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!

"Son of Man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who even now are prophesying, and tell those prophets that keep on prophesying according to what they wish would happen, "Listen to what the LORD says.'"

You didn't go up to repair the breaches in the walls and you didn't build the walls so Israel's house would be able to endure battle on the Day of the LORD.

""Therefore, this is what the Lord GOD says, "Watch out! I'm opposing your amulets with which you hunt souls as one would swat at a flying insect. I'll tear them off your arms and then deliver those people, whom you've hunted like birds.

"""Because you've dismayed the heart of the righteous whom I never intended to dismay with lies, and because you've encouraged the wicked so that he wouldn't abandon his evil behavior and by doing so live,

Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job lived in that land, they would only save their own lives on account of their righteousness," declares the Lord GOD.

then even though these three men were in it, as I live," says the Lord GOD, "they wouldn't be able to deliver even their sons or daughters. They would only save themselves, but the land would become desolate.

though these three men lived there, as I live," declares the Lord GOD, "they couldn't deliver their own sons and daughters. They would only save themselves.

even though Noah, Daniel, and Job were among them, as I live" says the Lord GOD, "they couldn't save their own sons or daughters. They would only save their own souls due to their own righteousness."

in order to humiliate the kingdom so it wouldn't be able to return to power, but would still be able to continue as long as he keeps his covenant.

"Yet you keep asking, "Why wouldn't the son bear the punishment of his father's sin?' Because the son has done what was lawful and right, and has kept all my statutes and obeyed them, he's certainly going to live.

They imprisoned him in a cage with hooks and brought him to the king of Babel. Then they placed him in their dungeon where his voice would no longer be heard on the mountains of Israel.

Also, I instituted my Sabbath for them as a sign between me and them, so they would know that I am the LORD, who has set them apart."

"But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. They didn't live by my statutes. They despised my ordinances, which if a person observes, he'll live by them. They greatly profaned my Sabbaths. So I said I would pour out my anger on them and bring them to an end in the wilderness.

I did this so my reputation wouldn't be tarnished among the nations in whose presence I had brought them out.

"Moreover, I solemnly swore to them in the wilderness that I wouldn't bring them to the land that I had given them a land flowing with milk and honey, the most beautiful of all lands

But I withdrew my decision so my reputation wouldn't be tarnished among the nations before whose eyes I brought them out.

After all, he heard the alarm sounding, but did not heed the warning, so his shed blood will remain his own responsibility. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved himself.

"As certainly as I'm alive and living, my sheep have truly become victims, food for all of the wild animals because there are no shepherds. My shepherds did not go searching for my flock. Instead, the shepherds fed themselves, and my flock they would not feed!'

When the descendants of your people ask you, "Would you please explain to us what you mean by this?'

"This is what the Lord GOD says: "Surely you're the one about whom I spoke years ago in the writings of my servants, Israel's prophets, aren't you? They predicted back then that I would bring you up after many years, didn't they?

When he had measured out another 1,000 cubits, the water had become deep enough that I wasn't able to ford it. Instead, I would have had to swim through it.

The king assigned them fine food and choice wine on a daily basis, ordering them to be trained for three years, at the end of which time they would enter the king's service.

"While you were in bed, the dream and the visions that came to your head were as follows: Your majesty, when you were in bed, thoughts came to your mind about what would happen in the future, and the Revealer of Secrets has made known to you what will take place.

So I gave an order to bring in all of the advisors of Babylon so they would tell me the interpretation of the dream.

along with three chief administrators from them, one of which was Daniel. The regional authorities reported to these three administrators, so that the king would experience no losses.

When Daniel learned that the written document had been signed, he went to an upstairs room in his house that had windows opened facing Jerusalem. Three times a day he would kneel down, pray, and give thanks to his God, just as he had previously done.

So they approached the king and asked, "Didn't you sign an edict that for the next 30 days if anyone prays to any god or man, except to you, your majesty, he would be thrown into the lions' pit?" The king responded, "The decree has been established, in accordance with the laws of the Medes and Persians that can't be repealed."

