The Lord who commands armies told me this: ¹  “Many houses will certainly become desolate, large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. ² 

they will say about me, “Yes, the Lord is a powerful deliverer.”’” ¹  All who are angry at him will cower before him. ² 

We know our noisy worship of false gods on the hills and mountains did not help us. ¹  We know that the Lord our God is the only one who can deliver Israel. ² 

The Lord God of Israel who rules over all says, ‘You women ¹  have confirmed by your actions what you vowed with your lips! You said, “We will certainly carry out our vows to sacrifice and pour out drink offerings to the Queen of Heaven.” Well, then fulfill your vows! Carry them out!’ ² 

“Therefore, as surely as I live, says the sovereign Lord, because you defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable idols and with all your abominable practices, I will withdraw; my eye will not pity you, nor will I spare ¹  you.

I gave it over to the leader of the nations. He has judged it thoroughly, ¹  as its sinfulness deserves. I have thrown it out.

“This is what you must say to them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, those living in the ruins will die ¹  by the sword, those in the open field I will give to the wild beasts for food, and those who are in the strongholds and caves will die of disease.

So this is what the sovereign Lord says: I vow ¹  that the nations around you will endure insults as well.

In my zeal, in the fire of my fury, ¹  I declare that on that day there will be a great earthquake ²  in the land of Israel.

As a matter of fact, ¹  Amos is saying this: ‘Jeroboam will die by the sword and Israel will certainly be carried into exile ²  away from its land.’”

After ¹  a little while, those standing there came up to Peter and said, “You really are one of them too – even your accent ²  gives you away!”

Then Joseph said to his brothers, “I am about to die. But God will surely come to you ¹  and lead you up from this land to the land he swore on oath to give ²  to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

It is a guilt offering; he was surely guilty before the Lord.”

Otherwise, as surely as the Lord, the God of Israel, lives – he who has prevented me from harming you – if you had not come so quickly to meet me, by morning’s light not even one male belonging to Nabal would have remained alive!”

They came from nations about which the Lord had warned the Israelites, “You must not establish friendly relations with them! ¹  If you do, they will surely shift your allegiance to their gods.” ²  But Solomon was irresistibly attracted to them. ³ 

So the Lord said to Solomon, “Because you insist on doing these things and have not kept the covenantal rules I gave you, ¹  I will surely tear the kingdom away from you and give it to your servant.

Haman then related to his wife Zeresh and to all his friends everything that had happened to him. These wise men, ¹  along with his wife Zeresh, said to him, “If indeed this Mordecai before whom you have begun to fall is Jewish, ²  you will not prevail against him. No, you will surely fall before him!”

but people ¹  are born ²  to trouble, as surely as the sparks ³  fly ⁴  upward. ⁵ 

“Surely now you count my steps; ²  then you would not mark ³  my sin. ⁴ 

Surely then you will delight yourself ¹  in the Almighty, and will lift up your face toward God.