1Come near, ye nations, to hear; and hearken, ye people: let the earth hear, and all that is therein; the world, and all things that come forth of it.2For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter.3Their slain also shall be cast out, and their stink shall come up out of their carcases, and the mountains shall be melted with their blood.4And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree.5For my sword shall be bathed in heaven: behold, it shall come down upon Idumea, and upon the people of my curse, to judgment.6The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea.7And the unicorns shall come down with them, and the bullocks with the bulls; and their land shall be soaked with blood, and their dust made fat with fatness.8For it is the day of the LORD' vengeance, and the year of recompences for the controversy of Zion.9And the streams thereof shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into brimstone, and the land thereof shall become burning pitch.10It shall not be quenched night nor day; the smoke thereof shall go up for ever: from generation to generation it shall lie waste; none shall pass through it for ever and ever.11But the cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of confusion, and the stones of emptiness.12They shall call the nobles thereof to the kingdom, but none shall be there, and all her princes shall be nothing.13And thorns shall come up in her palaces, nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for owls.14The wild beasts of the desert shall also meet with the wild beasts of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the screech owl also shall rest there, and find for herself a place of rest.15There shall the great owl make her nest, and lay, and hatch, and gather under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.16Seek ye out of the book of the LORD, and read: no one of these shall fail, none shall want her mate: for my mouth it hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.17And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it unto them by line: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation shall they dwell therein.
1Nations, come near and listen to me! Pay attention to what I’m about to say. Let the earth and everything in it listen. Let the world and everything that comes out of it pay attention.2The LORD is angry with all the nations. His anger is against all their armies. He will totally destroy them. He will let them be killed.3Those who are killed won’t be buried. Their dead bodies will be thrown on the ground. They will stink. Their blood will cover the mountains.4All the stars in the sky will vanish. The heavens will be rolled up like a scroll. All the stars in the sky will fall like dried-up leaves from a vine. They will drop like wrinkled figs from a fig tree.5The sword of the LORD will finish its deadly work in the sky. Then it will come down to strike Edom. He will totally destroy that nation.6His sword will be red with blood. It will be covered with fat. The blood will flow like the blood of lambs and goats being sacrificed. The fat will be like the fat taken from the kidneys of rams. That’s because the LORD will offer a sacrifice in the city of Bozrah. He will kill many people in the land of Edom.7The people and their leaders will be killed like wild oxen and young bulls. Their land will be wet with their blood. The dust will be covered with their fat.8That’s because the LORD has set aside a day to pay Edom back. He has set aside a year to pay them back. He will pay them back for what they did to Zion.9The streams of Edom will be turned into tar. Its dust will be turned into blazing sulphur. Its land will become burning tar.10The fire will keep burning night and day. It can’t be put out. Its smoke will go up for ever. Edom will lie empty for all time to come. No one will ever travel through it again.11The desert owl and screech owl will make it their home. The great owl and the raven will build their nests there. God will use his measuring line to show how completely Edom will be destroyed. He will use his plumb line to show how empty Edom will become.12Edom’s nobles won’t have anything left there that can be called a kingdom. All its princes will vanish.13Thorns will cover its forts. Bushes and weeds will cover its safest places. It will become a home for wild dogs. It will become a place where owls live.14Desert creatures will meet with hyenas. Wild goats will call out to each other. Night creatures will also lie down there. They will find places where they can rest.15Owls will make their nests and lay their eggs there. And they will hatch them. They will take care of their little ones under the shadow of their wings. Male and female falcons will also gather there.16Look in the book of the LORD. Here is what you will read there. None of those animals will be missing. Male and female alike will be there. The LORD himself has commanded it. And his Spirit will gather them together.17The LORD will decide what part of the land goes to each animal. Then he will give each one its share. It will belong to them for ever. And they will live there for all time to come.