Be Wise and Trust the Lord – Isaiah 28:1-29
28 Woe to the crown, the pride of Ephraim’s drunkards! And woe to the fading flower, his glorious beauty! Woe to the city situated at the head of the fertile valley—the city that is the pride of those who are overcome with wine! (2) Look! The Lord has someone at his disposal that is powerful and strong—like a hailstorm, like a destructive wind, like a rainstorm with a flooding downpour, he will throw that city down to the ground with his hand. (3) The crown, the pride of Ephraim’s drunkards, will be trampled under foot. (4) The fading flower, his glorious beauty, situated at the head of the fertile valley, will be like the first ripe fig before harvest: when someone discovers it and sees its goodness, he picks it and immediately eats it up. (5) On that day Jehovah of hosts will become a glorious crown and a beautiful diadem for the remnant of his people. (6) He will be a Spirit of justice upon him who sits as judge, and a Spirit of strength upon those who repel the onslaught at the gate. (7) Even these men reel from wine and stagger from strong drink, namely, the priest and the prophet reel from strong drink, they are consumed by wine, they stagger from strong drink. Consequently, they misinterpret their visions and they stumble when they pronounce their judgments; (8) because every table is full of vomit and filth, without a single spot that is clean.
(9) To whom is he trying to impart knowledge? To whom is he explaining his message? Does he think he is speaking to children who have just been weaned from their mother’s milk, those who have just been taken from their mother’s breast?— (10) because his teaching is precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; a little teaching here, a little teaching there.
(11) On the contrary, by means of men whose lips utter strange words and who speak another language, Jehovah will speak to this people—(12) people to whom he said, This is the place of rest, give rest to the one who is weary! and, This is the place of refreshment! But they would not listen. (13) Therefore, the word of Jehovah to them shall be precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; a little teaching here, a little teaching there; so that they may continue on their way and fall backward, be injured, and be snared and be captured.
(14) Therefore, hear the word of Jehovah, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem. (15) Because you have said, We have made a covenant with death, and we have made a pact with Sheol; when the overwhelming scourge passes through the land it shall not reach us, for we have made deceit our refuge and we have taken shelter under deception; (16) therefore, this is what the Lord Jehovah says, Listen! I will lay a foundation stone in Zion, a stone that has been proven to be reliable, a precious cornerstone, for a secure foundation. He who trusts in it will not be panic-stricken. (17) Furthermore, I will use justice as the measuring rod and righteousness as the plumb line. But the hail will sweep away your refuge of deceit and the floodwaters will overflow your hiding place. (18) Your covenant with death shall be annulled and your pact with Sheol shall not stand. When the overflowing scourge passes through the land, you will be trampled down by it. (19) As often as it comes it will carry you away; morning after morning, by day and by night, it will sweep through the land—the report you receive will bring nothing but terror.
(20) The bed is too short to stretch out on, and the blanket is too narrow for a man to wrap around himself; (21) because Jehovah will rise up as he did at Mount Perazim, he will rouse himself as he did in the Valley Gibeon, in order that he may perform his work, his astonishing work, and accomplish his task, his strange task. (22) Now, therefore, do not go on being scoffers, or else your chains will be made stronger; for the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, has told me the destruction that has been decreed against the whole land.
(23) Listen, and hear my voice; pay attention, and understand what I am saying. (24) When a farmer plows the ground for planting, does he plow continually? Does he keep on breaking up and harrowing the soil? (25) After he has leveled the surface of the ground, does he not sow dill and scatter cumin? Does he not plant wheat in furrows, barley in its appointed plot, and spelt along the edge of the field? (26) He does so because his God instructs him and teaches him the right way. (27) Dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge, nor is a cartwheel rolled over cumin; on the contrary, dill is beaten out with a rod, and cumin with a stick. (28) Grain for making bread must be finely ground, so the farmer will not endlessly thresh it; for although his cartwheel and his horse may tread the grain, that cannot grind it finely enough. (29) All this knowledge comes from Jehovah of hosts, whose counsel is wonderful and whose wisdom is magnificent.
Now proceed to the next section of this study, entitled, Exploring the Passage.
