Bible in 90 Days Plan

¹This is the message that the prophet Habakkuk received in a vision.

²How long, O LORD, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save.

³Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight.

⁴The law has become paralyzed, and there is no justice in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, so that justice has become perverted.

⁵The LORD replied, “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.

⁶I am raising up the Babylonians, a cruel and violent people. They will march across the world and conquer other lands.

⁷They are notorious for their cruelty and do whatever they like.

⁸Their horses are swifter than cheetahs and fiercer than wolves at dusk. Their charioteers charge from far away. Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.

⁹“On they come, all bent on violence. Their hordes advance like a desert wind, sweeping captives ahead of them like sand.

¹⁰They scoff at kings and princes and scorn all their fortresses. They simply pile ramps of earth against their walls and capture them!

¹¹They sweep past like the wind and are gone. But they are deeply guilty, for their own strength is their god.”

¹²O LORD my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal — surely you do not plan to wipe us out? O LORD, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us, to punish us for our many sins.

¹³But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil. Will you wink at their treachery? Should you be silent while the wicked swallow up people more righteous than they?

¹⁴Are we only fish to be caught and killed? Are we only sea creatures that have no leader?

¹⁵Must we be strung up on their hooks and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate?

¹⁶Then they will worship their nets and burn incense in front of them. “These nets are the gods who have made us rich!” they will claim.

¹⁷Will you let them get away with this forever? Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?

¹I will climb up to my watchtower and stand at my guardpost. There I will wait to see what the LORD says and how he will answer my complaint.

²Then the LORD said to me, “Write my answer plainly on tablets, so that a runner can carry the correct message to others.

³This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed.

⁴“Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.

⁵Wealth is treacherous, and the arrogant are never at rest. They open their mouths as wide as the grave, and like death, they are never satisfied. In their greed they have gathered up many nations and swallowed many peoples.

⁶“But soon their captives will taunt them. They will mock them, saying, ‘What sorrow awaits you thieves! Now you will get what you deserve! You’ve become rich by extortion, but how much longer can this go on?’

⁷Suddenly, your debtors will take action. They will turn on you and take all you have, while you stand trembling and helpless.

⁸Because you have plundered many nations, now all the survivors will plunder you. You committed murder throughout the countryside and filled the towns with violence.

⁹“What sorrow awaits you who build big houses with money gained dishonestly! You believe your wealth will buy security, putting your family’s nest beyond the reach of danger.

¹⁰But by the murders you committed, you have shamed your name and forfeited your lives.

¹¹The very stones in the walls cry out against you, and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.

¹²“What sorrow awaits you who build cities with money gained through murder and corruption!

¹³Has not the LORD of Heaven’s Armies promised that the wealth of nations will turn to ashes? They work so hard, but all in vain!

¹⁴For as the waters fill the sea, the earth will be filled with an awareness of the glory of the LORD.

¹⁵“What sorrow awaits you who make your neighbors drunk! You force your cup on them so you can gloat over their shameful nakedness.

¹⁶But soon it will be your turn to be disgraced. Come, drink and be exposed! Drink from the cup of the LORD’s judgment, and all your glory will be turned to shame.

¹⁷You cut down the forests of Lebanon. Now you will be cut down. You destroyed the wild animals, so now their terror will be yours. You committed murder throughout the countryside and filled the towns with violence.

¹⁸“What good is an idol carved by man, or a cast image that deceives you? How foolish to trust in your own creation — a god that can’t even talk!

¹⁹What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols, ‘Wake up and save us!’ To speechless stone images you say, ‘Rise up and teach us!’ Can an idol tell you what to do? They may be overlaid with gold and silver, but they are lifeless inside.

²⁰But the LORD is in his holy Temple. Let all the earth be silent before him.”

¹This prayer was sung by the prophet Habakkuk :

²I have heard all about you, LORD. I am filled with awe by your amazing works. In this time of our deep need, help us again as you did in years gone by. And in your anger, remember your mercy.

³I see God moving across the deserts from Edom, the Holy One coming from Mount Paran. His brilliant splendor fills the heavens, and the earth is filled with his praise.

⁴His coming is as brilliant as the sunrise. Rays of light flash from his hands, where his awesome power is hidden.

