American Standard Version of 1901
Versliste
And Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and called for the elders of Israel, and for their heads, and for their judges, and for their officers; and they presented themselves before God.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of Israel, Your fathers dwelt of old time beyond the River, even Terah, the father of Abraham, and the father of Nahor: and they served other gods.
And I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
And I gave unto Isaac Jacob and Esau: and I gave unto Esau mount Seir, to possess it: and Jacob and his children went down into Egypt.
And I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt, according to that which I did in the midst thereof: and afterward I brought you out.
And I brought your fathers out of Egypt: and ye came unto the sea; and the Egyptians pursued after your fathers with chariots and with horsemen unto the Red Sea.
And when they cried out unto Jehovah, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and brought the sea upon them, and covered them; and your eyes saw what I did in Egypt: and ye dwelt in the wilderness many days.
And I brought you into the land of the Amorites, that dwelt beyond the Jordan: and they fought with you; and I gave them into your hand, and ye possessed their land; and I destroyed them from before you.
Then Balak the son of Zippor, king of Moab, arose and fought against Israel: and he sent and called Balaam the son of Beor to curse you;
but I would not hearken unto Balaam; therefore he blessed you still: so I delivered you out of his hand.
And ye went over the Jordan, and came unto Jericho: and the men of Jericho fought against you, the Amorite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Girgashite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I delivered them into your hand.
And I sent the hornet before you, which drove them out from before you, even the two kings of the Amorites; not with thy sword, nor with thy bow.
And I gave you a land whereon thou hadst not labored, and cities which ye built not, and ye dwell therein; of vineyards and oliveyards which ye planted not do ye eat.
Now therefore fear Jehovah, and serve him in sincerity and in truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River, and in Egypt; and serve ye Jehovah.
And if it seem evil unto you to serve Jehovah, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve Jehovah.
And the people answered and said, Far be it from us that we should forsake Jehovah, to serve other gods;
for Jehovah our God, he it is that brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of {Hebrew: bondmen.}bondage, and that did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way wherein we went, and among all the peoples through the midst of whom we passed;
and Jehovah drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites that dwelt in the land: therefore we also will serve Jehovah; for he is our God.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve Jehovah; for he is a holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgression nor your sins.
If ye forsake Jehovah, and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you evil, and consume you, after that he hath done you good.
And the people said unto Joshua, Nay; but we will serve Jehovah.
And Joshua said unto the people, Ye are witnesses against yourselves that ye have chosen you Jehovah, to serve him. And they said, We are witnesses.
Now therefore put away, said he, the foreign gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto Jehovah, the God of Israel.
And the people said unto Joshua, Jehovah our God will we serve, and unto his voice will we hearken.
So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and set them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.
And Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a great stone, and set it up there under the oak that was {Or, in}by the sanctuary of Jehovah.
And Joshua said unto all the people, Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it hath heard all the words of Jehovah which he spake unto us: it shall be therefore a witness against you, lest ye deny your God.
So Joshua sent the people away, every man unto his inheritance.
And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Jehovah, died, being a hundred and ten years old.
And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnathserah, which is in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash.
And Israel served Jehovah all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, and had known all the work of Jehovah, that he had wrought for Israel.
And the bones of Joseph, which the children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem, in the parcel of ground which Jacob bought of the sons of Hamor the father of Shechem for a hundred pieces of money: and they became the inheritance of the children of Joseph.
And Eleazar the son of Aaron died; and they buried him in {Or, Gibeah of Phinehas}the hill of Phinehas his son, which was given him in the hill-country of Ephraim.
And {Or, a messenger}the angel of Jehovah came up from Gilgal to Bochim. And he said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you:
and ye shall make no covenant with the inhabitants of this land; ye shall break down their altars. But ye have not hearkened unto my voice: why have ye done this?
Wherefore I also said, I will not drive them out from before you; but they shall be as thorns in your sides, and their gods shall be a snare unto you.
And it came to pass, when the angel of Jehovah spake these words unto all the children of Israel, that the people lifted up their voice, and wept.
And they called the name of that place {That is, Weepers}Bochim: and they sacrificed there unto Jehovah.
Now when Joshua had sent the people away, the children of Israel went every man unto his inheritance to possess the land.
And the people served Jehovah all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders that outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great work of Jehovah that he had wrought for Israel.
And Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of Jehovah, died, being a hundred and ten years old.
And they buried him in the border of his inheritance in Timnath-heres, in the hill-country of Ephraim, on the north of the mountain of Gaash.
