The Daily Audio Bible
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Those Not Faithful Are Judged
12 Then the Word of the Lord came to me saying, 13 “Son of man, if a country sins against Me by not being faithful, I will put out My hand against it. I will destroy its store of bread, and send hunger against it, and take away both man and animal from it. 14 For even if these three men, Noah, Daniel and Job, were in this country, they would save only their own lives by being right and good,” says the Lord God. 15 “If I sent wild animals to pass through the land to kill its people and destroy it so that no one would go through it because of the wild animals, 16 even if these three men were in the land, as I live,” says the Lord God, “they could not save their sons or their daughters. They alone would be saved, but the country would be laid waste. 17 If I bring a sword against that country and say, ‘Let the sword pass through the country and cut off man and animal from it,’ 18 even if these three men were in the land, as I live,” says the Lord God, “they could not save their sons or their daughters. They alone would be saved. 19 Or if I send a disease against that country and show My anger by killing, to take away man and animal from it, 20 even if Noah, Daniel and Job were in the land, as I live,” says the Lord God, “they could not save their son or daughter. They would save only themselves by being right and good.
21 “For the Lord God says, ‘How much worse will it be when I send my four worst punishments against Jerusalem! I will send the sword, hunger, wild animals, and disease, to take away man and animal from it! 22 Yet there will be some people and their children left alive in it who will be brought out. When they come to you, see how sinful they are. Then you will know that all the trouble I brought upon Jerusalem was right. 23 It will help you when you see how they act. Then you will know that there was a good reason for everything I did,’ says the Lord God.”
Jerusalem—a Vine of No Worth
15 Then the Word of the Lord came to me saying, 2 “Son of man, how is the wood of the vine better than any wood of a branch among the trees? 3 Can wood be taken from it to make anything? Or can men take a piece of wood from it on which to hang a pot? 4 If it has been put into the fire to burn, and the fire has burned up both of its ends, and the center of it is black from the fire, can it then be used for anything? 5 See, if it is not used for anything while it is whole, how much less can it ever be used for anything when the fire has burned it up and it has turned black! 6 So the Lord God says, ‘Like the wood of the vine among the trees, which I have given to be burned in the fire, so will I give up the people of Jerusalem. 7 I will set My face against them. Even if they get away from the fire, the fire will yet destroy them. Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I set My face against them. 8 I will lay waste the land, because they have not been faithful,’” says the Lord God.
Jerusalem—Not Faithful
16 The Word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her hated sins. 3 Tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: “Your beginning and your birth are from the land of the Canaanite. Your father was an Amorite and your mother was a Hittite. 4 On the day you were born the cord between you and your mother was not cut. You were not washed with water to make you clean. You were not rubbed with salt or even covered with cloth. 5 No one looked with pity on you or did any of these things for you out of loving-kindness. Instead you were thrown out into the open field, for you were hated on the day you were born.
6 “When I passed by you and saw you rolling about in your blood, I said to you in your blood, ‘Live!’ Yes, I said to you while you were in your blood, ‘Live!’ 7 I made you become many, like plants of the field. Then you grew up and became tall. You grew into a beautiful woman. You had breasts and your hair had grown. Yet you were not covered and your body could be seen. 8 Then I passed by you and saw that you were old enough for love. So I spread my clothing over you and covered your body. I gave you my promise and made an agreement with you so that you became Mine,” says the Lord God. 9 “Then I washed you with water, washed the blood from you, and poured oil on you. 10 I dressed you with beautiful cloth, and put leather shoes on your feet. I dressed you with fine linen and covered you with silk. 11 I put on you objects of beauty. I put beautiful objects on your arms and around your neck. 12 I put rings in your nose and in your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. 13 So you were dressed with gold and silver. Your clothing was of fine linen, silk, and beautiful cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil. So you were very beautiful, and you became a queen. 14 Your name became known among the nations because of your beauty. For it was perfect because of My shining-greatness which I had given to you,” says the Lord God.
15 “But you trusted in your beauty. Because your name was well-known, you acted like a woman who sells the use of her body. And you did sex sins with anyone who passed by. 16 You took some of your clothes of many colors and made for yourself places of worship. There you acted like a woman who sells the use of her body. Such things should never happen or come to pass. 17 You also took your objects of beauty made of My gold and silver, which I had given you. And you used them to make things that looked like men, that you might play with them as a woman who sells the use of her body. 18 Then you took your beautiful cloth and covered them, and set My oil and My special perfume in front of them. 19 You also set in front of them My bread which I gave you, the fine flour, oil and honey I gave you to eat. You gave it all to them as a special perfume. So it was,” says the Lord God. 20 “You even took your sons and daughters whom you had given birth for Me, and gave them to the false gods to be destroyed. Were your sex sins too little? 21 You killed My children and gave them as burnt gifts to false gods. 22 And in all your hated acts and sex sins you did not remember the days when you were young. You did not remember when you were without clothing or covering, and when you rolled about in your blood.
