The Season of End Times

³¹Yes, the days are coming, declares the Lord,

when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel

and with the house of Judah.

³²It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers,

when I took them by the hand

and led them out of the land of Egypt.

They broke that covenant of mine,

although I was a husband to them, declares the Lord.

³³But this is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after those days,

declares the Lord.

I will put my law in their minds,

and I will write it on their hearts.

I will be their God,

and they will be my people.

³⁴No longer will each one teach his neighbor,

or each one teach his brother, saying, “Know the Lord,”

because they will all know me,

from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord,

for I will forgive their guilt,

and I will remember their sins no more.

¹⁹Now we know that whatever the law says is addressed to those who are under the law, so that every mouth will be silenced and the whole world will be subject to God’s judgment. ²⁰For this reason, no one will be declared righteous in his sight by works of the law, for through the law we become aware of sin.

²¹But now, completely apart from the law, a righteousness from God has been made known. The Law and the Prophets testify to it. ²²This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all and over all who believe.

In fact, there is no difference, ²³because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God ²⁴and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, ²⁵whom God publicly displayed as the atonement seat through faith in his blood. God did this to demonstrate his justice, since, in his divine restraint, he had left the sins that were committed earlier unpunished. ²⁶He did this to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so that he would be both just and the one who justifies the person who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷What happens to boasting then? It has been eliminated. By what principle—by the principle of works? No, but by the principle of faith. ²⁸For we conclude that a person is justified by faith without the works of the law.

³¹So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you remain in my word, you are really my disciples. ³²You will also know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

³³“We are Abraham’s descendants,” they answered, “and we have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say, ‘You will be set free’?”

³⁴Jesus answered, “Amen, Amen, I tell you: Everyone who keeps committing sin is a slave to sin. ³⁵But a slave does not remain in the family forever. A son does remain forever. ³⁶So if the Son sets you free, you really will be free.”

In the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim son of Josiah, king of Judah, the following word came from the Lord.

²This is what the Lord says. Stand in the courtyard of the Lord’s house, and speak to people from the cities and towns of Judah who have come to worship at the House of the Lord. Tell them everything I have commanded you to tell them. Do not hold back a single word. ³Maybe they will listen, and everyone will turn from his evil way. Then I will relent and not bring about the disaster that I was planning because of the evil things they have done.

⁴You are also to say this to him.

This is what the Lord says. If you will not listen to me and follow my law, which I have set before you, ⁵and if you do not listen to the words of my servants the prophets, whom I have sent to you again and again (but you have not listened), ⁶then I will make this house like Shiloh, and I will make the name of this city a curse word for all the nations of the earth.

⁵This is evidence of God’s righteous verdict that resulted in your being counted worthy of God’s kingdom, for which you also suffer. ⁶Certainly, it is right for God to repay trouble to those who trouble you, ⁷and to give relief to you, who are troubled along with us. When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his powerful angels, ⁸he will exercise vengeance in flaming fire on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. ⁹Such people will receive a just penalty: eternal destruction away from the presence of the Lord and from his glorious strength, ¹⁰on that day when he comes to be glorified among his saints, and to be marveled at among all those who have believed, because our testimony to you was believed.

¹¹As they were listening to these things, Jesus went on to tell a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once. ¹²So he said, “A man of noble birth traveled to a distant country to receive a kingdom for himself and then to return. ¹³He called ten of his servants and gave them ten minas. ‘Conduct business until I return,’ he said to them.

¹⁴“But his subjects hated him and sent a delegation after him, saying, ‘We do not want this man to be king over us.’

¹⁵“When he returned after receiving the kingdom, he summoned the servants to whom he had given the money. He wanted to find out what they had gained by conducting business.

¹⁶“The first one came to him and said, ‘Master, your mina has earned ten more minas.’

¹⁷“He said to him, ‘Well done, good servant! Because you were faithful in a very small matter, you will have authority over ten cities.’

¹⁸“The second one came and said, ‘Master, your mina has produced five more minas.’

¹⁹“So he said to him, ‘You will be over five cities.’

²⁰“And another one came and said, ‘Master, here is your mina that I laid away in a piece of cloth. ²¹For I was afraid of you, since you are a demanding man. You take what you did not deposit and reap what you did not sow.’

²²“He said to him, ‘You wicked servant, I will judge you with your own words! You knew that I am a demanding man, taking what I did not deposit and reaping what I did not sow. ²³Then why did you not put my money in the bank? Then, when I returned, I could have collected it with interest!’

²⁴“He said to those standing there, ‘Take the mina away from him and give it to the one who has the ten minas.’

²⁵“But they said to him, ‘Master, he already has ten minas!’

²⁶“‘I tell you that to everyone who has, more will be given, but from the one who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. ²⁷Now as for those enemies of mine who did not want me to be king over them, bring them here and kill them in front me.’”

