Jeremiah 49
49This message was given concerning the Ammonites. This is what the Lord says. “Are there no descendants of Israel to inherit the land of Gad? Why are you, who worship Molech, living in its towns?H1121H5983H559H3068H3478H1121H3423H4428H3423H1410H5971H3427H58922In the days to come,” says the Lord, “I will sound the battle cry against your city of Rabbah. It will become a desolate heap of ruins, and the neighboring towns will be burned. Then Israel will take back the land you took from her,” says the Lord.H3117H935H559H3068H8643H4421H8085H7237H1121H5983H8077H8510H1323H3341H784H3478H3423H3423H5002H30683“Cry out, O Heshbon, for the town of Ai is destroyed. Weep, O people of Rabbah! Put on your clothes of mourning. Weep and wail, hiding in the hedges, for your god Molech, with his priests and officials, will be hauled off to distant lands.H3213H2809H5857H7703H6817H1323H7237H2296H8242H5594H7751H1448H4428H3212H1473H3548H8269H31624You are proud of your fertile valleys, but they will soon be ruined. You trusted in your wealth, you rebellious daughter, and thought no one could ever harm you.H1984H6010H2100H6010H7728H1323H982H214H9355But look! I will bring terror upon you,” says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Your neighbors will chase you from your land, and no one will help your exiles as they flee.H935H6343H5002H136H3069H6635H5439H5080H376H6440H6908H50746But I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites in days to come. I, the Lord, have spoken.”H310H7725H7622H1121H5983H5002H30687This message was given concerning Edom. This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says. “Is there no wisdom in Teman? Is no one left to give wise counsel?H123H559H3068H6635H2451H8487H6098H6H995H2451H56288Turn and flee! Hide in deep caves, you people of Dedan! For when I bring disaster on Edom, I will punish you, too!H5127H6437H3427H6009H3427H1719H935H343H6215H6256H64859Those who harvest grapes always leave a few for the poor. If thieves came at night, they would not take everything.H1219H935H7604H5955H1590H3915H7843H176710But I will strip bare the land of Edom, and there will be no place left to hide. Its children, its brothers, and its neighbors will all be destroyed, and Edom itself will be no more.H6215H2834H1540H4565H3201H2247H2233H7703H251H793411But I will protect the orphans who remain among you. Your widows, too, can depend on me for help.”H5800H3490H2421H490H98212And this is what the Lord says: “If the innocent must suffer, how much more must you! You will not go unpunished! You must drink this cup of judgment!H559H3068H4941H8354H3563H8354H8354H5352H5352H5352H8354H835413For I have sworn by my own name,” says the Lord, “that Bozrah will become an object of horror and a heap of ruins; it will be mocked and cursed. All its towns and villages will be desolate forever.”H7650H5002H3068H1224H8047H2781H2721H7045H5892H5769H272314I have heard a message from the Lord that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say, “Form a coalition against Edom, and prepare for battle!”H8085H8052H3068H6735H7971H1471H6908H935H6965H442115The Lord says to Edom, “I will cut you down to size among the nations. You will be despised by all.H5414H6996H1471H959H12016You have been deceived by the fear you inspire in others and by your own pride. You live in a rock fortress and control the mountain heights. But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles, I will bring you crashing down,” says the Lord.H8606H5377H2087H3820H7931H2288H5553H8610H4791H1389H7064H1361H5404H3381H5002H306817“Edom will be an object of horror. All who pass by will be appalled and will gasp at the destruction they see there.H123H8047H5674H8074H8319H434718It will be like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns,” says the Lord. “No one will live there; no one will inhabit it.H4114H5467H6017H7934H559H3068H376H3427H1121H120H148119I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan, leaping on the sheep in the pasture. I will chase Edom from its land, and I will appoint the leader of my choice. For who is like me, and who can challenge me? What ruler can oppose my will?”H5927H738H1347H3383H5116H386H7280H7323H977H6485H3259H7462H5975H644020Listen to the Lord’s plans against Edom and the people of Teman. Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep, and their homes will be destroyed.H8085H6098H3068H3289H123H4284H2803H3427H8487H6810H6629H5498H5116H807421The earth will shake with the noise of Edom’s fall, and its cry of despair will be heard all the way to the Red Sea.H776H7493H6963H5307H6818H6963H8085H5488H322022Look! The enemy swoops down like an eagle, spreading his wings over Bozrah. Even the mightiest warriors will be in anguish like a woman in labor.H5927H1675H5404H6566H3671H1224H3117H3820H1368H123H3820H802H688723This message was given concerning Damascus. This is what the Lord says. “The towns of Hamath and Arpad are struck with fear, for they have heard the news of their destruction. Their hearts are troubled like a wild sea in a raging storm.H1834H2574H954H774H8085H7451H8052H4127H1674H3220H3201H825224Damascus has become feeble, and all her people turn to flee. Fear, anguish, and pain have gripped her as they grip a woman in labor.H1834H7503H6437H5127H7374H2388H6869H2256H270H320525That famous city, a city of joy, will be forsaken!H5892H8416H5800H7151H488526Her young men will fall in the streets and die. Her soldiers will all be killed,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.H970H5307H7339H582H4421H1826H3117H5002H3068H663527“And I will set fire to the walls of Damascus that will burn up the palaces of Ben-hadad.”H3341H784H2346H1834H398H759H113028This message was given concerning Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which were attacked by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon. This is what the Lord says. “Advance against Kedar! Destroy the warriors from the East!H6938H4467H2674H5019H4428H894H5221H559H3068H6965H5927H6938H7703H1121H692429Their flocks and tents will be captured, and their household goods and camels will be taken away. Everywhere shouts of panic will be heard. ‘We are terrorized at every turn!’H168H6629H3947H5375H3407H3627H1581H7121H4032H543930Run for your lives,” says the Lord. “Hide yourselves in deep caves, you people of Hazor, for King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon has plotted against you and is preparing to destroy you.H5127H5110H3966H3427H6009H3427H2674H5002H3068H5019H4428H894H6098H3289H2803H428431“Go up and attack that complacent nation,” says the Lord. “Its people live alone in the desert without walls or gates.H6965H5927H7961H1471H3427H983H5002H3068H1817H1280H7931H91032Their camels and other livestock will all be yours. I will scatter to the winds these people who live in remote places. I will bring calamity upon them from every direction,” says the Lord.H1581H957H1995H4735H7998H2219H7307H7112H6285H935H343H5676H5002H306833“Hazor will be inhabited by jackals, and it will be desolate forever. No one will live there; no one will inhabit it.”H2674H4583H8577H8077H5704H5769H376H3427H1121H120H148134This message concerning Elam came to the prophet Jeremiah from the Lord at the beginning of the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah.H1697H3068H3414H5030H5867H7225H4438H6667H4428H3063H55935This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says. “I will destroy the archers of Elam—the best of their forces.H559H3068H6635H7665H7198H5867H7225H136936I will bring enemies from all directions, and I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds. They will be exiled to countries around the world.H5867H935H702H7307H702H7098H8064H2219H7307H1471H5080H5867H5769H93537I myself will go with Elam’s enemies to shatter it. In my fierce anger, I will bring great disaster upon the people of Elam,” says the Lord. “Their enemies will chase them with the sword until I have destroyed them completely.H5867H2865H6440H341H6440H1245H5315H935H7451H2740H639H5002H3068H7971H2719H310H361538I will set my throne in Elam,” says the Lord, “and I will destroy its king and officials.H7760H3678H5867H6H4428H8269H5002H306839But I will restore the fortunes of Elam in days to come. I, the Lord, have spoken!”H319H3117H7725H7725H7622H7622H5867H5002H3068
Jeremiah 50
50The Lord gave Jeremiah the prophet this message concerning Babylon and the land of the Babylonians.H1697H3068H1696H894H776H3778H3027H3414H50302This is what the Lord says. “Tell the whole world, and keep nothing back. Raise a signal flag to tell everyone that Babylon will fall! Her images and idols will be shattered. Her gods Bel and Marduk will be utterly disgraced.H5046H1471H8085H5375H5251H8085H3582H559H894H3920H1078H3001H4781H2865H6091H3001H1544H28653For a nation will attack her from the north and bring such destruction that no one will live there again. Everything will be gone; both people and animals will flee.H6828H5927H1471H7896H776H8047H3427H5110H1980H120H9294“In those coming days,” says the Lord, “the people of Israel will return home together with the people of Judah. They will come weeping and seeking the Lord their God.H3117H6256H5002H3068H1121H3478H935H1121H3063H3162H1980H1058H3212H1245H3068H4305They will ask the way to Jerusalem and will start back home again. They will bind themselves to the Lord with an eternal covenant that will never be forgotten.H7592H1870H6726H6440H2008H935H3867H3068H5769H1285H79116“My people have been lost sheep. Their shepherds have led them astray and turned them loose in the mountains. They have lost their way and can’t remember how to get back to the sheepfold.H5971H6H6629H7462H8582H7725H7726H2022H1980H2022H1389H7911H72587All