A Prophecy against Gog

¹And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²“Son of man, set your face against Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.Prophesy against him

³and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal.

⁴I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws, and bring you out with all your army—your horses, your horsemen in full armor, and a great company armed with shields and bucklers, all brandishing their swords.

⁵Persia, Cush,and Put will accompany them, all with shields and helmets,

⁶as well as Gomer with all its troops, and Beth-togarmah from the far north with all its troops—the many nations with you.

⁷Get ready; prepare yourself, you and all your company gathered around you; you will be their guard.

⁸After a long time you will be summoned. In the latter years you will enter a land that has recovered from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They had been brought out from the nations, and all now dwell securely.

⁹You and all your troops, and many peoples with you will go up, advancing like a thunderstorm; you will be like a cloud covering the land.

¹⁰This is what the Lord GOD says: On that day, thoughts will arise in your mind, and you will devise an evil plan.

¹¹You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will come against a quiet people who dwell securely, all of them living without walls or bars or gates—

¹²in order to seize the spoil and carry off the plunder, to turn a hand against the desolate places now inhabited and against a people gathered from the nations, who have acquired livestock and possessions and who live at the center of the land.’

¹³Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish with all its villageswill ask, ‘Have you come to capture the plunder? Have you assembled your hordes to carry away loot, to make off with silver and gold, to take cattle and goods, to seize great spoil?’

¹⁴Therefore prophesy, son of man, and tell Gog that this is what the Lord GOD says: On that day when My people Israel are dwelling securely, will you not take notice of this?

¹⁵And you will come from your place out of the far north—you and many peoples with you, all riding horses—a mighty horde, a huge army.

¹⁶You will advance against My people Israel like a cloud covering the land. It will happen in the latter days, O Gog, that I will bring you against My land, so that the nations may know Me when I show Myself holy in you before their eyes.

¹⁷This is what the Lord GOD says: Are you the one of whom I have spoken in former days through My servants, the prophets of Israel, who in those times prophesied for years that I would bring you against them?

¹⁸Now on that day when Gog comes against the land of Israel, declares the Lord GOD, My wrath will flare up.

¹⁹In My zeal and fiery rage I proclaim that on that day there will be a great earthquake in the land of Israel.

²⁰The fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, every creature that crawls upon the ground, and all mankind on the face of the earth will tremble at My presence. The mountains will be thrown down, the cliffs will collapse, and every wall will fall to the ground.

²¹And I will summon a sword against Gog on all My mountains, declares the Lord GOD, and every man’s sword will be against his brother.

²²I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed. I will pour out torrents of rain, hailstones, fire, and sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.

²³I will magnify and sanctify Myself, and I will reveal Myself in the sight of many nations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.

Jerusalem the Useless Vine

¹Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

²“Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any other branch among the trees in the forest?

³Can wood be taken from it to make something useful? Or can one make from it a peg on which to hang utensils?

⁴No, it is cast into the fire for fuel. The fire devours both ends, and the middle is charred. Can it be useful for anything?

⁵Even when it was whole, it could not be made useful. How much less can it ever be useful when the fire has consumed it and charred it!

⁶Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I will give up the people of Jerusalem.

⁷And I will set My face against them. Though they may have escaped the fire, yet another fire will consume them. And when I set My face against them, you will know that I am the LORD.

⁸Thus I will make the land desolate, because they have acted unfaithfully,’ declares the Lord GOD.”

The Vision of the Four Chariots

¹And again I lifted up my eyes and saw four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze.

²The first chariot had red horses, the second black horses,

³the third white horses, and the fourth dappled horses—all of them strong.

⁴So I inquired of the angel who was speaking with me, “What are these, my lord?”

⁵And the angel told me, “These are the four spiritsof heaven, going forth from their station before the Lord of all the earth.

⁶The one with the black horses is going toward the land of the north, the one with the white horses toward the west,and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.”

