The Berean Pursuit
And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says:
Your heart is proud,
and you have said,
'I am a god;
I sit in the seat of gods
in the heart of the sea.'
Yet you are a man and not a god,
though you have regarded your heart
as that of a god.
Behold, you are wiser than Daniel;
no secret is hidden from you!
By your wisdom and understanding
you have gained your wealth
and amassed gold and silver
for your treasuries.
By your great skill in trading
you have increased your wealth,
but your heart has grown proud
because of it.
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says:
Because you regard your heart
as the heart of a god,
behold, I will bring foreigners against you,
the most ruthless of nations.
They will draw their swords
against the beauty of your wisdom
and will defile your splendor.
They will bring you down to the Pit,
and you will die a violent death
in the heart of the seas.
Will you still say, 'I am a god,'
in the presence of those who slay you?
You will be only a man, not a god,
in the hands of those who wound you.
You will die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners.
For I have spoken,
declares the Lord GOD."
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, take up a lament for the king of Tyre and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says:
'You were the seal of perfection,
full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.
You were in Eden,
the garden of God.
Every kind of precious stone adorned you:
ruby, topaz, and diamond,
beryl, onyx, and jasper,
sapphire, turquoise, and emerald.
Your mountings and settings were crafted in gold,
prepared on the day of your creation.
You were anointed as a guardian cherub,
for I had ordained you.
You were on the holy mountain of God;
you walked among the fiery stones.
From the day you were created
you were blameless in your ways-
until wickedness was found in you.
By the vastness of your trade,
you were filled with violence, and you sinned.
So I drove you in disgrace
from the mountain of God,
and I banished you, O guardian cherub,
from among the fiery stones.
Your heart grew proud of your beauty;
you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor;
so I cast you to the earth;
I made you a spectacle before kings.
By the multitude of your iniquities
and the dishonesty of your trading
you have profaned your sanctuaries.
So I made fire come from within you,
and it consumed you.
I reduced you to ashes on the ground
in the eyes of all who saw you.
All the nations who know you
are appalled over you.
You have come to a horrible end
and will be no more.'?"
Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, set your face against Sidon and prophesy against her. And you are to declare that this is what the Lord GOD says:
'Behold, I am against you, O Sidon,
and I will be glorified within you.
They will know that I am the LORD
when I execute judgments against her
and demonstrate My holiness through her.
I will send a plague against her
and shed blood in her streets;
the slain will fall within her,
while the sword is against her on every side.
Then they will know that I am the LORD.
For the people of Israel will no longer face a pricking brier or a painful thorn from all around them who treat them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD.'
This is what the Lord GOD says: 'When I gather the house of Israel from the peoples among whom they have been scattered, I will show Myself holy among them in the sight of the nations.
Then they will dwell in their own land, which I have given to My servant Jacob. And there they will dwell securely, build houses, and plant vineyards. They will dwell securely when I execute judgments against all those around them who treat them with contempt. Then they will know that I am the LORD their God.'?"
In the tenth year, on the twelfth day of the tenth month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. Speak to him and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says:
Behold, I am against you,
O Pharaoh king of Egypt,
O great monster who lies
among his rivers,
who says, 'The Nile is mine;
I made it myself.'
But I will put hooks in your jaws
and cause the fish of your streams
to cling to your scales.
I will haul you up out of your rivers,
and all the fish of your streams
will cling to your scales.
I will leave you in the desert,
you and all the fish of your streams.
You will fall on the open field
and will not be taken away
or gathered for burial.
I have given you as food
to the beasts of the earth
and the birds of the air.
Then all the people of Egypt
will know that I am the LORD.
For you were only a staff of reeds
to the house of Israel.
When Israel took hold of you with their hands,
you splintered, tearing all their shoulders;
when they leaned on you,
you broke, and their backs were wrenched.
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: I will bring a sword against you and cut off from you man and beast. The land of Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the LORD.
Because you said, 'The Nile is mine; I made it,' therefore I am against you and against your rivers. I will turn the land of Egypt into a ruin, a desolate wasteland from Migdol to Syene, and as far as the border of Cush. No foot of man or beast will pass through, and it will be uninhabited for forty years.
I will make the land of Egypt a desolation among desolate lands, and her cities will lie desolate for forty years among the ruined cities. And I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the countries.
For this is what the Lord GOD says: At the end of forty years I will gather the Egyptians from the nations to which they were scattered. I will restore Egypt from captivity and bring them back to the land of Pathros, the land of their origin. There they will be a lowly kingdom.
Egypt will be the lowliest of kingdoms and will never again exalt itself above the nations. For I will diminish Egypt so that it will never again rule over the nations. Egypt will never again be an object of trust for the house of Israel, but will remind them of their iniquity in turning to the Egyptians. Then they will know that I am the Lord GOD."
In the twenty-seventh year, on the first day of the first month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre. Every head was made bald and every shoulder made raw. But he and his army received no wages from Tyre for the labor they expended on it.
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: I will give the land of Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, who will carry off its wealth, seize its spoil, and remove its plunder. This will be the wages for his army. I have given him the land of Egypt as the reward for his labor, because it was done for Me, declares the Lord GOD.
