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| 1 Behold, Jehovah maketh the earth empty, and maketh it waste, and turneth it upside down, and scattereth abroad the inhabitants thereof. |
Behold the LORD – It is the Lord that makes the earth desolate. Truth on every subject is the voice of God. It is the dissemination of truth that prompts men to assert their equal rights and make desperate efforts to obtain them. R686. 6
Maketh the earth – The present social organization. R1813:6
Upside down – The upper crust, the proud, will be deposed and the lower classes, the humble and meek, will be exalted. R332:3
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| 2 And it shall be, as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the creditor, so with the debtor; as with the taker of interest, so with the giver of interest to him. |
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| 3 The earth shall be utterly emptied, and utterly laid waste; for Jehovah hath spoken this word. |
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| 4 The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the lofty people of the earth do languish. |
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| 5 The earth also is polluted under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, broken the everlasting covenant. |
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| 6 Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are found guilty: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left. |
Few men left – A class of the world, not spirit-begotten, who will be preserved in the time of trouble: "Seek righteousness, seek meekness, it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord's anger." (Zeph. 2:3) R5041:6; Q719:1
As the three Hebrews were preserved in the fiery furnace, so we expect some will be spared in the time of trouble. R5041:6; Q718:6
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| 7 The new wine mourneth, the vine languisheth, all the merryhearted do sigh. |
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| 8 The mirth of tabrets ceaseth, the noise of them that rejoice endeth, the joy of the harp ceaseth. |
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| 9 They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it. |
Strong drink – False doctrines. R3455:2; D614
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| 10 The waste city is broken down; every house is shut up, that no man may come in. |
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| 11 There is a crying in the streets because of the wine; all joy is darkened, the mirth of the land is gone. |
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| 12 In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction. |
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| 13 For thus shall it be in the midst of the earth among the peoples, as the shaking of an olive-tree, as the gleanings when the vintage is done. |
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| 14 These shall lift up their voice, they shall shout; for the majesty of Jehovah they cry aloud from the sea. |
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| 15 Wherefore glorify ye Jehovah in the east, even the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel, in the coastlands of the sea. |
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| 16 From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs: Glory to the righteous. But I said, I pine away, I pine away, woe is me! the treacherous have dealt treacherously; yes, the treacherous have dealt very treacherously. |
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| 17 Fear, and the pit, and the snare, are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth. |
Fear – Verses 17 to 22 give a vivid description of the awful time of trouble. R5735:4
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| 18 And it shall come to pass, that he who fleeth from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that cometh up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: for the windows on high are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble. |
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| 19 The earth is utterly broken, the earth is rent asunder, the earth is shaken violently. |
The earth – The present old social structure. D558; R1813:6
Is utterly broken – In the time of trouble. D551; R1813:6
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| 20 The earth shall stagger like a drunken man, and shall sway to and fro like a hammock; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it, and it shall fall, and not rise again. |
Reel to and fro – As a result of the judgments of the Lord falling heavily upon the wayward and disobedient. R1913:4
Like a drunkard – Vainly endeavoring to right itself, maintain a footing and re-establish itself. D551
Like a cottage – To clear the way for the new building of God. D558
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| 21 And it shall come to pass in that day, that Jehovah will punish the host of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. |
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| 22 And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison; and after many days shall they be visited. |
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| 23 Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for Jehovah of hosts will reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem; and before his elders shall be glory. |
Shall reign – When Christ and his glorified Church shall reign in righteousness. R2049:5
In mount Zion – The spiritual phase of the Kingdom of God. F363
Gloriously – "He must reign until he shall have put all enemies under his feet." (1 Cor. 15:25) R2049:6
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