"For the mountainsI will takeup a weepingand wailing,And for the pasturesof the wildernessa dirge,Becausethey are laidwastesothat noonepassesthrough,And the lowingof the cattleis not heard;Boththe birdsof the skyand the beastshave fled;they are gone.
"Behold,I have madeyou a new,sharpthreshingsledgewith double edges;You will threshthe mountainsand pulverize[them], And will makethe hillslike chaff.
"For your wasteand desolateplaces and your destroyedland--Surelynowyou will be toocrampedfor the inhabitants,And those who swallowedyou will be faraway.
"Manyshepherdshave ruinedMy vineyard,They have trampleddownMy field;They have madeMy pleasantfieldA desolatewilderness.
"It has been madea desolation,Desolate,it mournsbeforeMe; The wholelandhas been madedesolate,Becausenomanlaysit to heart.
Howlongis the landto mournAnd the vegetationof the countrysideto wither?For the wickednessof those who dwellin it, Animalsand birdshave been snatchedaway,Because[men] have said,"He will not seeour latterending."
"The wilddonkeysstandon the bareheights;They pantfor airlike jackals,Their eyesfailFor thereis novegetation.
"The younglionshave roaredat him, They have roaredloudly.And they have madehis landa waste;His citieshave been destroyed,withoutinhabitant.
"They did not say,'Whereis the LORDWho broughtus up out of the landof Egypt,Who ledus through the wilderness,Through a landof desertsand of pits,Through a landof droughtand of deepdarkness,Through a landthat noonecrossedAnd wherenomandwelt?'
For the landis fullof adulterers;For the landmournsbecauseof the curse.The pasturesof the wildernesshave driedup. Their coursealso is evilAnd their mightis not right.
"For a nationhas comeup againsther out of the north;it will makeher landan objectof horror,and there will be noinhabitantin it. Bothmanand beasthave wanderedoff, they have goneaway!
Cutoffyour hairand cast[it] away,And takeup a lamentationon the bareheights;For the LORDhas rejectedand forsakenThe generationof His wrath.'
My sorrowis beyond healing,My heartis faint[within me]!
"For thesethingsI weep;My eyesrundownwith water;Becausefarfrom me is a comforter,One who restoresmy soul.My childrenare desolateBecausethe enemyhas prevailed."
My eyesfailbecause of tears,My spiritis greatlytroubled;My heartis pouredout on the earthBecauseof the destructionof the daughterof my people,When littleonesand infantsfaintIn the streetsof the city.
Becauseof MountZionwhichliesdesolate,Foxesprowlin it.
"IfI were to cause wildbeaststo passthrough the landand they depopulatedit, and it becamedesolatesothat noonewould passthroughit becauseof the beasts,
"And you, sonof man,takeup a lamentationoverTyre;
"A man'sfootwill not passthrough it, and the footof a beastwill not passthrough it, and it will not be inhabitedfor fortyyears.
"I will makethe landa desolationand a waste,and the prideof her powerwill cease;and the mountainsof Israelwill be desolatesothat noonewill passthrough.
"In allyour dwellings,citieswill becomewasteand the highplaceswill be desolate,that your altarsmay becomewasteand desolate,your idolsmay be brokenand broughtto an end,your incensealtarsmay be cutdown,and your worksmay be blottedout.
Thereforethe landmourns,And everyonewho livesin it languishesAlong with the beastsof the fieldand the birdsof the sky,And alsothe fishof the seadisappear.
Girdyourselves[with sackcloth] And lament,O priests;Wail,O ministersof the altar!Come,spendthe nightin sackclothO ministersof my God,For the grain offeringand the drinkofferingAre withheldfrom the houseof your God.
To You, O LORD,I cry;For firehas devouredthe pasturesof the wildernessAnd the flamehas burnedup allthe treesof the field.
HearthiswordwhichI takeup for you as a dirge,O houseof Israel:
Thereforethussaysthe LORDGodof hosts,the Lord,"There is wailingin allthe plazas,And in allthe streetsthey say,'Alas!Alas!'They also callthe farmerto mourningAnd professionalmournersto lamentation.
"On that daythey will takeup againstyou a tauntAnd uttera bitterlamentation[and] say,'We are completelydestroyed!He exchangesthe portionof my people;HowHe removesit from me! To the apostateHe apportionsour fields.'
Therefore,on accountof you Zionwill be plowedas a field,Jerusalemwill becomea heapof ruins,And the mountainof the temple[will become] highplacesof a forest.
