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10 “How prosperous Israel is—a luxuriant vine all filled with fruit! But the more wealth I give her, the more she pours it on the altars of her heathen gods; the richer the harvests I give her, the more beautiful the statues and idols she erects. 2 The hearts of her people are false toward God. They are guilty and must be punished. God will break down their heathen altars and smash their idols.”
3 Then they will say, “We deserted the Lord and he took away our king. But what’s the difference? We don’t need one anyway!”
4 They make promises they don’t intend to keep. Therefore punishment will spring up among them like poisonous weeds in the furrows of the field. 5 The people of Samaria tremble lest their calf idol at Beth-aven should be hurt; the priests and people, too, mourn over the departed honor of their shattered gods. 6 This idol—this calf-god thing—will be carted with them when they go as slaves to Assyria, a present to the great king there. Ephraim will be laughed at for trusting in this idol; Israel will be put to shame. 7 As for Samaria, her king shall disappear like a chip of wood upon an ocean wave. 8 And the idol altars of Aven at Bethel where Israel sinned will crumble. Thorns and thistles will grow up to surround them. And the people will cry to the mountains and hills to fall upon them and crush them.
9 “O Israel, ever since that awful night in Gibeah,[a] there has been only sin, sin, sin! You have made no progress whatever. Was it not right that the men of Gibeah were wiped out? 10 I will come against you for your disobedience; I will gather the armies of the nations against you to punish you for your heaped-up sins.
11 “Ephraim is accustomed to treading out the grain—an easy job she loves. I have never put her under a heavy yoke before; I have spared her tender neck. But now I will harness her to the plow and harrow. Her days of ease are gone.
12 “Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will reap a crop of my love; plow the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and shower salvation upon you.
13 “But you have cultivated wickedness and raised a thriving crop of sins. You have earned the full reward of trusting in a lie—believing that military might and great armies can make a nation safe!
14 “Therefore, the terrors of war shall rise among your people, and all your forts will fall, just as at Beth-arbel, which Shalman[b] destroyed; even mothers and children were dashed to death there. 15 That will be your fate, too, you people of Israel, because of your great wickedness. In one morning the king of Israel shall be destroyed.
11 “When Israel was a child, I loved him as a son and brought him out of Egypt. 2 But the more I called to him, the more he rebelled, sacrificing to Baal and burning incense to idols. 3 I trained him from infancy, I taught him to walk, I held him in my arms. But he doesn’t know or even care that it was I who raised him.
4 “As a man would lead his favorite ox,[c] so I led Israel with my ropes of love. I loosened his muzzle so he could eat. I myself have stooped and fed him. 5 But my people shall return to Egypt and Assyria because they won’t return to me.
6 “War will swirl through their cities; their enemies will crash through their gates and trap them in their own fortresses. 7 For my people are determined to desert me. And so I have sentenced them to slavery, and no one shall set them free.
8 “Oh, how can I give you up, my Ephraim? How can I let you go? How can I forsake you like Admah and Zeboiim?[d] My heart cries out within me; how I long to help you! 9 No, I will not punish you as much as my fierce anger tells me to. This is the last time I will destroy Ephraim. For I am God and not man; I am the Holy One living among you, and I did not come to destroy.
10 “For the people shall walk after the Lord. I shall roar as a lion at their enemies and my people shall return trembling from the west. 11 Like a flock of birds, they will come from Egypt—like doves flying from Assyria. And I will bring them home again; it is a promise from the Lord.”
12 Israel surrounds me with lies and deceit, but Judah still trusts in God and is faithful to the Holy One.
12 Israel is chasing the wind, yes, shepherding a whirlwind—a dangerous game![e] For she has given gifts to Egypt and Assyria to get their help, and in return she gets their worthless promises.
2 But the Lord is bringing a lawsuit against Judah. Jacob will be justly punished for his ways. 3 When he was born, he struggled with his brother; when he became a man, he even fought with God. 4 Yes, he wrestled with the Angel and prevailed. He wept and pleaded for a blessing from him. He met God there at Bethel face-to-face. God spoke to him— 5 the Lord, the God of heaven’s armies—Jehovah is his name.
