The Ruler to Be Born in Bethlehem

¹1 Now muster your troops, O daughter2 of troops;

siege is laid against us;

with a rod they strike the judge of Israel

on the cheek.

²3 But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah,

who are too little to be among the clans of Judah,

from you shall come forth for me

one who is to be ruler in Israel,

whose coming forth is from of old,

from ancient days.

³Therefore he shall give them up until the time

when she who is in labor has given birth;

then the rest of his brothers shall return

to the people of Israel.

⁴And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord,

in the majesty of the name of the Lord his God.

And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great

to the ends of the earth.

⁵And he shall be their peace.

When the Assyrian comes into our land

and treads in our palaces,

then we will raise against him seven shepherds

and eight princes of men;

⁶they shall shepherd the land of Assyria with the sword,

and the land of Nimrod at its entrances;

and he shall deliver us from the Assyrian

when he comes into our land

and treads within our border.

A Remnant Shall Be Delivered

⁷Then the remnant of Jacob shall be

in the midst of many peoples

like dew from the Lord,

like showers on the grass,

which delay not for a man

nor wait for the children of man.

⁸And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the nations,

in the midst of many peoples,

like a lion among the beasts of the forest,

like a young lion among the flocks of sheep,

which, when it goes through, treads down

and tears in pieces, and there is none to deliver.

⁹Your hand shall be lifted up over your adversaries,

and all your enemies shall be cut off.

¹⁰And in that day, declares the Lord,

I will cut off your horses from among you

and will destroy your chariots;

¹¹and I will cut off the cities of your land

and throw down all your strongholds;

¹²and I will cut off sorceries from your hand,

and you shall have no more tellers of fortunes;

¹³and I will cut off your carved images

and your pillars from among you,

and you shall bow down no more

to the work of your hands;

¹⁴and I will root out your Asherah images from among you

and destroy your cities.

¹⁵And in anger and wrath I will execute vengeance

on the nations that did not obey.