For afore the harvest, when the bud is perfect, and the sour grape is ripening in the flower, he shall both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks, and take away and cut down the branches.

At that time Israel will be the third member of the group, along with Egypt and Assyria, and will be a recipient of blessing in the earth.

For so will it be in the midst of the land among the peoples, as the shaking of an olive-tree, as the grape-gleanings when the vintage is done.

And his spirit as the torrent overflowing, shall divide even to the neck, to shake the nations in the sieve of ruin: and a curb upon the cheeks of the people, causing to err.

For Yahweh said this to me: "As which lion growls and young lion over its prey when {a full group} of shepherds is called against him, it is not terrified by their voice, and to their noise it does not respond, so Yahweh of hosts will come down to fight upon Mount Zion and upon its hill.

In little more than a year, you complacent women will shudder; for the grape harvest will fail, and the fruit harvest will not come.

Therefore their inhabitants had little power. They were dismayed and confounded. They were like the grass of the field, and like the green herb, like the grass on the housetops, and like a field before its crop has grown.

Because thine anger against me and thine arrogance came up into mine ear, and I put my hook in thy nose and my curb in thy lips, and I turned thee back in the way which thou camest in it

“For the moth will eat them like a garment,
And the grub will eat them like wool.
But My righteousness will be forever,
And My salvation to all generations.”

We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if we had no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; we are in desolate places as dead men.

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 servants
In order not to destroy all of them.

and among all green trees. Whereas I planted thee out of noble grapes and good roots. How art thou turned then into a bitter, unfruitful, and strange grape?

"Come back to me, my wayward sons," says the Lord, "for I am your true master. If you do, I will take one of you from each town and two of you from each family group, and I will bring you back to Zion.

Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, They shall thoroughly glean the remnant of Israel as a vine: turn again thy hand as a grape-gatherer into the baskets.

They grab bow and spear; they're cruel and show no mercy. Their sound roars like the sea as they ride on horses, deployed like men ready for battle against you, daughter of Zion."

Moreover, I will gather them in, sayeth the LORD, so that there shall not be one grape upon the vine, neither one fig upon the fig tree, and the leaves shall be plucked off. And the thing that I have given to them shall be taken from them."

For the destruction of the daughter of my people I am broken: I am dressed in the clothing of grief; fear has taken me in its grip.

What will you say when the Lord appoints as rulers over you those allies that you, yourself, had actually prepared as such? Then anguish and agony will grip you like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.

“And if you [wonder and] say in your heart,
‘Why have these things happened to me?’
It is because of the greatness and nature of your sin
That your skirts have been pulled away [subjecting you to public disgrace]
And [like a barefoot slave] your heels have been wounded.

“Judah mourns
And her gates languish;
Her people sit on the ground in mourning clothes
And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up.

I will make them take the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters for food, they will be making a meal of one another, because of their bitter need and the cruel grip of their haters and those who have made designs against their life.

"'Therefore tell them all these words, and say unto them: The LORD shall cry from above, and let his voice be heard from his holy habitation. With a great noise shall he cry from his regal court. He shall give a great voice, like the grape gatherers, and the sound thereof shall be heard unto the ends of the world.

Thou shalt plant vines again upon the hills of Samaria, and the grape gathers shall plant and sing.

Look, I'm bringing them from the northern region, and I'll gather them from the farthest parts of the earth. among them will be the blind and the lame, together with the pregnant woman and the woman in labor. A large group will return here.

“They will come and sing aloud and shout for joy on the height of Zion,
And will be radiant [with joy] over the goodness of the Lord—
For the grain, for the new wine, for the oil,
And for the young of the flock and the herd.
And their life will be like a watered garden,
And they shall never sorrow or languish again.

In those days they shall say no more, The fathers have eaten a sour grape, and the children's teeth are set on edge.

But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge.

And the measuring line shall yet go forth over against it upon the hill Gareb, and shall compass about to Goath.

As for me, I am going to stay at Mizpah to stand [for you] before the Chaldeans who come to us [ministering to them and looking after the king’s interests]; but as for you, gather in wine, summer fruit and oil and store them in your utensils [designed for such purposes], and live in your cities that you have taken over.”

then all the Jews returned from all the places to which they had been driven and came back to the land of Judah, to Gedaliah at Mizpah, and gathered a great abundance of wine and summer fruits.

Then all the men who knew that their wives were offering sacrifices to other gods and all the women who were standing by a large group, including all the people who were living in the land of Egypt in Pathros answered Jeremiah:

“O vines of Sibmah, I will weep for you
More than the weeping of Jazer [over its ruins and wasted vineyards].
Your tendrils [of influence] stretched across the sea,
Reaching [even] to the sea of Jazer.
The destroyer has fallen
On your summer fruits and your [season’s] crop of grapes.

