Day 326 of 365

¹But in the latter days, it will happen that the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established on the top of the mountains, and it will be exalted above the hills; and peoples will stream to it.

²Many nations will go and say, "Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths." For out of Zion will go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem;

³and he will judge between many peoples, and will decide concerning strong nations afar off. They will beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, neither will they learn war any more.

⁴But they will sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and no one will make them afraid: For the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken.

⁵Indeed all the nations may walk in the name of their gods; but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever.

⁶"In that day," says the Lord, "I will assemble that which is lame, and I will gather that which is driven away, and that which I have afflicted;

⁷and I will make that which was lame a remnant, and that which was cast far off a strong nation: and the Lord will reign over them on Mount Zion from then on, even forever."

⁸You, tower of the flock, the hill of the daughter of Zion, to you it will come, yes, the former dominion will come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem.

⁹Now why do you cry out aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pains have taken hold of you as of a woman in travail?

¹⁰Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, daughter of Zion, like a woman in travail; for now you will go forth out of the city, and will dwell in the field, and will come even to Babylon. There you will be rescued. There the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies.

¹¹Now many nations have assembled against you, that say, "Let her be defiled, and let our eye gloat over Zion."

¹²But they do not know the thoughts of the Lord, neither do they understand his counsel; for he has gathered them like the sheaves to the threshing floor.

¹³Arise and thresh, daughter of Zion; for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs brass; and you will beat in pieces many peoples: and I will devote their gain to the Lord, and their substance to the Lord of the whole earth.

¹Now you shall gather yourself in troops, daughter of troops. He has laid siege against us. They will strike the judge of Israel with a rod on the cheek.

²But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, being small among the clans of Judah, out of you one will come forth to me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth are from of old, from everlasting.

³Therefore he will abandon them until the time that she who is in labor gives birth. Then the rest of his brothers will return to the children of Israel.

⁴He shall stand, and shall shepherd in the strength of the Lord, in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God: and they will live, for then he will be great to the ends of the earth.

⁵He will be our peace when Assyria invades our land, and when he marches through our fortresses, then we will raise against him seven shepherds, and eight leaders of men.

⁶They will rule the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in its gates. He will deliver us from the Assyrian, when he invades our land, and when he marches within our border.

⁷The remnant of Jacob will be in the midst of many peoples, like dew from the Lord, like showers on the grass, that do not wait for man, nor wait for the sons of men.

⁸The remnant of Jacob will be among the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the animals of the forest, like a young lion among the flocks of sheep; who, if he goes through, treads down and tears in pieces, and there is no one to deliver.

⁹Let your hand be lifted up above your adversaries, and let all of your enemies be cut off.

¹⁰"It will happen in that day," says the Lord, "That I will cut off your horses out of the midst of you, and will destroy your chariots.

¹¹I will cut off the cities of your land, and will tear down all your strongholds.

¹²I will destroy witchcraft from your hand; and you shall have no soothsayers.

¹³I will cut off your engraved images and your pillars out of your midst; and you shall no more worship the work of your hands.

¹⁴I will uproot your Asherim out of your midst; and I will destroy your cities.

¹⁵I will execute vengeance in anger, and wrath on the nations that did not listen."

¹Listen now to what the Lord says: "Arise, plead your case before the mountains, and let the hills hear what you have to say.

²Hear, you mountains, the Lord's controversy, and you enduring foundations of the earth; for the Lord has a controversy with his people, and he will contend with Israel.

³My people, what have I done to you? How have I burdened you? Answer me!

⁴For I brought you up out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage. I sent before you Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

⁵My people, remember now what Balak king of Moab devised, and what Balaam the son of Beor answered him from Shittim to Gilgal, that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord."

⁶How shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before the exalted God? Shall I come before him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old?

⁷Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams? With tens of thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my disobedience? The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?

⁸He has shown you, O man, what is good. What does the Lord require of you, but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

⁹The Lord's voice calls to the city, and wisdom sees your name: "Listen to the rod, and he who appointed it.

¹⁰Are there yet treasures of wickedness in the house of the wicked, and a short ephah that is accursed?

¹¹Shall I be pure with dishonest scales, and with a bag of deceitful weights?

¹²Her rich men are full of violence, her inhabitants speak lies, and their tongue is deceitful in their speech.

¹³Therefore I also have struck you with a grievous wound. I have made you desolate because of your sins.

¹⁴You shall eat, but not be satisfied. Your humiliation will be in your midst. You will store up, but not save; and that which you save I will give up to the sword.

¹⁵You will sow, but won't reap. You will tread the olives, but won't anoint yourself with oil; and crush grapes, but won't drink the wine.

¹⁶For the statutes of Omri are kept, and all the works of the house of Ahab. You walk in their counsels, that I may make you a ruin, and her inhabitants a hissing; And you will bear the reproach of my people."

¹Judge me, Lord, for I have walked in my integrity. I have trusted also in Lord without wavering.

²Examine me, Lord, and prove me. Try my heart and my mind.

³For your loving kindness is before my eyes. I have walked in your truth.

⁴I have not sat with deceitful men, neither will I go in with hypocrites.

⁵I hate the assembly of evildoers, and will not sit with the wicked.

⁶I will wash my hands in innocence, so I will go about your altar, Lord;

⁷that I may make the voice of thanksgiving to be heard, and tell of all your wondrous works.

⁸Lord, I love the habitation of your house, the place where your glory dwells.

⁹Do not gather my soul with sinners, nor my life with bloodthirsty men;

¹⁰in whose hands is wickedness, their right hand is full of bribes.

¹¹But as for me, I will walk in my integrity. Redeem me, and be merciful to me.

¹²My foot stands in an even place. In the congregations I will bless the Lord.

¹The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord.

²All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but the Lord weighs the motives.

³Commit your deeds to the Lord, and your plans shall succeed.

⁴The Lord has made everything for its own end- yes, even the wicked for the day of evil.

⁵Everyone who is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: they shall certainly not be unpunished.

⁶By mercy and truth iniquity is atoned for. By the fear of the Lord men depart from evil.

⁷When a man's ways please the Lord, he makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.

⁸Better is a little with righteousness, than great revenues with injustice.

⁹A man's heart plans his course, but the Lord directs his steps.

¹⁰Inspired judgments are on the lips of the king. He shall not betray his mouth.

¹¹Honest balances and scales are the Lord's; all the weights in the bag are his work.

¹²It is an abomination for kings to do wrong, for the throne is established by righteousness.

¹³Righteous lips are the delight of kings. They value one who speaks the truth.

¹⁴The king's wrath is a messenger of death, but a wise man will pacify it.

¹⁵In the light of the king's face is life. His favor is like a cloud of the spring rain.

¹⁶How much better it is to get wisdom than gold! Yes, to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.

¹⁷The highway of the upright is to depart from evil. He who keeps his way preserves his soul.

¹⁸Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.

¹⁹It is better to be of a lowly spirit with the poor, than to divide the plunder with the proud.

²⁰He who heeds the Word finds prosperity. Whoever trusts in the Lord is blessed.

²¹The wise in heart shall be called prudent. Pleasantness of the lips promotes instruction.

²²Understanding is a fountain of life to one who has it, but the punishment of fools is their folly.

²³The heart of the wise instructs his mouth, and adds learning to his lips.

²⁴Pleasant words are a honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones.

²⁵There is a way which seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death.

²⁶The appetite of the laboring man labors for him; for his mouth urges him on.

²⁷A worthless man devises mischief. His speech is like a scorching fire.

²⁸A perverse man stirs up strife. A whisperer separates close friends.

²⁹A man of violence entices his neighbor, and leads him in a way that is not good.

³⁰One who winks his eyes to plot perversities, one who compresses his lips, is bent on evil.

³¹Gray hair is a crown of glory. It is attained by a life of righteousness.

³²One who is slow to anger is better than the mighty; one who rules his spirit, than he who takes a city.

³³The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord.