Isaiah 3
3
Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah
1#These verses suggest deportation, with resulting social upheaval, and thus may date to sometime after Ahaz submitted as vassal to Assyria. The deportation practiced by Assyria, as later by Babylon, exiled the leading elements of society, such as those named in vv. 2–3; cf. 2 Kgs 24:12, 14–16 for a similar list of those exiled by the Babylonians. Denuding society of its leaders opens the way to near anarchy and a situation in which leadership is seized by or thrust upon those unqualified for it (vv. 5–7). The situation has been provoked by sinfully inept leadership (vv. 4, 8–9, 12). Some suggest that vv. 4 and 12 refer to Ahaz, who may have come to the throne at an early age. Verses 10–11 form a wisdom couplet that was inserted later. The Lord, the Lord of hosts,
will take away from Jerusalem and from Judah
Support and staff—
all support of bread,
all support of water:#Lv 26:26; Ez 4:16.
2Hero and warrior,
judge and prophet, diviner and elder,
3The captain of fifty and the nobleman,
counselor, skilled magician, and expert charmer.
4I will place boys as their princes;
the fickle will govern them,#Eccl 10:16.
5And the people will oppress one another,
yes, each one the neighbor.
The child will be insolent toward the elder,
and the base toward the honorable.#Mi 7:5–6.
6When anyone seizes a brother
in their father’s house, saying,
“You have clothes! Be our ruler,
and take in hand this ruin!”—
7He will cry out in that day:
“I cannot be a healer,#Is 1:6.
when there is neither bread nor clothing in my own house!
You will not make me a ruler of the people!”
8Jerusalem has stumbled, Judah has fallen;
for their speech and deeds affront the Lord,
a provocation in the sight of his majesty.
9Their very look bears witness against them;#Jer 3:3.
they boast of their sin like Sodom,#Is 1:10.
They do not hide it.
Woe to them!
They deal out evil to themselves.
10Happy the just, for it will go well with them,
the fruit of their works they will eat.
11Woe to the wicked! It will go ill with them,
with the work of their hands they will be repaid.
12My people—infants oppress them,
women rule over them!
My people, your leaders deceive you,#Mi 3:5.
they confuse the paths you should follow.
13#The princes and the elders, here accused of despoiling the poor, are the very ones who should be their defenders. Loot: by the Hebrew term (gazela) Isaiah conveys the idea of violent seizure, though 10:1–4 suggests the poor could be plundered by legal means. The Lord rises to accuse,
stands to try his people.
14The Lord enters into judgment
with the people’s elders and princes:
You, you who have devoured the vineyard;
the loot wrested from the poor is in your houses.
15What do you mean by crushing my people,
and grinding down the faces of the poor?
says the Lord, the God of hosts.
The Haughty Women of Zion#3:16–4:1] Here and again in 32:9–14 Isaiah condemns the women of the ruling class for their part in Jerusalem’s plight.
16The Lord said:#Is 32:9–14; Ez 16:50; Am 4:1–3.
Because the daughters of Zion are haughty,
and walk with necks outstretched,
Ogling and mincing as they go,
their anklets tinkling with every step,
17The Lord shall cover the scalps of Zion’s daughters with scabs,
and the Lord shall lay bare their heads.#A shaven head is a mark of social disgrace; cf. Nm 5:18. #Jer 13:26; Ez 16:37.
18#The long list of women’s apparel in these verses suggests luxury and vanity; it contains a number of rare words, and the precise meaning of many of the terms is uncertain. On that day the Lord will do away with the finery of the anklets, sunbursts, and crescents; 19the pendants, bracelets, and veils; 20the headdresses, bangles, cinctures, perfume boxes, and amulets; 21the signet rings, and the nose rings; 22the court dresses, wraps, cloaks, and purses; 23the lace gowns, linen tunics, turbans, and shawls.
24Instead of perfume there will be stench,
instead of a girdle, a rope,
And instead of elaborate coiffure, baldness;
instead of a rich gown, a sackcloth skirt.
Then, instead of beauty, shame.
25Your men will fall by the sword,
and your champions,#Your men…your champions: the second person feminine singular pronoun here shows that the prophet has shifted his attention from the women of Zion to the personified city of Zion. in war;#Hos 14:1.
26Her gates will lament and mourn,
as the city sits desolate on the ground.#Is 47:1; Lam 2:10.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Isaiah 3
3
God Will Remove the Leaders
1Listen carefully, the Lord God of hosts is removing from Jerusalem and from Judah
Both supply and support, the whole supply of bread
And the whole supply of water;
2The brave man and the warrior [He is also removing],
The judge and the prophet,
The diviner and the elder,
3The captain of fifty and the man of honor,
The counselor and the expert artisan,
And the skillful enchanter.
4And I will make mere boys their princes,
And capricious (impulsive, unpredictable) children will rule over them.
5And the people will be oppressed,
Each one by another, and each one by his neighbor;
The boy will be arrogant and insolent toward the elder
And the vulgar (common) toward the honorable [person of rank].
6When a man takes hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying,
“You have a robe, you shall be our judge and ruler,
And this pile of ruins will be under your control,”
7He will protest on that day, saying,
“I will not be a #Or binder of wounds.governor;
For in my house there is neither bread nor clothing;
You should not make me a judge and ruler of the people.”
8For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen,
Because their words and their actions are against the Lord,
To rebel against His glorious presence and defiantly provoke Him.
9Their partiality testifies against them,
They display their sin like Sodom;
They do not even hide it.
Woe (judgment is coming) to #Lit their soul.them!
For they have brought evil on themselves [as a reward].
10Say to the righteous that it will go well with them,
For they will eat the fruit of their [righteous] actions.
11Woe (judgment is coming) to the wicked! It shall go badly with him,
For what his hand has done shall be done to him.
12O My people! Children are their oppressors,
And women rule over them.
O My people! Your leaders lead you astray
And confuse (destroy, swallow up) the direction of your paths.
God Will Judge
13The Lord rises to contend,
And stands to judge the people.
14The Lord enters into judgment with the elders of His people and their princes,
“For it is you who have devoured the vineyard [with your oppression, you have robbed the people and ruined the country];
The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15What do you mean by crushing My people
And grinding the face of the poor?”
Declares the Lord God of hosts.
Judah’s Women Denounced
16Moreover, the Lord said, “Because the daughters of Zion are proud
And walk with outstretched necks and seductive (flirtatious, alluring) eyes,
And trip along with mincing steps and an affected gait
And walk with jingling #Decorative chains attached from one ankle to the other to insure a measured gait.anklets on their feet,
17Therefore the Lord will afflict the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion with scabs [making them bald],
And the Lord will expose their foreheads (send them into captivity).”
18In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, [braided] caps, crescent [head] ornaments, 19dangling earrings, bracelets, and the hanging veils and scarves, 20head wraps (turbans), [short, jingling] ankle chains, sashes, perfume boxes, amulets (charms), 21signet [finger] rings, nose rings, 22festival robes, outer tunics, shawls, handbags, 23hand mirrors, [fine linen] undergarments, headbands, and veils [covering the entire body].
24Now it will come to pass that instead of the sweet fragrance of spices there will be [the stench of] rottenness;
Instead of a belt, a rope;
Instead of well-set hair, baldness;
Instead of fine clothes, a robe of sackcloth;
And branding [of captives by the scorching heat] instead of beauty.
25Your men will fall by the sword
And your mighty men in battle.
26And Jerusalem’s gates will lament (cry out in grief) and mourn [as those who wail for the dead];
And she, being ruined and desolate, will sit upon the ground.
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