The Message Bible MSG
English Standard Version ESV
1 God's Message came to me:
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Again the word of the LORD came to me:
2 "Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her outrageous violations.
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"Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations,
3 Say this: 'The Message of God, the Master, to Jerusalem: You were born and bred among Canaanites. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.
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and say, Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth are of the land of the Canaanites; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.
4 "'On the day you were born your umbilical cord was not cut, you weren't bathed and cleaned up, you weren't rubbed with salt, you weren't wrapped in a baby blanket.
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And as for your birth, on the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to cleanse you, nor rubbed with salt, nor wrapped in swaddling cloths.
5 No one cared a fig for you. No one did one thing to care for you tenderly in these ways. You were thrown out into a vacant lot and left there, dirty and unwashed - a newborn nobody wanted.
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No eye pitied you, to do any of these things to you out of compassion for you, but you were cast out on the open field, for you were abhorred, on the day that you were born.
6 "'And then I came by. I saw you all miserable and bloody. Yes, I said to you, lying there helpless and filthy, "Live!
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"And when I passed by you and saw you wallowing in your blood, I said to you in your blood, 'Live!' I said to you in your blood, 'Live!'
7 Grow up like a plant in the field!" And you did. You grew up. You grew tall and matured as a woman, full-breasted, with flowing hair. But you were naked and vulnerable, fragile and exposed.
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I made you flourish like a plant of the field. And you grew up and became tall and arrived at full adornment. Your breasts were formed, and your hair had grown; yet you were naked and bare.
8 "'I came by again and saw you, saw that you were ready for love and a lover. I took care of you, dressed you and protected you. I promised you my love and entered the covenant of marriage with you. I, God, the Master, gave my word. You became mine.
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"When I passed by you again and saw you, behold, you were at the age for love, and I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness; I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord GOD, and you became mine.
9 I gave you a good bath, washing off all that old blood, and anointed you with aromatic oils.
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Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood from you and anointed you with oil.
10 I dressed you in a colorful gown and put leather sandals on your feet. I gave you linen blouses and a fashionable wardrobe of expensive clothing.
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I clothed you also with embroidered cloth and shod you with fine leather. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk.
11 I adorned you with jewelry: I placed bracelets on your wrists, fitted you out with a necklace,
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And I adorned you with ornaments and put bracelets on your wrists and a chain on your neck.
12 emerald rings, sapphire earrings, and a diamond tiara.
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And I put a ring on your nose and earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head.
13 You were provided with everything precious and beautiful: with exquisite clothes and elegant food, garnished with honey and oil. You were absolutely stunning. You were a queen!
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Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen and silk and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour and honey and oil. You grew exceedingly beautiful and advanced to royalty.
14 You became world-famous, a legendary beauty brought to perfection by my adornments. Decree of God, the Master.
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And your renown went forth among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through the splendor that I had bestowed on you, declares the Lord GOD.
15 "'But your beauty went to your head and you became a common whore, grabbing anyone coming down the street and taking him into your bed.
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"But you trusted in your beauty and played the whore because of your renown and lavished your whorings on any passerby; your beauty became his.
16 You took your fine dresses and made "tents" of them, using them as brothels in which you practiced your trade. This kind of thing should never happen, never. What a Sick Soul!
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You took some of your garments and made for yourself colorful shrines, and on them played the whore. The like has never been, nor ever shall be.
17 "'And then you took all that fine jewelry I gave you, my gold and my silver, and made pornographic images of them for your brothels.
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You also took your beautiful jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given you, and made for yourself images of men, and with them played the whore.
18 You decorated your beds with fashionable silks and cottons, and perfumed them with my aromatic oils and incense.
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And you took your embroidered garments to cover them, and set my oil and my incense before them.
19 And then you set out the wonderful foods I provided - the fresh breads and fruits, with fine herbs and spices, which were my gifts to you - and you served them as delicacies in your whorehouses. That's what happened, says God, the Master.
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Also my bread that I gave you--I fed you with fine flour and oil and honey--you set before them for a pleasing aroma; and so it was, declares the Lord GOD.
20 "'And then you took your sons and your daughters, whom you had given birth to as my children, and you killed them, sacrificing them to idols. Wasn't it bad enough that you had become a whore?
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And you took your sons and your daughters, whom you had borne to me, and these you sacrificed to them to be devoured. Were your whorings so small a matter
21 And now you're a murderer, killing my children and sacrificing them to idols.
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that you slaughtered my children and delivered them up as an offering by fire to them?
22 "'Not once during these years of outrageous obscenities and whorings did you remember your infancy, when you were naked and exposed, a blood-smeared newborn.
