Isaiah 1
- 1
- The vision of Isaiah the son of Amoz concerning Judah and Jerusalem, which
he saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
- 2
- Listen, O heavens, and hear, O earth; For the LORD speaks, "" Sons I have
reared and brought up, But they have revolted against Me.
- 3
- ""An ox knows its owner, And a donkey its master's manger, But Israel does
not know, My people do not understand.''
- 4
- Alas, sinful nation, People weighed down with iniquity, Offspring of
evildoers, Sons who act corruptly! They have abandoned the LORD, They have
despised the Holy One of Israel, They have turned away from Him.
- 5
- Where will you be stricken again, As you continue in your rebellion? The
whole head is sick And the whole heart is faint.
- 6
- From the sole of the foot even to the head There is nothing sound in it,
Only bruises, welts and raw wounds, Not pressed out or bandaged, Nor softened
with oil.
- 7
- Your land is desolate, Your cities are burned with fire, Your
fieldsstrangers are devouring them in your presence; It is desolation, as
overthrown by strangers.
- 8
- The daughter of Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, Like a
watchman's hut in a cucumber field, like a besieged city.
- 9
- Unless the LORD of hosts Had left us a few survivors, We would be like
Sodom, We would be like Gomorrah.
- 10
- Hear the word of the LORD, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the
instruction of our God, You people of Gomorrah.
- 11
- "" What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?'' Says the LORD. ""I have
had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle; And I take no
pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs or goats.
- 12
- ""When you come to appear before Me, Who requires of you this trampling of
My courts?
- 13
- ""Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to
Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies I cannot endure iniquity
and the solemn assembly.
- 14
- ""I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have
become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them.
- 15
- ""So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from
you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are
covered with blood.
- 16
- "" Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds
from My sight. Cease to do evil,
- 17
- Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan,
Plead for the widow.
- 18
- ""Come now, and let us reason together,'' Says the LORD, "" Though your
sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like
crimson, They will be like wool.
- 19
- "" If you consent and obey, You will eat the best of the land;
- 20
- ""But if you refuse and rebel, You will be devoured by the sword.'' Truly,
the mouth of the LORD has spoken.
- 21
- How the faithful city has become a harlot, She who was full of justice!
Righteousness once lodged in her, But now murderers.
- 22
- Your silver has become dross, Your drink diluted with water.
- 23
- Your rulers are rebels And companions of thieves; Everyone loves a bribe
And chases after rewards. They do not defend the orphan, Nor does the widow's
plea come before them.
- 24
- Therefore the Lord GOD of hosts, The Mighty One of Israel, declares, ""Ah,
I will be relieved of My adversaries And avenge Myself on My foes.
- 25
- ""I will also turn My hand against you, And will smelt away your dross as
with lye And will remove all your alloy.
- 26
- ""Then I will restore your judges as at the first, And your counselors as
at the beginning; After that you will be called the city of righteousness, A
faithful city.''
- 27
- Zion will be redeemed with justice And her repentant ones with
righteousness.
- 28
- But transgressors and sinners will be crushed together, And those who
forsake the LORD will come to an end.
- 29
- Surely you will be ashamed of the oaks which you have desired, And you
will be embarrassed at the gardens which you have chosen.
- 30
- For you will be like an oak whose leaf fades away Or as a garden that has
no water.
- 31
- The strong man will become tinder, His work also a spark. Thus they shall
both burn together And there will be none to quench them.
2
Isaiah 2
- 1
- The word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.
- 2
- Now it will come about that In the last days The mountain of the house of
the LORD Will be established as the chief of the mountains, And will be raised
above the hills; And all the nations will stream to it.
- 3
- And many peoples will come and say, ""Come, let us go up to the mountain
of the LORD, To the house of the God of Jacob; That He may teach us concerning
His ways And that we may walk in His paths.'' For the law will go forth from
Zion And the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.
- 4
- And He will judge between the nations, And will render decisions for many
peoples; And they will hammer their swords into plowshares and their spears
into pruning hooks. Nation will not lift up sword against nation, And never
again will they learn war.
- 5
- Come, house of Jacob, and let us walk in the light of the LORD.
- 6
- For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob, Because they are
filled with influences from the east, And they are soothsayers like the
Philistines, And they strike bargains with the children of foreigners.
- 7
- Their land has also been filled with silver and gold And there is no end
to their treasures; Their land has also been filled with horses And there is
no end to their chariots.
- 8
- Their land has also been filled with idols; They worship the work of their
hands, That which their fingers have made.
