1  Flee for safety, O people of Benjamin,

from the midst of Jerusalem!

^rBlow the trumpet in Tekoa,

and ^sraise a signal on Beth-haccherem,

for disaster looms out of the ^tnorth,

and great destruction.

2  The lovely and delicately bred I will destroy,

the daughter of Zion.¹

3  ^uShepherds with their flocks shall come against her;

they shall pitch their tents around her;

they shall pasture, each in his place.

4  ^v“Prepare war against her;

arise, and let us attack ^wat noon!

Woe to us, for the day declines,

for the shadows of evening lengthen!

5  Arise, and let us attack by night

and destroy her palaces!”

6  For thus says the Lord of hosts:

^x“Cut down her trees;

^ycast up a siege mound against Jerusalem.

This is the city that must be punished;

there is nothing but oppression within her.

7  As a well keeps its water fresh,

so she keeps fresh her evil;

^zviolence and destruction are heard within her;

sickness and wounds are ever before me.

8  Be warned, O Jerusalem,

lest I ^aturn from you in disgust,

lest I make you a desolation,

an uninhabited land.”

9  Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“They shall glean thoroughly as a vine

the remnant of Israel;

like a grape gatherer pass your hand again

over its branches.”

10  ^bTo whom shall I speak and give warning,

that they may hear?

Behold, their ^cears are uncircumcised,

they cannot listen;

behold, ^dthe word of the Lord is to them an object of scorn;

they take no pleasure in it.

11  Therefore I am full of the wrath of the Lord;

^eI am weary of holding it in.

“Pour it out upon the ^fchildren in the street,

and upon the gatherings of young men, also;

both husband and wife shall be taken,

the elderly and the very aged.

12  Their houses shall be turned over to others,

^gtheir fields and wives together,

for I will stretch out my hand

against the inhabitants of the land,”

declares the Lord.

13  “For ^hfrom the least to the greatest of them,

everyone is greedy for unjust gain;

and from ⁱprophet to priest,

everyone deals falsely.

14  ^jThey have healed the wound of my people lightly,

^ksaying, ‘Peace, peace,’

when there is no peace.

15  ^lWere they ashamed when they committed abomination?

No, they were ^mnot at all ashamed;

they did not know how to blush.

Therefore they shall fall among those who fall;

at the time that I punish them, they shall be overthrown,”

says the Lord.

16  Thus says the Lord:

“Stand by the roads, and look,

and ask for the ⁿancient paths,

where the good way is; and walk in it,

^oand find rest for your souls.

But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’

17  I set ^pwatchmen over you, saying,

‘Pay attention to the sound of the trumpet!’

But they said, ‘We will not pay attention.’

18  Therefore hear, O nations,

and know, O congregation, what will happen to them.

19  Hear, O earth; behold, I am bringing disaster upon this people,

the fruit of their devices,

because they have not paid attention to my words;

and as for my law, they have rejected it.

20  ^qWhat use to me is frankincense that comes from Sheba,

or sweet cane from a distant land?

Your burnt offerings are ^rnot acceptable,

nor your sacrifices pleasing to me.

21  Therefore thus says the Lord:

‘Behold, I will lay before this people

^sstumbling blocks against which they shall stumble;

fathers and sons together,

neighbor and friend shall perish.’”

22  Thus says the Lord:

“Behold, a people is coming from the north country,

a great nation is stirring from the farthest parts of the earth.

23  ^tThey lay hold on bow and javelin;

they are cruel and have no mercy;

the sound of them is like the roaring sea;

they ride on horses,

set in array as a man for battle,

against you, O daughter of Zion!”

24  We have ^uheard the report of it;

our hands fall helpless;

anguish has taken hold of us,

pain as of a woman in labor.

25  Go not out into the field,

nor walk on the road,

for the enemy has a sword;

^vterror is on every side.

26  O daughter of my people, put on sackcloth,

and roll in ashes;

make mourning as ^wfor an only son,

most bitter lamentation,

for suddenly the destroyer

will come upon us.

27  “I have made you a ^xtester of metals among my people,

that you may know and test their ways.

28  They are all stubbornly rebellious,

going about with ^yslanders;

^zthey are bronze and iron;

all of them act corruptly.

29  The bellows blow fiercely;

the lead is consumed by the fire;

in vain the ^arefining goes on,

for the wicked are not removed.

30  Rejected silver they are called,

for the Lord has ^brejected them.”