'Says the Lord' in the Bible

This is the land which you shall divide by lot among the tribes of Israel as their inheritance, and these are their several portions,” says the Lord God.

“And I will punish her for the [feast] days of the Baals,When she used to offer sacrifices and burn incense to themAnd adorn herself with her earrings and nose rings and her jewelry,And follow her lovers, so that she forgot Me,” says the Lord.

“It shall come about in that day,” says the Lord,“That you will call Me Ishi (my husband)And will no longer call Me Baali (my Baal).

“It will come about in that day that I will respond,” says the Lord.“I will respond to the heavens [which ask for rain to pour on the earth], and they will respond to the earth [which begs for the rain],

O Ephraim, what shall I do with you?O Judah, what shall I do with you?For your [wavering] loyalty and kindness are [transient] like the morning cloudAnd like the dew that goes away early.

All their wickedness [says the Lord] is focused in Gilgal;Indeed, I came to hate them there!Because of the wickedness of their [idolatrous] practicesI will drive them out of My house (the land of Israel)!I will love them no longer;All their princes are rebels.

They will come trembling and hurriedly like birds from EgyptAnd like doves from the land of Assyria;And I will settle them in their houses [in the land of their inheritance], declares the Lord.

“Even now,” says the Lord,“Turn and come to Me with all your heart [in genuine repentance],With fasting and weeping and mourning [until every barrier is removed and the broken fellowship is restored];

And after that, it will come about, says the Lord, that I will send my spirit on all flesh; and your sons and your daughters will be prophets, your old men will have dreams, your young men will see visions:

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Damascus and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I shall not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because they have threshed Gilead [east of the Jordan River] with sharp iron sledges [having spikes that crushed and shredded].

“I also will break the bar [of the gate] of Damascus,And cut off and destroy the inhabitant from the Valley of Aven (Wickedness),And the ruler who holds the scepter, from Beth-eden (Damascus);And the people of Aram [conquered by the Assyrians] will go into exile to Kir,”Says the Lord.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Gaza [in Philistia] and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because [as slave traders] they took captive the entire [Jewish] population [of defenseless Judean border villages, of which none was spared]And deported them to Edom [for the slave trade].

“And I will cut off and destroy the inhabitants from Ashdod,And the ruler who holds the scepter, from Ashkelon;And I will unleash My power and turn My hand [in judgment] against Ekron,And the rest of the Philistines [in Gath and the towns dependent on these four Philistine cities] shall die,”Says the Lord God.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Tyre and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because they [as middlemen] deported an entire [Jewish] population to EdomAnd did not [seriously] remember their covenant of brotherhood.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Edom [the descendants of Esau] and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because he pursued his brother Jacob (Israel) with the sword,Corrupting and stifling his compassions and casting off all mercy;His destructive anger raged continually,And he maintained [and nurtured] his wrath forever.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of the children of Ammon and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because the Ammonites have ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead,That they might enlarge their border.

“Their king shall go into exile,He and his princes together,” says the Lord.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Moab and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because he burned the bones of the king of Edom [Esau’s descendant] into lime [and used it to plaster a Moabite house].

“I will also cut off and destroy the ruler from its midstAnd slay all the princes with him,” says the Lord.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Judah and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because they have rejected the law of the Lord [the sum of God’s instruction to His people]And have not kept His commandments;But their lies [and their idols], after which their fathers walked,Caused them to go astray.

Thus says the Lord,“For three transgressions of Israel and for four (multiplied delinquencies)I will not reverse its punishment or revoke My word concerning it,Because they sell the righteous and innocent for silverAnd the needy for the price of a pair of sandals.

“Then I raised up some of your sons to be prophets [who gave you My revelation],And some of your young men to be Nazirites (dedicated ones).Is this not true, O you children of Israel?” says the Lord.

“Even the bravest among the warriors shall flee naked on that day,” says the Lord.

