Isaiah 10

1 Woe to those who decree unrighteous decrees, and to the writers who write oppressive decrees;

Terrible things will happen to you judges who are unjust and who make unfair laws.

2 to deprive the needy from justice, and to rob the poor among my people of their rights, that widows may be their spoil, and that they may make the fatherless their prey.

You refuse to help poor people, and you do not allow them to get the things that they should get. You [allow people to] steal things from widows and do unfair things to orphans.

3 What will you do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth,

When I punish you by sending people from distant lands to cause you to experience disasters, (to whom will you run to get help?/there will be no one who can help you.) [RHQ] Your valuable possessions will certainly [not be safe] [RHQ] anywhere.

4 so as not to kneel with the prisoners, or fall among the slain? For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

You will be able only to stumble along as you are taken away with other prisoners, or [else] your corpses will lie on the ground with others who have been killed. But even after that happens, Yahweh will still be very angry with you. He will still be ready to strike you again with his fist.

5 Alas Assyrian, the rod of my anger, the staff in whose hand is my indignation.

[Yahweh says], “Terrible things will happen to Assyria. [It is true that their army] is like a rod/club [DOU] with which I [punish other nations] because I am very angry with those nations [DOU].

6 I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people who anger me will I give him a command to take the spoil and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.

[Sometimes] I send the armies of Assyria to attack a godless nation, to fight against [other] people who have caused me to be angry. I send them to capture people and to seize and take away their possessions, and to trample them like [SIM] people walk on mud in the streets.

7 However he doesn't mean so, neither does his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off not a few nations.

But the [king of Assyria] does not understand, he does not realize [that he is only like a weapon in my hand]. He wants [only] to destroy people, to get rid of many nations.

8 For he says, "Aren't all of my officials kings?

He says, ‘All of my army commanders will soon be kings [of these nations that I conquer]!

9 Isn't Calno like Carchemish? Isn't Hamath like Arpad? Isn't Samaria like Damascus?

We destroyed Calno [city] like we destroyed Carchemish [city], We destroyed Hamath [city] like we destroyed Arpad [city]; we destroyed Samaria just like we destroyed Damascus.

10 As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, whose engraved images exceeded those of Jerusalem and of Samaria;

We were able to destroy [all] those kingdoms [that were full] of idols, kingdoms whose idols were greater than the idols in Jerusalem and Samaria.

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

So we will defeat Jerusalem and destroy the idols that are there, just like we destroyed Samaria and the idols that were there!’

12 Therefore it will happen that, when YHWH has performed his whole work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, he will punish the fruit of the willful proud heart of the king of Assyria, and the insolence of his haughty looks.

[But, I, Yahweh, say that] after I [have used Assyria to] finish what I want to do to punish the people in Jerusalem [DOU], I will punish the king of Assyria because he has been very proud and arrogant/boastful [DOU].

13 For he has said, "By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding: and I have removed the boundaries of the peoples, and have robbed their treasures. Like a valiant man I have brought down their rulers.

He says, ‘By my own great power [MTY] I have done these things. I have been able to do them because I am very wise and very intelligent. My army removed the barriers [at the borders] of nations and carried away all their valuable things. My army has knocked down their kings like [SIM] a ferocious bull would.

14 My hand has found the riches of the peoples like a nest, and like one gathers eggs that are abandoned, have I gathered all the earth. There was no one who moved their wing, or that opened their mouth, or chirped."

Like [MET] a farmer reaches into a bird’s nest [to take away the eggs], we have taken away the treasures of other countries [DOU]. The people were not like birds that would flap their wings or chirp loudly [to protest about their eggs being stolen]; the people did not object at all [to their treasures being stolen].’

15 Should an axe brag against him who chops with it? Should a saw exalt itself above him who saws with it? As if a rod should lift those who lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up someone who is not wood.

[But I, Yahweh, say that] an axe certainly cannot [RHQ] boast about being stronger than the person who uses it, and a saw is not greater than the person who uses it. A rod cannot control the one who holds it [RHQ], and a wooden club cannot lift up a person [RHQ]. [So the king of Assyria should not boast that he has done these things with his own wisdom and strength].

16 Therefore YHWH of hosts will send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory a burning will be kindled like the burning of fire.

And [I], the Commander of the armies of angels, will send a plague among the proud soldiers of Assyria; it will be like [MET] a fire that will kill them and get rid of their glory/wealth.

