“Behold, Damascus is about to be ^(C)removed from being a city
And will become a ^(D)fallen ruin.
² The cities ^[a]of ^(E)Aroer are abandoned;
They will be for ^(F)herds ^[b]to lie down in,
And there will be ^(G)no one to frighten them.
³ The ^[c](H)fortified city will disappear from Ephraim,
And ^[d]sovereignty from Damascus
And the remnant of Aram;
They will be like the ^(I)glory of the sons of Israel,”
Declares the Lord of armies.

²³ Concerning ^(A)Damascus:
“^(B)Hamath and ^(C)Arpad are put to shame,
For they have heard bad news;
They ^(D)despair.
There is anxiety at the sea,
It ^(E)cannot be calmed.
²⁴ Damascus has become helpless;
She has turned away to flee,
And panic has gripped her;
^(F)Distress and labor pains have seized her
Like a woman in childbirth.
²⁵ How the ^(G)city of praise has not been deserted,
The town of My joy!
²⁶ Therefore, her ^(H)young men will fall in her streets,
And all the men of war will perish on that day,” declares the Lord of armies.
²⁷ “I will ^(I)set fire to the wall of Damascus,
And it will devour the fortified palace of ^(J)Ben-hadad.”