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A Rebellious People

¹ "I permitted Myself to be sought by ^(C1)those who did not ask for Me;
I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, 'Here am I, here am I,'
To a nation which ^(C2)did not call on My name.

² "^(C1)I have spread out My hands all day long to a ^(C2)rebellious people,
Who walk in the way which is not good, ^(F1)following their own ^(C3)thoughts,

³ A people who continually ^(C1)provoke Me to My face,
Offering sacrifices in ^(C2)gardens and ^(C3)burning incense on bricks;

⁴ Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places;
Who ^(C1)eat pig's flesh,
And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.

⁵ "Who say, '^(C1)Keep to yourself, do not come near me,
For I am holier than you!'
These are smoke in My ^(F1)nostrils,
A fire that burns all the day.

⁶ "Behold, it is written before Me:
I will ^(C1)not keep silent, but ^(C2)I will repay;
I will even repay ^(F1)into their laps,

⁷ Both your own ^(C1)wrongdoings and the wrongdoings of your fathers together," says the LORD.
"Because they have ^(C2)burned incense on the mountains
And ^(C3)scorned Me on the hills,
Therefore I will ^(C4)measure their former work ^(F1)into their laps."

⁸ This is what the LORD says:

"Just as the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, 'Do not destroy it, for there is ^(F1)benefit in it,'
So I will act in behalf of My servants
In order ^(C1)not to destroy ^(F2)all of them.

⁹ "I will bring forth ^(F1)(C1)offspring from Jacob,
And an ^(C2)heir of My mountains from Judah;
^(C3)My chosen ones shall inherit it,
And ^(C4)My servants will live there.

¹⁰ "^(C1)Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks,
And the ^(C2)Valley of Achor a resting place for herds,
For My people who ^(C3)seek Me.

¹¹ "But as for you who ^(C1)abandon the LORD,
Who forget My ^(C2)holy mountain,
Who set a table for ^(F1)Fortune,
And fill a jug of mixed wine for ^(F2)Destiny,

¹² I will destine you for the ^(C1)sword,
And all of you will bow down to the ^(C2)slaughter.
Because I called, but you ^(C3)did not answer;
I spoke, but you did not listen.
Instead, you did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight."

¹³ Therefore, this is what the Lord ^(F1)GOD says:
"Behold, My servants will ^(C1)eat, but you will be ^(C2)hungry.
Behold, My servants will ^(C3)drink, but you will be ^(C4)thirsty.
Behold, My servants will ^(C5)rejoice, but you will be ^(C6)put to shame.

¹⁴ "Behold, My servants will ^(C1)shout joyfully with a glad heart,
But you will ^(C2)cry out from a painful heart,
And you will wail from a broken spirit.

¹⁵ "You will leave your name as a ^(C1)curse to My chosen ones,
And the Lord ^(F1)GOD will put you to death.
But ^(F2)My servants will be called by ^(C2)another name.

¹⁶ "Because the one who ^(F1)is blessed on the earth
Will ^(F1)be blessed by the ^(C1)God of truth;
And the one who swears an oath on the earth
Will ^(C2)swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My sight!

New Heavens and a New Earth

¹⁷ "For behold, I create ^(C1)new heavens and a new earth;
And the ^(C2)former things will not be remembered or come to ^(F1)mind.

¹⁸ "But be ^(C1)glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem for rejoicing
And her people for gladness.

¹⁹ "I will also ^(C1)rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people;
And there will no longer be heard in her
The voice of ^(C2)weeping and the sound of crying.

²⁰ "No longer will there be ^(F1)in it an infant who lives only a few days,
Or an old person who does ^(C1)not ^(F2)live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of a hundred,
And the ^(F3)(C2)one who does not reach the age of a hundred
Will be thought accursed.

²¹ "They will ^(C1)build houses and inhabit them;
They will also ^(C2)plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

²² "They will not build and ^(C1)another inhabit,
They will not plant and another eat;
For ^(C2)as the ^(F1)lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people,
And My chosen ones will ^(C3)fully enjoy the work of their hands.

²³ "They will ^(C1)not labor in vain,
Or give birth to children for disaster;
For they are the ^(F1)(C2)descendants of those blessed by the LORD,
And their descendants with them.