| International Standard Version | NET Bible |
| 1Hear the message that the LORD has spoken to you, house of Israel. | 1You people of Israel, listen to what the LORD has to say to you. |
| 2This is what the LORD says: "Don't learn the way of the nations, and don't be terrified by signs in the heavens, though the nations are terrified of them. | 2The LORD says, "Do not start following pagan religious practices. Do not be in awe of signs that occur in the sky even though the nations hold them in awe. |
| 3For the practices of the people are worthless. Indeed, a tree is cut down from the forest; it's the work of the hands of a craftsman with an ax. | 3For the religion of these people is worthless. They cut down a tree in the forest, and a craftsman makes it into an idol with his tools. |
| 4They decorate it with silver and gold. They secure it with nails and hammers so it won't totter. | 4He decorates it with overlays of silver and gold. He uses hammer and nails to fasten it together so that it will not fall over. |
| 5Their idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They can't speak! They must always be carried because they can't walk! Don't be afraid of them because they can do no harm, nor can they do any good." | 5Such idols are like scarecrows in a cucumber field. They cannot talk. They must be carried because they cannot walk. Do not be afraid of them because they cannot hurt you. And they do not have any power to help you." |
| 6There is no one like you, LORD. You are great, and your name is great and powerful. | 6I said, "There is no one like you, LORD. You are great. And you are renowned for your power. |
| 7Who wouldn't fear you, king of the nations? This is what you deserve! Indeed, among all the wise men of the nations, and throughout all their kingdoms, there is no one like you! | 7Everyone should revere you, O King of all nations, because you deserve to be revered. For there is no one like you among any of the wise people of the nations nor among any of their kings. |
| 8Everyone is stupid and senseless. They follow worthless instruction from a piece of wood! | 8The people of those nations are both stupid and foolish. Instruction from a wooden idol is worthless! |
| 9Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz. The idols are the work of a craftsman and of the hands of a goldsmith. Their clothing is violet and purple. The idols are all the work of skilled craftsmen. | 9Hammered-out silver is brought from Tarshish and gold is brought from Uphaz to cover those idols. They are the handiwork of carpenters and goldsmiths. They are clothed in blue and purple clothes. They are all made by skillful workers. |
| 10The LORD is the true God; he's the living God and the everlasting king. At his wrath the earth quakes, and the nations cannot endure his indignation. | 10The LORD is the only true God. He is the living God and the everlasting King. When he shows his anger the earth shakes. None of the nations can stand up to his fury. |
| 11 Tell this to them: "The gods who didn't make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from these heavens." | 11You people of Israel should tell those nations this: 'These gods did not make heaven and earth. They will disappear from the earth and from under the heavens.' |
| 12The LORD is the one who made the world by his power, who established the earth by his wisdom and stretched out the heavens by his understanding. | 12The LORD is the one who by his power made the earth. He is the one who by his wisdom established the world. And by his understanding he spread out the skies. |
| 13When his voice sounds there is thunder from the waters of heaven, and he makes clouds rise up from the ends of the earth. He makes lightning for the rain and brings wind out of his storehouses. | 13When his voice thunders, the heavenly ocean roars. He makes the clouds rise from the far-off horizons. He makes the lightning flash out in the midst of the rain. He unleashes the wind from the places where he stores it. |
| 14Everyone is stupid and without knowledge. Every goldsmith is put to shame by his idols, for his images are false. There is no life in them. | 14All these idolaters will prove to be stupid and ignorant. Every goldsmith will be disgraced by the idol he made. For the image he forges is merely a sham. There is no breath in any of those idols. |
| 15They're worthless, a work of mockery, and when the time of punishment comes, they'll perish. | 15They are worthless, mere objects to be mocked. When the time comes to punish them, they will be destroyed. |
| 16The Portion of Jacob is not like these. He made everything, and Israel is the tribe of his inheritance. The LORD of the Heavenly Armies is his name. | 16The LORD, who is the inheritance of Jacob's descendants, is not like them. He is the one who created everything. And the people of Israel are those he claims as his own. He is known as the LORD who rules over all." |
| 17You who live under siege, Gather up your bundle from the ground. | 17Gather your belongings together and prepare to leave the land, you people of Jerusalem who are being besieged. |
| 18For this is what the LORD says: "I'm going to throw out the inhabitants of the land at this time, and I'll bring distress on them so they'll experience it." | 18For the LORD says, "I will now throw out those who live in this land. I will bring so much trouble on them that they will actually feel it." |
| 19Woe is me because of my injury. My wound is severe. I said, "Truly this is my sickness, and I must bear it. | 19And I cried out, "We are doomed! Our wound is severe! We once thought, 'This is only an illness. And we will be able to bear it!' |
| 20My tent is destroyed, and all my tent cords are broken. My sons have gone away from me, they no longer live. There is no one to pitch my tent again and set up my curtains. | 20But our tents have been destroyed. The ropes that held them in place have been ripped apart. Our children are gone and are not coming back. There is no survivor to put our tents back up, no one left to hang their tent curtains in place. |
| 21Because the shepherds are stupid and don't seek the LORD, therefore, they don't prosper, and their flock is scattered. | 21For our leaders are stupid. They have not sought the LORD's advice. So they do not act wisely, and the people they are responsible for have all been scattered. |
| 22The sound of a report, it's coming now! There is a great commotion from a land in the north to make the towns of Judah desolate, a refuge for jackals." | 22Listen! News is coming even now. The rumble of a great army is heard approaching from a land in the north. It is coming to turn the towns of Judah into rubble, places where only jackals live. |
| 23LORD, I know that a person's life is not his to control, nor does a person establish his way in life. | 23LORD, we know that people do not control their own destiny. It is not in their power to determine what will happen to them. |
| 24LORD, correct me, but with justice, not with anger. Otherwise, you'll bring me to nothing. | 24Correct us, LORD, but only in due measure. Do not punish us in anger or you will reduce us to nothing. |
| 25Pour out your anger on the nations that don't acknowledge you, and on the families that don't call on your name. For they have devoured Jacob; they have devoured and consumed him; they have devastated his habitation. | 25Vent your anger on the nations that do not acknowledge you. Vent it on the peoples who do not worship you. For they have destroyed the people of Jacob. They have completely destroyed them and left their homeland in utter ruin. |
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