23Bow and javelin they take hold of, Fierce it [is], and they have no mercy, Their voice as a sea doth sound, And on horses they ride, set in array as a man of war, Against thee, O daughter of Zion.
24`We have heard its sound, feeble have been our hands, Distress hath seized us, pain as of a travailing woman.
25Go not forth to the field, And in the way walk not, For a sword hath the enemy, fear [is] round about.
26O daughter of My people, Gird on sackcloth, and roll thyself in ashes, The mourning of an only one make for thee, A lamentation most bitter, For suddenly come doth the spoiler against us.
27A watch-tower I have given thee, Among My people a fortress, And thou knowest, and hast tried their way.
28All of them are turned aside by apostates, Walking slanderously -- brass and iron, All of them are corrupters.
29The bellows have been burnt, By fire hath the lead been consumed, In vain hath a refiner refined, And the wicked have not been drawn away.
