Isaiah 28 — Side by side (ASV, WEB, BBE)

1Woe to the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley of them that are overcome with wine!

1Ho! crown of pride of those who are given up to wine in Ephraim, and the dead flower of his glory which is on the head of those who are overcome by strong drink!

2Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one; as a tempest of hail, a destroying storm, as a tempest of mighty waters overflowing, will he cast down to the earth with the hand.

2See, the Lord has a strong and cruel one; like a rain of ice, a storm of destruction, like the overflowing of a strong river, he will violently overcome them.

3The crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim shall be trodden under foot:

3The crown of pride of those who are given up to wine in Ephraim will be crushed under foot;

4and the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be as the first-ripe fig before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.

4And the dead flower of his glory, which is on the head of the fertile valley, will be like the first early fruit before the summer; which a man takes and puts in his mouth the minute he sees it.

5In that day will Jehovah of hosts become a crown of glory, and a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people;

5In that day will the Lord of armies be a crown of glory, and a fair ornament, to the rest of his people;

6and a spirit of justice to him that sitteth in judgment, and strength to them that turn back the battle at the gate.

6And a spirit of wisdom to the judge, and strength to those who keep back the attackers at the door of the town.

7And even these reel with wine, and stagger with strong drink; the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they stagger with strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.

7And further, these are uncertain through wine, and have gone out of the right way through strong drink: the priest and the prophet are uncertain through strong drink, they are overcome by wine, they have gone out of the way through strong drink; their vision is false, they go wrong in their decisions.

8For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean.

8For all the tables are covered with coughed-up food, so that there is not a clean place.

9Whom will he teach knowledge? and whom will he make to understand the message? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts?

9To whom will he give knowledge? and to whom will he make clear the word? Will it be to those who have newly given up milk, and who have only now been taken from the breast?

10For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little.

10For it is one rule after another; one line after another; here a little, there a little.

11Nay, but bymen of strange lips and with another tongue will he speak to this people;

11No, but with broken talk, and with a strange tongue, he will give his word to this people:

12to whom he said, This is the rest, give ye rest to him that is weary; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.

12To whom he said, This is the rest, give rest to him who is tired; and by this you may get new strength; but they would not give ear.

13Therefore shall the word of Jehovah be unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little; that they may go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

13For this cause the word of the Lord will be to them rule after rule, line after line, here a little, there a little; so that they may go on their way, and falling back may be broken, and taken in the net.

14Wherefore hear the word of Jehovah, ye scoffers, that rule this people that is in Jerusalem:

14Give ear then to the word of the Lord, you men of pride, the rulers of this people in Jerusalem:

15Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us; for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

15Because you have said, We have made death our friend, and with the underworld we have made an agreement; when the overflowing waters come through they will not come near us; for we are looking to false words for help, taking cover in what is untrue:

16therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner-stone of sure foundation: he that believeth shall not be in haste.

16For this cause says the Lord God, See, I am placing in Zion as a base, a stone, a tested stone, an angle-stone which is certain and of great value: and he who has faith will not give way.

17And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plummet; and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding-place.

17And I will make right decision the measuring-line, and righteousness the weight: and the ice-storm will take away the safe place of false words, and the secret place will be covered by the flowing waters.

18And your covenant with death shall be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.

18And the help you were looking for from death will come to nothing, and your agreement with the underworld will be broken; when the overflowing waters come through, then you will be overcome by them.

19As often as it passeth through, it shall take you; for morning by morning shall it pass through, by day and by night: and it shall be nought but terror to understand the message.

19Whenever they come through they will overtake you; for they will come through morning after morning, by day and by night: and the news will be nothing but fear.

20For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it; and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it.

20For the bed is not long enough for a man to be stretched out on: and the cover is not wide enough for him to be covered with.

21For Jehovah will rise up as in mount Perazim, he will be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon; that he may do his work, his strange work, and bring to pass his act, his strange act.

21For the Lord will come up as on Mount Perazim, he will be moved to wrath as in the valley of Gibeon; so that he may do his work--strange is his work; and give effect to his act--unnatural is his act.

22Now therefore be ye not scoffers, lest your bonds be made strong; for a decree of destruction have I heard from the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, upon the whole earth.

22And now, take care that you do not make sport of him, or your bands will be made strong; for I have had word from the Lord, the Lord of armies, of an end, of a complete end, which is to come on all the land.

23Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.

23Let your ears be open to my voice; give attention to what I say.

24Doth he that ploweth to sow plow continually? doth he continually open and harrow his ground?

24Is the ploughman for ever ploughing? does he not get the earth ready and broken up for the seed?

25When he hath levelled the face thereof, doth he not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cummin, and put in the wheat in rows, and the barley in the appointed place, and the spelt in the border thereof?

25When the face of the earth has been levelled, does he not put in the different sorts of seed, and the grain in lines, and the barley in its place, and the spelt at the edge?

26For his God doth instruct him aright, and doth teach him.

26For his God is his teacher, giving him the knowledge of these things.

27For the fitches are not threshed with a sharp threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin; but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod.

27For the fitches are not crushed with a sharp instrument, and a cart-wheel is not rolled over the cummin; but the grain of the fitches is hammered out with a stick, and of the cummin with a rod.

28Bread grain is ground; for he will not be always threshing it: and though the wheel of his cart and his horses scatter it, he doth not grind it.

28Is the grain for bread crushed? He does not go on crushing it for ever, but he lets his cart-wheels and his horses go over it without crushing it.

29This also cometh forth from Jehovah of hosts, who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in wisdom.

29This comes from the Lord of armies, purposing wonders, and wise in all his acts.