The Bible discusses a time that is coming that it the 'Great Tribulation'.

Matt 24:21

KVJ For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

American Standard Version for then shall be great tribulation, such as hath not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever shall be.

The Emphasized Bible For there will be then Great tribulation, Such as hath not happened from the beginning of the world until the present time, Neither in any wise shall happen.

NW Translation for then there will be great tribulation such as has not occurred since the world’s beginning until now, no, nor will occur again.

I've heard a LOT of rhetoric around what that means. But Jesus was pretty specific in Matthew 24 about how matters would transpire.

In the opening verses of Matt 24 he tells his disciples to look for:

wars and reports of wars. See that you are not alarmed, for these things must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be food shortages and earthquakes in one place after another. All these things are a beginning of pangs of distress.

Then people will hand you over to tribulation (Note, NOT the great tribulation) and will kill you, and you will be hated by all the nations on account of my name. Then, too, many will be stumbled and will betray one another and will hate one another. Many false prophets will arise and mislead many; and because of the increasing of lawlessness, the love of the greater number will grow cold. But the one who has endured to the end will be saved. And this good news of the Kingdom will be preached in all the inhabited earth for a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

It is only then that we see him introduce the idea in verse 21 of the 'Great Tribulation' that befalls all humankind. A global circumstance that is worse than anything man has seen before.

That means, look at history, all the worst stuff we've done to each other? Just the warm up.

Just the horrible horrible warmup.

What will get us through that? Faith. A relationship with the Creator, with God. IDK what atheists will make of the situation. My guess is the perception of aliens will somehow play in. A plausible explanation as to why the world is going to hell in a hand basket.

Not that it isn't already there.

But wait, there's more!

Its sometime during this period that the Book of Revelation discusses the idea of the 'harlot' (false religion) being destroyed by the world's governments.

It is an incredible development. Monumental. We think mankind has has some landmark events, but they'll be footnotes in history. Humanity will NEVER forget what Jesus dropped in that discussion at Matt 24:21.

what's wrong with me?

As with all things hypocritepoet, I want to make it about me. Maybe you too.

This isn't new information. if it's new to you, google great tribulation what is is wol.jw.org and get informed. Study God's word the Bible. This isn't a drill and it isn't a joke.

My question is, 'what's wrong with me?'. I've been a serious student of the Bible for more than 40 years. I lived my entire life like it was going to trigger tomorrow. Any day of the week for more than 2100 weeks, that's 15,000+ days, I lived like it could start.

That's not hyperbolic.

It's true, there were times when it felt more immediate than others. But rarely did more than a week go by before I began to feel that sense of urgency.

So, why, dear dear reader, is it that as I face the doorway to old age, does it finally feel on an emotional level that it could be decades away?

this Isn't an intellectual matter. I KNOW it can't be far off. Matt 24 has been largely fulfilled in my short life, but the emotion of it is different.

I an only say it must be relate to a weakened faith or that somehow my hope in a better future is tarnished. For so long, no matter how bad things got, how dark the day became, I could imagine things getting better. I saw myself make real progress emotionally and spiritually.

For the first time, I feel stuck. Stuck in time, stuck in location.

There's been 10 years of family tragedy involving deaths, suicides, disablements, sickness and disarray. That is definitely adding up, taking it's toll. I was able to live past it for a long time. As in: keep my face to the wind and endure.

But along the way, something broke in me. I lost my balance and when I reached out to regain it, all i found was vacuum. a tipping chair that when you realize you're going over and you grab, all you get is air until you clatter to the floor.

And like falling over, it hurts, but it isn't life-ending. Which is why i'm supremely confident that God's word is true and that the promises in it will be fulfilled.

I no longer feel the certainty that I am in line with His standards and have a place in his Kingdom, but that's okay. I trust His son, Jesus to make the right call, all things considered and accept whatever judgment comes from that.

I guess what i'm saying is, I don't mind where I came from, I don't mind where I'm going. What frustrates me is, where I am.

But, as they say, this too shall pass. I'm serving some kind of purpose here in Dust Meridian. I'm not sure what it is. But for whatever reason I'm here and I intend to use my time in the best way possible. There are a lot of minds that are set in stone, no changing them. Instead, i'll put my energy into helping shape the soft clay to be better teachers, more attentive shepherds and better friends.

Friends.

Jehovah says he'll be there for us. and I think in large part they way he does that is through our friends.

Worry

Worry distracts us and doesn't fix anything. But we can't help but do it.

Another thing Jesus said was that it would come as a surprise. So, maybe, just maybe the shift in emotion of desperate expectation to quiet surrender is an indication that I'm getting ready to be surprised.

Let's hope that's true. And that tomorrow, we both wake up shocked and a little bit scared.

#essay #bible

I believe that there is one story in the world, and only one, that has been writing itself over and over again—one story. The story of good and evil.

Originally published 2025-04-08 13:24:24

There’s a farm road I take when I need to cross town and I’m not in a hurry. It skirts the city, wrapping around it gently, and deposits me where I need to be. There are many things on this farm road.

There’s an old sign shop with “JUNK” splashed across the yard. There’s a big red barn—metal and modern, but designed to look like something out of a North Carolina postcard. There’s a row of country homes, spaced so widely apart you couldn’t walk door-to-door without turning it into a day trip. You have to drive to visit all your neighbors out here.

One of those houses catches my eye every time. The yard is cluttered with used cars and trailers. The owner clearly sells trailers, maybe even builds them. I can see the large metal building way in the back of the property—his workshop. It reminds me of my father. He built trailers in his garage, too. He built railings, worked on cars, created things from scratch. His hands were never still.

But I think about this man now, the trailer-seller, and his neighbors. The homes flanking his are neat and manicured, with green lawns and white fences made of old oilfield pipe—a crude material turned elegant by effort and paint. The trailer man’s fence is rusted and brown, like the rest of his property. I wonder how his neighbors feel.

We can't choose our neighbors. We can only be patient with them. I try to be a good neighbor. I suppose that matters. After all, we wouldn’t want everyone to be exactly like us. The differences test our patience. They shape our character. No man is an island.

We need our culture. We need our people. We need our worker bees and queen bees. We need our ditch diggers and maybe even our politicians. More than anything, we need the Kingdom.

Under the Kingdom, people will learn to be kind. If someone builds trailers in their yard, they'll do it with care. And if they don’t, neighbors will speak with grace instead of letting resentment brew.

I’m passing a house now that’s under construction. The roof deck is up, felt paper waiting for shingles. I can see the toe boards nailed across the steep pitch—the same kind I used when I was a roofer.

I remember those days. It feels like yesterday. I knew the work so well. Even now, I could get out of the car, pick up a bundle of shingles and a hammer, and by afternoon I’d have a good-sized portion of roof done. And yet, I’m not a roofer anymore. We aren’t always what we once were, even if the knowledge never leaves us.

Some of us were once lost, and now try to do good. But we still hold the capacity for bad. We may still desire it. Sometimes it slips out in moments of passion. When does that make us wicked? Only if we willingly choose the wrong we know to be wrong. Perhaps that was Lot’s wife’s failure.

Maybe she didn’t look back out of weakness. Maybe she was simply honest. She didn’t want to leave. Her life was there. Her home. Her identity. Was it so wrong to mourn what she was being pulled from? The Bible says she became a pillar of salt. We think of that as punishment. But maybe it was mercy.

Maybe God knew she wouldn’t survive the wilderness. Maybe turning her to salt spared her a different kind of death. Maybe it was the kindest thing. The hand of flaming fire and hailstone never touched her. Maybe that was the best ending she could have. As a bonus, we get a lesson on faithfulness.

I think about that as I drive. I think about myself. I ask a question I wrote the other day: If I am becoming her. I keep looking back. I can’t seem to stop. I keep desiring, wanting. I’ve lost things—goals, faith, the hope of being someone respected. A man of standing. A man of God.

Can I reclaim those things?

No doubt—no doubt.

But the real question is:

do I want to?

Luke 19:29-44

29 And when he got near to Bethʹpha·ge and Bethʹa·ny at the mountain called Mount of Olives, he sent two of the disciples, 30 saying: “Go into the village that is within sight, and after you enter it, you will find a colt tied, on which no man has ever sat. Untie it and bring it here. 31 But if anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you must say, ‘The Lord needs it.’” 32 So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had said to them. 33 But as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them: “Why are you untying the colt?” 34 They said: “The Lord needs it.” 35 And they led it to Jesus, and they threw their outer garments on the colt and seated Jesus on it.36 As he moved along, they were spreading their outer garments on the road. 37 As soon as he got near the road down the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and to praise God with a loud voice because of all the powerful works they had seen, 38 saying: “Blessed is the one coming as the King in Jehovah’s name! Peace in heaven, and glory in the heights above!” 39 However, some of the Pharisees from the crowd said to him: “Teacher, rebuke your disciples.” 40 But in reply he said: “I tell you, if these remained silent, the stones would cry out.” 41 And when he got nearby, he viewed the city and wept over it, 42 saying: “If you, even you, had discerned on this day the things having to do with peace—but now they have been hidden from your eyes. 43 Because the days will come upon you when your enemies will build around you a fortification of pointed stakes and will encircle you and besiege you from every side. 44 They will dash you and your children within you to the ground, and they will not leave a stone upon a stone in you, because you did not discern the time of your being inspected.” 45 Then he entered the temple and started to throw out those who were selling, 46 saying to them: “It is written, ‘My house will be a house of prayer,’ but you have made it a cave of robbers.” 47 He continued teaching daily in the temple. But the chief priests and the scribes and the principal ones of the people were seeking to kill him; 48 but they did not find any way to do this, for the people one and all kept hanging on to him to hear him.

#essay #existentialcrisis #travel #thoughts #bible

They trusted the temple to save them, but Jehovah was asking for hearts that would turn back.

Summary:

Jeremiah 7–8 is a forceful warning against false worship, shallow confidence, and refusing correction. Jehovah tells Judah that simply having the temple will not protect them if their lives are filled with injustice, idolatry, violence, and hypocrisy. The people are treating worship like a shield while ignoring the very obedience Jehovah requires: justice, mercy toward the vulnerable, and faithfulness to him. Because they refuse to listen, repent, or feel shame, judgment is coming, and their leaders’ promises of “peace” are exposed as empty comfort. The reading ends with grief rather than triumph: Jeremiah is heartbroken over the people’s spiritual sickness, asking whether there is no “balsam in Gilead” to heal them. Its core message is that true security does not come from religious identity or sacred places, but from a humble heart that actually turns back to God.

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from Jehovah, saying:

“Stand in the gate of the house of Jehovah and proclaim there this message, ‘Hear the word of Jehovah, all you people of Judah who enter these gates to bow down to Jehovah. This is what Jehovah of armies, the God of Israel, says: “Reform your ways and your actions, and I will allow you to keep residing in this place. Do not put your trust in deceptive words and say, ‘This is the temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah!’

For if you truly reform your ways and actions; if you truly uphold justice between a man and his neighbor; if you do not oppress foreign residents, orphans, and widows; if you do not shed innocent blood in this place; and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm; then I will allow you to keep residing in this place, in the land I gave to your forefathers for all time.”’”

“But you are putting your trust in deceptive words—it will bring absolutely no benefit. Can you steal, murder, commit adultery, swear falsely, make sacrifices to Baʹal, and follow after gods you had not known, and then come and stand before me in this house that bears my name and say, ‘We will be saved,’ despite your doing all these detestable things? Has this house that bears my name become a cave of robbers in your eyes? Here I have seen it for myself,” declares Jehovah.

“‘However, go now to my place in Shiʹloh, where I first caused my name to reside, and see what I did to it because of the badness of my people Israel. But you kept doing all these things,’ declares Jehovah, ‘and even though I spoke to you again and again, you did not listen. I kept calling you, but you would not answer. So I will do to the house that bears my name, in which you are trusting, and to this place that I gave to you and your forefathers, just as I did to Shiʹloh. I will throw you out of my sight, just as I threw out all your brothers, all the descendants of Eʹphra·im.’

“As for you, do not pray in behalf of this people. Do not cry out or offer a prayer or plead with me in their behalf, for I will not listen to you. Do you not see what they are doing in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem? The sons are gathering wood, the fathers are lighting the fire, and the wives are kneading dough in order to make sacrificial cakes to the Queen of Heaven, and they are pouring out drink offerings to other gods to offend me. ‘But am I the one they are hurting?’ declares Jehovah. ‘Is it not they themselves, to their own shame?’ Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says, ‘Look! My anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the fruitage of the ground; it will burn and will not be extinguished.’

“This is what Jehovah of armies, the God of Israel, says, ‘Go ahead, add your whole burnt offerings to your other sacrifices, and eat the flesh yourselves. For on the day I brought your forefathers out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak with them or command them concerning whole burnt offerings and sacrifices. But I did give them this command: “Obey my voice, and I will become your God, and you will become my people. You must walk in all the way that I command, so that it may go well with you.”’

But they did not listen or incline their ear; instead, they walked in their own schemes, stubbornly following their wicked heart, and they went backward, not forward, from the day your forefathers came out of the land of Egypt until this day. So I kept sending all my servants the prophets to you, sending them each day, again and again. But they refused to listen to me, and they did not incline their ear. Instead, they were stubborn, and they acted worse than their forefathers!

“You will speak all these words to them, but they will not listen to you; you will call to them, but they will not answer you. And you will say to them, ‘This is the nation that did not obey the voice of Jehovah their God and refused to accept discipline. Faithfulness has perished and is not even mentioned among them.’

“Shear off your uncut hair and throw it away, and on the bare hills raise a dirge, for Jehovah has rejected and will abandon this generation that has infuriated him. ‘For the people of Judah have done what is bad in my eyes,’ declares Jehovah. ‘They have set up their disgusting idols in the house that bears my name, in order to defile it. They have built the high places of Toʹpheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinʹnom, in order to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, something that I had not commanded and that had never even come into my heart.’

“‘Therefore look! the days are coming,’ declares Jehovah, ‘when it will no longer be called Toʹpheth or the Valley of the Son of Hinʹnom but the Valley of the Slaughter. They will bury in Toʹpheth until there is no place left. And the dead bodies of this people will become food for the birds of the heavens and for the beasts of the earth, with no one to frighten them away. I will put an end to the sound of exultation and the sound of rejoicing, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem, for the land will be reduced to ruins.’”

Jeremiah 8

“At that time,” declares Jehovah, “the bones of the kings of Judah, the bones of its princes, the bones of the priests, the bones of the prophets, and the bones of the inhabitants of Jerusalem will be taken from their graves. They will be spread out to the sun and to the moon and to all the army of the heavens that they loved and served and followed and sought after and bowed down to. They will not be gathered, nor will they be buried. They will become like manure on the surface of the ground.”

“And the remnant of this evil family who survive will choose death over life in all the places where I disperse them,” declares Jehovah of armies.

“And you must say to them, ‘This is what Jehovah says:

“Will they fall and not get up again? If one would turn back, will the other not also turn back?

Why is this people, Jerusalem, unfaithful with an enduring unfaithfulness? They hold fast to deception; They refuse to turn back.

I paid attention and kept listening, but the way they spoke was not right. Not a man repented over his wickedness or asked, ‘What have I done?’ Each one keeps returning to the popular course, like a horse dashing into the battle.

Even the stork in the sky knows its seasons; The turtledove and the swift and the thrush keep to the time of their return. But my own people do not understand the judgment of Jehovah.”’

‘How can you say: “We are wise, and we have the law of Jehovah”? For in fact, the lying stylus of the scribes has been used only for falsehood.

The wise have been put to shame. They have become terrified and will be caught. Look! They have rejected the word of Jehovah, And what wisdom do they have?

So I will give their wives to other men, Their fields to other owners; For from the least to the greatest, each one is making dishonest gain; From the prophet to the priest, each one is practicing fraud.

And they try to heal the breakdown of the daughter of my people lightly, saying, “There is peace! There is peace!” When there is no peace.

Do they feel ashamed of the detestable things they have done? They feel no shame at all! They do not even know how to feel humiliated! So they will fall among the fallen. When I bring punishment on them they will stumble,’ says Jehovah.

‘When I gather them, I will bring them to their end,’ declares Jehovah. ‘There will be no grapes left on the vine, no figs on the fig tree, and the leaves will wither. And what I gave to them will be lost to them.’”

