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Jeremiah’s Complaint

10 Then I said,

“What sorrow is mine, my mother.
    Oh, that I had died at birth!
    I am hated everywhere I go.
I am neither a lender who threatens to foreclose
    nor a borrower who refuses to pay—
    yet they all curse me.”

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22 What blessings await you when people hate you and exclude you and mock you and curse you as evil because you follow the Son of Man.

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25 “If you lend money to any of my people who are in need, do not charge interest as a money lender would.

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Not finding them there, they dragged out Jason and some of the other believers[a] instead and took them before the city council. “Paul and Silas have caused trouble all over the world,” they shouted, “and now they are here disturbing our city, too. And Jason has welcomed them into his home. They are all guilty of treason against Caesar, for they profess allegiance to another king, named Jesus.”

The people of the city, as well as the city council, were thrown into turmoil by these reports.

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Footnotes

  1. 17:6 Greek brothers; also in 17:10, 14.

20 “The whole city is in an uproar because of these Jews!” they shouted to the city officials. 21 “They are teaching customs that are illegal for us Romans to practice.”

22 A mob quickly formed against Paul and Silas, and the city officials ordered them stripped and beaten with wooden rods.

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34 Then Simeon blessed them, and he said to Mary, the baby’s mother, “This child is destined to cause many in Israel to fall, and many others to rise. He has been sent as a sign from God, but many will oppose him.

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“Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.[a]

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Footnotes

  1. 24:9 Greek on account of my name.

21 “A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed. 22 And all nations will hate you because you are my followers.[a] But everyone who endures to the end will be saved. 23 When you are persecuted in one town, flee to the next. I tell you the truth, the Son of Man[b] will return before you have reached all the towns of Israel.

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Footnotes

  1. 10:22 Greek on account of my name.
  2. 10:23 “Son of Man” is a title Jesus used for himself.

44 But I say, love your enemies![a] Pray for those who persecute you!

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Footnotes

  1. 5:44 Some manuscripts add Bless those who curse you. Do good to those who hate you. Compare Luke 6:27-28.

But the people of Israel won’t listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard-hearted and stubborn. But look, I have made you as obstinate and hard-hearted as they are. I have made your forehead as hard as the hardest rock! So don’t be afraid of them or fear their angry looks, even though they are rebels.”

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14 Yet I curse the day I was born!
    May no one celebrate the day of my birth.
15 I curse the messenger who told my father,
    “Good news—you have a son!”
16 Let him be destroyed like the cities of old
    that the Lord overthrew without mercy.
Terrify him all day long with battle shouts,
17     because he did not kill me at birth.
Oh, that I had died in my mother’s womb,
    that her body had been my grave!
18 Why was I ever born?
    My entire life has been filled
    with trouble, sorrow, and shame.

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Jeremiah’s Complaint

O Lord, you misled me,
    and I allowed myself to be misled.
You are stronger than I am,
    and you overpowered me.
Now I am mocked every day;
    everyone laughs at me.
When I speak, the words burst out.
    “Violence and destruction!” I shout.
So these messages from the Lord
    have made me a household joke.

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20 They will fight against you like an attacking army,
    but I will make you as secure as a fortified wall of bronze.
They will not conquer you,
    for I am with you to protect and rescue you.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!

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18 For see, today I have made you strong
    like a fortified city that cannot be captured,
    like an iron pillar or a bronze wall.
You will stand against the whole land—
    the kings, officials, priests, and people of Judah.
19 They will fight you, but they will fail.
    For I am with you, and I will take care of you.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!”

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Like a fluttering sparrow or a darting swallow,
    an undeserved curse will not land on its intended victim.

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How I suffer in far-off Meshech.
    It pains me to live in distant Kedar.
I am tired of living
    among people who hate peace.

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28 Then let them curse me if they like,
    but you will bless me!
When they attack me, they will be disgraced!
    But I, your servant, will go right on rejoicing!

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Those who lend money without charging interest,
    and who cannot be bribed to lie about the innocent.
Such people will stand firm forever.

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Job’s First Speech

At last Job spoke, and he cursed the day of his birth. He said:

“Let the day of my birth be erased,
    and the night I was conceived.
Let that day be turned to darkness.
    Let it be lost even to God on high,
    and let no light shine on it.
Let the darkness and utter gloom claim that day for its own.
    Let a black cloud overshadow it,
    and let the darkness terrify it.
Let that night be blotted off the calendar,
    never again to be counted among the days of the year,
    never again to appear among the months.
Let that night be childless.
    Let it have no joy.
Let those who are experts at cursing—
    whose cursing could rouse Leviathan[a]
    curse that day.
Let its morning stars remain dark.
    Let it hope for light, but in vain;
    may it never see the morning light.
10 Curse that day for failing to shut my mother’s womb,
    for letting me be born to see all this trouble.

11 “Why wasn’t I born dead?
    Why didn’t I die as I came from the womb?
12 Why was I laid on my mother’s lap?
    Why did she nurse me at her breasts?
13 Had I died at birth, I would now be at peace.
    I would be asleep and at rest.
14 I would rest with the world’s kings and prime ministers,
    whose great buildings now lie in ruins.
15 I would rest with princes, rich in gold,
    whose palaces were filled with silver.
16 Why wasn’t I buried like a stillborn child,
    like a baby who never lives to see the light?
17 For in death the wicked cause no trouble,
    and the weary are at rest.
18 Even captives are at ease in death,
    with no guards to curse them.
19 Rich and poor are both there,
    and the slave is free from his master.

20 “Oh, why give light to those in misery,
    and life to those who are bitter?
21 They long for death, and it won’t come.
    They search for death more eagerly than for hidden treasure.
22 They’re filled with joy when they finally die,
    and rejoice when they find the grave.
23 Why is life given to those with no future,
    those God has surrounded with difficulties?
24 I cannot eat for sighing;
    my groans pour out like water.
25 What I always feared has happened to me.
    What I dreaded has come true.
26 I have no peace, no quietness.
    I have no rest; only trouble comes.”

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Footnotes

  1. 3:8 The identification of Leviathan is disputed, ranging from an earthly creature to a mythical sea monster in ancient literature.

Nehemiah Defends the Oppressed

About this time some of the men and their wives raised a cry of protest against their fellow Jews. They were saying, “We have such large families. We need more food to survive.”

Others said, “We have mortgaged our fields, vineyards, and homes to get food during the famine.”

And others said, “We have had to borrow money on our fields and vineyards to pay our taxes. We belong to the same family as those who are wealthy, and our children are just like theirs. Yet we must sell our children into slavery just to get enough money to live. We have already sold some of our daughters, and we are helpless to do anything about it, for our fields and vineyards are already mortgaged to others.”

When I heard their complaints, I was very angry.

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The king of Israel replied to Jehoshaphat, “There is one more man who could consult the Lord for us, but I hate him. He never prophesies anything but trouble for me! His name is Micaiah son of Imlah.”

Jehoshaphat replied, “That’s not the way a king should talk! Let’s hear what he has to say.”

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20 “So, my enemy, you have found me!” Ahab exclaimed to Elijah.

“Yes,” Elijah answered, “I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the Lord’s sight.

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17 When Ahab saw him, he exclaimed, “So, is it really you, you troublemaker of Israel?”

18 “I have made no trouble for Israel,” Elijah replied. “You and your family are the troublemakers, for you have refused to obey the commands of the Lord and have worshiped the images of Baal instead.

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19 “Do not charge interest on the loans you make to a fellow Israelite, whether you loan money, or food, or anything else. 20 You may charge interest to foreigners, but you may not charge interest to Israelites, so that the Lord your God may bless you in everything you do in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

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36 Do not charge interest or make a profit at his expense. Instead, show your fear of God by letting him live with you as your relative.

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