The Proclamation of Cyrus

(A)In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, (B)that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so (C)that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

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Cyrus Helps the Exiles to Return(A)

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah,(B) the Lord moved the heart(C) of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

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10 “For thus says the Lord: (A)When seventy years are completed for Babylon, (B)I will visit you, (C)and I will fulfill to you my promise (D)and bring you back to this place.

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10 This is what the Lord says: “When seventy years(A) are completed for Babylon, I will come to you(B) and fulfill my good promise(C) to bring you back(D) to this place.

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The Proclamation of Cyrus

22 (A)Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, (B)that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, (C)the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: 23 “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia, ‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Whoever is among you of all his people, may the Lord his God be with him. Let him go up.’”

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22 In the first year of Cyrus(A) king of Persia, in order to fulfill the word of the Lord spoken by Jeremiah, the Lord moved the heart of Cyrus king of Persia to make a proclamation throughout his realm and also to put it in writing:

23 “This is what Cyrus king of Persia says:

“‘The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth and he has appointed(B) me to build a temple for him at Jerusalem in Judah. Any of his people among you may go up, and may the Lord their God be with them.’”

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21 The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;
    he (A)turns it wherever he will.

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21 In the Lord’s hand the king’s heart is a stream of water
    that he channels toward all who please him.(A)

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12 Then after (A)seventy years are completed, (B)I will punish the king of Babylon and that nation, (C)the land of the Chaldeans, for their iniquity, declares the Lord, (D)making the land an everlasting waste. 13 I will bring upon that land all the words that I have uttered against it, everything written (E)in this book, which Jeremiah prophesied against all the nations. 14 (F)For many nations (G)and great kings shall make slaves even of them, (H)and I will recompense them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”

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12 “But when the seventy years(A) are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon(B) and his nation, the land of the Babylonians,[a] for their guilt,” declares the Lord, “and will make it desolate(C) forever. 13 I will bring on that land all the things I have spoken against it, all that are written(D) in this book and prophesied by Jeremiah against all the nations. 14 They themselves will be enslaved(E) by many nations(F) and great kings; I will repay(G) them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 25:12 Or Chaldeans

46 He caused them to be (A)pitied
    by all those who held them captive.

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46 He caused all who held them captive
    to show them mercy.(A)

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27 (A)Blessed be the Lord, the God of our fathers, (B)who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king, to beautify the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem,

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27 Praise be to the Lord, the God of our ancestors, who has put it into the king’s heart(A) to bring honor(B) to the house of the Lord in Jerusalem in this way

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22 And they kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread (A)seven days with joy, for the Lord had made them joyful (B)and had turned the heart of (C)the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided them in the work of the house of God, the God of Israel.

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22 For seven days they celebrated with joy the Festival of Unleavened Bread,(A) because the Lord had filled them with joy by changing the attitude(B) of the king of Assyria so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel.

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(A)I will restore the fortunes of Judah and the fortunes of Israel, (B)and rebuild them as they were (C)at first. (D)I will cleanse them from all the guilt of their sin against me, (E)and I will forgive all the guilt of their sin and rebellion against me. (F)And this city[a] shall be to me a name of joy, a praise and a glory before all the nations of the earth who shall hear of all the good that I do for them. They shall (G)fear and tremble because of all the good and all the prosperity I provide for it.

10 “Thus says the Lord: In this place (H)of which you say, ‘It is a waste without man or beast,’ in the cities of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are desolate, without man or inhabitant or beast, there shall be heard again 11 (I)the voice of mirth and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voices of those who sing, as they bring (J)thank offerings to the house of the Lord:

(K)“‘Give thanks to the Lord of hosts,
    for the Lord is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever!’

(L)For I will restore the fortunes of the land as at first, says the Lord.

12 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: (M)In this place that is waste, without man or beast, and in all of its cities, there shall again be (N)habitations of shepherds (O)resting their flocks. 13 (P)In the cities of the hill country, (Q)in the cities of the Shephelah, (R)and in the cities of the Negeb, in the land of Benjamin, (S)the places about Jerusalem, (T)and in the cities of Judah, (U)flocks shall again pass under the hands (V)of the one who counts them, says the Lord.

