The priests carrying the ark of the covenant of the <sc>Lordsc> stood firmly on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan. All Israel crossed over on dry ground until the entire nation was on the other side.<n id="1" />p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> was furious with Israel.<n id="1" /> He said, &#8220;This nation<n id="2" /> has violated the terms of the agreement I made with their ancestors<n id="3" /> by disobeying me.<n id="4" />

As certainly as the <sc>Lordsc> your God lives, my master has sent to every nation and kingdom in an effort to find you. When they say, &#8216;He&#8217;s not here,&#8217; he makes them<n id="1" /> swear an oath that they could not find you.

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;&#8216;But when the seventy years are over, I will punish the king of Babylon and his nation<n id="1" /> for their sins. I will make the land of Babylon<n id="2" /> an everlasting ruin.<n id="3" /> I, the <sc>Lordsc>, affirm it!<n id="4" />

<p class="poetry">I will cause enemies to blow through Elam from every directionp> <p class="poetry">like the winds blowing in from the four quarters of heaven.p> <p class="poetry">I will scatter the people of Elam to the four winds.p> <p class="poetry">There will not be any nation where the refugees of Elam will not go.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="bodytext">Then Haggai responded, &#8220;&#8216;The people of this nation are unclean in my sight,&#8217;<n id="1" /> says the <sc>Lordsc>. &#8216;And so is all their effort; everything they offer is also unclean.<n id="2" />

Indeed, for forty years the Israelites traveled through the desert until all the men old enough to fight when they left Egypt, the ones who had disobeyed the <sc>Lordsc>, died off.<n id="1" /> For the <sc>Lordsc> had sworn a solemn oath to them that he would not let them see the land he had sworn on oath to give them,<n id="2" /> a land rich in<n id="3" /> milk and honey.