Woe to Samaria

28 Woe to the majestic crown of Ephraim’s drunkards,(A)
and to the fading flower of its beautiful splendor,
which is on the summit above the rich valley.
Woe to those overcome with wine.
Look, the Lord has a strong and mighty one(B)
like a devastating hail storm,
like a storm with strong flooding waters.
He will bring it across the land with His hand.
The majestic crown of Ephraim’s drunkards
will be trampled underfoot.
The fading flower of his beautiful splendor,
which is on the summit above the rich valley,
will be like a ripe fig before the summer harvest.(C)
Whoever sees it will swallow it
while it is still in his hand.
On that day
the Lord of Hosts will become a crown of beauty
and a diadem of splendor(D)
to the remnant of His people,
a spirit of justice
to the one who sits in judgment,(E)
and strength
to those who turn back the battle at the gate.

These also stagger because of wine
and stumble under the influence of beer:
priest and prophet stagger because of beer,
they are confused by wine.(F)
They stumble because of beer,
they are muddled in their visions,
they stumble in their judgments.
Indeed, all their tables are covered with vomit;
there is no place without a stench.
Who is he[a] trying to teach?
Who is he[b] trying to instruct?
Infants[c] just weaned from milk?
Babies[d] removed from the breast?
10 For he says: “Law after law, law after law,
line after line, line after line,
a little here, a little there.”[e][f]
11 So He will speak to this people
with stammering speech
and in a foreign language.(G)
12 He had said to them:
“This is the place of rest,
let the weary rest;(H)
this is the place of repose.”
But they would not listen.

13 Then the word of the Lord came to them:
“Law after law, law after law,
line after line, line after line,
a little here, a little there,”[g][h]
so they go stumbling backward,
to be broken, trapped, and captured.(I)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 28:9 Or He
  2. Isaiah 28:9 Or He
  3. Isaiah 28:9 Lit Those
  4. Isaiah 28:9 Lit Those
  5. Isaiah 28:10 Hb obscure
  6. Isaiah 28:10 Perhaps the mockers of v. 9 are mimicking the prophet’s words as baby talk.
  7. Isaiah 28:13 Hb obscure
  8. Isaiah 28:13 The Lord quotes the mockers' words in v. 10 to represent the unintelligible language of the Assyrian invaders.

Whenever the living creatures give glory, honor, and thanks to the One seated on the throne, the One who lives forever and ever, 10 the 24 elders fall down before the One seated on the throne, worship the One who lives forever and ever, cast their crowns before the throne, and say:

11 Our Lord and God,[a]
You are worthy to receive
glory and honor and power,
because You have created all things,
and because of Your will
they exist and were created.

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Footnotes

  1. Revelation 4:11 Other mss add the Holy One; other mss read Lord

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