O God, Do Not Keep Silence

A Song. A Psalm of (A)Asaph.

83 O God, do not keep silence;
    (B)do not hold your peace or be still, O God!
For behold, your enemies (C)make an uproar;
    those who hate you have (D)raised their heads.
They lay (E)crafty plans against your people;
    they consult together against your (F)treasured ones.
They say, “Come, (G)let us wipe them out as a nation;
    let the name of Israel be remembered no more!”
For they conspire with one accord;
    against you they make a covenant—
the tents of (H)Edom and (I)the Ishmaelites,
    (J)Moab and (K)the Hagrites,
(L)Gebal and (M)Ammon and (N)Amalek,
    (O)Philistia with the inhabitants of (P)Tyre;
(Q)Asshur also has joined them;
    they are the strong arm of (R)the children of Lot. Selah

Do to them as you did to (S)Midian,
    as to (T)Sisera and Jabin at (U)the river Kishon,
10 who were destroyed at (V)En-dor,
    who became (W)dung for the ground.
11 Make their nobles like (X)Oreb and Zeeb,
    all their princes like (Y)Zebah and Zalmunna,
12 who said, (Z)“Let us take possession for ourselves
    of the pastures of God.”

13 O my God, make them like (AA)whirling dust,[a]
    like (AB)chaff before the wind.
14 As (AC)fire consumes the forest,
    as the flame (AD)sets the mountains ablaze,
15 so may you pursue them (AE)with your tempest
    and terrify them with your hurricane!
16 (AF)Fill their faces with shame,
    that they may seek your name, O Lord.
17 Let them be (AG)put to shame and dismayed forever;
    let them perish in disgrace,
18 that they may (AH)know that you alone,
    (AI)whose name is the Lord,
    are (AJ)the Most High over all the earth.

Footnotes

  1. Psalm 83:13 Or like a tumbleweed

The Lord Has Drawn His Sword

21 [a] The word of the Lord came to me: (A)“Son of man, (B)set your face toward Jerusalem and (C)preach against the sanctuaries.[b] Prophesy against the land of Israel and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the Lord: (D)Behold, I am against you and will draw (E)my sword from its sheath and (F)will cut off from you both righteous and wicked. Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall be drawn from its sheath against all flesh from south to north. (G)And all flesh shall know that I am the Lord. I have drawn (H)my sword from its sheath; (I)it shall not be sheathed again.

“As for you, son of man, (J)groan; with breaking heart and bitter grief, (K)groan before their eyes. (L)And when they say to you, ‘Why do you groan?’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news (M)that it is coming. (N)Every heart will melt, and (O)all hands will be feeble; every spirit will faint, and (P)all knees will be weak as water. (Q)Behold, it is (R)coming, and it will be fulfilled,’” declares the Lord God.

And the word of the Lord came to me: (S)“Son of man, prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord, say:

(T)“A sword, a sword is sharpened
    and also polished,
10 (U)sharpened for slaughter,
    (V)polished to flash like lightning!

(Or (W)shall we rejoice? You have despised the rod, my son, (X)with everything of wood.)[c] 11 So the sword is given to be polished, that it may be grasped in the hand. It is sharpened and polished (Y)to be given into the hand of the slayer. 12 (Z)Cry out and wail, son of man, for it is against my people. It is against all the princes of Israel. They are delivered over to the sword with my people. (AA)Strike therefore upon your thigh. 13 For it will not be a testing—what could it do if you despise (AB)the rod?”[d] declares the Lord God.

14 “As for you, (AC)son of man, prophesy. (AD)Clap your hands and let the sword come down twice, (AE)yes, three times,[e] the sword for those to be slain. It is the sword for the great slaughter, which surrounds them, 15 that their hearts may melt, and many stumble.[f] At all their gates I have given the glittering sword. Ah, it is made like lightning; (AF)it is taken up[g] for slaughter. 16 Cut sharply to the right; set yourself to the left, wherever your face is directed. 17 I also will (AG)clap my hands, (AH)and I will satisfy my fury; (AI)I the Lord have spoken.”

