Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

See now, the Lord,
    the Lord Almighty,
is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah
    both supply and support:(A)
all supplies of food(B) and all supplies of water,(C)
    the hero and the warrior,(D)
the judge and the prophet,
    the diviner(E) and the elder,(F)
the captain of fifty(G) and the man of rank,(H)
    the counselor, skilled craftsman(I) and clever enchanter.(J)

“I will make mere youths their officials;
    children will rule over them.”(K)

People will oppress each other—
    man against man, neighbor against neighbor.(L)
The young will rise up against the old,
    the nobody against the honored.

A man will seize one of his brothers
    in his father’s house, and say,
“You have a cloak, you be our leader;
    take charge of this heap of ruins!”
But in that day(M) he will cry out,
    “I have no remedy.(N)
I have no food(O) or clothing in my house;
    do not make me the leader of the people.”(P)

Jerusalem staggers,
    Judah is falling;(Q)
their words(R) and deeds(S) are against the Lord,
    defying(T) his glorious presence.
The look on their faces testifies(U) against them;
    they parade their sin like Sodom;(V)
    they do not hide it.
Woe to them!
    They have brought disaster(W) upon themselves.

10 Tell the righteous it will be well(X) with them,
    for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.(Y)
11 Woe to the wicked!(Z)
    Disaster(AA) is upon them!
They will be paid back(AB)
    for what their hands have done.(AC)

12 Youths(AD) oppress my people,
    women rule over them.
My people, your guides lead you astray;(AE)
    they turn you from the path.

13 The Lord takes his place in court;(AF)
    he rises to judge(AG) the people.
14 The Lord enters into judgment(AH)
    against the elders and leaders of his people:
“It is you who have ruined my vineyard;
    the plunder(AI) from the poor(AJ) is in your houses.
15 What do you mean by crushing my people(AK)
    and grinding(AL) the faces of the poor?”(AM)
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.(AN)

16 The Lord says,
    “The women of Zion(AO) are haughty,
walking along with outstretched necks,(AP)
    flirting with their eyes,
strutting along with swaying hips,
    with ornaments jingling on their ankles.
17 Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion;
    the Lord will make their scalps bald.(AQ)

18 In that day(AR) the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,(AS) 19 the earrings and bracelets(AT) and veils,(AU) 20 the headdresses(AV) and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms, 21 the signet rings and nose rings,(AW) 22 the fine robes and the capes and cloaks,(AX) the purses 23 and mirrors, and the linen garments(AY) and tiaras(AZ) and shawls.

24 Instead of fragrance(BA) there will be a stench;(BB)
    instead of a sash,(BC) a rope;
instead of well-dressed hair, baldness;(BD)
    instead of fine clothing, sackcloth;(BE)
    instead of beauty,(BF) branding.(BG)
25 Your men will fall by the sword,(BH)
    your warriors in battle.(BI)
26 The gates(BJ) of Zion will lament and mourn;(BK)
    destitute,(BL) she will sit on the ground.(BM)

In that day(BN) seven women
    will take hold of one man(BO)
and say, “We will eat our own food(BP)
    and provide our own clothes;
only let us be called by your name.
    Take away our disgrace!”(BQ)

The Branch of the Lord

In that day(BR) the Branch of the Lord(BS) will be beautiful(BT) and glorious, and the fruit(BU) of the land will be the pride and glory(BV) of the survivors(BW) in Israel. Those who are left in Zion,(BX) who remain(BY) in Jerusalem, will be called holy,(BZ) all who are recorded(CA) among the living in Jerusalem. The Lord will wash away the filth(CB) of the women of Zion;(CC) he will cleanse(CD) the bloodstains(CE) from Jerusalem by a spirit[a] of judgment(CF) and a spirit[b] of fire.(CG) Then the Lord will create(CH) over all of Mount Zion(CI) and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night;(CJ) over everything the glory[c](CK) will be a canopy.(CL) It will be a shelter(CM) and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge(CN) and hiding place from the storm(CO) and rain.

The Song of the Vineyard

I will sing for the one I love
    a song about his vineyard:(CP)
My loved one had a vineyard
    on a fertile hillside.
He dug it up and cleared it of stones
    and planted it with the choicest vines.(CQ)
He built a watchtower(CR) in it
    and cut out a winepress(CS) as well.
Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
    but it yielded only bad fruit.(CT)

“Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
    judge between me and my vineyard.(CU)
What more could have been done for my vineyard
    than I have done for it?(CV)
When I looked for good grapes,
    why did it yield only bad?(CW)
Now I will tell you
    what I am going to do to my vineyard:
I will take away its hedge,
    and it will be destroyed;(CX)
I will break down its wall,(CY)
    and it will be trampled.(CZ)
I will make it a wasteland,(DA)
    neither pruned nor cultivated,
    and briers and thorns(DB) will grow there.
I will command the clouds
    not to rain(DC) on it.”

