Question 1

What does it mean that God takes away the stay and staff, bread and water?

Accepted Answer

The “stay and staff” picture the main supports people lean on to live. When God says He will take away “the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,” He is warning that He will remove both food and the security that comes with it. The people had trusted in their wealth and supplies instead of God. So part of judgment is hunger, lack, and the loss of any sense of safety. It shows that even basic things like bread and water are gifts from God, and when He withdraws His support, nothing else can hold a nation up.

Question 2

Why are children said to be princes and women ruling over the people?

Accepted Answer

When the passage says children will be princes and women will rule, it is not attacking age or gender as such. It is painting a picture of weak, untrained, and fearful leadership. The normal pattern of wise, steady rulers is gone. Instead, immature or unfit people are in charge, which leads to disorder and oppression. This is part of God’s judgment: He removes capable leaders, and those who remain are unable or unwilling to guide the people in a just and stable way, so the whole society suffers.

Question 3

What was happening in Jerusalem and Judah when this warning was given?

Accepted Answer

The people of Jerusalem and Judah were enjoying strength, wealth, and strong leadership, and many felt secure. Yet their “tongue and their doings” were against the Lord. Sin was open and bold, like Sodom. The poor were being crushed, and leaders were using their positions for gain instead of care. God sent this warning to tell them that because of this rebellion, He would soon strip away food, protection, and wise leaders. The result would be confusion, failed leadership, and deep suffering in the nation.

Question 4

What does this passage teach about God’s view of leaders and the poor?

Accepted Answer

God cares deeply about how leaders treat the people, especially the poor. In this passage He accuses the rulers of eating up His vineyard and filling their houses with what they have taken from the needy. He pictures them as beating His people to pieces and grinding the faces of the poor. God Himself stands up to plead and to judge, showing that He will not ignore injustice. Those who use power to harm instead of protect will answer to Him, and their position will not shield them from His judgment.

Question 5

What does it mean that the people declare their sin like Sodom?

Accepted Answer

To “declare their sin as Sodom” means they sin openly and shamelessly. Instead of hiding their wrong, they boast in it and make no effort to turn back. Their faces themselves are like witnesses against them. This shows a heart that is hard and unafraid of God. The passage says “woe unto their soul,” because by living this way they are bringing evil on themselves. It is not just that judgment comes from outside; their own choices are leading them toward ruin and away from God’s favor.

Question 6

Why does God say it will be well with the righteous and ill with the wicked?

Accepted Answer

In the middle of heavy warnings, God gives a clear word of comfort: “Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him,” and, “Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him.” This shows that God sees and distinguishes people. Those who honor Him will eat the fruit of their doings, even when a nation is under judgment. Those who persist in evil will also reap what they have sown. The passage holds these two truths side by side: shared trouble in society, and very different outcomes for those who trust God or reject Him.

Question 7

How does this passage describe the results of turning away from God?

Accepted Answer

The passage shows that turning away from God does not only affect private life, it affects the whole community. When people’s words and actions are against the Lord, He removes supports: food becomes scarce, wise leaders disappear, and those who remain are weak or selfish. People oppress each other, respect breaks down, and no one wants the hard work of responsible leadership. Sin brings its own misery, and God’s judgment confirms it. The picture is of a society slowly falling apart because it has pushed God and His ways aside.

Question 8

How can this warning to Jerusalem and Judah speak to readers today?

Accepted Answer

While this passage spoke first to Jerusalem and Judah, its lessons still fit. It reminds us that God is the true source of daily bread, safety, and good order. When a people forget Him, mock what is right, and crush the weak, they should not be surprised when things begin to fall apart. It also encourages those who seek to live rightly that God has not forgotten them. Even in troubled times, He says it will be well with the righteous. So it calls us to turn from open sin and to value just, God-fearing leadership.

Isaiah 3:1

For, behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,

Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

God Will Remove the Leaders

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Isaiah 3:1

For, behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the stay and the staff, the whole stay of bread, and the whole stay of water,

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Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

God Will Remove the Leaders

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