24:1 | In the ninth year, in the tenth month on the tenth day, the word of the LORD came to me |
24:2 | "Son of man, record this date, this very date, because the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.
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24:3 | Tell this rebellious house a parable and say to them |
24:4 | Put into it the pieces of meat, all the choice pieces-- the leg and the shoulder. Fill it with the best of these bones;
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24:5 | take the pick of the flock. Pile wood beneath it for the bones; bring it to a boil and cook the bones in it.
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24:6 | ""For this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
24:7 | ""For the blood she shed is in her midst |
24:8 | To stir up wrath and take revenge I put her blood on the bare rock, so that it would not be covered.
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24:9 | ""Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
24:10 | So heap on the wood and kindle the fire. Cook the meat well, mixing in the spices; and let the bones be charred.
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24:11 | Then set the empty pot on the coals till it becomes hot and its copper glows so its impurities may be melted and its deposit burned away.
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24:12 | It has frustrated all efforts; its heavy deposit has not been removed, not even by fire.
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24:13 | ""Now your impurity is lewdness. Because I tried to cleanse you but you would not be cleansed from your impurity, you will not be clean again until my wrath against you has subsided.
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24:14 | ""I the LORD have spoken. The time has come for me to act. I will not hold back; I will not have pity, nor will I relent. You will be judged according to your conduct and your actions, declares the Sovereign LORD.""
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24:15 | The word of the LORD came to me |
24:16 | "Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears.
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24:17 | Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food [of mourners]."
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24:18 | So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.
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24:19 | Then the people asked me, "Won"t you tell us what these things have to do with us?"
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24:20 | So I said to them, "The word of the LORD came to me |
24:21 | Say to the house of Israel, "This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
24:22 | And you will do as I have done. You will not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food [of mourners].
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24:23 | You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of your sins and groan among yourselves.
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24:24 | Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD."
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24:25 | "And you, son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes, their heart's desire, and their sons and daughters as well--
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24:26 | on that day a fugitive will come to tell you the news.
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24:27 | At that time your mouth will be opened; you will speak with him and will no longer be silent. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD."
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25:1 | The word of the LORD came to me |
25:2 | "Son of man, set your face against the Ammonites and prophesy against them.
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25:3 | Say to them, "Hear the word of the Sovereign LORD. This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:4 | therefore I am going to give you to the people of the East as a possession. They will set up their camps and pitch their tents among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk.
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25:5 | I will turn Rabbah into a pasture for camels and Ammon into a resting place for sheep. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
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25:6 | For this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:7 | therefore I will stretch out my hand against you and give you as plunder to the nations. I will cut you off from the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy you, and you will know that I am the LORD.""
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25:8 | "This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:9 | therefore I will expose the flank of Moab, beginning at its frontier towns-- Beth Jeshimoth, Baal Meon and Kiriathaim-- the glory of that land.
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25:10 | I will give Moab along with the Ammonites to the people of the East as a possession, so that the Ammonites will not be remembered among the nations;
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25:11 | and I will inflict punishment on Moab. Then they will know that I am the LORD.""
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25:12 | "This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:13 | therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:14 | I will take vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my anger and my wrath; they will know my vengeance, declares the Sovereign LORD.""
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25:15 | "This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:16 | therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
25:17 | I will carry out great vengeance on them and punish them in my wrath. Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I take vengeance on them.""
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26:1 | In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me |
26:2 | "Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, "Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,"
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26:3 | therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
26:4 | They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock.
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26:5 | Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD. She will become plunder for the nations,
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26:6 | and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
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26:7 | "For this is what the Sovereign LORD says |
26:8 | He will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works against you, build a ramp up to your walls and raise his shields against you.
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26:9 | He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and demolish your towers with his weapons.
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26:10 | His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will tremble at the noise of the war horses, wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through.
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26:11 | The hoofs of his horses will trample all your streets; he will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground.
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26:12 | They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea.
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26:13 | I will put an end to your noisy songs, and the music of your harps will be heard no more.
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26:14 | I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the LORD have spoken, declares the Sovereign LORD.
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26:15 | "This is what the Sovereign LORD says to Tyre |
26:16 | Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you.
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26:17 | Then they will take up a lament concerning you and say to you |
26:18 | Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall; the islands in the sea are terrified at your collapse."
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26:19 | "This is what the Sovereign LORD says |
26:20 | then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place in the land of the living.
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26:21 | I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign LORD."
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2:1 | Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind.
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2:2 | Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation,
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2:3 | now that you have tasted that the Lord is good.
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2:4 | As you come to him, the living Stone-- rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him--
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2:5 | you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.
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2:6 | For in Scripture it says |
2:7 | Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, "The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone,"
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2:8 | and, "A stone that causes men to stumble and a rock that makes them fall." They stumble because they disobey the message-- which is also what they were destined for.
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2:9 | But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.
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2:10 | Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.
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2:11 | Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.
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2:12 | Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.
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2:13 | Submit yourselves for the Lord's sake to every authority instituted among men |
2:14 | or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.
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2:15 | For it is God's will that by doing good you should silence the ignorant talk of foolish men.
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2:16 | Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God.
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2:17 | Show proper respect to everyone |
2:18 | Slaves, submit yourselves to your masters with all respect, not only to those who are good and considerate, but also to those who are harsh.
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2:19 | For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God.
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2:20 | But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God.
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2:21 | To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
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2:22 | "He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth."
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2:23 | When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly.
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2:24 | He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.
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2:25 | For you were like sheep going astray, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
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