¶ Hear¹ ye this word which I take² up against you, even a lamentation, O house of Israel.

The virgin³ of Israel is fallen⁴; she shall⁵ no more rise: she is⁶ forsaken upon her land; there is none⁷ to raise her up.

For thus saith the Lord GOD; The city⁸ that went out by a thousand shall leave an hundred, and that which went forth by an hundred shall leave ten, to the house of Israel.

¶ For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek⁹ ye me, and¹⁰ ye shall live:

But seek¹¹ not Bethel, nor enter into Gilgal, and pass not to Beersheba¹²: for Gilgal¹³ shall surely go into captivity, and Bethel¹⁴ shall come¹⁵ to nought.

Seek¹⁶ the LORD, and ye shall live; lest¹⁷ he break out like fire in the house¹⁸ of Joseph, and devour it, and there¹⁹ be none to quench it in Bethel.

Ye who turn²⁰ judgment to wormwood, and leave²¹ off righteousness in the earth,

Seek him that maketh²² the seven stars and Orion, and turneth²³ the shadow of death into the morning, and maketh²⁴ the day dark with night: that calleth²⁵ for the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the face of the earth: The LORD²⁶ is his name:

That strengtheneth²⁷ the spoiled²⁸ against the strong, so that the spoiled shall come against the fortress.

¶ They hate²⁹ him that rebuketh in the gate, and they abhor³⁰ him that speaketh uprightly.

Forasmuch therefore as your treading³¹ is upon the poor, and ye take from him burdens of wheat: ye have built³² houses of hewn stone, but ye shall not dwell in them; ye have planted pleasant vineyards³³, but ye shall not drink wine of them.

For I know³⁴ your manifold³⁵ transgressions and your mighty sins: they afflict³⁶ the just, they take³⁷ a bribe³⁸, and they turn aside the poor in the³⁹ gate from their right.

Therefore the prudent⁴⁰ shall keep silence in that time; for it is an evil⁴¹ time.

Seek⁴² good, and not evil, that ye may live: and so⁴³ the LORD, the God of hosts, shall be with you, as⁴⁴ ye have spoken.

Hate⁴⁵ the evil, and love the good, and establish⁴⁶ judgment in the gate: it may⁴⁷ be that the LORD God of hosts will be gracious unto the remnant⁴⁸ of Joseph.

¶ Therefore the LORD⁴⁹, the God of hosts, the Lord, saith thus; Wailing⁵⁰ shall be in all streets; and they shall say in all the highways, Alas! alas! and they shall call the husbandman to mourning, and such⁵¹ as are skilful of lamentation to wailing.

And in⁵² all vineyards shall be wailing: for I will⁵³ pass through thee, saith the LORD.

Woe unto you that desire⁵⁴ the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you? the day of the LORD is⁵⁵ darkness, and not light.

As if⁵⁶ a man did flee from a lion, and a bear met him; or went into the house, and leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him.

¶ Shall not the day of the LORD be darkness⁵⁷, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?

¶ I hate⁵⁸, I despise your feast days, and I will⁵⁹ not smell in your solemn assemblies⁶⁰.

Though ye offer⁶¹ me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings⁶² of your fat beasts.

Take thou away from me the noise⁶³ of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.

But let⁶⁴ judgment run⁶⁵ down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.

⁶⁶Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?

But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch⁶⁷ and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.

Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond⁶⁹ Damascus, saith the LORD, whose⁷⁰ name is The God of hosts.