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Isaiah 3

Isaiah declares that the Lord will strip Judah’s supports away and judge the pride and oppression beneath its public life.

Jerusalem and Judah face the loss of food, water, and capable leaders. Isaiah announces the Lord’s judgment against a people whose speech and deeds defy him. Social order breaks down, and desperate families seek rulers who refuse the burden. The Lord brings charges against elders and leaders for taking from the poor. He then addresses the proud daughters of Zion, declaring that their finery will give way to humiliation. The chapter ends with war losses and a desolate city mourning.

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1For, behold, the Lord, GOD of Armies, takes away from Jerusalem and from Judah supply and support, the whole supply of bread, and the whole supply of water;
2the mighty man, the man of war, the judge, the prophet, the diviner, the elder,
3the captain of fifty, the honorable man, the counselor, the skilled craftsman, and the clever enchanter.
4I will give boys to be their princes, and children shall rule over them.
5The people will be oppressed, everyone by another, and everyone by his neighbor. The child will behave himself proudly against the old man, and the wicked against the honorable.
6Indeed a man shall take hold of his brother in the house of his father, saying, “You have clothing, you be our ruler, and let this ruin be under your hand.”
7In that day he will cry out, saying, “I will not be a healer; for in my house is neither bread nor clothing. You shall not make me ruler of the people.”
8For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against the LORD, to provoke the eyes of his glory.
9The look of their faces testify against them. They parade their sin like Sodom. They don’t hide it. Woe to their soul! For they have brought disaster upon themselves.
10Tell the righteous that it will be well with them, for they will eat the fruit of their deeds.
11Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them, for the deeds of their hands will be paid back to them.
12As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. My people, those who lead you cause you to err, and destroy the way of your paths.
13The LORD stands up to contend, and stands to judge the peoples.
14The LORD will enter into judgment with the elders of his people and their leaders: “It is you who have eaten up the vineyard. The plunder of the poor is in your houses.
15What do you mean that you crush my people, and grind the face of the poor?” says the Lord, GOD of Armies.
16Moreover the LORD said, “Because the daughters of Zion are arrogant, and walk with outstretched necks and flirting eyes, walking daintily as they go, jingling ornaments on their feet;
17therefore the Lord brings sores on the crown of the head of the women of Zion, and the LORD will make their scalps bald.”
18In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets, the headbands, the crescent necklaces,
19the earrings, the bracelets, the veils,
20the headdresses, the ankle chains, the sashes, the perfume containers, the charms,
21the signet rings, the nose rings,
23the hand mirrors, the fine linen garments, the tiaras, and the shawls.
24It shall happen that instead of sweet spices, there shall be rottenness; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of well set hair, baldness; instead of a robe, a wearing of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty.
25Your men shall fall by the sword, and your mighty in the war.
26Her gates shall lament and mourn. She shall be desolate and sit on the ground.
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Isaiah 3:10Amid the announcement of national ruin, this verse affirms that the Lord distinguishes the righteous and honors their deeds.
Isaiah 3:11This warning pairs with the promise to the righteous, declaring that wicked deeds bring consequences under God’s judgment.
Isaiah 3:9The comparison with Sodom exposes Judah’s open defiance and identifies the coming disaster as judgment upon their own conduct.
Where this chapter reaches

The reference to Sodom links Judah’s exposed sin with the city judged in Genesis, while Deuteronomy shares the warning of lost food and social security under judgment. Lamentations shares the closing picture of Jerusalem as a bereaved, desolate woman mourning her losses.

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After reading the whole chapter

What stands out to you about the Lord’s charges against the leaders who have plundered the poor?

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How does the distinction between righteous and wicked shape your reading of Judah’s shared collapse?

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Questions people ask about Isaiah 3

What does Isaiah 3:10 mean?

Verse 10 assures the righteous of good under God’s just rule, even within an announcement of Judah’s collapse. Its paired warning in verse 11 makes the distinction clear: deeds matter before God. The chapter does not explain when this good comes or promise that righteous people escape every hardship of national disaster.

Who are the daughters of Zion in Isaiah 3?

The daughters of Zion are the women of Jerusalem, with attention here to those displaying wealth and pride. Their posture, ornaments, and fine clothes fill the description. The judgment reverses those signs of status into deprivation and humiliation, before the closing verses widen the scene to the city’s war losses and mourning.

Why does God judge Judah’s leaders in Isaiah 3?

The Lord charges the elders and leaders with consuming the vineyard and keeping goods taken from the poor in their houses. They have used their position to crush the people entrusted to them. These charges follow the warning that Judah’s leaders cause the people to stray and destroy their paths.

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Isaiah · 66 chapters
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What the Bible says about anger →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).