• The Unjust Knows No Shame

  • 1 Woe to her who is rebellious and defiled, The oppressive city!
  • 2 She did not listen to any voice; She did not receive discipline. She did not trust in Yahweh; She did not draw near to her God.
  • 3 Her princes in her midst are roaring lions; Her judges are wolves at evening; They leave nothing to gnaw for the morning.
  • 4 Her prophets are reckless, treacherous men; Her priests have profaned the sanctuary. They have done violence to the law.
  • 5 Yahweh is righteous in her midst; He will do no injustice. Every morning He brings His justice to light; He does not fail. But the unjust knows no shame.
  • 6 “I have cut off nations; Their corner towers are desolate. I have made their streets a waste, With no one passing by; Their cities are laid waste, Without a man, without an inhabitant.
  • 7 “I said, ‘Surely you will fear Me, Receive discipline.’ So her abode will not be cut off According to all that I have appointed concerning her. But they were eager to corrupt all their deeds.

  • Yahweh Will Pour Out His Anger

  • 8 “Therefore wait for Me,” declares Yahweh, “For the day when I rise up as a witness. Indeed, My judgment is to assemble nations, To gather kingdoms, To pour out on them My indignation, All My burning anger; For all the earth will be devoured By the fire of My zeal.
  • 9 “For then I will change them to peoples with purified lips, That all of them may call on the name of Yahweh, To serve Him shoulder to shoulder.
  • 10 “From beyond the rivers of Ethiopia My worshipers, My scattered ones, Will bring My offerings.
  • 11 “In that day you will feel no shame Because of all your deeds By which you have transgressed against Me; For then I will remove from your midst Your proud, exulting ones, And you will never again be haughty On My holy mountain.
  • 12 “But I will cause to remain in your midst A lowly and poor people, And they will take refuge in the name of Yahweh.
  • 13 “The remnant of Israel will do no injustice And not speak falsehood, Nor will a deceitful tongue Be found in their mouths; For they will feed and lie down With no one to make them tremble.”

  • Yahweh’s Joy in Restoring Israel

  • 14 Sing for joy, O daughter of Zion! Make a loud shout, O Israel! Be glad and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!
  • 15 Yahweh has taken away His judgments against you; He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, Yahweh, is in your midst; You will fear evil no more.
  • 16 In that day it will be said to Jerusalem: “Do not fear, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp.
  • 17 “Yahweh your God is in your midst, A mighty one who will save. He will be joyful over you with gladness; He will be quiet in His love; He will rejoice over you with joyful singing.
  • 18 “I will assemble those who grieve about the appointed feasts— They were from you, O Zion; The reproach of exile is a burden on them.
  • 19 “Behold, I am going to deal at that time With all those who afflict you, And I will save the lame And gather the banished, And I will turn them—in their shame—into praise and a name In all the earth.
  • 20 “At that time I will bring you in, Even at the time when I gather you together; Indeed, I will give you to be a name and praise Among all the peoples of the earth, When I restore your fortunes before your eyes,” Says Yahweh.