'Says the Lord' in the Bible

“Woe (judgment is coming) to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord,“Who carry out a plan, but not Mine,And make an alliance [by pouring out a libation], but not of My Spirit,In order to add sin to sin;

For thus says the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall you be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: but you would not.

For thus says the Lord to me,“As the lion or the young lion growls over his prey,Against which a band of shepherds is called out,And he will not be terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise,So will the Lord of hosts come down to wage war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”

“His rock [his stronghold] will pass away because of panic,And his princes will be terrified at the [sight of the battle] standard,”Declares the Lord, whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

“Now I will arise,” says the Lord.“Now I will be exalted; now I will be lifted up.

“You who are far away, hear what I have done;And you who are near, acknowledge My might.”

Isaiah said to them, “You shall say the following to your master: ‘This is what the Lord says, “Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.

Then Isaiah son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, “For the Lord, the God of Israel says this, ‘Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king of Assyria,

“This shall be the sign [of these things] to you [Hezekiah]: you are to eat this year what grows of itself, and in the second year that which springs from the same, and in the third year you are to sow and harvest, and plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

“Therefore, the Lord says this concerning the king of Assyria, ‘He will not come into this city or shoot an arrow there, or come before it with shield, or raise an assault ramp against it.

By the way that he came, by the same way he will return, and he will not come into this city,’ declares the Lord.

In those days Hezekiah [king of Judah] became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, came to him and said, “For the Lord says this, ‘Set your house in order and prepare a will, for you shall die; you will not live.’”

“Go and say to Hezekiah, ‘For the Lord, the God of David your father says this, “I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; listen carefully, I will add fifteen years to your life.

‘Listen carefully, the days are coming when everything that is in your house and everything that your predecessors have stored up until this day will be carried to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.

“Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel;I will help you,” declares the Lord, “and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.

“Present your case [for idols made by men’s hands],” says the Lord.“Produce your evidence [of divinity],”Says the king of Jacob.

“I [the Lord] have been silent for a long time,I have been still and restrained Myself.Now I will moan like a woman in labor,I will both gasp and pant.

But now, this is what the Lord, your Creator says, O Jacob,And He who formed you, O Israel,“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you [from captivity];I have called you by name; you are Mine!

“You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord,“And My servant whom I have chosen,That you may know and believe MeAnd understand that I am He.Before Me there was no God formed,And there will be none after Me.

“I have declared [the future] and saved [the nation] and proclaimed [that I am God],And there was no strange (alien) god among you;Therefore you are My witnesses [among the pagans],” declares the Lord,“That I am God.

This is what the Lord your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says,“For your sake I have sent [one] to Babylon,And I will bring down all of them as fugitives,Even the Chaldeans [who reign in Babylon], into the ships over which they rejoiced.

This is what the Lord says,He who makes a way through the seaAnd a path through the mighty waters,

This is what the Lord who made youAnd formed you from the womb, who will help you says,‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant;And Jeshurun (Israel, the upright one) whom I have chosen.

“For the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts says this,‘I am the First and I am the Last;And there is no God besides Me.

For the Lord, your Redeemer, and He who formed you from the womb says this,“I am the Lord, Maker of all things,Who alone stretches out the heavens,Who spreads out the earth by Myself,

This is what the Lord says to His anointed, to Cyrus [king of Persia],Whose right hand I have heldTo subdue nations before him,And I will ungird the loins of kings [disarming them];To open doors before him so that gates will not be shut:

For the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker says this,“Ask Me about the things to come concerning My sons,And give Me orders concerning the work of My hands.

“I have stirred up Cyrus and put him into action in righteousness [to accomplish My purpose]And I will make all his ways smooth;He will build My city and let My exiles go,Without any payment or reward,” says the Lord of hosts.

