24:7 The new wine dries up,
the vines shrivel up,
all those who like to celebrate 3 groan.
24:8 The happy sound 4 of the tambourines stops,
the revelry of those who celebrate comes to a halt,
the happy sound of the harp ceases.
24:9 They no longer sing and drink wine; 5
the beer tastes bitter to those who drink it.
24:10 The ruined town 6 is shattered;
all of the houses are shut up tight. 7
24:11 They howl in the streets because of what happened to the wine; 8
all joy turns to sorrow; 9
celebrations disappear from the earth. 10
24:12 The city is left in ruins; 11
the gate is reduced to rubble. 12
2:11 I will put an end to all her celebration:
her annual religious festivals,
monthly new moon celebrations,
and weekly Sabbath festivities –
all her appointed festivals.
18:22 And the sound of the harpists, musicians,
flute players, and trumpeters
will never be heard in you 14 again.
No 15 craftsman 16 who practices any trade
will ever be found in you again;
the noise of a mill 17 will never be heard in you again.
18:23 Even the light from a lamp
will never shine in you again!
The voices of the bridegroom and his bride
will never be heard in you again.
For your merchants were the tycoons of the world,
because all the nations 18 were deceived by your magic spells! 19
1 sn Compare Jer 7:24 and 16:9 for this same dire prediction limited to Judah and Jerusalem.
2 sn The sound of people grinding meal and the presence of lamps shining in their houses were signs of everyday life. The
3 tn The Hebrew text reads literally, “all the joyful in heart,” but the context specifies the context as parties and drinking bouts.
4 tn Heb “the joy” (again later in this verse).
5 tn Heb “with a song they do not drink wine.”
6 tn Heb “the city of chaos” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV). Isaiah uses the term תֹּהוּ (tohu) rather frequently of things (like idols) that are empty and worthless (see BDB 1062 s.v.), so the word might characterize the city as rebellious or morally worthless. However, in this context, which focuses on the effects of divine judgment, it probably refers to the ruined or worthless condition in which the city is left (note the use of the word in Isa 34:11). For a discussion of the identity of this city, see R. Chisholm, “The ‘Everlasting Covenant’ and the ‘City of Chaos’: Intentional Ambiguity and Irony in Isaiah 24,” CTR 6 (1993): 237-53. In the context of universal judgment depicted in Isa 24, this city represents all the nations and cities of the world which, like Babylon of old and the powers/cities mentioned in chapters 13-23, rebel against God’s authority. Behind the stereotypical language one can detect various specific manifestations of this symbolic and paradigmatic city, including Babylon, Moab, and Jerusalem, all of which are alluded or referred to in chapters 24-27.
7 tn Heb “every house is closed up from entering.”
8 tn Heb “[there is] an outcry over the wine in the streets.”
9 tn Heb “all joy turns to evening,” the darkness of evening symbolizing distress and sorrow.
10 tn Heb “the joy of the earth disappears.”
11 tn Heb “and there is left in the city desolation.”
12 tn Heb “and [into] rubble the gate is crushed.”
13 tn Heb “cause to end.”
14 tn The shift to a second person pronoun here corresponds to the Greek text.
15 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
16 tn On this term BDAG 1001 s.v. τεχνίτης states, “craftsperson, artisan, designer…Of a silversmith Ac 19:24, 25 v.l., 38….Of a potter 2 Cl 8:2 (metaph., cp. Ath. 15:2). πᾶς τεχνίτης πάσης τέχνης Rv 18:22.”
17 tn This is a different Greek word (μύλος, mulos) from the one for the millstone in v. 21 (μύλινος, mulinos). See L&N 7.68.
18 tn Or “all the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).
19 tn On the term φαρμακεία (farmakeia, “magic spells”) see L&N 53.100: “the use of magic, often involving drugs and the casting of spells upon people – ‘to practice magic, to cast spells upon, to engage in sorcery, magic, sorcery.’ φαρμακεία: ἐν τῇ φαρμακείᾳ σου ἐπλανήθησαν πάντα τὰ ἔθνη ‘with your magic spells you deceived all the peoples (of the world)’ Re 18:23.”