Isaiah 28:1-13 ▼

1 Woe, to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, and the withering flower, the beauty of his glory, which is at the head of the valley of fatness, those having been struck down by wine!

2 Behold, a mighty and strong one is unto the Lord, like a storm of hail and a tempest of destruction, like a flood of mighty waters overflowing, He will bring it to the ground with the hand.

3 With his feet, the pride of the crown of the drunkards of Ephraim will be trampled.

4 The fading flower, the beauty of his glory that is on the head of the valley of fatness, will be like a ripe fig before summer, which the one seeing it sees, and with it still in his palm, he swallows it.

5 In that day YHWH of Hosts will be a crown of glory and a diadem of beauty for the remnant of His people,

6 and as a spirit of justice for the one sitting in judgment, and as strength for those turning back the battle at the gate.

7 And also these through wine have erred, and with strong drink have wandered; priest and prophet have erred through strong drink and are swallowed up by the wine, they go astray through strong drink; they err in vision, they have stumbled in judgment.

8 For all the tables are full of vomit and filth without a place to stand.

9 To whom will He teach knowledge? And to whom will he explain the message? Those weaned from milk? Those removed from the breasts?

10 For, “Order on order, order on order; line on line, line on line; a little here, a little there.”

11 For with mocking lips and a foreign tongue He will speak to this people,

12 to whom He said: “This is the resting, may they give rest to the weary, and this is the refreshing,” they were not willing to listen.

13 And the word of YHWH will become to them “Order on order, order on order; line on line, line on line; a little here, a little there,” that they might go and stumble backward, and be broken and ensnared and captured.