A stone was brought and placed over the opening to the pit, and the king affixed a seal to it with his personal signet ring and with the signet rings of his officials so that no one would interfere with Daniel's situation.

"I heard the man dressed in linen clothes, who was standing above the waters of the river as he lifted his right and left hands to heaven and swore by the one who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and a half. When the shattering of the power of the holy people has occurred, all these things will conclude."

"Don't celebrate, Israel, like other nations would rejoice, because you left your God by committing fornication, loving the profit you gained on all of the threshing floors.

From now on they will say, "We have no king, because we did not fear the LORD and what would a king do for us?'

"I therefore have withheld the rain from you three months before the harvest, causing rain to come upon one city, but not upon another, and upon one field but not upon another, so that it would wither.

"If thieves came against you, if marauding gangs by night Oh, how you will be destroyed! Would they not steal only until they had enough? If grape pickers came to you, would they not leave some grapes to be gleaned?

Then Jonah left the city and sat down on the eastern side. There he made a shelter for himself and sat down under its shade to see what would happen to the city.

I have said, "If only you would fear me, if only you would take my instructions to heart.' Then their houses would not have been torn down. I have chastened them, but they were eager to corrupt everything they were doing."

So Haggai responded, "If someone who is unclean because of contact with a dead body were to touch any of these things, would they become unclean?" The priests responded, "They would be unclean."

Don't be like your ancestors, to whom the former prophets proclaimed: "This is what the LORD of the Heavenly Armies says: "It's time to turn from your evil lifestyles and from your evil actions," "but they would neither listen nor pay attention to me,'" declares the LORD.'

Therefore, just as when I cried out and they would not listen, so also they will cry out, and I will not listen,' says the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.

It was broken at that time so the oppressed of the flock who were observing me would know that it had been a message from the LORD.

It will also come about that if any man would dare to prophesy, then his father and his mother who bore him will respond to him, "You will not live, because you are speaking lies in the name of the LORD.' Then his father and mother who bore him will stab him for prophesying.

When you bring blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? And when you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals, is that not wrong? Offer that to your governor would he be pleased with you or receive you favorably?" asks the LORD of the Heavenly Armies.

"Oh, that one of you would shut the Temple doors and not light useless fires on the altar! I'm not pleased with you," says the LORD of the Heavenly Armies, "and I'll accept no offerings from you.

"My covenant with him was for life and peace, and I gave the commandments to him so he would fear me. He did fear me as he stood in my presence.

"There isn't a person among you who would give his son a stone if he asked for bread, is there?

Or if he asks for a fish, he wouldn't give him a snake, would he?

"A wedding song we played for you, the dance you all did scorn. A woeful dirge we chanted, too, but then you would not mourn.'

"How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! Because if the miracles that happened in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.

"And you, Capernaum! You won't be lifted up to heaven, will you? You'll go down to Hell! Because if the miracles that happened in you had taken place in Sodom, it would have remained to this day.

If you had known what "I want mercy and not sacrifice' means, you would not have condemned the innocent,

But he asked them, "Is there a man among you who, if he had one sheep and it fell into a ditch on the Sabbath, wouldn't take hold of it and pull it out?

for this people's heart has become dull, and their ears are hard of hearing. They have shut their eyes so that they might not see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.'

From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he would have to go to Jerusalem and suffer a great deal because of the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but on the third day he would be raised.

"If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a large millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned at the bottom of the sea.

"When the first came, they thought they would receive more, but each received a denarius as well.

Then you say, "If we had been living in the days of our ancestors, we would have had no part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'

If those days hadn't been limited, no one would survive. But for the sake of the elect, those days will be limited.

But be sure of this: if the owner of the house had known when during the night the thief would be coming, he would have stayed awake and not allowed his house to be broken into.

Then you should've invested my money with the bankers. When I returned, I would've received my money back with interest.'

The Son of Man is going away, just as it has been written about him. How terrible it will be for that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him if he had never been born."

