Therefore the Lord does not rejoice over their young men, Nor does He have compassion on their orphans or their widows; For every one of them is godless and an evildoer, And every mouth is speaking foolishness. In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away, And His hand is still stretched out.

The officials of Zoan are mere fools; The advice of Pharaoh’s wisest advisers has become stupid. How can you say to Pharaoh, “I am a son of the wise, a son of ancient kings”?

The officials of Zoan have turned out to be fools, The officials of Memphis are deluded; Those who are the cornerstone of her tribes Have led Egypt astray.

No longer will the fool be called noble, Or the rogue be spoken of as generous.

For a fool speaks nonsense, And his heart inclines toward wickedness: To practice ungodliness and to speak error against the Lord, To keep the hungry person unsatisfied And to withhold drink from the thirsty.

A highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for the one who walks that way, And fools will not wander on it.

The Foolishness of Idolatry

Those who fashion an idol are all futile, and their treasured things are of no benefit; even their own witnesses fail to see or know, so that they will be put to shame.

Causing the omens of diviners to fail, Making fools of fortune-tellers; Causing wise men to turn back And making their knowledge ridiculous,