For this is what the Lord says,“The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush (ancient Ethiopia)And the Sabeans, men of stature,Will come over to you and they will be yours;They will walk behind you, in chains [of subjection to you] they will come over,And they will bow down before you;They will make supplication to you, [humbly and earnestly] saying,‘Most certainly God is with you, and there is no other,No other God [besides Him].’”

For the Lord, who created the heavens (He is God, who formed the earth and made it; He established it and did not create it to be a wasteland, but formed it to be inhabited) says this,“I am the Lord, and there is no one else.

“Listen to Me,” [says the Lord], “O house of Jacob,And all the remnant of the house of Israel,You who have been carried by Me from your birthAnd have been carried [in My arms] from the womb,

Says the Lord who takes up our cause; the Lord of armies is his name, the Holy One of Israel.

“I have declared the former things [which happened to Israel] in times past;They went forth from My mouth and I proclaimed them;Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.

This is what the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel says,“I am the Lord your God, who teaches you to profit (benefit),Who leads you in the way that you should go.

“There is no peace for the wicked,” says the Lord.

And now says the Lord, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant,To bring Jacob back to Him and that Israel might be gathered to Him,—For I am honored in the eyes of the Lord,And My God is My strength—

This is what the Lord, the Redeemer of Israel, Israel’s Holy One says,To the thoroughly despised One,To the One hated by the nationTo the Servant of rulers,“Kings will see and arise,Princes shall also bow down,Because of the Lord who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen You.”

This is what the Lord says,“In a favorable time I have answered You,And in a day of salvation I have helped You;And I will keep watch over You and give You for a covenant of the people,To restore the land [from its present state of ruin] and to apportion and give as inheritances the deserted hereditary lands,

“Lift up your eyes and look around [at the returning exiles];All these gather together and they come to you [to rebuild you].As I live,” declares the Lord,“You [Zion] will indeed clothe yourself with all of them as jewels and tie them on as a bride.

This is what the Lord God says,“Listen carefully, I will lift up My hand to the [Gentile] nationsAnd set up My banner to the peoples;And they will bring your sons in the fold of their garments,And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders.

Indeed, this is what the Lord says,“Even the captives of the mighty man will be taken away,And the tyrant’s spoils of war will be rescued;For I will contend with your opponent,And I will save your children.

The Lord declares this;“Where is the certificate of divorceBy which I have sent your mother away, [O Israel]?Or to which one of My creditors did I sell you [as slaves]?In fact, You were sold for your wickedness [your sin, your injustice, your wrongdoing],And for your transgressions your mother was sent away.

For the Lord says this, “You were sold for nothing and you will be redeemed, but not with money.”

For the Lord God says this, “My people went down at the first into Egypt to live there; and [many years later Sennacherib] the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.

But now, what do I have here,” declares the Lord, “seeing that My people have been taken away without reason? Those who rule over them howl [with taunting and mockery of salvation],” declares the Lord, “and My name is continually blasphemed all day long.

As a result of the anguish of His soul,He shall see it and be satisfied;By His knowledge [of what He has accomplished] the Righteous One,My Servant, shall justify the many [making them righteous—upright before God, in right standing with Him],For He shall bear [the responsibility for] their sins.

“Shout for joy, O barren one, she who has not given birth;Break forth into joyful shouting and rejoice, she who has not gone into labor [with child]!For the [spiritual] sons of the desolate one will be more numerousThan the sons of the married woman,” says the Lord.

For the LORD has called you back like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like the wife of a man's youth when she is cast off," says the LORD your God.

“In an outburst of wrathI hid My face from you for a moment,But with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you,”Says the Lord your Redeemer.

“For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake,But My lovingkindness will not be removed from you,Nor will My covenant of peace be shaken,”Says the Lord who has compassion on you.

“No weapon that is formed against you will succeed;And every tongue that rises against you in judgment you will condemn.This [peace, righteousness, security, and triumph over opposition] is the heritage of the servants of the Lord,And this is their vindication from Me,” says the Lord.

“For My thoughts are not your thoughts,Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord.