“Why are we sitting here? Let us gather together and enter the fortified cities and perish there. For Jehovah our God will do away with us, And he gives us poisoned water to drink, Because we have sinned against Jehovah.

There was a hope for peace, but nothing good came, For a time of healing, but there is terror!

From Dan is heard the snorting of his horses. At the sound of the neighing of his stallions, The whole land quakes. They come in and devour the land and everything in it, The city and its inhabitants.”

“For here I am sending in serpents among you, Poisonous snakes that cannot be charmed, And they will certainly bite you,” declares Jehovah.

My grief is incurable; My heart is sick.

From a distant land there is a cry for help From the daughter of my people:

“Is Jehovah not in Zion? Or is her king not in her?”

“Why have they offended me with their graven images, With their worthless foreign gods?”

“The harvest has passed, the summer has ended, But we have not been saved!”

I am shattered over the breakdown of the daughter of my people; I am dejected. Horror has seized me.

Is there no balsam in Gilʹe·ad? Or is there no healer there? Why has the daughter of my people not been restored to health?

#bible #jeremiah #spokenword

Where rebellion leaves ashes, Jehovah plants a world of joy.

Isaiah 65 and 66

“I have let myself be searched for by those who did not ask for me; I have let myself be found by those who did not look for me. I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’ to a nation that was not calling on my name.

I have spread out my hands all day long to a stubborn people, To those walking in the way that is not good, Following their own thoughts; A people who constantly offend me to my face, Sacrificing in gardens and making sacrificial smoke on bricks. They sit among graves, And they pass the night in hidden places, Eating the flesh of pigs, And the broth of foul things is in their vessels.

They say, ‘Keep to yourself; do not approach me, For I am holier than you.’ These are a smoke in my nostrils, a fire burning all day long.

Look! It is written before me; I will not stand still, But I will repay them, I will repay them in full measure For their errors and for the errors of their forefathers as well,” says Jehovah.

“Because they have made sacrificial smoke on the mountains And have reproached me on the hills, I will first measure out their wages in full.”

This is what Jehovah says:

“Just as when new wine is found in a cluster of grapes And someone says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is some good in it,’ So I will do for the sake of my servants; I will not destroy them all. I will bring out of Jacob an offspring And out of Judah the one to inherit my mountains; My chosen ones will take possession of it, And my servants will reside there. Sharʹon will become a pasture for sheep And the Valley of Aʹchor a resting-place for cattle, For my people who search for me.

But you are among those forsaking Jehovah, Those forgetting my holy mountain, Those setting a table for the god of Good Luck, And those filling up cups of mixed wine for the god of Destiny. So I will destine you for the sword, And all of you will bow down to be slaughtered, Because I called, but you did not answer, I spoke, but you did not listen; You kept doing what was bad in my eyes, And you chose what displeased me.”

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says:

“Look! My servants will eat, but you will go hungry. Look! My servants will drink, but you will go thirsty. Look! My servants will rejoice, but you will suffer shame. Look! My servants will shout joyfully because of the good condition of the heart, But you will cry out because of the pain of heart And you will wail because of a broken spirit. You will leave behind a name that my chosen ones will use as a curse, And the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will put each of you to death, But his own servants he will call by another name; So that anyone who seeks a blessing for himself in the earth Will be blessed by the God of truth, And anyone who swears an oath in the earth Will swear by the God of truth. For the former distresses will be forgotten; They will be concealed from my eyes.

For look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth; And the former things will not be called to mind, Nor will they come up into the heart. So exult and be joyful forever in what I am creating. For look! I am creating Jerusalem a cause for joy And her people a cause for exultation. And I will rejoice in Jerusalem and exult in my people; No more will there be heard in her the sound of weeping or a cry of distress.”

“No more will there be an infant from that place who lives but a few days, Nor an old man who fails to live out his days. For anyone who dies at a hundred will be considered a mere boy, And the sinner will be cursed, even though he is a hundred years of age. They will build houses and live in them, And they will plant vineyards and eat their fruitage. They will not build for someone else to inhabit, Nor will they plant for others to eat. For the days of my people will be like the days of a tree, And the work of their hands my chosen ones will enjoy to the full. They will not toil for nothing, Nor will they bear children for distress, Because they are the offspring made up of those blessed by Jehovah, And their descendants with them. Even before they call out, I will answer; While they are yet speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, The lion will eat straw just like the bull, And the serpent’s food will be dust. They will do no harm nor cause any ruin in all my holy mountain,” says Jehovah.

Isaiah 66

This is what Jehovah says:

“The heavens are my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where, then, is the house that you could build for me, And where is my resting-place?”

“My own hand has made all these things, And this is how they all came to be,” declares Jehovah. “To this one, then, I will look, To the one humble and broken in spirit who trembles at my word.

The one slaughtering the bull is like one striking down a man. The one sacrificing a sheep is like one breaking the neck of a dog. The one offering a gift—like the blood of a pig! The one presenting a memorial offering of frankincense is like one saying a blessing with magical words. They have chosen their own ways, And they take delight in what is disgusting. So I will choose ways to punish them, And the very things they dread I will bring upon them. Because when I called, no one answered; When I spoke, there were none who listened. They kept doing what was bad in my eyes, And they chose to do what displeased me.”

Hear the word of Jehovah, you who tremble at his word:

“Your brothers who hate you and exclude you because of my name said, ‘May Jehovah be glorified!’ But He will appear and bring you joy, And they are the ones who will be put to shame.”

There is a sound of uproar from the city, a sound from the temple! It is the sound of Jehovah repaying his enemies what they deserve. Before she went into labor, she gave birth. Before birth pangs came to her, she delivered a male child. Who has ever heard of such a thing? Who has seen such things? Will a land be brought to birth in one day? Or will a nation be born all at once? Yet, as soon as Zion went into labor, she gave birth to her sons.

“Will I bring it to the point of birth and then not bring it forth?” says Jehovah. “Or would I cause the birth and then shut the womb?” says your God.

Rejoice with Jerusalem and be joyful with her, all you who love her. Exult greatly with her, all you who are in mourning over her, For you will nurse and be fully satisfied from her breast of consolation, And you will drink deeply and find delight in the abundance of her glory.

For this is what Jehovah says:

“Here I am extending to her peace just like a river And the glory of nations like a flooding torrent. You will nurse and be carried on the hip, And you will be bounced on the knees. As a mother comforts her son, So I will keep comforting you; And over Jerusalem you will be comforted. You will see this, and your heart will rejoice, Your bones will flourish just like new grass. And the hand of Jehovah will become known to his servants, But he will denounce his enemies.”

“For Jehovah will come as a fire, And his chariots are like a storm wind, To repay in furious anger, To rebuke with flames of fire. For with fire Jehovah will execute judgment, Yes, with his sword, against all flesh; And the slain of Jehovah will be many.

Those sanctifying themselves and cleansing themselves to enter the gardens following one who is in the center, those eating the flesh of pigs and loathsome things and mice, they will all come to their end together,” declares Jehovah.

“Since I know about their works and their thoughts, I am coming to gather people of all nations and languages, and they will come and see my glory.

I will set a sign among them, and I will send some of those who escape to the nations—to Tarʹshish, Pul, and Lud, those who draw the bow, to Tuʹbal and Jaʹvan, and to the faraway islands—who have not heard a report about me or seen my glory; and they will proclaim my glory among the nations.

They will bring all your brothers out of all the nations as a gift to Jehovah, on horses, in chariots, in covered wagons, on mules, and on swift camels, up to my holy mountain, Jerusalem,” says Jehovah, “just as when the people of Israel bring their gift in a clean vessel into the house of Jehovah.”

“I will also take some for the priests and for the Levites,” says Jehovah.

“For just as the new heavens and the new earth that I am making will remain standing before me,” declares Jehovah, “so your offspring and your name will remain.”

“And from new moon to new moon and from sabbath to sabbath, All flesh will come in to bow down before me,” says Jehovah.

“And they will go out and look on the carcasses of the men who rebelled against me; For the worms on them will not die, And their fire will not be extinguished, And they will become something repulsive to all people.”

