Later King Ben Hadad of Syria assembled his entire army and attacked ¹  and besieged Samaria. ² 

At that time King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel attacked Jerusalem. ¹  They besieged Ahaz, ²  but were unable to conquer him. ³ 

“The time will come when the land suffers from a famine, a plague, blight, and disease, or a locust ¹  invasion, or when their enemy lays siege to the cities of the land, ²  or when some other type of plague or epidemic occurs.

Yes, ¹  wild dogs surround me – a gang of evil men crowd around me; like a lion they pin my hands and feet. ² 

O Lord, do not let me be humiliated, for I call out to you! May evil men be humiliated! May they go wailing to the grave! ¹ 

For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a well-written song ²  by David. Listen, O God, to my prayer! Do not ignore ³  my appeal for mercy!

But the king ¹  will rejoice in God; everyone who takes oaths in his name ²  will boast, for the mouths of those who speak lies will be shut up. ³ 

A song, a psalm of Asaph. O God, do not be silent! Do not ignore us! ²  Do not be inactive, O God!

However, ¹  because ²  I called but you refused to listen, ³  because ⁴  I stretched out my hand ⁵  but no one paid attention,

¹ Be careful what you do ²  when you go to the temple ³  of God; draw near to listen ⁴  rather than to offer a sacrifice ⁵  like fools, ⁶  for they do not realize that they are doing wrong.

Daughter Zion ¹  is left isolated, like a hut in a vineyard, or a shelter in a cucumber field; she is a besieged city. ² 

Is this the one who made the world like a desert, who ruined its ¹  cities, and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ ² 

I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master; a powerful king will rule over them,” says the sovereign master, ¹  the Lord who commands armies.

like heat ¹  in a dry land, you humble the boasting foreigners. ²  Just as the shadow of a cloud causes the heat to subside, ³  so he causes the song of tyrants to cease. ⁴ 

I will lay siege to you on all sides; ¹  I will besiege you with troops; ²  I will raise siege works against you.

It will be like a dream, a night vision. There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel, those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.

Those who try to hide their plans from the Lord are as good as dead, ¹  who do their work in secret and boast, ²  “Who sees us? Who knows what we’re doing?” ³ 

They ¹  say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!” and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! ²  Tell us nice things, relate deceptive messages. ³ 

This is the person who will live in a secure place; ¹  he will find safety in the rocky, mountain strongholds; ²  he will have food and a constant supply of water.

My servant is truly blind, my messenger is truly deaf. My covenant partner, ¹  the servant of the Lord, is truly blind. ²