1 ^aNevertheless the dimness shall not be such as was in her vexation, ^bwhen at the first he lightly afflicted the land of ^cZebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward did more grievously afflict her by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, in Galilee of the nations.

2 The people that walked in ^adarkness have seen a great ^blight: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.

3 Thou hast ^amultiplied the ^bnation, ^cand not increased the joy: they joy before thee according to the joy in harvest, and as men ^drejoice when they divide the spoil.

4 For thou hast broken the ^ayoke of his ^bburden, and the staff of his shoulder, the ^crod of his oppressor, as ^din the day of ^eMidian.

5 ^aFor every battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in blood; but this shall be with ^bburning and fuel of fire.

6 For unto us a ^achild is ^bborn, unto us a ^cson is given: and the ^dgovernment shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, ^eCounsellor, The ^fmighty ^gGod, The ^heverlasting Father, The Prince of ⁱPeace.

7 Of the increase of his ^agovernment and peace there shall be no ^bend, upon the throne of ^cDavid, and upon his kingdom, to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with ^djustice from henceforth even for ever. The ^ezeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.

8 ¶ The Lord sent a word into Jacob, and it hath lighted upon ^aIsrael.

9 And all the people shall know, even Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria, that say in the ^apride and stoutness of heart,

10 The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn stones: the sycomores are cut down, but we will change them into cedars.

11 Therefore the Lord shall set up the adversaries of ^aRezin against him, and join his enemies together;

12 The Syrians ^abefore, and the Philistines ^bbehind; and they shall devour Israel with open mouth. For all this his ^canger is not turned away, but ^dhis hand is ^estretched out still.

13 ¶ For the people ^aturneth not unto him that smiteth them, neither do they ^bseek the Lord of hosts.

14 Therefore the Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail, branch and rush, in one day.

15 The ^aancient and honourable, he is the head; and the ^bprophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail.

16 For the ^aleaders of this people cause them to err; and they that are led of them are ^bdestroyed.

17 Therefore the Lord shall have no joy in their young men, neither shall have mercy on their fatherless and widows: for every one is an ^ahypocrite and an evildoer, and every mouth ^bspeaketh folly. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

18 ¶ For wickedness burneth as the fire: it shall devour the briers and ^athorns, and shall kindle in the ^bthickets of the forest, and they shall mount up like the lifting up of smoke.

19 Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts is the land darkened, and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire: no man shall ^aspare his ^bbrother.

20 And he shall snatch on the right hand, and be hungry; and he shall eat on the left hand, and they shall not be satisfied: they shall ^aeat every man the ^bflesh of his own arm:

21 Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh: and they together shall be against Judah. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.