The Daily Audio Bible

4 Sons of Israel, hear ye the word of the Lord, for why doom is to the Lord with the dwellers of earth; for why truth is not, and mercy is not, and knowing of the Lord is not in earth. (Israelites, hear ye the word of the Lord, for judgement is with the Lord for the inhabitants of the land; for there is no truth, or love, or knowledge of the Lord, in the land.)

² Curse, and leasing, and man-quelling, and theft, and adultery flowed, and blood touched blood. (Curses, and lies, and man-killing, or murder, and theft, and adultery flowed, and blood touched blood.)

³ For this thing the earth shall mourn, and each that dwelleth in that land shall be sick, in the beast of the field, and in the bird of the air; but also the fishes of the sea shall be gathered together. (For this thing the land shall mourn, and everyone who liveth in that land shall die, and with them the wild beasts, and the birds of the air; and even the fish of the sea shall be gathered together, and taken away.)

⁴ Nevertheless each man deem not, and a man be not reproved; for thy people is as they that against-say the priest. (Nevertheless let no one judge the people, and let no one rebuke them; for my quarrel is with you, false priest/s.)

⁵ And thou shalt fall today, and the prophet also shall fall with thee; in the night I made thy mother to be still (and in the night I shall make thy mother Israel to die).

⁶ My people was still, for it had not knowing; for thou hast put away knowing, I shall put thee away, that thou use not priesthood to me; and for thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, also I shall forget thy sons. (My people were destroyed, for they had no knowledge; and for thou hast put away knowledge, I shall put thee away, so that thou be not my priests/My people were destroyed, for they did not acknowledge me; and for thou hast not acknowledged me, I shall put thee away, so that thou be not my priests; and for thou hast forgotten the Law, or the teaching, of thy God, I shall also forget thy sons, who also shall not be my priests.)

⁷ By the multitude of them, so they sinned against me. I shall change the glory of them into shame.

⁸ They shall eat (from) the sins of my people, and they shall raise (up) the souls of them to the wickedness of them.

⁹ And it shall be, as the people, so the priest; and I shall visit on him the ways of him, and I shall yield to him the thoughts of him. (And it shall be, as for the people, so for the priests; and I shall punish them for their ways, and I shall repay them for their deeds.)

¹⁰ And they shall eat, and they shall not be [ful]filled; they did fornication, and ceased not, for they forsook the Lord in not keeping (his word). (And they shall eat, but they shall not be fulfilled; for they worshipped idols, and ceased not, yea, they deserted the Lord, and followed other gods.)

¹¹ Fornication, and wine, and drunkenness do away the heart. (Wine and drunkenness do away clear thinking.)

¹² My people asked in his tree, and the staff thereof told to it; for the spirit of fornication deceived them, and they did fornication, (going away) from their God. (My people asked for counsel, or advice, from their piece of wood, and a staff, or a stick, told them what to do; and so the spirit of adultery, or of idolatry, deceived them, and they did adultery, or idolatry, and went away from their God.)

¹³ On the heads, either tops, of mountains they made sacrifice, and on the little hills they burnt incense under an oak, and a poplar, and a terebinth, for the shadow thereof was good. Therefore your daughters shall do fornication, and your wives shall be adulteresses. (On the tops of the mountains they made sacrifice, and on the little hills they burned incense under an oak, and a poplar, and a terebinth, for its shadow was good. And so your daughters do adultery, or idolatry, and your wives be adulteresses.)

¹⁴ I shall not visit on your daughters, when they do fornication, and on your wives, when they do adultery; for they lived with whores, and made sacrifice with men turned into women’s conditions. And the people that understandeth not, shall be beaten. (Yet I shall not punish your daughters, when they do adultery, or idolatry, and your wives, when they also do adultery, or idolatry; for ye yourselves have sought out whores, and made sacrifice to idols. And so the people who understandeth not, shall bring ruin upon themselves.)

¹⁵ If thou, Israel, doest fornication, namely (thou) Judah, trespass not; and do not ye enter into Gilgal, and go ye not into Bethaven, neither swear ye, The Lord liveth. (Even if thou, Israel, doest adultery, or idolatry, do not thou, Judah, trespass; and do not ye go to Gilgal, and go ye not to Bethaven, nor swear ye, As the Lord liveth.)

¹⁶ For as a wild cow Israel bowed away; now the Lord shall feed them as a lamb in broadness. (For Israel hath run away like a wild cow; but now the Lord shall feed them like a lamb in a broad pasture.)

¹⁷ Ephraim^[a] is the partner of idols, leave thou him;

¹⁸ the feast of them is parted. By fornication they did fornication, the defenders thereof loved to bring shame. (their feast is over; they adultery after adultery, that is, idolatry after idolatry, and they loved shame more than honour, or glory.)

¹⁹ The spirit bound him in his wings (The wind shall bind them up in its wings), and they shall be ashamed of their sacrifices.

5 Priests, hear ye this, and the house of Israel, perceive ye, and the house of the king, harken ye; for why doom is to you, for ye be made a snare to looking afar, and as a net spread abroad on Tabor (because now judgement is for you, for ye be made a snare at Mizpah, and like a net spread abroad upon Tabor).

² And ye bowed down sacrifices into (the) depth; and I am the learner of all them. (And ye made the most base, or wretched, sacrifices; and so I shall punish all of you.)

³ I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hid from me; for now Ephraim did fornication, Israel is defouled. (I know Ephraim, yea, Israel is not hid from me; for now Ephraim hath done adultery, or idolatry, Israel is now defiled.)

