DANIEL 9:1-19

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Daniel’s Prayer for His People  9:1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, by descent a Mede, who was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans— 2 in the first year of his reign, I, Daniel, perceived in the books the number of years that, according to the word of the Lord to Jeremiah the prophet, must pass before the end of the desolations of Jerusalem, namely, seventy years.
    3 Then I turned my face to the Lord God, seeking him by prayer and pleas for mercy with fasting and sackcloth and ashes. 4 I prayed to the Lord my God and made confession, saying, “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps covenant and steadfast love with those who love him and keep his commandments, 5 we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled, turning aside from your commandments and rules. 6 We have not listened to your servants the prophets, who spoke in your name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to all the people of the land. 7 To you, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but to us open shame, as at this day, to the men of Judah, to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and to all Israel, those who are near and those who are far away, in all the lands to which you have driven them, because of the treachery that they have committed against you. 8 To us, O Lord, belongs open shame, to our kings, to our princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against you. 9 To the Lord our God belong mercy and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against him 10 and have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God by walking in his laws, which he set before us by his servants the prophets. 11 All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice. And the curse and oath that are written in the Law of Moses the servant of God have been poured out upon us, because we have sinned against him. 12 He has confirmed his words, which he spoke against us and against our rulers who ruled us, by bringing upon us a great calamity. For under the whole heaven there has not been done anything like what has been done against Jerusalem. 13 As it is written in the Law of Moses, all this calamity has come upon us; yet we have not entreated the favor of the Lord our God, turning from our iniquities and gaining insight by your truth. 14 Therefore the Lord has kept ready the calamity and has brought it upon us, for the Lord our God is righteous in all the works that he has done, and we have not obeyed his voice. 15 And now, O Lord our God, who brought your people out of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and have made a name for yourself, as at this day, we have sinned, we have done wickedly.
    16 “O Lord, according to all your righteous acts, let your anger and your wrath turn away from your city Jerusalem, your holy hill, because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our fathers, Jerusalem and your people have become a byword among all who are around us. 17 Now therefore, O our God, listen to the prayer of your servant and to his pleas for mercy, and for your own sake, O Lord, make your face to shine upon your sanctuary, which is desolate. 18 O my God, incline your ear and hear. Open your eyes and see our desolations, and the city that is called by your name. For we do not present our pleas before you because of our righteousness, but because of your great mercy. 19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive. O Lord, pay attention and act. Delay not, for your own sake, O my God, because your city and your people are called by your name.”

AMOS 3-5

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Israel’s Guilt and Punishment  3:1 Hear this word that the Lord has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:
2

“You only have I known

of all the families of the earth;

therefore I will punish you

for all your iniquities.
3

“Do two walk together,

unless they have agreed to meet? 4

Does a lion roar in the forest,

when he has no prey?

Does a young lion cry out from his den,

if he has taken nothing? 5

Does a bird fall in a snare on the earth,

when there is no trap for it?

Does a snare spring up from the ground,

when it has taken nothing? 6

Is a trumpet blown in a city,

and the people are not afraid?

Does disaster come to a city,

unless the Lord has done it?
7

“For the Lord God does nothing

without revealing his secret

to his servants the prophets. 8

The lion has roared;

who will not fear?

The Lord God has spoken;

who can but prophesy?”
9

Proclaim to the strongholds in Ashdod

and to the strongholds in the land of Egypt,

and say, “Assemble yourselves on the mountains of Samaria,

and see the great tumults within her,

and the oppressed in her midst.” 10

“They do not know how to do right,” declares the Lord,

“those who store up violence and robbery in their strongholds.” 11 Therefore thus says the Lord God:

“An adversary shall surround the land

and bring down your defenses from you,

and your strongholds shall be plundered.”
    12 Thus says the Lord: “As the shepherd rescues from the mouth of the lion two legs, or a piece of an ear, so shall the people of Israel who dwell in Samaria be rescued, with the corner of a couch and part of a bed.
13

