Isaiah 5
1 Let me sing for my well beloved a song of my beloved about his vineyard. My beloved had a vineyard on a very fruitful hill.
Let me sing now a song respecting my friend, A song respecting my friend touching his vineyard. My friend had a vineyard On a very fruitful hill;
2 He dug it up, gathered out its stones, planted it with the choicest vine, built a tower in the middle of it, and also cut out a wine press in it. He looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.
He digged it, and cleared it of stones, And planted it with the choicest vine, And built a tower in the midst of it, And hewed out a wine-press therein; Then he looked that it should bring forth its grapes, But it brought forth sour grapes.
3 “Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, please judge between me and my vineyard.
And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, Judge ye between me and my vineyard!
4 What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? Why, when I looked for it to yield grapes, did it yield wild grapes?
What could have been done for my vineyard That I have not done for it? Why, then, when I looked that it should bring forth its grapes, Brought it forth sour grapes?
5 Now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will take away its hedge, and it will be eaten up. I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled down.
But come now, and I will tell you What I mean to do with my vineyard. I will take away its hedge, and it shall be eaten up; I will break down its wall, and it shall be trodden down!
6 I will lay it a wasteland. It will not be pruned or hoed, but it will grow briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain on it.”
And I will make it a waste; It shall not be pruned, nor digged, But shall grow up into thorns and briers; I will also command the clouds That they shed no rain upon it.
7 For the vineyard of the LORD of Armies is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression, for righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.
The vineyard of Jehovah of hosts is the house of Israel, And the men of Judah the plant of his delight. He looked for justice, and behold, bloodshed! For righteousness, and behold, outcry!
8 Woe to those who join house to house, who lay field to field, until there is no room, and you are made to dwell alone in the middle of the land!
Woe to them that join house to house, That add field to field, Till there is no place left, And they dwell alone in the land.
9 In my ears, the LORD of Armies says: “Surely many houses will be desolate, even great and beautiful, unoccupied.
To mine ear hath Jehovah of hosts revealed it: Surely many houses shall become a desolation, The great and the fair ones, without an inhabitant.
10 For ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and a homer of seed shall yield an ephah.”
Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield a single bath of wine, And a homer of seed shall produce but an ephah.
11 Woe to those who rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink, who stay late into the night, until wine inflames them!
Woe to them that rise early in the morning to follow strong drink, —Who sit late in the night that wine may inflame them!
12 The harp, lyre, tambourine, and flute, with wine, are at their feasts; but they do not respect the work of the LORD, neither have they considered the operation of his hands.
And the lyre and the harp, the tabret and the pipe, and wine, are at their feasts, But they regard not the work of Jehovah, Nor attend to the operation of his hands.
13 Therefore my people go into captivity for lack of knowledge. Their honorable men are famished, and their multitudes are parched with thirst.
Therefore shall my people be led captive, when they think not of it; Their honorable men shall be famished with hunger, And their rich men parched with thirst.
14 Therefore Sheol (Sheol h7585) has enlarged its desire, and opened its mouth without measure; and their glory, their multitude, their pomp, and he who rejoices among them, descend into it.
Therefore doth the under-world enlarge its greedy throat, And stretch open its mouth without measure, And down go her nobility and her wealth, Her busy throng, and all that was joyful within her. (Sheol h7585)
15 So man is brought low, mankind is humbled, and the eyes of the arrogant ones are humbled;
The mean man shall be bowed down, And the great man shall be brought low, And the eyes of the haughty shall be humbled;
16 but the LORD of Armies is exalted in justice, and God the Holy One is sanctified in righteousness.
Jehovah of hosts shall be exalted through judgment; Yea, God, the Holy One, shall be sanctified through righteousness.
17 Then the lambs will graze as in their pasture, and strangers will eat the ruins of the rich.
Then shall the lambs feed, as in their own pasture, And the deserted fields of the rich shall strangers consume.
18 Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood, and wickedness as with cart rope,
Woe to them that draw calamity with cords of wickedness, And punishment as with wagon-traces, —
19 who say, “Let him make haste, let him hasten his work, that we may see it; let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, that we may know it!”
Who say, Let him make speed, let him hasten his work that we may see it! Let the purpose of the Holy One of Israel draw near and be fulfilled, that we may know it!
20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe to 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 to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!
Woe to them that are wise in their own eyes, And prudent in their own conceit!
22 Woe to those who are mighty to drink wine, and champions at mixing strong drink;
Woe to them that are valiant to drink wine, And men of might to mingle strong drink!
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice for the innocent!
That clear the guilty for a reward, And take away from the righteous his right!
24 Therefore as the tongue of fire devours the stubble, and as the dry grass sinks down in the flame, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust, because they have rejected the law of the LORD of Armies, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
Therefore, as fire devours stubble, And as the withered grass sinks into the flame, So their root shall become rottenness, And their blossom shall fly up like dust. For they have despised the law of Jehovah of hosts, And contemned the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25 Therefore the LORD’s anger burns against his people, and he has stretched out his hand against them and has struck them. The mountains tremble, and their dead bodies are as refuse in the middle of the streets. For all this, his anger is not turned away, but his hand is still stretched out.
Therefore is the anger of Jehovah kindled against his people; He stretcheth forth his hand against them, and smiteth them, so that the mountains tremble, And their carcasses are as dung in the midst of the streets; For all this his anger is not turned away, But his hand is stretched out still.
26 He will lift up a banner to the nations from far away, and he will whistle for them from the end of the earth. Behold, they will come speedily and swiftly.
He lifteth up a banner for the nations afar off, He whistleth for them from the ends of the earth, And behold, they haste, and come swiftly.
27 No one shall be weary nor stumble among them; no one shall slumber nor sleep, neither shall the belt of their waist be untied, nor the strap of their sandals be broken,
None among them is weary, and none stumbleth; None slumbereth nor sleepeth; The girdle of their loins is not loosed, Nor the latchet of their shoes broken.
28 whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent. Their horses’ hoofs will be like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind.
Their arrows are sharp, And all their bows bent; The hoofs of their horses are like flint, And their wheels like a whirlwind.
29 Their roaring will be like a lioness. They will roar like young lions. Yes, they shall roar, and seize their prey and carry it off, and there will be no one to deliver.
Their roaring is like the roaring of the lion; They roar like young lions; They roar, and seize the prey; They bear it away, and none can rescue it.
30 They will roar against them in that day like the roaring of the sea. If one looks to the land, behold, darkness and distress. The light is darkened in its clouds.
Yea, in that day shall they roar against them like the roaring of the sea; And if one look to the land, behold darkness and sorrow, And the light is darkened by its clouds.
