Isaiah 28
1 Woe to the crown of pride, of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious ornament, which is on the eminence of the fat valley of those who are struck down by wine!
Woe [to] the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim. And the fading flower of the beauty of his glory, That [is] on the head of the fat valley of the broken down of wine.
2 Behold, [it cometh] mighty and strong from the Lord, as a tempest of hail, a storm of destruction; as a tempest of mighty overflowing waters, will he cast it down to the earth with force.
Behold, a mighty and strong one [is] to the Lord, As a storm of hail—a destructive shower, As an inundation of mighty waters overflowing, He cast down to the earth with the hand.
3 Under feet shall be trodden the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim:
The proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim is trodden down by feet,
4 And the fading flower of his glorious ornament, which is on the eminence of the fat valley, shall be as its early ripe fruit before the summer; which one, when he just seeth it, while it is scarcely in his hand, hastily devoureth.
And the fading flower of the beauty of his glory That [is] on the head of the fat valley, Has been as its first-fruit before summer, That its beholder sees; He swallows it while it [is] yet in his hand.
5 On that day will the Lord of hosts be for a crown of glory, and for a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people,
In that day YHWH of Hosts is For a crown of beauty, and for a circlet of glory, To the remnant of His people.
6 And for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment, and for strength to those that drive back the battle to the gate [of the enemy].
And for a spirit of judgment To him who is sitting in the judgment, And for might [to] those turning back the battle to the gate.
7 But these also are now stumbling through wine, and reeling through strong drink: priest and prophet are stumbling through strong drink, they are overpowered with wine, they reel through strong drink; they stumble in [divine] vision, they are unsteady in giving judgment.
And even these have erred through wine, And have wandered through strong drink, Priest and prophet erred through strong drink, They have been swallowed up of the wine, They wandered because of the strong drink, They have erred in seeing, They have stumbled judicially.
8 For all tables are full of vomit of filthiness, there is no place [clean].
For all tables have been full of vomit, Filth—without place!
9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he give to understand doctrine? those that are weaned from the milk, those that are taken from the breasts.
By whom does He teach knowledge? And by whom does He cause to understand the report? The weaned from milk, the removed from breasts,
10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little.
For rule on rule, rule on rule, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there,
11 For [as] with stammering lips and a foreign tongue will he speak to this people;
For by scorned lip, and by another tongue, Does He speak to this people.
12 When he said unto them, This is the rest, cause ye the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing; but they would not hear.
To whom He has said, “This [is] the rest, give rest to the weary, And this—the refreshing”: And they have not been willing to hear,
13 Therefore shall be unto them the word of the Lord, precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; in order that they may go, and stumble backward, and be broken, and snared, and caught.
And to whom a word of YHWH has been, Rule on rule, rule on rule, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there, So that they go and have stumbled backward, And been broken, and snared, and captured.
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, ye scornful men, who rule this people that is in Jerusalem.
Therefore, hear a word of YHWH, you men of scorning, Ruling this people that [is] in Jerusalem.
15 Because ye have said, “We have entered into a covenant with death, and with the nether world have we made an agreement; the overflowing scourge, when it passeth by, shall not come at us; for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we sought a hiding-place.” (Sheol h7585)
Because you have said: “We have made a covenant with death, And we have made a provision with Sheol, An overflowing scourge, when it passes over, Does not meet us, Though we have made a lie our refuge, And have been hidden in falsehood.” (Sheol h7585)
16 Therefore thus hath said the Lord Eternal, Behold, I have laid in Zion as a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a costly corner-stone, well founded: he that believeth will not make haste.
Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: “Behold, I am laying a foundation in Zion, A stone—a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a settled foundation, He who is believing does not make haste.
17 And I will make of justice a measuring line, and of righteousness a plummet: and the hail shall sweep off the refuge of lies, and the hiding-place against the waters shall these flood away.
And I have put judgment for a line, And righteousness for a plummet, And hail sweeps away the refuge of lies, And waters overflow the secret hiding place.
18 And your covenant with death shall be annulled, and your agreement with the nether world shall not have permanence; the overflowing scourge, when it passeth by—then shall ye be trodden down by it. (Sheol h7585)
And your covenant with death has been annulled, And your provision with Sheol does not stand, An overflowing scourge, when it passes over, Then you have been to it for a treading-place. (Sheol h7585)
19 As often as it passeth by shall it take you; for morning by morning shall it pass by, by day and by night; and the mere understanding of the report shall cause terror.
From the fullness of its passing over it takes you, For it passes over morning by morning, By day and by night, And it has been only a trembling to consider the report.
20 For the bed shall be too short for [a man] to stretch himself out [on it]: and the covering too narrow to wrap himself in.
For the bed has been shorter Than to stretch one’s self out in, And the covering has been narrower Than to wrap one’s self up in.
21 For as on mount Perazim will the Lord rise up, as in the valley of Gib'on will he be wroth, that he may do his work, his singular work; and to accomplish his labor, his strange labor.
For as YHWH rises [at] Mount Perazim, As He is troubled [at] the valley in Gibeon, To do His work—strange [is] His work, And to do His deed—strange [is] His deed.”
22 And now be ye no longer scornful, lest your bonds be made strong; for as completed and fully decreed have I heard it from the Lord Eternal of hosts over all the earth.
And now, do not show yourselves scorners, Lest your bands are strong, For a consumption, that is determined, I have heard, by the Lord, YHWH of Hosts, [Is] for all the land.
23 Give ye ear, and hear my voice; listen, and hear my speech.
Give ear, and hear my voice, Attend, and hear my saying:
24 Doth the ploughman plough all the time to sow? doth he open and harrow his ground [continually]?
Does the plowman plow the whole day to sow? He opens and harrows his ground!
25 Is it not so? that, when he hath made level its surface he scattereth fennel, and streweth about cumin, and planteth the wheat in rows, and barley on its assigned [place], and millet on its proper spot?
Has he not, if he has made its face level, Then scattered fitches, and sprinkles cumin, And has placed the principal wheat, And the appointed barley, And the rye [in] its own border?
26 For his God instructed him rightly, taught him [so to do].
And his God instructs him for judgment, He directs him.
27 Truly not with a threshing instrument is fennel threshed, and a wagon-wheel is not turned about upon cumin; but fennel is beaten out with a staff, and cumin with a stick.
For fitches are not threshed with a sharp-pointed thing, And the wheel of a cart turned around on cumin, For fitches are beaten out with a staff, And cumin with a rod.
28 Bread-corn is crushed; but not for ever doth [man] keep threshing it; and though he drive over it the wheel of his wagon and his horses, he will not [thereby] crush it.
Bread-[grain] is beaten small, For he does not severely thresh it forever, Nor has a wheel of his cart crushed [it], Nor do his hooves beat it small.
29 This also cometh forth from the Lord of hosts; wonderful is he in counsel, and excellent in [his] wise deeds.
Even this from YHWH of Hosts has gone out, He has made counsel wonderful, He has made wisdom great!
