18 You who desire the day of Yahweh won’t end well.

Why do you long for the day of Yahweh?

It’ll be darkness and not light,

19 like when a person flees from a lion and then they run into a bear,

≈or when a person goes in a house and puts a hand on the wall and gets bitten by a snake.

20 Won’t Yahweh’s day consist of darkness and not light?

≈Gloom and no brightness?

21 “I hate, I despise your festivals,

≈I take no delight in your formal gatherings.[ref]

22 Even though you all offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I won’t accept them,

≈nor will I take any notice of your fellowship offerings of fattened animals.

23 Take the noise of your songs away from me.

≈I won’t listen to the sound of your harps.

24 Instead, let justice flow like water,

≈and righteousness like a constantly flowing stream.

25 You descendants of Israel,

did you bring me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness for forty years?[ref]

26 You’ve all lifted up the images of Sikkut, your king,

and Kiyyun, your star god that you made for yourselves. 27 Therefore I will exile you far beyond Damascus,”

says Yahweh, whose name is the God with armies.