No More Learning

5:29 Then commanded Belshazzar, and they clothed Daniel with scarlet,
and put a chain of gold about his neck, and made a proclamation
concerning him, that he should be the third ruler in the kingdom.

5:30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain.

5:31 And Darius the Median took the kingdom, being about threescore
and two years old.

6:1 It pleased Darius to set over the kingdom an hundred and twenty
princes, which should be over the whole kingdom; 6:2 And over these
three presidents; of whom Daniel was first: that the princes might
give accounts unto them, and the king should have no damage.

6:3 Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes,
because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set
him over the whole realm.

6:4 Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against
Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor
fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or
fault found in him.

6:5 Then said these men, We shall not find any occasion against this
Daniel, except we find it against him concerning the law of his God.

6:6 Then these presidents and princes assembled together to the king,
and said thus unto him, King Darius, live for ever.

6:7 All the presidents of the kingdom, the governors, and the princes,
the counsellors, and the captains, have consulted together to
establish a royal statute, and to make a firm decree, that whosoever
shall ask a petition of any God or man for thirty days, save of thee,
O king, he shall be cast into the den of lions.

6:8 Now, O king, establish the decree, and sign the writing, that it
be not changed, according to the law of the Medes and Persians, which
altereth not.

6:9 Wherefore king Darius signed the writing and the decree.

6:10 Now when Daniel knew that the writing was signed, he went into
his house; and his windows being open in his chamber toward Jerusalem,
he kneeled upon his knees three times a day, and prayed, and gave
thanks before his God, as he did aforetime.

6:11 Then these men assembled, and found Daniel praying and making
supplication before his God.

6:12 Then they came near, and spake before the king concerning the
king's decree; Hast thou not signed a decree, that every man that
shall ask a petition of any God or man within thirty days, save of
thee, O king, shall be cast into the den of lions? The king answered
and said, The thing is true, according to the law of the Medes and
Persians, which altereth not.

6:13 Then answered they and said before the king, That Daniel, which
is of the children of the captivity of Judah, regardeth not thee, O
king, nor the decree that thou hast signed, but maketh his petition
three times a day.

6:14 Then the king, when he heard these words, was sore displeased
with himself, and set his heart on Daniel to deliver him: and he
laboured till the going down of the sun to deliver him.

6:15 Then these men assembled unto the king, and said unto the king,
Know, O king, that the law of the Medes and Persians is, That no
decree nor statute which the king establisheth may be changed.

6:16 Then the king commanded, and they brought Daniel, and cast him
into the den of lions. Now the king spake and said unto Daniel, Thy
God whom thou servest continually, he will deliver thee.

6:17 And a stone was brought, and laid upon the mouth of the den; and
the king sealed it with his own signet, and with the signet of his
lords; that the purpose might not be changed concerning Daniel.

6:18 Then the king went to his palace, and passed the night fasting:
neither were instruments of musick brought before him: and his sleep
went from him.

6:19 Then the king arose very early in the morning, and went in haste
unto the den of lions.

6:20 And when he came to the den, he cried with a lamentable voice
unto Daniel: and the king spake and said to Daniel, O Daniel, servant
of the living God, is thy God, whom thou servest continually, able to
deliver thee from the lions? 6:21 Then said Daniel unto the king, O
king, live for ever.

6:22 My God hath sent his angel, and hath shut the lions' mouths, that
they have not hurt me: forasmuch as before him innocency was found in
me; and also before thee, O king, have I done no hurt.

6:23 Then was the king exceedingly glad for him, and commanded that
they should take Daniel up out of the den. So Daniel was taken up out
of the den, and no manner of hurt was found upon him, because he
believed in his God.

6:24 And the king commanded, and they brought those men which had
accused Daniel, and they cast them into the den of lions, them, their
children, and their wives; and the lions had the mastery of them, and
brake all their bones in pieces or ever they came at the bottom of the
den.

6:25 Then king Darius wrote unto all people, nations, and languages,
that dwell in all the earth; Peace be multiplied unto you.

6:26 I make a decree, That in every dominion of my kingdom men tremble
and fear before the God of Daniel: for he is the living God, and
stedfast for ever, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed,
and his dominion shall be even unto the end.

6:27 He delivereth and rescueth, and he worketh signs and wonders in
heaven and in earth, who hath delivered Daniel from the power of the
lions.

6:28 So this Daniel prospered in the reign of Darius, and in the reign
of Cyrus the Persian.

7:1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon Daniel had a dream
and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream, and
told the sum of the matters.

7:2 Daniel spake and said, I saw in my vision by night, and, behold,
the four winds of the heaven strove upon the great sea.

7:3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, diverse one from
another.

7:4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till
the wings thereof were plucked, and it was lifted up from the earth,
and made stand upon the feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to
it.

7:5 And behold another beast, a second, like to a bear, and it raised
up itself on one side, and it had three ribs in the mouth of it
between the teeth of it: and they said thus unto it, Arise, devour
much flesh.

7:6 After this I beheld, and lo another, like a leopard, which had
upon the back of it four wings of a fowl; the beast had also four
heads; and dominion was given to it.

7:7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast,
dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron
teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with
the feet of it: and it was diverse from all the beasts that were
before it; and it had ten horns.

7:8 I considered the horns, and, behold, there came up among them
another little horn, before whom there were three of the first horns
plucked up by the roots: and, behold, in this horn were eyes like the
eyes of man, and a mouth speaking great things.

7:9 I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days
did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head
like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his
wheels as burning fire.

