1Of Moab . Thus saith Jehovah of hosts , the God of Israel : Woe unto Nebo ! for it is laid waste ; Kiriathaim is put to shame, it is taken ; Misgab is put to shame and broken down . 2The praise of Moab is no more ; in Heshbon they have devised evil against her : Come , and let us cut her off from being a nation . Thou also , O Madmen , shalt be brought to silence ; the sword shall pursue thee . 3The sound of a cry from Horonaim , desolation and great destruction ! 4Moab is destroyed ; her little ones have caused a cry to be heard . 5For by the ascent of Luhith with continual weeping shall they go up ; for at the descent of Horonaim they have heard the distress of the cry of destruction . 6Flee , save your lives , and be like the heath in the wilderness . 7For , because thou hast trusted in thy works and in thy treasures, thou also shalt be taken : and Chemosh shall go forth into captivity , his priests and his princes together . 8And the destroyer shall come upon every city , and no city shall escape ; the valley also shall perish, and the plain shall be destroyed ; as Jehovah hath spoken. 9Give wings unto Moab , that she may fly and get her away : and her cities shall become a desolation , without any to dwell therein . 10Cursed be he that doeth the work of Jehovah negligently ; and cursed be he that keepeth back his sword from blood .
The Lament for Moab
11Moab hath been at ease from his youth , and he hath settled on his lees , and hath not been emptied from vessel to vessel , neither hath he gone into captivity : therefore his taste remaineth in him , and his scent is not changed . 12Therefore , behold , the days come , saith Jehovah , that I will send unto him them that pour off , and they shall pour him off ; and they shall empty his vessels , and break their bottles in pieces . 13And Moab shall be ashamed of Chemosh , as the house of Israel was ashamed of Beth-el their confidence . 14How say ye, We are mighty men , and valiant men for the war ? 15Moab is laid waste , and they are gone up into his cities , and his chosen young men are gone down to the slaughter , saith the King , whose name is Jehovah of hosts . 16The calamity of Moab is near to come, and his affliction hasteth fast . 17All ye that are round about him , bemoan him , and all ye that know his name ; say, How is the strong staff broken , the beautiful rod ! 18O thou daughter that dwellest in Dibon , come down from thy glory , and sit in thirst ; for the destroyer of Moab is come up against thee, he hath destroyed thy strongholds . 19O inhabitant of Aroer , stand by the way , and watch : ask him that fleeth , and her that escapeth ; say, What hath been done ? 20Moab is put to shame; for it is broken down : wail and cry ; tell ye it by the Arnon, that Moab is laid waste .
The Call to Repentance
21And judgment is come upon the plain country, upon Holon , and upon Jahzah , and upon Mephaath , 22and upon Dibon , and upon Nebo , and upon Beth-diblathaim , 23and upon Kiriathaim , and upon Beth-gamul , and upon Beth-meon , 24and upon Kerioth , and upon Bozrah , and upon all the cities of the land of Moab , far or near . 25The horn of Moab is cut off , and his arm is broken , saith Jehovah . 26Make ye him drunken ; for he magnified himself against Jehovah : and Moab shall wallow in his vomit , and he also shall be in derision . 27For was not Israel a derision unto thee ? was he found among thieves ? for as often as thou speakest of him , thou waggest the head. 28O ye inhabitants of Moab , leave the cities , and dwell in the rock ; and be like the dove that maketh her nest over the mouth of the abyss. 29We have heard of the pride of Moab , that he is very proud ; his loftiness , and his pride , and his arrogancy , and the haughtiness of his heart . 30I know his wrath , saith Jehovah , that it is nought ; his boastings have wrought nothing .
The Final Destruction of Moab
31Therefore will I wail for Moab ; yea, I will cry out for all Moab : for the men of Kir-heres shall they mourn . 32With more than the weeping of Jazer will I weep for thee, O vine of Sibmah : thy branches passed over the sea , they reached even to the sea of Jazer : upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage the destroyer is fallen . 33And gladness and joy is taken away from the fruitful field and from the land of Moab ; and I have caused wine to cease from the winepresses : none shall tread with shouting ; the shouting shall be no shouting . 34From the cry of Heshbon even unto Elealeh, even unto Jahaz have they uttered their voice , from Zoar even unto Horonaim , to Eglath-shelishiyah: for the waters of Nimrim also shall become desolate . 35Moreover I will cause to cease in Moab , saith Jehovah , him that offereth in the high place , and him that burneth incense to his gods. 36Therefore my heart soundeth for Moab like pipes , and my heart soundeth like pipes for the men of Kir-heres : therefore the abundance that he hath gotten is perished. 37For every head is bald , and every beard clipped : upon all the hands are cuttings , and upon the loins sackcloth . 38On all the housetops of Moab and in the streets thereof there is lamentation every where ; for I have broken Moab like a vessel wherein none delighteth, saith Jehovah . 39How is it broken down ! how do they wail ! how hath Moab turned the back with shame! so shall Moab become a derision and a terror to all that are round about him . 40For thus saith Jehovah : Behold , he shall fly as an eagle , and shall spread out his wings against Moab . 41Kerioth is taken , and the strongholds are seized , and the heart of the mighty men of Moab at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs . 42And Moab shall be destroyed from being a people , because he hath magnified himself against Jehovah . 43Fear , and the pit , and the snare , are upon thee, O inhabitant of Moab , saith Jehovah . 44He that fleeth from the fear shall fall into the pit ; and he that getteth up out of the pit shall be taken in the snare : for I will bring upon him , even upon Moab , the year of their visitation , saith Jehovah . 45They that fled stand without strength under the shadow of Heshbon ; for a fire is gone forth out of Heshbon , and a flame from the midst of Sihon , and hath devoured the corner of Moab , and the crown of the head of the tumultuous ones . 46Woe unto thee , O Moab ! the people of Chemosh is undone; for thy sons are taken away captive , and thy daughters into captivity . 47Yet will I bring back the captivity of Moab in the latter days , saith Jehovah . Thus far is the judgment of Moab .