"I senta plagueamong you after the mannerof Egypt;I slewyour youngmenby the swordalongwith your capturedhorses,And I made the stenchof your campriseup in your nostrils;Yet you have not returnedto Me," declaresthe LORD.
In thosedaysthe LORDbeganto cutoff[portions] from Israel;and Hazaeldefeatedthem throughoutthe territoryof Israel:
So the angerof the LORDwas kindledagainst Israel,and He gavethem continuallyinto the handof Hazaelkingof Aram,and into the handof Ben-hadadthe sonof Hazael.
For he leftto Jehoahazof the armynot morethanfiftyhorsemenand tenchariotsand 10,000footmen,for the kingof Aramhad destroyedthem and madethem like the dustat threshing.
Hazaelsaid,"Whydoes my lordweep?"Then he answered,"BecauseI knowthe evilthat you will doto the sonsof Israel:their strongholdsyou will seton fire,and their youngmenyou will killwith the sword,and their littleonesyou will dashin pieces,and their womenwith childyou will ripup."
But the LORDhardenedPharaoh'sheart,and he was not willingto letthem go.
Mosesand Aaronwentto Pharaohand saidto him, "Thussaysthe LORD,the Godof the Hebrews,'Howlongwill you refuseto humbleyourself beforeMe? LetMy peoplego,that they may serveMe.
"Thus I will hardenPharaoh'sheart,and he will chaseafterthem; and I will be honoredthrough Pharaohand allhis army,and the Egyptianswill knowthat I am the LORD."And they didso.
And He said,"Ifyou will giveearnestheedto the voiceof the LORDyour God,and dowhat is rightin His sight,and giveearto His commandments,and keepallHis statutes,I will putnoneof the diseaseson you whichI have puton the Egyptians;for I, the LORD,am your healer."
Then the magicianssaidto Pharaoh,"Thisis the fingerof God."But Pharaoh'sheartwas hardened,and he did not listento them, as the LORDhad said.
And the LORDhardenedPharaoh'sheart,and he did not listento them, justas the LORDhad spokento Moses.
"Stillyou exaltyourself against My peopleby not lettingthem go.
So their slainwill be thrownout, And their corpseswill giveofftheir stench,And the mountainswill be drenchedwith their blood.
Behold,allyou who kindlea fire,Who encircleyourselves with firebrands,Walkin the lightof your fireAnd among the brandsyou have setablaze.Thisyou will havefrom My hand:You will liedownin torment.
The Arameanson the eastand the Philistineson the west;And they devourIsraelwith gapingjaws.In [spite of] allthis,His angerdoes not turnawayAnd His handis stillstretchedout.
Yet the peopledo not turnbackto Him who struckthem, Nordo they seekthe LORDof hosts.
Thereforethe Lorddoes not takepleasurein their youngmen,Nordoes He havepityon their orphansor their widows;For everyoneof them is godlessand an evildoer,And everymouthis speakingfoolishness.In [spite of] allthis,His angerdoes not turnawayAnd His handis stillstretchedout.
therefore,thussaysthe LORDof hosts,"Behold,I am about to punishthem! The youngmenwill dieby the sword,their sonsand daughterswill dieby famine;
"I will appointoverthem fourkinds[of doom]," declaresthe LORD:"the swordto slay,the dogsto dragoff, and the birdsof the skyand the beastsof the earthto devourand destroy.
"They will dieof deadlydiseases,they will not be lamentedor buried;they will be as dungon the surfaceof the groundand cometo an endby swordand famine,and their carcasseswill becomefoodfor the birdsof the skyand for the beastsof the earth."
Therefore,givetheir childrenover to famineAnd deliverthem up to the powerof the sword;And let their wivesbecomechildlessand widowed.Let their menalso be smittento death,Their youngmenstruckdownby the swordin battle.
"Moabhas been destroyedand men have goneup to his cities;His choicestyoungmenhave also gonedownto the slaughter,"Declaresthe King,whose nameis the LORDof hosts.
"Therefore,her youngmenwill fallin her streets,And allthe menof warwill be silencedin that day,"declaresthe LORDof hosts.
O LORD,do not Your eyes[look] for truth?You have smittenthem, [But] they did not weaken;You have consumedthem, But they refusedto takecorrection.They have madetheir facesharderthanrock;They have refusedto repent.
But I am fullof the wrathof the LORD;I am wearywith holding[it] in. "Pour[it] out on the childrenin the streetAnd on the gatheringof youngmentogether;For bothhusbandand wifeshall be taken,The agedand the veryold.
Speak,"Thussaysthe LORD,'The corpsesof menwill falllike dungon the openfield,And like the sheafafterthe reaper,But noonewill gather[them].'"
They will not returnto the landof Egypt;But Assyria--he will be their kingBecausethey refusedto return[to Me].
"But I will removethe northern[army] farfrom you, And I will driveit into a parchedand desolateland,And its vanguardinto the easternsea,And its rearguard into the westernsea.And its stenchwill ariseand its foulsmellwill comeup, For it has donegreatthings."
I, in turn,will dothisto you: I will appointoveryou a suddenterror,consumptionand feverthat will wasteawaythe eyesand cause the soulto pineaway;also, you will sowyour seeduselessly,for your enemieswill eatit up.
I will also bringupon you a swordwhich will executevengeancefor the covenant;and when you gathertogether into your cities,I will sendpestilenceamongyou, so that you shall be deliveredinto enemyhands.
"But I gaveyou alsocleannessof teethin allyour citiesAnd lackof breadin allyour places,Yet you have not returnedto Me," declaresthe LORD.
"The songsof the palacewill turnto wailingin that day,"declaresthe LordGOD."Many[will be] the corpses;in everyplacethey will castthem forth in silence."
I smoteyou [and] everyworkof your handswith blastingwind,mildewand hail;yet you [did] not [come] [back] to Me,' declaresthe LORD.
"The LORDwill make the pestilenceclingto you untilHe has consumedyou from the landwhereyou are enteringto possessit.
"The LORDwill smiteyou with consumptionand with feverand with inflammationand with fieryheatand with the swordand with blightand with mildew,and they will pursueyou untilyou perish.
"He will bringbackon you allthe diseasesof Egyptof whichyou were afraid,and they will clingto you.
"The LORDwill removefrom you allsickness;and He will not puton you anyof the harmfuldiseasesof Egyptwhichyou have known,but He will laythem on allwho hateyou.
