| New American Standard Bible 1995 | New International Version |
| 1"Roam to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem, And look now and take note. And seek in her open squares, If you can find a man, If there is one who does justice, who seeks truth, Then I will pardon her. | 1"Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city. |
| 2"And although they say, 'As the LORD lives,' Surely they swear falsely." | 2Although they say, 'As surely as the LORD lives,' still they are swearing falsely." |
| 3O LORD, do not Your eyes look for truth? You have smitten them, But they did not weaken; You have consumed them, But they refused to take correction. They have made their faces harder than rock; They have refused to repent. | 3LORD, do not your eyes look for truth? You struck them, but they felt no pain; you crushed them, but they refused correction. They made their faces harder than stone and refused to repent. |
| 4Then I said, "They are only the poor, They are foolish; For they do not know the way of the LORD Or the ordinance of their God. | 4I thought, "These are only the poor; they are foolish, for they do not know the way of the LORD, the requirements of their God. |
| 5"I will go to the great And will speak to them, For they know the way of the LORD And the ordinance of their God." But they too, with one accord, have broken the yoke And burst the bonds. | 5So I will go to the leaders and speak to them; surely they know the way of the LORD, the requirements of their God." But with one accord they too had broken off the yoke and torn off the bonds. |
| 6Therefore a lion from the forest will slay them, A wolf of the deserts will destroy them, A leopard is watching their cities. Everyone who goes out of them will be torn in pieces, Because their transgressions are many, Their apostasies are numerous. | 6Therefore a lion from the forest will attack them, a wolf from the desert will ravage them, a leopard will lie in wait near their towns to tear to pieces any who venture out, for their rebellion is great and their backslidings many. |
| 7"Why should I pardon you? Your sons have forsaken Me And sworn by those who are not gods. When I had fed them to the full, They committed adultery And trooped to the harlot's house. | 7"Why should I forgive you? Your children have forsaken me and sworn by gods that are not gods. I supplied all their needs, yet they committed adultery and thronged to the houses of prostitutes. |
| 8"They were well-fed lusty horses, Each one neighing after his neighbor's wife. | 8They are well-fed, lusty stallions, each neighing for another man's wife. |
| 9"Shall I not punish these people," declares the LORD, "And on a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself? | 9Should I not punish them for this?" declares the LORD. "Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this? |
| 10"Go up through her vine rows and destroy, But do not execute a complete destruction; Strip away her branches, For they are not the LORD'S. | 10"Go through her vineyards and ravage them, but do not destroy them completely. Strip off her branches, for these people do not belong to the LORD. |
| 11"For the house of Israel and the house of Judah Have dealt very treacherously with Me," declares the LORD. | 11The people of Israel and the people of Judah have been utterly unfaithful to me," declares the LORD. |
| 12They have lied about the LORD And said, "Not He; Misfortune will not come on us, And we will not see sword or famine. | 12They have lied about the LORD; they said, "He will do nothing! No harm will come to us; we will never see sword or famine. |
| 13"The prophets are as wind, And the word is not in them. Thus it will be done to them!" | 13The prophets are but wind and the word is not in them; so let what they say be done to them." |
| 14Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of hosts, "Because you have spoken this word, Behold, I am making My words in your mouth fire And this people wood, and it will consume them. | 14Therefore this is what the LORD God Almighty says: "Because the people have spoken these words, I will make my words in your mouth a fire and these people the wood it consumes. |
| 15"Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from afar, O house of Israel," declares the LORD. "It is an enduring nation, It is an ancient nation, A nation whose language you do not know, Nor can you understand what they say. | 15People of Israel," declares the LORD, "I am bringing a distant nation against you-- an ancient and enduring nation, a people whose language you do not know, whose speech you do not understand. |
| 16"Their quiver is like an open grave, All of them are mighty men. | 16Their quivers are like an open grave; all of them are mighty warriors. |
| 17"They will devour your harvest and your food; They will devour your sons and your daughters; They will devour your flocks and your herds; They will devour your vines and your fig trees; They will demolish with the sword your fortified cities in which you trust. | 17They will devour your harvests and food, devour your sons and daughters; they will devour your flocks and herds, devour your vines and fig trees. With the sword they will destroy the fortified cities in which you trust. |
| 18"Yet even in those days," declares the LORD, "I will not make you a complete destruction. | 18"Yet even in those days," declares the LORD, "I will not destroy you completely. |
| 19"It shall come about when they say, 'Why has the LORD our God done all these things to us?' then you shall say to them, 'As you have forsaken Me and served foreign gods in your land, so you will serve strangers in a land that is not yours.' | 19And when the people ask, 'Why has the LORD our God done all this to us?' you will tell them, 'As you have forsaken me and served foreign gods in your own land, so now you will serve foreigners in a land not your own.' |
| 20"Declare this in the house of Jacob And proclaim it in Judah, saying, | 20"Announce this to the descendants of Jacob and proclaim it in Judah: |
| 21'Now hear this, O foolish and senseless people, Who have eyes but do not see; Who have ears but do not hear. | 21Hear this, you foolish and senseless people, who have eyes but do not see, who have ears but do not hear: |
| 22'Do you not fear Me?' declares the LORD. 'Do you not tremble in My presence? For I have placed the sand as a boundary for the sea, An eternal decree, so it cannot cross over it. Though the waves toss, yet they cannot prevail; Though they roar, yet they cannot cross over it. | 22Should you not fear me?" declares the LORD. "Should you not tremble in my presence? I made the sand a boundary for the sea, an everlasting barrier it cannot cross. The waves may roll, but they cannot prevail; they may roar, but they cannot cross it. |
| 23'But this people has a stubborn and rebellious heart; They have turned aside and departed. | 23But these people have stubborn and rebellious hearts; they have turned aside and gone away. |
| 24'They do not say in their heart, "Let us now fear the LORD our God, Who gives rain in its season, Both the autumn rain and the spring rain, Who keeps for us The appointed weeks of the harvest." | 24They do not say to themselves, 'Let us fear the LORD our God, who gives autumn and spring rains in season, who assures us of the regular weeks of harvest.' |
| 25'Your iniquities have turned these away, And your sins have withheld good from you. | 25Your wrongdoings have kept these away; your sins have deprived you of good. |
| 26'For wicked men are found among My people, They watch like fowlers lying in wait; They set a trap, They catch men. | 26"Among my people are the wicked who lie in wait like men who snare birds and like those who set traps to catch people. |
| 27'Like a cage full of birds, So their houses are full of deceit; Therefore they have become great and rich. | 27Like cages full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; they have become rich and powerful |
| 28'They are fat, they are sleek, They also excel in deeds of wickedness; They do not plead the cause, The cause of the orphan, that they may prosper; And they do not defend the rights of the poor. | 28and have grown fat and sleek. Their evil deeds have no limit; they do not seek justice. They do not promote the case of the fatherless; they do not defend the just cause of the poor. |
| 29Shall I not punish these people?' declares the LORD, 'On a nation such as this Shall I not avenge Myself?' | 29Should I not punish them for this?" declares the LORD. "Should I not avenge myself on such a nation as this? |
| 30"An appalling and horrible thing Has happened in the land: | 30"A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land: |
| 31The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule on their own authority; And My people love it so! But what will you do at the end of it? | 31The prophets prophesy lies, the priests rule by their own authority, and my people love it this way. But what will you do in the end? |
| New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit //www.lockman.org | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. |
|
