| NET Bible | New International Version |
| 1Bunch yourselves together like straw, you undesirable nation, | 1Gather together, gather yourselves together, you shameful nation, |
| 2before God's decree becomes reality and the day of opportunity disappears like windblown chaff, before the LORD's raging anger overtakes you--before the day of the LORD's angry judgment overtakes you! | 2before the decree takes effect and that day passes like windblown chaff, before the LORD's fierce anger comes upon you, before the day of the LORD's wrath comes upon you. |
| 3Seek the LORD's favor, all you humble people of the land who have obeyed his commands! Strive to do what is right! Strive to be humble! Maybe you will be protected on the day of the LORD's angry judgment. | 3Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility; perhaps you will be sheltered on the day of the LORD's anger. |
| 4Indeed, Gaza will be deserted and Ashkelon will become a heap of ruins. Invaders will drive away the people of Ashdod by noon, and Ekron will be overthrown. | 4Gaza will be abandoned and Ashkelon left in ruins. At midday Ashdod will be emptied and Ekron uprooted. |
| 5Those who live by the sea, the people who came from Crete, are as good as dead. The LORD has decreed your downfall, Canaan, land of the Philistines: "I will destroy everyone who lives there!" | 5Woe to you who live by the sea, you Kerethite people; the word of the LORD is against you, Canaan, land of the Philistines. He says, "I will destroy you, and none will be left." |
| 6The seacoast will be used as pasture lands by the shepherds and as pens for their flocks. | 6The land by the sea will become pastures having wells for shepherds and pens for flocks. |
| 7Those who are left from the kingdom of Judah will take possession of it. By the sea they will graze, in the houses of Ashkelon they will lie down in the evening, for the LORD their God will intervene for them and restore their prosperity. | 7That land will belong to the remnant of the people of Judah; there they will find pasture. In the evening they will lie down in the houses of Ashkelon. The LORD their God will care for them; he will restore their fortunes. |
| 8"I have heard Moab's taunts and the Ammonites' insults. They taunted my people and verbally harassed those living in Judah. | 8"I have heard the insults of Moab and the taunts of the Ammonites, who insulted my people and made threats against their land. |
| 9Therefore, as surely as I live," says the LORD who commands armies, the God of Israel, "be certain that Moab will become like Sodom and the Ammonites like Gomorrah. They will be overrun by weeds, filled with salt pits, and permanently desolate. Those of my people who are left will plunder their belongings; those who are left in Judah will take possession of their land." | 9Therefore, as surely as I live," declares the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, "surely Moab will become like Sodom, the Ammonites like Gomorrah-- a place of weeds and salt pits, a wasteland forever. The remnant of my people will plunder them; the survivors of my nation will inherit their land." |
| 10This is how they will be repaid for their arrogance, for they taunted and verbally harassed the people of the LORD who commands armies. | 10This is what they will get in return for their pride, for insulting and mocking the people of the LORD Almighty. |
| 11The LORD will terrify them, for he will weaken all the gods of the earth. All the distant nations will worship the LORD in their own lands. | 11The LORD will be awesome to them when he destroys all the gods of the earth. Distant nations will bow down to him, all of them in their own lands. |
| 12"You Ethiopians will also die by my sword!" | 12"You Cushites, too, will be slain by my sword." |
| 13The LORD will attack the north and destroy Assyria. He will make Nineveh a heap of ruins; it will be as barren as the desert. | 13He will stretch out his hand against the north and destroy Assyria, leaving Nineveh utterly desolate and dry as the desert. |
| 14Flocks and herds will lie down in the middle of it, as well as every kind of wild animal. Owls will sleep in the tops of its support pillars; they will hoot through the windows. Rubble will cover the thresholds; even the cedar work will be exposed to the elements. | 14Flocks and herds will lie down there, creatures of every kind. The desert owl and the screech owl will roost on her columns. Their hooting will echo through the windows, rubble will fill the doorways, the beams of cedar will be exposed. |
| 15This is how the once-proud city will end up--the city that was so secure. She thought to herself, "I am unique! No one can compare to me!" What a heap of ruins she has become, a place where wild animals live! Everyone who passes by her taunts her and shakes his fist. | 15This is the city of revelry that lived in safety. She said to herself, "I am the one! And there is none besides me." What a ruin she has become, a lair for wild beasts! All who pass by her scoff and shake their fists. |
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