Annihilation of the Assyrians

27 Look! The name of the Lord is coming from far away,
his anger burning and heavy with smoke.[a]
His lips are full of fury,
and his tongue is like a consuming fire.
28 His breath is like an overflowing torrent(A)
that rises to the neck.(B)
He comes to sift the nations in a sieve of destruction
and to put a bridle on the jaws of the peoples
to lead them astray.(C)
29 Your singing will be like that
on the night of a holy festival,
and your heart will rejoice
like one who walks to the music of a flute,
going up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the Rock of Israel.(D)
30 And the Lord will make the splendor of his voice heard
and reveal his arm(E) striking in angry wrath
and a flame of consuming fire,
in driving rain, a torrent, and hailstones.
31 Assyria will be shattered by the voice of the Lord.
He will strike with a rod.
32 And every stroke of the appointed[b] staff
that the Lord brings down on him
will be to the sound of tambourines and lyres;
he will fight against him with brandished weapons.
33 Indeed! Topheth has been ready(F)
for the king for a long time.
Its funeral pyre is deep and wide,
with plenty of fire and wood.
The breath of the Lord,(G) like a torrent of burning sulfur,
kindles it.

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Footnotes

  1. 30:27 Hb obscure
  2. 30:32 Some Hb mss read punishing

27 Look! The Lord is coming from far away,
    burning with anger,
    surrounded by thick, rising smoke.
His lips are filled with fury;
    his words consume like fire.
28 His hot breath pours out like a flood
    up to the neck of his enemies.
He will sift out the proud nations for destruction.
    He will bridle them and lead them away to ruin.

29 But the people of God will sing a song of joy,
    like the songs at the holy festivals.
You will be filled with joy,
    as when a flutist leads a group of pilgrims
to Jerusalem, the mountain of the Lord
    to the Rock of Israel.
30 And the Lord will make his majestic voice heard.
    He will display the strength of his mighty arm.
It will descend with devouring flames,
    with cloudbursts, thunderstorms, and huge hailstones.
31 At the Lord’s command, the Assyrians will be shattered.
    He will strike them down with his royal scepter.
32 And as the Lord strikes them with his rod of punishment,[a]
    his people will celebrate with tambourines and harps.
    Lifting his mighty arm, he will fight the Assyrians.
33 Topheth—the place of burning—
    has long been ready for the Assyrian king;
    the pyre is piled high with wood.
The breath of the Lord, like fire from a volcano,
    will set it ablaze.

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Footnotes

  1. 30:32 As in some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac version; Masoretic Text reads with the founded rod.