#bible #reading #isaiah

here we go again

“Where Is the Certificate?” (50:1–3) > Speaker: Jehovah

This is what Jehovah says: “Where is the divorce certificate of your mother, whom I sent away? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Look! It was because of your own errors you were sold, And because of your own transgressions your mother was sent away. Why, then, was no one here when I came? Why did no one answer when I called? Is my hand too short to redeem, Or is there no power in me to rescue? Look! With my rebuke I dry up the sea; I make rivers a desert. Their fish rot for lack of water, And they die because of thirst. I clothe the heavens with gloom, And I make sackcloth their covering.”

👂 The Obedient Servant (50:4–9)

Speaker: The Servant

The Sovereign Lord Jehovah has given me the tongue of those taught, So that I may know how to answer the tired one with the right word. He awakens me morning by morning; He awakens my ear to listen like the taught ones. The Sovereign Lord Jehovah has opened my ear, And I was not rebellious. I did not turn in the opposite direction. I offered my back to those striking me And my cheeks to those who plucked them bare. I did not hide my face from humiliating things and from spit. But the Sovereign Lord Jehovah will help me. That is why I will not feel humiliated. That is why I have set my face like a flint, And I know that I will not be put to shame. The One who declares me righteous is near. Who can accuse me? Let us stand up together. Who has a case against me? Let him approach me. Look! The Sovereign Lord Jehovah will help me. Who will pronounce me guilty? Look! They will all wear out like a garment. A moth will eat them up.

🔥 Two Ways to Walk (50:10–11)

Speaker: Jehovah

Who among you fears Jehovah And listens to the voice of his servant? Who has walked in deep darkness, without any brightness? Let him trust in the name of Jehovah and support himself on his God. “Look! All of you who are igniting a fire, Making sparks fly, Walk in the light of your fire, Among the sparks you have set ablaze. This is what you will have from my hand: In sheer pain you will lie down.

🪨 Look to the Rock (51:1–3)

Speaker: Jehovah

“Listen to me, you who are pursuing righteousness, You who are seeking Jehovah. Look to the rock from which you were hewn And to the quarry from which you were dug. Look to Abraham your father And to Sarah who gave birth to you. For he was only one when I called him, And I blessed him and made him many. For Jehovah will comfort Zion. He will bring comfort to all her ruins, And he will make her wilderness like Eden And her desert plain like the garden of Jehovah. Exultation and rejoicing will be found in her, Thanksgiving and melodious song.

🌍 What Lasts Forever (51:4–8)

Speaker: Jehovah

“Pay attention to me, O my people, And give ear to me, my nation. For a law will go out from me, And my justice I will establish as a light to the peoples. My righteousness draws near. My salvation will go out, And my arms will judge the peoples. In me the islands will hope, And for my arm they will wait. Raise your eyes to the heavens, And look at the earth below. For the heavens will disperse in fragments like smoke; The earth will wear out like a garment, And its inhabitants will die like gnats. But my salvation will be eternal, And my righteousness will never fail. Listen to me, you who know righteousness, The people with my law in their heart. Do not be afraid of the taunts of mortal men, And do not be terrified because of their insults. For a moth will eat them up just like a garment; The clothes moth will devour them like wool. But my righteousness will last forever, And my salvation for all generations.”

💪 “Awake, Arm of Jehovah!” (51:9–11)

Speaker: The People

Awake! Awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of Jehovah! Awake as in the days of long ago, as in past generations. Was it not you who broke Rahab to pieces, Who pierced the sea monster? Are you not the one who dried up the sea, the waters of the vast deep? The one who made the depths of the sea a roadway for the repurchased ones to cross? The redeemed ones of Jehovah will return. They will come to Zion with a joyful cry, And unending joy will crown them. Exultation and rejoicing will be theirs, And grief and sighing will flee away.

🫂 “I Am the One Comforting You” (51:12–16)

Speaker: Jehovah

“I myself am the One comforting you. Why should you be afraid of a mortal man who will die And of a son of man who will wither like green grass? Why do you forget Jehovah your Maker, The One who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundation of the earth? And all day long you were in constant fear of the rage of the oppressor, As though he were in a position to bring you to ruin. Where, now, is the rage of the oppressor? The one bent over in chains will soon be set free; He will not die and go into the pit, Nor will his bread be lacking. But I am Jehovah your God, Who stirs up the sea and makes its waves boisterous —Jehovah of armies is his name. I will put my words in your mouth, And with the shadow of my hand I will cover you, In order to plant the heavens and to lay the foundation of the earth And to say to Zion, ‘You are my people.’”

🍷 The Cup Removed (51:17–23)

Speaker: Jehovah

Awake! Awake! Rise up, O Jerusalem, You who have drunk from the hand of Jehovah his cup of wrath. You have drunk the goblet; You have drained out the cup causing staggering. Not one of all the sons whom she bore is there to guide her, And not one of all the sons whom she raised has taken hold of her hand. These two things have befallen you. Who will sympathize with you? Destruction and devastation, hunger and sword! Who will comfort you? Your sons have fainted. They lie down at every street corner Like wild sheep in the net. They are full of the wrath of Jehovah, the rebuke of your God. So please listen to this, O woman afflicted and drunk, though not with wine. This is what your Lord Jehovah says, your God who defends his people: “Look! I will take from your hand the cup causing staggering, The goblet, my cup of wrath; You will never drink it again. I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, Those who said to you, ‘Bow down so that we may walk over you!’ So you made your back like the ground, Like a street for them to walk on.”

#poetry #bible #isaiah

“If only you would pay attention to my commandments! Then your peace would become just like a river.”

Isaiah 48

Jehovah:

Hear this, O house of Jacob, You who call yourselves by the name of Israel And who have come from the waters of Judah, You who swear by the name of Jehovah And who call on the God of Israel, Though not in truth and righteousness.

For they call themselves after the holy city And seek the support of the God of Israel, Whose name is Jehovah of armies.

“The former things I told you long ago. From my own mouth they went out, And I made them known. Suddenly I took action, and they came about.

Because I knew how stubborn you are —That your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead is copper—

I told you long ago. Before it came about, I caused you to hear it, So that you could not say, ‘My idol did this; My carved image and my metal image commanded this.’

You have heard and seen all of this. Will you not declare it?

From now on I am announcing new things to you, Guarded secrets that you have not known.

Only now are they being created, and not long ago, Things that you never heard before today, So that you cannot say, ‘Look! I already know them.’

No, you have not heard, you have not known, And in the past your ears were not opened. For I know that you are very treacherous, And you have been called a transgressor from birth.

But for the sake of my name I will hold back my anger; For my own praise I will restrain myself toward you, And I will not do away with you.

Look! I have refined you, but not in the form of silver. I have tested you in the smelting furnace of affliction.

For my own sake, for my own sake I will act, For how could I let myself be profaned? I give my glory to no one else.

Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I have called. I am the same One. I am the first; I am also the last.

My own hand laid the foundation of the earth, And my right hand spread out the heavens. When I call to them, they stand up together.

Gather together, all of you, and listen. Who among them has announced these things? Jehovah has loved him. He will carry out his delight against Babylon, And his arm will come against the Chaldeans.

I myself have spoken, and I have called him. I have brought him, and his way will be successful.

Come near to me, and hear this. From the very start I have not spoken in secret. From the time it happened I was there.”

Narrator:

And now the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has sent me, and his spirit.

Jehovah:

“This is what Jehovah says, your Repurchaser, the Holy One of Israel:

‘I, Jehovah, am your God, The One teaching you to benefit yourself, The One guiding you in the way you should walk.

If only you would pay attention to my commandments! Then your peace would become just like a river And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

Your offspring would be as many as the sand And your descendants as its grains. Their name would never be cut off or annihilated from before me.’

Go out from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! Announce it with a joyful cry! Proclaim it! Make it known to the ends of the earth.

Say: ‘Jehovah has repurchased his servant Jacob. They did not become thirsty when he led them through devastated places. He caused water to flow out of the rock for them; He split a rock and made water gush out.’”

“There is no peace,” says Jehovah, “for the wicked.”

Isaiah 49

Servant:

Listen to me, you islands, And pay attention, you faraway nations.

Jehovah has called me before I was born. From the time I was in my mother’s womb he has made mention of my name.

He made my mouth like a sharp sword; He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand. He made me a polished arrow; He concealed me in his quiver.

He said to me: “You are my servant, O Israel, Through whom I will show my splendor.”

But I said:

“I have toiled for nothing. I used up my strength for an unreality, in vain. But surely my judgment is with Jehovah, And my wages with my God.”

And now Jehovah, the One who formed me from the womb as his servant, Has said for me to bring Jacob back to him, So that Israel may be gathered to him.

I will be glorified in the eyes of Jehovah, And my God will have become my strength.

Jehovah:

“And he said:

‘It is not enough that you are my servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob And to bring back those who were preserved of Israel.

I have also given you as a light of nations, So that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.’”

“This is what Jehovah, the Repurchaser of Israel, his Holy One, says To the one who is despised, To the one who is detested by the nation, To the servant of rulers:

‘Kings will see and rise up, And princes will bow down Because of Jehovah, who is faithful, The Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’”

“This is what Jehovah says:

‘In a time of favor I answered you, And in a day of salvation I helped you; I kept safeguarding you to give you as a covenant for the people, To rehabilitate the land, To cause them to possess their desolate inheritances,

To say to the prisoners, “Come out!” And to those in the darkness, “Show yourselves!”

By the roadways they will feed, Along all the worn paths will be their pastures.

They will not go hungry, nor will they thirst, Nor will scorching heat or the sun beat down on them. For the One who has mercy on them will lead them, And he will guide them by the springs of water.

I will make all my mountains into a road, And my highways will be raised up.

Look! These are coming from far away, And look! these from the north and from the west, And these from the land of Sinim.’”

Shout for joy, you heavens, and rejoice, you earth. Let the mountains become cheerful with a joyful cry. For Jehovah has comforted his people, And he shows mercy to his own afflicted ones.

Zion:

“Jehovah has abandoned me, And Jehovah has forgotten me.”

Jehovah:

“Can a woman forget her nursing child Or have no compassion for the son of her womb? Even if these women forget, I would never forget you.

Look! On my palms I have engraved you. Your walls are always before me.

Your sons hurry back. Those who tore you down and devastated you will depart from you.

Raise your eyes and look all around. They are all gathering together. They are coming to you.

As surely as I am living,” declares Jehovah, “You will clothe yourself with all of them as with ornaments, And you will fasten them on yourself as a bride does.

Although your places were devastated and desolate and your land was in ruins, Now it will become too cramped for those dwelling there, And those who swallowed you down will be far away.

The sons born when you were bereaved will say in your hearing, ‘This place is too cramped for me. Make room for me to dwell here.’

And you will say in your heart, ‘Who has fathered these for me, Since I am a woman bereaved of children and barren, Exiled and taken prisoner? Who has raised these? Look! I was left all alone, So where have these come from?’”

“This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says:

‘Look! I will raise up my hand to the nations, And I will lift up my signal to the peoples.

They will bring your sons in their arms And carry your daughters on their shoulders.

Kings will become caretakers for you, And their princesses will be your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground And lick the dust of your feet, And you will have to know that I am Jehovah; Those hoping in me will not be put to shame.’”

“Can those already captured be taken from a mighty man, Or can the captives of the tyrant be rescued?”

“But this is what Jehovah says:

‘Even the captives of a mighty man will be taken away, And those captured by the tyrant will be rescued.

I will oppose those who oppose you, And I will save your own sons.

I will make those who mistreat you eat their own flesh, And as with sweet wine, they will become drunk with their own blood.

And all people will have to know that I am Jehovah, Your Savior and your Repurchaser, The Powerful One of Jacob.’”

—

Hear this, O house of Jacob, You who call yourselves by the name of Israel+ And who have come from the waters of* Judah, You who swear by the name of Jehovah+ And who call on the God of Israel, Though not in truth and righteousness.+ 2 For they call themselves after the holy city+ And seek the support of the God of Israel,+ Whose name is Jehovah of armies. 3 “The former* things I told you long ago. From my own mouth they went out, And I made them known.+ Suddenly I took action, and they came about.+ 4 Because I knew how stubborn you are —That your neck is an iron sinew and your forehead is copper+— 5 I told you long ago. Before it came about, I caused you to hear it, So that you could not say, ‘My idol did this; My carved image and my metal image* commanded this.’ 6 You have heard and seen all of this. Will you not declare it?+ From now on I am announcing new things to you,+ Guarded secrets that you have not known. 7 Only now are they being created, and not long ago, Things that you never heard before today, So that you cannot say, ‘Look! I already know them.’ 8 No, you have not heard,+ you have not known, And in the past your ears were not opened. For I know that you are very treacherous,+ And you have been called a transgressor from birth.+ 9 But for the sake of my name I will hold back my anger;+ For my own praise I will restrain myself toward you, And I will not do away with you.+ 10 Look! I have refined you, but not in the form of silver.+ I have tested* you in the smelting furnace of affliction.+ 11 For my own sake, for my own sake I will act,+ For how could I let myself be profaned?+ I give my glory to no one else.* 12 Listen to me, O Jacob, and Israel, whom I have called. I am the same One.+ I am the first; I am also the last.+ 13 My own hand laid the foundation of the earth,+ And my right hand spread out the heavens.+ When I call to them, they stand up together. 14 Gather together, all of you, and listen. Who among them has announced these things? Jehovah has loved him.+ He will carry out his delight against Babylon,+ And his arm will come against the Chal·deʹans.+ 15 I myself have spoken, and I have called him.+ I have brought him, and his way will be successful.+ 16 Come near to me, and hear this. From the very start I have not spoken in secret.+ From the time it happened I was there.” And now the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has sent me, and* his spirit. 17 This is what Jehovah says, your Repurchaser, the Holy One of Israel:+ “I, Jehovah, am your God, The One teaching you to benefit yourself,+ The One guiding you in the way you should walk.+ 18 If only you would pay attention to my commandments!+ Then your peace would become just like a river+ And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.+ 19 Your offspring would be as many as the sand And your descendants as its grains.+ Their name would never be cut off or annihilated from before me.” 20 Go out from Babylon!+ Flee from the Chal·deʹans! Announce it with a joyful cry! Proclaim it!+ Make it known to the ends of the earth.+ Say: “Jehovah has repurchased his servant Jacob.+ 21 They did not become thirsty when he led them through devastated places.+ He caused water to flow out of the rock for them; He split a rock and made water gush out.”+ 22 “There is no peace,” says Jehovah, “for the wicked.”+ 49 Listen to me, you islands, And pay attention, you faraway nations.+ Jehovah has called me before I was born.+ From the time I was in my mother’s womb he has made mention of my name. 2 He made my mouth like a sharp sword; He has hidden me in the shadow of his hand.+ He made me a polished arrow; He concealed me in his quiver. 3 He said to me: “You are my servant, O Israel,+ Through whom I will show my splendor.”+ 4 But I said: “I have toiled for nothing. I used up my strength for an unreality, in vain. But surely my judgment is with Jehovah, And my wages* with my God.”+ 5 And now Jehovah, the One who formed me from the womb as his servant, Has said for me to bring Jacob back to him, So that Israel may be gathered to him.+ I will be glorified in the eyes of Jehovah, And my God will have become my strength. 6 And he said: “It is not enough that you are my servant To raise up the tribes of Jacob And to bring back those who were preserved of Israel. I have also given you as a light of nations,+ So that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.”+ 7 This is what Jehovah, the Repurchaser of Israel, his Holy One,+ says to the one who is despised,+ to the one who is detested by the nation, to the servant of rulers: “Kings will see and rise up, And princes will bow down Because of Jehovah, who is faithful,+ The Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”+ 8 This is what Jehovah says: “In a time of favor I answered you,+ And in a day of salvation I helped you;+ I kept safeguarding you to give you as a covenant for the people,+ To rehabilitate the land, To cause them to possess their desolate inheritances,+ 9 To say to the prisoners, ‘Come out!’+ And to those in the darkness,+ ‘Show yourselves!’ By the roadways they will feed, Along all the worn paths* will be their pastures. 10 They will not go hungry, nor will they thirst,+ Nor will scorching heat or the sun beat down on them.+ For the One who has mercy on them will lead them,+ And he will guide them by the springs of water.+ 11 I will make all my mountains into a road, And my highways will be raised up.+ 12 Look! These are coming from far away,+ And look! these from the north and from the west, And these from the land of Siʹnim.”+ 13 Shout for joy, you heavens, and rejoice, you earth.+ Let the mountains become cheerful with a joyful cry.+ For Jehovah has comforted his people,+ And he shows mercy to his own afflicted ones.+ 14 But Zion kept saying: “Jehovah has abandoned me,+ and Jehovah has forgotten me.”+ 15 Can a woman forget her nursing child Or have no compassion for the son of her womb? Even if these women forget, I would never forget you.+ 16 Look! On my palms I have engraved you. Your walls are always before me. 17 Your sons hurry back. Those who tore you down and devastated you will depart from you. 18 Raise your eyes and look all around. They are all gathering together.+ They are coming to you. “As surely as I am living,” declares Jehovah, “You will clothe yourself with all of them as with ornaments, And you will fasten them on yourself as a bride does. 19 Although your places were devastated and desolate and your land was in ruins,+ Now it will become too cramped for those dwelling there,+ And those who swallowed you down+ will be far away.+ 20 The sons born when you were bereaved will say in your hearing, ‘This place is too cramped for me. Make room for me to dwell here.’+ 21 And you will say in your heart, ‘Who has fathered these for me, Since I am a woman bereaved of children and barren, Exiled and taken prisoner? Who has raised these?+ Look! I was left all alone,+ So where have these come from?’”+ 22 This is what the Sovereign Lord Jehovah says: “Look! I will raise up my hand to the nations, And I will lift up my signal* to the peoples.+ They will bring your sons in their arms* And carry your daughters on their shoulders.+ 23 Kings will become caretakers for you,+ And their princesses will be your nurses. They will bow down to you with their faces to the ground+ And lick the dust of your feet,+ And you will have to know that I am Jehovah; Those hoping in me will not be put to shame.”+ 24 Can those already captured be taken from a mighty man, Or can the captives of the tyrant be rescued? 25 But this is what Jehovah says: “Even the captives of a mighty man will be taken away,+ And those captured by the tyrant will be rescued.+ I will oppose those who oppose you,+ And I will save your own sons. 26 I will make those who mistreat you eat their own flesh, And as with sweet wine, they will become drunk with their own blood. And all people* will have to know that I am Jehovah,+ Your Savior+ and your Repurchaser,+ The Powerful One of Jacob.”+

