“ He will destroy those evil people,” they replied.“ Then he will rent the vineyard out to other renters. They will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

他们说：“要下毒手除灭那些恶人，将葡萄园另租给那按着时候交果子的园户。”

他们说：“要狠狠地除灭那些恶人，将葡萄园转租给那些按时候交果子的园户。”

他们说：“要狠狠地除灭那些恶人，将葡萄园转租给那些按时候交果子的园户。”

他们说：“他会毫不留情地除掉那些恶人，然后把葡萄园租给其他按时交果子的佃户。”

他们回答：“他会毫不留情地除掉那些恶人，把葡萄园租给按时缴纳果子的佃户。”

他们回答说：“他会狠狠地除灭那些恶人，把葡萄园另租给按时交果子的农夫们。”

他們說：「要下毒手除滅那些惡人，將葡萄園另租給那按着時候交果子的園戶。」

他們說：「要狠狠地除滅那些惡人，將葡萄園轉租給那些按時候交果子的園戶。」

他們說：「要狠狠地除滅那些惡人，將葡萄園轉租給那些按時候交果子的園戶。」

他們說：「他會毫不留情地除掉那些惡人，然後把葡萄園租給其他按時交果子的佃戶。」

他們回答：“他會毫不留情地除掉那些惡人，把葡萄園租給按時繳納果子的佃戶。”

他們對他說：『惡人、他必用惡報殺滅他們，把葡萄園租給別的園工，就是能在果子的節候把果子納給他的。」』

他們回答說：「他會狠狠地除滅那些惡人，把葡萄園另租給按時交果子的農夫們。」

僉曰、必殲滅此惡人、園租於他農、可依期納果也、

曰、其必翦滅此惡人、租園與他農、可按時納果也、

眾曰、必翦滅此惡人、以園轉租與他園夫、可按時納果也、

曰：『必殲此惡類、而以葡萄園另租良農、俾得按時收菓。』

“ He will bring those wretches to a wretched end,” they replied,“ and he will rent the vineyard to other tenants, who will give him his share of the crop at harvest time.”

They said to him,“ He will put those wretches to a miserable death and let out the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the fruits in their seasons.”

The religious leaders replied,“ He will put the wicked men to a horrible death and lease the vineyard to others who will give him his share of the crop after each harvest.”

“ He will completely destroy those terrible men,” they told him,“ and lease his vineyard to other farmers who will give him his fruit at the harvest.”

They* said to Him,“ He will bring those wretches to a wretched end and lease the vineyard to other vine growers, who will pay him the fruit in the proper seasons.”

They said to Him,“ He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.”

They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those miserable men, and will let out the vineyard unto other husbandmen, who shall render him the fruits in their seasons.

“ He will completely destroy those terrible men,” they told Him,“ and lease his vineyard to other farmers who will give him his produce at the harvest.”

They say unto him, He will miserably destroy those wicked men, and will let out[ his] vineyard unto other husbandmen, which shall render him the fruits in their seasons.

They said to him,“ He will utterly destroy those evil men! Then he will lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him his portion at the harvest.”

They told him,“ He will miserably destroy those miserable men, and will lease out the vineyard to other farmers, who will give him the fruit in its season.”

But they opposed Paul. They treated him badly. So he shook out his clothes in protest. Then he said to them,“ God’s judgment against you will be your own fault! Don’t blame me for it! From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

“ So here is what I tell you. The kingdom of God will be taken away from you. It will be given to people who will produce its fruit.

“ Here is what I want you to know. God has sent his salvation to the Gentiles. And they will listen!”

The God who sits on his throne in heaven laughs. The Lord makes fun of those rulers and their plans.When he is angry, he warns them. When his anger blazes out, he terrifies them.

Jesus became a servant of the Jews. He did this so that the Gentiles might give glory to God for his mercy. It is written,“ I will praise you among the Gentiles. I will sing the praises of your name.”( 2 Samuel 22:50; Psalm 18:49)Again it says,“ You Gentiles, be full of joy. Be joyful together with God’s people.”( Deuteronomy 32:43)And again it says,“ All you Gentiles, praise the Lord. Let all the nations sing praises to him.”( Psalm 117:1)And Isaiah says,“ The Root of Jesse will grow up quickly. He will rule over the nations. The Gentiles will put their hope in him.”( Isaiah 11:10)May the God who gives hope fill you with great joy. May you have perfect peace as you trust in him. May the power of the Holy Spirit fill you with hope.My brothers and sisters, I am sure that you are full of goodness. You are filled with knowledge and able to teach one another.But I have written to you very boldly about some things. I wanted to remind you of them again. The grace of God has allowed meto serve Christ Jesus among the Gentiles. I have the duty of a priest to preach God’s good news. Then the Gentiles will become an offering that pleases God. The Holy Spirit will make the offering holy.Because I belong to Christ Jesus, I can take pride in my work for God.I will speak about what Christ has done through me. I won’t try to speak about anything else. He has been leading the Gentiles to obey God. He has been doing this by what I have said and done.

