“ If the skies are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and if they pray toward this Temple and acknowledge your name and turn from their sins because you have punished them,

“你的民因得罪你，你惩罚他们，使天闭塞不下雨，他们若向此处祷告，承认你的名，离开他们的罪，

“你的百姓若得罪了你，你使天闭塞不下雨；他们若向此处祷告，宣认你的名，因你的惩罚而离开他们的罪，

“你的百姓若得罪了你，你使天闭塞不下雨；他们若向此处祷告，宣认你的名，因你的惩罚而离开他们的罪，

“当你的子民得罪你，你惩罚他们，使天不降雨时，如果他们向着这地方祷告，承认你的名，并离开罪恶，

“你的子民因得罪了你，你惩罚他们，使天闭塞不下雨；如果他们向着这地方祷告，承认你的名，离开他们的罪，

「你的民因得罪你，你懲罰他們，使天閉塞不下雨，他們若向此處禱告，承認你的名，離開他們的罪，

「你的百姓若得罪了你，你使天閉塞不下雨；他們若向此處禱告，宣認你的名，因你的懲罰而離開他們的罪，

「你的百姓若得罪了你，你使天閉塞不下雨；他們若向此處禱告，宣認你的名，因你的懲罰而離開他們的罪，

「當你的子民得罪你，你懲罰他們，使天不降雨時，如果他們向著這地方禱告，承認你的名，並離開罪惡，

“你的子民因得罪了你，你懲罰他們，使天閉塞不下雨；如果他們向著這地方禱告，承認你的名，離開他們的罪，

『你人民因犯罪得罪了你，天便被制住而沒有雨水；你這樣懲罰他們，他們若向這聖地而禱告，稱讚你的名，離開他們的罪而歸向你，

民獲罪爾、致天閉塞不雨、遭爾罰時、若向此祈禱、而認爾名、改悔厥罪、

如人獲罪於爾、使天閉塞、雨澤不降、至殿祈禱、呼籲爾名、緣遘患難、去厥罪愆、

如民獲罪於主、致天閉塞不雨、而在此處祈禱、主罰之之後、遂認主之名、悔改罪惡、

“ When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because your people have sinned against you, and when they pray toward this place and give praise to your name and turn from their sin because you have afflicted them,

“ Suppose your people have sinned against you. And because of that, the sky is closed up and there isn’t any rain. But your people pray toward this place. They praise you by admitting they’ve sinned. And they turn away from their sin because you have made them suffer.

“ When heaven is shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, if they pray toward this place and acknowledge your name and turn from their sin, when you afflict them,

When the skies are shut and there is no rain because they have sinned against you, and they pray toward this place and praise your name, and they turn from their sins because you are afflicting them,

“ When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and praise Your name, and turn from their sin when You afflict them,

“ When the heavens are shut up and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, when they pray toward this place and confess Your name, and turn from their sin because You afflict them,

When the heavens are shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee; if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them:

When the skies are shut and there is no rain because they have sinned against You, and they pray toward this place and praise Your name, and they turn from their sins because You are afflicting them,

When the heaven is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against thee;[ yet] if they pray toward this place, and confess thy name, and turn from their sin, when thou dost afflict them;

“ The time will come when the skies are shut up tightly and no rain falls because your people sinned against you. When they direct their prayers toward this place, renew their allegiance to you, and turn away from their sin because you punish them,

“ When the sky is shut up, and there is no rain, because they have sinned against you; if they pray toward this place, and confess your name, and turn from their sin, when you afflict them;

If you do, the Lord’s anger will burn against you. He will shut up the sky and hold back the rain, and the ground will fail to produce its harvests. Then you will quickly die in that good land the Lord is giving you.

I will break your proud spirit by making the skies as unyielding as iron and the earth as hard as bronze.

The skies above will be as unyielding as bronze, and the earth beneath will be as hard as iron.

Then I will return to my place until they admit their guilt and turn to me. For as soon as trouble comes, they will earnestly search for me.”“ Come, let us return to the Lord. He has torn us to pieces; now he will heal us. He has injured us; now he will bandage our wounds.

And if wicked people turn from their wickedness, obey the law, and do what is just and right, they will save their lives.They will live because they thought it over and decided to turn from their sins. Such people will not die.And yet the people of Israel keep saying,‘ The Lord isn’t doing what’s right!’ O people of Israel, it is you who are not doing what’s right, not I.“ Therefore, I will judge each of you, O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign Lord. Repent, and turn from your sins. Don’t let them destroy you!Put all your rebellion behind you, and find yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O people of Israel?I don’t want you to die, says the Sovereign Lord. Turn back and live!