6 Oh, come back to God. Live by the principles of love and justice, and always be expecting much from him, your God.
7 But no, my people are like crafty merchants selling from dishonest scales—they love to cheat. 8 Ephraim boasts, “I am so rich! I have gotten it all by myself!” But riches can’t make up for sin.
9 “I am the same Lord, the same God, who delivered you from slavery in Egypt, and I am the one who will consign you to living in tents again, as you do each year at the Tabernacle Feast. 10 I sent my prophets to warn you with many a vision and many a parable and dream.”
11 But the sins of Gilgal flourish just the same. Row on row of altars—like furrows in a field—are used for sacrifices to your idols. And Gilead, too, is full of fools[f] who worship idols. 12 Jacob fled to Syria and earned a wife by tending sheep. 13 Then the Lord led his people out of Egypt by a prophet, who guided and protected them. 14 But Ephraim has bitterly provoked the Lord. The Lord will sentence him to death as payment for his sins.
13 It used to be when Israel spoke, the nations shook with fear, for he was a mighty prince; but he worshiped Baal and sealed his doom.
2 And now the people disobey more and more. They melt their silver to mold into idols, formed with skill by the hands of men. “Sacrifice to these!” they say—men kissing calves! 3 They shall disappear like morning mist, like dew that quickly dries away, like chaff blown by the wind, like a cloud of smoke.
4 “I alone am God, your Lord, and have been ever since I brought you out from Egypt. You have no God but me, for there is no other Savior. 5 I took care of you in the wilderness, in that dry and thirsty land. 6 But when you had eaten and were satisfied, then you became proud and forgot me. 7 So I will come upon you like a lion, or a leopard lurking along the road. 8 I will rip you to pieces like a bear whose cubs have been taken away, and like a lion I will devour you.
9 “O Israel, if I destroy you, who can save you? 10 Where is your king? Why don’t you call on him for help? Where are all the leaders of the land? You asked for them, now let them save you! 11 I gave you kings in my anger, and I took them away[g] in my wrath. 12 Ephraim’s sins are harvested and stored away for punishment.
13 “New birth is offered him, but he is like a child resisting in the womb—how stubborn! how foolish! 14 Shall I ransom him from hell? Shall I redeem him from Death? O Death, bring forth your terrors for his tasting! O Grave, demonstrate your plagues! For I will not relent!
15 “He was called the most fruitful of all his brothers, but the east wind—a wind of the Lord from the desert—will blow hard upon him and dry up his land. All his flowing springs and green oases will dry away, and he will die of thirst. 16 Samaria must bear her guilt, for she rebelled against her God. Her people will be killed by the invading army, her babies dashed to death against the ground, her pregnant women ripped open with a sword.”
14 O Israel, return to the Lord, your God, for you have been crushed by your sins. 2 Bring your petition. Come to the Lord and say, “O Lord, take away our sins; be gracious to us and receive us, and we will offer you the sacrifice of praise. 3 Assyria cannot save us, nor can our strength in battle; never again will we call the idols we have made ‘our gods’; for in you alone, O Lord, the fatherless find mercy.”
4 “Then I will cure you of idolatry and faithlessness, and my love will know no bounds, for my anger will be forever gone! 5 I will refresh Israel like the dew from heaven; she will blossom as the lily and root deeply in the soil like cedars in Lebanon. 6 Her branches will spread out as beautiful as olive trees, fragrant as the forests of Lebanon. 7 Her people will return from exile far away and rest beneath my shadow. They will be a watered garden and blossom like grapes; they will be as fragrant as the wines of Lebanon.
8 “O Ephraim! Stay away from idols! I am living and strong! I look after you and care for you. I am like an evergreen tree, yielding my fruit to you throughout the year. My mercies never fail.”
9 Whoever is wise, let him understand these things. Whoever is intelligent, let him listen. For the paths of the Lord are true and right, and good men walk along them. But sinners trying them will fail.
1 From: Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ, and a brother of James.
To: Christians everywhere—beloved of God and chosen by him. 2 May you be given more and more of God’s kindness, peace, and love.
