Old/New Testament
The Lord’s Word Against the Leaders
5 “Listen, you priests.
Pay attention, people of Israel.
Listen, royal family.
You will all be judged.
You have been like a trap at Mizpah.
You have been like a net spread out at Mount Tabor.
2 You have done many bad things.
So I will punish you all.
3 I know all about Israel.
What they have done is not hidden from me.
They all act like prostitutes.
Israel has made itself unclean.
4 “And those bad things they have done
keep them from returning to their God.
They are determined to be unfaithful to me.
They do not know the Lord.
5 Israel’s pride testifies against them.
The people of Israel will stumble because of their sin.
The people of Judah will also stumble with them.
6 The people will come to worship the Lord.
They will come with their sheep and cattle.
But they will not be able to find him,
because he has left them.
7 They have not been true to the Lord.
Their children do not belong to him.
So their false worship
will destroy them and their land.
8 “Blow the horn in Gibeah.
Blow the trumpet in Ramah.
Give the warning at Beth Aven.
Be first into battle, people of Benjamin.
9 A time of punishment is coming.
Israel will be destroyed.
I warn the tribes of Israel
that this will surely happen.
10 The leaders of Judah are like thieves.
They try to steal the property of others.
My punishment will overwhelm them
like a flood of water.
11 Israel will be crushed by the punishments,
because they decided to follow idols.
12 I will destroy Israel
as a moth destroys clothing.
I will destroy Judah
as rot destroys wood.
13 “Israel saw how weak she was.
Judah saw the wounds she suffered.
So Israel turned to Assyria for help.
She sent to the great king of Assyria for help.
But he cannot heal you.
He cannot cure your wound.
14 I will be like a lion to Israel.
I will be like a young lion to Judah.
I will attack them
and tear them to pieces.
I will drag them off,
and no one will be able to save them.
15 Then I will go back to my place
until the people admit they are guilty.
At that time they must look for me.
In their trouble they must turn to me.”
The People Are Not Faithful
6 You people say,
“Come, let’s go back to the Lord.
He has hurt us, but he will heal us.
He has wounded us, but he will bandage our wounds.
2 In a short while he will put new life in us.
We will not have to wait long for him to raise us up.
Then we may live in his presence.
3 Let’s learn about the Lord.
Let’s try hard to know who he is.
He will come to us
as surely as the dawn comes.
The Lord will come to us like the rain,
like the spring rain that waters the ground.”
4 The Lord says, “Israel, what should I do with you?
Judah, what should I do with you?
Your faithfulness is like a morning mist.
It lasts only as long as the dew in the morning.
5 I have warned you by my prophets
that I will kill you and destroy you.
My judgments will flash forth like lightning against you.
6 I want faithful love
more than I want animal sacrifices.
I want people to know me
more than I want burnt offerings.
7 But you have broken the agreement as Adam did.
You have been unfaithful to me.
8 Gilead is full of people who do evil.
It is covered with bloody footprints.
9 Some of the priests are like
robbers waiting in ambush.
They murder people on the way to Shechem.[a]
They do wicked crimes.
10 I have seen horrible things in Israel.
The people are unfaithful to God,
and Israel has become unclean.
11 “Judah, I have set a time to punish you also.
“I would like to give my people back their riches.
7 I would like to heal Israel.
But their sin can be seen by everyone.
The wickedness of Israel is too well-known.
They cheat one another.
They break into other peoples’ houses.
There are robberies in the streets.
2 It never enters their minds
that I remember all their wicked deeds.
The bad things they do are all around,
and I can see their sins clearly.
Israel Destroys Her Rulers
3 “They make the king happy with their wickedness.
They make their rulers glad with their lies.
4 But all of them are traitors.
They are like an oven heated by a baker.
While he mixes the dough,
he does not stir up the flame.
5 They hold a festival day for the king.
On that day the rulers become drunk with wine.
The king joins in with those who had made evil plans.
6 They approach him with murder in mind.
Their hearts are like a hot oven.
All night long its fire is low.
When morning comes, it is fanned into flame.
7 So all these people are as hot as an oven.
Like a fire they destroy their rulers.
Their kings fall one after another.
And no one calls on me.
Israel and the Other Nations
8 “Israel mixes with other nations.
Israel is useless like a pancake cooked only on one side.
9 Foreign nations are using up Israel’s strength.
And Israel doesn’t even know it.
Israel is weak and feeble, like an old man.
And they don’t even know it.
10 Israel’s pride will cause their defeat.
They have had many troubles.
But they still do not turn to the Lord their God.
They do not look to him for help.
11 Israel has become like a silly pigeon.
The people have no understanding.
First they call to Egypt for help.
Then they run for help to Assyria.
12 When they go, I will catch them
as men catch birds in a net.
Then I will punish them
as I have warned them.
13 How terrible for them because they left me!
They will be destroyed because they turned against me.
I want to save them.
But they have spoken lies against me.
14 They do not call to me from their hearts.
They just lie on their beds and cry.
They come together to ask for grain and new wine.
But they really turn away from me.
15 I trained them and gave them strength.
But they have made evil plans against me.
16 They did not turn to the Most High God.
They are like a crooked bow that does not shoot straight.
Their leaders brag about their strength.
But they will be killed with swords.