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 33:9 Hebrew And it

I will bring Judah(A) and Israel back from captivity[a](B) and will rebuild(C) them as they were before.(D) I will cleanse(E) them from all the sin they have committed against me and will forgive(F) all their sins of rebellion against me. Then this city will bring me renown,(G) joy, praise(H) and honor(I) before all nations on earth that hear of all the good things I do for it; and they will be in awe and will tremble(J) at the abundant prosperity and peace I provide for it.’

10 “This is what the Lord says: ‘You say about this place, “It is a desolate waste, without people or animals.”(K) Yet in the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem that are deserted,(L) inhabited by neither people nor animals, there will be heard once more 11 the sounds of joy and gladness,(M) the voices of bride and bridegroom, and the voices of those who bring thank offerings(N) to the house of the Lord, saying,

“Give thanks to the Lord Almighty,
    for the Lord is good;(O)
    his love endures forever.”(P)

For I will restore the fortunes(Q) of the land as they were before,(R)’ says the Lord.

12 “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘In this place, desolate(S) and without people or animals(T)—in all its towns there will again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks.(U) 13 In the towns of the hill(V) country, of the western foothills and of the Negev,(W) in the territory of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem and in the towns of Judah, flocks will again pass under the hand(X) of the one who counts them,’ says the Lord.

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 33:7 Or will restore the fortunes of Judah and Israel

13 (A)However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, Cyrus the king made a decree that this house of God should be rebuilt. 14 (B)And the gold and silver vessels of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken out of the temple that was in Jerusalem and brought into the temple of Babylon, these Cyrus the king took out of the temple of Babylon, and they were delivered to one whose name was (C)Sheshbazzar, whom he had made governor; 15 and he said to him, “Take these vessels, go and put them in the temple that is in Jerusalem, and let the house of God be rebuilt on its site.”

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13 “However, in the first year of Cyrus king of Babylon, King Cyrus issued a decree(A) to rebuild this house of God. 14 He even removed from the temple[a] of Babylon the gold and silver articles of the house of God, which Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple in Jerusalem and brought to the temple[b] in Babylon.(B) Then King Cyrus gave them to a man named Sheshbazzar,(C) whom he had appointed governor, 15 and he told him, ‘Take these articles and go and deposit them in the temple in Jerusalem. And rebuild the house of God on its site.’

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Footnotes

  1. Ezra 5:14 Or palace
  2. Ezra 5:14 Or palace

John the Baptist Prepares the Way

(A)In those days (B)John the Baptist came preaching in (C)the wilderness of Judea, (D)“Repent, for (E)the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[a] For this is he who was spoken of by the prophet Isaiah when he said,

(F)“The voice of one crying in the wilderness:
(G)‘Prepare[b] the way of the Lord;
    make his paths straight.’”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 3:2 Or the kingdom of heaven has come near
  2. Matthew 3:3 Or crying: Prepare in the wilderness

John the Baptist Prepares the Way(A)

In those days John the Baptist(B) came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven(C) has come near.” This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah:

“A voice of one calling in the wilderness,
‘Prepare the way for the Lord,
    make straight paths for him.’”[a](D)

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 3:3 Isaiah 40:3

Nebuchadnezzar's Dream

In the second year of the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams; (A)his spirit was troubled, and (B)his sleep left him.

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Nebuchadnezzar’s Dream

In the second year of his reign, Nebuchadnezzar had dreams;(A) his mind was troubled(B) and he could not sleep.(C)

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23 He said, “I am (A)the voice of one crying out in the wilderness, ‘Make straight[a] the way of the Lord,’ as the prophet Isaiah said.”

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Footnotes

  1. John 1:23 Or crying out, ‘In the wilderness make straight

23 John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness,(A) ‘Make straight the way for the Lord.’”[a](B)

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Footnotes

  1. John 1:23 Isaiah 40:3