Isaiah 5

1 Let me sing for my well beloved a song of my beloved about his vineyard. My beloved had a vineyard on a very fruitful hill.

Let me sing, I pray you, for my beloved, A song of my beloved as to his vineyard: My beloved hath a vineyard in a fruitful hill,

2 He dug it up, gathered out its stones, planted it with the choicest vine, built a tower in its midst, and also cut out a winepress in it. He looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded wild grapes.

And he fenceth it, and casteth out its stones, And planteth it [with] a choice vine, And buildeth a tower in its midst, And also a wine press hath hewn out in it, And he waiteth for the yielding of grapes, And it yieldeth bad ones!

3 "Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, please judge between me and my vineyard.

And now, O inhabitant of Jerusalem, and man of Judah, Judge, I pray you, between me and my vineyard.

4 What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? Why, when I looked for it to yield grapes, did it yield wild grapes?

What — to do still to my vineyard, That I have not done in it! Wherefore, I waited to the yielding of grapes, And it yieldeth bad ones!

5 Now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard. I will take away its hedge, and it will be eaten up. I will break down its wall of it, and it will be trampled down.

And now, pray, let me cause you to know, That which I am doing to my vineyard, To turn aside its hedge, And it hath been for consumption, To break down its wall, And it hath been for a treading-place.

6 I will lay it a wasteland. It won't be pruned nor hoed, but it will grow briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain on it."

And I make it a waste, It is not pruned, nor arranged, And gone up have brier and thorn, And on the thick clouds I lay a charge, From raining upon it rain.

7 For the vineyard of YHWH of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for justice, but, look, oppression; for righteousness, but, look, a cry of distress.

Because the vineyard of Jehovah of Hosts [Is] the house of Israel, And the man of Judah His pleasant plant, And He waiteth for judgment, and lo, oppression, For righteousness, and lo, a cry.

8 Woe to those who join house to house, who lay field to field, until there is no room, and you are made to dwell alone in the midst of the land.

Woe [to] those joining house to house, Field to field they bring near, till there is no place, And ye have been settled by yourselves In the midst of the land!

9 In my ears, YHWH of hosts says: "Surely many houses will be desolate, even great and beautiful, unoccupied.

By the weapons of Jehovah of Hosts Do not many houses a desolation become? Great and good without inhabitant!

10 For ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and a homer of seed shall yield an ephah."

For ten acres of vineyard do yield one bath, And an homer of seed yieldeth an ephah.

11 Woe to those who rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; who stay late into the night, until wine inflames them.

Woe [to] those rising early in the morning, Strong drink they pursue! Tarrying in twilight, wine inflameth them!

12 The harp, lyre, tambourine, and flute, with wine, are at their feasts; but they do not regard the work of YHWH, neither have they considered the operation of his hands.

And harp, and psaltery, tabret, and pipe, And wine, have been their banquets, And the work of Jehovah they behold not, Yea, the work of His hands they have not seen.

13 Therefore my people go into captivity for lack of knowledge. Their honorable men are famished, and their multitudes are parched with thirst.

Therefore my people removed without knowledge, And its honourable ones are famished, And its multitude dried up of thirst.

14 Therefore Sheol has enlarged its desire, and opened its mouth without measure; and their glory, their multitude, their pomp, and he who rejoices among them, descend into it. (Sheol h7585)

Therefore hath Sheol enlarged herself, And hath opened her mouth without limit. And gone down hath its honour, and its multitude, And its noise, and its exulting one — into her. (Sheol h7585)

15 So man is brought low, mankind is humbled, and the eyes of the arrogant ones are humbled;

And bowed down is the low, and humbled the high, And the eyes of the haughty become low,

16 but YHWH of hosts is exalted in justice, and God the Holy One is sanctified in righteousness.

And Jehovah of Hosts is high in judgment, And the Holy God sanctified in righteousness,

17 Then the lambs will graze as in their pasture, and kids will eat the ruins of the rich.

And fed have lambs according to their leading, And waste places of the fat ones Do sojourners consume.

18 Woe to those who draw iniquity with cords of falsehood, and wickedness as with cart rope;

Woe [to] those drawing out iniquity with cords of vanity, And as [with] thick ropes of the cart — sin.

19 Who say, "Let him make speed, let him hasten his work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw near and come, that we may know it."

Who are saying, 'Let Him hurry, Let Him hasten His work, that we may see, And let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel Draw near and come, and we know.'

20 Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.

Woe [to] those saying to evil 'good,' And to good 'evil,' Putting darkness for light, and light for darkness, Putting bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter.

21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight.

Woe [to] the wise in their own eyes, And — before their own faces — intelligent!

22 Woe to those who are mighty to drink wine, and champions at mixing strong drink;

Woe [to] the mighty to drink wine, And men of strength to mingle strong drink.

23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe, but deny justice for the innocent.

Declaring righteous the wicked for a bribe, And the righteousness of the righteous They turn aside from him.

24 Therefore as the tongue of fire devours the stubble, and as the dry grass sinks down in the flame, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust; because they have rejected the law of YHWH of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

Therefore, as a tongue of fire devoureth stubble, And flaming hay falleth, Their root is as muck, And their flower as dust goeth up. Because they have rejected the law of Jehovah of Hosts, And the saying of the Holy One of Israel despised.

25 Therefore YHWH's anger burns against his people, and he has stretched out his hand against them, and has struck them. The mountains tremble, and their dead bodies are as refuse in the midst of the streets. For all this, his anger is not turned away, but his hand is still stretched out.

Therefore hath the anger of Jehovah burned among His people, And He stretcheth out His hand against it, And smiteth it, and the mountains tremble, And their carcase is as filth in the midst of the out-places. With all this His anger did not turn back, And still His hand is stretched out!

26 He will lift up a banner to the nations from far, and he will whistle for them from the far regions of the earth. Look, they will come speedily and swiftly.

And He lifted up an ensign to nations afar off, And hissed to it from the end of the earth, And lo, with haste, swift it cometh.

27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the belt of their waist be untied, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:

There is none weary, nor stumbling in it, It doth not slumber, nor sleep, Nor opened hath been the girdle of its loins, Nor drawn away the latchet of its sandals.

28 whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent. Their horses' hoofs will be like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind.

Whose arrows [are] sharp, and all its bows bent, Hoofs of its horses as flint have been reckoned, And its wheels as a hurricane!

29 Their roaring will be like a lioness. They will roar like young lions. Yes, they shall roar, and seize their prey and carry it off, and there will be no one to deliver.

Its roaring [is] like a lioness, It roareth like young lions, And it howleth, and seizeth prey, And carrieth away safely, and there is none delivering.

30 They will roar against them in that day like the roaring of the sea. If one looks to the land look, darkness and distress. The light is darkened in its clouds.

And it howleth against it in that day as the howling of a sea, And it hath looked attentively to the land, And lo, darkness — distress, And light hath been darkened by its abundance!