<p class="poetry">Men are nothing but a mere breath;p> <p class="poetry">human beings are unreliable.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">When they are weighed in the scales,p> <p class="poetry">all of them together are lighter than air.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">For he never bothered to show kindness;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he harassed the oppressed and needy,p> <p class="poetry">and killed the disheartened.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">All this<n id="1" /> monotony<n id="2" /> is tiresome; no one can bear<n id="3" /> to describe it:<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">The eye is never satisfied with seeing, nor is the ear ever content<n id="5" /> with hearing.p>

<p class="poetry">when those who keep watch over the house<n id="1" /> begin to tremble,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">and the virile men begin to stoop over,<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and the grinders<n id="4" /> begin to cease because they grow few,p> <p class="poetry">and those who look through the windows grow dim,<n id="5" />p>

<t /><p class="sosspeaker"><b><i>The Beloved to Her Lover:i>b>p> <p class="poetry">Solomon had a vineyard at Baal-Hamon;p> <p class="poetry">he leased out<n id="1" /> the vineyard to those who maintained it.p> <p class="poetry">Each was to bring a thousand shekels of silver for its fruit.p>

<p class="poetry">Indeed, a man will grab his brotherp> <p class="poetry">right in his father&#8217;s house<n id="1" /> and say,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8216;You own a coat &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">you be our leader!p> <p class="poetry">This heap of ruins will be under your control.&#8217;<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">Seven women will grab hold ofp> <p class="poetry">one man at that time.<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">They will say, &#8220;We will provide<n id="2" /> our own food,p> <p class="poetry">we will provide<n id="3" /> our own clothes;p> <p class="poetry">but let us belong to you<n id="4" /> &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">take away our shame!&#8221;<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">Indeed<n id="1" /> Israel<n id="2" /> is the vineyard of the <sc>Lordsc> who commands armies,p> <p class="poetry">the people<n id="3" /> of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight.p> <p class="poetry">He waited for justice, but look what he got &#8211; disobedience!<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">He waited for fairness, but look what he got &#8211; cries for help!<n id="5" />p>

So Isaiah replied,<n id="1" /> &#8220;Pay attention,<n id="2" /> family<n id="3" /> of David.<n id="4" /> Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God?

<p class="poetry">Because of the anger of the <sc>Lordsc> who commands armies, the land was scorched,<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">and the people became fuel for the fire.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">People had no compassion on one another.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">They devoured<n id="1" /> on the right, but were still hungry,p> <p class="poetry">they ate on the left, but were not satisfied.p> <p class="poetry">People even ate<n id="2" /> the flesh of their own arm!<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">They panic &#8211;p> <p class="poetry">cramps and pain seize hold of themp> <p class="poetry">like those of a woman who is straining to give birth.p> <p class="poetry">They look at one another in astonishment;p> <p class="poetry">their faces are flushed red.<n id="1" />p>

<p class="poetry">Look what&#8217;s coming!p> <p class="poetry">A charioteer,p> <p class="poetry">a team of horses.&#8221;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">When questioned, he replies,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">&#8220;Babylon has fallen, fallen!p> <p class="poetry">All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!&#8221;p>

For at that time<n id="1" /> everyone will get rid of<n id="2" /> the silver and gold idols your hands sinfully made.<n id="3" />p>

<p class="poetry">Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">a sword not made by humankind will destroy them.<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">They will run away from this sword<n id="3" />p> <p class="poetry">and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.p>

<p class="poetry">Each of them<n id="1" /> will be like a shelter from the windp> <p class="poetry">and a refuge from a rainstorm;p> <p class="poetry">like streams of water in a dry regionp> <p class="poetry">and like the shade of a large cliff in a parched land.p>

Hezekiah is misleading you when he says, &#8220;The <sc>Lordsc> will rescue us.&#8221; Has any of the gods of the nations rescued his land from the power of the king of Assyria?<n id="1" />

<p class="poetry">The <sc>Lordsc> emerges like a hero,p> <p class="poetry">like a warrior he inspires himself for battle;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he shouts, yes, he yells,p> <p class="poetry">he shows his enemies his power.<n id="2" />p>

<p class="poetry">A carpenter takes measurements;<n id="1" />p> <p class="poetry">he marks out an outline of its form;<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">he scrapes<n id="3" /> it with chisels,p> <p class="poetry">and marks it with a compass.p> <p class="poetry">He patterns it after the human form,<n id="4" />p> <p class="poetry">like a well-built human being,p> <p class="poetry">and puts it in a shrine.<n id="5" />p>

<p class="poetry">who summons an eagle<n id="1" /> from the east,p> <p class="poetry">from a distant land, one who carries out my plan.p> <p class="poetry">Yes, I have decreed,<n id="2" />p> <p class="poetry">yes, I will bring it to pass;p> <p class="poetry">I have formulated a plan,p> <p class="poetry">yes, I will carry it out.p>