Assyria Is God’s Instrument

10 Woe to those who (A)enact unjust statutes
And to those who constantly record [a]harmful decisions,
So as (B)to [b]deprive the needy of justice
And rob the poor among My people of their rights,
So (C)that widows may be their spoil
And that they may plunder the [c]orphans.
Now (D)what will you do in the (E)day of punishment,
And in the devastation which will come (F)from afar?
(G)To whom will you flee for help?
And where will you leave your wealth?
Nothing remains but to crouch [d]among the (H)captives
Or fall [e]among those (I)killed.
(J)In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away
And His hand is still stretched out.

Woe to (K)Assyria, the (L)rod of My anger
And the staff in whose hands is (M)My indignation,
I send it against a (N)godless nation
And commission it against the (O)people of My fury
To capture spoils and (P)to seize plunder,
And to [f]trample them down like (Q)mud in the streets.
Yet it (R)does not so intend,
Nor does [g]it plan so in its heart,
But rather it is [h]its purpose to destroy
And to eliminate [i]many nations.
For it says, “Are not my officers [j]all kings?
Is not (S)Calno like (T)Carchemish,
Or (U)Hamath like Arpad,
Or (V)Samaria like (W)Damascus?
10 As my hand has reached to the (X)kingdoms of the idols,
Whose carved images were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 Shall I not do the same to Jerusalem and her images
Just as I have done to Samaria and (Y)her idols?”

12 So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His (Z)work on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will [k]punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and (AA)the arrogant pride of his eyes.” 13 For (AB)he has said,

“By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this,
Because I have understanding;
And I (AC)removed the boundaries of the peoples
And plundered their treasures,
And like a powerful man I brought down [l]their inhabitants,
14 And my hand reached to the riches of the peoples like a (AD)nest,
And as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth;
And there was not one that flapped its wing, opened its beak, or chirped.”

15 Is the (AE)axe to (AF)boast itself over the one who chops with it?
Is the saw to exalt itself over the one who wields it?
That would be like (AG)a [m]club wielding those who lift it,
Or like (AH)a rod lifting the one who is not wood.
16 Therefore the Lord, the [n]God of armies, will send a (AI)wasting disease among his (AJ)stout warriors;
And under his (AK)glory a fire will be kindled like a burning flame.
17 And the (AL)Light of Israel will become a fire and [o]Israel’s (AM)Holy One a flame,
And it will (AN)burn and devour [p]his thorns and his briars in a single day.
18 And He will (AO)destroy the glory of his forest and of his fruitful garden, both soul and body,
And it will be as when a sick person wastes away.
19 And the (AP)rest of the trees of his forest will be so small in number
That a child could write them down.

A Remnant Will Return

20 Now on that day the (AQ)remnant of Israel, and those of the house of Jacob (AR)who have escaped, will no longer rely on the one who struck them, but will truly (AS)rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.

21 A (AT)remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the (AU)mighty God.
22 For (AV)though your people, Israel, may be like the sand of the sea,
Only a remnant within them will return;
A (AW)destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness.

23 For a complete destruction, one that is determined, (AX)the Lord [q]God of armies will execute in the midst of the whole land.

24 Therefore this is what the Lord [r]God of armies says: “My people, you who dwell in (AY)Zion, (AZ)do not fear the Assyrian [s]who (BA)strikes you with the rod, and lifts up his staff against you the way Egypt did. 25 For in a very (BB)little while (BC)My indignation against you will be ended and My anger will be directed toward their destruction.” 26 The Lord of armies will (BD)wield a whip against him like the defeat of (BE)Midian at the rock of Oreb; and His (BF)staff will be over the sea, and He will lift it up (BG)the way He did in Egypt. 27 So it will be on that day, that [t]his (BH)burden will be removed from your shoulders, and his yoke from your neck; and the yoke will be broken because (BI)of fatness.

28 He has come against Aiath,
He has passed through (BJ)Migron;
At (BK)Michmash he deposited his (BL)baggage.
29 They have gone through (BM)the pass, saying,
(BN)Geba will be our encampment for the night.”
(BO)Ramah is terrified, and (BP)Gibeah of Saul has fled.
30 Cry aloud with your voice, daughter of (BQ)Gallim!
Pay attention, Laishah and [u]wretched (BR)Anathoth!
31 Madmenah has fled.
The inhabitants of Gebim have sought refuge.
32 Yet today he will halt at (BS)Nob;
He (BT)shakes his fist at the mountain of the [v](BU)daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.

