God gives one person riches, wealth, and honor so that he doesn’t lack anything he wants. Yet, God doesn’t give him the power to enjoy any of them. Instead, a stranger enjoys them. This is pointless and is a painful tragedy.
How horrible it will be for the arrogant drunks of Ephraim. Their glorious beauty is ⌞like⌟ a withered flower. They are at the entrance to a fertile valley where they lie drunk from wine.
Now I, Nebuchadnezzar, will praise, honor, and give glory to the King of Heaven. Everything he does is true, his ways are right, and he can humiliate those who act arrogantly.
I will cut off those living in Ashdod and the one who holds the scepter in Ashkelon. I will turn my power against Ekron. The rest of the Philistines will die. The Almighty Lord has said this.
This is what they will get for their sinful pride, because they insulted the people who belong to the Lord of Armies and made themselves greater than them.
Ashkelon will see ⌞this⌟ and be afraid. Gaza will also be in great pain, also Ekron, because its hope will fade. Gaza will lose its king. Ashkelon will no longer be lived in.
I will remove the blood from their mouths and the disgusting things from between their teeth. Then only a few of them will be left for our God like a tribe in Judah, and Ekron will be like a Jebusite.
Young people, in a similar way, place yourselves under the authority of spiritual leaders. Furthermore, all of you must serve each other with humility, because God opposes the arrogant but favors the humble.