Zechariah 14

The Day Is Coming

1-2 Note well:God’s Judgment Day is on the way:

“Plunder will be piled high and handed out.

I’m bringing all the godless nations

to war against Jerusalem—

Houses plundered,

women raped,

Half the city taken into exile,

the other half left behind.”

3-5 But thenGodwill march out against the godless nations and fight—a great war! That’s the Day he’ll take his stand on the Mount of Olives, facing Jerusalem from the east. The Mount of Olives will be split right down the middle, from east to west, leaving a wide valley. Half the mountain will shift north, the other half south. Then you will run for your lives down the valley, your escape route that will take you all the way to Azal. You’ll run for your lives, just as you ran on the day of the great earthquake in the days of Uzziah, king of Judah. Then myGodwill arrive and all the holy angels with him.

6-7 What a Day that will be! No more cold nights—in fact, no more nights! The Day is coming—the timing isGod’s—when it will be continuous day. Every evening will be a fresh morning.

8 What a Day that will be! Fresh flowing rivers out of Jerusalem, half to the eastern sea, half to the western sea, flowing year-round, summer and winter!

9 Godwill be king over all the earth, oneGodand only one. What a Day that will be!

10-11 The land will stretch out spaciously around Jerusalem—to Geba in the north and Rimmon in the south, with Jerusalem towering at the center, and the commanding city gates—Gate of Benjamin to First Gate to Corner Gate to Hananel Tower to the Royal Winery—ringing the city full of people. Never again will Jerusalem be totally destroyed. From now on it will be a safe city.

12-14 But this is what will happen to all who fought against Jerusalem:Godwill visit them with a terrible plague. People’s flesh will rot off their bones while they are walking around; their eyes will rot in their sockets and their tongues in their mouths; people will be dying on their feet! Mass hysteria when that happens—total panic! Fellow soldiers fighting and killing each other—holy terror! And then Judah will jump into the fray!

14-15 Treasures from all the nations will be piled high—gold, silver, the latest fashions. The plague will also hit the animals—horses, mules, camels, donkeys. Everything alive in the military camps will be hit by the plague.

16-19 All the survivors from the godless nations that fought against Jerusalem will travel to Jerusalem every year to worship the King,God-of-the-Angel-Armies, and celebrate the Feast of Booths. If any of these survivors fail to make the annual pilgrimage to Jerusalem to worship the King,God-of-the-Angel-Armies, there will be no rain. If the Egyptians don’t make the pilgrimage and worship, there will be no rain for them. Every nation that does not go up to celebrate the Feast of Booths will be hit with the plague. Egypt and any other nation that does not make pilgrimage to celebrate the Feast of Booths gets punished.

20-21 On that Day, the Big Day, all the horses’ harness bells will be inscribed “Holy toGod.” The cooking pots in the Temple ofGodwill be as sacred as chalices and plates on the altar. In fact, all the pots and pans in all the kitchens of Jerusalem and Judah will be holy toGod-of-the-Angel-Armies. People who come to worship, preparing meals and sacrifices, will use them. On that Big Day there will be no buying or selling in the Temple ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/ZEC/14-e0df217e167316aeb4e574b68c463b50.mp3?version_id=97—

Haggai 1

Caught Up with Taking Care of Your Own Houses

1 On the first day of the sixth month of the second year in the reign of King Darius of Persia,God’s Message was delivered by the prophet Haggai to the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and to the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak:

2 A Message fromGod-of-the-Angel-Armies: “The people procrastinate. They say this isn’t the right time to rebuild my Temple, the Temple ofGod.”

3-4 Shortly after that,Godsaid more and Haggai spoke it: “How is it that it’s the ‘right time’ for you to live in your fine new homes while the Home,God’s Temple, is in ruins?”

5-6 And then a little later,God-of-the-Angel-Armies spoke out again:

“Take a good, hard look at your life.

Think it over.

You have spent a lot of money,

but you haven’t much to show for it.

You keep filling your plates,

but you never get filled up.

You keep drinking and drinking and drinking,

but you’re always thirsty.

You put on layer after layer of clothes,

but you can’t get warm.

