1 BLOW THE trumpet in Zion; sound an alarm on My holy Mount [Zion]. Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, for the day of [the judgment of] the Lord is coming; it is close at hand–[Ezek. 7:2-4; Amos 5:16-20.]
2 A day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and of thick mists and darkness, like the morning dawn spread upon the mountains; so there comes a [heathen, hostile] people numerous and mighty, the like of which has never been before and shall not be again even to the years of many generations.
3 A fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns; the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yes, and none has escaped [the ravages of the devouring hordes].
4 Their appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like war horses and horsemen, so do they run.
5 Like the noise of chariots on the tops of the mountains they leap–like the noise of a flame of fire devouring the stubble, like a mighty people set in battle array. [Rev. 9:7, 9.]
6 Before them the peoples are in anguish; all faces become pale.