Isaiah 24
International Standard Version
The Earth is Judged
24 “Watch out! The Lord[a] is about to depopulate the land
and devastate it;
he will turn it upside down[b]
and scatter its inhabitants.
2 It will be the same for the lay people as for priests,
the same for servants as for their masters,
for female servants as for their mistresses,
for buyers as for sellers,
for lenders as for borrowers,
and for creditors as for debtors.
3 The earth will be utterly depopulated
and completely laid waste —
for the Lord has spoken this message.[c]
4 “The earth dries up and withers;
the world languishes and fades away;
heaven fades away,
along with the earth.[d]
5 The earth lies defiled
beneath its inhabitants;
because they have transgressed the laws,[e]
violated the statutes,
and broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore the curse keeps on consuming,[f]
and its inhabitants are declared guilty.
Furthermore, the inhabitants of earth are ablaze,
and few people are left.
7 The new wine evaporates;
the vine and the oil[g] dry up;
all the merrymakers groan.
8 “The celebrations of the tambourine have ended,
the noise of the jubilant has stopped,
and the mirth that the harp produces has ended.
9 No longer do they drink wine
accompanied by singing;
even beer[h] tastes bitter to those who drink it.
10 The chaotic city lies broken down;
every house is closed up
so that no one can enter them.[i]
11 There is an outcry in the streets over wine;
all cheer turns to gloom;
the fun times of the earth are banished.
12 Desolation remains in the city
whose gates lie battered into ruins.
13 So it will be on the earth
and among the nations—
as when an olive tree is beaten,
or as gleanings when the grape harvest has ended.”
Glorifying God
14 “They raise their voices;
they shout for joy;[j]
from the west[k] they shout aloud[l]
over the Lord’s majesty.
15 Therefore, you in the east,[m]
give glory to the Lord!
You in the coastlands of the sea,
give glory to the name of the Lord God of Israel!
16 From the ends of the earth
we hear songs of praise:
‘Glory to the Righteous One!’
“But I say, ‘I am pining away,
I’m pining away.
How terrible things are for me!
For treacherous people betray—
treacherous people are betraying with treachery!’”
The Universal Impact of Judgment
17 “Terror and pit and snare are coming in your direction,
you inhabitants of the earth!
18 Whoever flees at the sound of terror
will fall into a pit,
and whoever climbs out of the pit
will be caught in a snare.
For the windows of judgment[n] from above are opened,
and the foundations of the earth are shaken.
19 The earth is utterly shattered,
the earth is split apart,
the earth is violently shaken.
20 The earth[o] reels to and fro like a drunkard;
it sways like a hut;[p]
its transgression lies so heavy upon it,
that it falls, never to rise again.
21 “And it will come about at that time,[q]
the Lord will punish
the armies of the exalted ones in the heavens,[r]
and the rulers[s] of the earth on earth.
22 They[t] will be herded together[u]
into the Pit;[v]
they will be shut up in prison,
and after many days they will be punished.
23 Then the moon will be embarrassed
and the sun ashamed,
for the Lord of the Heavenly Armies will reign
on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem;
and in the presence of its elders
there will be glory.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 24:1 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsac reads Lord
- Isaiah 24:1 Or distort its surface
- Isaiah 24:3 Lit. word
- Isaiah 24:4 So 1QIsaa 4QIsac; MT reads the heavens fade away; cf. LXX reads the exalted ones of the earth mourn
- Isaiah 24:5 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsac LXX read the Law
- Isaiah 24:6 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsac MT LXX read consuming the earth
- Isaiah 24:7 So 4QIsac; 1QIsaa MT LXX lack and the oil
- Isaiah 24:9 Or and strong drink
- Isaiah 24:10 1QIsaa MT lack them
- Isaiah 24:14 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsac reads and they shout
- Isaiah 24:14 Lit. sea; so 1QIsaa MT; cf. LXX; 4QIsac reads day
- Isaiah 24:14 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsac reads And they cry out
- Isaiah 24:15 So 1QIsaa MT; 4Q1sac reads in the east, in Aram; LXX lacks in the east
- Isaiah 24:18 1QIsaa MT lack of judgment
- Isaiah 24:20 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read Earth
- Isaiah 24:20 So MT; 1QIsaa lacks like a hut
- Isaiah 24:21 Lit. about on that day
- Isaiah 24:21 Or ones on high
- Isaiah 24:21 Lit. kings
- Isaiah 24:22 So 1QIsaa; 4QIsac MT LXX read And they
- Isaiah 24:22 So 1QIsaa LXX; 4QIsac MT read together like prisoners
- Isaiah 24:22 I.e., the place of punishment in the afterlife; or into a dungeon;
Isaiah 24
Tree of Life Version
Curse of Empty Land
24 Behold, Adonai makes the land empty
and makes it waste,
twists its face,
and scatters its inhabitants.
2 So it shall be:
as with the people, so with the kohen,
as with a servant, so with his master,
as with a maid, so with her mistress,
as with a buyer, so with the seller,
as with a lender, so with the borrower,
as with a creditor, so with the debtor.
3 The land will be utterly emptied,
and totally plundered.
For Adonai has spoken this word.
4 The land faints and fades away,
The world wilts and fades away,
The exalted people of the earth wilt.
5 The land is polluted by its inhabitants,
for they have transgressed Torah,
violated statutes,
and broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore a curse will devour the land.
Those dwelling there are found guilty.
Therefore the inhabitants of the land will be burned up,
so the people remaining are few.
7 The new wine fails, the vine wilts,
all the merry-hearted sigh.
8 The glee of tambourines stops,
the noise of revelers ends,
the joy of the harp ceases.
9 They no longer drink wine with song.
Liquor is bitter to those drinking it.
10 The shattered city is in chaos.
Every house is shut up, none may enter.
11 In the streets is an outcry for wine;
all joy becomes dark as evening;
the mirth of the land is banished.
12 The city is left in ruins;
the gate is battered down.
Last Days’ Judgments
13 So will it be in the earth and among the nations,
as when shaking an olive tree,
or as when gleanings are left after the grape harvest.
14 They will raise their voices,
They will sing for joy, of the majesty of Adonai
they shout from the sea.
15 ‘Therefore glorify Adonai in the east,
the Name of Adonai, the God of Israel,
in the isles of the sea.
16 From the ends of the earth we have heard songs:
“Glory to the righteous!”
But I say, “I waste away, I waste away!
Oy to me! Traitors betray!
With treachery traitors betray!”
17 Panic, pit and trap are upon you,
O inhabitant of the earth.
18 And it shall come to pass:
whoever flees from the sound of panic
will fall in the pit,
and whoever climbs up out of the pit
will be caught in the trap.
For the windows of heaven are opened
and the foundations of the earth shake.
19 The earth is broken apart,
the earth is split open,
the earth is shaken utterly.
20 The earth reels to and fro like a drunk,
and sways like a hut.
its transgression is so heavy upon it
that it will fall and never rise again.
21 It will come about in that day,
Adonai will punish the host of heaven on high,
and the kings of the earth on the earth.
22 They will be gathered together,
like prisoners in the Pit,
and will be shut up in the prison,
and after many days be punished.
23 Then the moon will be abashed and the sun ashamed,
for Adonai-Tzva’ot will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,
and before His elders, gloriously.
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Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.