us?" The LORD answers, "Esau and Jacob were brothers, but I have loved Jacob and his descendants,


text:
 and have hated Esau and his descendants. I have devastated Esau's hill country and abandoned the land to jackals."


text:
 If Esau's descendants, the Edomites, say, "Our towns have been destroyed, but we will rebuild them," then the LORD will reply, "Let them rebuild---I will tear them down again. People will call them 'The evil country' and 'The nation with whom the LORD is angry forever.' "


text:
 The people of Israel are going to see this with their own eyes, and they will say, "The LORD is mighty even outside the land of Israel!"


text:
 The LORD Almighty says to the priests, "Children honor their parents, and servants honor their masters. I am your father---why don't you honor me? I am your master---why don't you respect me? You despise me, and yet you ask, 'How have we despised you?'


text:
 This is how---by offering worthless food on my altar. Then you ask, 'How have we failed to respect you?' I will tell you---by showing contempt for my altar.


text:
 When you bring a blind or sick or lame animal to sacrifice to me, do you think there's nothing wrong with that? Try giving an animal like that to the governor! Would he be pleased with you or grant you any favors?"


text:
 Now, you priests, try asking God to be good to us. He will not answer your prayer, and it will be your fault.


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "I wish one of you would close the Temple doors so as to prevent you from lighting useless fires on my altar. I am not pleased with you; I will not accept the offerings you bring me.


text:
 People from one end of the world to the other honor me. Everywhere they burn incense to me and offer acceptable sacrifices. All of them honor me!


text:
 But you dishonor me when you say that my altar is worthless and when you offer on it food that you despise.


text:
 You say, 'How tired we are of all this!' and you turn up your nose at me. As your offering to me you bring a stolen animal or one that is lame or sick. Do you think I will accept that from you?


text:
 A curse on the cheater who sacrifices a worthless animal to me, when he has in his flock a good animal that he promised to give me! For I am a great king, and people of all nations fear me."


text:
 You must honor me by what you do. If you will not listen to what I say, then I will bring a curse on you. I will put a curse on the things you receive for your support. In fact, I have already put a curse on them, because you do not take my command seriously.


text:
 I will punish your children and rub your faces in the dung of the animals you sacrifice---and you will be taken out to the dung heap.


text:
 Then you will know that I have given you this command, so that my covenant with the priests, the descendants of Levi, will not be broken.


text:
 "In my covenant I promised them life and well-being, and this is what I gave them, so that they might respect me. In those days they did respect and fear me.


text:
 They taught what was right, not what was wrong. They lived in harmony with me; they not only did what was right themselves, but they also helped many others to stop doing evil.


text:
 It is the duty of priests to teach the true knowledge of God. People should go to them to learn my will, because they are the messengers of the LORD Almighty.


text:
 "But now you priests have turned away from the right path. Your teaching has led many to do wrong. You have broken the covenant I made with you.


text:
 So I, in turn, will make the people of Israel despise you because you do not obey my will, and when you teach my people, you do not treat everyone alike."


text:
 Don't we all have the same father? Didn't the same God create us all? Then why do we break our promises to one another, and why do we despise the covenant that God made with our ancestors?


text:
 The people of Judah have broken their promise to God and done a horrible thing in Jerusalem and all over the country. They have defiled the Temple which the LORD loves. Men have married women who worship foreign gods.


text:
 May the LORD remove from the community of Israel those who did this, and never again let them participate in the offerings our nation brings to the LORD Almighty.


text:
 This is another thing you do. You drown the LORD's altar with tears, weeping and wailing because he no longer accepts the offerings you bring him.


text:
 You ask why he no longer accepts them. It is because he knows you have broken your promise to the wife you married when you were young. She was your partner, and you have broken your promise to her, although you promised before God that you would be faithful to her.


text:
 Didn't God make you one body and spirit with her? What was his purpose in this? It was that you should have children who are truly God's people. So make sure that none of you breaks his promise to his wife.


text:
 "I hate divorce," says the LORD God of Israel. "I hate it when one of you does such a cruel thing to his wife. Make sure that you do not break your promise to be faithful to your wife."


text:
 You have tired the LORD out with your talk. But you ask, "How have we tired him?" By saying, "The LORD Almighty thinks all evildoers are good; in fact he likes them." Or by asking, "Where is the God who is supposed to be just?"


text:
 The LORD Almighty answers, "I will send my messenger to prepare the way for me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger you long to see will come and proclaim my covenant."


text:
 But who will be able to endure the day when he comes? Who will be able to survive when he appears? He will be like strong soap, like a fire that refines metal.


text:
 He will come to judge like one who refines and purifies silver. As a metalworker refines silver and gold, so the LORD's messenger will purify the priests, so that they will bring to the LORD the right kind of offerings.


text:
 Then the offerings which the people of Judah and Jerusalem bring to the LORD will be pleasing to him, as they used to be in the past.


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "I will appear among you to judge, and I will testify at once against those who practice magic, against adulterers, against those who give false testimony, those who cheat employees out of their wages, and those who take advantage of widows, orphans, and foreigners---against all who do not respect me.


text:
 "I am the LORD, and I do not change. And so you, the descendants of Jacob, are not yet completely lost.


text:
 You, like your ancestors before you, have turned away from my laws and have not kept them. Turn back to me, and I will turn to you. But you ask, 'What must we do to turn back to you?'


text:
 I ask you, is it right for a person to cheat God? Of course not, yet you are cheating me. 'How?' you ask. In the matter of tithes and offerings.


text:
 Bring the full amount of your tithes to the Temple, so that there will be plenty of food there. Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things.


text:
 Then the people of all nations will call you happy, because your land will be a good place to live.


text:
 "You have said terrible things about me," says the LORD. "But you ask, 'What have we said about you?'


text:
 You have said, 'It's useless to serve God. What's the use of doing what he says or of trying to show the LORD Almighty that we are sorry for what we have done?


text:
 As we see it, proud people are the ones who are happy. Evil people not only prosper, but they test God's patience with their evil deeds and get away with it.' "


text:
 Then the people who feared the LORD spoke to one another, and the LORD listened and heard what they said. In his presence, there was written down in a book a record of those who feared the LORD and respected him.


text:
 "They will be my people," says the LORD Almighty. "On the day when I act, they will be my very own. I will be merciful to them as parents are merciful to the children who serve them.


text:
 Once again my people will see the difference between what happens to the righteous and to the wicked, to the person who serves me and the one who does not."


text:
 The LORD Almighty says, "The day is coming when all proud and evil people will burn like straw. On that day they will burn up, and there will be nothing left of them.


text:
 But for you who obey me, my saving power will rise on you like the sun and bring healing like the sun's rays. You will be as free and happy as calves let out of a stall.


text:
 "Remember the teachings of my servant Moses, the laws and commands which I gave him at Mount Sinai for all the people of Israel to obey.


text:
 He will bring fathers and children together again; otherwise I would have to come and destroy your country."


text:
 This is the list of the ancestors of Jesus Christ, a descendant of David, who was a descendant of Abraham.


text:
 From Abraham to King David, the following ancestors are listed: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Judah and his brothers; then Perez and Zerah (their mother was Tamar), Hezron, Ram, Amminadab, Nahshon, Salmon, Boaz (his mother was Rahab), Obed (his mother was Ruth), Jesse, and King David.


text:
 From David to the time when the people of Israel were taken into exile in Babylon, the following ancestors are listed: David, Solomon (his mother was the woman who had been Uriah's wife), Rehoboam, Abijah, Asa, Jehoshaphat, Jehoram, Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, Manasseh, Amon, Josiah, and Jehoiachin and his brothers.


text:
 From the time after the exile in Babylon to the birth of Jesus, the following ancestors are listed: Jehoiachin, Shealtiel, Zerubbabel, Abiud, Eliakim, Azor, Zadok, Achim, Eliud, Eleazar, Matthan, Jacob, and Joseph, who married Mary, the mother of Jesus, who was called the Messiah.


text:
 So then, there were fourteen generations from Abraham to David, and fourteen from David to the exile in Babylon, and fourteen from then to the birth of the Messiah.


text:
 This was how the birth of Jesus Christ took place. His mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, but before they were married, she found out that she was going to have a baby by the Holy Spirit.


text:
 Joseph was a man who always did what was right, but he did not want to disgrace Mary publicly; so he made plans to break the engagement privately.


text:
 While he was thinking about this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, descendant of David, do not be afraid to take Mary to be your wife. For it is by the Holy Spirit that she has conceived.


text:
 She will have a son, and you will name him Jesus---because he will save his people from their sins."


text:
 "A virgin will become pregnant and have a son, and he will be called Immanuel" (which means, "God is with us").


text:
 But he had no sexual relations with her before she gave birth to her son. And Joseph named him Jesus.


text:
 Jesus was born in the town of Bethlehem in Judea, during the time when Herod was king. Soon afterward, some men who studied the stars came from the East to Jerusalem


text:
 and asked, "Where is the baby born to be the king of the Jews? We saw his star when it came up in the east, and we have come to worship him."


text:
 He called together all the chief priests and the teachers of the Law and asked them, "Where will the Messiah be born?"


text:
 'Bethlehem in the land of Judah, you are by no means the least of the leading cities of Judah; for from you will come a leader who will guide my people Israel.' "


text:
 So Herod called the visitors from the East to a secret meeting and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.


text:
 Then he sent them to Bethlehem with these instructions: "Go and make a careful search for the child; and when you find him, let me know, so that I too may go and worship him."


text:
 And so they left, and on their way they saw the same star they had seen in the East. When they saw it, how happy they were, what joy was theirs! It went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.


text:
 They went into the house, and when they saw the child with his mother Mary, they knelt down and worshiped him. They brought out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, and presented them to him.


text:
 Then they returned to their country by another road, since God had warned them in a dream not to go back to Herod.


text:
 After they had left, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph and said, "Herod will be looking for the child in order to kill him. So get up, take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you to leave."


text:
 where he stayed until Herod died. This was done to make come true what the Lord had said through the prophet, "I called my Son out of Egypt."


text:
 When Herod realized that the visitors from the East had tricked him, he was furious. He gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its neighborhood who were two years old and younger---this was done in accordance with what he had learned from the visitors about the time when the star had appeared.


text:
 "A sound is heard in Ramah, the sound of bitter weeping. Rachel is crying for her children; she refuses to be comforted, for they are dead."


text:
 and said, "Get up, take the child and his mother, and go back to the land of Israel, because those who tried to kill the child are dead."


text:
 But when Joseph heard that Archelaus had succeeded his father Herod as king of Judea, he was afraid to go there. He was given more instructions in a dream, so he went to the province of Galilee


text:
 and made his home in a town named Nazareth. And so what the prophets had said came true: "He will be called a Nazarene."


text:
 John was the man the prophet Isaiah was talking about when he said, "Someone is shouting in the desert, 'Prepare a road for the Lord; make a straight path for him to travel!' "


text:
 John's clothes were made of camel's hair; he wore a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.


text:
 People came to him from Jerusalem, from the whole province of Judea, and from all over the country near the Jordan River.


text:
 When John saw many Pharisees and Sadducees coming to him to be baptized, he said to them, "You snakes---who told you that you could escape from the punishment God is about to send?


text:
 And don't think you can escape punishment by saying that Abraham is your ancestor. I tell you that God can take these rocks and make descendants for Abraham!


text:
 The ax is ready to cut down the trees at the roots; every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown in the fire.


text:
 I baptize you with water to show that you have repented, but the one who will come after me will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. He is much greater than I am; and I am not good enough even to carry his sandals.


text:
 He has his winnowing shovel with him to thresh out all the grain. He will gather his wheat into his barn, but he will burn the chaff in a fire that never goes out."


text:
 But John tried to make him change his mind. "I ought to be baptized by you," John said, "and yet you have come to me!"


text:
 But Jesus answered him, "Let it be so for now. For in this way we shall do all that God requires." So John agreed.


