Fifth Vision: The Lord beside the Altar

9 I saw the Lord standing beside the altar, t and He said:

Strike the capitals of the pillars u

so that the thresholds shake;

knock them down on the heads of all the people.

Then I will kill the rest of them with the sword. v

None of those who flee will get away; w

none of the fugitives will escape.

2 If they dig down to * Sheol, x

from there My hand will take them;

if they climb up to heaven, y

from there I will bring them down.

3 If they hide themselves

on the top of Carmel,

from there I will track them down z

and seize them;

if they conceal themselves

from My sight on the sea floor, a

from there I will command

the sea serpent to bite them. b

4 And if they are driven

by their enemies into captivity, c

from there I will command

the sword to kill them. d

I will fix My eyes on them

for harm and not for good. e

5 The Lord, the God of * Hosts—

He touches the earth; f

it melts, and all who dwell in it mourn;

all of it rises like the Nile

and subsides like the Nile of Egypt. g

6 He builds His upper chambers

in the heavens h

and lays the foundation of His vault

on the earth. i

He summons the waters of the sea

and pours them out on the face of the earth. j

* Yahweh is His name. k

Announcement of Judgment

7 Israelites, are you not like the * Cushites to Me? l

This is the Lord’s declaration.

Didn’t I bring Israel from the land of Egypt,

the Philistines from Caphtor, m n

and the Arameans from Kir? o

8 Look, the eyes of the Lord God

are on the sinful kingdom, p

and I will destroy it

from the face of the earth. q

However, I will not totally destroy

the house of Jacob r—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

9 for I am about to give the command,

and I will shake the house of Israel s

among all the nations,

as one shakes a sieve,

but not a pebble will fall to the ground.

10 All the sinners among My people t

who say: “Disaster will never overtake u

or confront us,” v

will die by the sword.

Announcement of Restoration

11 In that day

I will restore the fallen booth w of David: x

I will repair its gaps,

restore its ruins, y

and rebuild it as in the days of old, z

12 so that they may possess

the remnant of Edom a

and all the nations

that are called by My name b c—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

He will do this.

13 Hear this! The days are coming—

this is the Lord’s declaration—

when the plowman will overtake the reaper d

and the one who treads grapes,

the sower of seed.

The mountains will drip with sweet wine,

and all the hills will flow with it. e

14 I will restore the fortunes of My people Israel. f g

They will rebuild and occupy ruined cities, h

plant vineyards and drink their wine,

make gardens and eat their produce. i

15 I will plant them on their land,

and they will never again be uprooted

from the land I have given them. j

Yahweh your God has spoken.