“ So, people of Israel, I will judge you. Because I will do that to you, Israel, prepare to meet your God!”

“以色列啊，我必向你如此行；以色列啊，我既这样行，你当预备迎见你的神。

“因此，以色列啊，我要如此对待你；因为我要这样对待你，以色列啊，你当预备迎见你的上帝。”

“因此，以色列啊，我要如此对待你；因为我要这样对待你，以色列啊，你当预备迎见你的神。”

“以色列人啊，我要这样惩罚你们。以色列人啊，准备迎见你们的上帝吧！因为我要这样惩罚你们。”

“因此，以色列啊！我必这样对付你。以色列啊！因我必这样对付你，你应当预备迎见你的神。”

以色列啊，我必向你如此行；以色列啊，我既這樣行，你當預備迎見你的神。

「因此，以色列啊，我要如此對待你；因為我要這樣對待你，以色列啊，你當預備迎見你的上帝。」

「因此，以色列啊，我要如此對待你；因為我要這樣對待你，以色列啊，你當預備迎見你的神。」

「以色列人啊，我要這樣懲罰你們。以色列人啊，準備迎見你們的上帝吧！因為我要這樣懲罰你們。」

“因此，以色列啊！我必這樣對付你。以色列啊！因我必這樣對付你，你應當預備迎見你的神。”

『因此以色列啊，我必這樣辦你！雅各啊，我既要這樣辦你，那麼以色列啊，你就要準備好、來迎見你的上帝！』

以色列歟、我必如是行於爾、以色列歟、職是之故、爾宜自備、以迎爾之上帝、

故我必降爾以罰、以色列族乎、爾之上帝將臨汝、必預為備、思何以當之、

以色列人歟、故我降爾以若是之災、原文作以色列人歟故我將如是以行於爾我既將若是以行於爾、以色列人歟、當預為備、以迎爾之天主、

“ Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel, and because I will do this to you, Israel, prepare to meet your God.”

“ Therefore thus I will do to you, O Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”

“ Therefore, I will bring upon you all the disasters I have announced. Prepare to meet your God in judgment, you people of Israel!”

Therefore, Israel, that is what I will do to you, and since I will do that to you, Israel, prepare to meet your God!

“ Therefore so I will do to you, Israel; Because I will do this to you, Prepare to meet your God, Israel.”

“ Therefore thus will I do to you, O Israel; Because I will do this to you, Prepare to meet your God, O Israel!”

Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel; and because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.

Therefore, Israel, that is what I will do to you, and since I will do that to you, Israel, prepare to meet your God!

Therefore thus will I do unto thee, O Israel:[ and] because I will do this unto thee, prepare to meet thy God, O Israel.

“ Therefore this is what I will do to you, Israel. Because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, Israel!

“ Therefore thus I will do to you, Israel; because I will do this to you, prepare to meet your God, Israel.

You know very well how the day of the Lord will come. It will come like a thief in the night.People will be saying that everything is peaceful and safe. Then suddenly they will be destroyed. It will happen like birth pains coming on a pregnant woman. None of the people will escape.Brothers and sisters, you are not in darkness. So that day should not surprise you as a thief would.

Why do you fight and argue among yourselves? Isn’t it because of your sinful desires? They fight within you.You want something, but you don’t have it. So you kill. You want what others have, but you can’t get what you want. So you argue and fight. You don’t have what you want, because you don’t ask God.When you do ask for something, you don’t receive it. That’s because you ask for the wrong reason. You want to spend your money on your sinful pleasures.You are not faithful to God. Don’t you know that to be a friend of the world is to hate God? So anyone who chooses to be the world’s friend becomes God’s enemy.Don’t you know what Scripture says? God wants the spirit in us to belong only to him. God caused this spirit to live in us. Don’t you think Scripture has a reason for saying this?But God continues to give us more grace. That’s why Scripture says,“ God opposes those who are proud. But he gives grace to those who are humble.”( Proverbs 3:34)So obey God. Stand up to the devil. He will run away from you.Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners. Make your hearts pure, you who can’t make up your minds.Be full of sorrow. Cry and weep. Change your laughter to mourning. Change your joy to sadness.Be humble in front of the Lord. And he will lift you up.

