Jeremiah 48; Jeremiah 49; Hebrews 7

Jeremiah 48

1 About Moab, this is what the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: Woe to Nebo, because it is about to be destroyed; Kiriathaim will be put to shame; it will be taken captive. The fortress will be put to shame and dismayed!

2 There is no longer praise for Moab; they plan harm against her in Heshbon: Come, let's cut her off from nationhood. You madmen will also be silenced; the sword will pursue you.

3 A voice cries out from Horonaim: devastation and great disaster!

4 Moab will be shattered; her little ones will cry out.

5 For on the ascent to Luhith they will be weeping continually, and on the descent to Horonaim will be heard cries of distress over the destruction:

6 Flee! Save your lives! Be like a juniper bushin the wilderness.

7 Because you trust in your works and treasures, you will be captured also. Chemosh will go into exile with his priests and officials.

8 The destroyer will move against every town; not one town will escape. The valley will perish, and the plain will be annihilated, as the Lord has said.

9 Make Moab a salt marsh, for she will run away; her towns will become a desolation, without inhabitant.

10 Cursed is the one who does the Lord's business deceitfully, and cursed is the one who withholds his sword from bloodshed.

11 Moab has been left quiet since his youth, settled [like wine] on its dregs. He hasn't been poured from one container to another or gone into exile. So his taste has remained the same, and his aroma hasn't changed.

12 Therefore look, the days are coming- [this is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration- when I will send those to him, who will pour him out. They will empty his containers and smash his jars.

13 Moab will be put to shame because of Chemosh, just as the house of Israel was put to shame because of Bethel that they trusted in.

14 How can you say, We are warriors- mighty men [ready] for battle?

15 The destroyer of Moab and its towns has come up, and the best of its young men have gone down to slaughter. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the King's declaration; the Lord of Hosts is His name.

16 Moab's calamity is near at hand; his disaster is rushing swiftly.

17 Mourn for him, all you surrounding [nations], everyone who knows his name. Say: How the mighty scepter is shattered, the glorious staff!

18 Come down from glory; sit on parched ground, resident of the daughter of Dibon, for the destroyer of Moab has come against you; he has destroyed your fortresses.

19 Stand by the highway and look, resident of Aroer! Ask him who is fleeing or her who is escaping, What happened?

20 Moab is put to shame, indeed dismayed. Wail and cry out! Declare by the Arnon that Moab is destroyed.

21 "Judgment has come to the land of the plateau-to Holon, Jahzah, Mephaath,

22 Dibon, Nebo, Beth-diblathaim,

23 Kiriathaim, Beth-gamul, Beth-meon,

24 Kerioth, Bozrah, and all the towns of the land of Moab, those far and near.

25 Moab's horn is chopped off; his arm is shattered." [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration.

26 "Make him drunk, because he has exalted himself against the Lord. Moab will wallow in his own vomit, and he will also become a laughingstock.

27 Wasn't Israel a laughingstock to you? Was he ever found among thieves? For whenever you speak of him you shake [your head]."

28 Abandon the towns! Live in the cliffs, residents of Moab! Be like a dove that nests inside the mouth of a cave.

29 We have heard of Moab's pride, great pride, indeed- his insolence, arrogance, pride, and haughty heart.

30 I know his outburst. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration. It is empty. His boast is empty.

31 Therefore, I will wail over Moab. I will cry out for Moab, all of it; he will moan for the men of Kir-heres.

32 I will weep for you, vine of Sibmah, with more than the weeping for Jazer. Your tendrils have extended to the sea; they have reached to the sea [and to] Jazer. The destroyer has fallen on your summer fruit and grape harvest.

33 Joy and celebration are taken from the fertile field and from the land of Moab. I have stopped the flow of wine from the winepresses; no one will tread with shouts of joy. The shouting is not a shout of joy.

34 "There is a cry from Heshbon to Elealeh; they raise their voices as far as Jahaz-from Zoar to Horonaim [and] Eglath-shelishiyah-because even the waters of Nimrim have become desolate.

35 In Moab, I will stop"-[this is] the Lord's declaration-"the one who offers sacrifices on the high place and burns incense to his gods.

36 Therefore, My heart moans like flutes for Moab, and My heart moans like flutes for the people of Kir-heres. And therefore, the wealth he has gained has perished.

37 Indeed, every head is bald and every beard clipped; on every hand is a gash and sackcloth around the waist.

38 On all the rooftops of Moab and in her public squares, everyone is mourning because I have shattered Moab like a jar no one wants." [This is] the Lord's declaration.

