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God’s Dealings with Israel Rehearsed
20 In the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth of the month [after the beginning of the exile in Babylon], certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord and sat down before me.(A) 2 Then came the word of the Lord to me, saying, 3 “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Have you come to inquire of Me? As I live,” says the Lord God, “I will not be inquired of by you.”’ 4 Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Then make them know [accurately] and understand fully the repulsive acts of their fathers;(B) 5 and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “On the day when I chose Israel and lifted up My hand and swore to the descendants of the house of Jacob and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt, when I swore to them, saying, I am the Lord your God, 6 on that day I swore to them to bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had selected for them, [plentiful and] [a]flowing with milk and honey, [a land] which is an ornament and a glory to all lands. 7 Then I said to them, ‘Let every man throw away the detestable things on which he feasts his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.’ 8 But they rebelled against Me and were not willing to listen to Me; they did not throw away the detestable things on which they feasted their eyes, nor did they [b]give up the idols of Egypt.
“Then I decided to pour out My wrath on them and finish My anger against them in the land of Egypt. 9 But I acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt. 10 So I made them leave the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. 11 I gave them My statutes and explained My ordinances to them, which, if a man keeps, he will live. 12 Also I gave them My Sabbaths to be a sign between Me and them, that they might know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord who sanctifies them (separates and sets them apart). 13 But the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not walk in My statutes and they despised and rejected My ordinances, which, if a man keeps, he will live; and they greatly profaned My Sabbaths. Then I decided to pour out My wrath on them in the wilderness, to annihilate them. 14 But I acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations in whose sight I had brought them out [of slavery]. 15 I also swore to them in the wilderness that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, [a land of plenty] [c]flowing with milk and honey, which is the ornament and glory of all lands, 16 because they rejected My ordinances, and as for My statutes, they did not walk in them; they even profaned My Sabbaths, for their heart continually went after their [worthless] idols. 17 Yet My eye [looked on them with compassion and] spared them instead of destroying them, and I did not annihilate them in the wilderness.
18 “But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers nor observe their ordinances nor defile yourselves with their idols. 19 I am the Lord your God; walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and observe them. 20 Sanctify My Sabbaths and keep them holy; and they shall be a sign between Me and you, that you may know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord your God.’ 21 Yet the children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, nor were they careful to observe My ordinances, which, if a man keeps, he will live; they profaned My Sabbaths. Then I decided to pour out My wrath on them and finish My anger against them in the wilderness. 22 Yet I withdrew My hand and acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations in whose sight I had brought them out [of slavery]. 23 Moreover, I swore to them in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the [Gentile] nations and disperse them among the countries, 24 because they had not observed My ordinances, but had [dishonored and] rejected My statutes and had profaned My Sabbaths, and set their eyes on the [man-made] idols of their fathers. 25 [Therefore] I also gave them statutes that were not good and ordinances by which they could not live;(C) 26 and I pronounced them unclean because of their offerings [to their idols], in that they made all their firstborn pass through the fire [as pagan sacrifices], so that I might make them desolate, in order that they might know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.”’(D)
27 “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Again in this your fathers have blasphemed Me, in that they acted faithlessly and treacherously against Me. 28 For when I had brought them into the land which I swore to give to them, they saw every high hill and every dark and leafy tree [as a place for idol worship], and there they offered their sacrifices and there they presented their offering that provoked My anger; there also they made their sweet-smelling aroma and there poured out their drink offerings. 29 Then I said to them, ‘What is the high place to which you go?’ So the name of it is called Bamah (High Place) to this day.”’ 30 Therefore, say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Will you [exiles] defile yourselves in the same manner as your fathers? And will you prostitute yourselves before their loathsome and heinous things? 31 When you offer your gifts, when you make your sons pass through the fire, you are defiling yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be asked by you [for an oracle], O house of Israel? As I live,” says the Lord God, “I will not be inquired of by you. 32 What comes into your mind will never happen, when you say, ‘We will be like the [pagan] nations, like the tribes of the [Gentile] countries, serving [idols made of] wood and stone.’