“So joy and gladness are taken away
From the fruitful field and from the land of Moab.
And I have made the wine cease from the wine presses;
No one treads the grapes with shouting.
Their shouting is not joyful shouting [but is instead, a battle cry].

Get you hence, turn your backs, creep down into the deep, O ye citizens of Dedan. For I will bring destruction upon Esau; yea, and the day of his visitation.

If grape-gatherers came to thee, would they not leave some gleaning grapes? if thieves by night, would they not destroy till they had enough?

Damascus has become feeble, she is turned to flight, fear has taken her in its grip: pain and sorrows have come on her, as on a woman in birth-pains.

Flee, get you soon away, creep into caves, that ye may dwell there, O ye inhabiters of Hazor, sayeth the LORD. For Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon hath holden a counsel concerning you, and concluded his device against you.

This is what the Lord of armies has said: The children of Israel and the children of Judah are crushed down together: all those who took them prisoner keep them in a tight grip; they will not let them go.

They grab bow and spear. They're cruel and show no mercy. Their sound roars like the sea, as they ride on horses deployed like men ready for battle against you, daughter of Babylon.

The king of Babylon will become paralyzed with fear when he hears news of their coming. Anguish will grip him, agony like that of a woman giving birth to a baby.

And the ways across the river have been taken, and the water-holes ... burned with fire, and the men of war are in the grip of fear.

(Zayin) Jerusalem remembers, when she became a poor homeless person, all her treasures that she owned in days of old. When her people fell into an enemy's grip, none of her allies came to her rescue. Her enemies gloated over her; they sneered at her downfall.

Whether this rebellious group listens to you or not, at least they'll realize that a prophet had appeared in their midst!

"Now as for you, Son of Man, never be afraid of them or of anything they have to say, because being with them will be like settling down to live among briers, thorn bushes, and scorpions! Don't be afraid of anything they have to say, and don't be awed by their appearance, since they are a rebellious group.

"Son of Man, you are to listen to what I tell you. You are never to be rebellious like they are: a rebellious group. Now, open your mouth and eat what I'm giving you""

This isn't a large group of people whose speech is unintelligible to you or whose language is difficult for you to comprehend. Frankly, if I had sent you to that kind of people, they would certainly have listened to you!

I'm making you harder than flint like diamond! So you are not to fear them or be intimidated by how they look at you, since they're a rebellious group."

Meanwhile, I'll make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you'll be mute and unable to reprove them, since they're a rebellious group.

But when I speak with you, I'll open your mouth so you can say to them, "This is what the Lord GOD says: "As for those who will listen, "Let them listen,' but as for those who refuse, "Let them refuse,' since they're a rebellious group."'"

Then said he that sat therein, to him that had the linen raiment upon him, "Creep in between the wheels that are under the Cherubims, and take thine hand full of hot coals out from between the Cherubims, and cast them over the city. And he crept in, that I might see."

I'll also tear off your headbands and deliver my people from your grip so that they won't be under your control anymore. Then you'll know that I am the LORD.

Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: "Just as the wood from a grape vine is removed from the forest and used for kindling fires, I'm giving the inhabitants of Jerusalem over

Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high mountain and eminent:

They will plunder your riches and loot your businesses. They'll tear down your walls and demolish your luxurious homes. They'll grab the stones, wood, and rubble from the destruction and dump it all into the Mediterranean Sea.

"So I'm going to plant a hook in your jaw and make the fish in your waterways grab hold of your scales. I'll bring you up out of the middle of your waterways, along with all of the fish from your waterways that cling to your scales,

When they took a grip of you in their hands, you were crushed so that their arms were broken: and when they put their weight on you for support, you were broken and all their muscles gave way.

Then they come to you as a group, sit down right in front of you as if they were my people, hear your words and then they don't do what you say because they're seeking only their own desires, they pursue ill-gotten profits, and they keep following their own self-interests.

And I will cause the fruit of the tree and the crop of the field to increase, so that you will not suffer again [the] disgrace of famine among the nations.

And I prophesied {as} he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they became alive, and they stood on their feet, a very, very large group.

"Now as for you, Son of Man, grab a stick of wood for yourself and write on it these words: "FOR JUDAH AND THE ISRAELIS, HIS COMPANIONS' "Then grab another stick and write on it: "FOR JOSEPH, THE STICK OF EPHRAIM, AND ALL THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL, HIS COMPANIONS'

So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.

Then the man led me out by way of the north gate into the outer court. He brought me to the group of chambers opposite the temple yard and opposite the building to the north.

And it was every living soul that shall creep, to all where the two torrents shall come there, shall live: and there was very many fish, because these waters came there: and they shall be healed and all lived where the torrent shall come there.

The chief officer told Daniel, "I fear his majesty the king, who has determined what you eat and drink. If he notices that your faces are more pale than the other young men in your group, I will forfeit my head to the king."

