Isaiah 10
Amplified Bible
Assyria Is God’s Instrument
10 Woe (judgment is coming) to those [judges] who issue evil statutes,
And to those [magistrates] who constantly record unjust and oppressive decisions,
2
So as to deprive the needy of justice
And rob the poor of My people of rightful claims,
So that widows may be their spoil
And that they may plunder the fatherless.
3
Now what will you do in the day of [God’s] punishment,
And in the storm of devastation which will come from far away?
To whom will you flee for help?
And where will you leave your wealth [for safekeeping]?
4
Nothing remains but to crouch among the captives
Or fall [dead] among the slain [on the battlefield].
In spite of all this, God’s anger does not turn away,
But His hand is still stretched out [in judgment].
5
Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger [against Israel],
The staff in whose hand is My indignation and fury [against Israel’s disobedience]!
6
I send Assyria against a godless nation
And commission it against the people of My wrath
To take the spoil and to seize the plunder,
And to trample them down like mud in the streets.
7
Yet it is not Assyria’s intention [to do My will],
Nor does it plan so in its heart,
But instead it is its purpose to destroy
And to cut off many nations.
8
For Assyria says, “Are not my princes all kings?
9
“Is not Calno [conquered] like Carchemish [on the Euphrates]?
Is not Hamath [subdued] like Arpad [her neighbor]?
Is not Samaria [in Israel] like Damascus [in Aram]?
10
“As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols,
Whose carved images were greater and more feared than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11
Shall I not do to Jerusalem and her images
Just as I have done to Samaria and her idols?” [declares Assyria].
12 So when the Lord has completed all His work [of judgment] on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, He will say, “I will punish the fruit [the thoughts, the declarations, and the actions] of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria and the haughtiness of his pride.” 13 For the Assyrian king has said,
“I have done this by the power of my [own] hand and by my wisdom,
For I have understanding and skill.
I have removed the boundaries of the peoples
And have plundered their treasures;
Like a bull I have brought down those who sat on thrones.
14
“My hand has found the wealth of the people like a nest,
And as one gathers eggs that are abandoned, so I have gathered all the earth;
And there was not one that flapped its wing, or that opened its beak and chirped.”
15
Is the axe able to lift itself over the one who chops with it?
Is the saw able to magnify itself over the one who wields it?
That would be like a club moving those who lift it,
Or like a staff raising him who is not [made of] wood [like itself]!
16
Therefore the Lord, the God of hosts, will send a wasting disease among the stout warriors of Assyria;
And under his glory a fire will be kindled like a burning flame.
17
And the Light of Israel will become a fire and His Holy One a flame,
And it will [a]burn and devour Assyria’s thorns and briars in a single day.(A)
18
The Lord will consume the glory of Assyria’s forest and of its fruitful garden, both soul and body,
And it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19
And the remaining trees of Assyria’s forest will be so few in number
That a child could write them down.
A Remnant Will Return
20 Now in that day the remnant of Israel, and those of the house of Jacob who have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.
21
A [b]remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.
22
For though your people, O Israel, may be as the sand of the sea,
Only a remnant within them will return;
The destruction is determined [it is decided and destined for completion], overflowing with justice (righteous punishment).(B)
23 For the Lord, the God of hosts, will execute a complete destruction, one that is decreed, in the midst of all the land.
24 Therefore, the Lord God of hosts says this, “O My people who dwell in Zion, do not be afraid of the Assyrian who strikes you with a rod and lifts up his staff against you, as [the king of] Egypt did.(C) 25 For yet a very little while and My indignation [against you] will be fulfilled and My anger will be directed toward the destruction of the Assyrian.” 26 The Lord of hosts will brandish a whip against them like the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb; and His staff will be over the [Red] Sea and He will lift it up the way He did in [the flight from] Egypt.(D) 27 So it will be in that day, that the burden of the Assyrian will be removed from your shoulders and his yoke from your neck. The yoke will be broken because of the fat.(E)
28
The Assyrian has come against Aiath [in Judah],
He has passed through Migron [with his army];
At Michmash he stored his equipment.
29
They have gone through the pass, saying,
“Geba will be our lodging place for the night.”
