Online Bible

2 ^aHow long, LORD, have I called for help,And You do not hear?I cry out to You, “Violence!”Yet You do ^bnot save.3 Why do You make me ^asee disaster,And make me look at destitution?Yes, ^bdevastation and violence are before me;^cStrife exists and contention arises.4 Therefore the ^aLaw ¹is ignored,And justice ²is never upheld.For the wicked ^bsurround the righteous;Therefore justice comes out ^cconfused.

5 “^aLook among the nations! Watch!Be horrified! ^bBe frightened speechless!For I am accomplishing ^ca work in your days—You would not believe it even if ¹you were told!6 “For behold, I am ^araising up the Chaldeans,That ¹grim and impetuous peopleWho march ²throughout the earth,To ^btake possession of dwelling places that are not theirs.7 “They are terrifying and ^afeared;Their ^bjustice and ¹authority ²originate with themselves.8 “Their ^ahorses are faster than leopards,And quicker than ^bwolves in the evening.Their ¹horsemen charge along,Their ²horsemen come from afar;They fly like an ^ceagle ³swooping down to devour.9 “All of them come for violence.¹Their horde of ^afaces moves forward.They gather captives like sand.10 “They ^amake fun of kings,And dignitaries are an object of laughter to them.They ^blaugh at every fortress,Then ^cheap up dirt and ¹capture it.11 “Then they fly along like the ^awind and pass on.But they will be held ^bguilty,They whose ^cstrength is their god.”

12 Are You not from ^atime everlasting,LORD, my God, my Holy One?We will not die.You, LORD, have ^bappointed them to deliver judgment;And You, O ^cRock, have destined them to punish.13 Your eyes are too ^apure to look at evil,And You cannot look at harm favorably.Why do You ^blook favorablyAt those who deal ^ctreacherously?Why are You ^dsilent when the wicked ^eswallow upThose more righteous than they?14 Why have You made people like the fish of the sea,Like crawling things that have no ruler over them?15 The Chaldeans ^abring all of them up with a hook,^bDrag them away with their net,And gather them together in their fishing net.Therefore they rejoice and are joyful.16 Therefore they offer a sacrifice to their netAnd ¹burn incense to their fishing net,Because through ^athese things their ²catch is ³large,And their food is ⁴plentiful.17 Will they therefore empty their ^anet,And continually ^bslay nations without sparing?