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Judgment Against Wicked Kings
22 This is what the Lord says: “Go down to the palace of the king(A) of Judah and proclaim this message there: 2 ‘Hear(B) the word of the Lord to you, king of Judah, you who sit on David’s throne(C)—you, your officials and your people who come through these gates.(D) 3 This is what the Lord says: Do what is just(E) and right. Rescue from the hand of the oppressor(F) the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow,(G) and do not shed innocent blood(H) in this place. 4 For if you are careful to carry out these commands, then kings(I) who sit on David’s throne will come through the gates of this palace, riding in chariots and on horses, accompanied by their officials and their people. 5 But if you do not obey(J) these commands, declares the Lord, I swear(K) by myself that this palace will become a ruin.’”
6 For this is what the Lord says about the palace of the king of Judah:
“Though you are like Gilead(L) to me,
like the summit of Lebanon,(M)
I will surely make you like a wasteland,(N)
like towns not inhabited.
7 I will send destroyers(O) against you,
each man with his weapons,
and they will cut(P) up your fine cedar beams
and throw them into the fire.(Q)
8 “People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’(R) 9 And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshiped and served other gods.(S)’”
10 Do not weep for the dead(T) king or mourn(U) his loss;
rather, weep bitterly for him who is exiled,
because he will never return(V)
nor see his native land again.
11 For this is what the Lord says about Shallum[a](W) son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but has gone from this place: “He will never return. 12 He will die(X) in the place where they have led him captive; he will not see this land again.”
13 “Woe(Y) to him who builds(Z) his palace by unrighteousness,
his upper rooms by injustice,
making his own people work for nothing,
not paying(AA) them for their labor.
14 He says, ‘I will build myself a great palace(AB)
with spacious upper rooms.’
So he makes large windows in it,
panels it with cedar(AC)
and decorates it in red.(AD)
15 “Does it make you a king
to have more and more cedar?
Did not your father have food and drink?
He did what was right and just,(AE)
so all went well(AF) with him.
16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,(AG)
and so all went well.
Is that not what it means to know(AH) me?”
declares the Lord.
17 “But your eyes and your heart
are set only on dishonest gain,(AI)
on shedding innocent blood(AJ)
and on oppression and extortion.”(AK)
18 Therefore this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah:
“They will not mourn(AL) for him:
‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him:
‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’
19 He will have the burial(AM) of a donkey—
dragged away and thrown(AN)
outside the gates of Jerusalem.”
20 “Go up to Lebanon and cry out,(AO)
let your voice be heard in Bashan,(AP)
cry out from Abarim,(AQ)
for all your allies(AR) are crushed.
21 I warned you when you felt secure,(AS)
but you said, ‘I will not listen!’
This has been your way from your youth;(AT)
you have not obeyed(AU) me.
22 The wind(AV) will drive all your shepherds(AW) away,
and your allies(AX) will go into exile.
Then you will be ashamed and disgraced(AY)
because of all your wickedness.
23 You who live in ‘Lebanon,[b](AZ)’
who are nestled in cedar buildings,
how you will groan when pangs come upon you,
pain(BA) like that of a woman in labor!
24 “As surely as I live,” declares the Lord, “even if you, Jehoiachin[c](BB) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, were a signet ring(BC) on my right hand, I would still pull you off. 25 I will deliver(BD) you into the hands of those who want to kill you, those you fear—Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and the Babylonians.[d] 26 I will hurl(BE) you and the mother(BF) who gave you birth into another country, where neither of you was born, and there you both will die. 27 You will never come back to the land you long to return(BG) to.”
28 Is this man Jehoiachin(BH) a despised, broken pot,(BI)
an object no one wants?
Why will he and his children be hurled(BJ) out,
cast into a land(BK) they do not know?
29 O land,(BL) land, land,
hear the word of the Lord!
30 This is what the Lord says:
“Record this man as if childless,(BM)
a man who will not prosper(BN) in his lifetime,
for none of his offspring(BO) will prosper,
none will sit on the throne(BP) of David
or rule anymore in Judah.”
The Righteous Branch
23 “Woe to the shepherds(BQ) who are destroying and scattering(BR) the sheep of my pasture!”(BS) declares the Lord. 2 Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says to the shepherds(BT) who tend my people: “Because you have scattered my flock(BU) and driven them away and have not bestowed care on them, I will bestow punishment on you for the evil(BV) you have done,” declares the Lord. 3 “I myself will gather the remnant(BW) of my flock out of all the countries where I have driven them and will bring them back to their pasture,(BX) where they will be fruitful and increase in number. 4 I will place shepherds(BY) over them who will tend them, and they will no longer be afraid(BZ) or terrified, nor will any be missing,(CA)” declares the Lord.