Ramah trembles, and Gibeah [the city] of Saul has fled.
30
Cry aloud with your voice [in consternation], O Daughter of Gallim!
Pay attention, Laishah! Answer her, Anathoth!
31
Madmenah has fled;
The inhabitants of Gebim have fled [with their belongings] to safety.
32
Yet today the Assyrian will halt at Nob [the city of priests];
He shakes his fist at the mountain of the Daughter of Zion, at the hill of Jerusalem.
33
Listen carefully, the Lord, the God of hosts, will lop off the [beautiful] boughs with terrifying force;
The tall in stature will be cut down
And the lofty will be abased and humiliated.
34
He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe,
And Lebanon (the Assyrian) will fall by the Mighty One.(F)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 10:17 During a single night this prophecy was fulfilled (2 Kin 19:35).
- Isaiah 10:21 See note 7:3.
Isaiah 10
Expanded Bible
10 ·How terrible it will be for [L Woe to] those who make ·unfair [evil; unjust] ·laws [decrees],
and those who ·write [or issue] ·laws that make life hard for people [oppressive regulations/edicts].
2 They ·are not fair [withold justice] to the poor [Ex. 23:6, 11; Deut. 15:4–11],
and they ·rob [deprive] my people of their rights.
They ·allow people to steal from widows [L make widows their plunder/prey; Ex. 22:22]
and ·to take from orphans what really belongs to them [L plunder/loot the fatherless; Deut. 10:18].
3 ·How will you explain the things you have done [L What will you do on the day of accounting/visitation]?
What will you do when your destruction comes from far away?
·Where [or To whom] will you run for help?
Where will you ·hide your riches [or leave your wealth/glory] then?
4 You will have to ·bow down [kneel; cower] among the captives
or fall down among the ·dead bodies [L slain ones].
But the Lord is still angry;
his hand is still ·raised to strike down the people [outstretched].
God Will Punish Assyria
5 God says, “·How terrible it will be for the king of Assyria [L Woe to Assyria].
·I use him like a rod to show my anger […the rod of my anger];
in ·anger [my wrath/fury] I use Assyria like a club.
6 I send ·it [or him; C the king of Assyria] to fight against a godless nation [C Judah; see v. 10].
I ·command [order; dispatch] ·Assyria [L it; or him] to fight against the people ·with whom I am angry [L of my wrath].
to ·take their wealth from them [L plunder the plunder and loot the loot],
to trample them down like dirt in the streets.
7 But Assyria’s king doesn’t ·understand that I am using him [intend to do this];
·he [L his heart] doesn’t ·know he is a tool for me [think/reason this way].
He only wants to destroy other people
and to ·defeat [L cut off] many nations.
8 The king of Assyria says to himself,
‘All of my ·commanders [princes] are like kings
9 The city Calno is like the city Carchemish.
The city Hamath is like the city Arpad.
The city Samaria is like the city Damascus [C all city-states conquered by Assyria].
10 ·I defeated [L My hand has found/seized] those kingdoms that worship idols,
and those ·idols [carved images] were ·more [greater] than the idols of Jerusalem and Samaria.
11 As I ·defeated [L have done to] Samaria and her idols,
·I will also defeat [L shall I also do to…?] Jerusalem and her idols.’”
12 When the Lord finishes doing what he planned to Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will punish the king of Assyria for ·his proud heart and evil deeds [L the fruit of his great/exalted heart and glory of his haughty/high eyes]. 13 The king of Assyria says this:
“By ·my own power [L the strength of my hand] I have done these things;
by my wisdom ·and careful planning [L because I have understanding] I have ·defeated many [L removed the boundaries/borders of] nations.
I have ·taken their wealth [plundered their treasures],
and, like a ·mighty one [or bull], I have ·taken their people [or defeated their kings; L removed the sitting ones; C referring to those inhabiting the land or to kings on thrones].
14 ·I have taken [L My hand has found] the riches of all these people,
like a person reaching into a bird’s nest.
I have ·taken [gathered] these nations,
like a person ·taking [L gathering abandoned] eggs.
Not one ·raised a hand [L flapped a wing]
or opened its mouth to ·stop me [L chirp].”
