1"Ifyou will return,O Israel,"declaresthe LORD,"[Then] you should returnto Me. And ifyou will putawayyour detestedthingsfrom My presence,And will not waver,
2And you will swear,'As the LORDlives,'In truth,in justiceand in righteousness;Then the nationswill blessthemselves in Him, And in Him they will glory."
3For thussaysthe LORDto the menof Judahand to Jerusalem,"Breakup your fallowground,And do not sowamongthorns.
4"Circumciseyourselves to the LORDAnd removethe foreskinsof your heart,Menof Judahand inhabitantsof Jerusalem,OrelseMy wrathwill goforthlike fireAnd burnwith noneto quenchit, Becauseof the evilof your deeds."
5Declarein Judahand proclaimin Jerusalem,and say,"Blowthe trumpetin the land;Cryaloudand say,Assembleyourselves, and let us goInto the fortifiedcities.'
6"Liftup a standardtoward Zion!Seekrefuge,do not stand[still], For I am bringingevilfrom the north,And greatdestruction.
7"A lionhas goneup from his thicket,And a destroyerof nationshas setout; He has goneout from his placeTo makeyour landa waste.Your citieswill be ruinsWithoutinhabitant.
8"For this,puton sackcloth,Lamentand wail;For the fierceangerof the LORDHas not turnedbackfrom us."
9"It shall comeabout in that day,"declaresthe LORD,"that the heartof the kingand the heartof the princeswill fail;and the priestswill be appalledand the prophetswill be astounded."
10Then I said,"Ah,LordGOD!SurelyYou have utterlydeceivedthispeopleand Jerusalem,saying,You will havepeace;whereas a swordtouchesthe throat."
11In that timeit will be saidto thispeopleand to Jerusalem,"A scorchingwindfrom the bareheightsin the wildernessin the directionof the daughterof My people--not to winnowand not to cleanse,12a windtoostrongfor this--will comeat My command; nowI will alsopronouncejudgmentsagainst them.
13"Behold,he goesup like clouds,And his chariotslike the whirlwind;His horsesare swifterthaneagles.Woeto us, for we are ruined!"
14Washyour heartfrom evil,O Jerusalem,That you may be saved.Howlongwill your wickedthoughtsLodgewithinyou?
15For a voicedeclaresfrom Dan,And proclaimswickednessfrom MountEphraim.
16"Report[it] to the nations,now!ProclaimoverJerusalem,'Besiegerscomefrom a farcountry,And lifttheir voicesagainstthe citiesof Judah.
17Like watchmenof a fieldthey are againsther roundabout,Becauseshe has rebelledagainst Me,' declaresthe LORD.
18"Your waysand your deedsHave broughtthesethingsto you. Thisis your evil.Howbitter!Howit has touchedyour heart!"
19My soul,my soul!I am in anguish!Oh,my heart!My heartis poundingin me; I cannotbe silent,Becauseyou have heard,O my soul,The soundof the trumpet,The alarmof war.
20Disasteron disasteris proclaimed,For the wholelandis devastated;Suddenlymy tentsare devastated,My curtainsin an instant.
21Howlongmust I seethe standardAnd hearthe soundof the trumpet?
22"For My peopleare foolish,They knowMe not; They are stupidchildrenAnd havenounderstanding.They are shrewdto doevil,But to dogoodthey do not know."
23I lookedon the earth,and behold,[it was] formlessand void;And to the heavens,and they hadnolight.
24I lookedon the mountains,and behold,they were quaking,And allthe hillsmovedto and fro.
25I looked,and behold,therewas noman,And allthe birdsof the heavenshad fled.
26I looked,and behold,the fruitfullandwas a wilderness,And allits citieswere pulleddownBeforethe LORD,beforeHis fierceanger.
27For thussaysthe LORD,"The wholelandshall be a desolation,Yet I will not executea completedestruction.
28"For thisthe earthshall mournAnd the heavensabovebe dark,BecauseI have spoken,I have purposed,And I will not changeMy mind,norwill I turnfrom it."
29At the soundof the horsemanand bowmaneverycityflees;They gointo the thicketsand climbamong the rocks;Everycityis forsaken,And nomandwellsin them.
30And you, O desolateone, whatwill you do?Althoughyou dressin scarlet,Althoughyou decorate[yourself with] ornamentsof gold,Althoughyou enlargeyour eyeswith paint,In vainyou makeyourself beautiful.[Your] loversdespiseyou; They seekyour life.
31For I hearda cryas of a woman in labor,The anguishas of one givingbirthto her firstchild,The cryof the daughterof Ziongaspingfor breath,Stretchingout her hands,[saying], "Ah,woeis me, for I faintbefore murderers."
