Bilingual reading

Open your doors, Lebanon, that the fire may devour your cedars.

Wail, cypress tree, for the cedar has fallen, because the stately ones are destroyed. Wail, you oaks of Bashan, for the strong forest has come down.

A voice of the wailing of the shepherds! For their glory is destroyed—a voice of the roaring of young lions! For the pride of the Jordan is ruined.

The LORD my God says: “Feed the flock of slaughter.

Their buyers slaughter them and go unpunished. Those who sell them say, ‘Blessed be the LORD, for I am rich;’ and their own shepherds don’t pity them.

For I will no more pity the inhabitants of the land,” says the LORD; “but, behold, I will deliver every one of the men into his neighbor’s hand and into the hand of his king. They will strike the land, and out of their hand I will not deliver them.”

So I fed the flock to be slaughtered, especially the oppressed of the flock. I took for myself two staffs. The one I called “Favor” and the other I called “Union”, and I fed the flock.

I cut off the three shepherds in one month; for my soul was weary of them, and their soul also loathed me.

Then I said, “I will not feed you. That which dies, let it die; and that which is to be cut off, let it be cut off; and let those who are left eat each other’s flesh.”

I took my staff Favor and cut it apart, that I might break my covenant that I had made with all the peoples.

It was broken in that day; and thus the poor of the flock that listened to me knew that it was the LORD’s word.

I said to them, “If you think it best, give me my wages; and if not, keep them.” So they weighed for my wages thirty pieces of silver.

The LORD said to me, “Throw it to the potter—the handsome price that I was valued at by them!” I took the thirty pieces of silver and threw them to the potter in the LORD’s house.

Then I cut apart my other staff, Union, that I might break the brotherhood between Judah and Israel.

The LORD said to me, “Take for yourself yet again the equipment of a foolish shepherd.

For, behold, I will raise up a shepherd in the land who will not visit those who are cut off, neither will seek those who are scattered, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which is sound; but he will eat the meat of the fat sheep, and will tear their hoofs in pieces.

Woe to the worthless shepherd who leaves the flock! The sword will strike his arm and his right eye. His arm will be completely withered, and his right eye will be totally blinded!”

إِفتَحْ يا لُبْنانُ أَبْوابَكَ ولْتَلتَهِمِ النَّارُ أَرزَكَ

وَلوِلْ أَيُّها السَّرْوُ فإِنَّ الأَرزَ قد سَقَط لِأَنَّ العُظَماءَ قد دُمِّروا. وَلْوِلْ يا بَلُّوطَ باشان فإِنَّ الغابَةَ المَنيعَةَ قد صُرِعَت

صَوتُ وَلْوالِ الرُّعاة لِأَنَّ عَظَمَتَهم قد دُمِّرَت. صَوتُ زَئيرِ الأَشْبال لِأَنَّ زَهْوَ الأُردُنِّ قد دُمِّر

هٰكذا قالَ الرَّبُّ إِلٰهي: «إِرعَ غَنَمَ القَتْلِ

الَّتي يَقتُلُها مُشْتَروها ولا يُعاقَبون. وكُلُّ مَن يَبيعُها يَقول: تَبارَكَ الرَّبّ، فإِنِّي قدِ ٱغتَنَيتُ، ورُعاتُها لا يُشفِقونَ علَيها

فأَنا أَيضًا لا أُشفِقُ مِن بَعدُ على سُكَّانِ الأَرْض، يَقولُ الرَّبّ، بل هاءَنَذا أُسلِمُ البَشَرَ كُلَّ واحِدٍ إِلى يَدِ قَريبِه وإِلى يَدِ مَلِكِه، فيَسحَقونَ الأَرضَ ولا أُنقِذُ مِن أَيديهِم»

فرَعَيتُ غَنَمَ القَتْلِ الَّتي لِتُجَّارِ الغَنَم، وأَخَذتُ لي عَصَوَينِ ٱثنَتَين، فسَمَّيتُ الواحِدَةَ نِعمَة، وسَمَّيتُ الأُخْرى حِبال، ورَعَيتُ الغَنَم

وأَبَدتُ الرُّعاةَ الثَّلاثَةَ في شَهرٍ واحِد. نَفَدَ صَبْري مِنها، ونُفوسُها أَيضًا سَئِمَت مِنِّي

وقُلتُ: «إِنِّي لا أَرْعاكِ، فمَن يُريدُ المَوتَ فلْيَمُت، ومَن يُريدُ الهَلاكَ فلْيَهلِكْ، وأَمَّا البَقِيَّة فلْيَأكُلْ بَعضُها لَحمَ بَعْض»

وأَخَذتُ عَصايَ نِعمَةَ وحَطَّمتُها لِأَنقُضَ عَهْدِيَ الَّذي قَطَعتُه مع جَميعِ الشُّعوب

فنُقِضَ في ذٰلك اليَوم، وهٰكذا عَلِمَ تُجَّارُ الغَنَمِ المُراقِبونَ لي أَنَّها كَلِمَةُ الرَّبّ

وقُلتُ لَهم: «إِن حَسُنَ في عُيونِكم، فهاتوا أُجرَتي، وإِلَّا فٱمتَنِعوا»، فوَزَنوا أُجرَتي ثَلاثينَ مِنَ الفِضَّة

فقالَ لِيَ الرَّبّ: «أَلقِها إِلى السَّبَّاكِ ثَمَنًا كَريمًا ثَمَّنوني بِه». فأَخَذتُ الثَّلاثينَ مِنَ الفِضَّة، وأَلقَيتُها في بَيتِ الرَّبِّ إِلى السَّبَّاك

وحَطَّمتُ عَصايَ الأُخْرى حِبال، لِأَنقُضَ الإِخاءَ بَينَ يَهوذا وإِسْرائيل

وقالَ لِيَ الرَّبّ: «عُدْ فخُذْ لَكَ أَدَواتِ راعٍ غَبِيّ

فهاءَنَذا أُقيمُ راعِيًا في الأَرضِ لا يَفتَقِدُ النَّعجَةَ المُختَفِيَة ولا يَطلُبُ المَفْقودةَ ولا يَجبُرُ المَكْسورة ولا يَعولُ القائم، بل يأكُلُ لَحمَ السِّمانِ ويَنزِعُ أَظْلافَها

وَيلٌ لِلرَّاعي الباطِلِ الَّذي يُهمِلُ الغَنَم لِيَكُنِ السَّيفُ على ذِراعِه وعلى عَينِه اليُمْنى ولْتَيبَس ذِراعُه يُبْسًا ولْتَكِلَّ عَينُه اليُمْنى كَلالَةً»