“Hear, and testify against the house of Jacob,”

declares the Lord God, the God of hosts, 14

“that on the day I punish Israel for his transgressions,

I will punish the altars of Bethel,

and the horns of the altar shall be cut off

and fall to the ground. 15

I will strike the winter house along with the summer house,

and the houses of ivory shall perish,

and the great houses shall come to an end,”declares the Lord.
4:1

“Hear this word, you cows of Bashan,

who are on the mountain of Samaria,

who oppress the poor, who crush the needy,

who say to your husbands, ‘Bring, that we may drink!’ 2

The Lord God has sworn by his holiness

that, behold, the days are coming upon you,

when they shall take you away with hooks,

even the last of you with fishhooks. 3

And you shall go out through the breaches,

each one straight ahead;

and you shall be cast out into Harmon,”declares the Lord.
4

“Come to Bethel, and transgress;

to Gilgal, and multiply transgression;

bring your sacrifices every morning,

your tithes every three days; 5

offer a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened,

and proclaim freewill offerings, publish them;

for so you love to do, O people of Israel!”declares the Lord God. Israel Has Not Returned to the Lord6

“I gave you cleanness of teeth in all your cities,

and lack of bread in all your places,

yet you did not return to me,”declares the Lord.
7

“I also withheld the rain from you

when there were yet three months to the harvest;

I would send rain on one city,

and send no rain on another city;

one field would have rain,

and the field on which it did not rain would wither; 8

so two or three cities would wander to another city

to drink water, and would not be satisfied;

yet you did not return to me,”declares the Lord.
9

“I struck you with blight and mildew;

your many gardens and your vineyards,

your fig trees and your olive trees the locust devoured;

yet you did not return to me,”declares the Lord.
10

“I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt;

I killed your young men with the sword,

and carried away your horses,

and I made the stench of your camp go up into your nostrils;

yet you did not return to me,”declares the Lord.
11

“I overthrew some of you,

as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,

and you were as a brand plucked out of the burning;

yet you did not return to me,”declares the Lord.
12

“Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel;

because I will do this to you,

prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”
13

For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind,

and declares to man what is his thought,

who makes the morning darkness,

and treads on the heights of the earth—

the Lord, the God of hosts, is his name! Seek the Lord and Live  5:1 Hear this word that I take up over you in lamentation, O house of Israel:
2

“Fallen, no more to rise,

is the virgin Israel;

forsaken on her land,

with none to raise her up.” 3 For thus says the Lord God:

“The city that went out a thousand

shall have a hundred left,

and that which went out a hundred

shall have ten left

to the house of Israel.” 4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel:

“Seek me and live; 5

but do not seek Bethel,

and do not enter into Gilgal

or cross over to Beersheba;

for Gilgal shall surely go into exile,

and Bethel shall come to nothing.”
6

Seek the Lord and live,

lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph,

and it devour, with none to quench it for Bethel, 7

O you who turn justice to wormwood

and cast down righteousness to the earth!
8

He who made the Pleiades and Orion,

and turns deep darkness into the morning

and darkens the day into night,

who calls for the waters of the sea

and pours them out on the surface of the earth,

the Lord is his name; 9

who makes destruction flash forth against the strong,

so that destruction comes upon the fortress.
10

They hate him who reproves in the gate,

and they abhor him who speaks the truth. 11

Therefore because you trample on the poor

and you exact taxes of grain from him,

you have built houses of hewn stone,

but you shall not dwell in them;

you have planted pleasant vineyards,

but you shall not drink their wine. 12

For I know how many are your transgressions

and how great are your sins—

you who afflict the righteous, who take a bribe,

and turn aside the needy in the gate. 13

Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time,

for it is an evil time.
14

Seek good, and not evil,

that you may live;

and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you,

as you have said. 15

Hate evil, and love good,

and establish justice in the gate;

it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts,

will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph. 16 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord:

“In all the squares there shall be wailing,

and in all the streets they shall say, ‘Alas! Alas!’

They shall call the farmers to mourning

and to wailing those who are skilled in lamentation, 17

and in all vineyards there shall be wailing,

for I will pass through your midst,”says the Lord. Let Justice Roll Down18

Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!

Why would you have the day of the Lord?

It is darkness, and not light, 19

as if a man fled from a lion,

and a bear met him,

or went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall,

and a serpent bit him. 20

Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light,

and gloom with no brightness in it?
21

“I hate, I despise your feasts,

and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies. 22

Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,

I will not accept them;

and the peace offerings of your fattened animals,

I will not look upon them. 23

Take away from me the noise of your songs;

to the melody of your harps I will not listen. 24

But let justice roll down like waters,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
    25 “Did you bring to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? 26 You shall take up Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun your star-god—your images that you made for yourselves, 27 and I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.

1 JOHN 1:9

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9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.