After these things happened, the Lord spoke his word to Abram in a vision: “Abram, don’t be afraid. I will defend you, and I will give you a great reward.”
Look, the Lord has someone who is strong and powerful. Like a storm of hail and strong wind, like a sudden flood of water pouring over the country, he will throw Samaria down to the ground.
But I said, “I have worked hard for nothing; I have used all my power, but I did nothing useful. But the Lord will decide what my work is worth; God will decide my reward.”
I will soon show that I do what is right. I will soon save you. I will use my power and judge all nations. All the faraway places are waiting for me; they wait for my power to help them.
For this reason I will make him a great man among people, and he will share in all things with those who are strong. He willingly gave his life and was treated like a criminal. But he carried away the sins of many people and asked forgiveness for those who sinned.”
He could not find anyone to help the people, and he was surprised that there was no one to help. So he used his own power to save the people; his own goodness gave him strength.
The Lord will pay back his enemies for what they have done. He will show his anger to those who were against him; he will punish the people in faraway places as they deserve.
The Lord is speaking to all the faraway lands: “Tell the people of Jerusalem, ‘Look, your Savior is coming. He is bringing your reward to you; he is bringing his payment with him.’ ”
I looked around, but I saw no one to help me. I was surprised that no one supported me. So I used my own power to save my people; my own anger supported me.
But this is what the Lord says: “Stop crying; don’t let your eyes fill with tears. You will be rewarded for your work!” says the Lord. “The people will return from their enemy’s land.
The Lord All-Powerful says, “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way for me. Suddenly, the Lord you are looking for will come to his Temple; the messenger of the agreement, whom you want, will come.”
So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Jesus, shouting, “Praise God! God bless the One who comes in the name of the Lord! God bless the King of Israel!”
Since these children are people with physical bodies, Jesus himself became like them. He did this so that, by dying, he could destroy the one who has the power of death—the devil—
The devil has been sinning since the beginning, so anyone who continues to sin belongs to the devil. The Son of God came for this purpose: to destroy the devil’s work.
They will make war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will defeat them, because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. He will defeat them with his called, chosen, and faithful followers.”