1Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, 2Also, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD unto the land of Israel; An end, the end is come upon the four corners of the land. 3Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations.7.3 recompense: Heb. give 4And mine eye shall not spare thee, neither will I have pity: but I will recompense thy ways upon thee, and thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee: and ye shall know that I am the LORD. 5Thus saith the Lord GOD; An evil, an only evil, behold, is come. 6An end is come, the end is come: it watcheth for thee; behold, it is come.7.6 watcheth for: Heb. awaketh against 7The morning is come unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the land: the time is come, the day of trouble is near, and not the sounding again of the mountains.7.7 sounding…: or, echo 8Now will I shortly pour out my fury upon thee, and accomplish mine anger upon thee: and I will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense thee for all thine abominations. 9And mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: I will recompense thee according to thy ways and thine abominations that are in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am the LORD that smiteth.7.9 thee according: Heb. upon thee, etc 10Behold the day, behold, it is come: the morning is gone forth; the rod hath blossomed, pride hath budded. 11Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness: none of them shall remain, nor of their multitude, nor of any of theirs: neither shall there be wailing for them.7.11 theirs: or, their tumultuous persons: Heb. tumult 12The time is come, the day draweth near: let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn: for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof. 13For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they were yet alive: for the vision is touching the whole multitude thereof, which shall not return; neither shall any strengthen himself in the iniquity of his life.7.13 although they…: Heb. though their life were yet among the living7.13 in the…: or, whose life is in his iniquity7.13 the iniquity: Heb. his iniquity 14They have blown the trumpet, even to make all ready; but none goeth to the battle: for my wrath is upon all the multitude thereof. 15The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within: he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.
16¶ But they that escape of them shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, every one for his iniquity. 17All hands shall be feeble, and all knees shall be weak as water.7.17 be weak…: Heb. go into water 18They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be upon all faces, and baldness upon all their heads. 19They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be removed: their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels: because it is the stumblingblock of their iniquity.7.19 removed: Heb. for a separation, or, uncleanness7.19 it is…: or, their iniquity is their stumblingblock
20¶ As for the beauty of his ornament, he set it in majesty: but they made the images of their abominations and of their detestable things therein: therefore have I set it far from them.7.20 set it far…: or, made it unto them an unclean thing 21And I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall pollute it. 22My face will I turn also from them, and they shall pollute my secret place: for the robbers shall enter into it, and defile it.7.22 robbers: or, burglers
23¶ Make a chain: for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence. 24Wherefore I will bring the worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses: I will also make the pomp of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be defiled.7.24 their holy…: or, they shall inherit their holy places 25Destruction cometh; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.7.25 Destruction: Heb. Cutting off 26Mischief shall come upon mischief, and rumour shall be upon rumour; then shall they seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the ancients. 27The king shall mourn, and the prince shall be clothed with desolation, and the hands of the people of the land shall be troubled: I will do unto them after their way, and according to their deserts will I judge them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.7.27 according…: Heb. with their judgments
Afslutningen nærmer sig
1Derefter sagde Herren til mig: 2„Du menneske, nu er enden nær for Israels folk, og det gælder for hele landet, at afslutningen nærmer sig. 3Nu er tiden kommet. Jeg udøser min vrede over jer og straffer jer for alle jeres afskyelige handlinger. 4Jeg viser ingen medlidenhed, for I må tage konsekvensen af jeres ondskab, så I kan indse, at jeg er Herren.
5Ulykkerne begynder at vælte ind over jer, for nu er tiden kommet. 6I har løbet linen ud, og straffen hænger over hovedet på jer. 7Solen er gået ned for jer, som bor i mit land. Fjenden er på vej, og I kommer snart til at høre skærende rædselsskrig på højene i stedet for glædesråb. 8-9Jeg vil give min vrede frit løb, så I rammes af min knusende dom for jeres afskyelige handlinger. Jeg viser ingen medlidenhed og skåner ingen. I må lide straffen for jeres ondskab og afgudsdyrkelse, så I kan indse, at jeg er Herren, og at det er mig, der straffer jer. 10Dommens dag er kommet, for jeres vold og stolthed har nået et klimaks. 11De rige og mægtige rammes af min vrede. De vil miste alt, og ingen af dem slipper med livet i behold.
12Tiden er inde, dagen er kommet. Den, der har gjort et godt køb, får ikke tid til at glæde sig over nyerhvervelsen, og den, der må sælge sine ejendele, får ikke tid til at mærke tabet, for min vrede rammer alt og alle. 13Hvis nogen fortryder et salg, bliver der ikke tid til at lade handelen gå tilbage, for min vrede rammer hele folket og kan ikke standses. Ingen undgår straffen for deres synd.
14Der blæses i vædderhornet og kaldes til krig, men ingen gør sig klar til kamp, for min vrede vil ramme dem alle. 15Uden for bymuren bliver krigere dræbt i kampen, og indenfor dør man af sult og sygdom. 16De, der undslipper, flygter op i bjergene og hænger med hovedet som skræmte duer. De sørger over deres synder. 17Man lader hænderne synke i afmagt, og alles knæ ryster af skræk. 18De klæder sig i sæk og aske, og rædsel står malet i deres ansigt. Deres glatbarberede hoveder viser deres fortvivlelse og skam.
19De vil smide deres sølvmønter væk, og deres guld vil overhovedet ikke gavne dem noget. Deres kostbarheder kan ikke redde dem, for på vredens dag er de intet værd. Sølv og guld kan ikke mætte de tomme maver, og for øvrigt var det deres jagt efter rigdom, som førte dem ud på syndens skråplan. 20De var så stolte af deres smykker, men de brugte dem til at lave afguder af. Derfor vil jeg gøre det sådan, at deres sølv og guld hænger dem langt ud af halsen. 21Gudløse folkeslag vil komme og overtage det, så de kan bruge det til deres egne afgudsbilleder. 22Jeg vil ikke røre en finger, når fjenderne trænger ind i templet og røver alt af værdi.
23Gør fangelænkerne parat til mit folk, for Jerusalem er fyldt med vold, og landet er fuld af mordere. 24Onde folkeslag vil overtage jeres huse, og nedbryde alt det, I er så stolte over. Jeres afgudshøje vil blive ødelagt. 25Skræk og rædsel vil overmande jer. I vil søge efter fred, men ikke finde den. 26Katastroferne vil vælte ind over jer, og I vil høre de forfærdeligste rygter. I vil spørge profeterne, om de har fået et syn, og I ville ønske, at præsterne havde svar på jeres spørgsmål, eller lederne havde nogle gode råd. Men det får I intet ud af. 27Kongen sørger, og fyrsterne står rådvilde og uden håb. Hele folket er lammet af frygt og forfærdelse. Jeg giver jer, hvad I har fortjent. Nu dømmer jeg jer, som altid havde så travlt med at dømme andre. Så må I da kunne indse, at jeg er Herren.”
