When the Lord finishes doing what he planned to Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will punish Assyria. The king of Assyria is very proud, and his pride has made him do these evil things, so God will punish him.
An ax is not better than the person who swings it. A saw is not better than the one who uses it. A stick cannot control the person who picks it up. A club cannot pick up the person!
This is what the Lord God All-Powerful says: “My people living in Jerusalem, don’t be afraid of the Assyrians, who beat you with a rod and raise a stick against you, as Egypt did.
Then the Lord All-Powerful will beat the Assyrians with a whip as he defeated Midian at the rock of Oreb. He will raise his stick over the waters as he did in Egypt.
But he will judge the poor honestly; he will be fair in his decisions for the poor people of the land. At his command evil people will be punished, and by his words the wicked will be put to death.
I will destroy the king of Assyria in my country; I will trample him on my mountains. He placed a heavy load on my people, but that weight will be removed.
The Lord will cause all people to hear his great voice and to see his powerful arm come down with anger, like a great fire that burns everything, like a great storm with much rain and hail.
“Assyria will be defeated by a sword, but not the sword of a person; Assyria will be destroyed, but not by a person’s sword. Assyria will run away from the sword of God, but its young men will be caught and made slaves.