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22 The Lord told me,[a] “Go down[b] to the palace of the king of Judah. Give him a message from me there.[c] 2 Say: ‘Listen, O king of Judah who follows in David’s succession.[d] You, your officials, and your subjects who pass through the gates of this palace must listen to the Lord’s message.[e] 3 The Lord says, “Do what is just and right. Deliver those who have been robbed from those[f] who oppress them. Do not exploit or mistreat resident foreigners who live in your land, children who have no fathers, or widows.[g] Do not kill innocent people[h] in this land. 4 If you are careful to[i] obey these commands, then the kings who follow in David’s succession and ride in chariots or on horses will continue to come through the gates of this palace, as will their officials and their subjects.[j] 5 But, if you do not obey these commands, I solemnly swear[k] that this palace will become a pile of rubble. I, the Lord, affirm it!”’[l]
6 “For the Lord says concerning the palace of the king of Judah,
“‘This place looks like a veritable forest of Gilead to me.
It is like the wooded heights of Lebanon in my eyes.
But I swear that I will make it like a wilderness
whose towns have all been deserted.[m]
7 I will send men against it to destroy it[n]
with their axes and hatchets.
They will hack up its fine cedar panels and columns
and throw them into the fire.
8 “‘People from other nations will pass by this city. They will ask one another, “Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?” 9 The answer will come back, “It is because they broke their covenant with the Lord their God and worshiped and served other gods.”
Judgment on Jehoahaz
10 “‘Do not weep for the king who was killed.
Do not grieve for him.
But weep mournfully for the king who has gone into exile.
For he will never return to see his native land again.[o]
11 “‘For the Lord has spoken about Shallum son of Josiah, who succeeded his father as king of Judah but was carried off into exile. He has said, “He will never return to this land.[p] 12 For he will die in the country where they took him as a captive. He will never see this land again.”[q]
Judgment on Jehoiakim
13 “‘Sure to be judged[r] is the king who builds his palace using injustice
and treats people unfairly while adding its upper rooms.[s]
He makes his countrymen work for him for nothing.
He does not pay them for their labor.
14 He says, “I will build myself a large palace
with spacious upper rooms.”
He cuts windows in its walls,
panels it[t] with cedar, and paints its rooms red.[u]
15 Does it make you any more of a king
that you outstrip everyone else in[v] building with cedar?
Just think about your father.
He was content that he had food and drink.[w]
He did what was just and right.[x]
So things went well with him.
16 He upheld the cause of the poor and needy.
So things went well for Judah.’[y]
The Lord says,
‘That is a good example of what it means to know me.[z]
17 But you are always thinking and looking
for ways to increase your wealth by dishonest means.
Your eyes and your heart are set
on killing some innocent person
and committing fraud and oppression.’”[aa]
18 So[ab] the Lord has this to say about Josiah’s son, King Jehoiakim of Judah:
“People will not mourn for him, saying,
‘This makes me sad, my brother!
This makes me sad, my sister!’
They will not mourn for him, saying,
‘Poor, poor lord! Poor, poor majesty!’[ac]
19 He will be left unburied just like a dead donkey.
His body will be dragged off and thrown outside the gates of Jerusalem.[ad]
Warning to Jerusalem
20 “People of Jerusalem,[ae] go up to Lebanon and cry out in mourning.
Go to the land of Bashan and cry out loudly.
Cry out in mourning from the mountains of Moab.[af]
For your allies[ag] have all been defeated.
21 While you were feeling secure I gave you warning.[ah]
But you said, ‘I refuse to listen to you.’
That is the way you have acted from your earliest history onward.[ai]
Indeed, you have never paid attention to me.
22 My judgment will carry off all your leaders like a storm wind![aj]
Your allies will go into captivity.
Then you will certainly[ak] be disgraced and put to shame
because of all the wickedness you have done.
23 You may feel as secure as a bird
nesting in the cedars of Lebanon.
But O how you[al] will groan[am] when the pains of judgment come on you.
