OBADIAH 1- 21
REVELATION 4:1- 11
PSALM 132:1- 18
PROVERBS 29:24- 25
This is the vision that the Sovereign LORD revealed to Obadiah concerning the land of Edom. We have heard a message from the LORD that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say, "Get ready, everyone! Let's assemble our armies and attack Edom!" 2 The LORD says, "I will cut you down to size among the nations, Edom; you will be small and despised. 3 You are proud because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. `Who can ever reach us way up here? 'you ask boastfully. Don't fool yourselves! 4 Though you soar as high as eagles and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you crashing down. I, the LORD, have spoken! 5" If thieves came at night and robbed you, they would not take everything. Those who harvest grapes always leave a few for the poor. But your enemies will wipe you out completely! 6 Every nook and cranny of Edom will be searched and looted. Every treasure will be found and taken. 7 "All your allies will turn against you. They will help to chase you from your land. They will promise you peace, while plotting your destruction. Your trusted friends will set traps for you, and you won't even know about it. 8 At that time not a single wise person will be left in the whole land of Edom!" says the LORD. "For on the mountains of Edom I will destroy everyone who has wisdom and understanding. 9 The mightiest warriors of Teman will be terrified, and everyone on the mountains of Edom will be cut down in the slaughter. 10" And why? Because of the violence you did to your close relatives in Israel. Now you will be destroyed completely and filled with shame forever. 11 For you deserted your relatives in Israel during their time of greatest need. You stood aloof, refusing to lift a finger to help when foreign invaders carried off their wealth and cast lots to divide up Jerusalem. You acted as though you were one of Israel's enemies. 12 "You shouldn't have done this! You shouldn't have gloated when they exiled your relatives to distant lands. You shouldn't have rejoiced because they were suffering such misfortune. You shouldn't have crowed over them as they suffered these disasters. 13 You shouldn't have plundered the land of Israel when they were suffering such calamity. You shouldn't have gloated over the destruction of your relatives, looting their homes and making yourselves rich at their expense. 14 You shouldn't have stood at the crossroads, killing those who tried to escape. You shouldn't have captured the survivors, handing them over to their enemies in that terrible time of trouble. 15" The day is near when I, the LORD, will judge the godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. 16 Just as you swallowed up my people on my holy mountain, so you and the surrounding nations will swallow the punishment I pour out on you. Yes, you nations will drink and stagger and disappear from history, as though you had never even existed. 17 "But Jerusalem will become a refuge for those who escape; it will be a holy place. And the people of Israel will come back to reclaim their inheritance. 18 At that time Israel will be a raging fire, and Edom, a field of dry stubble. The fire will roar across the field, devouring everything and leaving no survivors in Edom. I, the LORD, have spoken! 19" Then my people living in the Negev will occupy the mountains of Edom. Those living in the foothills of Judah will possess the Philistine plains and take over the fields of Ephraim and Samaria. And the people of Benjamin will occupy the land of Gilead. 20 The exiles of Israel will return to their land and occupy the Phoenician coast as far north as Zarephath. The captives from Jerusalem exiled in the north will return to their homeland and resettle the villages of the Negev. 21 Deliverers will go up to Mount Zion in Jerusalem to rule over the mountains of Edom. And the LORD himself will be king! "
Then as I [John] looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me with the sound of a mighty trumpet blast. The voice said," Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things. "2 And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it! 3 The one sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones-- jasper and carnelian. And the glow of an emerald circled his throne like a rainbow. 4 Twenty- four thrones surrounded him, and twenty- four elders sat on them. They were all clothed in white and had gold crowns on their heads. 5 And from the throne came flashes of lightning and the rumble of thunder. And in front of the throne were seven lampstands with burning flames. They are the seven spirits of God. 6 In front of the throne was a shiny sea of glass, sparkling like crystal. In the center and around the throne were four living beings, each covered with eyes, front and back. 7 The first of these living beings had the form of a lion; the second looked like an ox; the third had a human face; and the fourth had the form of an eagle with wings spread out as though in flight. 8 Each of these living beings had six wings, and their wings were covered with eyes, inside and out. Day after day and night after night they keep on saying," Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty--
the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come. "
9 Whenever the living beings give glory and honor and thanks to the one sitting on the throne, the one who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty- four elders fall down and worship the one who lives forever and ever. And they lay their crowns before the throne and say, 11" You are worthy, O Lord our God,
to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created everything,
and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created. "
A song for the ascent to Jerusalem.
