Observe My Sabbaths,

            Have reverence for My sanctuary,

                        I am the Lord. 

I will send rain that yields crops,

            Trees that yield fruit,

                        Abundant grapes and safety.

I will bring peace in the land,

            Remove savage beasts

                        And prevent swords from entering.

I will look on you with favor,

            Make you fruitful,

                        And multiply your numbers.

I will put my dwelling place among you,

            Walk among you,

                        And You will be My people.

But if you reject my commands,

            If you forget my Sabbaths

                        And ignore my decrees,

            If you cage the aliens

                        And ravage the land with chemicals and modified seed,

            If you put the widow and orphan in bondage

                        And maintain oppressive systems,

            If you cling to capitalism and commercialism

                        And settle for fast food communion,

            If you enslave the world’s population to maintain your life style

                        And desecrate lands with pollution and over population,

            If you ignore the plight of the lost, lonely, and poor

                        And justify abuses under the banner of nationalism,

I will bring upon you disease and terror, 

            Fever and scarcity of food.

I will punish you for you sins,

            And afflict you for your pride

                        Not just one time, but seven times over. 

                                    Seven times over. 

When your enemies have carried you off,

            When you have eaten the flesh of your sons and daughters,

                        When all you have ever known lies desolate, barren, and dead, 

                                    When you call on my name from a foreign land,

                                        When you confess your sin and the sin of your fathers,

I will hear, remember, and deliver. 

I will give you rest,

            And together we will lie on the warm sand, 

                        In wonder and awe,

And Sabbath. 

Photo by Holger Link on Unsplash