New Testament·Philippians 4
1Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, that is how you must stand firm in the Lord, my beloved. 2I urge Euodia and Syntyche to agree with each other in the Lord. 3Yes, and I ask you, my true yokefellow, to help these women who have labored with me for the gospel, along with Clement and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life. 4Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5Let your gentleness be apparent to all. The Lord is near. 6Be anxious for nothing, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 8Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think on these things. 9Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me, put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you. 10Now I rejoice greatly in the Lord that at last you have revived your concern for me. You were indeed concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. 11I am not saying this out of need, for I have learned to be content regardless of my circumstances. 12I know how to live humbly, and I know how to abound. I am accustomed to any and every situation—to being filled and being hungry, to having plenty and having need. 13I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. 14Nevertheless, you have done well to share in my affliction. 15And as you Philippians know, in the early days of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church but you partnered with me in the matter of giving and receiving. 16For even while I was in Thessalonica, you provided for my needs again and again. 17Not that I am seeking a gift, but I am looking for the fruit that may be credited to your account. 18I have all I need and more, now that I have received your gifts from Epaphroditus. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, well-pleasing to God. 19And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus. 20To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. 21Greet all the saints in Christ Jesus. The brothers who are with me send you greetings. 22All the saints send you greetings, especially those from the household of Caesar. 23The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit.
Old Testament·Jeremiah 4–5
1“If you will return, O Israel, return to Me,” declares the LORD. “If you will remove your detestable idols from My sight and no longer waver, 2and if you can swear, ‘As surely as the LORD lives,’ in truth, in justice, and in righteousness, then the nations will be blessed by Him, and in Him they will glory.” 3For this is what the LORD says to the men of Judah and Jerusalem: “Break up your unplowed ground, and do not sow among the thorns. 4Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and remove the foreskins of your hearts, O men of Judah and people of Jerusalem. Otherwise, My wrath will break out like fire and burn with no one to extinguish it, because of your evil deeds.” 5Announce in Judah, proclaim in Jerusalem, and say: “Blow the ram’s horn throughout the land. Cry aloud and say, ‘Assemble yourselves and let us flee to the fortified cities.’ 6Raise a signal flag toward Zion. Seek refuge! Do not delay! For I am bringing disaster from the north, and terrible destruction. 7A lion has gone up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations has set out. He has left his lair to lay waste your land. Your cities will be reduced to ruins and lie uninhabited. 8So put on sackcloth, mourn and wail, for the fierce anger of the LORD has not turned away from us.” 9“In that day,” declares the LORD, “the king and officials will lose their courage. The priests will tremble in fear, and the prophets will be astounded.” 10Then I said, “Ah, Lord GOD, how completely You have deceived this people and Jerusalem by saying, ‘You will have peace,’ while a sword is at our throats.” 11At that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem, “A searing wind from the barren heights in the desert blows toward the daughter of My people, but not to winnow or to sift; 12a wind too strong for that comes from Me. Now I also pronounce judgments against them.” 13Behold, he advances like the clouds, his chariots like the whirlwind. His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are ruined! 14Wash the evil from your heart, O Jerusalem, so that you may be saved. How long will you harbor wicked thoughts within you? 15For a voice resounds from Dan, proclaiming disaster from the hills of Ephraim. 16Warn the nations now! Proclaim to Jerusalem: “A besieging army comes from a distant land; they raise their voices against the cities of Judah. 17They surround her like men guarding a field, because she has rebelled against Me,” declares the LORD. 18“Your ways and deeds have brought this upon you. This is your punishment; how bitter it is, because it pierces to the heart!” 19My anguish, my anguish! I writhe in pain! Oh, the pain in my chest! My heart pounds within me; I cannot be silent. For I have heard the sound of the horn, the alarm of battle. 20Disaster after disaster is proclaimed, for the whole land is laid waste. My tents are destroyed in an instant, my curtains in a moment. 21How long must I see the signal flag and hear the sound of the horn? 22“For My people are fools; they have not known Me. They are foolish children, without understanding. They are skilled in doing evil, but they know not how to do good.” 23I looked at the earth, and it was formless and void; I looked to the heavens, and they had no light. 24I looked at the mountains, and behold, they were quaking; all the hills were swaying. 25I looked, and no man was left; all the birds of the air had fled. 26I looked, and the fruitful land was a desert. All its cities were torn down before the LORD, before His fierce anger. 27For this is what the LORD says: “The whole land will be desolate, but I will not finish its destruction. 28Therefore the earth will mourn and the heavens above will grow dark. I have spoken, I have planned, and I will not relent or turn back.” 29Every city flees at the sound of the horseman and archer. They enter the thickets and climb among the rocks. Every city is abandoned; no inhabitant is left. 30And you, O devastated one, what will you do, though you dress yourself in scarlet, though you adorn yourself with gold jewelry, though you enlarge your eyes with paint? You adorn yourself in vain; your lovers despise you; they want to take your life. 31For I hear a cry like a woman in labor, a cry of anguish like one bearing her first child— the cry of the Daughter of Zion gasping for breath, stretching out her hands to say, “Woe is me, for my soul faints before the murderers!”
5“Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem. Look now and take note; search her squares. If you can find a single person, anyone who acts justly, anyone who seeks the truth, then I will forgive the city. 2Although they say, ‘As surely as the LORD lives,’ they are swearing falsely.” 3O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain. You finished them off, but they refused to accept discipline. They have made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent. 4Then I said, “They are only the poor; they have played the fool, for they do not know the way of the LORD, the justice of their God. 5I will go to the powerful and speak to them. Surely they know the way of the LORD, the justice of their God.” But they too, with one accord, had broken the yoke and torn off the chains. 6Therefore a lion from the forest will strike them down, a wolf from the desert will ravage them. A leopard will lie in wait near their cities, and everyone who ventures out will be torn to pieces. For their rebellious acts are many, and their unfaithful deeds are numerous. 7“Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken Me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I satisfied their needs, yet they committed adultery and assembled at the houses of prostitutes. 8They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing after his neighbor’s wife. 9Should I not punish them for these things?” declares the LORD. “Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this? 10Go up through her vineyards and ravage them, but do not finish them off. Strip off her branches, for they do not belong to the LORD. 11For the house of Israel and the house of Judah have been utterly unfaithful to Me,” declares the LORD. 12They have lied about the LORD and said: “He will not do anything; harm will not come to us; we will not see sword or famine. 13The prophets are but wind, for the word is not in them. So let their own predictions befall them.” 14Therefore this is what the LORD God of Hosts says: “Because you have spoken this word, I will make My words a fire in your mouth and this people the wood it consumes. 15Behold, I am bringing a distant nation against you, O house of Israel,” declares the LORD. “It is an established nation, an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know and whose speech you do not understand. 16Their quivers are like open graves; they are all mighty men. 17They will devour your harvest and food; they will consume your sons and daughters; they will eat up your flocks and herds; they will feed on your vines and fig trees. With the sword they will destroy the fortified cities in which you trust.” 18“Yet even in those days,” declares the LORD, “I will not make a full end of you. 19And when the people ask, ‘For what offense has the LORD our God done all these things to us?’ You are to tell them, ‘Just as you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so will you serve foreigners in a land that is not your own.’” 20Declare this in the house of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah: 21“Hear this, O foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear. 22Do you not fear Me?” declares the LORD. “Do you not tremble before Me, the One who set the sand as the boundary for the sea, an enduring barrier it cannot cross? The waves surge, but they cannot prevail. They roar but cannot cross it. 23But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts. They have turned aside and gone away. 24They have not said in their hearts, ‘Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives the rains, both autumn and spring, in season, who keeps for us the appointed weeks of harvest.’ 25Your iniquities have diverted these from you; your sins have deprived you of My bounty. 26For among My people are wicked men; they watch like fowlers lying in wait; they set a trap to catch men. 27Like cages full of birds, so their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become powerful and rich. 28They have grown fat and sleek, and have excelled in the deeds of the wicked. They have not taken up the cause of the fatherless, that they might prosper; nor have they defended the rights of the needy. 29Should I not punish them for these things?” declares the LORD. “Should I not avenge Myself on such a nation as this? 30A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land. 31The prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own authority. My people love it so, but what will you do in the end?
Scripture quotations are from the Berean Standard Bible (BSB), which is in the public domain.