2 The Lord says, ‘The people in Moab have done more and more wrong things. So I will certainly punish them.

They dug up the bones of Edom's king. They burned his bones until they became ashes. ² So I will send fire to the country called Moab. The fire will destroy the strong buildings in Kerioth town. The people will hear their enemies shout. And they will hear the sounds that their enemies' trumpets make. And the people will die. ³ I will let the enemies kill the ruler of Moab. And I will let them kill all its leaders too.’ That is what the Lord says.

A message to the people in Judah

⁴ The Lord says, ‘The people in Judah have done more and more wrong things. So I will certainly punish them.

They refused to obey my laws and my commands. They have listened to their false gods, Those are the same false gods that their ancestors served. ⁵ So I will send fire to Judah. The fire will completely burn the strong buildings that are in Jerusalem.’

A message to the people in Israel

⁶ The Lord says, ‘The people in Israel have done more and more wrong things. So I will certainly punish them.

They sold people that did not do wrong things. They sold them for silver. And they sold poor people for only the price of shoes. ⁷ They are not kind to poor people and they do not help them. A father and his son have sex with the same woman. They do not respect the holy way that I want them to live. ⁸ When they lend money to poor people, they take the poor people's clothes.^[a] They do not return the clothes each night, as they should do. Instead they sleep on the clothes themselves. They do that at the places where they worship their gods. The rich people take money from poor people. They use that money to buy wine for themselves. Then they drink the wine in the temples of their gods.

⁹ Remember the Amorites. They were big and strong. They were like the tallest cedar trees and the strongest oak trees. But I destroyed all of them. ¹⁰ I brought you out of Egypt. After that, I led you through the wilderness for 40 years. Then I took you to the land where the Amorites lived, so that it would belong to you. ¹¹ I chose some men among you to be prophets, and some to be Nazirites.^[b] You Israelites know that it is true.’ That is what the Lord says. ¹² ‘But you told the Nazirites to drink wine, like everyone else. And you said to the prophets, “Do not speak messages from God.” 

¹³ So I will punish you. A cart that has a heavy load pushes down on the ground. That is how I will push down on you. ¹⁴ You might try to run away. But nobody will get free. Even the fastest runner will not get free. The strong people will not be strong enough to stop me. The soldiers will not be able to save their lives. ¹⁵ Soldiers who shoot arrows will have to turn back. Fast runners will not save their lives. Soldiers who ride on horses will also die. ¹⁶ At that time, strong, brave soldiers will run away without their clothes.’ That is what the Lord says.