7:10 A fiery stream issued and came forth from before him: thousand
thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand
stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

7:11 I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the
horn spake: I beheld even till the beast was slain, and his body
destroyed, and given to the burning flame.

7:12 As concerning the rest of the beasts, they had their dominion
taken away: yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time.

7:13 I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man
came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and
they brought him near before him.

7:14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that
all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is
an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom
that which shall not be destroyed.

7:15 I Daniel was grieved in my spirit in the midst of my body, and
the visions of my head troubled me.

7:16 I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the
truth of all this. So he told me, and made me know the interpretation
of the things.

7:17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall
arise out of the earth.

7:18 But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and
possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.

7:19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was
diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of
iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and
stamped the residue with his feet; 7:20 And of the ten horns that were
in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three
fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very
great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.

7:21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and
prevailed against them; 7:22 Until the Ancient of days came, and
judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came
that the saints possessed the kingdom.

7:23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon
earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the
whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

7:24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall
arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from
the first, and he shall subdue three kings.

7:25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall
wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and
laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and
the dividing of time.

7:26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his
dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

7:27 And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom
under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of
the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all
dominions shall serve and obey him.

7:28 Hitherto is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my
cogitations much troubled me, and my countenance changed in me: but I
kept the matter in my heart.

8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision
appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto
me at the first.

8:2 And I saw in a vision; and it came to pass, when I saw, that I was
at Shushan in the palace, which is in the province of Elam; and I saw
in a vision, and I was by the river of Ulai.

8:3 Then I lifted up mine eyes, and saw, and, behold, there stood
before the river a ram which had two horns: and the two horns were
high; but one was higher than the other, and the higher came up last.

8:4 I saw the ram pushing westward, and northward, and southward; so
that no beasts might stand before him, neither was there any that
could deliver out of his hand; but he did according to his will, and
became great.

8:5 And as I was considering, behold, an he goat came from the west on
the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat
had a notable horn between his eyes.

8:6 And he came to the ram that had two horns, which I had seen
standing before the river, and ran unto him in the fury of his power.

8:7 And I saw him come close unto the ram, and he was moved with
choler against him, and smote the ram, and brake his two horns: and
there was no power in the ram to stand before him, but he cast him
down to the ground, and stamped upon him: and there was none that
could deliver the ram out of his hand.

8:8 Therefore the he goat waxed very great: and when he was strong,
the great horn was broken; and for it came up four notable ones toward
the four winds of heaven.

8:9 And out of one of them came forth a little horn, which waxed
exceeding great, toward the south, and toward the east, and toward the
pleasant land.

8:10 And it waxed great, even to the host of heaven; and it cast down
some of the host and of the stars to the ground, and stamped upon
them.

8:11 Yea, he magnified himself even to the prince of the host, and by
him the daily sacrifice was taken away, and the place of the sanctuary
was cast down.

8:12 And an host was given him against the daily sacrifice by reason
of transgression, and it cast down the truth to the ground; and it
practised, and prospered.

8:13 Then I heard one saint speaking, and another saint said unto that
certain saint which spake, How long shall be the vision concerning the
daily sacrifice, and the transgression of desolation, to give both the
sanctuary and the host to be trodden under foot? 8:14 And he said
unto me, Unto two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the
sanctuary be cleansed.

8:15 And it came to pass, when I, even I Daniel, had seen the vision,
and sought for the meaning, then, behold, there stood before me as the
appearance of a man.

8:16 And I heard a man's voice between the banks of Ulai, which
called, and said, Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision.

8:17 So he came near where I stood: and when he came, I was afraid,
and fell upon my face: but he said unto me, Understand, O son of man:
for at the time of the end shall be the vision.

8:18 Now as he was speaking with me, I was in a deep sleep on my face
toward the ground: but he touched me, and set me upright.

8:19 And he said, Behold, I will make thee know what shall be in the
last end of the indignation: for at the time appointed the end shall
be.

8:20 The ram which thou sawest having two horns are the kings of Media
and Persia.

8:21 And the rough goat is the king of Grecia: and the great horn that
is between his eyes is the first king.

8:22 Now that being broken, whereas four stood up for it, four
kingdoms shall stand up out of the nation, but not in his power.

8:23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors
are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance, and understanding
dark sentences, shall stand up.

8:24 And his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he
shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practise, and shall
destroy the mighty and the holy people.

8:25 And through his policy also he shall cause craft to prosper in
his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and by peace
shall destroy many: he shall also stand up against the Prince of
princes; but he shall be broken without hand.

8:26 And the vision of the evening and the morning which was told is
true: wherefore shut thou up the vision; for it shall be for many
days.

8:27 And I Daniel fainted, and was sick certain days; afterward I rose
up, and did the king's business; and I was astonished at the vision,
but none understood it.

9:1 In the first year of Darius the son of Ahasuerus, of the seed of
the Medes, which was made king over the realm of the Chaldeans; 9:2 In
the first year of his reign I Daniel understood by books the number of
the years, whereof the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah the prophet,
that he would accomplish seventy years in the desolations of
Jerusalem.

9:3 And I set my face unto the Lord God, to seek by prayer and
supplications, with fasting, and sackcloth, and ashes: 9:4 And I
prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord,
the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them
that love him, and to them that keep his commandments; 9:5 We have
sinned, and have committed iniquity, and have done wickedly, and have
rebelled, even by departing from thy precepts and from thy judgments:
9:6 Neither have we hearkened unto thy servants the prophets, which
spake in thy name to our kings, our princes, and our fathers, and to
all the people of the land.

