Old/New Testament
The Lord’s Kindness to Jerusalem
16 The ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me, saying: 2 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], tell Jerusalem about her ·hateful [detestable; abominable] actions. 3 Say, ‘This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: Your ·beginnings [origin] and your ·ancestors [L birth] were in the land of the Canaanites. Your father was an Amorite, and your mother was a Hittite. 4 On the day you were born, your cord [C umbilical cord] was not cut. You were not washed with water to clean you. You were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in ·cloths [T swaddling cloths; Luke 2:7, 12; C typical care for newborns in the ancient Near East]. 5 No ·one felt sorry enough for [L eye took pity on] you to do any of these things for you. No, you were thrown out into the open field, because you were ·hated [detested; despised] on the day you were born.
6 “‘When I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, I said to you ·as you lay in your blood [L in your blood], “Live!”[a] 7 I made you ·grow [flourish] like a plant in the field. You grew up and ·became tall [or matured; developed] and ·became like a beautiful jewel [or entered puberty; reached womanhood]. Your breasts formed, and your hair grew, but you were naked and ·without clothes [bare; exposed].
8 “‘Later when I passed by you and looked at you, ·I saw that [T behold] you were old enough for love. So I spread ·my robe [L the corner of my garment; Deut. 22:30; Ruth 3:9] over you and covered your nakedness. I also ·made a promise [swore; made a vow] to you and entered into an ·agreement [covenant; treaty; Ex. 19:5] with you so that you became mine, says the Lord God.
9 “‘Then I bathed you with water, washed all the blood off of you, and ·put oil on you [anointed you with oil/ointment]. 10 I put ·beautiful clothes made with needlework [embroidered clothing] on you and put sandals of fine leather on your feet. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I put jewelry on you: bracelets on your arms, a ·necklace [chain] around your neck, 12 a ring in your nose, earrings in your ears, and a beautiful ·crown [tiara] on your head. 13 So you ·wore [were adorned with] gold and silver. Your clothes were made of fine linen, silk, and ·beautiful needlework [embroidery]. You ate fine flour, honey, and olive oil. You were very beautiful and became ·a queen [royalty]. 14 Then ·you became famous [your fame spread] among the nations, because you were so beautiful. Your beauty was perfect, because of the ·glory [splendor] I gave you, says the Lord God.
Jerusalem Becomes a Prostitute
15 “‘But you trusted in your beauty. You used your fame to become a prostitute. You ·had sexual relations with [lavished sexual favors on] anyone who passed by. 16 You took some of your clothes and made your ·places of worship [high places; 6:3] ·colorful [decorated; gaudy]. There you carried on your prostitution. ·These things should not happen; they should never occur [or You went to him and became his; or How could such a thing ever have happened? C the Hebrew here is obscure]. 17 You also took your beautiful jewelry, made from my gold and silver I had given you, and you made for yourselves male idols so you could be a prostitute with them [2 Kin. 23:7]. 18 Then you took your ·clothes with beautiful needlework [embroidered clothing] and covered the idols. You gave my oil and incense as an offering to them. 19 Also, you took the ·bread [food] I gave you, the fine flour, oil, and honey I gave you to eat, and you offered them before the gods as a ·pleasing smell [fragrant incense]. This is what happened, says the Lord God.
20 “‘But your ·sexual sins [acts of prostitution] were not enough for you. You also took your sons and daughters who ·were my children [you bore to me], and you sacrificed them to the idols as food. 21 You ·killed [slaughtered] my children and offered them up in fire to the idols [Lev. 18:21; 20:2; Deut. 12:31; 18:10; 2 Kin. 16:3; 21:6; 23:10; Jer. 32:35]. 22 While you did all your ·hateful [detestable; abominable] acts and ·sexual sins [prostitution], you did not remember ·when you were young [L the days of your youth], when you were naked and had no clothes and were ·left [L kicking about] in your blood.
23 “‘·How terrible [L Woe]! ·How terrible it will be for you [L Woe to you], says the Lord God. After you did all these evil things, 24 you built yourself a ·place to worship gods [pagan shrine; or chamber; or mound]. You made for yourself a ·place of worship [lofty shrine; pavilion] in every city square. 25 You built a place of worship at the ·beginning [head; corner] of every street. You made your beauty ·hateful [defiled; disgraced; detestable; an abomination], ·offering your body for sex [L spreading your legs] to anyone who passed by, ·so your sexual sins became worse and worse [multiplying your promiscuity/prostitution]. 26 You also ·had sexual relations [engaged in prostitution] with the ·Egyptians [L sons of Egypt], who were your ·neighbors and partners in sexual sin [or well-endowed neighbors; or lusty neighbors]. Your ·sexual sins [prostitution; promiscuity] became even worse, and ·they caused me to be angry [provoked me to anger]. 27 So then, [L look; T behold] I ·used my power [L stretched out my hand] against you and ·took away some of your land [reduced your boundaries; or cut off your rations]. I ·let you be defeated by [L delivered you to the greed/desire of] ·those who hate you [your enemies], the Philistine ·women [L daughters], who were ashamed of your ·evil ways [obscene/lewd behavior; C even the pagan Philistines were shocked at Israel’s outrageous sins]. 28 Also, you ·had sexual relations [engaged in prostitution] with the Assyrians, because you could not be satisfied. Even though you ·had sexual relations [prostituted yourself] with them, you still were not satisfied. 29 You ·did many more sexual sins [multiplied your prostitution/promiscuity] in ·Babylonia [L Chaldea], the land of ·traders [merchants], but even this did not satisfy you.
30 “‘·Truly your will is weak [or How sick/feverish is your heart; or I am filled with anger against you], says the Lord God. You do all the things a ·stubborn [bold; brazen; shameless] prostitute does. 31 You built your ·place to worship gods [pagan shrines; or chambers; or mounds] at the ·beginning [head; corner] of every street, and you made ·places of worship [lofty shrines; pavilions; v. 24] in every city square. But you were not like a prostitute when you ·refused to accept [scorned; scoffed at] payment.
32 “‘You adulterous wife! You ·desire [prefer; receive] strangers instead of your husband. 33 Men ·pay [or give gifts to] prostitutes, but you ·pay all [give gifts to] your lovers, bribing them to come to you. And they come from all around for ·sexual relations [your prostitution]. 34 So you are ·different from [the opposite of] other prostitutes. No man ·asks [solicited] you to be a prostitute, and you pay money instead of having money paid to you. Yes, you are ·different [the opposite].
The Prostitute Is Judged
35 “‘So, prostitute, hear the word of the Lord. 36 This is what the Lord God says: You ·showed your nakedness [L poured out your lust] and ·uncovered your body [L exposed your nakedness] in your ·sexual sins [prostitution; promiscuity] with your lovers and with all your ·hateful [detestable; abominable] idols. You killed your children and offered their blood to your idols. 37 So [L look; T behold] I will gather all your lovers with whom you found pleasure. Yes, I will gather all those you loved and those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around, and I will strip you naked in front of them so they can see your nakedness [C an act of humiliation and shame; Jer. 13:22, 26; Nah. 3:5]. 38 I will punish you as women guilty of adultery or as ·murderers [L those who shed blood] are punished. I will ·put you to death [L bring blood upon you; or avenge your bloody deeds] because I am angry and jealous. 39 I will also ·hand you over to your lovers [L give you into their hands]. They will tear down your ·places of worship [pagan shrines; chambers; mounds] and destroy ·other places where you worship gods [your lofty shrines; or pavilions; v. 24]. They will ·tear [strip] off your clothes and take away your beautiful jewelry, leaving you naked and bare. 40 They will bring a crowd against you to throw stones at you and to cut you into pieces with their swords. 41 They will burn down your houses and will ·punish you [execute judgments] in ·front [the sight of] of many women. I will put an end to your ·sexual sins [prostitution], and you will no longer ·pay [give gifts to] your lovers. 42 Then I will ·rest from [exhaust; satisfy] my ·anger [wrath] against you, and ·I will stop being jealous [L my jealousy will turn away from you]. I will be ·quiet [calm] and not angry anymore.
43 “‘Because you didn’t remember ·when you were young [L the days of your youth], but have ·made me angry [enraged me] in all these ways, I will ·repay you for what you have done [L bring these ways upon your head], says the Lord God. Didn’t you add ·sexual sins [lewd acts; obscenities] to all your ·other acts which I hate [detestable practices; abominations]?
44 “‘Everyone who uses ·wise sayings [proverbs] will say this about you: “·The daughter is like her mother [L Like mother, like daughter].” 45 You are ·like your mother [L the daughter of your mother], who ·hated [detested; loathed] her husband and ·children [sons]. You are ·also like your sisters [L the sister of your sisters], who ·hated [detested; loathed] their husbands and ·children [sons]. Your mother was a Hittite, and your father was an Amorite [v. 3]. 46 Your older sister is Samaria, who lived north of you with her daughters; your younger sister is Sodom, who lived south of you with her daughters [Gen. 19; C Sodom is a symbol of evil in Scripture; Deut. 29:23; 32:32; Is. 1:9–10; 3:9; Jer. 23:14; Lam. 4:6; Matt. 10:15; 11:23–24; Jude 7]. 47 You not only ·followed [walked in] their ways and did the ·hateful [detestable; abominable] things they did, but you were ·soon worse [more corrupt/depraved] than they were in all your ways. 48 As surely as I live, says the Lord God, your sister Sodom and her daughters never did what you and your daughters have done.
49 “‘This was the ·sin [iniquity; guilt] of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were proud and had plenty of food and lived in ·great comfort [secure ease], but she did not ·help [L strengthen the hand of] the poor and needy. 50 So Sodom and her daughters were ·proud [haughty] and did ·things I hate [detestable/abominable things] in front of me. So I ·got rid of [removed] them when I saw what they did. 51 Also, Samaria [C the northern kingdom] did not do half the sins you do; you have done more ·hateful [detestable; abominable] things than they did. So you make your sisters ·look good [appear righteous] because of all the ·hateful [detestable; abominable] things you have done. 52 You will ·suffer [bear your] disgrace, because you have ·provided an excuse [L interceded with your sins] for your sisters. They ·are better [appear more righteous] than you are. Your sins were even more ·terrible [vile; abominable] than theirs. Feel ashamed and suffer disgrace, because you made your sisters ·look good [appear righteous].
53 “‘But I will ·give back [restore] to Sodom and her daughters ·the good things they once had [their fortunes]. I will give back to Samaria and her daughters ·the good things they once had [their fortunes]. And with them I will also give back ·the good things you once had [your fortunes] 54 so you may ·suffer [bear your] disgrace and feel ashamed for all the things you have done. You even gave comfort to your sisters in their sins. 55 Your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will return to ·what they were before [their former status]. You and your daughters will also return to ·what you were before [their former status]. 56 You ·humiliated [spoke contemptuously about; L made a byword in your mouth] your sister Sodom ·when you were proud [L in the day of your pride/majesty], 57 before your ·evil [wickedness] was uncovered [exposed]. And now the Edomite ·women[b] [L daughters] and their neighbors ·humiliate [scorn] you. Even the Philistine women ·humiliate [scorn] you. Those around you ·hate [despise] you. 58 ·This is your punishment [L You bear the penalty] for your ·terrible sins [lewdness] and for ·actions that I hate [your detestable practices/abominations], says the Lord.
God Keeps His Promises
59 “‘This is what the Lord God says: I will ·do to you what you have done [give you what you deserve]. You ·hated [despised] and broke the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] you ·promised [swore; made an oath] to keep. 60 But I will remember my ·agreement [covenant; treaty] I made with you ·when you were young [L in the days of your youth], and I will make an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] that will continue forever with you [Jer. 31:31–34]. 61 Then you will remember ·what you have done [your ways] and feel ashamed when you receive your sisters—both your older and your younger sisters. I will give them to you like daughters, but not because they share in my ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with you. 62 I will ·set up my agreement [establish my covenant/treaty] with you, and you will know that I am the Lord. 63 You will remember what you did and feel ashamed. You will not open your mouth again because of your shame, when I ·forgive [make atonement for] you for all the things you have done, says the Lord God.’”
The Eagle and the Vine
17 The ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me, saying: 2 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], give a ·riddle [allegory] and tell a ·story [parable] to the ·people [L house] of Israel. 3 Say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: A ·giant [great; mighty] eagle with ·big [great] wings and long ·feathers [L feathers and plumage] of many different colors [16:10] came to Lebanon and took hold of the top of a cedar tree. 4 He pulled off the top ·branch [shoot] and brought it to a land of ·traders [merchants; C Babylon], where he planted it in a city of traders [C the eagle symbolizes King Nebuchadnezzar; v. 12].
