The time of Israel’s punishment has come; the day of payment is here. Soon Israel will know this all too well. Because of your great sin and hostility, you say,“ The prophets are crazy and the inspired men are fools!”

以色列人必知道降罚的日子临近，报应的时候来到。民说：作先知的是愚昧；受灵感的是狂妄，皆因他们多多作孽，大怀怨恨。

降罚的日子近了，报应的时候已经来到。以色列必知道，先知愚昧，受灵感动的人狂妄，皆因你多多作恶，大怀怨恨。

降罚的日子近了，报应的时候已经来到。以色列必知道，先知愚昧，受灵感动的人狂妄，皆因你多多作恶，大怀怨恨。

以色列人受惩罚的日子近了，遭报应的时候到了！这点你们要知道。你们罪恶深重，充满憎恨，以致你们说：“先知是傻瓜，被灵感动的人是疯子。”

惩罚的日子临近，报应的时候来到，以色列必定知道，因着你们众多的罪孽和深仇大恨，先知被看为愚昧，受灵感动的人被当作疯子。

以色列人必知道降罰的日子臨近，報應的時候來到。民說：作先知的是愚昧；受靈感的是狂妄，皆因他們多多作孽，大懷怨恨。

降罰的日子近了，報應的時候已經來到。以色列必知道，先知愚昧，受靈感動的人狂妄，皆因你多多作惡，大懷怨恨。

降罰的日子近了，報應的時候已經來到。以色列必知道，先知愚昧，受靈感動的人狂妄，皆因你多多作惡，大懷怨恨。

以色列人受懲罰的日子近了，遭報應的時候到了！這點你們要知道。你們罪惡深重，充滿憎恨，以致你們說：「先知是傻瓜，被靈感動的人是瘋子。」

懲罰的日子臨近，報應的時候來到，以色列必定知道，因著你們眾多的罪孽和深仇大恨，先知被看為愚昧，受靈感動的人被當作瘋子。

察罰的日子來了，報應的日子到了，以色列必知道的。神言人愚忘，靈感動的人瘋狂，都因你罪孽之大，仇恨之深。

懲罰之日既至、報施之日已來、以色列必知之、先知愚妄、感於靈者顚狂、因爾多罪、怨恨特甚、

降災罰惡、其日已屆、以色列族必知之、因犯罪惡、蓄怨不已、故彼冒為先知、佯托感神、卒見愚蠢、而發狂疾、

降罰之日速至、施報之日將臨、以色列人必知偽先知愚魯、自言感神者顛狂、皆因爾多犯罪惡、大懷怨恨、

The days of punishment are coming, the days of reckoning are at hand. Let Israel know this. Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired person a maniac.

The time when God will punish you is coming. The day when he will judge you is near. I want Israel to know this. You have committed many sins. And you hate me very much. That’s why you think the prophet is foolish. You think the person the Lord speaks through is crazy.

The days of punishment have come; the days of recompense have come; Israel shall know it. The prophet is a fool; the man of the spirit is mad, because of your great iniquity and great hatred.

The days of punishment have come; the days of retribution have come. Let Israel recognize it! The prophet is a fool, and the inspired man is insane, because of the magnitude of your iniquity and hostility.

The days of punishment have come, The days of retribution have come; Let Israel know this! The prophet is a fool, The inspired person is insane, Because of the grossness of your wrongdoing, And because your hostility is so great.

The days of punishment have come; The days of recompense have come. Israel knows! The prophet is a fool, The spiritual man is insane, Because of the greatness of your iniquity and great enmity.

The days of visitation are come, the days of recompense are come; Israel shall know it: the prophet is a fool, the man that hath the spirit is mad, for the abundance of thine iniquity, and because the enmity is great.

The days of punishment have come; the days of retribution have come. Let Israel recognize it! The prophet is a fool, and the inspired man is insane, because of the magnitude of your guilt and hostility.

The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are come; Israel shall know[ it]: the prophet[ is] a fool, the spiritual man[ is] mad, for the multitude of thine iniquity, and the great hatred.

The time of judgment is about to arrive! The time of retribution is imminent! Let Israel know! The prophet is considered a fool– the inspired man is viewed as a madman– because of the multitude of your sins and your intense animosity.

The days of visitation have come. The days of reckoning have come. Israel will consider the prophet to be a fool, and the man who is inspired to be insane, because of the abundance of your sins, and because your hostility is great.

Even the best of them is like a brier; the most honest is as dangerous as a hedge of thorns. But your judgment day is coming swiftly now. Your time of punishment is here, a time of confusion.

What will you do when I punish you, when I send disaster upon you from a distant land? To whom will you turn for help? Where will your treasures be safe?

This is what the Sovereign Lord says: What sorrow awaits the false prophets who are following their own imaginations and have seen nothing at all!’

Idols are worthless; they are ridiculous lies! On the day of reckoning they will all be destroyed.

Your prophets have said so many foolish things, false to the core. They did not save you from exile by pointing out your sins. Instead, they painted false pictures, filling you with false hope.

“‘ And if a prophet is deceived into giving a message, it is because I, the Lord, have deceived that prophet. I will lift my fist against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel.False prophets and those who seek their guidance will all be punished for their sins.

For those will be days of God’s vengeance, and the prophetic words of the Scriptures will be fulfilled.

“ The Lord has appointed you to replace Jehoiada as the priest in charge of the house of the Lord. You are responsible to put into stocks and neck irons any crazy man who claims to be a prophet.

