Isaiah 22:1-3

Contemporary English Version

Trouble in Vision Valley

22 This is a message about Vision Valley:^[a]

Why are you celebrating
on the flat roofs^[b]
    of your houses?
²Your city is filled
    with noisy shouts.
Those who lie drunk
in your streets
    were not killed in battle.
³Your leaders ran away,
but they were captured
    without a fight.
No matter how far they ran,
    they were found and caught.^[c]

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Footnotes

22.1 Vision Valley: The exact location is not known. In Hebrew the name sounds something like “Hinnom Valley,” where the people of Jerusalem sometimes offered human sacrifices to the gods of Canaan.
22.1 flat roofs: In Palestine the houses usually had a flat roof. Stairs on the outside led up to the roof, which was made of beams and boards covered with packed earth.
22.3 No matter … caught: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.