Bible Reading Plan – Day 220

₁Some of the leaders of the Israelites came to consult me about the LORD's will. ₂Then the LORD spoke to me. ₃“Mortal man,” he said, “these men have given their hearts to idols and are letting idols lead them into sin. Do they think I will give them an answer?

₄“Now speak to them and tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them: every Israelite who has given his heart to idols and lets them lead him into sin and who then comes to consult a prophet, will get an answer from me — the answer that his many idols deserve! ₅All those idols have turned the Israelites away from me, but by my answer I hope to win back their loyalty.

₆“Now then, tell the Israelites what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: turn back and leave your disgusting idols.

₇“Whenever one of the Israelites or one of the foreigners who live in the Israelite community turns away from me and worships idols, and then goes to consult a prophet, I, the LORD, will give him his answer! ₈I will oppose him. I will make an example of him. I will remove him from the community of my people, so that you will know that I am the LORD.

₉“If a prophet is deceived into giving a false answer, it is because I, the LORD, have deceived him. I will remove him from the people of Israel. ₁₀Both the prophet and the one who consults him will get the same punishment. ₁₁I will do this to keep the Israelites from deserting me and defiling themselves by their sins. They are to be my people, and I will be their God.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁₂The LORD spoke to me. ₁₃“Mortal man,” he said, “if a country sins and is unfaithful to me, I will stretch out my hand and destroy its supply of food. I will send a famine and kill people and animals alike. ₁₄Even if those three men, Noah, Danel, and Job, were living there, their goodness would save only their own lives.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁₅“Or I might send wild animals to kill the people, making the land so dangerous that no one could travel through it, ₁₆and even if those three men lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their own children. They would save only their own lives, and the land would become a wilderness.

₁₇“Or I might bring war on that country and send destructive weapons to wipe out people and animals alike, ₁₈and even if those three men lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their children, but only their own lives.

₁₉“If I send an epidemic on that country and in my anger take many lives, killing people and animals, ₂₀even if Noah, Danel, and Job lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their own children. Their goodness would save only their own lives.”

₂₁This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: “I will send my four worst punishments on Jerusalem — war, famine, wild animals, and disease — to destroy people and animals alike. ₂₂If anyone does survive and save his children, look at them when they come to you. See how evil they are, and be convinced that the punishment I am bringing on Jerusalem is justified; ₂₃then you will know that there was good reason for everything I did.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁The LORD spoke to me. ₂“Mortal man,” he said, “how does a vine compare with a tree? What good is a branch of a grapevine compared with the trees of the forest? ₃Can you use it to make anything? Can you even make a peg out of it to hang things on? ₄It is only good for building a fire. And when the ends are burnt up and the middle is charred, can you make anything out of it? ₅It was useless even before it was burnt. Now that the fire has burnt it and charred it, it is even more useless.”

₆Now this is what the Sovereign LORD is saying, “Just as a vine is taken from the forest and burnt, so I will take the people who live in Jerusalem ₇and will punish them. They have escaped one fire, but now fire will burn them up. When I punish them, you will know that I am the LORD. ₈They have been unfaithful to me, and so I will make the country a wilderness.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁The LORD spoke to me again. ₂“Mortal man,” he said, “point out to Jerusalem what disgusting things she has done. ₃Tell Jerusalem what the Sovereign LORD is saying to her:

“You were born in the land of Canaan. Your father was an Amorite, and your mother was a Hittite. ₄When you were born, no one cut your umbilical cord or washed you or rubbed you with salt or wrapped you in cloth. ₅No one took enough pity on you to do any of these things for you. When you were born, no one loved you. You were thrown out in an open field.

₆“Then I passed by and saw you squirming in your own blood. You were covered with blood, but I wouldn't let you die. ₇I made you grow like a healthy plant. You grew strong and tall and became a young woman. Your breasts were well formed, and your hair had grown, but you were naked.

₈“As I passed by again, I saw that the time had come for you to fall in love. I covered your naked body with my coat and promised to love you. Yes, I made a marriage covenant with you, and you became mine.” This is what the Sovereign LORD says.

₉“Then I took water and washed the blood off you. I rubbed olive oil on your skin. ₁₀I dressed you in embroidered gowns and gave you shoes of the best leather, a linen headband, and a silk cloak. ₁₁I put jewels on you — bracelets and necklaces. ₁₂I gave you a nose-ring and earrings and a beautiful crown to wear. ₁₃You had ornaments of gold and silver, and you always wore clothes of embroidered linen and silk. You ate bread made from the best flour, and had honey and olive oil to eat. Your beauty was dazzling, and you became a queen. ₁₄You became famous in every nation for your perfect beauty, because I was the one who made you so lovely.” This is what the Sovereign LORD says.

₁₅“But you took advantage of your beauty and fame to sleep with everyone who came along. ₁₆You used some of your clothes to decorate your places of worship, and just like a prostitute, you gave yourself to everyone. ₁₇You took the silver and gold jewellery that I had given you, used it to make male images, and committed adultery with them. ₁₈You took the embroidered clothes I gave you and put them on the images, and you offered to the images the olive oil and incense I had given you. ₁₉I gave you food — the best flour, olive oil, and honey — but you offered it as a sacrifice to win the favour of idols.” This is what the Sovereign LORD says.

