World English Bible
- Behold, the LORD makes the earth empty, makes it waste, turns it upside down, and scatters its inhabitants.
- 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.
- The earth will be utterly emptied and utterly laid waste; for the LORD has spoken this word.
- The earth mourns and fades away. The world languishes and fades away. The lofty people of the earth languish.
- The earth also is polluted under its inhabitants, because they have transgressed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant.
- 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.
- The new wine mourns. The vine languishes. All the merry-hearted sigh.
- The mirth of tambourines ceases. The sound of those who rejoice ends. The joy of the harp ceases.
- They will not drink wine with a song. Strong drink will be bitter to those who drink it.
- The confused city is broken down. Every house is shut up, that no man may come in.
- There is a crying in the streets because of the wine. All joy is darkened. The mirth of the land is gone.
- The city is left in desolation, and the gate is struck with destruction.
- 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.
- These shall lift up their voice. They will shout for the majesty of the LORD. They cry aloud from the sea.
- Therefore glorify the LORD in the east, even the name of the LORD, the God of Israel, in the islands of the sea!
- 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.
- Fear, the pit, and the snare are on you who inhabit the earth.
- 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.
- The earth is utterly broken. The earth is torn apart. The earth is shaken violently.
- 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 happen in that day that the LORD will punish the army of the high ones on high, and the kings of the earth on the earth.
- 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.
- Then the moon will be confounded, and the sun ashamed; for the LORD of Armies will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem; and glory will be before his elders.
Isaiah 24
After Isaiah’s warnings to particular nations, the horizon suddenly widens. No border contains this judgment. Priest and people, buyer and seller, lender and borrower stand together on an earth that is coming apart. The relationships by which a society measures rank and security cannot keep anyone safe.
The World English Bible calls the ruined city the “confused city” (verse 10). The Hebrew phrase is qiryat tohu, a city of emptiness. Tohu also describes the earth before God gave it form in Genesis 1:2. Isaiah pictures more than a damaged town: human life is slipping toward unmaking. Even the city gate is shattered. In Isaiah’s world, the gate was where trade took place and justice was heard. Its fall means more than breached walls. The habits that let neighbors live together have failed.
Why does the earth itself mourn? Isaiah says its inhabitants have broken an “everlasting covenant” (verse 5). He does not name that covenant. Its worldwide scope recalls God’s dealings with all living creatures after the flood; its language of curse recalls the warnings given to Israel. Either way, the point is searching: what we do to one another does not stay between us. Creation bears a weight it did not place upon itself. Isaiah will even picture the earth staggering under human disobedience.
This is not permission to call sufferers more guilty than those spared. Isaiah’s long list in verse 2 refuses that easy judgment. It is a call to ask what burdens our common life places on people and on the ground beneath them.
Listen to the strange movement of the chapter. Wine loses its song; the instruments fall silent. Then voices rise from distant shores in praise of the Lord—and Isaiah cannot join them without crying out in anguish. He hears treachery still at work. His lament does not deny the song. It refuses to use worship to drown out sorrow. Centuries later, Jesus would hear a crowd praise God as he approached Jerusalem, yet weep over the city (Luke 19:37–44). The holy heart has room for both.
Isaiah’s last sight is not an empty earth but the Lord reigning, his glory before his elders. The moon and sun pale beside him. Judgment has exposed every false source of light; it has not extinguished hope. The God who gave the world its form has not abandoned his purpose to dwell with his people.
For further reading: Genesis 1:1–2; Genesis 7:11; Romans 8:20–22; Revelation 21:23. A hymn for today: “This Is My Father’s World.”
Prayer: Lord, forgive us for the burdens we make others bear. Keep our praise honest enough to hear their cries. Teach us to live as people who trust your reign and care for your world. Amen.