Isaiah 3

Jerusalem on Its Last Legs

1-7 The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, is emptying Jerusalem and Judah Of all the basic necessities, plain bread and water to begin with. He's withdrawing police and protection, judges and courts, pastors and teachers, captains and generals, doctors and nurses, and, yes, even the repairmen and jacks-of-all-trades. He says, "I'll put little kids in charge of the city. Schoolboys and schoolgirls will order everyone around. People will be at each other's throats, stabbing one another in the back: Neighbor against neighbor, young against old, the no-account against the well-respected. One brother will grab another and say, 'You look like you've got a head on your shoulders. Do something! Get us out of this mess.' And he'll say, 'Me? Not me! I don't have a clue. Don't put me in charge of anything.'

8-9 "Jerusalem's on its last legs. Judah is soon down for the count. Everything people say and do is at cross-purposes with God, a slap in my face. Brazen in their depravity, they flaunt their sins like degenerate Sodom. Doom to their eternal souls! They've made their bed; now they'll sleep in it.

10-11 "Reassure the righteous that their good living will pay off. But doom to the wicked! Disaster! Everything they did will be done to them.

12 "Skinny kids terrorize my people. Silly girls bully them around. My dear people! Your leaders are taking you down a blind alley. They're sending you off on a wild-goose chase."

A City Brought to Her Knees by Her Sorrows

13-15 God enters the courtroom. He takes his place at the bench to judge his people. God calls for order in the court, hauls the leaders of his people into the dock: "You've played havoc with this country. Your houses are stuffed with what you've stolen from the poor. What is this anyway? Stomping on my people, grinding the faces of the poor into the dirt?" That's what the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says.

16-17 God says, "Zion women are stuck-up, prancing around in their high heels, Making eyes at all the men in the street, swinging their hips, Tossing their hair, gaudy and garish in cheap jewelry." The Master will fix it so those Zion women will all turn bald— Scabby, bald-headed women. The Master will do it.

18-23 The time is coming when the Master will strip them of their fancy baubles—the dangling earrings, anklets and bracelets, combs and mirrors and silk scarves, diamond brooches and pearl necklaces, the rings on their fingers and the rings on their toes, the latest fashions in hats, exotic perfumes and aphrodisiacs, gowns and capes, all the world's finest in fabrics and design.

24 Instead of wearing seductive scents, these women are going to smell like rotting cabbages; Instead of modeling flowing gowns, they'll be sporting rags; Instead of their stylish hairdos, scruffy heads; Instead of beauty marks, scabs and scars.

25-26 Your finest fighting men will be killed, your soldiers left dead on the battlefield. The entrance gate to Zion will be clotted with people mourning their dead— A city stooped under the weight of her loss, brought to her knees by her sorrows.

Isaiah 3

1 For, behold, the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah stay and staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water;2 the mighty man, and the man of war; the judge, and the prophet, and the diviner, and the elder;3 the captain of fifty, and the honorable man, and the counsellor, and the expert artificer, and the skilful enchanter.4 And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.5 And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbor: the child shall behave himself proudly against the old man, and the base against the honorable.6 When a man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand;7 in that day shall he lift up his voice, saying, I will not be a healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: ye shall not make me ruler of the people.8 For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to provoke the eyes of his glory.9 The show of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have done evil unto themselves.10 Say ye of the righteous, that it shall be well with him; for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.11 Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him; for what his hands have done shall be done unto him.12 As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they that lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.13 Jehovah standeth up to contend, and standeth to judge the peoples.14 Jehovah will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and the princes thereof: It is ye that have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses:15 what mean ye that ye crush my people, and grind the face of the poor? saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.16 Moreover Jehovah said, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with outstretched necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet;17 therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and Jehovah will lay bare their secret parts.18 In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, and the cauls, and the crescents;19 the pendants, and the bracelets, and the mufflers;20 the headtires, and the ankle chains, and the sashes, and the perfume-boxes, and the amulets;21 the rings, and the nose-jewels;22 the festival robes, and the mantles, and the shawls, and the satchels;23 the hand-mirrors, and the fine linen, and the turbans, and the veils.24 And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet spices there shall be rottenness; and instead of a girdle, a rope; and instead of well set hair, baldness; and instead of a robe, a girding of sackcloth; branding instead of beauty.25 Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war.26 And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she shall be desolate and sit upon the ground.