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Old Testament:  Isaiah 5-6

Isaiah 5

A Song about the LORD's Vineyard
 1  Now I will sing for the one I love
  a song about his vineyard:
My beloved had a vineyard
  on a rich and fertile hill.
 2  He plowed the land, cleared its stones,
  and planted it with the best vines.
In the middle he built a watchtower
  and carved a winepress in the nearby rocks.
Then he waited for a harvest of sweet grapes,
  but the grapes that grew were bitter.

 3  Now, you people of Jerusalem and Judah,
  you judge between me and my vineyard.
 4  What more could I have done for my vineyard
  that I have not already done?
When I expected sweet grapes,
  why did my vineyard give me bitter grapes?

 5  Now let me tell you
  what I will do to my vineyard:
I will tear down its hedges
  and let it be destroyed.
I will break down its walls
  and let the animals trample it.
 6  I will make it a wild place
  where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed,
  a place overgrown with briers and thorns.
I will command the clouds
  to drop no rain on it.

 7  The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the LORD of Heaven's Armies.
  The people of Judah are his pleasant garden.
He expected a crop of justice,
  but instead he found oppression.
He expected to find righteousness,
  but instead he heard cries of violence.

Judah's Guilt and Judgment
 8  What sorrow for you who buy up house after house and field after field,
  until everyone is evicted and you live alone in the land.
 9  But I have heard the LORD of Heaven's Armies
  swear a solemn oath:
"Many houses will stand deserted;
  even beautiful mansions will be empty.
 10  Ten acres [10]  of vineyard will not produce even six gallons [10]  of wine.
  Ten baskets of seed will yield only one basket [10]  of grain."

 11  What sorrow for those who get up early in the morning
  looking for a drink of alcohol
and spend long evenings drinking wine
  to make themselves flaming drunk.
 12  They furnish wine and lovely music at their grand parties—
  lyre and harp, tambourine and flute—
but they never think about the LORD
  or notice what he is doing.

 13  So my people will go into exile far away
  because they do not know me.
Those who are great and honored will starve,
  and the common people will die of thirst.
 14  The grave [14]  is licking its lips in anticipation,
  opening its mouth wide.
The great and the lowly
  and all the drunken mob will be swallowed up.
 15  Humanity will be destroyed, and people brought down;
  even the arrogant will lower their eyes in humiliation.
 16  But the LORD of Heaven's Armies will be exalted by his justice.
  The holiness of God will be displayed by his righteousness.
 17  In that day lambs will find good pastures,
  and fattened sheep and young goats [17]  will feed among the ruins.

 18  What sorrow for those who drag their sins behind them
  with ropes made of lies,
  who drag wickedness behind them like a cart!
 19  They even mock God and say,
  "Hurry up and do something!
  We want to see what you can do.
Let the Holy One of Israel carry out his plan,
  for we want to know what it is."

 20  What sorrow for those who say
  that evil is good and good is evil,
that dark is light and light is dark,
  that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.
 21  What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes
  and think themselves so clever.
 22  What sorrow for those who are heroes at drinking wine
  and boast about all the alcohol they can hold.
 23  They take bribes to let the wicked go free,
  and they punish the innocent.

 24  Therefore, just as fire licks up stubble
  and dry grass shrivels in the flame,
so their roots will rot
  and their flowers wither.
For they have rejected the law of the LORD of Heaven's Armies;
  they have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
 25  That is why the LORD's anger burns against his people,
  and why he has raised his fist to crush them.
The mountains tremble,
  and the corpses of his people litter the streets like garbage.
But even then the LORD's anger is not satisfied.
  His fist is still poised to strike!

 26  He will send a signal to distant nations far away
  and whistle to those at the ends of the earth.
  They will come racing toward Jerusalem.
 27  They will not get tired or stumble.
  They will not stop for rest or sleep.
Not a belt will be loose,
  not a sandal strap broken.
 28  Their arrows will be sharp
  and their bows ready for battle.
Sparks will fly from their horses' hooves,
  and the wheels of their chariots will spin like a whirlwind.
 29  They will roar like lions,
  like the strongest of lions.
Growling, they will pounce on their victims and carry them off,
  and no one will be there to rescue them.
 30  They will roar over their victims on that day of destruction
  like the roaring of the sea.
If someone looks across the land,
  only darkness and distress will be seen;
  even the light will be darkened by clouds.

Isaiah 6

Isaiah's Cleansing and Call
 1  It was in the year King Uzziah died [1]  that I saw the Lord. He was sitting on a lofty throne, and the train of his robe filled the Temple.  2  Attending him were mighty seraphim, each having six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew.  3  They were calling out to each other,

"Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of Heaven's Armies!
  The whole earth is filled with his glory!"