3 Dearly loved friends, I had been planning to write you some thoughts about the salvation God has given us, but now I find I must write of something else instead, urging you to stoutly defend the truth that God gave once for all to his people to keep without change through the years. 4 I say this because some godless teachers have wormed their way in among you, saying that after we become Christians we can do just as we like without fear of God’s punishment. The fate of such people was written long ago, for they have turned against our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.
5 My answer to them is: Remember this fact—which you know already—that the Lord saved a whole nation of people out of the land of Egypt and then killed every one of them who did not trust and obey him. 6 And I remind you of those angels who were once pure and holy but turned to a life of sin.[a] Now God has them chained up in prisons of darkness, waiting for the judgment day. 7 And don’t forget the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring towns, all full of lust of every kind, including lust of men for other men. Those cities were destroyed by fire and continue to be a warning to us that there is a hell in which sinners are punished.
8 Yet these false teachers carelessly go right on living their evil, immoral lives, degrading their bodies and laughing at those in authority over them, even scoffing at the Glorious Ones. 9 Yet Michael, one of the mightiest of the angels, when he was arguing with Satan about Moses’ body, did not dare to accuse even Satan, or jeer at him, but simply said, “The Lord rebuke you.” 10 But these men mock and curse at anything they do not understand, and like animals, they do whatever they feel like, thereby ruining their souls.
11 Woe upon them! For they follow the example of Cain who killed his brother; and like Balaam, they will do anything for money; and like Korah, they have disobeyed God and will die under his curse.
12 When these men join you at the love feasts of the church, they are evil smears among you, laughing and carrying on, gorging and stuffing themselves without a thought for others. They are like clouds blowing over dry land without giving rain, promising much, but producing nothing. They are like fruit trees without any fruit at picking time. They are not only dead, but doubly dead, for they have been pulled out, roots and all, to be burned.
13 All they leave behind them is shame and disgrace like the dirty foam left along the beach by the wild waves. They wander around looking as bright as stars, but ahead of them is the everlasting gloom and darkness that God has prepared for them.
14 Enoch, who lived seven generations after Adam, knew about these men and said this about them: “See, the Lord is coming with millions of his holy ones. 15 He will bring the people of the world before him in judgment, to receive just punishment and to prove the terrible things they have done in rebellion against God, revealing all they have said against him.” 16 These men are constant gripers, never satisfied, doing whatever evil they feel like; they are loudmouthed “show-offs,” and when they show respect for others, it is only to get something from them in return.
17 Dear friends, remember what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ told you, 18 that in the last times there would come these scoffers whose whole purpose in life is to enjoy themselves in every evil way imaginable. 19 They stir up arguments; they love the evil things of the world; they do not have the Holy Spirit living in them.
20 But you, dear friends, must build up your lives ever more strongly upon the foundation of our holy faith, learning to pray in the power and strength of the Holy Spirit.
21 Stay always within the boundaries where God’s love can reach and bless you. Wait patiently for the eternal life that our Lord Jesus Christ in his mercy is going to give you. 22 Try to help those who argue against you. Be merciful to those who doubt. 23 Save some by snatching them as from the very flames of hell itself. And as for others, help them to find the Lord by being kind to them, but be careful that you yourselves aren’t pulled along into their sins. Hate every trace of their sin while being merciful to them as sinners.
24-25 And now—all glory to him who alone is God, who saves us through Jesus Christ our Lord; yes, splendor and majesty, all power and authority are his from the beginning; his they are and his they evermore shall be. And he is able to keep you from slipping and falling away, and to bring you, sinless and perfect, into his glorious presence with mighty shouts of everlasting joy. Amen.
Jude
127 Unless the Lord builds a house, the builders’ work is useless. Unless the Lord protects a city, sentries do no good. 2 It is senseless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night, fearing you will starve to death; for God wants his loved ones to get their proper rest.
3 Children are a gift from God; they are his reward. 4 Children born to a young man are like sharp arrows to defend him.
5 Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. That man shall have the help he needs when arguing with his enemies.[a]
15 Scolding and spanking a child helps him to learn. Left to himself, he brings shame to his mother.
16 When rulers are wicked, their people are too; but good men will live to see the tyrant’s downfall.
17 Discipline your son and he will give you happiness and peace of mind.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.