7. Up comes the lion from its lair,the destroyer of nations has set out,has left its place,To turn your land into a desolation,your cities into an uninhabited waste.
8. So put on sackcloth,mourn and wail:“The blazing anger of the Lordhas not turned away from us.”
9. In that day—oracle of the Lord—The king will lose heart, and the princes;the priests will be horrified,and the prophets stunned.
10. “Ah! Lord God,” they will say,“You really did deceive usWhen you said: You shall have peace,while the sword was at our very throats.”
11. At that time it will be saidto this people and to Jerusalem,A scorching wind from the bare heights comesthrough the wilderness toward my daughter, the people.Not to winnow, not to cleanse,
12. a strong wind from there comes at my bidding.Now I too pronouncesentence upon them.
13. See! like storm clouds he advances,like a whirlwind, his chariots;Swifter than eagles, his horses:“Woe to us! we are ruined.”
14. Cleanse your heart of evil, Jerusalem,that you may be saved.How long will you entertainwicked schemes?
15. A voice proclaims it from Dan,announces wickedness from Mount Ephraim:
16. “Make this known to the nations,announce it against Jerusalem:Besiegers are coming from the distant land,shouting their war cry against the cities of Judah.”
17. Like watchers in the fields they surround her,for she has rebelled against me—oracle of the Lord.
18. Your conduct, your deeds, have done this to you;how bitter is this evil of yours,how it reaches to your very heart!
19. My body! my body! how I writhe!The walls of my heart!My heart beats wildly,I cannot be still;For I myself have heard the blast of the horn,the battle cry.
20. Ruin upon ruin is reported;the whole land is laid waste.In an instant my tents are ravaged;in a flash, my shelters.
21. How long must I see the signal,hear the blast of the horn!
22. My people are fools,they do not know me;They are senseless children,without understanding;They are wise at evil,but they do not know how to do good.