text:
 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he came up out of the water. Then heaven was opened to him, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down like a dove and lighting on him.


text:
 Then the Devil came to him and said, "If you are God's Son, order these stones to turn into bread."


text:
 But Jesus answered, "The scripture says, 'Human beings cannot live on bread alone, but need every word that God speaks.' "


text:
 and said to him, "If you are God's Son, throw yourself down, for the scripture says, 'God will give orders to his angels about you; they will hold you up with their hands, so that not even your feet will be hurt on the stones.' "


text:
 Then the Devil took Jesus to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in all their greatness.


text:
 Then Jesus answered, "Go away, Satan! The scripture says, 'Worship the Lord your God and serve only him!' "


text:
 He did not stay in Nazareth, but went to live in Capernaum, a town by Lake Galilee, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali.


text:
 "Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali, on the road to the sea, on the other side of the Jordan, Galilee, land of the Gentiles!


text:
 The people who live in darkness will see a great light. On those who live in the dark land of death the light will shine."


text:
 From that time Jesus began to preach his message: "Turn away from your sins, because the Kingdom of heaven is near!"


text:
 As Jesus walked along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw two brothers who were fishermen, Simon (called Peter) and his brother Andrew, catching fish in the lake with a net.


text:
 He went on and saw two other brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in their boat with their father Zebedee, getting their nets ready. Jesus called them,


text:
 Jesus went all over Galilee, teaching in the synagogues, preaching the Good News about the Kingdom, and healing people who had all kinds of disease and sickness.


text:
 The news about him spread through the whole country of Syria, so that people brought to him all those who were sick, suffering from all kinds of diseases and disorders: people with demons, and epileptics, and paralytics---and Jesus healed them all.


text:
 Large crowds followed him from Galilee and the Ten Towns, from Jerusalem, Judea, and the land on the other side of the Jordan.


text:
 "Happy are those who are persecuted because they do what God requires; the Kingdom of heaven belongs to them!


text:
 "Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers.


text:
 Be happy and glad, for a great reward is kept for you in heaven. This is how the prophets who lived before you were persecuted.


text:
 "You are like salt for the whole human race. But if salt loses its saltiness, there is no way to make it salty again. It has become worthless, so it is thrown out and people trample on it.


text:
 No one lights a lamp and puts it under a bowl; instead it is put on the lampstand, where it gives light for everyone in the house.


text:
 In the same way your light must shine before people, so that they will see the good things you do and praise your Father in heaven.


text:
 "Do not think that I have come to do away with the Law of Moses and the teachings of the prophets. I have not come to do away with them, but to make their teachings come true.


text:
 Remember that as long as heaven and earth last, not the least point nor the smallest detail of the Law will be done away with---not until the end of all things.


text:
 So then, whoever disobeys even the least important of the commandments and teaches others to do the same, will be least in the Kingdom of heaven. On the other hand, whoever obeys the Law and teaches others to do the same, will be great in the Kingdom of heaven.


text:
 I tell you, then, that you will be able to enter the Kingdom of heaven only if you are more faithful than the teachers of the Law and the Pharisees in doing what God requires.


text:
 "You have heard that people were told in the past, 'Do not commit murder; anyone who does will be brought to trial.'


text:
 But now I tell you: if you are angry with your brother you will be brought to trial, if you call your brother 'You good-for-nothing!' you will be brought before the Council, and if you call your brother a worthless fool you will be in danger of going to the fire of hell.


text:
 So if you are about to offer your gift to God at the altar and there you remember that your brother has something against you,


text:
 leave your gift there in front of the altar, go at once and make peace with your brother, and then come back and offer your gift to God.


text:
 "If someone brings a lawsuit against you and takes you to court, settle the dispute while there is time, before you get to court. Once you are there, you will be turned over to the judge, who will hand you over to the police, and you will be put in jail.


text:
 But now I tell you: anyone who looks at a woman and wants to possess her is guilty of committing adultery with her in his heart.


text:
 So if your right eye causes you to sin, take it out and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose a part of your body than to have your whole body thrown into hell.


text:
 If your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away! It is much better for you to lose one of your limbs than to have your whole body go off to hell.


text:
 But now I tell you: if a man divorces his wife for any cause other than her unfaithfulness, then he is guilty of making her commit adultery if she marries again; and the man who marries her commits adultery also.


text:
 "You have also heard that people were told in the past, 'Do not break your promise, but do what you have vowed to the Lord to do.'


text:
 But now I tell you: do not use any vow when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven, for it is God's throne;


text:
 nor by earth, for it is the resting place for his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.


text:
 But now I tell you: do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap your left cheek too.


text:
 When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something, lend it to him.


text:
 so that you may become the children of your Father in heaven. For he makes his sun to shine on bad and good people alike, and gives rain to those who do good and to those who do evil.


text:
 Why should God reward you if you love only the people who love you? Even the tax collectors do that!


text:
 And if you speak only to your friends, have you done anything out of the ordinary? Even the pagans do that!


text:
 "Make certain you do not perform your religious duties in public so that people will see what you do. If you do these things publicly, you will not have any reward from your Father in heaven.


text:
 "So when you give something to a needy person, do not make a big show of it, as the hypocrites do in the houses of worship and on the streets. They do it so that people will praise them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.


text:
 But when you help a needy person, do it in such a way that even your closest friend will not know about it.


text:
 Then it will be a private matter. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.


text:
 "When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites! They love to stand up and pray in the houses of worship and on the street corners, so that everyone will see them. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.


text:
 But when you pray, go to your room, close the door, and pray to your Father, who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.


text:
 "When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long.


text:
 "If you forgive others the wrongs they have done to you, your Father in heaven will also forgive you.


text:
 "And when you fast, do not put on a sad face as the hypocrites do. They neglect their appearance so that everyone will see that they are fasting. I assure you, they have already been paid in full.


text:
 so that others cannot know that you are fasting---only your Father, who is unseen, will know. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.


text:
 "Do not store up riches for yourselves here on earth, where moths and rust destroy, and robbers break in and steal.


text:
 Instead, store up riches for yourselves in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and robbers cannot break in and steal.


text:
 "The eyes are like a lamp for the body. If your eyes are sound, your whole body will be full of light;


text:
 but if your eyes are no good, your body will be in darkness. So if the light in you is darkness, how terribly dark it will be!


text:
 "You cannot be a slave of two masters; you will hate one and love the other; you will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.


text:
 "This is why I tell you: do not be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn't life worth more than food? And isn't the body worth more than clothes?


text:
 Look at the birds: they do not plant seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren't you worth much more than birds?


text:
 "And why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow: they do not work or make clothes for themselves.


text:
 But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers.


text:
 It is God who clothes the wild grass---grass that is here today and gone tomorrow, burned up in the oven. Won't he be all the more sure to clothe you? What little faith you have!


text:
 (These are the things the pagans are always concerned about.) Your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things.


text:
 Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things.


text:
 So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings.


text:
 for God will judge you in the same way you judge others, and he will apply to you the same rules you apply to others.


text:
 Why, then, do you look at the speck in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the log in your own eye?


text:
 How dare you say to your brother, 'Please, let me take that speck out of your eye,' when you have a log in your own eye?


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 You hypocrite! First take the log out of your own eye, and then you will be able to see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.


text:
 "Do not give what is holy to dogs---they will only turn and attack you. Do not throw your pearls in front of pigs---they will only trample them underfoot.


text:
 For everyone who asks will receive, and anyone who seeks will find, and the door will be opened to those who knock.


text:
 As bad as you are, you know how to give good things to your children. How much more, then, will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!


text:
 "Do for others what you want them to do for you: this is the meaning of the Law of Moses and of the teachings of the prophets.


text:
 "Go in through the narrow gate, because the gate to hell is wide and the road that leads to it is easy, and there are many who travel it.


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 But the gate to life is narrow and the way that leads to it is hard, and there are few people who find it.


text:
 "Be on your guard against false prophets; they come to you looking like sheep on the outside, but on the inside they are really like wild wolves.


text:
 "Not everyone who calls me 'Lord, Lord' will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only those who do what my Father in heaven wants them to do.


text:
 When the Judgment Day comes, many will say to me, 'Lord, Lord! In your name we spoke God's message, by your name we drove out many demons and performed many miracles!'


text:
 "So then, anyone who hears these words of mine and obeys them is like a wise man who built his house on rock.


text:
 The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, and the wind blew hard against that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on rock.


text:
 "But anyone who hears these words of mine and does not obey them is like a foolish man who built his house on sand.


text:
 The rain poured down, the rivers flooded over, the wind blew hard against that house, and it fell. And what a terrible fall that was!"


text:
 Then a man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to him, knelt down before him, and said, "Sir, if you want to, you can make me clean."


text:
 Jesus reached out and touched him. "I do want to," he answered. "Be clean!" At once the man was healed of his disease.


text:
 Then Jesus said to him, "Listen! Don't tell anyone, but go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered."


text:
 "Oh no, sir," answered the officer. "I do not deserve to have you come into my house. Just give the order, and my servant will get well.


text:
 I, too, am a man under the authority of superior officers, and I have soldiers under me. I order this one, 'Go!' and he goes; and I order that one, 'Come!' and he comes; and I order my slave, 'Do this!' and he does it."


text:
 When Jesus heard this, he was surprised and said to the people following him, "I tell you, I have never found anyone in Israel with faith like this.


text:
 I assure you that many will come from the east and the west and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the feast in the Kingdom of heaven.


text:
 But those who should be in the Kingdom will be thrown out into the darkness, where they will cry and gnash their teeth."


text:
 Then Jesus said to the officer, "Go home, and what you believe will be done for you." And the officer's servant was healed that very moment.


text:
 When evening came, people brought to Jesus many who had demons in them. Jesus drove out the evil spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.


text:
 He did this to make come true what the prophet Isaiah had said, "He himself took our sickness and carried away our diseases."


text:
 When Jesus noticed the crowd around him, he ordered his disciples to go to the other side of the lake.


text:
 Jesus answered him, "Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lie down and rest."


text:
 "Why are you so frightened?" Jesus answered. "What little faith you have!" Then he got up and ordered the winds and the waves to stop, and there was a great calm.


text:
 Everyone was amazed. "What kind of man is this?" they said. "Even the winds and the waves obey him!"


text:
 When Jesus came to the territory of Gadara on the other side of the lake, he was met by two men who came out of the burial caves there. These men had demons in them and were so fierce that no one dared travel on that road.


text:
 At once they screamed, "What do you want with us, you Son of God? Have you come to punish us before the right time?"


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 "Go," Jesus told them; so they left and went off into the pigs. The whole herd rushed down the side of the cliff into the lake and was drowned.


text:
 The men who had been taking care of the pigs ran away and went into the town, where they told the whole story and what had happened to the men with the demons.


text:
 So everyone from the town went out to meet Jesus; and when they saw him, they begged him to leave their territory.


text:
 where some people brought to him a paralyzed man, lying on a bed. When Jesus saw how much faith they had, he said to the paralyzed man, "Courage, my son! Your sins are forgiven."


text:
 I will prove to you, then, that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins." So he said to the paralyzed man, "Get up, pick up your bed, and go home!"


text:
 Jesus left that place, and as he walked along, he saw a tax collector, named Matthew, sitting in his office. He said to him, "Follow me." Matthew got up and followed him.


text:
 While Jesus was having a meal in Matthew's house, many tax collectors and other outcasts came and joined Jesus and his disciples at the table.


text:
 Jesus heard them and answered, "People who are well do not need a doctor, but only those who are sick.


text:
 Go and find out what is meant by the scripture that says: 'It is kindness that I want, not animal sacrifices.' I have not come to call respectable people, but outcasts."


text:
 Then the followers of John the Baptist came to Jesus, asking, "Why is it that we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples don't fast at all?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "Do you expect the guests at a wedding party to be sad as long as the bridegroom is with them? Of course not! But the day will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.


text:
 "No one patches up an old coat with a piece of new cloth, for the new patch will shrink and make an even bigger hole in the coat.


text:
 Nor does anyone pour new wine into used wineskins, for the skins will burst, the wine will pour out, and the skins will be ruined. Instead, new wine is poured into fresh wineskins, and both will keep in good condition."


text:
 While Jesus was saying this, a Jewish official came to him, knelt down before him, and said, "My daughter has just died; but come and place your hands on her, and she will live."


