Wolves and sheep will live together in peace, and leopards will lie down with young goats. Calves and lion cubs will feed together, and little children will take care of them.

Even a baby will not be harmed if it plays near a poisonous snake.

I will make cedars grow in the desert, and acacias and myrtles and olive trees. Forests will grow in barren land, forests of pine and juniper and cypress.

"The wood of the pine, the juniper, and the cypress, The finest wood from the forests of Lebanon, Will be brought to rebuild you, Jerusalem, To make my Temple beautiful, To make my city glorious.

Your people will all do what is right, And will possess the land forever. I planted them, I made them, To reveal my greatness to all.

To give to those who mourn in Zion Joy and gladness instead of grief, A song of praise instead of sorrow. They will be like trees That the LORD himself has planted. They will all do what is right, And God will be praised for what he has done.

Even the best and most honest of them are as worthless as weeds. The day has come when God will punish the people, as he warned them through their watchmen, the prophets. Now they are in confusion.

(I use everyday language because of the weakness of your natural selves.) At one time you surrendered yourselves entirely as slaves to impurity and wickedness for wicked purposes. In the same way you must now surrender yourselves entirely as slaves of righteousness for holy purposes.

Surely you know that the wicked will not possess God's Kingdom. Do not fool yourselves; people who are immoral or who worship idols or are adulterers or homosexual perverts

Some of you were like that. But you have been purified from sin; you have been dedicated to God; you have been put right with God by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

Anyone who is joined to Christ is a new being; the old is gone, the new has come.

They are the people I made for myself, and they will sing my praises!"

Just as shorts fit tightly around the waist, so I intended all the people of Israel and Judah to hold tightly to me. I did this so that they would be my people and would bring praise and honor to my name; but they would not obey me."

Jerusalem will be a source of joy, honor, and pride to me; and every nation in the world will fear and tremble when they hear about the good things that I do for the people of Jerusalem and about the prosperity that I bring to the city."

"Glory to God in the highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom he is pleased!"

My Father's glory is shown by your bearing much fruit; and in this way you become my disciples.

To him who by means of his power working in us is able to do so much more than we can ever ask for, or even think of:

to God be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus for all time, forever and ever! Amen.

But you are the chosen race, the King's priests, the holy nation, God's own people, chosen to proclaim the wonderful acts of God, who called you out of darkness into his own marvelous light.

At one time you were not God's people, but now you are his people; at one time you did not know God's mercy, but now you have received his mercy.

Those who preach must preach God's messages; those who serve must serve with the strength that God gives them, so that in all things praise may be given to God through Jesus Christ, to whom belong glory and power forever and ever. Amen.

The mountains and hills may crumble, but my love for you will never end; I will keep forever my promise of peace." So says the LORD who loves you.

They will ask the way to Zion and then go in that direction. They will make an eternal covenant with me and never break it.