Jesus Walks on Water
16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles,1 they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 cBut he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.
I Am the Bread of Life
22 On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only done boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. 23 Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord ehad given thanks. 24 fSo when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and gwent to Capernaum, seeking Jesus.
Wives and Husbands
1 Likewise, wives, kbe subject to your own husbands, so that leven if some do not obey the word, mthey may be won without a word by the conduct of their wives, 2 when they see your nrespectful and pure conduct. 3 oDo not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear— 4 but let your adorning be pthe hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious. 5 For this is how the holy women who hoped in God used to adorn themselves, by submitting to their own husbands, 6 as Sarah obeyed Abraham, qcalling him lord. And you are her children, if you do good and rdo not fear anything that is frightening.
7 Likewise, shusbands, live with your wives in an understanding way, showing honor to the woman as the weaker tvessel, since they are heirs with you1 of the grace of life, so that your prayers may not be hindered.
Solomon Admires His Bride’s Beauty
He
1 Behold, myou are beautiful, my love,
behold, you are beautiful!
nYour eyes are doves
obehind your veil.
pYour hair is like a flock of goats
leaping down qthe slopes of Gilead.
2 Your rteeth are like a flock of shorn ewes
that have come up from the washing,
all of which bear twins,
and not one among them has lost its young.
3 Your lips are like sa scarlet thread,
and your mouth is tlovely.
Your ucheeks are like halves of a pomegranate
obehind your veil.
4 Your vneck is like the tower of David,
on it xhang a thousand shields,
all of ythem shields of warriors.
5 Your ztwo breasts are like two afawns,
twins of a gazelle,
that bgraze among the lilies.
6 cUntil the day breathes
and the shadows flee,
I will go away to the mountain of dmyrrh
and the hill of dfrankincense.
7 eYou are altogether beautiful, my love;
there is no fflaw in you.
Judgment on Babylon
1 The word that the Lord spoke concerning cBabylon, concerning the land of the Chaldeans, dby Jeremiah the prophet:
2 “Declare among the nations and proclaim,
set up a banner and proclaim,
conceal it not, and say:
e‘Babylon is taken,
fBel is put to shame,
Merodach is dismayed.
eHer images are put to shame,
her idols are dismayed.’
3 “For gout of the north a nation has come up against her, hwhich shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell in it; iboth man and beast shall flee away.
4 j“In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, jthe people of Israel and the people of Judah shall come together, kweeping as they come, and they lshall seek the Lord their God. 5 mThey shall ask the way to Zion, with faces turned toward it, nsaying, ‘Come, let us join ourselves to the Lord in an oeverlasting covenant that will never be forgotten.’
6 p“My people have been lost sheep. qTheir shepherds have led them astray, turning them away on the mountains. From mountain to hill they have gone. They have forgotten their fold. 7 All who found them have devoured them, rand their enemies have said, ‘We are not guilty, for sthey have sinned against the Lord, ttheir habitation of righteousness, the Lord, uthe hope of their fathers.’
8 v“Flee from the midst of Babylon, vand go out of the land of the Chaldeans, and be as male goats before the flock. 9 For behold, I am stirring up and bringing against Babylon wa gathering of great nations, from the north country. And they shall array themselves against her. From there she shall be taken. Their arrows are like a skilled warrior who does not return empty-handed. 10 xChaldea shall be plundered; all who plunder her shall be sated, declares the Lord.
11 y“Though you rejoice, though you exult,
O plunderers of my heritage,
though you frolic like a heifer in the pasture,
and neigh like stallions,
12 your mother shall be utterly shamed,
and she who bore you shall be disgraced.
Behold, she shall be the last of the nations,
za wilderness, a dry land, and a desert.
13 aBecause of the wrath of the Lord she shall not be inhabited
but shall be an utter desolation;
beveryone who passes by Babylon shall be appalled,
band hiss because of all her wounds.
14 cSet yourselves in array against Babylon all around,
dall you who bend the bow;
shoot at her, spare no arrows,
efor she has sinned against the Lord.
15 fRaise a shout against her all around;
she has surrendered;
her bulwarks have fallen;
gher walls are thrown down.
For hthis is the vengeance of the Lord:
take vengeance on her;
ido to her as she has done.
16 Cut off from Babylon the sower,
and the one who handles the sickle in time of harvest;
jbecause of the sword of the oppressor,
kevery one shall turn to his own people,
and every one shall flee to his own land.
