19 *Repent therefore, and *turn back, that *your sins may be blotted out,

38 And Peter said to them, *"Repent and *be baptized every one of you *in the name of Jesus Christ *for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive *the gift of the Holy Spirit.

30 *The times of ignorance *God overlooked, but *now he *commands all people everywhere to repent,

17 *From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, *"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."*

8 Bear fruit *in keeping with repentance.

15 and saying, *"The time is fulfilled, and *the kingdom of God is at hand;**repent and believe in the gospel."

7 Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who *repents than over ninety-nine *righteous persons who need no repentance.

10 Just so, I tell you, there is joy before *the angels of God over one sinner who repents."

32 *I have not come to call the righteous *but sinners *to repentance."

32 *For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; *so turn, and live."

21 *"But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does *what is just and right, *he shall surely live; he shall not die.

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 "What do you* mean *by repeating this proverb concerning the land of Israel, *‘The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge’? 3 *As I live, declares the Lord God, *this proverb shall no more be used by you in Israel. 4 Behold, all souls are mine; the soul of the father as well as the soul of the son is mine: *the soul who sins shall die.

5 "If a man is righteous and does *what is just and right— 6 if he *does not eat upon the mountains or *lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, *does not defile his neighbor’s wife *or approach *a woman in her time of menstrual impurity, 7 *does not oppress anyone, but *restores to the debtor his pledge, *commits no robbery, *gives his bread to the hungry *and covers the naked with a garment, 8 *does not lend at interest *or take any profit,* withholds his hand from injustice, *executes true justice between man and man, 9 *walks in my statutes, and keeps my rules by acting faithfully—he is righteous; *he shall surely live, declares the Lord God.

10 "If he fathers a son who is violent, *a shedder of blood, who does any of these things 11 (though he himself did none of these things), *who even eats upon the mountains, *defiles his neighbor’s wife, 12 oppresses the poor and needy, *commits robbery, *does not restore the pledge, *lifts up his eyes to the idols, *commits abomination, 13 *lends at interest, and takes profit; shall he then live? He shall not live. He has done all these abominations; he shall surely die; *his blood shall be upon himself.

14 "Now suppose this man fathers a son who sees all the sins that his father has done; he sees, and does not do likewise: 15 he does not eat upon the mountains or lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, 16 does not oppress anyone, *exacts no pledge, *commits no robbery, *but gives his bread to the hungry *and covers the naked with a garment, 17 withholds his hand from iniquity,* takes no interest or profit, obeys my rules, *and walks in my statutes; he shall not die for his father’s iniquity; *he shall surely live. 18 As for his father, because he practiced extortion, robbed his brother, and did what is not good among his people, *behold, he shall die for his iniquity.

19 "Yet you say, *‘Why should not the son suffer for the iniquity of the father?’ When the son has done *what is just and right, and has been careful to observe all my statutes, *he shall surely live. 20 *The soul who sins shall die. *The son shall not suffer for the iniquity of the father, nor the father suffer for the iniquity of the son. *The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, *and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

21 *"But if a wicked person turns away from all his sins that he has committed and keeps all my statutes and does *what is just and right, *he shall surely live; he shall not die. 22 *None of the transgressions that he has committed shall be remembered against him; for the righteousness that he has done he shall live. 23 *Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? 24 *But when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice and does the same abominations that the wicked person does, shall he live? *None of the righteous deeds that he has done shall be remembered; for *the treachery of which he is guilty and the sin he has committed, for them he shall die.

25 *"Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ Hear now, O house of Israel: Is my way not just? Is it not your ways that are not just? 26 *When a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and does injustice, he shall die for it; for the injustice that he has done he shall die. 27 Again, *when a wicked person turns away from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he shall save his life. 28 Because he considered and turned away from all the transgressions that he had committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. 29 Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ O house of Israel, are my ways not just? Is it not your ways that are not just?

30 "Therefore *I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord God. *Repent and turn from all your transgressions, *lest iniquity be your ruin.*31 *Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and *make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! *Why will you die, O house of Israel? 32 *For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord God; *so turn, and live."

9 *The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise *as some count slowness, but *is patient toward you,**not wishing that any should perish, but *that all should reach repentance.

7 let the wicked forsake his way,

and the unrighteous man his thoughts;

let him return to the Lord, that he may have compassion on him,

and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

22 *I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud

and your sins like mist;

return to me, for I have redeemed you.

12 "Yet even now," declares the Lord,

*"return to me with all your heart,

*with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning;

13 and *rend your hearts and not *your garments."

Return to the Lord your God,

*for he is gracious and merciful,

slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love;

*and he relents over disaster.

14 if my people who are called by my name *humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

1 Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of the Lord at Jerusalem to keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel. 2 For the king and his princes and all the assembly in Jerusalem had taken counsel to keep the Passover *in the second month— 3 for they could not keep it *at that time *because the priests had not consecrated themselves in sufficient number, nor had the people assembled in Jerusalem— 4 and the plan seemed right to the king and all the assembly. 5 So they decreed to make a proclamation throughout all Israel, *from Beersheba to Dan, that the people should come and keep the Passover to the Lord, the God of Israel, at Jerusalem, for they had not kept it as often as prescribed. 6 *So couriers went throughout all Israel and Judah with letters from the king and his princes, as the king had commanded, saying, "O people of Israel, *return to the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, that he may turn again to the remnant of you who have escaped from the hand of *the kings of Assyria. 7 *Do not be like your fathers and your brothers, who were faithless to the Lord God of their fathers, so that he made them a desolation, as you see. 8 *Do not now be stiff-necked as your fathers were, but yield yourselves to the Lord and come to his sanctuary, which he has consecrated forever, and serve the Lord your God, *that his fierce anger may turn away from you. 9 For *if you return to the Lord, your brothers and your children *will find compassion with their captors and return to this land. For *the Lord your God is gracious and merciful and will not turn away his face from you, *if you return to him."

