22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, And men of strength to mingle strong drink; 23 That justify the wicked for a reward, And take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! 24 Therefore as the tongue of fire devoureth the stubble, LORD of hosts, of Israel. 25 Therefore is the anger of the LORD kindled against His people, And He hath stretched forth His hand against them, and hath smitten them, And the hills did tremble, And their carcasses were as refuse in the midst of the streets. For all this His anger is not turned away, But His hand is stretched out still. 26 And He will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, And will hiss unto them from the end of the earth; And, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly; 27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; None shall slumber nor sleep; loosed, And all their bows bent; flint, And their wheels like a whirlwind; 29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, They shall roar like young lions, yea, they shall roar, And lay hold of the prey, and carry it away safe, And there shall be none to deliver. 30 And they shall roar against them in that day thereof. A Prophet Is Called 6 In the year that king Uzziah died I saw the Lord sitting upon a throne high and listed up, and His train filled the temple. 2 Above Him stood the seraphim; each one had six wings: with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. 3 And one called unto another, and said: Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts; 4 And the posts of the door were moved at the voice of them that called, and the house was filled with smoke. 5 Then said I: Woe is me! for I am undone; unclean lips; The LORD of hosts. 6 Then flew unto me one of the seraphim, with a glowing stone in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar; 7 and he touched my mouth with it, and said: Lo, this hath touched thy lips; And thy sin expiated. Whom shall I send, And who will go for us? Then I said: 'Here am I; send me.' 9 And He said: 'Go, and tell this people: Hear ye indeed, but understand not; And see ye indeed, but perceive not. 10 Make the heart of this people fat. And make their ears heavy, Return, and be healed.' 11 Then said I: ‘Lord, how long?' And He answered: ‘Until cities be waste without inhabitant, '12 And the LORD have removed men far away, And the forsaken places be many in the midst of the land. 13 And if there be yet a tenth in it, it shall again be eaten up; as a terebinth, and as an oak, whose stock remaineth, when they cast their leaves, so the holy seed shall be the stock thereof.' The Assyrian Invasion 10 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, And to the writers that write iniquity; 2 To turn aside the needy from judgment, And to take away the right of the poor of My people, prey! 3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation, And in the ruin which shall come from far? And where will ye leave your glory? 4 They can do nought except crouch under the captives, 5 O Asshur, the rod of Mine anger, In whose hand as a staff is Mine indignation! 6 I do send him against an ungodly nation, And against the people of My wrath do I give him a charge, To take the spoil, and to take the prey, streets. Neither doth his heart think so; And to cut off nations not a few. 8 For he saith: ‘Are not my princes all of them kings? 9 Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus? 10 As my hand hath reached the kingdoms of the idols, Whose graven images did exceed them of Jerusalem and of Samaria; 11 Shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, So do to Jerusalem and her idols?' 12 Wherefore it shall come to pass, that when the Lord hath performed His whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks. 13 For he hath said: By the strength of my hand I have done it, peoples, inhabitants; 14 And my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples; And as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken, |