9:7 O LORD, righteousness belongeth unto thee, but unto us confusion
of faces, as at this day; to the men of Judah, and to the inhabitants
of Jerusalem, and unto all Israel, that are near, and that are far
off, through all the countries whither thou hast driven them, because
of their trespass that they have trespassed against thee.

9:8 O Lord, to us belongeth confusion of face, to our kings, to our
princes, and to our fathers, because we have sinned against thee.

9:9 To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we
have rebelled against him; 9:10 Neither have we obeyed the voice of
the LORD our God, to walk in his laws, which he set before us by his
servants the prophets.

9:11 Yea, all Israel have transgressed thy law, even by departing,
that they might not obey thy voice; therefore the curse is poured upon
us, and the oath that is written in the law of Moses the servant of
God, because we have sinned against him.

9:12 And he hath confirmed his words, which he spake against us, and
against our judges that judged us, by bringing upon us a great evil:
for under the whole heaven hath not been done as hath been done upon
Jerusalem.

9:13 As it is written in the law of Moses, all this evil is come upon
us: yet made we not our prayer before the LORD our God, that we might
turn from our iniquities, and understand thy truth.

9:14 Therefore hath the LORD watched upon the evil, and brought it
upon us: for the LORD our God is righteous in all his works which he
doeth: for we obeyed not his voice.

9:15 And now, O Lord our God, that hast brought thy people forth out
of the land of Egypt with a mighty hand, and hast gotten thee renown,
as at this day; we have sinned, we have done wickedly.

9:16 O LORD, according to all thy righteousness, I beseech thee, let
thine anger and thy fury be turned away from thy city Jerusalem, thy
holy mountain: because for our sins, and for the iniquities of our
fathers, Jerusalem and thy people are become a reproach to all that
are about us.

9:17 Now therefore, O our God, hear the prayer of thy servant, and his
supplications, and cause thy face to shine upon thy sanctuary that is
desolate, for the Lord's sake.

9:18 O my God, incline thine ear, and hear; open thine eyes, and
behold our desolations, and the city which is called by thy name: for
we do not present our supplications before thee for our
righteousnesses, but for thy great mercies.

9:19 O Lord, hear; O Lord, forgive; O Lord, hearken and do; defer not,
for thine own sake, O my God: for thy city and thy people are called
by thy name.

9:20 And whiles I was speaking, and praying, and confessing my sin and
the sin of my people Israel, and presenting my supplication before the
LORD my God for the holy mountain of my God; 9:21 Yea, whiles I was
speaking in prayer, even the man Gabriel, whom I had seen in the
vision at the beginning, being caused to fly swiftly, touched me about
the time of the evening oblation.

9:22 And he informed me, and talked with me, and said, O Daniel, I am
now come forth to give thee skill and understanding.

9:23 At the beginning of thy supplications the commandment came forth,
and I am come to shew thee; for thou art greatly beloved: therefore
understand the matter, and consider the vision.

9:24 Seventy weeks are determined upon thy people and upon thy holy
city, to finish the transgression, and to make an end of sins, and to
make reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting
righteousness, and to seal up the vision and prophecy, and to anoint
the most Holy.

9:25 Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the
commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the
Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street
shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times.

9:26 And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but
not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall
destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with
a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined.

9:27 And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in
the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to
cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it
desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be
poured upon the desolate.

10:1 In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a thing was revealed
unto Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar; and the thing was
true, but the time appointed was long: and he understood the thing,
and had understanding of the vision.

10:2 In those days I Daniel was mourning three full weeks.

10:3 I ate no pleasant bread, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth,
neither did I anoint myself at all, till three whole weeks were
fulfilled.

10:4 And in the four and twentieth day of the first month, as I was by
the side of the great river, which is Hiddekel; 10:5 Then I lifted up
mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen,
whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz: 10:6 His body also
was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and
his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to
polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a
multitude.

10:7 And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me
saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they
fled to hide themselves.

10:8 Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there
remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into
corruption, and I retained no strength.

10:9 Yet heard I the voice of his words: and when I heard the voice of
his words, then was I in a deep sleep on my face, and my face toward
the ground.

10:10 And, behold, an hand touched me, which set me upon my knees and
upon the palms of my hands.

10:11 And he said unto me, O Daniel, a man greatly beloved, understand
the words that I speak unto thee, and stand upright: for unto thee am
I now sent.

And when he had spoken this word unto me, I stood trembling.

10:12 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day
that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself
before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words.

10:13 But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and
twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help
me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

10:14 Now I am come to make thee understand what shall befall thy
people in the latter days: for yet the vision is for many days.

10:15 And when he had spoken such words unto me, I set my face toward
the ground, and I became dumb.

10:16 And, behold, one like the similitude of the sons of men touched
my lips: then I opened my mouth, and spake, and said unto him that
stood before me, O my lord, by the vision my sorrows are turned upon
me, and I have retained no strength.

10:17 For how can the servant of this my lord talk with this my lord?
for as for me, straightway there remained no strength in me, neither
is there breath left in me.

10:18 Then there came again and touched me one like the appearance of
a man, and he strengthened me, 10:19 And said, O man greatly beloved,
fear not: peace be unto thee, be strong, yea, be strong. And when he
had spoken unto me, I was strengthened, and said, Let my lord speak;
for thou hast strengthened me.

10:20 Then said he, Knowest thou wherefore I come unto thee? and now
will I return to fight with the prince of Persia: and when I am gone
forth, lo, the prince of Grecia shall come.

10:21 But I will shew thee that which is noted in the scripture of
truth: and there is none that holdeth with me in these things, but
Michael your prince.

11:1 Also I in the first year of Darius the Mede, even I, stood to
confirm and to strengthen him.

11:2 And now will I shew thee the truth. Behold, there shall stand up
yet three kings in Persia; and the fourth shall be far richer than
they all: and by his strength through his riches he shall stir up all
against the realm of Grecia.

11:3 And a mighty king shall stand up, that shall rule with great
dominion, and do according to his will.

11:4 And when he shall stand up, his kingdom shall be broken, and
shall be divided toward the four winds of heaven; and not to his
posterity, nor according to his dominion which he ruled: for his
kingdom shall be plucked up, even for others beside those.

11:5 And the king of the south shall be strong, and one of his
princes; and he shall be strong above him, and have dominion; his
dominion shall be a great dominion.

11:6 And in the end of years they shall join themselves together; for
the king's daughter of the south shall come to the king of the north
to make an agreement: but she shall not retain the power of the arm;
neither shall he stand, nor his arm: but she shall be given up, and
they that brought her, and he that begat her, and he that strengthened
her in these times.

11:7 But out of a branch of her roots shall one stand up in his
estate, which shall come with an army, and shall enter into the
fortress of the king of the north, and shall deal against them, and
shall prevail: 11:8 And shall also carry captives into Egypt their
gods, with their princes, and with their precious vessels of silver
and of gold; and he shall continue more years than the king of the
north.

11:9 So the king of the south shall come into his kingdom, and shall
return into his own land.

11:10 But his sons shall be stirred up, and shall assemble a multitude
of great forces: and one shall certainly come, and overflow, and pass
through: then shall he return, and be stirred up, even to his
fortress.

11:11 And the king of the south shall be moved with choler, and shall
come forth and fight with him, even with the king of the north: and he
shall set forth a great multitude; but the multitude shall be given
into his hand.

11:12 And when he hath taken away the multitude, his heart shall be
lifted up; and he shall cast down many ten thousands: but he shall not
be strengthened by it.

11:13 For the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a
multitude greater than the former, and shall certainly come after
certain years with a great army and with much riches.

11:14 And in those times there shall many stand up against the king of
the south: also the robbers of thy people shall exalt themselves to
establish the vision; but they shall fall.

11:15 So the king of the north shall come, and cast up a mount, and
take the most fenced cities: and the arms of the south shall not
withstand, neither his chosen people, neither shall there be any
strength to withstand.

11:16 But he that cometh against him shall do according to his own
will, and none shall stand before him: and he shall stand in the
glorious land, which by his hand shall be consumed.

11:17 He shall also set his face to enter with the strength of his
whole kingdom, and upright ones with him; thus shall he do: and he
shall give him the daughter of women, corrupting her: but she shall
not stand on his side, neither be for him.

11:18 After this shall he turn his face unto the isles, and shall take
many: but a prince for his own behalf shall cause the reproach offered
by him to cease; without his own reproach he shall cause it to turn
upon him.

11:19 Then he shall turn his face toward the fort of his own land: but
he shall stumble and fall, and not be found.

11:20 Then shall stand up in his estate a raiser of taxes in the glory
of the kingdom: but within few days he shall be destroyed, neither in
anger, nor in battle.

11:21 And in his estate shall stand up a vile person, to whom they
shall not give the honour of the kingdom: but he shall come in
peaceably, and obtain the kingdom by flatteries.

11:22 And with the arms of a flood shall they be overflown from before
him, and shall be broken; yea, also the prince of the covenant.

11:23 And after the league made with him he shall work deceitfully:
for he shall come up, and shall become strong with a small people.

11:24 He shall enter peaceably even upon the fattest places of the
province; and he shall do that which his fathers have not done, nor
his fathers' fathers; he shall scatter among them the prey, and spoil,
and riches: yea, and he shall forecast his devices against the strong
holds, even for a time.

11:25 And he shall stir up his power and his courage against the king
of the south with a great army; and the king of the south shall be
stirred up to battle with a very great and mighty army; but he shall
not stand: for they shall forecast devices against him.

11:26 Yea, they that feed of the portion of his meat shall destroy
him, and his army shall overflow: and many shall fall down slain.

11:27 And both of these kings' hearts shall be to do mischief, and
they shall speak lies at one table; but it shall not prosper: for yet
the end shall be at the time appointed.

11:28 Then shall he return into his land with great riches; and his
heart shall be against the holy covenant; and he shall do exploits,
and return to his own land.

11:29 At the time appointed he shall return, and come toward the
south; but it shall not be as the former, or as the latter.

11:30 For the ships of Chittim shall come against him: therefore he
shall be grieved, and return, and have indignation against the holy
covenant: so shall he do; he shall even return, and have intelligence
with them that forsake the holy covenant.

11:31 And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the
sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and
they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

11:32 And such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by
flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and
do exploits.

11:33 And they that understand among the people shall instruct many:
yet they shall fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by
spoil, many days.

11:34 Now when they shall fall, they shall be holpen with a little
help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.

11:35 And some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and
to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because
it is yet for a time appointed.

11:36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt
himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak
marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the
indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be
done.

11:37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire
of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all.

11:38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god
whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and
with precious stones, and pleasant things.

11:39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god,
whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause
them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain.

11:40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at
him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a
whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and
he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over.

11:41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries
shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even
Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon.

11:42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the
land of Egypt shall not escape.

11:43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of
silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and
the Ethiopians shall be at his steps.

11:44 But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble
him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and
utterly to make away many.

11:45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the
seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and
none shall help him.

12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which
standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of
trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same
time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that
shall be found written in the book.

12:2 And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.

12:3 And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the
firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for
ever and ever.

12:4 But thou, O Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book, even to
the time of the end: many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be
increased.

12:5 Then I Daniel looked, and, behold, there stood other two, the one
on this side of the bank of the river, and the other on that side of
the bank of the river.

12:6 And one said to the man clothed in linen, which was upon the
waters of the river, How long shall it be to the end of these wonders?
12:7 And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters
of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto
heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a
time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to
scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be
finished.

12:8 And I heard, but I understood not: then said I, O my Lord, what
shall be the end of these things? 12:9 And he said, Go thy way,
Daniel: for the words are closed up and sealed till the time of the
end.

12:10 Many shall be purified, and made white, and tried; but the
wicked shall do wickedly: and none of the wicked shall understand; but
the wise shall understand.

12:11 And from the time that the daily sacrifice shall be taken away,
and the abomination that maketh desolate set up, there shall be a
thousand two hundred and ninety days.

12:12 Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three
hundred and five and thirty days.

12:13 But go thou thy way till the end be: for thou shalt rest,
and stand in thy lot at the end of the days.




Hosea


1:1 The word of the LORD that came unto Hosea, the son of Beeri, in
the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah, and in
the days of Jeroboam the son of Joash, king of Israel.

1:2 The beginning of the word of the LORD by Hosea. And the LORD said
to Hosea, Go, take unto thee a wife of whoredoms and children of
whoredoms: for the land hath committed great whoredom, departing from
the LORD.

1:3 So he went and took Gomer the daughter of Diblaim; which
conceived, and bare him a son.

1:4 And the LORD said unto him, Call his name Jezreel; for yet a
little while, and I will avenge the blood of Jezreel upon the house of
Jehu, and will cause to cease the kingdom of the house of Israel.

1:5 And it shall come to pass at that day, that I will break the bow
of Israel, in the valley of Jezreel.

1:6 And she conceived again, and bare a daughter. And God said unto
him, Call her name Loruhamah: for I will no more have mercy upon the
house of Israel; but I will utterly take them away.

1:7 But I will have mercy upon the house of Judah, and will save them
by the LORD their God, and will not save them by bow, nor by sword,
nor by battle, by horses, nor by horsemen.

1:8 Now when she had weaned Loruhamah, she conceived, and bare a son.

1:9 Then said God, Call his name Loammi: for ye are not my people, and
I will not be your God.
1:10 Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of
the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to
pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my
people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the
living God.

1:11 Then shall the children of Judah and the children of Israel be
gathered together, and appoint themselves one head, and they shall
come up out of the land: for great shall be the day of Jezreel.

2:1 Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi; and to your sisters, Ruhamah.

2:2 Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am
I her husband: let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her
sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts; 2:3 Lest I strip
her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her
as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with
thirst.

2:4 And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the
children of whoredoms.

2:5 For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them
hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that
give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my
drink.

2:6 Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a
wall, that she shall not find her paths.

2:7 And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake
them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she
say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better
with me than now.

2:8 For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and
multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.

2:9 Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time
thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool
and my flax given to cover her nakedness.

2:10 And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers,
and none shall deliver her out of mine hand.

2:11 I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new
moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts.

2:12 And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, whereof she hath
said, These are my rewards that my lovers have given me: and I will
make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them.

2:13 And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned
incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her
jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD.

2:14 Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the
wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.

2:15 And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of
Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of
her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of
Egypt.

2:16 And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call
me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali.

2:17 For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and
they shall no more be remembered by their name.

2:18 And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts
of the field and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping
things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the
battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.

2:19 And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth
thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness,
and in mercies.

2:20 I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt
know the LORD.

2:21 And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the
LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; 2:22 And
the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they
shall hear Jezreel.

2:23 And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy
upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which
were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art
my God.

3:1 Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her
friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward
the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of
wine.

3:2 So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for an
homer of barley, and an half homer of barley: 3:3 And I said unto her,
Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and
thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee.

3:4 For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king,
and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image,
and without an ephod, and without teraphim: 3:5 Afterward shall the
children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David
their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter
days.

4:1 Hear the word of the LORD, ye children of Israel: for the LORD
hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is
no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.

4:2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing
adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.

4:3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth
therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the
fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.

4:4 Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another: for thy people are as
they that strive with the priest.

4:5 Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall
fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother.

4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast
rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no
priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will
also forget thy children.

4:7 As they were increased, so they sinned against me: therefore will
I change their glory into shame.

4:8 They eat up the sin of my people, and they set their heart on
their iniquity.

4:9 And there shall be, like people, like priest: and I will punish
them for their ways, and reward them their doings.

4:10 For they shall eat, and not have enough: they shall commit
whoredom, and shall not increase: because they have left off to take
heed to the LORD.

4:11 Whoredom and wine and new wine take away the heart.

4:12 My people ask counsel at their stocks, and their staff declareth
unto them: for the spirit of whoredoms hath caused them to err, and
they have gone a whoring from under their God.

4:13 They sacrifice upon the tops of the mountains, and burn incense
upon the hills, under oaks and poplars and elms, because the shadow
thereof is good: therefore your daughters shall commit whoredom, and
your spouses shall commit adultery.

4:14 I will not punish your daughters when they commit whoredom, nor
your spouses when they commit adultery: for themselves are separated
with whores, and they sacrifice with harlots: therefore the people
that doth not understand shall fall.

4:15 Though thou, Israel, play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend;
and come not ye unto Gilgal, neither go ye up to Bethaven, nor swear,
The LORD liveth.

4:16 For Israel slideth back as a backsliding heifer: now the LORD
will feed them as a lamb in a large place.

