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Isaiah 28:1-15
New King James Version
Isaiah 28:1-15
New King James Version
Woe to Ephraim and Jerusalem
28 Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim,
Whose glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the [a]verdant valleys,
To those who are overcome with wine!
2 Behold, the Lord has a mighty and strong one,
(A)Like a tempest of hail and a destroying storm,
Like a flood of mighty waters overflowing,
Who will bring them down to the earth with His hand.
3 The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim,
Will be trampled underfoot;
4 And the glorious beauty is a fading flower
Which is at the head of the [b]verdant valley,
Like the first fruit before the summer,
Which an observer sees;
He eats it up while it is still in his hand.
5 In that day the Lord of hosts will be
For a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty
To the remnant of His people,
6 For a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,
And for strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7 But they also (B)have erred through wine,
And through intoxicating drink are out of the way;
(C)The priest and the prophet have erred through intoxicating drink,
They are swallowed up by wine,
They are out of the way through intoxicating drink;
They err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
8 For all tables are full of vomit and filth;
No place is clean.
9 “Whom(D) will he teach knowledge?
And whom will he make to understand the message?
Those just weaned from milk?
Those just drawn from the breasts?
10 (E)For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little.”
11 For with (F)stammering lips and another tongue
He will speak to this people,
12 To whom He said, “This is the (G)rest with which
You may cause the weary to rest,”
And, “This is the refreshing”;
Yet they would not hear.
13 But the word of the Lord was to them,
“Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
Line upon line, line upon line,
Here a little, there a little,”
That they might go and fall backward, and be broken
And snared and caught.
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you scornful men,
Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem,
15 Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
And with Sheol we are in agreement.
When the overflowing scourge passes through,
It will not come to us,
(H)For we have made lies our refuge,
And under falsehood we have hidden ourselves.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 28:1 Lit. valleys of fatness
- Isaiah 28:4 Lit. valley of fatness
Isaiah 28:1-15
New International Version
Isaiah 28:1-15
New International Version
Woe to the Leaders of Ephraim and Judah
28 Woe(A) to that wreath, the pride of Ephraim’s(B) drunkards,
to the fading flower, his glorious beauty,
set on the head of a fertile valley(C)—
to that city, the pride of those laid low by wine!(D)
2 See, the Lord has one who is powerful(E) and strong.
Like a hailstorm(F) and a destructive wind,(G)
like a driving rain and a flooding(H) downpour,
he will throw it forcefully to the ground.
3 That wreath, the pride of Ephraim’s(I) drunkards,
will be trampled(J) underfoot.
4 That fading flower, his glorious beauty,
set on the head of a fertile valley,(K)
will be like figs(L) ripe before harvest—
as soon as people see them and take them in hand,
they swallow them.
5 In that day(M) the Lord Almighty
will be a glorious(N) crown,(O)
a beautiful wreath
for the remnant(P) of his people.
6 He will be a spirit of justice(Q)
to the one who sits in judgment,(R)
a source of strength
to those who turn back the battle(S) at the gate.
7 And these also stagger(T) from wine(U)
and reel(V) from beer:
Priests(W) and prophets(X) stagger from beer
and are befuddled with wine;
they reel from beer,
they stagger when seeing visions,(Y)
they stumble when rendering decisions.
8 All the tables are covered with vomit(Z)
and there is not a spot without filth.
9 “Who is it he is trying to teach?(AA)
To whom is he explaining his message?(AB)
To children weaned(AC) from their milk,(AD)
to those just taken from the breast?
10 For it is:
Do this, do that,
a rule for this, a rule for that[a];
a little here, a little there.(AE)”
11 Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues(AF)
God will speak to this people,(AG)
12 to whom he said,
“This is the resting place, let the weary rest”;(AH)
and, “This is the place of repose”—
but they would not listen.
13 So then, the word of the Lord to them will become:
Do this, do that,
a rule for this, a rule for that;
a little here, a little there(AI)—
so that as they go they will fall backward;
they will be injured(AJ) and snared and captured.(AK)
14 Therefore hear the word of the Lord,(AL) you scoffers(AM)
who rule this people in Jerusalem.
