Wail, for the Lord’s day of judgment ¹  is near; it comes with all the destructive power of the sovereign judge. ² 

For the Lord has planned a day of revenge, ¹  a time when he will repay Edom for her hostility toward Zion. ² 

For I looked forward to the day of vengeance, and then payback time arrived. ¹ 

Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, ¹  for ²  all the high and mighty, for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;

So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail, both the shoots and stalk ¹  in one day.

Now they come into being, ¹  not in the past; before today you did not hear about them, so you could not say, ‘Yes, ²  I know about them.’

Each one says, ¹  ‘Come on, I’ll get some wine! Let’s guzzle some beer! Tomorrow will be just like today! We’ll have everything we want!’ ² 

They seek me day after day; they want to know my requirements, ¹  like a nation that does what is right and does not reject the law of their God. They ask me for just decrees; they want to be near God.

Look, the Lord’s day of judgment ¹  is coming; it is a day of cruelty and savage, raging anger, ²  destroying ³  the earth ⁴  and annihilating its sinners.

For the sovereign master, ¹  the Lord who commands armies, has planned a day of panic, defeat, and confusion. ²  In the Valley of Vision ³  people shout ⁴  and cry out to the hill. ⁵ 

“This is what Hezekiah says: ¹  ‘This is a day of distress, insults, ²  and humiliation, ³  as when a baby is ready to leave the birth canal, but the mother lacks the strength to push it through. ⁴ 

Is this really the kind of fasting I want? ¹  Do I want a day when people merely humble themselves, ²  bowing their heads like a reed and stretching out ³  on sackcloth and ashes? Is this really what you call a fast, a day that is pleasing to the Lord?