The Daily Audio Bible
Today's audio is from the NIV. Switch to the NIV to read along with the audio.
10 People of Israel, listen to what the Lord says to you.
2 The Lord says,
‘Do not copy the way that people of other nations live.
They are afraid of strange things that they see in the sky.
But you must not be afraid of those things.[a]
3 The customs of those people are useless.[b]
They cut down a tree in the forest.
A worker uses his tools to make it into an idol.
4 He covers it with silver and gold
to make it look beautiful.
He uses nails to fix it together
so that it will not fall down.
5 Those idols cannot speak.
They are like scarecrows that a farmer puts in his field of vegetables.[c]
The idols cannot walk,
so people have to carry them.
So do not be afraid of them.
They cannot hurt you.
And they do not have any power to help you.’
6 There is nobody like you, Lord.
You are great and your name shows your power.
7 Everyone should respect you,
the King who rules all the nations.
You deserve that people give you honour.
There is nobody like you anywhere in the world.
Among all the wise people of the nations
and among all their kings,
there is no one like you.
8 The people of those nations are stupid and foolish.
They think that wooden idols can teach them something!
9 They bring thin silver from Spain.
They bring gold from Uphaz.
Workers who know how to use wood and metal
make the idols look beautiful.
They put valuable blue and purple clothes on the idols.
Workers who have special skills do this.
10 But the Lord is the only true God.
He is the God who is alive.
He is the King who rules for ever.
When he is angry, the earth shakes.
None of the nations can stop his anger.
11 Tell the nations this:
‘Your gods did not make the earth or the sky.
They will disappear completely from everywhere on earth
and everywhere in the sky.’
12 But the Lord used his power to make the earth.
He used his wisdom to make it strong.
He knew how to put the sky to cover the earth.
13 When he shouts like thunder,
the water in the sky roars.
He causes clouds to rise from the far places of the earth.
He causes bright lightning to show in the storms.
He opens his rooms so that the wind comes out
and it blows everywhere.
14 People who worship idols are stupid.
They do not understand what they are doing.
The men who make idols will be ashamed.
They make images of gods that are false.
None of their idols have the breath of life in them.
15 They are useless things that people should laugh at.
When the time for their punishment arrives,
God will destroy them.
16 The God that Jacob's descendants worship
is not like those idols.
He created everything.
He chose the Israelites as the people who would belong to him.
His name is the Lord Almighty.
God will soon punish the people of Judah
17 Your enemies are all around
and they are ready to attack you.
So get all your things together.
Prepare to leave your country.
18 This is what the Lord says:
‘I will now throw out the people who live in this land.
I will bring much trouble to them,
and they will be in pain.’
19 ‘A terrible thing has happened to us![d]
We have received a very bad wound.
We thought, “We are very ill,
but one day we will get better.”
20 But now they have destroyed our tent.
They have broken the ropes that held it.[e]
Our children have gone,
and none of them remain.
There is nobody still alive
who can help us build our homes again.
21 Our leaders are fools.
They do not ask the Lord for his advice.
So they have failed to take care of us,
and all their people have disappeared.[f]
22 Listen! We have heard the news!
There is the noise of a great army in the north.
It is marching towards us!
It is coming to attack the towns of Judah.
It will make them heaps of stones.
Only wild animals will live in them.
23 Lord, I know that nobody controls their own life.
Nobody can decide what will happen to them.
24 Lord, teach us what is right,
but do it carefully.
Please do not punish us in your anger.
That would be the end of us.
25 Instead, be angry with the nations that do not respect you.
Be angry with the people who do not worship you.
Those are the people who have destroyed Jacob's descendants.[g]
They have killed our people.
They have destroyed our land and our homes.’
The people have not obeyed God's covenant with them
11 The Lord gave this message to Jeremiah: 2 ‘Listen to the rules of the covenant that I made with my people. Tell them to the people who live in Jerusalem and the other towns in Judah. 3 Tell them that the Lord, Israel's God, says, “I will curse anyone who does not obey the rules of this covenant. 4 I gave those rules to your ancestors when I brought them safely out of Egypt. That place was like a hot oven where they were in great pain. At that time, I said to them, ‘Obey me and do everything that I command you to do. If you obey my covenant with you, you will be my people and I will be your God. 5 I will do what I promised to your ancestors. I promised to give to them a land where there was plenty of food and drink, enough for everyone.’ That is the land that you still live in today.” ’
I answered, ‘Amen, Lord, I would like that to happen.’