⁵Pestilence marches before him; plague follows close behind.

⁶When he stops, the earth shakes. When he looks, the nations tremble. He shatters the everlasting mountains and levels the eternal hills. He is the Eternal One!

⁷I see the people of Cushan in distress, and the nation of Midian trembling in terror.

⁸Was it in anger, LORD, that you struck the rivers and parted the sea? Were you displeased with them? No, you were sending your chariots of salvation!

⁹You brandished your bow and your quiver of arrows. You split open the earth with flowing rivers.

¹⁰The mountains watched and trembled. Onward swept the raging waters. The mighty deep cried out, lifting its hands in submission.

¹¹The sun and moon stood still in the sky as your brilliant arrows flew and your glittering spear flashed.

¹²You marched across the land in anger and trampled the nations in your fury.

¹³You went out to rescue your chosen people, to save your anointed ones. You crushed the heads of the wicked and stripped their bones from head to toe.

¹⁴With his own weapons, you destroyed the chief of those who rushed out like a whirlwind, thinking Israel would be easy prey.

¹⁵You trampled the sea with your horses, and the mighty waters piled high.

¹⁶I trembled inside when I heard this; my lips quivered with fear. My legs gave way beneath me, and I shook in terror. I will wait quietly for the coming day when disaster will strike the people who invade us.

¹⁷Even though the fig trees have no blossoms, and there are no grapes on the vines; even though the olive crop fails, and the fields lie empty and barren; even though the flocks die in the fields, and the cattle barns are empty,

¹⁸yet I will rejoice in the LORD! I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!

¹⁹The Sovereign LORD is my strength! He makes me as surefooted as a deer, able to tread upon the heights. (For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)

¹The LORD gave this message to Zephaniah when Josiah son of Amon was king of Judah. Zephaniah was the son of Cushi, son of Gedaliah, son of Amariah, son of Hezekiah.

²“I will sweep away everything from the face of the earth,” says the LORD.

³“I will sweep away people and animals alike. I will sweep away the birds of the sky and the fish in the sea. I will reduce the wicked to heaps of rubble, and I will wipe humanity from the face of the earth,” says the LORD.

⁴“I will crush Judah and Jerusalem with my fist and destroy every last trace of their Baal worship. I will put an end to all the idolatrous priests, so that even the memory of them will disappear.

⁵For they go up to their roofs and bow down to the sun, moon, and stars. They claim to follow the LORD, but then they worship Molech, too.

⁶And I will destroy those who used to worship me but now no longer do. They no longer ask for the LORD’s guidance or seek my blessings.”

⁷Stand in silence in the presence of the Sovereign LORD, for the awesome day of the LORD’s judgment is near. The LORD has prepared his people for a great slaughter and has chosen their executioners.

⁸“On that day of judgment,” says the LORD, “I will punish the leaders and princes of Judah and all those following pagan customs.

⁹Yes, I will punish those who participate in pagan worship ceremonies, and those who fill their masters’ houses with violence and deceit.

¹⁰“On that day,” says the LORD, “a cry of alarm will come from the Fish Gate and echo throughout the New Quarter of the city. And a great crash will sound from the hills.

¹¹Wail in sorrow, all you who live in the market area, for all the merchants and traders will be destroyed.

¹²“I will search with lanterns in Jerusalem’s darkest corners to punish those who sit complacent in their sins. They think the LORD will do nothing to them, either good or bad.

¹³So their property will be plundered, their homes will be ransacked. They will build new homes but never live in them. They will plant vineyards but never drink wine from them.

¹⁴“That terrible day of the LORD is near. Swiftly it comes — a day of bitter tears, a day when even strong men will cry out.

¹⁵It will be a day when the LORD’s anger is poured out — a day of terrible distress and anguish, a day of ruin and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness,

¹⁶a day of trumpet calls and battle cries. Down go the walled cities and the strongest battlements!

¹⁷“Because you have sinned against the LORD, I will make you grope around like the blind. Your blood will be poured into the dust, and your bodies will lie rotting on the ground.”

¹⁸Your silver and gold will not save you on that day of the LORD’s anger. For the whole land will be devoured by the fire of his jealousy. He will make a terrifying end of all the people on earth.

¹Gather together — yes, gather together, you shameless nation.

²Gather before judgment begins, before your time to repent is blown away like chaff. Act now, before the fierce fury of the LORD falls and the terrible day of the LORD’s anger begins.

³Seek the LORD, all who are humble, and follow his commands. Seek to do what is right and to live humbly. Perhaps even yet the LORD will protect you — protect you from his anger on that day of destruction.

⁴Gaza and Ashkelon will be abandoned, Ashdod and Ekron torn down.

⁵And what sorrow awaits you Philistines who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan, for this judgment is against you, too! The LORD will destroy you until not one of you is left.

⁶The Philistine coast will become a wilderness pasture, a place of shepherd camps and enclosures for sheep and goats.

⁷The remnant of the tribe of Judah will pasture there. They will rest at night in the abandoned houses in Ashkelon. For the LORD their God will visit his people in kindness and restore their prosperity again.

⁸“I have heard the taunts of the Moabites and the insults of the Ammonites, mocking my people and invading their borders.

⁹Now, as surely as I live,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, “Moab and Ammon will be destroyed — destroyed as completely as Sodom and Gomorrah. Their land will become a place of stinging nettles, salt pits, and eternal desolation. The remnant of my people will plunder them and take their land.”

¹⁰They will receive the wages of their pride, for they have scoffed at the people of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

¹¹The LORD will terrify them as he destroys all the gods in the land. Then nations around the world will worship the LORD, each in their own land.

¹²“You Ethiopians will also be slaughtered by my sword,” says the LORD.

¹³And the LORD will strike the lands of the north with his fist, destroying the land of Assyria. He will make its great capital, Nineveh, a desolate wasteland, parched like a desert.

¹⁴The proud city will become a pasture for flocks and herds, and all sorts of wild animals will settle there. The desert owl and screech owl will roost on its ruined columns, their calls echoing through the gaping windows. Rubble will block all the doorways, and the cedar paneling will be exposed to the weather.

¹⁵This is the boisterous city, once so secure. “I am the greatest!” it boasted. “No other city can compare with me!” But now, look how it has become an utter ruin, a haven for wild animals. Everyone passing by will laugh in derision and shake a defiant fist.

¹What sorrow awaits rebellious, polluted Jerusalem, the city of violence and crime!

²No one can tell it anything; it refuses all correction. It does not trust in the LORD or draw near to its God.

³Its leaders are like roaring lions hunting for their victims. Its judges are like ravenous wolves at evening time, who by dawn have left no trace of their prey.

⁴Its prophets are arrogant liars seeking their own gain. Its priests defile the Temple by disobeying God’s instructions.

⁵But the LORD is still there in the city, and he does no wrong. Day by day he hands down justice, and he does not fail. But the wicked know no shame.

⁶“I have wiped out many nations, devastating their fortress walls and towers. Their streets are now deserted; their cities lie in silent ruin. There are no survivors — none at all.

⁷I thought, ‘Surely they will have reverence for me now! Surely they will listen to my warnings. Then I won’t need to strike again, destroying their homes.’ But no, they get up early to continue their evil deeds.

⁸Therefore, be patient,” says the LORD. “Soon I will stand and accuse these evil nations. For I have decided to gather the kingdoms of the earth and pour out my fiercest anger and fury on them. All the earth will be devoured by the fire of my jealousy.

⁹“Then I will purify the speech of all people, so that everyone can worship the LORD together.

¹⁰My scattered people who live beyond the rivers of Ethiopia will come to present their offerings.

¹¹On that day you will no longer need to be ashamed, for you will no longer be rebels against me. I will remove all proud and arrogant people from among you. There will be no more haughtiness on my holy mountain.

¹²Those who are left will be the lowly and humble, for it is they who trust in the name of the LORD.

¹³The remnant of Israel will do no wrong; they will never tell lies or deceive one another. They will eat and sleep in safety, and no one will make them afraid.”

¹⁴Sing, O daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!

¹⁵For the LORD will remove his hand of judgment and will disperse the armies of your enemy. And the LORD himself, the King of Israel, will live among you! At last your troubles will be over, and you will never again fear disaster.