Don't you think that I could call on my Father, and he would send me more than twelve legions of angels now?

How, then, would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say this must happen?"

Peter, however, followed him at a distance as far as the high priest's courtyard. He went inside and sat down with the servants to see how this would end.

After they had crucified him, they determined who would get his clothes by throwing dice for them.

Therefore, order the tomb to be secured until the third day, or his disciples may go and steal him and then tell the people, "He has been raised from the dead.' Then the last deception would be worse than the first one."

He healed many who were sick with various diseases and drove out many demons. However, he wouldn't allow the demons to speak because they knew who he was.

Now John's disciples and the Pharisees would fast regularly. Some people came and asked Jesus, "Why do John's disciples and the Pharisees' disciples fast, but your disciples don't fast?"

The people watched Jesus closely to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, intending to accuse him of doing something wrong.

Jesus told his disciples to have a boat ready for him so that the crowd wouldn't crush him,

Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they would fall down in front of him and scream, "You are the Son of God!"

But Jesus wouldn't let him. Instead, he told him, "Go home to your family, and tell them how much the Lord has done for you and how merciful he has been to you."

Wherever he went, whether into villages, towns, or farms, people would place their sick in the marketplaces and beg him to let them touch even the tassel of his garment, and everyone who touched it was healed.

Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man would have to suffer a great deal and be rejected by the elders, the high priests, and the scribes. Then he would be killed, but after three days he would rise again.

"If anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a large millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.

He wouldn't even let anyone carry a vessel through the Temple.

When evening came, Jesus and his disciples would leave the city.

If the Lord had not shortened those days, no one would be saved. But for the sake of the elect whom he has chosen, he has shortened those days.

For the Son of Man is going away, just as it has been written about him, but how terrible it will be for that man by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been better for him if he had never been born."

At every festival, Pilate would release any one prisoner whom the people requested.

They tried to give him wine mixed with myrrh, but he wouldn't accept it.

Then they crucified him. They divided his clothes among themselves by throwing dice to see what each one would get.

How blessed is this woman for believing that what was spoken to her by the Lord would be fulfilled!"

that he would save us from our enemies and from the grip of all who hate us.

Now a man named Simeon was in Jerusalem. This man was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the one who would comfort Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.

It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die until he had seen the Lord's Messiah.

Every year Jesus' parents would go to Jerusalem for the Passover Festival.

John would say to the crowds that were coming out to be baptized by him, "You children of serpents! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?

The scribes and the Pharisees were watching Jesus closely to see whether he would heal on the Sabbath, in order to find a way of accusing him of doing something wrong.

They're like little children who sit in the marketplace and shout to each other, "A wedding song we played for you, the dance you all did scorn. A woeful dirge we chanted, too, but then you would not mourn.'

Now the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this and told himself, "If this man were a prophet, he would have known who is touching him and what kind of woman she is. She's a sinner!"

because Jesus was in the process of ordering the unclean spirit to come out of the man. On many occasions the unclean spirit had seized the man, and though he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, he would break the chains and be driven by the demon into deserted places.

They had a glorified appearance, and were discussing Jesus' departure that he would shortly bring about in Jerusalem.

But the people would not welcome him, because he was determined to go to Jerusalem.

"How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! If the miracles that happened in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.

What father among you, if his son asks for bread, would give him a stone, or if he asks for a fish, would give him a snake instead of the fish?

Or if he asks for an egg, would he give him a scorpion?

But be sure of this: if the homeowner had known at what time the thief were coming, he would have watched and would not have let his house be broken into.

Then he asked them, "If your son or ox falls into a well on the Sabbath day, you would pull him out immediately, wouldn't you?"

Then the host who invited both of you would come to you and say, "Give this person your place.' In disgrace, you would have to take the place of least honor.

Then he told the man who had invited him, "When you give a luncheon or a dinner, stop inviting only your friends, brothers, relatives, or rich neighbors. Otherwise, they may invite you in return and you would be repaid.