Isaiah 3:24 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Instead of perfume there will be rottenness; and instead of a belt, a rope; and instead of well-set hair, baldness; and instead of a rich robe, a skirt of sackcloth; and branding instead of beauty.

NIV: Instead of fragrance there will be a stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of well-dressed hair, baldness; instead of fine clothing, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding.

NASB: Now it will come about that instead of balsam oil there will be a stench; Instead of a belt, a rope; Instead of well-set hair, a plucked-out scalp; Instead of fine clothes, a robe of sackcloth; And branding instead of beauty.

CSB: Instead of perfume there will be a stench; instead of a belt, a rope; instead of beautifully styled hair, baldness; instead of fine clothes, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding.

NLT: Instead of smelling of sweet perfume, she will stink. She will wear a rope for a sash, and her elegant hair will fall out. She will wear rough burlap instead of rich robes. Shame will replace her beauty.

KJV: And it shall come to pass, that instead of sweet smell there shall be stink; and instead of a girdle a rent; and instead of well set hair baldness; and instead of a stomacher a girding of sackcloth; and burning instead of beauty.

NKJV: And so it shall be: Instead of a sweet smell there will be a stench; Instead of a sash, a rope; Instead of well-set hair, baldness; Instead of a rich robe, a girding of sackcloth; And branding instead of beauty.

Isaiah has written that the Lord will take something away from the prideful women of Jerusalem and Judah. They will lose all the adornments they wear to glorify themselves in their community (Isaiah 3:16–17). For these women, external enhancements represent the condition of their hearts. They are boastful about their wealth and sexually immorality, as well as relying on false gods and demonic spirituality (Isaiah 3:18–23).

Now Isaiah describes how these women will live after God's judgment comes in the form of invading armies. Their smell of perfume will be replaced with a stench, perhaps the smell of death and decay. Instead of fine belts, they will wear simple ropes around their waists, maybe as they are led away into captivity tied together. Their carefully arranged hair will be replaced by baldness (Isaiah 3:17), indicating either being shaved by the enemy or shaving their own heads in mourning over their great losses.

The rich robes of these once wealthy ladies will be taken away, leaving them to cover themselves with whatever cheap material they can find. Finally, their once great beauty will be marred by the branding of their enemies. Being branded involved having the enemy's mark burned onto a part of the body, much as cows are sometimes branded to show ownership.

These once self-exalted women will lose all hope of seeing themselves as beautiful or desirable or self-reliant again.

Isaiah 3:16–4:1 describes the wealthy women of Jerusalem and Judah from the Lord's perspective. He describes them as conceited, casting seductive looks all around. Because of their open rebellion, the Lord will take away all their adornments, from their moon-god crescent ornaments to their veils. When the judgment comes, their perfume will be replaced by stench and their styled hair with baldness. They will wear sackcloth with rope belts. They will be destitute and lonely enough to beg any living man to simply say he is their husband. Jerusalem's men will fall in battle, leaving the city exposed. Jerusalem will sit empty and in mourning.

Isaiah reveals that the Lord will take away all the qualified men from Judah and Jerusalem in His judgment. This includes military, political, and spiritual leaders. After they're gone, the people will turn on each other to survive, trying to convince anyone with the slightest advantage to be their leader. The Lord makes his case against Judah's leaders for taking from the poor instead of providing for them. The Lord will take away from Judah's women all the adornments they displayed in public in their arrogance and immorality. Jerusalem's men will fall, and she will be left empty.

Isaiah 3 picks up where the last verse in Isaiah 2 left off (Isaiah 2:22). There Isaiah warned the people not to trust in mere men and now he proclaims that the Lord will remove all the qualified men from Jerusalem. Those left behind will turn on each other. The Lord will bring charges against Jerusalem's current leaders for mistreating the poor. Because the wealthy women of Jerusalem and Judah are arrogant and immoral, the Lord will take away all their adornments, replacing hair with baldness and beauty with enemy brands. Jerusalem's men will die, leaving her broken and empty. This likely refers to the eventual invasion of Jerusalem and the capture of her people (2 Kings 24:14).

Isaiah is among the most important prophetic books in the entire Bible. The first segment details God's impending judgment against ancient peoples for sin and idolatry (Isaiah 1—35). The second part of Isaiah briefly explains a failed assault on Jerusalem during the rule of Hezekiah (Isaiah 36—39). The final chapters predict Israel's rescue from Babylonian captivity (Isaiah 40—48), the promised Messiah (Isaiah 49—57), and the final glory of Jerusalem and God's people (Isaiah 58—66).