This is what the Lord says,“Maintain justice and do righteousness,For My salvation is soon to come,And My righteousness and justice is soon to be revealed.

This is what the Lord says,“To the eunuchs who keep My SabbathsAnd choose what pleases Me,And hold firmly to My covenant,

The Lord God, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares:“I will gather yet others to them (Israel), to those [already] gathered.”

As I create the praise of his lips,Peace, peace, to him who is far away [both Jew and Gentile] and to him who is near!”Says the Lord;“And I will heal him [making his lips blossom anew with thankful praise].”

“A Redeemer (Messiah) will come to Zion,And to those in Jacob (Israel) who turn from transgression (sin),” declares the Lord.

“As for Me, this is My covenant with them,” says the Lord: “My Spirit which is upon you [writing the law of God on the heart], and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouths of your [true, spiritual] children, nor from the mouth of your children’s children,” says the Lord, “from now and forever.”

See, it is recorded before me, says the Lord: I will not keep back my hand, till I have sent punishment,

Both your own wickedness and the wickedness of your fathers,” says the Lord.“Since they too have made offerings with incense on the mountainsAnd scorned and taunted Me on the hills,I therefore will measure [punishment for] their former work [directly] into their arms.”

This is what the Lord says,“As the new wine is found in the cluster,And one says, ‘Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing and benefit in it,’So I will do for the sake of My servantsIn order not to destroy all of them.

I will destine you for the sword, [says the Lord],And all of you will bow down to the slaughter,Because when I called, you did not answer;When I spoke, you did not listen or obey.But you did [what was] evil in My sightAnd chose that in which I did not delight.”

Therefore, the Lord God says this,“Listen carefully, My servants will eat, but you will be hungry;Indeed, My servants will drink, but you will be thirsty;Indeed, My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame.

The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox [there will no longer be predator and prey]; and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain (Zion),” says the Lord.

This is what the Lord says,“Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.Where, then, is a house that you could build for Me?And where will My resting place be?

“For all these things My hand has made,So all these things came into being [by and for Me],” declares the Lord.“But to this one I will look [graciously],To him who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who [reverently] trembles at My word and honors My commands.

“Shall I bring to the moment of birth and not give delivery?” says the Lord.“Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?” says your God.

For the Lord says this, “Behold, I extend peace to her (Jerusalem) like a river,And the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;And you will be nursed, you will be carried on her hip and [playfully] rocked on her knees.

“Those who [vainly attempt to] sanctify and cleanse themselves to go to the gardens [to sacrifice to idols],Following after one in the center,Who eat swine’s flesh, detestable things and mice,Will come to an end together,” says the Lord.

Then they shall bring all your countrymen (children of Israel) from all the nations as a grain offering to the Lord—on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules and on camels—to My holy mountain Jerusalem,” says the Lord, “just as the sons of Israel bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the Lord.

I will also take some of them as priests and Levites,” says the Lord.

“For just as the new heavens and the new earthWhich I make will remain and endure before Me,” declares the Lord,“So your offspring and your name will remain and endure.

“And it shall be that from New Moon to New MoonAnd from Sabbath to Sabbath,All mankind will come to bow down and worship before Me,” says the Lord.

“Do not be afraid of them [or their hostile faces],For I am with you [always] to protect you and deliver you,” says the Lord.

For, behold, I will call all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north,” says the Lord; “and they will come and each one will set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all its surrounding walls, and against all the cities of Judah [as My judicial act, the consequence of Judah’s deliberate disobedience].

They will fight against you, but they will not [ultimately] prevail over you, for I am with you [always] to protect you and deliver you,” says the Lord.

“Go and proclaim in the ears of Jerusalem, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord,“I remember [earnestly] the lovingkindness and devotion of your youth,Your time of betrothal [like that of a bride during the early years in Egypt and again at Sinai],When you followed Me in the wilderness,Through a land not sown.

