The Daily Audio Bible

¹² But this is what the holy God of Israel says: “You ignore what I tell you and rely on violence and deceit. ¹³ You are guilty. You are like a high wall with a crack running down it; suddenly you will collapse. ¹⁴ You will be shattered like a clay pot, so badly broken that there is no piece big enough to pick up hot coals with or to dip water from a cistern.”

¹⁵ The Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says to the people, “Come back and quietly trust in me. Then you will be strong and secure.” But you refuse to do it. ¹⁶ Instead, you plan to escape from your enemies by riding fast horses. And you are right—escape is what you will have to do! You think your horses are fast enough, but those who pursue you will be faster! ¹⁷ A thousand of you will run away when you see one enemy soldier, and five soldiers will be enough to make you all run away. Nothing will be left of your army except a lonely flagpole on the top of a hill. ¹⁸ And yet the Lord is waiting to be merciful to you. He is ready to take pity on you because he always does what is right. Happy are those who put their trust in the Lord.

God Will Bless His People

¹⁹ You people who live in Jerusalem will not weep any more. The Lord is compassionate, and when you cry to him for help, he will answer you. ²⁰ The Lord will make you go through hard times, but he himself will be there to teach you, and you will not have to search for him any more. ²¹ If you wander off the road to the right or the left, you will hear his voice behind you saying, “Here is the road. Follow it.” ²² You will take your idols plated with silver and your idols covered with gold, and will throw them away like filth, shouting, “Out of my sight!” ²³ Whenever you plant your crops, the Lord will send rain to make them grow and will give you a rich harvest, and your livestock will have plenty of pasture. ²⁴ The oxen and donkeys that plow your fields will eat the finest and best fodder. ²⁵ On the day when the forts of your enemies are captured and their people are killed, streams of water will flow from every mountain and every hill. ²⁶ The moon will be as bright as the sun, and the sun will be seven times brighter than usual, like the light of seven days in one. This will all happen when the Lord bandages and heals the wounds he has given his people.

God Will Punish Assyria

²⁷ The Lord's power and glory can be seen in the distance. Fire and smoke show his anger. He speaks, and his words burn like fire. ²⁸ He sends the wind in front of him like a flood that carries everything away. It sweeps nations to destruction and puts an end to their evil plans. ²⁹ But you, God's people, will be happy and sing as you do on the night of a sacred festival. You will be as happy as those who walk to the music of flutes on their way to the Temple of the Lord, the defender of Israel.

³⁰ The Lord will let everyone hear his majestic voice and feel the force of his anger. There will be flames, cloudbursts, hailstones, and torrents of rain. ³¹ The Assyrians will be terrified when they hear the Lord's voice and feel the force of his punishment. ³² As the Lord strikes them again and again, his people will keep time with the music of drums and harps. God himself will fight against the Assyrians. ³³ Long ago a place was prepared where a huge fire will burn the emperor of Assyria. It is deep and wide, and piled high with wood. The Lord will breathe out a stream of flame to set it on fire.

God Will Protect Jerusalem

31 Those who go to Egypt for help are doomed! They are relying on Egypt's vast military strength—horses, chariots, and soldiers. But they do not rely on the Lord, the holy God of Israel, or ask him for help. ² He knows what he is doing! He sends disaster. He carries out his threats to punish evil people and those who protect them. ³ The Egyptians are not gods—they are only human. Their horses are not supernatural. When the Lord acts, the strong nation will crumble, and the weak nation it helped will fall. Both of them will be destroyed.

⁴ The Lord said to me, “No matter how shepherds yell and shout, they can't scare away a lion from an animal that it has killed; in the same way, there is nothing that can keep me, the Lord Almighty, from protecting Mount Zion. ⁵ Just as a bird hovers over its nest to protect its young, so I, the Lord Almighty, will protect Jerusalem and defend it.”

⁶ God said, “People of Israel, you have sinned against me and opposed me. But now, come back to me! ⁷ A time is coming when all of you will throw away the sinful idols you made out of silver and gold. ⁸ Assyria will be destroyed in war, but not by human power. The Assyrians will run from battle, and their young men will be made slaves. ⁹ Their emperor will run away in terror, and the officers will be so frightened that they will abandon their battle flags.” The Lord has spoken—the Lord who is worshiped in Jerusalem and whose fire burns there for sacrifices.