4:17 Ephraim is joined to idols: let him alone.

4:18 Their drink is sour: they have committed whoredom continually:
her rulers with shame do love, Give ye.

4:19 The wind hath bound her up in her wings, and they shall be
ashamed because of their sacrifices.

5:1 Hear ye this, O priests; and hearken, ye house of Israel; and give
ye ear, O house of the king; for judgment is toward you, because ye
have been a snare on Mizpah, and a net spread upon Tabor.

5:2 And the revolters are profound to make slaughter, though I have
been a rebuker of them all.

5:3 I know Ephraim, and Israel is not hid from me: for now, O Ephraim,
thou committest whoredom, and Israel is defiled.

5:4 They will not frame their doings to turn unto their God: for the
spirit of whoredoms is in the midst of them, and they have not known
the LORD.

5:5 And the pride of Israel doth testify to his face: therefore shall
Israel and Ephraim fall in their iniquity: Judah also shall fall with
them.

5:6 They shall go with their flocks and with their herds to seek the
LORD; but they shall not find him; he hath withdrawn himself from
them.

5:7 They have dealt treacherously against the LORD: for they have
begotten strange children: now shall a month devour them with their
portions.

5:8 Blow ye the cornet in Gibeah, and the trumpet in Ramah: cry aloud
at Bethaven, after thee, O Benjamin.

5:9 Ephraim shall be desolate in the day of rebuke: among the tribes
of Israel have I made known that which shall surely be.

5:10 The princes of Judah were like them that remove the bound:
therefore I will pour out my wrath upon them like water.

5:11 Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment, because he willingly
walked after the commandment.

5:12 Therefore will I be unto Ephraim as a moth, and to the house of
Judah as rottenness.

5:13 When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then went
Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb: yet could he not heal
you, nor cure you of your wound.

5:14 For I will be unto Ephraim as a lion, and as a young lion to the
house of Judah: I, even I, will tear and go away; I will take away,
and none shall rescue him.

5:15 I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their
offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me
early.

6:1 Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he
will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up.

6:2 After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise
us up, and we shall live in his sight.

6:3 Then shall we know, if we follow on to know the LORD: his going
forth is prepared as the morning; and he shall come unto us as the
rain, as the latter and former rain unto the earth.

6:4 O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? O Judah, what shall I do
unto thee? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early
dew it goeth away.

6:5 Therefore have I hewed them by the prophets; I have slain them by
the words of my mouth: and thy judgments are as the light that goeth
forth.

6:6 For I desired mercy, and not sacrifice; and the knowledge of God
more than burnt offerings.

6:7 But they like men have transgressed the covenant: there have they
dealt treacherously against me.

6:8 Gilead is a city of them that work iniquity, and is polluted with
blood.

6:9 And as troops of robbers wait for a man, so the company of priests
murder in the way by consent: for they commit lewdness.

6:10 I have seen an horrible thing in the house of Israel: there is
the whoredom of Ephraim, Israel is defiled.

6:11 Also, O Judah, he hath set an harvest for thee, when I returned
the captivity of my people.

7:1 When I would have healed Israel, then the iniquity of Ephraim was
discovered, and the wickedness of Samaria: for they commit falsehood;
and the thief cometh in, and the troop of robbers spoileth without.

7:2 And they consider not in their hearts that I remember all their
wickedness: now their own doings have beset them about; they are
before my face.

7:3 They make the king glad with their wickedness, and the princes
with their lies.

7:4 They are all adulterers, as an oven heated by the baker, who
ceaseth from raising after he hath kneaded the dough, until it be
leavened.

7:5 In the day of our king the princes have made him sick with bottles
of wine; he stretched out his hand with scorners.

7:6 For they have made ready their heart like an oven, whiles they lie
in wait: their baker sleepeth all the night; in the morning it burneth
as a flaming fire.

7:7 They are all hot as an oven, and have devoured their judges; all
their kings are fallen: there is none among them that calleth unto me.

7:8 Ephraim, he hath mixed himself among the people; Ephraim is a cake
not turned.

7:9 Strangers have devoured his strength, and he knoweth it not: yea,
gray hairs are here and there upon him, yet he knoweth not.

7:10 And the pride of Israel testifieth to his face: and they do not
return to the LORD their God, nor seek him for all this.

7:11 Ephraim also is like a silly dove without heart: they call to
Egypt, they go to Assyria.

7:12 When they shall go, I will spread my net upon them; I will bring
them down as the fowls of the heaven; I will chastise them, as their
congregation hath heard.

7:13 Woe unto them! for they have fled from me: destruction unto them!
because they have transgressed against me: though I have redeemed
them, yet they have spoken lies against me.

7:14 And they have not cried unto me with their heart, when they
howled upon their beds: they assemble themselves for corn and wine,
and they rebel against me.

7:15 Though I have bound and strengthened their arms, yet do they
imagine mischief against me.

7:16 They return, but not to the most High: they are like a deceitful
bow: their princes shall fall by the sword for the rage of their
tongue: this shall be their derision in the land of Egypt.

8:1 Set the trumpet to thy mouth. He shall come as an eagle against
the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant, and
trespassed against my law.

8:2 Israel shall cry unto me, My God, we know thee.

8:3 Israel hath cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall
pursue him.

8:4 They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and
I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them
idols, that they may be cut off.

8:5 Thy calf, O Samaria, hath cast thee off; mine anger is kindled
against them: how long will it be ere they attain to innocency? 8:6
For from Israel was it also: the workman made it; therefore it is not
God: but the calf of Samaria shall be broken in pieces.

8:7 For they have sown the wind, and they shall reap the whirlwind: it
hath no stalk; the bud shall yield no meal: if so be it yield, the
strangers shall swallow it up.

8:8 Israel is swallowed up: now shall they be among the Gentiles as a
vessel wherein is no pleasure.

8:9 For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself:
Ephraim hath hired lovers.

8:10 Yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather
them, and they shall sorrow a little for the burden of the king of
princes.

8:11 Because Ephraim hath made many altars to sin, altars shall be
unto him to sin.

8:12 I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were
counted as a strange thing.

8:13 They sacrifice flesh for the sacrifices of mine offerings, and
eat it; but the LORD accepteth them not; now will he remember their
iniquity, and visit their sins: they shall return to Egypt.

8:14 For Israel hath forgotten his Maker, and buildeth temples; and
Judah hath multiplied fenced cities: but I will send a fire upon his
cities, and it shall devour the palaces thereof.

9:1 Rejoice not, O Israel, for joy, as other people: for thou hast
gone a whoring from thy God, thou hast loved a reward upon every
cornfloor.

9:2 The floor and the winepress shall not feed them, and the new wine
shall fail in her.

9:3 They shall not dwell in the LORD's land; but Ephraim shall return
to Egypt, and they shall eat unclean things in Assyria.

9:4 They shall not offer wine offerings to the LORD, neither shall
they be pleasing unto him: their sacrifices shall be unto them as the
bread of mourners; all that eat thereof shall be polluted: for their
bread for their soul shall not come into the house of the LORD.

9:5 What will ye do in the solemn day, and in the day of the feast of
the LORD? 9:6 For, lo, they are gone because of destruction: Egypt
shall gather them up, Memphis shall bury them: the pleasant places for
their silver, nettles shall possess them: thorns shall be in their
tabernacles.

9:7 The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are come;
Israel shall know it: the prophet is a fool, the spiritual man is mad,
for the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred.

9:8 The watchman of Ephraim was with my God: but the prophet is a
snare of a fowler in all his ways, and hatred in the house of his God.

9:9 They have deeply corrupted themselves, as in the days of Gibeah:
therefore he will remember their iniquity, he will visit their sins.

9:10 I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers
as the firstripe in the fig tree at her first time: but they went to
Baalpeor, and separated themselves unto that shame; and their
abominations were according as they loved.

9:11 As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, from the
birth, and from the womb, and from the conception.

9:12 Though they bring up their children, yet will I bereave them,
that there shall not be a man left: yea, woe also to them when I
depart from them! 9:13 Ephraim, as I saw Tyrus, is planted in a
pleasant place: but Ephraim shall bring forth his children to the
murderer.

9:14 Give them, O LORD: what wilt thou give? give them a miscarrying
womb and dry breasts.

9:15 All their wickedness is in Gilgal: for there I hated them: for
the wickedness of their doings I will drive them out of mine house, I
will love them no more: all their princes are revolters.

9:16 Ephraim is smitten, their root is dried up, they shall bear no
fruit: yea, though they bring forth, yet will I slay even the beloved
fruit of their womb.

9:17 My God will cast them away, because they did not hearken unto
him: and they shall be wanderers among the nations.

10:1 Israel is an empty vine, he bringeth forth fruit unto himself:
according to the multitude of his fruit he hath increased the altars;
according to the goodness of his land they have made goodly images.

10:2 Their heart is divided; now shall they be found faulty: he shall
break down their altars, he shall spoil their images.

10:3 For now they shall say, We have no king, because we feared not
the LORD; what then should a king do to us? 10:4 They have spoken
words, swearing falsely in making a covenant: thus judgment springeth
up as hemlock in the furrows of the field.

10:5 The inhabitants of Samaria shall fear because of the calves of
Bethaven: for the people thereof shall mourn over it, and the priests
thereof that rejoiced on it, for the glory thereof, because it is
departed from it.

10:6 It shall be also carried unto Assyria for a present to king
Jareb: Ephraim shall receive shame, and Israel shall be ashamed of his
own counsel.

10:7 As for Samaria, her king is cut off as the foam upon the water.

10:8 The high places also of Aven, the sin of Israel, shall be
destroyed: the thorn and the thistle shall come up on their altars;
and they shall say to the mountains, Cover us; and to the hills, Fall
on us.

10:9 O Israel, thou hast sinned from the days of Gibeah: there they
stood: the battle in Gibeah against the children of iniquity did not
overtake them.

10:10 It is in my desire that I should chastise them; and the people
shall be gathered against them, when they shall bind themselves in
their two furrows.

10:11 And Ephraim is as an heifer that is taught, and loveth to tread
out the corn; but I passed over upon her fair neck: I will make
Ephraim to ride; Judah shall plow, and Jacob shall break his clods.

10:12 Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap in mercy; break up your
fallow ground: for it is time to seek the LORD, till he come and rain
righteousness upon you.

10:13 Ye have plowed wickedness, ye have reaped iniquity; ye have
eaten the fruit of lies: because thou didst trust in thy way, in the
multitude of thy mighty men.

10:14 Therefore shall a tumult arise among thy people, and all thy
fortresses shall be spoiled, as Shalman spoiled Betharbel in the day
of battle: the mother was dashed in pieces upon her children.

10:15 So shall Bethel do unto you because of your great wickedness: in
a morning shall the king of Israel utterly be cut off.

11:1 When Israel was a child, then I loved him, and called my son out
of Egypt.

11:2 As they called them, so they went from them: they sacrificed unto
Baalim, and burned incense to graven images.