 4  Their voices shook the Temple to its foundations, and the entire building was filled with smoke.
   5  Then I said, "It's all over! I am doomed, for I am a sinful man. I have filthy lips, and I live among a people with filthy lips. Yet I have seen the King, the LORD of Heaven's Armies."
   6  Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs.  7  He touched my lips with it and said, "See, this coal has touched your lips. Now your guilt is removed, and your sins are forgiven."
   8  Then I heard the Lord asking, "Whom should I send as a messenger to this people? Who will go for us?" I said, "Here I am. Send me."    9  And he said, "Yes, go, and say to this people,

`Listen carefully, but do not understand.
  Watch closely, but learn nothing.'
 10  Harden the hearts of these people.
  Plug their ears and shut their eyes.
That way, they will not see with their eyes,
  nor hear with their ears,
nor understand with their hearts
  and turn to me for healing." [10] 

   11  Then I said, "Lord, how long will this go on?"
  And he replied,

"Until their towns are empty,
  their houses are deserted,
  and the whole country is a wasteland;
 12  until the LORD has sent everyone away,
  and the entire land of Israel lies deserted.
 13  If even a tenth—a remnant—survive,
  it will be invaded again and burned.
But as a terebinth or oak tree leaves a stump when it is cut down,
  so Israel's stump will be a holy seed."
<<  5:10a Hebrew A ten yoke, that is, the area of land plowed by ten teams of oxen in one day. 5:10b Hebrew a bath [21 liters]. 5:10c Hebrew A homer [5 bushels or 182 liters] of seed will yield only an ephah [20 quarts or 22 liters].
<<  5:14 Hebrew Sheol.
<<  5:17 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads and strangers.
<<  6:1 King Uzziah died in 740 <%=ftSC%>B.C.
<<  6:9-10 Greek version reads And he said, "Go and say to this people, / `When you hear what I say, you will not understand. / When you see what I do, you will not comprehend.' / For the hearts of these people are hardened, / and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes— / so their eyes cannot see, / and their ears cannot hear, / and their hearts cannot understand, / and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them." Compare Matt 13:14-15; Mark 4:12; Luke 8:10; Acts 28:26-27.

New Testament:  Ephesians 1

Ephesians 1

Greetings from Paul
 1  This letter is from Paul, chosen by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus.
  I am writing to God's holy people in Ephesus, [1]  who are faithful followers of Christ Jesus.
   2  May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

Spiritual Blessings
 3  All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms because we are united with Christ.  4  Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes.  5  God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure.  6  So we praise God for the glorious grace he has poured out on us who belong to his dear Son. [6]   7  He is so rich in kindness and grace that he purchased our freedom with the blood of his Son and forgave our sins.  8  He has showered his kindness on us, along with all wisdom and understanding.
   9  God has now revealed to us his mysterious plan regarding Christ, a plan to fulfill his own good pleasure.  10  And this is the plan: At the right time he will bring everything together under the authority of Christ—everything in heaven and on earth.  11  Furthermore, because we are united with Christ, we have received an inheritance from God, for he chose us in advance, and he makes everything work out according to his plan.    12  God's purpose was that we Jews who were the first to trust in Christ would bring praise and glory to God.  13  And now you Gentiles have also heard the truth, the Good News that God saves you. And when you believed in Christ, he identified you as his own [13]  by giving you the Holy Spirit, whom he promised long ago.  14  "The Spirit is God's guarantee that he will give us the inheritance he promised and that he has purchased us to be his own people. He did this so we would praise and glorify him." Paul's Prayer for Spiritual Wisdom
 15  Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God's people everywhere, [15]   16  I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly,  17  asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom [17]  and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.  18  "I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called - his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance."    19  I also pray that you will understand the incredible greatness of God's power for us who believe him. This is the same mighty power...  20  that raised Christ from the dead and seated him in the place of honor at God's right hand in the heavenly realms.  21  Now he is far above any ruler or authority or power or leader or anything else—not only in this world but also in the world to come.  22  God has put all things under the authority of Christ and has made him head over all things for the benefit of the church.  23  And the church is his body; it is made full and complete by Christ, who fills all things everywhere with himself.
<<  1:1 The most ancient manuscripts do not include in Ephesus.
<<  1:6 Greek to us in the beloved.
<<  1:11 Or we have become God's inheritance.
<<  1:13 Or he put his seal on you.
<<  1:15 Some manuscripts read your faithfulness to the Lord Jesus and to God's people everywhere.
<<  1:17 Or to give you the Spirit of wisdom.
<<  1:18 Or called, and the rich and glorious inheritance he has given to his holy people.

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