Your court officials are like the swarming locust,
and your scribes like clouds of locusts,
which settle on the walls on a cold day;
when the sun rises, they take off,
and no one knows where they are.

See among the nations, and take note, and be full of wonder: for in your days I am doing a work in which you will have no belief, even if news of it is given to you.

“For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans [who rule in Babylon],
That fierce and impetuous nation
Who march throughout the earth
To take possession of dwelling places that do not belong to them.

"They all come to oppress hordes of them, their faces pressing onward they take prisoners as numerous as the desert sand!

And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.

Then shall they take a fresh courage unto them, to go forth and do more evil, and so ascribe that power unto their God.

They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad.

I will take my position and be on watch, placing myself on my tower, looking out to see what he will say to me, and what answer he will give to my protest.

Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!

Because you have taken their goods from great nations, all the rest of the peoples will take your goods from you; because of men's blood and violent acts against the land and the town and all who are living in it.

You are full of shame in place of glory: take your part in the drinking, and let your shame be uncovered: the cup of the Lord's right hand will come round to you and your glory will be covered with shame.

Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

You took the sheath from Your bow;
the arrows are ready to be used with an oath.Selah
You split the earth with rivers.

I heard, and I trembled within me, at the voice, my lips, quivered, decay, entered, my bones, and, in my limbs, I trembled, - though I am to find rest, in the day of distress, when their invader, cometh up against the people.

I will utterly take away everything from off the face of the ground, saith Jehovah:

I will take away man and beast; I will take away the fowl of the heavens and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling-blocks with the wicked, and I will cut off mankind from off the face of the ground, saith Jehovah.

And the worshippers of the army of heaven on the house-tops, and the Lord's worshippers who take oaths by Milcom,

The land by the sea will be for the rest of the children of Judah; by the sea they will give their flocks food: in the houses of Ashkelon they will take their rest in the evening; for the Lord their God will take them in hand and their fate will be changed.

For this cause, by my life, says the Lord of armies, the God of Israel, truly Moab will become like Sodom and the children of Ammon like Gomorrah, given up to waste plants and salt pools and unpeopled for ever: the rest of my people will take their property, the overflow of my nation will take their heritage.

And herds will take their rest in the middle of her, all the beasts of the valley: the pelican and the porcupine will make their living-places on the tops of its pillars; the owl will be crying in the window; the raven will be seen on the doorstep.

This is the town which was full of joy, living without fear of danger, saying in her heart, I am, and there is no other: how has she been made waste, a place for beasts to take their rest in! everyone who goes by her will make hisses, waving his hand.

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."

Therefore you must wait patiently for me," says the Lord, "for the day when I attack and take plunder. I have decided to gather nations together and assemble kingdoms, so I can pour out my fury on them -- all my raging anger. For the whole earth will be consumed by my fiery anger.

In that day shalt thou not be ashamed for all thy doings, wherein thou hast transgressed against me: for then I will take away out of the midst of thee them that rejoice in thy pride, and thou shalt no more be haughty because of my holy mountain.

But I will leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall take refuge in the name of Jehovah.

The rest of Israel will do no evil and say no false words; the tongue of deceit will not be seen in their mouth: for they will take their food and their rest, and no one will be a cause of fear to them.

The LORD your God among you is powerful he will save and he will take joyful delight in you. In his love he will renew you with his love; he will celebrate with singing because of you.

I will take away your troubles, lifting up your shame from off you.

Look, at that time I will deal with those who mistreated you. I will rescue the lame sheep and gather together the scattered sheep. I will take away their humiliation and make the whole earth admire and respect them.

Much has been planted, but little got in; you take food, but have not enough; you take drink, but are not full; you are clothed, but no one is warm; and he who gets payment for his work, gets it to put it into a bag full of holes.

Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD.

You were looking for much, and it came to little; and when you got it into your house, I took it away with a breath. Why? says the Lord of armies. Because of my house which is a waste, while every man takes care of the house which is his.

This took place on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of the second year of the reign of King Darius.

'But now take courage, Zerubbabel,' {declares} Yahweh. 'Take courage, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and take courage, all the people of the land,' {declares} Yahweh. 'Do the work, because I [am] with you,' {declares} Yahweh of hosts,

If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No.

Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.

In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts.

Be not like your fathers, to whom the voice of the earlier prophets came, saying, Be turned now from your evil ways and from your evil doings: but they did not give ear to me or take note, says the Lord.

But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.

But I am greatly displeased with the nations that take my grace for granted. I was a little displeased with them, but they have only made things worse for themselves.

And again let your voice be loud and say, This is what the Lord of armies has said: My towns will again be overflowing with good things, and again the Lord will give comfort to Zion and take Jerusalem for himself.

And I said to him, Where are you going? And he said to me, To take the measure of Jerusalem, to see how wide and how long it is.

For thus sayeth the LORD of Hosts: With a glorious power hath he sent me out to the Heathen, which spoiled you: for whoso toucheth you, shall touch the apple of his own eye.

"Sing and rejoice, daughter of Zion! Take note! I am coming to live in your midst," declares the LORD.

The Lord will take possession of Judah as His portion in the Holy Land, and He will once again choose Jerusalem.

And he let me see Joshua, the high priest, in his place before the angel of the Lord, and the Satan at his right hand ready to take up a cause against him.

And he answered and spake unto those that stood before him, saying, Take away the filthy garments from him. And unto him he said, Behold, I have caused thine iniquity to pass from thee, and I will clothe thee with change of raiment.

“This is what the Lord of Hosts says: If you walk in My ways and keep My instructions, you will both rule My house and take care of My courts; I will also grant you access among these who are standing here.

Notice the stone I have set before Joshua; on that one stone are seven eyes. I will engrave an inscription on it”—this is the declaration of the Lord of Hosts—“and I will take away the guilt of this land in a single day.

And lifting up my eyes I saw two women coming out, and the wind was in their wings; and they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they took the ephah, lifting it up between earth and heaven.

Then said I to the angel that talked with me, where do these take the basket?

These horses were very strong, and went out: and sought to go and take their journey over the whole earth.' And he said, 'Get you hence, and go through the world.' So they went throughout the world.

Take of them of the captivity, even of Heldai, of Tobijah, and of Jedaiah, which are come from Babylon, and come thou the same day, and go into the house of Josiah the son of Zephaniah;

Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest;

And he will be the builder of the Temple of the Lord; and the glory will be his, and he will take his place as ruler on the seat of power; and Joshua will be a priest at his right hand, and between them there will be a design of peace.

Those who are far off will come and build the temple of the Lord.” Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. And it will take place if you completely obey the Lord your God.

Nevertheless, they would not take heed, but turned their backs and stopped their ears, that they should not hear.

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; In those days it shall come to pass, that ten men shall take hold out of all languages of the nations, even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you: for we have heard that God is with you.

Behold, the Lord will take possession of her, and he will smite her power in the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.

And I will take away his blood out of his mouth, and his abominations from between his teeth: but he that remaineth, even he, shall be for our God, and he shall be as a governor in Judah, and Ekron as a Jebusite.

For I have made Judah a bow bent for my use, I have made Ephraim the arrows of the bow; I will make your sons, O Zion, take up arms against your sons, O Greece, and will make you like the sword of a man of war.

The Lord of armies will be a cover for them; and they will overcome, crushing under foot the armed men; they will take their blood for drink like wine: they will be full like the sides of the altar.

Though I had them planted among the peoples, they will keep me in mind in far countries: and they will take care of their children and will come back.

And I will make them come back out of the land of Egypt, and will get them together out of Assyria; and I will take them into the land of Gilead, and it will not be wide enough for them.

This is what the Lord my God has said: Take care of the flock of death;

which shall be slain of those that possess them. Yet they take it for no sin, but they that sell them, say, 'The LORD be thanked, I am rich.' Yea, their own shepherds spare them not.

And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock. And I took unto me two staves; the one I called Beauty, and the other I called Bands; and I fed the flock.

And I said, I will not take care of you: If death comes to any, let death be its fate; if any is cut off, let it be cut off; and let the rest take one another's flesh for food.

And I took my staff, even Beauty, and cut it asunder, that I might break my covenant which I had made with all the people.

And the LORD said unto me, Cast it unto the potter: a goodly price that I was prised at of them. And I took the thirty pieces of silver, and cast them to the potter in the house of the LORD.

Then I took my other rod, the one named Bands, cutting it in two, so that the relation of brothers between Judah and Israel might be broken.

And the LORD said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd.

For see, I will put a sheep-keeper over the land, who will have no care for that which is cut off, and will not go in search of the wanderers, or make well what is broken, and he will not give food to that which is ill, but he will take for his food the flesh of the fat, and let their feet be broken.

And it will come about in that day that I will make Jerusalem a stone of great weight for all the peoples; all those who take it up will be badly wounded; and all the nations of the earth will come together against it.

And it will come about on that day that I will take in hand the destruction of all the nations who come against Jerusalem.

Then they will mourn for him, as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him, as for a firstborn son. At that time, Jerusalem will mourn deeply, like the mourning about Hadad-rimmon that took place in the plain of Megiddo.

And then, sayeth the LORD of Hosts, I will destroy the names of Idols out of the land: so that they shall no more be put in remembrance. As for the false prophets also and the unclean spirit, I shall take them out of the land:

Now this will be the plague with which the Lord shall strike all the peoples that have warred against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they stand on their feet, and their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongue will rot in their mouth.

And it will be on that day that a great fear will be sent among them from the Lord; and everyone will take his neighbour's hand, and every man's hand will be lifted against his neighbour's.

If the people of Egypt do not come to Jerusalem to take part, they will have no annual Nile overflow. A plague will come from the LORD to strike the nations who do not come to observe the Festival of Tents.

Yea, every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holiness unto the LORD of hosts: and all they that sacrifice shall come and take of them, and seethe therein: and in that day there shall be no more the Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts.

"Who also among you will shut [the temple] doors [so that] you will not kindle fire in vain [on] my altar? I take no pleasure in you," says Yahweh of hosts, "and {I will not accept} an offering from your hand.

If you will not listen, and if you will not {take it to heart} to give glory to my name," says Yahweh of hosts, "then I will send the curse on you, and I will curse your blessings; moreover I have [already] cursed them because {you are not taking it to heart}.

Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.

"So I also made you despised, humiliating you before all of the people, because you aren't following my ways and are showing partiality when you teach."

This is another thing you do: you cover the altar of the Lord with tears, with [your own] weeping and sighing, because the Lord no longer regards your offering or accepts it with favor from your hand.

And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.

He will take his seat, testing and cleaning the sons of Levi, burning away the evil from them as from gold and silver; so that they may make offerings to the Lord in righteousness.

And I will come near to you for judging; I will quickly be a witness against the wonder-workers, against those who have been untrue in married life, against those who take false oaths; against those who keep back from the servant his payment, and who are hard on the widow and the child without a father, who do not give his rights to the man from a strange country, and have no fear of me, says the Lord of armies.

And I will rebuke your devourer, and he shall not decay the fruit of your ground against you; nor shall your vine miscarry against you in the field, says Jehovah of Hosts.

At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another. The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance was written before Him for those who feared Yahweh and had high regard for His name.

Now the birth of Jesus Christ was as follows: when His mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found to be with child by [the power of] the Holy Spirit.

But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost.

"Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife home, for what is begotten in her is by the Holy Spirit; and she will bear a son, and you are to call him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins."

All this happened in order to fulfill what the Lord had spoken through the prophet [Isaiah]:

Then Joseph being raised from sleep did as the angel of the Lord had bidden him, and took unto him his wife:

and he took his wife to himself, and did not know her until she brought forth a son, and called his name Jesus.

Now after the birth of Jesus, which took place at Bethlehem in Judaea in the reign of King Herod, excitement was produced in Jerusalem by the arrival of certain Magi from the east,

And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him.