All those who behave wickedly ¹  do not understand ²  – those who devour my people as if they were eating bread, and do not call out to God.

Do not strike them dead suddenly, because then my people might forget the lesson. ¹  Use your power to make them homeless vagabonds and then bring them down, O Lord who shields us! ² 

A well-written song ²  by Asaph. Pay attention, my people, to my instruction! Listen to the words I speak! ³ 

I said, ¹  ‘Listen, my people! I will warn ²  you! O Israel, if only you would obey me! ³ 

But my people did not obey me; ¹  Israel did not submit to me. ² 

Show me evidence of your favor! ¹  Then those who hate me will see it and be ashamed, ²  for you, O Lord, will help me and comfort me. ³ 

who loves me ¹  and is my stronghold, my refuge ²  and my deliverer, my shield and the one in whom I take shelter, who makes nations submit to me. ³ 

An ox recognizes its owner, a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; ¹  but Israel does not recognize me, ²  my people do not understand.”

Why do you crush my people and grind the faces of the poor?” ¹  The sovereign Lord who commands armies ²  has spoken.

Therefore my ¹  people will be deported ²  because of their lack of understanding. Their ³  leaders will have nothing to eat, ⁴  their ⁵  masses will have nothing to drink. ⁶ 

For this reason my people will know my name, for this reason they will know ¹  at that time ²  that I am the one who says, ‘Here I am.’”

He says, ¹  “Build it! Build it! Clear a way! Remove all the obstacles out of the way of my people!”

He said, “Certainly they will be my people, children who are not disloyal.” ¹  He became their deliverer.

They offer only superficial help for the harm my people have suffered. ¹  They say, ‘Everything will be all right!’ But everything is not all right! ² 

They offer only superficial help for the hurt my dear people ¹  have suffered. ²  They say, “Everything will be all right!” But everything is not all right! ³ 

The Lord continued, ¹  “In every town in the land I will purge them like straw blown away by the wind. ²  I will destroy my people. I will kill off their children. I will do so because they did not change their behavior. ³ 

The Lord says, ¹  “I saw the prophets of Samaria ²  doing something that was disgusting. ³  They prophesied in the name of the god Baal and led my people Israel astray. ⁴ 

But if they had stood in my inner circle, ¹  they would have proclaimed my message to my people. They would have caused my people to turn from their wicked ways and stop doing the evil things they are doing.

“Get out of Babylon, my people! Flee to save your lives from the fierce anger of the Lord! ¹ 

י (Yod) The hands of tenderhearted women ¹  cooked their own children, who became their food, ²  when my people ³  were destroyed. ⁴