Isaiah 3–4

Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

3See now, the Lord,

the Lord Almighty,

is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah

both supply and support:^c

all supplies of food^d and all supplies of water,^e

²the hero and the warrior,^f

the judge and the prophet,

the diviner^g and the elder,^h

³the captain of fiftyⁱ and the man of rank,^j

the counselor, skilled craftsman^k and clever enchanter.^l

⁴“I will make mere youths their officials;

children will rule over them.”^m

⁵People will oppress each other—

man against man, neighbor against neighbor.ⁿ

The young will rise up against the old,

the nobody against the honored.

⁶A man will seize one of his brothers

in his father’s house, and say,

“You have a cloak, you be our leader;

take charge of this heap of ruins!”

⁷But in that day^o he will cry out,

“I have no remedy.^p

I have no food^q or clothing in my house;

do not make me the leader of the people.”^r

⁸Jerusalem staggers,

Judah is falling;^s

their words^t and deeds^u are against the Lord,

defying^v his glorious presence.

⁹The look on their faces testifies^w against them;

they parade their sin like Sodom;^x

they do not hide it.

Woe to them!

They have brought disaster^y upon themselves.

¹⁰Tell the righteous it will be well^z with them,

for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.^a

¹¹Woe to the wicked!^b

Disaster^c is upon them!

They will be paid back^d

for what their hands have done.^e

¹²Youths^f oppress my people,

women rule over them.

My people, your guides lead you astray;^g

they turn you from the path.

¹³The Lord takes his place in court;^h

he rises to judgeⁱ the people.

¹⁴The Lord enters into judgment^j

against the elders and leaders of his people:

“It is you who have ruined my vineyard;

the plunder^k from the poor^l is in your houses.

¹⁵What do you mean by crushing my people^m

and grindingⁿ the faces of the poor?”^o

declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.^p

¹⁶The Lord says,

“The women of Zion^q are haughty,

walking along with outstretched necks,^r

flirting with their eyes,

strutting along with swaying hips,

with ornaments jingling on their ankles.

¹⁷Therefore the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion;

the Lord will make their scalps bald.^s”

¹⁸In that day^t the Lord will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces,^{u 19}the earrings and bracelets^v and veils,^{w 20}the headdresses^x and anklets and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms, ²¹the signet rings and nose rings,^{y 22}the fine robes and the capes and cloaks,^z the purses ²³and mirrors, and the linen garments^a and tiaras^b and shawls.

²⁴Instead of fragrance^c there will be a stench;^d

instead of a sash,^e a rope;

instead of well-dressed hair, baldness;^f

instead of fine clothing, sackcloth;^g

instead of beauty,^h branding.ⁱ

²⁵Your men will fall by the sword,^j

your warriors in battle.^k

²⁶The gates^l of Zion will lament and mourn;^m

destitute,ⁿ she will sit on the ground.^o

4In that day^p seven women

will take hold of one man^q

and say, “We will eat our own food^r

and provide our own clothes;

only let us be called by your name.

Take away our disgrace!”^s

The Branch of the Lord

²In that day^t the Branch of the Lord^u will be beautiful^v and glorious, and the fruit^w of the land will be the pride and glory^x of the survivors^y in Israel. ³Those who are left in Zion,^z who remain^a in Jerusalem, will be called holy,^b all who are recorded^c among the living in Jerusalem. ⁴The Lord will wash away the filth^d of the women of Zion;^e he will cleanse^f the bloodstains^g from Jerusalem by a spirit^a of judgment^h and a spirit^b of fire.^{i 5}Then the Lord will create^j over all of Mount Zion^k and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night;^l over everything the glory^cm will be a canopy.^{n 6}It will be a shelter^o and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge^p and hiding place from the storm^q and rain.