Isaiah 3

1 The Commander of the armies of angels is about to take away from Jerusalem and [other places in] Judea everything that you depend on— all your food and water.

For behold, the Lord, YHWH of Hosts, Is turning aside from Jerusalem and from Judah [Both] stay and staff: Every stay of bread and every stay of water;

2 He will take away your heroes and your [other] soldiers, your judges and your prophets, people who do rituals to find out what will happen in the future and the elders,

Mighty and man of war, judge and prophet, And diviner and elderly,

3 army officers and [other] officials, advisors and skilled craftsmen and those who perform rituals to predict the future.

Head of fifty, and accepted of faces, And counselor, and wise craftsmen, And discerning charmer.

4 He will appoint boys to be your leaders; your children will rule you.

And I have made youths their heads, And sucklings rule over them.

5 People will treat each other cruelly: people will fight against their neighbors. Young people will insult older people, and vulgar/dishonorable people will sneer at people who should be honored.

And the people has exacted—man on man, Even a man on his neighbor, The youths enlarge themselves against the aged, And the lightly esteemed against the honored.

6 At that time, someone will grab one of his brothers in his father’s house and say to him, “You have a coat, [which shows that you are respected]. [So] you be our leader! You rule this [city, which is now] a pile of ruins!”

When one lays hold on his brother, Of the house of his father, [by] the garment, “Come, you are a ruler to us, And this ruin [is] under your hand.”

7 [But] his brother will reply, “[No], I cannot help you, [because] I do not have [any extra] food or clothes in this house. [So] do not appoint me to be your leader!”

He lifts up, in that day, saying, “I am not a binder up, And in my house is neither bread nor garment, You do not make me a ruler of the people.”

8 Jerusalem and [the other towns in] Judah will be destroyed, because [everything] that the people do and say there opposes Yahweh, who is powerful and glorious, and they refuse to obey him. They rebel against him.

For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen, For their tongue and their doings [are] against YHWH, To provoke the eyes of His glory.

9 They even show on their faces that [they oppose Yahweh]. They are proud of their sins, like [the people of] Sodom were [long ago]; they do not try to hide their sins. [Because of their sins], terrible things will happen to them, [but] they will bring those disasters on themselves.

The appearance of their faces witnessed against them, And their sin, as Sodom, they declared, They have not hidden! Woe to their soul, For they have done evil to themselves.

10 [Yahweh told me to] tell the righteous people that good things will happen to them; they will enjoy the blessings that they will receive for their good deeds.

Say to the righteous that [it is] good, Because they eat the fruit of their doings.

11 [But] terrible things will happen to wicked people; they will be (paid back/punished) for [the evil things that] [MTY] they have done.

Woe to the wicked—evil, Because the deed of his hand is done to him.

12 [Now], youths [who have become leaders] treat my people cruelly, and women rule over my people. My people, your leaders are misleading you; they are causing you to go down the wrong road [MET].

My people—its exactors [are] sucklings, And women have ruled over it. My people—your eulogists are causing to err, And the way of your paths swallowed up.

13 [It is as though] Yahweh has sat in his place in a courtroom and is ready to judge his people.

YHWH has stood up to plead, And He is standing to judge the peoples.

14 He will stand up to declare why the elders and rulers of his people should be punished: [he says], “The people of Israel are [like] [MET] a vineyard that I planted, but you have ruined it! Your houses are full of things that you have stolen from poor people.

YHWH enters into judgment With [the] elderly of His people, and its heads: “And you, you have consumed the vineyard, Plunder of the poor [is] in your houses.

15 You should stop [RHQ] crushing my people! [It is as though] you are pushing the faces of poor people into the dirt!” [That is what] the Commander of the armies of angels says.

Why? Why do you [do this]? You bruise My people, And you grind the faces of the poor.” A declaration of the Lord, YHWH of Hosts, And YHWH says:

16 Yahweh says this: “The women of Jerusalem are haughty/proud; they walk around sticking their chins out, and flirting [with men] with their eyes. They walk with tiny steps with bracelets on their ankles that jingle.

“Because that daughters of Zion have been haughty, And they walk stretching out the neck, And deceiving [with] the eyes, They go walking and mincing, And they make a jingling with their feet,

17 So I, Yahweh, will cause sores to be on their heads, and I will cause those beautiful women in Jerusalem to become bald.”

The Lord has also scabbed The crown of the head of daughters of Zion, And YHWH exposes their simplicity.

18 At the time [that Yahweh does that], he will strip away everything that the women of Jerusalem wear to make themselves beautiful—the ornaments on their ankles and their headbands, their crescent necklaces,

In that day the Lord turns aside The beauty of the jingling ornaments, And of the embroidered works, And of the crescents,

19 their earrings and bracelets and veils,

Of the pendants, and the bracelets, and the veils,

20 their scarves and ankle bracelets and sashes, their perfumes and (charms/little things that they wear thinking that those things will protect them from evil),

Of the headdresses, and the ornaments of the legs, And of the bands, And of the perfume boxes, and the amulets,

21 their signet rings and nose rings,

Of the seals, and of the nose-rings,

22 their nice robes and capes and cloaks and purses,

Of the costly apparel, and of the mantles, And of the coverings, and of the purses,

23 their mirrors and nice linen clothes and shawls.

Of the mirrors, and of the linen garments, And of the hoods, and of the veils,

24 Instead of their having a nice smell from perfume, they will stink; instead of nice sashes, they will have ropes [around their waists because they will be captives]. Instead of having fancy hairdos, they will be bald. Instead of fancy/beautiful robes, they will wear rough sackcloth, and instead of being beautiful, they will be branded.

And it has been, instead of spice is muck, And instead of a girdle, a rope, And instead of curled work, baldness, And instead of a stomacher a girdle of sackcloth.

25 Their husbands will be killed by [their enemies’] swords, and their soldiers [will also die] in battles.

For instead of glory, your men fall by sword, And your might in battle.

26 People [PRS] will mourn and cry at the gates [of the city]. The city will [be like] [MET] a woman who sits on the ground because everything that she owned is gone.

And her openings have lamented and mourned, Indeed, she has been emptied, she sits on the earth!”