15 You boast, “We have entered into a covenant with death,(AN)
with the realm of the dead we have made an agreement.
When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by,(AO)
it cannot touch us,
for we have made a lie(AP) our refuge
and falsehood[b] our hiding place.(AQ)”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 28:10 Hebrew / sav lasav sav lasav / kav lakav kav lakav (probably meaningless sounds mimicking the prophet’s words); also in verse 13
- Isaiah 28:15 Or false gods
Isaiah 29:13
New King James Version
Isaiah 29:13
New King James Version
13 Therefore the Lord said:
(A)“Inasmuch as these people draw near with their mouths
And honor Me (B)with their lips,
But have removed their hearts far from Me,
And their fear toward Me is taught by the commandment of men,
Isaiah 29:13
New International Version
Isaiah 29:13
New International Version
13 The Lord says:
Footnotes
- Isaiah 29:13 Hebrew; Septuagint They worship me in vain; / their teachings are merely human rules
Isaiah 28:16-29
New King James Version
Isaiah 28:16-29
New King James Version
A Cornerstone in Zion
16 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, I lay in Zion (A)a stone for a foundation,
A tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation;
Whoever believes will not act hastily.
17 Also I will make justice the measuring line,
And righteousness the plummet;
The hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,
And the waters will overflow the hiding place.
18 Your covenant with death will be annulled,
And your agreement with Sheol will not stand;
When the overflowing scourge passes through,
Then you will be trampled down by it.
19 As often as it goes out it will take you;
For morning by morning it will pass over,
And by day and by night;
It will be a terror just to understand the report.”
20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on,
And the covering so narrow that one cannot wrap himself in it.
21 For the Lord will rise up as at Mount (B)Perazim,
He will be angry as in the Valley of (C)Gibeon—
That He may do His work, (D)His awesome work,
And bring to pass His act, His [a]unusual act.
22 Now therefore, do not be mockers,
Lest your bonds be made strong;
For I have heard from the Lord God of hosts,
(E)A [b]destruction determined even upon the whole earth.
Listen to the Teaching of God
23 Give ear and hear my voice,
Listen and hear my speech.
24 Does the plowman keep plowing all day to sow?
Does he keep turning his soil and breaking the clods?
25 When he has leveled its surface,
Does he not sow the black cummin
And scatter the cummin,
Plant the wheat in rows,
The barley in the appointed place,
And the [c]spelt in its place?
26 For He instructs him in right judgment,
His God teaches him.
27 For the black cummin is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
Nor is a cartwheel rolled over the cummin;
But the black cummin is beaten out with a stick,
And the cummin with a rod.
28 Bread flour must be ground;
Therefore he does not thresh it forever,
Break it with his cartwheel,
Or crush it with his horsemen.
29 This also comes from the Lord of hosts,
(F)Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in [d]guidance.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 28:21 Lit. foreign
- Isaiah 28:22 Lit. complete end
- Isaiah 28:25 rye
- Isaiah 28:29 sound wisdom
Isaiah 28:16-29
New International Version
Isaiah 28:16-29
New International Version
16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,(A) a tested stone,(B)
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;(C)
the one who relies on it
will never be stricken with panic.(D)
17 I will make justice(E) the measuring line
and righteousness the plumb line;(F)
hail(G) will sweep away your refuge, the lie,
and water will overflow(H) your hiding place.
18 Your covenant with death will be annulled;
your agreement with the realm of the dead will not stand.(I)
When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by,(J)
you will be beaten down(K) by it.
19 As often as it comes it will carry you away;(L)
morning after morning,(M) by day and by night,
it will sweep through.”
The understanding of this message
will bring sheer terror.(N)
20 The bed is too short to stretch out on,
the blanket too narrow to wrap around you.(O)
21 The Lord will rise up as he did at Mount Perazim,(P)
he will rouse himself as in the Valley of Gibeon(Q)—
to do his work,(R) his strange work,
and perform his task, his alien task.