And also all that generation were gathered unto their fathers: and there arose another generation after them, that knew not Jehovah, nor yet the work which he had wrought for Israel.
And the children of Israel did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and served the Baalim;
and they forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers, who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods, of the gods of the peoples that were round about them, and bowed themselves down unto them: and they provoked Jehovah to anger.
And they forsook Jehovah, and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.
And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel, and he delivered them into the hands of spoilers that despoiled them; and he sold them into the hands of their enemies round about, so that they could not any longer stand before their enemies.
Whithersoever they went out, the hand of Jehovah was against them for evil, as Jehovah had spoken, and as Jehovah had sworn unto them: and they were sore distressed.
And Jehovah raised up judges, who saved them out of the hand of those that despoiled them.
And yet they hearkened not unto their judges; for they played the harlot after other gods, and bowed themselves down unto them: they turned aside quickly out of the way wherein their fathers walked, obeying the commandments of Jehovah; but they did not so.
And when Jehovah raised them up judges, then Jehovah was with the judge, and saved them out of the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge: for it repented Jehovah because of their groaning by reason of them that oppressed them and vexed them.
But it came to pass, when the judge was dead, that they turned back, and dealt more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down unto them; {Hebrew: they let nothing fall of their doings.}they ceased not from their doings, nor from their stubborn way.
And the anger of Jehovah was kindled against Israel; and he said, Because this nation have transgressed my covenant which I commanded their fathers, and have not hearkened unto my voice,
I also will not henceforth drive out any from before them of the nations that Joshua left when he died;
that by them I may prove Israel, whether they will keep the way of Jehovah to walk therein, as their fathers did keep it, or not.
So Jehovah left those nations, without driving them out hastily; neither delivered he them into the hand of Joshua.
And the ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain.
And Jehovah said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee; for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected me, that I should not be king over them.
And Samuel said unto Saul, I will not return with thee; for thou hast rejected the word of Jehovah, and Jehovah hath rejected thee from being king over Israel.
For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, and after Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites.
And Solomon did that which was evil in the sight of Jehovah, and went not fully after Jehovah, as did David his father.
Then did Solomon build a high place for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, in the mount that is before Jerusalem, and for Molech the abomination of the children of Ammon.
And so did he for all his foreign wives, who burnt incense and sacrificed unto their gods.
And Jehovah was angry with Solomon, because his heart was turned away from Jehovah, the God of Israel, who had appeared unto him twice,
and had commanded him concerning this thing, that he should not go after other gods: but he kept not that which Jehovah commanded.
Wherefore Jehovah said unto Solomon, Forasmuch as {Hebrew: is with thee.}this is done of thee, and thou hast not kept my covenant and my statutes, which I have commanded thee, I will surely rend the kingdom from thee, and will give it to thy servant.
And king Ahaz went to Damascus to meet Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and saw the altar that was at Damascus; and king Ahaz sent to Urijah the priest the fashion of the altar, and the pattern of it, according to all the workmanship thereof.
And Urijah the priest built an altar: according to all that king Ahaz had sent from Damascus, so did Urijah the priest make it against the coming of king Ahaz from Damascus.
And when the king was come from Damascus, the king saw the altar: and the king drew near unto the altar, and {Or, went up unto it}offered thereon.
And he burnt his burnt-offering and his meal-offering, and poured his drink-offering, and sprinkled the blood of {Hebrew: the peace-offerings which were his.}his peace-offerings, upon the altar.
And the brazen altar, which was before Jehovah, he brought from the forefront of the house, from between his altar and the house of Jehovah, and put it on the north side of his altar.
And Jehovah, the God of their fathers, sent to them by his messengers, rising up early and sending, because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling-place:
but they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and scoffed at his prophets, until the wrath of Jehovah arose against his people, till there was no {Hebrew: healing.}remedy.
And it came to pass, when the king dwelt in his house, and Jehovah had given him rest from all his enemies round about,
that the king said unto Nathan the prophet, See now, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.
And Nathan said to the king, Go, do all that is in thy heart; for Jehovah is with thee.
And it came to pass the same night, that the word of Jehovah came unto Nathan, saying,
Go and tell my servant David, Thus saith Jehovah, Shalt thou build me a house for me to dwell in?
for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up the children of Israel out of Egypt, even to this day, but have walked in a tent and in a tabernacle.
