1 Woe to Ariel Woe, O 29:1Lion of God, lion of Jerusalem Ariel, 29:1Lion of God, lion of Jerusalem Ariel the citywhereDavidoncecamped!Add year to year, 29:1Lit let your feasts run their round observeyourfeasts on schedule.
2 I will bring distress to 29:2See v1,note 1 Ariel,And she will bea city ofmourning and moaning;And she will be like an Ariel to me.
3 And I will camp against you 29:3Lit like a circle encirclingyou,And I will fortify siegeworks against you,And I will raise up fortifications against you.
4 Then you will be brought low;From the earth you will speak,And from the dustwhereyou are prostrateYour wordswill come.Your voice will also be like that of a 29:4Or ghost spirit from the ground,And your speech will whisper from the dust.
5 ¶But it will be that the multitude of your 29:5Lit strangers enemies will become like fine dust,And the multitude of the ruthless ones like the chaff which 29:5Lit passes away blows away;And it will happen instantly, suddenly.
6 From Yahweh of hosts you will be punished with thunder and earthquake and loud noise,Withwhirlwind and tempest and the flame of a consuming fire.
7 And it will be that the multitude of all the nations who wage war against 29:7 v1,note 1 Ariel,Even all who wage war against her and her stronghold, and who distress her,Will be like a dream, a vision of the night.
8 And it will be as when a hungry man dreams—And behold, he is eating;But he awakens, and his soul is empty,Or as when a thirsty man dreams—And behold, he is drinking,But he awakens, and behold, he is faint,And his soul is not quenched.Thus the multitude of all the nations will beWho wage war against Mount Zion.
9 ¶Astonish yourselves and be astonished,Blind yourselves and be blind;They become drunk, but not with wine;They stagger, but not with strong drink.
10 For Yahweh has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep;He has shut your eyes, the prophets;And He has covered your heads, the seers.
11 The entire vision will be to you like the words of a sealed 29:11Or scroll book, which when they give it to the one who 29:11Lit knows books is literate, saying, “Please read this,” he will say, “I cannot, for it is sealed.”
12 Then the 29:12Or scroll book will be given to the one who 29:12Lit does not know books does not knowhow to reada book, saying, “Please read this.” And he will say, “I 29:12Lit do not know books do not knowhow to reada book.”
13 Then the Lord said,“Because this people draw near with their mouthAnd honor Me with their lips,But they remove their hearts far from Me,And their fear of Me isin thecommand of men learnedby rote,
14 Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous;And the wisdom of their wise men will perish,And the discernment of their discerning men will be hidden.”
15 ¶Woe to those who deeply hide their counsel from Yahweh,And whose deeds aredonein a dark place,And they say, “Who sees us?” or “Who knows us?”
16 You turnthingsaround!Shall the potter be considered 29:16Lit like as equal with the clay,That what is made would say to its maker, “He did not make me”;Or what is formed say to him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?The Afflicted Will Rejoice
17 ¶Is it not yet just a little while 29:17Lit And Before Lebanon will be turned into a fruitful orchard,And the fruitful orchard will be counted as a forest?
18 On that day the deaf will hear words of a book,And out of 29:18Lit thick darkness and darkness, cf.8:22; 9:2 darkness and thick darkness the eyes of the blind will see.
19 The afflicted also will increase their gladness in Yahweh,And the needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the ruthless will come to an end and the scoffer will be finished,Indeed all who are watching out to do evil will be cut off;
21 Who 29:21Lit bring a person under condemnation cause a person to sin by a word,And ensnare him who reproves at the gate,And 29:21Lit turn aside defraud the one in the right with 29:21Lit confusion meaningless arguments.
22 Therefore thus says Yahweh, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob:“Jacob shall not now be ashamed, and now his face shall not turn pale;
23 But when 29:23Or his children see he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst,They will sanctify My name;Indeed, they will sanctify the Holy One of JacobAnd will stand tremblingbeforethe God of Israel.
24 “Those who err in spirit will know discernment,And those who 29:24Lit murmur criticize will 29:24Lit learn gain learning.