Subscribe
Share
Share
Embed
Take a breath, find your place, and read deeply. Discover the joy of reading God’s word with the Immerse New Living Translation (NLT) Bible.
This daily Bible podcast will take you through the Bible in a year following the Immerse Bible Reading Experience. So grab your family and small group and go through the Bible in a year together with Immerse. Each of the 6 volumes is available online or at your favorite Christian bookstore.
Nancy: Welcome To Immerse: The
Daily Bible Reading Experience.
Day 200 and 52
this message came to
me concerning Babylon.
The desert by the sea disaster is roaring
down on you from the desert, like a
whirlwind sweeping in from the negative.
I see a terrifying vision.
I see the betrayer betraying
the destroyer, destroying.
Go ahead you.
Elamites and Meads attack and lay siege.
I will make an end to all the
groaning Babylon caused my
stomach aches and burns with pain.
Sharp pangs of anguish are upon me.
Like those of a woman in labor.
I grow faint.
When I hear what God is planning,
I am too afraid to look.
My mind reels and my heart races.
I longed for evening to come.
Now I am terrified of the dark.
Look.
They are preparing a great feast.
They are spreading rugs
for people to sit on.
Everyone is eating and drinking.
But quick, grab your shields
and prepare for battle.
You are being attacked.
Meanwhile, the Lord said to me,
put a watchman on the city wall.
Let him shout out what he sees.
He should look for chariots
drawn by pairs of horses and for
riders on donkeys and camels.
Let the watchmen be fully alert.
Then the watchman called
out day after day.
I have stood on the watchtower
my Lord, night after night.
I have remained at my post.
Now at last look.
Here comes a man in a chariot
with a pair of horses.
Then the watchman said, Babylon is fallen.
Fallen.
All the idols of Babylon
lie broken on the ground.
All my people, threshed and
winnowed, I have told you everything.
The Lord of heaven's armies has said
everything the God of Israel has told me.
This message came to me concerning Edem.
Someone from Edem keeps calling to me.
Watchman, how much longer until morning?
When will the night be over?
The watchman replies.
Morning is coming, but
night will soon return.
If you wish to ask again,
then come back and ask.
This message came to me concerning Arabia.
Oh, caravans from Edin hide
in the deserts of Arabia O.
People of Tema.
Bring water to these thirsty people.
Food to these weary refugees.
They have fled from the sword,
from the drawn sword, from the
bent bow and the terrors of battle.
The Lord said to me, within a year
counting, each day, all the glory
of Keter will come to an end.
Only a few of its courageous
archers will survive.
I the Lord, the God of
Israel, have spoken.
This message came to me concerning
Jerusalem, the valley of vision.
What is happening?
Why is everyone running to the rooftops?
The whole city is in a terrible uproar.
What do I see in this reveling
city bodies are lying everywhere.
Killed not in battle, but
by famine and disease.
All your leaders have fled.
They surrendered without resistance.
The people tried to slip away,
but they were captured too.
That's why I said, leave me alone to weep.
Do not try to comfort me.
Let me cry for my people as
I watch them being destroyed.
Oh, what a day of crushing defeat.
What a day of confusion and
terror brought by the Lord?
The Lord of heaven's armies
upon the valley of vision.
The walls of Jerusalem have
been broken and cries of death.
Echo from the mountainsides.
Elamites are the archers with
their chariots and charioteers.
The men of Keir hold up the shields.
Chariots fill your beautiful valleys and
charioteers storm your gates, Judah's
defenses have been stripped away.
You run to the armory for your weapons.
You inspect the brakes in
the walls of Jerusalem.
You store up water in the lower pool.
You survey the houses and tear
some down for stone to strengthen
the walls between the city walls.
You build a reservoir for water from
the old pool, but you never ask for
help from the one who did all this.
You never considered the one who
planned this long ago at that time.
The Lord, the Lord of heaven's
armies called you to weep and mourn.
He told you to shave your heads in
sorrow for your sins and to wear
clothes of burlap to show your remorse.
But instead, you dance and play.
You slaughter cattle and kill sheep.
You feast on meat and drink wine.
You say, let's feast
and drink for tomorrow.
We die.
The Lord of heaven's armies
has revealed this to me.
Until the day you die, you will
never be forgiven for this sin.
That is the judgment of the Lord,
the Lord of heaven's armies.
This is what the Lord, the Lord
of heaven's armies said to me.
Confront Sheb the palace administrator
and give him this message.
Who do you think you are
and what are you doing here?
Building a beautiful tomb for yourself.
A monument high up in the rock for the
Lord is about to hurl you away mighty man.
He is going to grab you, crumple
you into a ball, and toss you
away into a distant, barren land.
There you will die and your glorious
chariots will be broken and useless.
You are a disgrace to your master.
Yes, I will drive you out
of office, says the Lord.
I will pull you down
from your high position.
Then I will call my servant
Eliakim, son of Hel to replace you.
I will dress him in your royal robes
and will give him your title and your
authority, and he will be a father
to the people of Jerusalem and Judah.
I will give him the key to the
house of David, the highest
position in the Royal Court.
When he opens doors, no one
will be able to close them.
When he closes doors, no one
will be able to open them.
He will bring honor to his family
name for I will drive him firmly
in place like a nail in the wall.
They will give him great responsibility
and he will bring honor to even
the lowliest members of his family.
But the Lord of Heaven's armies also
says the time will come when I will
pull out the nail That seemed so firm.
It will come out and fall to the ground.
Everything it supports will fall with it.
I, the Lord have spoken.
This message came to me
concerning tire whale.
You trading ships of tar sh for the
harbor and houses of tire are gone.
The rumors you heard in Cyprus
are all true mourn in silence.
You people of the coast and you
merchants of seden, your traders crossed
the sea sailing over deep waters.
They brought you grain from Egypt
and harvests from along the Nile.
You were the marketplace of the
world, but now you are put to shame.
City of Seden Fort Tire.
The fortress of the sea
says, now I am childless.
I have no sons or daughters.
When Egypt hears the news about
tire, there will be great sorrow.
Send word now to Tarshish whale.
You people who live in distant
lands is this silent ruin.
All that is left of your once joyous city.
What a long history was yours?
Think of all the colonists you
sent to distant places who has
brought this disaster on tire,
that great creator of kingdoms.
Her traitors were all princes.
Her merchants were nobles.
The Lord of heaven's armies has done
it To destroy your pride and bring low
all earth's nobility come people of
tar sh sweep over the land like the
flooding Nile for tire is defenseless.
The Lord held out his hand over the sea
and shook the kingdoms of the earth.
He has spoken out against Isha.
Ordering that her fortresses be destroyed.
He says, never again will you.
Rejoice o daughter of Sidon
for you have been crushed.
Even if you flee to Cyprus,
you will find no rest.
Look at the land of Babylonia.
The people of that land are gone.
The Assyrians have handed Babylon over
to the wild animals of the desert.
They have built seed ramps against
its walls, torn down its palaces,
and turned it to a heap of rubble.
Whale you ships of tar sh
for your harbor is destroyed.
For 70 years the length of a king's life.
T will be forgotten, but then the
city will come back to life as
in the song about the prostitute.
Take a harp and walk the streets.
You've forgotten Harlett.
Make sweet melody and sing your songs
so you will be remembered again.
Yes, after 70 years, the Lord will
revive tire, but she will be no
different than she was before.
She will again be a prostitute
to all kingdoms around the world.
But in the end, her prophets
will be given to the Lord.
Her wealth will not be hoarded,
but will provide good food and fine
clothing for the Lord's priests.
Look, the Lord is about to destroy the
earth and make it a vast wasteland.
He devastates the surface of the earth
and scatters the people, priests and
laypeople, servants and masters, maids and
mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders
and borrowers, bankers and debtors.
None will be spared.
The Earth will be completely
emptied and looted.
The Lord has spoken the earth,
mourns and dries up, and the
land wastes away and withers.
Even the greatest people on earth.
Waste away.
The earth suffers for the sins of its
people, for they have twisted God's
instructions, violated his laws,
and broken his everlasting covenant.
Therefore, a curse consumes the earth.
Its people must pay the
price for their sin.
They are destroyed by fire
and only a few are left alive.
The grapevines waste away
and there is no new wine.
All the MerryMakers sigh and mourn.
The cheerful sound of
tambourines is stilled.
The happy cries of
celebration are heard no more.
The melodious chords
of the harp are silent.
Gone are the joys of wine and song.
Alcoholic drink turns bitter in the mouth.
The city rises in chaos.
Every home is locked to keep out.
Intruders mobs gather in the
streets, crying out for wine.
Joy has turned to gloom.
Gladness has been banished from the land.
The city is left in ruins.
Its gates battered down.
Throughout the earth,
the story is the same.
Only a remnant is left like the stray
olives left on the tree or the few
grapes left on the vine after harvest.
But all who are left,
shout and sing for joy.
Those in the west.
Praise the Lord's majesty in
eastern lands, give glory to the
Lord in the lands beyond the sea.
Praise the name of the
Lord, the God of Israel.
We hear songs of praise
from the ends of the earth.
Songs that give glory to the righteous
one, but my heart is heavy with grief.
Wheat for me, for I wither away.
Deceit still prevails and
treachery is everywhere.
Terror and traps and snares will be
your lot, you people of the earth.
Those who flee in terror
will fall into a trap.
And those who escape the trap
will be caught in a snare.
Destruction falls like
rain from the heavens.
The foundations of the earth shake.
The earth has broken up.
It has utterly collapsed.
It is violently shaken.
The earth staggers like a drunk.
It trembles like a tent in a storm.
It falls and will not rise again.
For the guilt of its
rebellion is very heavy.
That day, the Lord will punish the
gods in the heavens and the proud
rulers of the nations on earth.
They will be rounded up and put in prison.
They will be shut up in prison
and will finally be punished.
Then the glory of the moon will wane
and the brightness of the sun will fade.
For the Lord of Heaven's,
armies will rule on Mount Zion.
He will rule in great glory
in Jerusalem, in the sight of
all the leaders of his people.
Oh Lord, I will honor and praise
your name for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things.
You planned them long ago and
now you have accomplished them.
You turn mighty cities
into heaps of ruins.
Cities with strong walls
are turned to rubble.
Beautiful palaces in distant lands
disappear and will never be rebuilt.
Therefore, strong nations
will declare your glory.
Ruthless nations will fear
you, but you are a tower of
refuge to the poor, oh Lord.
A tower of refuge to
the needy in distress.
You are a refuge from the storm
and a shelter from the heat.
For the oppressive acts of ruthless people
are like a storm beating against a wall
or like the relentless heat of the desert.
But you silence the roar of
foreign nations as the shade of
a cloud cools relentless heat.
So the boastful songs of ruthless
people are stilled in Jerusalem.
The Lord of heaven's armies will
spread a wonderful feast for
all the people of the world.
It will be a delicious banquet with
clear well aged wine and choice meat.
There he will remove the cloud
of gloom, the shadow of death
that hangs over the earth.
He will swallow up death forever.
The sovereign Lord will
wipe away all tears.
He will remove forever, all insults and
mockery against his land and people.
The Lord has spoken.
In that day, the people will
proclaim, this is our God.
We trusted in him and he saved us.
This is the Lord in whom we trust it, let
us rejoice in the salvation he brings.
For the Lord's hand of blessing will rest
on Jerusalem, but Moab will be crushed.
It will be like straw
trampled down and left to rot.
God will push down.
Moabs people as a swimmer pushes
down water with his hands.
He will end their pride
and all their evil works.
The high walls of Moab will be demolished.
They will be brought down to the
ground, down into the dust in that day.