#poetry #bible #isaiah

You shall not stand

Isaiah 45-47

Isaiah This is what Jehovah says to his anointed one, to Cyrus, Whose right hand I have taken hold of To subdue nations before him, To disarm kings, To open before him the double doors, So that the gates will not be shut:

“Before you I will go, And the hills I will level. The copper doors I will break in pieces, And the iron bars I will cut down.

I will give you the treasures in the darkness And the hidden treasures in the concealed places, So that you may know that I am Jehovah, The God of Israel, who is calling you by your name.

For the sake of my servant Jacob and of Israel my chosen one, I am calling you by your name. I am giving you a name of honor, although you did not know me.

I am Jehovah, and there is no one else. There is no God except me. I will strengthen you, although you did not know me,

In order that people may know From the rising of the sun to its setting That there is none besides me. I am Jehovah, and there is no one else.

I form light and create darkness, I make peace and create calamity; I, Jehovah, am doing all these things.

You heavens, rain down from above; Let the clouds pour down righteousness. Let the earth open up and be fruitful with salvation, And let it cause righteousness to spring up at the same time. I, Jehovah, have created it.

Woe to the one who contends with his Maker, For he is just an earthenware fragment Among the other earthenware fragments lying on the ground! Should the clay say to the Potter: “What are you making?” Or should your work say: “He has no hands”?

Woe to the one who says to a father: “What do you become father to?” And to a woman: “What are you giving birth to?”

This is what Jehovah says, the Holy One of Israel, the One who formed him: “Would you question me about the things coming And command me about my sons and the works of my hands?

I made the earth and created man on it. I stretched out the heavens with my own hands, And I give orders to all their army.

I have raised up a man in righteousness, And I will make all his ways straight. He is the one who will build my city And set my exiles free without a price or a bribe,” says Jehovah of armies.

This is what Jehovah says:

“The profit of Egypt and the merchandise of Ethiopia and the Sabeans, tall of stature, Will come over to you and become yours. They will walk behind you in chains. They will come over and bow down to you. To you they will say in prayer, ‘Surely God is with you, And there is no one else; there is no other God.’”

Truly you are a God who conceals himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.

They will all be put to shame and be humiliated; The makers of idols will all go off in disgrace.

But Israel will be saved by Jehovah with an everlasting salvation. You will not be put to shame or disgraced for all eternity.

For this is what Jehovah says, The Creator of the heavens, the true God, The One who formed the earth, its Maker who firmly established it, Who did not create it simply for nothing, but formed it to be inhabited:

“I am Jehovah, and there is no one else.

I did not speak in a concealed place, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me simply for nothing.’ I am Jehovah, who speaks what is righteous and declares what is upright.

Gather together and come. Approach together, you escapees from the nations. They know nothing, those who carry around carved images And pray to a god that cannot save them.

Make your report, present your case. Let them consult together in unity. Who foretold this long ago And declared it from times past? Is it not I, Jehovah? There is no other God but me; A righteous God and a Savior, there is none besides me.

Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth, For I am God, and there is no one else.

By myself I have sworn; The word has gone out of my mouth in righteousness, And it will not return: To me every knee will bend, Every tongue will swear loyalty And say, ‘Surely in Jehovah are true righteousness and strength. All those enraged against him will come before him in shame.

In Jehovah all the offspring of Israel will prove to be right, And in him they will make their boast.’”

Bel bends down, Nebo stoops over. Their idols are loaded on animals, on beasts of burden, Like baggage that burdens the weary animals. They stoop and bend down together; They cannot rescue the loads, And they themselves go into captivity.

“Listen to me, O house of Jacob, and all you who remain of the house of Israel, You whom I have supported from birth and carried from the womb.

Until you grow old I will be the same; Until your hair is gray I will keep bearing you. As I have done, I will carry you and bear you and rescue you.

To whom will you liken me or make me equal or compare me, So that we should resemble each other?

There are those who lavish gold from their purse; They weigh out the silver on the scale. They hire a metalworker, and he makes it into a god. Then they prostrate themselves, yes, they worship it.

They lift it to their shoulders; They carry it and put it in its place, and it just stands there. It does not move from its place. They cry out to it, but it does not answer; It cannot rescue anyone from distress.

Remember this, and take courage. Take it to heart, you transgressors.

Remember the former things of long ago, That I am God, and there is no other. I am God, and there is no one like me.

From the beginning I foretell the outcome, And from long ago the things that have not yet been done. I say, ‘My decision will stand, And I will do whatever I please.’

I am calling a bird of prey from the sunrise, From a distant land the man to carry out my decision. I have spoken, and I will bring it about. I have purposed it, and I will also carry it out.

Listen to me, you who are stubborn of heart, You who are far away from righteousness.

I have brought my righteousness near; It is not far away, And my salvation will not delay. I will grant salvation in Zion, my splendor to Israel.”

Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon. Sit down on the ground where there is no throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans, For never again will people call you delicate and pampered. Take a hand mill and grind flour. Remove your veil. Strip off your skirt, uncover your legs. Cross over the rivers.

Your nakedness will be uncovered. Your shame will be exposed. I will take vengeance, And no man will stand in my way.

“The One repurchasing us —Jehovah of armies is his name— Is the Holy One of Israel.”

Sit there silently and go into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans; No more will they call you Mistress of Kingdoms.

I grew indignant at my people. I profaned my inheritance, And I gave them into your hand. But you showed them no mercy. Even on the elderly you placed a heavy yoke.

You said: “I will always be the Mistress, forever.” You did not take these things to heart; You did not consider how the matter would end.

Now hear this, O lover of pleasure, Who sits in security, who says in her heart: “I am the one, and there is no one else. I will not become a widow. I will never know the loss of children.”

But these two things will come upon you suddenly, in one day: Loss of children and widowhood. In full measure they will come upon you Because of your many sorceries and all your powerful spells.

You trusted in your wickedness. You said: “No one sees me.” Your wisdom and knowledge are what led you astray, And you say in your heart: “I am the one, and there is no one else.”

But calamity will come upon you, And none of your charms will stop it. Adversity will befall you; you will not be able to avert it. Sudden ruin will come upon you like you have never known.

Go ahead, then, with your spells and your many sorceries, With which you have toiled from your youth. Perhaps you may be able to benefit; Perhaps you may strike people with awe.

