Isaiah — Chapter 3
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1For behold, the Lord GOD of Hosts is about to remove from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: the whole supply of food and water,
2the mighty man and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the soothsayer and the elder,
3the commander of fifty and the dignitary, the counselor, the cunning magician, and the clever enchanter.
4“I will make mere lads their leaders, and children will rule over them.”
5The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will rise up against the old, and the base against the honorable.
6A man will seize his brother within his father’s house: “You have a cloak—you be our leader! Take charge of this heap of rubble.”
7On that day he will cry aloud: “I am not a healer. I have no food or clothing in my house. Do not make me leader of the people!”
8For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen because they spoke and acted against the LORD, defying His glorious presence.
9The expression on their faces testifies against them, and like Sodom they flaunt their sin; they do not conceal it. Woe to them, for they have brought disaster upon themselves.
10Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their labor.
11Woe to the wicked; disaster is upon them! For they will be repaid with what their hands have done.
12Youths oppress My people, and women rule over them. O My people, your guides mislead you; they turn you from your paths.
13The LORD arises to contend; He stands to judge the people.
14The LORD brings this charge against the elders and leaders of His people: “You have devoured the vineyard; the plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15Why do you crush My people and grind the faces of the poor?” declares the Lord GOD of Hosts.
16The LORD also says: “Because the daughters of Zion are haughty—walking with heads held high and wanton eyes, prancing and skipping as they go, jingling the bracelets on their ankles—
17the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will make their foreheads bare.”
18In that day the Lord will take away their finery: their anklets and headbands and crescents;
19their pendants, bracelets, and veils;
20their headdresses, ankle chains, and sashes; their perfume bottles and charms;
21their signet rings and nose rings;
22their festive robes, capes, cloaks, and purses;
23and their mirrors, linen garments, tiaras, and shawls.
24Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of styled hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, shame.
25Your men will fall by the sword, and your warriors in battle.
26And the gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.
1For, 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,
2The mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the prudent, and the ancient,
3The captain of fifty, and the honourable man, and the counsellor, and the cunning artificer, and the eloquent orator.
4And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.
5And 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.
6When 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:
7In 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.
8For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen: because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
9The shew of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have rewarded evil unto themselves.
10Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him.
12As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.
13The LORD standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge the people.
14The LORD will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses.
15What mean ye that ye beat my people to pieces, and grind the faces of the poor? saith the LORD GOD of hosts.
16Moreover the LORD saith, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with stretched forth necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet:
17Therefore the LORD will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will discover their secret parts.
18In that day the Lord will take away the bravery of their tinkling ornaments about their feet, and their cauls, and their round tires like the moon,
19The chains, and the bracelets, and the mufflers,
20The bonnets, and the ornaments of the legs, and the headbands, and the tablets, and the earrings,
21The rings, and nose jewels,
22The changeable suits of apparel, and the mantles, and the wimples, and the crisping pins,
23The glasses, and the fine linen, and the hoods, and the vails.
24And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.
25Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war.
26And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she being desolate shall sit upon the ground.
1For, behold, the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah stay and staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water;
2the mighty man, and the man of war; the judge, and the prophet, and the diviner, and the elder;
3the captain of fifty, and the honorable man, and the counsellor, and the expert artificer, and the skilful enchanter.
4And I will give children to be their princes, and babes shall rule over them.
5And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbor: the child shall behave himself proudly against the old man, and the base against the honorable.
6When a man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father, [saying], Thou hast clothing, be thou our ruler, and let this ruin be under thy hand;
7in that day shall he lift up [his voice], saying, I will not be a healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing: ye shall not make me ruler of the people.
8For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
9The show of their countenance doth witness against them; and they declare their sin as Sodom, they hide it not. Woe unto their soul! for they have done evil unto themselves.
10Say ye of the righteous, that [it shall be] well [with him]; for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.
11Woe unto the wicked! [it shall be] ill [with him]; for what his hands have done shall be done unto him.
12As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they that lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths.
13Jehovah standeth up to contend, and standeth to judge the peoples.
14Jehovah will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and the princes thereof: It is ye that have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses:
15what mean ye that ye crush my people, and grind the face of the poor? saith the Lord, Jehovah of hosts.
16Moreover Jehovah said, Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with outstretched necks and wanton eyes, walking and mincing as they go, and making a tinkling with their feet;
17therefore the Lord will smite with a scab the crown of the head of the daughters of Zion, and Jehovah will lay bare their secret parts.
18In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, and the cauls, and the crescents;
19the pendants, and the bracelets, and the mufflers;
20the headtires, and the ankle chains, and the sashes, and the perfume-boxes, and the amulets;
21the rings, and the nose-jewels;
22the festival robes, and the mantles, and the shawls, and the satchels;
23the hand-mirrors, and the fine linen, and the turbans, and the veils.
24And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet spices there shall be rottenness; and instead of a girdle, a rope; and instead of well set hair, baldness; and instead of a robe, a girding of sackcloth; branding instead of beauty.
25Thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy mighty in the war.
26And her gates shall lament and mourn; and she shall be desolate and sit upon the ground.
1Look, the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies is about to remove from Jerusalem and Judah every source of security, including all the food and water,
2the mighty men and warriors, judges and prophets, omen readers and leaders,
3captains of groups of 50, the respected citizens, advisers and those skilled in magical arts, and those who know incantations.
4The Lord says, “I will make youths their officials; malicious young men will rule over them.
5The 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.
6Indeed, 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.’
7At 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!’”
8Jerusalem certainly stumbles, Judah falls, for their words and their actions offend the Lord; they rebel against his royal authority.
