1 Concerning Moab. This is what the Lord of armies, the God of Israel says:
“Woe to Nebo, for it has been destroyed;
Kiriathaim has been put to shame, it has been captured;
The high stronghold has been put to shame and shattered.
2 There is no longer praise for Moab;
In Heshbon they have devised disaster against her:
‘Come and let’s cut her off from being a nation!’
You too, Madmen, will be silenced;
The sword will follow you.
3 The sound of an outcry from Horonaim,
‘Devastation and great destruction!’
4 Moab is broken,
Her little ones have sounded out a cry of distress.
5 For they will go up by the ascent of Luhith
With continual weeping;
For at the descent of Horonaim
They have heard the anguished cry of destruction.
6 Flee, save yourselves,
So that you may be like a juniper in the wilderness.
7 For because of your trust in your own achievements and treasures,
You yourself will also be captured;
And Chemosh will go off into exile
Together with his priests and his leaders.
8 A destroyer will come to every city,
So that no city will escape;
The valley also will be ruined
And the plateau will be destroyed,
As the Lord has said.
9 Give wings to Moab,
For she will flee away;
And her cities will become a desolation,
Without inhabitants in them.
10 Cursed is the one who does the Lord’s work negligently,
And cursed is the one who restrains his sword from blood.
11 “Moab has been at ease since his youth;
He has also been peaceful, like wine on its dregs,
And he has not been poured from vessel to vessel,
Nor has he gone into exile.
Therefore he retains his flavor,
And his aroma has not changed.
12 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will send to him those who tip vessels, and they will tip him over, and they will pour out his vessels and smash his jars. 13 And Moab will be ashamed of Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was ashamed of Bethel, their confidence.
14 How can you say, ‘We are warriors,
And men competent for battle’?
15 Moab has been destroyed and men have gone up to his cities;
His choicest young men have also gone down to the slaughter,”
Declares the King, whose name is the Lord of armies.
16 “The disaster of Moab will soon come,
And his catastrophe has hurried quickly.
17 Mourn for him, all you who live around him,
And all of you who know his name;
Say, ‘How the mighty scepter has been broken,
A staff of splendor!’
18 Come down from your glory
And sit on the parched ground,
O daughter living in Dibon,
For the destroyer of Moab has come up against you,
He has ruined your strongholds.
19 Stand by the road and keep watch,
You inhabitant of Aroer;
Ask him who flees and her who escapes
And say, ‘What has happened?’
20 Moab has been put to shame, for it has been shattered.
Wail and cry out;
Declare by the Arnon
That Moab has been destroyed.
21 “Judgment has also come upon the plain, upon Holon, Jahzah, and against Mephaath, 22 against Dibon, Nebo, and Beth-diblathaim, 23 against Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, and Beth-meon, 24 against Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the cities of the land of Moab, far and near. 25 The horn of Moab has been cut off, and his arm broken,” declares the Lord. 26 “Make him drunk, for he has become arrogant toward the Lord; so Moab will vomit, and he also will become a laughingstock. 27 Now was Israel not a laughingstock to you? Or was he caught among thieves? For whenever you speak about him you shake your head in scorn.
28 Leave the cities and live among the rocky cliffs,
You inhabitants of Moab,
And be like a dove that nests
Beyond the mouth of the chasm.
29 We have heard of the pride of Moab—he is very proud—
Of his haughtiness, his pride, his arrogance, and his self-exaltation.
30 I know his fury,” declares the Lord,
“But it is futile;
His idle boasts have accomplished nothing.
31 Therefore I will wail for Moab,
For all of Moab I will cry out;
I will moan for the men of Kir-heres.
32 More than the weeping for Jazer
I will weep for you, O vine of Sibmah!
Your tendrils stretched across the sea,
They reached to the sea of Jazer;
Upon your summer fruits and your grape harvest
The destroyer has fallen.
33 So joy and rejoicing are removed
From the fruitful field, and from the land of Moab.
And I have eliminated the wine from the wine presses;
No one will tread them with shouting,
The shouting will not be shouts of joy.
34 From the outcry at Heshbon to Elealeh, to Jahaz they have raised their voice, from Zoar to Horonaim, and to Eglath-shelishiyah; for even the waters of Nimrim will become desolate. 35 And I will put an end to Moab,” declares the Lord, “the one who offers sacrifice on the high place and the one who burns incense to his gods.
