But then David's conscience began to hurt,

My sacrifice is a humble spirit, O God; you will not reject a humble and repentant heart.

Because of you I am afraid; I am filled with fear because of your judgments.

"Listen to me, you stubborn people who think that victory is far away.

"I am the high and holy God, who lives forever. I live in a high and holy place, but I also live with people who are humble and repentant, so that I can restore their confidence and hope.

I myself created the whole universe! I am pleased with those who are humble and repentant, who fear me and obey me.

Listen to what the LORD says, you that fear him and obey him: "Because you are faithful to me, some of your own people hate you and will have nothing to do with you. They mock you and say, 'Let the LORD show his greatness and save you, so that we may see you rejoice.' But they themselves will be disgraced!

But neither the king nor any of his officials who heard all this was afraid or showed any sign of sorrow.

The LORD told me to say to the king, "You have burned the scroll, and you have asked Jeremiah why he wrote that the king of Babylonia would come and destroy this land and kill its people and its animals.

I will punish you, your descendants, and your officials because of the sins all of you commit. Neither you nor the people of Jerusalem and of Judah have paid any attention to my warnings, and so I will bring on all of you the disaster that I have threatened."

"Go through the whole city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the forehead of everyone who is distressed and troubled because of all the disgusting things being done in the city."

Or perhaps you despise his great kindness, tolerance, and patience. Surely you know that God is kind, because he is trying to lead you to repent.

But you have a hard and stubborn heart, and so you are making your own punishment even greater on the Day when God's anger and righteous judgments will be revealed.

But the grace that God gives is even stronger. As the scripture says, "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."

Come near to God, and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners! Purify your hearts, you hypocrites!

Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

So Moses and Aaron went to the king and said to him, "The LORD, the God of the Hebrews, says, 'How much longer will you refuse to submit to me? Let my people go, so that they may worship me.

"But your descendants will confess their sins and the sins of their ancestors, who resisted me and rebelled against me,

and caused me to turn against them and send them into exile in the land of their enemies. At last, when your descendants are humbled and they have paid the penalty for their sin and rebellion,

"Have you noticed how Ahab has humbled himself before me? Since he has done this, I will not bring disaster on him during his lifetime; it will be during his son's lifetime that I will bring disaster on Ahab's family."

In his suffering he became humble, turned to the LORD his God, and begged him for help.

The king's prayer and God's answer to it, and an account of the sins he committed before he repented---the evil he did, the pagan places of worship and the symbols of the goddess Asherah that he made and the idols that he worshiped---are all recorded in The History of the Prophets.

But unlike his father, he did not become humble and turn to the LORD; he was even more sinful than his father had been.

No, the LORD has told us what is good. What he requires of us is this: to do what is just, to show constant love, and to live in humble fellowship with our God.

In the same way you younger people must submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you must put on the apron of humility, to serve one another; for the scripture says, "God resists the proud, but shows favor to the humble."

Humble yourselves, then, under God's mighty hand, so that he will lift you up in his own good time.

I will turn your cities into ruins, destroy your places of worship, and refuse to accept your sacrifices.

I will destroy your land so completely that the enemies who occupy it will be shocked at the destruction.

The fields will be a barren waste, covered with sulfur and salt; nothing will be planted, and not even weeds will grow there. Your land will be like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD destroyed when he was furiously angry.

If you continue to disobey, then I will do to this Temple what I did to Shiloh, and all the nations of the world will use the name of this city as a curse."

This very day your land lies in ruins and no one lives in it. It has become a horrifying sight, and people use its name as a curse because the LORD could no longer endure your wicked and evil practices.

One of the Israelites took a Midianite woman into his tent in the sight of Moses and the whole community, while they were mourning at the entrance of the Tent of the LORD's presence.

When the angel had said this, all the people of Israel began to cry,

and that is why the place is called Bochim. There they offered sacrifices to the LORD.

Then all the people of Israel went up to Bethel and mourned. They sat there in the LORD's presence and did not eat until evening. They offered fellowship sacrifices and burned some sacrifices whole---all in the presence of the LORD.

When I heard this, I tore my clothes in despair, tore my hair and my beard, and sat down crushed with grief.

I sat there grieving until the time for the evening sacrifice to be offered, and people began to gather around me---all those who were frightened because of what the God of Israel had said about the sins of those who had returned from exile.

While Ezra was bowing in prayer in front of the Temple, weeping and confessing these sins, a large group of Israelites---men, women, and children---gathered around him, weeping bitterly.

When I heard all this, I sat down and wept. For several days I mourned and did not eat. I prayed to God,

When the people heard what the Law required, they were so moved that they began to cry. So Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra, the priest and scholar of the Law, and the Levites who were explaining the Law told all the people, "This day is holy to the LORD your God, so you are not to mourn or cry.

My tears pour down like a river, because people do not obey your law.

I wish my head were a well of water, and my eyes a fountain of tears, so that I could cry day and night for my people who have been killed.

If you will not listen, I will cry in secret because of your pride; I will cry bitterly, and my tears will flow because the LORD's people have been taken away as captives.

The LORD commanded me to tell the people about my sorrow and to say: "May my eyes flow with tears day and night, may I never stop weeping, for my people are deeply wounded and are badly hurt.

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

when I say how great is my sorrow, how endless the pain in my heart

for my people, my own flesh and blood! For their sake I could wish that I myself were under God's curse and separated from Christ.

Then Isaiah sent a message telling King Hezekiah that in answer to the king's prayer

to go back to Hezekiah, ruler of the LORD's people, and say to him, "I, the LORD, the God of your ancestor David, have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will heal you, and in three days you will go to the Temple.