33 Behold, the Lord, the [w]God of armies, will lop off the branches with terrifying power;
Those also who are (BV)tall in stature will be cut down,
And those who are lofty will be brought low.
34 He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe,
And (BW)Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.

Righteous Reign of the Branch

11 Then a (BX)shoot will spring from the (BY)stem of Jesse,
And a (BZ)Branch from (CA)his roots will bear fruit.
The (CB)Spirit of the Lord will rest on Him,
The spirit of (CC)wisdom and understanding,
The spirit of counsel and (CD)strength,
The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.
And He will delight in the fear of the Lord,
And He will not judge by what His eyes (CE)see,
Nor make decisions by what His ears hear;
But with (CF)righteousness He will judge the (CG)poor,
And decide with fairness for the (CH)humble of the earth;
And He will strike the earth with the (CI)rod of His mouth,
And with the (CJ)breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
Also (CK)righteousness will be the belt around His hips,
And (CL)faithfulness the belt around His waist.

And the (CM)wolf will dwell with the lamb,
And the leopard will lie down with the young goat,
And the calf and the young lion [x]and the fattened steer will be together;
And a little boy will lead them.
Also the cow and the bear will graze,
Their young will lie down together,
And the (CN)lion will eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra,
And the weaned child will put his hand on the viper’s den.
They will (CO)not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the (CP)earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.

10 Then on that day
The (CQ)nations will resort to the (CR)root of Jesse,
Who will stand as a (CS)signal flag for the peoples;
And His (CT)resting place will be [y]glorious.

The Restored Remnant

11 Then it will happen on that day that the Lord
Will again recover with His hand the second time
The (CU)remnant of His people who will remain,
From (CV)Assyria, (CW)Egypt, Pathros, Cush, (CX)Elam, Shinar, Hamath,
And from the [z](CY)islands of the sea.
12 And He will lift up a (CZ)flag for the nations
And (DA)assemble the banished ones of Israel,
And will gather the dispersed of Judah
From the four corners of the earth.
13 Then the (DB)jealousy of Ephraim will depart,
And those who harass Judah will be eliminated;
Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah,
And Judah will not harass Ephraim.
14 They will (DC)swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines on the (DD)west;
Together they will (DE)plunder the [aa]people of the east;
[ab]They will possess (DF)Edom and (DG)Moab,
And the sons of Ammon will be [ac]subject to them.
15 And the Lord will [ad](DH)utterly destroy
The tongue of the [ae]Sea of Egypt;
And He will (DI)wave His hand over the (DJ)Euphrates River
With His scorching wind;
And He will strike it into seven streams
And make people walk over in dry sandals.
16 And there will be a (DK)highway from Assyria
For the (DL)remnant of His people who will be left,
Just as there was for Israel
On (DM)the day that they came up out of the land of Egypt.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 10:1 Lit harm
  2. Isaiah 10:2 Lit turn the needy aside from
  3. Isaiah 10:2 Or fatherless
  4. Isaiah 10:4 Lit under
  5. Isaiah 10:4 Lit under
  6. Isaiah 10:6 Lit make them a trampled place
  7. Isaiah 10:7 Lit its heart so plan
  8. Isaiah 10:7 Lit in its heart
  9. Isaiah 10:7 Lit not a few
  10. Isaiah 10:8 Lit altogether
  11. Isaiah 10:12 Lit visit
  12. Isaiah 10:13 Or those who sit on thrones
  13. Isaiah 10:15 Lit staff
  14. Isaiah 10:16 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  15. Isaiah 10:17 Lit his
  16. Isaiah 10:17 I.e., the Assyrian king’s forces
  17. Isaiah 10:23 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  18. Isaiah 10:24 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  19. Isaiah 10:24 Lit he
  20. Isaiah 10:27 I.e., the Assyrian
  21. Isaiah 10:30 An ancient version reads Answer her, O Anathoth
  22. Isaiah 10:32 Another reading is house of
  23. Isaiah 10:33 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  24. Isaiah 11:6 Some ancient versions will feed together
  25. Isaiah 11:10 Lit glory
  26. Isaiah 11:11 Or coastlands
  27. Isaiah 11:14 Lit sons
  28. Isaiah 11:14 Lit Edom and Moab will be the outstretching of their hand
  29. Isaiah 11:14 Lit their obedience
  30. Isaiah 11:15 Another reading is dry up the tongue
  31. Isaiah 11:15 Perhaps the Red Sea

