The Readable Bible: Isaiah

The Readable Bible

Isaiah

From Iron Stream Media

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The Readable Bible

Isaiah

Warning Judah’s Kings

Translated and Edited by Rodney S. Laughlin Brendan I. Kennedy, PhD

Birmingham, Alabama

The Readable Bible: Isaiah

Iron Stream

An imprint of Iron Stream Media 100 Missionary Ridge Birmingham, AL 35242 www.ironstreammedia.com

Copyright © 2022 by Rodney S. Laughlin

The Readable Bible text may be quoted in any form (written, visual, electronic, or audio) up to and inclusive of five hundred verses without express written permission of the publisher provided that (a) the verses quoted do not account for more than 25 percent of the total work in which they are quoted, (b) no more than 25 percent of a book of the Bible is quoted, (c) all quotations conform accurately to The Readable Bible text, and (d) one of the following credit lines appears on the copyright page or title page of the work:

Scripture quotations marked TRB are taken from The Readable Bible®. Copyright © 2022 by Rodney S. Laughlin, Leawood, Kansas. Used by permission of Iron Stream Media.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture quotations are taken from The Readable Bible®. Copyright © 2022 by Rodney S. Laughlin, Leawood, Kansas. Used by permission of Iron Stream Media.

When quotations from The Readable Bible text are used in not-for-sale media (e.g., church bulletins, orders of service, newsletters, digital presentations), a copyright notice is not required, but the initials “TRB” must appear at the end of each quotation. Websites and blogs may quote up to five hundred verses without express written permission provided they include the initials “TRB” at the end of each quotation and provided that the verses quoted account for not more than 25 percent of any web page upon which they appear and that no more than 25 percent of a book of the Bible is quoted.

Quotations not covered by the above guidelines must be approved in writing by Iron Stream Media. Send requests to info@ironstreammedia.com or to the address above.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2022938636

Cover design: twoline | | Studio

Interior designer/illustrator: Clyde Adams (www.clydeadams.com)

Map geographic features courtesy of Bible Mapper (www.biblemapper.com).

Typeface: Veritas AE from Altered Ego Fonts, a division of Aespire

Part

Today

Part 2. The Last Days

Part 3. Woes to the Wasted Vineyard

Song of the Vineyard

Isaiah 5

to the Wicked 9

Part 4. Isaiah’s Call and Work Isaiah 6

Isaiah’s Call 11 Isaiah 7

The Lord’s Message for Ahaz 12 Isaiah 8

The Lord’s Message to Isaiah 14

Instructions to His Followers 15

Part 5. Encouragement for the Righteous (I) Isaiah 9

The Lord’s Promise to His People

Vision of the Future

The Lord’s Judgment Will Not Turn Back

The Lord Will Punish Assyria

Sennacherib’s Conquests

The Lord Reaffirms His Promise to a Remnant

Isaiah 10

18

The Lord Will Punish Babylon

The Lord Will Rescue Israel

Part 6. Messages Against God’s Enemies

A Message Against Moab

Judgment upon Moab

Isaiah 11 Isaiah 12 Isaiah 13

23 Isaiah 14

Isaiah 15

Isaiah 16 Isaiah 17

A Message Against Damascus

A Message Against Cush

Message Against Egypt

Isaiah 18

Isaiah 19

Isaiah 20

Message Against

Message About the

A Message Against

Message Against

A Message Against Tyre

Isaiah 21

Isaiah 22

Isaiah 23

24

The Lord Is Ravaging the Earth..........................................................

Part 7. The Lord and His People Will Triumph

Isaiah 25

God Will Rule on Mount Zion

Judah’s Song of Praise

Prayer for Restoration

Counsel

The Lord’s People Will Be Gathered to Jerusalem

Part 8. Woes to God’s Enemies

Woe to Ephraim

to Scoffers

Woe to Those Who Worship Without Heart

Woe to the Stubborn

to Egypt

Will Be Restored

Woe to Those Who Trust in Egypt

26

Isaiah 27

Isaiah 28

Isaiah 29

Isaiah 30

Isaiah 31

Part 9. Encouragement for the Righteous (II)

