Isaiah 28
1 Woe to the crowne of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim: for his glorious beautie shall be a fading flowre, which is vpon the head of the valley of them that be fat, and are ouercome with wine.
Ho! crown of pride of those who are given up to wine in Ephraim, and the dead flower of his glory which is on the head of those who are overcome by strong drink!
2 Beholde, the Lord hath a mightie and strong hoste, like a tempest of haile, and a whirlewinde that ouerthroweth, like a tempest of mightie waters that ouerflowe, which throwe to the ground mightily.
See, the Lord has a strong and cruel one; like a rain of ice, a storm of destruction, like the overflowing of a strong river, he will violently overcome them.
3 They shall be troden vnder foote, euen the crowne and the pride of the drunkards of Ephraim.
The crown of pride of those who are given up to wine in Ephraim will be crushed under foot;
4 For his glorious beautie shall be a fading floure, which is vpon the head of the valley of them that be fatte, and as the hastie fruite afore sommer, which when hee that looketh vpon it, seeth it, while it is in his hand, he eateth it.
And the dead flower of his glory, which is on the head of the fertile valley, will be like the first early fruit before the summer; which a man takes and puts in his mouth the minute he sees it.
5 In that day shall the Lord of hostes be for a crowne of glory, and for a diademe of beautie vnto the residue of his people:
In that day will the Lord of armies be a crown of glory, and a fair ornament, to the rest of his people;
6 And for a spirite of iudgement to him that sitteth in iudgement, and for strength vnto them that turne away the battell to the gate.
And a spirit of wisdom to the judge, and strength to those who keep back the attackers at the door of the town.
7 But they haue erred because of wine, and are out of the way by strong drinke: the priest and the prophet haue erred by strong drinke: they are swallowed vp with wine: they haue gone astraye through strong drinke: they faile in vision: they stumble in iudgement.
And further, these are uncertain through wine, and have gone out of the right way through strong drink: the priest and the prophet are uncertain through strong drink, they are overcome by wine, they have gone out of the way through strong drink; their vision is false, they go wrong in their decisions.
8 For all their tables are full of filthy vomiting: no place is cleane.
For all the tables are covered with coughed-up food, so that there is not a clean place.
9 Whome shall he teache knowledge? and whome shall he make to vnderstand the thinges that hee heareth? them that are weyned from the milke, and drawen from the breastes.
To whom will he give knowledge? and to whom will he make clear the word? Will it be to those who have newly given up milk, and who have only now been taken from the breast?
10 For precept must be vpon precept, precept vpon precept, line vnto line, line vnto line, there a litle, and there a litle.
For it is one rule after another; one line after another; here a little, there a little.
11 For with a stammering tongue and with a strange language shall he speake vnto this people.
No, but with broken talk, and with a strange tongue, he will give his word to this people:
12 Vnto whome hee saide, This is the rest: giue rest to him that is weary: and this is the refreshing, but they would not heare.
To whom he said, This is the rest, give rest to him who is tired; and by this you may get new strength; but they would not give ear.
13 Therefore shall the worde of the Lord be vnto them precept vpon precept, precept vpon precept, line vnto line, line vnto line, there a litle and there a litle, that they may goe, and fall backward, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.
For this cause the word of the Lord will be to them rule after rule, line after line, here a little, there a little; so that they may go on their way, and falling back may be broken, and taken in the net.
14 Wherefore, heare the worde of the Lord, ye scornefull men that rule this people, which is at Ierusalem.
Give ear then to the word of the Lord, you men of pride, the rulers of this people in Jerusalem:
15 Because ye haue said, We haue made a couenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement: though a scourge runne ouer, and passe through, it shall not come at vs: for we haue made falshood our refuge, and vnder vanitie are we hid, (Sheol h7585)
Because you have said, We have made death our friend, and with the underworld we have made an agreement; when the overflowing waters come through they will not come near us; for we are looking to false words for help, taking cover in what is untrue: (Sheol h7585)
16 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will laye in Zion a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation. Hee that beleeueth, shall not make haste.
For this cause says the Lord God, See, I am placing in Zion as a base, a stone, a tested stone, an angle-stone which is certain and of great value: and he who has faith will not give way.
17 Iudgement also will I laye to the rule, and righteousnesse to the balance, and the haile shall sweepe away the vaine confidence, and the waters shall ouerflowe the secret place.
And I will make right decision the measuring-line, and righteousness the weight: and the ice-storm will take away the safe place of false words, and the secret place will be covered by the flowing waters.
18 And your couenant with death shalbe disanulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand: when a scourge shall runne ouer and passe through, then shall ye be trode downe by it. (Sheol h7585)
And the help you were looking for from death will come to nothing, and your agreement with the underworld will be broken; when the overflowing waters come through, then you will be overcome by them. (Sheol h7585)
19 When it passeth ouer, it shall take you away: for it shall passe through euery morning in the day, and in the night, and there shalbe onely feare to make you to vnderstand the hearing.
Whenever they come through they will overtake you; for they will come through morning after morning, by day and by night: and the news will be nothing but fear.
20 For the bed is streight that it can not suffice, and the couering narowe that one can not wrappe himselfe.
For the bed is not long enough for a man to be stretched out on: and the cover is not wide enough for him to be covered with.
21 For the Lord shall stand as in mount Perazim: hee shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his worke, his strage worke, and bring to passe his acte, his strange acte.
For the Lord will come up as on Mount Perazim, he will be moved to wrath as in the valley of Gibeon; so that he may do his work — strange is his work; and give effect to his act — unnatural is his act.
22 Nowe therefore be no mockers, least your bondes increase: for I haue heard of the Lord of hostes a consumption, euen determined vpon the whole earth.
And now, take care that you do not make sport of him, or your bands will be made strong; for I have had word from the Lord, the Lord of armies, of an end, of a complete end, which is to come on all the land.
23 Hearken ye, and heare my voyce: hearken ye, and heare my speach.
Let your ears be open to my voice; give attention to what I say.
24 Doeth the plowe man plowe all the day, to sowe? doeth he open, and breake the clots of his ground?
Is the ploughman for ever ploughing? does he not get the earth ready and broken up for the seed?
25 When he hath made it plaine, wil he not then sowe the fitches, and sowe cummin, and cast in wheat by measure, and the appointed barly and rye in their place?
When the face of the earth has been levelled, does he not put in the different sorts of seed, and the grain in lines, and the barley in its place, and the spelt at the edge?
26 For his God doeth instruct him to haue discretion, and doeth teach him.
For his God is his teacher, giving him the knowledge of these things.
27 For fitches shall not be threshed with a threshing instrument, neither shall a cart wheele be turned about vpon the cummin: but ye fitches are beaten out with a staffe, and cummin with a rod.
For the fitches are not crushed with a sharp instrument, and a cart-wheel is not rolled over the cummin; but the grain of the fitches is hammered out with a stick, and of the cummin with a rod.
28 Bread corne when it is threshed, hee doeth not alway thresh it, neither doeth the wheele of his cart still make a noyse, neither will he breake it with the teeth thereof.
Is the grain for bread crushed? He does not go on crushing it for ever, but he lets his cart-wheels and his horses go over it without crushing it.
29 This also commeth from the Lord of hostes, which is wonderfull in counsell, and excellent in workes.
This comes from the Lord of armies, purposing wonders, and wise in all his acts.
