Ezekiel 29-30
Against Egypt
29 In the tenth year, on the twelfth day of the tenth month, the Lord’s word came to me: 2 Human one, face Pharaoh, Egypt’s king, and prophesy against him and against all of Egypt. 3 Speak and say, The Lord God proclaims:
I’m against you, Pharaoh, Egypt’s king,
great crocodile lurking
in the Nile’s canals,
who says, “The Nile is all mine;
I made it for myself!”
4 I will set hooks in your jaws;
I will make the fish from the Nile’s canals cling to your scales.
I will drag you out of the Nile’s canals,
and also all the fish from the Nile’s canals
clinging to your scales.
5 I will fling you out into the desert,
and also all the fish from the Nile’s canals.
You will fall on the open ground,
and won’t be gathered or retrieved.
I’ve given you to the beasts of the earth
and the birds in the sky for food.
6 Everyone living in Egypt will know that I am the Lord.
Because they were a flimsy crutch for the house of Israel— 7 when they took you in hand, you would splinter and make their shoulders sore; when they leaned on you, you would break, bringing them to their knees— 8 now the Lord God proclaims: I’m bringing a sword against you, and I will cut off from you human and beast. 9 The land of Egypt will be turned into a wasteland and ruins. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
Because you[a] said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,” 10 I’m against you and against the Nile’s canals. I will make the land of Egypt into an utter ruin, a wasteland, from Migdol to Syene and as far as its boundary with Cush. 11 No foot, animal or human, will walk across it, and it won’t be inhabited for forty years. 12 I will make the land of Egypt the most desolate of wastelands and its cities the most devastated of ruined cities. It will be a wasteland for forty years, and the Egyptians will be scattered among the nations and dispersed throughout the lands.
13 The Lord God proclaims: At the end of forty years, I will gather the Egyptians from among the nations where they are scattered. 14 I will improve their circumstances and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin. Egypt will be a lowly kingdom there. 15 Out of all the kingdoms, it will be the lowliest. It will never again exalt itself over the nations, and I will make it small to keep it from ruling the nations. 16 The house of Israel will never again bring guilt on itself by faithlessly turning to Egypt for help, for they will know that I am the Lord God.
17 In the twenty-seventh year, on the first day of the first month, the Lord’s word came to me: 18 Human one, Babylon’s King Nebuchadrezzar made his army labor very hard against Tyre. Every head was scraped bald, and every shoulder was rubbed raw, yet he got nothing from Tyre for himself or for his army for any of his efforts against it. 19 So now the Lord God proclaims: I’m going to give the land of Egypt to Babylon’s King Nebuchadnezzar. He will carry off its wealth, he will plunder and loot it, and it will be the wages for his army. 20 I will give him the land of Egypt as payment for his laboring for me. This is what the Lord God says.
21 On that day I will give new strength[b] to the house of Israel, and I will open your mouth among them. Then they will know that I am the Lord.
30 The Lord’s word came to me: 2 Human one, prophesy and say, The Lord God proclaims:
Howl! Horror for the day!
3 The day is coming,
the day of the Lord comes,
a day of clouds: the nations’ time has come.
4 A sword will come into Egypt,
and trembling will overcome Cush,
when the slain fall in Egypt,
its wealth carried away,
and its foundations razed.
5 Cush, Put, and Lud,
all Arabia and Cub,
and the people from the allied country[c] with them
will fall by the sword.
6 The Lord proclaims:
When Egypt’s helpers fall,
its proud strength will decline.
From Migdol to Syene
they will fall by the sword.
This is what the Lord God says.
7 Of all the lands laid waste, it will be the most desolate; of all cities, the most ruined. 8 They will know that I am the Lord. On the day that I set fire to Egypt and all its helpers are broken, 9 messengers in ships will go out from me to startle the complacent Cushites. Anguish will overcome them on Egypt’s day. It’s certainly coming.
10 The Lord God proclaims:
I will bring an end to the hordes of Egypt
through the power of Babylon’s King Nebuchadrezzar.
11 He and his people with him,
the most terrible of the nations,
will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
and fill the land with the slain.
12 I will dry up the Nile canals;
I will sell the land to evildoers.
With the help of foreigners
I will lay waste to the land and everything in it.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
13 The Lord God proclaims:
I will destroy the idols
and bring an end to the images in Memphis.
Never again will there be a prince from the land of Egypt;
so I will kindle fear in the land of Egypt.
14 I will turn Pathros into a desolation,
set fire to Zoan,
and execute judgments in Thebes.
15 I will pour out my anger on Pelusium,
the stronghold of Egypt,
and I will cut down pompous Thebes.
16 I will set Egypt on fire;
Pelusium will writhe in travail,
Thebes will be split open,
Memphis assaulted in broad daylight.