And the people who work for you,

what are they getting out of it?

Not much—

a leaky, rusted-out bucket, that’s what.”

7 That’s whyGod-of-the-Angel-Armies said:

“Take a good, hard look at your life.

Think it over.”

8-9 ThenGodsaid:

“Here’s what I want you to do:

Climb into the hills and cut some timber.

Bring it down and rebuild the Temple.

Do it just for me. Honor me.

You’ve had great ambitions for yourselves,

but nothing has come of it.

The little you have brought to my Temple

I’ve blown away—there was nothing to it.

9-11 “And why?” (This is a Message fromGod-of-the-Angel-Armies, remember.) “Because while you’ve run around, caught up with taking care of your own houses, my Home is in ruins. That’s why. Because of your stinginess. And so I’ve given you a dry summer and a skimpy crop. I’ve matched your tight-fisted stinginess by decreeing a season of drought, drying up fields and hills, withering gardens and orchards, stunting vegetables and fruit. Nothing—not man or woman, not animal or crop—is going to thrive.”

12 Then the governor, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and the high priest, Joshua son of Jehozadak, and all the people with them listened, really listened, to the voice of theirGod. WhenGodsent the prophet Haggai to them, they paid attention to him. In listening to Haggai, they honoredGod.

13 Then Haggai,God’s messenger, preachedGod’s Message to the people: “I am with you!”God’s Word.

14-15 This is howGodgot Zerubbabel, Joshua, and all the people moving—got them working on the Temple ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies. This happened on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year of King Darius.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/HAG/1-4b4c0190e545d96bdaf8ea897bf6b8b1.mp3?version_id=97—

Haggai 2

This Temple Will End Up Better Than It Started Out

1-3 On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the Word ofGodcame through the prophet Haggai: “Tell Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak and all the people: ‘Is there anyone here who saw the Temple the way it used to be, all glorious? And what do you see now? Not much, right?

4-5 “‘So get to work, Zerubbabel!’—Godis speaking.

“‘Get to work, Joshua son of Jehozadak—high priest!’

“‘Get to work, all you people!’—Godis speaking.

“‘Yes, get to work! For I am with you.’ TheGod-of-the-Angel-Armies is speaking! ‘Put into action the word I covenanted with you when you left Egypt. I’m living and breathing among you right now. Don’t be timid. Don’t hold back.’

6-7 “This is whatGod-of-the-Angel-Armies said: ‘Before you know it, I will shake up sky and earth, ocean and fields. And I’ll shake down all the godless nations. They’ll bring bushels of wealth and I will fill this Temple with splendor.’God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.

8 ‘I own the silver,

I own the gold.’

Decree ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies.

9 “‘This Temple is going to end up far better than it started out, a glorious beginning but an even more glorious finish: a place in which I will hand out wholeness and holiness.’ Decree ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies.”

10-12 On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month (again, this was in the second year of Darius),God’s Message came to Haggai: “God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaks: Consult the priests for a ruling. If someone carries a piece of sacred meat in his pocket, meat that is set apart for sacrifice on the altar, and the pocket touches a loaf of bread, a dish of stew, a bottle of wine or oil, or any other food, will these foods be made holy by such contact?”

The priests said, “No.”

13 Then Haggai said, “How about someone who is contaminated by touching a corpse—if that person touches one of these foods, will it be contaminated?”

The priests said, “Yes, it will be contaminated.”

14 Then Haggai said, “‘So, this people is contaminated. Their nation is contaminated. Everything they do is contaminated. Whatever they do for me is contaminated.’Godsays so.

15-17 “‘Think back. Before you set out to lay the first foundation stones for the rebuilding of my Temple, how did it go with you? Isn’t it true that your foot-dragging, halfhearted efforts at rebuilding the Temple ofGodwere reflected in a sluggish, halfway return on your crops—half the grain you were used to getting, half the wine? I hit you with drought and blight and hail. Everything you were doing got hit. But it didn’t seem to faze you. You continued to ignore me.’God’s Decree.

