17. People of the earth, terror, a pit and a trap are waiting for you.
18. Anyone who runs away from the terror will fall into the pit. Anyone who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the trap. The Lord will open the windows of the skies. He will flood the land. The foundations of the earth will shake.
19. The earth will be broken up. It will split open. It will be shaken to pieces.
20. The earth will be unsteady like someone who is drunk. It will sway like a tent in the wind. Its sin will weigh so heavily on it that it will fall. It will never get up again.
21. At that time the Lord will punish the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens above. He will also punish the kings on the earth below.
22. They will be brought together like prisoners in chains. They'll be locked up in prison. After many days the Lord will punish them.