“This is what the sovereign Lord says: “You will drink your sister’s deep and wide cup; ¹  you will be scorned and derided, for it holds a great deal.

I am about to bring foreigners ¹  against you, the most terrifying of nations. They will draw their swords against the grandeur made by your wisdom, ²  and they will defile your splendor.

A sword will come against Egypt and panic will overtake Ethiopia when the slain fall in Egypt and they carry away her wealth and dismantle her foundations.

By the swords of the mighty warriors I will cause your hordes to fall – all of them are the most terrifying among the nations. They will devastate the pride of Egypt, and all its hordes will be destroyed.

The inhabitants ¹  of Samaria will lament ²  over the calf idol ³  of Beth Aven. ⁴  Its people will mourn over it; its idolatrous priests will wail ⁵  over it, ⁶  because its splendor will be taken from them ⁷  into exile.

I cannot carry out ¹  my fierce anger! I cannot totally destroy Ephraim! Because I am God, and not man – the Holy One among you – I will not come in wrath!

The Lord roars from Zion; from Jerusalem ¹  his voice bellows out. ²  The heavens ³  and the earth shake. But the Lord is a refuge for his people; he is a stronghold for the citizens ⁴  of Israel.

Make this announcement in ¹  the fortresses of Ashdod and in the fortresses in the land of Egypt. Say this: “Gather on the hills around Samaria! ²  Observe the many acts of violence ³  taking place within the city, ⁴  the oppressive deeds ⁵  occurring in it.” ⁶ 

Jerusalem, why are you ¹  now shouting so loudly? ²  Has your king disappeared? ³  Has your wise leader ⁴  been destroyed? Is this why ⁵  pain grips ⁶  you as if you were a woman in labor?

They will lick the dust like a snake, like serpents crawling on the ground. ¹  They will come trembling from their strongholds to the Lord our God; ²  they will be terrified ³  of you. ⁴ 

For you will pay in full for your violent acts against Lebanon; ¹  terrifying judgment will come upon you because of the way you destroyed the wild animals living there. ²  You have shed human blood and committed violent acts against lands, cities, and those who live in them.

The sovereign Lord is my source of strength. ¹  He gives me the agility of a deer; ²  he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain. ³  (This prayer is for the song leader. It is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.) ⁴ 

On that day,” says the Lord, “a loud cry will go up ¹  from the Fish Gate, ²  wailing from the city’s newer district, ³  and a loud crash ⁴  from the hills.

The Lord will terrify them, ¹  for ²  he will weaken ³  all the gods of the earth. All the distant nations will worship the Lord in their own lands. ⁴ 

Ashkelon will see and be afraid; Gaza will be in great anguish, as will Ekron, for her hope will have been dried up. ¹  Gaza will lose her king, and Ashkelon will no longer be inhabited.

On that day there will be great confusion from the Lord among them; they will seize each other and attack one another violently.

When he saw ¹  Jesus, he cried out, fell ²  down before him, and shouted with a loud voice, “Leave me alone, ³  Jesus, Son of the Most High ⁴  God! I beg you, do not torment ⁵  me!”

Then ¹  all the people of the Gerasenes ²  and the surrounding region ³  asked Jesus ⁴  to leave them alone, ⁵  for they were seized with great fear. ⁶  So ⁷  he got into the boat and left. ⁸ 

This became known to all who lived in Ephesus, ¹  both Jews and Greeks; fear came over ²  them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. ³ 

I punished ¹  them often in all the synagogues ²  and tried to force ³  them to blaspheme. Because I was so furiously enraged ⁴  at them, I went to persecute ⁵  them even in foreign cities.