20 Go my people—enter into your rooms and shut the door behind you.
Hide a little while until the indignation has passed by.
21 Listen, Yahweh is about to come out of his place, to punish all the world’s inhabitants,
and the earth will reveal all its bloodshed and will no longer cover over those who were killed.
27 At that time, Yahweh will use his extremely powerful sword,
to punish the slithering sea monster Livyatan—Livyatan the twisting snake-like creature,[ref]
and he’ll kill the monster that’s in the ocean.
2 When that happens, sing about a delightful vineyard.
3 I, Yahweh, will look after it.
I’ll keep it watered in case someone attacks it.
I’ll guard it night and day.
4 I don’t have any anger—who will give me thorn bushes?
I will march against it—I’ll completely burn it up.
5 If anyone takes advantage of my protection,
then they’ll make peace to me—
let them make peace with me.
6 The (time) is coming when Ya’akov (Jacob) will take root.
Yisrael (Israel) will blossom and bud,
and they’ll fill the world with fruit.
7 Has he attacked us like he attacked those who attacked us,
≈ or did he kill us like he killed those who killed us?
8 By sending her away, you have contended with her.
He released his fierce breath on an east-wind day.
9 So Ya’akov’s (Jacob’s) disobedience will be made right again by that,
and this is all the fruit of the removal of his sin:
when he’ll make all the altar stones like pulverised pieces of chalk.
No Asherah poles or incense altars will remain standing,
10 because the fortified city is desolate.
That habitation is deserted and abandoned like a wilderness.
A calf grazes there, then it will lie down.
It will bring its branches to an end—
11 when its branches dry up, they’ll be broken off.
Women will come and light fires with them because they’re not a people with understanding.
Therefore the who made and formed it, won’t show any favour towards it.
12 Then at that time, Yahweh will thresh people
from the Perat (Euphrates) river in the northeast to Mitsrayim’s (Egypt’s) river down in the southwest,
and you Israelis will be gathered in one by one.
13 Then on that same day, a loud trumpet will be blown,
and those who are perishing in Ashur (Assyria) will come
≈ along with those who were banished to Mitsrayim,
and they will bow down to Yahweh on Yerushalem’s (Jerusalem’s) sacred mountain.
