While Joseph was in the well, the brothers sat down to eat. They looked up and saw a group of traders traveling from Gilead to Egypt. Their camels were carrying many different spices and riches.
Then their father Israel said, “If it is really true, take Benjamin with you. But take some gifts to the governor. Take some of the things we have been able to gather in our land. Take him some honey, pistachio nuts, almonds, spices, and myrrh.
Lord, have you completely rejected the nation of Judah? Do you hate Zion? You hurt us so badly that we cannot be made well again. Why did you do that? We were hoping for peace, but nothing good has come. We were hoping for a time of healing, but only terror came.
My dear Jerusalem, what can I say about you? What can I compare you to? What can I say you are like? How can I comfort you, city of Zion? You have been hurt much too badly for anyone to heal.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad had many cattle. These people looked at the land near Jazer and Gilead. They saw that this land was good for their cattle.
As a well keeps its water fresh, so Jerusalem keeps its wickedness fresh. I hear about the robbing and violence in this city all the time. I see nothing but pain and sickness there all the time.
The Lord says, “I will make the city of Jerusalem a pile of garbage. It will be a home for jackals. I will destroy the cities in the land of Judah, so no one will live there.”
This is what the Lord says about the palace where the king of Judah lives: “The palace is tall like the forests of Gilead, like the mountains of Lebanon. But I will make it like a desert, as empty as a city where no one lives.