1 LORD, remember David
and all that he suffered.
2 He took an oath before the LORD.
He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,
3" I will not go home;
I will not let myself rest.
4 I will not let my eyes sleep
nor close my eyelids in slumber
5 until I find a place to build a house for the LORD,
a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel. "
6 We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah;
then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar.
7 Let us go to the dwelling place of the LORD;
let us bow low before him.
8 Arise, O LORD, and enter your sanctuary,
along with the Ark, the symbol of your power.
9 Your priests will be agents of salvation;
may your loyal servants sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
do not reject the king you chose for your people.
11 The LORD swore to David
a promise he will never take back:
" I will place your descendants on your throne.
12 If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant
and follow the decrees that I teach them,
then your royal line will never end. "
13 For the LORD has chosen Jerusalem;
he has desired it as his home.
14" This is my home where I will live forever, "he said.
" I will live here, for this is the place I desired.
15 I will make this city prosperous
and satisfy its poor with food.
16 I will make its priests the agents of salvation;
its godly people will sing for joy.
17 Here I will increase the power of David;
my anointed one will be a light for my people.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but he will be a glorious king. "
If you assist a thief, you are only hurting yourself. You will be punished if you report the crime, but you will be cursed if you don't. Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but to trust the LORD means safety
REVELATION 4:1- 11
PSALM 132:1- 18
PROVERBS 29:24- 25
This is the vision that the Sovereign LORD revealed to Obadiah concerning the land of Edom. We have heard a message from the LORD that an ambassador was sent to the nations to say, "Get ready, everyone! Let's assemble our armies and attack Edom!" 2 The LORD says, "I will cut you down to size among the nations, Edom; you will be small and despised. 3 You are proud because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. `Who can ever reach us way up here? 'you ask boastfully. Don't fool yourselves! 4 Though you soar as high as eagles and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you crashing down. I, the LORD, have spoken! 5" If thieves came at night and robbed you, they would not take everything. Those who harvest grapes always leave a few for the poor. But your enemies will wipe you out completely! 6 Every nook and cranny of Edom will be searched and looted. Every treasure will be found and taken. 7 "All your allies will turn against you. They will help to chase you from your land. They will promise you peace, while plotting your destruction. Your trusted friends will set traps for you, and you won't even know about it. 8 At that time not a single wise person will be left in the whole land of Edom!" says the LORD. "For on the mountains of Edom I will destroy everyone who has wisdom and understanding. 9 The mightiest warriors of Teman will be terrified, and everyone on the mountains of Edom will be cut down in the slaughter. 10" And why? Because of the violence you did to your close relatives in Israel. Now you will be destroyed completely and filled with shame forever. 11 For you deserted your relatives in Israel during their time of greatest need. You stood aloof, refusing to lift a finger to help when foreign invaders carried off their wealth and cast lots to divide up Jerusalem. You acted as though you were one of Israel's enemies. 12 "You shouldn't have done this! You shouldn't have gloated when they exiled your relatives to distant lands. You shouldn't have rejoiced because they were suffering such misfortune. You shouldn't have crowed over them as they suffered these disasters. 13 You shouldn't have plundered the land of Israel when they were suffering such calamity. You shouldn't have gloated over the destruction of your relatives, looting their homes and making yourselves rich at their expense. 14 You shouldn't have stood at the crossroads, killing those who tried to escape. You shouldn't have captured the survivors, handing them over to their enemies in that terrible time of trouble. 15" The day is near when I, the LORD, will judge the godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. 16 Just as you swallowed up my people on my holy mountain, so you and the surrounding nations will swallow the punishment I pour out on you. Yes, you nations will drink and stagger and disappear from history, as though you had never even existed. 