9The look on their faces testifies to their guilt; like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. Woe to them! For they bring disaster on themselves.
10Tell the innocent it will go well with them, for they will be rewarded for what they have done.
11Woe to the wicked sinners! For they will get exactly what they deserve.
12Oppressors treat my people cruelly; creditors rule over them. My people, your leaders mislead you; they give you confusing directions.
13The Lord takes his position to judge; he stands up to pass sentence on his people.
14The Lord comes to pronounce judgment on the leaders of his people and their officials. He says, “It is you who have ruined the vineyard! You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor.
15Why do you crush my people and grind the faces of the poor?” The Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies has spoken.
16The Lord says, “The women of Zion are proud. They walk with their heads high and flirt with their eyes. They skip along and the jewelry on their ankles jingles.
17So the Lord will afflict the foreheads of Zion’s women with skin diseases; the Lord will make the front of their heads bald.”
18At that time the Lord will remove their beautiful ankle jewelry, neck ornaments, crescent-shaped ornaments,
19earrings, bracelets, veils,
20headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, amulets,
21rings, nose rings,
22festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses,
23garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns.
24A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, a rope will replace a belt, baldness will replace braided locks of hair, a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe, and a prisoner’s brand will replace beauty.
25Your men will fall by the sword, your strong men will die in battle.
26Her gates will mourn and lament; deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground.
1For, behold, the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah supply and support, the whole supply of bread, and the whole supply of water;
2the mighty man, the man of war, the judge, the prophet, the diviner, the elder,
3the captain of fifty, the honorable man, the counselor, the skilled craftsman, and the clever enchanter.
4I will give boys to be their princes, and children shall rule over them.
5The people will be oppressed, everyone by another, and everyone by his neighbor. The child will behave himself proudly against the old man, and the wicked against the honorable.
6Indeed a man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying, “You have clothing, you be our ruler, and let this ruin be under your hand.”
7In that day he will cry out, saying, “I will not be a healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing. You shall not make me ruler of the people.”
8For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Yahweh, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
9The look of their faces testify against them. They parade their sin like Sodom. They don’t hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought disaster upon themselves.
10Tell the righteous “Good!” For they shall eat the fruit of their deeds.
11Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them; for the deeds of his hands will be paid back to him.
12As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. My people, those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.
13Yahweh stands up to contend, and stands to judge the peoples.
14Yahweh will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and their leaders: “It is you who have eaten up the vineyard. The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15What do you mean that you crush my people, and grind the face of the poor?” says the Lord, Yahweh of Armies.
16Moreover Yahweh said, “Because the daughters of Zion are haughty, and walk with outstretched necks and flirting eyes, walking to trip as they go, jingling ornaments on their feet;
17therefore the Lord brings sores on the crown of the head of the women of Zion, and Yahweh will make their scalps bald.”
18In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, the headbands, the crescent necklaces,
19the earrings, the bracelets, the veils,
20the headdresses, the ankle chains, the sashes, the perfume bottles, the charms,
21the signet rings, the nose rings,
22the fine robes, the capes, the cloaks, the purses,
23the hand mirrors, the fine linen garments, the tiaras, and the shawls.
24It shall happen that instead of sweet spices, there shall be rottenness; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of well set hair, baldness; instead of a robe, a wearing of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty.
25Your men shall fall by the sword, and your mighty in the war.
26Her gates shall lament and mourn; and she shall be desolate and sit on the ground.
Summary
God announces he is stripping Jerusalem and Judah of every stabilizing support — food, water, warriors, judges, elders, and skilled leaders — leaving the nation to be ruled by children and the incompetent (vv. 1-5). Society collapses into such disorder that no one wants the burden of leadership (vv. 6-9), though Isaiah pauses to affirm that it will go well for the righteous and badly for the wicked (vv. 10-11). He indicts the leaders for crushing the poor and grinding down the needy (vv. 12-15), then turns to the proud women of Zion, who parade in vanity and jewelry; God will replace their finery with baldness, sackcloth, and shame as the men fall in battle and the city itself sits desolate on the ground (vv. 16-26).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Jerusalem (v.1, v.8): Capital of Judah; the holy city where the Temple stood.
- Sodom (v.9): City destroyed by God for its wickedness (Genesis 19).
- Zion (v.16, v.17): The hill on which Jerusalem/the Temple stood; often used poetically for God's dwelling.
Places on this map
- JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik examines how God's judgment works through removal of competent leadership, the social chaos that follows, and the detailed description of Jerusalem's proud women.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- BibleProject: bibleproject.com On the whole book: the promised king who runs through Isaiah from beginning to end.
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Isaiah -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- Judgment by Removal (vv.1-3) — God's discipline here isn't fire from heaven but the quiet withdrawal of capable leaders, provision, and skill, leaving chaos to do the rest. What steady support in your life might actually be God's sustaining hand rather than something you built yourself?
- When Age No Longer Commands Respect (v.5) — Isaiah describes a society inverted, where the young are insolent toward the old and the base toward the honorable. How do you honor those with more experience and wisdom, even when it's culturally easier to dismiss them?
- Sin Without Shame (v.9) — Judah's sin is described as open and unhidden, worn like the public wickedness of Sodom. What has become so normal to you or your culture that you've stopped feeling any conviction about it?
- God Defends the Powerless (v.15) — God confronts the leaders who grind the faces of the poor, calling them "my people" as if the offense were personal. How do you treat people who have nothing to offer you in return?
- What Pride Dresses Up (vv.16-24) — The finery and haughty display of Zion's daughters will be stripped away and replaced with shame. What do you lean on to project status or feel secure, and what would be left of your identity without it?