² mighty man and man of war,
    judge, and prophet,
    fortune-teller and elder,
³ captain of 50 and man of rank,
    counselor, crafty magician and cunning charmer.
⁴ I will set children as their rulers.
    Capricious ones will govern them.
⁵ The people will oppress one another—
    each one by his fellow,
    each one by his neighbor.
The child will be insolent to the aged,
    and dishonarable to the honorable.
⁶ When a man takes hold of his brother
    in the house of his father, saying:
“You have a cloak, you be our ruler!
    This ruin is under your charge.”
⁷ In that day he will protest, saying:
    “I’m no healer!
In my house is no bread or cloak.
    Don’t make me a ruler of people!”

⁸ For Jerusalem has stumbled,
    and Judah is fallen.
For their tongue and their actions
    are against Adonai,
    defying the eyes of His glory.
⁹ The expression of their faces
    bears witness against them.
They display their sin like Sodom—
    they do not hide it.
Oy, their souls!
For they brought evil on themselves.

¹² My people! Children are their oppressors
    and women rule over them.
My people! Your guides mislead you
    and destroy the way of your paths.

¹³ Adonai arises to contend a case,
    and stands to judge the people.
¹⁴ Adonai will enter into judgment
    with the elders of His people and with the princes:
“You have devoured the vineyard.
    The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
¹⁵ What do you mean by crushing My people
    and grinding the face of the poor?”
says Adonai Elohei-Tzva’ot.

¹⁶ Moreover Adonai says:
“Since the Daughters of Zion are proud,
    and walk with outstretched necks and seductive eyes,
walking and mincing as they go,
    making a jingling with their feet,
¹⁷ therefore Adonai will smite with a scab the forehead of the Daughters of Zion.
    Adonai will expose their secret parts.

⁷ For the vineyard of Adonai-Tzva’ot
    is the house of Israel,
and the people of Judah
    the planting of His delight.
He looked for justice,
    but behold, bloodshed,
for righteousness,
    but behold, a cry!

⁹ In my ears, Adonai-Tzva’ot has said:
“Surely many houses will be desolate—
    even grand and fine ones—
with no occupants.”
¹⁰ Ten acres of vineyard
    will yield six gallons,
and an omer of seed
    will yield one ephah.^[c]
11 Woe to those who rise up early in the morning—
    so they may pursue liquor,
who stay up late at night,
    until wine inflames them!
¹² Harp and lyre, tambourine and flute,
    and wine are at their banquets.
They do not notice Adonai’s activity
    nor see the works of His hands.
¹³ “Therefore My people are in captivity
    for lack of knowledge.
Their honorable men are famished
    and their multitudes parched with thirst.
¹⁴ Therefore Sheol has enlarged its gullet
    and opened its measureless mouth—
down goes her glory, her tumult,
    her uproar, and the revelry in her.
¹⁵ So humanity will be bowed down
    mankind will be humbled,
and the eyes of the lofty humbled.”
¹⁶ But Adonai-Tzva’ot will be exalted through justice,
    and the Holy God consecrated through righteousness.
¹⁷ Then lambs will graze as if in their own pasture,
    and nomads will eat in the ruins of the wealthy.
¹⁸ Oy to those that drag iniquity along with cords of deceit,
    and sin as if with a cart rope!
¹⁹ They say: “Let Him hurry up
    and hasten His work, so we may see it!
Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel
    draw near and come,
so we may know it!”
²⁰ Oy to those who call evil good
    and good evil,
who present darkness as light
    and light as darkness,
who present bitter as sweet,
    and sweet as bitter!
²¹ Oy to those who are wise in their own eyes,
    and clever in their own sight!
²² Oy to those who are heroes at drinking wine,
    and valiant at mixing drinks,
²³ who justify the wicked for a bribe,
    and deprive the innocent of justice!
²⁴ Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes straw,
    and as chaff collapses into the flame,
so their root will be like rot,
    and their blossom will go up like dust.
For they have rejected the Torah of Adonai–Tzva’ot,
    and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
²⁵ Therefore Adonai’s anger is kindled
    against His people.
When He has stretched out His hand
    against them and struck them,
the hills trembled, and their carcasses
    were like refuse in the streets.
For all this His anger is not turned away,
    yet His hand is still outstretched.

²⁶ He will lift up a banner to nations far off,
    and will whistle for them from the ends of the earth.
Look! Swiftly, speedily they come!

²⁷ None will be weary
    and none stumble among them;
none will slumber or sleep;
    no belt will be loose at the waist;
no strap of sandals be broken.
²⁸ Their arrows are sharp
    and all their bows bent;
their horse hooves will be like flint
    and their wheels like a whirlwind.
²⁹ Their roaring will be like a lion.
    They will growl like young lions—
yes, they will roar, seize their prey
    and carry it away safely—
and there will be none to rescue.
³⁰ They will roar against them
    like the roaring of the sea.
If one looks to the land,
    behold, darkness and distress!
The light is darkened by the clouds.

²⁸ Do not move an ancient boundary stone
which your fathers set up.

²⁹ Do you see a man skilled in his work?
He will stand before kings.
He will not stand before obscure people.