³ “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
    judge between me and my vineyard.^(F)
4 What more could have been done for my vineyard
    than I have done for it?^(G)
When I looked for good grapes,
    why did it yield only bad?^(H)
5 Now I will tell you
    what I am going to do to my vineyard:
I will take away its hedge,
    and it will be destroyed;^(I)
I will break down its wall,^(J)
    and it will be trampled.^(K)
6 I will make it a wasteland,^(L)
    neither pruned nor cultivated,
    and briers and thorns^(M) will grow there.
I will command the clouds
    not to rain^(N) on it.”

⁷ The vineyard^(O) of the Lord Almighty
    is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
    are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice,^(P) but saw bloodshed;
    for righteousness,^(Q) but heard cries of distress.^(R)

“Surely the great houses will become desolate,^(W)
    the fine mansions left without occupants.
¹⁰ A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath^[a] of wine;
    a homer^[b] of seed will yield only an ephah^[c] of grain.”^(X)

¹¹ Woe^(Y) to those who rise early in the morning
    to run after their drinks,
who stay up late at night
    till they are inflamed with wine.^(Z)
12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
    pipes^(AA) and timbrels^(AB) and wine,
but they have no regard^(AC) for the deeds of the Lord,
    no respect for the work of his hands.^(AD)
13 Therefore my people will go into exile^(AE)
    for lack of understanding;^(AF)
those of high rank^(AG) will die of hunger
    and the common people will be parched with thirst.^(AH)
14 Therefore Death^(AI) expands its jaws,
    opening wide its mouth;^(AJ)
into it will descend their nobles and masses
    with all their brawlers and revelers.^(AK)
15 So people will be brought low^(AL)
    and everyone humbled,^(AM)
    the eyes of the arrogant^(AN) humbled.
¹⁶ But the Lord Almighty will be exalted^(AO) by his justice,^(AP)
    and the holy God will be proved holy^(AQ) by his righteous acts.
¹⁷ Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;^(AR)
    lambs will feed^[d] among the ruins of the rich.

¹⁸ Woe^(AS) to those who draw sin along with cords^(AT) of deceit,
    and wickedness^(AU) as with cart ropes,
¹⁹ to those who say, “Let God hurry;
    let him hasten^(AV) his work
    so we may see it.
The plan of the Holy One^(AW) of Israel—
    let it approach, let it come into view,
    so we may know it.”^(AX)

²⁰ Woe^(AY) to those who call evil good^(AZ)
    and good evil,^(BA)
who put darkness for light
    and light for darkness,^(BB)
who put bitter for sweet
    and sweet for bitter.^(BC)

²¹ Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes^(BD)
    and clever in their own sight.

²² Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine^(BE)
    and champions at mixing drinks,^(BF)
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe,^(BG)
    but deny justice^(BH) to the innocent.^(BI)
24 Therefore, as tongues of fire^(BJ) lick up straw^(BK)
    and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
so their roots will decay^(BL)
    and their flowers blow away like dust;^(BM)
for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty
    and spurned the word^(BN) of the Holy One^(BO) of Israel.
²⁵ Therefore the Lord’s anger^(BP) burns against his people;
    his hand is raised and he strikes them down.
The mountains shake,^(BQ)
    and the dead bodies^(BR) are like refuse^(BS) in the streets.^(BT)

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,^(BU)
    his hand is still upraised.^(BV)

²⁶ He lifts up a banner^(BW) for the distant nations,
    he whistles^(BX) for those at the ends of the earth.^(BY)
Here they come,
    swiftly and speedily!
²⁷ Not one of them grows tired^(BZ) or stumbles,
    not one slumbers or sleeps;
not a belt^(CA) is loosened at the waist,^(CB)
    not a sandal strap is broken.^(CC)
28 Their arrows are sharp,^(CD)
    all their bows^(CE) are strung;
their horses’ hooves^(CF) seem like flint,
    their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.^(CG)
29 Their roar is like that of the lion,^(CH)
    they roar like young lions;
they growl as they seize^(CI) their prey
    and carry it off with no one to rescue.^(CJ)
30 In that day^(CK) they will roar over it
    like the roaring of the sea.^(CL)
And if one looks at the land,
    there is only darkness^(CM) and distress;^(CN)
    even the sun will be darkened^(CO) by clouds.

¹² The wicked plot^(A) against the righteous
    and gnash their teeth^(B) at them;
¹³ but the Lord laughs at the wicked,
    for he knows their day is coming.^(C)

¹⁴ The wicked draw the sword^(D)
    and bend the bow^(E)
to bring down the poor and needy,^(F)
    to slay those whose ways are upright.
¹⁵ But their swords will pierce their own hearts,^(G)
    and their bows will be broken.^(H)

¹⁶ Better the little that the righteous have
    than the wealth^(I) of many wicked;
¹⁷ for the power of the wicked will be broken,^(J)
    but the Lord upholds^(K) the righteous.

¹⁸ The blameless spend their days under the Lord’s care,^(L)
    and their inheritance will endure forever.^(M)
19 In times of disaster they will not wither;
    in days of famine they will enjoy plenty.

²⁰ But the wicked will perish:^(N)
    Though the Lord’s enemies are like the flowers of the field,
    they will be consumed, they will go up in smoke.^(O)

²¹ The wicked borrow and do not repay,
    but the righteous give generously;^(P)
22 those the Lord blesses will inherit the land,
    but those he curses^(Q) will be destroyed.^(R)

²³ The Lord makes firm the steps^(S)
    of the one who delights^(T) in him;
²⁴ though he may stumble, he will not fall,^(U)
    for the Lord upholds^(V) him with his hand.

²⁵ I was young and now I am old,
    yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken^(W)
    or their children begging^(X) bread.
²⁶ They are always generous and lend freely;^(Y)
    their children will be a blessing.^[a](Z)

²⁷ Turn from evil and do good;^(AA)
    then you will dwell in the land forever.^(AB)
28 For the Lord loves the just
    and will not forsake his faithful ones.^(AC)

Wrongdoers will be completely destroyed^[b];
    the offspring of the wicked will perish.^(AD)
29 The righteous will inherit the land^(AE)
    and dwell in it forever.^(AF)