When thou art malignant, shalt thou then rejoice? 16 An olive tree, green, fair, of goodly fruit, JEHOVAH had called thy name : With the noise of loud clamour hath he kindled a fire mounting upwards, Even to consume the branches thereof. 17 For JEHOVAH of hosts, who planted thee, Hath pronounced evil against thee, 18 In prosecution of the evil of the house of Israel, Which they have wrought unto themselves, JEHOVAH also acquainted me, and I knew; Then didst thou shew me their proceedings. 19 For I was like a tame lamb that is led to slaughter; And knew not that they had laid plots against me, [saying] Let us destroy the tree in its nutriment; And let us cut him off from the land of the living, 20 But, OJEHOVAH of hosts, who judgest righteously, Who triest the reins and the heart, 21 Let me see thy vengeance upon them, For unto thee have I laid open my cause. As concerning the men of Anathoth that seek thy Saying, Prophesy not in the name of JEHOVAH, 22 For this cause, thus saith JEHOVAH of hosts; Behold I am about to execute judgment upon them ; The young men shall die by the sword; Their sons and their daughters shall die by famine; 23 And there shall be none of them left remaining; For I will bring evil upon the men of Anathoth, The year of their visitation. 1 CHAP. XII. RIGHTEOUS art thou, O JEHOVAH, whensoever I enter into controversy with thee, Yet let me expostulate with thee concerning judg ments. Wherefore doth the way of wicked men prosper? At ease are all they who deal very perfidiously. 2 Thou hast planted them, they have also taken root; They advance in growth, they have borne fruit ; Thou art near in their mouth, But art far from their reins. 3 But Thou, O JEHOVAH, hast known me; Thou canst discern by trial my heart to be with thee; Draw them out as sheep for slaughter, And set them apart as for the day of execution. 4 How long shall the land mourn, 5 And the grass of every field wither, Through the wickedness of them that dwell therein? The beasts are consumed, and the birds, Because they have said, He will not see our latter end. If thou hast run with footmen, and they have Then how wilt thou chafe thyself with horses? confidence, peace thou mayest have I Yet how wilt thou do in the swelling of Jordan? 6 Whereas also thy brethren and the house of thy father, Even these have acted perfidiously towards thee; Even these have pursued with loud outcries after thee: Rely not upon them, that they will speak friendly unto thee. I have abandoned my house, I have relinquished my heritage, I have given the beloved of my soul into the hand of her enemies. 8 Mine heritage hath been to me as a lion in the fo-. rest, She hath exerted her voice against me, Therefore have I hated her. 9 As the ravenous bird Tseboa hath my heritage been to me; Ο O ye ravenous birds, come ye against her round about; Assemble, all ye beasts of the field, Come ye to devour. 10 Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, They have trodden under foot my portion, They have reduced my pleasant portion into a desolate wilderness. 11 They have made it a desolation ; Through me it mourneth being desolate; The whole land is made desolate, Yet there is no man that layeth it to heart. 12 Upon all the plains in the wilderness are the spoilers come; Surely the sword by JEHOVAH's appointment devoureth, From one end of the land even unto the other end of the land, No flesh hath any peace. 13 They have sown wheat, and have reaped thorns, They have possessed, and shall not be benefited ; But they shall be disappointed of your crops, Because of the fierceness of the wrath of JEнO 14 VAH. THUS saith JEHOVAH; With regard to all my evil neighbours, Who molest the inheritance which I have caused my people Israel to inherit; Behold I will pluck them out of their land, And the house of Judah will I pluck out from among them. 15 And it shall be, after that I shall have plucked them out,' I will again have compassion on them, and bring them back, Every one to his own possession, And every one to his own land. 16 And it shall be, if they will indeed learn the ways of my people, To swear by my name, As JEHOVAH liveth, Like as they have taught my people to swear by Then shall they be built in the midst of my peo- 17 But if they will not comply, Then will I pluck up that nation, Plucking up and destroying, saith JEHOVAH, 1 CHAP. XIII. THUS SAID JEHOVAH UNTO ME, Go and get thee a linen girdle, and put it upon thy loins, but 2 put it not in water. And I got the girdle according to the word of JEHOVAH, and I put it upon 3 my loins. And the word of JEHOVAH came un4 to me a second time, saying, Take the girdle which thou hast gotten, which is upon thy loins, and arise, go to Euphrates, and hide it there in a 5 hole of the rock. So I went and hid it near Eu6 phrates, as JEHOVAH had commanded me. And it came to pass after many days, that JEHOVAH said unto me, Arise, go to Euphrates, and take from thence the girdle, which I commanded thee to hide there. And I went to Euphrates, and digged, and took the girdle from the place where I had hidden it; and, behold, the girdle was mar8 red, so that it was good for nothing. And the word of JEHOVAH came unto me, saying, After this manner will I mar the excellency of And the excellency of Jerusalem exceedingly; 10 This wicked people, 11 Who refuse to hearken to my words, Who walk after the lust of their own heart, And have gone after strange gods, To serve them, and to bow down to them; Which is good for nothing. For as the girdle cleaveth unto the loins of a man; The whole house of Israel, |