When the king spoke with them, he did not find among the entire group anyone like Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, or Azariah. So they entered the king's service.

I hereby decree that any people, nation, or language group that blasphemes the god of Shadrach, Meshach, or Abednego will be dismembered and his home reduced to rubble! For there exists no other god who can deliver in this way."

Then these administrators and regional authorities went as a group to the king and said this, "Your majesty, live forever!

Then these men came as a group and they found Daniel praying and pleading for mercy before his God.

Then these men came as group to the king and {said}, "Recall, O king, that [with respect to] [the] law of [the] Medes and Persians that {any} decree or edict that the king establishes cannot be changed."

From the time that an alliance is made with him, he'll act deceitfully, and he will go up and take power with only a small group of nations.

And Jehovah saith unto me: 'Again, go, love a woman, loved of a friend, and an adulteress, like the loved of Jehovah, the sons of Israel, and they are turning unto other gods, and are lovers of grape-cakes.'

Awake [from your intoxication], you drunkards, and weep;
Wail, all you drinkers of wine,
Because of the [fresh] sweet wine
That is cut off from your mouth.

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

The grape gatherers shall make great moan, when the vineyard and fig trees be so utterly wasted. Yea all the pomegranates, palm trees, apple trees, and the other trees of the field shall wither away. Thus the merry cheer of the children of men shall come to confusion.

The Lord will answer and say to His people,
“Behold, I am going to send you grain and new wine and oil,
And you will be satisfied in full with them;
And I will never again make you an object of ridicule among the [Gentile] nations.

And the threshing floors shall be full of grain,
And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.

“They have also cast lots for My people,
And have traded a boy for a prostitute
And have sold a girl for wine that they may drink.

And in that day
The mountains will drip with sweet wine
And the hills will flow with milk;
And all the brooks and riverbeds of Judah will flow with water,
And a fountain will go out from the house of the Lord
To water the [desert] Valley of Shittim.

Alas for the careless in Zion, and for them who put confidence in the mountain of Samaria, - the distinguished among the first group of nations, to whom came in the house of Israel.

Thus the Lord God showed me [a vision], and behold, He was forming a swarm of locusts when the spring crop began to sprout. And behold, the spring crop was after the king’s mowing.

Though they hide themselves upon the top of Carmel, yet shall I seek them out, and bring them from thence. Though they creep down from my sight into the deep of the sea, I shall command the serpent, even there to bite them.

If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night (how art thou cut off!), would they not steal only till they had enough? if grape-gatherers came to thee, would they not leave some gleaning grapes?

They covet fields and seize them; they covet houses, and grab them, too. They harass the valiant man, along with his household, an individual and his estate.

Instead, each man will sit in the shade of his grape vines and beneath the shade of his fig tree," since theLORD of the Heavenly Armies has spoken.

Thou, shalt sow, but shalt not reap, - thou, shalt tread the olive, but shalt not anoint thee with oil, also the grape, but shalt not drink the wine.

Woe is me! for I am as when they have gathered the summer fruits, as the grape gleanings of the vintage: there is no cluster to eat; my soul desireth the first-ripe fig.

Though the fig tree does not bud
and there is no fruit on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,

I will leave in your midst a humble and meek group of people, and they will find safety in the Lord's presence.

The Lord of Hosts says this: “In those days, 10 men from nations of every language will grab the robe of a Jewish man tightly, urging: Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”

Look at the birds in the sky; they do not plant seeds or harvest [a crop] or store [things] in barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them [adequately]. Are you not a lot more valuable than they are?

Beware of false prophets; they come to you with the garb of sheep but at heart they are ravenous wolves.

You shall know them by their fruits. Do the people gather the grape-bunches from thorns, or figs from thistles?

Also, people do not put freshly squeezed grape juice into bottles made of previously used animal skins. If they did, the [old dried-out] animal skins would break open and the grape juice would [all] leak out, and the animal skins would become useless. But people put freshly squeezed grape juice into newly prepared animal skin bottles. That way both of them will survive."

"You should pray to the Lord of the harvest to send [more] workers out into the field to gather His crop."

He said to them, "What man is there among you, who has one sheep, and if this one falls into a pit on the Sabbath day, won't he grab on to it, and lift it out?

Still others fell on good ground and produced a crop: some 100, some 60, and some 30 times what was sown.

As for what was sown among the thorn bushes, this is the person who hears the word, but the worries of life and the deceitful pleasures of wealth choke the word so that it can't produce a crop.

But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the person who hears the word, understands it, and produces a crop that yields 100, 60, or 30 times what was sown."

When the crop came up and bore grain, the weeds appeared, too.

And straight away Jesus put out his hand and took a grip of him, and said to him, O man of little faith, why were you in doubt?