who found them devoured them. Their enemies said, ‘We did nothing wrong in attacking them, for they sinned against the Lord, their true place of rest, and the hope of their ancestors.’H4672H398H6862H559H816H2398H3068H5116H6664H3068H4723H18“But now, flee from Babylon! Leave the land of the Babylonians. Like male goats at the head of the flock, lead my people home again.H5110H8432H894H3318H3318H776H3778H6260H6440H66299For I am raising up an army of great nations from the north. They will join forces to attack Babylon, and she will be captured. The enemies’ arrows will go straight to the mark; they will not miss!H5782H5927H894H6951H1419H1471H6828H776H6186H3920H2671H1368H7919H7921H7725H738710Babylonia will be looted until the attackers are glutted with loot. I, the Lord, have spoken!H3778H7998H7997H7646H5002H306811“You rejoice and are glad, you who plundered my chosen people. You frisk about like a calf in a meadow and neigh like a stallion.H8055H5937H8154H5159H6335H5697H1877H1758H6670H4712But your homeland will be overwhelmed with shame and disgrace. You will become the least of nations—a wilderness, a dry and desolate land.H517H3966H954H3205H2659H319H1471H4057H6723H616013Because of the Lord’s anger, Babylon will become a deserted wasteland. All who pass by will be horrified and will gasp at the destruction they see there.H7110H3068H3427H8077H5674H894H8074H8319H434714“Yes, prepare to attack Babylon, all you surrounding nations. Let your archers shoot at her; spare no arrows. For she has sinned against the Lord.H6186H894H5439H1869H7198H3034H2550H2671H2398H306815Shout war cries against her from every side. Look! She surrenders! Her walls have fallen. It is the Lord’s vengeance, so take vengeance on her. Do to her as she has done to others!H7321H5439H5414H3027H803H5307H2346H2040H5360H3068H5358H6213H621316Take from Babylon all those who plant crops; send all the harvesters away. Because of the sword of the enemy, everyone will run away and rush back to their own lands.H3772H2232H894H8610H4038H6256H7105H6440H3238H2719H6437H376H5971H5127H376H77617“The Israelites are like sheep that have been scattered by lions. First the king of Assyria ate them up. Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon cracked their bones.”H3478H6340H7716H738H5080H7223H4428H804H398H314H5019H4428H894H610518Therefore, this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says. “Now I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, just as I punished the king of Assyria.H559H3068H6635H430H3478H6485H4428H894H776H6485H4428H80419And I will bring Israel home again to its own land, to feed in the fields of Carmel and Bashan, and to be satisfied once more in the hill country of Ephraim and Gilead.H7725H3478H7725H5116H7462H3760H1316H5315H7646H2022H669H156820In those days,” says the Lord, “no sin will be found in Israel or in Judah, for I will forgive the remnant I preserve.H3117H6256H5002H3068H5771H3478H1245H2403H3063H4672H5545H760421“Go up, my warriors, against the land of Merathaim and against the people of Pekod. Pursue, kill, and completely destroy them, as I have commanded you,” says the Lord.H5927H776H4850H3427H6489H2717H2763H310H5002H3068H6213H668022“Let the battle cry be heard in the land, a shout of great destruction.H6963H4421H776H1419H766723Babylon, the mightiest hammer in all the earth, lies broken and shattered. Babylon is desolate among the nations!H6360H776H1438H7665H894H8047H147124Listen, Babylon, for I have set a trap for you. You are caught, for you have fought against the Lord.H3369H3920H894H3045H4672H8610H1624H306825The Lord has opened his armory and brought out weapons to vent his fury. The terror that falls upon the Babylonians will be the work of the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies.H3068H6605H214H3318H3627H2195H4399H136H3069H6635H776H377826Yes, come against her from distant lands. Break open her granaries. Crush her walls and houses into heaps of rubble. Destroy her completely, and leave nothing!H935H7093H6605H3965H5549H6194H2763H761127Destroy even her young bulls—it will be terrible for them, too! Slaughter them all! For Babylon’s day of reckoning has come.H2717H6499H3381H2874H1945H3117H935H6256H648628Listen to the people who have escaped from Babylon, as they tell in Jerusalem how the Lord our God has taken vengeance against those who destroyed his Temple.H6963H5127H6405H776H894H5046H6726H5360H3068H430H5360H196429“Send out a call for archers to come to Babylon. Surround the city so none can escape. Do to her as she has done to others, for she has defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.H8085H7228H894H1869H7198H2583H5439H6413H7999H6467H6213H6213H2102H3068H6918H347830Her young men will fall in the streets and die. Her soldiers will all be killed,” says the Lord.H970H5307H7339H582H4421H1826H3117H5002H306831“See, I