God Will Restore Israel to Her Land
33 “As I live,” says the Lord God, “most certainly with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out, I shall be King over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and will gather you from the countries in which you are scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out; 35 and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you and contend with you face to face. 36 As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment and contend with you,” says the Lord God.(E) 37 “I will make you pass under the rod [as the shepherd does with his sheep when he counts them, and I will count you as Mine and constrain you] and bring you into the bond of the covenant [to which you are permanently bound].(F) 38 And I will separate from you the rebels and those who transgress against Me; I will bring them out of the land where they temporarily live, but they will not enter the land of Israel. Thus you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.(G)
39 “As for you, O house of Israel,” thus says the Lord God, “Go, let everyone serve his idols; but later you shall most certainly listen to Me, and you shall no longer profane My holy name with your gifts and with your idols. 40 For on My holy mountain, on the high mountain of Israel (Zion),” says the Lord God, “there the whole house of Israel, all of them in the land, shall serve Me. There I will [graciously] accept them, and there I will seek (require) your offerings and the choicest of your gifts, with all your holy and sacred things. 41 I will accept you [graciously] as a pleasant and soothing aroma when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands in which you have been scattered; and I will prove Myself holy and manifest My holiness among you in the sight of the nations.(H) 42 And you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord, when I bring you into the land of Israel, into the land which I swore to give to your fathers. 43 There you will remember your ways and all your deeds with which you have defiled yourselves; and you will loathe yourselves in your own sight because of all your evil deeds which you have done. 44 And you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord when I have dealt with you for My Name’s sake, not in accordance with your evil ways nor with your corrupt conduct, O house of Israel,” says the Lord God.’”
45 Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 46 “Son of man, set your face toward Teman, and speak out against the south and prophesy against the forest land of the Negev (the South), 47 and say to the forest of the Negev, ‘Hear the word of the Lord: thus says the Lord God, “Behold, I am about to kindle a fire in you, and it will devour every one of your green trees, as well as every one of your dry trees. The blazing flame will not be quenched and the whole surface from the south to the north will be burned by it. 48 All flesh will see that I the Lord have kindled it; it will not be quenched.”’” 49 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! They are saying of me, ‘Is he not [just] speaking in parables and making allegories?’”
11 But when Christ appeared as a High Priest of the good things to come [that is, true spiritual worship], He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not a part of this [material] creation. 12 He went once for all into the Holy Place [the Holy of Holies of heaven, into the presence of God], and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, having obtained and secured eternal redemption [that is, the salvation of all who personally believe in Him as Savior]. 13 For if the sprinkling of [ceremonially] defiled persons with the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a [burnt] heifer is sufficient for the cleansing of the body,(A) 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal [Holy] Spirit willingly offered Himself unblemished [that is, without moral or spiritual imperfection as a sacrifice] to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works and lifeless observances to serve the ever living God?
15 For this reason He is the Mediator and Negotiator of a new covenant [that is, an entirely new agreement uniting God and man], so that those who have been called [by God] may receive [the fulfillment of] the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has taken place [as the payment] which redeems them from the sins committed under the obsolete first covenant. 16 For where there is a will and [a]testament involved, the death of the one who made it must be established, 17 for a will and testament takes effect [only] at death, since it is never in force as long as the one who made it is alive. 18 So even the first covenant was not put in force without [the shedding of] blood. 19 For when every commandment in the Law had been read by Moses to all the people, he took the blood of the calves and goats [which had been sacrificed], together with water and scarlet wool and with a bunch of hyssop, and he sprinkled both the scroll itself and all the people, 20 saying, “This is the blood of the covenant [that seals and ratifies the agreement] which God ordained and commanded [me to deliver to] you.”(B) 21 And in the same way he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the containers and sacred utensils of worship with the blood. 22 In fact under the Law almost everything is cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness [neither release from sin and its guilt, nor cancellation of the merited punishment].