39 "How broken it is! They wail! How Moab has turned his back! He is ashamed. Moab will become a laughingstock and a shock to all those around him."

40 For this is what the Lord says: He will swoop down like an eagle and spread his wings against Moab.

41 The towns have been captured, and the strongholds seized. In that day the heart of Moab's warriors will be like the heart of a woman with contractions.

42 Moab will be destroyed as a people because he has exalted himself against the Lord.

43 Panic, pit, and trap await you, resident of Moab. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration.

44 He who flees from the panic will fall in the pit, and he who climbs from the pit will be captured in the trap, for I will bring against Moab the year of their punishment. [This is] the Lord's declaration.

45 Those who flee will stand exhausted in Heshbon's shadow because fire has come out from Heshbon and a flame from within Sihon. It will devour Moab's forehead and the skull of the noisemakers.

46 Woe to you, Moab! The people of Chemosh have perished because your sons have been taken captive and your daughters have gone into captivity.

47 Yet, I will restore the fortunes of Moab in the last days. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration. The judgment on Moab ends here.

Jeremiah 49

1 About the Ammonites, this is what the Lord says: Does Israel have no sons? Is he without an heir? Why then has Milcomdispossessed Gad and his people settled in their cities?

2 Therefore look, the days are coming- [this is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration- when I will make the shout of battle heard against Rabbah of the Ammonites. It will become a desolate mound, and its villages will be burned down. Israel will dispossess their dispossessors, says the Lord.

3 Wail, Heshbon, for Ai is devastated; cry out, daughters of Rabbah! Clothe yourselves with sackcloth, and lament; run back and forth within your walls, because Milcom will go into exile together with his priests and officials.

4 Why do you brag about your valleys, your flowing valley, you faithless daughter? You who trust in your treasures [and boast]: Who can attack me?

5 Look, I am about to bring terror on you- [this is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the declaration of the Lord, the God of Hosts- from all those around you. You will be banished, each man headlong, with no one to gather up the fugitives.

6 But after that, I will restore the fortunes of the Ammonites. [This is] the Lord's declaration.

7 About Edom, this is what the Lord of Hosts says: Is there no longer wisdom in Teman? Has counsel perished from the prudent? Has their wisdom rotted away?

8 Run! Turn back! Lie low, residents of Dedan, for I will bring Esau's calamity on him at the time I punish him.

9 If grape harvesters came to you, wouldn't they leave some gleanings? Were thieves to come in the night, they would destroy only what they wanted.

10 But I will strip Esau bare; I will uncover his secret places. He will try to hide himself, but he will be unable. His descendants will be destroyed along with his relatives and neighbors. He will exist no longer.

11 Abandon your orphans; I will preserve them; let your widows trust in Me.

12 "For this is what the Lord says: If those who do not deserve to drink the cup must drink it, can you possibly remain unpunished? You will not remain unpunished, for you must drink [it] too.

13 For by Myself I have sworn"-the Lord's declaration-"Bozrah will become a desolation, a disgrace, a ruin, and a curse, and all her cities will become ruins forever."

14 I have heard a message from the Lord; an envoy has been sent among the nations: Assemble yourselves to come against her. Rise up for war!

15 Look, I will certainly make you insignificant among the nations, despised among humanity.

16 As to the terror you cause, your presumptuous heart has deceived you. You who live in the clefts of the rock, you who occupy the mountain summit, though you elevate your nest like the eagle, even from there I will bring you down. [This is] the Lord's declaration.

17 "Edom will become a desolation. Everyone who passes by her will be horrified and scoff because of all her wounds.

18 As when Sodom and Gomorrah were overthrown along with their neighbors," says the Lord, "no one will live there; no human being will even stay in it as a resident alien.

19 "Look, it will be like a lion coming up from the thickets of the Jordan to the perennially watered grazing land. Indeed, I will chase Edom away from her [land] in a flash. I will appoint whoever is chosen for her. For who is like Me? Who will summon Me? Who is the shepherd who can stand against Me?"

20 Therefore, hear the plans that the Lord has drawn up against Edom and the strategies He has devised against the people of Teman: The flock's little lambs will certainly be dragged away, and their grazing land will be made desolate because of them.

21 At the sound of their fall the earth will quake; the sound of her cry will be heard at the Red Sea.

22 Look! It will be like an eagle soaring upward, then swooping down and spreading its wings over Bozrah. In that day the hearts of Edom's warriors will be like the heart of a woman with contractions.

23 About Damascus: Hamath and Arpad are put to shame, for they have heard a bad report and are agitated; in the sea there is anxiety that cannot be calmed.

24 Damascus has become weak; she has turned to run; panic has gripped her. Distress and labor pains have seized her like a woman in labor.

25 How can the city of praise not be abandoned, the town that brings Me joy?

26 Therefore, her young men will fall in her public squares; all the warriors will be silenced in that day. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the declaration of the Lord of Hosts.

27 I will set fire to the wall of Damascus; it will devour Ben-hadad's citadels.

28 About Kedar and the kingdoms of Hazor, which Nebuchadnezzar, Babylon's king, defeated, this is what the Lord says: Rise up, go against Kedar, and destroy the people of the east!

29 They will take their tents and their flocks along with their tent curtains and all their equipment. They will take their camels for themselves. They will call out to them: Terror is on every side!

30 Run! Escape quickly! Lie low, residents of Hazor- [this is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration- for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon has drawn up a plan against you; he has devised a strategy against you.

31 Rise up, go up against a nation at ease, one living in security. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration. They have no doors, not even a gate bar; they live alone.

32 Their camels will become plunder, and their massive herds of cattle will become spoil. I will scatter them to the wind in every direction, those who shave their temples; I will bring calamity on them across all their borders. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration.

33 Hazor will become a jackals' den, a desolation forever. No one will live there; no human being will even stay in it as a resident alien.

34 [This is] the word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah the prophet about Elam at the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah.

35 This is what the Lord of Hosts says: I am about to shatter Elam's bow, the source of their might.

36 I will bring the four winds against Elam from the four corners of the heavens, and I will scatter them to all these winds. There will not be a nation to which Elam's banished ones will not go.

37 I will devastate Elam before their enemies, before those who want to take their lives. I will bring disaster on them, My burning anger. [This is]*The bracketed text has been added for clarity. the Lord's declaration. I will send the sword after them until I finish them off.

38 I will set My throne in Elam, and I will destroy the king and officials from there. [This is] the Lord's declaration.

39 In the last days, I will restore the fortunes of Elam. [This is] the Lord's declaration.

Hebrews 7

1 For this Melchizedek- King of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham and blessed him as he returned from defeating the kings,

2 and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything; first, his name means "king of righteousness," then also, "king of Salem," meaning "king of peace";

3 without father, mother, or genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God- remains a priest forever.

4 Now consider how great this man was, to whom even Abraham the patriarch gave a tenth of the plunder!

5 The sons of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment according to the law to collect a tenth from the people-that is, from their brothers-though they have [also] descended from Abraham.

6 But one without this lineage collected tithes from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises.

7 Without a doubt, the inferior is blessed by the superior.

8 In the one case, men who will die receive tithes; but in the other case, [Scripture] testifies that he lives.

9 And in a sense Levi himself, who receives tithes, has paid tithes through Abraham,

10 for he was still within his forefather when Melchizedek met him.

11 If, then, perfection came through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need was there for another priest to arise in the order of Melchizedek, and not to be described as being in the order of Aaron?

12 For when there is a change of the priesthood, there must be a change of law as well.

13 For the One about whom these things are said belonged to a different tribe, from which no one has served at the altar.

14 Now it is evident that our Lord came from Judah, and about that tribe Moses said nothing concerning priests.

15 And this becomes clearer if another priest like Melchizedek arises,

16 who doesn't become a [priest] based on a legal command concerning physical descent but based on the power of an indestructible life.

17 For it has been testified: You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.

18 So the previous commandment is annulled because it was weak and unprofitable

19 (for the law perfected nothing), but a better hope is introduced, through which we draw near to God.

20 None of this [happened] without an oath. For others became priests without an oath,

21 but He with an oath made by the One who said to Him: The Lord has sworn, and He will not change His mind, You are a priest forever.

22 So Jesus has also become the guarantee of a better covenant.

23 Now many have become [Levitical] priests, since they are prevented by death from remaining in office.

24 But because He remains forever, He holds His priesthood permanently.

25 Therefore He is always able to save those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to intercede for them.

26 For this is the kind of high priest we need: holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens.

27 He doesn't need to offer sacrifices every day, as high priests do-first for their own sins, then for those of the people. He did this once for all when He offered Himself.

28 For the law appoints as high priests men who are weak, but the promise of the oath, which came after the law, [appoints] a Son, who has been perfected forever.