with the sword.
[32] And the earth shall be laid waste, and the fields thereof shall wax old, and her ways
and all her paths shall grow full of thorns, because no man shall travel therethrough.
[33] The virgins
shall mourn, having no bridegrooms; the women shall mourn, having no husbands; their daughters shall
mourn, having no helpers.
[34] In the wars shall their bridegrooms be destroyed, and their husbands
shall perish of famine.
[35] Hear now these things and understand them, ye servants of the Lord.
[36]
Behold, the word of the Lord, receive it: believe not the gods of whom the Lord spake.
[37] Behold, the
plagues draw nigh, and are not slack.
[38] As when a woman with child in the ninth month bringeth forth
her son, with two or three hours of her birth great pains compass her womb, which pains, when the
child cometh forth, they slack not a moment:
[39] Even so shall not the plagues be slack to come upon
the earth, and the world shall mourn, and sorrows shall come upon it on every side.
[40] O my people,
hear my word: make you ready to thy battle, and in those evils be even as pilgrims upon the earth.
[41]
He that selleth, let him be as he that fleeth away: and he that buyeth, as one that will lose:
[42] He that
occupieth merchandise, as he that hath no profit by it: and he that buildeth, as he that shall not dwell
therein:
[43] He that soweth, as if he should not reap: so also he that planteth the vineyard, as he that
shall not gather the grapes:
[44] They that marry, as they that shall get no children; and they that marry
not, as the widowers.
[45] And therefore they that labour labour in vain:
[46] For strangers shall reap their
fruits, and spoil their goods, overthrow their houses, and take their children captives, for in captivity and
famine shall they get children.
[47] And they that occupy their merchandise with robbery, the more they
deck their cities, their houses, their possessions, and their own persons:
[48] The more will I be angry
with them for their sin, saith the Lord.
[49] Like as a whore envieth a right honest and virtuous woman:
[50]
So shall righteousness hate iniquity, when she decketh herself, and shall accuse her to her face, when
he cometh that shall defend him that diligently searcheth out every sin upon earth.
[51] And therefore
be ye not like thereunto, nor to the works thereof.
[52] For yet a little, and iniquity shall be taken away
out of the earth, and righteousness shall reign among you.
[53] Let not the sinner say that he hath not
sinned: for God shall burn coals of fire upon his head, which saith before the Lord God and his glory, I
have not sinned.
[54] Behold, the Lord knoweth all the works of men, their imaginations, their thoughts,
and their hearts:
[55] Which spake but the word, Let the earth be made; and it was made: Let the heaven
be made; and it was created.
[56] In his word were the stars made, and he knoweth the number of them.
[57]
He searcheth the deep, and the treasures thereof; he hath measured the sea, and what it containeth.
[58]
He hath shut the sea in the midst of the waters, and with his word hath he hanged the earth upon the
waters.
[59] He spreadeth out the heavens like a vault; upon the waters hath he founded it.
[60] In the
desert hath he made springs of water, and pools upon the tops of the mountains, that the floods might
pour down from the high rocks to water the earth.
[61] He made man, and put his heart in the midst of
the body, and gave him breath, life, and understanding.
[62] Yea and the Spirit of Almighty God, which
made all things, and searcheth out all hidden things in the secrets of the earth,
[63] Surely he knoweth
your inventions, and what ye think in your hearts, even them that sin, and would hide their sin.
[64] Therefore
hath the Lord exactly searched out all your works, and he will put you all to shame.
[65] And when your
sins are brought forth, ye shall be ashamed before men, and your own sins shall be your accusers in
that day.
[66] What will ye do? or how will ye hide your sins before God and his angels?
[67] Behold, God
himself is the judge, fear him: leave off from your sins, and forget your iniquities, to meddle no more with
them for ever: so shall God lead you forth, and deliver you from all trouble.
[68] For, behold, the burning
wrath of a great multitude is kindled over you, and they shall take away certain of you, and feed you,
being idle, with things offered unto idols.
[69] And they that consent unto them shall be had in derision
and in reproach, and trodden under foot.
[70] For there shall be in every place, and in the next cities,
a great insurrection upon those that fear the Lord.
[71] They shall be like mad men, sparing none, but
still spoiling and destroying those that fear the Lord.
[72] For they shall waste and take away their goods,
and cast them out of their houses.
[73] Then shall they be known, who are my chosen; and they shall be
tried as the gold in the fire.
[74] Hear, O ye my beloved, saith the Lord: behold, the days of trouble are at
hand, but I will deliver you from the same.
[75] Be ye not afraid neither doubt; for God is your guide,
[76]
And the guide of them who keep my commandments and precepts, saith the Lord God: let not your sins
weigh you down, and let not your iniquities lift up themselves.
[77] Woe be unto them that are bound
with their sins, and covered with their iniquities like as a field is covered over with bushes, and the path