5 “‘The eagle took ·some seed [or a seedling] from the land and planted it in ·a good field [fertile soil] near plenty of water. He planted it to grow like a willow tree. 6 It sprouted and became a low vine that spread over the ground. The branches turned toward the eagle, but the roots were under ·the eagle [or itself; L it]. So the seed became a vine, and its ·branches [shoots] grew, sending out ·leaves [or branches; boughs].
7 “‘But there was another ·giant [great; mighty] eagle with ·big [great] wings and ·many feathers [full plumage]. The vine then ·bent [sent] its roots toward this eagle. It ·sent [stretched; shot] out its branches from the ·area [bed; plot] where it was planted toward the eagle ·so he could water it [to get water]. 8 It had been planted in ·a good field [good soil] by plenty of water so it could grow branches and bear fruit. It could have become a ·fine [beautiful; splendid] vine.’
9 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: ·The vine will not continue to grow [L Will it thrive/prosper?]. ·The first eagle will [L Will he not…?] pull up the vine’s roots and strip off its fruit. Then the vine and all its new leaves will ·dry up and die [wither]. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull the vine up by its roots. 10 [L Look; T Behold] Even if it is planted again, ·it will not [L will it…?] ·continue to grow [thrive]. ·It will [L Will it not…?] completely ·dry up and die [wither] when the east wind hits it. ·It will [or Will it not…?] ·dry up and die [wither] in the ·area [bed; plot] where it ·grew [sprouted].’”
Zedekiah Against Nebuchadnezzar
11 Then the ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me, saying: 12 “Say now to the ·people who refuse to obey [L rebellious house]: ‘Don’t you know what these things mean?’ Say: ‘[L Look; T Behold] The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and took the king [C Jehoiachin; 2 Kin. 24:12] and ·important men [nobles; officials] of Jerusalem and brought them to Babylon. 13 Then he took ·a member of the family of the king of Judah [L from the royal offspring/seed; C Zedekiah, Jehoiachin’s uncle; 2 Kin. 24:17] and made an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with him, ·forcing him to take an [putting him under] oath. The king also took away the leaders of ·Judah [L the land] 14 to ·make the kingdom weak [humble/bring low the kingdom] so it would not ·be strong [rise; exalt itself] again. Then the kingdom of Judah ·could continue only [would stand] by keeping its ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with the king of Babylon. 15 But ·the king of Judah [L he; C referring to Zedekiah; 2 Kin. 24:20] ·turned [rebelled] against the king of Babylon by sending his ·messengers [emissaries] to Egypt and asking them for horses and many soldiers [2 Kin. 24:20]. Will ·the king of Judah succeed [he prosper/succeed]? Will the one who does such things escape? ·He cannot [L Can he…?] break the ·agreement [covenant; treaty] and escape.
16 “‘As surely as I live, says the Lord God, he will die in Babylon, in the land of the king who made him king of Judah. The king of Judah ·hated [despised] his ·promise [oath] to the king of Babylon and broke his ·agreement [covenant; treaty] with him. 17 ·The king of Egypt [L Pharaoh] with his mighty army and ·many people [vast horde] will not help ·the king of Judah [L him] in the war. The Babylonians will build ·devices [ramps and siege walls] to attack the cities and to ·kill [destroy; cut off] many people. 18 The king of Judah showed that he ·hated [despised] the ·promise [oath] by breaking the ·agreement [covenant; treaty]. He ·promised to support Babylon [L gave his hand (in pledge)], but he did all these things. So he will not escape.
19 “‘So this is what the Lord God says: As surely as I live, I will ·pay back the king of Judah [L bring down on his head] for ·hating [despising] my ·promise [oath] and breaking my ·agreement [covenant; treaty]. 20 I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my ·trap [snare]. Then I will bring him to Babylon, where I will ·punish [execute judgment on] him for the ·unfaithful acts [treachery] he did against me. 21 All the ·best[c] [choice men] of his soldiers will die by the sword, and those who live will be scattered to every wind. Then you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken.
