But the Lord says:\par “Bad people stole from the poor people.\par They took things from helpless people.\par But now I will stand and defend those weary (tired) people.”\par
Lord, get up {\cf2\super [37]} and show your anger!\par My enemy is angry,\par so stand and fight against him.\par Lord, get up and demand fairness!\par
\{Assyria {\cf2\super [119]} thinks he is great.\} But the Lord All-Powerful will send a terrible disease against Assyria. Assyria will lose his wealth and power like a sick man loses weight. Then Assyria’s glory will be destroyed. It will be like a fire burning until everything is gone.
Watch! Our Master, the Lord All-Powerful, will chop down the great tree (Assyria). The Lord will do this with his great power. The great and important people will be cut down—they will become not important.
People will hide behind rocks and in cracks in the ground. People will be afraid of the Lord and his great power. This will happen when the Lord stands to make the earth shake.
Then the people will hide in cracks in the rocks. They will do this because they will be afraid of the Lord and his great power. This will happen when the Lord stands to make the earth shake.
The Lord All-Powerful will judge fairly, and people will know he is great. The Holy God will do the things that are right, and the people will respect him.
Oh, it will be very bad for you people taking it easy in Zion, {\cf2\super [75]} \par and for you people who feel so safe on Mount Samaria.\par You are “important” leaders\par of the most important nation!\par The “House of Israel”\par comes to you \{for advice\}!\par
The Lord said, “So just wait! Wait for me to stand and judge you. I have the right to bring people from many nations and use them to punish you. I will use those people to show my anger against you. I will use them to show how upset I am—and the whole country will be destroyed!