Study Desk

All her idols will be broken into pieces; all the gifts to her idols will be burned with fire. I will destroy all her idols, and because Samaria earned her money by being unfaithful to me, this money will be carried off by others who are not faithful to me."

I will moan and cry because of this evil, going around barefoot and naked. I will cry loudly like the wild dogs and make sad sounds like the owls do,

because Samaria's wound cannot be healed. It will spread to Judah; it will reach the city gate of my people, all the way to Jerusalem.

Those who live in Maroth will be anxious for good news to come, because trouble will come from the Lord , all the way to the gate of Jerusalem.

Cut off your hair to show you are sad for the children you love. Make yourself bald like the eagle, because your children will be taken away to a foreign land.

How terrible it will be for people who plan wickedness, who lie on their beds and make evil plans. When the morning light comes, they do what they planned, because they have the power to do so.

That is why the Lord says: "Look, I am planning trouble against such people, and you won't be able to save yourselves. You will no longer walk proudly, because it will be a terrible time.

They will cry to the Lord , but he won't answer them. At that time he will hide his face from them, because what they have done is evil."

The seers will be ashamed; the people who see the future will be embarrassed. Yes, all of them will cover their mouths, because there will be no answer from God."

Because of you, Jerusalem will be plowed like a field. The city will become a pile of rocks, and the hill on which the Temple stands will be covered with bushes.

Everyone will sit under his own vine and fig tree, and no one will make him afraid, because the Lord All-Powerful has said it.

People of Jerusalem, strain and be in pain. Be like a woman trying to give birth, because now you must leave the city and live in the field. You will go to Babylon, but you will be saved from that place. The Lord will go there and buy you back from your enemies.

So, strong city, gather your soldiers together, because we are surrounded and attacked. They will hit the leader of Israel in the face with a club.

At that time the ruler of Israel will stand and take care of his people with the Lord 's strength and with the power of the name of the Lord his God. The Israelites will live in safety, because his greatness will reach all over the earth.

As for me, I will make you sick. I will attack you, ruining you because of your sins.

This is because you obey the laws of King Omri and do all the things that Ahab's family does; you follow their advice. So I will let you be destroyed. The people in your city will be laughed at, and other nations will make fun of you.

The earth will be ruined for the people who live in it because of their deeds.

There is no God like you. You forgive those who are guilty of sin; you don't look at the sins of your people who are left alive. You will not stay angry forever, because you enjoy being kind.

The Lord has given you this command, Nineveh: "You will not have descendants to carry on your name. I will destroy the idols and metal images that are in the temple of your gods. I will make a grave for you, because you are wicked."

It has been announced that the people of Nineveh will be captured and carried away. The slave girls moan like doves and beat their breasts, because they are sad.