“Your country is devastated. Your cities are burned down. Your fields are destroyed right before your eyes by foreigners. Your fields are devastated and taken over by foreigners.
But these people are robbed and looted. They are all trapped in pits and hidden in prisons. They have become prey with no one to rescue them. They have become loot with no one to say, “Give it back.”
The Lord has sworn with his right hand and with his mighty arm, “I will never again let your enemies eat your grain, nor will foreigners drink the new wine which you made.”
Nation of Israel, I’m going to bring a nation from far away to attack you, declares the Lord. It is a nation that has lasted a long time. It is an ancient nation. You don’t know the language of this nation. You can’t understand what its people say.
They will devour your harvest and your food. They will devour your sons and your daughters. They will devour your flocks and your cattle. They will devour your grapevines and your fig trees. With their swords they will destroy the fortified cities you trust.
The snorting of horses can be heard from Dan. The neighing of stallions makes the whole land tremble. They are coming to devour the land and everything in it, the city and its people.
That is why I’m going to hand you over to the people in the east. They will possess your land. They will set up their camps and pitch their tents among you. They will eat your crops and drink your milk.
“The people of Israel plant the wind, but they harvest a storm. A field of grain that doesn’t ripen will never produce any grain. Even if it did produce grain, foreigners would eat it all.
then this is what I will do to you: I will terrorize you with disease and fever. You will suffer from eye problems and depression. You will plant your crops and get nothing because your enemies will eat them.
They’ll eat the offspring of your animals and the crops from your fields until you’re destroyed. They’ll leave you no grain, no new wine, no olive oil, no calves from your herds, and no lambs or kids from your flocks. They’ll continue to do this until they’ve completely ruined you.
Like swarms of locusts, they came with their livestock and their tents. They and their camels could not be counted. They came into the land only to ruin it.