“ But no one knows about that day or hour. Not even the angels in heaven know. The Son does not know. Only the Father knows.Keep watch! Stay awake! You do not know when that time will come.It’s like a man going away. He leaves his house and puts his servants in charge. Each one is given a task to do. He tells the one at the door to keep watch.“ So keep watch! You do not know when the owner of the house will come back. It may be in the evening or at midnight. It may be when the rooster crows or at dawn.He may come suddenly. So do not let him find you sleeping.What I say to you, I say to everyone.‘ Watch!’ ”

You have not repaired the cracks in the city wall for the people of Israel. So it will not stand firm in the battle on the day I judge you.

“ I looked for someone among them who would stand up for Jerusalem. I tried to find someone who would pray to me for the land. Then I would not have to destroy it. But I could not find anyone who would pray for it.

I saw the Lord standing next to the altar in the temple. He said to me,“ Strike the tops of the temple pillars. Then the heavy stones at the base of the entrance will shake. Bring everything down on the heads of everyone there. I will kill with my swords those who are left alive. None of the Israelites will escape. None will get away.They might dig down deep. But my powerful hand will take them out of there. They might climb up to the heavens. But I will bring them down from there.They might hide on top of Mount Carmel. But I will hunt them down and grab them. They might hide from me at the bottom of the ocean. But even there I will command the serpent to bite them.Their enemies might take them away as prisoners to another country. But there I will command Israel’s enemies to cut them down with swords. I will keep my eye on Israel to harm them. I will not help them.”

The Lord and King has made a promise by his own holy name. He says,“ You can be sure that the time will come when your enemies will put hooks in your faces. They will lead every one of you away with fishhooks.Each of you will go straight out through gaps made in the wall. You will be thrown out toward Harmon,” announces the Lord.

“ What I’m about to tell you is true,” Jesus said.“ That poor widow has put in more than all the others.All these other people gave a lot because they are rich. But even though she is poor, she put in everything. She had nothing left to live on.”Some of Jesus’ disciples were talking about the temple. They spoke about how it was decorated with beautiful stones and with gifts that honored God. But Jesus asked,“ Do you see all this? The time will come when not one stone will be left on top of another. Every stone will be thrown down.”“ Teacher,” they asked,“ when will these things happen? And what will be the sign that they are about to take place?”Jesus replied,“ Keep watch! Be careful that you are not fooled. Many will come in my name. They will claim,‘ I am he!’ And they will say,‘ The time is near!’ Do not follow them.Do not be afraid when you hear about wars and about fighting against rulers. Those things must happen first. But the end will not come right away.”Then Jesus said to them,“ Nation will fight against nation. Kingdom will fight against kingdom.In many places there will be powerful earthquakes. People will go hungry. There will be terrible sicknesses. Things will happen that will make people afraid. There will be great and miraculous signs from heaven.“ But before all this, people will arrest you and treat you badly. They will hand you over to synagogues and put you in prison. You will be brought to kings and governors. All this will happen to you because of my name.And so you will be witnesses about me.But make up your mind not to worry ahead of time about how to stand up for yourselves.I will give you words of wisdom. None of your enemies will be able to withstand them or prove them wrong.Even your parents, brothers, sisters, relatives and friends will hand you over to the authorities. The authorities will put some of you to death.Everyone will hate you because of me.But not a hair on your head will be harmed.Remain strong in the faith, and you will receive eternal life.“ A time is coming when you will see armies surround Jerusalem. Then you will know that it will soon be destroyed.Those who are in Judea should then escape to the mountains. Those in the city should get out. Those in the country should not enter the city.This is the time when God will punish Jerusalem. Everything will come true, just as it has been written.How awful it will be in those days for pregnant women! How awful for nursing mothers! There will be terrible suffering in the land. There will be great anger against those people.Some will be killed by the sword. Others will be taken as prisoners to all the nations. Jerusalem will be taken over by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles come to an end.“ There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars. The nations of the earth will be in terrible pain. They will be puzzled by the roaring and tossing of the sea.Terror will make people faint. They will be worried about what is happening in the world. The sun, moon and stars will be shaken from their places.At that time people will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud. He will come with power and great glory.When these things begin to take place, stand up. Hold your head up with joy and hope. The time when you will be set free will be very close.”Jesus told them a story.“ Look at the fig tree and all the trees,” he said.“ When you see leaves appear on the branches, you know that summer is near.In the same way, when you see these things happening, you will know that God’s kingdom is near.“ What I’m about to tell you is true. The people living now will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.Heaven and earth will pass away. But my words will never pass away.“ Be careful. If you aren’t, your hearts will be loaded down with wasteful living, drunkenness and the worries of life. Then the day the Son of Man returns will close on you like a trap. It will happen suddenly.That day will come on every person who lives on the whole earth.Always keep watching. Pray that you will be able to escape all that is about to happen. Also, pray that you will not be judged guilty when the Son of Man comes.”

