Isaiah 24

1 Behold, Yahweh makes the earth empty, makes it waste, turns it upside down, and scatters its inhabitants.

Some day, Yahweh is going to destroy everything on the earth. He will devastate it and cause it to become a desert and scatter its people.

2 It will be as with the people, so with the priest; as with the servant, so with his master; as with the maid, so with her mistress; as with the buyer, so with the seller; as with the creditor, so with the debtor; as with the taker of interest, so with the giver of interest.

He will scatter everyone— priests and common people, servants and their masters, maids and their mistresses, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, people who owe money and people who are owed money.

3 The earth will be utterly emptied and utterly laid waste; for Yahweh has spoken this word.

Nothing that is worth anything will be left on earth; everything valuable will be destroyed. [That will surely happen because] Yahweh has said it.

4 The earth mourns and fades away. The world languishes and fades away. The lofty people of the earth languish.

[Everything on] the earth will dry up and die [DOU]; its important people will become weak and unimportant.

5 The earth also is polluted under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant.

The earth has become unacceptable to Yahweh because the people who live on it have disobeyed his laws; they have rejected the agreement that he intended to last forever.

6 Therefore the curse has devoured the earth, and those who dwell therein are found guilty. Therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left.

Therefore, [Yahweh] will curse the earth; the people who live on it must be punished because of the sins that they have committed. They will be destroyed by fire, and [only a] few people will remain [alive].

7 The new wine mourns. The vine languishes. All the merry-hearted sigh.

The grapevines will wither, and there will be no [grapes to make] wine. All [the people] who were previously happy will then groan and mourn.

8 The mirth of tambourines ceases. The sound of those who rejoice ends. The joy of the harp ceases.

People will no longer play cheerful songs with tambourines, people will no longer play joyfully on their harps, and people will no longer shout noisily [during their celebrations].

9 They will not drink wine with a song. Strong drink will be bitter to those who drink it.

People will no longer sing while they drink wine, and [all] their alcoholic drinks will taste bitter.

10 The confused city is broken down. Every house is shut up, that no man may come in.

[Towns and] cities will be desolate; every house will be locked to prevent thieves from entering.

11 There is a crying in the streets because of the wine. All joy is darkened. The mirth of the land is gone.

[Mobs] will gather in the streets, wanting wine; no one on the earth will be happy [DOU] any more.

12 The city is left in desolation, and the gate is struck with destruction.

Cities will be ruined and [all] their gates will be battered/broken into pieces.

13 For it will be so within the earth among the peoples, as the shaking of an olive tree, as the gleanings when the vintage is done.

It will be like that all over the earth: [there will only be a few people still alive], like what happens when [workers] beat all the olives off a tree [and there are only a few left], [or] when they harvest the grapes and there are only a few left [on the vines].

14 These shall lift up their voice. They will shout for the majesty of Yahweh. They cry aloud from the sea.

But [those who are left alive] will sing joyfully; people [in nations] to the west [of Israel] will declare that Yahweh is very great;

15 Therefore glorify Yahweh in the east, even the name of Yahweh, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea!

people in nations to the east [of Israel will also] praise Yahweh [MTY]; in countries across the sea, people will praise Yahweh, the God whom we Israelis [worship].

16 From the uttermost part of the earth have we heard songs. Glory to the righteous! But I said, “I pine away! I pine away! woe is me!” The treacherous have dealt treacherously. Yes, the treacherous have dealt very treacherously.

We will hear [people] in the most distant places on the earth singing praise to [Yahweh], the [truly] righteous one. But [now], I am [SYN] very sad. Weep for me, [because] I have become thin and weak. Terrible things are happening! Treacherous [people still] betray/deceive others everywhere [DOU].

17 Fear, the pit, and the snare are on you who inhabit the earth.

You people all over the earth, you will be terrified, and you will fall into deep pits and traps/snares.

18 It will happen that he who flees from the noise of the fear will fall into the pit; and he who comes up out of the middle of the pit will be taken in the snare; for the windows on high are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble.

Those who [try to] flee because they are terrified will fall into [deep] pits, and those who climb out of the pits will be caught by traps/snares. The sky will split open and torrents [SIM] [of rain will fall]; the foundations of the earth will shake.

19 The earth is utterly broken. The earth is torn apart. The earth is shaken violently.

The earth will split apart and be shattered; it will shake violently.

20 The earth will stagger like a drunken man, and will sway back and forth like a hammock. Its disobedience will be heavy on it, and it will fall and not rise again.

[It will be as though] the earth will stagger like [SIM] a drunk; it will shake like [SIM] a hut [shakes in a windstorm]. It will collapse and not [be able to] rise again, [because] the guilt of the people who rebel [against Yahweh] is very great.

21 It will happen in that day that Yahweh will punish the army of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth on the earth.

At that time, Yahweh will punish the [wicked] powerful beings in the skies and the wicked kings on the earth.

22 They will be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and will be shut up in the prison; and after many days they will be visited.

They will [all] be gathered together and thrown into a dungeon/pit. They will be shut/locked in that dungeon/pit, and later they will be punished.

23 Then the moon will be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for Yahweh of Armies will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem; and glory will be before his elders.

At that time the light of the moon and the sun will be lessened; [it will be as though] they are ashamed [in the presence of] Yahweh, because he, the Commander of the armies of angels, will rule gloriously (on Zion Hill/in Jerusalem), in the presence of the leaders [of his people].