Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

3 See now, the Lord,

the Lord Almighty,

is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah

both supply and support:c

all supplies of foodd and all supplies of water,e

2 the hero and the warrior,f

the judge and the prophet,

the divinerg and the elder,h

3 the captain of fiftyi and the man of rank,j

the counselor, skilled craftsmank and clever enchanter.l

4 “I will make mere youths their officials;

children will rule over them.”m

5 People will oppress each other—

man against man, neighbor against neighbor.n

The young will rise up against the old,

the nobody against the honored.

6 A man will seize one of his brothers

in his father’s house, and say,

“You have a cloak, you be our leader;

take charge of this heap of ruins!”

7 But in that dayo he will cry out,

“I have no remedy.p

I have no foodq or clothing in my house;

do not make me the leader of the people.”r

8 Jerusalem staggers,

Judah is falling;s

their wordst and deedsu are against the Lord,

defyingv his glorious presence.

9 The look on their faces testifiesw against them;

they parade their sin like Sodom;x

they do not hide it.

Woe to them!

They have brought disastery upon themselves.

10 Tell the righteous it will be wellz with them,

for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.a

11 Woe to the wicked!b

Disasterc is upon them!

They will be paid backd

for what their hands have done.e

12 Youthsf oppress my people,

women rule over them.

My people, your guides lead you astray;g

they turn you from the path.

13 The Lord takes his place in court;h

he rises to judgei the people.

14 The Lord enters into judgmentj

against the elders and leaders of his people:

“It is you who have ruined my vineyard;

the plunderk from the poorl is in your houses.

15 What do you mean by crushing my peoplem

and grindingn the faces of the poor?”o

declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.p

16 The Lord says,

“The women of Zionq are haughty,

walking along with outstretched necks,r

flirting with their eyes,

strutting along with swaying hips,

with ornaments jingling on their ankles.

17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion;

the Lord will make their scalps bald.s”

18 In that dayt the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,u 19 the earrings and braceletsv and veils,w 20 the headdressesx and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms, 21 the signet rings and nose rings,y 22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks,z the purses 23 and mirrors, and the linen garmentsa and tiarasb and shawls.

24 Instead of fragrancec there will be a stench;d

instead of a sash,e a rope;

instead of well-dressed hair, baldness;f

instead of fine clothing, sackcloth;g

instead of beauty,h branding.i

25 Your men will fall by the sword,j

your warriors in battle.k

26 The gatesl of Zion will lament and mourn;m

destitute,n she will sit on the ground.o

4 In that dayp seven women

will take hold of one manq

and say, “We will eat our own foodr

and provide our own clothes;

only let us be called by your name.

Take away our disgrace!”s

The Branch of the Lord

2 In that dayt the Branch of the Lordu will be beautifulv and glorious, and the fruitw of the land will be the pride and gloryx of the survivorsy in Israel. 3 Those who are left in Zion,z who remaina in Jerusalem, will be called holy,b all who are recordedc among the living in Jerusalem. 4 The Lord will wash away the filthd of the women of Zion;e he will cleansef the bloodstainsg from Jerusalem by a spirita of judgmenth and a spiritb of fire.i 5 Then the Lord will createj over all of Mount Zionk and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night;l over everything the gloryc m will be a canopy.n 6 It will be a sheltero and shade from the heat of the day, and a refugep and hiding place from the stormq and rain.