¹⁶On that day the announcement to Jerusalem will be, “Cheer up, Zion! Don’t be afraid!

¹⁷For the LORD your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”

¹⁸“I will gather you who mourn for the appointed festivals; you will be disgraced no more.

¹⁹And I will deal severely with all who have oppressed you. I will save the weak and helpless ones; I will bring together those who were chased away. I will give glory and fame to my former exiles, wherever they have been mocked and shamed.

²⁰On that day I will gather you together and bring you home again. I will give you a good name, a name of distinction, among all the nations of the earth, as I restore your fortunes before their very eyes. I, the LORD, have spoken!”

¹On August 29 of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the LORD gave a message through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest.

²“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: The people are saying, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD.’”

³Then the LORD sent this message through the prophet Haggai:

⁴“Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins?

⁵This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you!

⁶You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!

⁷“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: Look at what’s happening to you!

⁸Now go up into the hills, bring down timber, and rebuild my house. Then I will take pleasure in it and be honored, says the LORD.

⁹You hoped for rich harvests, but they were poor. And when you brought your harvest home, I blew it away. Why? Because my house lies in ruins, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, while all of you are busy building your own fine houses.

¹⁰It’s because of you that the heavens withhold the dew and the earth produces no crops.

¹¹I have called for a drought on your fields and hills — a drought to wither the grain and grapes and olive trees and all your other crops, a drought to starve you and your livestock and to ruin everything you have worked so hard to get.”

¹²Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of God’s people began to obey the message from the LORD their God. When they heard the words of the prophet Haggai, whom the LORD their God had sent, the people feared the LORD.

¹³Then Haggai, the LORD’s messenger, gave the people this message from the LORD: “I am with you, says the LORD!”

¹⁴So the LORD sparked the enthusiasm of Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the enthusiasm of Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the enthusiasm of the whole remnant of God’s people. They began to work on the house of their God, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies,

¹⁵on September 21 of the second year of King Darius’s reign.

¹Then on October 17 of that same year, the LORD sent another message through the prophet Haggai.

²“Say this to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of God’s people there in the land:

³‘Does anyone remember this house — this Temple — in its former splendor? How, in comparison, does it look to you now? It must seem like nothing at all!

⁴But now the LORD says: Be strong, Zerubbabel. Be strong, Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people still left in the land. And now get to work, for I am with you, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁵My Spirit remains among you, just as I promised when you came out of Egypt. So do not be afraid.’

⁶“For this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: In just a little while I will again shake the heavens and the earth, the oceans and the dry land.

⁷I will shake all the nations, and the treasures of all the nations will be brought to this Temple. I will fill this place with glory, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁸The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁹The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. I, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”

¹⁰On December 18 of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the LORD sent this message to the prophet Haggai:

¹¹“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says. Ask the priests this question about the law:

¹²‘If one of you is carrying some meat from a holy sacrifice in his robes and his robe happens to brush against some bread or stew, wine or olive oil, or any other kind of food, will it also become holy?’” The priests replied, “No.”

¹³Then Haggai asked, “If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?” And the priests answered, “Yes.”

¹⁴Then Haggai responded, “That is how it is with this people and this nation, says the LORD. Everything they do and everything they offer is defiled by their sin.

¹⁵Look at what was happening to you before you began to lay the foundation of the LORD’s Temple.

¹⁶When you hoped for a twenty-bushel crop, you harvested only ten. When you expected to draw fifty gallons from the winepress, you found only twenty.

¹⁷I sent blight and mildew and hail to destroy everything you worked so hard to produce. Even so, you refused to return to me, says the LORD.

¹⁸“Think about this eighteenth day of December, the day when the foundation of the LORD’s Temple was laid. Think carefully.

¹⁹I am giving you a promise now while the seed is still in the barn. You have not yet harvested your grain, and your grapevines, fig trees, pomegranates, and olive trees have not yet produced their crops. But from this day onward I will bless you.”

²⁰On that same day, December 18, the LORD sent this second message to Haggai:

²¹“Tell Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah, that I am about to shake the heavens and the earth.

