Isaiah 3:5 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And the people will oppress one another, every one his fellow and every one his neighbor; the youth will be insolent to the elder, and the despised to the honorable.

NIV: People will oppress each other-- man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored.

NASB: And the people will be oppressed, Each one by another, and each one by his neighbor; The youth will assault the elder, And the contemptible person will assault the one honored.

CSB: The people will oppress one another, man against man, neighbor against neighbor; the young will act arrogantly toward the old, and the worthless toward the honorable.

NLT: People will oppress each other — man against man, neighbor against neighbor. Young people will insult their elders, and vulgar people will sneer at the honorable.

KJV: And the people shall be oppressed, every one by another, and every one by his neighbour: the child shall behave himself proudly against the ancient, and the base against the honourable.

NKJV: The people will be oppressed, Every one by another and every one by his neighbor; The child will be insolent toward the elder, And the base toward the honorable.”

When leaders are weak and ineffective, a power vacuum forms. Recognizing there will be no consequences for their actions and no protection from others, people will turn on each other to try to provide for their own. The standards for right and wrong in the community will vanish.

Isaiah describes that moment coming for Judah when all her strong men and leaders are taken away, leaving only the inexperienced to rule over the people (Isaiah 3:2–4). In response, the people will turn on each other, taking what they can from their neighbors to provide for themselves when resources are scant.

With no strong leaders to hold them accountable, the strong will take advantage of the weak. The young will be disrespectful to the older ones. Those who are despised, or "nobodies" in the NIV, will treat those who should be honored with open disrespect and harshness. The implication here is more than rudeness: Isaiah foresees abuse and manipulation.

The Lord will remove Judah's leaders to show that His people should trust Him first and above all.

Isaiah 3:1–15 describes what will happen when God removes all the men of importance from Jerusalem . From soldiers to commanders and judges to charms experts. Those left behind will soon turn on each other for survival, oppressing the poor and old. Any man offered the role of Jerusalem's leader will refuse, knowing he cannot bring healing or provision to God's people. The Lord will bring charges against Judah's current leaders for mistreating the poor and taking everything from them.

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).