10 *So the couriers went from city to city through the country of *Ephraim and Manasseh, and as far as Zebulun, but *they laughed them to scorn and mocked them. 11 However, *some men of Asher, of Manasseh, and of Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. 12 The hand of God was also on Judah to give them one heart to do what the king and the princes commanded *by the word of the Lord.

13 And many people came together in Jerusalem to keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread *in the second month, a very great assembly. 14 They set to work and removed *the altars that were in Jerusalem, and all the altars for burning incense they took away *and threw into the brook Kidron. 15 *And they slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. *And the priests and the Levites were ashamed, *so that they consecrated themselves and brought burnt offerings into the house of the Lord. 16 *They took their accustomed posts according to the Law of Moses *the man of God. The priests threw the blood that they received from the hand of the Levites. 17 For there were many in the assembly who had not consecrated themselves. Therefore the Levites had to slaughter the Passover lamb for everyone who was not clean, to consecrate it to the Lord. 18 For a majority of the people, *many of them from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet they ate the Passover otherwise *than as prescribed. For Hezekiah had prayed for them, saying, "May the good Lord pardon everyone 19 *who sets his heart to seek God, the Lord, the God of his fathers, even though not according to the sanctuary’s rules of cleanness."*20 And the Lord heard Hezekiah and healed the people. 21 And the people of Israel who were present at Jerusalem kept *the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with great gladness, and the Levites and the priests praised the Lord day by day, singing with all their might* to the Lord. 22 And Hezekiah spoke *encouragingly to all the Levites who showed good skill in the service of the Lord. So they ate the food of the festival for seven days, sacrificing *peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord, the God of their fathers.

23 Then the whole assembly agreed together to keep the feast *for another seven days. So they kept it for another seven days with gladness. 24 For Hezekiah king of Judah *gave the assembly 1,000 bulls and 7,000 sheep for offerings, and the princes gave the assembly 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep. And the priests *consecrated themselves in great numbers. 25 The whole assembly of Judah, and the priests and the Levites, *and the whole assembly that came out of Israel, and the sojourners who came out of the land of Israel, and the sojourners who lived in Judah, rejoiced. 26 So there was great joy in Jerusalem, for *since the time of Solomon the son of David king of Israel there had been nothing like this in Jerusalem. 27 Then *the priests and the Levites arose and *blessed the people, and their voice was heard, and their prayer came to *his holy habitation in heaven.

1 In the eighth month, *in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet *Zechariah, the son of *Berechiah, son of *Iddo, saying, 2 *"The Lord was very angry with your fathers. 3 Therefore say to them, Thus declares the Lord of hosts: *Return to me, says the Lord of hosts, and *I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. 4 *Do not be like your fathers, *to whom the former prophets cried out, ‘Thus says the Lord of hosts, *Return from your evil ways and from your evil deeds.’ But *they did not hear or pay attention to me, declares the Lord. 5 Your fathers, where are they? And *the prophets, do they live forever? 6 *But my words and my statutes, which I commanded *my servants the prophets, did they not *overtake your fathers? So they repented and said, *‘As the Lord of hosts purposed to deal with us for *our ways and *deeds, so has he dealt with us.’"

7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, which is the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet *Zechariah, the son of *Berechiah, son of *Iddo, saying, 8 "I saw in the night, and behold, *a man riding on a red horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen, and behind him were *red, sorrel, and white horses. 9 Then I said, ‘What are these, my lord?’ *The angel who talked with me said to me, ‘I will show you what they are.’ 10 So *the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, *‘These are they whom the Lord has sent to *patrol the earth.’ 11 And they answered *the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, and said, *‘We have patrolled the earth, and behold, all the earth *remains at rest.’ 12 Then *the angel of the Lord said, *‘O Lord of hosts, *how long will you *have no mercy on Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, against which you have been angry these *seventy years?’ 13 And the Lord answered *gracious and comforting words to *the angel who talked with me. 14 So *the angel who talked with me said to me, ‘Cry out, Thus says the Lord of hosts: *I am exceedingly jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion. 15 *And I am exceedingly angry with the nations that are *at ease; *for while I was angry but a little, *they furthered the disaster. 16 Therefore, thus says the Lord, *I have returned to Jerusalem with mercy; *my house shall be built in it, declares the Lord of hosts, and *the measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem. 17 Cry out again, Thus says the Lord of hosts: *My cities shall again overflow with prosperity, *and the Lord will again comfort Zion and again *choose Jerusalem.’"

18 * And I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, *four horns! 19 And I said to *the angel who talked with me, "What are these?" And he said to me, *"These are the horns that have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem." 20 Then the Lord showed me four craftsmen. 21 And I said, "What are these coming to do?" He said, *"These are the horns that scattered Judah, so that no one raised his head. And these have come *to terrify them, to cast down the horns of the nations *who lifted up their horns against the land of Judah to scatter it."

19 *Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline, so be zealous and repent.

5 *Put to death therefore *what is earthly in you:**sexual immorality, impurity, *passion, evil desire, and covetousness, *which is idolatry.

13 *Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but *present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.

1 Brothers,**if anyone is caught in any transgression, *you who are spiritual should restore him in *a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.

21 Therefore *put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with *meekness the implanted word, *which is able to save your souls.