Isaiah 28
Amplified Bible
Ephraim’s Captivity Predicted
28 Woe (judgment is coming) to [Samaria] the splendid crown of the drunkards of [a]Ephraim,
And to the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
Which is at the head of the rich valley
Of those who are overcome with wine!
2
Listen carefully, the Lord has a strong and mighty agent [the Assyrian];
Like a tempest of hail, a disastrous storm,
Like a tempest of mighty overflowing waters,
He has cast it down to the earth with His hand.
3
The splendid crown of the drunkards of Ephraim is trampled by [the foreigners’] feet.
4
And the fading flower of its glorious beauty,
Which is at the head of the rich valley,
Will be like the early fig before the summer,
Which one sees,
And as soon as it is in his hand
He [greedily] swallows it [and so will the Assyrians rapidly devour Samaria, Israel’s capital].
5
In that day the Lord of hosts will become a magnificent crown
And a glorious diadem to the [converted] remnant of His people,
6
A spirit of justice for him who sits in judgment [administering the law],
A strength to those who drive back the battle at the gate.
7
But even these reel with wine and stagger from strong drink:
The priest and the prophet reel with strong drink;
They are confused by wine, they stagger from strong drink;
They reel while seeing visions,
They stagger when pronouncing judgment.
8
For all the tables are full of filthy vomit, so that there is no place [that is clean.]
9
They say “To whom would He teach knowledge?
And to whom would He explain the message?
Those just weaned from milk?
Those just taken from the breast?
10
“For He says,
‘Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
Rule upon rule, rule upon rule,
Here a little, there a little.’”
11
Indeed, the Lord will teach this people [in a more humiliating way]
By [men with] stammering lips and a foreign tongue,
12
He who said to them, “This is the place of quiet, give rest to the weary,”
And, “This is the resting place,” yet they would not listen.
13
Therefore the word of the Lord to them will be [merely monotonous repetitions]:
“Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,
Rule upon rule, rule upon rule,
Here a little, there a little.”
That they may go and stumble backward, and be broken, ensnared, and taken captive.
Judah Is Warned
14
Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, you arrogant men
Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem!
15
Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,
And with Sheol (the place of the dead) we have made an agreement,
When the overwhelming scourge passes by, it will not reach us,
For we have made lies our refuge and we have concealed ourselves in deception.”
16 Therefore the Lord God says this,
“Listen carefully, I am laying in Zion a Stone, a tested Stone,
A precious Cornerstone for the [secure] foundation, firmly placed.
He who believes [who trusts in, relies on, and adheres to that Stone] will not [b]be disturbed or give way [in sudden panic].(A)
17
“I will make justice the measuring line
And righteousness the mason’s level;
Then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies
And waters will flood over the secret [hiding] place.
18
“Your covenant with death will be annulled,
And your agreement with Sheol (the place of the dead) will not stand;
When the overwhelming scourge passes through,
Then you will become its trampling ground.
19
“As often as it passes through, it will seize you;
For morning after morning it will pass through, by day and by night,
And it will be sheer terror to understand what it means.”
20
For the bed is too short to stretch out on,
And the blanket is too narrow to wrap around oneself [and likewise all their preparations are inadequate].
21
For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim,
He will be stirred up as in the Valley of Gibeon,
To do His work, His unusual and incredible work,
And to accomplish His work, His extraordinary work.(B)
22
Now do not carry on as scoffers,
Or the bands which bind you will be made stronger;
For I have heard from the Lord God of hosts [a decree]
Of decisive destruction on all the earth.
23
Listen and hear my voice;
Listen carefully and hear my words.
24
Does the farmer plow all day to plant seed?
Does he continually dig furrows and harrow his ground [after it is prepared]?
25
When he has leveled its surface,
Does he not sow [the seed of] dill and scatter cumin,
And plant wheat in rows,
And barley in its [intended] place and [c]rye within its border?
26
For his God instructs [him correctly] and teaches him properly.
27
For dill is not threshed with a sharp threshing sledge,
Nor is a cartwheel rolled over cumin;
But dill is beaten out with a staff, and cumin with a rod.
28
Bread grain is crushed fine,
Indeed, the farmer does not continue to thresh it forever.
Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it,
He does not thresh it longer.
