ב (Bet) The precious sons of Zion were worth their weight in gold – Alas! – but now they are treated like ¹  broken clay pots, made by a potter. ² 

כ (Kaf) The Lord fully vented ¹  his wrath; he poured out his fierce anger. ²  He started a fire in Zion; it consumed her foundations. ³ 

But on Mount Zion there will be a remnant of those who escape, ¹  and it will be a holy place once again. The descendants ²  of Jacob will conquer ³  those who had conquered them. ⁴ 

Those who have been delivered ¹  will go up on Mount Zion in order to rule over ²  Esau’s mountain. Then the Lord will reign as King! ³ 

Therefore, because of you, ¹  Zion will be plowed up like ²  a field, Jerusalem will become a heap of ruins, and the Temple Mount ³  will become a hill overgrown with brush! ⁴ 

Many nations have now assembled against you. They say, “Jerusalem must be desecrated, ¹  so we can gloat over Zion!” ² 

Shout for joy, Daughter Zion! ¹  Shout out, Israel! Be happy and boast with all your heart, Daughter Jerusalem!

On that day they will say ¹  to Jerusalem, “Don’t be afraid, Zion! Your hands must not be paralyzed from panic! ² 

“Sing out and be happy, Zion my daughter! ¹  For look, I have come; I will settle in your midst,” says the Lord.

“The Lord who rules over all says, ‘I am very much concerned for Zion; indeed, I am so concerned for her that my rage will fall on those who hurt her.’

This is what the Lord says about him: ¹  “The virgin daughter Zion ²  despises you, she makes fun of you; Daughter Jerusalem shakes her head after you. ³ 

The residents of Jebus said to David, “You cannot invade this place!” But David captured the fortress of Zion (that is, the City of David).

I wish the deliverance ¹  of Israel would come from Zion! When the Lord restores the well-being of his people, ²  may Jacob rejoice, ³  may Israel be happy! ⁴ 

It is lofty and pleasing to look at, ¹  a source of joy to the whole earth. ²  Mount Zion resembles the peaks of Zaphon; ³  it is the city of the great king.

I wish the deliverance ¹  of Israel would come from Zion! When God restores the well-being of his people, ²  may Jacob rejoice, ³  may Israel be happy! ⁴ 

It is like the dew of Hermon, ¹  which flows down upon the hills of Zion. ²  Indeed ³  that is where the Lord has decreed a blessing will be available – eternal life. ⁴ 

Come out, O maidens of Zion, and gaze upon King Solomon! He is wearing the crown with which his mother crowned him on his wedding day, on the most joyous day of his life! ¹ 

The Lord says, “The women ¹  of Zion are proud. They walk with their heads high ²  and flirt with their eyes. They skip along ³  and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. ⁴ 

At that time ¹  the sovereign master ²  will wash the excrement ³  from Zion’s women, he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem’s midst, ⁴  as he comes to judge and to bring devastation. ⁵ 

Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me ¹  are reminders and object lessons ²  in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion.