The Living Bible (237 page)
Authors: Inc. Tyndale House Publishers
Tags: #BIBLES / Other Translations / Text
The Lord says, People
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who never before inquired about me are now seeking me out. Nations
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who never before searched for me are finding me.
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But my own people—though I have been spreading out my arms to welcome them all day long—have rebelled; they follow their own evil paths and thoughts.
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All day long they insult me to my face by worshiping idols in many gardens and burning incense on the rooftops of their homes.
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At night they go out among the graves and caves to worship evil spirits, and they eat pork and other forbidden foods.
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Yet they say to one another, “Don’t come too close, you’ll defile me! For I am holier than you!” They stifle me. Day in and day out they infuriate me.
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See, here is my decree all written out before me:
I will not stand silent; I will repay. Yes, I will repay them—
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not only for their own sins but for those of their fathers too, says the Lord, for they also burned incense on the mountains and insulted me upon the hills. I will pay them back in full.
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But I will not destroy them all, says the Lord; for just as good grapes are found among a cluster of bad ones (and someone will say, “Don’t throw them all away—there are some good grapes there!”) so I will not destroy all Israel, for I have true servants there.
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I will preserve a remnant of my people to possess the land of Israel; those I select will inherit it and serve me there.
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As for my people who have sought me, the plains of Sharon shall again be filled with flocks, and the valley of Achor shall be a place to pasture herds.
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But because the rest of you have forsaken the Lord and his Temple and worship gods of “Fate” and “Destiny,”
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therefore I will “destine” you to the sword, and your “fate” shall be a dark one; for when I called, you didn’t answer; when I spoke, you wouldn’t listen. You deliberately sinned before my very eyes, choosing to do what you know I despise.
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Therefore, the Lord God says: You shall starve, but my servants shall eat; you shall be thirsty while they drink; you shall be sad and ashamed, but they shall rejoice.
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You shall cry in sorrow and vexation and despair, while they sing for joy.
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Your name shall be a curse word among my people, for the Lord God will slay you and call his true servants by another name.
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And yet, the days will come
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when all who invoke a blessing or take an oath shall swear by the God of Truth; for I will put aside my anger and forget the evil that you did.
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For see, I am creating new heavens and a new earth—so wonderful that no one will even think about the old ones anymore.
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Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation. Look! I will re-create Jerusalem as a place of happiness, and her people shall be a joy!
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And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and in my people; and the voice of weeping and crying shall not be heard there anymore.
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No longer will babies die when only a few days old; no longer will men be considered old at 100! Only sinners will die that young!
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In those days, when a man builds a house, he will keep on living in it—it will not be destroyed by invading armies as in the past. My people will plant vineyards and eat the fruit themselves—their enemies will not confiscate it. For my people will live as long as trees and will long enjoy their hard-won gains.
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Their harvests will not be eaten by their enemies; their children will not be born to be cannon fodder. For they are the children of those the Lord has blessed; and their children, too, shall be blessed.
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I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking to me about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers!
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The wolf and lamb shall feed together, the lion shall eat straw as the ox does, and poisonous snakes shall strike no more!
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In those days nothing and no one shall be hurt or destroyed in all my holy mountain, says the Lord.
Heaven is my throne and the earth is my footstool: What Temple can you build for me as good as that?
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My hand has made both earth and skies, and they are mine. Yet I will look with pity on the man who has a humble and a contrite heart, who trembles at my word.
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But those who choose their own ways, delighting in their sins, are cursed. God will not accept their offerings. When such men sacrifice an ox on the altar of God, it is no more acceptable to him than human sacrifice. If they sacrifice a lamb or bring an offering of grain, it is as loathsome to God as putting a dog or the blood of a swine on his altar! When they burn incense to him, he counts it the same as though they blessed an idol.
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I will send great troubles upon them—all the things they feared, for when I called them, they refused to answer, and when I spoke to them, they would not hear. Instead, they did wrong before my eyes and chose what they knew I despised.
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Hear the words of God, all you who fear him, and tremble at his words: Your brethren hate you and cast you out for being loyal to my name. “Glory to God,” they scoff. “Be happy in the Lord!” But they shall be put to shame.
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What is all the commotion in the city? What is that terrible noise from the Temple? It is the voice of the Lord taking vengeance upon his enemies.
