WORDS for your PSYCHE - Part I

Old Testament: Books of Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel and Amos

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6 / NIV ®)

EZEKIEL

“He said to me, ’Son of man, stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.’ As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me.... ’Do not rebel like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you.’ Then I looked, and I saw a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe. And he said to me, ’Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the house of Israel.’ So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat. Then he said to me, ’Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.’ So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth.” (Ezekiel 2:1-2 and 8-10 to 3:1-3 / NIV ®)

“The word of the Lord came to me: ’Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.’” (Ezekiel 12:1-2 / NIV ®)

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!” (Ezekiel 14:6 / NIV ®)

“On the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths. No-one looked on you with pity or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised. Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay in your blood I said to you, ’Live!’ I made you grow like a plant of the field. You grew up and developed and became the most beautiful of jewels. Your breasts were formed and your hair grew, you who were naked and bare. Later I passed by, and when I looked at you and saw that you were old enough for love, I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness. I gave you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Sovereign Lord, and you became mine.” (Ezekiel 16:4-8 / NIV ®)

“I bathed you with water and washed the blood from you and put ointments on you. I clothed you with an embroidered dress and put leather sandals on you. I dressed you in fine linen and covered you with costly garments. I adorned you with jewellery: I put bracelets on your arms and a necklace around your neck, and I put a ring on your nose, ear-rings on your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. So you were adorned with gold and silver; your clothes were of fine linen and costly fabric and embroidered cloth. Your food was fine flour, honey and olive oil. You became very beautiful and rose to be a queen. And your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, because the splendour I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign Lord. But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. You lavished your favours on anyone...and became his...and took the fine jewellery I gave you...and made for yourself male idols....” (Ezekiel 16:9-17 / NIV ®)

“Everyone who quotes proverbs will quote this proverb about you: ’Like mother, like daughter.’” (Ezekiel 16:44 / NIV ®)

“But if a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die.” (Ezekiel 18:21 / NIV ®)

“’Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?’ declares the Sovereign Lord. ’Rather, am I not pleased when they turn from their ways and live?’” (Ezekiel 18:23 / NIV ®)

“Repent! Turn away from all your offences; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit.” (Ezekiel 18:30-31 / NIV ®)

“The righteousness of the righteous man will not save him when he disobeys, and the wickedness of the wicked man will not cause him to fall when he turns from it.” (Ezekiel 33:12 / NIV ®)

“With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.” (Ezekiel 33:31-32 / NIV ®)

“...Woe to the shepherds...who only take care of themselves! Should not shepherds take care of the flock? You eat the curds, clothe yourselves with the wool and slaughter the choice animals, but you do not take care of the flock. You have not strengthened the weak or healed the sick or bound up the injured. You have not brought back the strays or searched for the lost. You have ruled them harshly and brutally.” (Ezekiel 34:2-4 / NIV ®)

“’For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep.... I will tend them in good pasture...they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture...I myself will tend my sheep...declares the Sovereign Lord. I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.’” (Ezekiel 34:11-16 / NIV ®)

“The hand of the Lord was upon me...He asked me, ’Son of man, can these bones live?’ I said, ’O Sovereign Lord, you alone know.’ Then he said to me, ’Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ’Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ So I prophesied as I was commanded...they came to life....” (Ezekiel 37:1-10 / NIV ®)

“This is the law of the Temple: All the surrounding area on top of the mountain will be most holy. Such is the law of the Temple.” (Ezekiel 43:12 / NIV ®)

DANIEL

“Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever; wisdom and power are his. He changes times and seasons; he sets up kings and deposes them. He gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to the discerning. He reveals deep and hidden things; he knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with him.” (Daniel 2:20-22 / NIV ®)

“King Belshazzar gave a great banquet...he gave orders to bring in the gold and silver goblets that...his father had taken from the temple in Jerusalem, so that the king and his nobles, his wives and concubines might drink from them.... As they drank...fingers of a human hand appeared and wrote on the plaster of the wall...The king watched the hand as it wrote. His face turned pale and he was so frightened that his knees knocked together....The queen...came into the banquet hall...she said,’...Call for Daniel, and he will tell you what the writing means.’ So Daniel was brought before the king and the king said to him, ’...If you can read this writing and tell me what it means...you will be made the third highest ruler in the kingdom.’ Then Daniel answered the king, ’You may keep your gifts...Nevertheless, I will read the writing for the king....This is the inscription that was written: MENE, MENE, TEKEL, PARSIN. This is what these words mean: Mene: God has numbered the days of your reign and brought it to an end. Tekel: You have been weighed on the scales and found wanting. Peres: Your kingdom is divided and given to the Medes and Persians...’ That very night Belshazzar, king of the Babylonians, was slain and Darius the Mede took over the kingdom....” (Daniel 5:1-2, 4-6, 10-13, 16-17, 25-28 and 30-31 / NIV ®)

“Now listen and understand! Seven sets of seven plus sixty-two sets of seven will pass from the time this command is given to rebuild Jerusalem until a ruler - the Anointed One - comes. Jerusalem will be rebuilt...After this period of sixty-two sets of seven, the Anointed One will be killed, appearing to have accomplished nothing....” (Daniel 9:25-26 / NLT)

“At that time Michael, the great prince who protects your people, will arise. There will be a time of distress such as has not happened from the beginning of nations until then. But at that time your people - everyone whose name is found written in the book - will be delivered. Multitudes who sleep in the dust of the earth will awake; some to everlasting life, others to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars for ever and ever. But you, Daniel, close up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.” (Daniel 12:1-4 / NIV ®)

HOSEA

“Hear...the Lord...because the Lord has a charge to bring against you who live in the land: There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgement of God in the land. There is only cursing, lying and murder, stealing and adultery; they break all bounds, and bloodshed follows bloodshed.” (Hosea 4:1-2 / NIV ®)

“For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6 / NIV ®)

“Your sins have been your downfall!” (Hosea 14:1 / NIV ®)

“Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: ’Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips.’” (Hosea 14:2 / NIV ®)

JOEL

“’Even now,’ declares the Lord, ’return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments.’” (Joel 2:12-13 / NIV ®)

“Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love....” (Joel 2:13 / NIV ®)

“And afterwards, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions.” (Joel 2:28 / NIV ®)

“I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved....” (Joel 2:30-32 / NIV ®)

AMOS

“He who forms the mountains, creates the wind, and reveals his thought to man, he who turns dawn to darkness, and treads the high places of the earth - the Lord God Almighty is his name.” (Amos 4:13 / NIV ®)

“I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies. Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them. Away with the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream!” (Amos 5:21-24 / NIV ®)

“’The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ’when I will send a famine through the land - not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.’” (Amos 8:11 / NIV ®)