Isaiah 32

Righteous Kings Are a Blessing

and Hope to Complacent Women

Woe to Destroyers

Favor for the Righteous

Isaiah 33

Isaiah 34

God’s Anger at the Nations

God’s Retribution and Redemption Will Come

Isaiah 35

Part 10. The Reign of Hezekiah, King of Judah Isaiah 36

Sennacherib Attacks Judah

Isaiah Prophesies

Hezekiah Prays

God Spares Judah

Hezekiah’s Sickness

Poem of Hezekiah King of Judah

Hezekiah’s Pride

Isaiah 37

Isaiah 38

Isaiah 39

Part 11. Comfort and Hope for Israel Isaiah 40

Israel’s God Is God Almighty

The Lord Is Over All; Idols Are Nothing

Will Save His Servant

God Will Provide Redemption

Israel’s God Is Lord Almighty

Kings and Countries Are Under God’s Control

God Will Deliver Israel from

Isaiah 41

Isaiah 42

Isaiah 43

Isaiah 44

Isaiah 45

Isaiah 46

Isaiah 47 Isaiah 48

God Controls History

God Will Never Forget His Servant Israel

Is Sold Due to Its Sin

Isaiah 49

Isaiah 50

12. Encouragement for the Righteous (III)

The Lord Will Establish

Lord Comforts

Lord Contends for His People

God Is Coming and Will Succeed

The Suffering Servant

Israel Will Have Many Children

God Forgives Freely

God’s Salvation Is Coming

Those Who Seek Refuge in God Will Inherit the Land

Will Dwell with the Contrite

The Fast That God Chooses

The Lord Will Save Despite People’s Sin

A New Zion Is Coming

Isaiah 52

Isaiah 53

54

Isaiah 55

56

57

Isaiah 58

59

Isaiah 60

Isaiah

The Afflicted Will Receive a Double Portion

God’s Savior Will Come

God Will Accomplish His Salvation

Remembering God’s Ancient

for God’s Salvation

Part 13. God’s Care, Mercy, and Victory

62

63

Isaiah 64

God’s Complaint

God’s Mercy

God’s Victory: All Will Bow Before Him

Isaiah 65

Isaiah 66

Preface

To the Reader

One day I was standing in an airport bookstore looking for a book to read. I asked myself, “Why am I looking for something to read when I have a Bible in my briefcase?” I answered, “The Bible is hard to read. I want to read something easier.” Then I asked myself, “Why is it so hard to read? You’re a seminary graduate, a former pastor, a Bible teacher!” Thus began a quest that has led to The Readable Bible—the Bible as it would look if Moses, Joshua, Matthew, Mark, Paul, and the other writers had been sitting in front of a computer when God spoke through them.

It seems to me that the Bible is hard to read because all material is presented in sentence format. Today we use tables to present census information and charts for genealogies. When we want something built, we draw up a specification document. Law codes are organized in outline form. We use bullet points, bold text, and other aids to help us grasp information. Yet in today’s Bibles, all the information is still presented in sentence format in plain text. Surely those men of old would have used modern formats if they had known about them when God spoke through them. Modern formatting does not change the information; it simply presents it in a way that makes it easier to grasp. The Readable Bible brings you the biblical text in modern formats.

You may struggle with the idea of Scripture in modern formats. Actually, all of today’s Bibles present the text in a form much different from that of the original manuscripts. Consider how many format changes that were developed over the past two thousand years led to the format considered normal today. Each change was radical in its time:

• Vowels: The earliest Hebrew manuscripts have no vowels; they were added hundreds of years later.

• Capital Letters: The Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament manuscripts have no uppercase and lowercase letters.

• Punctuation: The original manuscripts have no punctuation (no commas or periods!).

• Chapter Numbers: These were not common in Bibles until the thirteenth century AD.

• Verse Numbers: The first verse-numbering system was developed over a thousand years after the last Bible book was written. It had one-third of today’s verse numbers, making verses three or four times longer. Today’s Christian Bible numbering system was not developed until the sixteenth century.

• Paragraphs: The first paragraphed King James Bible was published in the mid-1800s.

So presenting the words of Scripture in tables, cascading the text of long, complex sentences, and using other modern formatting techniques is simply continuing the long-term trend of making the Bible easier to understand.

