Isaiah 24
1 Lo, Jehovah is emptying the land, And is making it waste, And hath overturned [it on] its face, And hath scattered its inhabitants.
Behold, Jehovah emptieth and draineth the land; Yea, he turneth it upside down, and scattereth its inhabitants.
2 And it hath been — as a people so a priest, As the servant so his master, As the maid-servant so her mistress, As the buyer so the seller, As the lender so the borrower, As the usurer so he who is lifting [it] on himself.
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.
3 Utterly emptied is the land, and utterly spoiled, For Jehovah hath spoken this word:
The land is utterly emptied and utterly plundered; For Jehovah hath spoken this word.
4 Mourned, faded hath the land, Languished, faded hath the world, Languished have they — the high place of the people of the land.
The land mourneth, and withereth; The world languisheth, and withereth; The nobles of the people of the land do languish.
5 And the land hath been defiled under its inhabitants, Because they have transgressed laws, They have changed a statute, They have made void a covenant age-during.
The land was polluted under its inhabitants, Because they transgressed the law, they violated the statutes, They broke the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore a curse hath consumed the land, And the inhabitants in it are become desolate, Therefore consumed have been inhabitants of the land, And few men have been left.
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.
7 Mourned hath the new wine, languished the vine, Sighed have all the joyful of heart.
The new wine mourneth; The vine languisheth; All that were of a joyful heart do sigh;
8 Ceased hath the joy of tabrets, Ceased hath the noise of exulting ones, Ceased hath the joy of a harp.
The mirth of tabrets ceaseth; The noise of them that rejoice is at an end; The joy of the harp ceaseth.
9 With a song they drink not wine, Bitter is strong drink to those drinking it.
No more do they drink wine with the song; Strong drink is bitter to them that use it.
10 It was broken down — a city of emptiness, Shut hath been every house from entrance.
The city of desolation is broken down; Every house is closed, so that none can enter.
11 A cry over the wine [is] in out-places, Darkened hath been all joy, Removed hath been the joy of the land.
There is a cry for wine in the streets; All gladness is departed; The mirth of the land is gone;
12 Left in the city [is] desolation, And [with] wasting is the gate smitten.
Desolation is left in the city, And the gate is smitten into ruins.
13 When thus it is in the heart of the land, In the midst of the peoples, As the compassing of the olive, As gleanings when harvest hath been finished,
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.
14 They — they lift up their voice, They sing of the excellency of Jehovah, They have cried aloud from the sea.
These shall lift up their voice, and sing; Yea, for the majesty of Jehovah they shall shout from the sea.
15 Therefore in prosperity honour ye Jehovah, In isles of the sea, the name of Jehovah, God of Israel.
Wherefore praise ye Jehovah in the East, The name of Jehovah, the God of Israel, in the isles of the sea!
16 From the skirt of the earth we heard songs, The desire of the righteous. And I say, 'Leanness [is] to me, Leanness [is] to me, woe [is] to me.' Treacherous dealers dealt treacherously, Yea, treachery, treacherous dealers dealt treacherously.
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.
17 Fear, and a snare, and a gin, [Are] on thee, O inhabitant of the land.
The terror, the pit, and the snare Are upon thee, O inhabitant of the land!
18 And it hath come to pass, He who is fleeing from the noise of the fear Doth fall into the snare, And he who is coming up from the midst of the snare, Is captured by the gin, For windows on high have been opened, And shaken are foundations of the land.
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.
19 Utterly broken down hath been the land, Utterly broken hath been the land, Utterly moved hath been the land.
The earth is utterly broken down; The earth is shattered in pieces; The earth is violently moved from her place.
20 Stagger greatly doth the land as a drunkard, And it hath been moved as a lodge, And heavy on it hath been its transgression, And it hath fallen, and addeth not to rise.
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.
21 And it hath come to pass, in that day, Jehovah layeth a charge on the host of the high place in the high place, And on the kings of the land on the land.
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.
22 And they have been gathered — A gathering of bound ones in a pit, And shut up they have been in a prison, And after a multitude of days are inspected.
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.
23 And confounded hath been the moon, And ashamed hath been the sun, For reigned hath Jehovah of Hosts In mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, And over-against His elders — honour!
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.