29
This also comes from the Lord of hosts,
Who has made His counsel wonderful and His wisdom great.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 28:1 I.e. the ten northern tribes of Israel.
- Isaiah 28:16 The Septuagint (Greek translation of the Old Testament) reads “be put to shame,” a phrase which occurs frequently in pleas to God.
- Isaiah 28:25 A subspecies of common wheat.
Isaiah 28
New Life Version
Time of Trouble for Ephraim and Jerusalem
28 It is a time of trouble to the crown of pride and to the drunk men of Ephraim, whose shining beauty is a dying flower. It is at the head of the rich valley of those who have taken too much wine! 2 See, the Lord has one who is strong and powerful, like a storm of hail, a destroying storm. As with a flood of powerful waters flowing over, He will bring them down to the earth with His hand. 3 The crown of pride, the drunk men of Ephraim, will be crushed under foot. 4 The dying flower of its shining beauty which is at the head of the rich valley will be like the first fig grown before the summer. When one sees it, he takes it in his hand and eats it. 5 In that day the Lord of All will be a crown of shining-greatness, a beautiful crown to those who are left of His people. 6 He will be a spirit of what is fair to him who judges the people. He will be a strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate. 7 These also walk from one side to the other side because of wine and strong drink. The religious leaders and the men who tell what will happen in the future make mistakes because of strong drink. They are troubled by wine. They walk from side to side because of strong drink. They make mistakes as they have special dreams. And they make mistakes when judging between right and wrong. 8 All the tables are covered with what they have spit up. There is no place that is clean.
9 “Who is it He is trying to teach? To whom will He tell what He has to say? Children finished with their nursing and just taken from the breast? 10 For He says, ‘Law on law, law on law, rule on rule, rule on rule, a little here, a little there.’” 11 The Lord will speak to these people through men from other lands and in strange languages. 12 He Who said to them, “This is rest, give rest to the tired and weak.” And, “This is the place to rest,” but they would not listen. 13 So the Word of the Lord to them will be, “Law on law, law on law, rule on rule, rule on rule, a little here, a little there,” that they may go and fall back, be broken, trapped, and taken away by those who hate them.
A Stone of Great Worth in Jerusalem
14 So hear the Word of the Lord, you who laugh at the truth, who rule the people in Jerusalem! 15 You have said, “We have made an agreement with death. With the place of the dead we have made an agreement. The destroying flood will not touch us when it passes by. We have made lies our safe place. We have hidden ourselves with what is false.” 16 So the Lord God says, “See, I lay in Jerusalem a Stone of great worth to build upon, a tested Stone. Anyone who puts his trust in Him will not be afraid of what will happen. 17 And I will use what is fair to decide about the base. And I will use what is right and good to make it straight. Then hail will take away all the lies you depend on, and the waters will flow over the place where you hide. 18 Your agreement with death will come to an end. Your agreement with the place of the dead will be stopped. When a flood of trouble passes through, you will be beaten down by it. 19 As often as it passes through, it will take you. And it will pass through morning after morning, anytime during the day or night. To understand what it means will bring much fear.” 20 The bed is too short to lie on in comfort. And the covering is too small to put around yourself. 21 For the Lord will rise up as at Mount Perazim. He will be angry as in the valley of Gibeon, to do what He needs to do, His strange act, and to do His work, His different kind of work. 22 So now do not laugh, or your chains will be made stronger. I have heard that the Lord God of All plans to destroy the whole earth.
The Wisdom of God
23 Listen and hear my voice. Listen and hear my words. 24 Does the farmer plow all the time to plant seed? Does he keep on turning and digging up the ground? 25 When he gets the ground ready to plant, does he not sow dill seeds and cummin seeds and wheat in rows? Does he not put barley in its place, and rye in the right place? 26 For his God tells him what to do and teaches him the right way. 27 Dill is not crushed with a crushing object. And the wagon wheel is not rolled over cummin. But dill is beaten out with a stick, and cummin with a heavy stick. 28 Grain for bread is crushed. He does not keep on crushing it forever. When he drives his wagon-wheel over it with his horses, it does not crush it. 29 This also comes from the Lord of All, Who has given wonderful wise words and great wisdom.
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