Jeremiah 42-44:23 (Contemporary English Version)
Jeremiah 42
The People Ask Jeremiah To Pray for Them
1Johanan, Jezaniah, a] the other army officers, and everyone else in the group, came to me 2and said, "Please pray to the LORD your God for us. Judah used to have many people, but as you can see, only a few of us are left. 3Ask the LORD to tell us where he wants us to go and what he wants us to do." 4"All right," I answered, "I will pray to the LORD your God, and I will tell you everything he says." 5They answered, "The LORD himself will be our witness that we promise to do whatever he says, 6even if it isn't what we want to do. We will obey the LORD so that all will go well for us."7Ten days later, the LORD gave me an answer for 8Johanan, the officers, and the other people. So I called them together 9and told them that the LORD God of Israel had said:
You asked Jeremiah to pray and find out what you should do. 10I am sorry that I had to punish you, and so I now tell you to stay here in Judah, where I will plant you and build you up, instead of tearing you down and uprooting you. 11Don't be afraid of the King of Babylonia. I will protect you from him, 12and I will even force him to have mercy on you and give back your farms.
13But you might keep on saying, "We won't stay here in Judah, and we won't obey the LORD our God. 14We are going to Egypt, where there is plenty of food and no danger of war."
15People of Judah, you survived when the Babylonian army attacked. Now you are planning to move to Egypt, and if you do go, this is what will happen. 16-17You are afraid of war, starvation, and disease here in Judah, but they will follow you to Egypt and kill you there. None of you will survive the disasters I will send.
18I, the LORD, was angry with the people of Jerusalem and punished them. And if you go to Egypt, I will be angry and punish you the same way. You will never again see your homeland. People will be horrified at what I do to you, and they will use the name of your city as a curse word.
Jeremiah Gives a Warning
19I told the people: You escaped the disaster that struck Judah, but now the LORD warns you to stay away from Egypt. 20You asked me to pray and find out what the LORD our God wants you to do, and you promised to obey him. But that was a terrible mistake, 21because now that I have given you the LORD's answer, you refuse to obey him. 22And so, you will die in Egypt from war, hunger, and disease.Jeremiah 43
The People Go to Egypt
1I told the people everything the LORD had told me. 2But Azariah, Johanan b]and some other arrogant men said to me, "You're lying! The LORD didn't tell you to say that we shouldn't go to Egypt. 3Baruch son of Neriah must have told you to say that. He wants the Babylonians to capture us, so they can take us away to Babylonia or even kill us." 4Johanan, the other army officers, and everyone else refused to stay in Judah in spite of the LORD's command. 5So Johanan and the officers led us away toward Egypt. The group that left Judah included those who had been scattered in other countries and who had then come back to live in Judah. 6Baruch and I and others in the group had been staying with Gedaliah, because Nebuzaradan, the Babylonian officer in charge of the guard, had ordered him to take care of the king's daughters and quite a few men, women, and children. 7The people disobeyed the LORD and went to Egypt. The group had settled in Tahpanhes, 8when the LORD told me:9Jeremiah, carry some large stones to the entrance of the government building in Tahpanhes. Bury the stones underneath the brick pavement c] and be sure the Jews are watching. 10Then tell them that I, the LORD All-Powerful, the God of Israel, have sent for my servant, Nebuchadnezzar d] of Babylonia. I will bring him here and have him set up his throne and his royal tent over these stones that I told you to bury. 11He will attack Egypt and kill many of its people; others will die of disease or be dragged away as prisoners. 12-13I will have him set Egypt's temples on fire, and he will either burn or carry off their idols. He will destroy the sacred monuments at the temple of the sun-god. e] Then Nebuchadnezzar will pick the land clean, just like a shepherd picking the lice off his clothes. And he will return safely home.
Jeremiah 44
The LORD Will Destroy the People of Judah
1The LORD told me to speak with the Jews who were living in the towns of Migdol, Tahpanhes, and Memphis in northern Egypt, and also to those living in southern Egypt. He told me to tell them: 2I am the LORD All-Powerful, the God of Israel. You saw how I destroyed Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. They lie empty and in ruins today, 3because the people of Judah made me angry by worshiping gods that had never helped them or their ancestors.4Time after time I sent my servants the prophets to tell the people of Judah how much I hated their disgusting sins. The prophets warned them to stop sinning, 5but they refused to listen and would not stop worshiping other gods. 6Finally, my anger struck like a raging flood, and today Jerusalem and the towns of Judah are nothing but empty ruins.
