In this way the Lord’s word came true. The Lord had told Jehu that four generations of his descendants [175] would be kings of Israel.
Zechariah 1:6 - Easy To Read Version The prophets were my servants. I used them to tell your ancestors about my laws and teachings. And your ancestors finally learned their lesson. They said, ‘The Lord All-Powerful did the things he said he would do. He punished us for the way we lived and for all the bad things we did.’ So they came back to God.” Tuilleadh leaganachaKing James Version (Oxford) 1769 But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us. Amplified Bible - Classic Edition But My words and My statutes, which I commanded My servants the prophets, did they not overtake and take hold of your fathers? So they repented and said, As the Lord of hosts planned and purposed to do to us, according to our ways and according to our doings, so has He dealt with us. American Standard Version (1901) But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not overtake your fathers? and they turned and said, Like as Jehovah of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us. Common English Bible In fact, didn’t my words and laws, which I gave to my servants, the prophets, pursue your ancestors? And then the people changed their hearts, and they said, The LORD of heavenly forces has treated us according to what we have done, exactly as he planned. Catholic Public Domain Version Yet truly my words and my lawfulness, which I entrusted to my servants the prophets, were indeed comprehended by your fathers, and so they were converted, and they said: Just as the Lord of hosts decided to do to us, according to our ways and according to our inventions, so has he done to us. Douay-Rheims version of The Bible - 1752 version But yet my words, and my ordinances, which I gave in charge to my servants the prophets, did they not take hold of your fathers, and they returned, and said: As the Lord of hosts thought to do to us according to our ways, and according to our devices, so he hath done to us. |
In this way the Lord’s word came true. The Lord had told Jehu that four generations of his descendants [175] would be kings of Israel.
So now, change your mind.\par Don’t be unfair, think again.\par I have done nothing wrong.\par
At that time, only a few of the archers, {\cf2\super [212]} the great soldiers of Kedar, will be left alive.” The Lord, the God of Israel, told me those things.
The Lord sends his servants to tell messages to the people. And the Lord makes those messages true. The Lord sends messengers to tell the people the things they should do. And the Lord shows their advice is good.
“All you thirsty people,\par Come drink water!\par Don’t worry if you do not have money.\par Come, eat and drink until you are full!\par You do not need money;\par eat and drink until you are full.\par The food and wine cost nothing!\par
In the same way, my words leave my mouth,\par and they don’t come back until they make things happen.\par My words make the things happen that I want to happen.\par My words succeed in doing the things I send them to do.\par
The Lord’s anger will not stop\par until he finishes what he plans to do.\par When that day is over,\par you will understand this clearly.\par
But if you kill me, be sure of one thing. You will be guilty of killing an innocent person. You will make this city and everyone that lives in it guilty, too. The Lord really did send me to you. The message you heard really is from the Lord.”
“And now, the enemy has surrounded the city. They are building ramps, so that they can get over the walls of Jerusalem and capture it. By using their swords, and hunger, and terrible sicknesses, the Babylonian army will defeat the city of Jerusalem. The Babylonian army is attacking the city now. Lord, you said this would happen—and now you see it is happening.
“Jeremiah, get another scroll. {\cf2\super [316]} Write all the messages on it that were on the first scroll. That is the scroll that Jehoiakim king of Judah burned.
“Jeremiah, go and tell Ebed-Melech, {\cf2\super [332]} the man from Ethiopia, this message: ‘This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of the people of Israel, says: Very soon I will make my messages about this city of Jerusalem come true. My messages will come true through disaster and not good things. You will see everything come true with your own eyes.
Become the Lord’s people.\par Change your hearts! {\cf2\super [20]} \par Men of Judah and people of Jerusalem,\par if you don’t change,\par then I will become very angry.\par My anger will spread fast like a fire,\par and my anger will burn you up.\par And no person will be able to put out that fire.\par Why will this happen?\par Because of the evil things you have done.”\par
The Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel, says, “You people saw the terrible happenings that I brought on the city of Jerusalem and on all the towns of Judah. Those towns are empty piles of stones today.
Some people of Judah will escape being killed by the sword. They will come back to Judah from Egypt. But there will be very few people of Judah that escape. Then those survivors {\cf2\super [362]} of Judah that came to live in Egypt will know whose word will come true. They will know whether my word or their word came true.
I will give you people proof’—this is the message of the Lord—‘that I will punish you here in Egypt. Then you will know for sure that my promises to hurt you will really happen.
So, I showed my anger against those people. I punished the towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem. My anger made Jerusalem and the towns of Judah the empty piles of stone they are today.”
The Lord God All-Powerful said\par these things:\par “Those people said I would not punish them.\par So Jeremiah, the words I give you\par will be like fire.\par And those people will be like wood.\par That fire will burn them up completely!\par
Now Jerusalem says,\par “I refused to listen to the Lord.\par So the Lord is right for doing these things.\par So listen, all you people!\par Look at my pain!\par My young women and men\par have gone into captivity.\par
The Lord did what he planned to do.\par He has done what he said he would do.\par He has done what he commanded\par from times of long ago.\par He destroyed, and he had no pity.\par He made your enemies happy\par because of what happened to you.\par He made your enemies strong.\par
Let us say to him,\par “We have sinned and have been stubborn.\par Because of this, you haven’t forgiven us.\par
In that country you will remember all the bad things you did that made you filthy. And you will be ashamed.
Then the Lord my Master said to me, “Son of man, {\cf2\super [291]} these bones are like the whole family of Israel. The people of Israel say, ‘Our bones have dried up, {\cf2\super [292]} our hope is gone. We have been completely destroyed!’
Ephraim {\cf2\super [60]} will become empty\par at the time of punishment.\par I (God) warn the families of Israel\par that those things really will happen.\par
All their evil is in Gilgal; {\cf2\super [96]} \par I began hating them there.\par I will force them to leave my house,\par because of the evil things they do.\par I will not love them any more.\par Their leaders are rebels—\par \{they have turned against me\}.\par
You will be covered with shame,\par and you will be destroyed forever.\par Why? Because you were very cruel\par to your brother Jacob. {\cf2\super [8]} \par
On the 24th day of the eleventh month (Shebat) of the second year that Darius was king {\cf2\super [2]} of Persia, Zechariah received another message from the Lord. (This was Zechariah son of Berekiah, son of Iddo, the prophet.) This is the message:
God is not a man; he will not lie. God is not a human being; his decisions will not change. If the Lord says he will do something, then he will do it. If the Lord makes a promise, then he will do the thing he promised.
But if you don’t do these things, then you will be sinning against the Lord. And know for sure that you will be punished for your sin.
I showed you what I would do—and I will do that to you {if you let those people stay in your country}.”
The whole world, earth and sky, will be destroyed, but the words I have said will never be destroyed!
“But if you don’t listen to things the Lord your God tells you—if you don’t obey all his commands and laws that I tell you today—then all these bad things will happen to you:
If you will obey the Lord your God, then all these blessings will come to you and be yours:
“If you do evil and turn away from the Lord, then he will make bad things happen to you. You will have frustration and trouble in everything you do. He will continue to do this until you are quickly and completely destroyed. He will do this because you turned away from him and left him.
“All these curses will come on you. They will keep chasing you and catching you, until you are destroyed. Why? Because you did not listen to the things the Lord your God told you. You did not obey the commands and laws that he gave you.
But you, brothers and sisters, are not living in darkness (sin). And so that day will not surprise you like a thief.