2
1 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Moab has committed three crimes –
make that four! – I will not revoke my decree of judgment.
They burned the bones of Edom’s king into lime.
2 So I will set Moab on fire,
and it will consume Kerioth’s fortresses.
Moab will perish in the heat of battle
amid war cries and the blaring of the ram’s horn.
3 I will remove Moab’s leader;
I will kill all Moab’s officials with him.”
The Lord has spoken!
4 This is what the Lord|strong="H3069" says:
“Because Judah has committed three covenant transgressions –
make that four! – I will not revoke my decree of judgment.
They rejected the Lord’s law;
they did not obey his commands.
Their false gods,
to which their fathers were loyal,
led them astray.
5 So I will set Judah on fire,
and it will consume Jerusalem’s fortresses.”
God Will Judge Israel
6 This is what the Lord says:
“Because Israel has committed three covenant transgressions –
make that four! – I will not revoke my decree of judgment.
They sold the innocent for silver,
the needy for a pair of sandals.
7 They trample on the dirt-covered heads of the poor;
they push the destitute away.
A man and his father go to the same girl;
in this way they show disrespect for my moral purity.
8 They stretch out on clothing seized as collateral;
they do so right beside every altar!
They drink wine bought with the fines they have levied;
they do so right in the temple of their God!
9 For Israel’s sake I destroyed the Amorites.
They were as tall as cedars
and as strong as oaks,
but I destroyed the fruit on their branches
and their roots in the ground.
10 I brought you up from the land of Egypt;
I led you through the wilderness for forty years
so you could take the Amorites’ land as your own.
11 I made some of your sons prophets
and some of your young men Nazirites.
Is this not true, you Israelites?”
The Lord is speaking!
12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine;
you commanded the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy!’
13 Look! I will press you down,
like a cart loaded down with grain presses down.
14 Fast runners will find no place to hide;
strong men will have no strength left;
warriors will not be able to save their lives.
15 Archers will not hold their ground;
fast runners will not save their lives,
nor will those who ride horses.
16 Bravehearted warriors will run away naked in that day.”
The Lord is speaking!