1 L o, Jehovah is emptying the land, And is making it waste, And hath overturned its face, And hath scattered its inhabitants.

¶ Behold, the LORD makes the earth empty and makes it naked and turns it upside down and scatters abroad its inhabitants.

2 A nd it hath been -- as a people so a priest, As the servant so his master, As the maid-servant so her mistress, As the buyer so the seller, As the lender so the borrower, As the usurer so he who is lifting on himself.

And it shall be, as with the people so with the priest; as with the slave so with his master; as with the maid so with her mistress; as with the buyer so with the seller; as with the lender so with the borrower; as with the taker of usury so with the giver of usury to him.

3 U tterly emptied is the land, and utterly spoiled, For Jehovah hath spoken this word:

The land shall be utterly emptied and utterly spoiled: for the LORD has spoken this word.

4 M ourned, faded hath the land, Languished, faded hath the world, Languished have they -- the high place of the people of the land.

The earth has destroyed itself and fallen; the world has become sick and fallen; the haughty peoples of the earth are become sick.

5 A nd the land hath been defiled under its inhabitants, Because they have transgressed laws, They have changed a statute, They have made void a covenant age-during.

The earth is also become bankrupt under its inhabitants because they have transgressed the laws, falsified the order, broken the everlasting covenant.

6 T herefore a curse hath consumed the land, And the inhabitants in it are become desolate, Therefore consumed have been inhabitants of the land, And few men have been left.

Therefore the curse has consumed the earth, and those that dwell therein are found guilty; therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are consumed, and few men left.

7 M ourned hath the new wine, languished the vine, Sighed have all the joyful of heart.

The new wine is lost; the vine is sick; all those who were merryhearted sigh.

8 C eased hath the joy of tabrets, Ceased hath the noise of exulting ones, Ceased hath the joy of a harp.

The mirth of tambourines ceases; the noise of those that rejoice ends; the joy of the harp ceases.

9 W ith a song they drink not wine, Bitter is strong drink to those drinking it.

They shall not drink wine with a song; the drink shall be bitter to them that would drink it.

10 I t was broken down -- a city of emptiness, Shut hath been every house from entrance.

The city of confusion is broken down: every house is shut up that no man may come in.

11 A cry over the wine in out-places, Darkened hath been all joy, Removed hath been the joy of the land.

There is a crying for wine in the streets; all joy is darkened; the mirth of the land is gone.

12 L eft in the city desolation, And wasting is the gate smitten.

In the city is left desolation, and the gate is smitten with destruction.

13 W hen thus it is in the heart of the land, In the midst of the peoples, As the compassing of the olive, As gleanings when harvest hath been finished,

¶ For thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the peoples as the shaking of an olive tree, as the gleanings when the vintage is done.

14 T hey -- they lift up their voice, They sing of the excellency of Jehovah, They have cried aloud from the sea.

These shall lift up their voice; they shall sing joyfully in the majesty of the LORD; they shall lift up their voice from the sea.

15 T herefore in prosperity honour ye Jehovah, In isles of the sea, the name of Jehovah, God of Israel.

Therefore glorify ye the LORD in the valleys; let the LORD God of Israel be called upon by name in the isles of the sea.

16 F rom the skirt of the earth we heard songs, The desire of the righteous. And I say, `Leanness to me, Leanness to me, wo to me.' Treacherous dealers dealt treacherously, Yea, treachery, treacherous dealers dealt treacherously.

¶ From the uttermost part of the earth we have heard psalms, Glory to the righteous one. But I said, My leanness, my leanness, woe unto me! The treacherous dealers have dealt treacherously; yea, the treacherous dealers have dealt very treacherously.

17 F ear, and a snare, and a gin, on thee, O inhabitant of the land.

Fear and the pit and the snare are upon thee, O inhabitant of the earth.

18 A nd it hath come to pass, He who is fleeing from the noise of the fear Doth fall into the snare, And he who is coming up from the midst of the snare, Is captured by the gin, For windows on high have been opened, And shaken are foundations of the land.

And it shall come to pass that he who shall flee from the noise of the fear shall fall into the pit; and he that shall come up out of the midst of the pit shall be taken in the snare: because from on high, windows have been opened, and the foundations of the earth shall shake.

19 U tterly broken down hath been the land, Utterly broken hath been the land, Utterly moved hath been the land.

The earth shall be utterly broken down; the earth is clean dissolved; the earth is moved exceedingly.

20 S tagger greatly doth the land as a drunkard, And it hath been moved as a lodge, And heavy on it hath been its transgression, And it hath fallen, and addeth not to rise.

The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard and shall be removed like a cottage; and its transgression shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall and never rise again.

21 A nd it hath come to pass, in that day, Jehovah layeth a charge on the host of the high place in the high place, And on the kings of the land on the land.

And it shall come to pass in that day that the LORD shall visit punishment upon the host of the high ones that are on high and upon the kings of the earth on the earth.

22 A nd they have been gathered -- A gathering of bound ones in a pit, And shut up they have been in a prison, And after a multitude of days are inspected.

And they shall be gathered together as prisoners are gathered in the pit and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days they shall be visited.

23 A nd confounded hath been the moon, And ashamed hath been the sun, For reigned hath Jehovah of Hosts In mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, And over-against His elders -- honour!

Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of the hosts shall reign in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and in the presence of his ancients he shall be glorious.