"The ugliness of intra-religious conflict..."
Isaiah 65:1-9 NRSV
I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask, to be found by those who did not seek me. I said, “Here I am, here I am,” to a nation that did not call on my name. I held out my hands all day long to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and offering incense on bricks; who sit inside tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat swine’s flesh, with broth of abominable things in their vessels; who say, “Keep to yourself, do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.” These are a smoke in my nostrils, a fire that burns all day long. See, it is written before me: I will not keep silent, but I will repay; I will indeed repay into their laps their iniquities and their ancestors’ iniquities together, says the Lord; because they offered incense on the mountains and reviled me on the hills, I will measure into their laps full payment for their actions.
Thus says the Lord: As the wine is found in the cluster, and they say, “Do not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it,” so I will do for my servants’ sake, and not destroy them all. I will bring forth descendants from Jacob, and from Judah inheritors of my mountains; my chosen shall inherit it, and my servants shall settle there.
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References
Kirk, Glen A. "PNG image created by gakirk for www.rrlp.org." Canva.com. Edited by Glen A. Kirk. www.rrlp.org, 2022.
Luther Theological Seminary. Working Preacher. 2022. www.workingpreacher.org.
NCCC in the US. Oremus Bible Browser. National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. 1989. http://www.nrsvbibles.org (accessed 2022).