His father was sick in bed. The man suffered from fever and dysentery. So Paul went in to see him. Paul prayed for him. He placed his hands on him and healed him.

“ You can be sure the day of the Lord is coming. My anger will burn like a furnace. All those who are proud will be like straw. So will all those who do what is evil. The day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the Lord who rules over all.“ Not even a root or a branch will be left to them.But here is what will happen for you who have respect for me. The sun that brings life will rise. Its rays will bring healing to my people. You will go out and leap for joy like calves that have just been fed.Then you will stomp on sinful people. They will be like ashes under your feet. That will happen on the day I judge,” says the Lord.“ Remember the law my servant Moses gave you. Remember the rules and laws I gave him at Mount Horeb. They were for the whole nation of Israel.“ I will send the prophet Elijah to you. He will come before the day of the Lord arrives. It will be a great and terrifying day.Elijah will bring peace between parents and their children. He will also bring peace between children and their parents. If that does not happen, I will come. And I will completely destroy the land.”

They try to keep us from speaking to the Gentiles. These Jews don’t want the Gentiles to be saved. In this way, these Jews always increase their sins to the limit. God’s anger has come on them at last.

My chosen ones will use your names when they curse others. I am your Lord and King. I will put you to death. But I will give new names to those who serve me.

You will break them with an iron scepter. You will smash them to pieces like clay pots.”

The Lord formed me in my mother’s body to be his servant. He wanted me to bring the family of Jacob back to him. He wanted me to gather the people of Israel to himself. The Lord will honor me. My God will give me strength.Here is what the Lord says to me.“ It is not enough for you as my servant to bring the tribes of Jacob back to their land. It is not enough for you to bring back the people of Israel I have kept alive. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles. Then you will make it possible for the whole world to be saved.”The Lord sets his people free. He is the Holy One of Israel. He speaks to his servant, who is looked down on and hated by the nations. He speaks to the servant of rulers. He says to him,“ Kings will see you and stand up to honor you. Princes will see you and bow down to show you their respect. I am the Lord. I am faithful. I am the Holy One of Israel. I have chosen you.”

In one month I got rid of three worthless shepherds. The sheep hated me, and I got tired of them.So I said,“ I won’t be your shepherd anymore. Let those of you who are dying die. Let those who are passing away pass away. Let those who are left eat one another up.”Then I got my staff called Favor. I broke it. That meant the covenant the Lord had made with all the nations was broken.

The rest grabbed his slaves. They treated them badly and then killed them.The king became very angry. He sent his army to destroy them. They killed those murderers and burned their 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 terrible suffering in those days. It will be worse than any other from the beginning of the world until now. And there will never be anything like it again.“ If the time had not been cut short, no one would live. But because of God’s chosen people, it will be shortened.

After the 62‘ weeks,’ the Anointed King will be put to death. His followers will desert him. And everything he has will be taken away from him. The army of the ruler who will come will destroy the city and the temple. The end will come like a flood. War will continue until the end. The Lord has ordered that many places be destroyed.

I say to you that many will come from the east and the west. They will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of heaven. They will sit with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.But those who think they belong in the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness. There they will weep and grind their teeth.”

“ I will give them a sign. I will send to the nations some of those who are left alive. I will send some of them to the people of Tarshish, Libya and Lydia, who are famous for using bows. I will send others to Tubal and Greece. And I will send still others to islands far away. The people who live there have not heard about my fame. They have not seen my glory. But when I act, those I send will tell the nations about my glory.And they will bring back all the people of Israel from all those nations. They will bring them to my holy mountain in Jerusalem. My people will ride on horses, mules and camels. They will come in chariots and wagons,” says the Lord.“ Those messengers will bring my people as an offering to me. They will bring them to my temple, just as the Israelites bring their grain offerings in bowls that are‘ clean.’And I will choose some of them to be priests and Levites,” says the Lord.

“ Then the master told his servant,‘ Go out to the roads. Go out to the country lanes. Make the people come in. I want my house to be full.I tell you, not one of those people who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’ ”

Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly.“ We had to speak God’s word to you first,” they said.“ But you don’t accept it. You don’t think you are good enough for eternal life. So now we are turning to the Gentiles.This is what the Lord has commanded us to do. He said,“‘ I have made you a light for the Gentiles. You will bring salvation to the whole earth.’ ”( Isaiah 49:6)When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad. They honored the word of the Lord. All who were appointed for eternal life believed.