In all places wherein I have walked with all the children of Israel, spake I a word with {In 1 Chronicles 17:6, any of the judges.}any of the tribes of Israel, whom I commanded to be shepherd of my people Israel, saying, Why have ye not built me a house of cedar?
Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, I took thee from the {Or, pasture}sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be {Or, leader}prince over my people, over Israel;
and I have been with thee whithersoever thou wentest, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a great name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth.
And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as at the first,
and as from the day that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel; and I {Or, have caused}will cause thee to rest from all thine enemies. Moreover Jehovah telleth thee that Jehovah will make thee a house.
When thy days are fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, that shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom.
He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever.
I will be his father, and he shall be my son: if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men;
but my lovingkindness shall not depart from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee.
And thy house and thy kingdom shall be made sure for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever.
According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Then David the king went in, and sat before Jehovah; and he said, Who am I, O Lord Jehovah, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far?
And this was yet a small thing in thine eyes, O Lord Jehovah; but thou hast spoken also of thy servant's house for a great while to come; {Or, and is this the law of man, O Lord Jehovah?}and this too after the manner of men, O Lord Jehovah!
And what can David say more unto thee? for thou knowest thy servant, O Lord Jehovah.
For thy word's sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou wrought all this greatness, to make thy servant know it.
Wherefore thou art great, O Jehovah God: for there is none like thee, neither is there any God besides thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.
{Or, And who is like thy people, like Israel, a nation that is alone in the earth &c.}And what one nation in the earth is like thy people, even like Israel, whom God went to redeem unto himself for a people, and to make him a name, and to do great things for you, and terrible things for thy land, before thy people, whom thou redeemedst to thee out of Egypt, from the nations and their gods?
And thou didst establish to thyself thy people Israel to be a people unto thee for ever; and thou, Jehovah, becamest their God.
And now, O Jehovah God, the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, confirm thou it for ever, and do as thou hast spoken.
And let thy name be magnified for ever, saying, Jehovah of hosts is God over Israel; and the house of thy servant David shall be established before thee.
For thou, O Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, hast revealed to thy servant, saying, I will build thee a house: therefore hath thy servant {Or, been bold}found in his heart to pray this prayer unto thee.
And now, O Lord Jehovah, thou art God, and thy words are truth, and thou hast promised this good thing unto thy servant:
now therefore {Or, begin and bless}let it please thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee; for thou, O Lord Jehovah, hast spoken it: and with thy blessing let the house of thy servant be blessed for ever.
And it came to pass, when David dwelt in his house, that David said to Nathan the prophet, Lo, I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of the covenant of Jehovah dwelleth under curtains.
And Nathan said unto David, Do all that is in thy heart; for God is with thee.
And it came to pass the same night, that the word of God came to Nathan, saying,
Go and tell David my servant, Thus saith Jehovah, Thou shalt not build me a house to dwell in:
for I have not dwelt in a house since the day that I brought up Israel, unto this day, but {Hebrew: have been.}have gone from tent to tent, and from one tabernacle to another.
In all places wherein I have walked with all Israel, spake I a word with any of the judges of Israel, whom I commanded to be shepherd of my people, saying, Why have ye not built me a house of cedar?
Now therefore thus shalt thou say unto my servant David, Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, I took thee from the {Or, pasture}sheepcote, from following the sheep, that thou shouldest be {Or, leader}prince over my people Israel:
and I have been with thee whithersoever thou hast gone, and have cut off all thine enemies from before thee; and I will make thee a name, like unto the name of the great ones that are in the earth.
And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness waste them any more, as at the first,
and as from the day that I commanded judges to be over my people Israel; and I {Or, have subdued}will subdue all thine enemies. Moreover I tell thee that Jehovah will build thee a house.
And it shall come to pass, when thy days are fulfilled that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will set up thy seed after thee, who shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.
He shall build me a house, and I will establish his throne for ever.
I will be his father, and he shall be my son: and I will not take my lovingkindness away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee;
but I will settle him in my house and in my kingdom for ever; and his throne shall be established for ever.
According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
Then David the king went in, and sat before Jehovah; and he said, Who am I, O Jehovah God, and what is my house, that thou hast brought me thus far?
And this was a small thing in thine eyes, O God; but thou hast spoken of thy servant's house for a great while to come, and hast regarded me according to the estate of a man of high degree, O Jehovah God.
What can David say yet more unto thee concerning the honor which is done to thy servant? for thou knowest thy servant.
O Jehovah, for thy servant's sake, and according to thine own heart, hast thou wrought all this greatness, to make known all these great things.
