Unmarried People

1 Corinthians 7²⁵I don't know of anything that the Lord said about people who have never been married. But I will tell you what I think. And you can trust me, because the Lord has treated me with kindness. ²⁶We are now going through hard times, and I think it is best for you to stay as you are. ²⁷If you are married, stay married. If you are not married, don't try to get married. ²⁸It isn't wrong to marry, even if you have never been married before. But those who marry will have a lot of trouble, and I want to protect you from that.
²⁹My friends, what I mean is that the Lord will soon come, and it won't matter if you are married or not. ³⁰It will be all the same if you are crying or laughing, or if you are buying or are completely broke. ³¹It won't make any difference how much good you are getting from this world or how much you like it. This world as we know it is now passing away.
³²I want all of you to be free from worry. An unmarried man worries about how to please the Lord. ³³But a married man has more worries. He must worry about the things of this world, because he wants to please his wife. ³⁴So he is pulled in two directions. Unmarried women and women who have never been married worry only about pleasing the Lord, and they keep their bodies and minds pure. But a married woman worries about the things of this world, because she wants to please her husband. ³⁵What I am saying is for your own good--it isn't to limit your freedom. I want to help you to live right and to love the Lord above all else.
³⁶But suppose you are engaged to someone old enough to be married, and you want her so much that all you can think about is getting married. Then go ahead and marry. There is nothing wrong with that. ³⁷But it is better to have self-control and to make up your mind not to marry. ³⁸It is perfectly all right to marry, but it is better not to get married at all.
³⁹A wife should stay married to her husband until he dies. Then she is free to marry again, but only to a man who is a follower of the Lord. ⁴⁰However, I think I am obeying God's Spirit when I say she would be happier to stay single.

Jezebel Has Naboth Killed

1 Kings 21 Naboth owned a vineyard in Jezreel near King Ahab's palace.
²One day, Ahab said, "Naboth, your vineyard is near my palace. Give it to me so I can turn it into a vegetable garden. I'll give you a better vineyard or pay whatever you want for yours."
³Naboth answered, "This vineyard has always been in my family. I won't let you have it."
⁴So Ahab went home, angry and depressed because of what Naboth had told him. He lay on his bed, just staring at the wall and refusing to eat a thing.
⁵Jezebel his wife came in and asked, "What's wrong? Why won't you eat?"
⁶"I asked Naboth to sell me his vineyard or to let me give him a better one," Ahab replied. "And he told me I couldn't have it."
⁷"Aren't you the king of Israel?" Jezebel asked. "Get out of bed and eat something! Don't worry, I'll get Naboth's vineyard for you."
^8-10Jezebel wrote a letter to each of the leaders of the town where Naboth lived. In the letters she said:

Call everyone together and tell them to go without eating today. When they come together, give Naboth a seat at the front. Have two liars sit across from him and swear that Naboth has cursed God and the king. Then take Naboth outside and stone him to death!

She signed Ahab's name to the letters and sealed them with his seal. Then she sent them to the town leaders.
¹¹After receiving her letters, they did exactly what she had asked. ¹²They told the people that it was a day to go without eating, and when they all came together, they seated Naboth at the front. ¹³The two liars came in and sat across from Naboth. Then they accused him of cursing God and the king, so the people dragged Naboth outside and stoned him to death.
¹⁴The leaders of Jezreel sent a message back to Jezebel that said, "Naboth is dead."
¹⁵As soon as Jezebel got their message, she told Ahab, "Now you can have the vineyard Naboth refused to sell. He's dead." ¹⁶Ahab got up and went to take over the vineyard.

Elijah Condemns Ahab

¹⁷The LORD said to Elijah the prophet, ¹⁸"King Ahab of Israel is in Naboth's vineyard right now, taking it over. ¹⁹Go tell him that I say, 'Ahab, you murdered Naboth and took his property. And so, in the very spot where dogs licked up Naboth's blood, they will lick up your blood.' "
When Elijah found him, ²⁰Ahab said, "So, my enemy, you found me at last."
Elijah answered:

Yes, I did! Ahab, you have managed to do everything the LORD hates. ²¹Now you will be punished. You and every man and boy in your family will die, whether slave or free. ²²Your whole family will be wiped out, just like the families of King Jeroboam and King Baasha. You've made the LORD very angry by sinning and causing the Israelites to sin.

