Isaiah 3:1-7 - Compare All Versions

Share

See now, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water, the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter. “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.” People will oppress each other— man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored. A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!” But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.”

For behold, the Lord GOD of hosts is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah support and supply, all support of bread, and all support of water; the mighty man and the soldier, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor and the skillful magician and the expert in charms. And I will make boys their princes, and infants shall rule over them. And the people will oppress one another, every one his fellow and every one his neighbor; the youth will be insolent to the elder, and the despised to the honorable. For a man will take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying: “You have a cloak; you shall be our leader, and this heap of ruins shall be under your rule”; in that day he will speak out, saying: “I will not be a healer; in my house there is neither bread nor cloak; you shall not make me leader of the people.”

The Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, will take away from Jerusalem and Judah everything they depend on: every bit of bread and every drop of water, all their heroes and soldiers, judges and prophets, fortune-tellers and elders, army officers and high officials, advisers, skilled sorcerers, and astrologers. I will make boys their leaders, and toddlers their rulers. People will oppress each other— man against man, neighbor against neighbor. Young people will insult their elders, and vulgar people will sneer at the honorable. In those days a man will say to his brother, “Since you have a coat, you be our leader! Take charge of this heap of ruins!” But he will reply, “No! I can’t help. I don’t have any extra food or clothes. Don’t put me in charge!”

Note this: The Lord GOD of Armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and from Judah every kind of security: the entire supply of bread and water, heroes and warriors,  judges and prophets, fortune-tellers and elders, commanders of fifty and dignitaries, counselors, cunning magicians,  and necromancers.  “I will make youths their leaders,  and unstable rulers  will govern them.” The people will oppress one another,  man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will act arrogantly toward the old, and the worthless toward the honorable. A man will even seize his brother in his father’s house, saying, “You have a cloak — you be our leader! This heap of rubble will be under your control.” On that day he will cry out, saying, “I’m not a healer. I don’t even have food or clothing in my house. Don’t make me the leader of the people! ”

For, behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water, the mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient, the captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator. And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them. And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable. When a man shall take hold of his brother of the house of his father, saying, Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand: in that day shall he swear, saying, I will not be an healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: make me not a ruler of the people.

For behold, the Lord, the LORD of hosts, Takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah The stock and the store, The whole supply of bread and the whole supply of water; The mighty man and the man of war, The judge and the prophet, And the diviner and the elder; The captain of fifty and the honorable man, The counselor and the skillful artisan, And the expert enchanter. “I will give children to be their princes, And babes shall rule over them. The people will be oppressed, Every one by another and every one by his neighbor; The child will be insolent toward the elder, And the base toward the honorable.” When a man takes hold of his brother In the house of his father, saying, “You have clothing; You be our ruler, And let these ruins be under your power,” In that day he will protest, saying, “I cannot cure your ills, For in my house is neither food nor clothing; Do not make me a ruler of the people.”

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.’

For behold, the Lord GOD of armies is going to remove from Jerusalem and Judah Both supply and support, the entire supply of bread And the entire supply of water; The mighty man and the warrior, The judge and the prophet, The diviner and the elder, The captain of fifty and the esteemed person, The counselor and the expert artisan, And the skillful enchanter. And I will make mere boys their leaders, And mischievous children will rule over them, And the people will be oppressed, Each one by another, and each one by his neighbor; The youth will assault the elder, And the contemptible person will assault the one honored. When a man lays hold of his brother in his father’s house, saying, “You have a cloak, you shall be our ruler! And these ruins will be under your authority,” He will protest on that day, saying, “I will not be your healer, For in my house there is neither bread nor cloak; You should not appoint me ruler of the people.”

Listen 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; The brave man and the warrior [He is also removing], The judge and the prophet, The diviner and the elder, The captain of fifty and the man of honor, The counselor and the expert artisan, And the skillful enchanter. And I will make mere boys their princes, And capricious (impulsive, unpredictable) children will rule over them. And 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]. When 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,” He will protest on that day, saying, “I will not be a governor; For in my house there is neither bread nor clothing; You should not make me a judge and ruler of the people.”

Look, the sovereign LORD who commands armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and Judah every source of security, including all the food and water, the mighty men and warriors, judges and prophets, omen readers and leaders, captains of groups of fifty, the respected citizens, advisers and those skilled in magical arts, and those who know incantations. The LORD says, “I will make youths their officials; malicious young men will rule over them. The people will treat each other harshly; men will oppose each other; neighbors will fight. Youths will proudly defy the elderly and riffraff will challenge those who were once respected. Indeed, a man will grab his brother right in his father’s house and say, ‘You own a coat – you be our leader! This heap of ruins will be under your control.’ At that time the brother will shout, ‘I am no doctor, I have no food or coat in my house; don’t make me a leader of the people!’”