41 "If you will return , O Israel ," declares the Lord , "Then you should return to Me. And if you will put away your detested things from My presence , And will not waver , 2 And you will swear , 'As the Lord lives ,' In truth , in justice and in righteousness ; Then the nations will bless themselves in Him, And in Him they will glory ."
3 For thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem , " Break up your fallow ground , And do not sow among thorns . 4 " Circumcise yourselves to the Lord And remove the foreskins of your heart , Men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem , Or else My wrath will go forth like fire And burn with none to quench it, Because e of the evil of your deeds ."
5 Declare in Judah and proclaim in Jerusalem , and say , " Blow the trumpet in the land ; Cry aloud and say , ' Assemble yourselves, and let us go Into the fortified cities .' 6 "Lift up a standard toward Zion ! Seek refuge , do not stand still, For I am bringing evil from the north , And great destruction . 7 "A lion has gone up from his thicket , And a destroyer of nations has set out; He has gone out from his place To make your land a waste . Your cities will be ruins Without inhabitant . 8 "For this , put on sackcloth , Lament and wail ; For the fierce anger of the Lord Has not turned back from us." 9 "It shall come about in that day ," declares the Lord , "that the heart of the king and the heart of the princes will fail ; and the priests will be appalled and the prophets will be astounded ." 10 Then I said , "Ah , Lord GOD ! Surely You have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem , saying , ' You will have peace '; whereas a sword touches the throat ." 11 In that time it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem , "A scorching wind from the bare heights in the wilderness in the direction of the daughter of My people -not to winnow and not to cleanse , 12 a wind too strong for this -will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them. 13 "Behold , he goes up like clouds , And his chariots like the whirlwind ; His horses are swifter than eagles . Woe to us, for we are ruined !" 14 Wash your heart from evil , O Jerusalem , That you may be saved . How long e will your wicked thoughts Lodge within you? 15 For a voice declares from Dan , And proclaims wickedness from Mount Ephraim . 16 "Report it to the nations , now ! Proclaim over Jerusalem , 'Besiegers come from a far country , And lift their voices against the cities of Judah . 17 'Like watchmen of a field they are against her round about , Because she has rebelled against Me,' declares the Lord . 18 "Your ways and your deeds Have brought these things to you. This is your evil . How bitter ! How it has touched your heart !"
19 My soul , my soul ! I am in anguish ! Oh , my heart ! My heart is pounding in me; I cannot be silent , Because you have heard , O my soul , The sound of the trumpet , The alarm of war . 20 Disaster on disaster is proclaimed , For the whole land is devastated ; Suddenly my tents are devastated , My curtains in an instant . 21 How long e must I see the standard And hear the sound of the trumpet ? 22 " For My people are foolish , They know Me not; They are stupid children And have no understanding . They are shrewd to do evil , But to do good they do not know ." 23 I looked on the earth , and behold , it was formless and void ; And to the heavens , and they had no light . 24 I looked on the mountains , and behold , they were quaking , And all the hills moved to and fro . 25 I looked , and behold , there was no man , And all the birds of the heavens had fled . 26 I looked , and behold , the fruitful land was a wilderness , And all its cities were pulled down Before e the Lord , before e His fierce anger . 27 For thus says the Lord , "The whole land shall be a desolation , Yet I will not execute a complete destruction . 28 "For this the earth shall mourn And the heavens above e be dark , Because e I have spoken , I have purposed , And I will not change My mind , nor will I turn from it." 29 At the sound of the horseman and bowman e every city flees ; They go into the thickets and climb among the rocks ; Every city is forsaken , And no man dwells in them. 30 And you, O desolate one, what will you do ? Although you dress in scarlet , Although you decorate yourself with ornaments of gold , Although you enlarge your eyes with paint , In vain you make yourself beautiful . Your lovers despise you; They seek your life . 31 For I heard a cry as of a woman in labor , The anguish as of one giving birth to her first child , The cry of the daughter of Zion gasping for breath , Stretching out her hands , saying, "Ah , woe is me, for I faint before murderers ."
