Study Desk

When they ask you why you are groaning, tell them it is because of the news that is coming. When it comes, their hearts will be filled with fear, their hands will hang limp, their courage will fail, and their knees will tremble. The time has come; it is here." The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

The people of Jerusalem won't believe this because of the treaties they have made. But this prediction is to remind them of their sins and to warn them that they will be captured.

Tell the city what I, the Sovereign Lord , am saying: Because you have murdered so many of your own people and have defiled yourself by worshiping idols, your time is coming.

Countries nearby and countries far away sneer at you because of your lawlessness.

Because I am angry with you, I will let them deal with you in their anger. They will cut off your nose and your ears and kill your children. Yes, they will take your sons and daughters from you and burn them alive.

And because they hate you, they will take away everything you have worked for and leave you stripped naked, exposed like a prostitute. Your lust and your prostitution

Now this is what the Sovereign Lord is saying: "Because you forgot me and turned your back on me, you will suffer for your lust and your prostitution."

Righteous men will condemn them on the charge of adultery and murder, because they practice adultery and their hands are stained with blood."

"Mortal man," he said, "write down today's date, because this is the day that the king of Babylonia is beginning the siege of Jerusalem.

You will not go bareheaded or barefoot or mourn or cry. You will waste away because of your sins, and you will groan to one another.

Because you were glad, I will let the tribes from the eastern desert conquer you. They will set up their camps in your country and settle there. They will eat the fruit and drink the milk that should have been yours.

Because you did, I will hand you over to other nations who will rob you and plunder you. I will destroy you so completely that you will not be a nation any more or have a country of your own. Then you will know that I am the Lord ."

The Sovereign Lord said, "Because Moab has said that Judah is like all the other nations,

"Now then, this is what I, the Sovereign Lord , am saying: Because you think you are as wise as a god,

You were proud of being handsome, and your fame made you act like a fool. Because of this I hurled you to the ground and left you as a warning to other kings.

Tell the people there what I, the Sovereign Lord , say about them: I am your enemy, Sidon; people will praise me because of what I do to you. They will know that I am the Lord , when I show how holy I am by punishing those who live in you.

Egypt will become an empty wasteland. Then you will know that I am the Lord . "Because you said that the Nile is yours and you made it,

I am giving him Egypt in payment for his services, because his army was working for me. I, the Sovereign Lord , have spoken.

Because it was well-watered, It grew taller than other trees. Its branches grew thick and long.

This is what the Sovereign Lord says: "On the day when the tree goes to the world of the dead, I will make the underground waters cover it as a sign of mourning. I will hold back the rivers and not let the many streams flow out. Because the tree has died, I will bring darkness over the Lebanon Mountains and make all the trees of the forest wither.