Go into your houses, my people, and shut the door behind you. Hide yourselves for a little while until God's anger is over.

The LORD is coming from his heavenly dwelling place to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The murders that were secretly committed on the earth will be revealed, and the ground will no longer hide those who have been killed.

I hear all this, and I tremble; my lips quiver with fear. My body goes limp, and my feet stumble beneath me. I will quietly wait for the time to come when God will punish those who attack us.

And this small and temporary trouble we suffer will bring us a tremendous and eternal glory, much greater than the trouble.

For we fix our attention, not on things that are seen, but on things that are unseen. What can be seen lasts only for a time, but what cannot be seen lasts forever.

and he will give relief to you who suffer and to us as well. He will do this when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven with his mighty angels,

with a flaming fire, to punish those who reject God and who do not obey the Good News about our Lord Jesus.

As it is, however, there still remains for God's people a rest like God's resting on the seventh day.

Then I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: Happy are those who from now on die in the service of the Lord!" "Yes indeed!" answers the Spirit. "They will enjoy rest from their hard work, because the results of their service go with them."

The heathen have dug a pit and fallen in; they have been caught in their own trap.

But you, O God, will bring those murderers and liars to their graves before half their life is over. As for me, I will trust in you.

Is evil the payment for good? Yet they have dug a pit for me to fall in. Remember how I came to you and spoke on their behalf, so that you would not deal with them in anger.

Send a mob to plunder their homes without warning; make them cry out in terror. They have dug a pit for me to fall in and have set traps to catch me.

And so the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials and how to keep the wicked under punishment for the Day of Judgment,

First of all, you must understand that in the last days some people will appear whose lives are controlled by their own lusts. They will make fun of you

They purposely ignore the fact that long ago God gave a command, and the heavens and earth were created. The earth was formed out of water and by water,

But the heavens and the earth that now exist are being preserved by the same command of God, in order to be destroyed by fire. They are being kept for the day when godless people will be judged and destroyed.

They shouted in a loud voice, "Almighty Lord, holy and true! How long will it be until you judge the people on earth and punish them for killing us?"

Each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to rest a little while longer, until the complete number of other servants and believers were killed, as they had been.

The heathen were filled with rage, because the time for your anger has come, the time for the dead to be judged. The time has come to reward your servants, the prophets, and all your people, all who have reverence for you, great and small alike. The time has come to destroy those who destroy the earth!"