The Daily Audio Bible

Noah, Danel, and Job

¹² The Lord spoke to me. ¹³ “Mortal man,” he said, “if a country sins and is unfaithful to me, I will reach out and destroy its supply of food. I will send a famine and kill people and animals alike. ¹⁴ Even if those three men, Noah, Danel,^[a] and Job, were living there, their goodness would save only their own lives.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

¹⁵ “Or I might send wild animals to kill the people, making the land so dangerous that no one could travel through it, ¹⁶ and even if those three men lived there—as surely as I, the Sovereign Lord, am the living God—they would not be able to save even their own children. They would save only their own lives, and the land would become a wilderness.

¹⁷ “Or I might bring war on that country and send destructive weapons to wipe out people and animals alike, ¹⁸ and even if those three men lived there—as surely as I, the Sovereign Lord, am the living God—they would not be able to save even their children, but only their own lives.

¹⁹ “If I send an epidemic on that country and in my anger take many lives, killing people and animals, ²⁰ even if Noah, Danel, and Job lived there—as surely as I, the Sovereign Lord, am the living God—they would not be able to save even their own children. Their goodness would save only their own lives.”

^21 (A)This is what the Sovereign Lord is saying: “I will send my four worst punishments on Jerusalem—war, famine, wild animals, and disease—to destroy people and animals alike. ²² If some survive and save their children, look at them when they come to you. See how evil they are, and be convinced that the punishment I am bringing on Jerusalem is justified; ²³ then you will know that there was good reason for everything I did.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

A Parable about a Vine

15 The Lord spoke to me. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “how does a vine compare with a tree? What good is a branch of a grapevine compared with the trees of the forest? ³ Can you use it to make anything? Can you even make a peg out of it to hang things on? ⁴ It is only good for building a fire. And when the ends are burned up and the middle is charred, can you make anything out of it? ⁵ It was useless even before it was burned. Now that the fire has burned it and charred it, it is even more useless.”

⁶ Now this is what the Sovereign Lord is saying: “Just as a vine is taken from the forest and burned, so I will take the people who live in Jerusalem ⁷ and will punish them. They have escaped one fire, but now fire will burn them up. When I punish them, you will know that I am the Lord. ⁸ They have been unfaithful to me, and so I will make the country a wilderness.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

Jerusalem the Unfaithful

16 The Lord spoke to me again. ² “Mortal man,” he said, “point out to Jerusalem what disgusting things she has done. ³ Tell Jerusalem what the Sovereign Lord is saying to her:

“You were born in the land of Canaan. Your father was an Amorite, and your mother was a Hittite.^{[b] 4} When you were born, no one cut your umbilical cord or washed you^[c] or rubbed you with salt or wrapped you in cloths. ⁵ No one took enough pity on you to do any of these things for you. When you were born, no one loved you. You were thrown out in an open field.

⁶ “Then I passed by and saw you squirming in your own blood. You were covered with blood, but I wouldn't let you die. ⁷ I made you grow like a healthy plant. You grew strong and tall and became a young woman.^[d] Your breasts were well-formed, and your hair had grown, but you were naked.

⁸ “As I passed by again, I saw that the time had come for you to fall in love. I covered your naked body with my coat and promised to love you. Yes, I made a marriage covenant with you, and you became mine.” This is what the Sovereign Lord says.

⁹ “Then I took water and washed the blood off you. I rubbed olive oil on your skin. ¹⁰ I dressed you in embroidered gowns and gave you shoes of the best leather, a linen headband, and a silk cloak. ¹¹ I put jewels on you—bracelets and necklaces. ¹² I gave you a nose ring and earrings and a beautiful crown to wear. ¹³ You had ornaments of gold and silver, and you always wore clothes of embroidered linen and silk. You ate bread made from the best flour, and had honey and olive oil to eat. Your beauty was dazzling, and you became a queen. ¹⁴ You became famous in every nation for your perfect beauty, because I was the one who made you so lovely.” This is what the Sovereign Lord says.

¹⁵ “But you took advantage of your beauty and fame to sleep with everyone who came along.^{[e] 16} You used some of your clothes to decorate your places of worship, and just like a prostitute,^[f] you gave yourself to everyone. ¹⁷ You took the silver and gold jewelry that I had given you, used it to make male images, and committed adultery with them. ¹⁸ You took the embroidered clothes I gave you and put them on the images, and you offered to the images the olive oil and incense I had given you. ¹⁹ I gave you food—the best flour, olive oil, and honey—but you offered it as a sacrifice to win the favor of idols.” This is what the Sovereign Lord says.