Everyone in the land of
Judah will sing this song.
Our city is strong.
We are surrounded by the
walls of God's salvation.
Open the gates to all who are righteous.
Allow the faithful to enter.
You will keep in perfect peace,
all who trust in you, all whose
thoughts are fixed on you.
Trust in the Lord always for the
Lord God is the eternal rock.
He humbles the proud and
brings down the arrogant city.
He brings it down to the dust.
The poor and oppressed trample it
underfoot and the needy walk all over it.
But for those who are righteous,
the way is not steep and rough.
You are a God who does what is right, and
you smooth out the path ahead of them.
Lord, we show our trust in
you by obeying your laws.
Our heart's desire is to glorify your
name In the night I search for you
in the morning, I earnestly seek you.
For only when you come to judge the
Earth will people learn what is right.
Your kindness to the wicked does not
make them do good, although others do.
Right the wicked.
Keep doing wrong and take no
notice of the Lord's Majesty.
Oh Lord, they pay no attention
to your upraised fist.
Show them your eagerness to defend
your people, then they will be ashamed.
Let your fire consume your enemies.
Lord, you will grant us peace.
All we have accomplished
is really from you.
Oh Lord, our God.
Others have ruled us, but you
alone are the one we worship.
Those we served before are dead and gone.
They're departed.
Spirits will never return.
You attacked them and destroyed
them and they are long forgotten.
Oh Lord, you have made our nation great.
Yes, you have made us great.
You have extended our borders and we
give you the glory Lord, in distress.
We searched for you.
We prayed beneath the
burden of your discipline.
Just as a pregnant woman rise and
cries out in pain as she gives birth.
So were we in your presence?
Lord, we too ride in agony, but
nothing comes of our suffering.
We have not given salvation to the
earth, nor brought life into the world.
Those who die in the Lord will live.
Their bodies will rise again.
Those who sleep in the earth
will rise up and sing for joy for
your life-giving light will fall.
Like do on your people
in the place of the dead.
Go home my people and lock your doors.
Hide yourselves for a little while
until the Lord's anger has passed.
Look.
The Lord is coming from heaven to punish
the people of the earth for their sins.
The earth will no longer hide
those who have been killed.
They will be brought out
for all to see in that day.
The Lord will take his terrible
swift sword and punish leviathan,
the swiftly moving serpent,
the coiling, writhing, serpent.
He will kill the dragon
of the sea in that day.
Sing about the fruitful vineyard.
I, the Lord will watch over
it, watering it carefully.
Day and night.
I will watch so no one can harm it.
My anger will be gone.
If I find breyers and thorns
growing, I will attack them.
I will burn them up unless
they turn to me for help.
Let them make peace with me.
Yes, let them make peace with me.
The time is coming when Jacob's
descendants will take root.
Israel will bud and blossom and
fill the whole earth with fruit.
Has the Lord struck Israel
as he struck her enemies?
Has he punished her as he punished them?
No.
But he exiled Israel
to call her to account.
She was exiled from her land as though
blown away in a storm from the east.
The Lord did this to purge Israel's
wickedness to take away all her sin.
As a result, all the pagan
altars will be crushed to dust.
No Asher pole or pagan
shrine will be left standing.
The fortified towns will
be silent and empty.
The houses abandoned the
streets overgrown with weeds.
Calves will graze their
chewing on twigs and branches.
The people are like the dead branches
of a tree broken off and used for
kindling beneath the cooking pots.
Israel is a foolish and stupid nation
for its people have turned away from God.
Therefore, the one who made them
will show them no pity or mercy.
Yet the time will come when the Lord
will gather them together like handpicked
grain one by one, he will gather them from
the Euphrates River in the east to the
brook of Egypt in the West in that day.
The great trumpet will sound.
Many who were dying in exile in Assyria
and Egypt will return to Jerusalem to
worship the Lord on his holy mountain.
This concludes today's
immerse reading experience.
Thank you for joining us.