The vineyard(DD) of the Lord Almighty
    is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
    are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice,(DE) but saw bloodshed;
    for righteousness,(DF) but heard cries of distress.(DG)

Woes and Judgments

Woe(DH) to you who add house to house
    and join field to field(DI)
till no space is left
    and you live alone in the land.

The Lord Almighty(DJ) has declared in my hearing:(DK)

“Surely the great houses will become desolate,(DL)
    the fine mansions left without occupants.
10 A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath[d] of wine;
    a homer[e] of seed will yield only an ephah[f] of grain.”(DM)

11 Woe(DN) to those who rise early in the morning
    to run after their drinks,
who stay up late at night
    till they are inflamed with wine.(DO)
12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
    pipes(DP) and timbrels(DQ) and wine,
but they have no regard(DR) for the deeds of the Lord,
    no respect for the work of his hands.(DS)
13 Therefore my people will go into exile(DT)
    for lack of understanding;(DU)
those of high rank(DV) will die of hunger
    and the common people will be parched with thirst.(DW)
14 Therefore Death(DX) expands its jaws,
    opening wide its mouth;(DY)
into it will descend their nobles and masses
    with all their brawlers and revelers.(DZ)
15 So people will be brought low(EA)
    and everyone humbled,(EB)
    the eyes of the arrogant(EC) humbled.
16 But the Lord Almighty will be exalted(ED) by his justice,(EE)
    and the holy God will be proved holy(EF) by his righteous acts.
17 Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;(EG)
    lambs will feed[g] among the ruins of the rich.

18 Woe(EH) to those who draw sin along with cords(EI) of deceit,
    and wickedness(EJ) as with cart ropes,
19 to those who say, “Let God hurry;
    let him hasten(EK) his work
    so we may see it.
The plan of the Holy One(EL) of Israel—
    let it approach, let it come into view,
    so we may know it.”(EM)

20 Woe(EN) to those who call evil good(EO)
    and good evil,(EP)
who put darkness for light
    and light for darkness,(EQ)
who put bitter for sweet
    and sweet for bitter.(ER)

21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes(ES)
    and clever in their own sight.

22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine(ET)
    and champions at mixing drinks,(EU)
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe,(EV)
    but deny justice(EW) to the innocent.(EX)
24 Therefore, as tongues of fire(EY) lick up straw(EZ)
    and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
so their roots will decay(FA)
    and their flowers blow away like dust;(FB)
for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty
    and spurned the word(FC) of the Holy One(FD) of Israel.
25 Therefore the Lord’s anger(FE) burns against his people;
    his hand is raised and he strikes them down.
The mountains shake,(FF)
    and the dead bodies(FG) are like refuse(FH) in the streets.(FI)

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,(FJ)
    his hand is still upraised.(FK)

26 He lifts up a banner(FL) for the distant nations,
    he whistles(FM) for those at the ends of the earth.(FN)
Here they come,
    swiftly and speedily!
27 Not one of them grows tired(FO) or stumbles,
    not one slumbers or sleeps;
not a belt(FP) is loosened at the waist,(FQ)
    not a sandal strap is broken.(FR)
28 Their arrows are sharp,(FS)
    all their bows(FT) are strung;
their horses’ hooves(FU) seem like flint,
    their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.(FV)
29 Their roar is like that of the lion,(FW)
    they roar like young lions;
they growl as they seize(FX) their prey
    and carry it off with no one to rescue.(FY)
30 In that day(FZ) they will roar over it
    like the roaring of the sea.(GA)
And if one looks at the land,
    there is only darkness(GB) and distress;(GC)
    even the sun will be darkened(GD) by clouds.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 4:4 Or the Spirit
  2. Isaiah 4:4 Or the Spirit
  3. Isaiah 4:5 Or over all the glory there
  4. Isaiah 5:10 That is, about 6 gallons or about 22 liters
  5. Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 360 pounds or about 160 kilograms
  6. Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
  7. Isaiah 5:17 Septuagint; Hebrew / strangers will eat

For, behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water.

The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient,

The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.

And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.

And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.

When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand:

In that day shall he swear, saying, I will not be an healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: make me not a ruler of the people.

