"Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil;
That put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
That put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
"Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes,
And prudent in their own conceit!
"Woe unto them that are heroic in drinking wine,
And valiant in mixing strong drink!
Who, for a bribe, justify the wicked
And strip the innocent man of his innocence!
"Therefore, as the fire devours stubble,
And as hay shrivels in a flame,
So their root shall be as rottenness
And their blossom go up as dust;
Because they have rejected the teaching of the Lord of hosts,
And despised the word of Israel's Holy One."
So intensely absorbed in his speech was Isaiah, and so deeply interested was the vast assembly whom he was addressing, that no one took note of a splendidly arrayed group of men who had come up and stood with the rest, listening.
When Isaiah had finished speaking, and the people had caught their breath again, some one shouted:
"Behold! The king!"
Isaiah looked over the heads of the crowd toward the newcomers, and there he beheld Jotham and a retinue of nobles, laughing heartily, no doubt, at his masterful effort.
Fearlessly, and without a moment's hesitation, the prophet did what he had threatened Jotham he would do—he denounced his friend, the king, before his people:
"The Lord standeth forth to present his case,
And He standeth up to judge His people.
The Lord entereth into judgment
With the elders of His people and their princes.
'Ye, yourselves, have devoured the vineyard.
The spoils of the needy are in your houses.
What do you mean by crushing my people
And by grinding the face of the needy?'
Saith the Lord, God of hosts."