Isaiah 28
28
Judgment on Ephraim and Judah
1Oh, the majestic garland of Ephraim’s drunks
and the fading flower of its splendid beauty
on the head that flows with perfume#28.1 DSS (1QIsaa)
of those hammered with wine.
2Look! The Lord has someone who is powerful and strong;
like a hailstorm, a disastrous tempest,
like a downpour of mighty, overflowing waters,
he can level them to the ground with his hand.
3The majestic garland of Ephraim’s drunks
will be trampled underfoot.
4The withered flower, which is a thing of beauty#28.4 Heb uncertain
as it sits on the head of those bloated with fat,#28.4 Or at the head of the fat valley
will be like an early fig before the summer harvest:
whoever sees it swallows it as soon as it is in hand.
5On that day, the LORD of heavenly forces will be a splendid garland and a beautiful wreath for the people who survive, 6and a spirit of justice for the one who sits in judgment, and a strength for those who repel the assault at the gate.
7These also stagger from wine and stumble from beer:
priest and prophet stagger from beer;
they are confused by wine;
they stray on account of beer;
they err when receiving visions;
they stumble when making judgments.
8All the tables are covered with vomit;
filth overruns the place.
9To whom will God teach knowledge?
To whom will he explain the message?
To those just weaned from milk?
To those who have hardly outgrown the breast?
10It is “tsav letsav, tsav letsav; qav leqav, qav leqav,”#28.10 A Hebrew version of baby talk or gibberish
a little of this, a little of that.
11With derisive speech and a foreign tongue,
he will speak to this people.
12He has said to them,
“This is the place of rest;
give rest to the weary;
this is the place of repose”;
but they refused to listen.
13So the LORD’s word will be for them:
“tsav letsav, tsav letsav; qav leqav, qav leqav,”
a little of this, a little of that.
So that they will go and stagger backward,
they will be broken, snared, and captured.
The covenant with death overturned
14Therefore, hear the LORD’s word,
you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem.
15You said, “We’ve cut a deal with death;#28.15 Heb Maveth
with the underworld#28.15 Heb Sheol we made a pact.
When the overflowing flood passes through, it won’t reach us;
for we have made lies our hiding place,
and in falsehood we take shelter.”
16Therefore, the LORD God says:
Look! I’m laying in Zion a stone,
a tested stone, a valuable cornerstone,
a sure foundation:
the one who trusts won’t tremble.
17I will make justice the measuring line
and righteousness the plumb line.
But hail will sweep away the hiding place of lies,
and water will overflow the shelter.
18Your deal with death#28.18 Heb Maveth will be dissolved,
and your pact with the grave#28.18 Heb Sheol won’t stand.
The rushing flood: when it passes through,
you will be annihilated by it.
19Every time it passes through it will take you,
for morning by morning it will pass,
by day and by night.
It will be nothing but terror to understand the message.
20The bed is too short to stretch out,
and the shroud is too narrow to cover oneself.
21Just as on Mount Perazim, the LORD will rise up;
as in the Gibeon Valley he will rage to do his deed—strange is his deed!—
And to work his work—foreign is his work!
22So now stop your scoffing,
or your chains will be tightened,
because destruction has been ordered—I have heard it!—
by the LORD God of heavenly forces against the whole land.
Plowing and threshing
23Listen and hear my voice;
pay attention and hear my word:
24Does the plowman plow without stopping for planting,
opening and harrowing their ground?
25When he has smoothed its surface,
doesn’t he scatter fennel,#28.25 Or black cumin and sow cumin,
and plant wheat and barley in their places,
and spelt as a border?
26They are properly ordered;
their God directs them.#28.26 Or waters them
27Fennel#28.27 Or black cumin isn’t threshed with a threshing sledge,
nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin,
but fennel#28.27 Or black cumin is beaten with a staff,
and cumin with a rod.
28Bread grain is crushed,
but the thresher#28.28 DSS (1QIsaa) doesn’t thresh it forever.
He drives the cart wheel over it;
he spreads it out but doesn’t crush it.
29This also comes from the LORD of heavenly forces,
who gives wondrous counsel and increases wisdom.
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Isaiah 28: CEB
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 28
28
Judgment against the Leaders of Ephraim
1Ah! The garland of the pride of the drunkards of Ephraim
and the withering flower of the glory of his beauty,
which is at the head of the rich valley,#Literally “a valley of fat” ones overcome#Literally “ones struck” with wine!
