“I made the earth and the people and animals on it by my mighty power and great strength, ¹  and I give it to whomever I see fit. ² 

But Babylonia will be put to great shame. The land where you were born ¹  will be disgraced. Indeed, ²  Babylonia will become the least important of all nations. It will become a dry and barren desert.

You took some of your clothing and made for yourself decorated high places; you engaged in prostitution on them. You went to him to become his. ¹ 

You engaged in prostitution with the Assyrians because your sexual desires were insatiable; you prostituted yourself with them and yet you were still not satisfied.

Indeed! All lives are mine – the life of the father as well as the life of the son is mine. The one ¹  who sins will die.

They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword. She became notorious ¹  among women, and they executed judgments against her.

Yet she increased her prostitution, remembering the days of her youth when she engaged in prostitution in the land of Egypt.

The sound of a carefree crowd accompanied her, ¹  including all kinds of men; ²  even Sabeans ³  were brought from the desert. The sisters ⁴  put bracelets on their wrists and beautiful crowns on their heads.

and they cast lots for my people. They traded ¹  a boy for a prostitute; they sold a little girl for wine so they could drink. ² 

Each of you will go straight through the gaps in the walls; ¹  you will be thrown out ²  toward Harmon.” ³  The Lord is speaking!

Disaster will be inescapable, ¹  as if a man ran from a lion only to meet a bear, then escaped ²  into a house, leaned his hand against the wall, and was bitten by a poisonous snake.

Each will sit under his own grapevine or under his own fig tree without any fear. ¹  The Lord who commands armies has decreed it. ² 

“Because ¹  you have acted like a wanton prostitute ²  – a seductive mistress who practices sorcery, ³  who ⁴  enslaves ⁵  nations by her harlotry, ⁶  and entices peoples by her sorcery ⁷  –

He answered, “Have you not read that from the beginning the Creator made them male and female, ¹ 

For nation will rise up in arms ¹  against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places, and there will be famines. ²  These are but the beginning of birth pains.

Zechariah ¹  said to the angel, “How can I be sure of this? ²  For I am an old man, and my wife is old as well.” ³ 

The ¹  angel ²  came ³  to her and said, “Greetings, favored one, ⁴  the Lord is with you!” ⁵ 

because he has looked upon the humble state of his servant. ¹  For ²  from now on ³  all generations will call me blessed, ⁴ 

She had lived as a widow since then for eighty-four years. ¹  She never left the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. ² 

“The law and the prophets were in force ¹  until John; ²  since then, ³  the good news of the kingdom of God ⁴  has been proclaimed, and everyone is urged to enter it. ⁵