9:1 | | A word of the Lord: The Lord has come to the land of Hadrach, and Damascus is his resting-place: for the towns of Aram are the Lord's, |
9:2 | | As well as Hamath, which is by its limit, and Tyre and Zidon, because they are very wise. |
9:3 | | And Tyre made for herself a strong place, and got together silver like dust and the best gold like the earth of the streets. |
9:4 | | See, the Lord will take away her heritage, overturning her power in the sea; and she will be burned up with fire. |
9:5 | | Ashkelon will see it with fear, and Gaza, bent with pain; and Ekron, for her hope will be shamed: and the king will be cut off from Gaza, and Ashkelon will be unpeopled. |
9:6 | | And a mixed people will be living in Ashdod, and I will have the pride of the Philistines cut off. |
9:7 | | And I will take away his blood from his mouth, and his disgusting things from between his teeth; and some of his people will be kept for our God: and he will be as a family in Judah, and Ekron as one living in Jerusalem. |
9:8 | | And I will put my forces in position round my house, so that there may be no coming and going: and no cruel master will again go through them: for now I have seen his trouble. |
9:9 | | Be full of joy, O daughter of Zion; give a glad cry, O daughter of Jerusalem: see, your king comes to you: he is upright and has overcome; gentle and seated on an ass, on a young ass. |
9:10 | | And he will have the war-carriage cut off from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the bow of war will be cut off: and he will say words of peace to the nations: and his rule will be from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth. |
9:11 | | And as for you, because of the blood of your agreement, I have sent out your prisoners from the deep hole in which there is no water. |
9:12 | | And they will come back to you, O daughter of Zion, as prisoners of hope: today I say to you that I will give you back twice as much; |
9:13 | | For I have made Judah a bow bent for my use, I have made Ephraim the arrows of the bow; I will make your sons, O Zion, take up arms against your sons, O Greece, and will make you like the sword of a man of war. |
9:14 | | And the Lord will be seen over them, and his arrow will go out like the thunder-flame: and the Lord God, sounding the war-horn, will go in the storm-winds of the South. |
9:15 | | The Lord of armies will be a cover for them; and they will overcome, crushing under foot the armed men; they will take their blood for drink like wine: they will be full like the sides of the altar. |
9:16 | | And the Lord their God will be their saviour in that day, giving them food like the flock of his people: for they will be like the jewels of a crown shining over his land. |
9:17 | | For how good it is and how beautiful! grain will make the young men strong and new wine the virgins. |