Revelation 19 After
this, I heard what sounded like a lot of voices in
heaven, and they were shouting,
"Praise the Lord!
To our God belongs the glorious power to save,
2 because
his judgments are honest and fair.
That filthy prostitute
ruined the earth with shameful deeds.
But God has judged her and made her pay the price
for murdering his servants."
3Then
the crowd shouted, "Praise the Lord!
Smoke will never stop rising from her burning body."
4After
this, the twenty-four elders and the four living
creatures all knelt before the throne of God and
worshiped him. They said, "Amen! Praise the
Lord!" The Marriage Supper
of the Lamb
5From
the throne a voice said,
"If you worship and fear our God,
give praise to him, no matter who you are."
6Then
I heard what seemed to be a large crowd that sounded like
a roaring flood and loud thunder all mixed together. They
were saying,
"Praise the Lord!
Our Lord God All-Powerful now rules as king.
7 So we
will be glad and happy and give him praise.
The wedding day of the Lamb is here,
and his bride is ready.
8She
will be given a wedding dress
made of pure and shining linen.
This linen stands for the good things
God's people have done."
9Then
the angel told me, "Put this in writing. God will
bless everyone who is invited to the wedding feast of the
Lamb." The angel also said, "These things that
God has said are true."
10I
knelt at the feet of the angel and began to worship him.
But the angel said, "Don't do that! I am a servant,
just like you and everyone else who tells about Jesus.
Don't worship anyone but God. Everyone who tells about
Jesus does it by the power of the Spirit."
The Rider on the White Horse
11I
looked and saw that heaven was open, and a white horse
was there. Its rider was called Faithful and True, and he
is always fair when he judges or goes to war. 12He
had eyes like flames of fire, and he was wearing a lot of
crowns. His name was written on him, but he was the only
one who knew what the name meant.
13The
rider wore a robe that was covered with blood, and he was
known as "The Word of God." 14He was
followed by armies from heaven that rode on horses and
were dressed in pure white linen. 15From his
mouth a sharp sword went out to attack the nations. He
will rule them with an iron rod and will show the fierce
anger of God All-Powerful by trampling the grapes in the
pit where wine is made. 16On the part of the
robe that covered his thigh was written, "KING OF
KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS."
17I
then saw an angel standing on the sun, and he shouted to
all the birds flying in the sky, "Come and join in
God's great feast! 18You can eat the flesh of
kings, rulers, leaders, horses, riders, free people,
slaves, important people, and everyone else."
19I
also saw the beast and all kings of the earth come
together. They fought against the rider on the white
horse and against his army. 20But the beast
was captured and so was the false prophet. This is the
same prophet who had worked miracles for the beast, so
that he could fool everyone who had the mark of the beast
and worshiped the idol. The beast and the false prophet
were thrown alive into a lake of burning sulfur. 21But
the rest of their army was killed by the sword that came
from the mouth of the rider on the horse. Then birds
stuffed themselves on the dead bodies.
A Song about a Vineyard
The LORD said:
Isaiah 5 I will
sing a song about my friend's vineyard
that was on the side of a fertile hill.
2My
friend dug the ground, removed the stones,
and planted the best vines.
He built a watchtower and dug a pit in rocky ground
for pressing the grapes.
He hoped they would be sweet,
but bitter grapes were all it produced.
3Listen,
people of Jerusalem and of Judah!
You be the judge of me and my vineyard.
4What
more could I have done for my vineyard?
I
hoped for sweet grapes,
but bitter grapes were all that grew.
5Now
I will let you know what I am going to do.
I
will cut down the hedge and tear down the wall.
My vineyard will be trampled and left in ruins.
6It
will turn into a desert, neither pruned nor hoed;
it will be covered with thorns and briars.
I
will command the clouds not to send rain.
7I
am the LORD All-Powerful! Israel is
the vineyard,
and Judah is the garden I tended with care.
I
had hoped for honesty and for justice,
but dishonesty and cries for mercy were all I found.
Isaiah Condemns Social
Injustice
8You
are in for trouble! You take over house after house and
field after field, until there is no room left for anyone
else in all the land. 9But the LORD
All-Powerful has made this promise to me:
Those large and beautiful homes will be
left empty, with no one to take care of them. 10Ten
acres of grapevines will produce only six gallons of
juice, and five bushels of seed will produce merely a
half-bushel of grain.
11You
are in for trouble! You get up early to start drinking,
and you keep it up late into the night. 12At
your drinking parties you have the music of stringed
instruments, tambourines, and flutes. But you never even
think about all the LORD has done, 13and
so his people know nothing about him. That's why many of
you will be dragged off to foreign lands. Your leaders
will starve to death, and everyone else will suffer from
thirst.