₂₀“Then you took the sons and the daughters you had borne me and offered them as sacrifices to idols. Wasn't it bad enough to be unfaithful to me, ₂₁without taking my children and sacrificing them to idols? ₂₂During your disgusting life as a prostitute you never once remembered your childhood — when you were naked, squirming in your own blood.”

₂₃The Sovereign LORD said, “You are doomed! Doomed! You did all that evil, and then ₂₄by the side of every road you built places to worship idols and practise prostitution. ₂₅You dragged your beauty through the mud. You offered yourself to everyone who came by, and you were more of a prostitute every day. ₂₆You let your lustful neighbours, the Egyptians, go to bed with you, and you used your prostitution to make me angry.

₂₇“Now I have raised my hand to punish you and to take away your share of my blessing. I have handed you over to the Philistines, who hate you and are disgusted with your immoral actions.

₂₈“Because you were not satisfied by the others, you went running after the Assyrians. You were their prostitute, but they didn't satisfy you either. ₂₉You were also a prostitute for the Babylonians, that nation of merchants, but they didn't satisfy you either.”

₃₀This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: “You have done all this like a shameless prostitute. ₃₁On every street you built places to worship idols and practise prostitution. But you are not out for money like a common prostitute. ₃₂You are like a woman who commits adultery with strangers instead of loving her husband. ₃₃A prostitute is paid, but you gave presents to all your lovers and bribed them to come from everywhere to sleep with you. ₃₄You are a special kind of prostitute. No one forced you to become one. You didn't get paid; you paid them! Yes, you are different.”

₃₅Now then, Jerusalem, you whore! Hear what the LORD is saying.

₃₆This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “You stripped off your clothes and, like a prostitute, you gave yourself to your lovers and to all your disgusting idols, and you killed your children as sacrifices to idols. ₃₇Because of this I will bring all your former lovers together — the ones you liked and the ones you hated. I will bring them round you in a circle, and then I will strip off your clothes and let them see you naked. ₃₈I will condemn you for adultery and murder, and in my anger and fury I will punish you with death. ₃₉I will put you in their power, and they will tear down the places where you engage in prostitution and worship idols. They will take away your clothes and jewels and leave you completely naked.

₄₀“They will stir up a crowd to stone you, and they will cut you to pieces with their swords. ₄₁They will burn your houses down and let crowds of women see your punishment. I will make you stop being a prostitute and make you stop giving gifts to your lovers. ₄₂Then my anger will be over, and I will be calm. I will not be angry or jealous any more. ₄₃You have forgotten how I treated you when you were young, and you have made me angry by all the things you did. That is why I have made you pay for them all. Why did you add sexual immorality to all the other disgusting things you did?” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₄₄The LORD said, “People will use this proverb about you, Jerusalem: ‘Like mother, like daughter.’ ₄₅You really are your mother's daughter. She detested her husband and her children. You are like your sisters, who hated their husbands and their children. You and your sister cities had a Hittite mother and an Amorite father.

₄₆“Your elder sister is Samaria, in the north, with her villages. Your younger sister, with her villages, is Sodom, in the south. ₄₇Were you content to follow in their footsteps and copy their disgusting actions? No, in only a little while you were behaving worse than they were in everything you did.

₄₈“As surely as I am the living God,” the Sovereign LORD says, “your sister Sodom and her villages never did the evil that you and your villages have done. ₄₉She and her daughters were proud because they had plenty to eat and lived in peace and quiet, but they did not take care of the poor and the underprivileged. ₅₀They were proud and stubborn and did the things that I hate, so I destroyed them, as you well know.

₅₁“Samaria did not sin half as much as you have. You have acted more disgustingly than she ever did. Your corruption makes your sisters look innocent by comparison. ₅₂And now you will have to endure your disgrace. Your sins are so much worse than those of your sisters that they look innocent beside you. Now blush and bear your shame, because you make your sisters look pure.”

₅₃The LORD said to Jerusalem, “I will make them prosperous again — Sodom and her villages and Samaria and her villages. Yes, I will make you prosperous too. ₅₄You will be ashamed of yourself, and your disgrace will show your sisters how well off they are. ₅₅They will become prosperous again, and you and your villages will also be restored. ₅₆Didn't you joke about Sodom in those days when you were proud ₅₇and before the evil you did had been exposed? Now you are just like her — a joke to the Edomites, the Philistines, and your other neighbours who hate you. ₅₈You must suffer for the obscene, disgusting things you have done.” The LORD has spoken.

₅₉The Sovereign LORD says, “I will treat you as you deserve, because you ignored your promises and broke the covenant. ₆₀But I will honour the covenant I made with you when you were young, and I will make a covenant with you that will last for ever. ₆₁You will remember how you have acted, and be ashamed of it when you get your elder sister and your younger sister back. I will let them be like daughters to you, even though this was not part of my covenant with you. ₆₂I will renew my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD. ₆₃I will forgive all the wrongs you have done, but you will remember them and be too ashamed to open your mouth.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.