“ What sorrow awaits you who build big houses with money gained dishonestly! You believe your wealth will buy security, putting your family’s nest beyond the reach of danger.

为本家积蓄不义之财、在高处搭窝、指望免灾的有祸了！

祸哉！那为本家积蓄不义之财、在高处搭窝、指望得免灾祸的人！

祸哉！那为本家积蓄不义之财、在高处搭窝、指望得免灾祸的人！

“为自己的家积蓄不义之财、在高处搭窝躲避灾祸的人啊，你们有祸了！

你这为自己的家积聚不义之财，在高处搭窝，以逃避灾害的，有祸了！

為本家積蓄不義之財、在高處搭窩、指望免災的有禍了！

禍哉！那為本家積蓄不義之財、在高處搭窩、指望得免災禍的人！

禍哉！那為本家積蓄不義之財、在高處搭窩、指望得免災禍的人！

「為自己的家積蓄不義之財、在高處搭窩躲避災禍的人啊，你們有禍了！

你這為自己的家積聚不義之財，在高處搭窩，以逃避災害的，有禍了！

為自己的家積蓄着不義的臭錢，去在高處搭窩，指望着安穩、免受災禍之掌握的、有禍啊！

獲不義之財、以富其家、營巢於高處、以避凶暴之手、其人禍哉、

爾貪不義之利、以富其家、營巢甚高、求免災害、禍必不遠、

禍哉爾歟、為己家積不義之財、結巢於高處、求免災害、

“ Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, setting his nest on high to escape the clutches of ruin!

“ How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They build their kingdom with money that they gained by cheating others. They have tried to make the kingdom as secure as possible. After all, they did not want to be destroyed.

“ Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!

Woe to him who dishonestly makes wealth for his house to place his nest on high, to escape the grasp of disaster!

“ Woe to him who makes evil profit for his household, To put his nest on high, To be saved from the hand of catastrophe!

“ Woe to him who covets evil gain for his house, That he may set his nest on high, That he may be delivered from the power of disaster!

Woe to him that getteth an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!

Woe to him who dishonestly makes wealth for his house to place his nest on high, to escape from the reach of disaster!

Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!

The one who builds his house by unjust gain is as good as dead. He does this so he can build his nest way up high and escape the clutches of disaster.

Woe to him who gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!

You have been deceived by the fear you inspire in others and by your own pride. You live in a rock fortress and control the mountain heights. But even if you make your nest among the peaks with the eagles, I will bring you crashing down,” says the Lord.

I looked up again and saw a scroll flying through the air.“ What do you see?” the angel asked.“ I see a flying scroll,” I replied.“ It appears to be about 30 feet long and 15 feet wide.”Then he said to me,“ This scroll contains the curse that is going out over the entire land. One side of the scroll says that those who steal will be banished from the land; the other side says that those who swear falsely will be banished from the land.And this is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says: I am sending this curse into the house of every thief and into the house of everyone who swears falsely using my name. And my curse will remain in that house and completely destroy it— even its timbers and stones.”

But Gehazi, the servant of Elisha, the man of God, said to himself,“ My master should not have let this Aramean get away without accepting any of his gifts. As surely as the Lord lives, I will chase after him and get something from him.”So Gehazi set off after Naaman. When Naaman saw Gehazi running after him, he climbed down from his chariot and went to meet him.“ Is everything all right?” Naaman asked.“ Yes,” Gehazi said,“ but my master has sent me to tell you that two young prophets from the hill country of Ephraim have just arrived. He would like 75 pounds of silver and two sets of clothing to give to them.”“ By all means, take twice as much silver,” Naaman insisted. He gave him two sets of clothing, tied up the money in two bags, and sent two of his servants to carry the gifts for Gehazi.But when they arrived at the citadel, Gehazi took the gifts from the servants and sent the men back. Then he went and hid the gifts inside the house.When he went in to his master, Elisha asked him,“ Where have you been, Gehazi?”“ I haven’t been anywhere,” he replied.But Elisha asked him,“ Don’t you realize that I was there in spirit when Naaman stepped down from his chariot to meet you? Is this the time to receive money and clothing, olive groves and vineyards, sheep and cattle, and male and female servants?Because you have done this, you and your descendants will suffer from Naaman’s leprosy forever.” When Gehazi left the room, he was covered with leprosy; his skin was white as snow.

Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest.”So Joshua sent some men to make a search. They ran to the tent and found the stolen goods hidden there, just as Achan had said, with the silver buried beneath the rest.They took the things from the tent and brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites. Then they laid them on the ground in the presence of the Lord.Then Joshua and all the Israelites took Achan, the silver, the robe, the bar of gold, his sons, daughters, cattle, donkeys, sheep, goats, tent, and everything he had, and they brought them to the valley of Achor.Then Joshua said to Achan,“ Why have you brought trouble on us? The Lord will now bring trouble on you.” And all the Israelites stoned Achan and his family and burned their bodies.They piled a great heap of stones over Achan, which remains to this day. That is why the place has been called the Valley of Trouble ever since. So the Lord was no longer angry.

For they brag about their evil desires; they praise the greedy and curse the Lord.The wicked are too proud to seek God. They seem to think that God is dead.Yet they succeed in everything they do. They do not see your punishment awaiting them. They sneer at all their enemies.They think,“ Nothing bad will ever happen to us! We will be free of trouble forever!”

The grave is their eternal home, where they will stay forever. They may name their estates after themselves,

But Lot’s wife looked back as she was following behind him, and she turned into a pillar of salt.Abraham got up early that morning and hurried out to the place where he had stood in the Lord’s presence.He looked out across the plain toward Sodom and Gomorrah and watched as columns of smoke rose from the cities like smoke from a furnace.But God had listened to Abraham’s request and kept Lot safe, removing him from the disaster that engulfed the cities on the plain.Afterward Lot left Zoar because he was afraid of the people there, and he went to live in a cave in the mountains with his two daughters.One day the older daughter said to her sister,“ There are no men left anywhere in this entire area, so we can’t get married like everyone else. And our father will soon be too old to have children.Come, let’s get him drunk with wine, and then we will have sex with him. That way we will preserve our family line through our father.”So that night they got him drunk with wine, and the older daughter went in and had intercourse with her father. He was unaware of her lying down or getting up again.The next morning the older daughter said to her younger sister,“ I had sex with our father last night. Let’s get him drunk with wine again tonight, and you go in and have sex with him. That way we will preserve our family line through our father.”So that night they got him drunk with wine again, and the younger daughter went in and had intercourse with him. As before, he was unaware of her lying down or getting up again.As a result, both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their own father.When the older daughter gave birth to a son, she named him Moab. He became the ancestor of the nation now known as the Moabites.When the younger daughter gave birth to a son, she named him Ben ammi. He became the ancestor of the nation now known as the Ammonites.

“ You must burn their idols in fire, and you must not covet the silver or gold that covers them. You must not take it or it will become a trap to you, for it is detestable to the Lord your God.Do not bring any detestable objects into your home, for then you will be destroyed, just like them. You must utterly detest such things, for they are set apart for destruction.

You said,‘ I will reign forever as queen of the world!’ You did not reflect on your actions or think about their consequences.“ Listen to this, you pleasure loving kingdom, living at ease and feeling secure. You say,‘ I am the only one, and there is no other. I will never be a widow or lose my children.’Well, both these things will come upon you in a moment: widowhood and the loss of your children. Yes, these calamities will come upon you, despite all your witchcraft and magic.

Lot took a long look at the fertile plains of the Jordan Valley in the direction of Zoar. The whole area was well watered everywhere, like the garden of the Lord or the beautiful land of Egypt.( This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.)Lot chose for himself the whole Jordan Valley to the east of them. He went there with his flocks and servants and parted company with his uncle Abram.So Abram settled in the land of Canaan, and Lot moved his tents to a place near Sodom and settled among the cities of the plain.But the people of this area were extremely wicked and constantly sinned against the Lord.

“ Look what happens to mighty warriors who do not trust in God. They trust their wealth instead and grow more and more bold in their wickedness.”

