The Daily Audio Bible
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33 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time. This was while he was still locked up in the courtyard of the guard.
2 This is what the Lord, who made the earth,[a] says, the Lord who formed it and who established it—the Lord is his name. 3 Call on me and I will answer you. I will show you great and mysterious things you did not know. 4 For the Lord, the God of Israel, says this concerning the houses of this city and the palaces of the kings of Judah (which were being torn down to build up defenses against the siege ramps and the sword 5 during the fight against the Chaldeans): I will fill them with the corpses of men whom I have killed in my anger and my wrath. I will hide my face from this city because of all its wickedness.
6 But watch! I will bring it health and healing. I will heal them and reveal an abundance of peace and truth to them. 7 I will cause the captives of Judah and the captives of Israel to return, and I will build them up as they were in the beginning. 8 I will cleanse them from all the guilt they incurred by sinning against me. I will pardon all the guilt they incurred by sinning against me and by their rebellion against me. 9 This will provide a name of joy, praise, and glory for me, in the presence of all the nations of the earth. They will hear about all the good that I do for this city, and they will tremble in awe because of the good and because of the peace I provide for it.
10 This is what the Lord says. You say that this place is a wasteland, without man or animal, and that there is no man living in the cities of Judah or in the desolate streets of Jerusalem, not even an animal. 11 But the sound of joy, the sound of gladness, and the voice of the bride and groom will be heard there once again. A voice will again be heard that says, “Give thanks to the Lord of Armies, for the Lord is good, and his mercy endures forever,” as they bring thank offerings into the House of the Lord. For I will restore the fortunes of the lands as they were in the beginning, says the Lord.
12 This is what the Lord of Armies says. In this place, which is desolate, without man and without animal, in all its cities there will once again be pastures for shepherds to rest their flocks. 13 In the cities of the hill country, in the cities of the Shephelah, in the cities of the Negev, in the land of Benjamin, in the villages around Jerusalem, and in the cities of Judah, flocks will once again pass under the hand of the one who counts them, says the Lord.
14 Listen, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will fulfill the good promises that I have spoken to the house of Israel and concerning the house of Judah.
15 In those days and at that time,
I will cause a righteous Branch to grow up from David’s line.
He will establish justice and righteousness on earth.
16 In those days Judah will be saved,
and Jerusalem will dwell securely.
This is what she[b] will be called:
The Lord Our Righteousness.
17 This is what the Lord says.
David will never fail to have a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel. 18 Neither will the priests, who are Levites, fail to have a man to stand before me to offer burnt offerings, to burn grain offerings, and to offer sacrifices continually.
19 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.
20 This is what the Lord says. If you could break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that there would no longer be day or night at their appointed times, 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. Only then could my covenant with the priests who are Levites, my ministers, be broken. 22 Just as the stars of the sky cannot be counted and the sand of the seashore cannot be measured, in the same way I will multiply the offspring[c] of my servant David and the Levites who minister before me.
23 The word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.
24 Have you not considered what these people are saying—that the Lord rejected the two families that he chose? They despise my people in this way, and they do not consider them a nation. 25 The Lord says: If I have not established my covenant with day and night, or the ordinances of heaven and earth, 26 only then will I reject the offspring of Jacob and of my servant David, and only then will I fail to choose one of his sons to rule over the offspring of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. So I will restore them from captivity, and I will have mercy on them.
A Message for Zedekiah
34 This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord when Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, along with all his army, all the kingdoms of the earth, and all the peoples that were subject to him were fighting against Jerusalem and against all its cities.
2 The Lord, the God of Israel, says:
Go to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him this is what the Lord says. I certainly am giving this city into the hand of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it. 3 You will not escape his grasp. You will surely be taken and handed over to him. You will see the king of Babylon eye-to-eye, and he will speak with you face-to-face. You will go to Babylon.
4 Even so, hear the word of the Lord, Zedekiah king of Judah.
The Lord says concerning you: You will not die by the sword. 5 You will die in peace. Just as people made a funeral fire in honor of your fathers who were kings before you, so they will make a fire for you. They will lament for you, saying, “Alas, master!” This is my word, declares the Lord.
6 Jeremiah the prophet said all these things to Zedekiah king of Judah in Jerusalem 7 when the army of the king of Babylon was fighting against Jerusalem and against the cities of Judah that still remained, namely, Lachish and Azekah (for these alone remained from all of Judah’s fortified cities).