⁷As the strong horses went out, they were eager to go and patrol the earth; and the LORD said, “Go and patrol the earth.” So they patrolled the earth.

⁸Then the LORD summoned me and said, “Behold, those going to the land of the north have given rest to My Spirit in the land of the north.”

The Crown and the Temple

⁹The word of the LORD also came to me, saying,

¹⁰“Take an offering from the exiles—from Heldai, Tobijah, and Jedaiah, who have arrived from Babylon—and go that same day to the house of Josiah son of Zephaniah.

¹¹Take silver and gold, make an ornate crown, and set it on the head of the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak.

¹²And you are to tell him that this is what the LORD of Hosts says: ‘Here is a man whose name is the Branch, and He will branch out from His place and build the temple of the LORD.

¹³Yes, He will build the temple of the LORD; He will be clothed in splendor and will sit on His throne and rule. And He will be a priest on His throne,and there will be peaceful counsel between the two.’

¹⁴The crown will reside in the temple of the LORD as a memorial to Helem,Tobijah, Jedaiah, and the graciousson of Zephaniah.

¹⁵Even those far away will come and build the temple of the LORD, and you will know that the LORD of Hosts has sent Me to you. This will happen if you diligently obey the voice of the LORD your God.”

Thanksgiving for Deliverance

¹Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good;His loving devotion endures forever.

²Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy

³and gathered from the lands,from east and west, from north and south.

⁴Some wandered in desert wastelands,finding no path to a city in which to dwell.

⁵They were hungry and thirsty;their soul fainted within them.

⁶Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He delivered them from their distress.

⁷He led them on a straight pathto reach a city where they could live.

⁸Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

⁹For He satisfies the thirstyand fills the hungry with good things.

¹⁰Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,prisoners in affliction and chains,

¹¹because they rebelled against the words of Godand despised the counsel of the Most High.

¹²He humbled their hearts with hard labor;they stumbled, and there was no one to help.

¹³Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He saved them from their distress.

¹⁴He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of deathand broke away their chains.

¹⁵Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

¹⁶For He has broken down the gates of bronzeand cut through the bars of iron.

¹⁷Fools, in their rebellious ways,and through their iniquities, suffered affliction.

¹⁸They loathed all foodand drew near to the gates of death.

¹⁹Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He saved them from their distress.

²⁰He sent forth His word and healed them;He rescued them from the Pit.

²¹Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

²²Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgivingand declare His works with rejoicing.

²³Others went out to sea in ships,conducting trade on the mighty waters.

²⁴They saw the works of the LORD,and His wonders in the deep.

²⁵For He spoke and raised a tempestthat lifted the waves of the sea.

²⁶They mounted up to the heavens, then sunk to the depths;their courage melted in their anguish.

²⁷They reeled and staggered like drunkards,and all their skill was useless.

²⁸Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,and He brought them out of their distress.

²⁹He calmed the storm to a whisper,and the waves of the seawere hushed.

³⁰They rejoiced in the silence,and He guided them to the harbor they desired.

³¹Let them give thanks to the LORD for His loving devotionand His wonders to the sons of men.

³²Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the peopleand praise Him in the council of the elders.

³³He turns rivers into deserts,springs of water into thirsty ground,

³⁴and fruitful land into fields of salt,because of the wickedness of its dwellers.

³⁵He turns a desert into pools of waterand a dry land into flowing springs.

³⁶He causes the hungry to settle there,that they may establish a city in which to dwell.

³⁷They sow fields and plant vineyardsthat yield a fruitful harvest.

³⁸He blesses them, and they multiply greatly;He does not let their herds diminish.

³⁹When they are decreased and humbledby oppression, evil, and sorrow,

⁴⁰He pours out contempt on the noblesand makes them wander in a trackless wasteland.

⁴¹But He lifts the needy from afflictionand increases their families like flocks.

⁴²The upright see and rejoice,and all iniquity shuts its mouth.

⁴³Let him who is wise pay heed to these thingsand consider the loving devotion of the LORD.