24. Emaciating hunger and consuming feverand bitter pestilence,And the teeth of wild beasts I will send among them,with the venom of reptiles gliding in the dust.
25. Out in the street the sword shall bereave,and at home the terrorFor the young man and the young woman alike,the nursing babe as well as the gray beard.
26. I said: I will make an end of themand blot out their name from human memory,
27. Had I not feared the provocation by the enemy,that their foes might misunderstand,And say, “Our own hand won the victory;the Lord had nothing to do with any of it.”
28. For they are a nation devoid of reason,having no understanding.
29. If they had insight they would realize this,they would understand their end: