Isaiah 10

1 Woe to them that make wicked laws: and when they write, write injustice:

“Woe [to] those decreeing decrees of iniquity, And writers who have prescribed perverseness,

2 To oppress the poor in judgment, and do violence to the cause of the humble of my people: that widows might be their prey, and that they might rob the fatherless.

Of My people, That widows may be their prey, That they may spoil the fatherless.

3 What will you do in the day of visitation, and of the calamity which cometh from afar? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?

And what do you do at a day of inspection? And at desolation that comes from afar? Near whom do you flee for help? And where do you leave your glory?

4 That you be not bowed down under the bond, and fall with the slain? In all these things his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

It has bowed down without Me In the place of a bound one, And they fall in the place of the slain.” With all this His anger has not turned back, And His hand is still stretched out.

5 Woe to the Assyrian, he is the rod and the staff of my anger, and my indignation is in their hands.

“Woe [to] Asshur, a rod of My anger, And My indignation [is] a staff in their hand.

6 I will send him to a deceitful nation, and I will give him a charge against the people of my wrath, to take away the spoils, and to lay hold on the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

I send him against a profane nation, And concerning a people of My wrath I charge him, To spoil spoil, and to seize prey, And to make it a treading-place as the clay of out places.

7 But he shall not take it so, and his heart shall not think so: but his heart shall be set to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few.

And he does not think [it] so, And his heart does not reckon [it] so, For—to destroy [is] in his heart, And to cut off nations—not a few.

8 For he shall say:

For he says, Are my princes not altogether kings?

9 Are not my princes as so many kings? is not Calano as Charcamis: and Emath as Arphad? is not Samaria as Damascus?

Is not Calno as Carchemish? Is not Hamath as Arpad? Is not Samaria as Damascus?

10 As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idol, so also their idols of Jerusalem, and of Samaria.

As my hand has gotten to the kingdoms of a worthless thing, and their carved images, [Greater] than Jerusalem and than Samaria,

11 Shall I not, as I have done to Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?

Do I not—as I have done to Samaria, And to her worthless things, So do to Jerusalem and to her grievous things?”

12 And it shall come to pass, that when the Lord shall have performed all his works in mount Sion, and in Jerusalem, I will visit the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of the haughtiness of his eyes.

And it has come to pass, When the Lord fulfills all His work In Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, I see concerning the fruit of the greatness Of the heart of the king of Asshur, And concerning the glory of the height of his eyes.

13 For he hath said: By the strength of my own hand I have done it, and by my own wisdom I have understood: and I have removed the bounds of the people, and have taken the spoils of the princes, and as a mighty man hath pulled down them that sat on high.

For he has said, “I have worked by the power of my hand, And by my wisdom, for I have been intelligent, And I remove borders of the peoples, And I have spoiled their chief ones, And I put down the inhabitants as a mighty one,

14 And my hand hath found the strength of the people as a nest; and as eggs are gathered, that are left, so have I gathered all the earth: and there was none that moved the wing, or opened the mouth, or made the least noise.

And my hand gets to the wealth of the peoples as to a nest, And as a gathering of forsaken eggs I have gathered all the earth, And there has not been one moving wing, Or opening mouth, or whispering.”

15 Shall the axe boast itself against him that cutteth with it? or shall the saw exalt itself against him by whom it is drawn? as if a rod should lift itself up against him that lifteth it up, and a staff exalt itself, which is but wood.

Does the axe glorify itself Against him who is hewing with it? Does the saw magnify itself Against him who is shaking it? As a rod waving those lifting it up! As a staff lifting up that which is not wood!

16 Therefore the sovereign Lord, the Lord of hosts, shall send leanness among his fat ones: and under his glory shall be kindled a burning, as it were the burning of a fire.

Therefore the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, Sends leanness among his fat ones, And under his glory He kindles a burning As the burning of a fire.

17 And the light of Israel shall be as a fire, and the Holy One thereof as a flame: and his thorns and his briers shall be set on fire, and shall be devoured in one day.

