29:1  Woe, O Ariel, Ariel the city where David once camped! Add year to year, observe your feasts on schedule.

29:2  I will bring distress to Ariel, And she will become a city of lamenting and mourning; And she will become like an Ariel to me.

29:3  I will camp against you encircling you, And I will set siegeworks against you, And I will raise up battle towers against you.

29:4  Then you will find yourselves brought low;From the earth you will speak, And from the dust where you lie prostrate Your words will come. Your voice will also resemble a spirit from the ground, And your speech will whisper from the dust.

29:5  But the multitude of your enemies will become like fine dust, And the multitude of the ruthless ones like the chaff which blows away; And it will happen instantly, suddenly.

29:6  From the LORD of hosts you will receive punishment with thunder and earthquake and loud noise, With whirlwind and tempest and the flame of a consuming fire.

29:7  And the multitude of all the nations who wage war against Ariel, Even all who wage war against her and her stronghold, and who distress her, Will seem like a dream, a vision of the night.

29:8  It will seem as when a hungry man dreams-- And behold, he eats; But when he awakens, his hunger has not become satisfied, Or as when a thirsty man dreams-- And behold, he drinks, But when he awakens, behold, he feels faint And his thirst has not become quenched. Thus the multitude of all the nations will seem Who wage war against Mount Zion.

29:9  Stay delayed and wait, Blind yourselves and remain blind; They become drunk, but not with wine, They stagger, but not with strong drink.

29:10  For the LORD has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep, He has shut your eyes, the prophets; And He has covered your heads, the seers.

29:11  The entire vision will appear to you like the words of a sealed book, which when they give it to the one who has become literate, saying, "Please read this," he will say, "I cannot, for someone has sealed it ."

29:12  Then the book we will give to the one who cannot read, saying, "Please read this." And he will say, "I cannot read."

29:13  Then the Lord said, "Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,

29:14  Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous; And the wisdom of their wise men will perish, And the discernment of their discerning men will have concealment."

29:15  Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the LORD, And whose deeds they do in a dark place, And they say, " Who sees us?" or "Who knows us?"

29:16  You turn things around! Shall we consider the potter as equal with the clay, That what has become made would say to its maker, "He did not make me"; Or what someone has formed say to him who formed it, "He has no understanding"?

29:17  Does it not seem just a little while Before Lebanon will turn into a fertile field, And the fertile field we will consider as a forest?

29:18  On that day the deaf will hear words of a book, And out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.

29:19  The afflicted also will increase their gladness in the LORD, And the needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

29:20  For the ruthless will come to an end and the scorner will come to an end, Indeed all who feel intent on doing evil will become cut off;

29:21  Who cause a person to receive indictment by a word, And ensnare him who adjudicates at the gate, And defraud the one in the right with meaningless arguments.

29:22  Therefore thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: "Jacob shall not now feel ashamed, nor shall his face now turn pale;

29:23  But when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, They will sanctify My name; Indeed, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob And will stand in awe of the God of Israel.

29:24  "Those who err in mind will know the truth, And those who criticize will accept instruction.