22 “‘This is what the Lord God says: I myself will also take a ·young branch [shoot; sprig] from the top of a tall cedar tree, and I will plant it. I will cut off a ·small [tender] twig from the top of the tree’s young branches, and I will plant it on a ·very high [L high and lofty] mountain. 23 I will plant it on the ·high mountain [mountain heights] of Israel. Then it will grow branches and give fruit and become a ·great [beautiful; majestic] cedar tree. Birds of every kind will build nests in it and live in the ·shelter [shade] of the tree’s branches. 24 Then all the trees in the ·countryside [field] will know that I am the Lord. I bring down the high tree and make the low tree tall. I ·dry up [wither] the green tree and make the dry tree ·grow [thrive; flourish]. I am the Lord. I have spoken, and I will do it.’”
Controlling the Things We Say
3 My ·brothers and sisters [C fellow believers], not many of you should become teachers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly [Luke 12:48]. 2 We all ·make many mistakes [L stumble in many ways]. If people ·never said anything wrong [L did not stumble in speech/teaching/word], they would be perfect and able to ·control their entire selves, too [L bridle their whole body also]. 3 When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we ·can control [guide; direct] their whole bodies. 4 Also a ship is very big, and it is pushed by ·strong [fierce] winds. But a very small rudder ·controls [guides; steers] that big ship, making it go wherever the pilot wants. 5 It is the same with the tongue. It is a small ·part [member] of the body, but it ·brags [boasts] about great things.
A big forest fire can be started with only a little flame. 6 And the tongue is like a fire. It is a whole world of ·evil [iniquity; unrighteousness] among ·the parts of our bodies [L our members]. The tongue ·spreads its evil through [pollutes; stains; corrupts] the whole body. The tongue is set on fire by hell [L Gehenna; C a valley outside of Jerusalem where in the OT period children were sacrificed to a pagan god; later used as a burning trash heap; a metaphor for hell], and it starts a fire that influences ·all of life [L the wheel of birth/life]. 7 [L For] People can tame every ·kind [species] of wild animal, bird, reptile, and ·fish [L sea creature], and they have tamed them, 8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is ·wild and evil [or a restless evil; or an uncontrollable evil] and full of deadly poison. 9 ·We use our tongues to [L With it we] ·praise [bless] our Lord and Father, but ·then [L with it] we curse people, whom God made ·like himself [L in his likeness; Gen. 1:27]. 10 Praises and curses come from the same mouth! My ·brothers and sisters [C fellow believers], this should not happen. 11 Do ·good [fresh; L sweet] and ·bad [stale; or salt; L bitter] water flow from the same [L opening of a] spring? 12 My ·brothers and sisters [C fellow believers], can a fig tree make olives, or can a grapevine make figs? No! ·And a well full of salty water cannot give good water [L Neither can salt water make sweet].
True Wisdom
13 Are there those among you who are truly wise and ·understanding [insightful; discerning]? Then they should show it by ·living right [their good life/conduct/lifestyle] and ·doing good things [their deeds/works] with a ·gentleness [humility; meekness; Matt. 5:5; 11:29; Gal. 6:1] that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter ·jealousy [or envy] and ·are selfish [have selfish ambition] in your hearts, do not ·brag [boast; Jer. 9:23–24]. Your ·bragging [boasting] is a lie ·that hides [that denies; L against] the truth [or Don’t cover up the truth with bragging or lying]. 15 That kind of “wisdom” does not come ·from God [L down from above; C that is, from heaven] but ·from the world [is earthly]. It is ·not spiritual [natural; “soulish”; C human life apart from God; 1 Cor. 2:14]; it is ·from the devil [demonic]. 16 Where ·jealousy [or envy] and ·selfishness [selfish ambition] are, there will be ·confusion [chaos; disorder] and every ·kind of evil [evil thing/practice]. 17 But the wisdom that comes from ·God [L above; 3:15] is first of all pure, then peaceful [peace-loving], gentle [patient; considerate], and ·easy to please [or willing to yield; or open to reason]. This wisdom is ·always ready to help those who are troubled and to do good for others [L full of mercy and good fruits]. It is ·always fair [impartial] and ·honest [sincere; unhypocritical]. 18 ·People who work for peace in a peaceful way plant a good crop of right living [or Peacemakers who sow with peace will harvest a crop of justice/righteousness; Gal. 5:22–23].
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