12He will say to them, "This is a place for comfort. This is a place of rest for those who are tired. This is a place for them to rest." But they weren't willing to listen.
13The LORD speaks utter nonsense to them. That is why they will fall backwards. That is why they will be hurt, trapped, and captured.
14So hear the word of the LORD, you foolish talkers who rule the people in Jerusalem.
15You say, "We made a treaty with death and an agreement with the grave. When the overwhelming disaster passes by, it won't matter to us, because we have taken refuge in our lies, and falsehood is our hiding place."
16This is what the Almighty LORD says: I am going to lay a rock in Zion, a rock that has been tested, a precious cornerstone, a solid foundation. Whoever believes [in him] will not worry.
17I will make justice a measuring line and righteousness a plumb line. Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies, and floodwaters will wash away your hiding place.
18Your treaty with death will be wiped away. Your agreement with the grave will not stand. When the overwhelming disaster passes by, you will be trampled by it.
19Each time it passes by it will take you. It will pass by morning after morning, during the day and during the night. Understanding this message brings only terror.
20The bed is too short to stretch out on. The blanket is too narrow to serve as a cover.
21The LORD will rise as he did on Mount Perazim. He will wake up as he did in Gibeon Valley. He will do his work, his unexpected work, and perform his deeds, his mysterious deeds.
22Now stop laughing, or your chains will be tightened, because I have heard that the Almighty LORD of Armies has finally determined to destroy the whole land.
23Open your ears, and listen to me! Pay attention, and hear me!
24Does a farmer go on plowing every day so he can plant? Does he continue to break up the soil and make furrows in the ground?
25When he has smoothed its surface, doesn't he scatter black cumin seed and plant cumin? Doesn't he plant wild wheat in rows? Doesn't he put barley in its own area and winter wheat at its borders?
26God will guide him in judgment, and his God will teach him.
27Black cumin isn't threshed with a sledge, and wagon wheels aren't rolled over cumin. Black cumin is beaten with a rod and cumin with a stick.
28Grain is ground into flour, but the grinding eventually stops. It will be threshed. The wheels of his cart will roll over it, but his horses won't crush it.
29All of this has come from the LORD of Armies. His counsel is wonderful, and his wisdom is great.
