May the mumbling commence!
Welcome to the sprint to repentance part two. Read from Micah and Nahum and Habakkuk and
Zephaniah and Haggai and Zechariah.
What can we bring to the Lord to make up for what we've done? Should we bow
before God with offerings of yearling calves?
Should we offer him thousands of rams and tens of thousands of rivers of
olive oil? Would that please the Lord?
Should we sacrifice our firstborn children to pay for the sins of our souls?
Would that make him glad?
No, O people, the Lord has already told you what is good,
and this is what he requires: to do what is
right, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
(Micah 6:6-8)
Will there be no end of your getting
rich by cheating? The homes of the wicked are filled with treasures gained by dishonestly
measuring out grain in short measures.
And how can I tolerate all your merchants who use dishonest scales and weights? The rich among you have become wealthy through extortion and violence.
Your citizens are so used to lying that
their tongues can no longer tell the truth. (Micah 6:10-12)
The godly people have all disappeared; not one fair-minded person is left
on the earth. They are all murderers,
even setting traps for their own
brothers. They go about their evil
deeds with both hands. How skilled they are at using them!
Officials and judges alike demand bribes.
The people with money and influence pay them off, and together they scheme to twist justice. (Micah 7:2-3)
Loot the silver! Plunder the gold! There seems no end to Nineveh's many
treasures – its vast, uncounted wealth. Soon the city is an empty shambles, stripped
of its wealth. Hearts melt in horror, and knees shake. The people stand aghast,
their faces pale and trembling. (Nahum 2:9-10)
There is no healing for your
wound; your injury is fatal. All who hear
of your destruction will clap their hands for joy. Where can anyone be found who has not suffered
from your cruelty? (Nahum 3:19)
"Look at the proud! They
trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked;
but the righteous will
live by their faith. Wealth
is treacherous, and the arrogant
are never at rest. They range far and wide, with their mouths opened as wide as
death, but they are never satisfied.
In their greed they have gathered up
many nations and peoples. But the time
is coming when all their captives will taunt them, saying, 'You thieves! At
last justice has caught up with you! Now you will get what you deserve for your
oppression and extortion!' Suddenly, your debtors will rise up in anger.
They will turn on you and take all you have, while you stand trembling and
helpless. You have plundered many nations; now they will plunder you. You murderers! You have filled the
countryside with violence and all
the cities, too.
How terrible it will be for you who
get rich by unjust means! You believe your wealth will buy security,
putting your families beyond the reach of danger. But by the murders you committed, you have shamed your name and forfeited your lives. The very stones in the walls of your houses
cry out against you, and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.
How terrible it will be for you who build cities with money gained by murder and corruption! Has not the Lord
Almighty promised that the wealth of nations will turn to ashes? They work so
hard, but all in vain! For the time will come when all the earth
will be filled, as the waters fill the sea, with an awareness of the glory of
the Lord.
How terrible it will be for you who make your neighbors drunk! You force
your cup on them so that you can gloat over their nakedness and shame. But soon it will be your turn! Come, drink
and be exposed! Drink from the cup
of the Lord's judgment, and all
your glory will be turned to shame. You cut down the forests of Lebanon. Now
you will be cut down! You terrified the wild animals you caught in your traps.
Now terror will strike you because of your murder and violence in cities
everywhere!
What have you gained by worshiping
all your man-made idols? How foolish to trust in something made by your own
hands! What fools you are to believe such lies!
How terrible it will be for you who beg lifeless wooden idols to save
you. You ask speechless stone images to tell you what to do. Can an idol speak
for God? They may be overlaid with gold and silver, but they are lifeless
inside. But the Lord
is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth
be silent before him." (Habakkuk 2:4-20)
Gather together and pray, you shameless
nation. Gather while there is still
time, before judgment begins and your opportunity is blown away like chaff. Act
now, before the fierce fury of the Lord
falls and the terrible day of the Lord's
anger begins. Beg the Lord to save you – all you who are
humble, all you who uphold justice. Walk humbly and do what is right. Perhaps
even yet the Lord will protect you
from his anger on that day of destruction. (Zephaniah 2:1-3)
"Why are you living in luxurious
houses while my house lies in ruins?” (Haggai 1:4)
"I will sweep away
everything in all your land," says the Lord. "I will sweep away both people and
animals alike. Even the birds of the air and the fish in the sea will die. I will reduce
the wicked to heaps of rubble, along with the rest of humanity," says the Lord.
"I will crush Judah and Jerusalem with my fist and destroy every
last trace of their Baal worship. I will put an end to all the idolatrous
priests, so that even the memory of them will disappear.” (Zephaniah
1:2-4)
Enough mumbling for now…
Peace Out
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