7Why do you now insist on heading for another disaster? A disaster that will destroy not only you, but also your children and babies. 8You have made me angry by worshiping idols and burning incense to other gods after you came here to Egypt. You will die such a disgusting death, that other nations will use the name of Judah as a curse word. 9When you were living in Jerusalem and Judah, you followed the example of your ancestors in doing evil things, just like your kings and queens. 10Even now, your pride keeps you from respecting me and obeying the laws and teachings I gave you and your ancestors.
11I, the LORD All-Powerful, have decided to wipe you out with disasters. 12There were only a few of you left in Judah, and you decided to go to Egypt. But you will die such horrible deaths in war or from starvation, that people of other countries will use the name of Judah as a curse word. 13I punished Jerusalem with war, hunger, and disease, and that's how I will punish you. 14None of you will survive. You may hope to return to Judah someday, but only a very few of you will escape death and be able to go back.
The People Refuse To Worship the LORD
15A large number of Jews from both northern and southern Egypt listened to me as I told them what the LORD had said. Most of the men in the crowd knew that their wives often burned incense to other gods. So they and their wives shouted: 16Jeremiah, what do we care if you speak in the LORD's name? We refuse to listen! 17We have promised to worship the goddess Astarte, the Queen of Heaven, f] and that is exactly what we are going to do. We will burn incense and offer sacrifices of wine to her, just as we, our ancestors, our kings, and our leaders did when we lived in Jerusalem and the other towns of Judah. We had plenty of food back then. We were well off, and nothing bad ever happened to us. 18But since the time we stopped burning incense and offering wine sacrifices to her, we have been dying from war and hunger. 19Then the women said, "When we lived in Judah, we worshiped the Queen of Heaven and offered sacrifices of wine and special loaves of bread shaped like her. Our husbands knew what we were doing, and they approved of it."20Then I told the crowd:
21Don't you think the LORD knew that you and your ancestors, your leaders and kings, and the rest of the people were burning incense to other gods in Jerusalem and everywhere else in Judah? 22And when he could no longer put up with your disgusting sins, he placed a curse on your land and turned it into a desert, as it is today. 23This disaster happened because you worshiped other gods and rebelled against the LORD by refusing to obey him or follow his laws and teachings.
Footnotes:
- Jeremiah 42:1 Jezaniah: Hebrew "Jezaniah son of Hoshaiah"; one ancient translation "Azariah son of Hoshaiah" (see also 43.2 and the note there).
- Jeremiah 43:2 Azariah, Johanan: Hebrew "Azariah son of Hoshaiah, Johanan son of Kareah."
- Jeremiah 43:9 underneath the brick pavement: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- Jeremiah 43:10 Nebuchadnezzar: See the note at 21.2.
- Jeremiah 43:12 at the temple of the sun-god: Or "in the city of Heliopolis."
- Jeremiah 44:17 the goddess Astarte, the Queen of Heaven: The Hebrew text has "the queen of heaven," which probably refers to the goddess Astarte.
2 Timothy 2:1-21 (Contemporary English Version)
2 Timothy 2
A Good Soldier of Christ Jesus
1Timothy, my child, Christ Jesus is kind, and you must let him make you strong. 2You have often heard me teach. Now I want you to tell these same things to followers who can be trusted to tell others. 3As a good soldier of Christ Jesus you must endure your share of suffering. 4Soldiers on duty don't work at outside jobs. They try only to please their commanding officer. 5No one wins an athletic contest without obeying the rules.6And farmers who work hard are the first to eat what grows in their field. 7If you keep in mind what I have told you, the Lord will help you understand completely.8Keep your mind on Jesus Christ! He was from the family of David and was raised from death, just as my good news says. 9And because of this message, I am locked up in jail and treated like a criminal. But God's good news isn't locked in jail, 10and so I am willing to put up with anything. Then God's special people will be saved. They will be given eternal glory because they belong to Christ Jesus. 11Here is a true message:
"If we died with Christ,
we will live with him.
