Those who are [spiritually] wise will shine brightly like the brightness of the expanse of heaven, and those who lead many to righteousness, [will shine] like the stars forever and ever.

“She will [passionately] pursue her lovers, but she will not overtake them;
And she will seek them, but will not find them.
Then she will say, ‘Let me go and return to my first husband,
For it was better for me then than now!’

Yet let no one find fault, nor let any rebuke [others];
For your people are like those who contend with the priest.

My people consult their [lifeless] wooden idol, and their [diviner’s] wand gives them oracles.
For a spirit of prostitution has led them astray [morally and spiritually],
And they have played the prostitute, withdrawing themselves from their God.

Though you, Israel, play the prostitute [by worshiping idols],
Do not let Judah become guilty [of the same thing];
And do not go to Gilgal [where idols are worshiped],
Or go up to Beth-aven (House of Wickedness),
Nor swear [oaths in idolatrous worship, saying],
“As the Lord lives!”

Ephraim is joined to idols,
So let him alone [to suffer the consequences].

“Come and let us return [in repentance] to the Lord,
For He has torn us, but He will heal us;
He has wounded us, but He will bandage us.

“So let us know and become personally acquainted with Him; let us press on to know and understand fully the [greatness of the] Lord [to honor, heed, and deeply cherish Him].
His appearing is prepared and is as certain as the dawn,
And He will come to us [in salvation] like the [heavy] rain,
Like the spring rain watering the earth.”

Therefore, I have hewn them in pieces by [the words of] the prophets;
I have slain them by the words of My mouth;
My judgments [pronounced upon them by the prophets] are like the light that shines forth [obvious to all].

I led them gently with cords of a man, with bonds of love [guiding them],
And I was to them as one who lifts up and eases the yoke [of the law] over their jaws;
And I bent down to them and fed them.

The wickedness of Ephraim [which is not yet completely punished] is bound up [as in a bag];
His sin is stored up [for judgment and destruction].

Tell your children about it,
And let your children tell their children,
And their children the next generation.

It has made My vine (My people) a waste and object of horror,
And splintered and broken My fig tree.
It has stripped them completely bare and thrown them away;
Their branches have become white.

The field is ruined,
The ground mourns;
For the grain is ruined,
The new wine is dried up,
The fresh oil fails.

Blow the trumpet in Zion [warning of impending judgment],
Sound an alarm on My holy mountain [Zion]!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble and shudder in fear,
For the [judgment] day of the Lord is coming;
It is close at hand,

Gather the people, sanctify the congregation,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the children and the nursing infants.
Let the bridegroom come out of his room
And the bride out of her bridal chamber. [No one is excused from the assembly.]

Let the priests, the ministers of the Lord,
Weep between the porch and the altar,
And let them say, “Have compassion and spare Your people, O Lord,
And do not make Your inheritance (Israel) an object of ridicule,
Or a [humiliating] byword among the [Gentile] nations.
Why should they say among the peoples,
‘Where is their God?’”

Proclaim this among the [pagan] nations:
Prepare a war! Stir up the mighty men!
Let all the men of war come near, let them come up!

Beat your plowshares into swords
And your pruning hooks into spears;
Let the weak say, “I am strong!”

Let the nations be stirred [to action]
And come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat,
For there I will sit to judge and punish
All the surrounding nations.

Thus says the Lord,
“For three transgressions of the children of Ammon and for four (multiplied delinquencies)
I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,
Because the Ammonites have ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead,
That they might enlarge their border.

Thus says the Lord,
“For three transgressions of Moab and for four (multiplied delinquencies)
I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,
Because he burned the bones of the king of Edom [Esau’s descendant] into lime [and used it to plaster a Moabite house].

“Also it was I who brought you up out of the land of Egypt,
And I led you forty years through the wilderness
That you might possess the land of the Amorite.

Hear this word, you [well-fed, pampered] cows (women) of Bashan who are on the mountain of Samaria,
Who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,
Who say to their husbands, “Bring [the wine] now, and let us drink!”

“I wounded you with blight [from the hot, blasting east wind] and with mildew;
And the caterpillar devoured
Your many gardens and vineyards, your fig trees and your olive trees;
Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

Woe (judgment is coming) to you who desire the day of the Lord [expecting rescue from the Gentiles]!
Why would you want the day of the Lord?
It is darkness (judgment) and not light [and rescue and prosperity];

Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, instead of light,
Even very dark with no brightness in it?

“But let justice run down like waters
And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream [flowing abundantly].

“And the [idolatrous] high places of Isaac (Israel) will be devastated and deserted,
And the sanctuaries of Israel will be in ruins.
Then I shall rise up against the house of Jeroboam with the sword [and destroy the monarchy].”

For in this way Amos has said, ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly go from its land into exile.’”

“Though they dig into Sheol [to hide in the deepest pit],
From there My hand will take them [for judgment];
And though they climb up to heaven [to hide in the realm of light],
From there will I bring them down [for judgment].

The vision of Obadiah.

Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom—

We have heard a report from the Lord,
And an ambassador has been sent among the nations, saying,
“Arise, and let us rise up against Edom for battle [with the Lord as commander]!”

“All the men allied with you
Shall send you on your way to the border;
The men who were at peace with you
Shall deceive you and overpower you;
Those who eat your bread [those you trust]
Shall set a hostile ambush for you.
(There is no understanding of it.)

And they said to another, “Come, let us cast lots, so we may learn who is to blame for this disaster.” So they cast lots and the lot fell on Jonah.

Then they called on the Lord and said, “Please, O Lord, do not let us perish because of taking this man’s life, and do not make us accountable for innocent blood; for You, O Lord, have done as You pleased.”

When word reached the king of Nineveh [of Jonah’s message from God], he rose from his throne, took off his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in the dust [in repentance].

He issued a proclamation and it said, “In Nineveh, by the decree of the king and his nobles: No man, animal, herd, or flock is to taste anything. They are not to eat or drink water.

But both man and animal must be covered with sackcloth; and every one is to call on God earnestly and forcefully that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence that is in his hands.

Hear, O peoples, all of you;
Listen closely, O earth and all that is in it,
And let the Lord God be witness [giving a testimony of the judgment] against you,
The Lord from His holy temple [in the heavens].

All her idols shall be broken in pieces,
All her earnings [from her idolatry] shall be burned with fire,
And all her images I shall make desolate;
For from the earnings of a prostitute she collected them,
And to the earnings of a prostitute they shall return.

Woe (judgment is coming) to those who devise wickedness
And plot evil on their beds!
When morning comes, they practice evil
Because it is in the power of their hands.

“On that day they shall take up a [taunting, deriding] parable against you
And wail with a doleful and bitter song of mourning and say,
‘We are completely destroyed!
God exchanges the inheritance of my people;
How He removes it from me!
He divides our fields to the rebellious [our captors].’

“Therefore, you will have no one stretching a measuring line [dividing the common land]
For you by lot in the assembly of the Lord.

And many nations shall come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
To the house of the God of Jacob,
That He may teach us about His ways
And that we may walk in His paths.”
For the law shall go forward from Zion,
And the word of the Lord [the revelation about Him and His truth] from Jerusalem.

“Now many [conquering] nations are assembled against you,
Who say, ‘Let her be profaned [through Gentile presence and the temple’s destruction],
And let our eyes gaze on and gloat over Zion.’

Hear now what the Lord is saying,
“Arise, plead your case before the mountains,
And let the hills [as witnesses] hear your voice.

Do not rejoice over me [amid my tragedies], O my enemy!
Though I fall, I will rise;
Though I sit in the darkness [of distress], the Lord is a light for me.

I will bear the indignation and wrath of the Lord
Because I have sinned against Him,
Until He pleads my case and executes judgment for me.
He will bring me out to the light,
And I will behold His [amazing] righteousness and His remarkable deliverance.

“Behold, I am against you,” declares the Lord of hosts,
“And I will lift up your skirts over your face,
And I will let the nations look at your nakedness [O Nineveh]
And the kingdoms at your disgrace.

“And it will come about that all who see you
Will shrink back and run from you and say,
‘Nineveh is completely ruined!
Who will grieve for her?’
Where will I seek comforters for you?”

“Then they will sweep by like the wind and pass on.
But they will be held guilty,
They [and all men] whose own power and strength is their god.”

“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to the wooden image, ‘Awake!’
And to the speechless stone, ‘Arise!’
And that is your teacher?
Look, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
And there is no breath at all inside it.

“But the Lord is in His holy temple.
Let all the earth hush and be silent before Him.”

The sun and moon stood in their places [as before Joshua];
They went away at the light of Your [swift] arrows,
At the radiance and gleam of Your glittering spear.

Her prophets are reckless and treacherous men;
Her priests have profaned the sanctuary;
They have done violence to the law [by pretending their word is God’s word].

The Lord is righteous within her;
He will do no injustice.
Every morning He brings His justice to light;
He does not fail.
But the unjust person knows no shame.

“I [the Lord] have cut off and destroyed nations [as a warning to Judah];
Their corner towers (battlements) are in ruins.
I have made their streets desolate
So that no one passes by;
Their cities are destroyed
So that there is no man, there is no inhabitant.

“I said, ‘Most certainly you will [reverently] fear Me;
Accept correction.’
So Jerusalem’s dwelling will not be cut off
In accordance with all that I have appointed concerning her [punishment],
But they were eager [even rising early] to make all their deeds corrupt.

In that day it will be said to Jerusalem:
“Do not be afraid, O Zion;
Do not let your hands fall limp.

