A Warning to the Northern Kingdom
1 The kingdom of Israel is doomed! Its glory is fading like the crowns of flowers on the heads of its drunken leaders. Their proud heads are well perfumed, but there they lie, dead drunk. 2 The Lord has someone strong and powerful ready to attack them, someone who will come like a hailstorm, like a torrent of rain, like a rushing, overpowering flood, and will overwhelm the land. 3 The pride of those drunken leaders will be trampled underfoot. 4 The fading glory of those proud leaders will disappear like the first figs of the season, picked and eaten as soon as they are ripe.
5 A day is coming when the Lord Almighty will be like a glorious crown of flowers for his people who survive. 6 He will give a sense of justice to those who serve as judges, and courage to those who defend the city gates from attack.
Isaiah and the Drunken Prophets of Judah
7 Even the prophets and the priests are so drunk that they stagger. They have drunk so much wine and liquor that they stumble in confusion. The prophets are too drunk to understand the visions that God sends, and the priests are too drunk to decide the cases that are brought to them. 8 The tables where they sit are all covered with vomit, and not a clean spot is left.
9 They complain about me. They say, “Who does that man think he's teaching? Who needs his message? It's only good for babies that have just stopped nursing! 10 He is trying to teach us letter by letter, line by line, lesson by lesson.”
11 If you won't listen to me, then God will use foreigners speaking some strange-sounding language to teach you a lesson. 12 He offered rest and comfort to all of you, but you refused to listen to him. 13 That is why the Lord is going to teach you letter by letter, line by line, lesson by lesson. Then you will stumble with every step you take. You will be wounded, trapped, and taken prisoner.
A Cornerstone for Zion
14 Now you arrogant leaders who rule here in Jerusalem over this people, listen to what the Lord is saying. 15 You boast that you have made a treaty with death and reached an agreement with the world of the dead. You are certain that disaster will spare you when it comes, because you depend on lies and deceit to keep you safe. 16 This, now, is what the Sovereign Lord says: “I am placing in Zion a foundation that is firm and strong. In it I am putting a solid cornerstone on which are written the words, ‘Faith that is firm is also patient.’ 17 Justice will be the measuring line for the foundation, and honesty will be its plumb line.”
Hailstorms will sweep away all the lies you depend on, and floods will destroy your security. 18 The treaty you have made with death will be abolished, and your agreement with the world of the dead will be canceled. When disaster sweeps down, you will be overcome. 19 It will strike you again and again, morning after morning. You will have to bear it day and night. Each new message from God will bring new terror! 20 You will be like the person in the proverb, who tries to sleep in a bed too short to stretch out on, with a blanket too narrow to wrap himself in. 21 The Lord will fight as he did at Mount Perazim and in the valley of Gibeon, in order to do what he intends to do—strange as his actions may seem. He will complete his work, his mysterious work.
22 Don't laugh at the warning I am giving you! If you do, it will be even harder for you to escape. I have heard the Lord Almighty's decision to destroy the whole country.
God's Wisdom
23 Listen to what I am saying; pay attention to what I am telling you. 24 Farmers don't constantly plow their fields and keep getting them ready for planting. 25 Once they have prepared the soil, they plant the seeds of herbs such as dill and cumin. They plant rows of wheat and barley, and at the edges of their fields they plant other grain. 26 They know how to do their work, because God has taught them. 27 They never use a heavy club to beat out dill seeds or cumin seeds; instead they use light sticks of the proper size. 28 They do not ruin the wheat by threshing it endlessly, and they know how to thresh it by driving a cart over it without bruising the grains. 29 All this wisdom comes from the Lord Almighty. The plans God makes are wise, and they always succeed.
1 Woe to the crowne of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim: for his glorious beautie shall be a fading flowre, which is vpon the head of the valley of them that be fat, and are ouercome with wine. 2 Beholde, the Lord hath a mightie and strong hoste, like a tempest of haile, and a whirlewinde that ouerthroweth, like a tempest of mightie waters that ouerflowe, which throwe to the ground mightily. 3 They shall be troden vnder foote, euen the crowne and the pride of the drunkards of Ephraim. 4 For his glorious beautie shall be a fading floure, which is vpon the head of the valley of them that be fatte, and as the hastie fruite afore sommer, which when hee that looketh vpon it, seeth it, while it is in his hand, he eateth it. 5 In that day shall the Lord of hostes be for a crowne of glory, and for a diademe of beautie vnto the residue of his people: 6 And for a spirite of iudgement to him that sitteth in iudgement, and for strength vnto them that turne away the battell to the gate. 7 But they haue erred because of wine, and are out of the way by strong drinke: the priest and the prophet haue erred by strong drinke: they are swallowed vp with wine: they haue gone astraye through strong drinke: they faile in vision: they stumble in iudgement. 8 For all their tables are full of filthy vomiting: no place is cleane. 9 Whome shall he teache knowledge? and whome shall he make to vnderstand the thinges that hee heareth? them that are weyned from the milke, and drawen from the breastes. 10 For precept must be vpon precept, precept vpon precept, line vnto line, line vnto line, there a litle, and there a litle. 11 For with a stammering tongue and with a strange language shall he speake vnto this people. 12 Vnto whome hee saide, This is the rest: giue rest to him that is weary: and this is the refreshing, but they would not heare. 13 Therefore shall the worde of the Lord be vnto them precept vpon precept, precept vpon precept, line vnto line, line vnto line, there a litle and there a litle, that they may goe, and fall backward, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken. 14 Wherefore, heare the worde of the Lord, ye scornefull men that rule this people, which is at Ierusalem. 15 Because ye haue said, We haue made a couenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement: though a scourge runne ouer, and passe through, it shall not come at vs: for we haue made falshood our refuge, and vnder vanitie are we hid, 16 Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I will laye in Zion a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation. Hee that beleeueth, shall not make haste. 17 Iudgement also will I laye to the rule, and righteousnesse to the balance, and the haile shall sweepe away the vaine confidence, and the waters shall ouerflowe the secret place. 18 And your couenant with death shalbe disanulled, and your agreement with hell shall not stand: when a scourge shall runne ouer and passe through, then shall ye be trode downe by it. 19 When it passeth ouer, it shall take you away: for it shall passe through euery morning in the day, and in the night, and there shalbe onely feare to make you to vnderstand the hearing. 20 For the bed is streight that it can not suffice, and the couering narowe that one can not wrappe himselfe. 21 For the Lord shall stand as in mount Perazim: hee shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that he may do his worke, his strage worke, and bring to passe his acte, his strange acte. 22 Nowe therefore be no mockers, least your bondes increase: for I haue heard of the Lord of hostes a consumption, euen determined vpon the whole earth. 23 Hearken ye, and heare my voyce: hearken ye, and heare my speach. 24 Doeth the plowe man plowe all the day, to sowe? doeth he open, and breake the clots of his ground? 25 When he hath made it plaine, wil he not then sowe the fitches, and sowe cummin, and cast in wheat by measure, and the appointed barly and rye in their place? 26 For his God doeth instruct him to haue discretion, and doeth teach him. 27 For fitches shall not be threshed with a threshing instrument, neither shall a cart wheele be turned about vpon the cummin: but ye fitches are beaten out with a staffe, and cummin with a rod. 28 Bread corne when it is threshed, hee doeth not alway thresh it, neither doeth the wheele of his cart still make a noyse, neither will he breake it with the teeth thereof. 29 This also commeth from the Lord of hostes, which is wonderfull in counsell, and excellent in workes.