The Righteous Branch and the Covenant with David

¹⁴ The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah.^{(A) 15} In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and he shall execute justice and righteousness in the land.^{(B) 16} In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will live in safety. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The Lord is our righteousness.”^(C)

¹⁷ For thus says the Lord: David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel,^{(D) 18} and the Levitical priests shall never lack a man in my presence to offer burnt offerings, to make grain offerings, and to make sacrifices for all time.^(E)

¹⁹ The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁰ Thus says the Lord: If any of you could break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that day and night would not come at their appointed time,^{(F) 21} only then could my covenant with my servant David be broken, so that he would not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with my ministers the Levites.^{(G) 22} Just as the host of heaven cannot be numbered and the sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will increase the offspring of my servant David and the Levites who minister to me.^(H)

²³ The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah: ²⁴ Have you not observed how these people say, “The two families that the Lord chose have been rejected by him,” and how they hold my people in such contempt that they no longer regard them as a nation?^{(I) 25} Thus says the Lord: Only if I had not established my covenant with day and night and the ordinances of heaven and earth^{(J) 26} would I reject the offspring of Jacob and of my servant David and not choose any of his descendants as rulers over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. For I will restore their fortunes and will have mercy upon them.^(K)

Paul’s Present Circumstances

¹² I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually resulted in the progress of the gospel, ¹³ so that it has become known throughout the whole imperial guard^[a] and to everyone else that my imprisonment is for Christ, ¹⁴ and most of the brothers and sisters, having been made confident in the Lord by my imprisonment, dare to speak the word^[b] with greater boldness and without fear.

¹⁵ Some proclaim Christ from envy and rivalry but others from goodwill. ¹⁶ These proclaim Christ out of love, knowing that I have been put here for the defense of the gospel; ¹⁷ the others proclaim Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely but intending to increase my suffering in my imprisonment. ¹⁸ What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true, and in that I rejoice.

Yes, and I will rejoice, ¹⁹ for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my salvation.^{(A) 20} It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way but that by my speaking with all boldness Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death.^{(B) 21} For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. ²² If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me, yet I cannot say which I will choose. ²³ I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better,^{(C) 24} but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. ²⁵ Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, ²⁶ so that, by my presence again with you, your boast might abound in Christ Jesus because of me.^(D)

²⁷ Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel ²⁸ and in no way frightened by those opposing you. For them, this is evidence of their destruction but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing.^{(E) 29} For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ but of suffering for him as well,^{(F) 30} since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.^(G)

Treacherous Treatment of Slaves

⁸ The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord, after King Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem to make a proclamation of liberty to them,^{(A) 9} that all should set free their Hebrew slaves, male and female, so that no one should hold another Judean in slavery.^{(B) 10} And they obeyed, all the officials and all the people who had entered into the covenant that all would set free their slaves, male or female, so that they would not be enslaved again; they obeyed and set them free. ¹¹ But afterward they turned around and took back the male and female slaves they had set free and brought them again into subjection as slaves. ¹² The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah from the Lord: ¹³ Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: I myself made a covenant with your ancestors when I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying,^{(C) 14} “Every seventh year each of you must set free any Hebrews who have been sold to you and have served you six years; you must set them free from your service.” But your ancestors did not listen to me or incline their ears to me.^{(D) 15} You yourselves recently repented and did what was right in my sight by proclaiming liberty to one another, and you made a covenant before me in the house that is called by my name,^{(E) 16} but then you turned around and profaned my name when each of you took back your male and female slaves, whom you had set free according to their desire, and you brought them again into subjection to be your slaves.^{(F) 17} Therefore, thus says the Lord: You have not obeyed me by granting a release to your neighbors and friends; I am going to grant a release to you, says the Lord—a release to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine. I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.^{(G) 18} And those who transgressed my covenant and did not keep the terms of the covenant that they made before me, I will make like^[a] the calf when they cut it in two and passed between its parts:^{(H) 19} the officials of Judah, the officials of Jerusalem, the eunuchs, the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf ²⁰ shall be handed over to their enemies and to those who seek their lives. Their corpses shall become food for the birds of the air and the wild animals of the earth.^{(I) 21} And as for King Zedekiah of Judah and his officials, I will hand them over to their enemies and to those who seek their lives, to the army of the king of Babylon, which has withdrawn from you.^{(J) 22} I am going to command, says the Lord, and will bring them back to this city, and they will fight against it and take it and burn it with fire. The towns of Judah I will make a desolation without inhabitant.^(K)

Jesus Is Rejected by the Jews

²² At that time the Festival of the Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, ²³ and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the portico of Solomon.^{(A) 24} So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Messiah,^[a] tell us plainly.” ²⁵ Jesus answered, “I have told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name testify to me,^{(B) 26} but you do not believe because you do not belong to my sheep.^{(C) 27} My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.^{(D) 28} I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one will snatch them out of my hand.^{(E) 29} My Father, in regard to what he has given me, is greater than all,^[b] and no one can snatch them out of the Father’s hand.^{(F) 30} The Father and I are one.”

³¹ The Jews took up stones again to stone him. ³² Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?” ³³ The Jews answered, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, though only a human, are making yourself God.”^{(G) 34} Jesus answered, “Is it not written in your law,^[c] ‘I said, you are gods’?^{(H) 35} If those to whom the word of God came were called ‘gods’—and the scripture cannot be annulled— ³⁶ can you say that the one whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world is blaspheming because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?^{(I) 37} If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me.^{(J) 38} But if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may know and understand^[d] that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”^{(K) 39} Then they tried to arrest him again, but he escaped from their hands.^(L)

⁴⁰ He went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing earlier, and he remained there. ⁴¹ Many came to him, and they were saying, “John performed no sign, but everything that John said about this man was true.”^{(M) 42} And many believed in him there.^(N)