23 “It is bad for you!” says the Lord God. “After all your sinful acts, 24 you built a place of worship for yourself, and a high place in every street. 25 You built yourself a high place at the beginning of every street and made your beauty a hated thing. You gave yourself to anyone who passed by, to make your sex sins many. 26 You also gave the use of your body to the Egyptians, your neighbors who have much desire for sex sins. And you sinned many times to make Me angry. 27 So I have raised My hand to punish you and have made your share smaller. I have given you over to the desire of those who hate you, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your sinful actions. 28 You also gave the use of your body to the Assyrians because you had not had enough. Yes, you even gave the use of your body to them and still thought you had not had enough. 29 You did many sex sins with Babylon, the land of those who trade. Yet even this was not enough for you.
30 “How sinful your heart is,” says the Lord God, “that you do all these things, the actions of a sinful woman, and show no shame. 31 You built your places of worship at the beginning of every street and made your high place at every crossing. But you were not like a woman who sells the use of her body, because you did not want pay. 32 You are like a wife who is not faithful and has strangers instead of her husband! 33 Men give gifts to all women who sell the use of their body. But you give your gifts to all your lovers. You pay them to come to you from everywhere for your sex sins. 34 You are different from other women in your sex sins. You go after men; they do not come to you. You pay men instead of them giving pay to you. Yes, you are different.”
God Judges Jerusalem
35 So, sinful woman, hear the Word of the Lord. 36 The Lord God says, “Your shame was poured out and your clothing was taken off because of your sex sins with your lovers and with all your hated false gods. And you killed your children and gave them to false gods. Because of these things, 37 I will gather all your lovers who pleased you. I will gather all those whom you loved and all those whom you hated. I will gather them against you from every side, and take off your covering so that they may see all your shame. 38 I will punish you as I punish women who are not faithful in marriage, or women who kill. I will do it in My anger and jealousy. 39 And I will give you over to your lovers. They will tear down your places of worship and destroy your high places. They will take all of your clothes and your beautiful objects, and will leave you without any covering. 40 They will bring up a group of people against you, and they will kill you with stones and cut you to pieces with their swords. 41 They will burn your houses with fire and punish you as many women watch. Then I will stop you from acting like a woman who sells the use of her body, and you will no longer pay your lovers.
18 God put the Law of Moses aside. It was weak and could not be used. 19 For the Law of Moses could not make men right with God. Now there is a better hope through which we can come near to God.
20 God made a promise when Christ became the Religious Leader Who made the way for man to go to God. 21 God did not make such a promise when Levi’s family group became religious leaders. But when Christ became a Religious Leader, this is the promise God made, “The Lord has made a promise. He will never change His mind. You will be a Religious Leader forever.” (A) 22 Christ makes this New Way of Worship sure for us because of God’s promise. 23 There had to be many religious leaders during the time of the Old Way of Worship. They died and others had to keep on in their work. 24 But Jesus lives forever. He is the Religious Leader forever. It will never change. 25 And so Jesus is able, now and forever, to save from the punishment of sin all who come to God through Him because He lives forever to pray for them.
26 We need such a Religious Leader Who made the way for man to go to God. Jesus is holy and has no guilt. He has never sinned and is different from sinful men. He has the place of honor above the heavens. 27 Christ is not like other religious leaders. They had to give gifts every day on the altar in worship for their own sins first and then for the sins of the people. Christ did not have to do that. He gave one gift on the altar and that gift was Himself. It was done once and it was for all time. 28 The Law makes religious leaders of men. These men are not perfect. After the Law was given, God spoke with a promise. He made His Son a perfect Religious Leader forever.
The Lord Is Good to His People
106 Praise the Lord! O give thanks to the Lord for He is good. His loving-kindness lasts forever. 2 Who can put into words the great works of the Lord? Who can make known all His praise? 3 Happy are those who are faithful in being fair and who always do what is right and good!
4 O Lord, remember me when You show favor to Your people. Visit me also when You save them. 5 So I may share in the well-being of Your chosen ones. So I may share in the joy of Your nation, and be proud of Your people.
6 We have sinned like our fathers. We have done wrong. We have been sinful in our actions. 7 Our fathers in Egypt did not understand Your powerful works. They did not remember how many times You showed Your loving-kindness. But they turned against You by the sea, the Red Sea. 8 Yet He saved them because of the honor of His name, and to make His great power known. 9 So He spoke sharp words to the Red Sea and it dried up. And He led them through the sea as through a desert. 10 He saved them from the hand of those who hated them. He set them free from the hand of those who went against them. 11 And the waters covered those who hated them. Not one of them was left. 12 Then they believed His promises. They sang His praise.
4 Anger causes trouble and a bad temper is like a flood, but who can stand when there is jealousy?
5 Sharp words spoken in the open are better than love that is hidden.
6 The pains given by a friend are faithful, but the kisses of one who hates you are false.
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