“Israel was holy [something set apart from ordinary purposes, consecrated] to the Lord,The first fruits of His harvest [in which no outsider was allowed to share].All who ate of it [injuring Israel] became guilty;Evil came on them,” says the Lord.’”

Thus says the Lord,“What injustice or unrighteousness did your fathers find in Me,That they have wandered far from MeAnd [habitually] walked after emptiness and futility and became empty?

“Therefore I will still contend (struggle) with you [by bringing judgment on you],” says the Lord,“And I will contend with your children’s children.”

“Be appalled, O heavens, at this;Be shocked and shudder with horror [at the behavior of the people],” says the Lord.

“Your own wickedness will discipline you,And your desertion of the faith will punish you.Know therefore that it is an evil and bitter thingFor you to abandon (reject) the Lord your God,And for you to be indifferent to Me and dismiss the [reverent] fear of Me,” says the Lord God of hosts.

“For though you wash yourself with lyeAnd use much soap,The stain of your guilt is [still] before Me [and you are soiled and dirty],” says the Lord God.

“Why do you complain and contend with Me?You have all rebelled (transgressed) against Me,” says the Lord.

That is to say, “If a man divorces his wifeAnd she goes [away] from himAnd becomes another man’s [wife],Will he return to her again? [Of course not!]Will not that land [where such a thing happened] be completely desecrated?But you [rebelled against Me and you] are a prostitute with many lovers;Yet you turn to Me.” says the Lord.

Yet in spite of all this her treacherous sister Judah did not return to Me with her whole heart, but rather in [blatant] deception [she merely pretended obedience to King Josiah’s reforms],” declares the Lord.

Go and proclaim these words toward the north [where the ten tribes have been taken as captives] and say,‘Return, faithless Israel,’ says the Lord;‘I will not look on you in anger.For I am gracious and merciful,’ says the Lord;‘I will not be angry forever.

‘Only understand fully and acknowledge your wickedness and guilt,That you have rebelled (transgressed) against the Lord your GodAnd have scattered your favors among strangers under every green tree,And you have not obeyed My voice,’ says the Lord.

‘Return, O faithless children [of the twelve tribes],’ says the Lord,‘For I am a master and husband to you,And I will take you [not as a nation, but individually]—one from a city and two from a [tribal] family—And I will bring you to Zion.’

It will be in those days when you have [repented and] multiplied and increased in the land,” says the Lord, “they will no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord.’ It will not come to mind, nor will they [seriously] remember it, nor will they miss it, nor will it be made again [for instead of the ark, which symbolized My presence, I will be present].

“Surely, as a wife treacherously (unfaithfully) leaves her husband,So you have dealt treacherously with Me,O house of Israel,” says the Lord.

“Return, O faithless sons,” [says the Lord],“I will heal your unfaithfulness.”[They answer] “Behold, we come to You,For You are the Lord our God.

“If you will return, O Israel,” says the Lord,“If you will return to Me,And if you will put away your detestable things and remove your man-made gods from My sight,And not stray or waver,

For this is what the Lord says to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem,“Plow your uncultivated ground [for a season],And do not sow among thorns.

“It shall come about in that day,” says the Lord, “that the heart and courage of the king will fail (be paralyzed), and also the heart of the princes; the priests will be appalled and the prophets will be astounded and horrified.”

‘Like watchmen of a field they are against her on all sides,Because she has rebelled against Me,’ says the Lord.

“For My people are stupid and foolish,” [says the Lord to Jeremiah];“They do not know Me;They are foolish childrenAnd have no understanding.They are shrewd [enough] to do evil,But they do not know [how] to do good.”

Therefore says the Lord,“The whole land shall be a desolation,Yet I will not cause total destruction.

“Shall I not punish them [for these things]?” says the Lord;“Shall I not avenge MyselfOn a nation such as this?”

“For the house of Israel and the house of JudahHave dealt very treacherously (faithlessly) with Me,” declares the Lord.