22 Now stop your mocking,(S)
or your chains will become heavier;
the Lord, the Lord Almighty, has told me
of the destruction decreed(T) against the whole land.(U)
23 Listen(V) and hear my voice;
pay attention and hear what I say.
24 When a farmer plows for planting,(W) does he plow continually?
Does he keep on breaking up and working the soil?
25 When he has leveled the surface,
does he not sow caraway and scatter cumin?(X)
Does he not plant wheat in its place,[a]
barley(Y) in its plot,[b]
and spelt(Z) in its field?
26 His God instructs him
and teaches(AA) him the right way.
27 Caraway is not threshed(AB) with a sledge,(AC)
nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin;
caraway is beaten out with a rod,(AD)
and cumin with a stick.
28 Grain must be ground to make bread;
so one does not go on threshing it forever.
The wheels of a threshing cart(AE) may be rolled over it,
but one does not use horses to grind grain.
29 All this also comes from the Lord Almighty,
whose plan is wonderful,(AF)
whose wisdom is magnificent.(AG)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 28:25 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Isaiah 28:25 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Isaiah 22:1-14
New King James Version
Isaiah 22:1-14
New King James Version
Proclamation Against Jerusalem
22 The [a]burden against the Valley of Vision.
What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops,
2 You who are full of noise,
A [b]tumultuous city, (A)a joyous city?
Your slain men are not slain with the sword,
Nor dead in battle.
3 All your rulers have fled together;
They are captured by the archers.
All who are found in you are bound together;
They have fled from afar.
4 Therefore I said, “Look away from me,
(B)I will weep bitterly;
Do not labor to comfort me
Because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.”
5 (C)For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity
(D)By the Lord God of hosts
In the Valley of Vision—
Breaking down the walls
And of crying to the mountain.
6 (E)Elam bore the quiver
With chariots of men and horsemen,
And (F)Kir uncovered the shield.
7 It shall come to pass that your choicest valleys
Shall be full of chariots,
And the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.
8 (G)He removed the [c]protection of Judah.
You looked in that day to the armor (H)of the House of the Forest;
9 (I)You also saw the [d]damage to the city of David,
That it was great;
And you gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 You numbered the houses of Jerusalem,
And the houses you broke down
To fortify the wall.
11 (J)You also made a reservoir between the two walls
For the water of the old (K)pool.
But you did not look to its Maker,
Nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago.
12 And in that day the Lord God of hosts
(L)Called for weeping and for mourning,
(M)For baldness and for girding with sackcloth.
13 But instead, joy and gladness,
Slaying oxen and killing sheep,
Eating meat and (N)drinking wine:
(O)“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!”
14 (P)Then it was revealed in my hearing by the Lord of hosts,
“Surely for this iniquity there (Q)will be no atonement for you,
Even to your death,” says the Lord God of hosts.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 22:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 22:2 boisterous
- Isaiah 22:8 Lit. covering
- Isaiah 22:9 Lit. breaches in the city walls
Isaiah 22:1-14
New International Version
Isaiah 22:1-14
New International Version
A Prophecy About Jerusalem
22 A prophecy(A) against the Valley(B) of Vision:(C)
What troubles you now,
that you have all gone up on the roofs,(D)
2 you town so full of commotion,
you city of tumult(E) and revelry?(F)
Your slain(G) were not killed by the sword,(H)
nor did they die in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled(I) together;
they have been captured(J) without using the bow.
All you who were caught were taken prisoner together,
having fled while the enemy was still far away.
4 Therefore I said, “Turn away from me;
let me weep(K) bitterly.
Do not try to console me
over the destruction of my people.”(L)
5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day(M)
of tumult and trampling(N) and terror(O)
in the Valley of Vision,(P)
a day of battering down walls(Q)
and of crying out to the mountains.
6 Elam(R) takes up the quiver,(S)
with her charioteers and horses;
Kir(T) uncovers the shield.
7 Your choicest valleys(U) are full of chariots,
and horsemen are posted at the city gates.(V)
8 The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah,
and you looked in that day(W)
to the weapons(X) in the Palace of the Forest.(Y)
9 You saw that the walls of the City of David
were broken through(Z) in many places;
you stored up water
in the Lower Pool.(AA)
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem
and tore down houses(AB) to strengthen the wall.(AC)
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls(AD)
for the water of the Old Pool,(AE)
but you did not look to the One who made it,
or have regard(AF) for the One who planned(AG) it long ago.
12 The Lord, the Lord Almighty,
called you on that day(AH)
to weep(AI) and to wail,
to tear out your hair(AJ) and put on sackcloth.(AK)
13 But see, there is joy and revelry,(AL)
slaughtering of cattle and killing of sheep,
eating of meat and drinking of wine!(AM)
“Let us eat and drink,” you say,
“for tomorrow we die!”(AN)
14 The Lord Almighty has revealed this in my hearing:(AO) “Till your dying day this sin will not be atoned(AP) for,” says the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
Isaiah 29:1-8
New King James Version
Isaiah 29:1-8
New King James Version
Woe to Jerusalem
29 “Woe (A)to [a]Ariel, to Ariel, the city (B)where David dwelt!
Add year to year;
Let feasts come around.
2 Yet I will distress Ariel;
There shall be heaviness and sorrow,
And it shall be to Me as Ariel.
3 I will encamp against you all around,
I will lay siege against you with a mound,
And I will raise siegeworks against you.
4 You shall be brought down,
You shall speak out of the ground;
Your speech shall be low, out of the dust;
Your voice shall be like a medium’s, (C)out of the ground;
And your speech shall whisper out of the dust.
5 “Moreover the multitude of your (D)foes
Shall be like fine dust,
And the multitude of the terrible ones
Like (E)chaff that passes away;
Yes, it shall be (F)in an instant, suddenly.
6 (G)You will be punished by the Lord of hosts
With thunder and (H)earthquake and great noise,
With storm and tempest
And the flame of devouring fire.
7 (I)The multitude of all the nations who fight against [b]Ariel,
Even all who fight against her and her fortress,
And distress her,
Shall be (J)as a dream of a night vision.
8 (K)It shall even be as when a hungry man dreams,
And look—he eats;
But he awakes, and his soul is still empty;
Or as when a thirsty man dreams,
And look—he drinks;
But he awakes, and indeed he is faint,
And his soul still craves:
So the multitude of all the nations shall be,
Who fight against Mount Zion.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 29:1 Jerusalem, lit. Lion of God
- Isaiah 29:7 Jerusalem
Isaiah 29:1-8
New International Version
Isaiah 29:1-8
New International Version
Woe to David’s City
29 Woe(A) to you, Ariel, Ariel,(B)
the city(C) where David settled!
Add year to year
and let your cycle of festivals(D) go on.
2 Yet I will besiege Ariel;(E)
she will mourn and lament,(F)
she will be to me like an altar hearth.[a](G)
3 I will encamp against you on all sides;
I will encircle(H) you with towers
and set up my siege works(I) against you.
4 Brought low, you will speak from the ground;
your speech will mumble(J) out of the dust.(K)
Your voice will come ghostlike(L) from the earth;
out of the dust your speech will whisper.(M)
5 But your many enemies will become like fine dust,(N)
the ruthless(O) hordes like blown chaff.(P)
Suddenly,(Q) in an instant,
6 the Lord Almighty will come(R)
with thunder(S) and earthquake(T) and great noise,
with windstorm and tempest(U) and flames of a devouring fire.(V)
7 Then the hordes of all the nations(W) that fight against Ariel,(X)
that attack her and her fortress and besiege her,
will be as it is with a dream,(Y)
with a vision in the night—
8 as when a hungry person dreams of eating,
but awakens(Z) hungry still;
as when a thirsty person dreams of drinking,
but awakens faint and thirsty still.(AA)
So will it be with the hordes of all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.(AB)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 29:2 The Hebrew for altar hearth sounds like the Hebrew for Ariel.
