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¹ Woe is me! For I am like those who gather summer fruits, Like those who glean vintage grapes; There is no cluster to eat Of the first-ripe fruit which my soul desires.
² The faithful man has perished from the earth, And there is no one upright among men. They all lie in wait for blood; Every man hunts his brother with a net.
³ That they may successfully do evil with both hands--The prince asks for gifts, The judge seeks a bribe, And the great man utters his evil desire; So they scheme together.
⁴ The best of them is like a brier; The most upright is sharper than a thorn hedge; The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; Now shall be their perplexity.
⁵ Do not trust in a friend; Do not put your confidence in a companion; Guard the doors of your mouth From her who lies in your bosom.
⁶ For son dishonors father, Daughter rises against her mother, Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; A man's enemies are the men of his own household.
⁷ Therefore I will look to the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation; My God will hear me.
⁸ Do not rejoice over me, my enemy; When I fall, I will arise; When I sit in darkness, The LORD will be a light to me.
⁹ I will bear the indignation of the LORD, Because I have sinned against Him, Until He pleads my case And executes justice for me. He will bring me forth to the light; I will see His righteousness.
¹⁰ Then she who is my enemy will see, And shame will cover her who said to me, "Where is the LORD your God?" My eyes will see her; Now she will be trampled down Like mud in the streets.
¹¹ In the day when your walls are to be built, In that day the decree shall go far and wide.
¹² In that day they shall come to you From Assyria and the fortified cities, From the fortress to the River, From sea to sea, And mountain to mountain.
¹³ Yet the land shall be desolate Because of those who dwell in it, And for the fruit of their deeds.
¹⁴ Shepherd Your people with Your staff, The flock of Your heritage, Who dwell solitarily in a woodland, In the midst of Carmel; Let them feed in Bashan and Gilead, As in days of old.
¹⁵ "As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, I will show them wonders."
¹⁶ The nations shall see and be ashamed of all their might; They shall put their hand over their mouth; Their ears shall be deaf.
¹⁷ They shall lick the dust like a serpent; They shall crawl from their holes like snakes of the earth. They shall be afraid of the LORD our God, And shall fear because of You.
¹⁸ Who is a God like You, Pardoning iniquity And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy.
¹⁹ He will again have compassion on us, And will subdue our iniquities. You will cast all our sins Into the depths of the sea.
²⁰ You will give truth to Jacob And mercy to Abraham, Which You have sworn to our fathers From days of old.