14The
world of the dead has opened its mouth wide and is
eagerly waiting for the leaders of Jerusalem and for its
noisy crowds, especially for those who take pride in that
city. 15Its citizens have been put down, and
its proud people have been brought to shame. 16But
the holy LORD God All-Powerful is
praised, because he has shown who he is by bringing
justice. 17His people will be like sheep
grazing in their own pasture, and they will take off what
was left by others.
18You
are in for trouble! The lies you tell are like ropes by
which you drag along sin and evil. 19And you
say, "Let the holy God of Israel hurry up and do
what he has promised, so we can see it for
ourselves." 20You are headed for trouble!
You say wrong is right, darkness is light, and bitter is
sweet.
21You
think you are clever and smart. 22And you are
great at drinking and mixing drinks. But you are in for
trouble. 23You accept bribes to let the guilty
go free, and you cheat the innocent out of a fair trial.
24You
will go up in flames like straw and hay! You have
rejected the teaching of the holy LORD
God All-Powerful of Israel. Now your roots will rot, and
your blossoms will turn to dust.
25You
are the LORD's people, but you made
him terribly angry, and he struck you with his mighty
arm. Mountains shook, and dead bodies covered the streets
like garbage. The LORD is still
angry, and he is ready to strike you again.
Foreign Nations Will Attack
26The
LORD has signaled for the foreign
nations to come and attack you. He has already whistled,
and they are coming as fast as they can. 27None
of them are tired. They don't sleep or get drowsy, and
they run without stumbling. Their belts don't come loose;
their sandal straps don't break. 28Their
arrows are sharp, and their bows are ready. The hoofs of
their horses are hard as flint; the wheels of their war
chariots turn as fast as a whirlwind.
29They
roar and growl like fierce young lions as they grab their
victims and drag them off where no one can rescue them. 30On
the day they attack, they will roar like the ocean. And
across the land you will see nothing but darkness and
trouble, because the light of day will be covered by
thick clouds.
A Vision of the LORD in the
Temple
Isaiah 6 In the
year that King Uzziah died, I had a vision of the LORD. He was on his throne high above, and
his robe filled the temple. 2Flaming creatures
with six wings each were flying over him. They covered
their faces with two of their wings and their bodies with
two more. They used the other two wings for flying, 3as
they shouted,
"Holy, holy, holy, LORD
All-Powerful!
The earth is filled with your glory."
4As
they shouted, the doorposts of the temple shook, and the
temple was filled with smoke. 5Then I cried
out, "I'm doomed! Everything I say is sinful, and so
are the words of everyone around me. Yet I have seen the
King, the LORD All-Powerful."
6One
of the flaming creatures flew over to me with a burning
coal that it had taken from the altar with a pair of
metal tongs. 7It touched my lips with the hot
coal and said, "This has touched your lips. Your
sins are forgiven, and you are no longer guilty."
8After
this, I heard the LORD ask,
"Is there anyone I can send? Will someone go for
us?"
"I'll
go," I answered. "Send me!"
9Then
the LORD told me to go and speak
this message to the people:
"You will listen and listen, but never understand.
You will look and look, but never see."
The
LORD also said,
10"Make
these people stubborn! Make them stop up their ears,
cover their eyes, and fail to understand.
Don't let them turn to me and be healed."
11Then
I asked the LORD, "How long
will this last?"
The
LORD answered:
Until their towns are destroyed and their
houses are deserted, until their fields are empty, 12and
I have sent them far away, leaving their land in
ruins. 13If only a tenth of the people are
left, even they will be destroyed. But just as stumps
remain after trees have been cut down, some of my
chosen ones will be left.
Psalm 109
20Those are the cruel things my enemies wish
for me.
Let it all happen to them!
21Be
true to your name, LORD God!
Show your great kindness and rescue me.
22I
am poor and helpless, and I have lost all hope.
23I
am fading away like an evening shadow;
I
am tossed aside like a crawling insect.
24I
have gone without eating, until my knees are weak,
and my body is bony.
25When
my enemies see me,
they say cruel things and shake their heads.
26Please
help me, LORD God!
Come and save me because of your love.
27 Let
others know that you alone have saved me.
28I
don't care if they curse me, as long as you bless me.
You will make my enemies fail when they attack,
and you will make me glad to be your servant.
29You
will cover them with shame,
just as their bodies are covered with clothes.
30I
will sing your praises and thank you, LORD,
when your people meet.
31You
help everyone in need,
and you defend them when they are on trial.
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