1Jerusalem, enemy troops have surrounded you; they have struck Israel's ruler in the face with a stick.
2Bethlehem Ephrath, you are one of the smallest towns in the nation of Judah. But the Lord will choose one of your people to rule the nation— someone whose family goes back to ancient times.
3The Lord will abandon Israel only until this ruler is born, and the rest of his family returns to Israel.
4Like a shepherd taking care of his sheep, this ruler will lead and care for his people by the power and glorious name of the Lord his God. His people will live securely, and the whole earth will know his true greatness,
5because he will bring peace. Let Assyria attack our country and our palaces. We will counterattack, led by a number of rulers
6whose strong army will defeat the nation of Assyria. Yes, our leaders will rescue us, if those Assyrians dare to invade our land.
7A few of Jacob's descendants survived and are scattered among the nations. But the Lord will let them cover the earth like dew and rain that refreshes the soil.
8At present they are scattered, but later they will attack, as though they were fierce lions pouncing on sheep. Their enemies will be torn to shreds, with no one to save them;
12I will stop you from telling fortunes and practicing witchcraft.
13You will no longer worship the idols or stone images you have made— I will destroy them,
14together with the sacred poles and even your towns.
15I will become furious and take revenge on the nations that refuse to obey me.
Contemporary English Version (2006) Tap a verse to copy, share, highlight or add a note. Dotted words link to encyclopedia articles.
15 verses in this chapter
5 / 7 chapters
The text is Contemporary English Version (2006)(English) — Published under a copyright agreement with the Korean Bible Society — the text is copyright of the Korean Bible Society. Highlights, notes and read marks stay with the chapter whichever version you read. Dotted words are people, places and terms that have an encyclopedia article (marked once per page). Highlights, notes and read marks are saved only in this browser and gathered under My marks.