Isaiah 10

1 Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and to the writers that write perverseness;2 to turn aside the needy from justice, and to rob the poor of my people of their right, that widows may be their spoil, and that they may make the fatherless their prey!3 And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory?4 They shall only bow down under the prisoners, and shall fall under the slain. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.5 Ho Assyrian, the rod of mine anger, the staff in whose hand is mine indignation!6 I will send him against a profane nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge, to take the spoil, and to take the prey, and to tread them down like the mire of the streets.7 Howbeit he meaneth not so, neither doth his heart think so; but it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few.8 For he saith, Are not my princes all of them kings?9 Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arpad? is not Samaria as Damascus?10 As my hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images did excel them of Jerusalem and of Samaria;11 shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols?12 Wherefore it shall come to pass, that, when the Lord hath performed his whole work upon mount Zion and on Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his high looks.13 For he hath said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; for I have understanding: and I have removed the bounds of the peoples, and have robbed their treasures, and like a valiant man I have brought down them that sit on thrones:14 and my hand hath found as a nest the riches of the peoples; and as one gathereth eggs that are forsaken, have I gathered all the earth: and there was none that moved the wing, or that opened the mouth, or chirped.15 Shall the axe boast itself against him that heweth therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that wieldeth it? as if a rod should wield them that lift it up, or as if a staff should lift up him that is not wood.16 Therefore will the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory there shall be kindled a burning like the burning of fire.17 And the light of Israel will be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame; and it will burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day.18 And he will consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and it shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth.19 And the remnant of the trees of his forest shall be few, so that a child may write them.20 And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and they that are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again lean upon him that smote them, but shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.21 A remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God.22 For though thy people, Israel, be as the sand of the sea, only a remnant of them shall return: a destruction is determined, overflowing with righteousness.23 For a full end, and that determined, will the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, make in the midst of all the earth.24 Therefore thus saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian, though he smite thee with the rod, and lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt.25 For yet a very little while, and the indignation against thee shall be accomplished, and mine anger shall be directed to his destruction.26 And Jehovah of hosts will stir up against him a scourge, as in the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb: and his rod will be over the sea, and he will lift it up after the manner of Egypt.27 And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall depart from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed by reason of fatness.28 He is come to Aiath, he is passed through Migron; at Michmash he layeth up his baggage;29 they are gone over the pass; they have taken up their lodging at Geba; Ramah trembleth; Gibeah of Saul is fled.30 Cry aloud with thy voice, O daughter of Gallim! hearken, O Laishah! O thou poor Anathoth!31 Madmenah is a fugitive; the inhabitants of Gebim flee for safety.32 This very day shall he halt at Nob: he shaketh his hand at the mount of the daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.33 Behold, the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, will lop the boughs with terror: and the high of stature shall be hewn down, and the lofty shall be brought low.34 And he will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one.

ISAIAH 10

1 You people are in for trouble! You have made cruel and unfair laws 2 that let you cheat the poor and needy and rob widows and orphans. 3 But what will you do when you are fiercely attacked and punished by foreigners? Where will you run for help? Where will you hide your valuables?

4 How will you escape being capturedt or killed? The Lord is still angry, and he isn't through with you yet!t

The Lord's Purpose //and the King of Assyria

5  t The Lord says:
I am furious! And I will use the king of Assyriat as a club 6 to beat down you godless people. I am angry with you, and I will send him to attack you. He will take what he wants and walk on you like mud in the streets.

7 He has even bigger plans in mind, because he wants to destroy many nations.

8 The king of Assyria says:
My army commanders are kings! 9 They have already capturedt the cities of Calno, Carchemish, Hamath, Arpad, Samaria, and Damascus.

10-11 t The gods of Jerusalem and Samaria are weaker than the gods of those powerful nations. And I will destroy Jerusalem, together with its gods and idols, just as I did Samaria.
12 The Lord will do what he has planned against Jerusalem and Mount Zion. Then he will punish the proud and boastful king of Assyria,

13 who says:
I did these things by my own power because I am smart and clever. I attacked kings like a wild bull, and I took the land and the treasures of their nations.

14 I have conquered the whole world! And it was easier than taking eggs from an unguarded nest. No one even flapped a wing or made a peep.
15 King of Assyria, can an ax or a saw overpower the one who uses it? Can a wooden pole lift whoever holds it? 16 The mighty [Lord] All-Powerful will send a terrible disease to strike down your army, and you will burn with fever under your royal robes. 17 The holy God, who is the light of Israel, will turn into a fire, and in one day you will go up in flames, just like a thornbush. 18 The Lord will make your beautiful forests and fertile fields slowly rot.

19 There will be so few trees that even a young child can count them.

Only a Few //Will Come Back

23 The [Lord] All-Powerful has promised that everyone on this eartht will be punished.

24 Now the [Lord] God All-Powerful says to his people in Jerusalem:
The Assyrians will beat you with sticks and abuse you, just as the Egyptians did. But don't be afraid of them. 25 Soon I will stop being angry with you, and I will punish them for their crimes.t 26 I will beat the Assyrians with a whip, as I did the people of Midian near the rock at Oreb. And I will show the same mighty power that I used when I made a path through the sea in Egypt.

27 Then they will no longer rule your nation. All will go well for you, t and your burden will be lifted.
28 Enemy troops have reached the town of Aiath.t They have gone through Migron, and they stored their supplies at Michmash, 29 before crossing the valley and spending the night at Geba.t The people of Ramah are terrified; everyone in Gibeah, the hometown of Saul, has run away. 30 Loud crying can be heard in the towns of Gallim, Laishah, and sorrowful Anathoth. 31 No one is left in Madmenah or Gebim.

32 Today the enemy will camp at Nobt and shake a threatening fist at Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

33 But the [Lord] All-Powerful
will use his fearsome might
to bring down the tallest trees
and chop off every branch.

34 With an ax, the glorious Lord
will destroy every tree
in the forests of Lebanon.t