12If we don't give up,
we will rule with him.
If we deny
that we know him,
he will deny
that he knows us.
13If we are not faithful,
he will still be faithful.
Christ cannot deny
who he is."
An Approved Worker
14Don't let anyone forget these things. And with God a] as your witness, you must warn them not to argue about words. These arguments don't help anyone. In fact, they ruin everyone who listens to them. 15Do your best to win God's approval as a worker who doesn't need to be ashamed and who teaches only the true message. 16Keep away from worthless and useless talk. It only leads people farther away from God. 17That sort of talk is like a sore that won't heal. And Hymenaeus and Philetus have been talking this way 18by teaching that the dead have already been raised to life. This is far from the truth, and it is destroying the faith of some people. 19But the foundation that God has laid is solid. On it is written, "The Lord knows who his people are. So everyone who worships the Lord must turn away from evil."20In a large house some dishes are made of gold or silver, while others are made of wood or clay. Some of these are special, and others are not. 21That's also how it is with people. The ones who stop doing evil and make themselves pure will become special. Their lives will be holy and pleasing to their Master, and they will be able to do all kinds of good deeds.
Footnotes:
- 2 Timothy 2:14 God: Some manuscripts have "the Lord," and others have "Christ."
Psalm 92-93:5 (Contemporary English Version)
Psalm 92
(A psalm and a song for the Sabbath.)
Sing Praises to the LORD
1It is wonderful to be grateful and to sing your praises,LORD Most High!
2It is wonderful each morning
to tell about your love
and at night to announce
how faithful you are.
3I enjoy praising your name
to the music of harps,
4because everything you do
makes me happy,
and I sing joyful songs.
5You do great things, LORD.
Your thoughts are too deep
6for an ignorant fool
to know or understand.
7Though the wicked sprout
and spread like grass,
they will be pulled up
by their roots.
8But you will rule
over all of us forever,
9and your hateful enemies
will be scattered
and then destroyed.
10You have given me
the strength of a wild ox,
and you have chosen me
to be your very own.
11My eyes have seen,
and my ears have heard
the doom and destruction
of my terrible enemies.
12Good people will prosper
like palm trees,
and they will grow strong
like the cedars of Lebanon.
13They will take root
in your house, LORD God,
and they will do well.
14They will be like trees
that stay healthy and fruitful,
even when they are old.
15And they will say about you,
"The LORD always does right!
God is our mighty rock." a]
Psalm 93
The LORD Is King
1Our LORD, you are King! Majesty and powerare your royal robes.
You put the world in place,
and it will never be moved.
2You have always ruled,
and you are eternal.
3The ocean is roaring, LORD!
The sea is pounding hard.
4Its mighty waves are majestic,
but you are more majestic,
and you rule over all.
5Your decisions are firm,
and your temple will always
be beautiful and holy.
Footnotes:
- Psalm 92:15 mighty rock: See the note at 18.2.
Proverbs 26:3-5 (Contemporary English Version)
3Horses and donkeys
must be beaten and bridled--
and so must fools.
4Don't make a fool of yourself
by answering a fool.
5But if you answer any fools,
show how foolish they are,
so they won't feel smart.
Verse of the Day
“You obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand.” - Galatians 6:2
must be beaten and bridled--
and so must fools.
4Don't make a fool of yourself
by answering a fool.
5But if you answer any fools,
show how foolish they are,
so they won't feel smart.
Verse of the Day
“You obey the law of Christ when you offer each other a helping hand.” - Galatians 6:2
Today's passage is from the Contemporary English Version.
Thought for the Day
English writer, literary historian, scholar, critic and wine connoisseur, George Saintsbury wrote, “We shall not busy ourselves with what men ought to have admired, what they ought to have written, what they ought to have thought, but with what they did think, write, admire.”
A Joke for Today
A man rushed into the doctor's office and shouted, "Doctor! I think I'm shrinking!"
The doctor calmly responded, "Now, settle down. You'll just have to be a little patient."
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