Strong people will become tinder for a fire, and their work will be the spark. Both of them will burn together, and there will be no one to put out the fire.
I send them against a godless nation. In my fury I order them against the people to take their belongings, loot them, and trample on them like mud in the streets.
That is why a curse devours the earth, and its people are punished for their guilt. That is why those who live on the earth are burned up, and only a few people are left.
O Lord, your power is visible, but they do not see it. They will see how devoted your people are, and they will be put to shame. Your burning anger will destroy your enemies.
People will oppress each other, and everyone will oppress his neighbor. The young will make fun of the old, and common people will make fun of their superiors.
The sinners in Zion are terrified. Trembling seizes the ungodly. Can any of us live through a fire that destroys? Can any of us live through a fire that burns forever?
So he poured out his burning anger and the horrors of war on them. It engulfed them in flames, but they did not understand. It burned them, but they did not take it to heart.
As flames burn up straw and dry grass shrivels in flames, so their roots will rot, and their blossoms will blow away like dust. They have rejected the teachings of the Lord of Armies and have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
On that day they will roar over their prey as the sea roars. If they look at the land, they will see only darkness and distress. Even the light will be darkened by thick clouds.
Honor the Lord your God before it gets dark, before your feet stumble on the mountains in the twilight. You will look for light, but the Lord will turn it into the shadow of death and change it into deep darkness.
Tell the forest in the Negev, ‘Listen to the Lord’s word. This is what the Almighty Lord says: I am about to set fire to you to destroy all your green trees and all your dry trees. The blazing fire will not be put out. It will burn the whole land from the south to the north.
It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and overcast skies. A large and mighty army will spread over the mountains like the dawn. Nothing like this has ever happened. Nothing like this will ever happen again.
In front of this army a fire burns. Behind it flames are blazing. In front of it the land is like the garden of Eden. Behind it the land is like a barren desert. Nothing escapes it!
How horrible it will be for those who long for the day of the Lord! Why do you long for that day? The day of the Lord is one of darkness and not light.
The descendants of Jacob will be like a fire. The descendants of Joseph will be like a flame. But the descendants of Esau will be like straw. They will be burned and destroyed. There will be no one left among the descendants of Esau.” The Lord has spoken.
A son treats his father with contempt. A daughter rebels against her mother. A daughter-in-law rebels against her mother-in-law. People’s enemies are the members of their own families.
The Lord declares, “I will no longer have pity on those who live in the land. I am going to hand the people over to their neighbors and their king, who will crush the land. And I won’t rescue any of them from their power.”
So I said, “I won’t be your shepherd. Let those that are dying die. Let those that are missing stay missing. And let those that are left devour each other.”
“Certainly the day is coming! It will burn like a furnace. All arrogant people and all evildoers will be ⌞like⌟ straw. The day that is coming will burn them up completely,” says the Lord of Armies. “It won’t leave a single root or branch.