<p class="poetry">Destructive forces will come against her false prophets;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">they will be shown to be fools!<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Destructive forces will come against her soldiers;p> <p class="poetry">they will be filled with terror!<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">Destructive forces will come against her horses and her<n id="1" /> chariots.p> <p class="poetry">Destructive forces will come against all the foreign troops within her;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">they will be as frightened as women!<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">Destructive forces will come against her treasures;p> <p class="poetry">they will be taken away as plunder!p>

<p class="poetry">Do not go out into the countryside.p> <p class="poetry">Do not travel on the roads.p> <p class="poetry">For the enemy is there with sword in hand.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">They are spreading terror everywhere.&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

<t /><p class="bodytext">The <sc>Lordsc> says,p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;The people of Israel who survivedp> <p class="poetry">death at the hands of the enemy<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">will find favor in the wildernessp> <p class="poetry">as they journey to find rest for themselves.p>

<p class="poetry">How long will you cry out,<n id="1" /> &#8216;Oh, sword of the <sc>Lordsc>,p> <p class="poetry">how long will it be before you stop killing?<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Go back into your sheath!p> <p class="poetry">Stay there and rest!&#8217;<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;Destructive forces will come against the Babylonians,&#8221;<n id="1" /> says the <sc>Lordsc>.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;They will come against the people who inhabit Babylonia,p> <p class="poetry">against her leaders and her men of wisdom.p>

<p class="poetry">A drought will come upon her land;p> <p class="poetry">her rivers and canals will be dried up.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">All of this will happen because her land is filled with idols.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">Her people act like madmen because of<n id="3" /> those idols they fear.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="poetry">So let their children die of starvation.p> <p class="poetry">Let them be cut down by the sword.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Let their wives lose their husbands and children.p> <p class="poetry">Let the older men die of disease<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">and the younger men die by the sword in battle.p>

<p class="bodytext">In response to all this<n id="1" /> I said, &#8220;Ah, Lord <sc>Godsc>,<n id="2" /> you have surely allowed<n id="3" /> the people of Judah and Jerusalem<n id="4" /> to be deceived by those who say, &#8216;You will be safe!&#8217;<n id="5" /> But in fact a sword is already at our throats.&#8221;<n id="6" />p>

<p class="poetry">&#8220;Make an announcement throughout Egypt.p> <p class="poetry">Proclaim it in Migdol, Memphis, and Tahpanhes.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;Take your positions and prepare to do battle.p> <p class="poetry">For the enemy army is destroying all the nations around you.&#8217;<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">I will make many stumble.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">They will fall over one another in their hurry to flee.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">They will say, &#8216;Get up!p> <p class="poetry">Let&#8217;s go back to our own people.p> <p class="poetry">Let&#8217;s go back to our homelandsp> <p class="poetry">because the enemy is coming to destroy us.&#8217;<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">People will not praise Moab any more.p> <p class="poetry">The enemy will capture Heshbon<n id="1" /> and plot<n id="2" /> how to destroy Moab,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">saying, &#8216;Come, let&#8217;s put an end to that nation!&#8217;p> <p class="poetry">City of Madmen, you will also be destroyed.<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">A destructive army will march against you.<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">Kill all the farmers who sow the seed in the land of Babylon.p> <p class="poetry">Kill all those who wield the sickle at harvest time.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">Let all the foreigners return to their own people.p> <p class="poetry">Let them hurry back to their own landsp> <p class="poetry">to escape destruction by that enemy army.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">The <sc>Lordsc> says,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Attack<n id="2" /> the land of Merathaimp> <p class="poetry">and the people who live in Pekod!<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">Pursue, kill, and completely destroy them!<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">Do just as I have commanded you!<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">A destructive army<n id="1" /> will come marchingp> <p class="poetry">over the hilltops in the desert.p> <p class="poetry">For the <sc>Lordsc> will use them as his destructive weapon<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">against<n id="3" /> everyone from one end of the land to the other.p> <p class="poetry">No one will be safe.<n id="4" />p>

<p class="bodytext">Then I said, &#8220;Oh, Lord <sc>Godsc>,<n id="1" /> look!<n id="2" /> The prophets are telling them that you said,<n id="3" /> &#8216;You will not experience war or suffer famine.<n id="4" /> I will give you lasting peace and prosperity in this land.&#8217;&#8221;<n id="5" />p>

I did not send those prophets, though they claim to be prophesying in my name. They may be saying, &#8216;No war or famine will happen in this land.&#8217; But I, the <sc>Lordsc>, say this about<n id="1" /> them: &#8216;War and starvation will kill those prophets.&#8217;<n id="2" />

<p class="poetry">If I go out into the countryside,p> <p class="poetry">I see those who have been killed in battle.p> <p class="poetry">If I go into the city,p> <p class="poetry">I see those who are sick because of starvation.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">For both prophet and priest go about their own businessp> <p class="poetry">in the land without having any real understanding.&#8217;&#8221;<n id="2" />p>

For take note, I am already beginning to bring disaster on the city that I call my own.<n id="1" /> So how can you possibly avoid being punished?<n id="2" /> You will not go unpunished! For I am proclaiming war against all who live on the earth. I, the <sc>Lordsc> who rules over all,<n id="3" /> affirm it!&#8217;<n id="4" />p>

<p class="bodytext">&#8220;I, the <sc>Lordsc>, say:<n id="1" /> &#8216;You and your people are saying<n id="2" /> about this place, &#8220;It lies in ruins. There are no people or animals in it.&#8221; That is true. The towns of Judah and the streets of Jerusalem<n id="3" /> will soon be desolate, uninhabited either by people or by animals. But happy sounds will again be heard in these places.