102 lines
4.2 KiB
Markdown
102 lines
4.2 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 65
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1 The Lord says,
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“I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help.
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I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me.
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I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’
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to a nation that did not call on my name.
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2 All day long I opened my arms to a rebellious people.
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But they follow their own evil paths
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and their own crooked schemes.
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3 All day long they insult me to my face
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by worshiping idols in their sacred gardens.
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They burn incense on pagan altars.
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4 At night they go out among the graves,
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worshiping the dead.
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They eat the flesh of pigs
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and make stews with other forbidden foods.
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5 Yet they say to each other,
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‘Don’t come too close or you will defile me!
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I am holier than you!’
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These people are a stench in my nostrils,
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an acrid smell that never goes away.
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6 “Look, my decree is written out in front of me:
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I will not stand silent;
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I will repay them in full!
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Yes, I will repay them—
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7 both for their own sins
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and for those of their ancestors,”
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says the Lord.
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“For they also burned incense on the mountains
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and insulted me on the hills.
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I will pay them back in full!
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8 “But I will not destroy them all,”
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says the Lord.
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“For just as good grapes are found among a cluster of bad ones
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(and someone will say, ‘Don’t throw them all away—
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some of those grapes are good!’),
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so I will not destroy all Israel.
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For I still have true servants there.
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9 I will preserve a remnant of the people of Israel
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and of Judah to possess my land.
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Those I choose will inherit it,
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and my servants will live there.
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10 The plain of Sharon will again be filled with flocks
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for my people who have searched for me,
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and the valley of Achor will be a place to pasture herds.
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11 “But because the rest of you have forsaken the Lord
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and have forgotten his Temple,
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and because you have prepared feasts to honor the god of Fate
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and have offered mixed wine to the god of Destiny,
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12 now I will ‘destine’ you for the sword.
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All of you will bow down before the executioner.
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For when I called, you did not answer.
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When I spoke, you did not listen.
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You deliberately sinned—before my very eyes—
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and chose to do what you know I despise.”
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13 Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
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“My servants will eat,
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but you will starve.
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My servants will drink,
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but you will be thirsty.
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My servants will rejoice,
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but you will be sad and ashamed.
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14 My servants will sing for joy,
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but you will cry in sorrow and despair.
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15 Your name will be a curse word among my people,
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for the Sovereign Lord will destroy you
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and will call his true servants by another name.
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16 All who invoke a blessing or take an oath
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will do so by the God of truth.
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For I will put aside my anger
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and forget the evil of earlier days.
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17 “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth,
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and no one will even think about the old ones anymore.
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18 Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation!
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And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness.
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Her people will be a source of joy.
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19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem
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and delight in my people.
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And the sound of weeping and crying
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will be heard in it no more.
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20 “No longer will babies die when only a few days old.
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No longer will adults die before they have lived a full life.
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No longer will people be considered old at one hundred!
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Only the cursed will die that young!
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21 In those days people will live in the houses they build
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and eat the fruit of their own vineyards.
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22 Unlike the past, invaders will not take their houses
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and confiscate their vineyards.
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For my people will live as long as trees,
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and my chosen ones will have time to enjoy their hard-won gains.
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23 They will not work in vain,
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and their children will not be doomed to misfortune.
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For they are people blessed by the Lord,
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and their children, too, will be blessed.
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24 I will answer them before they even call to me.
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While they are still talking about their needs,
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I will go ahead and answer their prayers!
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25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together.
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The lion will eat hay like a cow.
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But the snakes will eat dust.
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In those days no one will be hurt or destroyed on my holy mountain.
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I, the Lord, have spoken!” |