18-19 “‘Now think ahead from this same date—this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Think ahead from when the Temple rebuilding was launched. Has anything in your fields—vine, fig tree, pomegranate, olive tree—failed to flourish? From now on you can count on a blessing.’”

20-21 God’s Message came a second time to Haggai on that most memorable day, the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month: “Speak to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah:

21-23 “‘I am about to shake up everything, to turn everything upside down and start over from top to bottom—overthrow governments, destroy foreign powers, dismantle the world of weapons and armaments, throw armies into confusion, so that they end up killing one another. And on that day’”—this isGod’s Message—“‘I will take you, O Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, as my personal servant and I will set you as a signet ring, the sign of my sovereign presence and authority. I’ve looked over the field and chosen you for this work.’” The Message ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/HAG/2-b94141649e14dbe57cdbaa7fa774cec7.mp3?version_id=97—

Zephaniah 1

No Longer Giving God a Thought or a Prayer

1 God’s Message to Zephaniah son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah. It came during the reign of Josiah son of Amon, who was king of Judah:

2 “I’m going to make a clean sweep of the earth,

a thorough housecleaning.”God’s Decree.

3 “Men and women and animals,

including birds and fish—

Anything and everything that causes sin—will go,

but especially people.

4-6 “I’ll start with Judah

and everybody who lives in Jerusalem.

I’ll sweep the place clean of every trace

of the sex-and-religion Baal shrines and their priests.

I’ll get rid of the people who sneak up to their rooftops at night

to worship the star gods and goddesses;

Also those who continue to worshipGod

but cover their bases by worshiping other king-gods as well;

Not to mention those who’ve dumpedGodaltogether,

no longer giving him a thought or offering a prayer.

7-13 “Quiet now!

Reverent silence before me,God, the Master!

Time’s up. My Judgment Day is near:

The Holy Day is all set, the invited guests made holy.

On the Holy Day,God’s Judgment Day,

I will punish the leaders and the royal sons;

I will punish those who dress up like foreign priests and priestesses,

Who introduce pagan prayers and practices;

And I’ll punish all who import pagan superstitions

that turn holy places into hellholes.

Judgment Day!”God’s Decree!

“Cries of panic from the city’s Fish Gate,

Cries of terror from the city’s Second Quarter,

sounds of great crashing from the hills!

Wail, you shopkeepers on Market Street!

Moneymaking has had its day. The god Money is dead.

On Judgment Day,

I’ll search through every closet and alley in Jerusalem.

I’ll find and punish those who are sitting it out, fat and lazy,

amusing themselves and taking it easy,

Who think, ‘Goddoesn’t do anything, good or bad.

He isn’t involved, so neither are we.’

But just wait. They’ll lose everything they have,

money and house and land.

They’ll build a house and never move in.

They’ll plant vineyards and never taste the wine.

A Day of Darkness at Noon

14-18 “The Great Judgment Day ofGodis almost here.

It’s countdown time: . . . seven, six, five, four . . .

Bitter and noisy cries on my Judgment Day,

even strong men screaming for help.

Judgment Day is payday—my anger paid out:

a day of distress and anguish,

a day of catastrophic doom,

a day of darkness at noon,

a day of black storm clouds,

a day of bloodcurdling war cries,

as forts are assaulted,

as defenses are smashed.

I’ll make things so bad they won’t know what hit them.

They’ll walk around groping like the blind.

They’ve sinned againstGod!

Their blood will be poured out like old dishwater,

their guts shoveled into slop buckets.

Don’t plan on buying your way out.

Your money is worthless for this.

This is the Day ofGod’s Judgment—mywrath!

Icareabout sin with fiery passion—

A fire to burn up the corrupted world,

a wildfire finish to the corrupting people.”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/ZEP/1-3590b526ae8fa9861deecee8744b1fb9.mp3?version_id=97—

Zephaniah 2

Seek God

1-2 So get yourselves together. Shape up!

You’re a nation without a clue about what it wants.

Do it before you’re blown away

like leaves in a windstorm,

BeforeGod’s Judgment-anger

sweeps down on you,

BeforeGod’s Judgment Day wrath

descends with full force.

3 SeekGod, all you quietly disciplined people

who live byGod’s justice.

