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Exhortation to Repent

22 Thus says the Lord: Go down to the house of the king of Judah, and speak there this word, and say: Hear the word of the Lord, O King of Judah sitting on the throne of David—you, and your servants, and your people who enter these gates. Thus says the Lord: Act with justice and righteousness, and deliver from the hand of the oppressor anyone who has been robbed. And do no wrong or violence to the alien, the orphan, and the widow, nor shed innocent blood in this place. For if you will indeed obey this word, then through the gates of this house shall enter kings who sit on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they, and their servants, and their people. But if you will not heed these words, I swear by myself, says the Lord, that this house shall become a desolation. For thus says the Lord concerning the house of the king of Judah:

You are like Gilead to me,
    like the summit of Lebanon;
but I swear that I will make you a desert,
    an uninhabited city.[a]
I will prepare destroyers against you,
    all with their weapons;
they shall cut down your choicest cedars
    and cast them into the fire.

And many nations will pass by this city, and all of them will say one to another, ‘Why has the Lord dealt in this way with that great city?’ And they will answer, ‘Because they abandoned the covenant of the Lord their God, and worshipped other gods and served them.’

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 22:6 Cn: Heb uninhabited cities

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: ‘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) 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. 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. But if you do not obey(J) these commands, declares the Lord, I swear(K) by myself that this palace will become a ruin.’”

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.
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)

“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) And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshiped and served other gods.(S)’”

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Psalm 52

Judgement on the Deceitful

To the leader. A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came to Saul and said to him, ‘David has come to the house of Ahimelech.’

Why do you boast, O mighty one,
    of mischief done against the godly?[a]
    All day long you are plotting destruction.
Your tongue is like a sharp razor,
    you worker of treachery.
You love evil more than good,
    and lying more than speaking the truth.Selah
You love all words that devour,
    O deceitful tongue.

But God will break you down for ever;
    he will snatch and tear you from your tent;
    he will uproot you from the land of the living.Selah
The righteous will see, and fear,
    and will laugh at the evildoer,[b] saying,
‘See the one who would not take
    refuge in God,
but trusted in abundant riches,
    and sought refuge in wealth!’[c]

But I am like a green olive tree
    in the house of God.
I trust in the steadfast love of God
    for ever and ever.
I will thank you for ever,
    because of what you have done.
In the presence of the faithful
    I will proclaim[d] your name, for it is good.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 52:1 Cn Compare Syr: Heb the kindness of God
  2. Psalm 52:6 Heb him
  3. Psalm 52:7 Syr Tg: Heb in his destruction
  4. Psalm 52:9 Cn: Heb wait for

Psalm 52[a]

For the director of music. A maskil[b] of David. When Doeg the Edomite(A) had gone to Saul and told him: “David has gone to the house of Ahimelek.”

Why do you boast of evil, you mighty hero?
    Why do you boast(B) all day long,(C)
    you who are a disgrace in the eyes of God?
You who practice deceit,(D)
    your tongue plots destruction;(E)
    it is like a sharpened razor.(F)
You love evil(G) rather than good,
    falsehood(H) rather than speaking the truth.[c]
You love every harmful word,
    you deceitful tongue!(I)

Surely God will bring you down to everlasting ruin:
    He will snatch you up and pluck(J) you from your tent;
    he will uproot(K) you from the land of the living.(L)
The righteous will see and fear;
    they will laugh(M) at you, saying,
“Here now is the man
    who did not make God his stronghold(N)
but trusted in his great wealth(O)
    and grew strong by destroying others!”

But I am like an olive tree(P)
    flourishing in the house of God;
I trust(Q) in God’s unfailing love
    for ever and ever.
For what you have done I will always praise you(R)
    in the presence of your faithful people.(S)
And I will hope in your name,(T)
    for your name is good.(U)

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 52:1 In Hebrew texts 52:1-9 is numbered 52:3-11.
  2. Psalm 52:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term
  3. Psalm 52:3 The Hebrew has Selah (a word of uncertain meaning) here and at the end of verse 5.

A Tree and Its Fruit

43 ‘No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit; 44 for each tree is known by its own fruit. Figs are not gathered from thorns, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. 45 The good person out of the good treasure of the heart produces good, and the evil person out of evil treasure produces evil; for it is out of the abundance of the heart that the mouth speaks.

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A Tree and Its Fruit(A)

43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit.(B) People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.(C)

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