The Punishment of Samaria

8 The Lord sent a word against pJacob,

And it has fallen on Israel.

9 All the people will know—

Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—

Who say in pride and arrogance of heart:

10 “The bricks have fallen down,

But we will rebuild with hewn stones;

The sycamores are cut down,

But we will replace them with cedars.”

11 Therefore the Lord shall set up

The adversaries of Rezin against him,

And spur his enemies on,

12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind;

And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth.

For all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is 4stretched out still.

13 For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them,

Nor do they seek the Lord of hosts.

14 Therefore the Lord will cut off head and tail from Israel,

Palm branch and bulrush qin one day.

15 The elder and honorable, he is the head;

The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.

16 For rthe leaders of this people cause them to err,

And those who are led by them are destroyed.

17 Therefore the Lord swill have no joy in their young men,

Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows;

For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer,

And every mouth speaks 5folly.

tFor all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

18 For wickedness uburns as the fire;

It shall devour the briers and thorns,

And kindle in the thickets of the forest;

They shall mount up like rising smoke.

19 Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts

vThe land is burned up,

And the people shall be as fuel for the fire;

wNo man shall spare his brother.

20 And he shall 6snatch on the right hand

And be hungry;

He shall devour on the left hand

xAnd not be satisfied;

yEvery man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.

21 Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh;

Together they shall be zagainst Judah.

aFor all this His anger is not turned away,

But His hand is stretched out still.

10 “Woe to those who adecree unrighteous decrees,

Who write misfortune,

Which they have prescribed

2 To rob the needy of justice,

And to take what is right from the poor of My people,

That widows may be their prey,

And that they may rob the fatherless.