Study Desk

Evil people should stop living evil lives. They should stop thinking bad thoughts. They should come to the Lord again, and he will comfort them. They should come to our God because he will freely forgive them.

The Lord said these things, "Be fair to all people. Do what is right, because soon my salvation will come to you. My goodness will soon be shown to the whole world.

They should not say that because the Lord says, "Some eunuchs obey the laws about the Sabbath. They choose to do what I want, and they follow my agreement.

So I will bring them to my holy mountain and make them happy in my house of prayer. The offerings and sacrifices they give me will please me, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations."

All of them made you tired, but you never gave up. You found new strength, because you enjoyed them.

Israel's evil greed made me angry, so I punished them. I turned away from them because I was angry. But they continued to do wrong. They did whatever they wanted.

That's because your hands are covered with blood from the people you murdered. You tell lies and say evil things.

That's because we committed crimes against our God. Our own sins speak out against us. We know we are guilty. We know we have sinned.

Your sun will never go down again. Your moon will never again be dark. That's because the Lord will be your light forever, and the dark days of mourning will end.

That's because I am the Lord and I love justice. I hate stealing and everything that is wrong. So I will give the people what they deserve. I will make an agreement with my people forever.

You will never again be called ‘The People God Left.' Your land will never again be called ‘The Land God Destroyed.' You will be called ‘The People God Loves.' Your land will be called ‘God's Bride,' because the Lord loves you, and your land will be his.

We don't call to you for help. We aren't excited about following you, so you have turned away from us. We are helpless before you, because we are full of sin.

But they tell others, ‘Don't come near me! Don't touch me because I am holy!' They are like smoke in my eyes, and their fire burns all the time."

I, the Lord , am doing this because of your sins and the sins of your ancestors. They did these sins when they burned incense in the mountains. They shamed me on those hills, and I punished them first."

The Lord says, "When there is new wine in the grapes, people squeeze out the wine. But they don't completely destroy the grapes because the grapes can still be used. I will do the same thing to my servants. I will not destroy them completely.

But I decided what would happen to you: you will be killed with a sword. You will all be killed because I called to you, but you refused to answer me. I spoke to you, but you would not listen. You did what I said is evil and chose to do what I did not like."

The Lord says, "People now ask blessings from the earth. But in the future they will ask blessings from the faithful God. People now trust in the power of the earth when they make a promise. But in the future they will trust in the God who is faithful. That's because the troubles in the past will all be forgotten. They will be hidden from my sight."

My people will be happy and rejoice forever and ever because of what I will make. I will make a Jerusalem that is full of joy, and I will make her people happy.

I am the one who made all things. They are all here because I made them," says the Lord . "These are the people I care for: the poor, humble people who obey my commands.

So I decided to use their own tricks. I will punish them using what they are most afraid of. I will do this because I called to them, but they did not answer. I spoke to them, but they did not listen. They did what I said is evil. They chose to do what I did not like."