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Common English Bible (CEB)
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Isaiah 1-2

The vision about Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah, Amoz’s son, saw in the days of Judah’s kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.

Rebels condemned

Hear you heavens, and listen earth,
        for the Lord has spoken:
I reared children; I raised them,
    and they turned against me!
An ox knows its owner,
    and a donkey its master’s feeding trough.
    But Israel doesn’t know;
        my people don’t behave intelligently.

Doom! Sinful nation, people weighed down with crimes,
    evildoing offspring, corrupt children!
They have abandoned the Lord,
    despised the holy one of Israel;
    they turned their backs on God.

Why do you invite further beatings?
    Why continue to rebel?
Everyone’s head throbs,
    and everyone’s heart fails.
From head to toe, none are well—
    only bruises, cuts, and raw wounds,
        not treated, not bandaged,
        not soothed with oil.

Your country is deserted,
    your cities burned with fire;
    your land—strangers are devouring it in plain sight.
    It’s a wasteland, as when foreigners raid.
Daughter Zion is left like a small shelter in a vineyard,
    like a hut in a cucumber field,
    like a city besieged.[a]
If the Lord of heavenly forces had not spared a few of us,
    we would be like Sodom; we would resemble Gomorrah.

Hands filled with bloodshed

10 Hear the Lord’s word, you leaders of Sodom.
    Listen to our God’s teaching,
        people of Gomorrah!
11 What should I think about all your sacrifices?
    says the Lord.
I’m fed up with entirely burned offerings of rams
    and the fat of well-fed beasts.
    I don’t want the blood of bulls, lambs, and goats.
12 When you come to appear before me,
    who asked this from you,
    this trampling of my temple’s courts?
13 Stop bringing worthless offerings.
    Your incense repulses me.
New moon, sabbath, and the calling of an assembly—
    I can’t stand wickedness with celebration!
14 I hate your new moons and your festivals.
    They’ve become a burden that I’m tired of bearing.
15 When you extend your hands,
    I’ll hide my eyes from you.
Even when you pray for a long time,
    I won’t listen.
Your hands are stained with blood.
16     Wash! Be clean!
Remove your ugly deeds from my sight.
    Put an end to such evil;
17     learn to do good.
Seek justice:
    help the oppressed;[b]
    defend the orphan;
    plead for the widow.

18 Come now, and let’s settle this,
    says the Lord.
Though your sins are like scarlet,
    they will be white as snow.
If they are red as crimson,
    they will become like wool.
19 If you agree and obey,
    you will eat the best food of the land.
20 But if you refuse and rebel,
    you will be devoured by the sword.
The Lord has said this.

Zion will be redeemed

21 This faithful town has become a prostitute!
She was full of justice;
    righteousness lived in her—
    but now murderers.
22 Your silver has become impure;
    your beer is diluted with water.
23 Your princes are rebels,
    companions of thieves.
Everyone loves a bribe and pursues gifts.
    They don’t defend the orphan,
    and the widow’s cause never reaches them.
24 Therefore, says the Lord God of heavenly forces,
    the mighty one of Israel:
Doom! I will vent my anger against my foes;
    I will take it out on my enemies,
25     and I will turn my hand against you.
I will refine your impurities as with lye,
    and remove all your cinders.
26 Then I will restore your judges as in earlier times,
    and your counselors as at the beginning.
After this you will be called Righteous City, Faithful Town.

27 Zion will be redeemed by justice,
    and those who change their lives by righteousness.
28 But God will shatter rebels and sinners alike;
    those who abandon the Lord will be finished.

29 You will be ashamed of the oaks you once desired,
    and embarrassed by the gardens you once chose.
30 You will be like an oak with withering leaves,
    like a garden without water.
31 The strong will be like dry twigs,
        their deeds like sparks;
    the two will burn together,
    with no one to extinguish them.

The Lord’s mountain

This is what Isaiah, Amoz’s son, saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

In the days to come
    the mountain of the Lord’s house
    will be the highest of the mountains.
    It will be lifted above the hills;
        peoples will stream to it.
Many nations will go and say,
“Come, let’s go up to the Lord’s mountain,
    to the house of Jacob’s God
        so that he may teach us his ways
        and we may walk in God’s paths.”
Instruction will come from Zion;
    the Lord’s word from Jerusalem.
God will judge between the nations,
    and settle disputes of mighty nations.
Then they will beat their swords into iron plows
    and their spears into pruning tools.
Nation will not take up sword against nation;
    they will no longer learn how to make war.

Come, house of Jacob,
    let’s walk by the Lord’s light.

Everyone is brought low

You have abandoned your people,
        house of Jacob.
    They are full of sorcerers from the east and fortune-tellers like the Philistines;
        they hold hands with foreigners’ children.[c]
Their land is full of silver and gold;
    they have countless treasures.
Their land is filled with horses;
    they have countless chariots.
Their land is filled with idols;
    they worship their handiwork,
    what their own fingers have made.

