God’s Reasons for Punishing Israel
1 Listen to this message that the LORD has spoken against you, Israelites, against the entire clan that I brought from the land of Egypt: p
2 I have known only you q
out of all the clans of the earth;
therefore, I will punish you for all your iniquities. r
3 Can two walk together s
without agreeing to meet?
4 Does a lion roar t in the forest
when it has no prey?
Does a young lion growl from its lair
unless it has captured something?
5 Does a bird land in a trap on the ground
if there is no bait for it?
Does a trap spring from the ground
when it has caught nothing?
6 If a ram’s horn u is blown in a city,
aren’t people afraid? v
If a disaster w occurs in a city,
hasn’t the LORD done it? x
7 Indeed, the Lord GOD does nothing
without revealing his counsel
to his servants the prophets. y
8 A lion has roared; z
who will not fear?
The Lord GOD has spoken; a
who will not prophesy? b
9 Proclaim on the citadels in Ashdod c
and on the citadels in the land of Egypt:
Assemble on the mountains of Samaria, d
and see the great turmoil in the city
and the acts of oppression within it. e
10 The people are incapable of doing right f—
this is the LORD’S declaration—
those who store up violence and destruction g
in their citadels.
11 Therefore, the Lord GOD says:
An enemy h will surround the land;
he will destroy i your strongholds
and plunder your citadels. j
As the shepherd snatches two legs
or a piece of an ear
from the lion’s mouth, k
so the Israelites who live in Samaria
will be rescued
with only the corner of a bed l
or the F cushion G of a couch. H,m
13 Listen and testify n against the house of Jacob—
this is the declaration of the Lord GOD,
the God of Armies.
14 I will punish the altars of Bethel o
on the day I punish Israel for its crimes;
the horns of the altar p will be cut off
and fall to the ground. q
15 I will demolish the winter house r
and the summer house; s
the houses inlaid with ivory t will be destroyed,
and the great houses u will come to an end.
This is the LORD’S declaration.