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And in all your abominations and your whorings you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare, wallowing in your blood.
23 "'And then to top off all your evil acts, you built your bold brothels in every town square. Doom! Doom to you, says God, the Master!
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"And after all your wickedness (woe, woe to you! declares the Lord GOD),
24 At every major intersection you built your bold brothels and exposed your sluttish sex, spreading your legs for everyone who passed by.
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you built yourself a vaulted chamber and made yourself a lofty place in every square.
25 "'And then you went international with your whoring.
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At the head of every street you built your lofty place and made your beauty an abomination, offering yourself to any passerby and multiplying your whoring.
26 You fornicated with the Egyptians, seeking them out in their sex orgies. The more promiscuous you became, the angrier I got.
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You also played the whore with the Egyptians, your lustful neighbors, multiplying your whoring, to provoke me to anger.
27 Finally, I intervened, reduced your borders and turned you over to the rapacity of your enemies. Even the Philistine women - can you believe it? - were shocked at your sluttish life.
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Behold, therefore, I stretched out my hand against you and diminished your allotted portion and delivered you to the greed of your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines, who were ashamed of your lewd behavior.
28 "'You went on to fornicate with the Assyrians. Your appetite was insatiable. But still you weren't satisfied.
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You played the whore also with the Assyrians, because you were not satisfied; yes, you played the whore with them, and still you were not satisfied.
29 You took on the Babylonians, a country of businessmen, and still you weren't satisfied.
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You multiplied your whoring also with the trading land of Chaldea, and even with this you were not satisfied.
30 "'What a sick soul! Doing all this stuff - the champion whore!
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"How sick is your heart, declares the Lord GOD, because you did all these things, the deeds of a brazen prostitute,
31 You built your bold brothels at every major intersection, opened up your whorehouses in every neighborhood, but you were different from regular whores in that you wouldn't accept a fee.
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building your vaulted chamber at the head of every street, and making your lofty place in every square. Yet you were not like a prostitute, because you scorned payment.
32 "'Wives who are unfaithful to their husbands accept gifts from their lovers.
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Adulterous wife, who receives strangers instead of her husband!
33 And men commonly pay their whores. But you pay your lovers! You bribe men from all over to come to bed with you!
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Men give gifts to all prostitutes, but you gave your gifts to all your lovers, bribing them to come to you from every side with your whorings.
34 You're just the opposite of the regular whores who get paid for sex. Instead, you pay men for their favors! You even pervert whoredom!
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So you were different from other women in your whorings. No one solicited you to play the whore, and you gave payment, while no payment was given to you; therefore you were different.
35 "'Therefore, whore, listen to God's Message:
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"Therefore, O prostitute, hear the word of the LORD:
36 I, God, the Master, say, Because you've been unrestrained in your promiscuity, stripped down for every lover, flaunting your sex, and because of your pornographic idols and all the slaughtered children you offered to them,
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Thus says the Lord GOD, Because your lust was poured out and your nakedness uncovered in your whorings with your lovers, and with all your abominable idols, and because of the blood of your children that you gave to them,
37 therefore, because of all this, I'm going to get all your lovers together, all those you've used for your own pleasure, the ones you loved and the ones you loathed. I'll assemble them as a courtroom of spectators around you. In broad daylight I'll strip you naked before them - they'll see what you really look like.
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therefore, behold, I will gather all your lovers with whom you took pleasure, all those you loved and all those you hated. I will gather them against you from every side and will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness.
38 Then I'll sentence you to the punishment for an adulterous woman and a murderous woman. I'll give you a taste of my wrath!
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And I will judge you as women who commit adultery and shed blood are judged, and bring upon you the blood of wrath and jealousy.
39 "'I'll gather all your lovers around you and turn you over to them. They'll tear down your bold brothels and sex shrines. They'll rip off your clothes, take your jewels, and leave you naked and exposed. Then
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And I will give you into their hands, and they shall throw down your vaulted chamber and break down your lofty places. They shall strip you of your clothes and take your beautiful jewels and leave you naked and bare.
40 they'll call for a mass meeting. The mob will stone you and hack you to pieces with their swords.
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They shall bring up a crowd against you, and they shall stone you and cut you to pieces with their swords.
41 They'll burn down your houses. A massive judgment - with all the women watching!
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And they shall burn your houses and execute judgments upon you in the sight of many women. I will make you stop playing the whore, and you shall also give payment no more.
42 By then my anger will be played out. My jealousy will subside.
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So will I satisfy my wrath on you, and my jealousy shall depart from you. I will be calm and will no more be angry.
