¹ The sovereign master ²  decreed judgment ³  on Jacob, and it fell on Israel. ⁴ 

“Then the king ¹  will do as he pleases. He will exalt and magnify himself above every deity and he will utter presumptuous things against the God of gods. He will succeed until the time of ²  wrath is completed, for what has been decreed must occur. ³ 

The punishment ¹  of Ephraim has been decreed; ²  his punishment is being stored up for the future.

and all humanity ¹  will see the salvation of God.’” ² 

But if we examined ourselves, we would not be judged.

So now, do not mock, or your chains will become heavier! For I have heard a message about decreed destruction, from the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, against the entire land. ¹ 

Who decreed this from the beginning, so we could know? Who announced it ¹  ahead of time, so we could say, ‘He’s correct’? Indeed, none of them decreed it! Indeed, none of them announced it! Indeed, no one heard you say anything!

For though I, the Lord who rules over all, ¹  planted you in the land, ²  I now decree that disaster will come on you ³  because the nations of Israel and Judah have done evil and have made me angry by offering sacrifices to the god Baal.” ⁴ 

Recall the miraculous deeds he performed, his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed, ¹ 

God has decreed that you will be powerful. ¹  O God, you who have acted on our behalf, demonstrate your power,

as the mountains rose up, and the valleys went down – to the place you appointed for them. ¹ 

Recall the miraculous deeds he performed, his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed, ¹ 

and execute the judgment to which their enemies ¹  have been sentenced. ²  All his loyal followers will be vindicated. ³  Praise the Lord!

The earth will be completely devastated and thoroughly ransacked. For the Lord has decreed this judgment. ¹ 

I first decreed to Zion, ‘Look, here’s what will happen!’ ¹  I sent a herald to Jerusalem. ² 

Now ¹  in those days a decree ²  went out from Caesar ³  Augustus ⁴  to register ⁵  all the empire ⁶  for taxes.

Listen, ¹  I will tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, ²  but we will all be changed –

So they sent an edict ¹  throughout Israel from Beer Sheba to Dan, summoning the people ²  to come and observe a Passover for the Lord God of Israel in Jerusalem, for they had not observed it on a nationwide scale as prescribed in the law. ³ 

“When you tell these people about all this, ¹  they will undoubtedly ask you, ‘Why has the Lord threatened us with such great disaster? What wrong have we done? What sin have we done to offend the Lord our God?’

The Lord had not decreed that he would blot out Israel’s memory ¹  from under heaven, ²  so he delivered them through Jeroboam son of Joash.