You have grown weary with the multitude of your advisers. Let them stand up now and save you, Those who worship the heavens, who gaze at the stars, Those giving out knowledge at the new moons About the things that will come upon you.

Look! They are like stubble. A fire will burn them up. They cannot save themselves from the power of the flame. These are not charcoals for keeping warm, And this is not a fire to sit in front of.

So your charmers will become to you, Those with whom you toiled from your youth. They will wander, each one in his own direction. There will be no one to save you.

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#poetry #bible #isaiah

Dead gods tell no tales, only the True and Living God's name will endure forever. No marketing required.

Now this is what Jehovah says, your Creator, O Jacob, the One who formed you, O Israel:

Do not be afraid, for I have repurchased you. I have called you by your name. You belong to me.

When you pass through the waters, I will be with you, and through the rivers, they will not flood over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame singe you.

For I am Jehovah your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I have given Egypt as a ransom for you, Ethiopia and Seba in exchange for you.

For you became precious in my eyes. You were honored, and I have loved you. So I will give people in place of you and nations in exchange for your life.

Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your offspring from the east and gather you together from the west. I will say to the north, “Give them up!” and to the south, “Do not hold them back. Bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth, everyone who is called by my name and whom I created for my own glory, whom I have formed and made.”

Bring out a people who are blind, though they have eyes, and who are deaf, though they have ears.

Let all the nations assemble in one place, and let the peoples be gathered together. Who among them can tell this? Or can they cause us to hear the former things? Let them present their witnesses to prove themselves right, or let them hear and say, “It is the truth.”

“You are my witnesses,” declares Jehovah, “yes, my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and have faith in me and understand that I am the same One. Before me no God was formed, and after me there has been none.

I—I am Jehovah, and besides me there is no savior.

I am the One who declared and saved and made known when there was no foreign god among you. So you are my witnesses,” declares Jehovah, “and I am God. Also, I am always the same One, and no one can snatch anything out of my hand. When I act, who can prevent it?”

This is what Jehovah says, your Repurchaser, the Holy One of Israel:

For your sakes I will send to Babylon and bring down all the bars of the gates, and the Chaldeans, in their ships, will cry out in distress.

I am Jehovah, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King.

This is what Jehovah says, the One making a way through the sea and a path through turbulent waters, the One who draws out the war chariot and the horse, the army together with the mighty warriors:

They will lie down and not get up. They will be extinguished, snuffed out like a burning wick.

Do not remember the former things, and do not dwell on the past.

Look! I am doing something new. Even now it is springing up. Do you not recognize it?

I will make a way through the wilderness and rivers through the desert. The wild beast of the field will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches, for I provide water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, for my people, my chosen one, to drink, the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise.

But you have not called on me, O Jacob, because you grew weary of me, O Israel.

You have not brought me sheep for your whole burnt offerings or glorified me with your sacrifices. I have not compelled you to bring me a gift, nor have I made you weary by demanding frankincense.

You did not buy me sweet cane with your money, and with the fat of your sacrifices you did not satisfy me.

Instead, you have burdened me with your sins and made me weary with your errors.

I, I am the One who is blotting out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.

Remind me; let us bring our case against each other. Tell your side of it to prove you are in the right.

Your first forefather sinned, and your own spokesmen have rebelled against me.

So I will profane the princes of the holy place, and I will give Jacob over to destruction and subject Israel to insulting words.

Now listen, O Jacob my servant, and you, O Israel, whom I have chosen.

This is what Jehovah says, your Maker and the One who formed you, who has helped you from the womb:

Do not be afraid, my servant Jacob, and you, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen.

For I will pour out water on the thirsty one and flowing streams on the dry ground. I will pour out my spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your descendants.

They will spring up among the green grass like poplars by the streams of water.

One will say, “I belong to Jehovah.” Another will call himself by the name of Jacob. Yet another will write on his hand, “Belonging to Jehovah.” And he will adopt the name of Israel.

This is what Jehovah says, the King of Israel and his Repurchaser, Jehovah of armies:

I am the first and I am the last. There is no God but me.

Who is there like me? Let him call out and tell it and prove it to me. From the time I established the people of long ago, let them tell both the things to come and what will yet happen.

Do not be in dread, and do not become paralyzed with fear. Have I not told each of you beforehand and declared it?

You are my witnesses. Is there any God but me? No, there is no other Rock. I know of none.

All who form carved images amount to nothing, and their cherished objects will be of no benefit. As their witnesses, they see nothing and know nothing, so those who made them will be put to shame.

Who would form a god or cast a metal image that can bring no benefit?

Look! All his associates will be put to shame. The craftsmen are mere humans. Let them all assemble and take their stand. They will be terrified and be put to shame together.

The metalsmith works the iron over the coals with his tool. He forms it with hammers, working it with his powerful arm. Then he grows hungry and his strength fails. He drinks no water and grows tired.

The wood-carver stretches the measuring line, tracing out the pattern with red chalk. He works it with a wood scraper and traces it with a compass. He patterns it after a man, with the beauty of a man, to sit in a house.

There is one whose work is to cut down cedars. He selects a certain type of tree, an oak, and he lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a laurel tree, and the rain makes it grow.

Then it becomes fuel for a man to make fires. He takes part of it to warm himself. He builds a fire and bakes bread. But he also makes a god and worships it. He makes it into a carved image and bows down before it.

Half of it he burns up in a fire. With that half he roasts the meat that he eats and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm as I watch the fire.”

But the rest of it he makes into a god, into his carved image. He bows down to it and worships it. He prays to it and says, “Save me, for you are my god.”

They know nothing, they understand nothing, because their eyes are sealed shut and they cannot see, and their heart has no insight.

No one reflects in his heart or has understanding, saying: “Half of it I burned up in a fire, and on its coals I baked bread and roasted meat to eat. Should I then make the rest of it into a detestable thing? Should I worship a block of wood from a tree?”

He feeds on ashes. His own deluded heart has led him astray. He cannot save himself, nor does he say, “Is there not a lie in my right hand?”

Remember these things, O Jacob, and you, O Israel, for you are my servant. I formed you, and you are my servant. O Israel, I will not forget you.

I will blot out your transgressions as with a cloud and your sins as with a thick cloud.

Return to me, for I will repurchase you.

Shout joyfully, you heavens, for Jehovah has acted! Shout in triumph, you depths of the earth! Shout for joy, you mountains, you forest and all your trees!

For Jehovah has repurchased Jacob, and on Israel he displays his splendor.

This is what Jehovah says, your Repurchaser, who formed you since you were in the womb:

I am Jehovah, who made everything. I stretched out the heavens by myself, and I spread out the earth. Who was with me?

I frustrate the signs of the empty talkers and make diviners act like fools, confounding the wise men and turning their knowledge into foolishness.

I make the word of my servant come true and completely fulfill the predictions of my messengers.

I say of Jerusalem, “She will be inhabited,” and of the cities of Judah, “They will be rebuilt, and I will restore her ruins.”

I say to the deep waters, “Be evaporated, and I will dry up all your rivers.”

I say of Cyrus, “He is my shepherd, and he will completely carry out all my will.”

I say of Jerusalem, “She will be rebuilt,” and of the temple, “Your foundation will be laid.”

#poetry #bible #isaiah

John 12:20-50 – Daytime events: Nisan 10

20 Now there were some Greeks among those who had come to worship at the festival. 21 So these approached Philip, who was from Beth·saʹi·da of Galʹi·lee, and they began to request him, saying: “Sir, we want to see Jesus.” 22 Philip came and told Andrew. Andrew and Philip came and told Jesus.

23 But Jesus answered them: “The hour has come for the Son of man to be glorified. 24 Most truly I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just one grain; but if it dies, it then bears much fruit. 25 Whoever is fond of his life destroys it, but whoever hates his life in this world will safeguard it for everlasting life. 26 If anyone would minister to me, let him follow me, and where I am, there my minister will be also. If anyone would minister to me, the Father will honor him. 27 Now I am troubled, and what should I say? Father, save me out of this hour. Nevertheless, this is why I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have glorified it and will glorify it again.”