SeekGod’s right ways. Seek a quiet and disciplined life.

Perhaps you’ll be hidden on the Day ofGod’s anger.

All Earth-Made Gods Will Blow Away

4-5 Gaza is scheduled for demolition,

Ashdod will be cleaned out by high noon,

Ekron pulled out by the roots.

Doom to the seaside people,

the seafaring people from Crete!

The Word ofGodis bad news for you

who settled Canaan, the Philistine country:

“You’re slated for destruction—

no survivors!”

6-7 The lands of the seafarers

will become pastureland,

A country for shepherds and sheep.

What’s left of the family of Judah will get it.

Day after day they’ll pasture by the sea,

and go home in the evening to Ashkelon to sleep.

Their very ownGodwill look out for them.

He’ll make things as good as before.

8-12 “I’ve heard the crude taunts of Moab,

the mockeries flung by Ammon,

The cruel talk they’ve used to put down my people,

their self-important strutting along Israel’s borders.

Therefore, as sure as I am the living God,” says

God-of-the-Angel-Armies,

Israel’s personal God,

“Moab will become a ruin like Sodom,

Ammon a ghost town like Gomorrah,

One a field of rocks, the other a sterile salt flat,

a moonscape forever.

What’s left of my people will finish them off,

will pick them clean and take over.

This is what they get for their bloated pride,

their taunts and mockeries of the people

ofGod-of-the-Angel-Armies.

Godwill be seen as truly terrible—a Holy Terror.

All earth-made gods will shrivel up and blow away;

And everyone, wherever they are, far or near,

will fall to the ground and worship him.

Also you Ethiopians,

you, too, will die—I’ll see to it.”

13-15 ThenGodwill reach into the north

and destroy Assyria.

He will waste Nineveh,

leave her dry and treeless as a desert.

The ghost town of a city,

the haunt of wild animals,

Nineveh will be home to raccoons and coyotes—

they’ll bed down in its ruins.

Owls will hoot in the windows, ravens will croak in the doorways—

all that fancy woodwork now a perch for birds.

Can this be the famous Fun City

that had it made,

That boasted, “I’m the Number-One City!

I’m King of the Mountain!”

So why is the place deserted,

a lair for wild animals?

Passersby hardly give it a look;

they dismiss it with a gesture.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/ZEP/2-9236d96df4e04457d58abff9acb79968.mp3?version_id=97—

Zephaniah 3

Sewer City

1-5 Doom to the rebellious city,

the home of oppressors—Sewer City!

The city that wouldn’t take advice,

wouldn’t accept correction,

Wouldn’t trustGod,

wouldn’t even get close to her own god!

Her very own leaders

are rapacious lions,

Her judges are rapacious timber wolves

out every morning prowling for a fresh kill.

Her prophets are out for what they can get.

They’re opportunists—you can’t trust them.

Her priests desecrate the Sanctuary.

They use God’s law as a weapon to maim and kill souls.

YetGodremains righteous in her midst,

untouched by the evil.

He stays at it, day after day, meting out justice.

At evening he’s still at it, strong as ever.

But evil men and women, without conscience

and without shame, persist in evil.

6 “So I cut off the godless nations.

I knocked down their defense posts,

Filled her roads with rubble

so no one could get through.

Her cities were bombed-out ruins,

unlivable and unlived in.

7 “I thought, ‘Surely she’ll honor me now,

accept my discipline and correction,

Find a way of escape from the trouble she’s in,

find relief from the punishment I’m bringing.’

But it didn’t faze her. Bright and early

she was up at it again, doing the same old things.

8 “Well, if that’s what you want, stick around.”

God’s Decree.

“Your day in court is coming,

but remember I’ll be there to bring evidence.

I’ll bring all the nations to the courtroom,

round up all the kingdoms,

And let them feel the brunt of my anger,

my raging wrath.

My zeal is a fire

that will purge and purify the earth.

God Is in Charge at the Center

9-13 “In the end I will turn things around for the people.

I’ll give them a language undistorted, unpolluted,

Words to addressGodin worship

and, united, to serve me with their shoulders to the wheel.

They’ll come from beyond the Ethiopian rivers,

they’ll come praying—

All my scattered, exiled people

will come home with offerings for worship.

You’ll no longer have to be ashamed

of all those acts of rebellion.

I’ll have gotten rid of your arrogant leaders.

No more pious strutting on my holy hill!

I’ll leave a core of people among you

who are poor in spirit—

What’s left of Israel that’s really Israel.

They’ll make their home inGod.

This core holy people

will not do wrong.

They won’t lie,

won’t use words to flatter or seduce.

Content with who they are and where they are,

unanxious, they’ll live at peace.”

14-15 So sing, Daughter Zion!

Raise the rafters, Israel!

Daughter Jerusalem,

be happy! celebrate!

Godhas reversed his judgments against you

and sent your enemies off chasing their tails.

From now on,Godis Israel’s king,

in charge at the center.

There’s nothing to fear from evil

ever again!

God Is Present Among You

16-17 Jerusalem will be told:

“Don’t be afraid.

Dear Zion,

don’t despair.

YourGodis present among you,

a strong Warrior there to save you.

Happy to have you back, he’ll calm you with his love

and delight you with his songs.

18-20 “The accumulated sorrows of your exile

will dissipate.

I, your God, will get rid of them for you.

You’ve carried those burdens long enough.

At the same time, I’ll get rid of all those

who’ve made your life miserable.

I’ll heal the maimed;

I’ll bring home the homeless.

In the very countries where they were hated

they will be venerated.

On Judgment Day

I’ll bring you back home—a great family gathering!

You’ll be famous and honored

all over the world.

You’ll see it with your own eyes—

all those painful partings turned into reunions!”

God’s Promise.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/ZEP/3-beb369da0181100f9feb114361cf8a1c.mp3?version_id=97—

Habakkuk 1

Justice Is a Joke

1-4 The problem as God gave Habakkuk to see it:

God, how long do I have to cry out for help

before you listen?

How many times do I have to yell, “Help! Murder! Police!”

before you come to the rescue?

Why do you force me to look at evil,

stare trouble in the face day after day?

Anarchy and violence break out,

quarrels and fights all over the place.

Law and order fall to pieces.

Justice is a joke.

The wicked have the righteous hamstrung

and stand justice on its head.

God Says, “Look!”

5-11 “Look around at the godless nations.

Look long and hard. Brace yourself for a shock.

Something’s about to take place

and you’re going to find it hard to believe.

I’m about to raise up Babylonians to punish you,

Babylonians, fierce and ferocious—

World-conquering Babylon,

grabbing up nations right and left,

A dreadful and terrible people,

making up its own rules as it goes.

Their horses run like the wind,

attack like bloodthirsty wolves.

A stampede of galloping horses

thunders out of nowhere.

They descend like vultures

circling in on carrion.

They’re out to kill. Death is on their minds.

They collect victims like squirrels gathering nuts.

They mock kings,

poke fun at generals,

Spit on forts,

and leave them in the dust.

They’ll all be blown away by the wind.

Brazen in sin, they call strength their god.”

Why Is God Silent Now?

12-13 God, you’re from eternity, aren’t you?

Holy God, we aren’t going to die, are we?

God, you choseBabyloniansfor your judgment work?

Rock-Solid God, you gavethemthe job of discipline?

But you can’t be serious!

Youcan’t condone evil!

So why don’t you do something about this?

Why are you silentnow?

This outrage! Evil men swallow up the righteous

and you stand around andwatch!

14-16 You’re treating men and women

as so many fish in the ocean,

Swimming without direction,

swimming but not getting anywhere.

Then this evil Babylonian arrives and goes fishing.

He pulls in a good catch.

He catches his limit and fills his creel—

a good day of fishing! He’s happy!

He praises his rod and reel,

piles his fishing gear on an altar and worships it!

It’s made his day,

and he’s going to eat well tonight!

17 Are you going to let this go on and on?

Will you let this Babylonian fisherman

Fish like a weekend angler,

killing people as if they’re nothing but fish?

