1 “ 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,

¶ If thou wilt return unto me, O Israel, said the LORD, thou shalt have rest; and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my sight, then thou shalt not go into captivity.

2 A nd 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.”

And thou shalt swear, The LORD lives, in truth, in judgment, and in righteous ness; and the Gentiles shall bless themselves in him, and in him shall they glory.

3 F or thus says the Lord to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem, “ Break up your fallow ground, And do not sow among thorns.

¶ For thus has the LORD said to every man of Judah and of 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 of the evil of your deeds.”

Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem lest my fury come forth like fire and burn so that no one can quench it because of the evil of your doings.

5 D eclare 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.’

¶ Declare ye in Judah and publish in Jerusalem and say, Blow ye the shofar in the land; cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the defenced 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.

Set up the banner in Zion: come together, do not delay: for I bring evil from the north wind, and a 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.

The lion is come up from his den, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he is gone forth from his place to make thy land desolate; and thy cities shall be laid waste, without an inhabitant.

8 “ For this, put on sackcloth, Lament and wail; For the fierce anger of the Lord Has not turned back from us.”

For this, gird yourselves with sackcloth; lament and howl; for the fierce anger of the LORD is 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.”

And it shall come to pass at that day, saith the LORD, that the heart of the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.

10 T hen 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.”

(Then I said, Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; when the sword reaches unto the soul.)

11 I n 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,

At that time it shall be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry wind of the high places of the wilderness came toward the daughter of my people, not to fan, nor to cleanse.

12 a wind too strong for this—will come at My command; now I will also pronounce judgments against them.

A wind much more violent than these shall come unto me; for now I will also speak 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!”

Behold, he shall come up as a cloud, and his chariots as a whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us, for we are given over to be spoiled!

14 W ash your heart from evil, O Jerusalem, That you may be saved. How long will your wicked thoughts Lodge within you?

O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness that thou may be saved. How long shalt thou entertain the thoughts of thy iniquity within thee?

15 F or a voice declares from Dan, And proclaims wickedness from Mount Ephraim.

For the voice is heard from him who brings the news from Dan and from him who causes to hear the affliction 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.

Say ye of the Gentiles; behold, cause it to be heard upon Jerusalem, Watchmen come from a far country and shall give out their voice upon 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.

As the watchmen of the heritages, they were upon her round about because she has been rebellious against me, saith 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!” Lament over Judah’s Devastation

Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness because it is bitter, because it reaches unto thine heart.

19 M y 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.

¶ My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart makes a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the shofar, the alarm of war.

20 D isaster on disaster is proclaimed, For the whole land is devastated; Suddenly my tents are devastated, My curtains in an instant.

Destruction upon destruction is cried, for the whole land is destroyed; suddenly are my tents destroyed, and my curtains in a moment.

21 H ow long must I see the standard And hear the sound of the trumpet?

How long shall I see the banner and hear the voice of the shofar?

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.”

For my people are foolish; the ignorant sons with no understanding have not known me; they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

23 I looked on the earth, and behold, it was formless and void; And to the heavens, and they had no light.

I beheld the earth, and, behold, it was without order, and empty; and 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.

I beheld the mountains, and, behold, they trembled, and all the hills were destroyed.

25 I looked, and behold, there was no man, And all the birds of the heavens had fled.

I beheld, 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 the Lord, before His fierce anger.

I beheld, and, behold, Carmel was a wilderness, and all its cities were broken down at the presence of the LORD and by his fierce anger.

27 F or thus says the Lord, “The whole land shall be a desolation, Yet I will not execute a complete destruction.

For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet I will not make a full end.

28 “ For this the earth shall mourn And the heavens above be dark, Because I have spoken, I have purposed, And I will not change My mind, nor will I turn from it.”

For this shall the earth be made desolate, and the heavens above be darkened because I spoke; I purposed and did not repent, neither will I turn back from it.

29 A t the sound of the horseman and bowman every city flees; They go into the thickets and climb among the rocks; Every city is forsaken, And no man dwells in them.

The whole city fled from the thunder of the horsemen and bowmen; they went into the thickets of the forests and climbed up upon the rocks; every city was forsaken, and not a man dwells therein.

30 A nd 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.

And thou who art destroyed, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothe thyself with crimson, though thou deck thee with ornaments of gold, though thou paint thy eyes with antimony, in vain shalt thou make thyself fair; thy lovers will despise thee; they will seek thy life.

31 F or 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.”

For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, the anguish as of her that brings forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that bewails herself, that spreads her hands, saying, Woe is me now! for my soul is faint because of the murderers.