Now Elijah, who was from Tishbe in Gilead, told King Ahab,“ As surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives— the God I serve— there will be no dew or rain during the next few years until I give the word!”Then the Lord said to Elijah,“ Go to the east and hide by Kerith Brook, near where it enters the Jordan River.Drink from the brook and eat what the ravens bring you, for I have commanded them to bring you food.”So Elijah did as the Lord told him and camped beside Kerith Brook, east of the Jordan.The ravens brought him bread and meat each morning and evening, and he drank from the brook.But after a while the brook dried up, for there was no rainfall anywhere in the land.Then the Lord said to Elijah,“ Go and live in the village of Zarephath, near the city of Sidon. I have instructed a widow there to feed you.”So he went to Zarephath. As he arrived at the gates of the village, he saw a widow gathering sticks, and he asked her,“ Would you please bring me a little water in a cup?”As she was going to get it, he called to her,“ Bring me a bite of bread, too.”But she said,“ I swear by the Lord your God that I don’t have a single piece of bread in the house. And I have only a handful of flour left in the jar and a little cooking oil in the bottom of the jug. I was just gathering a few sticks to cook this last meal, and then my son and I will die.”But Elijah said to her,“ Don’t be afraid! Go ahead and do just what you’ve said, but make a little bread for me first. Then use what’s left to prepare a meal for yourself and your son.For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There will always be flour and olive oil left in your containers until the time when the Lord sends rain and the crops grow again!”So she did as Elijah said, and she and Elijah and her family continued to eat for many days.There was always enough flour and olive oil left in the containers, just as the Lord had promised through Elijah.Some time later the woman’s son became sick. He grew worse and worse, and finally he died.Then she said to Elijah,“ O man of God, what have you done to me? Have you come here to point out my sins and kill my son?”

But while in deep distress, Manasseh sought the Lord his God and sincerely humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.And when he prayed, the Lord listened to him and was moved by his request. So the Lord brought Manasseh back to Jerusalem and to his kingdom. Then Manasseh finally realized that the Lord alone is God!

Dress yourselves in burlap and weep, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! Come, spend the night in burlap, you ministers of my God. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God.Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting. Bring the leaders and all the people of the land into the Temple of the Lord your God, and cry out to him there.The day of the Lord is near, the day when destruction comes from the Almighty. How terrible that day will be!Our food disappears before our very eyes. No joyful celebrations are held in the house of our God.The seeds die in the parched ground, and the grain crops fail. The barns stand empty, and granaries are abandoned.How the animals moan with hunger! The herds of cattle wander about confused, because they have no pasture. The flocks of sheep and goats bleat in misery.Lord, help us! The fire has consumed the wilderness pastures, and flames have burned up all the trees.Even the wild animals cry out to you because the streams have dried up, and fire has consumed the wilderness pastures.

I will make it a wild place where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed, a place overgrown with briers and thorns. I will command the clouds to drop no rain on it.

“ Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land.

“ Son of man, suppose the people of a country were to sin against me, and I lifted my fist to crush them, cutting off their food supply and sending a famine to destroy both people and animals.

“ Go ahead and offer sacrifices to the idols at Bethel. Keep on disobeying at Gilgal. Offer sacrifices each morning, and bring your tithes every three days.Present your bread made with yeast as an offering of thanksgiving. Then give your extra voluntary offerings so you can brag about it everywhere! This is the kind of thing you Israelites love to do,” says the Sovereign Lord.“ I brought hunger to every city and famine to every town. But still you would not return to me,” says the Lord.“ I kept the rain from falling when your crops needed it the most. I sent rain on one town but withheld it from another. Rain fell on one field, while another field withered away.People staggered from town to town looking for water, but there was never enough. But still you would not return to me,” says the Lord.“ I struck your farms and vineyards with blight and mildew. Locusts devoured all your fig and olive trees. But still you would not return to me,” says the Lord.

People who conceal their sins will not prosper, but if they confess and turn from them, they will receive mercy.

They have power to shut the sky so that no rain will fall for as long as they prophesy. And they have the power to turn the rivers and oceans into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they wish.

This message came to Jeremiah from the Lord, explaining why he was holding back the rain:“ Judah wilts; commerce at the city gates grinds to a halt. All the people sit on the ground in mourning, and a great cry rises from Jerusalem.The nobles send servants to get water, but all the wells are dry. The servants return with empty pitchers, confused and desperate, covering their heads in grief.The ground is parched and cracked for lack of rain. The farmers are deeply troubled; they, too, cover their heads.Even the doe abandons her newborn fawn because there is no grass in the field.The wild donkeys stand on the bare hills panting like thirsty jackals. They strain their eyes looking for grass, but there is none to be found.”The people say,“ Our wickedness has caught up with us, Lord, but help us for the sake of your own reputation. We have turned away from you and sinned against you again and again.O Hope of Israel, our Savior in times of trouble, why are you like a stranger to us? Why are you like a traveler passing through the land, stopping only for the night?Are you also confused? Is our champion helpless to save us? You are right here among us, Lord. We are known as your people. Please don’t abandon us now!”

This is what the Lord says:“ Was your mother sent away because I divorced her? Did I sell you as slaves to my creditors? No, you were sold because of your sins. And your mother, too, was taken because of your sins.Why was no one there when I came? Why didn’t anyone answer when I called? Is it because I have no power to rescue? No, that is not the reason! For I can speak to the sea and make it dry up! I can turn rivers into deserts covered with dying fish.

Blow the ram’s horn in Jerusalem! Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn meeting.Gather all the people— the elders, the children, and even the babies. Call the bridegroom from his quarters and the bride from her private room.Let the priests, who minister in the Lord’s presence, stand and weep between the entry room to the Temple and the altar. Let them pray,“ Spare your people, Lord! Don’t let your special possession become an object of mockery. Don’t let them become a joke for unbelieving foreigners who say,‘ Has the God of Israel left them?’”