²⁰ “Then you took the sons and the daughters you had borne me and offered them as sacrifices to idols. Wasn't it bad enough to be unfaithful to me, ²¹ without taking my children and sacrificing them to idols? ²² During your disgusting life as a prostitute you never once remembered your childhood—when you were naked, squirming in your own blood.”

Jerusalem's Life as a Prostitute

²³ The Sovereign Lord said, “You are doomed! Doomed! You did all that evil, and then ²⁴ by the side of every road you built places to worship idols and practice prostitution. ²⁵ You dragged your beauty through the mud. You offered yourself to everyone who came by, and you were more of a prostitute every day. ²⁶ You let your lustful neighbors, the Egyptians, go to bed with you, and you used your prostitution to make me angry.

²⁷ “Now I have raised my hand to punish you and to take away your share of my blessing. I have handed you over to the Philistines, who hate you and are disgusted with your immoral actions.

²⁸ “Because you were not satisfied by the others, you went running after the Assyrians. You were their prostitute, but they didn't satisfy you either. ²⁹ You were also a prostitute for the Babylonians, that nation of merchants, but they didn't satisfy you either.”

³⁰ This^[g] is what the Sovereign Lord is saying: “You have done all this like a shameless prostitute. ³¹ On every street you built places to worship idols and practice prostitution. But you are not out for money like a common prostitute. ³² You are like a woman who commits adultery with strangers instead of loving her husband. ³³ A prostitute is paid, but you gave presents to all your lovers and bribed them to come from everywhere to sleep with you. ³⁴ You are a special kind of prostitute. No one forced you to become one. You didn't get paid; you paid them! Yes, you are different.”

God's Judgment on Jerusalem

³⁵ Now then, Jerusalem, you whore! Hear what the Lord is saying.

³⁶ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “You stripped off your clothes, and like a prostitute, you gave yourself to your lovers and to all your disgusting idols, and you killed your children as sacrifices to idols. ³⁷ Because of this I will bring all your former lovers together—the ones you liked and the ones you hated. I will bring them around you in a circle, and then I will strip off your clothes and let them see you naked. ³⁸ I will condemn you for adultery and murder, and in my anger and fury I will punish you with death. ³⁹ I will put you in their power, and they will tear down the places where you engage in prostitution and worship idols. They will take away your clothes and jewels and leave you completely naked.

⁴⁰ “They will stir up a crowd to stone you, and they will cut you to pieces with their swords. ⁴¹ They will burn your houses down and let crowds of women see your punishment. I will make you stop being a prostitute and make you stop giving gifts to your lovers.

¹⁸ The old rule, then, is set aside, because it was weak and useless. ¹⁹ For the Law of Moses could not make anything perfect. And now a better hope has been provided through which we come near to God.

²⁰ In addition, there is also God's vow. There was no such vow when the others were made priests. ^21 (A)But Jesus became a priest by means of a vow when God said to him,

²² This difference, then, also makes Jesus the guarantee of a better covenant.

²³ There is another difference: there were many of those other priests, because they died and could not continue their work. ²⁴ But Jesus lives on forever, and his work as priest does not pass on to someone else. ²⁵ And so he is able, now and always, to save those who come to God through him, because he lives forever to plead with God for them.

²⁶ Jesus, then, is the High Priest that meets our needs. He is holy; he has no fault or sin in him; he has been set apart from sinners and raised above the heavens. ^27 (B)He is not like other high priests; he does not need to offer sacrifices every day for his own sins first and then for the sins of the people. He offered one sacrifice, once and for all, when he offered himself. ²⁸ The Law of Moses appoints men who are imperfect to be high priests; but God's promise made with the vow, which came later than the Law, appoints the Son, who has been made perfect forever.

The Lord's Goodness to His People

⁴ Anger is cruel and destructive, but it is nothing compared to jealousy.

⁵ Better to correct someone openly than to let him think you don't care for him at all.

⁶ Friends mean well, even when they hurt you. But when an enemy puts his arm around your shoulder—watch out!