Isaiah 27–28

¹In that day lay a charge doth Jehovah, With his sword—the sharp, and the great, and the strong, On leviathan—a fleeing serpent, And on leviathan—a crooked serpent, And He hath slain the dragon that is in the sea. ²In that day, ‘A desirable vineyard,’ respond ye to her, ³I, Jehovah, am its keeper, every moment I water it, Lest any lay a charge against it, Night and day I keep it! ⁴Fury is not in Me; Who giveth Me a brier—a thorn in battle? I step into it, I burn it at once. ⁵Or—he doth take hold on My strength, He doth make peace with Me, Peace he doth make with Me. ⁶Those coming in He causeth to take root, Jacob doth blossom, and flourished hath Israel, And they have filled the face of the world with increase.

⁷As the smiting of his smiter hath He smitten him? As the slaying of his slain doth He slay? ⁸In measure, in sending it forth, thou strivest with it, He hath taken away by His sharp wind, In the day of an east wind, ⁹Therefore by this is the iniquity of Jacob covered, And this is all the fruit—To take away his sin, in His setting all the stones of an altar, As chalkstones beaten in pieces, They rise not—shrines and images. ¹⁰For the fenced city is alone, A habitation cast out and forsaken as a wilderness, There doth the calf delight, And there it lieth down, And hath consumed its branches. ¹¹In the withering of its branch it is broken off, Women are coming in setting it on fire, For it is not a people of understanding, Therefore pity it not doth its Maker, And its Former doth not favour it. ¹²And it hath come to pass, in that day, Beat out doth Jehovah from the branch of the river, Unto the stream of Egypt, And ye are gathered one by one, O sons of Israel. ¹³And it hath come to pass, in that day, It is blown with a great trumpet, And come in have those perishing in the land of Asshur, And those cast out in the land of Egypt, And have bowed themselves to Jehovah, In the holy mount—in Jerusalem!

Chapter 28

¹Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim. And the fading flower of the beauty of his glory, That is on the head of the fat valley of the broken down of wine. ²Lo, a mighty and strong one is to the Lord, As a storm of hail—a destructive shower, As an inundation of mighty waters overflowing, He cast down to the earth with the hand. ³By feet trodden down is the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim, ⁴And the fading flower of the beauty of his glory That is on the head of the fat valley, Hath been as its first-fruit before summer, That its beholder seeth, While it is yet in his hand he swalloweth it. ⁵In that day is Jehovah of Hosts For a crown of beauty, and for a diadem of glory, To the remnant of His people. ⁶And for a spirit of judgment To him who is sitting in the judgment, And for might to those turning back the battle to the gate. ⁷And even these through wine have erred, And through strong drink have wandered, Priest and prophet erred through strong drink, They have been swallowed up of the wine, They wandered because of the strong drink, They have erred in seeing, They have stumbled judicially. ⁸For all tables have been full of vomit, Filth—without place!

⁹By whom doth He teach knowledge? And by whom doth He cause to understand the report? The weaned from milk, the removed from breasts, ¹⁰For rule is on rule, rule on rule, line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there, ¹¹For by scorned lip, and by another tongue, Doth He speak unto this people. ¹²Unto whom He hath said, ‘This is the rest, give ye rest to the weary, And this—the refreshing:’ And they have not been willing to hear, ¹³And to whom a word of Jehovah hath been, Rule on rule, rule on rule, line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there, So that they go and have stumbled backward, And been broken, and snared, and captured.

¹⁴Therefore, hear a word of Jehovah, ye men of scorning, Ruling this people that is in Jerusalem. ¹⁵Because ye have said: ‘We have made a covenant with death, And with Sheol we have made a provision, An overflowing scourge, when it passeth over, Doth not meet us, Though we have made a lie our refuge, And in falsehood have been hidden.’ ¹⁶Therefore, thus said the Lord Jehovah: ‘Lo, I am laying a foundation in Zion, A stone—a tried stone, a corner stone precious, a settled foundation, He who is believing doth not make haste. ¹⁷And I have put judgment for a line, And righteousness for a plummet, And sweep away doth hail the refuge of lies, And the secret hiding-place do waters overflow. ¹⁸And disannulled hath been your covenant with death, And your provision with Sheol doth not stand, An overflowing scourge, when it passeth over, Then ye have been to it for a treading-place. ¹⁹From the fulness of its passing over it taketh you, For morning by morning it passeth over, By day and by night, And it hath been only a trembling to consider the report. ²⁰For shorter hath been the bed Than to stretch one’s self out in, And the covering hath been narrower Than to wrap one’s self up in. ²¹For as at mount Perazim rise doth Jehovah, As at the valley in Gibeon He is troubled, To do His work—strange is His work, And to do His deed—strange is His deed.’ ²²And now, show not yourselves scorners, Lest strong be your bands, For a consumption, that is determined, I have heard, by the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, Is for all the land.

²³Give ear, and hear my voice, Attend, and hear my saying: ²⁴The whole day plougheth the ploughman to sow? He openeth and harroweth his ground! ²⁵Hath he not, if he have made level its face, Then scattered fitches, and cummin sprinkle, And hath placed the principal wheat, And the appointed barley, And the rie in its own border? ²⁶And instruct him for judgment doth his God, He doth direct him. ²⁷For not with a sharp-pointed thing threshed are fitches, And the wheel of a cart on cummin turned round, For with a staff beaten out are fitches, And cummin with a rod. ²⁸Bread -corn is beaten small, For not for ever doth he sorely thresh it, Nor crushed it hath a wheel of his cart, Nor do his hoofs beat it small. ²⁹Even this from Jehovah of Hosts hath gone out, He hath made counsel wonderful, He hath made wisdom great!

Chapter 29