¹⁷Watch this! I am about to create new heavens and a new earth.

The former things will not be remembered.

They will not come to mind.

¹⁸Instead, rejoice and celebrate forever, because of what I am creating.

Watch this! I am about to create Jerusalem to be a source of gladness,

and her people will be a source of joy.

¹⁹I also will be glad because of Jerusalem,

and I will rejoice over my people.

The sound of weeping will not be heard in her again,

nor will the sound of crying.

²⁰There will never again be an infant there who lives for only a few days,

or an elderly man who does not fill out all his days,

for one who dies at a hundred will be considered a young man,

and one who fails to attain the age of one hundred will be regarded as cursed.

²¹Then they will build houses and live in them.

They will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

²²They will not build a house and have another person live in it.

They will not plant and have another person eat the crop,

for the days of my people will be like the days of a tree,

and my chosen ones will enjoy all the work of their hands.

²³They will not labor only to receive nothing,

and they will not give birth to children doomed to disaster,

for they will be offspring who are blessed by the Lord,

and their descendants will be with them.

²⁴Then even before they call, I will answer.

While they are still speaking, I will hear.

²⁵The wolf and the lamb will graze together,

and lions will eat straw like cattle,

but the serpent will eat dust as its food.

They will not harm or destroy anywhere on my holy mountain,

says the Lord.

¹³But we are always obligated to thank God for you, brothers, loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning for salvation by the sanctifying work of the Spirit and faith in the truth. ¹⁴For this reason he also called you through our gospel so that you would obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. ¹⁵So then, brothers, stand firm and hold on to the teachings that were passed along to you, either by word of mouth or by a letter from us. ¹⁶May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and in his grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, ¹⁷encourage your hearts and establish you in every good work and word.

^3:1Finally, brothers, pray for us so that the word of the Lord may spread quickly and be glorified just as it was among you. ²Pray also that we may be rescued from evil and wicked people. For not everyone has faith. ³Still, the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and protect you from the Evil One. ⁴We also have confidence in the Lord concerning you, that you are doing and will continue to do what we are telling you. ⁵May the Lord continue to direct your hearts to God’s love and Christ’s patient endurance.

²⁷Some of the Sadducees (who say there is no resurrection) came to him. ²⁸They asked him a question, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies leaving a wife but no children, his brother should take the wife and raise up children for his brother. ²⁹So there were seven brothers. The first took a wife and died childless. ³⁰The second took her as a wife, ³¹and so did the third, and in the same way the seven died and left no children. ³²Finally the woman died too. ³³So in the resurrection, whose wife will she be? For the seven had her as a wife.”

³⁴Jesus said to them, “The people of this age marry and are given in marriage. ³⁵But those who are considered worthy to experience that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage. ³⁶In fact, they cannot die any more, for they are like the angels. They are sons of God, because they are sons of the resurrection.

³⁷“Even Moses showed in the account about the burning bush that the dead are raised, when he called the Lord: ‘The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ ³⁸He is not the God of the dead, but of the living, for all are alive to him.”

²Therefore, this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says about the shepherds who shepherd my people.

You have scattered my flock.

You have driven them away.

You have not taken care of them,

but I will certainly take care of you,

because of the evil things you have done,

declares the Lord.

³I will gather what is left of my flock

out of all the countries where I have driven them,

and I will bring them back to their pastures.

They will be fruitful and multiply.

⁴I will raise up shepherds over them

who will shepherd them.

They will no longer be afraid or terrified,

nor will any be missing, declares the Lord.

⁵Listen, the days are coming, declares the Lord,

when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch,

who will reign wisely as king

and establish justice and righteousness on earth.

⁶In his days Judah will be saved

and Israel will dwell securely.

This is his name by which he will be called:

The Lord Our Righteousness.

¹³The Father rescued us from the domain of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, ¹⁴in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation, ¹⁶for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, things seen and unseen, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. ¹⁷He is before all things, and all things hold together in him.

¹⁸He is also the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that in all things he might have the highest rank. ¹⁹For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, ²⁰and through him to reconcile all things to himself (whether things on earth or in heaven) by making peace through the blood of his cross.

³⁵The people stood watching. The rulers were ridiculing him, saying, “He saved others. Let him save himself, if this is the Christ of God, the Chosen One!”

³⁶The soldiers also made fun of him. Coming up to him, they offered him sour wine, ³⁷saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”

³⁸There was also an inscription written above him: “This is the King of the Jews.”

³⁹One of the criminals hanging there was blaspheming him, saying, “Aren’t you the Christ? Save yourself and us!”

⁴⁰But the other criminal rebuked him. “Don’t you fear God, since you are under the same condemnation? ⁴¹We are punished justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for what we have done, but this man has done nothing wrong.” ⁴²Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come in your kingdom.”

⁴³Jesus said to him, “Amen I tell you: Today you will be with me in paradise.”