am your enemy, you arrogant people,” says the Lord, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Your day of reckoning has arrived—the day when I will punish you.H2087H5002H136H3069H6635H3117H935H6256H648532O land of arrogance, you will stumble and fall, and no one will raise you up. For I will light a fire in the cities of Babylon that will burn up everything around them.”H2087H3782H5307H6965H3341H784H5892H398H543933This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says. “The people of Israel and Judah have been wronged. Their captors hold them and refuse to let them go.H559H3068H6635H1121H3478H1121H3063H6231H3162H7617H2388H3985H797134But the one who redeems them is strong. His name is the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. He will defend them and give them rest again in Israel. But for the people of Babylon there will be no rest!H1350H2389H3068H6635H8034H7378H7378H7379H7280H776H7264H3427H89435“The sword of destruction will strike the Babylonians,” says the Lord. “It will strike the people of Babylon—her officials and wise men, too.H2719H3778H5002H3068H3427H894H8269H245036The sword will strike her wise counselors, and they will become fools. The sword will strike her mightiest warriors, and panic will seize them.H2719H907H2973H2719H1368H286537The sword will strike her horses and chariots and her allies from other lands, and they will all become like women. The sword will strike her treasures, and they all will be plundered.H2719H5483H7393H6153H8432H802H2719H214H96238The sword will even strike her water supply, causing it to dry up. And why? Because the whole land is filled with idols, and the people are madly in love with them.H2721H4325H3001H776H6456H1984H36739“Soon Babylon will be inhabited by desert animals and hyenas. It will be a home for owls. Never again will people live there; it will lie desolate forever.H6728H338H3427H1323H3284H3427H3427H5331H7931H1755H175540I will destroy it as I destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns,” says the Lord. “No one will live there; no one will inhabit it.H430H4114H5467H6017H7934H5002H3068H376H3427H1121H120H148141“Look! A great army is coming from the north. A great nation and many kings are rising against you from far-off lands.H5971H935H6828H1419H1471H7227H4428H5782H3411H77642They are armed with bows and spears. They are cruel and show no mercy. As they ride forward on horses, they sound like a roaring sea. They are coming in battle formation, planning to destroy you, Babylon.H2388H7198H3591H394H7355H6963H1993H3220H7392H5483H6186H376H4421H1323H89443The king of Babylon has heard reports about the enemy, and he is weak with fright. Pangs of anguish have gripped him, like those of a woman in labor.H4428H894H8085H8088H3027H7503H6869H2388H2427H320544“I will come like a lion from the thickets of the Jordan, leaping on the sheep in the pasture. I will chase Babylon from its land, and I will appoint the leader of my choice. For who is like me, and who can challenge me? What ruler can oppose my will?”H5927H738H1347H3383H5116H386H7323H7280H7323H7323H977H6485H3259H7462H5975H644045Listen to the Lord’s plans against Babylon and the land of the Babylonians. Even the little children will be dragged off like sheep, and their homes will be destroyed.H8085H6098H3068H3289H894H4284H2803H776H3778H6810H6629H5498H5116H807446The earth will shake with the shout, “Babylon has been taken!” and its cry of despair will be heard around the world.H6963H8610H894H776H7493H2201H8085H1471
Psalms 26
26[A psalm of David.] Declare me innocent, O LORD, for I have acted with integrity; I have trusted in the LORD without wavering.H1732H8199H3068H1980H8537H982H3068H45712Put me on trial, LORD, and cross-examine me. Test my motives and my heart.H974H3068H5254H6884H3629H38203For I am always aware of your unfailing love, and I have lived according to your truth.H2617H5869H1980H5714I do not spend time with liars or go along with hypocrites.H3427H7723H4962H935H59565I hate the gatherings of those who do evil, and I refuse to join in with the wicked.H8130H6951H7489H3427H75636I wash my hands to declare my innocence. I come to your altar, O LORD,H7364H3709H5356H5437H4196H30687singing a song of thanksgiving and telling of all your wonders.H8085H6963H8426H5608H63818I love your sanctuary, LORD, the place where your glorious presence dwells.H3068H157H4583H1004H4725H3519H49089Don't let me suffer the fate of sinners. Don't condemn me along with murderers.H622H5315H2400H2416H1818H58210Their hands are dirty with evil schemes, and they constantly take bribes.H3027H2154H3225H4390H781011But I am not like that; I live with integrity. So redeem me and show me mercy.H3212H8537H6299H260312Now I stand on solid ground, and I will publicly praise the LORD.H7272H5975H4334H4721H1288H3068
Dublin, OH
, living in its towns?H1121