Then the people in Egypt
will laugh at them.
Israel Has Trusted Wrong Things
8 “Put the trumpet to your lips and give the warning!
The enemy swoops down on my people like an eagle.
The Israelites have broken my agreement.
They have turned against my teachings.
2 They cry out to me,
‘Our God, we in Israel know you!’
3 But Israel has rejected what is good.
So the enemy chases them.
4 They chose their own kings
without asking my permission.
They chose their own leaders,
men I did not know.
They made their silver and gold into idols.
For all this they will be destroyed.
5 I hate that calf-shaped idol.
I am very angry with the people.
How long will they remain unclean?
6 The idol is something a craftsman made.
It is not God.
Israel’s calf-shaped idol
will surely be smashed to pieces.
7 “Israel’s foolish plans are like planting the wind.
But they will harvest a whirlwind.
Her plans are like a stalk with no head of grain.
It produces nothing.
Even if it produces something,
other nations would eat it.
8 Israel is destroyed.
The people are mixed among the other nations.
They have become useless to me.
9 Like a wild donkey,
Israel has run to Assyria.
Israel has hired other nations to protect her.
10 Although Israel is mixed among the nations,
I will gather them together.
They will become weaker and weaker
as they suffer under the great king of Assyria.
11 “The more altars Israel built to remove sin,
the more they have become altars for sinning.
12 They reject the many teachings I have written for them.
They act as if the teachings were strange and foreign to them.
13 The Israelites offer sacrifices to me
and eat the meat.
But the Lord is not pleased with them.
He remembers the evil they have done.
And he will punish them for their sins.
They will be slaves again as they were in Egypt.
14 The people of Israel have forgotten their Maker.
They trust in the palaces they have built.
And Judah trusts in her many strong, walled cities.
But I will send fire on their cities
and destroy their strong towers.”
To the Church in Ephesus
2 “Write this to the angel of the church in Ephesus:
“The One who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands says this to you. 2 I know what you do. You work hard, and you never give up. I know that you do not accept evil people. You have tested those who say that they are apostles but really are not. You found that they are liars. 3 You continue to serve me. You have suffered troubles for my name, and you have not given up.
4 “But I have this against you: You have left the love you had in the beginning. 5 So remember where you were before you fell. Change your hearts and do what you did at first. If you do not change, I will come to you. I will take away your lampstand from its place. 6 But there is something you do that is right: You hate what the Nicolaitans[a] do, as much as I.
7 “Every person who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who wins the victory I will give the right to eat the fruit from the tree of life. This tree is in the garden of God.
To the Church in Smyrna
8 “Write this to the angel of the church in Smyrna:
“The One who is the First and the Last says this to you. He is the One who died and came to life again. 9 I know your troubles. I know that you are poor, but really you are rich! I know the bad things that some people say about you. They say they are Jews, but they are not true Jews. They are a synagogue that belongs to Satan. 10 Do not be afraid of what will happen to you. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you. You will suffer for ten days. But be faithful, even if you have to die. If you are faithful, I will give you the crown of life.
11 “Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. He who wins the victory will not be hurt by the second death.
To the Church in Pergamum
12 “Write this to the angel of the church in Pergamum:
“The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this to you. 13 I know where you live. You live where Satan has his throne. But you are true to me. You did not refuse to tell about your faith in me even during the time of Antipas. Antipas was my faithful witness who was killed in your city. Your city is where Satan lives.
14 “But I have a few things against you: You have some there who follow the teaching of Balaam. Balaam taught Balak how to cause the people of Israel to sin. They sinned by eating food offered to idols and by taking part in sexual sins. 15 You also have some who follow the teaching of the Nicolaitans.[b] 16 So change your hearts and lives! If you do not, I will come to you quickly and fight against them with the sword that comes out of my mouth.
17 “Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches!
“I will give the hidden manna to everyone who wins the victory. I will also give him a white stone with a new name written on it. No one knows this new name except the one who receives it.
To the Church in Thyatira
18 “Write this to the angel of the church in Thyatira:
“The Son of God is saying these things. He is the One who has eyes that blaze like fire and feet like shining bronze. He says this to you: 19 I know what you do. I know about your love, your faith, your service, and your patience. I know that you are doing more now than you did at first. 20 But I have this against you: You let that woman Jezebel do what she wants. She says that she is a prophetess. But she is leading my servants away with her teaching. Jezebel leads them to take part in sexual sins and to eat food that is offered to idols. 21 I have given her time to change her heart and turn away from her sin. But she does not want to change. 22 And so I will throw her on a bed of suffering. And all those who take part in adultery with her will suffer greatly. I will do this now if they do not turn away from the wrongs she does. 23 I will also kill her followers. Then all the churches will know that I am the One who knows what people feel and think. And I will repay each of you for what you have done.
24 “But others of you in Thyatira have not followed her teaching. You have not learned what some call Satan’s deep secrets. This is what I say to you: I will not put any other load on you. 25 Only continue the way you are until I come.
26 “I will give power to everyone who wins the victory and continues to the end to do what I want. I will give him power over the nations:
27 ‘You will make them obey you by punishing them with an iron rod.
You will break them into pieces like pottery.’ Psalm 2:9
28 This is the same power I received from my Father. I will also give him the morning star. 29 Everyone who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.