Isaiah 32

Chapter 32

The Glorious Future

¹Behold, a ^aking will reign righteously

And princes will rule justly.

²Each will be like a ^arefuge from the wind

And a shelter from the storm,

Like ^1bstreams of water in a dry country,

Like the shade of a ²huge rock in ³a parched land.

³Then ^athe eyes of those who see will not be ¹blinded,

And the ears of those who hear will listen.

⁴The ¹mind of the ^ahasty will discern the ²truth,

And the tongue of the stammerers will hasten to speak clearly.

⁵No longer will the ^afool be called noble,

Or the rogue be spoken of as generous.

⁶For a fool speaks nonsense,

And his heart ^1ainclines toward wickedness:

To practice ^bungodliness and to speak error against the Lord,

To ^2ckeep the hungry person unsatisfied

And ³to withhold drink from the thirsty.

⁷As for a rogue, his weapons are evil;

He ^adevises wicked schemes

To ^bdestroy the afflicted with ¹slander,

^cEven though the needy one speaks ²what is right.

⁸But ^athe noble man devises noble plans;

And by noble plans he stands.

⁹Rise up, you ^awomen who are at ease,

And hear my voice;

^bGive ear to my word,

You complacent daughters.

¹⁰Within a year and a few days

You will be troubled, O complacent daughters;

^aFor the vintage is ended,

And the fruit gathering will not come.

¹¹Tremble, you women who are at ease;

^aBe troubled, you complacent daughters;

^bStrip, undress and put sackcloth on your waist,

^12aBeat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,

^13aFor the land of my people in which thorns and briars shall come up;

Yea, for all the joyful houses and for the ^bjubilant city.

¹⁴Because ^athe palace has been abandoned, the ¹populated ^bcity forsaken.

²Hill and watch-tower have become ^ccaves forever,

A delight for ^dwild donkeys, a pasture for flocks;

¹⁵Until the ^aSpirit is poured out upon us from on high,

And the wilderness becomes a ^bfertile field,

And the fertile field is considered as a forest.

¹⁶Then ^ajustice will dwell in the wilderness

And righteousness will abide in the fertile field.

¹⁷And the ^awork of righteousness will be peace,

And the service of righteousness, ^bquietness and ¹confidence forever.

¹⁸Then my people will live in a ^apeaceful habitation,

And in secure dwellings and in undisturbed ^bresting places;

¹⁹And it will ^ahail when the ^bforest comes down,

And ^cthe city will be utterly laid low.

²⁰How ^ablessed will you be, you who sow beside all waters,

Who ¹let out freely the ox and the donkey.