The LORD Judges the Nations 1 UST Yahweh says this:“At that time, I will bring back the people whom their enemies took away from Jerusalem and from{ other places in} Judah. BSB BSB: “Yes, in those days and at that time, when I restore Judah and Jerusalem from captivity,
2 UST Then in the Valley of Jehoshaphat I will gather together{ the people of} all of the other nations; there I will judge{ and punish} them because they scattered my Israelite people and forced them to go to other countries, and because they divided up my land{ among themselves}. BSB BSB: I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment against them concerning My people, My inheritance, Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations as they divided up My land.
3 UST { I will judge them} also{ because} they played games of chance to determine who would get{ each of} my people. They traded{ some of the} Israelite boys for prostitutes, and they sold{ some of the} Israelite girls to get{ money to buy} wine, and they drank{ it}. BSB BSB: They cast lots for My people; they bartered a boy for a prostitute and sold a girl for wine to drink.
4 UST You people of the cities of Tyre and Sidon, and you people of Philistia— you have no reason to be angry with me. You are behaving as if you are trying to avenge yourselves on me for something. If that is what you are doing, I will very quickly do the same thing to you. BSB BSB: Now what do you have against Me, O Tyre, Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you rendering against Me a recompense? If you retaliate against Me, I will swiftly and speedily return your recompense upon your heads.
5 UST You took the silver and gold and other valuable things from my temple and put them into your own temples. BSB BSB: For you took My silver and gold and carried off My finest treasures to your temples.
6 UST You dragged away the people of Jerusalem and{ other places in} Judah, and you took them far away from their homes and sold them to Greek traders. BSB BSB: You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, to send them far from their homeland.
7 UST But I will make it possible for my people to return from the places to which you sold them, and I will do to you what you did to them. BSB BSB: Behold, I will rouse them from the places to which you sold them; I will return your recompense upon your heads.
8 UST Then I will cause people to take{ some of} your sons and your daughters and sell them to the people of Judah! And then they will sell{ some of} them to the Sabean people, who live far away.{ That will certainly happen} because I, Yahweh, have said it.” BSB BSB: I will sell your sons and daughters into the hands of the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans—to a distant nation.” Indeed, the LORD has spoken.
9 UST Proclaim to{ the people of} all nations,“Prepare for a war! Summon your soldiers; tell them to stand in their battle positions. BSB BSB: Proclaim this among the nations: “Prepare for war; rouse the mighty men; let all the men of war advance and attack!
10 UST Take your plows and make swords from them; take your pruning knives and make spears from them.{ Even} the weak{ people} must{ also} act like{ they are} strong{ soldiers}. BSB BSB: Beat your plowshares into swords and your pruning hooks into spears. Let the weak say, ‘I am strong!’
11 UST All of{ you people from} the nations that are near Judah must come quickly and gather there.” But Yahweh,{ when that happens,} send your army{ of angels to attack them}! BSB BSB: Come quickly, all you surrounding nations, and gather yourselves. Bring down Your mighty ones, O LORD.
12 UST Yahweh says,“The{ people in the} nations near Judah must get ready and come to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will sit as a judge, and I will punish them. BSB BSB: Let the nations be roused and advance to the Valley of Jehoshaphat, for there I will sit down to judge all the nations on every side.
13 UST { They are like} crops that are ready for farmers to harvest them; so{ strike them as a farmer} swings his sickle to cut the grain.{ They are like} large piles of grapes in the pits where farmers will press them;{ so crush them as a farmer tramples on the grapes.}{ Punish them severely} because they are very wicked.{ If all of the wicked things that they have done became grape juice,} they are so wicked that the juice would make the vats overflow.” BSB BSB: Swing the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, trample the grapes, for the winepress is full; the wine vats overflow because their wickedness is great.
14 UST There will be huge crowds of people in that Valley of Judgment. It will soon be the time that Yahweh will punish them in that Valley of Judgment. BSB BSB: Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the Day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
15 UST At that time there will be no light from the sun or moon, and the stars will not shine. BSB BSB: The sun and moon will grow dark, and the stars will no longer shine.
16 UST From Mount Zion in Jerusalem, Yahweh will speak forcefully; his voice will be like thunder, and his voice will cause the sky and the earth to shake. But Yahweh will protect his people; he will be like a strong wall around the people of Israel. BSB BSB: The LORD will roar from Zion and raise His voice from Jerusalem; heaven and earth will tremble. But the LORD will be a refuge for His people, a stronghold for the people of Israel.
Blessings for God’s People 17 UST Yahweh says,“At that time, you{ Israelite people} will know that I am Yahweh, your God. I live on Zion, my holy hill. Jerusalem will be a holy city, and soldiers from other countries will never conquer it again. BSB BSB: Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, My holy mountain. Jerusalem will be holy, never again to be overrun by foreigners.
18 UST At that time, there will be vineyards bearing sweet grapes on the mountains, and your cattle and goats on those hills will produce plenty of milk. The streams in Judah will have abundant water, and a stream will flow from my temple into the Valley of Shittim{ northeast of the Salt Sea}. BSB BSB: And in that day the mountains will drip with sweet wine, and the hills will flow with milk. All the streams of Judah will run with water, and a spring will flow from the house of the LORD to water the Valley of Acacias.
19 UST { The armies of} Egypt and Edom attacked the people of Judah and killed many people there who had not done anything that was wrong. As a result, those countries will become wastelands, with no one living there any longer. BSB BSB: Egypt will become desolate, and Edom a desert wasteland, because of the violence done to the people of Judah, in whose land they shed innocent blood.
20 UST But there will always be people living throughout Judea and in Jerusalem, forever. BSB BSB: But Judah will be inhabited forever, and Jerusalem from generation to generation.
21 UST I, Yahweh, live on Mount Zion{ in Jerusalem}, and I will not punish people{ further} for killing my people, for which I{ previously} punished them.” BSB BSB: For I will avenge their blood, which I have not yet avenged.” For the LORD dwells in Zion.