1 Ask the lord for rain in the spring,for he makes the storm clouds.And he will send showers of rainso every field becomes a lush pasture.
2 Household gods give worthless advice,fortune-tellers predict only lies,and interpreters of dreams pronouncefalsehoods that give no comfort.So my people are wandering like lost sheep;they are attacked because they have no shepherd.
3 “My anger burns against your shepherds,and I will punish these leaders.For the lord of Heaven’s Armies has arrivedto look after Judah, his flock.He will make them strong and glorious,like a proud warhorse in battle.
4 From Judah will come the cornerstone,the tent peg,the bow for battle,and all the rulers.
5 They will be like mighty warriors in battle,trampling their enemies in the mud under their feet.Since the lord is with them as they fight,they will overthrow even the enemy’s horsemen.
6 “I will strengthen Judah and save Israel;I will restore them because of my compassion.It will be as though I had never rejected them,for I am the lord their God, who will hear their cries.
7 The people of Israel will become like mighty warriors,and their hearts will be made happy as if by wine.Their children, too, will see it and be glad;their hearts will rejoice in the lord.