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God Accuses Israel
4 Hear the word of the Lord, O children of Israel,
for the Lord has a dispute
with the inhabitants of the land:
There is no truth or mercy,
and no knowledge of God in the land.
2 Swearing, lying, and killing,
and stealing and adultery
break out,
and bloodshed follows bloodshed.
3 Therefore the land dries up,
and everyone who lives in it withers
with the beasts of the field
and the birds of the sky;
even the fish of the sea disappear.
4 Yet let no one contend,
and let none reprove another,
for your people are like those
that contend with a priest.[a]
5 You will stumble in the day,
and the prophet also will stumble with you in the night,
and I will destroy your mother.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.
Because you have rejected knowledge,
I will reject you from being My priest.
And because you have forgotten the law of your God,
I will also forget your children.
7 As they increased, so they sinned against Me.
I will change[b] their glory[c] into shame.
8 They feed upon the sin of My people,
and they are greedy for their iniquity.
9 It will be like people, like priest.
I will punish them for their ways
and reward them for their deeds.
10 They will eat, but not be satisfied;
they will play the whore, but not multiply,
because they have forsaken the Lord
by devoting themselves to 11 harlotry;
wine and new wine
take away understanding.
The Idolatry of Israel
12 My people seek counsel from their wood,
and their staff informs them.
For the spirit of harlotry has led them astray,
and they have played the whore in defiance of their God.
13 They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains,
and burn incense upon the hills
under oak, poplar, and elm
because their shade is good.
Therefore your daughters play the whore,
and your daughters-in-law commit adultery.
14 I will not punish your daughters
when they play the whore,
nor your daughters-in-law
when they commit adultery.
For the men separate themselves with whores,
and they sacrifice with cult prostitutes.
A people without understanding will come to ruin.
15 Though you play the whore, O Israel,
do not let Judah offend.
Do not come to Gilgal,
or go up to Beth Aven,
and do not swear, “As the Lord lives.”
16 Like a stubborn heifer,
Israel is stubborn.
Now will the Lord feed them
like a lamb in a wide pasture?
17 Ephraim is joined to idols;
let him alone.
18 Their drink has soured,
they have played the whore continually.
Her rulers dearly love shame.
19 A wind has wrapped her in its wings,
and they will be ashamed because of their sacrifices.
Judgment Against Israel and Judah
5 Hear this, O priests!
Pay attention, O house of Israel!
Listen, O house of the king!
For the judgment is for you,
because you have been a snare at Mizpah
and a net spread over Tabor,
2 and a pit dug deep in Shittim;
but I will discipline them all.
3 I know Ephraim,
and Israel is not hidden from Me;
for now, O Ephraim, you have played the whore.
Israel is defiled.
4 Their deeds do not allow them
to return to their God;
for a spirit of harlotry is in their midst,
and they do not know the Lord.
5 The pride of Israel testifies against him.
Israel and Ephraim stumble in their iniquity.
Judah also stumbles with them.
6 With their flocks and their herds they will go
to seek the Lord,
but they will not find Him.
He has withdrawn from them.
7 They have dealt faithlessly with the Lord,
for they have given birth to illegitimate children.
Now the New Moon will devour them
along with their portion.
War, Wrath, and Repentance
8 Blow the horn in Gibeah,
and the trumpet in Ramah.
Cry aloud at Beth Aven,
“Look behind you, O Benjamin!”[d]
9 Ephraim will become desolate
in the day of punishment.
Among the tribes of Israel
I make known that which is sure.
10 The princes of Judah have become
like those who remove a boundary marker.
Upon them I will pour out
My wrath like water.
11 Ephraim is oppressed
and broken in judgment,
because he eagerly followed after vanity.
12 Therefore I will be like pus to Ephraim
and like rottenness to the house of Judah.
13 When Ephraim saw his sickness
and Judah saw his wound,
then Ephraim went to Assyria,
and sent to King Jareb.[e]
Yet he cannot cure you
or heal your wound.
14 For I will be like a lion to Ephraim
and like a young lion to the house of Judah.
I, Myself, will tear and go away.
I will carry off, and no one will rescue.
15 I will again return to My place
until they acknowledge their offense
and seek My face.
In their affliction they will earnestly seek Me.
Salutation
The elder,
To the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth, and not I only, but also all those who know the truth, 2 for the sake of the truth, which remains in us, and will be with us forever:
3 Grace, mercy, and peace will be with you from God the Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love.
Truth and Love
4 I greatly rejoiced that I found some of your children walking in truth as we were commanded by the Father. 5 And now I ask you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning, that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.
7 For many deceivers, who do not confess that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Each one is a deceiver and an antichrist. 8 Watch yourselves, so that we do not lose those things for which we have worked, but that we receive a full reward. 9 Whoever transgresses and does not remain in the teaching of Christ does not have God. Whoever remains in the teaching of Christ has both the Father and the Son. 10 If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, nor greet him. 11 For whoever greets him takes part in his evil deeds.
Final Greetings
12 I have many things to write to you, but I prefer not to write with paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come to you and speak face to face that our joy may be complete.
13 The children of your elect sister greet you. Amen.
Psalm 125
A Song of Ascents.
1 Those who trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion,
which cannot be removed, but abides forever.
2 As the mountains are around Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds His people,
from now and forever.
3 For the scepter of the wicked shall not rest
upon the land allotted to the righteous,
lest the righteous put forth
their hands to do iniquity.
4 Do good, O Lord, for those who are good,
and to those who are upright in their hearts.
5 As for those who turn aside to their twisted ways,
the Lord shall lead them away with the other workers of iniquity.
Peace be upon Israel!
9 If a wise man contends with a foolish man,
whether he rage or laugh, there is no rest.
10 The bloodthirsty hate the upright,
but the just seek his soul.
11 A fool utters all his mind,
but a wise man keeps it in until afterwards.
The Holy Bible, Modern English Version. Copyright © 2014 by Military Bible Association. Published and distributed by Charisma House.