Old/New Testament

God Will Remove the Leaders of Judah

3 See, the Lord, the Lord God of All, is going to take away from Jerusalem and Judah all they have to keep themselves alive and safe, all the bread and all the water. ² He will take away the strong man, the man of war, the man who judges, the man who tells what will happen in the future, the man who uses secret ways, and the leader. ³ He will take away the captain of fifty, the man of honor, the wise man, the able workman, and the one who uses secret powers. ⁴ I will make boys their rulers. Foolish children will rule over them. ⁵ The people will make it hard for each other. Each one will hurt the other, and each one will be hurt by his neighbor. The younger will show anger toward the older. And the man who is not respected will show anger toward the man of honor.

⁶ A man will take hold of his brother in his father’s house, saying, “You have a coat. You will be our ruler. This destroyed city will be under your rule.” ⁷ In that day he will call out, “I can not be of help to you. For in my house there is no bread or coat. You should not choose me to be ruler of the people.” ⁸ For Jerusalem has no strength, and Judah has fallen, because their speaking and their actions are against the Lord. They have turned against His shining-greatness. ⁹ The look on their faces speaks against them. They show their sin like Sodom. They do not even hide it. It is bad for them! For they have brought trouble upon themselves. ¹⁰ Tell those who are right and good that it will go well for them. For they will enjoy the fruit of what they do. ¹¹ It will be bad for the sinful man! It will not go well for him, for what he has done will be done to him. ¹² O My people! Children make it hard for them. And women rule over them. O My people! Your leaders lead you in the wrong way. You do not know which path to take.

The Lord Will Judge His People

¹³ The Lord is ready to say what He thinks and stands to judge the people. ¹⁴ The Lord judges the leaders and rulers of His people: “It is you who have destroyed the grape-field. What had belonged to the poor is in your houses. ¹⁵ What do you mean by crushing My people, and grinding the faces of the poor?” says the Lord God of All.

Women of Jerusalem Will Suffer

¹⁶ The Lord said, “The daughters of Zion are proud. They walk with heads held high and a wrong desire in their eyes. They walk with short steps, making noise with the chains on their ankles. ¹⁷ So the Lord will make sores come upon the heads of the daughters of Zion, and take the hair from their head. ¹⁸ In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their ankle chains, headbands, moon-like objects, ¹⁹ rings worn on their ears and arms, face-coverings, ²⁰ head-dresses, leg-chains, wide belts, perfume boxes, objects with secret powers, ²¹ finger rings, nose rings, ²² bright clothing, coats, money-bags, ²³ hand mirrors, underclothes, head-coverings, and face-coverings. ²⁴ Instead of sweet perfume there will be a bad smell. Instead of a belt there will be a rope. Instead of well set hair there will be no hair. Instead of fine clothes they will wear cloth made from hair. And there will be burnt marks instead of beauty. ²⁵ Your men will fall by the sword. Your strong ones will fall in battle. ²⁶ Jerusalem’s gates will be filled with sorrow. She will sit on the ground, laid waste and empty.

Jerusalem to Have Its Shining-Greatness Again

4 Seven women will take hold of one man in that day, saying, “We will eat our own bread and wear our own clothes. Only let us be called by your name. Take away our shame!”

² In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and shining with greatness. The fruit of the earth will be the pride and the beauty of those of Israel who are still alive. ³ He who is left in Zion and stays in Jerusalem will be called holy, everyone who has been written down among the living in Jerusalem. ⁴ The Lord will wash away the sin of the daughters of Zion. He will wash away the blood that was shed in Jerusalem, by the spirit of punishment and the spirit of fire. ⁵ Then the Lord will cover the whole land of Mount Zion and her people with a cloud of smoke during the day, and a bright fire that shines during the night. The Lord’s shining-greatness will cover everything. ⁶ It will be a covering from the heat during the day and it will keep the people safe from the storm and the rain.

Help Other Christians

6 Christian brothers, if a person is found doing some sin, you who are stronger Christians should lead that one back into the right way. Do not be proud as you do it. Watch yourself, because you may be tempted also. ² Help each other in troubles and problems. This is the kind of law Christ asks us to obey. ³ If anyone thinks he is important when he is nothing, he is fooling himself. ⁴ Everyone should look at himself and see how he does his own work. Then he can be happy in what he has done. He should not compare himself with his neighbor. ⁵ Everyone must do his own work.

⁶ He who is taught God’s Word should share the good things he has with his teacher. ⁷ Do not be fooled. You cannot fool God. A man will get back whatever he plants! ⁸ If a man does things to please his sinful old self, his soul will be lost. If a man does things to please the Holy Spirit, he will have life that lasts forever. ⁹ Do not let yourselves get tired of doing good. If we do not give up, we will get what is coming to us at the right time. ¹⁰ Because of this, we should do good to everyone. For sure, we should do good to those who belong to Christ.

The Christian’s Pride Should Be in the Cross

¹¹ See what big letters I make when I write to you with my own hand. ¹² Those men who say you must go through the religious act of becoming a Jew are doing it because they want to make a good show in front of the world. They do this so they will not have to suffer because of following the way of the cross of Christ. ¹³ Those who have gone through the religious act of becoming a Jew do not even keep the Law themselves. But they want you to go through that religious act so they can be proud that you are their followers. ¹⁴ I do not want to be proud of anything except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of the cross, the ways of this world are dead to me, and I am dead to them. ¹⁵ If a person does or does not go through the religious act of becoming a Jew, it is worth nothing. The important thing is to become a new person. ¹⁶ Those who follow this way will have God’s peace and loving-kindness. They are the people of God.

¹⁷ Let no one make trouble for me from now on. For I have on my body the whip marks of one who has been a servant owned by Jesus. ¹⁸ Christian brothers, may the loving-favor of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Let it be so.