17. God, the light of Israel, will become a fire. Israel's holy God will become a flame, which in a single day will burn up everything, even the thorns and thistles.
18. The rich forests and farmlands will be totally destroyed, in the same way that a fatal sickness destroys a person.
19. There will be so few trees left that even a child will be able to count them.
20. A time is coming when the people of Israel who have survived will no longer rely on the nation that almost destroyed them. They will truly put their trust in the Lord, Israel's holy God.
21. A few of the people of Israel will come back to their mighty God.
22. Even though now there are as many people of Israel as there are grains of sand by the sea, only a few will come back. Destruction is in store for the people, and it is fully deserved.