I have surely heard Ephraim moaning, ‘You disciplined me, and I have been disciplined like an untrained calf. Take me back, so that I can return, for you, Lord, are my God.
Lord, I have heard the report about you; Lord, I stand in awe of your deeds. Revive your work in these years; make it known in these years. In your wrath remember mercy!
The flocks will again pass under the hands of the one who counts them in the cities of the hill country, the cities of the Judean foothills, the cities of the Negev, the land of Benjamin #– #the areas around Jerusalem and in Judah’s cities, says the Lord.
‘This is what the Lord says: In this place, which you say is a ruin, without people or animals #– #that is, in Judah’s cities and Jerusalem’s streets that are a desolation without people, without inhabitants, and without animals #– #there will be heard again