Isaiah 10–11

Woe^q to those who make unjust laws,

to those who issue oppressive decrees,^r

to deprive^s the poor of their rights

and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,^t

making widows their prey

and robbing the fatherless.^u

What will you do on the day of reckoning,^v

when disaster^w comes from afar?

To whom will you run for help?^x

Where will you leave your riches?

Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives^y

or fall among the slain.^z

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,^a

his hand is still upraised.

God’s Judgment on Assyria

“Woe^a to the Assyrian,^b the rod^c of my anger,

in whose hand is the club^d of my wrath!^e

I send him against a godless^f nation,

I dispatch^g him against a people who anger me,^h

to seize loot and snatch plunder,ⁱ

and to trample^j them down like mud in the streets.

But this is not what he intends,^k

this is not what he has in mind;

his purpose is to destroy,

to put an end to many nations.

‘Are not my commanders^l all kings?’ he says.

‘Has not Kalno^m fared like Carchemish?ⁿ

Is not Hamath^o like Arpad,^p

and Samaria^q like Damascus?^r

As my hand seized the kingdoms of the idols,^s

kingdoms whose images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria—

shall I not deal with Jerusalem and her images

as I dealt with Samaria and her idols?^t’ ”

When the Lord has finished all his work^u against Mount Zion^v and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria^w for the willful pride^x of his heart and the haughty look^y in his eyes. For he says:

“ ‘By the strength of my hand^z I have done this,^a

and by my wisdom, because I have understanding.

I removed the boundaries of nations,

I plundered their treasures;^b

like a mighty one I subdued their kings.^c

As one reaches into a nest,^d

so my hand reached for the wealth^e of the nations;

as people gather abandoned eggs,

so I gathered all the countries;^f

not one flapped a wing,

or opened its mouth to chirp.^g’ ”

Does the ax raise itself above the one who swings it,

or the saw boast against the one who uses it?^h

As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up,

or a clubⁱ brandish one who is not wood!

Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,

will send a wasting disease^j upon his sturdy warriors;^k

under his pomp^l a fire^m will be kindled

like a blazing flame.

The Light of Israel will become a fire,ⁿ

their Holy One^o a flame;

in a single day it will burn and consume

his thorns^p and his briers.^q

The splendor of his forests^r and fertile fields

it will completely destroy,^s

as when sick people waste away.

And the remaining trees of his forests^t will be so few^u

that a child could write them down.

The Remnant of Israel

In that day^a the remnant of Israel,

the survivors^b of the house of Jacob,

will no longer rely^c on him

who struck them down^d

but will truly rely^e on the Lord,

the Holy One of Israel.^f

A remnant^g will return,^h a remnant of Jacob

will return to the Mighty God.ⁱ

Though your people be like the sand^j by the sea, Israel,

only a remnant will return.^k

Destruction has been decreed,^l

overwhelming and righteous.

The Lord, the Lord Almighty, will carry out

the destruction decreed^m upon the whole land.ⁿ

Therefore, this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:

“My people who live in Zion,^o

do not be afraid^p of the Assyrians,

who beat^q you with a rod^r

and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did.

Very soon^s my anger against you will end

and my wrath^t will be directed to their destruction.^u”

The Lord Almighty will lash^v them with a whip,

as when he struck down Midian^w at the rock of Oreb;

and he will raise his staff^x over the waters,^y

as he did in Egypt.

In that day^z their burden^a will be lifted from your shoulders,

their yoke^b from your neck;^c

the yoke^d will be broken

because you have grown so fat.

They enter Aiath;

they pass through Migron;^e

they store supplies^f at Mikmash.^g

They go over the pass, and say,

“We will camp overnight at Geba.^h”

Ramahⁱ trembles;

Gibeah^j of Saul flees.^k

Cry out, Daughter Gallim!^l

Listen, Laishah!

Poor Anathoth!^m

Madmenah is in flight;

the people of Gebim take cover.

This day they will halt at Nob;ⁿ

they will shake their fist^o

at the mount of Daughter Zion,^p

at the hill of Jerusalem.

See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,

will lop off^q the boughs with great power.

The lofty trees will be felled,^r

the tall^s ones will be brought low.^t

He will cut down^u the forest thickets with an ax;

Lebanon^v will fall before the Mighty One.^w

The Branch From Jesse

A shoot^a will come up from the stump^b of Jesse;^c

from his roots a Branch^d will bear fruit.^e

The Spirit^f of the Lord will rest on him—

the Spirit of wisdom^g and of understanding,

the Spirit of counsel and of might,^h

the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—

and he will delight in the fearⁱ of the Lord.

He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,^j

or decide by what he hears with his ears;^k

but with righteousness^l he will judge the needy,^m

with justiceⁿ he will give decisions for the poor^o of the earth.

He will strike^p the earth with the rod of his mouth;^q

with the breath^r of his lips he will slay the wicked.^s

Righteousness will be his belt^t

and faithfulness^u the sash around his waist.^v

The wolf will live with the lamb,^w

the leopard will lie down with the goat,

the calf and the lion and the yearling together;

and a little child will lead them.

The cow will feed with the bear,

their young will lie down together,

and the lion will eat straw like the ox.^x

Infants^y will play near the hole of the cobra;

young children will put their hands into the viper’s^z nest.

They will neither harm nor destroy^a

on all my holy mountain,^b

for the earth^c will be filled with the knowledge^d of the Lord

as the waters cover the sea.

In that day^e the Root of Jesse^f will stand as a banner^g for the peoples; the nations^h will rally to him,ⁱ and his resting place^j will be glorious.^k In that day^l the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant^m of his people from Assyria,ⁿ from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt,^o from Cush,^p from Elam,^q from Babylonia, from Hamath^r and from the islands^s of the Mediterranean.^t

He will raise a banner^u for the nations

and gather^v the exiles of Israel;^w

he will assemble the scattered people^x of Judah

from the four quarters of the earth.^y

Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish,

and Judah’s enemies will be destroyed;

Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah,

nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim.^z

They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia^a to the west;

together they will plunder the people to the east.^b

They will lay hands on Edom^c and Moab,^d

and the Ammonites^e will be subject to them.^f

The Lord will dry up^g

the gulf of the Egyptian sea;

with a scorching wind^h he will sweep his handⁱ

over the Euphrates River.^j

He will break it up into seven streams

so that anyone can cross over in sandals.^k

There will be a highway^l for the remnant^m of his people

that is left from Assyria,ⁿ

as there was for Israel

when they came up from Egypt.^o