He came closer to the city, and when he saw it, he wept over it,

saying, "If you only knew today what is needed for peace! But now you cannot see it!

"Jerusalem, Jerusalem! You kill the prophets and stone the messengers God has sent you! How many times I wanted to put my arms around all your people, just as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you would not let me!

From now on, I tell you, you will never see me again until you say, 'God bless him who comes in the name of the Lord.' "

King Joash joined in a conspiracy against Zechariah, and on the king's orders the people stoned Zechariah in the Temple courtyard.

The king forgot about the loyal service that Zechariah's father Jehoiada had given him, and he had Zechariah killed. As Zechariah was dying, he called out, "May the LORD see what you are doing and punish you!"

The LORD, the God of their ancestors, had continued to send prophets to warn his people, because he wanted to spare them and the Temple.

But they made fun of God's messengers, ignoring his words and laughing at his prophets, until at last the LORD's anger against his people was so great that there was no escape.

"But your people rebelled and disobeyed you; they turned their backs on your Law. They killed the prophets who warned them, who told them to turn back to you. They insulted you time after time,

I punished you, but it did no good; you would not let me correct you. Like a raging lion, you have murdered your prophets.

They brought him back to King Jehoiakim, who had him killed and his body thrown into the public burial ground.)

But it happened, because her prophets sinned and her priests were guilty of causing the death of innocent people.

The tenants grabbed his slaves, beat one, killed another, and stoned another.

Again the man sent other slaves, more than the first time, and the tenants treated them the same way.

while others grabbed the servants, beat them, and killed them.

Was there any prophet that your ancestors did not persecute? They killed God's messengers, who long ago announced the coming of his righteous Servant. And now you have betrayed and murdered him.

They kept on stoning Stephen as he called out to the Lord, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"

And Saul approved of his murder. That very day the church in Jerusalem began to suffer cruel persecution. All the believers, except the apostles, were scattered throughout the provinces of Judea and Samaria.

and their bodies will lie in the street of the great city, where their Lord was crucified. The symbolic name of that city is Sodom, or Egypt.

If only they would always feel this way! If only they would always honor me and obey all my commands, so that everything would go well with them and their descendants forever.

They fail to see why they were defeated; they cannot understand what happened.

I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt. Open your mouth, and I will feed you.

How I wish my people would listen to me; how I wish they would obey me!

The holy God of Israel, the LORD who saves you, says: "I am the LORD your God, the one who wants to teach you for your own good and direct you in the way you should go.

Your descendants would be as numerous as grains of sand, and I would have made sure they were never destroyed."

"Why did my people fail to respond when I went to them to save them? Why did they not answer when I called? Am I too weak to save them? I can dry up the sea with a command and turn rivers into a desert, so that the fish in them die for lack of water.

They will completely destroy you and the people within your walls; not a single stone will they leave in its place, because you did not recognize the time when God came to save you!"

Jesus turned to them and said, "Women of Jerusalem! Don't cry for me, but for yourselves and your children.

Be glad, Israel, because of your Creator; rejoice, people of Zion, because of your king!

"That is why my eyes are overflowing with tears. No one can comfort me; no one can give me courage. The enemy has conquered me; my people have nothing left.

"Be glad, people of Zion, rejoice at what the LORD your God has done for you. He has given you the right amount of autumn rain; he has poured down the winter rain for you and the spring rain as before.

Hagar, who stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia, is a figure of the present city of Jerusalem, in slavery with all its people.

But the heavenly Jerusalem is free, and she is our mother.

Like an eagle teaching its young to fly, catching them safely on its spreading wings, the LORD kept Israel from falling.

The LORD alone led his people without the help of a foreign god.

May the LORD reward you for what you have done. May you have a full reward from the LORD God of Israel, to whom you have come for protection!"

Protect me as you would your very eyes; hide me in the shadow of your wings

How precious, O God, is your constant love! We find protection under the shadow of your wings.

Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful, because I come to you for safety. In the shadow of your wings I find protection until the raging storms are over.

He will cover you with his wings; you will be safe in his care; his faithfulness will protect and defend you.

The older brother was so angry that he would not go into the house; so his father came out and begged him to come in.

Year after year you patiently warned them. You inspired your prophets to speak, but your people were deaf, so you let them be conquered by other nations.

"But my people would not listen to me; Israel would not obey me.

I have been calling you, inviting you to come, but you would not listen. You paid no attention to me.

So when you get into trouble, I will laugh at you. I will make fun of you when terror strikes---

Then you will call for wisdom, but I will not answer. You may look for me everywhere, but you will not find me.

You have never wanted my advice or paid any attention when I corrected you.

The Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says to the people, "Come back and quietly trust in me. Then you will be strong and secure." But you refuse to do it.

The LORD said to his people, "Stand at the crossroads and look. Ask for the ancient paths and where the best road is. Walk in it, and you will live in peace." But they said, "No, we will not!"

But I did command them to obey me, so that I would be their God and they would be my people. And I told them to live the way I had commanded them, so that things would go well for them.

But they did not obey or pay any attention. Instead, they did whatever their stubborn and evil hearts told them to do, and they became worse instead of better.

Jonadab's descendants have obeyed his command not to drink wine, and to this very day none of them drink any. But I have kept on speaking to you, and you have not obeyed me.

I kept sending you my servants the prophets, who told you not to do this terrible thing that I hate.

So I poured out my anger and fury on the towns of Judah and on the streets of Jerusalem, and I set them on fire. They were left in ruins and became a horrifying sight, as they are today.

But the more I called to him, the more he turned away from me. My people sacrificed to Baal; they burned incense to idols.

They insist on turning away from me. They will cry out because of the yoke that is on them, but no one will lift it from them.

Do not be like your ancestors. Long ago the prophets gave them my message, telling them not to live evil, sinful lives any longer. But they would not listen to me or obey me.

He sent his servants to tell the invited guests to come to the feast, but they did not want to come.

He was holy and good, but you rejected him, and instead you asked Pilate to do you the favor of turning loose a murderer.

You killed the one who leads to life, but God raised him from death---and we are witnesses to this.