43 "'Because you didn't remember what happened when you were young but made me angry with all this behavior, I'll make you pay for your waywardness. Didn't you just exponentially compound your outrageous obscenities with all your sluttish ways?
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Because you have not remembered the days of your youth, but have enraged me with all these things, therefore, behold, I have returned your deeds upon your head, declares the Lord GOD. Have you not committed lewdness in addition to all your abominations?
44 "'Everyone who likes to use proverbs will use this one: "Like mother, like daughter."
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"Behold, everyone who uses proverbs will use this proverb about you: 'Like mother, like daughter.'
45 You're the daughter of your mother, who couldn't stand her husband and children. And you're a true sister of your sisters, who couldn't stand their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.
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You are the daughter of your mother, who loathed her husband and her children; and you are the sister of your sisters, who loathed their husbands and their children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.
46 "'Your older sister is Samaria. She lived to the north of you with her daughters. Your younger sister is Sodom, who lived to the south of you with her daughters.
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And your elder sister is Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who lived to the south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.
47 Haven't you lived just like they did? Haven't you engaged in outrageous obscenities just like they did? In fact, it didn't take you long to catch up and pass them!
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Not only did you walk in their ways and do according to their abominations; within a very little time you were more corrupt than they in all your ways.
48 As sure as I am the living God! - Decree of God, the Master - your sister Sodom and her daughters never even came close to what you and your daughters have done.
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As I live, declares the Lord GOD, your sister Sodom and her daughters have not done as you and your daughters have done.
49 "'The sin of your sister Sodom was this: She lived with her daughters in the lap of luxury - proud, gluttonous, and lazy. They ignored the oppressed and the poor.
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Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.
50 They put on airs and lived obscene lives. And you know what happened: I did away with them.
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They were haughty and did an abomination before me. So I removed them, when I saw it.
51 "'And Samaria. Samaria didn't sin half as much as you. You've committed far more obscenities than she ever did. Why, you make your two sisters look good in comparison with what you've done!
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Samaria has not committed half your sins. You have committed more abominations than they, and have made your sisters appear righteous by all the abominations that you have committed.
52 Face it, your sisters look mighty good compared with you. Because you've outsinned them so completely, you've actually made them look righteous. Aren't you ashamed? But you're going to have to live with it. What a reputation to carry into history: outsinning your two sisters!
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Bear your disgrace, you also, for you have intervened on behalf of your sisters. Because of your sins in which you acted more abominably than they, they are more in the right than you. So be ashamed, you also, and bear your disgrace, for you have made your sisters appear righteous.
53 "'But I'm going to reverse their fortunes, the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters and the fortunes of Samaria and her daughters. And - get this - your fortunes right along with them!
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"I will restore their fortunes, both the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters, and the fortunes of Samaria and her daughters, and I will restore your own fortunes in their midst,
54 Still, you're going to have to live with your shame. And by facing and accepting your shame, you're going to provide some comfort to your two sisters.
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that you may bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all that you have done, becoming a consolation to them.
55 Your sisters, Sodom with her daughters and Samaria with her daughters, will become what they were before, and you will become what you were before.
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As for your sisters, Sodom and her daughters shall return to their former state, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former state, and you and your daughters shall return to your former state.
56 Remember the days when you were putting on airs, acting so high and mighty, looking down on sister Sodom?
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Was not your sister Sodom a byword in your mouth in the day of your pride,
57 That was before your evil ways were exposed. And now you're the butt of contempt, despised by the Edomite women, the Philistine women, and everybody else around.
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before your wickedness was uncovered? Now you have become an object of reproach for the daughters of Syria and all those around her, and for the daughters of the Philistines, those all around who despise you.
58 But you have to face it, to accept the shame of your obscene and vile life. Decree of God, the Master.
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You bear the penalty of your lewdness and your abominations, declares the LORD.
59 "'God, the Master, says, I'll do to you just as you have already done, you who have treated my oath with contempt and broken the covenant.
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"For thus says the Lord GOD: I will deal with you as you have done, you who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant,
60 All the same, I'll remember the covenant I made with you when you were young and I'll make a new covenant with you that will last forever.
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yet I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish for you an everlasting covenant.
61 You'll remember your sorry past and be properly contrite when you receive back your sisters, both the older and the younger. I'll give them to you as daughters, but not as participants in your covenant.
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Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you take your sisters, both your elder and your younger, and I give them to you as daughters, but not on account of the covenant with you.
62 I'll firmly establish my covenant with you and you'll know that I am God.
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I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the LORD,
63 You'll remember your past life and face the shame of it, but when I make atonement for you, make everything right after all you've done, it will leave you speechless.'" Decree of God, the Master.
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that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord GOD."
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.