Study Desk

"Maybe I will tell good people that they will live. But maybe those good people will begin to think that the good things they did in the past will save them. So they might begin to do bad things, but I will not remember the good things they did in the past! No, they will die because of the bad things they begin to do.

I will not remember the bad things they did in the past, because now they live right and are fair. So they will live!

The evening before that person came to me, the power of the Lord came on me. The Lord opened my mouth. So when that person came, I could speak again.

"Son of man, there are Israelites who live in the ruined cities in Israel. They are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, and God gave him all this land. Now, we are many people, so surely this land belongs to us! It is our land!'

"You must tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘You eat meat with the blood still in it. You look to your idols for help. You murder people, so why should I give you this land?

You depend on your own sword. Each of you does terrible things. Each of you commits sexual sins with his neighbor's wife, so you cannot have the land!'

The people have done many terrible things, so I will make that place an empty wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord ."

So they come to you as if they were my people. They sit in front of you as if they were my people. They hear your words, but they will not do the things you say. They only want to do what feels good. They only want to cheat people and make more money.

"‘And now the sheep are scattered because there was no shepherd. They became food for every wild animal, so they were scattered.

So, you shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord .

So, you shepherds, listen to the word of the Lord !

You can eat the grass growing on the good land. So why do you also crush the grass that other sheep want to eat? You can drink plenty of clear water. So why do you also stir the water that other sheep want to drink?

So the Lord God says to them: "I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the thin sheep!

so I will save my flock. They will not be caught by wild animals anymore. I will judge between one sheep and another.

And the trees growing in the field will produce their fruit. The earth will give its harvest, so the sheep will be safe on their land. I will break the yokes on them and save them from the power of the people who made them slaves. Then they will know that I am the Lord .

So the Lord God says, "But I promise by my own life that I will let death have you. Death will chase you. You did not hate killing people, so death will chase you.

And the Lord God says, "You were jealous of my people. You were angry and hateful to them. So by my life, I swear that I will punish you the same way you hurt them! I will punish you and let my people know that I am with them.

"So speak to the mountains of Israel for me. Tell them that this is what the Lord God says: ‘The enemy destroyed your cities and attacked you from every direction. They did this so that you would belong to the other nations. Then people talked and whispered about you.'"

So, mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord God ! This is what the Lord God says to the mountains, hills, streams, valleys, empty ruins, and abandoned cities that have been looted and laughed at by the other nations around them.

The Lord God says, "I swear, I will let my strong feelings speak for me! I will let Edom and the other nations feel my anger. They took my land for themselves. They really had a good time when they showed how much they hated this land. They took the land for themselves, just so they could destroy it."