29 The crowd that was standing there heard it and began to say that it had thundered. Others said: “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered: “This voice has occurred, not for my sake, but for your sakes. 31 Now there is a judging of this world; now the ruler of this world will be cast out. 32 And yet I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all sorts of men to myself.” 33 This he was really saying to indicate what sort of death he was about to die. 34 Then the crowd answered him: “We heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can you say that the Son of man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of man?” 35 So Jesus said to them: “The light will be among you a little while longer. Walk while you still have the light, so that darkness does not overpower you; whoever walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. 36 While you have the light, exercise faith in the light, so that you may become sons of light.”

Jesus said these things and went off and hid from them. 37 Although he had performed so many signs before them, they were not putting faith in him, 38 so that the word of Isaiah the prophet might be fulfilled, who said: “Jehovah, who has put faith in the thing heard from us?* And as for the arm of Jehovah, to whom has it been revealed?” 39 The reason why they were not able to believe is that again Isaiah said: 40 “He has blinded their eyes and has made their hearts hard, so that they would not see with their eyes and understand with their hearts and turn around and I heal them.”+ 41 Isaiah said these things because he saw his glory, and he spoke about him.+ 42 All the same, many even of the rulers actually put faith in him,+ but they would not acknowledge him because of the Pharisees, so that they would not be expelled from the synagogue;+ 43 for they loved the glory of men even more than the glory of God.*

44 However, Jesus called out and said: “Whoever puts faith in me puts faith not only in me but also in him who sent me;+ 45 and whoever sees me sees also the One who sent me.+ 46 I have come as a light into the world,+ so that everyone putting faith in me may not remain in the darkness.+ 47 But if anyone hears my sayings and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I came, not to judge the world, but to save the world.+ 48 Whoever disregards me and does not receive my sayings has one to judge him. The word that I have spoken is what will judge him on the last day.+ 49 For I have not spoken of my own initiative, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment about what to say and what to speak.+ 50 And I know that his commandment means* everlasting life.+ So whatever I speak, I speak just as the Father has told me.”

#poetry #bible #memorial

Who of us can live with unquenchable flames? —The one who walks in continual righteousness.

ISAIAH:

Woe to you, you destroyer who has not been destroyed; You betrayer who has not been betrayed! When you finish destroying, you will be destroyed. When you finish betraying, you will be betrayed.

O Jehovah, show us favor. Our hope is in you. Become our arm every morning, Yes, our salvation in the time of distress.

At the sound of turmoil peoples flee. When you rise up, nations scatter.

As the voracious locusts gather, so your spoil will be gathered; People will rush on it like swarms of locusts.

Jehovah will be exalted, For he resides in the heights above. He will fill Zion with justice and righteousness.

He is the stability of your times; An abundance of salvation, wisdom, knowledge, and the fear of Jehovah —This is his treasure.

Look! Their heroes cry out in the street; The messengers of peace weep bitterly.

The highways are deserted; There is no one traveling on the pathways. He has broken the covenant; He has rejected the cities; He shows no regard for mortal man.

The land mourns and withers away. Lebanon is ashamed; it has decayed. Sharon has become like the desert, And Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.

JEHOVAH:

“Now I will rise up, Now I will exalt myself; Now I will magnify myself.

You conceive dried grass and give birth to stubble. Your own spirit will consume you like a fire.

And peoples will become as the burnings of lime. As thorns cut down, they will be set ablaze with fire.

You who are far away, listen to what I will do! And you who are nearby, acknowledge my might!”

ISAIAH:

The sinners in Zion are in dread; Trembling has seized the apostates: ‘Who of us can live where there is a consuming fire? Who of us can live with unquenchable flames?’

The one who walks in continual righteousness, Who speaks what is upright, Who rejects dishonest, fraudulent gain, Whose hands refuse a bribe rather than grabbing it, Who closes his ear to talk of bloodshed, And who shuts his eyes to avoid seeing what is bad

—He will reside in the heights; His secure refuge will be in rocky strongholds, His bread will be provided, And his water supply will never fail.

Your eyes will behold a king in his splendor; They will see a land far away.

In your heart you will recall the terror: “Where is the secretary? Where is the one who weighed out the tribute? Where is the one who counted the towers?”

You will no more see the insolent people, A people whose language is too obscure to comprehend, Whose stammering tongue you cannot understand.

Behold Zion, the city of our festivals! Your eyes will see Jerusalem as a tranquil dwelling place, A tent that will not be moved. Never will its tent pins be pulled out, And none of its ropes will be torn apart.

But there the Majestic One, Jehovah, Will be for us a region of rivers, of wide canals, Where no galley fleet will go And no majestic ships will pass by.

For Jehovah is our Judge, Jehovah is our Lawgiver, Jehovah is our King; He is the One who will save us.

Your ropes will hang loose; They cannot hold up the mast nor spread the sail. At that time an abundance of spoil will be divided up; Even the lame will take much plunder.

And no resident will say: “I am sick.” The people dwelling in the land will be pardoned for their error.

ISAIAH 34

ISAIAH:

Come close to hear, you nations, And pay attention, you peoples. Let the earth and that which fills it listen, The land and all its produce.

For Jehovah’s indignation is against all the nations, And his wrath is against all their army. He will devote them to destruction; He will give them to the slaughter.

Their slain will be thrown out, And the stench of their carcasses will ascend; The mountains will melt because of their blood.

All the army of the heavens will rot away, And the heavens will be rolled up like a scroll. All their army will wither away, As a withered leaf falls from the vine And a shriveled fig from the fig tree.

JEHOVAH:

“For in the heavens my sword will be drenched. It will descend on Edom in judgment, On the people whom I devoted to destruction.

Jehovah has a sword; it will be covered with blood. It will be covered with the fat, With the blood of young rams and goats, With the kidney fat of rams. For Jehovah has a sacrifice in Bozrah, A great slaughter in the land of Edom.

The wild bulls will go down with them, The young bulls with the powerful ones. Their land will be drenched in blood, And their dust will be soaked with fat.”

ISAIAH:

For Jehovah has a day of vengeance, A year of retribution for the legal case over Zion.

Her streams will be changed into pitch, And her dust into sulfur, And her land will become like burning pitch.

By night or by day it will not be extinguished; Its smoke will keep ascending forever. From generation to generation she will remain devastated; No one will pass through her forever and ever.

The pelican and the porcupine will possess her, And long-eared owls and ravens will reside in her. He will stretch out over her the measuring line of emptiness And the plumb line of desolation.

None of her nobles will be called to the kingship, And all her princes will come to nothing.

Thorns will grow in her fortified towers, Nettles and thorny weeds in her fortresses. She will become a lair of jackals, An enclosure for ostriches.

Desert creatures will meet up with howling animals, And the wild goat will call to its companion. Yes, there the nightjar will settle and find a place of rest.

There the arrow snake will make its nest and lay eggs, And it will hatch them and gather them in its shadow. Yes, there the kites will gather, each one with her mate.

Search in the book of Jehovah and read it out loud: Not one of them will be missing; None of them will be lacking a mate, For it is the mouth of Jehovah that has given the order, And it is his spirit that has gathered them together.

He is the One who has cast the lot for them, And his own hand has measured out their assigned place. They will possess it for all time; They will reside in it throughout all generations.

ISAIAH 35

ISAIAH:

The wilderness and the parched land will exult, And the desert plain will be joyful and blossom as the saffron.

Without fail it will blossom; It will rejoice and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The splendor of Carmel and of Sharon. They will see the glory of Jehovah, the splendor of our God.

Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the knees that are shaking.

Say to those who are anxious at heart: “Be strong. Do not be afraid. Look! Your own God will come with vengeance, God will come with retribution. He will come and save you.”

At that time the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.

At that time the lame will leap like the deer, And the tongue of the speechless will shout for joy. For waters will burst forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert plain.

The heat-parched ground will become a reedy pool, And the thirsty ground springs of water. In the lairs where jackals rested, There will be green grass and reeds and papyrus.

And a highway will be there, Yes, a way called the Way of Holiness. The unclean one will not travel on it. It is reserved for the one walking on the way; No one foolish will stray onto it.

No lion will be there, And no vicious wild beasts will come on it. They will not be found there; Only the repurchased ones will walk there.

Those redeemed by Jehovah will return and come to Zion with a joyful cry. Unending joy will crown their heads. Exultation and rejoicing will be theirs, And grief and sighing will flee away.

#poetry #bible #isaiah