The Peaceful Kingdom

¹The royal line of David is like a tree that has been cut down; but just as new branches sprout from a stump, so a new king will arise from among David's descendants.

²The spirit of the Lord will give him wisdom and the knowledge and skill to rule his people. He will know the Lord's will and honor him,

³and find pleasure in obeying him. He will not judge by appearance or hearsay;

⁴he will judge the poor fairly and defend the rights of the helpless. At his command the people will be punished, and evil persons will die.

⁵He will rule his people with justice and integrity.

⁶Wolves and sheep will live together in peace, and leopards will lie down with young goats. Calves and lion cubs will feed together, and little children will take care of them.

⁷Cows and bears will eat together, and their calves and cubs will lie down in peace. Lions will eat straw as cattle do.

⁸Even a baby will not be harmed if it plays near a poisonous snake.

⁹On Zion, God's sacred hill, there will be nothing harmful or evil. The land will be as full of knowledge of the Lord as the seas are full of water.

The Exiled People Will Return

¹⁰A day is coming when the new king from the royal line of David will be a symbol to the nations. They will gather in his royal city and give him honor.

¹¹When that day comes, the Lord will once again use his power and bring back home those of his people who are left in Assyria and Egypt, in the lands of Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Babylonia, and Hamath, and in the coastlands and on the islands of the sea.

¹²The Lord will raise a signal flag to show the nations that he is gathering together again the scattered people of Israel and Judah and bringing them back from the four corners of the earth.

¹³The kingdom of Israel will not be jealous of Judah any more, and Judah will not be the enemy of Israel.

¹⁴Together they will attack the Philistines on the west and plunder the people who live to the east. They will conquer the people of Edom and Moab, and the people of Ammon will obey them.

¹⁵The Lord will dry up the Gulf of Suez, and he will bring a hot wind to dry up the Euphrates, leaving only seven tiny streams, so that anyone can walk across.

¹⁶There will be a highway out of Assyria for those of his people Israel who have survived there, just as there was for their ancestors when they left Egypt.

Hymn of Thanksgiving

¹A day is coming when people will sing, “I praise you, Lord! You were angry with me, but now you comfort me and are angry no longer.

²God is my savior; I will trust him and not be afraid. The Lord gives me power and strength; he is my savior.

³As fresh water brings joy to the thirsty, so God's people rejoice when he saves them.”

⁴A day is coming when people will sing, “Give thanks to the Lord! Call for him to help you! Tell all the nations what he has done! Tell them how great he is!

⁵Sing to the Lord because of the great things he has done. Let the whole world hear the news.

⁶Let everyone who lives in Zion shout and sing! Israel's holy God is great, and he lives among his people.”

God Will Punish Babylon

¹This is a message about Babylon, which Isaiah son of Amoz received from God.

²On the top of a barren hill raise the battle flag! Shout to the soldiers and raise your arm as the signal for them to attack the gates of the proud city.

³The Lord has called out his proud and confident soldiers to fight a holy war and punish those he is angry with.

⁴Listen to the noise on the mountains—the sound of a great crowd of people, the sound of nations and kingdoms gathering. The Lord of Armies is preparing his troops for battle.

⁵They are coming from far-off countries at the ends of the earth. In his anger the Lord is coming to devastate the whole country.

⁶Howl in pain! The day of the Lord is near, the day when the Almighty brings destruction.

⁷Everyone's hands will hang limp, and everyone's courage will fail.

⁸They will all be terrified and overcome with pain, like the pain of a woman in labor. They will look at each other in fear, and their faces will burn with shame.

⁹The day of the Lord is coming—that cruel day of his fierce anger and fury. The earth will be made a wilderness, and every sinner will be destroyed.

¹⁰Every star and every constellation will stop shining, the sun will be dark when it rises, and the moon will give no light.

¹¹The Lord says, “I will bring disaster on the earth and punish all wicked people for their sins. I will humble everyone who is proud and punish everyone who is arrogant and cruel.

¹²Those who survive will be scarcer than gold.

¹³I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place on that day when I, the Lord Almighty, show my anger.

¹⁴“The foreigners living in Babylon will run away to their homelands, scattering like deer escaping from hunters, like sheep without a shepherd.

¹⁵Anyone who is caught will be stabbed to death.

¹⁶While they look on helplessly, their babies will be battered to death, their houses will be looted, and their wives will be raped.”

¹⁷The Lord says, “I am stirring up the Medes to attack Babylon. They care nothing for silver and are not tempted by gold.

¹⁸With their bows and arrows they will kill the young men. They will show no mercy to babies and take no pity on children.

¹⁹Babylonia is the most beautiful kingdom of all; it is the pride of its people. But I, the Lord, will overthrow Babylon as I did Sodom and Gomorrah!

²⁰No one will ever live there again. No wandering Arab will ever pitch a tent there, and no shepherd will ever pasture a flock there.

²¹It will be a place where desert animals live and where owls build their nests. Ostriches will live there, and wild goats will prance through the ruins.

²²The towers and palaces will echo with the cries of hyenas and jackals. Babylon's time has come! Her days are almost over.”

Tobit's Song of Praise

¹Then Tobit prayed: Praise the eternal God, praise the one who rules.

²He punishes us; then he shows us mercy. He sends us down to the world of the dead, then he brings us up from the grave. No one can escape his power.

³People of Israel, give thanks among the nations, where he sent you into exile;

⁴even there he showed his great power. Let all who live hear your praise. The Lord is our God and father forever.

⁵Though he punished you for your wickedness, he will be merciful and bring you home from among the nations where he scattered you.

⁶Turn to him with all your heart and soul, live in loyal obedience to him. Then he will turn to you to help you and will no longer hide himself. Remember what God has done for you, and give thanks with all your heart. Praise the righteous Lord; honor the eternal King. Although I live in exile in a foreign land, I will give thanks to the Lord and will speak of his great strength to a nation of sinners. Turn away from your sins, and do what pleases God! Perhaps he will be gracious and show you his mercy.

⁷I praise my God and rejoice in his greatness; my whole being honors the King of heaven.

⁸Let everyone tell of his greatness and sing his praises in Jerusalem.

⁹Jerusalem, Holy City of our God, he will punish you for the sins of your people, but he will be merciful to all who do right.

¹⁰So give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. Praise the eternal King. Your Temple will be rebuilt, and your people will be happy again. May the Lord make all your exiles glad, may he take care of your suffering people for as long as time shall last.

¹¹Jerusalem, your light will shine brightly for all the world, and from far away many nations will come to you. Their people will come to honor the Lord your God, they will bring gifts for the King of heaven. In your streets many generations will sing joyful praise, your name will endure forever as God's chosen city.

¹²A curse will be on all who make threats against you, on all who destroy you and tear down your walls, on all who demolish your towers and burn your homes. But all who honor you will be blessed forever.

¹³Rejoice, Jerusalem, because of your righteous people; they will be gathered together from exile to praise the Lord of the ages.

¹⁴Happy are all who love you and are pleased to see you prosper. Those who mourn over your suffering now will one day be happy; your happiness will bring them joy forever.

¹⁵I praise the Lord, the great King;

¹⁶Jerusalem will be rebuilt and will be his home forever. Jerusalem, how happy I will be when my descendants can see your splendor and give thanks to the King of heaven. Your gates will be built with sapphires and emeralds, and all your walls with precious stones. Your towers will be made of gold, and their fortifications of pure gold.

¹⁷Your streets will be paved with rubies and precious jewels.

¹⁸Joyful songs will ring out from your gates, and from all your houses people will shout, Praise the Lord! Praise the God of Israel! Jerusalem, God will bless your people, and they will praise his holy name forever. With these words Tobit ended his song of praise.

Tobit's Final Advice

^1-2Tobit was 62 years old when he became blind, but after his sight had been restored, he lived a very full life. Once again he gave generously to the poor, and he continued to praise God and tell of his greatness. Tobit died a peaceful death at the age of 112, and was given an honorable burial in Nineveh.

³But just before Tobit died, he sent for his son Tobias and told him,

⁴My son, take your children and go at once to Media. I believe that God's judgment which his prophet Nahum announced against Nineveh is about to take place. Everything that God's prophets told Israel about Nineveh and Assyria will happen. It will all come true, every word of it, when the right time comes. I am absolutely convinced that everything God has said is sure to come true. God does not break his promises. It will be safer for you in Media than in Assyria or Babylon. Those Jews who live in Israel will all be scattered and taken from that good land into exile. All Israel will become a wasteland; Samaria and Jerusalem will be abandoned cities. God's Temple will be burned to the ground and will lie in complete ruin for a while.

⁵But God will have mercy on his people again, and he will bring them back to the land of Israel. They will rebuild the Temple, but it will not be as splendid as the first Temple, not until the proper time has come. But when that time does come, all the people of Israel will return from exile, and they will rebuild the city of Jerusalem in all its former splendor. They will rebuild God's Temple in Jerusalem, just as Israel's prophets have foretold.

⁶Then all the nations in the world will come back to God. They will worship him as the only true God and give up the idols that led them into false worship.

⁷The nations of the world will praise the everlasting God by doing what he demands. At that time God will save all the people of Israel who have been faithful to him. He will bring them together to Jerusalem, and let them take possession of the land of Abraham, and there they will live securely forever. All who love God with their heart and soul will rejoice, but all sinners and evil people will be wiped off the face of the earth.

⁸Now, my children, follow my instructions. Worship God sincerely and do what is pleasing to him.

⁹Bring up your children to do what is right. Teach them that they must give to the poor and must always remember to praise God with all sincerity.

¹⁰Tobias, my son, leave Nineveh now. Do not stay here. As soon as you bury your mother beside me, leave; do not stay another night within the city limits. It is a wicked city and full of immorality; the people here have no sense of shame. Remember what Nadab did to Ahikar his own uncle who had brought him up. He tried to kill Ahikar and forced him to go into hiding in a tomb. Ahikar came back into the light of day, but God sent Nadab down into everlasting darkness for what he had done. Ahikar escaped the deadly trap which Nadab had set for him, because Ahikar had given generously to the poor. But Nadab fell into that fatal trap and it destroyed him.

¹¹So now, my children, you see what happens to those who show their concern for others, and how death awaits those who treat others unjustly. But now I am very weak. Then they laid Tobit on his bed. He died and was given an honorable burial.

¹²Later on, Tobit's wife died and was buried beside her husband. Then Tobias and his wife moved to Ecbatana in Media, where they lived with Raguel, Tobias' father-in-law.

¹³Tobias took care of Edna and Raguel in their old age and showed them great respect. When at last they died, he buried them at Ecbatana. Tobias inherited Raguel's estate, as he had inherited the estate of his father Tobit.

¹⁴At the ripe old age of 117 Tobias died,

¹⁵having lived long enough to hear about the destruction of Nineveh and to see King Cyaxares of Media take the people away as captives. Tobias praised God for the way that he had punished the people of Nineveh and Assyria. As long as he lived he gave thanks for what God had done to Nineveh.

¹³Intelligent people talk sense, but stupid people need to be punished.

¹⁴The wise get all the knowledge they can, but when fools speak, trouble is not far off.

¹⁵Wealth protects the rich; poverty destroys the poor.

¹⁶The reward for doing good is life, but sin leads only to more sin.