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Chapter 10
The Lord Strengthens Judah and Rescues Ephraim
1 Ask the Lord for rain in the spring season,(A)
the Lord who brings storm clouds, and heavy rains,(B)
who gives to everyone grain in the fields.
2 For the teraphim[a] have spoken nonsense,(C)
the diviners have seen false visions;
Deceitful dreams they have told,
empty comfort they have offered.
This is why they wandered like sheep,
wretched, for they have no shepherd.(D)
3 My wrath is kindled against the shepherds,[b]
and I will punish the leaders.
For the Lord of hosts attends to the flock, the house of Judah,
and will make them like a splendid horse in battle.
4 From them will come the tower,
from them the tent peg,
from them the bow of war,
from them every officer.
5 Together they will be like warriors,
trampling the mud of the streets in battle.
They will wage war because the Lord is with them,
and will put the horsemen to shame.
6 I will strengthen the house of Judah,(E)
the house of Joseph[c] I will save;
I will bring them back, because I have mercy on them;
they will be as if I had never cast them off,
for I am the Lord their God, and I will answer them.(F)
7 Then Ephraim will be like a hero,
and their hearts will be cheered as by wine.(G)
Their children will see and rejoice—
their hearts will exult in the Lord.
8 I will whistle for them and gather them in;
for I will redeem them
and they will be as numerous as before.[d]
9 I sowed them among the nations,
yet in distant lands they will remember me;
they will bear their children and return.(H)
10 I will bring them back from the land of Egypt,
and gather them from Assyria.
To the land of Gilead and to Lebanon I will bring them,
until no room is found for them.
11 I will cross over to Egypt
and smite the waves of the sea,
and all the depths of the Nile will dry up.
The pride of Assyria will be cast down,
and the scepter of Egypt disappear.
12 I will strengthen them in the Lord,(I)
in whose name they will walk—oracle of the Lord.
Chapter 11
The Cry of Trees, Shepherds, and Lions
1 Open your doors, Lebanon,
that fire may devour your cedars!
2 Wail, cypress trees,
for the cedars are fallen,
the mighty are destroyed!
Wail, oaks of Bashan,
for the dense forest is cut down!
3 Listen! the wailing of shepherds,
their glory has been destroyed.
Listen! the roaring of young lions,
the thickets of the Jordan are destroyed.
The Shepherd Narrative.[e](J) 4 Thus says the Lord, my God: Shepherd the flock to be slaughtered.(K) 5 For they who buy them slay them and are not held accountable; while those who sell them say, “Blessed be the Lord, I have become rich!” Even their own shepherds will not pity them. 6 For I will no longer pity the inhabitants of the earth—oracle of the Lord.—Yes, I will deliver them into each other’s power, or into the power of their kings; they will crush the earth, and I will not deliver it out of their power.
7 So I shepherded the flock to be slaughtered for the merchants of the flock. I took two staffs: one I called Delight, and the other Union. Thus I shepherded the flock. 8 In a single month, I did away with the three shepherds, for I wearied of them, and they disdained me. 9 “I will not shepherd you,” I said. “Whoever is to die shall die; whoever is to be done away with shall be done away with; and those who are left shall devour one another’s flesh.”
10 Then I took my staff Delight and snapped it in two, breaking my covenant which I had made with all peoples. 11 So it was broken on that day. The merchants of the flock, who were watching me, understood that this was the word of the Lord. 12 Then I said to them, “If it seems good to you, give me my wages; but if not, withhold them.”(L) And they counted out my wages,(M) thirty pieces of silver. 13 Then the Lord said to me, Throw it in the treasury—the handsome price at which they valued me. So I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them into the treasury in the house of the Lord. 14 Then I snapped in two my second staff, Union, breaking the kinship between Judah and Israel.
15 The Lord said to me: This time take the gear of a foolish shepherd.(N) 16 For I am raising up a shepherd in the land who will take no note of those that disappear, nor seek the strays, nor heal the injured,(O) nor feed the exhausted; but he will eat the flesh of the fat ones and tear off their hoofs!
Oracle to the Worthless Shepherd
17 Ah! my worthless shepherd
who forsakes the flock!(P)
May the sword fall upon his arm
and upon his right eye;
His arm will surely wither,
and his right eye surely go blind!
Chapter 18
The Fall of Babylon.[a] 1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth became illumined by his splendor.(A) 2 [b]He cried out in a mighty voice:
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great.(B)
She has become a haunt for demons.
She is a cage for every unclean spirit,
a cage for every unclean bird,
[a cage for every unclean] and disgusting [beast].
3 For all the nations have drunk[c]
the wine of her licentious passion.
The kings of the earth had intercourse with her,
and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her drive for luxury.”(C)
4 Then I heard another voice from heaven say:
“Depart from her,[d] my people,
so as not to take part in her sins
and receive a share in her plagues,(D)
5 for her sins are piled up to the sky,
and God remembers her crimes.(E)
6 Pay her back as she has paid others.
Pay her back double for her deeds.
Into her cup pour double what she poured.(F)
7 To the measure of her boasting and wantonness
repay her in torment and grief;
for she said to herself,
‘I sit enthroned as queen;
I am no widow,
and I will never know grief.’(G)
8 Therefore, her plagues will come in one day,
pestilence, grief, and famine;
she will be consumed by fire.
For mighty is the Lord God who judges her.”
9 The kings of the earth who had intercourse with her in their wantonness will weep and mourn over her when they see the smoke of her pyre. 10 They will keep their distance for fear of the torment inflicted on her, and they will say:
“Alas, alas, great city,
Babylon, mighty city.
In one hour your judgment has come.”
11 The merchants of the earth will weep and mourn for her, because there will be no more markets[e] for their cargo: 12 their cargo of gold, silver, precious stones, and pearls; fine linen, purple silk, and scarlet cloth; fragrant wood of every kind, all articles of ivory and all articles of the most expensive wood, bronze, iron, and marble; 13 cinnamon, spice,[f] incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine, olive oil, fine flour, and wheat; cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human beings.
14 “The fruit you craved
has left you.
All your luxury and splendor are gone,
never again will one find them.”(H)
15 The merchants who deal in these goods, who grew rich from her, will keep their distance for fear of the torment inflicted on her. Weeping and mourning, 16 they cry out:
“Alas, alas, great city,
wearing fine linen, purple and scarlet,
adorned [in] gold, precious stones, and pearls.(I)
17 In one hour this great wealth has been ruined.”
Every captain of a ship, every traveler at sea, sailors, and seafaring merchants stood at a distance 18 and cried out when they saw the smoke of her pyre, “What city could compare with the great city?” 19 (J)They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and mourning:
“Alas, alas, great city,
in which all who had ships at sea
grew rich from her wealth.
In one hour she has been ruined.
20 Rejoice over her, heaven,
you holy ones, apostles, and prophets.
For God has judged your case against her.”(K)
21 A mighty angel picked up a stone like a huge millstone and threw it into the sea and said:
“With such force will Babylon the great city be thrown down,
and will never be found again.(L)
22 No melodies of harpists and musicians,
flutists and trumpeters,
will ever be heard in you again.
No craftsmen in any trade
will ever be found in you again.
No sound of the millstone
will ever be heard in you again.(M)
23 No light from a lamp
will ever be seen in you again.
No voices of bride and groom
will ever be heard in you again.
Because your merchants were the great ones of the world,
all nations were led astray by your magic potion.(N)
24 In her was found the blood of prophets and holy ones
and all who have been slain on the earth.”(O)
Psalm 146[a]
Trust in God the Creator and Redeemer
1 Hallelujah!
2 Praise the Lord, my soul;
I will praise the Lord all my life,
sing praise to my God while I live.(A)
I
3 Put no trust in princes,
in children of Adam powerless to save.(B)
4 Who breathing his last, returns to the earth;
that day all his planning comes to nothing.(C)
II
5 Blessed the one whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the Lord, his God,
6 The maker of heaven and earth,
the seas and all that is in them,(D)
Who keeps faith forever,
7 secures justice for the oppressed,(E)
who gives bread to the hungry.
The Lord sets prisoners free;(F)
8 the Lord gives sight to the blind.
The Lord raises up those who are bowed down;(G)
the Lord loves the righteous.
9 The Lord protects the resident alien,
comes to the aid of the orphan and the widow,(H)
but thwarts the way of the wicked.
10 The Lord shall reign forever,
your God, Zion, through all generations!(I)
Hallelujah!
33 For as the churning of milk produces curds,
and the pressing of the nose produces blood,
the churning of anger produces strife.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.