They will be like those of a woman giving birth to a baby.”[an]
Jeconiah Will Be Permanently Exiled
24 The Lord says,[ao] “As surely as I am the living God, you, Jeconiah,[ap] king of Judah, son of Jehoiakim, will not be the earthly representative of my authority. Indeed, I will take that right away from you.[aq] 25 I will hand you over to those who want to take your life and of whom you are afraid. I will hand you over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his Babylonian[ar] soldiers. 26 I will force you and your mother who gave you birth into exile. You will be exiled to[as] a country where neither of you were born, and you will both die there. 27 You will never come back to this land that you will long to return to![at]
28 “This man, Jeconiah, will be like a broken pot someone threw away.
He will be like a clay vessel[au] that no one wants.[av]
Why will he and his children be forced into exile?
Why will they be thrown out into a country they know nothing about?[aw]
29 O Land, land, land of Judah![ax]
Listen to the Lord’s message.
30 The Lord says,
“Enroll this man in the register as though he were childless.[ay]
Enroll him as a man who will not enjoy success during his lifetime.
For none of his sons will succeed in occupying the throne of David
or ever succeed in ruling over Judah.”
New Leaders over a Regathered Remnant
23 The Lord says,[az] “The leaders of my people are sure to be judged.[ba] They were supposed to watch over my people like shepherds watch over their sheep. But they are causing my people to be destroyed and scattered.”[bb] 2 So the Lord God of Israel has this to say about the leaders who are ruling over his people: “You have caused my people[bc] to be dispersed and driven into exile. You have not taken care of them. So I will punish you for the evil that you have done.[bd] I, the Lord, affirm it![be] 3 Then I myself will regather those of my people[bf] who are still alive from all the countries where I have driven them. I will bring them back to their homeland.[bg] They will greatly increase in number. 4 I will install rulers[bh] over them who will care for them. Then they will no longer need to fear or be terrified. None of them will turn up missing.[bi] I, the Lord, promise it![bj]
5 “I, the Lord, promise[bk] that a new time will certainly come[bl]
when I will raise up for them a righteous branch,[bm] a descendant of David.
He will rule over them with wisdom and understanding[bn]
and will do what is just and right in the land.[bo]
6 Under his rule[bp] Judah will enjoy safety[bq]
and Israel will live in security.[br]
This is the name he will go by:
‘The Lord has provided us with justice.’[bs]
7 “So I, the Lord, say:[bt] ‘A new time will certainly come.[bu] People now affirm their oaths with, “I swear as surely as the Lord lives who delivered the people of Israel out of Egypt.” 8 But at that time they will affirm them with, “I swear as surely as the Lord lives who delivered the descendants of the former nation of Israel[bv] from the land of the north and from all the other lands where he had banished[bw] them.”[bx] At that time they will live in their own land.’”
Oracles Against the False Prophets[by]
9 Here is what the Lord says concerning the false prophets:[bz]
My heart and my mind are deeply disturbed.
I tremble all over.[ca]
I am like a drunk person,
like a person who has had too much wine,[cb]
because of the way the Lord
and his holy word are being mistreated.[cc]
10 For the land is full of people unfaithful to him.[cd]
They live wicked lives and they misuse their power.[ce]
So the land is dried up[cf] because it is under his curse.[cg]
The pastures in the wilderness are withered.
11 Moreover,[ch] the Lord says,[ci]
“Both the prophets and priests are godless.
I have even found them doing evil in my temple.
12 So the paths they follow will be dark and slippery.
They will stumble and fall headlong.
For I will bring disaster on them.
A day of reckoning is coming for them.”[cj]
The Lord affirms it![ck]
13 The Lord says,[cl] “I saw the prophets of Samaria
doing something that was disgusting.[cm]
They prophesied in the name of the god Baal
and led my people Israel astray.[cn]
14 But I see the prophets of Jerusalem
doing something just as shocking.
They are unfaithful to me
and continually prophesy lies.[co]
So they give encouragement to people who are doing evil,
with the result that they do not stop their evildoing.[cp]
I consider all of them as bad as the people of Sodom,
and the citizens of Jerusalem as bad as the people of Gomorrah.[cq]
15 So then I, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[cr]
have something to say concerning the prophets of Jerusalem:[cs]
‘I will make these prophets eat the bitter food of suffering
and drink the poison water of judgment.[ct]
For the prophets of Jerusalem are the reason[cu]
that ungodliness[cv] has spread throughout the land.’”
