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Judgment on the Earth

¹ Behold, the LORD ^(C1)lays the earth waste, devastates it, twists its surface, and scatters its inhabitants.² And the people will be like the priest, the servant like his master, the female servant like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, the lender like the borrower, the ^(C1)creditor like the debtor.³ The earth will be completely laid waste and completely plundered, for the LORD has spoken this word.⁴ The ^(C1)earth dries up and crumbles away, the mainland dries out and crumbles away, the ^(C2)exalted of the people of the earth dwindle.⁵ The earth is also ^(C1)defiled ^(F1)by its inhabitants, for they violated laws, altered statutes, and ^(C2)broke the everlasting covenant.⁶ Therefore, a ^(C1)curse devours the earth, and those who live on it suffer for their guilt. Therefore, the ^(C2)inhabitants of the earth decrease in number, and few people are left.

⁷ The ^(C1)new wine mourns,
The vine decays,
All the joyful-hearted sigh.

⁸ The ^(C1)joy of tambourines ceases,
The noise of revelers stops,
The joy of the harp ceases.

⁹ They do not drink wine with song;
^(C1)Intoxicating drink is ^(C2)bitter to those who drink it.

¹⁰ The ^(C1)city of chaos is broken down;
^(C2)Every house is shut up so that no one may enter.

¹¹ There is an ^(C1)outcry in the streets concerning the wine;
^(C2)All joy ^(F1)turns to gloom.
The joy of the earth is banished.

¹² Desolation is left in the city
And the ^(C1)gate is battered to ruins.

¹³ For ^(C1)so it will be in the midst of the earth among the peoples,
As the ^(F1)shaking of an olive tree,
As the gleanings when the grape harvest is over.

^14 (C1)They raise their voices, they shout for joy;
They cry out from the ^(F1)west concerning the majesty of the LORD.

¹⁵ Therefore ^(C1)glorify the LORD in the ^(F1)east,
The ^(C2)name of the LORD, the God of Israel,
In the ^(F2)(C3)coastlands of the sea.

¹⁶ From the ^(C1)ends of the earth we hear songs: "^(C2)Glory to the Righteous One,"
But I say, "^(F1)I am finished! I am finished! Woe to me!
The ^(C3)treacherous deal treacherously,
And the treacherous deal very treacherously."

^17 (C1)Terror and pit and snare
^(F1)Confront you, you inhabitant of the earth.

¹⁸ Then it will be that the one who flees the sound of terror will fall into the pit,
And the one who ^(F1)climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare;
For the ^(C1)windows ^(F2)above are opened, and the ^(C2)foundations of the earth shake.

^19 (C1)The earth is broken apart,
The earth is ^(C2)split through,
The earth is shaken violently.

²⁰ The earth ^(C1)trembles like a heavy drinker
And sways like a hut,
For its ^(C2)wrongdoing is heavy upon it,
And it will fall, ^(C3)never to rise again.

²¹ So it will happen on that day,
That the LORD will ^(C1)punish the rebellious ^(F1)(C2)angels of ^(F2)heaven on high,
And the ^(C3)kings of the earth on earth.

²² They will be gathered together
Like ^(C1)prisoners in the ^(F1)dungeon,
And will be confined in prison;
And after many days they will ^(C2)be punished.

²³ Then the ^(C1)moon will be ashamed and the sun be put to shame,
For the ^(C2)LORD of armies will reign on ^(C3)Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,
And His glory will be before His elders.