11. The people the Lord has freed will return.They will enter Jerusalem with joy.Their happiness will last forever.They will have joy and gladness.All sadness and sorrow will be gone far away.
12. The Lord says, “I am the one who comforts you.So why should you be afraid of people, who die?Why should you fear people who die like the grass?
13. Have you forgotten that the Lord made you?He stretched out the skies.He made the earth.Why are you always afraidof those angry people who trouble you?They want to destroy.But where are those angry people now?
14. People in prison will soon be set free.They will not die in prison.They will have enough food.
15. This is because I am the Lord your God.I stir the sea and make the waves roar.My name is the Lord of heaven’s armies.
16. I will give you the words I want you to say.I will cover you with my hands and protect you.I made the heavens and the earth.And I say to Jerusalem, ‘You are my people.’”
17. The Lord was very angry with you.Your punishment was like wine in a cup.The Lord made you drink that wineuntil you stumbled.
18. Jerusalem had many people.But there was not a person to lead her.Of all the people who grew up there,no one was there to guide her.
19. Troubles came to you in groups of two.No one will feel sorry for you.There was ruin and disaster, great hunger and fighting.No one can comfort you.
20. Your people have become weak.They fall down and lie on every street corner.They are like animals caught in a net.They have felt the full anger of the Lord.They have heard God’s angry shout.
21. So listen to me, poor Jerusalem,you who are drunk but not from wine.
22. Your God will fight for his people.This is what the Lord your God says:“The punishment I gave you is like a cup of wine.You drank it and could not walk straight.I am taking that cup of my anger away from you.You will never be punished by my anger again.
23. I will now give that cup of punishment to those who gave you pain.They told you,‘Bow down so we can walk over you.’They made your back like dirt for them to walk on.You were like a street for them to travel on.”