The Levites must surround the king. Each of you must hold his weapon in his hand. Whoever tries to enter the temple ¹  must be killed. You must accompany the king wherever he goes.” ² 

That night – let darkness seize ¹  it; let it not be included ²  among the days of the year; let it not enter among the number of the months! ³ 

He gave me reason to sing a new song, ¹  praising our God. ²  May many see what God has done, so that they might swear allegiance to him and trust in the Lord! ³ 

Then I will go ¹  to the altar of God, to the God who gives me ecstatic joy, ²  so that I express my thanks to you, ³  O God, my God, with a harp.

May his fame endure! ¹  May his dynasty last as long as the sun remains in the sky! ²  May they use his name when they formulate their blessings! ³  May all nations consider him to be favored by God! ⁴ 

Do not forsake your friend and your father’s friend, and do not enter your brother’s house in the day of your disaster; a neighbor nearby is better than a brother far away. ¹ 

The Beloved to Her Lover: Awake, O north wind; come, O south wind! Blow on my garden so that its fragrant spices may send out their sweet smell. ¹  May my beloved come into his garden and eat its delightful fruit!

When the Moabites plead with all their might at their high places, ¹  and enter their temples to pray, their prayers will be ineffective! ² 

Here is a message about Tyre: Wail, you large ships, ¹  for the port is too devastated to enter! ²  From the land of Cyprus ³  this news is announced to them.

Instead the Lord will rule there as our mighty king. ¹  Rivers and wide streams will flow through it; ²  no war galley will enter; ³  no large ships will sail through. ⁴ 

The people who do this will be blessed, ¹  the people who commit themselves to obedience, ²  who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it, who refrain from doing anything that is wrong. ³ 

Sounds of violence ¹  will no longer be heard in your land, or the sounds of ²  destruction and devastation within your borders. You will name your walls, ‘Deliverance,’ and your gates, ‘Praise.’

you say, ‘I have not done anything wrong, so the Lord cannot really be angry with me any more.’ But, watch out! ¹  I will bring down judgment on you because you say, ‘I have not committed any sin.’

You, Pashhur, and all your household ¹  will go into exile in Babylon. You will die there and you will be buried there. The same thing will happen to all your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.’” ² 

The sounds of battle ¹  will resound to the ends of the earth. For the Lord will bring charges against the nations. ²  He will pass judgment on all humankind and will hand the wicked over to be killed in war.’ ³  The Lord so affirms it! ⁴ 

When the time for them to be rescued comes,” ¹  says the Lord who rules over all, ²  “I will rescue you from foreign subjugation. ³  I will deliver you from captivity. ⁴  Foreigners will then no longer subjugate them.

For a destroyer is attacking Babylon. ¹  Her warriors will be captured; their bows will be broken. ²  For the Lord is a God who punishes; ³  he pays back in full. ⁴ 

“Suppose I were to send wild animals through the land and kill its children, leaving it desolate, without travelers due to the wild animals.

You will become fuel for the fire – your blood will stain the middle of the land; ¹  you will no longer be remembered, for I, the Lord, have spoken.’”

But whenever you pray, go into your room, ¹  close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you. ²