Day 334 of 365

¹Ask of the Lord rain in the spring time, The Lord who makes storm clouds, and he gives rain showers to everyone for the plants in the field.

²For the teraphim have spoken vanity, and the diviners have seen a lie; and they have told false dreams. They comfort in vain. Therefore they go their way like sheep. They are oppressed, because there is no shepherd.

³My anger is kindled against the shepherds, and I will punish the male goats; For the Lord of hosts has visited his flock, the house of Judah, and will make them as his majestic horse in the battle.

⁴From him will come forth the cornerstone, from him the nail, from him the battle bow, from him every ruler together.

⁵They shall be as mighty men, treading down muddy streets in the battle; and they shall fight, because the Lord is with them; and the riders on horses will be confounded.

⁶"I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will bring them back; for I have mercy on them; and they will be as though I had not cast them off: for I am the Lord their God, and I will hear them.

⁷Ephraim will be like a mighty man, and their heart will rejoice as through wine; yes, their children will see it, and rejoice. Their heart will be glad in the Lord.

⁸I will signal for them, and gather them; for I have redeemed them; and they will increase as they have increased.

⁹I will sow them among the peoples; and they will remember me in far countries; and they will live with their children, and will return.

¹⁰I will bring them again also out of the land of Egypt, and gather them out of Assyria; and I will bring them into the land of Gilead and Lebanon; and there won't be room enough for them.

¹¹He will pass through the sea of affliction, and will strike the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the Nile will dry up; and the pride of Assyria will be brought down, and the scepter of Egypt will depart.

¹²I will strengthen them in the Lord; and they will walk up and down in his name," says the Lord.

¹Open your doors, Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars.

²Wail, fir tree, for the cedar has fallen, because the stately ones are destroyed. Wail, you oaks of Bashan, for the strong forest has come down.

³A voice of the wailing of the shepherds! For their glory is destroyed: a voice of the roaring of young lions! For the pride of the Jordan is ruined.

⁴Thus says the Lord my God: "Feed the flock of slaughter.

⁵Their buyers slaughter them, and go unpunished. Those who sell them say, 'Blessed be the Lord, for I am rich;' and their own shepherds do not pity them.

⁶For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land," says the Lord; "but, behold, I will deliver the men everyone into his neighbor's hand, and into the hand of his king. They will strike the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them."

⁷So I fed the flock of slaughter, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called "Favor," and the other I called "Union," and I fed the flock.

⁸I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.

⁹Then I said, "I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other's flesh."

¹⁰I took my staff Favor, and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples.

¹¹It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was the word of the Lord.

¹²I said to them, "If you think it best, give me my wages; and if not, keep them." So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver.

¹³The Lord said to me, "Throw it to the potter, the handsome price that I was valued at by them!" I took the thirty pieces of silver, and threw them to the potter, in the house of the Lord.

¹⁴Then I cut apart my other staff, even Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

¹⁵The Lord said to me, "Take for yourself yet again the equipment of a foolish shepherd.

¹⁶For, behold, I will raise up a shepherd in the land, who will not visit those who are cut off, neither will seek those who are scattered, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which is sound; but he will eat the flesh of the fat sheep, and will tear their hoofs in pieces.

¹⁷Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! The sword will be on his arm, and on his right eye. His arm will be completely withered, and his right eye will be totally blinded!"

¹An oracle. The word of the Lord concerning Israel. The Lord, who stretches out the heavens, and lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him says:

²"Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and on Judah also will it be in the siege against Jerusalem.

³It will happen in that day, that I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples. All who burden themselves with it will be severely wounded, and all the nations of the earth will be gathered together against it.

⁴In that day," says the Lord, "I will strike every horse with terror, and his rider with madness; and I will open my eyes on the house of Judah, and will strike every horse of the peoples with blindness.

⁵The chieftains of Judah will say in their heart, 'The inhabitants of Jerusalem are my strength in the Lord of hosts their God.'

⁶In that day I will make the chieftains of Judah like a pan of fire among wood, and like a flaming torch among sheaves; and they will devour all the surrounding peoples, on the right hand and on the left; and Jerusalem will yet again dwell in their own place, even in Jerusalem.

⁷The Lord also will save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David and the glory of the inhabitants of Jerusalem not be magnified above Judah.

⁸In that day the Lord will defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem. He who is feeble among them at that day will be like David, and the house of David will be like God, like the angel of the Lord before them.

⁹It will happen in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations that come against Jerusalem.

¹⁰I will pour on the house of David, and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplication; and they will look to me whom they have pierced; and they shall mourn for him, as one mourns for his only son, and will grieve bitterly for him, as one grieves for his firstborn.

¹¹In that day there will be a great mourning in Jerusalem, like the mourning of Hadadrimmon in the valley of Megiddon.

¹²The land will mourn, every family apart; the family of the house of David apart, and their wives apart; the family of the house of Nathan apart, and their wives apart;

¹³the family of the house of Levi apart, and their wives apart; the family of the Shimeites apart, and their wives apart;

¹⁴all the families who remain, every family apart, and their wives apart.

¹ALEPH I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will always be in my mouth.

²My soul shall boast in the Lord. The humble shall hear of it, and be glad.

³Oh magnify the Lord with me. Let us exalt his name together.

⁴I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.

⁵They looked to him, and were radiant. Their faces shall never be covered with shame.

⁶This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles.

⁷The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.

⁸Oh taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

⁹Oh fear the Lord, you his holy ones, for there is no lack with those who fear him.

¹⁰The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger, but those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.

¹¹Come, you children, listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

¹²Who is someone who desires life, and loves many days, that he may see good?

¹³Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking lies.

¹⁴Depart from evil, and do good. Seek peace, and pursue it.

¹⁵The Lord's eyes are toward the righteous. His ears listen to their cry.

¹⁶The Lord's face is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

¹⁷They cried, and the Lord hears, and delivers them out of all their troubles.

¹⁸The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, and saves those who have a crushed spirit.

¹⁹Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

²⁰He protects all of his bones. Not one of them is broken.

²¹Evil shall kill the wicked. Those who hate the righteous shall be condemned.

²²The Lord redeems the soul of his servants. None of those who take refuge in him shall be condemned.

¹Do not be envious of evil men; neither desire to be with them:

²for their hearts plot violence, and their lips talk about mischief.

³Through wisdom a house is built; by understanding it is established;

⁴by knowledge the rooms are filled with all rare and beautiful treasure.

⁵A wise man has great power; and a knowledgeable man increases strength;

⁶for by wise guidance you wage your war; and victory is in many advisors.

⁷Wisdom is too high for a fool: he doesn't open his mouth in the gate.

⁸One who plots to do evil will be called a schemer.

⁹The schemes of folly are sin. The mocker is detested by men.

¹⁰If you falter in the time of trouble, your strength is small.

¹¹Rescue those who are being led away to death! Indeed, hold back those who are staggering to the slaughter!

¹²If you say, "Behold, we did not know this;" doesn't he who weighs the hearts consider it? He who keeps your soul, doesn't he know it? Shall he not render to every man according to his work?

¹³My son, eat honey, for it is good; the droppings of the honeycomb, which are sweet to your taste:

¹⁴so you shall know wisdom to be to your soul; if you have found it, then there will be a reward, your hope will not be cut off.

¹⁵Do not lie in wait, wicked man, against the habitation of the righteous. Do not destroy his resting place:

¹⁶for a righteous man falls seven times, and rises up again; but the wicked are overthrown by calamity.

¹⁷Do not rejoice when your enemy falls. Do not let your heart be glad when he is overthrown;

¹⁸lest the Lord see it, and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from him.

¹⁹Do not fret yourself because of evildoers; neither be envious of the wicked:

²⁰for there will be no reward to the evil man; and the lamp of the wicked shall be snuffed out.

²¹My son, fear the Lord and the king. Do not join those who are rebellious:

²²for their calamity will rise suddenly; the destruction from them both-who knows?

²³These also are sayings of the wise. To show partiality in judgment is not good.

²⁴He who says to the wicked, "You are righteous;" peoples shall curse him, and nations shall abhor him-

²⁵but it will go well with those who convict the guilty, and a rich blessing will come on them.

²⁶An honest answer is like a kiss on the lips.

²⁷Prepare your work outside, and get your fields ready. Afterwards, build your house.

²⁸Do not be a witness against your neighbor without cause. Do not deceive with your lips.

²⁹Do not say, "I will do to him as he has done to me; I will render to the man according to his work."

³⁰I went by the field of the sluggard, by the vineyard of the man void of understanding;

³¹Behold, it was all grown over with thorns. Its surface was covered with nettles, and its stone wall was broken down.

³²Then I saw, and considered well. I saw, and received instruction:

³³a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep;

³⁴so your poverty will come as a robber, and your want as an armed man.