17 The elite troops of On and Pi-beseth
will fall by the sword,
and the cities themselves will go into captivity.
18 At Tehaphnehes the day will go dark when I break Egypt’s yoke and bring an end to its proud strength. A cloud will cover it, and the towns around it will go into captivity. 19 I will execute judgments in Egypt, and they will know that I am the Lord.
20 In the eleventh year, on the seventh day of the first month, the Lord’s word came to me: 21 Human one, I’ve broken the arm of Pharaoh, Egypt’s king, and it hasn’t been set so that it might heal, nor has it been braced or wrapped up so that it might be strong enough to grasp a sword.
22 So now the Lord God proclaims: I’m against Pharaoh, and I will break his arms, both the sound one and the broken one, and I’ll make the sword fall out of his hand. 23 I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the earth. 24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and I will put my sword into his hand. When I break the arms of Pharaoh, he will groan like a dying man in his presence. 25 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, but the arms of Pharaoh will fall. They will know that I am the Lord, when I put my sword into the hand of the king of Babylon and he uses it against the land of Egypt. 26 When I scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them throughout the earth, they will know that I am the Lord.
Footnotes:
- Ezekiel 29:9 Or he
- Ezekiel 29:21 Or make a horn sprout
- Ezekiel 30:5 Or land of the covenant
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Hebrews 11:32-12:13
32 What more can I say? I would run out of time if I told you about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets. 33 Through faith they conquered kingdoms, brought about justice, realized promises, shut the mouths of lions, 34 put out raging fires, escaped from the edge of the sword, found strength in weakness, were mighty in war, and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured and refused to be released so they could gain a better resurrection.
36 But others experienced public shame by being taunted and whipped; they were even put in chains and in prison. 37 They were stoned to death, they were cut in two, and they died by being murdered with swords. They went around wearing the skins of sheep and goats, needy, oppressed, and mistreated. 38 The world didn’t deserve them. They wandered around in deserts, mountains, caves, and holes in the ground.
39 All these people didn’t receive what was promised, though they were given approval for their faith. 40 God provided something better for us so they wouldn’t be made perfect without us.
Let’s also run the race
12 So then let’s also run the race that is laid out in front of us, since we have such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us. Let’s throw off any extra baggage, get rid of the sin that trips us up, 2 and fix our eyes on Jesus, faith’s pioneer and perfecter. He endured the cross, ignoring the shame, for the sake of the joy that was laid out in front of him, and sat down at the right side of God’s throne.
Run the race with discipline
3 Think about the one who endured such opposition from sinners so that you won’t be discouraged and you won’t give up. 4 In your struggle against sin, you haven’t resisted yet to the point of shedding blood, 5 and you have forgotten the encouragement that addresses you as sons and daughters:
My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline
or give up when you are corrected by him,
6 because the Lord disciplines whomever he loves,
and he punishes every son or daughter whom he accepts.[a]
7 Bear hardship for the sake of discipline. God is treating you like sons and daughters! What child isn’t disciplined by his or her father? 8 But if you don’t experience discipline, which happens to all children, then you are illegitimate and not real sons and daughters. 9 What’s more, we had human parents who disciplined us, and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live? 10 Our human parents disciplined us for a little while, as it seemed best to them, but God does it for our benefit so that we can share his holiness. 11 No discipline is fun while it lasts, but it seems painful at the time. Later, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness for those who have been trained by it.
12 So strengthen your drooping hands and weak knees! 13 Make straight paths for your feet so that if any part is lame, it will be healed rather than injured more seriously.
Footnotes:
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Psalm 112
Psalm 112[a]
112 Praise the Lord!
Those who honor the Lord,
who adore God’s commandments, are truly happy!
2 Their descendants will be strong throughout the land.
The offspring of those who do right will be blessed;
3 wealth and riches will be in their houses.
Their righteousness stands forever.
4 They shine in the dark for others who do right.
They are merciful, compassionate, and righteous.
5 Those who lend generously are good people—
as are those who conduct their affairs with justice.
6 Yes, these sorts of people will never be shaken;
the righteous will be remembered forever!
7 They won’t be frightened at bad news.
Their hearts are steady, trusting in the Lord.
8 Their hearts are firm; they aren’t afraid.
In the end, they will witness their enemies’ defeat.
9 They give freely to those in need.
Their righteousness stands forever.
Their strength increases gloriously.
10 The wicked see all this and fume;
they grind their teeth, but disappear to nothing.
What the wicked want to see happen comes to nothing!
Footnotes:
- Psalm 112:1 Ps 112 is an alphabetic acrostic poem; see the note at Pss 9–10.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Proverbs 27:17
17 As iron sharpens iron,
so friends sharpen each other’s faces.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible