Isaiah28

Isaiah 28 begins with a woe against the proud and drunken leaders of Ephraim, whose glory is fleeting and will be destroyed by a divine judgment. It then condemns the priests and prophets of Judah for their similar inebriation and spiritual blindness, rejecting the Lord's clear instruction. The chapter reveals the scornful rulers of Jerusalem trusting in a "covenant with death" and lies, but God promises to lay a sure foundation in Zion and annul their false security with an overwhelming judgment. The chapter concludes with an agricultural parable illustrating God's wise and discerning methods, even in His severe judgments.

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Woe to Drunken Ephraim (Samaria)

Woe to the crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim, and to the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley of them that are overcome with wine!

Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one; as a tempest of hail, a destroying storm, as a tempest of mighty waters overflowing, will he cast down to the earth with the hand.

The crown of pride of the drunkards of Ephraim shall be trodden under foot:

and the fading flower of his glorious beauty, which is on the head of the fat valley, shall be as the first-ripe fig before the summer; which when he that looketh upon it seeth, while it is yet in his hand he eateth it up.

In that day will Jehovah of hosts become a crown of glory, and a diadem of beauty, unto the residue of his people;

and a spirit of justice to him that sitteth in judgment, and strength to them that turn back the battle at the gate.

Drunkenness and Mockery in Jerusalem

And even these reel with wine, and stagger with strong drink; the priest and the prophet reel with strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they stagger with strong drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.

For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness, so that there is no place clean.

Whom will he teach knowledge? and whom will he make to understand the message? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts?

For it is precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little.

Nay, but bymen of strange lips and with another tongue will he speak to this people;

to whom he said, This is the rest, give ye rest to him that is weary; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.

Therefore shall the word of Jehovah be unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, there a little; that they may go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

The Cornerstone and the Covenant with Death

Wherefore hear the word of Jehovah, ye scoffers, that rule this people that is in Jerusalem:

Because ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with Sheol are we at agreement; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us; for we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:

therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner-stone of sure foundation: he that believeth shall not be in haste.

And I will make justice the line, and righteousness the plummet; and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding-place.

And your covenant with death shall be annulled, and your agreement with Sheol shall not stand; when the overflowing scourge shall pass through, then ye shall be trodden down by it.

As often as it passeth through, it shall take you; for morning by morning shall it pass through, by day and by night: and it shall be nought but terror to understand the message.

For the bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it; and the covering narrower than that he can wrap himself in it.

For Jehovah will rise up as in mount Perazim, he will be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon; that he may do his work, his strange work, and bring to pass his act, his strange act.

Now therefore be ye not scoffers, lest your bonds be made strong; for a decree of destruction have I heard from the Lord, Jehovah of hosts, upon the whole earth.

God’s Wisdom in Judgment (The Farmer’s Parable)

Give ye ear, and hear my voice; hearken, and hear my speech.

Doth he that ploweth to sow plow continually? doth he continually open and harrow his ground?

When he hath levelled the face thereof, doth he not cast abroad the fitches, and scatter the cummin, and put in the wheat in rows, and the barley in the appointed place, and the spelt in the border thereof?

For his God doth instruct him aright, and doth teach him.

For the fitches are not threshed with a sharp threshing instrument, neither is a cart wheel turned about upon the cummin; but the fitches are beaten out with a staff, and the cummin with a rod.

Bread grain is ground; for he will not be always threshing it: and though the wheel of his cart and his horses scatter it, he doth not grind it.

This also cometh forth from Jehovah of hosts, who is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in wisdom.

Study Notes for Isaiah 28

Verse 1

The 'crown of pride' refers to Samaria, the capital of the Northern Kingdom (Ephraim), geographically situated on a beautiful, fertile hill. Their pride and moral decay, symbolized by drunkenness, led to their imminent destruction by Assyria (722 BC).

Verse 2

The 'mighty and strong one' is the agent of God’s judgment, historically the Assyrian army, described here using powerful natural disaster metaphors (hail, storm, flood).

Verse 5

Isaiah pivots from the doom of Ephraim to the hope for the 'residue' (remnant) of Judah. In contrast to the fleeting crown of Samaria, Yahweh Himself will be the lasting glory and source of security for His people.

Verse 6

God promises to equip the remnant with wisdom ('spirit of judgment') for righteous rule and strength for military defense, ensuring stability in Jerusalem.

Verse 7

The judgment now shifts to Judah (Jerusalem). The spiritual leaders—priests and prophets—are equally addicted to wine, blurring their vision and causing them to fail in their primary duties of teaching and judging.

Verse 9

This verse begins the sarcastic retort of the drunken leaders. They mock Isaiah for teaching simple, repetitive instructions suitable only for infants who have just been weaned.

Verse 10

'Precept upon precept, line upon line' (Hebrew: *ṣaw lāṣāw, qaw lāqāw*) mimics the sound of monotonous babbling. The leaders ridicule God’s clear, foundational law as childish and boring.

Verse 11

God accepts the challenge, promising to speak to them not through the clear Hebrew of Isaiah, but through the harsh, foreign language of the invading Assyrians, fulfilling the threat of Deuteronomy 28:49.

Verse 12

The 'rest' refers to trusting God and relying on Him for security, rather than entering into complex, exhausting political alliances. They rejected this simple path to peace.

Verse 13

The simple, repetitive teaching (V. 10) that they mocked will become the very mechanism of their downfall. Because they scorned the word, they will stumble over it and be captured.

Verse 14

Isaiah addresses the 'scornful men,' specifically the political rulers in Jerusalem who rely on worldly wisdom and alliances rather than God.

Verse 15

The 'covenant with death' likely refers to a secret, desperate treaty made with a foreign power (possibly Egypt or an underworld deity reference) to ensure protection from Assyria. They trust in 'lies' (deceitful politics) as their refuge.

Verse 16

In contrast to their false security, God promises a true, divine foundation in Zion. This 'tried stone' is a crucial Messianic prophecy, signifying the secure foundation of God's plan, later applied to Christ by New Testament writers (Rom 9:33; 1 Pet 2:6).

Verse 17

God will use the standards of judgment ('line' and 'plummet') to expose the crookedness of their human alliances. The hail and water represent the destructive force of the coming invasion that will destroy their false refuge.

Verse 18

Their political agreement will be utterly nullified. The 'overflowing scourge' (the invading army) will not pass over them, but will crush them.

Verse 20

This proverb illustrates the futility of their alliances. Their false security provides no comfort or rest; it is inadequate and ultimately painful.

Verse 21

God will act decisively, recalling two great victories of Israel (Mount Perazim and Gibeon). Calling the judgment His 'strange work' emphasizes that punishing His own covenant people is an unusual, painful act, necessary for holiness.

Verse 22

The final warning before the parable: mockery will only solidify their impending doom, which is a judgment determined not just on Judah but on the 'whole earth' (universal judgment).

Verse 23

This final section serves as an illustration that God’s actions, even judgment, are neither random nor excessive, but are executed with purpose, timing, and divine wisdom.

Verse 25

The farmer does not plow endlessly; he knows when to sow different crops in their proper places. This illustrates God's ordered and strategic plan for humanity.

Verse 26

The farmer's professional knowledge is not innate but divinely instructed. If God gives a farmer wisdom, how much more wise is God in handling the affairs of nations and people.

Verse 27

Different crops require different methods of threshing. Light grains (fitches, cummin) are beaten gently, while harder grains require a heavier instrument. This metaphor shows that God’s punishment is measured and appropriate to the offense.

Verse 28

The farmer knows not to thresh the bread corn so aggressively that it is destroyed. God’s purpose in judgment is not annihilation, but refinement and correction.

Verse 29

The conclusion confirms that this orderly, precise, and measured approach to judgment (like the farmer’s work) originates from Yahweh, whose counsel is perfect and whose execution is excellent.

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Isaiah28

Woe to Drunken Ephraim (Samaria)

Drunkenness and Mockery in Jerusalem

The Cornerstone and the Covenant with Death

God’s Wisdom in Judgment (The Farmer’s Parable)

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