⁴ They shall not give their thoughts that they turn again to their God; for the spirit of fornication is in the midst of them, and they knew not the Lord. (They shall not turn their thoughts so that they return to their God; for the spirit of adultery, or of idolatry, is in their midst, and they do not know, or acknowledge, the Lord.)

⁵ And the boast of Israel shall answer into the face thereof, and Israel and Ephraim shall fall in their wickedness; also Judah shall fall with them. (And the boast of Israel crieth out against them, and Israel, yea, Ephraim, shall fall by their own wickedness; and Judah shall fall with them.)

⁶ In their flocks and in their droves, they go to seek the Lord, and they shall not find (him); he is taken away from them. (With their flocks and their herds, they go to seek the Lord, but they shall not find him; for he hath taken himself away from them.)

⁷ They trespassed against the Lord, for they engendered alien sons; now the month shall devour them with their parts. (They trespassed against the Lord, for they have begotten children who be strange, or foreign, to him; and soon they and their fields shall be devoured, or destroyed.)

⁸ Sound ye with a clarion in Gibeah, with a trump in Ramah; yell ye in Bethaven, after thy back, Benjamin.

⁹ Ephraim shall be into desolation, in the day of amending, and in the lineages of Israel I showed faith. (Ephraim shall be into desolation, on the day of correction; ye tribes of Israel, I have made known what shall surely be!)

¹⁰ The princes of Judah be made as (those) taking (over the) term; I shall shed out on them my wrath as water. (Judah’s rulers be made just like those who take over the land; I shall pour out my anger upon them like water.)

¹¹ Ephraim suffereth false challenge, and is broken by doom (Ephraim suffereth oppression, and is broken by injustice); for he began to go after filths.

¹² And I am as a moth to Ephraim, and as rot to the house of Judah. (And I am like a moth to Ephraim, or Israel, and like rot to the house of Judah.)

¹³ And Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his bond. And Ephraim went to Assur, and sent to the king venger. And he may not save you, neither he may unbind the bond from you. (And Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound. And Ephraim went to Assyria, and sent to the great king for help. But he cannot save you, nor can he cure you of your wound.)

¹⁴ For I am as a lioness to Ephraim, and as a whelp of a lion to the house of Judah. I myself shall take, and go, and take away, and none is that shall deliver. (For I am like a lioness to Ephraim, and like a lion’s cub to the house of Judah. I myself shall go, and shall tear them apart, and then shall carry them away, and no one shall be able to save, or rescue, them.)

¹⁵ I shall go, and turn again to my place, till ye fail, and seek my face. In their tribulation they shall rise early to me. (I shall go, and return to my place, until they fail, or suffer enough, and then seek my face. In their tribulation, they shall rise early in the morning to seek me.)

¹ The elder man, to the chosen lady [The elder man to the lady Electa], and to her children, which I love in truth; and not I alone, but also all men that know truth [but and all men that knew truth];

² for the truth that dwelleth in you, and with you shall be without end. [for the truth that dwelleth in you, and with you shall be into without end].

³ Grace be with you, mercy, and peace of God the Father, and of Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and charity.

⁴ I joyed full much, for I found of thy sons going in truth, as we received commandment of the Father.

⁵ And now I pray thee, lady, not as writing a new commandment to thee, but that that we had from the beginning, that we love each other.

⁶ And this is charity, that we walk after his commandments. For this is the commandment, that as ye heard at the beginning, walk ye in him.

⁷ For many deceivers went out into the world, which acknowledge not that Jesus Christ hath come in flesh; this is a deceiver and antichrist.

⁸ See ye yourselves, lest ye lose the things that ye have wrought, [but] that ye receive full meed;

⁹ witting that each man that goeth before [witting that each man that goeth away], and dwelleth not in the teaching of Christ, hath not God. He that dwelleth in the teaching [of Christ], hath both the Son and the Father.

¹⁰ If any man cometh to you, and bringeth not this teaching, do not ye receive him into your house, neither say to him, Hail.

¹¹ For he that saith to him, Hail, communeth with his evil works. Lo! I before-said to you, that ye be not confounded in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.

¹² I have more things to write to you, and I would not by parchment and ink [I having more things to write to you, would not by parchment and ink]; for I hope that I shall come to you, and speak mouth to mouth, that our joy be full.

¹³ The sons of thy chosen sister greet thee well [The sons of thy sister Electa greet thee well]. The grace of God be with thee. Amen.

125 The song of degrees. They that trust in the Lord be as the hill of Zion; he shall not be moved [into] without end, that dwelleth in Jerusalem. (They who trust in the Lord be like Mount Zion; it cannot be shaken, but it remaineth firm, or steadfast, forever.)

² Hills be in the compass of it, and the Lord is in the compass of his people; from this time now, and into the world. (Like the mountains, or the hills, be all around Jerusalem, so the Lord is all around his people; from this time now, and forever.)

³ For the Lord shall not leave the rod of sinners on the part of just men; that just men hold not forth their hands to wickedness. (For the rod of the sinners shall not remain over the land of the righteous; lest the righteous put forth their hands to wickedness.)

⁴ Lord, do thou well to good men; and to rightful in heart. (Lord, do thou good to good people; yea, to those with an upright heart.)

⁵ But the Lord shall lead them that bow into obligations, with them that work wickedness; peace be upon Israel. (But may the Lord lead forth those, who turn aside into depraved ways, with those who do evil. May peace be upon Israel.)

⁹ If a wise man striveth with a fool, whether he be wroth, or laugh, he shall not find rest.

¹⁰ Men-quellers hate a simple man; but just men seek his soul. (Murderers hate honest people; but the righteous seek them out.)

¹¹ A fool bringeth forth all his spirit; a wise man delayeth, and reserveth into (the) time (to) coming afterward.