And the light of Israel has been for a fire, And his Holy One for a flame, And it has burned, and devoured his thorn And his brier in one day.

18 And the glory of his forest, and of his beautiful hill, shall be consumed from the soul even to the flesh, and he shall run away through fear.

And the glory of his forest, and his fruitful field, He consumes from soul even to flesh, And it has been as the fainting of a standard-bearer.

19 And they that remain of the trees of his forest shall be so few, that they shall easily be numbered, and a child shall write them down.

And the rest of the trees of his forest [are] few, And a youth writes them.

20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and they that shall escape of the house of Jacob, shall lean no more upon him that striketh them: but they shall lean upon the Lord the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

And it has come to pass in that day, The remnant of Israel, And the escaped of the house of Jacob, Do not add anymore to lean on its striker, And have leaned on YHWH, The Holy One of Israel, in truth.

21 The remnant shall be converted, the remnant, I say, of Jacob, to the mighty God.

A remnant returns—a remnant of Jacob, To the Mighty God.

22 For if thy people, O Israel, shall be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them shall be converted, the consumption abridged shall overflow with justice.

For though your people Israel be as the sand of the sea, A remnant of it returns, A consumption determined, Overflowing [with] righteousness.

23 For the Lord God of hosts shall make a consumption, and an abridgment in the midst of all the land.

For a consumption that is determined, The Lord, YHWH of Hosts, Is making in the midst of all the land.

24 Therefore, thus saith the Lord the God of hosts: O my people that dwellest in Sion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall strike thee with his rod, and he shall lift up his staff over thee in the way of Egypt.

Therefore, thus said the Lord, YHWH of Hosts: “Do not be afraid, My people, inhabiting Zion, because of Asshur, He strikes you with a rod, And his staff lifts up against you, in the way of Egypt.

25 For yet a little and a very little while, and my indignation shall cease, and my wrath shall be upon their wickedness.

For yet a very little [while], And the indignation has been completed, And My anger by their wearing out.”

26 And the Lord of hosts shall raise up a scourge against him, according to the slaughter of Madian in the rock of Oreb, and his rod over the sea, and he shall lift it up in the way of Egypt.

And YHWH of Hosts is awaking for him, A scourge like the striking of Midian at the rock Oreb, And his rod [is] over the sea, And he has lifted it in the way of Egypt.

27 And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall putrify at the presence of the oil.

And it has come to pass in that day, His burden is turned from off your shoulder, And his yoke from off your neck, And the yoke has been destroyed, because of prosperity.

28 He shall come into Aiath, he shall pass into Magron: at Machmas he shall lay up his carriages.

He has come in against Aiath, He has passed over into Migron, At Michmash he looks after his vessels.

29 They have passed in haste, Gaba is our lodging: Rama was astonished, Gabaath of Saul fled away.

They have gone over the passage, They have made Geba a lodging place, Rama has trembled, Gibeah of Saul fled.

30 Lift up thy voice, O daughter of Gallim, attend, O Laisa, poor Anathoth.

Cry aloud [with] your voice, daughter of Gallim, Give attention, Laish! Answer her, Anathoth.

31 Medemena is removed: ye inhabitants of Gabim, take courage.

Madmenah has fled away, The inhabitants of the high places have hardened themselves.

32 It is yet day enough, to remain in Nobe: he shall shake his hand against the mountain of the daughter of Sion, the hill of Jerusalem.

Yet today to remain in Nob, The mountain of the daughter of Zion waves its hand, The hill of Jerusalem.

33 Behold the sovereign Lord of hosts shall break the earthen vessel with terror, and the tall of stature shall be cut down, and the lofty shall be humbled.

Behold, the Lord, YHWH of Hosts, Is lopping a branch with violence, And the high of stature are cut down, And the lofty have become low,

34 And the thickets of the forest shall be cut down with iron, and Libanus with its high ones shall fall.

And He has gone around the thickets of the forest with iron, And Lebanon falls by a mighty one!