Humanity will be brought down;
    each person laid low—don’t lift them up![d]
10 Go into the rocks,
    and hide yourself in the dust from the terror of the Lord,
    from the splendor of God’s majesty!
11 People’s proud gazing will be stopped
    and humanity’s arrogance brought down;
    the Lord alone will be exalted on that day.

12 The Lord of heavenly forces has planned a day:
    against all that is prideful and haughty;
    against all that is lofty, and it will be laid low;[e]
13     against all the cedars of Lebanon, high and lofty;
    against all the oaks of Bashan;
14     against all the high mountains;
    against all the lofty hills;
15     against every tall tower;
    against every fortified wall;
16     against all the ships of Tarshish;
    against all the wonderful boats.[f]
17 People’s pride will be brought down
    and human arrogance humiliated.
The Lord alone will be exalted on that day;
18     the idols will completely pass away.

19 Go into caves in the rocks
    and holes in the dust
        before the terror of the Lord
        and the splendor of God’s majesty,
        when he arises to terrify the earth.
20 On that day, people will toss
        to the rodents[g] and to the bats
    their idols of silver and idols of gold,
        which they made for themselves to worship.
21 They will hide in fissures of rocks and in crevices of cliffs
    before the terror of the Lord
    and the splendor of God’s majesty
    when he arises to terrify the earth.

22 Quit admiring the human race,
    who breathe through their nostrils.
    Why should they be admired?

2 Corinthians 10

Paul’s personal request for obedience

10 I, Paul, make a personal request to you with the gentleness and kindness of Christ. I’m shy when I’m with you, but I’m bossy when I’m away from you! I beg you that when I’m with you in person, I won’t have to boss you around. I’m afraid that I may have to use that kind of behavior with those people who think we live by human standards. Although we live in the world, we don’t fight our battles with human methods. Our weapons that we fight with aren’t human, but instead they are powered by God for the destruction of fortresses. They destroy arguments, and every defense that is raised up to oppose the knowledge of God. They capture every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Once your obedience is complete, we are ready to punish any disobedience.

Look at what is right in front of you! If anyone is sure about belonging to Christ, that person should think again. We belong to Christ just like that person. Even if I went on to brag about our authority, I wouldn’t be ashamed of it. The Lord gave us that authority to build you up and not to destroy you.

I don’t want it to seem like I’m trying to intimidate you with my letters. 10 I know what some people are saying: “His letters are severe and powerful, but in person he is weak and his speech is worth nothing.” 11 These people need to think about this—that when we are with you, our actions will show that we are the same as the words we wrote when we were away from you. 12 We won’t dare to place ourselves in the same league or to compare ourselves with some of those who are promoting themselves. When they measure themselves by themselves, and compare themselves with themselves, they have no understanding.

13 We won’t take pride in anything more than what is appropriate. Let’s look at the boundaries of our work area that God has assigned to us. It’s an area that includes you. 14 We aren’t going out of bounds, as if our work area doesn’t extend as far as you. We were the first ones to travel as far as Corinth with the gospel of Christ. 15 We don’t take pride in what other people do outside of our boundaries. We hope that our work will be extended even more by you as your faith grows, until it expands fully (within the boundaries, of course). 16 We hope that our work grows even to the point of the gospel being preached in places beyond Corinth, without bragging about what has already been done in another person’s work area. 17 But, the one who brags should brag in the Lord.[a] 18 It isn’t the person who promotes himself or herself who is approved but the person whom the Lord commends.

Psalm 52

Psalm 52

For the music leader. A maskil[a] of David, when Doeg the Edomite came and told Saul, “David has gone to Ahimelech’s house.”

52 Hey, powerful person!
    Why do you brag about evil?
    God’s faithful love lasts all day long.
Your tongue devises destruction:
    it’s like a sharpened razor, causing deception.
You love evil more than good;
    you love lying more than speaking what is right. Selah
You love all destructive words;
    you love the deceiving tongue.

But God will take you down permanently;
    he will snatch you up,
    tear you out of your tent,
    and uproot you from the land of the living! Selah
The righteous will see and be in awe;
    they will laugh at those people:
“Look at them! They didn’t make God their refuge.
    Instead, they trusted in their own great wealth.
        They sought refuge in it—to their own destruction!”

But I am like a green olive tree in God’s house;
    I trust in God’s faithful love forever and always.
I will give thanks to you, God, forever,
    because you have acted.
In the presence of your faithful people,
    I will hope in your name because it’s so good.

Proverbs 22:26-27

26 Don’t shake hands to guarantee a loan.
27 If you can’t repay,
    why should they be able to take your bed from you?

Common English Bible (CEB)

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