O Jehovah, there is none like thee, neither is there any God besides thee, according to all that we have heard with our ears.
{Or, And who is like thy people Israel, a nation that is alone in the earth &c.}And what one nation in the earth is like thy people Israel, whom God went to redeem unto himself for a people, to make thee a name by great and terrible things, in driving out nations from before thy people, whom thou redeemedest out of Egypt?
For thy people Israel didst thou make thine own people for ever; and thou, Jehovah, becamest their God.
And now, O Jehovah, let the word that thou hast spoken concerning thy servant, and concerning his house, be established for ever, and do as thou hast spoken.
{Or, Yea, let it be established, and let thy name be magnified &c.}And let thy name be established and magnified for ever, saying, Jehovah of hosts is the God of Israel, even a God to Israel: and the house of David thy servant is established before thee.
For thou, O my God, hast revealed to thy servant that thou wilt build him a house: therefore hath thy servant found in his heart to pray before thee.
And now, O Jehovah, thou art God, and hast promised this good thing unto thy servant:
and now it hath pleased thee to bless the house of thy servant, that it may continue for ever before thee: for thou, O Jehovah, hast blessed, and it is blessed for ever.
And I will appoint a place for my people Israel, and will plant them, that they may dwell in their own place, and be moved no more; neither shall the children of wickedness afflict them any more, as at the first,
And it shall come to pass, when thy days are fulfilled that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will set up thy seed after thee, who shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom.
God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers manners,
hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in {Greek: a Son.}his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the {Greek: ages. Compare 1 Timothy 1:17}worlds;
who being the effulgence of his glory, and {Or, the impress of his substance}the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had made purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
having become by so much better than the angels, as he hath inherited a more excellent name than they.
For unto which of the angels said he at any time, {Psalm 2:7}Thou art my Son,This day have I begotten thee?and again, {2 Samuel 7:14}I will be to him a Father,And he shall be to me a Son?
{Or, And again, when he bringeth in}And when he again {Or, shall have brought in}bringeth in the firstborn into {Greek: the inhabited earth.}the world he saith, {Deuteronomy 32:43 Septuagint Version; compare Psalm 97:7}And let all the angels of God worship him.
And of the angels he saith, {Psalm 104:4}Who maketh his angels winds,And his ministers a flame of fire:
but of the Son he saith, {Psalm 14:6 f} { Or, Thy throne is God for &c.}Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever;And the sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of {The two oldest Greek manuscripts read his.}thy kingdom.
Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity;Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed theeWith the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
And, {Psalm 102:25 ff.}Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth,And the heavens are the works of thy hands:
They shall perish; but thou continuest:And they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
And as a mantle shalt thou roll them up,As a garment, and they shall be changed:But thou art the same,And thy years shall not fail.
But of which of the angels hath he said at any time, {Psalm 110:1}Sit thou on my right hand,Till I make thine enemies the footstool of thy feet?
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?
and I will {Or, bring my hand again}turn my hand upon thee, and {Hebrew: as with lye.}thoroughly purge away thy dross, and will take away all thy {Or, alloy}tin;
and I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning: afterward thou shalt be called The city of righteousness, a faithful town.
Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and {Or, they that return of her}her converts with righteousness.
But the {Hebrew: breaking.}destruction of transgressors and sinners shall be together, and they that forsake Jehovah shall be consumed.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, that standeth for an ensign of the peoples, unto him shall the nations seek; and his resting-place shall be {Hebrew: glory.}glorious.
Look upon Zion, the city of our {Or, set feasts}solemnites: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tent that shall not be removed, the stakes whereof shall never be plucked up, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.
But there Jehovah will be with us in majesty, {Or, but in the place…streams there shall go &c.}a place of broad rivers and streams, wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.
For Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah is our lawgiver, Jehovah is our king; he will save us.
Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not strengthen the foot of their mast, they could not spread the sail: then was the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame took the prey.
And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.
But Zion said, Jehovah hath forsaken me, and the Lord hath forgotten me.
Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, these may forget, yet will not I forget thee.
Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me.
Thy children make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth from thee.
Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold: all these gather themselves together, and come to thee. As I live, saith Jehovah, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all as with an ornament, and gird thyself with them, like a bride.
For, as for thy waste and thy desolate places, and thy land that hath been destroyed, surely now shalt thou be too strait for the inhabitants, and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.
The children of thy bereavement shall yet say in thine ears, The place is too strait for me; give place to me that I may dwell.
Then shalt thou say in thy heart, Who hath {Or, borne}begotten me these, seeing I have been bereaved of my children, and am {Or, barren}solitary, an exile, and wandering to and fro? and who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where were they?
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I will lift up my hand to the nations, and set up my ensign to the peoples; and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.
And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their queens thy nursing mothers: they shall bow down to thee with their faces to the earth, and lick the dust of thy feet; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah; and they that wait for me shall not be put to shame.
And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith Jehovah, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Jehovah; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they {Or, visit}miss it; neither {Or, shall that be done any more}shall it be made any more.
At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart.
In those days the house of Judah shall walk {Or, to}with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers.
Thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel, Yet again shall they use this speech in the land of Judah and in the cities thereof, when I shall {Or, return to}bring again their captivity: Jehovah bless thee, O habitation of righteousness, O mountain of holiness.
Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast.
And it shall come to pass that, like as I have watched over them to pluck up and to break down and to overthrow and to destroy and to afflict, so will I watch over them to build and to plant, saith Jehovah.
Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:
Behold, I will gather them out of all the countries, whither I have driven them in mine anger, and in my wrath, and in great indignation; and I will bring them again unto this place, and I will cause them to dwell safely.
And they shall be my people, and I will be their God:
and I will give them one heart and one way, that they may fear me for ever, for the good of them, and of their children after them:
and I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will not turn away from following them, to do them good; and I will put my fear in their hearts, that they may not depart from me.
Yea, I will rejoice over them to do them good, and I will plant them in this land {Hebrew: in truth.}assuredly with my whole heart and with my whole soul.
For thus saith Jehovah: Like as I have brought all this great evil upon this people, so will I bring upon them all the good that I have promised them.
Behold, we are servants this day, and as for the land that thou gavest unto our fathers to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, behold, we are servants in it.
And it yieldeth much increase unto the kings whom thou hast set over us because of our sins: also they have power over our bodies, and over our cattle, at their pleasure, and we are in great distress. {[Chapter 10:1 in Hebrew]}
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, {Or, yet have I been Or, and have been}yet will I be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they are come.
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will gather you from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.
And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.
And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh;
that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
But the unclean spirit, when {Or, it}he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and findeth it not.
If I told you earthly things and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you heavenly things?
And thou, son of man, prophesy unto the mountains of Israel, and say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of Jehovah.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because the enemy hath said against you, Aha! and, The ancient high places are ours in possession;
therefore prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because, even because they have made you desolate, and swallowed you up on every side, that ye might be a possession unto the residue of the nations, and ye are taken up in the lips of talkers, and the evil report of the people;
therefore, ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord Jehovah: Thus saith the Lord Jehovah to the mountains and to the hills, to the watercourses and to the valleys, to the desolate wastes and to the cities that are forsaken, which are become a prey and derision to the residue of the nations that are round about;
therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Surely in the fire of my jealousy have I spoken against the residue of the nations, and against all Edom, that have appointed my land unto themselves for a possession with the joy of all their heart, with despite of soul, to cast it out for a prey.
Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say unto the mountains and to the hills, to the watercourses and to the valleys, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I have spoken in my jealousy and in my wrath, because ye have borne the shame of the nations:
therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I have {Hebrew: lifted up my hand.}sworn, saying, Surely the nations that are round about you, they shall bear their shame.
But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth your branches, and yield your fruit to my people Israel; for they are at hand to come.
For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown;
and I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, even all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded;
and I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and be fruitful; and I will cause you to be inhabited after your former estate, and will do better unto you than at your beginnings: and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.
Yea, I will cause men to walk upon you, even my people Israel; and they shall possess thee, and thou shalt be their inheritance, and thou shalt no more henceforth bereave them of children.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because they say unto you, Thou land art a devourer of men, and hast been a bereaver of thy {Another reading is, nations.}nation;
therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither {Another reading is, cause to stumble.}bereave thy {Another reading is, nations.}nation any more, saith the Lord Jehovah;
neither will I {Or, proclaim against thee}let thee hear any more the shame of the nations, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the peoples any more, neither shalt thou cause thy {Another reading is, nations.}nation to stumble any more, saith the Lord Jehovah.
Moreover the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their doings: their way before me was as the uncleanness of a woman in her impurity.
Wherefore I poured out my wrath upon them for the blood which they had poured out upon the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols;
and I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them.
And when they came unto the nations, whither they went, they profaned my holy name; in that men said of them, These are the people of Jehovah, and are gone forth out of his land.
But I had regard for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations, whither they went.
Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: {Or, I work not for &c.}I do not this for your sake, O house of Israel, but for my holy name, which ye have profaned among the nations, whither ye went.
And I will sanctify my great name, which hath been profaned among the nations, which ye have profaned in the midst of them; and the nations shall know that I am Jehovah, saith the Lord Jehovah, when I shall be sanctified in you before {Or, according to another reading, your}their eyes.
For I will take you from among the nations, and gather you out of all the countries, and will bring you into your own land.
And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep mine ordinances, and do them.
And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.
And I will save you from all your uncleannesses: and I will call for the grain, and will multiply it, and lay no famine upon you.
And I will multiply the fruit of the tree, and the increase of the field, that ye may receive no more the reproach of famine among the nations.
Then shall ye remember your evil ways, and your doings that were not good; and ye shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations.
Nor for your sake {Or, do I work}do I this, saith the Lord Jehovah, be it known unto you: be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: In the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded.
And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, whereas it was a desolation in the sight of all that passed by.
And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are fortified and inhabited.
Then the nations that are left round about you shall know that I, Jehovah, have builded the ruined places, and planted that which was desolate: I, Jehovah, have spoken it, and I will do it.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: For this, moreover, will I be inquired of by the house of Israel, to do it for them: I will increase them with men like a flock.
As the {Hebrew: flock of holy things.}flock for sacrifice, as the flock of Jerusalem in her appointed feasts, so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of men; and they shall know that I am Jehovah.
The hand of Jehovah was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of Jehovah, and set me down in the midst of the valley; and it was full of bones.
And he caused me to pass by them round about: and, behold, there were very many {Hebrew: upon the face of the valley.}in the open valley; and, lo, they were very dry.
And he said unto me, Son of man, can these bones live? And I answered, O Lord Jehovah, thou knowest.
Again he said unto me, Prophesy over these bones, and say unto them, O ye dry bones, hear the word of Jehovah.
Thus saith the Lord Jehovah unto these bones: Behold, I will cause {Or, spirit}breath to enter into you, and ye shall live.
And I will lay sinews upon you, and will bring up flesh upon you, and cover you with skin, and put {Or, spirit}breath in you, and ye shall live; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.
So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a {Or, thundering}noise, and, behold, an earthquake; and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
And I beheld, and, lo, there were sinews upon them, and flesh came up, and skin covered them above; but there was no breath in them.
Then said he unto me, Prophesy unto the {Or, breath}wind, prophesy, son of man, and say to the {Or, breath}wind, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Come from the four winds, O {Or, wind Or, spirit}breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live.
So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood up upon their feet, an exceeding great army.
Then he said unto me, Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel: behold, they say, Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are clean cut off.
Therefore prophesy, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, O my people; and I will bring you into the land of Israel.
And ye shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have opened your graves, and caused you to come up out of your graves, O my people.
And I will put my {Or, breath}Spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I will place you in your own land: and ye shall know that I, Jehovah, have spoken it and performed it, saith Jehovah.
The word of Jehovah came again unto me, saying,
And thou, son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah, and for the children of Israel his companions: then take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and {Or, of}for all the house of Israel his companions:
and join them for thee one to another into one stick, that they may become one in thy hand.
And when the children of thy people shall speak unto thee, saying, Wilt thou not show us what thou meanest by these?
say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel his companions; and I will put them {Or, together with him unto (or, to be) the stock of Judah}with it, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in my hand.
And the sticks whereon thou writest shall be in thy hand before their eyes.
And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will take the children of Israel from among the nations, whither they are gone, and will gather them on every side, and bring them into their own land:
and I will make them one nation in the land, upon the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all;
neither shall they defile themselves any more with their idols, nor with their detestable things, nor with any of their transgressions; but I will save them {Or, with a slight change of text, from all their backslidings}out of all their dwelling-places, wherein they have sinned, and will cleanse them: so shall they be my people, and I will be their God.
And my servant David shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in mine ordinances, and observe my statutes, and do them.
And they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children's children, for ever: and David my servant shall be their prince for ever.
Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will {Or, give it them}place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.
My tabernacle also shall be {Or, over}with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
And the nations shall know that {Or, I, Jehovah, do sanctify Israel}I am Jehovah that sanctifieth Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.
For this people's heart is waxed gross,And their ears are dull of hearing,And their eyes they have closed;Lest, haply they should perceive with their eyes,And hear with their ears,And understand with their heart,And should turn again,And I should heal them.