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/HAB/1-03de923f4a90642660832152e04a246e.mp3?version_id=97—

Habakkuk 2

1 What’s God going to say to my questions? I’m braced for the worst.

I’ll climb to the lookout tower and scan the horizon.

I’ll wait to see what God says,

how he’ll answer my complaint.

Full of Self, but Soul-Empty

2-3 And thenGodanswered: “Write this.

Write what you see.

Write it out in big block letters

so that it can be read on the run.

This vision-message is a witness

pointing to what’s coming.

It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait!

And it doesn’t lie.

If it seems slow in coming, wait.

It’s on its way. It will come right on time.

4 “Look at that man, bloated by self-importance—

full of himself but soul-empty.

But the person in right standing before God

through loyal and steady believing

is fully alive,reallyalive.

5-6 “Note well: Money deceives.

The arrogant rich don’t last.

They are more hungry for wealth

than the grave is for cadavers.

Like death, they always want more,

but the ‘more’ they get is dead bodies.

They are cemeteries filled with dead nations,

graveyards filled with corpses.

Don’t give people like this a second thought.

Soon the whole world will be taunting them:

6-8 “‘Who do you think you are—

getting rich by stealing and extortion?

How long do you think

you can get away with this?’

Indeed, how long before your victims wake up,

stand up and makeyouthe victim?

You’ve plundered nation after nation.

Now you’ll get a taste of your own medicine.

All the survivors are out to plunder you,

a payback for all your murders and massacres.

9-11 “Who do you think you are—

recklessly grabbing and looting,

Living it up, acting like king of the mountain,

acting above it all, above trials and troubles?

You’ve engineered the ruin of your own house.

In ruining others you’ve ruined yourself.

You’ve undermined your foundations,

rotted out your own soul.

The bricks of your house will speak up and accuse you.

The woodwork will step forward with evidence.

12-14 “Who do you think you are—

building a town by murder, a city with crime?

Don’t you know thatGod-of-the-Angel-Armies

makes sure nothing comes of that but ashes,

Makes sure the harder you work

at that kind of thing, the less you are?

Meanwhile the earth fills up

with awareness ofGod’s glory

as the waters cover the sea.

15-17 “Who do you think you are—

inviting your neighbors to your drunken parties,

Giving them too much to drink,

roping them into your sexual orgies?

You thought you were having the time of your life.

Wrong! It’s a time of disgrace.

All the time you were drinking,

you were drinking from the cup of God’s wrath.

You’ll wake up holding your throbbing head, hung over—

hung over from Lebanon violence,

Hung over from animal massacres,

hung over from murder and mayhem,

From multiple violations

of place and people.

18-19 “What’s the use of a carved god

so skillfully carved by its sculptor?

What good is a fancy cast god

when all it tells is lies?

What sense does it make to be a pious god-maker

who makes gods that can’t even talk?

Who do you think you are—

saying to a stick of wood, ‘Wake up,’

Or to a dumb stone, ‘Get up’?

Can they teach you anything about anything?

There’s nothing to them but surface.

There’s nothing on the inside.

20 “But oh!Godis in his holy Temple!

Quiet everyone—a holy silence. Listen!”

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/HAB/2-3b578ec45321a2213ae0c319cf48789f.mp3?version_id=97—

Habakkuk 3

God Racing on the Crest of the Waves

1-2 A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk, with orchestra:

God, I’ve heard what our ancestors say about you,

and I’m stopped in my tracks, down on my knees.

Do among us what you did among them.

Work among us as you worked among them.

And as you bring judgment, as you surely must,

remember mercy.

3-7 God’s on his way again,

retracing the old salvation route,

Coming up from the south through Teman,

the Holy One from Mount Paran.

Skies are blazing with his splendor,

his praises sounding through the earth,

His cloud-brightness like dawn, exploding, spreading,

forked-lightning shooting from his hand—

what power hidden in that fist!

Plague marches before him,

pestilence at his heels!

He stops. He shakes Earth.

He looks around. Nations tremble.

The age-old mountains fall to pieces;

ancient hills collapse like a spent balloon.

The paths God takes are older

than the oldest mountains and hills.

I saw everyone worried, in a panic:

Old wilderness adversaries,

Cushan and Midian, were terrified,

hoping he wouldn’t notice them.

