ISAIAH 14

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The Restoration of Jacob  14:1 For the Lord will have compassion on Jacob and will again choose Israel, and will set them in their own land, and sojourners will join them and will attach themselves to the house of Jacob. 2 And the peoples will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them in the Lord’s land as male and female slaves. They will take captive those who were their captors, and rule over those who oppressed them. Israel’s Remnant Taunts Babylon3 When the Lord has given you rest from your pain and turmoil and the hard service with which you were made to serve, 4 you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:

“How the oppressor has ceased,

the insolent fury ceased! 5

The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked,

the scepter of rulers, 6

that struck the peoples in wrath

with unceasing blows,

that ruled the nations in anger

with unrelenting persecution. 7

The whole earth is at rest and quiet;

they break forth into singing. 8

The cypresses rejoice at you,

the cedars of Lebanon, saying,

‘Since you were laid low,

no woodcutter comes up against us.’ 9

Sheol beneath is stirred up

to meet you when you come;

it rouses the shades to greet you,

all who were leaders of the earth;

it raises from their thrones

all who were kings of the nations. 10

All of them will answer

and say to you:

‘You too have become as weak as we!

You have become like us!’ 11

Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,

the sound of your harps;

maggots are laid as a bed beneath you,

and worms are your covers.
12

“How you are fallen from heaven,

O Day Star, son of Dawn!

How you are cut down to the ground,

you who laid the nations low! 13

You said in your heart,

‘I will ascend to heaven;

above the stars of God

I will set my throne on high;

I will sit on the mount of assembly

in the far reaches of the north; 14

I will ascend above the heights of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High.’ 15

But you are brought down to Sheol,

to the far reaches of the pit. 16

Those who see you will stare at you

and ponder over you:

‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,

who shook kingdoms, 17

who made the world like a desert

and overthrew its cities,

who did not let his prisoners go home?’ 18

All the kings of the nations lie in glory,

each in his own tomb; 19

but you are cast out, away from your grave,

like a loathed branch,

clothed with the slain, those pierced by the sword,

who go down to the stones of the pit,

like a dead body trampled underfoot.
20

You will not be joined with them in burial,

because you have destroyed your land,

you have slain your people.

“May the offspring of evildoers

nevermore be named! 21

Prepare slaughter for his sons

because of the guilt of their fathers,

lest they rise and possess the earth,

and fill the face of the world with cities.”
    22 “I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and will cut off from Babylon name and remnant, descendants and posterity,” declares the Lord. 23 “And I will make it a possession of the hedgehog, and pools of water, and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of hosts. An Oracle Concerning Assyria24

The Lord of hosts has sworn:

“As I have planned,

so shall it be,

and as I have purposed,

so shall it stand, 25

that I will break the Assyrian in my land,

and on my mountains trample him underfoot;

and his yoke shall depart from them,

and his burden from their shoulder.”
26

This is the purpose that is purposed

concerning the whole earth,

and this is the hand that is stretched out

over all the nations. 27

For the Lord of hosts has purposed,

and who will annul it?

His hand is stretched out,

and who will turn it back? An Oracle Concerning Philistia28 In the year that King Ahaz died came this oracle:
29

Rejoice not, O Philistia, all of you,

that the rod that struck you is broken,

for from the serpent’s root will come forth an adder,

and its fruit will be a flying fiery serpent. 30

And the firstborn of the poor will graze,

and the needy lie down in safety;

but I will kill your root with famine,

and your remnant it will slay. 31

Wail, O gate; cry out, O city;

melt in fear, O Philistia, all of you!

For smoke comes out of the north,

and there is no straggler in his ranks.
32

What will one answer the messengers of the nation?

“The Lord has founded Zion,

and in her the afflicted of his people find refuge.”

PSALM 59

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Deliver Me from My EnemiesTo the choirmaster: according to Do Not Destroy. A Miktam of David, when Saul sent men to watch his house in order to kill him.
59:1

Deliver me from my enemies, O my God;

protect me from those who rise up against me; 2

deliver me from those who work evil,

and save me from bloodthirsty men.
3

For behold, they lie in wait for my life;

fierce men stir up strife against me.

For no transgression or sin of mine, O Lord, 4

for no fault of mine, they run and make ready.

Awake, come to meet me, and see! 5

You, Lord God of hosts, are God of Israel.

