"Thussaysthe LORDof hosts,'The fastof the fourth,the fastof the fifth,the fastof the seventhand the fastof the tenth[months] will becomejoy,gladness,and cheerfulfeastsfor the houseof Judah;so lovetruthand peace.'
in the eleventhyearof Zedekiah,in the fourthmonth,in the ninth[day] of the month,the city[wall] was breached.
Theseare the thingswhichyou should do:speakthe truthto oneanother;judgewith truthand judgmentfor peacein your gates.
"Sayto allthe peopleof the landand to the priests,'Whenyou fastedand mournedin the fifthand seventhmonths theseseventyyears,was it actuallyfor Me that you fasted?
speakingto the priestswhobelong to the houseof the LORDof hosts,and to the prophets,saying,"Shall I weepin the fifthmonthand abstain,as I have donethesemanyyears?"
Now it cameabout in the ninthyearof his reign,on the tenth[day] of the tenthmonth,that Nebuchadnezzarkingof Babyloncame,he and allhis army,againstJerusalem,campedagainstit and builta siegewallallaroundit.
But it cameabout in the seventhmonth,that Ishmaelthe sonof Nethaniah,the sonof Elishama,of the royalfamily,camewith tenmenand struckGedaliahdown so that he diedalong with the Jewsand the Chaldeanswhowere with him at Mizpah.
You have turnedfor me my mourninginto dancing;You have loosedmy sackclothand girdedme with gladness,
And the ransomedof the LORDwill returnAnd comewith joyfulshoutingto Zion,With everlastingjoyupon their heads.They will findgladnessand joy,And sorrowand sighingwill fleeaway.
Then you will sayon that day,"I will givethanksto You, O LORD;For although You were angrywith me, Your angeris turnedaway,And You comfortme.
because on those daysthe Jewsridthemselvesof their enemies,and [it was a] monthwhichwas turnedfor them from sorrowinto gladnessand from mourninginto a holiday;that they should makethem daysof feastingand rejoicingand sendingportions[of food] to oneanotherand giftsto the poor.
Outsideare the dogsand the sorcerersand the immoral personsand the murderersand the idolaters,and everyonewho lovesand practiceslying.
So the ransomedof the LORDwill returnAnd comewith joyfulshoutingto Zion,And everlastingjoy[will be] on their heads.They will obtaingladnessand joy,And sorrowand sighingwill fleeaway.
In eachand everyprovinceand in eachand everycity,whereverthe king'scommandmentand his decreearrived,there was gladnessand joyfor the Jews,a feastand a holiday.And manyamongthe peoplesof the landbecameJews,for the dreadof the Jewshad fallenon them.
"So you goand readfrom the scrollwhichyou have writtenat my dictationthe wordsof the LORDto the peoplein the LORD'Shouseon a fastday.And alsoyou shall readthem to all[the people of] Judahwho comefrom their cities.
"Thussaysthe LORD,'I will returnto Zionand will dwellin the midstof Jerusalem.Then Jerusalemwill be calledthe Cityof Truth,and the mountainof the LORDof hosts[will be called] the HolyMountain.'
Then the wordof the LORDof hostscameto me, saying,
Now in the ninthyearof his reign,on the tenthday of the tenthmonth,Nebuchadnezzarkingof Babyloncame,he and allhis army,againstJerusalem,campedagainstit and builta siegewallallaroundit.
The eyesof the LORDare towardthe righteousAnd His earsare [open] to their cry.
if he does not lend[money] on interestor takeincrease,[if] he keepshis handfrom iniquity[and] executestrue~justicebetweenmanand man,
And the wordof the LORDcameto me in the ninthyear,in the tenthmonth,on the tenthof the month,saying,
