1 B low the trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; For the day of the Lord is coming, For it is at hand:

Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, For the day of the Lord is coming; Surely it is near,

2 A day of darkness and gloominess, A day of clouds and thick darkness, Like the morning clouds spread over the mountains. A people come, great and strong, The like of whom has never been; Nor will there ever be any such after them, Even for many successive generations.

A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness. As the dawn is spread over the mountains, So there is a great and mighty people; There has never been anything like it, Nor will there be again after it To the years of many generations.

3 A fire devours before them, And behind them a flame burns; The land is like the Garden of Eden before them, And behind them a desolate wilderness; Surely nothing shall escape them.

A fire consumes before them And behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them But a desolate wilderness behind them, And nothing at all escapes them.

4 T heir appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like swift steeds, so they run.

Their appearance is like the appearance of horses; And like war horses, so they run.

5 W ith a noise like chariots Over mountaintops they leap, Like the noise of a flaming fire that devours the stubble, Like a strong people set in battle array.

With a noise as of chariots They leap on the tops of the mountains, Like the crackling of a flame of fire consuming the stubble, Like a mighty people arranged for battle.

6 B efore them the people writhe in pain; All faces are drained of color.

Before them the people are in anguish; All faces turn pale.

7 T hey run like mighty men, They climb the wall like men of war; Every one marches in formation, And they do not break ranks.

They run like mighty men, They climb the wall like soldiers; And they each march in line, Nor do they deviate from their paths.

8 T hey do not push one another; Every one marches in his own column. Though they lunge between the weapons, They are not cut down.

They do not crowd each other, They march everyone in his path; When they burst through the defenses, They do not break ranks.

9 T hey run to and fro in the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter at the windows like a thief.

They rush on the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter through the windows like a thief.

10 T he earth quakes before them, The heavens tremble; The sun and moon grow dark, And the stars diminish their brightness.

Before them the earth quakes, The heavens tremble, The sun and the moon grow dark And the stars lose their brightness.

11 T he Lord gives voice before His army, For His camp is very great; For strong is the One who executes His word. For the day of the Lord is great and very terrible; Who can endure it? A Call to Repentance

The Lord utters His voice before His army; Surely His camp is very great, For strong is he who carries out His word. The day of the Lord is indeed great and very awesome, And who can endure it?

12 “ Now, therefore,” says the Lord, “Turn to Me with all your heart, With fasting, with weeping, and with mourning.”

“Yet even now,” declares the Lord, “ Return to Me with all your heart, And with fasting, weeping and mourning;

13 S o rend your heart, and not your garments; Return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and merciful, Slow to anger, and of great kindness; And He relents from doing harm.

And rend your heart and not your garments.” Now return to the Lord your God, For He is gracious and compassionate, Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness And relenting of evil.

14 W ho knows if He will turn and relent, And leave a blessing behind Him— A grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God?

Who knows whether He will not turn and relent And leave a blessing behind Him, Even a grain offering and a drink offering For the Lord your God?

15 B low the trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, Call a sacred assembly;

Blow a trumpet in Zion, Consecrate a fast, proclaim a solemn assembly,

16 G ather the people, Sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and nursing babes; Let the bridegroom go out from his chamber, And the bride from her dressing room.

Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, Assemble the elders, Gather the children and the nursing infants. Let the bridegroom come out of his room And the bride out of her bridal chamber.

17 L et the priests, who minister to the Lord, Weep between the porch and the altar; Let them say, “Spare Your people, O Lord, And do not give Your heritage to reproach, That the nations should rule over them. Why should they say among the peoples, ‘Where is their God?’” The Land Refreshed

Let the priests, the Lord’s ministers, Weep between the porch and the altar, And let them say, “ Spare Your people, O Lord, And do not make Your inheritance a reproach, A byword among the nations. Why should they among the peoples say, ‘ Where is their God?’” Deliverance Promised

18 T hen the Lord will be zealous for His land, And pity His people.

Then the Lord will be zealous for His land And will have pity on His people.

19 T he Lord will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I will send you grain and new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied by them; I will no longer make you a reproach among the nations.

The Lord will answer and say to His people, “Behold, I am going to send you grain, new wine and oil, And you will be satisfied in full with them; And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations.

20 “ But I will remove far from you the northern army, And will drive him away into a barren and desolate land, With his face toward the eastern sea And his back toward the western sea; His stench will come up, And his foul odor will rise, Because he has done monstrous things.”

“But I will remove the northern army far from you, And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land, And its vanguard into the eastern sea, And its rear guard into the western sea. And its stench will arise and its foul smell will come up, For it has done great things.”

21 F ear not, O land; Be glad and rejoice, For the Lord has done marvelous things!

Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, For the Lord has done great things.

22 D o not be afraid, you beasts of the field; For the open pastures are springing up, And the tree bears its fruit; The fig tree and the vine yield their strength.

Do not fear, beasts of the field, For the pastures of the wilderness have turned green, For the tree has borne its fruit, The fig tree and the vine have yielded in full.

23 B e glad then, you children of Zion, And rejoice in the Lord your God; For He has given you the former rain faithfully, And He will cause the rain to come down for you— The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month.

So rejoice, O sons of Zion, And be glad in the Lord your God; For He has given you the early rain for your vindication. And He has poured down for you the rain, The early and latter rain as before.

24 T he threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.

The threshing floors will be full of grain, And the vats will overflow with the new wine and oil.

25 “ So I will restore to you the years that the swarming locust has eaten, The crawling locust, The consuming locust, And the chewing locust, My great army which I sent among you.

“Then I will make up to you for the years That the swarming locust has eaten, The creeping locust, the stripping locust and the gnawing locust, My great army which I sent among you.

26 Y ou shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; And My people shall never be put to shame.

“You will have plenty to eat and be satisfied And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you; Then My people will never be put to shame.

27 T hen you shall know that I am in the midst of Israel: I am the Lord your God And there is no other. My people shall never be put to shame. God’s Spirit Poured Out

“Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am the Lord your God, And there is no other; And My people will never be put to shame. The Promise of the Spirit

28 “ And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions.

“ It will come about after this That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions.

29 A nd also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.

“Even on the male and female servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. The Day of the Lord

30 “ And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth: Blood and fire and pillars of smoke.

“I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire and columns of smoke.

31 T he sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.

“The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood Before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes.

32 A nd it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the Lord Shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, As the Lord has said, Among the remnant whom the Lord calls.

“And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the Lord Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the Lord has said, Even among the survivors whom the Lord calls.