Isaiah 3
The Lord will take away the strong leaders from Jerusalem and Judah, replacing them with inexperienced and weak leaders. The people will turn against each other, and social order will break down. Jerusalem and Judah have fallen because of their rebellion against the Lord, and they will be punished for their sins. The Lord will judge the elders and leaders for their oppression of the poor and their corruption. The daughters of Zion will be punished for their pride and vanity, losing their beautiful clothes and jewelry, and instead wearing mourning clothes.
For behold, the sovereign Lord of hosts will take away, from Jerusalem and from Judah, the powerful and the strong: all the strength from bread, and all the strength from waterthe strong man, and the man of war, the judge and the prophet, and the seer and the elderthe leader over fifty and the honorable in appearance; and the counselor, and the wise among builders, and the skillful in mystical speechAnd I will provide children as their leaders, and the effeminate will rule over themAnd the people will rush, man against man, and each one against his neighbor. The child shall rebel against the elder, and the ignoble against the nobleFor a man will apprehend his brother, from the household of his own father, saying: "The vestment is yours. Be our leader, but let this ruin be under your hand.In that day, he will respond by saying: "I am not a healer, and there is no bread or vestment in my house. Do not choose to appoint me as a leader of the people.For Jerusalem is ruined, and Judah has fallen, because their words and their plans are against the Lord, in order to provoke the eyes of his majestyThe acknowledgement of their countenance is their response. For they have proclaimed their own sin, like Sodom; and they have not concealed it. Woe to their souls! For evils are being repaid to themTell the just man that it is well, for he shall eat from the fruit from his own plansWoe to the impious man immersed in evil! For retribution will be given to him from his own handsAs for my people, their oppressors have despoiled them, and women have ruled over them. My people, who call you blessed, the same are deceiving you and disrupting the path of your stepsThe Lord stands for judgment, and he stands to judge the peopleThe Lord will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and with their leaders. For you have been devouring the vineyard, and the plunder from the poor is in your houseWhy do you wear down my people, and grind up the faces of the poor, says the Lord, the God of hostsAnd the Lord said: Because the daughters of Zion have been lifted up, and have walked with extended necks and winking eyes, because they have continued on, walking noisily and advancing with a pretentious stridethe Lord will make the heads of the daughters of Zion bald, and the Lord will strip them of the locks of their hairIn that day, the Lord will take away their decorative shoes,and the little moons and chains, and the necklaces and bracelets, and the hatsand the ornaments for their hair, and the anklets, and the touches of myrrh and little bottles of perfumes, and the earringsand the rings, and the jewels hanging on their foreheadsand the continual changes in appearance, and the short skirts, and the fine linens and embroidered clothsand the mirrors, and scarves, and ribbons, and their sparse clothingAnd in place of a sweet fragrance, there will be stench. And in place of a belt, there will be a rope. And in place of stylish hair, there will be baldness. And in place of a blouse, there will be hairclothLikewise, your most handsome men will fall by the sword, and your strong men will fall in battleAnd her gates will grieve and mourn. And she will sit on the ground, desolate
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