Isaiah 10

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

Woe to them that make unrighteous decrees, That write oppressive decisions,

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

To turn away the needy from judgment, And rob the poor of my people of their right; That the widows may become their prey, And that they may plunder the orphans.

3 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?

What will ye do in the day of visitation, And in the desolation which cometh from afar? To whom will ye flee for help, And where will ye leave your glory?

4 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.

Forsaken by me, they shall sink down among the prisoners, And fall among the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, But his hand is stretched out still.

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

Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, The staff in whose hands is the instrument of my indignation!

6 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.

Against an impious nation I will send him, And against a people under my wrath I will give him a charge To gather the spoil, and seize the prey, And to trample them under foot like the mire of the streets.

7 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.

But he doth not so purpose, And his heart doth not so intend; But to destroy is in his heart, And to cut off a multitude of nations.

8 For he says, Are my princes not altogether kings?

For he saith, “Are not my princes altogether kings?

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

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

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

As my hand hath seized the kingdoms of the idols, Whose graven images were more numerous than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,

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

Behold! as I have done to Samaria and her idols, So will I do to Jerusalem and her images.”

12 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.

But when the Lord hath accomplished his whole work upon Mount Zion and Jerusalem, Then will he punish the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria, And the arrogance of his lofty eyes.

13 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,

For he hath said: “By the strength of my hand I have done it, And by my wisdom; for I am wise; I have removed the bounds of nations, I have plundered their treasures; As a hero have I brought down them that sat upon thrones.

14 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.”

The riches of the nations hath my hand seized, as a nest; As one gathereth eggs that have been left, So have I gathered the whole world. And there was none that moved the wing, Or that opened the beak, or that chirped.”

15 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!

Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth with it? Or shall the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it? As if the rod should wield him that lifteth it! As if the staff should lift up him that is not wood!

16 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.

Wherefore the Lord, the Lord of hosts, shall send upon his fat ones leanness, And under his glory shall he kindle a burning, like the burning of a fire.

17 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.

The light of Israel shall be a fire, And his Holy One a flame, Which shall burn and devour his thorns and briers in one day.

18 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.

The glory of his forest and of his fruitful field From the spirit even to the flesh shall he consume; It shall be with them as when a sick man fainteth.

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

The remaining trees of the forest shall be few, So that a child may write them down.

20 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.

In that day shall the remnant of Israel, and they that have escaped of the house of Jacob, no more lean upon him that smote them; They shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

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

The remnant shall return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty Potentate;

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

For though thy people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea, Only a remnant of them shall return. The devastation is decreed; It shall overflow with righteousness.

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

For devastation and punishment doth the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, execute in the midst of the whole land,

24 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.

Yet thus saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts: Fear not, O my people, that dwellest in Zion, because of the Assyrian! With his rod indeed shall he smite thee, And lift up his staff against thee in the manner of Egypt;

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

But yet a very little while, and my indignation shall have past, And my anger shall destroy them.

26 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.

Jehovah of hosts shall raise up against him a scourge, As he smote Midian at the rock of Horeb, And as he lifted up the rod against the sea; Yea, he shall lift it up, as in Egypt.

27 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.

In that day shall his burden be removed from thy shoulder, And his yoke from thy neck; Yea, thy yoke shall be broken, as that of a fat steer.

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

He is come to Aiath; he passeth through Migron; In Michmash he leaveth his baggage;

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

They pass the strait; At Geba they make their night-quarters; Ramah trembleth; Gibeah of Saul fleeth.

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

Cry aloud, O daughter of Gallim! Hear, O Laish! Alas, poor Anathoth!

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

Madmenah hasteth away; The inhabitants of Gebim take to flight.

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

Yet one day shall he rest at Nob, Then shall he shake his hand against the mount of the daughter of Zion, The hill of Jerusalem.

33 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,

But behold! the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, shall lop the branches with fearful force, And the high of stature shall be cut down, And the lofty shall be brought low.

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

He shall hew the thickets of the forest with iron, And Lebanon shall fall by a mighty hand.