I will attack them like a bear that is robbed of her cubs. I will rip them wide open. Like a lion I will eat them up. Like a wild animal I will tear them apart.

Everyone will see your naked body. Everyone will see your shame. I will pay you back for what you did. I will not spare any of your people.”

“ Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. And suppose he has 10,000 men, while the other has 20,000 coming against him. Won’t he first sit down and think about whether he can win?And suppose he decides he can’t win. Then he will send some men to ask how peace can be made. He will do this while the other king is still far away.

The Lord speaks to the people of Israel. He says,“ Look to me and live.Do not look to Bethel. Do not go to Gilgal. Do not travel to Beersheba. The people of Gilgal will be taken away as prisoners. Nothing will be left of Bethel.”Israel, look to the Lord and live. If you don’t, he will sweep through the tribes of Joseph like a fire. It will burn everything up. And Bethel won’t have anyone to put it out.There are people among you who turn what is fair into something bitter. They throw down to the ground what is right.The Lord made the Pleiades and Orion. He turns midnight into sunrise. He makes the day fade into night. He sends for the waters in the clouds. Then he pours them out on the surface of the land. His name is the Lord.With a flash of light he destroys places of safety. He tears down cities that have high walls around them.There are people among you who hate anyone who stands for justice in court. They hate those who tell the truth.You make poor people pay tax on their straw. You also tax their grain. So, even though you have built stone houses, you won’t live in them. You have planted fruitful vineyards. But you won’t drink the wine they produce.I know how many crimes you have committed. You have sinned far too much. Among you are people who crush those who have done no wrong. They accept money from people who want special favors. They take away the rights of poor people in the courts.So those who are wise keep quiet in times like these. That’s because the times are evil.Look to what is good, not to what is evil. Then you will live. And the Lord God who rules over all will be with you, just as you say he is.Hate evil and love good. Do what is fair in the courts. Perhaps the Lord God who rules over all will have mercy on you. After all, you are the only ones left in the family line of Joseph.

So you also must be ready. The Son of Man will come at an hour when you don’t expect him.“ Suppose a master puts one of his slaves in charge of the other slaves in his house. The slave’s job is to give them their food at the right time. The master wants a faithful and wise slave for this.It will be good for the slave if the master finds him doing his job when the master returns.What I’m about to tell you is true. The master will put that slave in charge of everything he owns.But suppose that slave is evil. Suppose he says to himself,‘ My master is staying away a long time.’Suppose he begins to beat the other slaves. And suppose he eats and drinks with those who drink too much.The master of that slave will come back on a day the slave doesn’t expect him. He will return at an hour the slave does not know.Then the master will cut him to pieces. He will send him to the place where pretenders go. There people will weep and grind their teeth.“ Here is what the kingdom of heaven will be like at that time. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went out to meet the groom.Five of them were foolish. Five were wise.The foolish ones took their lamps but didn’t take any olive oil with them.The wise ones took oil in jars along with their lamps.The groom did not come for a long time. So the bridesmaids all grew tired and fell asleep.“ At midnight someone cried out,‘ Here’s the groom! Come out to meet him!’“ Then all the bridesmaids woke up and got their lamps ready.The foolish ones said to the wise ones,‘ Give us some of your oil. Our lamps are going out.’“‘ No,’ they replied.‘ There may not be enough for all of us. Instead, go to those who sell oil. Buy some for yourselves.’“ So they went to buy the oil. But while they were on their way, the groom arrived. The bridesmaids who were ready went in with him to the wedding dinner. Then the door was shut.“ Later, the other bridesmaids also came.‘ Sir! Sir!’ they said.‘ Open the door for us!’“ But he replied,‘ What I’m about to tell you is true. I don’t know you.’“ So keep watch. You do not know the day or the hour that the groom will come.

“ Suppose someone has a claim against you and is taking you to court. Settle the matter quickly. Do this while you are still together on the way. If you don’t, you may be handed over to the judge. The judge may hand you over to the officer to be thrown into prison.

Your fastest runners will not escape. The strongest people will not get away. Even soldiers will not be able to save their own lives.

So remember what you have been taught and have heard. Hold firmly to it. Turn away from your sins. If you don’t wake up, I will come like a thief. You won’t know when I will come to you.