²²I will overthrow royal thrones and destroy the power of foreign kingdoms. I will overturn their chariots and riders. The horses will fall, and their riders will kill each other.

²³“But when this happens, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, I will honor you, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, my servant. I will make you like a signet ring on my finger, says the LORD, for I have chosen you. I, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, have spoken!”

¹In November of the second year of King Darius’s reign, the LORD gave this message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo:

²“I, the LORD, was very angry with your ancestors.

³Therefore, say to the people, ‘This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: Return to me, and I will return to you, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.’

⁴Don’t be like your ancestors who would not listen or pay attention when the earlier prophets said to them, ‘This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: Turn from your evil ways, and stop all your evil practices.’

⁵“Where are your ancestors now? They and the prophets are long dead.

⁶But everything I said through my servants the prophets happened to your ancestors, just as I said. As a result, they repented and said, ‘We have received what we deserved from the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. He has done what he said he would do.’”

⁷Three months later, on February 15, the LORD sent another message to the prophet Zechariah son of Berekiah and grandson of Iddo.

⁸In a vision during the night, I saw a man sitting on a red horse that was standing among some myrtle trees in a small valley. Behind him were riders on red, brown, and white horses.

⁹I asked the angel who was talking with me, “My lord, what do these horses mean?” “I will show you,” the angel replied.

¹⁰The rider standing among the myrtle trees then explained, “They are the ones the LORD has sent out to patrol the earth.”

¹¹Then the other riders reported to the angel of the LORD, who was standing among the myrtle trees, “We have been patrolling the earth, and the whole earth is at peace.”

¹²Upon hearing this, the angel of the LORD prayed this prayer: “O LORD of Heaven’s Armies, for seventy years now you have been angry with Jerusalem and the towns of Judah. How long until you again show mercy to them?”

¹³And the LORD spoke kind and comforting words to the angel who talked with me.

¹⁴Then the angel said to me, “Shout this message for all to hear: ‘This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: My love for Jerusalem and Mount Zion is passionate and strong.

¹⁵But I am very angry with the other nations that are now enjoying peace and security. I was only a little angry with my people, but the nations inflicted harm on them far beyond my intentions.

¹⁶“‘Therefore, this is what the LORD says: I have returned to show mercy to Jerusalem. My Temple will be rebuilt, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, and measurements will be taken for the reconstruction of Jerusalem. ’

¹⁷“Say this also: ‘This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: The towns of Israel will again overflow with prosperity, and the LORD will again comfort Zion and choose Jerusalem as his own.’”

¹⁸Then I looked up and saw four animal horns.

¹⁹“What are these?” I asked the angel who was talking with me. He replied, “These horns represent the nations that scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem.”

²⁰Then the LORD showed me four blacksmiths.

²¹“What are these men coming to do?” I asked. The angel replied, “These four horns — these nations — scattered and humbled Judah. Now these blacksmiths have come to terrify those nations and throw them down and destroy them.”

¹When I looked again, I saw a man with a measuring line in his hand.

²“Where are you going?” I asked. He replied, “I am going to measure Jerusalem, to see how wide and how long it is.”

³Then the angel who was with me went to meet a second angel who was coming toward him.

⁴The other angel said, “Hurry, and say to that young man, ‘Jerusalem will someday be so full of people and livestock that there won’t be room enough for everyone! Many will live outside the city walls.

⁵Then I, myself, will be a protective wall of fire around Jerusalem, says the LORD. And I will be the glory inside the city!’”

⁶The LORD says, “Come away! Flee from Babylon in the land of the north, for I have scattered you to the four winds.

⁷Come away, people of Zion, you who are exiled in Babylon!”

⁸After a period of glory, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies sent me against the nations who plundered you. For he said, “Anyone who harms you harms my most precious possession.

⁹I will raise my fist to crush them, and their own slaves will plunder them.” Then you will know that the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.

¹⁰The LORD says, “Shout and rejoice, O beautiful Jerusalem, for I am coming to live among you.

¹¹Many nations will join themselves to the LORD on that day, and they, too, will be my people. I will live among you, and you will know that the LORD of Heaven’s Armies sent me to you.

