A Reign of Righteousness

¹ Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
And princes will rule with justice.
² A man will be as a hiding place from the wind,
And a cover from the tempest,
As rivers of water in a dry place,
As the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
³ The eyes of those who see will not be dim,
And the ears of those who hear will listen.
⁴ Also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge,
And the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.
⁵ The foolish person will no longer be called generous,
Nor the miser said to be bountiful;
⁶ For the foolish person will speak foolishness,
And his heart will work iniquity:
To practice ungodliness,
To utter error against the LORD,
To keep the hungry unsatisfied,
And he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
⁷ Also the schemes of the schemer are evil;
He devises wicked plans
To destroy the poor with lying words,
Even when the needy speaks justice.
⁸ But a generous man devises generous things,
And by generosity he shall stand.

Consequences of Complacency

⁹ Rise up, you women who are at ease,
Hear my voice;
You complacent daughters,
Give ear to my speech.
¹⁰ In a year and some days
You will be troubled, you complacent women;
For the vintage will fail,
The gathering will not come.
¹¹ Tremble, you women who are at ease;
Be troubled, you complacent ones;
Strip yourselves, make yourselves bare,
And gird sackcloth on your waists.
¹² People shall mourn upon their breasts
For the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
¹³ On the land of my people will come up thorns and briers,
Yes, on all the happy homes in the joyous city;
¹⁴ Because the palaces will be forsaken,
The bustling city will be deserted.
The forts and towers will become lairs forever,
A joy of wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks—
¹⁵ Until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,
And the wilderness becomes a fruitful field,
And the fruitful field is counted as a forest.

The Peace of God’s Reign

¹⁶ Then justice will dwell in the wilderness,
And righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
¹⁷ The work of righteousness will be peace,
And the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever.
¹⁸ My people will dwell in a peaceful habitation,
In secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places,
¹⁹ Though hail comes down on the forest,
And the city is brought low in humiliation.
²⁰ Blessed are you who sow beside all waters,
Who send out freely the feet of the ox and the donkey.