A Righteous King
1Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in judgment.
2And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the tempest; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
3And the eyes of them that see shall not be dim, and the ears of them that hear shall hearken.
4The heart also of the rash shall understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers shall be ready to speak plainly.
5The vile person shall be no more called liberal, nor the churl said to be bountiful.
6For the vile person will speak villany, and his heart will work iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against the LORD, to make empty the soul of the hungry, and he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7The instruments also of the churl are evil: he deviseth wicked devices to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaketh right.
8But the liberal deviseth liberal things; and by liberal things shall he stand.
The Women of Jerusalem
9Rise up, ye women that are at ease; hear my voice, ye careless daughters; give ear unto my speech.
10Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless women: for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come.
11Tremble, ye women that are at ease; be troubled, ye careless ones: strip you, and make you bare, and gird sackcloth upon your loins.
12They shall lament for the teats, for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
13Upon the land of my people shall come up thorns and briers; yea, upon all the houses of joy in the joyous city:
14Because the palaces shall be forsaken; the multitude of the city shall be left; the forts and towers shall be for dens for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks;
15Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.
16Then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness remain in the fruitful field.
17And the work of righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness quietness and assurance for ever.
18And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places;
19When it shall hail, coming down on the forest; and the city shall be low in a low place.
20Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters, that send forth thither the feet of the ox and the ass.
King James Bible
Text courtesy of BibleProtector.com.
A Righteous King
1 Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in justice.
2 A man shall be as a hiding place from the wind, and a covert from the storm, as streams of water in a dry place, as the shade of a large rock in a weary land.
3 The eyes of those who see will not be dim, and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4 The heart of the rash will understand knowledge, and the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.
5 The fool will no longer be called noble, nor the scoundrel be highly respected.
6 For the fool will speak folly, and his heart will work iniquity, to practice profanity, and to utter error against Yahweh, To make empty the soul of the hungry, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7 The ways of the scoundrel are evil. He devises wicked devices to destroy the humble with lying words, even when the needy speaks right.
8 But the noble devises noble things; and he will continue in noble things.
The Women of Jerusalem
9 Rise up, you women who are at ease! Hear my voice! You careless daughters, give ear to my speech!
10 For days beyond a year you will be troubled, you careless women; for the vintage shall fail. The harvest won’t come.
11 Tremble, you women who are at ease! Be troubled, you careless ones! Strip yourselves, make yourselves naked, and put sackcloth on your waist.
12 Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine.
13 Thorns and briars will come up on my people’s land; yes, on all the houses of joy in the joyous city.
14 For the palace will be forsaken. The populous city will be deserted. The hill and the watchtower will be for dens forever, a delight for wild donkeys, a pasture of flocks;
15 Until the Spirit is poured on us from on high, and the wilderness becomes a fruitful field, and the fruitful field is considered a forest.
16 Then justice will dwell in the wilderness; and righteousness will remain in the fruitful field.
17 The work of righteousness will be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
18 My people will live in a peaceful habitation, in safe dwellings, and in quiet resting places.
19 Though hail flattens the forest, and the city is leveled completely.
20 Blessed are you who sow beside all waters, who send out the feet of the ox and the donkey.
A Righteous King
1 Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
and princes will rule with justice.
2 Each will be like a shelter from the wind,
a refuge from the storm,
like streams of water in a dry land,
like the shadow of a great rock in an arid land.
3 Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed,
and the ears of those who hear will listen.
4 The mind of the rash will know and understand,
and the stammering tongue will speak clearly and fluently.
5 No longer will a fool be called noble,
nor a scoundrel be respected.
6 For a fool speaks foolishness;
his mind plots iniquity.
He practices ungodliness
and speaks falsely about the LORD;
he leaves the hungry empty
and deprives the thirsty of drink.
7 The weapons of the scoundrel are destructive;
he hatches plots to destroy the poor with lies,
even when the plea of the needy is just.
8 But a noble man makes honorable plans;
he stands up for worthy causes.
The Women of Jerusalem
9 Stand up, you complacent women;
listen to me.
Give ear to my word,
you overconfident daughters.
10 In a little more than a year you will tremble,
O secure ones.
For the grape harvest will fail
and the fruit harvest will not arrive.
11 Shudder, you ladies of leisure;
tremble, you daughters of complacency.
Strip yourselves bare
and put sackcloth around your waists.
12 Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vines,
13 and for the land of my people,
overgrown with thorns and briers—
even for every house of merriment
in this city of revelry.
14 For the palace will be forsaken,
the busy city abandoned.
The hill a and the watchtower will become caves forever—
the delight of wild donkeys
and a pasture for flocks—
15 until the Spirit is poured out
upon us from on high.
Then the desert will be an orchard,
and the orchard will seem like a forest.
16 Then justice will inhabit the wilderness,
and righteousness will dwell in the fertile field.
17 The work of righteousness will be peace;
the service of righteousness will be quiet confidence forever.
18 Then my people will dwell in a peaceful place,
in safe and secure places of rest.
19 But hail will level the forest,
and the city will sink to the depths.
20 Blessed are those who sow beside abundant waters,
who let the ox and donkey range freely.
Footnotes:
14 a Hebrew the Ophel
A Righteous King
1Lo, for righteousness doth a king reign, As to princes, for judgment they rule.
2And each hath been as a hiding-place from wind, And as a secret hiding-place from inundation, As rivulets of waters in a dry place, As a shadow of a heavy rock in a weary land.
3And not dazzled are the eyes of beholders, And the ears of hearers do attend.
4And the heart of those hastened Understandeth to know, And the tongue of stammerers hasteth to speak clearly.
5A fool is no more called 'noble,' And to a miser it is not said, 'rich;'
6For a fool speaketh folly, And his heart doth iniquity, to do profanity, And to speak concerning Jehovah error, To empty the soul of the hungry, Yea, drink of the thirsty he causeth to lack.
7And the miser -- his instruments are evil, He hath counselled wicked devices, To corrupt the poor with lying sayings, Even when the needy speaketh justly.
8And the noble counselled noble things, And he for noble things riseth up.
The Women of Jerusalem
9Women, easy ones, rise, hear my voice, Daughters, confident ones, give ear to my saying,
10Days and a year ye are troubled, O confident ones, For consumed hath been harvest, The gathering cometh not.
11Tremble ye women, ye easy ones, Be troubled, ye confident ones, Strip and make bare, with a girdle on the loins,
12For breasts they are lamenting, For fields of desire, for the fruitful vine.
13Over the ground of my people thorn -- brier goeth up, Surely over all houses of joy of the exulting city,
14Surely the palace hath been left, The multitude of the city forsaken, Fort and watch-tower hath been for dens unto the age, A joy of wild asses -- a pasture of herds;
15Till emptied out on us is the Spirit from on high, And a wilderness hath become a fruitful field, And the fruitful field for a forest is reckoned.
16And dwelt in the wilderness hath judgment, And righteousness in the fruitful field remaineth.
17And a work of the righteousness hath been peace, And a service of the righteousness -- Keeping quiet and confidence unto the age.
18And dwelt hath My people in a peaceful habitation, And in stedfast tabernacles, And in quiet resting-places.
19And it hath hailed in the going down of the forest, And in the valley is the city low.
20Happy are ye sowing by all waters, Sending forth the foot of the ox and the ass!
