Isaiah 32

1 Watch! A king is coming who does what's right when he rules, and those who rule under him will act fairly.

Behold! a king shall reign in righteousness, And princes shall rule with equity.

2 Each one will be like a shelter from the wind, like a protection from the storm, like rivers of water in the dry desert, like the shade of a large rock in a sun-baked land.

Every one of them shall be a hiding-place from the wind, And a shelter from the tempest; As streams of water in a dry place, As the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

3 Then everyone with eyes will be able to truly see, and everyone who has ears will be able to truly hear.

The eyes of them that see shall no more be blind, And the ears of them that hear shall hearken.

4 Those whose minds are impulsive will be sensible and think things through; those who stammer will speak clearly.

The heart of the rash shall gain wisdom, And the tongue of the stammerer learn to speak plainly.

5 No longer will fools be called respectable or crooks highly-regarded.

The vile shall no more be called liberal, Nor the niggard said to be bountiful;

6 For fools only talk foolishness, thinking evil things. They act in opposition to the Lord, misrepresenting him in what they say. They refuse to give food to the hungry and deny water to the thirsty.

For the vile will still utter villany, And his heart will devise iniquity; He will practise deception, and speak impiety against God; He will take away the food of the hungry, And deprive the thirsty of drink.

7 Cheats use evil methods; they devise schemes to ruin the poor with lies, even when right is on the side of the poor.

The instruments also of the niggard are evil; He plotteth mischievous devices, To destroy the poor with lying words, Even when the cause of the needy is just.

8 But noble people act unselfishly; they keep to their principles of generosity.

But the liberal deviseth liberal things, And in liberal things will he persevere.

9 Get up, you women who are lying around relaxing, and pay attention to what I'm saying! You ladies without a care in the world, listen to me!

Arise, hear my voice, ye women that are at ease! Give ear to my speech, ye careless daughters!

10 In just over a year, you who think yourselves so safe will tremble with fear. The grape harvest is going to fail and there'll be no harvest.

One year more, and ye shall tremble, ye careless women! For the vintage shall fail; the harvest shall not come.

11 Shudder, you women relaxing! Tremble, you ladies who feel so safe! Strip off your clothes, bare yourselves and put on sackcloth around your waists.

Tremble, O ye that are at ease! Be in dismay, ye careless ones! Strip you, make you bare, gird ye sackcloth upon your loins!

12 Beat your breasts in sadness over the loss of your lovely fields, your productive vines,

They shall smite themselves on their breasts, On account of the pleasant fields, On account of the fruitful vine.

13 over the loss of the land of my people. Mourn because it's now overgrown with thorns and brambles, mourn because of the loss of all the happy homes and joyful towns.

Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; Yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city.

14 The palace is abandoned, the crowded town is deserted. Castles and watch towers will forever become homes loved by wild donkeys, and places where sheep graze,

For the palace shall be forsaken; The tumult of the city shall be solitary; The fortified hill and the tower shall be dens forever; The joy of wild-asses, the pasture of flocks;

15 until the Spirit is poured out on us from above, and the desert becomes like a good field full of crops, and a good field will grow like a forest.

Until the spirit from on high be poured upon us, And the wilderness become a fruitful field, And the fruitful field be esteemed a forest.

16 Then people living in the desert will practice justice, and those living among the fields will do what is right.

Then shall justice dwell in the wilderness, And righteousness in the fruitful field.

17 Living right will bring peace and security that endures.

And the effect of righteousness shall be peace, And the fruit of righteousness quiet and security forever.

18 My people will live in peace, safe and secure in their homes.

Then shall my people dwell in peaceful habitations, In secure dwellings, in quiet resting-places.

19 Even though hail can destroy a forest, and a town can be demolished,

But the hail shall descend, and the forest shall fall; And the city shall be brought very low.

20 you will be happy as you sow your crops beside the waters and let your cattle and donkeys roam freely.

Happy ye who sow beside all waters; Who send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass!