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3 Look, I am sending my messenger who will clear the path before me;
suddenly the Lord whom you are seeking will come to his temple.
The messenger of the covenant in whom you take delight is coming,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
2 Who can endure the day of his coming?
Who can withstand his appearance?
He is like the refiner’s fire or the cleaner’s soap.
3 He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver.
He will purify the Levites
and refine them like gold and silver.
They will belong to the Lord,
presenting a righteous offering.
4 The offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord
as in ancient days and in former years.
5 I will draw near to you for judgment.
I will be quick to testify against the sorcerers,
the adulterers, those swearing falsely,
against those who cheat the day laborers out of their wages
as well as oppress the widow and the orphan,
and against those who brush aside the foreigner and do not revere me,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
6 I am the Lord, and I do not change;
and you, children of Jacob, have not perished.
Return to the Lord
7 Ever since the time of your ancestors,
you have deviated from my laws
and have not kept them.
Return to me and I will return to you,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
But you say,
“How should we return?”
8 Should a person deceive God?
Yet you deceive me.
But you say,
“How have we deceived you?”
With your tenth-part gifts and offerings.
9 You are being cursed with a curse,
and you, the entire nation, are robbing me.
10 Bring the whole tenth-part to the storage house so there might be food in my house.
Please test me in this,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
See whether I do not open all the windows of the heavens for you
and empty out a blessing until there is enough.[a]
11 I will threaten the one who wants to devour you
so that it doesn’t spoil the fruit of your fertile land,
and so that the vine doesn’t abort its fruit in your field,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
12 All the nations will consider you fortunate,
for you will be a desirable land,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
13 You have spoken harshly about me,
says the Lord;
but you say,
“What have we spoken about you?”
14 You said,
“Serving God is useless.
What do we gain by keeping his obligation
or by walking around as mourners
before the Lord of heavenly forces?
15 So now we consider the arrogant fortunate.
Moreover, those doing evil are built up;
they test God and escape.”
The scroll of remembrance
16 Then those revering the Lord,
each and every one, spoke among themselves.
The Lord paid attention and listened to them.
Then a scroll of remembrance was written before the Lord
about those revering the Lord,
the ones meditating on his name.
17 On the day that I am preparing,
says the Lord of heavenly forces,
they will be my special possession.
I will spare them just as parents spare a child who serves them.
18 You will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked,
between those serving God and those not serving him.
The day of the Lord
4 [b] Look, the day is coming,
burning like an oven.
All the arrogant ones and all those doing evil will become straw.
The coming day will burn them,
says the Lord of heavenly forces,
leaving them neither root nor branch.
2 But the sun of righteousness will rise on those revering my name;
healing will be in its wings
so that you will go forth and jump about like calves in the stall.
3 You will crush the wicked;
they will be like dust beneath the soles of your feet
on the day that I am preparing,
says the Lord of heavenly forces.
4 Remember the Instruction from Moses, my servant,
to whom I gave Instruction and rules for all Israel at Horeb.
5 Look, I am sending Elijah the prophet to you,
before the great and terrifying day of the Lord arrives.
6 Turn the hearts of the parents to the children
and the hearts of the children to their parents.
Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.
22 Then the angel showed me the river of life-giving water,[a] shining like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb 2 through the middle of the city’s main street. On each side of the river is the tree of life, which produces twelve crops of fruit, bearing its fruit each month. The tree’s leaves are for the healing of the nations. 3 There will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. 5 Night will be no more. They won’t need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will shine on them, and they will rule forever and always.
Jesus is coming soon
6 Then he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.
7 “Look! I’m coming soon. Favored is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy contained in this scroll.”
8 I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. When I heard and saw them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown them to me. 9 But he said to me, “Don’t do that! I’m a servant just like you and your brothers and sisters, the prophets, and those who keep the words of this scroll. Worship God!” 10 Then he said to me, “Don’t seal up the words of the prophecy contained in this scroll, because the time is near. 11 Let those who do wrong keep doing what is wrong. Let the filthy still be filthy. Let those who are righteous keep doing what is right. Let those who are holy still be holy.
12 “Look! I’m coming soon. My reward is with me, to repay all people as their actions deserve. 13 I am the alpha and the omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. 14 Favored are those who wash their robes so that they may have the right of access to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates. 15 Outside are the dogs, the drug users and spell-casters, those who commit sexual immorality, the murderers, the idolaters, and all who love and practice deception.
16 “I, Jesus, have sent my angel to bear witness to all of you about these things for the churches. I’m the root and descendant of David, the bright morning star. 17 The Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ Let the one who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let the one who is thirsty come! Let the one who wishes receive life-giving water[b] as a gift.”
18 Now I bear witness to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy contained in this scroll: If anyone adds to them, God will add to that person the plagues that are written in this scroll. 19 If anyone takes away from the words of this scroll of prophecy, God will take away that person’s share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this scroll.
20 The one who bears witness to these things says, “Yes, I’m coming soon.” Amen. Come, Lord Jesus!
21 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with all.
Psalm 150
150 Praise the Lord!
Praise God in his sanctuary!
Praise God in his fortress, the sky!
2 Praise God in his mighty acts!
Praise God as suits his incredible greatness!
3 Praise God with the blast of the ram’s horn!
Praise God with lute and lyre!
4 Praise God with drum and dance!
Praise God with strings and pipe!
5 Praise God with loud cymbals!
Praise God with clashing cymbals!
6 Let every living thing praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord!
25 Strength and honor are her clothing;
she is confident about the future.
26 Her mouth is full of wisdom;
kindly teaching is on her tongue.
27 She is vigilant over the activities of her household;
she doesn’t eat the food of laziness.
28 Her children bless her;
her husband praises her:
29 “Many women act competently,
but you surpass them all!”
30 Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting,
but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.
31 Let her share in the results of her work;
let her deeds praise her in the city gates.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible