10Doom to you who legislate evil, who make laws that make victims—H1945H2710H205H2711H3789H5999H3789 2Laws that make misery for the poor, that rob my destitute people of dignity, Exploiting defenseless widows, taking advantage of homeless children.H5186H1800H1779H1497H4941H6041H5971H490H7998H962H3490 3What will you have to say on Judgment Day, when Doomsday arrives out of the blue? Who will you get to help you? What good will your money do you?H6213H3117H6486H7722H935H4801H5127H5833H5800H3519 4A sorry sight you'll be then, huddled with the prisoners, or just some corpses stacked in the street. Even after all this, God is still angry, his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.H1115H3766H616H5307H2026H639H7725H3027H5186 5"Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger. My wrath is a cudgel in his hands!H1945H804H7626H639H4294H3027H2195 6I send him against a godless nation, against the people I'm angry with. I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind, and then push their faces in the mud and leave them.H7971H2611H1471H5971H5678H6680H7997H7998H962H957H7760H4823H2563H2351 7But Assyria has another agenda; he has something else in mind. He's out to destroy utterly, to stamp out as many nations as he can.H1819H3824H2803H3824H8045H3772H1471H4592 8Assyria says, 'Aren't my commanders all kings? Can't they do whatever they like?H559H8269H3162H4428 9Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish? Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus?H3641H3751H2574H774H8111H1834 10I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria.H3027H4672H4467H457H6456H3389H8111 11So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'"H6213H8111H457H6213H3389H6091 12When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing,H136H1214H4639H2022H6726H3389H6485H6529H1433H3824H4428H804H8597H7312H5869 13the way he goes around saying, "'I've done all this by myself. I know more than anyone. I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries. I've walked in and taken anything I wanted. I charged in like a bull and toppled their kings from their thrones.H559H3581H3027H6213H2451H995H5493H1367H5971H8154H6259H6264H3381H3427H47H3524 14I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest. Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse, I gathered the world in my basket, And no one so much as fluttered a wing or squawked or even chirped.'"H3027H4672H7064H2428H5971H622H1000H5800H622H776H5074H3671H6475H6310H6850 15Does an ax take over from the one who swings it? Does a saw act more important than the sawyer? As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger! As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails!H1631H6286H2672H4883H1431H5130H7626H5130H7311H4294H7311H6086 16Therefore the Master, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters. Under the canopy of God's bright glory a fierce fire will break out.H113H136H3068H6635H7971H4924H7332H3519H3344H3350H784 17Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration. The Holy will explode into a firestorm, And in one day burn to cinders every last Assyrian thornbush.H216H3478H784H6918H3852H1197H398H7898H8068H259H3117 18GOD will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens. The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing like a disease-ridden invalid.H3615H3519H3293H3759H5315H1320H5263H4549 19A child could count what's left of the trees on the fingers of his two hands.H7605H6086H3293H4557H5288H3789 20And on that Day also, what's left of Israel, the ragtag survivors of Jacob, will no longer be fascinated by abusive, battering Assyria. They'll lean on GOD, The Holy—yes, truly.H3117H7605H3478H6413H1004H3290H3254H8172H5221H8172H3068H6918H3478H571 21The ragtag remnant—what's left of Jacob—will come back to the Strong God.H7605H7725H7605H3290H1368H410 22Your people Israel were once like the sand on the seashore, but only a scattered few will return. Destruction is ordered, brimming over with righteousness.H5971H3478H2344H3220H7605H7725H3631H2782H7857H6666 23For the Master, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, will finish here what he started all over the globe.H136H3069H6635H6213H3617H2782H7130H776 24Therefore the Master, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, says: "My dear, dear people who live in Zion, don't be terrorized by the Assyrians when they beat you with clubs and threaten you with rods like the Egyptians once did.H559H136H3069H6635H5971H3427H6726H3372H804H5221H7626H5375H4294H1870H4714 25In just a short time my anger against you will be spent and I'll turn my destroying anger on them.H4213H4592H2195H3615H639H8399 26I, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, will go after them with a cat-o'-nine-tails and finish them off decisively—as Gideon downed Midian at the rock Oreb, as Moses turned the tables on Egypt.H3068H6635H5782H7752H4347H4080H6697H6159H4294H3220H5375H1870H4714 27On that day, Assyria will be pulled off your back, and the yoke of slavery lifted from your neck." Assyria's on the move: up from Rimmon,H3117H5448H5493H7926H5923H6677H5923H2254H6440H8081 28on to Aiath, through Migron, with a bivouac at Micmash.H935H5857H5674H4051H4363H6485H3627 29They've crossed the pass, set camp at Geba for the night. Ramah trembles with fright. Gibeah of Saul has run off.H5674H4569H4411H1387H7414H2729H1390H7586H5127 30Cry for help, daughter of Gallim! Listen to her, Laishah! Do something, Anathoth!H6670H6963H1323H1530H1554H7181H3919H6041H6068 31Madmenah takes to the hills. The people of Gebim flee in panic.H4088H5074H3427H1374H5756 32The enemy's soon at Nob—nearly there! In sight of the city he shakes his fist At the mount of dear daughter Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.H5975H5011H3117H5130H3027H2022H1323H1004H6726H1389H3389 33But now watch this: The Master, GOD-of-the-Angel-Armies, swings his ax and lops the branches, Chops down the giant trees, lays flat the towering forest-on-the-march.H113H3068H6635H5586H6288H4637H7311H6967H1438H1364H8213 34His ax will make toothpicks of that forest, that Lebanon-like army reduced to kindling.H5362H5442H3293H1270H3844H5307H117
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