Rouse yourself to punish all the nations;

spare none of those who treacherously plot evil. Selah
6

Each evening they come back,

howling like dogs

and prowling about the city. 7

There they are, bellowing with their mouths

with swords in their lips—

for “Who,” they think, “will hear us?”
8

But you, O Lord, laugh at them;

you hold all the nations in derision. 9

O my Strength, I will watch for you,

for you, O God, are my fortress. 10

My God in his steadfast love will meet me;

God will let me look in triumph on my enemies.
11

Kill them not, lest my people forget;

make them totter by your power and bring them down,

O Lord, our shield! 12

For the sin of their mouths, the words of their lips,

let them be trapped in their pride.

For the cursing and lies that they utter, 13

consume them in wrath;

consume them till they are no more,

that they may know that God rules over Jacob

to the ends of the earth. Selah
14

Each evening they come back,

howling like dogs

and prowling about the city. 15

They wander about for food

and growl if they do not get their fill.
16

But I will sing of your strength;

I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning.

For you have been to me a fortress

and a refuge in the day of my distress. 17

O my Strength, I will sing praises to you,

for you, O God, are my fortress,

the God who shows me steadfast love.

PSALM 60

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He Will Tread Down Our FoesTo the choirmaster: according to Shushan Eduth. A Miktam of David; for instruction; when he strove with Aram-naharaim and with Aram-zobah, and when Joab on his return struck down twelve thousand of Edom in the Valley of Salt.
60:1

O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;

you have been angry; oh, restore us. 2

You have made the land to quake; you have torn it open;

repair its breaches, for it totters. 3

You have made your people see hard things;

you have given us wine to drink that made us stagger.
4

You have set up a banner for those who fear you,

that they may flee to it from the bow. Selah 5

That your beloved ones may be delivered,

give salvation by your right hand and answer us!
6

God has spoken in his holiness:

“With exultation I will divide up Shechem

and portion out the Vale of Succoth. 7

Gilead is mine; Manasseh is mine;

Ephraim is my helmet;

Judah is my scepter. 8

Moab is my washbasin;

upon Edom I cast my shoe;

over Philistia I shout in triumph.”
9

Who will bring me to the fortified city?

Who will lead me to Edom? 10

Have you not rejected us, O God?

You do not go forth, O God, with our armies. 11

Oh, grant us help against the foe,

for vain is the salvation of man! 12

With God we shall do valiantly;

it is he who will tread down our foes.

PROVERBS 21

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21:1

The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord;

he turns it wherever he will. 2

Every way of a man is right in his own eyes,

but the Lord weighs the heart. 3

To do righteousness and justice

is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice. 4

Haughty eyes and a proud heart,

the lamp of the wicked, are sin. 5

The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance,

but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. 6

The getting of treasures by a lying tongue

is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death. 7

The violence of the wicked will sweep them away,

because they refuse to do what is just. 8

The way of the guilty is crooked,

but the conduct of the pure is upright. 9

It is better to live in a corner of the housetop

than in a house shared with a quarrelsome wife. 10

The soul of the wicked desires evil;

his neighbor finds no mercy in his eyes. 11

When a scoffer is punished, the simple becomes wise;

when a wise man is instructed, he gains knowledge. 12

The Righteous One observes the house of the wicked;

he throws the wicked down to ruin. 13

Whoever closes his ear to the cry of the poor

will himself call out and not be answered. 14

A gift in secret averts anger,

and a concealed bribe, strong wrath. 15

When justice is done, it is a joy to the righteous

but terror to evildoers. 16

One who wanders from the way of good sense

will rest in the assembly of the dead. 17

Whoever loves pleasure will be a poor man;

he who loves wine and oil will not be rich. 18

The wicked is a ransom for the righteous,

and the traitor for the upright. 19

It is better to live in a desert land

than with a quarrelsome and fretful woman. 20

Precious treasure and oil are in a wise man’s dwelling,

but a foolish man devours it. 21

Whoever pursues righteousness and kindness

will find life, righteousness, and honor. 22

A wise man scales the city of the mighty

and brings down the stronghold in which they trust. 23

Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue

keeps himself out of trouble. 24

“Scoffer” is the name of the arrogant, haughty man

who acts with arrogant pride. 25

The desire of the sluggard kills him,

for his hands refuse to labor. 26

All day long he craves and craves,

but the righteous gives and does not hold back. 27

The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination;

how much more when he brings it with evil intent. 28

A false witness will perish,

but the word of a man who hears will endure. 29

A wicked man puts on a bold face,

but the upright gives thought to his ways. 30

No wisdom, no understanding, no counsel

can avail against the Lord. 31

The horse is made ready for the day of battle,

but the victory belongs to the Lord.