9 Behold, nthe day of the Lord comes,
cruel, with wrath and fierce anger,
to make the land a desolation
and rto destroy its sinners from it.
10 sFor the stars of the heavens and their constellations
will not give their light;
tthe sun will be dark at its rising,
and the moon will not shed its light.
11 I will punish uthe world for its evil,
and the wicked for their iniquity;
I will vput an end to the pomp of the arrogant,
wand lay low the pompous pride of the ruthless.
12 I will make xpeople more rare than fine gold,
and mankind than the ygold of Ophir.
13 Therefore zI will make the heavens tremble,
and the earth will be shaken out of its place,
at the wrath of the Lord of hosts
in the day of his fierce anger.
21 On that day the Lord will punish
the host of heaven, in heaven,
and ethe kings of the earth, on the earth.
22 fThey will be gathered together
as prisoners in a pit;
they will be shut up in a prison,
and after many days gthey will be punished.
23 hThen the moon will be confounded
and the sun ashamed,
for ithe Lord of hosts reigns
on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,
and his glory will be before his elders.
A Lament for Egypt
1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 v“Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord God:
w“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’
3 wFor the day is near,
xthe day of the Lord is near;
it will be ya day of clouds,
a time of doom for1 the nations.
4 zA sword shall come upon Egypt,
aand anguish shall be in bCush,
when the slain fall in Egypt,
and cher wealth2 is carried away,
and dher foundations are torn down.
The Day of the Lord
sound an alarm on kmy holy mountain!
Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble,
for lthe day of the Lord is coming; it is near,
2 ma day of darkness and gloom,
ma day of clouds and thick darkness!
Like blackness there is spread upon the mountains
na great and powerful people;
otheir like has never been before,
nor will be again after them
through the years of all generations.
31 cThe sun shall be turned to darkness, dand the moon to blood, ebefore the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 32 And it shall come to pass that feveryone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved. gFor in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be those who escape, as the Lord has said, and among hthe survivors shall be those whom the Lord calls.
Let Justice Roll Down
18 Woe to you who desire lthe day of the Lord!
Why would you have the day of the Lord?
mIt is darkness, and not light,
19 nas if a man fled from a lion,
and a bear met him,
or went into the house and leaned his hand against the wall,
and a serpent bit him.
20 mIs not the day of the Lord darkness, and not light,
and gloom with no brightness in it?
The Day of the Lord Is Near
7 mBe silent before the Lord God!
For nthe day of the Lord is near;
othe Lord has prepared a sacrifice
and pconsecrated his guests.
8 And on the day of the Lord’s sacrifice—
q“I will punish the officials and the king’s sons
and rall who array themselves in foreign attire.
9 On that day I will punish
everyone swho leaps over the threshold,
and those who fill their master’s1 house
with violence and fraud.
10 “On that day,” declares the Lord,
“a cry will be heard from tthe Fish Gate,
ua wail from vthe Second Quarter,
a loud crash from the hills.
11 wWail, O inhabitants of the Mortar!
For all the traders2 are no more;
all who weigh out silver are cut off.
12 At that time xI will search Jerusalem with lamps,
and I will punish the men
zthose who say in their hearts,
‘The Lord will not do good,
nor will he do ill.’
13 Their goods shall be aplundered,
and their houses laid waste.
bThough they build houses,
they shall not inhabit them;
cthough they plant vineyards,
they shall not drink wine from them.”
14 dThe great day of the Lord is near,
near and hastening fast;
the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
ethe mighty man cries aloud there.
15 fA day of wrath is that day,
a day of distress and anguish,
a day of gruin and devastation,
ha day of darkness and gloom,
ha day of clouds and thick darkness,
16 ia day of trumpet blast and battle cry
jagainst the fortified cities
and against the lofty battlements.
17 kI will bring distress on mankind,
so that they shall walk llike the blind,
because they have sinned against the Lord;
mtheir blood shall be poured out like dust,
and their flesh nlike dung.
18 oNeither their silver nor their gold
shall be able to deliver them
on the day of the wrath of the Lord.
pIn the fire of his jealousy,
qall the earth shall be consumed;
rfor a full and sudden end
he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.
1 The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.1
The Lord’s Love for Israel
2 a“I have loved you,” says the Lord. bBut you say, “How have you loved us?” “Is not Esau cJacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet dI have loved Jacob 3 but Esau I have hated. eI have laid waste his hill country and left his heritage to jackals of the desert.” 4 If Edom says, “We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of hosts says, “They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called ‘the wicked country,’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.’” 5 fYour own eyes shall see this, and you shall say, “Great is the Lord beyond the border of Israel!”
The Priests’ Polluted Offerings
6 g“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am ha father, where is my honor? And if I am ia master, where is my fear? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. bBut you say, ‘How have we despised your name?’ 7 jBy offering polluted food upon my altar. bBut you say, ‘How have we polluted you?’ By saying that kthe Lord’s table may be despised. 8 lWhen you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor? says the Lord of hosts. 9 And now mentreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. With such a gift from your hand, nwill he show favor to any of you? says the Lord of hosts. 10 oOh that there were one among you who would shut the doors, that you might not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, pand I will not accept an offering from your hand. 11 For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name qwill be2 great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name qwill be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts. 12 But you profane it when you say that rthe Lord’s table is polluted, and its fruit, that is, its food may be despised. 13 But you say, s‘What a weariness this is,’ and you snort at it, says the Lord of hosts. tYou bring what has been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the Lord. 14 Cursed be the cheat who has ua male in his flock, and vvows it, and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished. For wI am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name xwill be feared among the nations.