15 ·An ax is not better than [L Does an ax exalt itself above…?] the person who swings it.
·A saw is not better than […or a saw over…?] the one who uses it.
A ·stick [rod; or scepter] cannot control the person who picks it up.
A club cannot pick up ·the person [L one who is not wood; or as if it were not made of wood]!
16 So the Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts]
will send ·a terrible disease [L leanness; emaciation] upon Assyria’s ·soldiers [strong/stout/fat ones].
·The strength of Assyria will be burned up [L Under his glory a fire will be lit]
like a fire burning.
17 The Light of Israel [C God], will be like a fire;
the Holy One [1:4] will be like a flame.
He will be like a fire
that ·suddenly [L in one day] burns and ·consumes [devours] the weeds and thorns.
18 The fire burns away the ·great [glorious] trees and rich farmlands,
destroying everything.
It will be like a sick person who wastes away.
19 The trees left standing will be so few
that even a child could count them.
20 At that time the ·people left in [remnant of] Israel
and the survivors of the ·family [L house] of Jacob.
will not continue to depend
on the person who ·defeated [struck] them [9:13].
They will learn truly to depend on the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel [1:4].
21 ·Those who are left alive in Jacob’s family [L A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob; 7:3]
will ·again follow [return to] the powerful God.
22 Israel, though your people are many,
like the grains of sand by the sea [48:19; Gen. 15:5; 22:17; Hos. 1:10].
only a ·few [L remnant] of them will ·be left alive to return to the Lord [L return; 7:3].
·God has announced that he will destroy the land [Destruction has been decreed]
·completely and fairly [L overflowing/overwhelming with righteousness/justice].
23 The Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] will ·certainly [or fully] destroy this land,
as he has ·announced [decreed].
24 This is what the Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] says:
“My people living in ·Jerusalem [L Zion; 1:27],
don’t be afraid of the Assyrians,
who beat you with a ·rod [staff; scepter]
and raise a ·stick [staff; rod; club] against you, as Egypt did.
25 After a short time my anger against you will stop,
and then I will turn my anger to destroying them.”
26 Then the Lord ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts] will beat the Assyrians with a whip
as he defeated Midian at the rock of Oreb [Judg. 7:25].
He will raise his ·stick [staff; rod] over the waters
as he did in Egypt [Ex. 14:15–16].
27 ·Then [L In that day] ·the troubles that Assyria puts on you [L their burden on your shoulders]
will be removed,
and the ·load they make you carry [L yoke from your neck]
will be ·taken away[a] [L destroyed because of the fat/oil; C because of Israel’s new strength, or because of the Lord’s blessings, or because of an Anointed One].
Assyria Invades Israel
28 ·The army of Assyria [L They] will enter near Aiath.
Its soldiers will walk through Migron.
They will store their ·food [supplies; equipment] in Micmash.
29 The army will go over the pass.
The soldiers will ·sleep [camp; lodge] at Geba.
·The people of Ramah will be afraid [L Ramah trembles],
·and the people at Gibeah of Saul will run away [L Gibeah of Saul flees; 1 Sam. 11:4].
30 Cry out, ·Bath [or Daughter of] Gallim!
Laishah, listen!
·Poor [or Answer her] Anathoth!
31 ·The people of Madmenah are running away [L Madmenah flees];
the people of Gebim ·are hiding [seek cover].
32 This day the army will stop at Nob [1 Sam 21–22].
They will shake their fist at ·Mount Zion [L the mount of Daughter Zion],
at the hill of Jerusalem.
33 Watch! The Lord God ·All-Powerful [Almighty; of Heaven’s Armies; T of hosts]
with his ·great [terrifying] power will chop them down like a great tree.
Those who are ·great [lofty] will be cut down;
those who are ·important [or tallest] will ·fall to the ground [be brought low].
34 He will cut them down
as a forest is cut down with an ax.
And ·the great trees of Lebanon [L Lebanon]
will fall ·by the power of [or before] the Mighty One.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 10:27 taken away Hebrew copies read “taken away.” Some Greek copies read, “broken from your shoulders.”
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The Expanded Bible, Copyright © 2011 Thomas Nelson Inc. All rights reserved.