A Prophecy about Damascus

¹This is God’s message for Damascus:

“Behold, Damascus is gone!

It is no longer a city, only a heap of rubble.

²Her ruins will be abandoned—[#17:2 Or “The towns of Aroer.” Aroer means “ruins.”]

left for flocks to lie down in with nothing to fear.

³Damascus will lose the power of her fortress,

and the strongholds of the northern kingdom will disappear.

The remnant of Syria will be like Israel—stripped of its glory,”

says the Lord Yahweh , Commander of Angel Armies.

⁴“On that day, the beautiful splendor of Jacob’s northern tribes

will be brought low, and they will become like skin and bones.

⁵It will be as when a farmer harvests the standing grain

and gathers armloads of grain,

and as one gathers ears of grain in the Valley of Giants.

⁶Yet some gleanings will remain,

as when an olive tree is shaken,

leaving two or three olives in the highest branches

and four or five on its fruitful branches,”

declares Lord Yahweh , the God of Israel.

⁷In that day, people will gaze toward their Creator,[#17:7 Or “At that time, the Adam will look toward the Creator.” See James 1:22–25.]

and their eyes will look in faith toward the Holy One of Israel.

⁸They will not be infatuated with the religious altars

their own hands crafted,

nor by what their own fingers have made,

nor with their sacred groves or altars of incense.

⁹On that day their bustling cities will become deserted

like those conquered by the Israelites—

abandoned to thickets and undergrowth,

it will all become desolate.

¹⁰For you have ignored and forgotten the God who saves you

and have not remembered your Rock of Safety.

So what do you do?

You cultivate your beautiful gardens and plant imported vines.

¹¹Even if on the day you plant them they begin to grow,

and even if immediately you see them bud,

your harvest will wither away in a day of grief and agony.

The Uproar of the Nations

¹²Ah, the thunder of many people joining together![#17:12 That is, the armies of Assyria. See Ps. 2:1–3.]

They roar like the roar of the sea.

Woe to the uproar of the many nations!

They thunder like the crashing of ocean waves.

¹³The nations are roaring like the roar of a massive waterfall,

but when God rebukes them they disperse

like chaff on the mountains,

like a tumbleweed whirling in the wind.

¹⁴In the evening—behold, sudden terror!

Before the morning comes, they vanish!

Such is the fate of those who plunder and try to rob us.