"If you will areturn
, O Israel
," declares
the LORD
, "Then you should return
to Me. And bif
you will put
away
your detested
things
from My presence
, And will not waver
,
And you will aswear, `As the LORD
lives
,' bIn truth
, in justice
and in righteousness
; Then the cnations
will bless
themselves in Him, And din Him they will glory
."
For thus says
the LORD
to the men
of Judah
and to Jerusalem
, " 1 aBreak
up your fallow
ground
, And bdo not sow
among
thorns
.
" aCircumcise yourselves to the LORD
And remove
the foreskins
of your heart
, Men
of Judah
and inhabitants
of Jerusalem
, Or
else
My bwrath
will go
forth
like fire
And burn
with cnone
to quench
it, Because
of the evil
of your deeds
."
Declare in Judah
and proclaim
in Jerusalem
, and say
, " aBlow
the trumpet
in the land
; Cry
aloud
and say
, ` bAssemble
yourselves, and let us go
Into the fortified
cities
.'
"Lift up a astandard
toward Zion
! Seek
refuge
, do not stand
still, For I am bringing
bevil
from the north
, And great
destruction
.
"A alion has gone
up from his thicket
, And a bdestroyer
of nations
has set
out; He has gone
out from his place
To cmake
your land
a waste
. Your cities
will be ruins
Without
inhabitant
.
"For this, aput
on sackcloth
, Lament
and wail
; For the bfierce
anger
of the LORD
Has not turned
back
from us."
"It shall come about in that day
," declares
the LORD
, "that the aheart
of the king
and the heart
of the princes
will fail
; and the priests
will be appalled
and the bprophets
will be astounded
."
Then I said, "Ah
, Lord
1GOD
! Surely
You have utterly
adeceived
this
people
and Jerusalem
, saying
, ` bYou will have
peace
'; whereas a sword
touches
the 2throat
."
In that time it will be said
to this
people
and to Jerusalem
, "A ascorching
wind
from the bare
heights
in the wilderness
in the direction
of the daughter
of My people
--not to winnow
and not to cleanse
,
a wind too
strong
for 1this
--will come
2at My command; now
I will also
pronounce
judgments
against them.
"Behold, he agoes
up like clouds
, And his bchariots
like the whirlwind
; His horses
are cswifter
than
eagles
. Woe
to us, for dwe are ruined
!"
Wash your heart
from evil
, O Jerusalem
, That you may be saved
. How
long
will your awicked
thoughts
Lodge
within
you?
For a voice declares
from aDan
, And proclaims
wickedness
from Mount
Ephraim
.
"Report it to the nations
, now
! Proclaim
over
Jerusalem
, `Besiegers
come
from a afar
country
, And blift
their voices
against
the cities
of Judah
.
`Like watchmen of a field
they are aagainst
her round
about
, Because
she has brebelled
against Me,' declares
the LORD
.
"Your aways and your deeds
Have 1brought
these
things
to you. This
is your evil
. How
bbitter
! How
it has touched
your heart
!"
aMy 1soul, my 1soul
! I am in anguish
! 2Oh
, my heart
! My bheart
is pounding
in me; I cannot
be silent
, Because
3you have heard
, O my soul
, The csound
of the trumpet
, The alarm
of war
.
aDisaster on disaster
is proclaimed
, For the bwhole
land
is devastated
; Suddenly
my ctents
are devastated
, My curtains
in an instant
.
How long
must I see
the standard
And hear
the sound
of the trumpet
?
" aFor My people are foolish
, They know
Me not; They are stupid
children
And have
no
understanding
. They are shrewd
to bdo
evil
, But to do
good
they do not know
."
I looked on the earth
, and behold
, it was 1 a formless
and void
; And to the heavens
, and they had
no
light
.
I looked on the mountains
, and behold
, they were aquaking
, And all
the hills
1moved
to and fro
.
I looked, and behold
, there
was no
man
, And all
the abirds
of the heavens
had fled
.
I looked, and behold
, 1the afruitful
land
was a wilderness
, And all
its cities
were pulled
down
Before
the LORD
, before
His fierce
anger
.
For thus says
the LORD
, "The awhole
land
shall be a desolation
, Yet I will bnot execute
a complete
destruction
.
"For this the aearth
shall mourn
And the bheavens
above
be dark
, Because
I have cspoken
, I have purposed
, And I will not 1change
My mind
, nor
will I turn
from it."
At the sound of the horseman
and bowman
aevery
city
flees
; They bgo
into the thickets
and climb
among the rocks
; cEvery
city
is forsaken
, And no
man
dwells
in them.
And you, O desolate one, awhat
will you do
? Although
you dress
in scarlet
, Although
you decorate
yourself with ornaments
of gold
, Although
you benlarge
your eyes
with paint
, In vain
you make
yourself beautiful
. Your 1 clovers
despise
you; They seek
your life
.
For I heard a 1cry
as of a woman in labor
, The anguish
as of one giving
birth
to her first
child
, The 1cry
of the daughter
of Zion
agasping
for breath
, bStretching
out her 2hands
, saying, "Ah
, woe
is me, for 3I faint
before murderers
."