God Will Swallow Up Death Forever

25 O Lord, (A)you are my God;
    (B)I will exalt you; I will praise your name,
for you have done wonderful things,
    (C)plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
For you have made the city (D)a heap,
    the fortified city a ruin;
the foreigners' palace is a city no more;
    it will never be rebuilt.
(E)Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
    cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
(F)For you have been a stronghold to the poor,
    a stronghold to the needy in his distress,
    (G)a shelter from the storm and a shade from the heat;
(H)for the breath of the ruthless is like a storm against a wall,
    (I)like heat in a dry place.
You subdue the noise of the foreigners;
    as heat by the shade of a cloud,
    so the song of the ruthless is put down.

(J)On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
    a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine,
    (K)of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.
And he will swallow up (L)on this mountain
    the covering that is cast over all peoples,
    (M)the veil that is spread over all nations.
    (N)He will swallow up death forever;
and (O)the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces,
    and (P)the reproach of his people he will take away from all the earth,
    (Q)for the Lord has spoken.
It will be said on that day,
    “Behold, this is our God; (R)we have waited for him, that he might save us.
    This is the Lord; we have waited for him;
    (S)let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

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Praise to the Lord

25 Lord, you are my God;(A)
    I will exalt you and praise your name,(B)
for in perfect faithfulness(C)
    you have done wonderful things,(D)
    things planned(E) long ago.
You have made the city a heap of rubble,(F)
    the fortified(G) town a ruin,(H)
the foreigners’ stronghold(I) a city no more;
    it will never be rebuilt.(J)
Therefore strong peoples will honor you;(K)
    cities of ruthless(L) nations will revere you.
You have been a refuge(M) for the poor,(N)
    a refuge for the needy(O) in their distress,
a shelter from the storm(P)
    and a shade from the heat.
For the breath of the ruthless(Q)
    is like a storm driving against a wall
    and like the heat of the desert.
You silence(R) the uproar of foreigners;(S)
    as heat is reduced by the shadow of a cloud,
    so the song of the ruthless(T) is stilled.

On this mountain(U) the Lord Almighty will prepare
    a feast(V) of rich food for all peoples,
a banquet of aged wine—
    the best of meats and the finest of wines.(W)
On this mountain he will destroy
    the shroud(X) that enfolds all peoples,(Y)
the sheet that covers all nations;
    he will swallow up death(Z) forever.
The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears(AA)
    from all faces;
he will remove his people’s disgrace(AB)
    from all the earth.
The Lord has spoken.(AC)

In that day(AD) they will say,

“Surely this is our God;(AE)
    we trusted(AF) in him, and he saved(AG) us.
This is the Lord, we trusted in him;
    let us rejoice(AH) and be glad in his salvation.”(AI)

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(A)Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness[a] be known to everyone. (B)The Lord is at hand; (C)do not be anxious about anything, (D)but in everything by prayer and supplication (E)with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And (F)the peace of God, (G)which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned[b] and (H)received and heard and seen (I)in me—practice these things, and (J)the God of peace will be with you.

God's Provision

10 I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length (K)you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity. 11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be (L)content. 12 I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and (M)hunger, abundance and (N)need. 13 I can do all things (O)through him who strengthens me.

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Footnotes

  1. Philippians 4:5 Or gentleness
  2. Philippians 4:9 Or these things—9which things you have also learned

Final Exhortations

Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!(A) Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.(B) Do not be anxious about anything,(C) but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.(D) And the peace of God,(E) which transcends all understanding,(F) will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice.(G) And the God of peace(H) will be with you.

Thanks for Their Gifts

10 I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me.(I) Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. 11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content(J) whatever the circumstances. 12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry,(K) whether living in plenty or in want.(L) 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.(M)

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The Parable of the Wedding Feast

22 And again Jesus (A)spoke to them in parables, saying, (B)“The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave (C)a wedding feast for his son, and (D)sent his servants[a] to call those who were invited to the wedding feast, but they would not come. (E)Again he sent other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my (F)dinner, (G)my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding feast.”’ But (H)they paid no attention and went off, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his servants, (I)treated them shamefully, and (J)killed them. The king was angry, and he sent his troops and (K)destroyed those murderers and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding feast is ready, but those invited were not (L)worthy. Go therefore to the main roads and invite to the wedding feast as many as you find.’ 10 And those servants went out into the roads and (M)gathered all whom they found, both bad and good. So the wedding hall was filled with guests.

11 “But when the king came in to look at the guests, he saw there (N)a man who had no wedding garment. 12 And he said to him, (O)‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot and (P)cast him into the outer darkness. In that place (Q)there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 For many are (R)called, but few are (S)chosen.”

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Footnotes

  1. Matthew 22:3 Or bondservants; also verses 4, 6, 8, 10

The Parable of the Wedding Banquet(A)

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like(B) a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his servants(C) to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come.

“Then he sent some more servants(D) and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’

“But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers(E) and burned their city.

“Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. So go to the street corners(F) and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, the bad as well as the good,(G) and the wedding hall was filled with guests.

11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 He asked, ‘How did you get in here without wedding clothes, friend(H)?’ The man was speechless.

13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’(I)

14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”(J)

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