But now, do consider [what will happen] from this day forward: before one stone was placed on another in the temple of the Lord,

‘Do consider from this day forward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month; from the day when the temple of the Lord was founded, consider:

And I (Zechariah) said, “Let them put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him with [rich] garments. And the Angel of the Lord stood by.

‘What are you, O great mountain [of obstacles]? Before Zerubbabel [who will rebuild the temple] you will become a plain (insignificant)! And he will bring out the capstone [of the new temple] with loud shouts of “Grace, grace to it!”’”

“The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundations of this house, and his hands will finish it. Then you will know (recognize, understand fully) that the Lord of hosts has sent me [as His messenger] to you.

(and behold, a [round, flat] lead cover was lifted up); and there sat a woman inside the ephah.”

Then he said, “This is Wickedness (Godlessness)!” And he threw her back down into the middle of the ephah and threw the lead cover on its opening.

and do not oppress or exploit the widow or the fatherless, the stranger or the poor; and do not devise or even imagine evil in your hearts against one another.’

“but I scattered them with a storm wind among all the nations whom they have not known. Thus the land was desolate after they had gone, so that no one passed through or returned, for they [by their sins] had made the pleasant land desolate and deserted.”

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Let your hands be strong, you who in these days hear these words from the mouths of the prophets who, on the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, foretold that the temple might be rebuilt.

For before those days there were no wages for man or animal; nor was there any peace or success for him who went out or came in because of his enemies, for I set all men against one another.

And as you have been a curse among the nations, O house of Judah (Southern Kingdom) and house of Israel (Northern Kingdom), so I will save you, that you may be a blessing. Fear not; let your hands be strong.’

And let none of you devise or even imagine evil in your heart against another, and do not love lying or half-truths; for all these things I hate,’ declares the Lord.”

The inhabitants of one [city] will go to another, saying, “Let us go at once to ask the favor of the Lord and to seek the Lord of hosts. I will go also.”

Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘In those days ten men [as representatives] from all the nations will grasp the robe of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”

Wail, O cypress, for the cedar has fallen,
Because the magnificent trees have been destroyed;
Wail, O oaks of Bashan,
For the inaccessible forest [on the steep mountainside] has come down.

There is a sound of the shepherds’ wail,
For their splendor (grazing land) is ruined;
There is a sound of the young lions’ roar,
For the pride of the Jordan is ruined.

So I said, “I will not pasture you. What is to die, let it die, and what is to be destroyed, let it be destroyed; and let the survivors devour one another’s flesh.”

In that day there will be no light; the glorious ones (heavenly bodies) shall be darkened.

But it will be a unique day which is known to the Lord—not day and not night, but at evening time there will be light.

but [in comparison with My love for Jacob] I have hated Esau (Edom), and I have made his mountains a wasteland, and have given his inheritance to the jackals of the wilderness.”

But not one has done so who has a remnant of the Spirit. And what did that one do while seeking a godly offspring? Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal treacherously against the wife of your youth.

“A voice was heard in Ramah,
Weeping and great mourning,
Rachel weeping for her children;
She refused to be comforted,
Because they were no more.”

So produce fruit that is consistent with repentance [demonstrating new behavior that proves a change of heart, and a conscious decision to turn away from sin];

Then Jesus was led by the [Holy] Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

“The people who were sitting (living) in [spiritual] darkness have seen a great Light,
And for those who were sitting (living) in the land and shadow of [spiritual and moral] death,
Upon them a Light has dawned.”

“You are the light of [Christ to] the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden;

nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.

Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good deeds and moral excellence, and [recognize and honor and] glorify your Father who is in heaven.

But let your statement be, ‘Yes, yes’ or ‘No, no’ [a firm yes or no]; anything more than that comes from the evil one.

If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also [for the Lord repays the offender].

But when you give to the poor and do acts of kindness, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing [give in complete secrecy],

‘And forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven our debtors [letting go of both the wrong and the resentment].

‘And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. [For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.]’

“The eye is the lamp of the body; so if your eye is clear [spiritually perceptive], your whole body will be full of light [benefiting from God’s precepts].

But if your eye is bad [spiritually blind], your whole body will be full of darkness [devoid of God’s precepts]. So if the [very] light inside you [your inner self, your heart, your conscience] is darkness, how great and terrible is that darkness!

Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me get the speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye?

Another of the disciples said to Him, “Lord, let me first go and bury my father (collect my inheritance).”

And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them: “See that no one knows this!”

If [the family living in] the house is worthy [welcoming you and your message], give it your [blessing of] peace [that is, a blessing of well-being and prosperity, the favor of God]. But if it is not worthy, take back your blessing of peace.

What I say to you in the dark (privately), tell in the light (publicly); and what you hear whispered in your ear, proclaim from the housetops [to many people].