²³And as for Jezebel, dogs will eat her body there in Jezreel. ²⁴Dogs will also eat the bodies of your relatives who die in town, and vultures will eat the bodies of those who die in the country.

^25-29When Ahab heard this, he tore his clothes and wore sackcloth day and night. He was depressed and refused to eat.
Some time later, the LORD said, "Elijah, do you see how sorry Ahab is for what he did? I won't punish his family while he is still alive. I'll wait until his son is king."
No one was more determined than Ahab to disobey the LORD. And Jezebel encouraged him. Worst of all, he had worshiped idols, just as the Amorites had done before the LORD forced them out of the land and gave it to Israel.

Turn Back to the LORD

Amos 5 Listen, nation of Israel, to my mournful message:
²You, dearest Israel, have fallen, never to rise again--
you lie deserted in your own land,
with no one to help you up.

³The LORD God has warned,
"From every ten soldiers only one will be left;
from a thousand troops, only a hundred will survive."

⁴The LORD keeps saying, "Israel, turn back to me
and you will live!
⁵Don't go to Gilgal or Bethel or even to Beersheba.
Gilgal will be dragged away,
and Bethel will end up as nothing."

⁶Turn back to the LORD, you descendants of Joseph,
and you will live.
If you don't, the LORD will attack like fire.
Bethel will burn to the ground, and no one can save it.
⁷You people are doomed! You twist the truth
and stomp on justice.

⁸But the LORD created the stars and put them in place.
He turns darkness to dawn and daylight to darkness;
he scoops up the ocean and empties it on the earth.
⁹God destroys mighty soldiers and strong fortresses.

Choose Good Instead of Evil!

The LORD said:
¹⁰You people hate judges and honest witnesses;
¹¹you abuse the poor and demand heavy taxes from them.
You have built expensive homes, but you won't enjoy them;
you have planted vineyards, but you will get no wine.
¹²I am the LORD, and I know your terrible sins.
You cheat honest people and take bribes;
you rob the poor of justice.
¹³Times are so evil that anyone with good sense
will keep quiet.

¹⁴If you really want to live, you must stop doing wrong
and start doing right.
I, the LORD God All-Powerful, will then be on your side,
just as you claim I am.
¹⁵Choose good instead of evil! See that justice is done.
Maybe I, the LORD All-Powerful,
will be kind to what's left of your people.

Judgment Is Coming

¹⁶This is what the LORD has sworn:
Noisy crying will be heard in every town and street.
Even farmers will be told to mourn for the dead,
together with those who are paid to mourn.
¹⁷Your vineyards will be filled with crying and weeping,
because I will punish you.
I, the LORD, have spoken!

When the LORD Judges

¹⁸You look forward to the day
when the LORD comes to judge.
But you are in for trouble!
It won't be a time of sunshine; all will be darkness.
¹⁹You will run from a lion, only to meet a bear.
You will escape to your house, rest your hand on the wall,
and be bitten by a snake.
²⁰The day when the LORD judges will be dark, very dark,
without a ray of light.

What the LORD Demands

²¹I, the LORD, hate and despise your religious celebrations
and your times of worship.
²²I won't accept your offerings or animal sacrifices--
not even your very best.
²³No more of your noisy songs!
I won't listen when you play your harps.
²⁴But let justice and fairness flow like a river
that never runs dry.

²⁵Israel, for forty years you wandered in the desert,
without bringing offerings or sacrifices to me.
²⁶Now you will have to carry the two idols you made--
Sakkuth, the one you call king, and Kaiwan,
the one you built in the shape of a star.
²⁷I will force you to march as captives beyond Damascus.
I, the LORD God All-Powerful, have spoken!