Ezekiel 35; Ezekiel 36; 2 Peter 1

Ezekiel 35

1 The LORD spoke his word to me. He said,

2 "Son of man, turn to Mount Seir, and prophesy against it.

3 Tell it, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: I'm against you, Mount Seir. I will use my power against you, and you will become a wasteland.

4 I will turn your cities into ruins, and you will become a wasteland. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

5 "'You have always been an enemy of Israel. You deserted the people of Israel in battle when they were in trouble during their final punishment.

6 That is why, as I live, declares the Almighty LORD, I will let you be murdered. Murderers will pursue you. Since you don't hate murdering people, murder will pursue you.

7 I will turn Mount Seir into a barren wasteland, and I will destroy everyone who comes or goes from there.

8 I will fill your mountains with those who have been killed. Those killed in battle will fall on your hills and in your valleys and ravines.

9 I will turn you into a permanent wasteland. Your cities will not be lived in. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

10 "'You said, "These two nations, Israel and Judah, along with their land, belong to us. We will take possession of them." But the LORD was there.

11 That is why, as I live, declares the Almighty LORD, I will do to you what you did to them. When you were angry and jealous, you acted hatefully toward them.

12 Then you will know that I, the LORD, heard all the insults that you spoke about the mountains of Israel. You said, "They have been deserted and handed over to us to use up."

13 You bragged and continually talked against me. I heard you.

14 "'This is what the Almighty LORD says: The whole earth will be glad when I turn you into a wasteland.

15 You were happy when the land of Israel became a wasteland. I will do the same thing to you. You will become a wasteland, Mount Seir, and so will all of Edom. Then you will know that I am the LORD.'"

Ezekiel 36

1 [The LORD said,] "Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel. Tell them, 'Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the LORD.

2 This is what the Almighty LORD says: Your enemies said this about you, "Aha! The ancient worship sites now belong to us."'

3 "So prophesy. Say, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: Your enemies turned you into ruins and crushed you from every side. You became the possession of the rest of the nations, and people began to talk and gossip about you.

4 "'Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Almighty LORD. This is what the Almighty LORD says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, and to the empty ruins and abandoned cities that have become prey and are mocked by the rest of the surrounding nations:

5 In my fiery anger I have spoken against the rest of the nations and against all of Edom. The Edomites have taken possession of my land with wholehearted joy and with complete scorn. They forced out the people and took their land.'

6 "So prophesy about Israel. Tell the mountains and hills and the ravines and valleys, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: I am speaking in my anger and fury because you have been insulted by the nations.

7 So this is what the Almighty LORD says: I raise my hand and swear that the nations which surround you will be insulted.

8 "'But you, mountains of Israel, will grow branches and bear fruit for my people Israel. My people will come home soon.

9 I am for you. I will turn to you, and you will be plowed and planted.

10 I will increase the number of people who live on you. All the people of Israel, all of them, will live on you. The cities will be inhabited, and the ruins will be rebuilt.

11 I will increase the number of people and animals that live on you. They will grow and become many. I will let people live on you as in the past, and I will make you better off than ever before. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

12 I will bring people, my people Israel, to you. They will take possession of you, and you will be their inheritance. You will no longer take their children away from them.

13 "'This is what the Almighty LORD says: People say that you devour your people and take the children away from your nation.

14 So you will no longer devour your people or take the children away from your nation, declares the Almighty LORD.

15 I will no longer let you hear the insults from the nations. You will no longer suffer the disgrace of the people. You will never again take the children away from your own nation, declares the Almighty LORD.'"

16 The LORD spoke his word to me. He said,

17 "Son of man, when the people of Israel lived in their land, they dishonored it by the way they lived and by everything they did. Their ways were as unclean as a woman's menstrual period.

18 So I poured out my fury on them because they poured out blood on the land and they dishonored the land with their idols.

19 I forced them into other nations, and they became scattered among the nations. I judged them based on the way that they lived and based on everything that they had done.

20 But wherever they went among the nations, they dishonored my holy name. People said about them, 'These are the LORD's people, yet they had to leave his land.'

