“This is what the sovereign Lord says: This is Jerusalem; I placed her in the center of the nations with countries all around her.

I acted for the sake of my reputation, so that I would not be profaned before the nations in whose sight I had brought them out.

“‘I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries; then I will bring you to your land.

Then, when my sanctuary is among them forever, the nations will know that I, the Lord, sanctify Israel.’” ¹ 

“Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because you are more arrogant ¹  than the nations around you, ²  you have not followed my statutes and have not carried out my regulations. You have not even ³  carried out the regulations of the nations around you!

“Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: I – even I – am against you, ¹  and I will execute judgment ²  among you while the nations watch. ³ 

Then you will know that I am the Lord, whose statutes you have not followed and whose regulations you have not carried out. Instead you have behaved according to the regulations of the nations around you!’”

I acted for the sake of my reputation, ¹  so that I would not be profaned before the nations among whom they lived, ²  before whom I revealed myself by bringing them out of the land of Egypt. ³ 

But I refrained from doing so, ¹  and acted instead for the sake of my reputation, so that I would not be profaned before the nations in whose sight I had brought them out.

“This is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Moab ¹  and Seir say, “Look, the house of Judah is like all the other nations.”

It will be the most insignificant of the kingdoms; it will never again exalt itself over the nations. I will make them so small that they will not rule over the nations.

This is a lament; they will chant it. The daughters of the nations will chant it. They will chant it over Egypt and over all her hordes, declares the sovereign Lord.”

I will prepare for them a healthy ¹  planting. They will no longer be victims ²  of famine in the land and will no longer bear the insults of the nations.

“‘You said, “These two nations, these two lands ¹  will be mine, and we will possess them,” ²  – although the Lord was there –

So this is what the sovereign Lord says: I vow ¹  that the nations around you will endure insults as well.

But when they arrived in the nations where they went, they profaned my holy name. It was said of them, ‘These are the people of the Lord, yet they have departed from his land.’

Then the nations which remain around you will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruins and replanted what was desolate. I, the Lord, have spoken – and I will do it!’

“I will display my majesty ¹  among the nations. All the nations will witness the judgment I have executed, and the power I have exhibited ²  among them.

When I have brought them back from the peoples and gathered them from the countries of their enemies, I will magnify myself among them in the sight of many nations.

Then they will know that I am the Lord their God, because I sent them into exile among the nations, and then gathered them into their own land. I will not leave any of them in exile ¹  any longer.