Judas was one of us and shared in the ministry with us.”( Judas had bought a field with the money he received for his treachery. Falling headfirst there, his body split open, spilling out all his intestines.The news of his death spread to all the people of Jerusalem, and they gave the place the Aramaic name Akeldama, which means“ Field of Blood.”)Peter continued,“ This was written in the book of Psalms, where it says,‘ Let his home become desolate, with no one living in it.’ It also says,‘ Let someone else take his position.’“ So now we must choose a replacement for Judas from among the men who were with us the entire time we were traveling with the Lord Jesus—from the time he was baptized by John until the day he was taken from us. Whoever is chosen will join us as a witness of Jesus’ resurrection.”So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas( also known as Justus) and Matthias.Then they all prayed,“ O Lord, you know every heart. Show us which of these men you have chosenas an apostle to replace Judas in this ministry, for he has deserted us and gone where he belongs.”

What sorrow awaits them! For they follow in the footsteps of Cain, who killed his brother. Like Balaam, they deceive people for money. And like Korah, they perish in their rebellion.

Give him this message:‘ This is what the Lord says: Wasn’t it enough that you killed Naboth? Must you rob him, too? Because you have done this, dogs will lick your blood at the very place where they licked the blood of Naboth!’”“ So, my enemy, you have found me!” Ahab exclaimed to Elijah.“ Yes,” Elijah answered,“ I have come because you have sold yourself to what is evil in the Lord’s sight.So now the Lord says,‘ I will bring disaster on you and consume you. I will destroy every one of your male descendants, slave and free alike, anywhere in Israel!I am going to destroy your family as I did the family of Jeroboam son of Nebat and the family of Baasha son of Ahijah, for you have made me very angry and have led Israel into sin.’“ And regarding Jezebel, the Lord says,‘ Dogs will eat Jezebel’s body at the plot of land in Jezreel.’“ The members of Ahab’s family who die in the city will be eaten by dogs, and those who die in the field will be eaten by vultures.”

One day Ahab said to Naboth,“ Since your vineyard is so convenient to my palace, I would like to buy it to use as a vegetable garden. I will give you a better vineyard in exchange, or if you prefer, I will pay you for it.”But Naboth replied,“ The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance that was passed down by my ancestors.”So Ahab went home angry and sullen because of Naboth’s answer. The king went to bed with his face to the wall and refused to eat!

You boast,“ We have struck a bargain to cheat death and have made a deal to dodge the grave. The coming destruction can never touch us, for we have built a strong refuge made of lies and deception.”

The rich think of their wealth as a strong defense; they imagine it to be a high wall of safety.Haughtiness goes before destruction; humility precedes honor.

And the Lord says,“ What sorrow awaits Jehoiakim, who builds his palace with forced labor. He builds injustice into its walls, for he makes his neighbors work for nothing. He does not pay them for their labor.He says,‘ I will build a magnificent palace with huge rooms and many windows. I will panel it throughout with fragrant cedar and paint it a lovely red.’But a beautiful cedar palace does not make a great king! Your father, Josiah, also had plenty to eat and drink. But he was just and right in all his dealings. That is why God blessed him.He gave justice and help to the poor and needy, and everything went well for him. Isn’t that what it means to know me?” says the Lord.“ But you! You have eyes only for greed and dishonesty! You murder the innocent, oppress the poor, and reign ruthlessly.”Therefore, this is what the Lord says about Jehoiakim, son of King Josiah:“ The people will not mourn for him, crying to one another,‘ Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’ His subjects will not mourn for him, crying,‘ Alas, our master is dead! Alas, his splendor is gone!’He will be buried like a dead donkey— dragged out of Jerusalem and dumped outside the gates!

For they oppressed the poor and left them destitute. They foreclosed on their homes.They were always greedy and never satisfied. Nothing remains of all the things they dreamed about.Nothing is left after they finish gorging themselves. Therefore, their prosperity will not endure.“ In the midst of plenty, they will run into trouble and be overcome by misery.May God give them a bellyful of trouble. May God rain down his anger upon them.When they try to escape an iron weapon, a bronze tipped arrow will pierce them.The arrow is pulled from their back, and the arrowhead glistens with blood. The terrors of death are upon them.Their treasures will be thrown into deepest darkness. A wildfire will devour their goods, consuming all they have left.The heavens will reveal their guilt, and the earth will testify against them.A flood will sweep away their house. God’s anger will descend on them in torrents.

But even if you soar as high as eagles and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you crashing down,” says the Lord.