8-16 God, is it River you’re mad at?

Angry at old River?

Were you raging at Sea when you rode

horse and chariot through to salvation?

You unfurled your bow

and let loose a volley of arrows.

You split Earth with rivers.

Mountains saw what was coming.

They twisted in pain.

Flood Waters poured in.

Ocean roared and reared huge waves.

Sun and Moon stopped in their tracks.

Your flashing arrows stopped them,

your lightning-strike spears impaled them.

Angry, you stomped through Earth.

Furious, you crushed the godless nations.

You were out to save your people,

to save your specially chosen people.

You beat the stuffing

out of King Wicked,

Stripped him naked

from head to toe,

Set his severed head on his own spear

and blew away his army.

Scattered they were to the four winds—

and ended up food for the sharks!

You galloped through the Sea on your horses,

racing on the crest of the waves.

When I heard it, my stomach did flips.

I stammered and stuttered.

My bones turned to water.

I staggered and stumbled.

I sit back and wait for Doomsday

to descend on our attackers.

17-19 Though the cherry trees don’t blossom

and the strawberries don’t ripen,

Though the apples are worm-eaten

and the wheat fields stunted,

Though the sheep pens are sheepless

and the cattle barns empty,

I’m singing joyful praise toGod.

I’m turning cartwheels of joy to my Savior God.

Counting onGod’s Rule to prevail,

I take heart and gain strength.

I run like a deer.

I feel like I’m king of the mountain!

(For congregational use, with a full orchestra.)

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/HAB/3-5a8b7e3f23e890a9ed42436e9da3389d.mp3?version_id=97—

Nahum 1

God Is Serious Business

1 A report on the problem of Nineveh, the way God gave Nahum of Elkosh to see it:

2-6 Godis serious business.

He won’t be trifled with.

He avenges his foes.

He stands up against his enemies, fierce and raging.

ButGoddoesn’t lose his temper.

He’s powerful, but it’s a patient power.

Still, no one gets by with anything.

Sooner or later, everyone pays.

Tornadoes and hurricanes

are the wake of his passage,

Storm clouds are the dust

he shakes off his feet.

He yells at the sea: It dries up.

All the rivers run dry.

The Bashan and Carmel mountains shrivel,

the Lebanon orchards shrivel.

Mountains quake in their roots,

hills dissolve into mud flats.

Earth shakes in fear ofGod.

The whole world’s in a panic.

Who can face such towering anger?

Who can stand up to this fierce rage?

His anger spills out like a river of lava,

his fury shatters boulders.

7-10 Godis good,

a hiding place in tough times.

He recognizes and welcomes

anyone looking for help,

No matter how desperate the trouble.

But cozy islands of escape

He wipes right off the map.

No one gets away from God.

Why waste time conniving againstGod?

He’s putting an end to all such scheming.

For troublemakers, no second chances.

Like a pile of dry brush,

Soaked in oil,

they’ll go up in flames.

A Think Tank for Lies

11 Nineveh’s an anthill

of evil plots againstGod,

A think tank for lies

that seduce and betray.

12-13 AndGodhas something to say about all this:

“Even though you’re on top of the world,

With all the applause and all the votes,

you’ll be mowed down flat.

“I’ve afflicted you, Judah, true,

but I won’t afflict you again.

From now on I’m taking the yoke from your neck

and splitting it up for kindling.

I’m cutting you free

from the ropes of your bondage.”

14 God’s orders on Nineveh:

“You’re the end of the line.

It’s all over with Nineveh.

I’m gutting your temple.

Your gods and goddesses go in the trash.

I’m digging your grave. It’s an unmarked grave.

You’re nothing—no, you’relessthan nothing!”

15 Look! Striding across the mountains—

a messenger bringing the latest good news: peace!

A holiday, Judah! Celebrate!

Worship and recommit to God!

No more worries aboutthisenemy.

This one is history. Close the books.

—https://d1b84921e69nmq.cloudfront.net/85/32k/NAM/1-8a30546bc9635f8f90765f915c91b473.mp3?version_id=97—