2
Gird yourselves with sackcloth and haircloth, and wail for your children, and lament for them; for your destruction is at hand.
3
The sword has been sent upon you, and who is there to turn it back?
4
A fire has been sent upon you, and who is there to quench it?
5
Calamities have been sent upon you, and who is there to drive them away?
6
Can one drive off a hungry lion in the forest, or quench a fire in the stubble, when once it has begun to burn?
Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.