1-4. Doom, Ariel, Ariel,the city where David set camp!Let the years add up,let the festivals run their cycles,But I’m not letting up on Jerusalem.The moaning and groaning will continue.Jerusalem to me is an Ariel.Like David, I’ll set up camp against you.I’ll set siege, build towers,bring in siege engines, build siege ramps.Driven into the ground, you’ll speak,you’ll mumble words from the dirt—Your voice from the ground, like the muttering of a ghost.Your speech will whisper from the dust.
11-12. What you’ve been shown here is somewhat like a letter in a sealed envelope. If you give it to someone who can read and tell her, “Read this,” she’ll say, “I can’t. The envelope is sealed.” And if you give it to someone who can’t read and tell him, “Read this,” he’ll say, “I can’t read.”