The Lord punishes Israel

8 The Lord God has spoken a message to warn Jacob's descendants, the kingdom of Israel. 9 All the people who live in Ephraim and in the city of Samaria know about it. But they are proud and they boast, 10 ‘We built houses with bricks and they fell down. But we will build them again with strong stones. People have cut down our fig trees, but we will plant great cedar trees instead.’

11 But the Lord caused Rezin's enemies, and other nations to attack Israel. 12 Syria's army came from the east. The Philistines' army came from the west. They destroyed Israel's land, like a hungry animal.

But the Lord is still angry. His hand is ready to hit them again.

13 The people did not turn back to the Lord Almighty, who had punished them. They did not ask for his help. 14 So, in one day, the Lord will destroy Israel, both its head and its tail. He will cut down both palm branch and reed. 15 The head is their leaders and important people. The tail is the prophets who teach lies.

16 The leaders of this nation lead them away from what is true. They confuse the people that they are leading. 17 So the Lord God is not pleased with their young men. He will not help their widows or their children who have no family. Nobody respects God and they all do evil things. They only speak about foolish things.

But the Lord is still angry. His hand is ready to hit them again.

18 The evil things that the people do destroy everything. They are like a fire that destroys thorn bushes. They burn up all the bushes in the forest. Clouds of smoke rise up from a great fire. 19 The Lord Almighty is very angry. He punishes the land of Israel, like a fire that burns everything. The people are like wood that makes the fire burn well. None of them try to help each other. 20 People eat whatever food they can get, on their right side or their left side. But they are still hungry. They even eat their own family!

21 Manasseh's tribe and Ephraim's tribe fight against each other. Then they join together to attack Judah.

But the Lord is still angry. His hand is ready to hit them again.

Isaiah 10

1 It will be very bad for people who make cruel laws that are not fair.

3 It will be bad for you on the day when God comes to judge people. You will not escape the punishment that he will bring from far away. There will be nobody to help you. There will be no safe place to hide your valuable things. 4 You will have to join the people who are in prison. Or you will die with those that the enemy kills in war.

But the Lord is still angry. His hand is ready to hit his people again.