59 lines
1.8 KiB
Markdown
59 lines
1.8 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 2
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1 One who scatters is coming up against you.
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Man the fortifications!
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Watch the road!
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Brace yourself!
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Summon all your strength!
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2 For the Lord will restore the majesty of Jacob,
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yes, the majesty of Israel,
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though ravagers have ravaged them
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and ruined their vine branches.
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3 The shields of his warriors are dyed red;
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the valiant men are dressed in scarlet.
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The fittings of the chariot flash like fire
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on the day of its battle preparations,
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and the spears are brandished.
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4 The chariots dash madly through the streets;
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they rush around in the plazas.
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They look like torches;
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they dart back and forth like lightning.
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5 He gives orders to his officers;
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they stumble as they advance.
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They race to its wall;
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the protective shield is set in place.
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6 The river gates are opened,
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and the palace erodes away.
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7 Beauty is stripped;
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she is carried away;
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her ladies-in-waiting moan
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like the sound of doves
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and beat their breasts.
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8 Nineveh has been like a pool of water
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from her first days,
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but they are fleeing.
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“Stop! Stop!” they cry,
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but no one turns back.
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9 “Plunder the silver! Plunder the gold!”
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There is no end to the treasure,
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an abundance of every precious thing.
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10 Desolation, decimation, devastation!
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Hearts melt,
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knees tremble,
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insides churn,
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every face grows pale!
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11 Where is the lions’ lair,
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or the feeding ground of the young lions,
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where the lion and lioness prowled,
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and the lion’s cub,
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with nothing to frighten them away?
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12 The lion mauled whatever its cubs needed
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and strangled prey for its lionesses.
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It filled up its dens with the kill,
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and its lairs with mauled prey.
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13 Beware, I am against you.
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This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies.
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I will make your chariots go up in smoke,
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and the sword will devour your young lions.
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I will cut off your prey from the earth,
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and the sound of your messengers
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will never be heard again. |