He will use every kind of evil deception to fool those on their way to destruction, because they refuse to love and accept the truth that would save them.So God will cause them to be greatly deceived, and they will believe these lies.Then they will be condemned for enjoying evil rather than believing the truth.

Jehu went back to his fellow officers, and one of them asked him,“ What did that madman want? Is everything all right?”“ You know how a man like that babbles on,” Jehu replied.

“ This will happen because these evil prophets deceive my people by saying,‘ All is peaceful’ when there is no peace at all! It’s as if the people have built a flimsy wall, and these prophets are trying to reinforce it by covering it with whitewash!

Suddenly, Festus shouted,“ Paul, you are insane. Too much study has made you crazy!”But Paul replied,“ I am not insane, Most Excellent Festus. What I am saying is the sober truth.

Its prophets are arrogant liars seeking their own gain. Its priests defile the Temple by disobeying God’s instructions.

“ Son of man, you’ve heard that proverb they quote in Israel:‘ Time passes, and prophecies come to nothing.’Tell the people,‘ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will put an end to this proverb, and you will soon stop quoting it.’ Now give them this new proverb to replace the old one:‘ The time has come for every prophecy to be fulfilled!’“ There will be no more false visions and flattering predictions in Israel.For I am the Lord! If I say it, it will happen. There will be no more delays, you rebels of Israel. I will fulfill my threat of destruction in your own lifetime. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”Then this message came to me from the Lord:“ Son of man, the people of Israel are saying,‘ He’s talking about the distant future. His visions won’t come true for a long, long time.’Therefore, tell them,‘ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: No more delay! I will now do everything I have threatened. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!’”

They offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace.

“ What do you see, Amos?” he asked. I replied,“ A basket full of ripe fruit.” Then the Lord said,“ Like this fruit, Israel is ripe for punishment! I will not delay their punishment again.

“ That terrible day of the Lord is near. Swiftly it comes— a day of bitter tears, a day when even strong men will cry out.It will be a day when the Lord’s anger is poured out— a day of terrible distress and anguish, a day of ruin and desolation, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness,a day of trumpet calls and battle cries. Down go the walled cities and the strongest battlements!“ Because you have sinned against the Lord, I will make you grope around like the blind. Your blood will be poured into the dust, and your bodies will lie rotting on the ground.”Your silver and gold will not save you on that day of the Lord’s anger. For the whole land will be devoured by the fire of his jealousy. He will make a terrifying end of all the people on earth.

“ Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to Israel:“ The end is here! Wherever you look— east, west, north, or south— your land is finished.No hope remains, for I will unleash my anger against you. I will call you to account for all your detestable sins.I will turn my eyes away and show no pity. I will repay you for all your detestable sins. Then you will know that I am the Lord.“ This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Disaster after disaster is coming your way!The end has come. It has finally arrived. Your final doom is waiting!O people of Israel, the day of your destruction is dawning. The time has come; the day of trouble is near. Shouts of anguish will be heard on the mountains, not shouts of joy.

O Lord, they pay no attention to your upraised fist. Show them your eagerness to defend your people. Then they will be ashamed. Let your fire consume your enemies.

In this way, I will show my greatness and holiness, and I will make myself known to all the nations of the world. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

If it seems we are crazy, it is to bring glory to God. And if we are in our right minds, it is for your benefit.

Not one of these plotters from Anathoth will survive, for I will bring disaster upon them when their time of punishment comes.”

The great city of Babylon split into three sections, and the cities of many nations fell into heaps of rubble. So God remembered all of Babylon’s sins, and he made her drink the cup that was filled with the wine of his fierce wrath.

Suppose a prophet full of lies would say to you,“ I’ll preach to you the joys of wine and alcohol!” That’s just the kind of prophet you would like!

When his family heard what was happening, they tried to take him away.“ He’s out of his mind,” they said.

I will double their punishment for all their sins, because they have defiled my land with lifeless images of their detestable gods and have filled my territory with their evil deeds.”

Egypt’s mercenaries have become like fattened calves. They, too, will turn and run, for it is a day of great disaster for Egypt, a time of great punishment.

They offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace.

Then the Lord said to me,“ Go again and play the part of a worthless shepherd.This illustrates how I will give this nation a shepherd who will not care for those who are dying, nor look after the young, nor heal the injured, nor feed the healthy. Instead, this shepherd will eat the meat of the fattest sheep and tear off their hooves.“ What sorrow awaits this worthless shepherd who abandons the flock! The sword will cut his arm and pierce his right eye. His arm will become useless, and his right eye completely blind.”

I will execute terrible vengeance against them to punish them for what they have done. And when I have inflicted my revenge, they will know that I am the Lord.”

For it is the day of the Lord’s revenge, the year when Edom will be paid back for all it did to Israel.

I expose the false prophets as liars and make fools of fortune tellers. I cause the wise to give bad advice, thus proving them to be fools.

This is what the Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to his people:“ Do not listen to these prophets when they prophesy to you, filling you with futile hopes. They are making up everything they say. They do not speak for the Lord!They keep saying to those who despise my word,‘ Don’t worry! The Lord says you will have peace!’ And to those who stubbornly follow their own desires, they say,‘ No harm will come your way!’

The prophet is a watchman over Israel for my God, yet traps are laid for him wherever he goes. He faces hostility even in the house of God.