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 A woman who had suffered from severe bleeding for twelve years came up behind Jesus and touched the edge of his cloak.


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 Jesus turned around and saw her, and said, "Courage, my daughter! Your faith has made you well." At that very moment the woman became well.


text:
 Then Jesus went into the official's house. When he saw the musicians for the funeral and the people all stirred up,


text:
 he said, "Get out, everybody! The little girl is not dead---she is only sleeping!" Then they all started making fun of him.


text:
 But as soon as the people had been put out, Jesus went into the girl's room and took hold of her hand, and she got up.


text:
 Jesus left that place, and as he walked along, two blind men started following him. "Have mercy on us, Son of David!" they shouted.


text:
 When Jesus had gone indoors, the two blind men came to him, and he asked them, "Do you believe that I can heal you?" "Yes, sir!" they answered.


text:
 As the men were leaving, some people brought to Jesus a man who could not talk because he had a demon.


text:
 But as soon as the demon was driven out, the man started talking, and everyone was amazed. "We have never seen anything like this in Israel!" they exclaimed.


text:
 But the Pharisees said, "It is the chief of the demons who gives Jesus the power to drive out demons."


text:
 Jesus went around visiting all the towns and villages. He taught in the synagogues, preached the Good News about the Kingdom, and healed people with every kind of disease and sickness.


text:
 As he saw the crowds, his heart was filled with pity for them, because they were worried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.


text:
 Jesus called his twelve disciples together and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and every sickness.


text:
 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon (called Peter) and his brother Andrew; James and his brother John, the sons of Zebedee;


text:
 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew, the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;


text:
 These twelve men were sent out by Jesus with the following instructions: "Do not go to any Gentile territory or any Samaritan towns.


text:
 Heal the sick, bring the dead back to life, heal those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases, and drive out demons. You have received without paying, so give without being paid.


text:
 do not carry a beggar's bag for the trip or an extra shirt or shoes or a walking stick. Workers should be given what they need.


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 "When you come to a town or village, go in and look for someone who is willing to welcome you, and stay with him until you leave that place.


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 If the people in that house welcome you, let your greeting of peace remain; but if they do not welcome you, then take back your greeting.


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 And if some home or town will not welcome you or listen to you, then leave that place and shake the dust off your feet.


text:
 I assure you that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to the people of Sodom and Gomorrah than to the people of that town!


text:
 "Listen! I am sending you out just like sheep to a pack of wolves. You must be as cautious as snakes and as gentle as doves.


text:
 Watch out, for there will be those who will arrest you and take you to court, and they will whip you in the synagogues.


text:
 For my sake you will be brought to trial before rulers and kings, to tell the Good News to them and to the Gentiles.


text:
 When they bring you to trial, do not worry about what you are going to say or how you will say it; when the time comes, you will be given what you will say.


text:
 For the words you will speak will not be yours; they will come from the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.


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 "People will hand over their own brothers to be put to death, and fathers will do the same to their children; children will turn against their parents and have them put to death.


text:
 When they persecute you in one town, run away to another one. I assure you that you will not finish your work in all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.


text:
 So a pupil should be satisfied to become like his teacher, and a slave like his master. If the head of the family is called Beelzebul, the members of the family will be called even worse names!


text:
 "So do not be afraid of people. Whatever is now covered up will be uncovered, and every secret will be made known.


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 What I am telling you in the dark you must repeat in broad daylight, and what you have heard in private you must announce from the housetops.


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 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather be afraid of God, who can destroy both body and soul in hell.


text:
 For only a penny you can buy two sparrows, yet not one sparrow falls to the ground without your Father's consent.


text:
 "Those who declare publicly that they belong to me, I will do the same for them before my Father in heaven.


text:
 "Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the world. No, I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.


text:
 I came to set sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law;


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 "Those who love their father or mother more than me are not fit to be my disciples; those who love their son or daughter more than me are not fit to be my disciples.


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 Those who try to gain their own life will lose it; but those who lose their life for my sake will gain it.


text:
 Whoever welcomes God's messenger because he is God's messenger, will share in his reward. And whoever welcomes a good man because he is good, will share in his reward.


text:
 You can be sure that whoever gives even a drink of cold water to one of the least of these my followers because he is my follower, will certainly receive a reward."


text:
 When Jesus finished giving these instructions to his twelve disciples, he left that place and went off to teach and preach in the towns near there.


text:
 When John the Baptist heard in prison about the things that Christ was doing, he sent some of his disciples to him.


text:
 "Tell us," they asked Jesus, "are you the one John said was going to come, or should we expect someone else?"


text:
 the blind can see, the lame can walk, those who suffer from dreaded skin diseases are made clean, the deaf hear, the dead are brought back to life, and the Good News is preached to the poor.


text:
 While John's disciples were leaving, Jesus spoke about him to the crowds: "When you went out to John in the desert, what did you expect to see? A blade of grass bending in the wind?


text:
 What did you go out to see? A man dressed up in fancy clothes? People who dress like that live in palaces!


text:
 For John is the one of whom the scripture says: 'God said, I will send my messenger ahead of you to open the way for you.'


text:
 I assure you that John the Baptist is greater than anyone who has ever lived. But the one who is least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than John.


text:
 From the time John preached his message until this very day the Kingdom of heaven has suffered violent attacks, and violent men try to seize it.


text:
 "Now, to what can I compare the people of this day? They are like children sitting in the marketplace. One group shouts to the other,


text:
 'We played wedding music for you, but you wouldn't dance! We sang funeral songs, but you wouldn't cry!'


text:
 When the Son of Man came, he ate and drank, and everyone said, 'Look at this man! He is a glutton and wine drinker, a friend of tax collectors and other outcasts!' God's wisdom, however, is shown to be true by its results."


text:
 The people in the towns where Jesus had performed most of his miracles did not turn from their sins, so he reproached those towns.


text:
 "How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible for you too, Bethsaida! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, the people there would have long ago put on sackcloth and sprinkled ashes on themselves, to show that they had turned from their sins!


text:
 I assure you that on the Judgment Day God will show more mercy to the people of Tyre and Sidon than to you!


text:
 And as for you, Capernaum! Did you want to lift yourself up to heaven? You will be thrown down to hell! If the miracles which were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would still be in existence today!


text:
 At that time Jesus said, "Father, Lord of heaven and earth! I thank you because you have shown to the unlearned what you have hidden from the wise and learned.


text:
 "My Father has given me all things. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.


text:
 Take my yoke and put it on you, and learn from me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit; and you will find rest.


text:
 Not long afterward Jesus was walking through some wheat fields on a Sabbath. His disciples were hungry, so they began to pick heads of wheat and eat the grain.


text:
 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Jesus, "Look, it is against our Law for your disciples to do this on the Sabbath!"


text:
 He went into the house of God, and he and his men ate the bread offered to God, even though it was against the Law for them to eat it---only the priests were allowed to eat that bread.


text:
 Or have you not read in the Law of Moses that every Sabbath the priests in the Temple actually break the Sabbath law, yet they are not guilty?


text:
 The scripture says, 'It is kindness that I want, not animal sacrifices.' If you really knew what this means, you would not condemn people who are not guilty;


text:
 where there was a man who had a paralyzed hand. Some people were there who wanted to accuse Jesus of doing wrong, so they asked him, "Is it against our Law to heal on the Sabbath?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "What if one of you has a sheep and it falls into a deep hole on the Sabbath? Will you not take hold of it and lift it out?


text:
 And a human being is worth much more than a sheep! So then, our Law does allow us to help someone on the Sabbath."


text:
 Then he said to the man with the paralyzed hand, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and it became well again, just like the other one.


text:
 When Jesus heard about the plot against him, he went away from that place; and large crowds followed him. He healed all the sick


text:
 "Here is my servant, whom I have chosen, the one I love, and with whom I am pleased. I will send my Spirit upon him, and he will announce my judgment to the nations.


text:
 He will not break off a bent reed, nor put out a flickering lamp. He will persist until he causes justice to triumph,


text:
 Then some people brought to Jesus a man who was blind and could not talk because he had a demon. Jesus healed the man, so that he was able to talk and see.


text:
 When the Pharisees heard this, they replied, "He drives out demons only because their ruler Beelzebul gives him power to do so."


text:
 Jesus knew what they were thinking, and so he said to them, "Any country that divides itself into groups which fight each other will not last very long. And any town or family that divides itself into groups which fight each other will fall apart.


text:
 So if one group is fighting another in Satan's kingdom, this means that it is already divided into groups and will soon fall apart!


text:
 You say that I drive out demons because Beelzebul gives me the power to do so. Well, then, who gives your followers the power to drive them out? What your own followers do proves that you are wrong!


text:
 No, it is not Beelzebul, but God's Spirit, who gives me the power to drive out demons, which proves that the Kingdom of God has already come upon you.


text:
 "No one can break into a strong man's house and take away his belongings unless he first ties up the strong man; then he can plunder his house.


text:
 "Anyone who is not for me is really against me; anyone who does not help me gather is really scattering.


text:
 For this reason I tell you: people can be forgiven any sin and any evil thing they say; but whoever says evil things against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven.


text:
 Anyone who says something against the Son of Man can be forgiven; but whoever says something against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven---now or ever.


text:
 "To have good fruit you must have a healthy tree; if you have a poor tree, you will have bad fruit. A tree is known by the kind of fruit it bears.


text:
 You snakes---how can you say good things when you are evil? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.


text:
 A good person brings good things out of a treasure of good things; a bad person brings bad things out of a treasure of bad things.


text:
 "You can be sure that on the Judgment Day you will have to give account of every useless word you have ever spoken.


text:
 Then some teachers of the Law and some Pharisees spoke up. "Teacher," they said, "we want to see you perform a miracle."


text:
 "How evil and godless are the people of this day!" Jesus exclaimed. "You ask me for a miracle? No! The only miracle you will be given is the miracle of the prophet Jonah.


text:
 In the same way that Jonah spent three days and nights in the big fish, so will the Son of Man spend three days and nights in the depths of the earth.


text:
 On the Judgment Day the people of Nineveh will stand up and accuse you, because they turned from their sins when they heard Jonah preach; and I tell you that there is something here greater than Jonah!


text:
 On the Judgment Day the Queen of Sheba will stand up and accuse you, because she traveled all the way from her country to listen to King Solomon's wise teaching; and I assure you that there is something here greater than Solomon!


text:
 "When an evil spirit goes out of a person, it travels over dry country looking for a place to rest. If it can't find one,


text:
 it says to itself, 'I will go back to my house.' So it goes back and finds the house empty, clean, and all fixed up.


text:
 Then it goes out and brings along seven other spirits even worse than itself, and they come and live there. So when it is all over, that person is in worse shape than at the beginning. This is what will happen to the evil people of this day."


text:
 Jesus was still talking to the people when his mother and brothers arrived. They stood outside, asking to speak with him.


text:
 So one of the people there said to him, "Look, your mother and brothers are standing outside, and they want to speak with you."


text:
 The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it, while the crowd stood on the shore.


text:
 As he scattered the seed in the field, some of it fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up.


text:
 Some of it fell on rocky ground, where there was little soil. The seeds soon sprouted, because the soil wasn't deep.


text:
 But when the sun came up, it burned the young plants; and because the roots had not grown deep enough, the plants soon dried up.


text:
 But some seeds fell in good soil, and the plants bore grain: some had one hundred grains, others sixty, and others thirty."


text:
 Then the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, "Why do you use parables when you talk to the people?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "The knowledge about the secrets of the Kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them.


text:
 For the person who has something will be given more, so that he will have more than enough; but the person who has nothing will have taken away from him even the little he has.


text:
 The reason I use parables in talking to them is that they look, but do not see, and they listen, but do not hear or understand.


text:
 So the prophecy of Isaiah applies to them: 'This people will listen and listen, but not understand; they will look and look, but not see,


text:
 because their minds are dull, and they have stopped up their ears and have closed their eyes. Otherwise, their eyes would see, their ears would hear, their minds would understand, and they would turn to me, says God, and I would heal them.'


text:
 I assure you that many prophets and many of God's people wanted very much to see what you see, but they could not, and to hear what you hear, but they did not.


text:
 Those who hear the message about the Kingdom but do not understand it are like the seeds that fell along the path. The Evil One comes and snatches away what was sown in them.


text:
 The seeds that fell on rocky ground stand for those who receive the message gladly as soon as they hear it.


text:
 But it does not sink deep into them, and they don't last long. So when trouble or persecution comes because of the message, they give up at once.


text:
 The seeds that fell among thorn bushes stand for those who hear the message; but the worries about this life and the love for riches choke the message, and they don't bear fruit.


text:
 And the seeds sown in the good soil stand for those who hear the message and understand it: they bear fruit, some as much as one hundred, others sixty, and others thirty."


text:
 Jesus told them another parable: "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man sowed good seed in his field.


text:
 The man's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, it was good seed you sowed in your field; where did the weeds come from?'


text:
 'It was some enemy who did this,' he answered. 'Do you want us to go and pull up the weeds?' they asked him.


text:
 'No,' he answered, 'because as you gather the weeds you might pull up some of the wheat along with them.


text:
 Let the wheat and the weeds both grow together until harvest. Then I will tell the harvest workers to pull up the weeds first, tie them in bundles and burn them, and then to gather in the wheat and put it in my barn.' "


text:
 Jesus told them another parable: "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man takes a mustard seed and sows it in his field.


text:
 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it grows up, it is the biggest of all plants. It becomes a tree, so that birds come and make their nests in its branches."


text:
 Jesus told them still another parable: "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. A woman takes some yeast and mixes it with a bushel of flour until the whole batch of dough rises."


text:
 Jesus used parables to tell all these things to the crowds; he would not say a thing to them without using a parable.


text:
 He did this to make come true what the prophet had said, "I will use parables when I speak to them; I will tell them things unknown since the creation of the world."


text:
 When Jesus had left the crowd and gone indoors, his disciples came to him and said, "Tell us what the parable about the weeds in the field means."


text:
 the field is the world; the good seed is the people who belong to the Kingdom; the weeds are the people who belong to the Evil One;


text:
 and the enemy who sowed the weeds is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvest workers are angels.


text:
 Just as the weeds are gathered up and burned in the fire, so the same thing will happen at the end of the age:


text:
 the Son of Man will send out his angels to gather up out of his Kingdom all those who cause people to sin and all others who do evil things,


text:
 Then God's people will shine like the sun in their Father's Kingdom. Listen, then, if you have ears!


text:
 "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. A man happens to find a treasure hidden in a field. He covers it up again, and is so happy that he goes and sells everything he has, and then goes back and buys that field.


text:
 and when he finds one that is unusually fine, he goes and sells everything he has, and buys that pearl.


text:
 "Also, the Kingdom of heaven is like this. Some fishermen throw their net out in the lake and catch all kinds of fish.


text:
 When the net is full, they pull it to shore and sit down to divide the fish: the good ones go into the buckets, the worthless ones are thrown away.


text:
 It will be like this at the end of the age: the angels will go out and gather up the evil people from among the good


text:
 So he replied, "This means, then, that every teacher of the Law who becomes a disciple in the Kingdom of heaven is like a homeowner who takes new and old things out of his storage room."


text:
 and went back to his hometown. He taught in the synagogue, and those who heard him were amazed. "Where did he get such wisdom?" they asked. "And what about his miracles?


text:
 Isn't he the carpenter's son? Isn't Mary his mother, and aren't James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas his brothers?


text:
 And so they rejected him. Jesus said to them, "A prophet is respected everywhere except in his hometown and by his own family."


text:
 "He is really John the Baptist, who has come back to life," he told his officials. "That is why he has this power to perform miracles."


text:
 For Herod had earlier ordered John's arrest, and he had him tied up and put in prison. He had done this because of Herodias, his brother Philip's wife.


text:
 Herod wanted to kill him, but he was afraid of the Jewish people, because they considered John to be a prophet.


text:
 On Herod's birthday the daughter of Herodias danced in front of the whole group. Herod was so pleased


text:
 At her mother's suggestion she asked him, "Give me here and now the head of John the Baptist on a plate!"


text:
 The king was sad, but because of the promise he had made in front of all his guests he gave orders that her wish be granted.


text:
 When Jesus heard the news about John, he left there in a boat and went to a lonely place by himself. The people heard about it, and so they left their towns and followed him by land.


text:
 Jesus got out of the boat, and when he saw the large crowd, his heart was filled with pity for them, and he healed their sick.


text:
 That evening his disciples came to him and said, "It is already very late, and this is a lonely place. Send the people away and let them go to the villages to buy food for themselves."


text:
 He ordered the people to sit down on the grass; then he took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, and gave thanks to God. He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.


text:
 Then Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people away.


text:
 After sending the people away, he went up a hill by himself to pray. When evening came, Jesus was there alone;


text:
 and by this time the boat was far out in the lake, tossed about by the waves, because the wind was blowing against it.


text:
 When they saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. "It's a ghost!" they said, and screamed with fear.


text:
 But when he noticed the strong wind, he was afraid and started to sink down in the water. "Save me, Lord!" he cried.


text:
 At once Jesus reached out and grabbed hold of him and said, "What little faith you have! Why did you doubt?"


text:
 where the people recognized Jesus. So they sent for the sick people in all the surrounding country and brought them to Jesus.


text:
 They begged him to let the sick at least touch the edge of his cloak; and all who touched it were made well.


text:
 "Why is it that your disciples disobey the teaching handed down by our ancestors? They don't wash their hands in the proper way before they eat!"


text:
 For God said, 'Respect your father and your mother,' and 'If you curse your father or your mother, you are to be put to death.'


text:
 But you teach that if people have something they could use to help their father or mother, but say, 'This belongs to God,'


text:
 they do not need to honor their father. In this way you disregard God's command, in order to follow your own teaching.


text:
 It is no use for them to worship me, because they teach human rules as though they were my laws!' "


text:
 It is not what goes into your mouth that makes you ritually unclean; rather, what comes out of it makes you unclean."


text:
 Then the disciples came to him and said, "Do you know that the Pharisees had their feelings hurt by what you said?"


text:
 "Don't worry about them! They are blind leaders of the blind; and when one blind man leads another, both fall into a ditch."


text:
 Don't you understand? Anything that goes into your mouth goes into your stomach and then on out of your body.


text:
 But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these are the things that make you ritually unclean.


text:
 For from your heart come the evil ideas which lead you to kill, commit adultery, and do other immoral things; to rob, lie, and slander others.


text:
 These are the things that make you unclean. But to eat without washing your hands as they say you should---this doesn't make you unclean."


text:
 A Canaanite woman who lived in that region came to him. "Son of David!" she cried out. "Have mercy on me, sir! My daughter has a demon and is in a terrible condition."


text:
 But Jesus did not say a word to her. His disciples came to him and begged him, "Send her away! She is following us and making all this noise!"


text:
 "That's true, sir," she answered, "but even the dogs eat the leftovers that fall from their masters' table."


text:
 So Jesus answered her, "You are a woman of great faith! What you want will be done for you." And at that very moment her daughter was healed.


text:
 Large crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the blind, the crippled, the dumb, and many other sick people, whom they placed at Jesus' feet; and he healed them.


text:
 The people were amazed as they saw the dumb speaking, the crippled made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they praised the God of Israel.


text:
 Jesus called his disciples to him and said, "I feel sorry for these people, because they have been with me for three days and now have nothing to eat. I don't want to send them away without feeding them, for they might faint on their way home."


text:
 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, gave thanks to God, broke them, and gave them to the disciples; and the disciples gave them to the people.


text:
 Some Pharisees and Sadducees who came to Jesus wanted to trap him, so they asked him to perform a miracle for them, to show that God approved of him.


text:
 But Jesus answered, "When the sun is setting, you say, 'We are going to have fine weather, because the sky is red.'


text:
 And early in the morning you say, 'It is going to rain, because the sky is red and dark.' You can predict the weather by looking at the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs concerning these times!


text:
 How evil and godless are the people of this day! You ask me for a miracle? No! The only miracle you will be given is the miracle of Jonah." So he left them and went away.


text:
 Jesus said to them, "Take care; be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."


text:
 Jesus knew what they were saying, so he asked them, "Why are you discussing among yourselves about not having any bread? What little faith you have!


text:
 Don't you understand yet? Don't you remember when I broke the five loaves for the five thousand men? How many baskets did you fill?


text:
 How is it that you don't understand that I was not talking to you about bread? Guard yourselves from the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees!"


text:
 Then the disciples understood that he was not warning them to guard themselves from the yeast used in bread but from the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.


text:
 Jesus went to the territory near the town of Caesarea Philippi, where he asked his disciples, "Who do people say the Son of Man is?"


text:
 "Some say John the Baptist," they answered. "Others say Elijah, while others say Jeremiah or some other prophet."


text:
 "Good for you, Simon son of John!" answered Jesus. "For this truth did not come to you from any human being, but it was given to you directly by my Father in heaven.


text:
 And so I tell you, Peter: you are a rock, and on this rock foundation I will build my church, and not even death will ever be able to overcome it.


text:
 I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of heaven; what you prohibit on earth will be prohibited in heaven, and what you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven."


text:
 From that time on Jesus began to say plainly to his disciples, "I must go to Jerusalem and suffer much from the elders, the chief priests, and the teachers of the Law. I will be put to death, but three days later I will be raised to life."


text:
 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. "God forbid it, Lord!" he said. "That must never happen to you!"


text:
 Jesus turned around and said to Peter, "Get away from me, Satan! You are an obstacle in my way, because these thoughts of yours don't come from God, but from human nature."


text:
 Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If any of you want to come with me, you must forget yourself, carry your cross, and follow me.


text:
 For if you want to save your own life, you will lose it; but if you lose your life for my sake, you will find it.


text:
 Will you gain anything if you win the whole world but lose your life? Of course not! There is nothing you can give to regain your life.


text:
 For the Son of Man is about to come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will reward each one according to his deeds.


text:
 I assure you that there are some here who will not die until they have seen the Son of Man come as King."


text:
 Six days later Jesus took with him Peter and the brothers James and John and led them up a high mountain where they were alone.


text:
 As they looked on, a change came over Jesus: his face was shining like the sun, and his clothes were dazzling white.


text:
 So Peter spoke up and said to Jesus, "Lord, how good it is that we are here! If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."


text:
 While he was talking, a shining cloud came over them, and a voice from the cloud said, "This is my own dear Son, with whom I am pleased---listen to him!"


text:
 When the disciples heard the voice, they were so terrified that they threw themselves face downward on the ground.


text:
 As they came down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, "Don't tell anyone about this vision you have seen until the Son of Man has been raised from death."


text:
 Then the disciples asked Jesus, "Why do the teachers of the Law say that Elijah has to come first?"


text:
 But I tell you that Elijah has already come and people did not recognize him, but treated him just as they pleased. In the same way they will also mistreat the Son of Man."


text:
 and said, "Sir, have mercy on my son! He is an epileptic and has such terrible attacks that he often falls in the fire or into water.


text:
 Jesus answered, "How unbelieving and wrong you people are! How long must I stay with you? How long do I have to put up with you? Bring the boy here to me!"