6 The Lord said to me, ‘Speak all these words in the towns of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem: “Listen to the rules of my covenant with you. Obey them! 7 I clearly warned your ancestors that they must obey me. I warned them many times since I brought them safely out of Egypt. I have continued to do that, even until today. 8 But they did not listen to me. They did not agree to obey my covenant. Instead, they continued to do all the wicked things that they wanted to do. They would not change how they lived. So I punished them in the way that the covenant said they deserved. I had commanded them to obey the rules of the covenant, and they did not do that.” ’
9 The Lord said to me, ‘The people of Judah and those who live in Jerusalem have decided to turn against me. 10 They are doing the same evil things that their ancestors did. Their ancestors refused to obey my commands. These people do that, and they also serve and worship other gods. I made a covenant with their ancestors. But the nations of Judah and Israel have refused to obey that covenant. 11 So now, I, the Lord, say this: “I will bring great trouble to these people. They will not be able to escape. When they call out to me for help, I will not listen to them. 12 The people who live in Jerusalem and in the other towns of Judah will ask their false gods to help them. Those are the gods that they offer sacrifices to. But when this terrible trouble comes, those gods will never be able to rescue them. 13 You people of Judah have as many gods as you have towns! You have built many altars to offer sacrifices to that disgusting god, Baal. You have built as many of those altars as there are streets in Jerusalem!”
14 So, Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not ask me to do anything to help them. Do not ask me to save them. When trouble comes and they ask me for help, I will not listen to them.
15 The people that I love are doing wicked things.
They should not be in my temple.
They think that they will be safe
if they offer animal sacrifices to me.
They enjoy the evil things that they do,
and their punishment will certainly happen.
16 I, the Lord, called you a beautiful olive tree.
It was a tree that gave lots of good fruit.
But now I will destroy you with fire.
The flames will make a loud noise.
All your branches will be useless.
17 I, the Lord Almighty, planted you in the land, like a tree.
But now you have caused me to be angry.
You nations of Israel and Judah have done evil things.
And you have offered sacrifices to Baal.
So now I have decided to punish you with great trouble.’
The men in Anathoth want to kill Jeremiah
18 The Lord showed me what the people were doing.[h] He helped me to understood what was really happening. 19 Before that, I did not know about their plans to kill me. I was like a lamb that men were taking away to kill it. I did not know that they were saying, ‘We should cut down this tree and destroy its fruit![i] Jeremiah must not continue to live in this world. Then people will forget all about him.’
20 So I said, ‘Lord Almighty, you judge people in a fair way. You know what people are thinking. You understand how they feel. I trust you to show that I have not done anything that is wrong. So please punish these people. Pay them back for their sins.’
21 The Lord told me that some men in Anathoth wanted to kill me. They said to me, ‘Stop telling us messages from the Lord! If you do not stop, we will kill you.’ 22 So the Lord Almighty said, ‘Yes, I will certainly punish them! Their young men will die as they fight in war. Their children will be so hungry that they die. 23 All those men in Anathoth who wanted to kill you will die. At the right time, I will punish them with great trouble.’
Do what is right, at home and at work
18 Wives, obey your husbands. That is the right thing to do, because you belong to the Lord.
19 Husbands, love your wives. Do not bring trouble to them.
20 Children, always obey your parents. That pleases the Lord.
21 Fathers, do not cause your children to be upset. If you do, they might think that they never do anything that is good.
22 Slaves, always obey your human masters. Do not do good work only when they can see you. Some people only work to make other people like them. Instead, serve your masters well because you want to. That will show that you respect the Lord as your master. 23 Whatever things you are doing, do them well. Remember that you are serving the Lord. You are not only serving people. 24 You know that you will receive the good things that the Lord has promised to his people. He will give you what is right for you. The Lord Jesus Christ is the master that you serve. 25 Remember that God will punish anyone who does wrong things. He always judges people correctly, whoever they are.
4 Masters, be fair to your servants. Give them what is right. Remember that you also serve a master, and he is in heaven.