16 The Lord of Heaven’s Armies[cw] says to the people of Jerusalem:[cx]
“Do not listen to what
those prophets are saying to you.
They are filling you with false hopes.
They are reporting visions of their own imaginations,
not something the Lord has given them to say.[cy]
17 They continually say[cz] to those who reject what the Lord has said,[da]
‘Things will go well for you!’[db]
They say to all those who follow the stubborn inclinations of their own hearts,
‘Nothing bad will happen to you!’
18 Yet which of them has ever stood in the Lord’s inner circle[dc]
so they[dd] could see and hear what he has to say?[de]
Which of them have ever paid attention or listened to what he has said?
19 But just watch![df] The wrath of the Lord
will come like a storm![dg]
Like a raging storm it will rage down[dh]
on the heads of those who are wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord will not turn back
until he has fully carried out his intended purposes.[di]
In future days[dj]
you people will come to understand this clearly.[dk]
Salutation
1 From Paul[a] and Silvanus and Timothy, to the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Grace and peace to you[b] from God the[c] Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!
Thanksgiving
3 We ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters,[d] and rightly so,[e] because your faith flourishes more and more and the love of each one of you all for one another is ever greater. 4 As a result we ourselves boast about you in the churches of God for your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and afflictions you are enduring.
Encouragement in Persecution
5 This is evidence of God’s righteous judgment, to make you worthy[f] of the kingdom of God, for which in fact you are suffering. 6 For it is right[g] for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, 7 and to you who are being afflicted to give rest together with us when the Lord Jesus is revealed[h] from heaven with his mighty angels.[i] 8 With flaming fire he will mete out[j] punishment on those who do not know God[k] and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. 9 They[l] will undergo the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his strength,[m] 10 when he comes to be glorified among his saints and admired[n] on that day among all who have believed—and you did in fact believe our testimony.[o] 11 And in this regard we pray for you always, that our God will make you worthy of his calling[p] and fulfill by his power your every desire for goodness and every work of faith, 12 that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to[q] the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Psalm 83[a]
A song, a psalm of Asaph.
83 O God, do not be silent.
Do not ignore us.[b] Do not be inactive, O God.
2 For look, your enemies are making a commotion;
those who hate you are hostile.[c]
3 They carefully plot[d] against your people,
and make plans to harm[e] the ones you cherish.[f]
4 They say, “Come on, let’s annihilate them so they are no longer a nation.[g]
Then the name of Israel will be remembered no more.”
5 Yes,[h] they devise a unified strategy;[i]
they form an alliance[j] against you.
6 It includes[k] the tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites,
Moab and the Hagrites,[l]
7 Gebal,[m] Ammon, and Amalek,
Philistia and the inhabitants of Tyre.
8 Even Assyria has allied with them,
lending its strength to the descendants of Lot.[n] (Selah)
9 Do to them as you did to Midian[o]—
as you did to Sisera and Jabin at the Kishon River.[p]
10 They were destroyed at Endor;[q]
their corpses were like manure[r] on the ground.
11 Make their nobles like Oreb and Zeeb,[s]
and all their rulers like Zebah and Zalmunna,[t]
12 who said,[u] “Let’s take over[v] the pastures of God.”
13 O my God, make them like dead thistles,[w]
like dead weeds blown away by[x] the wind.
14 Like the fire that burns down the forest,
or the flames that consume the mountainsides,[y]
15 chase them with your gale winds,
and terrify[z] them with your windstorm.
16 Cover[aa] their faces with shame,
so they might seek[ab] you,[ac] O Lord.
17 May they be humiliated and continually terrified.[ad]
May they die in shame.[ae]
18 Then they will know[af] that you alone are the Lord,[ag]
the Most High[ah] over all the earth.
11 Like apples of gold in settings of silver,[a]
so is a word skillfully spoken.[b]
12 Like an earring of gold and an ornament of fine gold,[c]
so is a wise reprover to the ear of the one who listens.[d]
13 Like the cold of snow in the time of harvest,[e]
so is a faithful messenger to those who send him,
for he refreshes the heart[f] of his masters.
14 Like cloudy skies and wind that produce no rain,[g]
so is the one who boasts[h] of a gift not given.[i]
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