23 Therefore it was necessary for the [earthly] copies of the heavenly things to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things themselves required far better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter into a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but [He entered] into heaven itself, now to appear in the very presence of God on our behalf; 25 nor did He [enter into the heavenly sanctuary to] offer Himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26 Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer over and over since the foundation of the world; but now once for all at the consummation of the ages He has appeared and been publicly manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And just as it is appointed and destined for all men to die once and after this [comes certain] judgment, 28 so Christ, having been offered once and once for all to bear [as a burden] [b]the sins of many, will appear a second time [when he returns to earth], not to deal with sin, but to bring salvation to those who are eagerly and confidently waiting for Him.
Book Five
The Lord Rescues People from Many Troubles.
107 O give thanks to the Lord, for He is good;
For His compassion and lovingkindness endure forever!
2
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the adversary,
3
And gathered them from the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the [a]south.
4
They wandered in the wilderness in a [solitary] desert region;
And did not find a way to an inhabited city.
5
Hungry and thirsty,
They fainted.
6
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He rescued them from their distresses.
7
He led them by the straight way,
To an inhabited city [where they could establish their homes].
8
Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His wonderful acts to the children of men!
9
For He satisfies the parched throat,
And fills the hungry appetite with what is good.
10
Some dwelt in darkness and in the deep (deathly) darkness,
Prisoners [bound] in misery and chains,(A)
11
Because they had rebelled against the precepts of God
And spurned the counsel of the Most High.
12
Therefore He humbled their heart with hard labor;
They stumbled and there was no one to help.
13
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He saved them from their distresses.
14
He brought them out of darkness and the deep (deathly) darkness
And broke their bonds apart.(B)
15
Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His wonderful acts to the children of men!
16
For He has shattered the gates of bronze
And cut the bars of iron apart.
17
Fools, because of their rebellious way,
And because of their sins, were afflicted.
18
They detested all kinds of food,
And they drew near to the gates of death.
19
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He saved them from their distresses.
20
He sent His word and healed them,
And rescued them from their destruction.(C)
21
Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His wonderful acts to the children of men!(D)
22
And let them offer the sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And speak of His deeds with shouts of joy!
23
Those who go down to the sea in ships,
Who do business on great waters;
24
They have seen the works of the Lord,
And His wonders in the deep.
25
For He spoke and raised up a stormy wind,
Which lifted up the waves of the sea.
26
They went up toward the heavens [on the crest of the wave], they went down again to the depths [of the watery trough];
Their courage melted away in their misery.
27
They staggered and trembled like a drunken man,
And were at their wits’ end [all their wisdom was useless].
28
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
And He brought them out of their distresses.
29
He hushed the storm to a gentle whisper,
So that the waves of the sea were still.(E)
30
Then they were glad because of the calm,
And He guided them to their desired haven (harbor).
31
Let them give thanks to the Lord for His lovingkindness,
And for His wonderful acts to the children of men!
32
Let them exalt Him also in the congregation of the people,
And praise Him at the seat of the elders.
33
He turns rivers into a wilderness,
And springs of water into a thirsty ground;(F)
34
A productive land into a [barren] salt waste,
Because of the wickedness of those who dwell in it.(G)
35
He turns a wilderness into a pool of water
And a dry land into springs of water;(H)
36
And there He has the hungry dwell,
So that they may establish an inhabited city,
37
And sow fields and plant vineyards,
And produce an abundant harvest.
38
Also He blesses them so that they multiply greatly,
And He does not let [the number of] their cattle decrease.
39
When they are diminished and bowed down (humbled)
Through oppression, misery, and sorrow,
40
He pours contempt on princes
And makes them wander in a pathless wasteland.
41
Yet He sets the needy securely on high, away from affliction,
And makes their families like a flock.
42
The upright see it and rejoice;
But all unrighteousness shuts its mouth.
43
Who is wise? Let him observe and heed these things;
And [thoughtfully] consider the lovingkindness of the Lord.
11
My son, be wise, and make my heart glad,
That I may reply to him who reproaches (reprimands, criticizes) me.(A)
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