Isaiah 24
1 Behold, Jehovah emptieth and draineth the land; Yea, he turneth it upside down, and scattereth its inhabitants.
Some day, Yahweh is going to destroy everything on the earth. He will devastate it and cause it to become a desert and scatter its people.
2 As with the people, so is it with the priest; As with the servant, so with the master; As with the maid, so with the mistress; As with the buyer, so with the seller; As with the borrower, so with the lender; As with the usurer, so with the giver of usury.
He will scatter everyone— priests and common people, servants and their masters, maids and their mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, people who owe money and people who are owed money.
3 The land is utterly emptied and utterly plundered; For Jehovah hath spoken this word.
Nothing that is worth anything will be left on earth; everything valuable will be destroyed. [That will surely happen because] Yahweh has said it.
4 The land mourneth, and withereth; The world languisheth, and withereth; The nobles of the people of the land do languish.
[Everything on] the earth will dry up and die [DOU]; its important people will become weak and unimportant.
5 The land was polluted under its inhabitants, Because they transgressed the law, they violated the statutes, They broke the everlasting covenant.
The earth has become unacceptable to Yahweh because the people who live on it have disobeyed his laws; they have rejected the agreement that he intended to last forever.
6 Therefore a curse devoured the land; Its inhabitants suffered for their guilt; Therefore are the inhabitants of the land consumed with heat, And few of the men are left.
Therefore, [Yahweh] will curse the earth; the people who live on it must be punished because of the sins that they have committed. They will be destroyed by fire, and [only a] few people will remain [alive].
7 The new wine mourneth; The vine languisheth; All that were of a joyful heart do sigh;
The grapevines will wither, and there will be no [grapes to make] wine. All [the people] who were previously happy will then groan and mourn.
8 The mirth of tabrets ceaseth; The noise of them that rejoice is at an end; The joy of the harp ceaseth.
People will no longer play cheerful songs with tambourines, people will no longer play joyfully on their harps, and people will no longer shout noisily [during their celebrations].
9 No more do they drink wine with the song; Strong drink is bitter to them that use it.
People will no longer sing while they drink wine, and [all] their alcoholic drinks will taste bitter.
10 The city of desolation is broken down; Every house is closed, so that none can enter.
[Towns and] cities will be desolate; every house will be locked to prevent thieves from entering.
11 There is a cry for wine in the streets; All gladness is departed; The mirth of the land is gone;
[Mobs] will gather in the streets, wanting wine; no one on the earth will be happy [DOU] any more.
12 Desolation is left in the city, And the gate is smitten into ruins.
Cities will be ruined and [all] their gates will be battered/broken into pieces.
13 Yea, thus shall it be in the land, in the midst of the people, As when the olive-tree has been shaken; As the gleaning, when the vintage is ended.
It will be like that all over the earth: [there will only be a few people still alive], like what happens when [workers] beat all the olives off a tree [and there are only a few left], [or] when they harvest the grapes and there are only a few left [on the vines].
14 These shall lift up their voice, and sing; Yea, for the majesty of Jehovah they shall shout from the sea.
But [those who are left alive] will sing joyfully; people [in nations] to the west [of Israel] will declare that Yahweh is very great;
15 Wherefore praise ye Jehovah in the East, The name of Jehovah, the God of Israel, in the isles of the sea!
people in nations to the east [of Israel will also] praise Yahweh [MTY]; in countries across the sea, people will praise Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship].
16 From the end of the earth we hear songs: “Glory to the righteous!” But I cry, Alas, my wretchedness, my wretchedness! woe is me! The plunderers plunder; the plunderers seize the spoil.
We will hear [people] in the most distant places on the earth singing praise to [Yahweh], the [truly] righteous one. But [now], I am [SYN] very sad. Weep for me, [because] I have become thin and weak. Terrible things are happening! Treacherous [people still] betray/deceive others everywhere [DOU].
17 The terror, the pit, and the snare Are upon thee, O inhabitant of the land!
You people all over the earth, you will be terrified, and you will fall into deep pits and traps/snares.
18 Whoso fleeth from the terror shall fall into the pit, And whoso escapeth from the pit, He shall be taken in the snare; For the floodgates of heaven are opened, And the foundations of the earth tremble.
Those who [try to] flee because they are terrified will fall into [deep] pits, and those who climb out of the pits will be caught by traps/snares. The sky will split open and torrents [SIM] [of rain will fall]; the foundations of the earth will shake.
19 The earth is utterly broken down; The earth is shattered in pieces; The earth is violently moved from her place.
The earth will split apart and be shattered; it will shake violently.
20 The earth reeleth like a drunkard, It moveth to and fro like a hammock; For her iniquity lieth heavy upon her, And she shall fall and rise no more.
[It will be as though] the earth will stagger like [SIM] a drunk; it will shake like [SIM] a hut [shakes in a windstorm]. It will collapse and not [be able to] rise again, [because] the guilt of the people who rebel [against Yahweh] is very great.
21 In that day will Jehovah punish the host of the high ones that are on high, And the kings of the earth upon the earth.
At that time, Yahweh will punish the [wicked] powerful beings in the skies and the wicked kings on the earth.
22 They shall be thrown together bound into the pit, And shall be shut up in the prison, But after many days shall they be visited.
They will [all] be gathered together and thrown into a dungeon/pit. They will be shut/locked in that dungeon/pit, and later they will be punished.
23 The moon shall be confounded and the sun ashamed, When Jehovah of hosts shall reign in mount Zion and Jerusalem, And his glory shall be before his ancients.
At that time the light of the moon and the sun will be lessened; [it will be as though] they are ashamed [in the presence of] Yahweh, because he, the Commander of the armies of angels, will rule gloriously (on Zion Hill/in Jerusalem), in the presence of the leaders [of his people].
