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Jeremiah 23:9-25:14
New International Version
Jeremiah 23:9-25:14
New International Version
Lying Prophets
9 Concerning the prophets:
My heart(A) is broken within me;
all my bones tremble.(B)
I am like a drunken man,
like a strong man overcome by wine,
because of the Lord
and his holy words.(C)
10 The land is full of adulterers;(D)
because of the curse[a](E) the land lies parched
and the pastures(F) in the wilderness are withered.(G)
The prophets follow an evil course
and use their power unjustly.
11 “Both prophet and priest are godless;(H)
even in my temple(I) I find their wickedness,”
declares the Lord.
12 “Therefore their path will become slippery;(J)
they will be banished to darkness
and there they will fall.
I will bring disaster on them
in the year they are punished,(K)”
declares the Lord.
13 “Among the prophets of Samaria
I saw this repulsive thing:
They prophesied by Baal(L)
and led my people Israel astray.(M)
14 And among the prophets of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:(N)
They commit adultery and live a lie.(O)
They strengthen the hands of evildoers,(P)
so that not one of them turns from their wickedness.(Q)
They are all like Sodom(R) to me;
the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”(S)
15 Therefore this is what the Lord Almighty says concerning the prophets:
“I will make them eat bitter food
and drink poisoned water,(T)
because from the prophets of Jerusalem
ungodliness(U) has spread throughout the land.”
16 This is what the Lord Almighty says:
“Do not listen(V) to what the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions(W) from their own minds,
not from the mouth(X) of the Lord.
17 They keep saying(Y) to those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’(Z)
And to all who follow the stubbornness(AA) of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm(AB) will come to you.’
18 But which of them has stood in the council(AC) of the Lord
to see or to hear his word?
Who has listened and heard his word?
19 See, the storm(AD) of the Lord
will burst out in wrath,
a whirlwind(AE) swirling down
on the heads of the wicked.
20 The anger(AF) of the Lord will not turn back(AG)
until he fully accomplishes
the purposes of his heart.
In days to come
you will understand it clearly.
21 I did not send(AH) these prophets,
yet they have run with their message;
I did not speak to them,
yet they have prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my council,(AI)
they would have proclaimed(AJ) my words to my people
and would have turned(AK) them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds.(AL)
23 “Am I only a God nearby,(AM)”
declares the Lord,
“and not a God far away?
24 Who can hide(AN) in secret places
so that I cannot see them?”
declares the Lord.
“Do not I fill heaven and earth?”(AO)
declares the Lord.
25 “I have heard what the prophets say who prophesy lies(AP) in my name. They say, ‘I had a dream!(AQ) I had a dream!’ 26 How long will this continue in the hearts of these lying prophets, who prophesy the delusions(AR) of their own minds?(AS) 27 They think the dreams they tell one another will make my people forget(AT) my name, just as their ancestors forgot(AU) my name through Baal worship.(AV) 28 Let the prophet who has a dream(AW) recount the dream, but let the one who has my word(AX) speak it faithfully. For what has straw to do with grain?” declares the Lord. 29 “Is not my word like fire,”(AY) declares the Lord, “and like a hammer(AZ) that breaks a rock in pieces?
30 “Therefore,” declares the Lord, “I am against(BA) the prophets(BB) who steal from one another words supposedly from me. 31 Yes,” declares the Lord, “I am against the prophets who wag their own tongues and yet declare, ‘The Lord declares.’(BC) 32 Indeed, I am against those who prophesy false dreams,(BD)” declares the Lord. “They tell them and lead my people astray(BE) with their reckless lies,(BF) yet I did not send(BG) or appoint them. They do not benefit(BH) these people in the least,” declares the Lord.
False Prophecy
33 “When these people, or a prophet or a priest, ask you, ‘What is the message(BI) from the Lord?’ say to them, ‘What message? I will forsake(BJ) you, declares the Lord.’ 34 If a prophet or a priest or anyone else claims, ‘This is a message(BK) from the Lord,’ I will punish(BL) them and their household. 35 This is what each of you keeps saying to your friends and other Israelites: ‘What is the Lord’s answer?’(BM) or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 36 But you must not mention ‘a message from the Lord’ again, because each one’s word becomes their own message. So you distort(BN) the words of the living God,(BO) the Lord Almighty, our God. 37 This is what you keep saying to a prophet: ‘What is the Lord’s answer to you?’ or ‘What has the Lord spoken?’ 38 Although you claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ this is what the Lord says: You used the words, ‘This is a message from the Lord,’ even though I told you that you must not claim, ‘This is a message from the Lord.’ 39 Therefore, I will surely forget you and cast(BP) you out of my presence along with the city I gave to you and your ancestors. 40 I will bring on you everlasting disgrace(BQ)—everlasting shame that will not be forgotten.”
Two Baskets of Figs
24 After Jehoiachin[b](BR) son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and the officials, the skilled workers and the artisans of Judah were carried into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, the Lord showed me two baskets of figs(BS) placed in front of the temple of the Lord. 2 One basket had very good figs, like those that ripen early;(BT) the other basket had very bad(BU) figs, so bad they could not be eaten.
3 Then the Lord asked me, “What do you see,(BV) Jeremiah?”
“Figs,” I answered. “The good ones are very good, but the bad ones are so bad they cannot be eaten.”
4 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 5 “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘Like these good figs, I regard as good the exiles from Judah, whom I sent(BW) away from this place to the land of the Babylonians.[c] 6 My eyes will watch over them for their good, and I will bring them back(BX) to this land. I will build(BY) them up and not tear them down; I will plant(BZ) them and not uproot them. 7 I will give them a heart to know(CA) me, that I am the Lord. They will be my people,(CB) and I will be their God, for they will return(CC) to me with all their heart.(CD)
8 “‘But like the bad(CE) figs, which are so bad they cannot be eaten,’ says the Lord, ‘so will I deal with Zedekiah(CF) king of Judah, his officials(CG) and the survivors(CH) from Jerusalem, whether they remain in this land or live in Egypt.(CI) 9 I will make them abhorrent(CJ) and an offense to all the kingdoms of the earth, a reproach and a byword,(CK) a curse[d](CL) and an object of ridicule, wherever I banish(CM) them. 10 I will send the sword,(CN) famine(CO) and plague(CP) against them until they are destroyed from the land I gave to them and their ancestors.(CQ)’”
Seventy Years of Captivity
25 The word came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim(CR) son of Josiah king of Judah, which was the first year of Nebuchadnezzar(CS) king of Babylon. 2 So Jeremiah the prophet said to all the people of Judah(CT) and to all those living in Jerusalem: 3 For twenty-three years—from the thirteenth year of Josiah(CU) son of Amon king of Judah until this very day—the word of the Lord has come to me and I have spoken to you again and again,(CV) but you have not listened.(CW)
4 And though the Lord has sent all his servants the prophets(CX) to you again and again, you have not listened or paid any attention.(CY) 5 They said, “Turn(CZ) now, each of you, from your evil ways and your evil practices, and you can stay in the land(DA) the Lord gave to you and your ancestors for ever and ever. 6 Do not follow other gods(DB) to serve and worship them; do not arouse my anger with what your hands have made. Then I will not harm you.”
7 “But you did not listen to me,” declares the Lord, “and you have aroused(DC) my anger with what your hands have made,(DD) and you have brought harm(DE) to yourselves.”