Our hope is that people who have never read the Bible will decide to read this version because it is so approachable. Please give a copy to someone who struggles to understand the Bible and, especially, to those who do not read the Bible.

Acknowledgments

My thanks to all the members of our editing team, our volunteer development team, and the many others who have donated funds and worked to bring The Readable Bible to completion.

A big “thank you” to my designer and partner in this project, Clyde Adams, for joining me in this faith venture. He has turned the translation into well-laid-out text and my formatting concepts into reality. The maps, tables, charts, book layout, and cover are all his work.

Most of all, I thank my wife, Rebecca, for her ideas, her love, and her strong support of this endeavor over the past twelve years.

Dedication

And now I dedicate to our Lord this translation of his holy Word, humbly asking him to grant that it may bring forth fruit to his glory and the building up of his people.

L

Spring

Before You Read

Words in italics are additions to the biblical text. In the context of commands, rules, and regulations, “shall,” “must,” and “are/is to” are equal terms, all the same strength. Read lists from top to bottom in the first column then read the next column.

We encourage you to read “Translation Notes” and “Format and Presentation Notes” in the back of the book. They are easy reading and will increase your understanding of the text.

Please browse the glossary before you begin reading. You will find helpful information about words that appear frequently in this book, as well as important explanations of the words “L” and “Yahweh.”

Introduction to the Old Testament Prophets

Old Testament prophets were spokespersons for God, proclaiming the will of God. Sometimes God gave them a vision or understanding of the future, and depending on what that future held, they warned or encouraged people by telling them what God had said.

Generally, the prophets’ lives were lonely ones. They typically felt alone in their faith—sometimes they had to proclaim that judgment was coming, making them quite unpopular among a people who were enjoying their rebellion against God. Other times they had to proclaim that, though everyone had given up hope, God would restore Israel. Such preaching led to isolation, abuse, and ridicule by both kings and commoners.a Nevertheless, they stood for God regardless of the consequences.

The prophets were only people, just like us. They had moments of doubt, waning faith,b and self-pity.c They sometimes wanted to quitd and cried out to God for relief, even for vengeance on their enemies.e

God used the prophets for many purposes, to correct people, call them to repentance and a restored relationship with him, encourage them, reveal truths about himself and his creation, tell people what he wanted them to do, reveal actions that he was going to take (e.g., pronounce judgment or blessing), announce who he had appointed as Israel’s leader, and lay a foundation of knowledge to help people recognize the coming Messiah, Jesus.

God revealed coming events to some prophets. While informing the people about the future was important, it was a small part of the prophets’ overall ministries. Every prophecy’s foundational purpose was to bring people back to a walk with God by strengthening their faith. Predictive prophecy (and the recording of it) was to strengthen future generations in their faith, confirming that the past, present, and future are all within the knowledge and control of God.

The prophetic books record not only the words God spoke to and through the prophets but also the thoughts of the prophets themselves and the people to whom they spoke. When there is an unclear or abrupt change in the source of the words, The Readable Bible alerts you with an italicized lead-in (e.g., “And I replied . . .”).

In the prophetic books, “Declares the Lord” occurs several hundred times within prophetic utterances. It is often unclear whether the expression is a comment of the prophet or words of God. It usually means “this is a solemn declaration/message.”

Except in cases where the expression is clearly words of the prophet, in prophetic books it is punctuated as words of God.

a See 1 Kings 22:26–27.

b See Exodus 4:1–13.

c See Jeremiah 15:10.

d See 1 Kings 19:1–4; Jonah 4:1.

e See Jeremiah 11:19–12:4.