17 l“Israel is a hunted sheep mdriven away by lions. nFirst the king of Assyria odevoured him, and now at last pNebuchadnezzar king of Babylon qhas gnawed his bones. 18 Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, rI am bringing punishment on the king of Babylon and his land, sas I punished the king of Assyria. 19 tI will restore Israel to his pasture, and the shall feed on uCarmel and in uBashan, and his desire shall be satisfied on the hills of Ephraim and in uGilead. 20 In those days and in that time, declares the Lord, viniquity shall be sought in Israel, and there shall be none, and sin in Judah, and none shall be found, for wI will pardon those whom I leave as a remnant.
21 “Go up against the land of Merathaim,1
and against the inhabitants of Pekod.2
Kill, xand devote them to destruction,3
declares the Lord,
and do all that I have commanded you.
22 yThe noise of battle is in the land,
and great destruction!
23 zHow the hammer of the whole earth
is cut down and broken!
a horror among the nations!
24 cI set a snare for you and you were taken, O Babylon,
and dyou did not know it;
you were found and caught,
because you opposed the Lord.
25 The Lord has opened his armory
and brought out ethe weapons of his wrath,
for the Lord God of hosts has a work to do
in the land of the Chaldeans.
26 Come against her from every quarter;
open her granaries;
fpile her up like heaps of grain, and devote her to destruction;
let nothing be left of her.
27 Kill all gher bulls;
let them go down to the slaughter.
Woe to them, for their day has come,
hthe time of their punishment.
28 “A voice! They iflee and escape from the land of Babylon, jto declare in Zion the vengeance of the Lord our God, vengeance for khis temple.
29 l“Summon archers against Babylon, all those who bend the bow. lEncamp around her; let no one escape. mRepay her according to her deeds; do to her according to all that she has done. For she has nproudly defied the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. 30 oTherefore her young men shall fall in her squares, and all her soldiers shall be destroyed on that day, declares the Lord.
31 “Behold, I am against you, O nproud one,
declares the Lord God of hosts,
pfor your day has come,
the time when I will punish you.
32 nThe proud one shall stumble and fall,
with none to raise him up,
qand I will kindle a fire in his cities,
and it will devour all that is around him.
33 “Thus says the Lord of hosts: rThe people of Israel are oppressed, and the people of Judah with them. All who took them captive have held them fast; sthey refuse to let them go. 34 tTheir Redeemer is strong; uthe Lord of hosts is his name. vHe will surely plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, but unrest to the inhabitants of Babylon.
35 “A sword against the Chaldeans, declares the Lord,
and against the inhabitants of Babylon,
and against wher officials and her xwise men!
36 A sword against the diviners,
that they may become fools!
A sword against her ywarriors,
that they may be destroyed!
37 A sword against her horses and against her chariots,
and against all zthe foreign troops in her midst,
that athey may become women!
bA sword against all her treasures,
that they may be plundered!
38 cA drought against her waters,
that they may be dried up!
dFor it is a land of images,
and they are mad over idols.
39 e“Therefore wild beasts shall dwell with hyenas in Babylon,4 and ostriches shall dwell in her. She shall never again have people, nor be inhabited for all generations. 40 fAs when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah and their neighboring cities, declares the Lord, gso no man shall dwell there, and no son of man shall sojourn in her.
41 h“Behold, a people comes from the north;
a mighty nation and many kings
are stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.
42 They lay hold of bow and spear;
they are cruel and have no mercy.
The sound of them is like the roaring of the sea;
they ride on horses,
arrayed as a man for battle
against you, O daughter of Babylon!
43 “The king of Babylon heard the report of them,
and his hands fell helpless;
anguish seized him,
pain as of a woman in labor.
44 i“Behold, like a lion coming up from the thicket of the Jordan against a perennial pasture, I will suddenly make them run away from her, and I will appoint over her whomever I choose. For who is like me? Who will summon me? What shepherd jcan stand before me? 45 Therefore hear kthe plan that the Lord has made against Babylon, kand the purposes that he has formed against the land of the Chaldeans: lSurely the little ones of their flock shall be dragged away; surely their fold shall be appalled at their fate. 46 mAt the sound of the capture of Babylon the earth shall tremble, and her cry shall be heard among the nations.”
