2Gather together—yes, gather together, you shameless nation.H7197H7197H1471H37002Gather before judgment begins, before your time to repent is blown away like chaff. Act now, before the fierce fury of the Lord falls and the terrible day of the Lord’s anger begins.H2706H3205H3117H5674H4671H3808H2740H639H3068H935H3117H3068H639H9353Seek the Lord, all who are humble, and follow his commands. Seek to do what is right and to live humbly. Perhaps even yet the Lord will protect you—protect you from his anger on that day of destruction.H1245H3068H6035H776H6466H4941H1245H6664H1245H6038H194H5641H3117H3068H639
Judgment against Philistia
4Gaza and Ashkelon will be abandoned, Ashdod and Ekron torn down.H5804H5800H831H8077H1644H795H6672H6138H61315And what sorrow awaits you Philistines who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan, for this judgment is against you, too! The Lord will destroy you until not one of you is left.H1945H3427H3220H2256H1471H3774H1697H3068H3667H776H6430H6H34276The Philistine coast will become a wilderness pasture, a place of shepherd camps and enclosures for sheep and goats.H3220H2256H5116H3741H7462H1448H66297The remnant of the tribe of Judah will pasture there. They will rest at night in the abandoned houses in Ashkelon. For the Lord their God will visit his people in kindness and restore their prosperity again.H2256H7611H1004H3063H7462H1004H831H7257H6153H3068H430H6485H7725H7622H7622
Judgment against Moab and Ammon
8“I have heard the taunts of the Moabites and the insults of the Ammonites, mocking my people and invading their borders.H8085H2781H4124H1421H1121H5983H2778H5971H1431H13669Now, as surely as I live,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, “Moab and Ammon will be destroyed—destroyed as completely as Sodom and Gomorrah. Their land will become a place of stinging nettles, salt pits, and eternal desolation. The remnant of my people will plunder them and take their land.”H2416H5002H3068H6635H430H3478H4124H5467H1121H5983H6017H4476H2738H4379H4417H5704H5769H8077H7611H5971H962H3499H1471H515710They will receive the wages of their pride, for they have scoffed at the people of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.H1347H2778H1431H5971H3068H663511The Lord will terrify them as he destroys all the gods in the land. Then nations around the world will worship the Lord, each in their own land.H3068H3372H7329H430H776H7812H376H4725H339H1471
Judgment against Ethiopia and Assyria
12“You Ethiopians will also be slaughtered by my sword,” says the Lord.H3569H1992H2491H271913And the Lord will strike the lands of the north with his fist, destroying the land of Assyria. He will make its great capital, Nineveh, a desolate wasteland, parched like a desert.H5186H3027H6828H6H804H7760H5210H8077H6723H405714The proud city will become a pasture for flocks and herds, and all sorts of wild animals will settle there. The desert owl and screech owl will roost on its ruined columns, their calls echoing through the gaping windows. Rubble will block all the doorways, and the cedar paneling will be exposed to the weather.H5739H7257H8432H2416H1471H6893H7090H3885H3730H6963H7891H2474H2721H5592H6168H73115This is the boisterous city, once so secure. “I am the greatest!” it boasted. “No other city can compare with me!” But now, look how it has become an utter ruin, a haven for wild animals. Everyone passing by will laugh in derision and shake a defiant fist.H5947H5892H3427H983H559H3824H657H8047H2416H4769H5674H8319H5128H3027
who live along the coast and in the land of Canaan, for this judgment is against you, too! The Lord will destroy you until not one of you is left.H1945
