19
I'll break your strong pride: I'll make the skies above you like a sheet of tin and the ground under you like cast iron.
20
No matter how hard you work, nothing will come of it: No crops out of the ground, no fruit off the trees.
21
"If you defy me and refuse to listen, your punishment will be seven times more than your sins:
22
I'll set wild animals on you; they'll rob you of your children, kill your cattle, and decimate your numbers until you'll think you are living in a ghost town.
23
"And if even this doesn't work and you refuse my discipline and continue your defiance,
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.