10 Woe(A) to those who make unjust laws,
    to those who issue oppressive decrees,(B)
to deprive(C) the poor of their rights
    and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,(D)
making widows their prey
    and robbing the fatherless.(E)
What will you do on the day of reckoning,(F)
    when disaster(G) comes from afar?
To whom will you run for help?(H)
    Where will you leave your riches?
Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives(I)
    or fall among the slain.(J)

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,(K)
    his hand is still upraised.

God’s Judgment on Assyria

“Woe(L) to the Assyrian,(M) the rod(N) of my anger,
    in whose hand is the club(O) of my wrath!(P)
I send him against a godless(Q) nation,
    I dispatch(R) him against a people who anger me,(S)
to seize loot and snatch plunder,(T)
    and to trample(U) them down like mud in the streets.
But this is not what he intends,(V)
    this is not what he has in mind;
his purpose is to destroy,
    to put an end to many nations.
‘Are not my commanders(W) all kings?’ he says.
    ‘Has not Kalno(X) fared like Carchemish?(Y)
Is not Hamath(Z) like Arpad,(AA)
    and Samaria(AB) like Damascus?(AC)
10 As my hand seized the kingdoms of the idols,(AD)
    kingdoms whose images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria—
11 shall I not deal with Jerusalem and her images
    as I dealt with Samaria and her idols?(AE)’”

12 When the Lord has finished all his work(AF) against Mount Zion(AG) and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria(AH) for the willful pride(AI) of his heart and the haughty look(AJ) in his eyes. 13 For he says:

“‘By the strength of my hand(AK) I have done this,(AL)
    and by my wisdom, because I have understanding.
I removed the boundaries of nations,
    I plundered their treasures;(AM)
    like a mighty one I subdued[a] their kings.(AN)
14 As one reaches into a nest,(AO)
    so my hand reached for the wealth(AP) of the nations;
as people gather abandoned eggs,
    so I gathered all the countries;(AQ)
not one flapped a wing,
    or opened its mouth to chirp.(AR)’”

15 Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it,
    or the saw boast against the one who uses it?(AS)
As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up,
    or a club(AT) brandish the one who is not wood!
16 Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
    will send a wasting disease(AU) upon his sturdy warriors;(AV)
under his pomp(AW) a fire(AX) will be kindled
    like a blazing flame.
17 The Light of Israel will become a fire,(AY)
    their Holy One(AZ) a flame;
in a single day it will burn and consume
    his thorns(BA) and his briers.(BB)
18 The splendor of his forests(BC) and fertile fields
    it will completely destroy,(BD)
    as when a sick person wastes away.
19 And the remaining trees of his forests(BE) will be so few(BF)
    that a child could write them down.

The Remnant of Israel

20 In that day(BG) the remnant of Israel,
    the survivors(BH) of Jacob,
will no longer rely(BI) on him
    who struck them down(BJ)
but will truly rely(BK) on the Lord,
    the Holy One of Israel.(BL)
21 A remnant(BM) will return,[b](BN) a remnant of Jacob
    will return to the Mighty God.(BO)
22 Though your people be like the sand(BP) by the sea, Israel,
    only a remnant will return.(BQ)
Destruction has been decreed,(BR)
    overwhelming and righteous.
23 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, will carry out
    the destruction decreed(BS) upon the whole land.(BT)

24 Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:

“My people who live in Zion,(BU)
    do not be afraid(BV) of the Assyrians,
who beat(BW) you with a rod(BX)
    and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did.
25 Very soon(BY) my anger against you will end
    and my wrath(BZ) will be directed to their destruction.(CA)

26 The Lord Almighty will lash(CB) them with a whip,
    as when he struck down Midian(CC) at the rock of Oreb;
and he will raise his staff(CD) over the waters,(CE)
    as he did in Egypt.
27 In that day(CF) their burden(CG) will be lifted from your shoulders,
    their yoke(CH) from your neck;(CI)
the yoke(CJ) will be broken
    because you have grown so fat.[c]

28 They enter Aiath;
    they pass through Migron;(CK)
    they store supplies(CL) at Mikmash.(CM)
29 They go over the pass, and say,
    “We will camp overnight at Geba.(CN)
Ramah(CO) trembles;
    Gibeah(CP) of Saul flees.(CQ)
30 Cry out, Daughter Gallim!(CR)
    Listen, Laishah!
    Poor Anathoth!(CS)
31 Madmenah is in flight;
    the people of Gebim take cover.
32 This day they will halt at Nob;(CT)
    they will shake their fist(CU)
at the mount of Daughter Zion,(CV)
    at the hill of Jerusalem.

33 See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
    will lop off(CW) the boughs with great power.
The lofty trees will be felled,(CX)
    the tall(CY) ones will be brought low.(CZ)
34 He will cut down(DA) the forest thickets with an ax;
    Lebanon(DB) will fall before the Mighty One.(DC)

The Branch From Jesse

11 A shoot(DD) will come up from the stump(DE) of Jesse;(DF)
    from his roots a Branch(DG) will bear fruit.(DH)
The Spirit(DI) of the Lord will rest on him—
    the Spirit of wisdom(DJ) and of understanding,
    the Spirit of counsel and of might,(DK)
    the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord
and he will delight in the fear(DL) of the Lord.

He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,(DM)
    or decide by what he hears with his ears;(DN)
but with righteousness(DO) he will judge the needy,(DP)
    with justice(DQ) he will give decisions for the poor(DR) of the earth.
He will strike(DS) the earth with the rod of his mouth;(DT)
    with the breath(DU) of his lips he will slay the wicked.(DV)
Righteousness will be his belt(DW)
    and faithfulness(DX) the sash around his waist.(DY)

The wolf will live with the lamb,(DZ)
    the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling[d] together;
    and a little child will lead them.
The cow will feed with the bear,
    their young will lie down together,
    and the lion will eat straw like the ox.(EA)
The infant(EB) will play near the cobra’s den,
    and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s(EC) nest.
They will neither harm nor destroy(ED)
    on all my holy mountain,(EE)
for the earth(EF) will be filled with the knowledge(EG) of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.

10 In that day(EH) the Root of Jesse(EI) will stand as a banner(EJ) for the peoples; the nations(EK) will rally to him,(EL) and his resting place(EM) will be glorious.(EN) 11 In that day(EO) the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant(EP) of his people from Assyria,(EQ) from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt,(ER) from Cush,[e](ES) from Elam,(ET) from Babylonia,[f] from Hamath(EU) and from the islands(EV) of the Mediterranean.(EW)

12 He will raise a banner(EX) for the nations
    and gather(EY) the exiles of Israel;(EZ)
he will assemble the scattered people(FA) of Judah
    from the four quarters of the earth.(FB)
13 Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish,
    and Judah’s enemies[g] will be destroyed;
Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah,
    nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim.(FC)
14 They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia(FD) to the west;
    together they will plunder the people to the east.(FE)
They will subdue Edom(FF) and Moab,(FG)
    and the Ammonites(FH) will be subject to them.(FI)
15 The Lord will dry up(FJ)
    the gulf of the Egyptian sea;
with a scorching wind(FK) he will sweep his hand(FL)
    over the Euphrates River.(FM)
He will break it up into seven streams
    so that anyone can cross over in sandals.(FN)
16 There will be a highway(FO) for the remnant(FP) of his people
    that is left from Assyria,(FQ)
as there was for Israel
    when they came up from Egypt.(FR)

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 10:13 Or treasures; / I subdued the mighty,
  2. Isaiah 10:21 Hebrew shear-jashub (see 7:3 and note); also in verse 22
  3. Isaiah 10:27 Hebrew; Septuagint broken / from your shoulders
  4. Isaiah 11:6 Hebrew; Septuagint lion will feed
  5. Isaiah 11:11 That is, the upper Nile region
  6. Isaiah 11:11 Hebrew Shinar
  7. Isaiah 11:13 Or hostility