The Hebrew Prophets

But ADONAI-Tzva'ot is exalted through justice, God the Holy One is consecrated through righteousness.

Then lambs will be able to feed as if they were in their own pasture, and those wandering through will eat from the ruined fields of the overfed.

Woe to those who begin by pulling at transgression with a thread, but end by dragging sin along as if with a cart rope.

They say, "We want God to speed up his work, to hurry it along, so we can see it! We want the Holy One of Isra'el's plan to come true right now, so we can be sure of it!"

Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who change darkness into light and light into darkness, who change bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter!

Woe to those seeing themselves as wise, esteeming themselves as clever.

Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine, men whose power goes to mixing strong drinks,

who acquit the guilty for bribes but deny justice to the righteous!

Therefore, as fire licks up the stubble, and the chaff is consumed in the flame; so their root will rot, and their flowers scatter like dust; because they have rejected the Torah of ADONAI-Tzva'ot, they have despised the word of the Holy One of Isra'el.

This is why ADONAI's anger blazed up against his people, why he stretched out his hand against them and struck them [so hard that] the hills shook, and corpses lay like trash in the streets. Even after all this, his anger remains, his upraised hand still threatens.

He will give a signal to faraway nations, he will whistle for them to come from the ends of the earth; and here they come, so fast!

none of them tired or stumbling, none of them sleeping or drowsy, none with a loose belt, none with a broken sandal-strap.

Their arrows are sharp, all their bows are strung, their horses' hoofs are like flint, and their [chariot] wheels like a whirlwind.

They will roar like lions - yes, roaring like young lions, they growl and seize the prey and carry it off, with no one to rescue.

On that day they will growl at them, like the sea when it growls - and when one looks toward land, one sees darkness closing in; the light is dissipated in the obscuring overcast.

In the year of King 'Uziyahu's death I saw Adonai sitting on a high, lofty throne! The hem of his robe filled the temple.

S'rafim stood over him, each with six wings - two for covering his face, two for covering his feet and two for flying.

They were crying out to each other, "More holy than the holiest holiness is ADONAI-Tzva'ot! The whole earth is filled with his glory!"

The doorposts shook at the sound of their shouting, and the house was filled with smoke.

Then I said, "Woe to me! I [too] am doomed! because I, a man with unclean lips, living among a people with unclean lips, have seen with my own eyes the King, ADONAI-Tzva'ot!"

One of the s'rafim flew to me with a glowing coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar.

He touched my mouth with it and said, "Here! This has touched your lips. Your iniquity is gone, your sin is atoned for."

Then I heard the voice of Adonai saying, "Whom should I send? Who will go for us?" I answered, "I'm here, send me!"

He said, "Go and tell this people: 'Yes, you hear, but you don't understand. You certainly see, but you don't get the point!'

"Make the heart of this people [sluggish with] fat, stop up their ears, and shut their eyes. Otherwise, seeing with their eyes, and hearing with their ears, then understanding with their hearts, they might repent and be healed!"