For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the Lord, to provoke the eyes of his glory.

The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.

10 Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.

11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.

12 As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.

13 The Lord standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.

14 The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses.

15 What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the Lord God of hosts.

16 Moreover the Lord saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet:

17 Therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the Lord will discover their secret parts.

18 In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the moon,

19 The chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers,

20 The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings,

21 The rings, and nose jewels,

22 The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping pins,

23 The glasses, and the fine linen, and the hoods, and the vails.

24 And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.

25 Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war.

26 And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground.

And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.

In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.

And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:

When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.

And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.

And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the day time from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.

Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:

And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.

And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

In mine ears said the Lord of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.

10 Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah.

11 Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!

12 And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands.

13 Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.

14 Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

15 And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:

16 But the Lord of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.

17 Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.

18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:

19 That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!

20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink:

23 Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!

24 Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25 Therefore is the anger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:

27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:

28 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses' hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:

29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.

30 And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea: and if one look unto the land, behold darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.

Paul and the False Apostles

11 I hope you will put up with(A) me in a little foolishness.(B) Yes, please put up with me! I am jealous for you with a godly jealousy. I promised you to one husband,(C) to Christ, so that I might present you(D) as a pure virgin to him. But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning,(E) your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes to you and preaches a Jesus other than the Jesus we preached,(F) or if you receive a different spirit(G) from the Spirit you received, or a different gospel(H) from the one you accepted, you put up with it(I) easily enough.

I do not think I am in the least inferior to those “super-apostles.”[a](J) I may indeed be untrained as a speaker,(K) but I do have knowledge.(L) We have made this perfectly clear to you in every way. Was it a sin(M) for me to lower myself in order to elevate you by preaching the gospel of God(N) to you free of charge?(O) I robbed other churches by receiving support from them(P) so as to serve you. And when I was with you and needed something, I was not a burden to anyone, for the brothers who came from Macedonia supplied what I needed.(Q) I have kept myself from being a burden to you(R) in any way, and will continue to do so. 10 As surely as the truth of Christ is in me,(S) nobody in the regions of Achaia(T) will stop this boasting(U) of mine. 11 Why? Because I do not love you? God knows(V) I do!(W)

12 And I will keep on doing what I am doing in order to cut the ground from under those who want an opportunity to be considered equal with us in the things they boast about. 13 For such people are false apostles,(X) deceitful(Y) workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ.(Z) 14 And no wonder, for Satan(AA) himself masquerades as an angel of light. 15 It is not surprising, then, if his servants also masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.(AB)

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Footnotes

  1. 2 Corinthians 11:5 Or to the most eminent apostles

11 Would to God ye could bear with me a little in my folly: and indeed bear with me.

For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.

But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.

For if he that cometh preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him.

For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest apostles.

But though I be rude in speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been throughly made manifest among you in all things.

Have I committed an offence in abasing myself that ye might be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely?

I robbed other churches, taking wages of them, to do you service.

And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from Macedonia supplied: and in all things I have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself.

10 As the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the regions of Achaia.

11 Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth.

12 But what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory, they may be found even as we.

13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ.

14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

15 Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works.

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Psalm 53[a](A)

For the director of music. According to mahalath.[b] A maskil[c] of David.

The fool(B) says in his heart,
    “There is no God.”(C)
They are corrupt, and their ways are vile;
    there is no one who does good.

God looks down from heaven(D)
    on all mankind
to see if there are any who understand,(E)
    any who seek God.(F)
Everyone has turned away, all have become corrupt;
    there is no one who does good,
    not even one.(G)

Do all these evildoers know nothing?

They devour my people as though eating bread;
    they never call on God.
But there they are, overwhelmed with dread,
    where there was nothing to dread.(H)
God scattered the bones(I) of those who attacked you;(J)
    you put them to shame,(K) for God despised them.(L)

Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion!
    When God restores his people,
    let Jacob rejoice and Israel be glad!

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 53:1 In Hebrew texts 53:1-6 is numbered 53:2-7.
  2. Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a musical term
  3. Psalm 53:1 Title: Probably a literary or musical term

53 The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.

God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.

Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread: they have not called upon God.

There were they in great fear, where no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them.

Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

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Saying 5

28 Do not move an ancient boundary stone(A)
    set up by your ancestors.

Saying 6

29 Do you see someone skilled(B) in their work?
    They will serve(C) before kings;(D)
    they will not serve before officials of low rank.

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28 Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set.

29 Seest thou a man diligent in his business? he shall stand before kings; he shall not stand before mean men.

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