52 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
52 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 3
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1 Listen to this message that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel—against the entire family I rescued from Egypt:
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2 “From among all the families on the earth,
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I have been intimate with you alone.
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That is why I must punish you
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for all your sins.”
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3 Can two people walk together
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without agreeing on the direction?
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4 Does a lion ever roar in a thicket
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without first finding a victim?
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Does a young lion growl in its den
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without first catching its prey?
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5 Does a bird ever get caught in a trap
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that has no bait?
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Does a trap spring shut
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when there’s nothing to catch?
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6 When the ram’s horn blows a warning,
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shouldn’t the people be alarmed?
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Does disaster come to a city
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unless the Lord has planned it?
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7 Indeed, the Sovereign Lord never does anything
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until he reveals his plans to his servants the prophets.
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8 The lion has roared—
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so who isn’t frightened?
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The Sovereign Lord has spoken—
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so who can refuse to proclaim his message?
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9 Announce this to the leaders of Philistia
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and to the great ones of Egypt:
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“Take your seats now on the hills around Samaria,
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and witness the chaos and oppression in Israel.”
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10 “My people have forgotten how to do right,”
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says the Lord.
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“Their fortresses are filled with wealth
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taken by theft and violence.
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11 Therefore,” says the Sovereign Lord,
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“an enemy is coming!
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He will surround them and shatter their defenses.
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Then he will plunder all their fortresses.”
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12 This is what the Lord says:
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“A shepherd who tries to rescue a sheep from a lion’s mouth
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will recover only two legs or a piece of an ear.
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So it will be for the Israelites in Samaria lying on luxurious beds,
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and for the people of Damascus reclining on couches.
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13 “Now listen to this, and announce it throughout all Israel,” says the Lord, the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies.
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14 “On the very day I punish Israel for its sins,
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I will destroy the pagan altars at Bethel.
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The horns of the altar will be cut off
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and fall to the ground.
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15 And I will destroy the beautiful homes of the wealthy—
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their winter mansions and their summer houses, too—
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all their palaces filled with ivory,”
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says the Lord. |