11:3 I taught Ephraim also to go, taking them by their arms; but they
knew not that I healed them.

11:4 I drew them with cords of a man, with bands of love: and I was to
them as they that take off the yoke on their jaws, and I laid meat
unto them.

11:5 He shall not return into the land of Egypt, and the Assyrian
shall be his king, because they refused to return.

11:6 And the sword shall abide on his cities, and shall consume his
branches, and devour them, because of their own counsels.

11:7 And my people are bent to backsliding from me: though they called
them to the most High, none at all would exalt him.

11:8 How shall I give thee up, Ephraim? how shall I deliver thee,
Israel? how shall I make thee as Admah? how shall I set thee as
Zeboim? mine heart is turned within me, my repentings are kindled
together.

11:9 I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not
return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God, and not man; the Holy One in
the midst of thee: and I will not enter into the city.

11:10 They shall walk after the LORD: he shall roar like a lion: when
he shall roar, then the children shall tremble from the west.

11:11 They shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of
the land of Assyria: and I will place them in their houses, saith the
LORD.

11:12 Ephraim compasseth me about with lies, and the house of Israel
with deceit: but Judah yet ruleth with God, and is faithful with the
saints.

12:1 Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind: he
daily increaseth lies and desolation; and they do make a covenant with
the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.

12:2 The LORD hath also a controversy with Judah, and will punish
Jacob according to his ways; according to his doings will he
recompense him.

12:3 He took his brother by the heel in the womb, and by his strength
he had power with God: 12:4 Yea, he had power over the angel, and
prevailed: he wept, and made supplication unto him: he found him in
Bethel, and there he spake with us; 12:5 Even the LORD God of hosts;
the LORD is his memorial.

12:6 Therefore turn thou to thy God: keep mercy and judgment and wait
on thy God continually.

12:7 He is a merchant, the balances of deceit are in his hand: he
loveth to oppress.

12:8 And Ephraim said, Yet I am become rich, I have found me out
substance: in all my labours they shall find none iniquity in me that
were sin.

12:9 And I that am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt will yet
make thee to dwell in tabernacles, as in the days of the solemn feast.

12:10 I have also spoken by the prophets, and I have multiplied
visions, and used similitudes, by the ministry of the prophets.

12:11 Is there iniquity in Gilead? surely they are vanity: they
sacrifice bullocks in Gilgal; yea, their altars are as heaps in the
furrows of the fields.

12:12 And Jacob fled into the country of Syria, and Israel served for
a wife, and for a wife he kept sheep.

12:13 And by a prophet the LORD brought Israel out of Egypt, and by a
prophet was he preserved.

12:14 Ephraim provoked him to anger most bitterly: therefore shall he
leave his blood upon him, and his reproach shall his LORD return unto
him.

13:1 When Ephraim spake trembling, he exalted himself in Israel; but
when he offended in Baal, he died.

13:2 And now they sin more and more, and have made them molten images
of their silver, and idols according to their own understanding, all
of it the work of the craftsmen: they say of them, Let the men that
sacrifice kiss the calves.

13:3 Therefore they shall be as the morning cloud and as the early dew
that passeth away, as the chaff that is driven with the whirlwind out
of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney.

13:4 Yet I am the LORD thy God from the land of Egypt, and thou shalt
know no god but me: for there is no saviour beside me.

13:5 I did know thee in the wilderness, in the land of great drought.

13:6 According to their pasture, so were they filled; they were
filled, and their heart was exalted; therefore have they forgotten me.

13:7 Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way
will I observe them: 13:8 I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved
of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I
devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them.

13:9 O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself; but in me is thine help.

13:10 I will be thy king: where is any other that may save thee in all
thy cities? and thy judges of whom thou saidst, Give me a king and
princes? 13:11 I gave thee a king in mine anger, and took him away in
my wrath.

13:12 The iniquity of Ephraim is bound up; his sin is hid.

13:13 The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon him: he is an
unwise son; for he should not stay long in the place of the breaking
forth of children.

13:14 I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem
them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be
thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.

13:15 Though he be fruitful among his brethren, an east wind shall
come, the wind of the LORD shall come up from the wilderness, and his
spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up: he shall
spoil the treasure of all pleasant vessels.

13:16 Samaria shall become desolate; for she hath rebelled against her
God: they shall fall by the sword: their infants shall be dashed in
pieces, and their women with child shall be ripped up.

14:1 O israel, return unto the LORD thy God; for thou hast fallen by
thine iniquity.

14:2 Take with you words, and turn to the LORD: say unto him, Take
away all iniquity, and receive us graciously: so will we render the
calves of our lips.

14:3 Asshur shall not save us; we will not ride upon horses: neither
will we say any more to the work of our hands, Ye are our gods: for in
thee the fatherless findeth mercy.

14:4 I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for mine
anger is turned away from him.

14:5 I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall grow as the lily, and
cast forth his roots as Lebanon.

14:6 His branches shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive
tree, and his smell as Lebanon.

14:7 They that dwell under his shadow shall return; they shall revive
as the corn, and grow as the vine: the scent thereof shall be as the
wine of Lebanon.

14:8 Ephraim shall say, What have I to do any more with idols? I have
heard him, and observed him: I am like a green fir tree. From me is
thy fruit found.

14:9 Who is wise, and he shall understand these things? prudent, and
he shall know them? for the ways of the LORD are right, and the just
shall walk in them: but the transgressors shall fall therein.




Joel


1:1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.

1:2 Hear this, ye old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land.

Hath this been in your days, or even in the days of your fathers? 1:3
Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their
children, and their children another generation.