Study Desk

Hear the word which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel.

Thus says the Lord , "^(a)Do not learn the way of the nations, And do not be terrified by the signs of the heavens Although the nations are terrified by them;

For the customs of the peoples are ^[a](b)delusion; Because ^(c)it is wood cut from the forest, The work of the hands of a craftsman with a cutting tool.

"They ^(d)decorate it with silver and with gold; They ^(e)fasten it with nails and with hammers So that it will not totter.

"Like a scarecrow in a cucumber field are they, And they ^(f)cannot speak; They must be ^(g)carried, Because they cannot walk! Do not fear them, For they ^(h)can do no harm, Nor can they do any good."

⁽ⁱ⁾There is none like You, O Lord ; You are ^(j)great, and great is Your name in might.

^(k)Who would not fear You, O ^(l)King of the nations? Indeed it is Your due! For among all the ^(m)wise men of the nations And in all their kingdoms, There is none like You.

But they are altogether ⁽ⁿ⁾stupid and foolish In their discipline of ^[b]delusion—^[c]their idol is wood!

Beaten ^(o)silver is brought from ^(p)Tarshish, And ^(q)gold from Uphaz, The work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith; Violet and purple are their clothing; They are all the ^(r)work of skilled men.

But the Lord is the ^(s)true God; He is the ^(t)living God and the ^(u)everlasting King. At His wrath the ^(v)earth quakes, And the nations cannot ^(w)endure His indignation.

^[d]Thus you shall say to them, "The ^(x)gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will ^(y)perish from the earth and from under the ^[e]heavens."

It is ^(z)He who made the earth by His power, Who ^(aa)established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has ^(ab)stretched out the heavens.

When He utters His ^(ac)voice, there is a tumult of waters in the heavens, And He causes the ^(ad)clouds to ascend from the end of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain, And brings out the ^(ae)wind from His storehouses.

Every man is ^(af)stupid, devoid of knowledge; Every goldsmith is put to shame by his ^[f]idols; For his molten images are deceitful, And there is no breath in them.

They are ^(ag)worthless, a work of mockery; In the ^(ah)time of their punishment they will perish.

The ^(ai)portion of Jacob is not like these; For the ^[g](aj)Maker of all is He, And ^(ak)Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; The ^(al) Lord of hosts is His name.

^(am)Pick up your bundle from the ground, You who dwell under siege!

For thus says the Lord , "Behold, I am ^(an)slinging out the inhabitants of the land At this time, And will cause them distress, That they may ^[h]be found."

^(ao)Woe is me, because of my ^[i]injury! My ^(ap)wound is incurable. But I said, "Truly this is a sickness, And I ^(aq)must bear it."

My ^(ar)tent is destroyed, And all my ropes are broken; My ^(as)sons have gone from me and are no more. There is ^(at)no one to stretch out my tent again Or to set up my curtains.

For the shepherds have become stupid And ^(au)have not sought the Lord ; Therefore they have not prospered, And ^(av)all their flock is scattered.

The sound of a ^(aw)report! Behold, it comes— A great commotion ^(ax)out of the land of the north— To ^(ay)make the cities of Judah A desolation, a haunt of jackals.

I know, O Lord , that ^(az)a man's way is not in himself, ^(ba)Nor is it in a man who walks to direct his steps.

^(bb)Correct me, O Lord , but with justice; Not with Your anger, or You will ^[j]bring me to nothing.

^(bc)Pour out Your wrath on the nations that ^(bd)do not know You And on the families that ^(be)do not call Your name; For they have devoured Jacob; They have ^(bf)devoured him and consumed him And have laid waste his ^[k]habitation.