Paul tells the believers to pray
2 Continue to pray seriously. Stay awake, like people who watch carefully. And remember to thank God. 3 Also pray for us. Ask God to make it possible for us to tell people his message. We want people to understand the message about Christ that was a secret before. I am now in a prison because I taught people those things. 4 Pray that I will be able to tell people this message clearly. That is what I should do.
5 When you are with people who do not believe in Christ, be careful how you live. Use every chance to do good things. 6 When you speak to people, always speak kind words. Say things that will help them. Then, when someone asks you a question, you will know how to reply.
Paul finishes his letter
7 Our Christian friend, Tychicus, will tell you all the news about me. He works hard to serve the Lord. Like me, he is the Lord's servant. 8 I want him to tell you what is happening to us, so that you will feel stronger. That is the reason why I am sending him to you. 9 Onesimus will travel with him. As you know, he is one of your own people. He is a good Christian friend who serves Christ well. Onesimus and Tychicus will tell you everything that is happening here.
10 Aristarchus is also here with me in the prison. He says ‘hello’ to you. Barnabas's cousin, Mark also says ‘hello’ to you. I have already told you about him. So, if he comes to you, be kind to him. 11 Jesus, who is also called Justus, says ‘hello’ to you, too. These three men are the only Jewish believers who are serving God with me. We work together to bring people into the kingdom of God. These men have helped me to be strong.
12 Epaphras says ‘hello’ to you. He is also one of your people, and he is Jesus Christ's servant. He always prays very strongly for you. He prays that you will continue to grow as believers. He prays that you will completely understand everything that God wants you to do. 13 I can tell you this about Epaphras: He has worked very hard for you, and also for the people at Laodicea and at Hierapolis.
14 Our good friend Luke, the doctor, says ‘hello’ to you. Demas also says ‘hello’. 15 Say ‘hello’ for me to all the believers at Laodicea. Also say ‘hello’ to Nympha and to the group of believers that meet in her house.
16 After someone has read this letter to all of you, send it to the believers at Laodicea. Tell them to read it aloud to the church there. You must also read my letter that the believers at Laodicea will send to you.
17 Say to Archippus, ‘As you serve the Lord, be careful to finish the work that he gave you to do.’
18 I, Paul, am writing these words at the end of this letter with my own hand. Remember to pray for me while I am in prison. I pray that God will continue to be very kind to you.
56 But the Israelites continued to test the Most High God,
and they turned against him.
They did not obey his commands.[a]
57 They turned away from him and they deceived him,
as their ancestors had done.
They were useless,
like a bow that would not shoot straight!
58 The places where they worshipped their idols
made God very angry.
59 God heard what they were doing,
and he became very angry.
He turned against the Israelite people.
60 He went away from his home at Shiloh.
That was the tent where he lived among people.[b]
61 He let Israel's enemies take away the Covenant Box,
that showed his power and his glory.[c]
62 He was so angry with his own people,
he let their enemies kill them in battle.
63 Fire killed their young men in war.
There was nobody for the young women to marry.
64 Their priests died in battle.
Their widows had no chance to weep.
65 Then the Lord woke up,
like someone had woken him from sleep.
He shouted loudly,
like a soldier who has drunk a lot of wine.
66 He chased his enemies away.
He caused them to be ashamed for ever.
67 He chose not to live among Joseph's descendants.
He did not choose the tribe of Ephraim.
68 Instead, he chose the tribe of Judah.
He chose Mount Zion,
the place which he loves.
69 There he built a temple for himself,
to be like his home in heaven.
He made it to be strong, like the earth itself,
so that it would always be there.
70 Also, he chose his servant, David.
He took David away from the fields,
71 so that he no longer took care of his father's sheep.
He became like a shepherd,
to lead his people, Jacob's descendants.
He ruled the people that belonged to God,
the Israelite people.[d]
72 David took care of them with an honest heart.
He was wise in the way that he led them.
28 If you do not know what is true, do not speak against your neighbour in court. Do not deceive people with what you say. 29 Do not say, ‘I will do to him the same thing that he did to me. I will punish him because of what he did.’
EasyEnglish Bible Copyright © MissionAssist 2019 - Charitable Incorporated Organisation 1162807. Used by permission. All rights reserved.