1  If thou wilt return, O Israel, saith YHWH, yea, return unto Me; and if thou wilt put away thy detestable things out of My sight, and wilt not waver;

1  If Israel will return to me, saith the Lord, he shall return: and if he will remove his abominations out of his mouth, and fear before me, and swear,

1  “O Israel, if you would return, says the Lord, then be converted to me. If you remove your offense from before my face, then you will not be shaken.

2  And wilt swear: 'As YHWH liveth' in truth, in justice, and in righteousness; then shall the nations bless themselves by Him, and in Him shall they glory.

2  The Lord lives, with truth, in judgement and righteousness, then shall nations bless by him, and by him they shall praise God in Jerusalem.

2  And you will swear, ‘As the Lord lives,’ in truth and in judgment and in justice.” And the Gentiles will bless him, and they will praise him.

3  For thus saith YHWH to the men of Judah and to Jerusalem: Break up for you a fallow ground, and sow not among thorns.

3  For thus saith the Lord to the men of Juda, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem, Break up fresh ground for yourselves, and sow not among thorns.

4  Circumcise yourselves to YHWH, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest My fury go forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doings.

4  Be circumcised to the Lord, and take away the foreskins from your hearts, O men of Judah, O inhabitants of Jerusalem. Otherwise my indignation may burst forth and flare up like a fire. And then there will be no one who can extinguish it, because of the wickedness of your thoughts.

5  Declare ye in Judah, and publish in Jerusalem, and say: 'Blow ye the horn in the land'; cry aloud and say: 'Assemble yourselves, and let us go into the fortified cities.'

5  Declare ye in Juda, and let it be heard in Jerusalem: say ye, Sound the trumpet in the land; cry ye aloud: say ye, Gather yourselves together, and let us enter into the fortified cities.

5  Declare it in Judah, and make it known in Jerusalem! Speak out and sound the trumpet in the land! Cry out strongly and say: ‘Gather yourselves! And let us go forth to fortified cities!’

6  Set up a standard toward Zion; put yourselves under covert, stay not; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great destruction.

6  Gather up your wares and flee to Sion: hasten, stay not: for I will bring evils from the north, an great destruction.

6  Lift up a standard in Zion. Be strengthened! Do not choose to stand still. For I am bringing an evil from the north, with great destruction.

7  A lion is gone up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations is set out, gone forth from his place; to make thy land desolate, that thy cities be laid waste, without inhabitant.

7  The lion is gone up from his lair, he has roused himself to the destruction of the nations, and has gone forth out of his place, to make the land desolate; and the cities shall be destroyed, so as to be without inhabitant.

7  A powerful king is come up like a lion from his thicket, and the destroyer of the Gentiles is on his way; he has gone forth from his country to make your land desolate; and your cities shall be laid waste without an inhabitant.

8  For this gird you with sackcloth, lament and wail; for the fierce anger of YHWH is not turned back from us.

8  For these things gird yourselves with sackclothes, and lament, and howl: for the anger of the Lord is not turned away from you.

8  Concerning this, wrap yourselves in haircloth, mourn and wail: ‘For the wrath of the fury of the Lord has not been turned away from us.’

9  And it shall come to pass at that day, saith YHWH, that the heart of the king shall fail, and the heart of the princes; and the priests shall be astonished, and the prophets shall wonder.

9  And this shall be in that day, says the Lord: The heart of the king will perish, with the heart of the princes. And the priests will be stupefied, and the prophets will be in consternation.”

10  Then said I: 'Ah, Lord GOD! surely Thou hast greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: Ye shall have peace; whereas the sword reacheth unto the soul.'

10  And I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Could it be that you have deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying: ‘Peace shall be yours,’ while, behold, the sword reaches even to the soul?”

10  Then I said, I beseech thee, O LORD God, surely I have greatly deceived this people and Jerusalem; for I have said, You shall have peace; and behold, the sword reaches into the soul.

11  At that time shall it be said of this people and of Jerusalem; A hot wind of the high hills in the wilderness toward the daughter of My people, not to fan, nor to cleanse;

11  At that time they shall say to this people and to Jerusalem, There is a spirit of error in the wilderness: the way of the daughter of my people is not to purity, nor to holiness.

11  “In that time, it will be said to this people and to Jerusalem: ‘A burning wind is in the ways that are in the desert, along the way of the daughter of my people, but not to winnow and not to cleanse.’

12  A wind too strong for this shall come for Me; now will I also utter judgments against them.

12  But a spirit of full vengeance shall come upon me; and now I declare my judgements against them.

12  A full spirit from these places will come to me. And now I will speak my judgments over them.

13  Behold, he cometh up as clouds, and his chariots are as the whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles.--'Woe unto us! for we are undone.'--

13  Behold, he shall come up as a cloud, and his chariots as a tempest: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are in misery.

13  Behold, he will ascend like a cloud, and his chariot will ascend like a tempest. His horses are swifter than eagles. ‘Woe to us! For we are being devastated!’

14  O Jerusalem, wash thy heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thy baleful thoughts lodge within thee?

14  Cleanse thine heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, that thou mayest be saved: how long will thy grievous thoughts be within thee?

14  Wash your heart from malice, O Jerusalem, so that you may be saved. How long will harmful thoughts abide in you?

15  For hark! one declareth from Dan, and announceth calamity from the hills of Ephraim

15  For a voice of one publishing from Dan shall come, and trouble out of mount Ephraim shall be heard of.

16  'Make ye mention to the nations: Behold--publish concerning Jerusalem--watchers come from a far country, and give out their voice against the cities of Judah.'

17  As keepers of a field are they against her round about; because she hath been rebellious against Me, saith YHWH.

17  They have been stationed over her, like the guardians of fields, all around. For she has provoked me to wrath, says the Lord.

18  Thy way and thy doings have procured these things unto thee; this is thy wickedness; yea, it is bitter, yea, it reacheth unto thy heart.

18  Your ways and your thoughts have brought these things upon you. This is your own wickedness. And it is bitter, because it has touched your heart.

19  My bowels, my bowels! I writhe in pain! The chambers of my heart! My heart moaneth within me! I cannot hold my peace! because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the horn, the alarm of war.

19  I am pained in my bowels, my bowels, and the sensitive powers of my heart; my soul is in great commotion, my heart is torn: I will not be silent, for my soul has heard the sound of a trumpet, the cry of war, and of distress: it calls on destruction;

20  Destruction followeth upon destruction, for the whole land is spoiled; suddenly are my tents spoiled, my curtains in a moment.

20  for all the land is distressed: suddenly my tabernacle is distressed, my curtains have been rent asunder.

20  Destruction upon destruction has been called forth. And the entire earth has been devastated. My tabernacles have been destroyed suddenly, and my tents in an instant.

21  How long shall I see the standard, shall I hear the sound of the horn?

22  For My people is foolish, they know Me not; they are sottish children, and they have no understanding; they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge.

22  For the princes of my people have not known me, they are foolish and unwise children: they are wise to do evil, but how to do good they have not known.

22  For my foolish people have not known me. They are foolish and mad sons. They are clever in doing evil, but they do not know how to do good.

23  I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was waste and void; and the heavens, and they had no light.

23  I looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was not; and to the sky, an there was no light in it.

23  I gazed upon the earth, and behold, it was empty and brought to nothing. And I gazed upon the heavens, but there was no light in them.

24  I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved to and fro.

24  I watched the mountains, and behold, they trembled, and all the hills were shaken.

25  I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled.

25  I looked, and behold, there was no man, and all the birds of the sky were scared.

25  I looked, and there was no man. And all the flying things of the air had gone away.

26  I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful field was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of YHWH, and before His fierce anger.

26  I saw, and, behold, Carmel was desert, and all the cities were burnt with fire at the presence of the Lord, and at the presence of his fierce anger they were utterly destroyed.

26  I gazed, and behold, Carmel was a desert, and all its cities were destroyed before the face of the Lord, and before the face of the wrath of his fury.”

27  For thus saith YHWH: The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.

27  Thus saith the Lord, The whole land shall be desolate; but I will not make a full end.

27  For thus says the Lord: “All the earth will be desolate, but I will not yet bring about its consummation.

28  For this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black; because I have spoken it, I have purposed it, and I have not repented, neither will I turn back from it.

28  For these things let the earth mourn, and let the sky be dark above: for I have spoken, and I will not repent; I have purposed, and I will not turn back from it.

28  The earth will mourn, and the heavens will lament from above. For I have spoken, I have decided, and I have not regretted. Neither will I be turned away from it.

29  For the noise of the horsemen and bowmen the whole city fleeth; they go into the thickets, and climb up upon the rocks; every city is forsaken, and not a man dwelleth therein.

29  The whole land has recoiled from the noise of the horseman and the bent bow; they have gone into the caves, and have hidden themselves in the groves, and have gone up upon the rocks: every city was abandoned, no man dwelt in them.

29  Because of the noise of the horsemen and bowmen, the whole city has fled; enter into the forests and climb up upon the rocks; all towns are deserted and no man dwells therein

30  And thou, that art spoiled, what doest thou, that thou clothest thyself with scarlet, that thou deckest thee with ornaments of gold, that thou enlargest thine eyes with paint? In vain dost thou make thyself fair; thy lovers despise thee, they seek thy life.

30  So then, when you have been devastated, what will you do? Though you will clothe yourself with scarlet, though you will adorn yourself with a gold necklace and tint your eyes with cosmetics, you will be dressing yourself up in vain. Your lovers have spurned you; they will be seeking your life.

31  For I have heard a voice as of a woman in travail, the anguish as of her that bringeth forth her first child, the voice of the daughter of Zion, that gaspeth for breath, that spreadeth her hands: 'Woe is me, now! for my soul fainteth before the murderers.'