8 The word came to Jeremiah from the Lord after King Zedekiah made a covenant with all the people in Jerusalem proclaiming freedom for the slaves. 9 Everyone was to free his Hebrew slaves, male and female. No one was to keep a fellow Jew in slavery. 10 All the officials and all the people who entered into this covenant agreed that they would set their male and female slaves free, and that no one would keep them in slavery anymore. They obeyed the agreement and set them free. 11 But after this they changed their minds. They took back the slaves they had set free, and they made them serve as male and female slaves once again.
12 It was after this that the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah.
13 This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says. I made a covenant with your fathers on the day I brought them out of the land of Egypt, out of slavery. I said that 14 every seven years you are to set free any fellow Hebrew who has sold himself to you. After he has served you six years, you are to set him free.[d] But your fathers did not listen to me or pay attention to me. 15 Now, after you repented and did what is right in my sight, each of you proclaimed freedom for his neighbor. You made a covenant before me in the house that bears my name, 16 but you have turned around and profaned my name. Each of you has taken back and enslaved his male and female slaves, whom you had set free to go where they wished. You forced them back into slavery, to serve as your male and female slaves.
17 Therefore this is what the Lord says. You have not listened to me by proclaiming freedom for your brothers and your neighbors. So I am proclaiming freedom to you, says the Lord. Freedom to fall by the sword, plague, and famine! I will make you a horror among all the kingdoms of the earth. 18 I am going to make the men who walked between the covenant pieces,[e] but who did not keep the terms of the covenant that they had made in my presence, just like the calf they cut in two and then walk between its pieces. 19 The officials of Judah and the officials of Jerusalem, the government ministers,[f] the priests, and all the people of the land who walked between the parts of the calf, 20 I will hand over to their enemies, to those who seek their lives. Their corpses will be food for the birds in the sky and the wild animals in the land.
21 I will hand over Zedekiah king of Judah and his officials to those who seek their lives and to the army of the king of Babylon, which has withdrawn from you. Watch, I will give a command, says the Lord, and I will bring them back to this city. They will fight against it, capture it, and burn it down. I will make the cities of Judah desolate so that no one can live there.
Some Will Fall Away
4 The Spirit clearly says that, in later times, some will fall away from the faith, because they devote themselves to deceitful spirits and the doctrines of demons, 2 in connection with the hypocrisy of liars, whose own consciences have been seared. 3 They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. 4 In fact, everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, 5 because it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
A Good Servant of Christ Jesus
6 If you point out these things to the brothers,[a] you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, nourished by the words of the faith and the good doctrine, which you have followed faithfully. 7 Pay no attention to worldly and absurd myths, but train yourself for godliness. 8 For bodily training is beneficial to an extent, but godliness is beneficial in all things, because it holds promise both for life now and for the life to come. 9 This saying is trustworthy and worthy of all acceptance. 10 Indeed, it is for this reason that we work hard and are insulted:[b] because we have put our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe.
11 Insist on these things and continue teaching them. 12 Let no one look down on your youth. Instead, be an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity. 13 Until I come, devote yourself to the reading[c] of Scripture, to encouraging, and to teaching. 14 Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy when the elders laid their hands on you. 15 Practice these things. Constantly be involved in them, so that everyone may see your progress. 16 Pay close attention to yourself and to the doctrine. Persevere in them, because by doing this you will save both yourself and those who listen to you.
Psalm 89
The Covenant With David
Heading
A maskil by Ethan the Ezrahite.
Opening Praise
1 I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever.
With my mouth I will make your faithfulness known
through all generations.
2 Yes, I have said, “Your mercy is built to last forever.
In the heavens you establish your faithfulness.”
The Statement of the Covenant
3 The Lord said,[a]
“I have made a covenant with my chosen one.
I have sworn to David my servant.
4 I will establish your seed[b] forever, Interlude
and I will build your throne through all generations.”
God’s Power Upholds the Covenant
5 The heavens praise your wonders, O Lord,
also your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones.
6 For who in the skies can compare with the Lord?
Who is like the Lord among the sons of God?
7 God is revered in the council of the holy ones.
He is to be feared more than all who surround him.
8 O Lord God of Armies, who is like you?
You are mighty, O Lord,[c]
and your faithfulness surrounds you.
9 You rule over the majestic sea.
When its waves rise up, you quiet them.
10 You crushed Rahab[d] like one of the slain.
With your strong arm you scattered your enemies.
11 The heavens are yours, and yours also is the earth.
You founded the world and everything that fills it.
12 You created the north and the south.
Tabor and Hermon shout for joy at your name.
13 Your arm works for you with power.
Your hand is strong. Your right hand is raised high.
23 A north wind gives birth to rain,
and a whispering tongue gives birth to angry faces.
24 Better to live on the corner of a roof
than in a home shared with a nagging wife.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.