8. The happy sounds of tambourines will be gone. The noise of those who enjoy wild parties will stop. The joyful music of harps will become silent.
9. People will no longer sing as they drink wine. Beer will taste bitter to those who drink it.
10. Destroyed cities will lie empty. People will lock themselves inside their houses.
11. In the streets people will cry out for wine. All joy will turn into sadness. All happiness will be driven out of the earth.
12. All of the buildings will be knocked down. Every city gate will be smashed to pieces.
13. That's how it will be on the earth. And that's how it will be among the nations. It will be as when workers knock all but a few olives off the trees. It will be like a vine that has only a few grapes left after the harvest.
14. Those who are left alive will shout with joy. People from the west will praise the Lord because he is the King.
15. So give glory to him, you who live in the east. Honor the name of the Lord, you who are in the islands of the sea. He is the God of Israel.
16. From one end of the earth to the other we hear singing. People are saying, "Give glory to the One who always does what is right." But I said, "I feel very bad. I'm getting weaker and weaker. How terrible it is for me! People turn against one another. They can't be trusted. So they turn against each other."
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.