When God Rises to Judge

¹Behold—Yahweh , the Sovereign One,

the Commander of Angel Armies, is about to cut off

from Jerusalem and Judah every source of their

support and security, including all food supplies and water.

²He will remove their heroes and soldiers,

prophets and judges, their psychics and statesmen,

³their respected military leaders,

pillars of the community,

their counselors, skilled craftsmen,

and those professional charmers.

⁴I will make inexperienced youth their rulers,

and children will govern them.

⁵Everyone will take advantage of everyone else,

and neighbor will struggle against neighbor.

The youth will not respect their elders,

and the dishonorable will sneer at those worthy of honor.

⁶One man will even seize a relative

right in his father’s house and say ,

“At least you own a coat; you be our leader!

You can oversee this heap of ruins!”

⁷In that day he will cry out,

“I have no remedy for this mess !

I don’t have any food or clothes either,

so don’t make me your leader!”

⁸Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen

because their words and their works

are defiant before the face of the Lord’s glorious presence.

⁹The look on their impudent faces says it all,

for they publicly flaunt their sin like Sodom,

not even trying to hide it.

Woe to their souls, for they invite

disaster upon themselves.

¹⁰Yet reassure the righteous; it will go well with them!

They will fully enjoy the reward of their deeds.

¹¹But woe to the guilty,[#3:11 Isaiah used the phrase “woe to the guilty” twenty-two times. (One time he used it about himself.)]

for they will get fully what they deserve!

¹²My people, mockers exploit you

and creditors rule over you.

My people, your leaders mislead you

and confuse you with their guidance.

The Judge in His Courtroom

¹³Yahweh is taking his rightful place in court;

he is rising to judge his people.

¹⁴Yahweh comes to issue the guilty verdict

of the elders and leaders of his people, saying:

“You are the ones who have ruined the nation!

Your houses are full of what you’ve stolen from the poor!

¹⁵What gives you the right to crush my people

by shoving the faces of the poor into the dirt?”

Yahweh , the Sovereign One, Commander of Angel Armies,

has spoken.

Cleansing the Daughters of Zion

¹⁶Here is what Yahweh says:

“The daughters of Zion are proud,

walking about arrogantly with their noses in the air.

Their eyes are seductive as they skip along

with jewelry jingling on their ankles.

¹⁷So the Lord will afflict the foreheads[#3:17 The Hebrew is the name Adonai; also in v. 18.]

of the daughters of Zion with scabs;

Yahweh will make the front of their heads bald in that day.”

^18-19In that day, the Lord will strip away their vanity —

their beautiful ankle jewelry, necklaces, crescent pendants,

earrings, bracelets, and veils of shimmering gauze.

²⁰Gone will be their elaborate headdresses and ankle chains,

their sashes, sachets, and charms.

²¹He will snatch away their signet rings and nose rings,

²²their stately gowns, capes, shawls, cloaks, and purses,

²³hand mirrors, fine linen garments interwoven

with gold and purple, turbans, and long veils.

²⁴A stench will take the place of seductive perfumes;

a rope will take the place of a sash,

baldness for braided hair, rags instead of a fine robe,

and the brand of a captive instead of beauty.

²⁵Your men will fall on the battlefield

and your heroes will die in war.

²⁶Cries of mourning will be heard at the city gates;

with the anguish of such great loss,

she will sit down and grieve in the dirt.