text:
 Jesus gave a command to the demon, and it went out of the boy, and at that very moment he was healed.


text:
 "It was because you do not have enough faith," answered Jesus. "I assure you that if you have faith as big as a mustard seed, you can say to this hill, 'Go from here to there!' and it will go. You could do anything!"


text:
 When the disciples all came together in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be handed over to those


text:
 When Jesus and his disciples came to Capernaum, the collectors of the Temple tax came to Peter and asked, "Does your teacher pay the Temple tax?"


text:
 "Of course," Peter answered. When Peter went into the house, Jesus spoke up first, "Simon, what is your opinion? Who pays duties or taxes to the kings of this world? The citizens of the country or the foreigners?"


text:
 "The foreigners," answered Peter. "Well, then," replied Jesus, "that means that the citizens don't have to pay.


text:
 But we don't want to offend these people. So go to the lake and drop in a line. Pull up the first fish you hook, and in its mouth you will find a coin worth enough for my Temple tax and yours. Take it and pay them our taxes."


text:
 and said, "I assure you that unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the Kingdom of heaven.


text:
 "If anyone should cause one of these little ones to lose his faith in me, it would be better for that person to have a large millstone tied around his neck and be drowned in the deep sea.


text:
 How terrible for the world that there are things that make people lose their faith! Such things will always happen---but how terrible for the one who causes them!


text:
 "If your hand or your foot makes you lose your faith, cut it off and throw it away! It is better for you to enter life without a hand or a foot than to keep both hands and both feet and be thrown into the eternal fire.


text:
 And if your eye makes you lose your faith, take it out and throw it away! It is better for you to enter life with only one eye than to keep both eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.


text:
 "See that you don't despise any of these little ones. Their angels in heaven, I tell you, are always in the presence of my Father in heaven.


text:
 "What do you think a man does who has one hundred sheep and one of them gets lost? He will leave the other ninety-nine grazing on the hillside and go and look for the lost sheep.


text:
 When he finds it, I tell you, he feels far happier over this one sheep than over the ninety-nine that did not get lost.


text:
 "If your brother sins against you, go to him and show him his fault. But do it privately, just between yourselves. If he listens to you, you have won your brother back.


text:
 But if he will not listen to you, take one or two other persons with you, so that 'every accusation may be upheld by the testimony of two or more witnesses,' as the scripture says.


text:
 And if he will not listen to them, then tell the whole thing to the church. Finally, if he will not listen to the church, treat him as though he were a pagan or a tax collector.


text:
 "And so I tell all of you: what you prohibit on earth will be prohibited in heaven, and what you permit on earth will be permitted in heaven.


text:
 "And I tell you more: whenever two of you on earth agree about anything you pray for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.


text:
 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, if my brother keeps on sinning against me, how many times do I have to forgive him? Seven times?"


text:
 because the Kingdom of heaven is like this. Once there was a king who decided to check on his servants' accounts.


text:
 The servant did not have enough to pay his debt, so the king ordered him to be sold as a slave, with his wife and his children and all that he had, in order to pay the debt.


text:
 The servant fell on his knees before the king. 'Be patient with me,' he begged, 'and I will pay you everything!'


text:
 "Then the man went out and met one of his fellow servants who owed him a few dollars. He grabbed him and started choking him. 'Pay back what you owe me!' he said.


text:
 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were very upset and went to the king and told him everything.


text:
 So he called the servant in. 'You worthless slave!' he said. 'I forgave you the whole amount you owed me, just because you asked me to.


text:
 The king was very angry, and he sent the servant to jail to be punished until he should pay back the whole amount."


text:
 And Jesus concluded, "That is how my Father in heaven will treat every one of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart."


text:
 When Jesus finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went to the territory of Judea on the other side of the Jordan River.


text:
 Some Pharisees came to him and tried to trap him by asking, "Does our Law allow a man to divorce his wife for whatever reason he wishes?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "Haven't you read the scripture that says that in the beginning the Creator made people male and female?


text:
 And God said, 'For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and unite with his wife, and the two will become one.'


text:
 So they are no longer two, but one. No human being must separate, then, what God has joined together."


text:
 The Pharisees asked him, "Why, then, did Moses give the law for a man to hand his wife a divorce notice and send her away?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "Moses gave you permission to divorce your wives because you are so hard to teach. But it was not like that at the time of creation.


text:
 I tell you, then, that any man who divorces his wife for any cause other than her unfaithfulness, commits adultery if he marries some other woman."


text:
 His disciples said to him, "If this is how it is between a man and his wife, it is better not to marry."


text:
 Jesus answered, "This teaching does not apply to everyone, but only to those to whom God has given it.


text:
 For there are different reasons why men cannot marry: some, because they were born that way; others, because men made them that way; and others do not marry for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven. Let him who can accept this teaching do so."


text:
 Some people brought children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and to pray for them, but the disciples scolded the people.


text:
 Jesus said, "Let the children come to me and do not stop them, because the Kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."


text:
 Once a man came to Jesus. "Teacher," he asked, "what good thing must I do to receive eternal life?"


text:
 "Why do you ask me concerning what is good?" answered Jesus. "There is only One who is good. Keep the commandments if you want to enter life."


text:
 "What commandments?" he asked. Jesus answered, "Do not commit murder; do not commit adultery; do not steal; do not accuse anyone falsely;


text:
 Jesus said to him, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell all you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have riches in heaven; then come and follow me."


text:
 Jesus then said to his disciples, "I assure you: it will be very hard for rich people to enter the Kingdom of heaven.


text:
 I repeat: it is much harder for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle."


text:
 Jesus looked straight at them and answered, "This is impossible for human beings, but for God everything is possible."


text:
 Then Peter spoke up. "Look," he said, "we have left everything and followed you. What will we have?"


text:
 Jesus said to them, "You can be sure that when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne in the New Age, then you twelve followers of mine will also sit on thrones, to rule the twelve tribes of Israel.


text:
 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake, will receive a hundred times more and will be given eternal life.


text:
 "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. Once there was a man who went out early in the morning to hire some men to work in his vineyard.


text:
 He agreed to pay them the regular wage, a silver coin a day, and sent them to work in his vineyard.


text:
 He went out again to the marketplace at nine o'clock and saw some men standing there doing nothing,


text:
 It was nearly five o'clock when he went to the marketplace and saw some other men still standing there. 'Why are you wasting the whole day here doing nothing?' he asked them.


text:
 "When evening came, the owner told his foreman, 'Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with those who were hired last and ending with those who were hired first.'


text:
 So when the men who were the first to be hired came to be paid, they thought they would get more; but they too were given a silver coin each.


text:
 'These men who were hired last worked only one hour,' they said, 'while we put up with a whole day's work in the hot sun---yet you paid them the same as you paid us!'


text:
 'Listen, friend,' the owner answered one of them, 'I have not cheated you. After all, you agreed to do a day's work for one silver coin.


text:
 Don't I have the right to do as I wish with my own money? Or are you jealous because I am generous?' "


text:
 As Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and spoke to them privately, as they walked along.


text:
 "Listen," he told them, "we are going up to Jerusalem, where the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and the teachers of the Law. They will condemn him to death


text:
 and then hand him over to the Gentiles, who will make fun of him, whip him, and crucify him; but three days later he will be raised to life."


text:
 Then the wife of Zebedee came to Jesus with her two sons, bowed before him, and asked him for a favor.


text:
 "What do you want?" Jesus asked her. She answered, "Promise me that these two sons of mine will sit at your right and your left when you are King."


text:
 "You don't know what you are asking for," Jesus answered the sons. "Can you drink the cup of suffering that I am about to drink?" "We can," they answered.


text:
 "You will indeed drink from my cup," Jesus told them, "but I do not have the right to choose who will sit at my right and my left. These places belong to those for whom my Father has prepared them."


text:
 So Jesus called them all together and said, "You know that the rulers of the heathen have power over them, and the leaders have complete authority.


text:
 This, however, is not the way it shall be among you. If one of you wants to be great, you must be the servant of the rest;


text:
 like the Son of Man, who did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life to redeem many people."


text:
 Two blind men who were sitting by the road heard that Jesus was passing by, so they began to shout, "Son of David! Have mercy on us, sir!"


text:
 The crowd scolded them and told them to be quiet. But they shouted even more loudly, "Son of David! Have mercy on us, sir!"


text:
 Jesus had pity on them and touched their eyes; at once they were able to see, and they followed him.


text:
 As Jesus and his disciples approached Jerusalem, they came to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives. There Jesus sent two of the disciples on ahead


text:
 with these instructions: "Go to the village there ahead of you, and at once you will find a donkey tied up with her colt beside her. Untie them and bring them to me.


text:
 And if anyone says anything, tell him, 'The Master needs them'; and then he will let them go at once."


text:
 "Tell the city of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you! He is humble and rides on a donkey and on a colt, the foal of a donkey."


text:
 A large crowd of people spread their cloaks on the road while others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.


text:
 The crowds walking in front of Jesus and those walking behind began to shout, "Praise to David's Son! God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord! Praise be to God!"


text:
 When Jesus entered Jerusalem, the whole city was thrown into an uproar. "Who is he?" the people asked.


text:
 Jesus went into the Temple and drove out all those who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the moneychangers and the stools of those who sold pigeons,


text:
 and said to them, "It is written in the Scriptures that God said, 'My Temple will be called a house of prayer.' But you are making it a hideout for thieves!"


text:
 The chief priests and the teachers of the Law became angry when they saw the wonderful things he was doing and the children shouting in the Temple, "Praise to David's Son!"


text:
 So they asked Jesus, "Do you hear what they are saying?" "Indeed I do," answered Jesus. "Haven't you ever read this scripture? 'You have trained children and babies to offer perfect praise.' "


text:
 He saw a fig tree by the side of the road and went to it, but found nothing on it except leaves. So he said to the tree, "You will never again bear fruit!" At once the fig tree dried up.


text:
 Jesus answered, "I assure you that if you believe and do not doubt, you will be able to do what I have done to this fig tree. And not only this, but you will even be able to say to this hill, 'Get up and throw yourself in the sea,' and it will.


text:
 Jesus came back to the Temple; and as he taught, the chief priests and the elders came to him and asked, "What right do you have to do these things? Who gave you such right?"


text:
 Jesus answered them, "I will ask you just one question, and if you give me an answer, I will tell you what right I have to do these things.


text:
 Where did John's right to baptize come from: was it from God or from human beings?" They started to argue among themselves, "What shall we say? If we answer, 'From God,' he will say to us, 'Why, then, did you not believe John?'


text:
 But if we say, 'From human beings,' we are afraid of what the people might do, because they are all convinced that John was a prophet."


text:
 So they answered Jesus, "We don't know." And he said to them, "Neither will I tell you, then, by what right I do these things.


text:
 "Now, what do you think? There was once a man who had two sons. He went to the older one and said, 'Son, go and work in the vineyard today.'


text:
 Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. 'Yes, sir,' he answered, but he did not go.


text:
 Which one of the two did what his father wanted?" "The older one," they answered. So Jesus said to them, "I tell you: the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the Kingdom of God ahead of you.


text:
 For John the Baptist came to you showing you the right path to take, and you would not believe him; but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him. Even when you saw this, you did not later change your minds and believe him.


text:
 "Listen to another parable," Jesus said. "There was once a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to tenants and left home on a trip.


text:
 When the time came to gather the grapes, he sent his slaves to the tenants to receive his share of the harvest.


text:
 Again the man sent other slaves, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.


text:
 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, 'This is the owner's son. Come on, let's kill him, and we will get his property!'


text:
 "He will certainly kill those evil men," they answered, "and rent the vineyard out to other tenants, who will give him his share of the harvest at the right time."


text:
 Jesus said to them, "Haven't you ever read what the Scriptures say? 'The stone which the builders rejected as worthless turned out to be the most important of all. This was done by the Lord; what a wonderful sight it is!'


