Read the Bible

^1 (C1)Blow a trumpet in Zion,
And make a loud shout on My holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
For the ^(C2)day of Yahweh is coming;
Surely it is near,

² A day of ^(C1)darkness and thick darkness,
A day of clouds and dense gloom.
As the dawn is spread over the mountains,
So there is a ^(C2)numerous and mighty people;
There has ^(C3)never been anything like it,
Nor will there be again after it
For the years from generation to generation.

³ A ^(C1)fire consumes before them,
And behind them a flame burns.
The land is ^(C2)like the garden of Eden before them
But a ^(C3)desolate wilderness behind them,
And nothing at all escapes them.

⁴ Their ^(C1)appearance is like the appearance of horses;
And like war horses, so they run.

^5 (F1)With a ^(C1)noise as of chariots
They leap on the tops of the mountains,
Like the ^(F2)crackling of a ^(C2)flame of fire consumes the stubble,
Like a mighty people arranged for battle.

⁶ Before them the peoples are ^(C1)writhing;
All ^(C2)faces ^(F1)turn pale.

⁷ They run like mighty men;
They climb up the wall like men of war;
And they each ^(C1)march ^(F1)in line,
And they do not deviate from their paths.

⁸ They do not crowd each other;
They march everyone in his path;
When they fall against the defending weapons,
They do not break ranks.

⁹ They rush on the city;
They run on the wall;
They climb up into the ^(C1)houses;
They ^(C2)enter through the windows like a thief.

¹⁰ Before them the earth ^(C1)trembles;
The heavens quake;
The ^(C2)sun and the moon grow dark,
And the stars ^(F1)lose their brightness.

¹¹ But Yahweh ^(C1)gives forth His voice before ^(C2)His military force;
Surely His camp is very numerous,
For ^(C3)mighty is he who does His word.
The ^(C4)day of Yahweh is indeed great and very awesome,
And ^(C5)who can endure it?

Return to Yahweh

¹² "Yet even now," declares Yahweh,
"^(C1)Return to Me with all your heart
And with ^(C2)fasting, weeping, and ^(F1)wailing;

¹³ And ^(C1)tear your heart and not ^(C2)your garments."
Now return to Yahweh your God,
For He is ^(C3)gracious and compassionate,
Slow to anger, abounding in lovingkindness,
And ^(C4)relenting concerning evil.

¹⁴ Who knows ^(C1)whether He will not turn and relent
And leave a ^(C2)blessing behind Him,
Even ^(C3)a grain offering and a drink offering
For Yahweh your God?

^15 (C1)Blow a trumpet in Zion,
^(C2)Set apart a fast as holy, call for a solemn assembly,

¹⁶ Gather the people, ^(C1)set apart the congregation as holy,
Assemble the elders,
Gather the infants and the nursing babies.
Let the ^(C2)bridegroom come out of his room
And the bride out of her bridal chamber.

¹⁷ Let the priests, the ministers of Yahweh,
Weep ^(C1)between the porch and the altar,
And let them say, "^(C2)Pity Your people, O Yahweh,
And do not make Your inheritance a ^(C3)reproach,
A byword among the nations.
Why should they among the peoples say,
'^(C4)Where is their God?'"

Yahweh Will Spare His People

¹⁸ Then Yahweh ^(F1)will be ^(C1)zealous for His land
And ^(F2)will ^(C2)spare His people.

¹⁹ Then Yahweh ^(F1)will answer and say to His people,
"Behold, I am going to ^(C1)send you grain, new wine, and oil,
And you will be satisfied in full with ^(F2)them;
And I will ^(C2)never again make you a reproach among the nations.

²⁰ "But I will remove the ^(C1)northern military force far from you,
And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land,
And its vanguard into the ^(C2)eastern sea,
And its rear guard into the ^(C3)western sea.
And its ^(C4)stench will rise up, and its foul smell will rise up,
For it has done great things."

^21 (C1)Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad,
For Yahweh has done ^(C2)great things.

²² Do not fear, beasts of the field,
For the ^(C1)pastures of the wilderness have turned green,
For the tree has borne its fruit;
The fig tree and the vine have yielded ^(F1)their full force.

²³ So rejoice, O ^(C1)sons of Zion,
And ^(C2)be glad in Yahweh your God,
For He has ^(C3)given you ^(F1)the early rain in righteousness.
And He has poured down for you the rain,
The ^(F2)early and ^(F3)(C4)late rains ^(F4)as before.

²⁴ The threshing floors will be full of grain,
And the vats will ^(C1)overflow with the new wine and oil.

²⁵ "Then I will pay back to you in full for the years
That the swarming ^(C1)locust has consumed,
The creeping locust, the stripping locust, and the gnawing locust,
My great military force which I sent among you.

²⁶ "And you will have plenty to ^(C1)consume and be satisfied
And ^(C2)praise the name of Yahweh your God,
Who has ^(C3)dealt wondrously with you;
Then My people will ^(C4)never be put to shame.

²⁷ "Thus you will ^(C1)know that I am in the midst of Israel,
And that I am Yahweh your God,
And there is ^(C2)no other;
And My people will never be ^(C3)put to shame.

Yahweh Will Pour Out His Spirit

²⁸ "^(F1)(C1)And it will be afterwards
That I will ^(C2)pour out My Spirit on all ^(F2)(C3)mankind;
And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy;
Your old men will dream dreams;
Your young men will see visions.

²⁹ "Even on the ^(C1)male slaves and female slaves
I will in those days pour out My Spirit.

Deliverance in the Day of Yahweh

³⁰ "And I will ^(C1)put wonders in the sky and on the earth,
Blood, fire, and columns of smoke.

³¹ "The ^(C1)sun will be turned into darkness
And the moon into blood
Before the ^(C2)great and awesome day of Yahweh comes.

³² "And it will be that ^(C1)everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh
Will ^(F1)be delivered;
For ^(C2)on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem
There will be those who ^(C3)escape,
As Yahweh has said,
Even among the ^(C4)survivors whom Yahweh calls.