16 Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord God Almighty, says:

“There will be wailing in all the streets

and cries of anguish in every public square.

The farmers will be summoned to weep

and the mourners to wail.

17 There will be wailing in all the vineyards,

for I will pass through your midst,”

says the Lord.

18 Woe to you who long

for the day of the Lord!

Why do you long for the day of the Lord?

That day will be darkness, not light.

19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion

only to meet a bear,

as though he entered his house

and rested his hand on the wall

only to have a snake bite him.

20 Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—

pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?

16 Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus;

Wailing shall be in all streets;

And they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas!

And they shall call the husbandman to mourning,

And such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.

17 And in all vineyards shall be wailing:

For I will pass through thee, saith the Lord.

18 Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord!

To what end is it for you?

The day of the Lord is darkness, and not light.

19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him;

Or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

20 Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light?

Even very dark, and no brightness in it?

16 Therefore, this is what the Lord, the Lord God of Heaven’s Armies, says:

“There will be crying in all the public squares

and mourning in every street.

Call for the farmers to weep with you,

and summon professional mourners to wail.

17 There will be wailing in every vineyard,

for I will destroy them all,”

says the Lord.

18 What sorrow awaits you who say,

“If only the day of the Lord were here!”

You have no idea what you are wishing for.

That day will bring darkness, not light.

19 In that day you will be like a man who runs from a lion—

only to meet a bear.

Escaping from the bear, he leans his hand against a wall in his house—

and he’s bitten by a snake.

20 Yes, the day of the Lord will be dark and hopeless,

without a ray of joy or hope.

16 Therefore the Lord God of hosts, the Lord, says this:

“There shall be wailing in all streets,

And they shall say in all the highways,

‘Alas! Alas!’

They shall call the farmer to mourning,

And skillful lamenters to wailing.

17 In all vineyards there shall be wailing,

For I will pass through you,”

Says the Lord.

18 Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!

For what good is the day of the Lord to you?

It will be darkness, and not light.

19 It will be as though a man fled from a lion,

And a bear met him!

Or as though he went into the house,

Leaned his hand on the wall,

And a serpent bit him!

20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light?

Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it?

16 This is what the Lord, the Lord God All-Powerful, says:

“People will be crying in all the streets;

they will be saying, ‘Oh, no!’ in the public places.

They will call the farmers to come and weep

and will pay people to cry out loud for them.

17 People will be crying in all the vineyards,

because I will pass among you to punish you,” says the Lord.

18 How terrible it will be for you who want

the Lord’s day of judging to come.

Why do you want that day to come?

It will bring darkness for you, not light.

19 It will be like someone who runs from a lion

and meets a bear,

or like someone who goes into his house

and puts his hand on the wall,

and then is bitten by a snake.

20 So the Lord’s day of judging will bring darkness, not light;

it will be very dark, not light at all.

16 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all the broad ways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful in lamentation to wailing. 17 And in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah.

18 Woe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! Wherefore would ye have the day of Jehovah? It is darkness, and not light. 19 As if a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. 20 Shall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

16 Therefore thus saith Jehovah, the God of hosts, the Lord: Wailing shall be in all broadways; and they shall say in all the streets, Alas! alas! And they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such as are skilful of lamentation to wailing. 17 And in all vineyards shall be wailing; for I will pass through the midst of thee, saith Jehovah. 18 Woe unto you that desire the day of Jehovah! To what end is the day of Jehovah for you? It shall be darkness and not light: 19 as if a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him. 20 Shall not the day of Jehovah be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

16 This is what the Lord, the Almighty God of Armies, says: 

There will be loud crying in every city square, 

and people will say in every street, “Oh, no!” 

They will call on farmers to mourn 

and on professional mourners to cry loudly. 

17 There will be loud crying in every vineyard, 

because I will pass through your land ⸤with death⸥. 

The Lord has said this. 

18 How horrible it will be for those who long for the day of the Lord! 

Why do you long for that day? 

The day of the Lord is one of darkness and not light. 

19 It is like a person who flees from a lion 

only to be attacked by a bear. 

It is like a person who goes home and puts his hand on the wall 

only to be bitten by a snake. 

20 The day of the Lord brings darkness and not light. 

It is pitch black, with no light. 

16 Therefore Yahweh, the God of Hosts, the Lord, says:

There will be wailing in all the public squares;

they will cry out in anguish in all the streets.

The farmer will be called on to mourn,

and professional mourners to wail.

17 There will be wailing in all the vineyards,

for I will pass among you.

The Lord has spoken.

18 Woe to you who long for the Day of the Lord!

What will the Day of the Lord be for you?

It will be darkness and not light.

19 It will be like a man who flees from a lion

only to have a bear confront him.

He goes home and rests his hand against the wall

only to have a snake bite him.

20 Won’t the Day of the Lord

be darkness rather than light,

even gloom without any brightness in it?

16 Therefore thus says the Lord, the God of hosts, the Lord:

In all the squares there shall be wailing;

and in all the streets they shall say, “Alas! alas!”

They shall call the farmers to mourning,

and those skilled in lamentation, to wailing;

17 in all the vineyards there shall be wailing,

for I will pass through the midst of you,

says the Lord.

18 Alas for you who desire the day of the Lord!

Why do you want the day of the Lord?

It is darkness, not light;

19 as if someone fled from a lion,

and was met by a bear;

or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall,

and was bitten by a snake.

20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light,

and gloom with no brightness in it?

16 Therefore, thus says Yahweh, the God of hosts, my Lord, “In all of the public squares there will be wailing, and in all of the streets they will say, ‘Alas, alas!’ They shall call the farmers to mourning and to wailing, to those who are skilled in lamentation. 17 And in all of the vineyards there will be wailing, because I will pass in your midst,” says Yahweh.

18 Alas, those who desire the day of Yahweh, why is this for you the day of Yahweh? It will be darkness and not light! 19 It will be as if a man fled from a lion and a bear met him; or he went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall and a snake bit him. 20 Is not the day of Yahweh darkness and not light, and pitch dark with no brightness in it?

16 The Lord God rules over all. The Lord says,

“People will sob in all of the streets.

They will be very sad in every market place.

Even farmers will be told to cry loudly.

People will sob over the dead.

17 Workers will cry in all of the vineyards.

That is because I will punish you,”

says the Lord.

18 How terrible it will be for you

who long for the day of the Lord!

Why do you want it to come?

That day will be dark, not light.

19 It will be like a man running away from a lion

only to meet a bear.

He enters his house and rests his hand on a wall

only to be bitten by a snake.

20 The day of the Lord will be dark, not light.

It will be very black.

There won’t be a ray of sunlight anywhere.

16 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts, the Lord,

“There is wailing in all the plazas,

And in all the streets they say, ‘Alas! Alas!’

They also call the farmer to mourning

And professional mourners to lamentation.

17 “And in all the vineyards there is wailing,

Because I will pass through the midst of you,” says the Lord.

18 Alas, you who are longing for the day of the Lord,

For what purpose will the day of the Lord be to you?

It will be darkness and not light;

19 As when a man flees from a lion

And a bear meets him,

Or goes home, leans his hand against the wall

And a snake bites him.

20 Will not the day of the Lord be darkness instead of light,

Even gloom with no brightness in it?