| New King James Version | NET Bible |
| 1“Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, Who write misfortune, Which they have prescribed | 1Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, those who are always instituting unfair regulations, |
| 2To rob the needy of justice, And to take what is right from the poor of My people, That widows may be their prey, And that they may rob the fatherless. | 2to keep the poor from getting fair treatment, and to deprive the oppressed among my people of justice, so they can steal what widows own, and loot what belongs to orphans. |
| 3What will you do in the day of punishment, And in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? And where will you leave your glory? | 3What will you do on judgment day, when destruction arrives from a distant place? To whom will you run for help? Where will you leave your wealth? |
| 4Without Me they shall bow down among the prisoners, And they shall fall among the slain.” For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still. | 4You will have no place to go, except to kneel with the prisoners, or to fall among those who have been killed. Despite all this, his anger does not subside, and his hand is ready to strike again. |
| 5“Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hand is My indignation. | 5Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, a cudgel with which I angrily punish. |
| 6I will send him against an ungodly nation, And against the people of My wrath I will give him charge, To seize the spoil, to take the prey, And to tread them down like the mire of the streets. | 6I sent him against a godless nation, I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, to take plunder and to carry away loot, to trample them down like dirt in the streets. |
| 7Yet he does not mean so, Nor does his heart think so; But it is in his heart to destroy, And cut off not a few nations. | 7But he does not agree with this, his mind does not reason this way, for his goal is to destroy, and to eliminate many nations. |
| 8For he says, ‘Are not my princes altogether kings? | 8Indeed, he says: "Are not my officials all kings? |
| 9Is not Calno like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad? Is not Samaria like Damascus? | 9Is not Calneh like Carchemish? Hamath like Arpad? Samaria like Damascus? |
| 10As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, Whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria, | 10I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem's or Samaria's. |
| 11As I have done to Samaria and her idols, Shall I not do also to Jerusalem and her idols?’ ” | 11As I have done to Samaria and its idols, so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols." |
| 12Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has performed all His work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, “I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks.” | 12But when the sovereign master finishes judging Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. |
| 13For he says: “By the strength of my hand I have done it, And by my wisdom, for I am prudent; Also I have removed the boundaries of the people, And have robbed their treasuries; So I have put down the inhabitants like a valiant man. | 13For he says: "By my strong hand I have accomplished this, by my strategy that I devised. I invaded the territory of nations, and looted their storehouses. Like a mighty conqueror, I brought down rulers. |
| 14My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people, And as one gathers eggs that are left, I have gathered all the earth; And there was no one who moved his wing, Nor opened his mouth with even a peep.” | 14My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest, as one gathers up abandoned eggs, I gathered up the whole earth. There was no wing flapping, or open mouth chirping." |
| 15Shall the ax boast itself against him who chops with it? Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it? As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up, Or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood! | 15Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it, or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it, or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood! |
| 16Therefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts, Will send leanness among his fat ones; And under his glory He will kindle a burning Like the burning of a fire. | 16For this reason the sovereign master, the LORD who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. His majestic glory will go up in smoke. |
| 17So the Light of Israel will be for a fire, And his Holy One for a flame; It will burn and devour His thorns and his briers in one day. | 17The light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One will become a flame; it will burn and consume the Assyrian king's briers and his thorns in one day. |
| 18And it will consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful field, Both soul and body; And they will be as when a sick man wastes away. | 18The splendor of his forest and his orchard will be completely destroyed, as when a sick man's life ebbs away. |
| 19Then the rest of the trees of his forest Will be so few in number That a child may write them. | 19There will be so few trees left in his forest, a child will be able to count them. |
| 20And it shall come to pass in that day That the remnant of Israel, And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob, Will never again depend on him who defeated them, But will depend on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. | 20At that time those left in Israel, those who remain of the family of Jacob, will no longer rely on a foreign leader that abuses them. Instead they will truly rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel. |
| 21The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, To the Mighty God. | 21A remnant will come back, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. |
| 22For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, A remnant of them will return; The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness. | 22For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. Destruction has been decreed; just punishment is about to engulf you. |
| 23For the Lord GOD of hosts Will make a determined end In the midst of all the land. | 23The sovereign master, the LORD who commands armies, is certainly ready to carry out the decreed destruction throughout the land. |
| 24Therefore thus says the Lord GOD of hosts: “O My people, who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of Egypt. | 24So here is what the sovereign master, the LORD who commands armies, says: "My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of Assyria, even though they beat you with a club and lift their cudgel against you as Egypt did. |
| 25For yet a very little while and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction.” | 25For very soon my fury will subside, and my anger will be directed toward their destruction." |
| 26And the LORD of hosts will stir up a scourge for him like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt. | 26The LORD who commands armies is about to beat them with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. |
| 27It shall come to pass in that day That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder, And his yoke from your neck, And the yoke will be destroyed because of the anointing oil. | 27At that time the LORD will remove their burden from your shoulders, and their yoke from your neck; the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. |
| 28He has come to Aiath, He has passed Migron; At Michmash he has attended to his equipment. | 28They attacked Aiath, moved through Migron, depositing their supplies at Micmash. |
| 29They have gone along the ridge, They have taken up lodging at Geba. Ramah is afraid, Gibeah of Saul has fled. | 29They went through the pass, spent the night at Geba. Ramah trembled, Gibeah of Saul ran away. |
| 30Lift up your voice, O daughter of Gallim! Cause it to be heard as far as Laish— O poor Anathoth! | 30Shout out, daughter of Gallim! Pay attention, Laishah! Answer her, Anathoth! |
| 31Madmenah has fled, The inhabitants of Gebim seek refuge. | 31Madmenah flees, the residents of Gebim have hidden. |
| 32As yet he will remain at Nob that day; He will shake his fist at the mount of the daughter of Zion, The hill of Jerusalem. | 32This very day, standing in Nob, they shake their fist at Daughter Zion's mountain--at the hill of Jerusalem. |
| 33Behold, the Lord, The LORD of hosts, Will lop off the bough with terror; Those of high stature will be hewn down, And the haughty will be humbled. | 33Look, the sovereign master, the LORD who commands armies, is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. The tallest trees will be cut down, the loftiest ones will be brought low. |
| 34He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One. | 34The thickets of the forest will be chopped down with an ax, and mighty Lebanon will fall. |
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