God’s Anger over Jerusalem

1How will Jehovah in his anger cover the daughter of Zion! he cast down from the heavens to the earth the beauty of Israel, and he remembered not the footstool of his feet in the day of his anger.

2Jehovah swallowed up, not pitying, all the seats of Jacob: he pulled down in his wrath the fortresses of the daughter of Judah; he caused to touch to the earth: he defiled the kingdom and her chiefs.

3He cut off in the burning of anger all the horn of Israel: he turned back his right hand from the face of the enemy, and he will consume against Jacob as a fire of flame devouring round about.

4He bent his bow as an enemy: he set his right hand as an adversary, and be will slay all the delights of the eye in the tent of the daughter of Zion: he poured his wrath as fire.

5Jehovah was as an enemy: he swallowed up Israel, he swallowed up all her fortresses: he destroyed his fortifications, and he will multiply in the daughter of Judah sorrow and sighing.

6And he will tear away as a garden his dwelling: he destroyed his appointment: Jehovah caused to forget the appointment in Zion, and the Sabbath, and he will despise in the wrath of his anger the king and the priest.

7Jehovah rejected his altar, he abhorred his holy place, he shut up in the hand of the enemy the walls of her castles; they gave a voice in the house of Jehovah, as the day of the appointment.

8Jehovah purposed to destroy the walls of the daughter of Zion: he stretched out a line, he turned not back his hand from swallowing down: and the entrenchment will mourn, and the wall; together they languished.

9Her gates sank into the earth; he destroyed and broke her bars: her king and her chiefs among the nations: no law: also her prophets found not a vision from Jehovah.

10They sat upon the earth; the old men of the daughter of Zion were silent; they brought up the dust upon their head: they girded on sackcloth: the virgins of Jerusalem brought down their head to the earth.

11Mine eyes failed with tears, my bowels were in a ferment, my liver was poured out to the earth, upon the breaking of the daughter of my people; in the fainting of the child and suckling in the wide places of the city.

12To their mothers will they say, Where the grain and wine? in their languishing as the wounded in the broad places of the city, in the pouring out of their soul into their mothers bosom.

13What shall I testify for thee? What shall I liken to thee, O daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I compare to thee, and comfort thee, O virgin daughter of Zion? for great as the sea thy breaking: who shall heal for thee?

14Thy prophets saw for thee vanity and a foolish thing, and they uncovered not upon thine iniquity to turn back thy captivity; and they will see for thee burdens of falsehood and seductions.

15All passing by the way clapped their hands at thee; they hissed, and they will nod their head at the daughter of Jerusalem: This the city, they will say; the complete splendor of joy to all the earth.

16All thine enemies opened wide their mouth upon thee: they hissed and they will gnash the teeth: they said, We swallowed down: surely this the day we longed for; we found; we saw.

17Jehovah did what he purposed; he completed his word which he commanded in days of old: he pulled down and he pitied not: and be will gladden the enemy over thee; he lifted up the horn of thine adversaries.

18Their heart cried to Jehovah, O wall of the daughter of Zion, cause tears to go down as a torrent day and night thou shalt give no remission to thyself; the daughter of thine eye shall not be silent.

19Arise, cry aloud in the night: at the head of the watches pour out thy heart as water before the face of Jehovah: lift up thy hands to him for the soul of thy young children fainting with hunger in the head of all the streets.

20See, O Jehovah, and look to whom thou didst accomplish this Shall the women eat their fruit, the children borne upon the hands? shall the priest and the prophet be slain in the holy place of Jehovah?

21The youth and old man lay down upon the earth of the streets; my virgins and my young men fell by the sword; thou didst slay in the day of thine anger; thou didst slay, thou didst not pity.

22Thou wilt call as the day of appointment my sojourning from round about, and in the day of the anger of Jehovah there was no escaping and surviving: those I bore upon my hands and brought up, the enemy finished.