text:
 "And so I tell you," added Jesus, "the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce the proper fruits."


text:
 so they tried to arrest him. But they were afraid of the crowds, who considered Jesus to be a prophet.


text:
 "The Kingdom of heaven is like this. Once there was a king who prepared a wedding feast for his son.


text:
 He sent his servants to tell the invited guests to come to the feast, but they did not want to come.


text:
 So he sent other servants with this message for the guests: 'My feast is ready now; my steers and prize calves have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast!'


text:
 But the invited guests paid no attention and went about their business: one went to his farm, another to his store,


text:
 The king was very angry; so he sent his soldiers, who killed those murderers and burned down their city.


text:
 Then he called his servants and said to them, 'My wedding feast is ready, but the people I invited did not deserve it.


text:
 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, good and bad alike; and the wedding hall was filled with people.


text:
 'Friend, how did you get in here without wedding clothes?' the king asked him. But the man said nothing.


text:
 Then the king told the servants, 'Tie him up hand and foot, and throw him outside in the dark. There he will cry and gnash his teeth.' "


text:
 Then they sent to him some of their disciples and some members of Herod's party. "Teacher," they said, "we know that you tell the truth. You teach the truth about God's will for people, without worrying about what others think, because you pay no attention to anyone's status.


text:
 Tell us, then, what do you think? Is it against our Law to pay taxes to the Roman Emperor, or not?"


text:
 Jesus, however, was aware of their evil plan, and so he said, "You hypocrites! Why are you trying to trap me?


text:
 "The Emperor's," they answered. So Jesus said to them, "Well, then, pay to the Emperor what belongs to the Emperor, and pay to God what belongs to God."


text:
 "Teacher," they said, "Moses said that if a man who has no children dies, his brother must marry the widow so that they can have children who will be considered the dead man's children.


text:
 Now, there were seven brothers who used to live here. The oldest got married and died without having children, so he left his widow to his brother.


text:
 Jesus answered them, "How wrong you are! It is because you don't know the Scriptures or God's power.


text:
 'I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.' He is the God of the living, not of the dead."


text:
 Jesus answered, " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'


text:
 "What do you think about the Messiah? Whose descendant is he?" "He is David's descendant," they answered.


text:
 No one was able to give Jesus any answer, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.


text:
 So you must obey and follow everything they tell you to do; do not, however, imitate their actions, because they don't practice what they preach.


text:
 They tie onto people's backs loads that are heavy and hard to carry, yet they aren't willing even to lift a finger to help them carry those loads.


text:
 They do everything so that people will see them. Look at the straps with scripture verses on them which they wear on their foreheads and arms, and notice how large they are! Notice also how long are the tassels on their cloaks!


text:
 And you must not call anyone here on earth 'Father,' because you have only the one Father in heaven.


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You lock the door to the Kingdom of heaven in people's faces, but you yourselves don't go in, nor do you allow in those who are trying to enter!


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You sail the seas and cross whole countries to win one convert; and when you succeed, you make him twice as deserving of going to hell as you yourselves are!


text:
 "How terrible for you, blind guides! You teach, 'If someone swears by the Temple, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gold in the Temple, he is bound.'


text:
 You also teach, 'If someone swears by the altar, he isn't bound by his vow; but if he swears by the gift on the altar, he is bound.'


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You give to God one tenth even of the seasoning herbs, such as mint, dill, and cumin, but you neglect to obey the really important teachings of the Law, such as justice and mercy and honesty. These you should practice, without neglecting the others.


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You clean the outside of your cup and plate, while the inside is full of what you have gotten by violence and selfishness.


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look fine on the outside but are full of bones and decaying corpses on the inside.


text:
 In the same way, on the outside you appear good to everybody, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and sins.


text:
 "How terrible for you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees! You hypocrites! You make fine tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of those who lived good lives;


text:
 and you claim that if you had lived during the time of your ancestors, you would not have done what they did and killed the prophets.


text:
 And so I tell you that I will send you prophets and wise men and teachers; you will kill some of them, crucify others, and whip others in the synagogues and chase them from town to town.


text:
 As a result, the punishment for the murder of all innocent people will fall on you, from the murder of innocent Abel to the murder of Zechariah son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the Temple and the altar.


text:
 "Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me!


text:
 From now on, I tell you, you will never see me again until you say, 'God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord.' "


text:
 Jesus left and was going away from the Temple when his disciples came to him to call his attention to its buildings.


text:
 "Yes," he said, "you may well look at all these. I tell you this: not a single stone here will be left in its place; every one of them will be thrown down."


text:
 As Jesus sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him in private. "Tell us when all this will be," they asked, "and what will happen to show that it is the time for your coming and the end of the age."


text:
 Many men, claiming to speak for me, will come and say, 'I am the Messiah!' and they will fool many people.


text:
 You are going to hear the noise of battles close by and the news of battles far away; but do not be troubled. Such things must happen, but they do not mean that the end has come.


text:
 Countries will fight each other; kingdoms will attack one another. There will be famines and earthquakes everywhere.


text:
 "Then you will be arrested and handed over to be punished and be put to death. Everyone will hate you because of me.


text:
 And this Good News about the Kingdom will be preached through all the world for a witness to all people; and then the end will come.


text:
 "You will see 'The Awful Horror' of which the prophet Daniel spoke. It will be standing in the holy place." (Note to the reader: understand what this means!)


text:
 Someone who is on the roof of a house must not take the time to go down and get any belongings from the house.


text:
 How terrible it will be in those days for women who are pregnant and for mothers with little babies!


text:
 For the trouble at that time will be far more terrible than any there has ever been, from the beginning of the world to this very day. Nor will there ever be anything like it again.


text:
 But God has already reduced the number of days; had he not done so, nobody would survive. For the sake of his chosen people, however, God will reduce the days.


text:
 For false Messiahs and false prophets will appear; they will perform great miracles and wonders in order to deceive even God's chosen people, if possible.


text:
 "Or, if people should tell you, 'Look, he is out in the desert!'---don't go there; or if they say, 'Look, he is hiding here!'---don't believe it.


text:
 For the Son of Man will come like the lightning which flashes across the whole sky from the east to the west.


text:
 "Soon after the trouble of those days, the sun will grow dark, the moon will no longer shine, the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers in space will be driven from their courses.


text:
 Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky; and all the peoples of earth will weep as they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.


text:
 The great trumpet will sound, and he will send out his angels to the four corners of the earth, and they will gather his chosen people from one end of the world to the other.


text:
 "Let the fig tree teach you a lesson. When its branches become green and tender and it starts putting out leaves, you know that summer is near.


text:
 In the same way, when you see all these things, you will know that the time is near, ready to begin.


text:
 "No one knows, however, when that day and hour will come---neither the angels in heaven nor the Son; the Father alone knows.


text:
 In the days before the flood people ate and drank, men and women married, up to the very day Noah went into the boat;


text:
 yet they did not realize what was happening until the flood came and swept them all away. That is how it will be when the Son of Man comes.


text:
 At that time two men will be working in a field: one will be taken away, the other will be left behind.


text:
 If the owner of a house knew the time when the thief would come, you can be sure that he would stay awake and not let the thief break into his house.


text:
 So then, you also must always be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you are not expecting him.


text:
 "Who, then, is a faithful and wise servant? It is the one that his master has placed in charge of the other servants to give them their food at the proper time.


text:
 But if he is a bad servant, he will tell himself that his master will not come back for a long time,


text:
 Then that servant's master will come back one day when the servant does not expect him and at a time he does not know.


text:
 The master will cut him in pieces and make him share the fate of the hypocrites. There he will cry and gnash his teeth.


text:
 "At that time the Kingdom of heaven will be like this. Once there were ten young women who took their oil lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.


text:
 Then the foolish ones said to the wise ones, 'Let us have some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.'


text:
 'No, indeed,' the wise ones answered, 'there is not enough for you and for us. Go to the store and buy some for yourselves.'


text:
 So the foolish ones went off to buy some oil; and while they were gone, the bridegroom arrived. The five who were ready went in with him to the wedding feast, and the door was closed.


text:
 "At that time the Kingdom of heaven will be like this. Once there was a man who was about to leave home on a trip; he called his servants and put them in charge of his property.


text:
 He gave to each one according to his ability: to one he gave five thousand gold coins, to another he gave two thousand, and to another he gave one thousand. Then he left on his trip.


text:
 The servant who had received five thousand coins went at once and invested his money and earned another five thousand.


text:
 But the servant who had received one thousand coins went off, dug a hole in the ground, and hid his master's money.


text:
 The servant who had received five thousand coins came in and handed over the other five thousand. 'You gave me five thousand coins, sir,' he said. 'Look! Here are another five thousand that I have earned.'


text:
 'Well done, you good and faithful servant!' said his master. 'You have been faithful in managing small amounts, so I will put you in charge of large amounts. Come on in and share my happiness!'


text:
 Then the servant who had been given two thousand coins came in and said, 'You gave me two thousand coins, sir. Look! Here are another two thousand that I have earned.'


text:
 Then the servant who had received one thousand coins came in and said, 'Sir, I know you are a hard man; you reap harvests where you did not plant, and you gather crops where you did not scatter seed.


text:
 'You bad and lazy servant!' his master said. 'You knew, did you, that I reap harvests where I did not plant, and gather crops where I did not scatter seed?


text:
 Well, then, you should have deposited my money in the bank, and I would have received it all back with interest when I returned.


text:
 For to every person who has something, even more will be given, and he will have more than enough; but the person who has nothing, even the little that he has will be taken away from him.


text:
 As for this useless servant---throw him outside in the darkness; there he will cry and gnash his teeth.'


text:
 and the people of all the nations will be gathered before him. Then he will divide them into two groups, just as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.


text:
 Then the King will say to the people on his right, 'Come, you that are blessed by my Father! Come and possess the kingdom which has been prepared for you ever since the creation of the world.


text:
 I was hungry and you fed me, thirsty and you gave me a drink; I was a stranger and you received me in your homes,


text:
 The righteous will then answer him, 'When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink?


text:
 The King will reply, 'I tell you, whenever you did this for one of the least important of these followers of mine, you did it for me!'


text:
 "Then he will say to those on his left, 'Away from me, you that are under God's curse! Away to the eternal fire which has been prepared for the Devil and his angels!


text:
 I was a stranger but you would not welcome me in your homes, naked but you would not clothe me; I was sick and in prison but you would not take care of me.'


text:
 Then they will answer him, 'When, Lord, did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and we would not help you?'


text:
 The King will reply, 'I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of these least important ones, you refused to help me.'


text:
 "In two days, as you know, it will be the Passover Festival, and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified."


text:
 While Jesus was eating, a woman came to him with an alabaster jar filled with an expensive perfume, which she poured on his head.


text:
 Jesus knew what they were saying, and so he said to them, "Why are you bothering this woman? It is a fine and beautiful thing that she has done for me.


text:
 Now, I assure you that wherever this gospel is preached all over the world, what she has done will be told in memory of her."


text:
 and asked, "What will you give me if I betray Jesus to you?" They counted out thirty silver coins and gave them to him.


text:
 On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus and asked him, "Where do you want us to get the Passover meal ready for you?"


text:
 "Go to a certain man in the city," he said to them, "and tell him: 'The Teacher says, My hour has come; my disciples and I will celebrate the Passover at your house.' "


text:
 The disciples were very upset and began to ask him, one after the other, "Surely, Lord, you don't mean me?"


text:
 The Son of Man will die as the Scriptures say he will, but how terrible for that man who will betray the Son of Man! It would have been better for that man if he had never been born!"


text:
 Judas, the traitor, spoke up. "Surely, Teacher, you don't mean me?" he asked. Jesus answered, "So you say."


text:
 While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. "Take and eat it," he said; "this is my body."


text:
 "this is my blood, which seals God's covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.


text:
 I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in my Father's Kingdom."


text:
 Then Jesus said to them, "This very night all of you will run away and leave me, for the scripture says, 'God will kill the shepherd, and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'


text:
 Jesus said to Peter, "I tell you that before the rooster crows tonight, you will say three times that you do not know me."


text:
 Peter answered, "I will never say that, even if I have to die with you!" And all the other disciples said the same thing.


text:
 Then Jesus went with his disciples to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to them, "Sit here while I go over there and pray."


text:
 and he said to them, "The sorrow in my heart is so great that it almost crushes me. Stay here and keep watch with me."


text:
 He went a little farther on, threw himself face downward on the ground, and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, take this cup of suffering from me! Yet not what I want, but what you want."


text:
 Then he returned to the three disciples and found them asleep; and he said to Peter, "How is it that you three were not able to keep watch with me for even one hour?


text:
 Keep watch and pray that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak."


text:
 Once more Jesus went away and prayed, "My Father, if this cup of suffering cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done."


text:
 Then he returned to the disciples and said, "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look! The hour has come for the Son of Man to be handed over to the power of sinners.


text:
 Jesus was still speaking when Judas, one of the twelve disciples, arrived. With him was a large crowd armed with swords and clubs and sent by the chief priests and the elders.


text:
 Jesus answered, "Be quick about it, friend!" Then they came up, arrested Jesus, and held him tight.


text:
 One of those who were with Jesus drew his sword and struck at the High Priest's slave, cutting off his ear.


text:
 "Put your sword back in its place," Jesus said to him. "All who take the sword will die by the sword.


text:
 Don't you know that I could call on my Father for help, and at once he would send me more than twelve armies of angels?


text:
 Then Jesus spoke to the crowd, "Did you have to come with swords and clubs to capture me, as though I were an outlaw? Every day I sat down and taught in the Temple, and you did not arrest me.


text:
 But all this has happened in order to make come true what the prophets wrote in the Scriptures." Then all the disciples left him and ran away.


text:
 Those who had arrested Jesus took him to the house of Caiaphas, the High Priest, where the teachers of the Law and the elders had gathered together.


text:
 Peter followed from a distance, as far as the courtyard of the High Priest's house. He went into the courtyard and sat down with the guards to see how it would all come out.


text:
 The chief priests and the whole Council tried to find some false evidence against Jesus to put him to death;


text:
 but they could not find any, even though many people came forward and told lies about him. Finally two men stepped up


text:
 and said, "This man said, 'I am able to tear down God's Temple and three days later build it back up.' "


text:
 The High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Have you no answer to give to this accusation against you?"


text:
 But Jesus kept quiet. Again the High Priest spoke to him, "In the name of the living God I now put you under oath: tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God."


text:
 Jesus answered him, "So you say. But I tell all of you: from this time on you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right side of the Almighty and coming on the clouds of heaven!"


text:
 At this the High Priest tore his clothes and said, "Blasphemy! We don't need any more witnesses! You have just heard his blasphemy!


text:
 Peter was sitting outside in the courtyard when one of the High Priest's servant women came to him and said, "You, too, were with Jesus of Galilee."


text:
 and went on out to the entrance of the courtyard. Another servant woman saw him and said to the men there, "He was with Jesus of Nazareth."


text:
 After a little while the men standing there came to Peter. "Of course you are one of them," they said. "After all, the way you speak gives you away!"


text:
 Then Peter said, "I swear that I am telling the truth! May God punish me if I am not! I do not know that man!" Just then a rooster crowed,


text:
 and Peter remembered what Jesus had told him: "Before the rooster crows, you will say three times that you do not know me." He went out and wept bitterly.


text:
 Early in the morning all the chief priests and the elders made their plans against Jesus to put him to death.


text:
 When Judas, the traitor, learned that Jesus had been condemned, he repented and took back the thirty silver coins to the chief priests and the elders.


text:
 "I have sinned by betraying an innocent man to death!" he said. "What do we care about that?" they answered. "That is your business!"


text:
 The chief priests picked up the coins and said, "This is blood money, and it is against our Law to put it in the Temple treasury."


text:
 After reaching an agreement about it, they used the money to buy Potter's Field, as a cemetery for foreigners.


text:
 Then what the prophet Jeremiah had said came true: "They took the thirty silver coins, the amount the people of Israel had agreed to pay for him,


text:
 Jesus stood before the Roman governor, who questioned him. "Are you the king of the Jews?" he asked. "So you say," answered Jesus.


text:
 But Jesus refused to answer a single word, with the result that the Governor was greatly surprised.


text:
 At every Passover Festival the Roman governor was in the habit of setting free any one prisoner the crowd asked for.


text:
 So when the crowd gathered, Pilate asked them, "Which one do you want me to set free for you? Jesus Barabbas or Jesus called the Messiah?"


text:
 He knew very well that the Jewish authorities had handed Jesus over to him because they were jealous.


text:
 While Pilate was sitting in the judgment hall, his wife sent him a message: "Have nothing to do with that innocent man, because in a dream last night I suffered much on account of him."


text:
 The chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowd to ask Pilate to set Barabbas free and have Jesus put to death.


text:
 But Pilate asked the crowd, "Which one of these two do you want me to set free for you?" "Barabbas!" they answered.


text:
 "What, then, shall I do with Jesus called the Messiah?" Pilate asked them. "Crucify him!" they all answered.


text:
 But Pilate asked, "What crime has he committed?" Then they started shouting at the top of their voices: "Crucify him!"


text:
 When Pilate saw that it was no use to go on, but that a riot might break out, he took some water, washed his hands in front of the crowd, and said, "I am not responsible for the death of this man! This is your doing!"


text:
 Then Pilate set Barabbas free for them; and after he had Jesus whipped, he handed him over to be crucified.


text:
 Then Pilate's soldiers took Jesus into the governor's palace, and the whole company gathered around him.


text:
 Then they made a crown out of thorny branches and placed it on his head, and put a stick in his right hand; then they knelt before him and made fun of him. "Long live the King of the Jews!" they said.


text:
 When they had finished making fun of him, they took the robe off and put his own clothes back on him. Then they led him out to crucify him.


text:
 As they were going out, they met a man from Cyrene named Simon, and the soldiers forced him to carry Jesus' cross.


text:
 There they offered Jesus wine mixed with a bitter substance; but after tasting it, he would not drink it.


text:
 Above his head they put the written notice of the accusation against him: "This is Jesus, the King of the Jews."


text:
 "You were going to tear down the Temple and build it back up in three days! Save yourself if you are God's Son! Come on down from the cross!"


text:
 "He saved others, but he cannot save himself ! Isn't he the king of Israel? If he will come down off the cross now, we will believe in him!


text:
 At about three o'clock Jesus cried out with a loud shout, <i>"Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?"</i> which means, "My God, my God, why did you abandon me?"


text:
 One of them ran up at once, took a sponge, soaked it in cheap wine, put it on the end of a stick, and tried to make him drink it.


text:
 Then the curtain hanging in the Temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split apart,


text:
 They left the graves, and after Jesus rose from death, they went into the Holy City, where many people saw them.


text:
 When the army officer and the soldiers with him who were watching Jesus saw the earthquake and everything else that happened, they were terrified and said, "He really was the Son of God!"


text:
 There were many women there, looking on from a distance, who had followed Jesus from Galilee and helped him.


text:
 When it was evening, a rich man from Arimathea arrived; his name was Joseph, and he also was a disciple of Jesus.


text:
 He went into the presence of Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Pilate gave orders for the body to be given to Joseph.


text:
 and placed it in his own tomb, which he had just recently dug out of solid rock. Then he rolled a large stone across the entrance to the tomb and went away.


text:
 and said, "Sir, we remember that while that liar was still alive he said, 'I will be raised to life three days later.'


text:
 Give orders, then, for his tomb to be carefully guarded until the third day, so that his disciples will not be able to go and steal the body, and then tell the people that he was raised from death. This last lie would be even worse than the first one."


text:
 So they left and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and leaving the guard on watch.


text:
 After the Sabbath, as Sunday morning was dawning, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.


text:
 Suddenly there was a violent earthquake; an angel of the Lord came down from heaven, rolled the stone away, and sat on it.


text:
 The angel spoke to the women. "You must not be afraid," he said. "I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.


text:
 He is not here; he has been raised, just as he said. Come here and see the place where he was lying.


text:
 Go quickly now, and tell his disciples, 'He has been raised from death, and now he is going to Galilee ahead of you; there you will see him!' Remember what I have told you."


text:
 Suddenly Jesus met them and said, "Peace be with you." They came up to him, took hold of his feet, and worshiped him.


text:
 "Do not be afraid," Jesus said to them. "Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me."


text:
 While the women went on their way, some of the soldiers guarding the tomb went back to the city and told the chief priests everything that had happened.


text:
 The chief priests met with the elders and made their plan; they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers


text:
 and said, "You are to say that his disciples came during the night and stole his body while you were asleep.


text:
 And if the Governor should hear of this, we will convince him that you are innocent, and you will have nothing to worry about."


text:
 The guards took the money and did what they were told to do. And so that is the report spread around by the Jews to this very day.


text:
 Go, then, to all peoples everywhere and make them my disciples: baptize them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,


text:
 and teach them to obey everything I have commanded you. And I will be with you always, to the end of the age."


text:
 It began as the prophet Isaiah had written: "God said, 'I will send my messenger ahead of you to open the way for you.'


text:
 Someone is shouting in the desert, 'Get the road ready for the Lord; make a straight path for him to travel!' "


text:
 So John appeared in the desert, baptizing and preaching. "Turn away from your sins and be baptized," he told the people, "and God will forgive your sins."


text:
 Many people from the province of Judea and the city of Jerusalem went out to hear John. They confessed their sins, and he baptized them in the Jordan River.


text:
 John wore clothes made of camel's hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.


text:
 He announced to the people, "The man who will come after me is much greater than I am. I am not good enough even to bend down and untie his sandals.


text:
 Not long afterward Jesus came from Nazareth in the province of Galilee, and was baptized by John in the Jordan.


text:
 As soon as Jesus came up out of the water, he saw heaven opening and the Spirit coming down on him like a dove.


text:
 where he stayed forty days, being tempted by Satan. Wild animals were there also, but angels came and helped him.


text:
 "The right time has come," he said, "and the Kingdom of God is near! Turn away from your sins and believe the Good News!"


text:
 As Jesus walked along the shore of Lake Galilee, he saw two fishermen, Simon and his brother Andrew, catching fish with a net.


text:
 He went a little farther on and saw two other brothers, James and John, the sons of Zebedee. They were in their boat getting their nets ready.


text:
 As soon as Jesus saw them, he called them; they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired men and went with Jesus.


text:
 Jesus and his disciples came to the town of Capernaum, and on the next Sabbath Jesus went to the synagogue and began to teach.


text:
 The people who heard him were amazed at the way he taught, for he wasn't like the teachers of the Law; instead, he taught with authority.


text:
 "What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Are you here to destroy us? I know who you are---you are God's holy messenger!"


text:
 The people were all so amazed that they started saying to one another, "What is this? Is it some kind of new teaching? This man has authority to give orders to the evil spirits, and they obey him!"


text:
 Jesus and his disciples, including James and John, left the synagogue and went straight to the home of Simon and Andrew.


text:
 Simon's mother-in-law was sick in bed with a fever, and as soon as Jesus arrived, he was told about her.


text:
 He went to her, took her by the hand, and helped her up. The fever left her, and she began to wait on them.


text:
 After the sun had set and evening had come, people brought to Jesus all the sick and those who had demons.


text:
 Jesus healed many who were sick with all kinds of diseases and drove out many demons. He would not let the demons say anything, because they knew who he was.


text:
 Very early the next morning, long before daylight, Jesus got up and left the house. He went out of town to a lonely place, where he prayed.


text:
 But Jesus answered, "We must go on to the other villages around here. I have to preach in them also, because that is why I came."