18 The word of the Lord came to me again: 19 “As for you, son of man, mark two ways for (AJ)the sword of the king of Babylon to come. Both of them shall come from the same land. And make (AK)a signpost; make it (AL)at the head of the way to a city. 20 Mark a way (AM)for the sword to come to Rabbah of the Ammonites and to Judah, into Jerusalem the fortified. 21 For the king of Babylon stands (AN)at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows; he consults (AO)the teraphim;[h] he looks at the liver. 22 Into his right hand comes the divination for Jerusalem, (AP)to set battering rams, to open the mouth with murder, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, (AQ)to cast up mounds, to build siege towers. 23 But to them it will seem like a false divination. (AR)They have sworn solemn oaths, but he brings their guilt to remembrance, (AS)that they may be taken.

24 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have made your guilt to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that in all your deeds your sins appear—because you have come to remembrance, (AT)you shall be taken in hand. 25 And you, O profane[i] (AU)wicked one, prince of Israel, (AV)whose day has come, (AW)the time of your final punishment, 26 thus says the Lord God: Remove the turban and take off the crown. Things shall not remain as they are. (AX)Exalt that which is low, and bring low that which is exalted. 27 A ruin, ruin, ruin I will make it. (AY)This also shall not be, (AZ)until he comes, the one to whom judgment belongs, and I will give it to him.

28 “And you, (BA)son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord God (BB)concerning the Ammonites and concerning their reproach; say, (BC)A sword, a sword (BD)is drawn for the slaughter. (BE)It is polished to consume and to flash like lightning— 29 while (BF)they see for you false visions, while they divine lies for you—to place you on the necks of the profane wicked, (BG)whose day has come, the time of their final punishment. 30 (BH)Return it to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin, (BI)I will judge you. 31 And (BJ)I will pour out my indignation upon you; (BK)I will blow upon you with the fire of my wrath, and I will deliver you into the hands of (BL)brutish men, skillful to destroy. 32 You shall be fuel for the fire. Your blood shall be in the midst of the land. (BM)You shall be no more remembered, (BN)for I the Lord have spoken.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 21:1 Ch 21:6 in Hebrew
  2. Ezekiel 21:2 Some Hebrew manuscripts, compare Septuagint, Syriac against their sanctuary
  3. Ezekiel 21:10 Probable reading; Hebrew The rod of my son despises everything of wood
  4. Ezekiel 21:13 Or For it is a testing; and what if even the rod despises? It shall not be!
  5. Ezekiel 21:14 Hebrew its third
  6. Ezekiel 21:15 Hebrew many stumbling blocks
  7. Ezekiel 21:15 The meaning of the Hebrew word rendered taken up is uncertain
  8. Ezekiel 21:21 Or household idols
  9. Ezekiel 21:25 Or slain; also verse 29

Pray for All People

First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, (A)for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life, godly and (B)dignified in every way. This is good, and (C)it is pleasing in the sight of (D)God our Savior, who desires (E)all people to be saved and (F)to come to (G)the knowledge of the truth. For (H)there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man[a] Christ Jesus, (I)who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is (J)the testimony given (K)at the proper time. (L)For this I was appointed a preacher and an apostle ((M)I am telling the truth, I am not lying), (N)a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.

I desire then that (O)in every place the men should pray, (P)lifting (Q)holy hands without anger or quarreling; likewise also (R)that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, 10 (S)but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works. 11 Let a woman learn quietly (T)with all submissiveness. 12 (U)I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. 13 (V)For Adam was formed first, (W)then Eve; 14 and Adam was not deceived, but (X)the woman was deceived and became a transgressor. 15 Yet she will be saved through (Y)childbearing—if they continue in (Z)faith and love and holiness, with self-control.

Footnotes

  1. 1 Timothy 2:5 men and man render the same Greek word that is translated people in verses 1 and 4

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