17 The light of Israel will be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame; and it will burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day.

[I], Yahweh, who am like [MET] a light for the people of Israel, will be the fire; [I], the Holy One, will be like a flame. [The soldiers of Assyria are like] [MET] thorns and briers, and I will burn them up in one night.

18 He will consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body. It will be as when a standard bearer faints.

There are glorious forests and fertile farmlands in Assyria, but I will completely destroy them; they will be like [SIM] a [very] sick person who shrivels up and then dies.

19 The remnant of the trees of his forest shall be few, so that a child could write their number.

There will be very few trees left in those forests; even a child will be able to count them.”

20 It will come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel, and those who have escaped from the house of Jacob will no more again lean on him who struck them, but shall lean on YHWH, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.

In the future there will be only a few people left in Israel; not many descendants of Jacob will still be alive. [But] they will no longer rely on [the king of Assyria], [the king of the nation] that tried to destroy them. Instead, they will faithfully/sincerely trust in Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel.

21 A remnant will return, even the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.

Those Israelis will return to their mighty God.

22 For though your people, Israel, are as the sand of the sea, a remnant will be kept safe. For he will fulfill the word and decisively in righteousness;

[Now], the people of Israel are as numerous as the grains of sand on the seashore, but only a few of them will return [from the countries to which they were exiled]. Yahweh has decided to destroy [most of the Israelis] and that is what [he must do because he is completely] just/righteous.

23 because YHWH will carry out the word decisively in the midst of the earth.

[Yes, ] the Commander of the armies of angels has [already] decided to destroy the entire land [of Israel].

24 Therefore YHWH of hosts says: "My people who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian, though he strike you with the rod, and lift up his staff against you, as Egypt did.

This is what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “My people in Jerusalem, do not be afraid of the army of Assyria when they beat you with rods and clubs, like the men of Egypt did [to your ancestors long ago].

25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation against you will be accomplished, and my anger will be directed to his destruction."

Soon I will no longer be angry with you, and [then] I will be angry with the people of Assyria and destroy them!”

26 YHWH of hosts will stir up a scourge against him, as in the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb. His rod will be over the sea, and he will lift it up like he did against Egypt.

The Commander of the armies of angels will whip them. He will do to them like he did when he helped Gideon [and his 300 soldiers] to defeat the [army of the] Midian people-group, and like he did when he showed his mighty power [MTY] [by causing the army of Egypt to drown] in the [Red] Sea.

27 It will happen in that day, that his burden will depart from off your shoulder, and his yoke from off your neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.

Some day, Yahweh will cause the army of Assyria to stop oppressing you, [his people]; he will end your suffering and your being slaves of the people of Assyria [MET]; he will take away the load that you people of Judah have been carrying, and cause things to go well for you.

28 He has come to Aiath. He has passed through Migron. At Michmash he stores his baggage.

[The army of Assyria will enter northern Judah] near Aiath [town], they will go through Migron [town] and store their supplies at Micmash [town north of Jerusalem].

29 He went through the pass. He has lodged at Geba. Ramah trembles. Gibeah of Saul has fled.

They will cross through a mountain pass and set up their tents at Geba [town]. [People in] Ramah [town] will tremble [because of being afraid]. [The people of] Gibeah [town], where King Saul [was born], will [all] run away.

30 Cry aloud with your voice, daughter of Gallim. Listen, Laishah. You poor Anathoth.

You people of Gallim [town] will cry out [for help]. You will shout to [the people of] Laish [city near Jerusalem] to warn them! [The people of] Anathoth [town] will suffer a lot.

31 Madmenah is a fugitive. The inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety.

[The people of] Madmenah [town north of Jerusalem will all] be running away, and [the people of] Gebim [town close to Jerusalem] will be trying to hide.

32 This very day he will halt at Nob. He shakes his hand at the mountain of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

The soldiers of Assyria will stop at Nob [city outside Jerusalem]. They will shake their fists [as they threaten the people] on Zion Hill in Jerusalem.

33 Look, the Lord, YHWH of hosts, will lop the boughs with terror. The tall will be cut down, and the lofty will be brought low.

But listen to this! The Commander of the armies of angels with his great power will destroy [MET] the mighty army of Assyria. [It is as though they are] a huge tree [MET] that he will cut down.

34 He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.

He will destroy the [soldiers of Assyria] like men use big axes to cut down the tall trees in the forests of Lebanon.