text:
 A man suffering from a dreaded skin disease came to Jesus, knelt down, and begged him for help. "If you want to," he said, "you can make me clean."


text:
 Jesus was filled with pity, and reached out and touched him. "I do want to," he answered. "Be clean!"


text:
 after saying to him, "Listen, don't tell anyone about this. But go straight to the priest and let him examine you; then in order to prove to everyone that you are cured, offer the sacrifice that Moses ordered."


text:
 But the man went away and began to spread the news everywhere. Indeed, he talked so much that Jesus could not go into a town publicly. Instead, he stayed out in lonely places, and people came to him from everywhere.


text:
 So many people came together that there was no room left, not even out in front of the door. Jesus was preaching the message to them


text:
 Because of the crowd, however, they could not get the man to him. So they made a hole in the roof right above the place where Jesus was. When they had made an opening, they let the man down, lying on his mat.


text:
 Is it easier to say to this paralyzed man, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Get up, pick up your mat, and walk'?


text:
 I will prove to you, then, that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins." So he said to the paralyzed man,


text:
 While they all watched, the man got up, picked up his mat, and hurried away. They were all completely amazed and praised God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this!"


text:
 Jesus went back again to the shore of Lake Galilee. A crowd came to him, and he started teaching them.


text:
 As he walked along, he saw a tax collector, Levi son of Alphaeus, sitting in his office. Jesus said to him, "Follow me." Levi got up and followed him.


text:
 Later on Jesus was having a meal in Levi's house. A large number of tax collectors and other outcasts was following Jesus, and many of them joined him and his disciples at the table.


text:
 Some teachers of the Law, who were Pharisees, saw that Jesus was eating with these outcasts and tax collectors, so they asked his disciples, "Why does he eat with such people?"


text:
 Jesus heard them and answered, "People who are well do not need a doctor, but only those who are sick. I have not come to call respectable people, but outcasts."


text:
 On one occasion the followers of John the Baptist and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came to Jesus and asked him, "Why is it that the disciples of John the Baptist and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but yours do not?"


text:
 Jesus answered, "Do you expect the guests at a wedding party to go without food? Of course not! As long as the bridegroom is with them, they will not do that.


text:
 "No one uses a piece of new cloth to patch up an old coat, because the new patch will shrink and tear off some of the old cloth, making an even bigger hole.


text:
 Nor does anyone pour new wine into used wineskins, because the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the skins will be ruined. Instead, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins."


text:
 Jesus was walking through some wheat fields on a Sabbath. As his disciples walked along with him, they began to pick the heads of wheat.


text:
 So the Pharisees said to Jesus, "Look, it is against our Law for your disciples to do that on the Sabbath!"


text:
 Jesus answered, "Have you never read what David did that time when he needed something to eat? He and his men were hungry,


text:
 so he went into the house of God and ate the bread offered to God. This happened when Abiathar was the High Priest. According to our Law only the priests may eat this bread---but David ate it and even gave it to his men."


text:
 And Jesus concluded, "The Sabbath was made for the good of human beings; they were not made for the Sabbath.


text:
 Some people were there who wanted to accuse Jesus of doing wrong; so they watched him closely to see whether he would cure the man on the Sabbath.


text:
 Then he asked the people, "What does our Law allow us to do on the Sabbath? To help or to harm? To save someone's life or to destroy it?" But they did not say a thing.


text:
 Jesus was angry as he looked around at them, but at the same time he felt sorry for them, because they were so stubborn and wrong. Then he said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and it became well again.


text:
 So the Pharisees left the synagogue and met at once with some members of Herod's party, and they made plans to kill Jesus.


text:
 Jesus and his disciples went away to Lake Galilee, and a large crowd followed him. They had come from Galilee, from Judea,


text:
 from Jerusalem, from the territory of Idumea, from the territory on the east side of the Jordan, and from the region around the cities of Tyre and Sidon. All these people came to Jesus because they had heard of the things he was doing.


text:
 The crowd was so large that Jesus told his disciples to get a boat ready for him, so that the people would not crush him.


text:
 And whenever the people who had evil spirits in them saw him, they would fall down before him and scream, "You are the Son of God!"


text:
 and he chose twelve, whom he named apostles. "I have chosen you to be with me," he told them. "I will also send you out to preach,


text:
 James and his brother John, the sons of Zebedee (Jesus gave them the name Boanerges, which means "Men of Thunder");


text:
 Then Jesus went home. Again such a large crowd gathered that Jesus and his disciples had no time to eat.


text:
 When his family heard about it, they set out to take charge of him, because people were saying, "He's gone mad!"


text:
 Some teachers of the Law who had come from Jerusalem were saying, "He has Beelzebul in him! It is the chief of the demons who gives him the power to drive them out."


text:
 But whoever says evil things against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, because he has committed an eternal sin."


text:
 Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. They stood outside the house and sent in a message, asking for him.


text:
 A crowd was sitting around Jesus, and they said to him, "Look, your mother and your brothers and sisters are outside, and they want you."


text:
 Again Jesus began to teach beside Lake Galilee. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it. The boat was out in the water, and the crowd stood on the shore at the water's edge.


text:
 Then, when the sun came up, it burned the young plants; and because the roots had not grown deep enough, the plants soon dried up.


text:
 Some of the seed fell among thorn bushes, which grew up and choked the plants, and they didn't bear grain.


text:
 But some seeds fell in good soil, and the plants sprouted, grew, and bore grain: some had thirty grains, others sixty, and others one hundred."


text:
 When Jesus was alone, some of those who had heard him came to him with the twelve disciples and asked him to explain the parables.


text:
 "You have been given the secret of the Kingdom of God," Jesus answered. "But the others, who are on the outside, hear all things by means of parables,


text:
 so that, 'They may look and look, yet not see; they may listen and listen, yet not understand. For if they did, they would turn to God, and he would forgive them.' "


text:
 Then Jesus asked them, "Don't you understand this parable? How, then, will you ever understand any parable?


text:
 Some people are like the seeds that fall along the path; as soon as they hear the message, Satan comes and takes it away.


text:
 Other people are like the seeds that fall on rocky ground. As soon as they hear the message, they receive it gladly.


text:
 Other people are like the seeds sown among the thorn bushes. These are the ones who hear the message,


text:
 but the worries about this life, the love for riches, and all other kinds of desires crowd in and choke the message, and they don't bear fruit.


text:
 But other people are like seeds sown in good soil. They hear the message, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirty, some sixty, and some one hundred."


text:
 Jesus continued, "Does anyone ever bring in a lamp and put it under a bowl or under the bed? Isn't it put on the lampstand?


text:
 Whatever is hidden away will be brought out into the open, and whatever is covered up will be uncovered.


text:
 He also said to them, "Pay attention to what you hear! The same rules you use to judge others will be used by God to judge you---but with even greater severity.


text:
 Those who have something will be given more, and those who have nothing will have taken away from them even the little they have."


text:
 He sleeps at night, is up and about during the day, and all the while the seeds are sprouting and growing. Yet he does not know how it happens.


text:
 The soil itself makes the plants grow and bear fruit; first the tender stalk appears, then the head, and finally the head full of grain.


text:
 "What shall we say the Kingdom of God is like?" asked Jesus. "What parable shall we use to explain it?


text:
 It is like this. A man takes a mustard seed, the smallest seed in the world, and plants it in the ground.


text:
 After a while it grows up and becomes the biggest of all plants. It puts out such large branches that the birds come and make their nests in its shade."


text:
 Jesus preached his message to the people, using many other parables like these; he told them as much as they could understand.


text:
 He would not speak to them without using parables, but when he was alone with his disciples, he would explain everything to them.


text:
 On the evening of that same day Jesus said to his disciples, "Let us go across to the other side of the lake."


text:
 So they left the crowd; the disciples got into the boat in which Jesus was already sitting, and they took him with them. Other boats were there too.


text:
 Suddenly a strong wind blew up, and the waves began to spill over into the boat, so that it was about to fill with water.


text:
 Jesus was in the back of the boat, sleeping with his head on a pillow. The disciples woke him up and said, "Teacher, don't you care that we are about to die?"


text:
 Jesus stood up and commanded the wind, "Be quiet!" and he said to the waves, "Be still!" The wind died down, and there was a great calm.


text:
 But they were terribly afraid and began to say to one another, "Who is this man? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"


text:
 As soon as Jesus got out of the boat, he was met by a man who came out of the burial caves there. This man had an evil spirit in him


text:
 many times his feet and his hands had been tied, but every time he broke the chains and smashed the irons on his feet. He was too strong for anyone to control him.


text:
 Day and night he wandered among the tombs and through the hills, screaming and cutting himself with stones.


text:
 and screamed in a loud voice, "Jesus, Son of the Most High God! What do you want with me? For God's sake, I beg you, don't punish me!"


text:
 So Jesus asked him, "What is your name!" The man answered, "My name is 'Mob'---there are so many of us!"


text:
 He let them go, and the evil spirits went out of the man and entered the pigs. The whole herd---about two thousand pigs in all---rushed down the side of the cliff into the lake and was drowned.


text:
 The men who had been taking care of the pigs ran away and spread the news in the town and among the farms. People went out to see what had happened,


text:
 and when they came to Jesus, they saw the man who used to have the mob of demons in him. He was sitting there, clothed and in his right mind; and they were all afraid.


text:
 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the man with the demons, and about the pigs.


text:
 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had had the demons begged him, "Let me go with you!"


text:
 But Jesus would not let him. Instead, he told him, "Go back home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how kind he has been to you."


text:
 So the man left and went all through the Ten Towns, telling what Jesus had done for him. And all who heard it were amazed.


text:
 Jesus went back across to the other side of the lake. There at the lakeside a large crowd gathered around him.


text:
 Jairus, an official of the local synagogue, arrived, and when he saw Jesus, he threw himself down at his feet


text:
 and begged him earnestly, "My little daughter is very sick. Please come and place your hands on her, so that she will get well and live!"


text:
 Then Jesus started off with him. So many people were going along with Jesus that they were crowding him from every side.


text:
 even though she had been treated by many doctors. She had spent all her money, but instead of getting better she got worse all the time.


text:
 She touched his cloak, and her bleeding stopped at once; and she had the feeling inside herself that she was healed of her trouble.


text:
 At once Jesus knew that power had gone out of him, so he turned around in the crowd and asked, "Who touched my clothes?"


text:
 The woman realized what had happened to her, so she came, trembling with fear, knelt at his feet, and told him the whole truth.


text:
 Jesus said to her, "My daughter, your faith has made you well. Go in peace, and be healed of your trouble."


text:
 While Jesus was saying this, some messengers came from Jairus' house and told him, "Your daughter has died. Why bother the Teacher any longer?"


text:
 They arrived at Jairus' house, where Jesus saw the confusion and heard all the loud crying and wailing.


text:
 He went in and said to them, "Why all this confusion? Why are you crying? The child is not dead---she is only sleeping!"


text:
 They started making fun of him, so he put them all out, took the child's father and mother and his three disciples, and went into the room where the child was lying.


text:
 He took her by the hand and said to her, <i>"Talitha, koum,"</i> which means, "Little girl, I tell you to get up!"


text:
 She got up at once and started walking around. (She was twelve years old.) When this happened, they were completely amazed.


text:
 On the Sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue. Many people were there; and when they heard him, they were all amazed. "Where did he get all this?" they asked. "What wisdom is this that has been given him? How does he perform miracles?


text:
 Isn't he the carpenter, the son of Mary, and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon? Aren't his sisters living here?" And so they rejected him.


text:
 Jesus said to them, "Prophets are respected everywhere except in their own hometown and by their relatives and their family."


text:
 He was not able to perform any miracles there, except that he placed his hands on a few sick people and healed them.


text:
 He was greatly surprised, because the people did not have faith. Then Jesus went to the villages around there, teaching the people.


text:
 He called the twelve disciples together and sent them out two by two. He gave them authority over the evil spirits