5 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“when I will raise up for David[e] a righteous Branch,(CB)
a King(CC) who will reign(CD) wisely
and do what is just and right(CE) in the land.
6 In his days Judah will be saved
and Israel will live in safety.(CF)
This is the name(CG) by which he will be called:
The Lord Our Righteous Savior.(CH)
7 “So then, the days are coming,”(CI) declares the Lord, “when people will no longer say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the Israelites up out of Egypt,’(CJ) 8 but they will say, ‘As surely as the Lord lives, who brought the descendants of Israel up out of the land of the north and out of all the countries where he had banished them.’ Then they will live in their own land.”(CK)
Lying Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart(CL) is broken within me;
all my bones tremble.(CM)
I am like a drunken man,
like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
and his holy words.(CN)
10 The land is full of adulterers;(CO)
because of the curse[f](CP) the land lies parched
and the pastures(CQ) in the wilderness are withered.(CR)
The prophets follow an evil course
and use their power unjustly.
11 “Both prophet and priest are godless;(CS)
even in my temple(CT) I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their path will become slippery;(CU)
they will be banished to darkness
and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
in the year they are punished,(CV)”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria
I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal(CW)
and led my people Israel astray.(CX)
14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:(CY)
They commit adultery and live a lie.(CZ)
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,(DA)
so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.(DB)
They are all like Sodom(DC) to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”(DD)
15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:
“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,(DE)
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness(DF) has spread throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“Do not listen(DG) to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions(DH) from their own minds,
not from the mouth(DI) of the Lord.
17 They keep saying(DJ) to those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’(DK)
And to all who follow the stubbornness(DL) of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm(DM) will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council(DN) of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm(DO) of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind(DP) swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger(DQ) of the Lord will not turn back(DR)
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand it clearly.
1 Paul, Silas[a](A) and Timothy,(B)
To the church of the Thessalonians(C) in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:
2 Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.(D)
Thanksgiving and Prayer
3 We ought always to thank God for you,(E) brothers and sisters,[b] and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing.(F) 4 Therefore, among God’s churches we boast(G) about your perseverance and faith(H) in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.(I)
5 All this is evidence(J) that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy(K) of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering. 6 God is just:(L) He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you(M) 7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven(N) in blazing fire(O) with his powerful angels.(P) 8 He will punish(Q) those who do not know God(R) and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.(S) 9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction(T) and shut out from the presence of the Lord(U) and from the glory of his might(V) 10 on the day(W) he comes to be glorified(X) in his holy people and to be marveled at among all those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you.(Y)
11 With this in mind, we constantly pray for you,(Z) that our God may make you worthy(AA) of his calling,(AB) and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness(AC) and your every deed prompted by faith.(AD) 12 We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you,(AE) and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.[c]
Psalm 83[a]
A song. A psalm of Asaph.
1 O God, do not remain silent;(A)
do not turn a deaf ear,
do not stand aloof, O God.
2 See how your enemies growl,(B)
how your foes rear their heads.(C)
3 With cunning they conspire(D) against your people;
they plot against those you cherish.(E)
4 “Come,” they say, “let us destroy(F) them as a nation,(G)
so that Israel’s name is remembered(H) no more.”
5 With one mind they plot together;(I)
they form an alliance against you—
6 the tents of Edom(J) and the Ishmaelites,
of Moab(K) and the Hagrites,(L)
7 Byblos,(M) Ammon(N) and Amalek,(O)
Philistia,(P) with the people of Tyre.(Q)
8 Even Assyria(R) has joined them
to reinforce Lot’s descendants.[b](S)
9 Do to them as you did to Midian,(T)
as you did to Sisera(U) and Jabin(V) at the river Kishon,(W)
10 who perished at Endor(X)
and became like dung(Y) on the ground.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,(Z)
all their princes like Zebah and Zalmunna,(AA)
12 who said, “Let us take possession(AB)
of the pasturelands of God.”
11 Like apples[a] of gold in settings of silver(A)
is a ruling rightly given.
12 Like an earring of gold or an ornament of fine gold
is the rebuke of a wise judge to a listening ear.(B)
13 Like a snow-cooled drink at harvest time
is a trustworthy messenger to the one who sends him;
he refreshes the spirit of his master.(C)
14 Like clouds and wind without rain
is one who boasts of gifts never given.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.