Isaiah 33:1
New King James Version
Isaiah 33:1
New King James Version
A Prayer in Deep Distress
33 Woe to you (A)who plunder, though you have not been plundered;
And you who deal treacherously, though they have not dealt treacherously with you!
(B)When you cease plundering,
You will be (C)plundered;
When you make an end of dealing treacherously,
They will deal treacherously with you.
Isaiah 33:1
New International Version
Isaiah 33:1
New International Version
Distress and Help
Isaiah 29:9-12
New King James Version
Isaiah 29:9-12
New King James Version
The Blindness of Disobedience
9 Pause and wonder!
Blind yourselves and be blind!
(A)They are drunk, (B)but not with wine;
They stagger, but not with intoxicating drink.
10 For (C)the Lord has poured out on you
The spirit of deep sleep,
And has (D)closed your eyes, namely, the prophets;
And He has covered your heads, namely, (E)the seers.
11 The whole vision has become to you like the words of a [a]book (F)that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is literate, saying, “Read this, please.”
(G)And he says, “I cannot, for it is sealed.”
12 Then the book is delivered to one who [b]is illiterate, saying, “Read this, please.”
And he says, “I am not literate.”
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Isaiah 29:11 scroll
- Isaiah 29:12 Lit. does not know books
Isaiah 29:9-12
New International Version
Isaiah 29:9-12
New International Version
9 Be stunned and amazed,(A)
blind yourselves and be sightless;(B)
be drunk,(C) but not from wine,(D)
stagger,(E) but not from beer.
10 The Lord has brought over you a deep sleep:(F)
He has sealed your eyes(G) (the prophets);(H)
he has covered your heads (the seers).(I)
11 For you this whole vision(J) is nothing but words sealed(K) in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” 12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.”
Isaiah 29:14-21
New King James Version
Isaiah 29:14-21
New King James Version
14 (A)Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvelous work
Among this people,
A marvelous work and a wonder;
(B)For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish,
And the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”
15 (C)Woe to those who seek deep to hide their counsel far from the Lord,
And their works are in the dark;
(D)They say, “Who sees us?” and, “Who knows us?”
16 Surely you have things turned around!
Shall the potter be esteemed as the clay;
For shall the (E)thing made say of him who made it,
“He did not make me”?
Or shall the thing formed say of him who formed it,
“He has no understanding”?
Future Recovery of Wisdom
17 Is it not yet a very little while
Till (F)Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field,
And the fruitful field be esteemed as a forest?
18 (G)In that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book,
And the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.
19 (H)The humble also shall increase their joy in the Lord,
And (I)the poor among men shall rejoice
In the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the [a]terrible one is brought to nothing,
(J)The scornful one is consumed,
And all who (K)watch for iniquity are cut off—
21 Who make a man an offender by a word,
And (L)lay a snare for him who reproves in the gate,
And turn aside the just (M)by empty words.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 29:20 terrifying
Isaiah 29:14-21
New International Version
Isaiah 29:14-21
New International Version
14 Therefore once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;(A)
the wisdom of the wise(B) will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.(C)”
15 Woe to those who go to great depths
to hide(D) their plans from the Lord,
who do their work in darkness and think,
“Who sees us?(E) Who will know?”(F)
16 You turn things upside down,
as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!(G)
Shall what is formed say to the one who formed(H) it,
“You did not make me”?
Can the pot say to the potter,(I)
“You know nothing”?(J)
17 In a very short time,(K) will not Lebanon(L) be turned into a fertile field(M)
and the fertile field seem like a forest?(N)
18 In that day(O) the deaf(P) will hear the words of the scroll,
and out of gloom and darkness(Q)
the eyes of the blind will see.(R)
19 Once more the humble(S) will rejoice in the Lord;
the needy(T) will rejoice in the Holy One(U) of Israel.
20 The ruthless(V) will vanish,(W)
the mockers(X) will disappear,
and all who have an eye for evil(Y) will be cut down—
21 those who with a word make someone out to be guilty,
who ensnare the defender in court(Z)
and with false testimony(AA) deprive the innocent of justice.(AB)
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.