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178 lines
5.3 KiB
Plaintext
178 lines
5.3 KiB
Plaintext
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\s5
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\c 40
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\q1
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\v 1 Our God says, "Encourage my people!
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\q2 Encourage them!
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\q1
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\v 2 Speak kindly to the people of Jerusalem;
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\q2 tell them that their suffering is ended
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\q1 Yahweh has forgiven them for the sins that they have committed.
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\q2 He has fully punished them for their sins."
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 3 Someone is shouting,
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\q1 "In the desert plain make the way straight for Yahweh to come to you;
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\q2 make a smooth road for our God.
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\q1
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\v 4 Fill in the valleys;
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\q2 flatten every hill and every mountain.
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\q1 Make the uneven ground smooth,
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\q2 and make the rough places smooth.
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\q1
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\v 5 If you do that, it will become known that Yahweh is glorious,
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\q2 and all people will realize it at the same time.
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\q1 Those things will surely happen because it is Yahweh who has said it."
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 6 Someone said to me, "Shout!"
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\q2 I replied, "What should I shout?"
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\q1 He replied, "Shout that people are like grass;
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\q2 their faithfulness fades as quickly as flowers in the field.
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\q1
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\v 7 Grass withers and flowers dry up
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\q2 when Yahweh causes a hot wind from the desert to blow on them.
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\q2 And all people are like that.
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\q1
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\v 8 The grass withers and the flowers dry up,
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\q2 but what our God promises will last forever."
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 9 You people of Jerusalem, you have good news to tell to people,
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\q2 so shout it from the top of a high mountain!
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\q1 Shout it loudly and do not be afraid!
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\q1 Tell the people in the cities of Judah,
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\q2 "Your God is coming here!"
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\q1
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\v 10 Yahweh your God will be coming with power,
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\q2 he will rule powerfully.
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\q1 When he comes, he will bring with him the people whom he has freed from being slaves in Babylonia.
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 11 He will take care of his people
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\q2 like a shepherd takes care of his sheep,
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\q2 and carries the young lambs in his arms.
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\q1 He carries them close to his chest
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\q2 and he gently leads the female sheep
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\q2 that are nursing their young lambs.
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 12 There is no one like Yahweh!
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\q2 Who else has measured the water in the oceans in the palm of his hand?
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\q1 Who else has measured the sky?
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\q2 Who else knows how much soil is in the earth?
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\q2 Who else has weighed the mountains and hills on scales?
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 13 And who else can advise Yahweh?
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\q2 Who can teach him or advise him what he should do?
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\q1
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\v 14 Has Yahweh ever consulted anyone else to get advice?
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\q2 Does he need someone to tell him what is right to do and how to act justly?
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 15 Yahweh considers that the nations are as insignificant as one drop from a bucket full of water.
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\q2 They are as insignificant as dust on scales.
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\q1 He is able to weigh islands
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\q2 as though they weighed no more than specks of dust.
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\q1
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\v 16 There would be not enough wood from all the trees in Lebanon
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\q2 to make a suitable fire for sacrificing animals to him,
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\q1 and there are not enough animals in Lebanon to offer as sacrifices to him.
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\q1
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\v 17 The nations of the world are completely insignificant to him;
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\q2 he considers that they are worthless and less than nothing.
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 18 So to whom can you compare God?
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\q2 What image resembles him?
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\q1
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\v 19 Can you compare him to an idol that is made in a mold,
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\q2 and then is covered with a thin sheet of gold
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\q2 and decorated with silver chains?
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\q1
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\v 20 A man who is poor cannot buy silver or gold for his idol;
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\q2 so he selects a piece of wood that will not rot,
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\q1 and he gives it to a craftsman
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\q2 to carve an idol that will not fall over!
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 21 Have you not heard this?
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\q2 Do you not understand it?
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\q1 Are you unable to hear what God said long ago—
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\q2 messages that he gave before he created the earth?
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\q1
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\v 22 God sits on his throne above the earth,
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\q2 and the people on the earth below seem to be as small as grasshoppers.
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\q1 He spreads out the sky like a curtain;
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\q2 it is like a tent for him to live in.
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 23 He causes kings to have no more power,
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\q2 and he causes the rulers to be worth nothing.
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\q1
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\v 24 They start to rule, like small plants start to grow and form roots;
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\q2 but then he gets rid of them
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\q2 as though they withered when he blew on them,
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\q1 like chaff that is blown away by the wind.
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 25 The Holy One asks,
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\q2 "To whom will you compare me?
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\q2 Is anyone equal to me?"
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\q1
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\v 26 Look up toward the sky:
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\q2 consider who created all the stars.
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\q1 Yahweh created them, and at night he causes them to appear;
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\q2 he calls each one by its name.
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\q1 Because he is extremely powerful,
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\q2 all of the stars are there when he calls out their names.
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\b
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 27 You people of Israel, why do you complain that Yahweh does not see the troubles that you are experiencing?
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\q2 Why do you say that he does not act fairly toward you?
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\q1
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\v 28 Have you never heard
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\q2 and have you never understood
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\q1 that Yahweh is the everlasting God;
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\q2 he is the one who created the earth, even the most distant places on the earth.
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\q1 He never becomes weak or weary,
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\q2 and no one can find out how much he understands.
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\s5
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\q1
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\v 29 He strengthens those who feel weak and tired.
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\q1
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\v 30 Even youths become faint and weary,
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\q2 and young men will fall when they are exhausted.
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\q1
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\v 31 But those who trust in Yahweh will become strong again;
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\q2 it will be as though they will soar as eagles do.
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\q1 They will run for a long time and not become weary;
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\q2 they will walk long distances and not faint.
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