9  Behold, nthe day of the Lord comes,

cruel, with wrath and fierce anger,

to make the land a desolation

and rto destroy its sinners from it.

10  sFor the stars of the heavens and their constellations

will not give their light;

tthe sun will be dark at its rising,

and the moon will not shed its light.

11  I will punish uthe world for its evil,

and the wicked for their iniquity;

I will vput an end to the pomp of the arrogant,

wand lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless.

12  I will make xpeople more rare than fine gold,

and mankind than the ygold of Ophir.

13  Therefore zI will make the heavens tremble,

and the earth will be shaken out of its place,

at the wrath of the Lord of hosts

in the day of his fierce anger.

14  And like a hunted gazelle,

or like sheep with none to gather them,

aeach will turn to his own people,

and each will flee to his own land.

15  Whoever is found will be thrust through,

and whoever is caught will fall by the sword.

16  bTheir infants will be dashed in pieces

before their eyes;

their houses will be plundered

and their wives ravished.

17  Behold, cI am stirring up the Medes against them,

who have no regard for silver

and do not delight in gold.

18  dTheir bows will slaughter4 the young men;

they will have no mercy on the fruit of the womb;

their eyes will not pity children.

19  And Babylon, ethe glory of kingdoms,

the splendor and pomp of the Chaldeans,

will be flike Sodom and Gomorrah

when God overthrew them.

20  gIt will never be inhabited

or lived in for all generations;

no hArab will pitch his tent there;

no ishepherds will make their flocks lie down there.