21 I became concerned about my holy name because my people dishonored it among the nations wherever they went.

22 "So tell the people of Israel, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: I am about to do something, people of Israel. I will not do this for your sake but for the sake of my holy name, which you have dishonored among the nations wherever you have gone.

23 I will reveal the holiness of my great name, which has been dishonored by the nations, [the name] that you have dishonored among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, because I will reveal my holiness among you as they watch, declares the Almighty LORD.

24 "'I will take you from the nations and gather you from every country. I will bring you back to your own land.

25 I will sprinkle clean water on you and make you clean instead of unclean. Then I will cleanse you from all your idols.

26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove your stubborn hearts and give you obedient hearts.

27 I will put my Spirit in you. I will enable you to live by my laws, and you will obey my rules.

28 Then you will live in the land that I gave your ancestors. You will be my people, and I will be your God.

29 I will rescue you from all your uncleanness. I will make the grain grow so that you will never again have famines.

30 I will make fruit grow on the trees and crops grow in the fields so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famines.

31 Then you will remember your evil ways and the bad things that you did, and you will hate yourselves for all these wicked and disgusting things.

32 I want you to know that I'm not doing this for your sake, declares the Almighty LORD. Be ashamed and disgraced because of your ways, people of Israel.

33 "'This is what the Almighty LORD says: On the day that I cleanse you from all your wickedness, I will cause your cities to be lived in again, and your ruins will be rebuilt.

34 The wasteland will be plowed. It will no longer remain empty for everyone passing by to see.

35 People will say, "This wasteland has become like the garden of Eden. The cities were destroyed. They were empty and ruined, but now they are fortified and have people living in them."

36 The surrounding nations that are left will know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted crops in the land that was empty. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it.'

37 "This is what the Almighty LORD says: I will also let the people of Israel ask me to make them as numerous as sheep.

38 They will be like the sheep for sacrifices, like the sheep in Jerusalem during the appointed festivals. Their ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the LORD."

2 Peter 1

1 From Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. To those who have obtained a faith that is as valuable as ours, a faith based on the approval that comes from our God and Savior, Jesus Christ.

2 May good will and peace fill your lives through your knowledge about Jesus, our God and Lord!

3 God's divine power has given us everything we need for life and for godliness. This power was given to us through knowledge of the one who called us by his own glory and integrity.

4 Through his glory and integrity he has given us his promises that are of the highest value. Through these promises you will share in the divine nature because you have escaped the corruption that sinful desires cause in the world.

5 Because of this, make every effort to add integrity to your faith; and to integrity add knowledge;

6 to knowledge add self-control; to self-control add endurance; to endurance add godliness;

7 to godliness add Christian affection; and to Christian affection add love.

8 If you have these qualities and they are increasing, it demonstrates that your knowledge about our Lord Jesus Christ is living and productive.

9 If these qualities aren't present in your life, you're shortsighted and have forgotten that you were cleansed from your past sins.

10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, use more effort to make God's calling and choosing of you secure. If you keep doing this, you will never fall away.

11 Then you will also be given the wealth of entering into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

12 Therefore, I will always remind you about these qualities, although you already know about them and are well-grounded in the truth that you now have.

13 As long as I'm still alive, I think it's right to refresh your memory.

14 I know that I will die soon. Our Lord Jesus Christ has made that clear to me.

15 So I will make every effort to see that you remember these things after I die.

16 When we apostles told you about the powerful coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, we didn't base our message on clever myths that we made up. Rather, we witnessed his majesty with our own eyes.

17 For example, we were eyewitnesses when he received honor and glory from God the Father and when the voice of our majestic God spoke these words to him: "This is my Son, whom I love and in whom I delight."

18 We heard that voice speak to him from heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.

19 So we regard the words of the prophets as confirmed beyond all doubt. You're doing well by paying attention to their words. Continue to pay attention as you would to a light that shines in a dark place as you wait for day to come and the morning star to rise in your hearts.

20 First, you must understand this: No prophecy in Scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation.

21 No prophecy ever originated from humans. Instead, it was given by the Holy Spirit as humans spoke under God's direction.