8 Therefore the Lord Almighty says this: “Because you have not listened to my words, 9 I will summon(DF) all the peoples of the north(DG) and my servant(DH) Nebuchadnezzar(DI) king of Babylon,” declares the Lord, “and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy[e](DJ) them and make them an object of horror and scorn,(DK) and an everlasting ruin.(DL) 10 I will banish from them the sounds(DM) of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom,(DN) the sound of millstones(DO) and the light of the lamp.(DP) 11 This whole country will become a desolate wasteland,(DQ) and these nations will serve(DR) the king of Babylon seventy years.(DS)
12 “But when the seventy years(DT) are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon(DU) and his nation, the land of the Babylonians,[f] for their guilt,” declares the Lord, “and will make it desolate(DV) forever. 13 I will bring on that land all the things I have spoken against it, all that are written(DW) in this book and prophesied by Jeremiah against all the nations. 14 They themselves will be enslaved(DX) by many nations(DY) and great kings; I will repay(DZ) them according to their deeds and the work of their hands.”
Footnotes
- Jeremiah 23:10 Or because of these things
- Jeremiah 24:1 Hebrew Jeconiah, a variant of Jehoiachin
- Jeremiah 24:5 Or Chaldeans
- Jeremiah 24:9 That is, their names will be used in cursing (see 29:22); or, others will see that they are cursed.
- Jeremiah 25:9 The Hebrew term refers to the irrevocable giving over of things or persons to the Lord, often by totally destroying them.
- Jeremiah 25:12 Or Chaldeans
Jeremiah 23:9-25:14
King James Version
Jeremiah 23:9-25:14
King James Version
9 Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the Lord, and because of the words of his holiness.
10 For the land is full of adulterers; for because of swearing the land mourneth; the pleasant places of the wilderness are dried up, and their course is evil, and their force is not right.
11 For both prophet and priest are profane; yea, in my house have I found their wickedness, saith the Lord.
12 Wherefore their way shall be unto them as slippery ways in the darkness: they shall be driven on, and fall therein: for I will bring evil upon them, even the year of their visitation, saith the Lord.
13 And I have seen folly in the prophets of Samaria; they prophesied in Baal, and caused my people Israel to err.
14 I have seen also in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies: they strengthen also the hands of evildoers, that none doth return from his wickedness; they are all of them unto me as Sodom, and the inhabitants thereof as Gomorrah.
15 Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts concerning the prophets; Behold, I will feed them with wormwood, and make them drink the water of gall: for from the prophets of Jerusalem is profaneness gone forth into all the land.
16 Thus saith the Lord of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.
17 They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you.
18 For who hath stood in the counsel of the Lord, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it?
19 Behold, a whirlwind of the Lord is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked.
20 The anger of the Lord shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly.
21 I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied.
22 But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.
23 Am I a God at hand, saith the Lord, and not a God afar off?
24 Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the Lord.
25 I have heard what the prophets said, that prophesy lies in my name, saying, I have dreamed, I have dreamed.
26 How long shall this be in the heart of the prophets that prophesy lies? yea, they are prophets of the deceit of their own heart;
27 Which think to cause my people to forget my name by their dreams which they tell every man to his neighbour, as their fathers have forgotten my name for Baal.
28 The prophet that hath a dream, let him tell a dream; and he that hath my word, let him speak my word faithfully. What is the chaff to the wheat? saith the Lord.
29 Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
30 Therefore, behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that steal my words every one from his neighbour.
31 Behold, I am against the prophets, saith the Lord, that use their tongues, and say, He saith.
32 Behold, I am against them that prophesy false dreams, saith the Lord, and do tell them, and cause my people to err by their lies, and by their lightness; yet I sent them not, nor commanded them: therefore they shall not profit this people at all, saith the Lord.
33 And when this people, or the prophet, or a priest, shall ask thee, saying, What is the burden of the Lord? thou shalt then say unto them, What burden? I will even forsake you, saith the Lord.
34 And as for the prophet, and the priest, and the people, that shall say, The burden of the Lord, I will even punish that man and his house.
35 Thus shall ye say every one to his neighbour, and every one to his brother, What hath the Lord answered? and, What hath the Lord spoken?