Introduction to Isaiah

Isaiah was the first of a new breed of Old Testament prophets. Before his time, prophets were usually miracle workers rather than writers, but there is no record of Isaiah performing any miracles. Like many prophets, Isaiah was associated with kings (in his case, Ahaz and Hezekiah), and he often spoke directly to them. He authored the largest single book in the Old Testament, except for Psalms. Isaiah denounced the sins of Judah and other nations, prophesied restoration, and described visions. His book is mostly poetry, but there is a significant section of narrative in chapters 36–39. The book has some of the most famous passages from the Old Testament, including “The nations will beat their swords into plow blades”;a

“Whom shall I send” and “Here I am. Send me!”b

“And he will be named Wonderful counselor . . . Prince of Peace.c “A voice is crying out, ‘Prepare the way of the L

in the wilderness!’ ”d

Isaiah also contains one of the most moving chapters of the Bible, chapter 53, commonly entitled “The Suffering Servant.” Though it was written more than seven hundred years before the birth of Jesus Christ, it describes his life in striking detail. The book’s sixty-six chapters are typically divided into four sections:

Chapter 1: Isaiah’s call to ministry

Chapters 2–35: denunciations of God’s people and foreign nations, primarily in the form of poetry

Chapters 36–39: narrative about the reign of Hezekiah, including Judah’s near destruction by the Assyrian Empire and the role Isaiah played in God’s deliverance of the city of Jerusalem

Chapters 40–66: poetry by which Isaiah delivers messages of comfort and hope for God’s people—some of the most beautiful poetry in the Hebrew Bible However, as you can see in the table of contents, the text can also be divided into thirteen topical sections. These show that God used Isaiah to convict and to comfort, to reveal some aspects of the future, and to record history.

The core of the book of Isaiah comes from Isaiah’s career as a prophet from roughly 750 to 700 BC. Evidence indicates that Isaiah’s words were edited and perhaps augmented around the time of the return from the Babylonian exile (539 BC), or even later by faithful, divinely supervised copyists and editors.

The book of Isaiah is often considered to be the highest achievement of Old Testament prophecy. It is the only book of the Bible of which a complete copy was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is one of the most quoted books in the New Testament, and Jesus himself often quoted it.

a See Isaiah 2:4.

b See Isaiah 6:8.

c See Isaiah 9:6

d See Isaiah 40:3.

Part 1. Judah Today and Tomorrow

Isaiah 1

The Condition of Judah

1 The vision that Isaiah son of Amoz saw about Judah and Jerusalem in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

2 Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth!

For the L has spoken: “I raised children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me.

3 The ox knows its owner, the donkey its master’s feed trough, but Israel doesn’t know its master; my people don’t understand.”

4 Oh! What a sinful nation— a people weighed down with guilt, offspring of evildoers, children who act corruptly!

They have abandoned the L, rejected the Holy One of Israel as worthless, and turned their backs on him.

5 Judah, why be beaten anymore and continue to turn away from me? Your whole head is wounded. Your whole heart is about to give out.

6 From the sole of your foot to the top of your head are wounds, welts, raw sores that are neither closed up, bandaged, nor soothed with ointment.a No part of you is healthy.b

7 Your land is desolate, your cities burned with fire; your ground is devoured right in front of you by foreigners; it’s a wasteland destroyed by strangers.

8 But Jerusalem, Daughter Zion, is left like a shelter in a vineyard, a hut in a cucumber field, a city under siege.

9 Unless the L of Armies had left us a few survivors, we would’ve been destroyed like Sodom, been like Gomorrah.c

a Literally, “with oil.”

b Literally, “There is no soundness in it.”

c See Genesis 19:23–29.

A Prescription for Judaha

10 Hear the word of the L, you rulers of Sodom!

Listen to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah!

11 The L says, “What are your many sacrifices to me?

I’m gorged, full with burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened animals. The blood of bulls and lambs and goats doesn’t please me.

12 Who invited youb to trample my courts when you come to appear before me?

13 Stop bringing worthless offerings! Your incense is detestable to me.

I can’t stand your wicked assemblies: new moon, Sabbath, and called meetings.

14

My soul hates your new moon and appointed festivals. They have become a burden to me; I’m too tired to bear them.

15 I’m not looking c when you spread out your hands in prayer

Even when you pray persistently,d I will not listen, because your hands are full of blood!

16 “Wash; make yourselves clean; get your evil deeds out of my sight!e Stop doing evil!

17 Learn to do good; seek justice. Correct the oppressor. Judge for the orphan; plead the case of the widow.

18 Come now! Let’s reason together,” says the L.

“Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be made white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they will be like wool.

19 If you are willing and obey, you’ll eat the good things of the land;

20 but if you refuse and disobey, you’ll be eaten by the sword.”

For the mouth of the L has spoken.

a Judah had become so wicked that God addressed them as if they were the rulers of Sodom and Gomorrah. (See Genesis 18–19.)

b Literally, “Who sought this from you.”

c Literally, “My eyes are hiding from you.”

d Literally, “when you multiply a prayer.”

e Literally, “remove your evil deeds from in front of my eyes.”

21 How the faithful city has become a prostitute.

The Redemption of Judah

She’d been full of justice; righteousness dwelt in her, but now murderers do.

22 Your silver has become dross,a and your beer is watered down.

23 Your rulers are rebels—partners with thieves. All of them love a bribe, and they chase after gifts. They don’t defendb the orphan or the widow’s case before them.

24 Therefore the Lord, the L of Armies, the Mighty One of Israel, declares: “Ah! I will be relieved of my rivals, avenge myself on my enemies, 25 turn my hand against you, refine your dross till it’s pure—take away all your impurities, and 26 bring back your judges like the ones you had before, your counselors as at the beginning. Thenc you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.”

27 Zion will be redeemed by justice, her repentant ones by righteousness.d 28 But rebels and sinners will be broken together, and those who forsake the L will be finished.

29 For you will be ashamed of the sacred oakse that you have desired. You’ll be embarrassed because of the gardens you’ve chosen.

30 You’ll be like an oak whose leaves wither or a garden without water.

31 The strong man will become tinder f and his work a spark. The two will burn together, and no one will quench the fire

a “Dross”: the impurities that form a scum on the surface of molten metal.

b Literally, “don’t judge for.”

c Literally, “After which.”

d Or “with justice . . . with righteousness.”

e “Sacred oaks”: large trees under which people sacrifice to idols.

f Literally, “become tow”; the shorter, less usable flax fibers that are removed before spinning flax fibers into linen cloth.

Part 2. The Last Days

2 Isaiah

The Lord’s Temple Will Be Established

1 This is whata Isaiah son of Amoz saw about Judah and Jerusalem:

2 In the last days

the mountain of the L’s houseb will be established in the top of the mountains, lifted above the hills, and all the Gentile nations will stream to it.

3 Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let’s go up to the mountain of the L, to the house of the God of Jacob so that he will teach us his ways, and we may walk in his paths.”

For instruction will go out from Zion, and the word of the L from Jerusalem.

4 The Lord will judge between the nations and settle disputes for many peoples. The nations will beat their swords into plow blades for farming and their spears into pruning knives for tending vines and trees

A nation will not go to war c against another nation, nor train for battle any longer.

5 Come, family of d Jacob, let’s walk in the L’s light.

6 For Lord, you’ve left your people, the family of Jacob. They are full of influences from the East, practice fortune-telling as if they were Philistines,e and make deals with the children of strangers.

a Literally, “is the word.”

b Or “the L’s temple.”

c Literally, “not lift up a sword.”

d Literally, “house of,” and in verse 6.

e Literally, “were like Philistines.”

Their land is full of silver and gold—there’s no limit to their treasures. Their land is full of horses—there’s no end to their chariots; and their land is full of 8 idols—they worship what they make with their hands, what their fingers have made.

9 All people have beena humbled and everyone brought low—do not forgive them.

10 Oh Israel, enter the rocks, hide in the ground from the terror of the L and the splendor of his majesty. 11 The eyes of the haughty person will be brought low, and the arrogant will bow down; only the L will be exalted in that day.

The Lord Will Have His Day

12 The L of Armies has planned a day for every proud and lofty person; everything that is exalted will be humbled. He will humbleb 13 every high and lifted up cedar of Lebanon, every oak of Bashan, 14 every lofty mountain, every high hill, 15 every high tower, every impenetrable wall, 16 every trading ship,c and every excellent sailing vessel.

17 Only the L will be exalted in that day. Human pride will bow down. Human loftiness will be brought low, 18 and the idols will completely vanish from the earth 19 When he rises to terrify the earth, people will enter rocky caves and holes in the ground to escape the terror d of the L and the splendor of his majesty. 20 On that day people will throw to moles and bats their idols of silver and gold, which craftsmen made for them to worship. 21 They’ll enter the clefts of the rocks and the cracks in the cliffs to escape the terror of the L and the splendor of his majesty when he rises to terrify the earth.

22 Stop considering the person who has breath in their nostrils, for why should you think of them?

a Literally, “Man has been.”

b Literally, “will be humbled—against.” “Against” reoccurs before each of the following “every” entry. c Literally, “every ship from Tarshish.”

d Literally, “before the terror.” And in verse 21.

Jerusalem and Judah Will Be Judged

1 Listen! The Lord, the L of Armies, is about to take every supply and kind of support from Jerusalem and Judah: its entire supply of food and water, 2 the mighty man and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the fortune-teller and the elder, 3 the captain of fifty and the honored one,a the advisor and the artisan, and the clever enchanter.

4 Instead, the LORD says, “I will make youths their leaders; and the mischief-makers will rule over them.”

5 And the people will be oppressed by one another person against person, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rage against the old, and the worthless against the honorable.

6 For a man will grab one of his brothers in his father’s house, saying, “You have a cloak; you should be our leader, and this heap of rubble should be under your control!”b

7 But on that day his brother will raise his voice and say, “I’m not one who can bind up this wound. There’s no food or clothing in my house. Don’t make me leader of the people.”

8 For Jerusalem has stumbled, and Judah has fallen; for their tongue and their conduct are against the L rebelling against his glorious presence.c

9 The look on their faces gives them away.d They flaunt their sin like Sodom; they don’t hide it.

Woe to them!

For they brought evil upon themselves.

10 But tell the righteous that good will come, for they will eat the fruit of their conduct.

11 Woe to the wicked!

Evil will come to them, for what their hands have done will be done back to them.e

a Literally, “the one whose face is lifted.”

b Literally, “under your hand.”

c Literally, “against the eyes of his glory.”

d Literally, “their faces answer against them.”

e Literally, “the recompense of their hands will be done to them.”

My people!

Extortioners oppress you, and moneylenders rule over you. a Those who lead you cause you to err, and they confuse the direction of your paths.

13 The L

stations himself in court; the L stands to judge the peoples and

14a enters into judgment with the elders and chiefs of his people.

15b The Lord, the L of Armies, declares:

14b “You have devouredb the vineyard; the plunder you’ve taken from the needy is in your houses.

15a How could you crush my people and grind the faces of the poor?”

16 The L says, “The daughters of Zion are haughty and walk with their noses in the air,c with sultry looks,d skipping as anklets jingle on their feet.

18a So in that day of judgment

17 the Lord will strike the scalps of the daughters of Zion with sores; the L will bare their foreheads.”

18b The Lord will take away their ornaments: – anklets – ankle chains – capes – headbands – sashes – cloaks – crescent jewelry – perfume bottles – purses – earrings 19 – charms – mirrors 23 – bracelets – signet rings 21 – linen garments – veils – nose rings – tiaras – headdresses 20 – party dresses 22 – head scarves

24 Instead of perfume, there will be a stench; instead of a sash, it will be a rope tying you up; instead of well-dressed hair, you’ll be bald; instead of fine clothing, you’ll be wrapped in sackcloth; and instead of beauty, you’ll be branded.

25 Your men will fall by the sword, and your warriors will fall in battle.

26 And the gates of Zione will lament and mourn, and she’ll sit deserted on the ground.

a Or, “Children oppress you, women rule over you.” The Hebrew is uncertain. b Literally, “have burned.” c Literally, “with a stretched neck.” d Literally, “with ogling eyes.” e Literally, “and her gates.”

Isaiah

1 In that day

seven women will desperately seize one man, saying, “We will eat our own food and wear our own clothes; only let us be called by your name.

Take our disgracea away from us!”

A Holy Branch of the Lord Will Survive

2 In that day the Branch of the L will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and gloryb of the survivors in Israel.

3 And it will come about that everyone who is recorded as living in Jerusalem— that is, everyone who is left in Zion and who remains in Jerusalem— will be called holy 4 when the Lord has washed away the filth from the daughters of Zion and rinsed the blood from the midst of Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.