2Look! The Lord has a mighty and strong one,
like a rainstorm of hail, a wind storm of destruction,
like a rainstorm of mighty overflowing waters,
he will put them to the earth with his hand.
3The garland of the pride of the drunkards of Ephraim will be trampled#The Hebrew is plural by feet,
4and the withering flower of the glory of its beauty which is at the head of the rich valley#Literally “a valley of fat” will be like its early fig before summer,
which the one who sees it swallows#Literally “Which, when the one who sees it sees it, he swallows it” while it is still in his hand.
5In that day, Yahweh of hosts will become a garland of glory
and a diadem of beauty to the remnant of his people,
6and a spirit of justice to the one who sits over judgment,
and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7And these also stagger because of wine
and stagger because of strong drink;
priest and prophet stagger because of strong drink;
they are confused#Or “swallowed” because of wine.
They stagger because of strong drink;
they err in vision.
They stagger in the rendering of a decision,
8for all the tables are full of disgusting vomit, with no place left.#Literally “without a place”
9To whom will he teach knowledge,
and to whom will he explain the message?
Those who are weaned from milk,
those taken from the breast?
10For it is blah-blah upon blah-blah,
blah-blah upon blah-blah,
gah-gah upon gah-gah,
gah-gah upon gah-gah,#In this context, the Hebrew expressions tsaw-tsaw and qaw-qaw are likely meant to sound like baby talk, but they could mean “command upon command” and “rule upon rule”
a little here, a little there.
11For he will speak with stammering#Literally “stammer of lip” and another tongue to this people, 12to whom he has said,
“This is rest; give rest to the weary;
and this is repose”; yet#Or “and” they were not willing to hear.
13And to them the word of Yahweh will be
blah-blah upon blah-blah
blah-blah upon blah-blah
gah-gah upon gah-gah
gah-gah upon gah-gah,#In this context, the Hebrew expressions tsaw-tsaw and qaw-qaw are likely meant to sound like baby talk, but they could mean “command upon command” and “rule upon rule”
a little here, a little there,
so that they may go and stumble backward
and be broken and ensnared and captured.
The Cornerstone of Zion
14Therefore hear the word of Yahweh, men of mockery,
rulers of these people in Jerusalem:
15Because you have said,
“We have made#Literally “cut” a covenant with death,
and we have made an agreement with Sheol.
The overwhelming flood, when it passes through, will not come to us,
for we have made lies#Hebrew “lie” our refuge,
and we have hidden ourselves in falsehood.”
16Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this:
“Look! I am laying a stone in Zion,
a tested#Literally “testing” stone,
a precious cornerstone,
a founded foundation:
‘The one who trusts will not panic.’#Literally “hurry”
17And I will make justice the measuring line,
and righteousness the plumb line;
and hail will sweep away the refuge of lies,#Hebrew “lie”
and waters will flood over the hiding place.
18And your covenant with death will be annulled,
and your agreement with Sheol will not stand;
you will become a trampling place for the overwhelming flood when it passes through.
19As often as it passes through,#Literally “From enough his passing through” it will take you,
for morning by morning#Literally “in the morning in the morning” it will pass through,
in the day and in the night,
and understanding the message will be only terror.”
20For the bed is too short to stretch out on,#Literally “from stretching oneself”
and the covering is too narrow when wrapping oneself.
21For Yahweh will rise up as at Mount Perazim;
he will rave as in the valley at Gibeon
to do his deed—his deed is strange—
and to work his work—his work is alien!
22And now you must not scoff,
or your bonds will be strong,
for I have heard from the Lord, Yahweh of hosts:
complete destruction
decreed upon all the land.
A Parable of Yahweh’s Work
23Listen, and hear my voice!
Listen attentively, and hear my word!
24Is it all day that the plowman plows,
opens to sow seed, harrows his ground?
25When he has leveled its surface,#Literally “face” does he not scatter dill,
and sow cumin seed,
and plant#Literally “place” wheat in planted rows,#Hebrew “row”
and barley in an appointed place,
and spelt grain as its border?
26And his God instructs him about the prescription;#That is, “the proper way”
he teaches him.
27For dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge,
nor is a wheel of a utility cart rolled#Literally “turned” over cumin,
but dill is beaten out with a stick,
and cumin with a rod.
28Grain is crushed fine,
but certainly one does not thresh it forever;
and one drives the wheel of his cart,
but his horses do not crush it.
29This also comes forth from Yahweh of hosts.
He is wonderful in advice;
he makes great wisdom.
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