This is why the sky<n id="1" /> has held back its dew and the earth its produce.<n id="2" />

<p class="poetry">I stay away<n id="1" /> from the evil path,p> <p class="poetry">so that I might keep your instructions.<n id="2" />p>

The fountains of the deep and the floodgates of heaven were closed,<n id="1" /> and the rain stopped falling from the sky.

Joshua son of Nun, the servant<n id="1" /> of Moses, one of his choice young men,<n id="2" /> said,<n id="3" /> &#8220;My lord Moses, stop them!&#8221;<n id="4" />

<p class="poetry">I have told the great assembly<n id="1" /> about your justice.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Look! I spare no words!<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">O <sc>Lordsc>, you know this is true.p>

<p class="poetry">O <sc>Lordsc>, you do not withhold<n id="1" /> your compassion from me.p> <p class="poetry">May your loyal love and faithfulness continually protect me!<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">You cause those who know me to keep their distance;p> <p class="poetry">you make me an appalling sight to them.p> <p class="poetry">I am trapped and cannot get free.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">I will say to the north, &#8216;Hand them over!&#8217;p> <p class="poetry">and to the south, &#8216;Don&#8217;t hold any back!&#8217;p> <p class="poetry">Bring my sons from distant lands,p> <p class="poetry">and my daughters from the remote regions of the earth,p>

<p class="bodytext">Moses instructed them to take<n id="1" /> his message<n id="2" /> throughout the camp, saying, &#8220;Let no man or woman do any more work for the offering for the sanctuary.&#8221; So the people were restrained from bringing any more.<n id="3" />

<p class="bodytext">So the men did as instructed.<n id="1" /> They took two cows that had calves and harnessed them to a cart; they also removed their calves to their stalls.

Praised be your good judgment! May you yourself be rewarded<n id="1" /> for having prevented me this day from shedding blood and taking matters into my own hands!

<p class="bodytext">Now at that time,<n id="1" /> the armies of the king of Babylon were besieging Jerusalem.<n id="2" /> The prophet Jeremiah was confined in the courtyard of the guardhouse<n id="3" /> attached to the royal palace of Judah.

&#8220;Listen, sir,<n id="1" /> you are a mighty prince<n id="2" /> among us! You may bury your dead in the choicest of our tombs. None of us will refuse you his tomb to prevent you<n id="3" /> from burying your dead.&#8221;p>

<p class="poetry">Just as no one has power over the wind to restrain it,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">so no one has power over the day of his<n id="2" /> death.p> <p class="poetry">Just as no one can be discharged during the battle,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">so wickedness cannot rescue the wicked.<n id="4" />p>

For King Zedekiah<n id="1" /> had confined Jeremiah there after he had reproved him for prophesying as he did. He had asked Jeremiah, &#8220;Why do you keep prophesying these things? Why do you keep saying that the <sc>Lordsc> says, &#8216;I will hand this city over to the king of Babylon? I will let him capture it.<n id="2" />

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;&#8216;This is what the sovereign <sc>Lordsc> says: On the day it<n id="1" /> went down to Sheol I caused observers to lament.<n id="2" /> I covered it with the deep and held back its rivers; its plentiful water was restrained. I clothed Lebanon in black for it, and all the trees of the field wilted because of it.

<p class="poetry">&#8220;Seventy weeks<n id="1" /> have been determinedp> <p class="poetry">concerning your people and your holy cityp> <p class="poetry">to put an end to<n id="2" /> rebellion,p> <p class="poetry">to bring sin<n id="3" /> to completion,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">to atone for iniquity,p> <p class="poetry">to bring in perpetual<n id="5" /> righteousness,p> <p class="poetry">to seal up<n id="6" /> the prophetic vision,<n id="7" />p> <p class="poetry">and to anoint a most holy place.<n id="8" />p>