1 H ear ye this word which I take up for a lamentation over you, O house of Israel.

2 T he virgin of Israel is fallen; she shall no more rise: she is cast down upon her land; there is none to raise her up.

3 F or thus saith the Lord Jehovah: The city that went forth a thousand shall have a hundred left, and that which went forth a hundred shall have ten left, to the house of Israel.

4 F or thus saith Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live;

5 b ut seek not Beth-el, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beer-sheba: for Gilgal shall surely go into captivity, and Beth-el shall come to nought.

6 S eek Jehovah, and ye shall live; lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it in Beth-el.

7 Y e who turn justice to wormwood, and cast down righteousness to the earth,

8 s eek him that maketh the Pleiades and Orion, and turneth the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh the day dark with night; that calleth for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth (Jehovah is his name);

9 t hat bringeth sudden destruction upon the strong, so that destruction cometh upon the fortress.

10 T hey hate him that reproveth in the gate, and they abhor him that speaketh uprightly.

11 F orasmuch therefore as ye trample upon the poor, and take exactions from him of wheat: ye have built houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards, but ye shall not drink the wine thereof.

12 F or I know how manifold are your transgressions, and how mighty are your sins-ye that afflict the just, that take a bribe, and that turn aside the needy in the gate from their right.

13 T herefore he that is prudent shall keep silence in such a time; for it is an evil time.

14 S eek good, and not evil, that ye may live; and so Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be with you, as ye say.

15 H ate the evil, and love the good, and establish justice in the gate: it may be that Jehovah, the God of hosts, will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph.

16 T herefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! Alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing.

17 A nd in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah.

18 W oe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! Wherefore would ye have the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light.

19 A s if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

20 S hall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

21 I hate, I despise your feasts, and I will take no delight in your solemn assemblies.

22 Y ea, though ye offer me your burnt-offerings and meal-offerings, I will not accept them; neither will I regard the peace-offerings of your fat beasts.

23 T ake thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.

24 B ut let justice roll down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

25 D id ye bring unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

26 Y ea, ye have borne the tabernacle of your king and the shrine of your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.

27 T herefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, saith Jehovah, whose name is the God of hosts.