HOSEA 4:1-5:15
2 JOHN 1-13
PSALM 125:1-5
PROVERBS 29:9-11
HOSEA 4:1-5:15
Hear the word of the LORD, O people of Israel! The LORD has filed a lawsuit against you, saying: " There is no faithfulness, no kindness, no knowledge of God in your land. 2 You curse and lie and kill and steal and commit adultery. There is violence everywhere, with one murder after another. 3 That is why your land is not producing. It is filled with sadness, and all living things are becoming sick and dying. Even the animals, birds, and fish have begun to disappear. 4 " Don't point your finger at someone else and try to pass the blame! Look, you priests, my complaint is with you! 5 As a sentence for your crimes, you will stumble in broad daylight, just as you might at night, and so will your false prophets. And I will destroy your mother, Israel. 6 My people are being destroyed because they don't know me. It is all your fault, you priests, for you yourselves refuse to know me. Now I refuse to recognize you as my priests. Since you have forgotten the laws of your God, I will forget to bless your children. 7 The more priests there are, the more they sin against me. They have exchanged the glory of God for the disgrace of idols. 8 " The priests get fed when the people sin and bring their sin offerings to them. So the priests are glad when the people sin! 9 ` Like priests, like people'--since the priests are wicked, the people are wicked, too. So now I will punish both priests and people for all their wicked deeds. 10 They will eat and still be hungry. Though they do a big business as prostitutes, they will have no children, for they have deserted the LORD to worship other gods.11 " Alcohol and prostitution have robbed my people of their brains. 12 They are asking a piece of wood to tell them what to do! They think a stick can tell them the future! Longing after idols has made them foolish. They have played the prostitute, serving other gods and deserting their God. 13 They offer sacrifices to idols on the tops of mountains. They go up into the hills to burn incense in the pleasant shade of oaks, poplars, and other trees. " That is why your daughters turn to prostitution, and your daughters-in-law commit adultery. 14 Why should I punish them? For you men are doing the same thing, sinning with whores and shrine prostitutes. O foolish people! You will be destroyed, for you refuse to understand.15 " Though Israel is a prostitute, may Judah avoid such guilt. O Judah, do not join with those who worship me insincerely at Gilgal and at Beth-aven. Their worship is mere pretense as they take oaths in the LORD's name. 16 Israel is as stubborn as a heifer, so the LORD will put her out to pasture. She will stand alone and unprotected, like a helpless lamb in an open field. 17 Leave her alone because she is married to idolatry. 18 The men of Israel finish up their drinking bouts and off they go to find some prostitutes. Their love for shame is greater than their love for honor. 19 So a mighty wind will sweep them away. They will die in shame because they offer sacrifices to idols. 5:1 " HEAR this, you priests and all of Israel's leaders! Listen, all you men of the royal family! These words of judgment are for you: You are doomed! For you have led the people into a snare by worshiping the idols at Mizpah and Tabor. 2 You have dug a deep pit to trap them at Acacia. But never forget--I will settle with all of you for what you have done. 3 I know what you are like, O Israel! You have left me as a prostitute leaves her husband; you are utterly defiled. 4 Your deeds won't let you return to your God. You are a prostitute through and through, and you cannot know the LORD. 5 " The arrogance of Israel* testifies against her; she will stumble under her load of guilt. Judah, too, will fall with her. 6 Then at last, they will come with their flocks and herds to offer sacrifices to the LORD. But it will be too late! They will not find him, because he has withdrawn from them, and they are now alone. 7 For they have betrayed the honor of the LORD, bearing children that aren't his. Now their false religion will devour them, along with their wealth. 8 " Blow the ram's horn in Gibeah! Sound the alarm in Ramah! Raise the battle cry in Beth-aven! Lead on into battle, O warriors of Benjamin! 9 One thing is certain, Israel: When your day of punishment comes, you will become a heap of rubble.10 " The leaders of Judah have become as bad as thieves. So I will pour my anger down on them like a waterfall. 11 The people of Israel will be crushed and broken by my judgment because they are determined to worship idols. 12 I will destroy Israel as a moth consumes wool. I will sap Judah's strength as dry rot weakens wood. 13 " When Israel and Judah saw how sick they were, Israel turned to Assyria, to the great king there, but he could neither help nor cure them. 14 I will tear at Israel and Judah as a lion rips apart its prey. I will carry them off, and there will be no one left to rescue them. 15 Then I will return to my place until they admit their guilt and look to me for help. For as soon as trouble comes, they will search for me."
2 JOHN 1-13
This letter is from John the Elder. It is written to the chosen lady and to her children, whom I love in the truth, as does everyone else who knows God's truth--2 the truth that lives in us and will be in our hearts forever. 3 May grace, mercy, and peace, which come from God our Father and from Jesus Christ his Son, be with us who live in truth and love. 4 How happy I was to meet some of your children and find them living in the truth, just as we have been commanded by the Father. 5 And now I want to urge you, dear lady, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we had from the beginning. 6 Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning. 7 Many deceivers have gone out into the world. They do not believe that Jesus Christ came to earth in a real body. Such a person is a deceiver and an antichrist. 8 Watch out, so that you do not lose the prize for which we have been working so hard. Be diligent so that you will receive your full reward. 9 For if you wander beyond the teaching of Christ, you will not have fellowship with God. But if you continue in the teaching of Christ, you will have fellowship with both the Father and the Son. 10 If someone comes to your meeting and does not teach the truth about Christ, don't invite him into your house or encourage him in any way. 11 Anyone who encourages him becomes a partner in his evil work. 12 Well, I have much more to say to you, but I don't want to say it in a letter. For I hope to visit you soon and to talk with you face to face. Then our joy will be complete. 13 Greetings from the children of your sister, chosen by God.
PSALM 125:1-5
A song for the ascent to Jerusalem.
1 Those who trust in the LORD are as secure as Mount Zion;
they will not be defeated but will endure forever.
2 Just as the mountains surround and protect Jerusalem,
so the LORD surrounds and protects his people, both now and forever.
3 The wicked will not rule the godly,
for then the godly might be forced to do wrong.
4 O LORD, do good to those who are good,
whose hearts are in tune with you.
5 But banish those who turn to crooked ways, O LORD.
Take them away with those who do evil.
And let Israel have quietness and peace.
PROVERBS 29:9-11
If a wise person takes a fool to court, there will be ranting and ridicule but no satisfaction. The bloodthirsty hate the honest, but the upright seek out the honest. A fool gives full vent to anger, but a wise person quietly holds it back.
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