Isaiah 32

¹Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.

²And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.

³And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken.

⁴The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.

⁵The vile person shall be no more called liberal, nor the churl said to be bountiful.

⁶For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against the Lord, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.

⁷The instruments also of the churl are evil: he deviseth wicked devices to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaketh right.

⁸But the liberal deviseth liberal things; and by liberal things shall he stand.

⁹Rise up, ye women that are at ease; hear my voice, ye careless daughters; give ear unto my speech.

¹⁰Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless women: for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come.

¹¹Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones: strip you, and make you bare, and gird sackcloth upon your loins.

¹²They shall lament for the teats, for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.

¹³Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city:

¹⁴Because the palaces shall be forsaken; the multitude of the city shall be left; the forts and towers shall be for dens for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks;

¹⁵Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.

¹⁶Then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field.

¹⁷And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.

¹⁸And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;

¹⁹When it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city shall be low in a low place.

²⁰Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.

Isaiah 32

¹Behold, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice.

²Each will be like a shelter from the wind, a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in a dry land, like the shadow of a great rock in an arid land.

³Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed, and the ears of those who hear will listen.

⁴The mind of the rash will know and understand, and the stammering tongue will speak clearly and fluently.

⁵No longer will a fool be called noble, nor a scoundrel be respected.

⁶For a fool speaks foolishness; his mind plots iniquity. He practices ungodliness and speaks falsely about the LORD; he leaves the hungry empty and deprives the thirsty of drink.

⁷The weapons of the scoundrel are destructive; he hatches plots to destroy the poor with lies, even when the plea of the needy is just.

⁸But a noble man makes honorable plans; he stands up for worthy causes.

⁹Stand up, you complacent women; listen to me. Give ear to my word, you overconfident daughters.

¹⁰In a little more than a year you will tremble, O secure ones. For the grape harvest will fail and the fruit harvest will not arrive.

¹¹Shudder, you ladies of leisure; tremble, you daughters of complacency. Strip yourselves bare and put sackcloth around your waists.

¹²Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vines,

¹³and for the land of my people, overgrown with thorns and briers— even for every house of merriment in this city of revelry.

¹⁴For the palace will be forsaken, the busy city abandoned. The hill and the watchtower will become caves forever— the delight of wild donkeys and a pasture for flocks—

¹⁵until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high. Then the desert will be an orchard, and the orchard will seem like a forest.

¹⁶Then justice will inhabit the wilderness, and righteousness will dwell in the fertile field.

¹⁷The work of righteousness will be peace; the service of righteousness will be quiet confidence forever.

¹⁸Then my people will dwell in a peaceful place, in safe and secure places of rest.

¹⁹But hail will level the forest, and the city will sink to the depths.

²⁰Blessed are those who sow beside abundant waters, who let the ox and donkey range freely.