¹²The land of Judah will be the LORD’s special possession in the holy land, and he will once again choose Jerusalem to be his own city.

¹³Be silent before the LORD, all humanity, for he is springing into action from his holy dwelling.”

¹Then the angel showed me Jeshua the high priest standing before the angel of the LORD. The Accuser, Satan, was there at the angel’s right hand, making accusations against Jeshua.

²And the LORD said to Satan, “I, the LORD, reject your accusations, Satan. Yes, the LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebukes you. This man is like a burning stick that has been snatched from the fire.”

³Jeshua’s clothing was filthy as he stood there before the angel.

⁴So the angel said to the others standing there, “Take off his filthy clothes.” And turning to Jeshua he said, “See, I have taken away your sins, and now I am giving you these fine new clothes.”

⁵Then I said, “They should also place a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean priestly turban on his head and dressed him in new clothes while the angel of the LORD stood by.

⁶Then the angel of the LORD spoke very solemnly to Jeshua and said,

⁷“This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: If you follow my ways and carefully serve me, then you will be given authority over my Temple and its courtyards. I will let you walk among these others standing here.

⁸“Listen to me, O Jeshua the high priest, and all you other priests. You are symbols of things to come. Soon I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.

⁹Now look at the jewel I have set before Jeshua, a single stone with seven facets. I will engrave an inscription on it, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, and I will remove the sins of this land in a single day.

¹⁰“And on that day, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, each of you will invite your neighbor to sit with you peacefully under your own grapevine and fig tree.”

¹Then the angel who had been talking with me returned and woke me, as though I had been asleep.

²“What do you see now?” he asked. I answered, “I see a solid gold lampstand with a bowl of oil on top of it. Around the bowl are seven lamps, each having seven spouts with wicks.

³And I see two olive trees, one on each side of the bowl.”

⁴Then I asked the angel, “What are these, my lord? What do they mean?”

⁵“Don’t you know?” the angel asked. “No, my lord,” I replied.

⁶Then he said to me, “This is what the LORD says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies.

⁷Nothing, not even a mighty mountain, will stand in Zerubbabel’s way; it will become a level plain before him! And when Zerubbabel sets the final stone of the Temple in place, the people will shout: ‘May God bless it! May God bless it!’ ”

⁸Then another message came to me from the LORD:

⁹“Zerubbabel is the one who laid the foundation of this Temple, and he will complete it. Then you will know that the LORD of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.

¹⁰Do not despise these small beginnings, for the LORD rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” (The seven lamps represent the eyes of the LORD that search all around the world.)

¹¹Then I asked the angel, “What are these two olive trees on each side of the lampstand,

¹²and what are the two olive branches that pour out golden oil through two gold tubes?”

¹³“Don’t you know?” he asked. “No, my lord,” I replied.

¹⁴Then he said to me, “They represent the two anointed ones who stand in the court of the Lord of all the earth.”

¹I looked up again and saw a scroll flying through the air.

²“What do you see?” the angel asked. “I see a flying scroll,” I replied. “It appears to be about 30 feet long and 15 feet wide. ”

³Then he said to me, “This scroll contains the curse that is going out over the entire land. One side of the scroll says that those who steal will be banished from the land; the other side says that those who swear falsely will be banished from the land.

⁴And this is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies says: I am sending this curse into the house of every thief and into the house of everyone who swears falsely using my name. And my curse will remain in that house and completely destroy it — even its timbers and stones.”

⁵Then the angel who was talking with me came forward and said, “Look up and see what’s coming.”

⁶“What is it?” I asked. He replied, “It is a basket for measuring grain, and it’s filled with the sins of everyone throughout the land.”

⁷Then the heavy lead cover was lifted off the basket, and there was a woman sitting inside it.

⁸The angel said, “The woman’s name is Wickedness,” and he pushed her back into the basket and closed the heavy lid again.

⁹Then I looked up and saw two women flying toward us, gliding on the wind. They had wings like a stork, and they picked up the basket and flew into the sky.

¹⁰“Where are they taking the basket?” I asked the angel.

¹¹He replied, “To the land of Babylonia, where they will build a temple for the basket. And when the temple is ready, they will set the basket there on its pedestal.”