Everyone in the land will mourn. Each family will mourn by themselves and their wives by themselves. That will include the family lines of David, Nathan,

After they had talked it over, Peter got up and spoke to them.“ Brothers,” he said,“ you know that some time ago God chose me. He appointed me to take the good news to the Gentiles. He wanted them to hear the good news and believe.

Be sure that you don’t say no to the one who speaks. People did not escape when they said no to the one who warned them on earth. And what if we turn away from the one who warns us from heaven? How much less will we escape!

Here is what will happen in the whole land,” announces the Lord.“ Two- thirds of the people will be struck down and die. But one- third will be left.

“‘ On the other hand, suppose you do not listen to me. Suppose you do not carry out all my commands.Suppose you say no to my rules and turn away from my laws. And suppose you break my covenant by failing to carry out all my commands.Then here is what I will do to you. All at once I will bring terror on you. I will send sicknesses that will make you weak. I will send fever that will destroy your sight. It will slowly take your strength away. When you plant seeds, it will not do you any good. Instead, your enemies will eat what you have planted.I will turn against you. Then your enemies will win the battle over you. Those who hate you will rule over you. You will run away even when no one is chasing you.“‘ After all that, suppose you still will not listen to me. Then I will punish you for your sins seven times.I will break down your stubborn pride. I will make the sky above you like iron, and it will not rain. I will make the ground under you like bronze, and you will not be able to farm it.You will work with all your strength, but it will not do you any good. That is because your soil will not produce any crops. The trees of your land will not bear any fruit.“‘ Suppose you continue to be my enemy. And suppose you still refuse to listen to me. Then I will multiply your troubles many times because of your sins.I will send wild animals against you. They will kill your children. They will destroy your cattle. There will be so few of you left that your roads will be deserted.“‘ After all those things, suppose you still do not accept my warnings. And suppose you continue to be my enemy.Then I myself will be your enemy. I will make you suffer again and again for your sins.I will send war against you to punish you for breaking my covenant. When you go back into your cities, I will send a plague among you. You will be handed over to your enemies.I will cut off your supply of bread. Ten women will need only one oven to bake your bread. They will weigh out the bread piece by piece. Even when you eat all of it, it will not be enough to satisfy you.“‘ After all that, suppose you still do not listen to me. And suppose you continue to be my enemy.Then I will be angry with you. I will be your enemy. I myself will again punish you for your sins over and over.You will eat the dead bodies of your sons. You will also eat the dead bodies of your daughters.I will destroy the high places where you worship other gods. I will pull down your incense altars. I will pile up your dead bodies on the lifeless statues of your gods. And I will turn away from you.I will completely destroy your cities. I will destroy your places of worship. The pleasant smell of your offerings will not give me any delight.I myself will destroy your land so completely that your enemies who live there will be shocked.I will scatter you among the nations. I will pull out my sword and hunt you down. Your land and your cities will be completely destroyed.Then the deserted land will enjoy its sabbath years. It will rest. It will not be farmed. It will enjoy its sabbaths. But you will become prisoners in the country of your enemies.The land will rest the whole time it is deserted. It was not able to rest during the sabbaths you lived in it.“‘ Some of you will be left in the lands of your enemies. I will fill your hearts with fear. The sound of a leaf blown by the wind will scare you away. You will run as if you were escaping from swords. You will fall down, even though no one is chasing you.You will trip over one another as if you were running away from the battle. You will run away, even though no one is chasing you. You will not be able to stand and fight against your enemies.While you are still scattered among the nations, you will die. The lands of your enemies will destroy you.You who are left in those lands will become weaker and weaker. You will die because of your sins and the sins of your people who lived before you.“‘ But suppose you admit that both you and your people who lived before you have sinned. You admit the evil and dishonest things you have done against me. And you admit you have become my enemy.What you did made me become your enemy. I let your enemies take you into their land. But suppose you stop being stubborn. You stop being proud. And you pay for your sin.Then I will remember my covenant with Jacob. I will remember my covenant with Isaac. I will remember my covenant with Abraham. I will remember what I said to them about the land.You will leave the land. It will enjoy its sabbaths while it lies deserted because you are not there. You will pay for your sins because you said no to my laws. You turned away from my rules.But even after all that, I will not say no to you or turn away from you. I will not destroy you completely in the land of your enemies. I will not break my covenant with you. I am the Lord your God.Because of you, I will remember the covenant I made with the people of Israel who lived before you. I brought them out of Egypt to be their God. The nations saw me do it. I am the Lord.’ ”These are the orders, the laws and the rules of the covenant the Lord made on Mount Sinai. He made it between himself and the Israelites through Moses.

His pitchfork is in his hand to clear the straw from his threshing floor. He will gather his wheat into the storeroom. But he will burn up the husks with fire that can’t be put out.”

he will send terrible plagues on you and your children after you. He’ll send horrible and lasting troubles. He’ll make you very sick for a long time.He’ll bring on you all the sicknesses you were afraid of getting when you were in Egypt. You won’t be able to get rid of them.The Lord will also bring on you all other kinds of sickness and trouble. I haven’t even written those down in this Book of the Law. You will be destroyed.At one time you were as many as the stars in the sky. But there will only be a few of you left. That’s because you didn’t obey the Lord your God.It pleased the Lord to give you success and to cause there to be many of you. But it will please him just as much to wipe you out and destroy you. You will be removed from the land you are entering to take as your own.Then the Lord will scatter you among all the nations. He’ll spread you around from one end of the earth to the other. There you will worship statues of gods made out of wood and stone. You and your people of long ago hadn’t known anything about those gods.Among those nations you won’t find any peace. There won’t be any place where you can make your home and rest your feet. The Lord will give you minds filled with worry. He’ll give you eyes worn out from looking for help. You won’t have any hope in your hearts.Your lives will always be in danger. You will be filled with fear night and day. You will never be sure you are safe.In the morning you will say,“ We wish it were evening!” In the evening you will say,“ We wish it were morning!” Your hearts will be filled with fear. The things you see will terrify you.The Lord will send you back to Egypt in ships. He’ll send you on a journey I said you should never have to make again. You will offer to sell yourselves to your enemies as slaves in Egypt. But no one will buy you.

So you will pay for all the godly people’s blood spilled on earth. I mean from the blood of godly Abel to the blood of Zechariah, the son of Berekiah. Zechariah was the one you murdered between the temple and the altar.What I’m about to tell you is true. All this will happen to those who are now living.“ Jerusalem! Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and throw stones in order to kill those who are sent to you. Many times I have wanted to gather your people together. I have wanted to be like a hen who gathers her chicks under her wings. And you would not let me!Look, your house is left empty.

I speak the truth in Christ. I am not lying. My mind tells me that what I say is true. It is guided by the Holy Spirit.My heart is full of sorrow. My sadness never ends.I am so concerned about my people, who are members of my own race. I am ready to be cursed, if that would help them. I am even willing to be separated from Christ.They are the people of Israel. They have been adopted as God’s children. God’s glory belongs to them. So do the covenants. They received the law. They were taught to worship in the temple. They were given the promises.The founders of our nation belong to them. The Messiah comes from their family line. He is God over all. May he always be praised! Amen.I do not mean that God’s word has failed. Not everyone in the family line of Israel really belongs to Israel.Not everyone in Abraham’s family line is really his child. Not at all! Scripture says,“ Your family line will continue through Isaac.”( Genesis 21:12)In other words, God’s children are not just in the family line of Abraham. Instead, they are the children God promised to him. They are the ones considered to be Abraham’s children.God promised,“ I will return at the appointed time. Sarah will have a son.”( Genesis 18:10, 14)And that’s not all. Rebekah’s children were born at the same time by the same father. He was our father Isaac.Here is what happened. Rebekah’s twins had not even been born. They hadn’t done anything good or bad yet. So they show that God’s purpose is based firmly on his free choice.

Now I will tell you what I am going to do to my vineyard. I will take away its fence. And the vineyard will be destroyed. I will break down its wall. And people will walk all over my vineyard.I will turn my vineyard into a dry and empty desert. It will not be pruned or taken care of. Thorns and bushes will grow there. I will command the clouds not to rain on it.”The vineyard of the Lord who rules over all is the nation of Israel. The people of Judah are the vines he took delight in. He kept looking for them to do what is fair. But all he saw was blood being spilled. He kept looking for them to do what is right. But all he heard were cries of suffering.

The Lord will gather all the nations together. They will fight against Jerusalem. They’ll capture the city. Its houses will be robbed. Its women will be raped. Half of the people will be taken away as prisoners. But the rest of them won’t be taken.Then the Lord will march out and fight against those nations. He will fight as on a day of battle.

“ You will weep and grind your teeth together when you see those who are in God’s kingdom. You will see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets there. But you yourselves will be thrown out.People will come from east and west and north and south. They will take their places at the feast in God’s kingdom.

Remember Lot’s wife!Whoever tries to keep their life will lose it. Whoever loses their life will keep it.I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed. One person will be taken and the other left.Two women will be grinding grain together. One will be taken and the other left.”

He approached Jerusalem. When he saw the city, he began to weep.He said,“ I wish you had known today what would bring you peace! But now it is hidden from your eyes.The days will come when your enemies will arrive. They will build a wall of dirt up against your city. They will surround you and close you in on every side.You didn’t recognize the time when God came to you. So your enemies will smash you to the ground. They will destroy you and all the people inside your walls. They will not leave one stone on top of another.”

Then how will we escape if we don’t pay attention to God’s great salvation? The Lord first announced this salvation. Those who heard him gave us the message about it.