36 And the burden of the Lord shall ye mention no more: for every man's word shall be his burden; for ye have perverted the words of the living God, of the Lord of hosts our God.
37 Thus shalt thou say to the prophet, What hath the Lord answered thee? and, What hath the Lord spoken?
38 But since ye say, The burden of the Lord; therefore thus saith the Lord; Because ye say this word, The burden of the Lord, and I have sent unto you, saying, Ye shall not say, The burden of the Lord;
39 Therefore, behold, I, even I, will utterly forget you, and I will forsake you, and the city that I gave you and your fathers, and cast you out of my presence:
40 And I will bring an everlasting reproach upon you, and a perpetual shame, which shall not be forgotten.
24 The Lord shewed me, and, behold, two baskets of figs were set before the temple of the Lord, after that Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the carpenters and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.
2 One basket had very good figs, even like the figs that are first ripe: and the other basket had very naughty figs, which could not be eaten, they were so bad.
3 Then said the Lord unto me, What seest thou, Jeremiah? And I said, Figs; the good figs, very good; and the evil, very evil, that cannot be eaten, they are so evil.
4 Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
5 Thus saith the Lord, the God of Israel; Like these good figs, so will I acknowledge them that are carried away captive of Judah, whom I have sent out of this place into the land of the Chaldeans for their good.
6 For I will set mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them again to this land: and I will build them, and not pull them down; and I will plant them, and not pluck them up.
7 And I will give them an heart to know me, that I am the Lord: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart.
8 And as the evil figs, which cannot be eaten, they are so evil; surely thus saith the Lord, So will I give Zedekiah the king of Judah, and his princes, and the residue of Jerusalem, that remain in this land, and them that dwell in the land of Egypt:
9 And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them.
10 And I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, among them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave unto them and to their fathers.
25 The word that came to Jeremiah concerning all the people of Judah in the fourth year of Jehoiakim the son of Josiah king of Judah, that was the first year of Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon;
2 The which Jeremiah the prophet spake unto all the people of Judah, and to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, saying,
3 From the thirteenth year of Josiah the son of Amon king of Judah, even unto this day, that is the three and twentieth year, the word of the Lord hath come unto me, and I have spoken unto you, rising early and speaking; but ye have not hearkened.
4 And the Lord hath sent unto you all his servants the prophets, rising early and sending them; but ye have not hearkened, nor inclined your ear to hear.
5 They said, Turn ye again now every one from his evil way, and from the evil of your doings, and dwell in the land that the Lord hath given unto you and to your fathers for ever and ever:
6 And go not after other gods to serve them, and to worship them, and provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; and I will do you no hurt.
7 Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, saith the Lord; that ye might provoke me to anger with the works of your hands to your own hurt.
8 Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts; Because ye have not heard my words,
9 Behold, I will send and take all the families of the north, saith the Lord, and Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon, my servant, and will bring them against this land, and against the inhabitants thereof, and against all these nations round about, and will utterly destroy them, and make them an astonishment, and an hissing, and perpetual desolations.
10 Moreover I will take from them the voice of mirth, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the sound of the millstones, and the light of the candle.
11 And this whole land shall be a desolation, and an astonishment; and these nations shall serve the king of Babylon seventy years.
12 And it shall come to pass, when seventy years are accomplished, that I will punish the king of Babylon, and that nation, saith the Lord, for their iniquity, and the land of the Chaldeans, and will make it perpetual desolations.
13 And I will bring upon that land all my words which I have pronounced against it, even all that is written in this book, which Jeremiah hath prophesied against all the nations.
14 For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also: and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands.
1 Thessalonians 4
New International Version
1 Thessalonians 4
New International Version
Living to Please God
4 As for other matters, brothers and sisters,(A) we instructed you how to live(B) in order to please God,(C) as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. 2 For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
3 It is God’s will(D) that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality;(E) 4 that each of you should learn to control your own body[a](F) in a way that is holy and honorable, 5 not in passionate lust(G) like the pagans,(H) who do not know God;(I) 6 and that in this matter no one should wrong or take advantage of a brother or sister.[b](J) The Lord will punish(K) all those who commit such sins,(L) as we told you and warned you before. 7 For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.(M) 8 Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.(N)
9 Now about your love for one another(O) we do not need to write to you,(P) for you yourselves have been taught by God(Q) to love each other.(R) 10 And in fact, you do love all of God’s family throughout Macedonia.(S) Yet we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more,(T) 11 and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands,(U) just as we told you, 12 so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders(V) and so that you will not be dependent on anybody.
Believers Who Have Died
13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed(W) about those who sleep in death,(X) so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.(Y) 14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again,(Z) and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.(AA) 15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,(AB) will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.(AC) 16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven,(AD) with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel(AE) and with the trumpet call of God,(AF) and the dead in Christ will rise first.(AG) 17 After that, we who are still alive and are left(AH) will be caught up together with them in the clouds(AI) to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord(AJ) forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another(AK) with these words.
Footnotes
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 Or learn to live with your own wife; or learn to acquire a wife
- 1 Thessalonians 4:6 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a believer, whether man or woman, as part of God’s family.
1 Thessalonians 4
King James Version
1 Thessalonians 4
King James Version
4 Furthermore then we beseech you, brethren, and exhort you by the Lord Jesus, that as ye have received of us how ye ought to walk and to please God, so ye would abound more and more.
2 For ye know what commandments we gave you by the Lord Jesus.
3 For this is the will of God, even your sanctification, that ye should abstain from fornication:
4 That every one of you should know how to possess his vessel in sanctification and honour;
5 Not in the lust of concupiscence, even as the Gentiles which know not God:
6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified.
7 For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.
8 He therefore that despiseth, despiseth not man, but God, who hath also given unto us his holy Spirit.
9 But as touching brotherly love ye need not that I write unto you: for ye yourselves are taught of God to love one another.
10 And indeed ye do it toward all the brethren which are in all Macedonia: but we beseech you, brethren, that ye increase more and more;
11 And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;
12 That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and that ye may have lack of nothing.
13 But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15 For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
18 Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
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Proverbs 24:23-34
New International Version
Proverbs 24:23-34
New International Version
Further Sayings of the Wise
23 These also are sayings of the wise:(A)
To show partiality(B) in judging is not good:(C)
24 Whoever says to the guilty, “You are innocent,”(D)
will be cursed by peoples and denounced by nations.
25 But it will go well with those who convict the guilty,
and rich blessing will come on them.
26 An honest answer
is like a kiss on the lips.
27 Put your outdoor work in order
and get your fields ready;
after that, build your house.
28 Do not testify against your neighbor without cause(E)—
would you use your lips to mislead?
29 Do not say, “I’ll do to them as they have done to me;
I’ll pay them back for what they did.”(F)
30 I went past the field of a sluggard,(G)
past the vineyard of someone who has no sense;
31 thorns had come up everywhere,
the ground was covered with weeds,
and the stone wall was in ruins.
32 I applied my heart to what I observed
and learned a lesson from what I saw:
33 A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest(H)—
34 and poverty will come on you like a thief
and scarcity like an armed man.(I)
Proverbs 24:23-34
King James Version
Proverbs 24:23-34
King James Version
23 These things also belong to the wise. It is not good to have respect of persons in judgment.
24 He that saith unto the wicked, Thou are righteous; him shall the people curse, nations shall abhor him:
25 But to them that rebuke him shall be delight, and a good blessing shall come upon them.
26 Every man shall kiss his lips that giveth a right answer.
27 Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house.
28 Be not a witness against thy neighbour without cause; and deceive not with thy lips.
29 Say not, I will do so to him as he hath done to me: I will render to the man according to his work.
30 I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;
31 And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down.
32 Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction.
33 Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep:
34 So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man.
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