A warning that God will punish Judah

3 The Commander of the armies of angels is about to take away from Jerusalem and other places in Judea

everything that you depend on—

all your food and water.

2 He will take away your heroes and your other soldiers,

your judges and your prophets,

people who do rituals to find out what will happen in the future and the elders,

3 army officers and other officials,

advisors and skilled craftsmen and those who perform rituals to predict the future.

4 He will appoint boys to be your leaders;

your children will rule you.

5 People will treat each other cruelly:

people will fight against their neighbors.

Young people will insult older people,

and vulgar/dishonorable people will sneer at people who should be honored.

6 At that time, someone will grab one of his brothers in his father’s house and say to him,

“You have a coat, which shows that you are respected.

So you be our leader!

You rule this city, which is now a pile of ruins!”

7 But his brother will reply,

“No, I cannot help you,

because I do not have any extra food or clothes in this house.

So do not appoint me to be your leader!”

8 Jerusalem and the other towns in Judah will be destroyed,

because everything that the people do and say there opposes Yahweh,

who is powerful and glorious,

and they refuse to obey him.

They rebel against him.

9 They even show on their faces that they oppose Yahweh.

They are proud of their sins,

like the people of Sodom were long ago;

they do not try to hide their sins.

Because of their sins, terrible things will happen to them,

but they will bring those disasters on themselves.

10 Yahweh told me to tell the righteous people that good things will happen to them;

they will enjoy the blessings that they will receive for their good deeds.

11 But terrible things will happen to wicked people;

they will be ◄paid back/punished► for the evil things that [MTY] they have done.

12 Now, youths who have become leaders treat my people cruelly,

and women rule over my people.

My people, your leaders are misleading you;

they are causing you to go down the wrong road [MET].

13 It is as though Yahweh has sat in his place in a courtroom

and is ready to judge his people.

14 He will stand up to declare why the elders and rulers of his people should be punished:

he says, “The people of Israel are like [MET] a vineyard that I planted,

but you have ruined it!

Your houses are full of things that you have stolen from poor people.

15 You should stop [RHQ] crushing my people!

It is as though you are pushing the faces of poor people into the dirt!”

That is what the Commander of the armies of angels says.