17 "But Jerusalem will become a refuge for those who escape; it will be a holy place. And the people of Israel will come back to reclaim their inheritance. 18 At that time Israel will be a raging fire, and Edom, a field of dry stubble. The fire will roar across the field, devouring everything and leaving no survivors in Edom. I, the LORD, have spoken! 19" Then my people living in the Negev will occupy the mountains of Edom. Those living in the foothills of Judah will possess the Philistine plains and take over the fields of Ephraim and Samaria. And the people of Benjamin will occupy the land of Gilead. 20 The exiles of Israel will return to their land and occupy the Phoenician coast as far north as Zarephath. The captives from Jerusalem exiled in the north will return to their homeland and resettle the villages of the Negev. 21 Deliverers will go up to Mount Zion in Jerusalem to rule over the mountains of Edom. And the LORD himself will be king! "
Then as I [John] looked, I saw a door standing open in heaven, and the same voice I had heard before spoke to me with the sound of a mighty trumpet blast. The voice said," Come up here, and I will show you what must happen after these things. "2 And instantly I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne in heaven and someone sitting on it! 3 The one sitting on the throne was as brilliant as gemstones-- jasper and carnelian. And the glow of an emerald circled his throne like a rainbow. 4 Twenty- four thrones surrounded him, and twenty- four elders sat on them. They were all clothed in white and had gold crowns on their heads. 5 And from the throne came flashes of lightning and the rumble of thunder. And in front of the throne were seven lampstands with burning flames. They are the seven spirits of God. 6 In front of the throne was a shiny sea of glass, sparkling like crystal. In the center and around the throne were four living beings, each covered with eyes, front and back. 7 The first of these living beings had the form of a lion; the second looked like an ox; the third had a human face; and the fourth had the form of an eagle with wings spread out as though in flight. 8 Each of these living beings had six wings, and their wings were covered with eyes, inside and out. Day after day and night after night they keep on saying," Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty--
the one who always was, who is, and who is still to come. "
9 Whenever the living beings give glory and honor and thanks to the one sitting on the throne, the one who lives forever and ever, 10 the twenty- four elders fall down and worship the one who lives forever and ever. And they lay their crowns before the throne and say, 11" You are worthy, O Lord our God,
to receive glory and honor and power.
For you created everything,
and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created. "
A song for the ascent to Jerusalem.
1 LORD, remember David
and all that he suffered.
2 He took an oath before the LORD.
He vowed to the Mighty One of Israel,
3" I will not go home;
I will not let myself rest.
4 I will not let my eyes sleep
nor close my eyelids in slumber
5 until I find a place to build a house for the LORD,
a sanctuary for the Mighty One of Israel. "
6 We heard that the Ark was in Ephrathah;
then we found it in the distant countryside of Jaar.
7 Let us go to the dwelling place of the LORD;
let us bow low before him.
8 Arise, O LORD, and enter your sanctuary,
along with the Ark, the symbol of your power.
9 Your priests will be agents of salvation;
may your loyal servants sing for joy.
10 For the sake of your servant David,
do not reject the king you chose for your people.
11 The LORD swore to David
a promise he will never take back:
" I will place your descendants on your throne.
12 If your descendants obey the terms of my covenant
and follow the decrees that I teach them,
then your royal line will never end. "
13 For the LORD has chosen Jerusalem;
he has desired it as his home.
14" This is my home where I will live forever, "he said.
" I will live here, for this is the place I desired.
15 I will make this city prosperous
and satisfy its poor with food.
16 I will make its priests the agents of salvation;
its godly people will sing for joy.
17 Here I will increase the power of David;
my anointed one will be a light for my people.
18 I will clothe his enemies with shame,
but he will be a glorious king. "
If you assist a thief, you are only hurting yourself. You will be punished if you report the crime, but you will be cursed if you don't. Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but to trust the LORD means safety