36 “Therefore My heart makes a sound like flutes for Moab; My heart also makes a sound like flutes for the men of Kir-heres. Therefore they have lost the abundance it produced. 37 For every head is shaved bald, and every beard cut short; there are gashes on all the hands, and sackcloth around the waists. 38 On all the housetops of Moab and in its public squares there is mourning everywhere; for I have broken Moab like an undesirable vessel,” declares the Lord. 39 “How shattered it is! How they have wailed! How Moab has turned his back—he is ashamed! So Moab will become a laughingstock and an object of terror to all around him.”
40 For this is what the Lord says:
“Behold, one will fly swiftly like an eagle
And spread out his wings against Moab.
41 Kerioth has been captured
And the strongholds have been seized,
So the hearts of the warriors of Moab on that day
Will be like the heart of a woman in labor.
42 Moab will be destroyed from being a people
Because he has become arrogant toward the Lord.
43 Terror, pit, and snare are coming upon you,
Inhabitant of Moab,” declares the Lord.
44 “The one who flees from the terror
Will fall into the pit,
And the one who climbs up out of the pit
Will be caught in the snare;
For I will bring upon her, upon Moab,
The year of their punishment,” declares the Lord.
45 “In the shadow of Heshbon
The fugitives stand without strength;
For a fire has spread out from Heshbon
And a flame from the midst of Sihon,
And it has devoured the forehead of Moab
And the scalps of the loud revelers.
46 Woe to you, Moab!
The people of Chemosh have perished;
For your sons have been taken away captive,
And your daughters into captivity.
47 Yet I will restore the fortunes of Moab
In the latter days,” declares the Lord.
This is the extent of the judgment on Moab.
1 Concerning the sons of Ammon. This is what the Lord says:
“Does Israel have no sons?
Or has he no heirs?
Why then has Malcam taken possession of Gad,
And his people settled in its cities?
2 Therefore behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When I will cause an alarm of war to be heard
Against Rabbah of the sons of Ammon;
And it will become a desolate heap,
And her towns will be set on fire.
Then Israel will take possession of his possessors,”
Says the Lord.
3 “Wail, Heshbon, for Ai has been destroyed!
Cry out, daughters of Rabbah,
Put on sackcloth and mourn,
And move about inside the walls;
For Malcam will go into exile
Together with his priests and his leaders.
4 How you boast about the valleys!
Your valley is flowing away,
You backsliding daughter
Who trusts in her treasures, saying,
‘Who can come against me?’
5 Behold, I am going to bring terror upon you,”
Declares the Lord God of armies,
“From all directions around you;
And you will be driven away one after another,
With no one to gather the fugitives together.
6 But afterward I will restore
The fortunes of the sons of Ammon,”
Declares the Lord.
7 Concerning Edom.
This is what the Lord of armies says:
“Is there no longer any wisdom in Teman?
Has good advice been lost by the prudent?
Has their wisdom decayed?
8 Flee away, turn back, dwell in the depths,
You inhabitants of Dedan,
For I will bring the disaster of Esau upon him
At the time I punish him.
9 If grape pickers came to you,
Would they not leave gleanings?
If thieves came by night,
They would destroy only what was sufficient for them.
10 But I have stripped Esau bare,
I have uncovered his hiding places
So that he will not be able to conceal himself;
His offspring have been destroyed along with his brothers
And his neighbors, and he no longer exists.
11 Leave your orphans behind, I will keep them alive;
And let your widows trust in Me.”
12 For this is what the Lord says: “Behold, those who were not sentenced to drink the cup will certainly drink it, so are you the one who will be held completely blameless? You will not be held blameless, but you will certainly drink it. 13 For I have sworn by Myself,” declares the Lord, “that Bozrah will become an object of horror, a disgrace, a wasteland, and a curse; and all its cities will become permanent ruins.”
14 I have heard a message from the Lord,
And a messenger is being sent among the nations, saying,
“Gather yourselves together and come against her,
And rise up for battle!”
15 “For behold, I have made you small among the nations,
Despised among people.