For they do not know how to do right,” says the Lord, “these who store up violence and devastation [like treasures] in their strongholds.”

Therefore, thus says the Lord God,“An adversary (Assyria), even one surrounding the land,Shall pull down your strength from youAnd your fortresses will be looted.”

Thus says the Lord,“Just as the shepherd snatches from the mouth of the lion a couple of legs or a piece of the [sheep’s] ear [to prove to the owner that he has not stolen the animal],So will the [remaining] children of Israel living in Samaria be snatched awayWith the corner of a bed and [part of] the damask covering of a couch.

“Hear and testify against the house of Jacob,”Says the Lord God, the God of hosts,

“And I shall tear down the winter house with the summer house;And the houses of ivory shall also perishAnd the great houses shall come to an end,”Says the Lord.

“And you shall go out through the breaches [made in the city wall],Every woman straight before her [unable to turn aside],And you shall be cast to Harmon,”Says the Lord.

“Offer [by burning] a sacrifice of thanksgiving of that which is leavened,And [boastfully] proclaim freewill offerings, announce them.For this you so love to do, O children of Israel!”Says the Lord God.

“I also gave you cleanness of teeth [because of the famine] in all your citiesAnd lack of bread in all your places,Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

“So [the people of] two or three cities would stagger into one city to drink water,But would not be satisfied;Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

“I wounded you with blight [from the hot, blasting east wind] and with mildew;And the caterpillar devouredYour many gardens and vineyards, your fig trees and your olive trees;Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

“I sent a plague among you like [those of] Egypt;I killed your young men with the sword and I captured your horses,I made the stench of your camp rise up into your nostrils;Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

“I overthrew and destroyed [some among] you, as [I, your] God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah,And you were [rescued] like a log pulled out of the flame;Yet you have not returned to Me [in repentance],” says the Lord.

For thus says the Lord God,“The city which goes forth a thousand strongWill have a hundred left,And the one which goes forth a hundred strongWill have ten left to the house of Israel.”

For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel,“Seek Me [search diligently for Me and regard Me as more essential than food] so that you may live.

Therefore, thus says the Lord God of hosts, the Lord,“There is wailing in all the public plazas,And in all the streets they say, ‘Alas! Alas!’And they call the farmers to mourning [for those who have died]And professional mourners to wailing.

“And in all vineyards there is wailing,For I will pass through your midst [in judgment],” says the Lord.

Therefore, I will send you to go into exile far beyond Damascus,” says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.

The Lord God has taken an oath by himself, says the Lord, the God of armies: the pride of Jacob is disgusting to me, and I have hate for his great houses: so I will give up the town with everything in it.

“For behold, I am going to stir up a nation against you,O house of Israel,” says the Lord, the God of hosts,“And they will afflict and torment you [to the entire limits of Israel] from the entrance of Hamath [in the north]To the brook of the Arabah [in the south].”

The LORD relented concerning this: It shall not be, says the LORD.

Yahweh relented concerning this. "This also shall not be," says the Lord Yahweh.

Therefore, thus says the Lord, ‘Your wife shall become a prostitute in the city [when the Assyrians capture Samaria] and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword, and your land shall be divided by a measuring line; you yourself shall die in an unclean and defiled [pagan] land, and Israel shall certainly go from its land into exile.’”

In that day, the songs of the palace shall turn to wailing,” says the Lord God. “There will be many dead bodies; in [sacred] silence they will throw them everywhere.”

“It shall come about in that day,” says the Lord God,“That I shall cause the sun to go down at noon,And I shall darken the earth in broad daylight.

“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God,“When I will send hunger over the land,Not hunger for bread or a thirst for water,But rather [a hunger] for hearing the words of the Lord.

“Are you [degenerate ones] not as the [despised] sons of Ethiopia to Me,O sons of Israel?” says the Lord.“Have I not brought up Israel from the land of Egypt,And the Philistines from Caphtor and the Arameans (Syrians) from Kir?

“Behold, the eyes of the Lord God are on the sinful [northern] kingdom [of Israel’s ten tribes]And I shall destroy it from the face of the earth;But I shall not totally destroy the house of Jacob [that is, the entire nation of Israel],”Says the Lord.

That they may possess the remnant of Edom (ancient enemies)And all the nations that are called by My name,”Says the Lord who does this.

“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord,“When the plowman shall overtake the one who gathers the harvest,And the one who treads the grapes [shall overtake] him who sows the seed [for the harvest continues until planting time];When the mountains will drip sweet wineAnd all the hills shall melt [that is, everything that was once barren will overflow with streams of blessing].

“I will also plant them on their land,And they shall never again be uprooted from their landWhich I have given them,”Says the Lord your God.

The vision of Obadiah.Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom—We have heard a report from the Lord,And an ambassador has been sent among the nations, saying,“Arise, and let us rise up against Edom for battle [with the Lord as commander]!”

“Though you build [your nest] on high like the eagle,Though you set your nest among the stars,I will bring you down from there,” says the Lord.

“Will I not on that day,” says the Lord,“Destroy the wise men from Edom [removing all wisdom]And understanding from the mountain of Esau?

Therefore, thus says the Lord,“Behold, I am planning against this family a disaster (exile)[Like a noose] from which you cannot remove your necks;Nor will you be able to walk haughtily and erect,For it will be an evil time [of subjugation to the invaders].

Thus says the Lord concerning the [false] prophets who lead my people astray;When they have something good to bite with their teeth,They call out, “Peace,”But against the one who gives them nothing to eat,They declare a holy war.

“In that day,” says the Lord,“I shall assemble the lame,And gather the outcasts [from foreign captivity],Even those whom I have caused pain.

“And in that day,” says the Lord,“I will cut off your horses from among youAnd destroy your chariots [on which you depend].

This is what the Lord says,“Though they are at full strength and many in number,Even so, they will be cut off and pass away.Though I have afflicted you and caused you grief [O Jerusalem],I will afflict you no longer.

“Behold, I am against you [Nineveh],” declares the Lord of hosts, “and I will burn your chariots in the smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the land, and the voice of your messengers will no longer be heard.”

“Behold, I am against you,” declares the Lord of hosts,“And I will lift up your skirts over your face,And I will let the nations look at your nakedness [O Nineveh]And the kingdoms at your disgrace.

“I will completely consume and sweep away all thingsFrom the face of the earth [in judgment],” says the Lord.

“I will consume and sweep away man and beast;I will consume and sweep away the birds of the airAnd the fish of the sea,And the stumbling blocks (idols) along with the wicked;And I will cut off and destroy man from the face of the earth,” declares the Lord.

“On that day,” declares the Lord,“There will be the sound of crying from the Fish (Damascus) Gate [in the northern wall of Jerusalem where invaders enter]And wailing from the Second Quarter [of the city],And a loud crash from the hills.

“Therefore, as I live,” declares the Lord of hosts,The God of Israel,“Moab will in fact become like SodomAnd the sons of Ammon like Gomorrah,A land possessed by nettles and salt pits,And a perpetual desolation.The remnant of My people will plunder themAnd what is left of My nation will inherit them [as their own].”

“Therefore [you of the godly remnant of Judah, patiently] wait for Me,” declares the Lord,“[Wait] for the day when I rise up as a witness [against the nations].For it is My decision and My right to gather the nations,To assemble kingdoms,To pour out on them My indignation,All [the heat of] My burning anger;For [in that day] all the earth shall be consumedBy the fire of My zeal.

“At that time I will bring you in,Yes, at the time I gather you together;For I will make you a name and a praiseAmong all the peoples of the earthWhen I restore your fortunes [and freedom] before your eyes,”Says the Lord.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts: ‘These people say, “The time has not come that the Lord’s house (temple) should be rebuilt.”’”

Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, “Consider your ways and thoughtfully reflect on your conduct!

Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Consider your ways and thoughtfully reflect on your conduct!

Go up to the hill country, bring lumber and rebuild My house (temple), that I may be pleased with it and be glorified,” says the Lord [accepting it as done for My glory].

You look for much [harvest], but it comes to little; and even when you bring that home, I blow it away. Why?” says the Lord of hosts. “Because of My house, which lies in ruins while each of you runs to his own house [eager to enjoy it].

Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, spoke the Lord’s message to the people saying, “‘I am with you,’ declares the Lord.”

But now be courageous, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘be courageous also, Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and be courageous, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the Lord of hosts.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Once more, in a little while, I am going to shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.

I will shake all the nations; and they will come with the desirable and precious things of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory and splendor,’ says the Lord of hosts.

‘The silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts.

‘The latter glory of this house will be greater than the former,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and in this place I shall give [the ultimate] peace and prosperity,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Ask the priests for a ruling:

Then Haggai answered, “‘So is this people. And so is this nation before Me,’ declares the Lord, ‘and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there [on the altar] is unclean [because they who offer it are unclean].

I struck you and the work of your hands with scorching wind, mildew, and hail; yet you did not come back to Me,’ declares the Lord.

On that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, My servant,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will make you [through the Messiah, your descendant] like a signet ring, for I have chosen you [as the one with whom to renew My covenant to David’s line],’” declares the Lord of hosts.

Therefore say to the Jews, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts (armies), “Return to Me,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and I shall return to you.

Do not be like your fathers, to whom the former prophets proclaimed, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Repent [that is, change your way of thinking] and return now from your evil way [of life] and from your evil deeds.”’ But they did not listen or pay attention to Me,” declares the Lord.

So the angel who was speaking with me said to me, “Proclaim, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “I am jealous [with a burning, fiery passion] for Jerusalem and for Zion [demanding what is rightfully and uniquely mine] with a great jealousy.

Therefore, thus says the Lord, “I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy and compassion. My house shall be built in it,” says the Lord of hosts, “and a measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem.”’

Proclaim again, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “My cities shall again overflow with prosperity, and the Lord shall again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.”’”

For I,’ declares the Lord, ‘will be a wall of fire around her [protecting her from enemies], and I will be the glory in her midst.’”

“Hear this! Flee from [Babylon] the land of the north [which shall come under judgment],” declares the Lord, “for I have scattered you like the four winds of the heavens,” declares the Lord.

For thus says the Lord of hosts, “After glory He has sent me against the nations which plunder you, for he who touches you, touches the apple of His eye.

Sing for joy and rejoice, O Daughter of Zion; for behold, I am coming, and I will dwell in your midst,” declares the Lord.

“Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If you will walk in My ways [that is, remain faithful] and perform My service, then you will also govern My house and have charge of My courts, and I will give you free access [to My presence] among these who are standing here.

For behold, the stone which I have set before Joshua; on that one stone are seven eyes (symbolizing infinite intelligence, omniscience). Behold, I will engrave an inscription on it,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘and I will remove the wickedness and guilt of this land in a single day.

In that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘every one of you will invite his neighbor to sit under his vine and his fig tree [enjoying peace and prosperity in the kingdom].’”

Then he said to me, “This [continuous supply of oil] is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel [prince of Judah], saying, ‘Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit [of whom the oil is a symbol],’ says the Lord of hosts.

I will send the curse out,” declares the Lord of hosts, “and it will enter the house of the thief and the house of the one who swears falsely by My name; and it will spend the night in that house and consume it, both its timber and its stones.”

Then say to Joshua, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, “Behold (look, keep in sight, watch), a Man (Messiah) whose name is Branch, for He shall branch out from His place (Israel, the Davidic line); and He shall build the [ultimate] temple of the Lord.

And just as He called and they would not listen, so they called and I would not listen,” says the Lord of hosts;