1. Behold, the Lord will lay waste to the earth, and he will strip it, and he will afflict its surface, and he will scatter its inhabitants.
2. And this shall be: as with the people, so with the priest; and as with the servant, so with his master; as with the handmaid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the lender, so with the borrower; as with the creditor, so with the debtor.
3. The earth will be utterly devastated and utterly plundered. For the Lord has spoken this word.
4. The earth mourned, and slipped away, and languished. The world slipped away; the loftiness of the people of the earth was weakened.
5. And the earth was corrupted by its inhabitants. For they have transgressed the laws, they have changed the ordinance, they have dissipated the everlasting covenant.
6. Because of this, a curse will devour the earth, and its inhabitants will sin. And for this reason, its caretakers will become crazed, and few men will be left behind.
7. The vintage has mourned. The vine has languished. All those who were rejoicing in their hearts have groaned.
8. The gladness of the drums has ceased. The sound of rejoicing has quieted. The sweetness of stringed instruments has been silenced.
9. They will not drink wine with a song. The drink will be bitter to those who drink it.
10. The city of vanity has been worn away. Every house has been closed up; no one enters.
11. There will be a clamor for wine in the streets. All rejoicing has been abandoned. The gladness of the earth has been carried away.