A King with Integrity

32 Some day there will be a king who rules with integrity, and national leaders who govern with justice. ² Each of them will be like a shelter from the wind and a place to hide from storms. They will be like streams flowing in a desert, like the shadow of a giant rock in a barren land. ³ Their eyes and ears will be open to the needs of the people. ⁴ They will not be impatient any longer, but they will act with understanding and will say what they mean. ⁵ No one will think that a fool is honorable or say that a scoundrel is honest. ⁶ A fool speaks foolishly and thinks up evil things to do. What he does and what he says are an insult to the Lord, and he never feeds the hungry or gives thirsty people anything to drink. ⁷ A stupid person is evil and does evil things; he plots to ruin the poor with lies and to keep them from getting their rights. ⁸ But an honorable person acts honestly and stands firm for what is right.

Judgment and Restoration

⁹ You women who live an easy life, free from worries, listen to what I am saying. ¹⁰ You may be satisfied now, but this time next year you will be in despair because there will be no grapes for you to gather. ¹¹ You have been living an easy life, free from worries; but now, tremble with fear! Strip off your clothes and tie rags around your waist. ¹² Beat your breasts in grief because the fertile fields and the vineyards have been destroyed, ¹³ and thorn bushes and briers are growing on my people's land. Weep for all the houses where people were happy and for the city that was full of life. ¹⁴ Even the palace will be abandoned and the capital city totally deserted. Homes and the forts that guarded them will be in ruins forever. Wild donkeys will roam there, and sheep will find pasture there.

¹⁵ But once more God will send us his spirit. The wasteland will become fertile, and fields will produce rich crops. ¹⁶ Everywhere in the land righteousness and justice will be done. ¹⁷ Because everyone will do what is right, there will be peace and security forever. ¹⁸ God's people will be free from worries, and their homes peaceful and safe. ¹⁹ (But hail will fall on the forests, and the city will be torn down.) ²⁰ How happy everyone will be with plenty of water for the crops and safe pasture everywhere for the donkeys and cattle.

A Prayer for Help

33 Our enemies are doomed! They have robbed and betrayed, although no one has robbed them or betrayed them. But their time to rob and betray will end, and they themselves will become victims of robbery and treachery.

² Lord, have mercy on us. We have put our hope in you. Protect us day by day and save us in times of trouble. ³ When you fight for us, nations run away from the noise of battle. ⁴ Their belongings are pounced upon and taken as loot.

⁵ How great the Lord is! He rules over everything. He will fill Jerusalem with justice and integrity ⁶ and give stability to the nation. He always protects his people and gives them wisdom and knowledge. Their greatest treasure is their reverence for the Lord.

⁷ The brave are calling for help. The ambassadors who tried to bring about peace are crying bitterly. ⁸ The highways are so dangerous that no one travels on them. Treaties are broken and agreements are violated. No one is respected any more. ⁹ The land lies idle and deserted. The forests of Lebanon have withered, the fertile valley of Sharon is like a desert, and in Bashan and on Mount Carmel the leaves are falling from the trees.

Preserve Your Freedom

5 Freedom is what we have—Christ has set us free! Stand, then, as free people, and do not allow yourselves to become slaves again.

² Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you allow yourselves to be circumcised, it means that Christ is of no use to you at all. ³ Once more I warn any man who allows himself to be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the whole Law. ⁴ Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God's grace. ⁵ As for us, our hope is that God will put us right with him; and this is what we wait for by the power of God's Spirit working through our faith. ⁶ For when we are in union with Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor the lack of it makes any difference at all; what matters is faith that works through love.

⁷ You were doing so well! Who made you stop obeying the truth? How did he persuade you? ⁸ It was not done by God, who calls you. ^9 (A)“It takes only a little yeast to make the whole batch of dough rise,” as they say. ¹⁰ But I still feel confident about you. Our life in union with the Lord makes me confident that you will not take a different view and that whoever is upsetting you will be punished by God.

¹¹ But as for me, my friends, if I continue to preach that circumcision is necessary, why am I still being persecuted? If that were true, then my preaching about the cross of Christ would cause no trouble. ¹² I wish that the people who are upsetting you would go all the way; let them go on and castrate themselves!

^(A)Longing for God^[a]

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²² Listen to your father; without him you would not exist. When your mother is old, show her your appreciation.