76 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
76 lines
3.4 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 9
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1 Nevertheless, that time of darkness and despair will not go on forever. The land of Zebulun and Naphtali will be humbled, but there will be a time in the future when Galilee of the Gentiles, which lies along the road that runs between the Jordan and the sea, will be filled with glory.
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2 The people who walk in darkness
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will see a great light.
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For those who live in a land of deep darkness,
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a light will shine.
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3 You will enlarge the nation of Israel,
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and its people will rejoice.
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They will rejoice before you
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as people rejoice at the harvest
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and like warriors dividing the plunder.
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4 For you will break the yoke of their slavery
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and lift the heavy burden from their shoulders.
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You will break the oppressor’s rod,
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just as you did when you destroyed the army of Midian.
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5 The boots of the warrior
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and the uniforms bloodstained by war
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will all be burned.
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They will be fuel for the fire.
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6 For a child is born to us,
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a son is given to us.
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The government will rest on his shoulders.
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And he will be called:
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Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
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Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
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7 His government and its peace
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will never end.
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He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
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for all eternity.
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The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
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will make this happen!
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8 The Lord has spoken out against Jacob;
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his judgment has fallen upon Israel.
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9 And the people of Israel and Samaria,
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who spoke with such pride and arrogance,
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will soon know it.
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10 They said, “We will replace the broken bricks of our ruins with finished stone,
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and replant the felled sycamore-fig trees with cedars.”
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11 But the Lord will bring Rezin’s enemies against Israel
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and stir up all their foes.
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12 The Syrians from the east and the Philistines from the west
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will bare their fangs and devour Israel.
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But even then the Lord’s anger will not be satisfied.
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His fist is still poised to strike.
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13 For after all this punishment, the people will still not repent.
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They will not seek the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
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14 Therefore, in a single day the Lord will destroy both the head and the tail,
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the noble palm branch and the lowly reed.
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15 The leaders of Israel are the head,
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and the lying prophets are the tail.
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16 For the leaders of the people have misled them.
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They have led them down the path of destruction.
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17 That is why the Lord takes no pleasure in the young men
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and shows no mercy even to the widows and orphans.
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For they are all wicked hypocrites,
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and they all speak foolishness.
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But even then the Lord’s anger will not be satisfied.
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His fist is still poised to strike.
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18 This wickedness is like a brushfire.
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It burns not only briers and thorns
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but also sets the forests ablaze.
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Its burning sends up clouds of smoke.
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19 The land will be blackened
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by the fury of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
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The people will be fuel for the fire,
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and no one will spare even his own brother.
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20 They will attack their neighbor on the right
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but will still be hungry.
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They will devour their neighbor on the left
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but will not be satisfied.
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In the end they will even eat their own children.
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21 Manasseh will feed on Ephraim,
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Ephraim will feed on Manasseh,
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and both will devour Judah.
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But even then the Lord’s anger will not be satisfied.
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His fist is still poised to strike. |