Impending Disaster for Jerusalem
Flee for safety, aO people of Benjamin,
from the midst of Jerusalem!
Blow the trumpet in bTekoa,
and raise a signal on cBeth‑haccherem,
for disaster looms dout of the north,
and great destruction.
2 The lovely and delicately bred I will destroy,
athe daughter of Zion.
3 aShepherds with their flocks shall come against her;
bthey shall pitch their tents around her;
they shall pasture, each in his place.
4 a“Prepare war against her;
arise, and let us attack bat noon!
Woe to us, for the day declines,
for the shadows of evening lengthen!
5 Arise, and let us attack by night
and destroy her palaces!”
6 For thus says the Lord of hosts:
a“Cut down her trees;
bcast up a siege mound against Jerusalem.
This is the city that must be cpunished;
there is nothing but oppression within her.
7 aAs a well keeps its water fresh,
so she keeps fresh her evil;
bviolence and destruction are heard within her;
sickness and wounds are ever before me.
8 Be warned, O Jerusalem,
alest I turn from you in disgust,
lest I make you ba desolation,
an uninhabited land.”
9 Thus says the Lord of hosts:
a“They shall glean thoroughly as a vine
the remnant of Israel;
like a grape gatherer pass your hand again
over its branches.”
10 aTo whom shall I speak and give warning,
that they may hear?
bBehold, their ears are uncircumcised,
cthey cannot listen;
behold, dthe word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn;
they take no pleasure in it.
11 Therefore I am full of the wrath of the Lord;
aI am weary of holding it in.
b“Pour it out upon the children in the street,
and upon the gatherings of young men, also;
cboth husband and wife dshall be taken,
the elderly and the very aged.
12 aTheir houses shall be turned over to others,
their fields and wives together,
for I will stretch out my hand
against the inhabitants of the land,”
declares the Lord.
13 a“For from the least to the greatest of them,
everyone bis greedy for unjust gain;
and from cprophet to priest,
everyone deals falsely.
14 They have healed the wound of my people lightly,
saying, a‘Peace, peace,’
bwhen there is no peace.
15 aWere they ashamed when they committed abomination?
No, they were not at all ashamed;
they did not know how to blush.
Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;
bat the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,”
says the Lord.
16 Thus says the Lord:
“Stand by the roads, and look,
and ask for athe ancient paths,
where the good way is; and walk in it,
band find rest for your souls.
But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
17 aI set watchmen over you, saying,
‘Pay attention to bthe sound of the trumpet!’
But they said, c‘We will not pay attention.’
18 Therefore hear, O nations,
and know, O congregation, what will happen to them.
19 Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people,
athe fruit of their devices,
because they have not paid attention to my words;
and as for my law, they have rejected it.
20 aWhat use to me is bfrankincense that comes from cSheba,
or sweet cane from a distant land?
dYour burnt offerings are not acceptable,
nor your sacrifices pleasing to me.
21 Therefore thus says the Lord:
a‘Behold, I will lay before this people
stumbling blocks against which they shall stumble;
fathers and sons together,
neighbor and friend shall perish.’”
22 Thus says the Lord:
a“Behold, a people is coming bfrom the north country,
a great nation is stirring from cthe farthest parts of the earth.
23 They lay hold on bow and javelin;
they are acruel and have no mercy;
bthe sound of them is like the roaring sea;
they ride on horses,
set in array as a man for battle,
against you, O daughter of Zion!”
24 We have heard the report of it;
aour hands fall helpless;
anguish has taken hold of us,
bpain as of a woman in labor.
25 Go not out into the field,
nor walk on the road,
for the enemy has a sword;
aterror is on every side.
26 O daughter of my people, aput on sackcloth,
and broll in ashes;
cmake mourning as for an only son,
most bitter lamentation,
for suddenly the destroyer
will come upon us.
27 “I have made you aa tester of metals among my people,
that you may know and btest their ways.
28 aThey are all stubbornly rebellious,
bgoing about with slanders;
they are cbronze and iron;
all of them act corruptly.
29 The abellows blow fiercely;
the lead is consumed by the fire;
bin vain the refining goes on,
for the wicked are not removed.
30 aRejected silver they are called,
for the Lord has rejected them.”