81 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
81 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 7
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1 How miserable I am!
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I feel like the fruit picker after the harvest
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who can find nothing to eat.
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Not a cluster of grapes or a single early fig
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can be found to satisfy my hunger.
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2 The godly people have all disappeared;
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not one honest person is left on the earth.
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They are all murderers,
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setting traps even for their own brothers.
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3 Both their hands are equally skilled at doing evil!
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Officials and judges alike demand bribes.
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The people with influence get what they want,
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and together they scheme to twist justice.
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4 Even the best of them is like a brier;
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the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns.
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But your judgment day is coming swiftly now.
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Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.
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5 Don’t trust anyone—
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not your best friend or even your wife!
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6 For the son despises his father.
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The daughter defies her mother.
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The daughter-in-law defies her mother-in-law.
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Your enemies are right in your own household!
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7 As for me, I look to the Lord for help.
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I wait confidently for God to save me,
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and my God will certainly hear me.
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8 Do not gloat over me, my enemies!
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For though I fall, I will rise again.
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Though I sit in darkness,
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the Lord will be my light.
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9 I will be patient as the Lord punishes me,
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for I have sinned against him.
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But after that, he will take up my case
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and give me justice for all I have suffered from my enemies.
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The Lord will bring me into the light,
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and I will see his righteousness.
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10 Then my enemies will see that the Lord is on my side.
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They will be ashamed that they taunted me, saying,
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“So where is the Lord—
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that God of yours?”
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With my own eyes I will see their downfall;
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they will be trampled like mud in the streets.
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11 In that day, Israel, your cities will be rebuilt,
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and your borders will be extended.
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12 People from many lands will come and honor you—
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from Assyria all the way to the towns of Egypt,
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from Egypt all the way to the Euphrates River,
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and from distant seas and mountains.
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13 But the land will become empty and desolate
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because of the wickedness of those who live there.
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14 O Lord, protect your people with your shepherd’s staff;
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lead your flock, your special possession.
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Though they live alone in a thicket
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on the heights of Mount Carmel,
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let them graze in the fertile pastures of Bashan and Gilead
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as they did long ago.
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15 “Yes,” says the Lord,
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“I will do mighty miracles for you,
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like those I did when I rescued you
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from slavery in Egypt.”
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16 All the nations of the world will stand amazed
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at what the Lord will do for you.
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They will be embarrassed
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at their feeble power.
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They will cover their mouths in silent awe,
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deaf to everything around them.
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17 Like snakes crawling from their holes,
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they will come out to meet the Lord our God.
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They will fear him greatly,
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trembling in terror at his presence.
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18 Where is another God like you,
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who pardons the guilt of the remnant,
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overlooking the sins of his special people?
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You will not stay angry with your people forever,
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because you delight in showing unfailing love.
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19 Once again you will have compassion on us.
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You will trample our sins under your feet
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and throw them into the depths of the ocean!
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20 You will show us your faithfulness and unfailing love
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as you promised to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago. |