[1:12] Lord, from the very beginning you are God. You are my God, holy and eternal. Lord, my God and protector, you have chosen the Babylonians and made them strong so that they can punish us.
[1:13] But how can you stand these treacherous, evil men? Your eyes are too holy to look at evil, and you cannot stand the sight of people doing wrong. So why are you silent while they destroy people who are more righteous than they are?
[1:14] How can you treat people like fish or like a swarm of insects that have no ruler to direct them?
[1:15] The Babylonians catch people with hooks, as though they were fish. They drag them off in nets and shout for joy over their catch!
[1:16] They even worship their nets and offer sacrifices to them, because their nets provide them with the best of everything.
[1:17] Are they going to use their swords forever and keep on destroying nations without mercy?