Why did you leave secretly and trick me? You didn’t even tell me you were leaving. I would have sent you on your way rejoicing, with songs accompanied by tambourines and lyres.
The king of Assyria has human power on his side, but the Lord our God is on our side to help us and fight our battles.” So the people were encouraged by what King Hezekiah of Judah said.
The Almighty Lord of Armies says: My people who live in Zion, don’t be afraid of the Assyrians when they strike with a rod or when they raise their staff against you as the Egyptians did.
Then the Lord of Armies will raise his whip against them. As he struck down Midian at the Rock of Oreb and raised his staff over the water, so he will lift it as he did in Egypt.
The Lord will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian Sea. He will wave his hand over the Euphrates River with his scorching wind and divide it into seven streams so that people can walk over it in their sandals.
People will go into caves in the rocks and into holes in the ground because of the Lord’s terrifying presence and the honor of his majesty when he rises to terrify the earth.
You will sing a song like the song you sing on a festival night. Your hearts will be happy like someone going out with a flute on the way to the Lord’s mountain, to the rock of Israel.
This is what the Lord said to me: A lion, even a young lion, growls over its prey when a crowd of shepherds is called to fight it. It isn’t frightened by their voices or disturbed by the noise they make. So the Lord of Armies will come to fight for Mount Zion and its hill.
Once again I will build you up, and you will be rebuilt, my dear people Israel. Once again you will take your tambourines, and you will go dancing with happy people.
You were in Eden, God’s garden. You were covered with every kind of precious stone: red quartz, topaz, crystal, beryl, onyx, gray quartz, sapphire, turquoise, and emerald. Your settings and your sockets were made of gold when you were created.
Many people will be shocked by what I will do to you. Their kings will shudder when I swing my sword in their faces. When you die, all of them will tremble in fear for their own lives.
After that, you will come to the hill of God, where the Philistines have a military post. When you arrive at the city, you will meet a group of prophets prophesying as they come from the worship site. They will be led by men playing a harp, a tambourine, a flute, and a lyre.
As they arrived, David was returning from a campaign against the Philistines. Women from all of Israel’s cities came to meet King Saul. They sang and danced, accompanied by tambourines, joyful music, and triangles.