Isaiah 4
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 4
1 Seven women will take hold of one man[a]
on that day, saying:
“We will eat our own food
and wear our own clothing;
Only let your name be given us,
put an end to our disgrace!”
Jerusalem Purified
2 [b]On that day,
The branch[c] of the Lord will be beauty and glory,
and the fruit of the land will be honor and splendor
for the survivors of Israel.
3 Everyone who remains in Zion,
everyone left in Jerusalem
Will be called holy:
everyone inscribed for life[d] in Jerusalem.(A)
4 When the Lord washes away
the filth of the daughters of Zion,
And purges Jerusalem’s blood from her midst
with a blast of judgment, a searing blast,(B)
5 Then will the Lord create,
over the whole site of Mount Zion
and over her place of assembly,
A smoking cloud by day
and a light of flaming fire by night.(C)
6 For over all, his glory will be shelter and protection:
shade from the parching heat of day,
refuge and cover from storm and rain.(D)
Footnotes
- 4:1 Seven women…one man: deportation (cf. note on 3:1–12) would result in a disproportion of the sexes and leave the female population without enough male partners. The women are willing to marry, not for support, but to avoid disgrace.
- 4:2–6 Usually judged a later addition to the oracles of Isaiah. It relieves the threatening tone of the surrounding chaps. 3 and 5.
- 4:2 Branch: the term (Heb. semah) that is sometimes used of the ideal Davidic king of the future (cf. Jer 23:5; 33:15; Zec 3:8; 6:12). However, the parallel “fruit of the land” does not favor that usage here.
- 4:3 Inscribed for life: in God’s list of the elect; cf. Ex 32:32.
Isaiah 4
Holman Christian Standard Bible
4 On that day seven women
will seize one man,(A) saying,
“We will eat our own bread
and provide our own clothing.
Just let us be called by your name.
Take away our disgrace.”(B)
Zion’s Future Glory
2 On that day the Branch of[a] the Lord will be beautiful and glorious,(C) and the fruit of the land(D) will be the pride and glory(E) of Israel’s survivors.(F) 3 Whoever remains in Zion and whoever is left in Jerusalem(G) will be called holy(H)—all in Jerusalem who are destined to live(I)— 4 when the Lord has washed away the filth(J) of the daughters of Zion and cleansed the bloodguilt(K) from the heart of Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment(L) and a spirit of burning.(M) 5 Then the Lord will create(N) a cloud of smoke by day(O) and a glowing flame of fire by night over the entire site of Mount Zion and over its assemblies. For there will be a canopy over all the glory,[b] 6 and there will be a booth for shade from heat by day, and a refuge and shelter from storm and rain.(P)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 4:2 Or plant
- Isaiah 4:5 Or For glory will be a canopy over all
Isaiah 4
King James Version
4 And in that day seven women shall take hold of one man, saying, We will eat our own bread, and wear our own apparel: only let us be called by thy name, to take away our reproach.
2 In that day shall the branch of the Lord be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent and comely for them that are escaped of Israel.
3 And it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written among the living in Jerusalem:
4 When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning.
5 And the Lord will create upon every dwelling place of mount Zion, and upon her assemblies, a cloud and smoke by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night: for upon all the glory shall be a defence.
6 And there shall be a tabernacle for a shadow in the day time from the heat, and for a place of refuge, and for a covert from storm and from rain.
Isaiah 4
Contemporary English Version
4 When this happens, seven women will grab the same man, and each of them will say, “I'll buy my own food and clothes! Just marry me and take away my disgrace.”[a]
The Lord Will Bless His People Who Survive
2 The time is coming when the Lord will make his land fruitful and glorious again, and the people of Israel who survive will take great pride in what the land produces. 3 Everyone who is left alive in Jerusalem will be called special, 4 after the Lord sends a fiery judgment to clean the city and its people of their violent deeds.
5 (A) Then the Lord will cover the whole city and its meeting places with a thick cloud each day and with a flaming fire[b] each night. God's own glory will be like a huge tent that covers everything. 6 It will provide shade from the heat of the sun and a place of shelter and protection from storms and rain.
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