16 As for the terror you cause,
The arrogance of your heart has deceived you,
You who live in the clefts of the rock,
Who occupy the height of the hill.
Though you make your nest as high as an eagle’s,
I will bring you down from there,” declares the Lord.
17 “Edom will become an object of horror; everyone who passes by it will be appalled and will hiss at all its wounds. 18 Like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah with its neighbors,” says the Lord, “no one will live there, nor will anyone of mankind reside in it. 19 Behold, one will come up like a lion from the thicket of the Jordan to a perennially watered pasture; for in an instant I will chase him away from it, and I will appoint over it whoever is chosen. For who is like Me, and who will summon Me into court? And who then is the shepherd who can stand against Me?”
20 Therefore hear the plan of the Lord which He has planned against Edom, and His purposes which He has in mind against the inhabitants of Teman: they will certainly drag them off, even the little ones of the flock; He will certainly make their pasture desolate because of them. 21 The earth has quaked at the noise of their downfall. There is an outcry! The noise of it has been heard at the Red Sea. 22 Behold, He will mount up and swoop like an eagle, and spread out His wings against Bozrah; and the hearts of the warriors of Edom on that day will be like the heart of a woman in labor.
1 I solemnly exhort you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: 2 preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; correct, rebuke, and exhort, with great patience and instruction. 3 For the time will come when they will not tolerate sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance with their own desires, 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth and will turn aside to myths. 5 But as for you, use self-restraint in all things, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.
6 For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; 8 in the future there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.
9 Make every effort to come to me soon; 10 for Demas, having loved this present world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescens has gone to Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia. 11 Only Luke is with me. Take along Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service. 12 But I have sent Tychicus to Ephesus. 13 When you come, bring the overcoat which I left at Troas with Carpus, and the books, especially the parchments. 14 Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. 15 Be on guard against him yourself too, for he vigorously opposed our teaching.
16 At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. 17 But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion’s mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
19 Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus. 20 Erastus remained at Corinth, but I left Trophimus sick at Miletus. 21 Make every effort to come before winter. Eubulus greets you, also Pudens, Linus, Claudia, and all the brothers and sisters.
22 The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you.
1 Come, let’s sing for joy to the Lord,
Let’s shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.
2 Let’s come before His presence with a song of thanksgiving,
Let’s shout joyfully to Him in songs with instruments.
3 For the Lord is a great God
And a great King above all gods,
4 In whose hand are the depths of the earth,
The peaks of the mountains are also His.
5 The sea is His, for it was He who made it,
And His hands formed the dry land.
6 Come, let’s worship and bow down,
Let’s kneel before the Lord our Maker.
7 For He is our God,
And we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
Today, if you will hear His voice,
8 Do not harden your hearts as at Meribah,
As on the day of Massah in the wilderness,
9 “When your fathers put Me to the test,
They tested Me, though they had seen My work.
10 For forty years I was disgusted with that generation,
And said they are a people who err in their heart,
And they do not know My ways.
11 Therefore I swore in My anger,
They certainly shall not enter My rest.”
1 Sing to the Lord a new song;
Sing to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Sing to the Lord, bless His name;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.
3 Tell of His glory among the nations,
His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.
4 For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;
He is to be feared above all gods.
5 For all the gods of the peoples are idols,
But the Lord made the heavens.
6 Splendor and majesty are before Him,
Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary.
7 Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples,
Ascribe to the Lord glory and strength.
8 Ascribe to the Lord the glory of His name;
Bring an offering and come into His courtyards.
9 Worship the Lord in holy attire;
Tremble before Him, all the earth.
10 Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns;
Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved;
He will judge the peoples fairly.”
11 May the heavens be joyful, and may the earth rejoice;
May the sea roar, and all it contains;
12 May the field be jubilant, and all that is in it.
Then all the trees of the forest will sing for joy
13 Before the Lord, for He is coming,
For He is coming to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
And the peoples in His faithfulness.
9 Like a thorn that sticks in the hand of a heavy drinker,
So is a proverb in the mouths of fools.
10 Like an archer who wounds everyone,
So is one who hires a fool or hires those who pass by.
11 Like a dog that returns to its vomit,
So is a fool who repeats his foolishness.
12 Do you see a person wise in his own eyes?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.