5 Then the L will create a cloud of smoke by day and a bright flaming fire by night

over all the foundations of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there. There will be a canopy over all the glory.

6 It will be a shelter to give shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and a protection from the storm and rain.

Part 3. Woes to a Wasted Vineyard

5 Isaiah

Song of the Vineyard

1 Now I will sing for my beloved a song about my beloved and his vineyard: My beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.

2 He dug it up, removed its stones, and planted it with the finest grapevines. He built a watchtower in the middle of it, and he even dug out a winepress.c And he expected it to produce good grapes, but it produced bitter grapes.

a “Disgrace”: the disgrace (in those times) of being single and/or childless.

b Literally, “and adornment.”

c Winepresses were oftentimes dug out of the chalk or limestone bedrock of Israel. Grapes were put in a treading area, and the juice flowed into a vat, where it fermented.

3 “Now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard.

4 What more was there to do for my vineyard that I haven’t done for it?

Why did it produce only bitter grapes when I expected it to produce good grapes?

5 Now I’ll tell you what I’m doing to my vineyard: I’m taking away its hedge, and it will be burned; I’m breaking down its wall, and it will be trampled.

6 I’ll make it a waste, neither pruned nor hoed, and briars and thorns will come up; I’ll command the clouds not to rain on it.”

7 For the vineyard of the L of Armies is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are the plants he delighted in. And he expected justice, but he saw bloodshed; righteousness, but he heard a cry of distress.

Woes to the Wicked

8 Woe to you who join house to house and connect field to field until there’s no room left, and you live alone in the land.

9 In my ears the L of Armies has said, “Surely many houses will become desolate; the largest and best will have no occupants.

10 A ten-acre vineyard will produce only twenty bottlesa of wine; a half a bushelb of seed will yield only two quartsc of grain.”

11 Woe to those who rise early in the morning to chase after their liquor, who stay up at night till wine inflames them.

12 At their feasts, there’s a harp and a lyre, a tambourine and a flute, and wine; but they don’t even notice the works of the L; they don’t see what he has done with his hands.

13 That’s why my people go into exile for lack of knowledge, their honored men will suffer starvation, and their crowds will be parched with thirst.

14 That’s why the graved has expanded its appetite—opened its mouth without limit—and Jerusalem’s nobles and masses, their brawlers and revelers, will go down into it.

15 Therefore people will be humbled, everyone will be made low, and the eyes of the proud will be brought low.

a Literally, “a bath,” whereas an acre normally produces more than a thousand bottles.

b Literally, “a homer.”

c Literally, “an ephah,” whereas a bushel of seed would normally produce over three hundred quarts.

d Literally, “Sheol.”

But

the L of Armies will be exalted by his justice, and the holy God will be shown to be holy by his righteousness. 17 Then lambs will graze as in their own pasture, and strangers will eat among the ruins of the rich.

18 Woe to those who pull sin behind them with ropes of lies, drag sin along as with cart ropes, and 19 mockingly say, “Let God hurry; let him rush his work so we may see it. Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel come near and come to pass, so we may know it.”

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

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

22 Woe to those who are champions at drinking wine and great ones at mixing drinks, 23 who exonerate the wicked for a bribe but take away justice from the righteous.

24 Therefore, as a flamea of fire consumes straw and as dry grass sinks down in the flame, so their roots will decay, and their blossom will blow away like dust; for they have rejected the law of the L of Armies, and they have spurned the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25 Therefore the anger of the L has burned against his people; his hand has stretched out against them and struck them. The mountains quaked, and the dead bodies were like garbage in the middle of the streets. Even with all this, his anger isn’t turned away, and his hand is still stretched out.

26 He will lift up a sign for the distant nations; he will whistle for those at the end of the earth. And look, they’ll come swiftly and speedily!

27 No one will be weary or stumble or be drowsy or sleepy; no belt will be loosened at their waists, and no sandal strap will be torn.

28 Their arrows will be sharp, and all their bows strung; their horses’ hooves will seem like flint and their chariot wheels like a windstorm.

29 Their roar will be like the lion. They’ll roar like young lions and growl as they seize their prey and carry it off with no one to rescue them.

a Literally, “a tongue.”