Judgment on Ephraim and Jerusalem

28 Ah, the proud crown of ythe drunkards of Ephraim,

and the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

which is on the head of the rich valley of those overcome with wine!

2  Behold, the Lord has zone who is mighty and strong;

like a storm of hail, a destroying tempest,

like aa storm of mighty, overflowing waters,

he casts down to the earth with his hand.

3  bThe proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim

will be trodden underfoot;

4  cand the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

which is on the head of the rich valley,

will be like da first-ripe fig1 before the summer:

when someone sees it, he swallows it

as soon as it is in his hand.

5  eIn that day the Lord of hosts will be a crown of glory,2

and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people,

6  and fa spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment,

and gstrength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.

7  hThese also reel with wine

and istagger with strong drink;

the priest and jthe prophet reel with strong drink,

they are swallowed by3 wine,

they stagger with strong drink,

they reel in vision,

they stumble in giving judgment.

8  For all tables are full of filthy vomit,

with no space left.

9  k“To whom will he teach knowledge,

and to whom will he explain the message?

Those who are weaned from the milk,

those taken from the breast?

10  For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

line upon line, line upon line,

here a little, there a little.”

11  lFor by people of strange lips

and with a foreign tongue

the Lord will speak to this people,

12  to whom he has said,

m“This is rest;

give rest to the weary;

and this is repose”;

yet they would not hear.

13  And the word of the Lord will be to them

precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

line upon line, line upon line,

here a little, there a little,

nthat they may go, and fall backward,

and be broken, and snared, and taken.

A Cornerstone in Zion

14  Therefore hear the word of the Lord, you oscoffers,

who rule this people in Jerusalem!

15  Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,

and with Sheol we have an agreement,

when the poverwhelming whip passes through

it will not come to us,

for we have made qlies our refuge,

and in falsehood we have taken shelter”;

16  therefore thus says the Lord God,

r“Behold, I am the one who has laid4 as a foundation sin Zion,

a stone, a tested stone,

a precious cornerstone, of a sure foundation:

‘Whoever believes will not be in haste.’

17  And I will make justice tthe line,

and righteousness tthe plumb line;

and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,

and waters will overwhelm the shelter.”

18  Then uyour covenant with death will be annulled,

and your agreement with Sheol will not stand;

when the overwhelming scourge passes through,

you will be beaten down by it.

19  As often as it passes through it will take you;

vfor morning by morning it will pass through,

by day and by night;

and it will be wsheer terror to understand the message.

20  For the bed is too short to stretch oneself on,

and the covering too narrow to wrap oneself in.

21  For the Lord will rise up xas on Mount Perazim;

yas in the Valley of zGibeon he will be roused;

to do his deed—strange is his deed!

and to work his work—alien is his work!

22  Now therefore do not ascoff,

lest your bonds be made strong;

for I have heard ba decree of destruction

from the Lord God of hosts against the whole land.

23  Give ear, and hear my voice;

give attention, and hear my speech.

24  Does he who plows for sowing plow continually?

Does he continually open and harrow his ground?

25  cWhen he has leveled its surface,

does he not scatter dill, sow cumin,

and put in wheat in rows

and barley in its proper place,

and emmer5 as the border?

26  dFor he is rightly instructed;

his God teaches him.

27  Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,

nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin,

but dill is beaten out with a stick,

and cumin with a rod.

28  Does one crush grain for bread?

No, he does not thresh it forever;6

when he drives his cart wheel over it

with his horses, he does not crush it.

29  This also comes from the Lord of hosts;

he is ewonderful in counsel

and excellent in wisdom.