Bible Strands
Isaiah 3:14
The LORD brings this charge against the elders and leaders of His people: “You have devoured the vineyard; the plunder of the poor is in your houses.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The LORD addresses the elders and leaders of Israel, delivering a formal charge immediately after arising to contend with the nation.
The words — The Hebrew זִקְנֵי (zik.Nei) translates literally to "the elders of," while שָׂרָי/ו (sa.Ra/v) means "its leaders." These terms identify the specific ruling class held accountable for the nation's corruption.
The thread — This accusation of devouring the vulnerable echoes the condemnation of workers of iniquity in Psalms 14:4 and the exploitation of the poor in Job 24:9. The pattern of judicial rebuke against corrupt leadership also appears in Job 22:4.
Why it lands — The text demands acknowledgment that systemic theft has been hoarded by the ruling class rather than the people. It requires a clear-eyed assessment of how leadership abuse directly enriches the powerful at the expense of the marginalized.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
The Lord will enter into judgment with the ancients of his people, and the princes thereof: for ye have eaten up the vineyard; the spoil of the poor is in your houses.
Cross-references
- Job 22:4 Is it for your reverence that He rebukes you and enters into judgment against you?
- Job 24:9 The fatherless infant is snatched from the breast; the nursing child of the poor is seized for a debt.
- Psalms 14:4 Will the workers of iniquity never learn? They devour my people like bread; they refuse to call upon the LORD.
- Psalms 143:2 Do not bring Your servant into judgment, for no one alive is righteous before You.
- Isaiah 3:2 the mighty man and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the soothsayer and the elder,
- Isaiah 5:7 For the vineyard of the LORD of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the plant of His delight. He looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard a cry of distress.
- Jeremiah 5:27 Like cages full of birds, so their houses are full of deceit. Therefore they have become powerful and rich.
- Amos 4:1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy, who say to your husbands, “Bring us more to drink.”
- James 2:6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you and drag you into court?
- Job 24:2 Men move boundary stones; they pasture stolen flocks.