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Who has heard or seen anything as strange as this? For in one day, suddenly, a nation, Israel, shall be born, even before the birth pains come. In a moment, just as Israel’s anguish starts, the baby is born; the nation begins.
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Shall I bring to the point of birth and then not deliver? asks the Lord your God. No! Never!
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Rejoice with Jerusalem; be glad with her, all you who love her, you who mourned for her.
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Delight in Jerusalem; drink deep of her glory even as an infant at a mother’s generous breasts.
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Prosperity shall overflow Jerusalem like a river, says the Lord, for I will send it; the riches of the Gentiles will flow to her. Her children shall be nursed at her breasts, carried on her hips and dandled on her knees.
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I will comfort you there as a little one is comforted by its mother.
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When you see Jerusalem, your heart will rejoice; vigorous health will be yours. All the world will see the good hand of God upon his people and his wrath upon his enemies.
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For see, the Lord will come with fire and with swift chariots of doom to pour out the fury of his anger and his hot rebuke with flames of fire.
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For the Lord will punish the world by fire and by his sword, and the slain of the Lord shall be many!
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Those who worship idols that are hidden behind a tree in the garden, feasting there on pork and mouse and all forbidden meat—they will come to an evil end, says Jehovah.
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I see full well what they are doing; I know what they are thinking, so I will gather together all nations and people against Jerusalem, where they shall see my glory.
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I will perform a mighty miracle against them, and I will send those who escape,
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as missionaries to the nations—to Tarshish, Put, Lud, Meshech, Rosh, Tubal, Javan, and to the lands beyond the sea that have not heard my fame nor seen my glory. There they shall declare my glory to the Gentiles.
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And they shall bring back all your brethren from every nation as a gift to the Lord, transporting them gently
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on horses and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules and camels, to my holy mountain, to Jerusalem, says the Lord. It will be like offerings flowing into the Temple of the Lord at harvesttime, carried in vessels consecrated to the Lord.
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And I will appoint some of those returning to be my priests and Levites, says the Lord.
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As surely as my new heavens and earth shall remain, so surely shall you always be my people, with a name that shall never disappear.
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All mankind shall come to worship me from week to week and month to month.
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And they shall go out and look at the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me, for their worm shall never die; their fire shall not be quenched; and they shall be a disgusting sight to all mankind.
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These are God’s messages to Jeremiah the priest (the son of Hilkiah) who lived in the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. The first of these messages came to him in the thirteenth year of the reign of Amon’s son Josiah, king of Judah.
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Others came during the reign of Josiah’s son Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and at various other times until July of the eleventh year of the reign of Josiah’s son Zedekiah, king of Judah, when Jerusalem was captured and the people were taken away as slaves.
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The Lord said to me,
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“I knew you before you were formed within your mother’s womb; before you were born I sanctified you and appointed you as my spokesman to the world.”
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“O Lord God,” I said, “I can’t do that! I’m far too young! I’m only a youth!”
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“Don’t say that,” he replied, “for you will go wherever I send you and speak whatever I tell you to.
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And don’t be afraid of the people, for I, the Lord, will be with you and see you through.”
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Then he touched my mouth and said, “See, I have put my words in your mouth!
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Today your work begins, to warn the nations and the kingdoms of the world. In accord with my words spoken through your mouth I will tear down some and destroy them, and plant others, nurture them, and make them strong and great.”
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Then the Lord said to me, “Look, Jeremiah! What do you see?”
And I replied, “I see a whip made from the branch of an almond tree.”
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And the Lord replied, “That’s right, and it means that I will surely carry out my threats of punishment.”
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Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see now?”
And I replied, “I see a pot of boiling water, tipping southward, spilling over Judah.”
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“Yes,” he said, “for terror from the north will boil out upon all the people of this land.
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I am calling the armies of the kingdoms of the north to come to Jerusalem and set their thrones at the gates of the city and all along its walls, and in all the other cities of Judah.
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This is the way I will punish my people for deserting me and for worshiping other gods—yes, idols they themselves have made!
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Get up and dress and go out and tell them whatever I tell you to say. Don’t be afraid of them, or else I will make a fool of you in front of them.
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For see, today I have made you impervious to their attacks. They cannot harm you. You are strong like a fortified city that cannot be captured, like an iron pillar and heavy gates of brass. All the kings of Judah, its officers, priests, and people will not be able to prevail against you.
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They will try, but they will fail. For I am with you,” says the Lord. “I will deliver you.”