Study Desk

Mourn, you priests who serve at the altar of my God. Spend your days and nights wearing sackcloth. Offerings of grain and wine are no longer brought to the Lord 's temple.

Our food is already gone; there's no more celebrating at the temple of our God.

The Lord God leads this army of countless troops, and they obey his commands. The day of his judgment is so terrible that no one can stand it.

I am the Lord your God. Perhaps I will change my mind and treat you with mercy. Then you will be blessed with enough grain and wine for offering sacrifices to me.

Tell my servants, the priests, to cry inside the temple and to offer this prayer near the altar: "Save your people, Lord God! Don't let foreign nations make jokes about us. Don't let them laugh and ask, ‘Where is your God?'"

People of Zion, celebrate in honor of the Lord your God! He is generous and has sent the autumn and spring rains in the proper seasons.

I, the Lord your God, will make up for the losses caused by those swarms and swarms of locusts I sent to attack you.

Israel, you will know that I stand at your side. I am the Lord your God— there are no other gods. Never again will you be put to shame.

I am the Lord your God. And you will know I live on Zion, my sacred hill, because Jerusalem will be sacred, untouched by foreign troops.

Whatever the Lord God plans to do, he tells his servants, the prophets.

Everyone is terrified when a lion roars— and ordinary people become prophets when the Lord God speaks.

And so the Lord God has sworn that they will be surrounded. Enemies will break through their defenses and steal their treasures.

The Lord God All-Powerful told me to speak this message against Jacob's descendants:

I, the Lord God, have sworn by my own name that your time is coming. Not one of you will be left— you will be taken away by sharp hooks.

Bring offerings to show me how thankful you are. Gladly bring more offerings than I have demanded. You really love to do this. I, the Lord God, have spoken!

Now, Israel, I myself will deal with you. Get ready to face your God!

I created the mountains and the wind. I let humans know what I am thinking. I bring darkness at dawn and step over hills. I am the Lord God All-Powerful!

The Lord God has warned, "From every ten soldiers only one will be left; from a thousand troops, only a hundred will survive."

God destroys mighty soldiers and strong fortresses.

If you really want to live, you must stop doing wrong and start doing right. I, the Lord God All-Powerful, will then be on your side, just as you claim I am.