4:1 If Israel will return to me, saith the
Lord, he shall return: and if he will remove his abominations out of his
mouth, and fear before me, and swear,
4:2 The Lord lives, with truth, in judgment and righteousness, then shall
nations bless by him, and by him they shall praise God in Jerusalem.
4:3 For thus saith the Lord to the men of Juda, and to the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, Break up fresh ground for yourselves, and sow not among thorns.
4:4 Circumcise yourselves to your God, and circumcise your hardness of
heart, ye men of Juda, and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my wrath go forth
as fire, and burn, and there be none to quench it, because of the evil of
your devices.
4:5 Declare ye in Juda, and let it be heard in Jerusalem: say ye, Sound the
trumpet in the land; cry ye aloud: say ye, Gather yourselves together, and
let us enter into the fortified cities.
4:6 Gather up [your wares] and flee to Sion: hasten, stay not: for I will
bring evils from the north, an great destruction.
4:7 The lion is gone up from his lair, he has roused [himself] to the
destruction of the nations, and has gone forth out of his place, to make the
land desolate; and the cities shall be destroyed, so as to be without
inhabitant.
4:8 For these things gird yourselves with sackcloths, and lament, and howl:
for the anger of the Lord is not turned away from you.
4:9 And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Lord, that the heart of
the king shall perish, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall
be amazed, and the prophets shall wonder.
4:10 And I said, O sovereign Lord, verily thou hast deceived this people and
Jerusalem, saying, There shall be peace; whereas behold, the sword has
reached even to their soul.
4:11 At that time they shall say to this people and to Jerusalem, [There is]
a spirit of error in the wilderness: the way of the daughter of my people is
not to purity, nor to holiness.
4:12 [But] a spirit of full vengeance shall come upon me; and now I declare
my judgments against them.
4:13 Behold, he shall come up as a cloud, and his chariots as a tempest: his
horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are in misery.
4:14 Cleanse thine heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, that thou mayest be
saved: how long will thy grievous thoughts be within thee?
4:15 For a voice of one publishing from Dan shall come, and trouble out of
mount Ephraim shall be heard of.
4:16 Remind ye the nations; behold, they are come: proclaim [it] in
Jerusalem, that bands are approaching from a land afar off, and have uttered
their voice against the cities of Juda.
4:17 As keepers of a field, they have surrounded her; because thou, saith
the Lord, has neglected me.
4:18 Thy ways and thy devices have brought these things upon thee; this is
thy wickedness, for [it is] bitter, for it has reached to thy heart.
4:19 I am pained in my bowels, my bowels, and the sensitive powers of my
heart; my soul is in great commotion, my heart is torn: I will not be
silent, for my soul has heard the sound of a trumpet, the cry of war, and of
distress: it calls on destruction;
4:20 for all the land is distressed: suddenly [my tabernacle is distressed,
my curtains have been rent asunder.
4:21 How long shall I see fugitives, and hear the sound of the trumpet?
4:22 For the princes of my people have not known me, they are foolish and
unwise children: they are wise to do evil, but [how] to do good they have
not known.
4:23 I looked upon the earth, and, behold, [it was] not; and to the sky, an
there was no light in it.
4:24 I beheld the mountains, and they trembled, and [I saw] all the hills in
commotion.
4:25 I looked, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the sky
were scared.
4:26 I saw, and, behold, Carmel was desert, and all the cities were burnt
with fire at the presence of the Lord, and at the presence of his fierce
anger they were utterly destroyed.
4:27 Thus saith the Lord, The whole land shall be desolate; but I will not
make a full end.
4:28 For these things let the earth mourn, and let the sky be dark above:
for I have spoken, and I will not repent; I have purposed, and I will not
turn back from it.
4:29 The whole land has recoiled from the noise of the horseman and the bent
bow; they have gone into the caves, and have hidden themselves in the
groves, and have gone up upon the rocks: every city was abandoned, no man
dwelt in them.
4:30 And what wilt thou do? Though thou clothe thyself with scarlet, and
adorn thyself with golden ornaments; though thou adorn thine eyes with
stibium, thy beauty [will be] in vain: thy lovers have rejected thee, they
seek thy life.
4:31 For I have heard thy groaning as the voice of a woman in travail, as of
her that brings forth her first child; the voice of the daughter of Zion
shall fail through weakness, and she shall lose the strength of her hands,
[saying], Woe is me! for my soul faints because of the slain. |
4:1 If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith the
LORD, return unto me: and if thou wilt put away thine abominations out of my
sight, then shalt thou not remove.
4:2 And thou shalt swear, The LORD liveth, in truth, in judgment, and in
righteousness; and the nations shall bless themselves in him, and in him
shall they glory.
4:3 For thus saith the LORD to the men of Judah and Jerusalem, Break up your
fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.
4:4 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 that none can quench it, because of the evil of your
doings.
4:5 Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem; and say, Blow ye the
trumpet in the land: cry, gather together, and say, Assemble yourselves, and
let us go into the defenced cities.
4:6 Set up the standard toward Zion: retire, stay not: for I will bring evil
from the north, and a great destruction.
4:7 The lion is come up from his thicket, 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.
4:8 For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and howl: for the fierce anger
of the LORD is not turned back from us.
4:9 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.
4:10 Then said I, Ah, Lord GOD! surely thou hast greatly deceived this
people and Jerusalem, saying, Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword
reacheth unto the soul.
4:11 At that time shall it be said to this people and to Jerusalem, A dry
wind of the high places in the wilderness toward the daughter of my people,
not to fan, nor to cleanse,
4:12 Even a full wind from those places shall come unto me: now also will I
give sentence against them.
4:13 Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a
whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are
spoiled.
4:14 O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be
saved. How long shall thy vain thoughts lodge within thee?
4:15 For a voice declareth from Dan, and publisheth affliction from mount
Ephraim.
4:16 Make ye mention to the nations; behold, publish against Jerusalem, that
watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the
cities of Judah.
4:17 As keepers of a field, are they against her round about; because she
hath been rebellious against me, saith the LORD.
4:18 Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is
thy wickedness, because it is bitter, because it reacheth unto thine heart.
4:19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a
noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the
sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war.
4:20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled:
suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment.
4:21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?
4:22 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish
children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to
do good they have no knowledge.
4:23 I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the
heavens, and they had no light.
4:24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved
lightly.
4:25 I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens
were fled.
4:26 I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the
cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his
fierce anger.
4:27 For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will
I not make a full end.
4:28 For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black; because
I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and will not repent, neither will I
turn back from it.
4:29 The whole city shall flee for the noise of the horsemen and bowmen;
they shall go into thickets, and climb up upon the rocks: every city shall
be forsaken, and not a man dwell therein.
4:30 And when thou art spoiled, what wilt thou do? Though thou clothest
thyself with crimson, though thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold,
though thou rentest thy face with painting, in vain shalt thou make thyself
fair; thy lovers will despise thee, they will seek thy life.
4:31 For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, and the anguish as
of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of
Zion, that bewaileth herself, that spreadeth her hands, saying, Woe is me
now! for my soul is wearied because of murderers. |