In that day I will cause a horn to sprout for the house of Israel, and I will open your mouth to speak among them. Then they will know that I am the LORD."
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, prophesy and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says:
Wail, 'Alas
for that day!'
For the day is near,
the Day of the LORD is near.
It will be a day of clouds,
a time of doom for the nations.
A sword will come against Egypt,
and there will be anguish in Cush
when the slain fall in Egypt,
its wealth is taken away,
and its foundations are torn down.
Cush, Put, and Lud,
and all the various peoples,
as well as Libya and the men of the covenant land,
will fall with Egypt by the sword.
For this is what the LORD says:
The allies of Egypt will fall,
and her proud strength will collapse.
From Migdol to Syene
they will fall by the sword within her,
declares the Lord GOD.
They will be desolate among desolate lands,
and their cities will lie among ruined cities.
Then they will know that I am the LORD
when I set fire to Egypt
and all her helpers are shattered.
On that day messengers will go out from Me in ships to frighten Cush out of complacency. Anguish will come upon them on the day of Egypt's doom. For it is indeed coming.
This is what the Lord GOD says:
I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt
by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
He and his people with him,
the most ruthless of the nations,
will be brought in to destroy the land.
They will draw their swords against Egypt
and fill the land with the slain.
I will make the streams dry up
and sell the land to the wicked.
By the hands of foreigners I will bring desolation
upon the land and everything in it.
I, the LORD, have spoken.
This is what the Lord GOD says:
I will destroy the idols
and put an end to the images in Memphis.
There will no longer be a prince in Egypt,
and I will instill fear in that land.
I will lay waste Pathros,
set fire to Zoan,
and execute judgment on Thebes.
I will pour out My wrath on Pelusium,
the stronghold of Egypt,
and cut off the crowds of Thebes.
I will set fire to Egypt,
Pelusium will writhe in anguish,
Thebes will be split open,
and Memphis will face daily distress.
The young men of On and Pi-beseth
will fall by the sword,
and those cities will go into captivity.
The day will be darkened in Tahpanhes
when I break the yoke of Egypt
and her proud strength comes to an end.
A cloud will cover her,
and her daughters will go into captivity.
So I will execute judgment on Egypt,
and they will know that I am the LORD."
In the eleventh year, on the seventh day of the first month, the word of the LORD came to me, saying, "Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt. See, it has not been bound up for healing, or splinted for strength to hold the sword.
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against Pharaoh king of Egypt. I will break his arms, both the strong one and the one already broken, and will make the sword fall from his hand. I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands.
I will strengthen the arms of Babylon's king and place My sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, who will groan before him like a mortally wounded man. I will strengthen the arms of Babylon's king, but Pharaoh's arms will fall limp.
Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I place My sword in the hand of Babylon's king, and he wields it against the land of Egypt. I will disperse the Egyptians among the nations and scatter them throughout the lands. Then they will know that I am the LORD."
"Truly, truly, I tell you, whoever does not enter the sheepfold by the gate, but climbs in some other way, is a thief and a robber. But the one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen for his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will flee from him because they do not recognize his voice."
Jesus spoke to them using this illustration, but they did not understand what He was telling them. So He said to them again, "Truly, truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before Me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved. He will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness.
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock. The man runs away because he is a hired servant and is unconcerned for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd. I know My sheep and My sheep know Me, just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father. And I lay down My life for the sheep. I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them in as well, and they will listen to My voice. Then there will be one flock and one shepherd.
The reason the Father loves Me is that I lay down My life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from Me, but I lay it down of My own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from My Father."
Again there was division among the Jews because of Jesus' message. Many of them said, "He is demon-possessed and insane. Why would you listen to Him?"
But others replied, "These are not the words of a man possessed by a demon. Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"
At that time the Feast of Dedication took place in Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple courts in Solomon's Colonnade. So the Jews gathered around Him and demanded, "How long will You keep us in suspense? If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."
"I already told you," Jesus replied, "but you did not believe. The works I do in My Father's name testify on My behalf. But because you are not My sheep, you refuse to believe. My sheep listen to My voice; I know them, and they follow Me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand. My Father who has given them to Me is greater than all. No one can snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and the Father are one."
At this, the Jews again picked up stones to stone Him. But Jesus responded, "I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these do you stone Me?"
"We are not stoning You for any good work," said the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, declare Yourself to be God."
Jesus replied, "Is it not written in your Law: 'I have said you are gods'? If he called them gods to whom the word of God came-and the Scripture cannot be broken- then what about the One whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world? How then can you accuse Me of blasphemy for stating that I am the Son of God?
If I am not doing the works of My Father, then do not believe Me. But if I am doing them, even though you do not believe Me, believe the works themselves, so that you may know and understand that the Father is in Me, and I am in the Father."
At this, they tried again to seize Him, but He escaped their grasp.
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had first been baptizing, and He stayed there. Many came to Him and said, "Although John never performed a sign, everything he said about this man was true." And many in that place believed in Jesus.