- 9
- So the common man has been humbled And the man of importance has been
abased, But do not forgive them.
- 10
- Enter the rock and hide in the dust From the terror of the LORD and from
the splendor of His majesty.
- 11
- The proud look of man will be abased And the loftiness of man will be
humbled, And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day.
- 12
- For the LORD of hosts will have a day of reckoning Against everyone who is
proud and lofty And against everyone who is lifted up, That he may be abased.
- 13
- And it will be against all the cedars of Lebanon that are lofty and lifted
up, Against all the oaks of Bashan,
- 14
- Against all the lofty mountains, Against all the hills that are lifted up,
- 15
- Against every high tower, Against every fortified wall,
- 16
- Against all the ships of Tarshish And against all the beautiful craft.
- 17
- The pride of man will be humbled And the loftiness of men will be abased;
And the LORD alone will be exalted in that day,
- 18
- But the idols will completely vanish.
- 19
- Men will go into caves of the rocks And into holes of the ground Before
the terror of the LORD And the splendor of His majesty, When He arises to make
the earth tremble.
- 20
- In that day men will cast away to the moles and the bats Their idols of
silver and their idols of gold, Which they made for themselves to worship,
- 21
- In order to go into the caverns of the rocks and the clefts of the cliffs
Before the terror of the LORD and the splendor of His majesty, When He arises
to make the earth tremble.
- 22
- Stop regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils; For why
should he be esteemed? 3
Isaiah 3
- 1
- For behold, the Lord GOD of hosts is going to remove from Jerusalem and
Judah Both supply and support, the whole supply of bread And the whole supply
of water;
- 2
- The mighty man and the warrior, The judge and the prophet, The diviner and
the elder,
- 3
- The captain of fifty and the honorable man, The counselor and the expert
artisan, And the skillful enchanter.
- 4
- And I will make mere lads their princes, And capricious children will rule
over them,
- 5
- And the people will be oppressed, Each one by another, and each one by his
neighbor; The youth will storm against the elder And the inferior against the
honorable.
- 6
- When a man lays hold of his brother in his father's house, saying, ""You
have a cloak, you shall be our ruler, And these ruins will be under your
charge,''
- 7
- He will protest on that day, saying, ""I will not be your healer, For in
my house there is neither bread nor cloak; You should not appoint me ruler of
the people.''
- 8
- For Jerusalem has stumbled and Judah has fallen, Because their speech and
their actions are against the LORD, To rebel against His glorious presence.
- 9
- The expression of their faces bears witness against them, And they display
their sin like Sodom; They do not even conceal it. Woe to them! For they have
brought evil on themselves.
- 10
- Say to the righteous that it will go well with them, For they will eat the
fruit of their actions.
- 11
- Woe to the wicked! It will go badly with him, For what he deserves will be
done to him.
- 12
- O My people! Their oppressors are children, And women rule over them. O My
people! Those who guide you lead you astray And confuse the direction of your
paths.
- 13
- The LORD arises to contend, And stands to judge the people.
- 14
- The LORD enters into judgment with the elders and princes of His people,
""It is you who have devoured the vineyard; The plunder of the poor is in your
houses.
- 15
- ""What do you mean by crushing My people And grinding the face of the
poor?'' Declares the Lord GOD of hosts.
- 16
- Moreover, the LORD said, ""Because the daughters of Zion are proud And
walk with heads held high and seductive eyes, And go along with mincing steps
And tinkle the bangles on their feet,
- 17
- Therefore the Lord will afflict the scalp of the daughters of Zion with
scabs, And the LORD will make their foreheads bare.''
- 18
- In that day the Lord will take away the beauty of their anklets,
headbands, crescent ornaments,
- 19
- dangling earrings, bracelets, veils,
- 20
- headdresses, ankle chains, sashes, perfume boxes, amulets,
- 21
- finger rings, nose rings,
- 22
- festal robes, outer tunics, cloaks, money purses,
- 23
- hand mirrors, undergarments, turbans and veils.
- 24
- Now it will come about that instead of sweet perfume there will be
putrefaction; Instead of a belt, a rope; Instead of well-set hair, a
plucked-out scalp; Instead of fine clothes, a donning of sackcloth; And
branding instead of beauty.
- 25
- Your men will fall by the sword And your mighty ones in battle.
- 26
- And her gates will lament and mourn, And deserted she will sit on the
ground. 4
Isaiah 4
- 1
- For seven women will take hold of one man in that day, saying, ""We will
eat our own bread and wear our own clothes, only let us be called by your
name; take away our reproach!''
- 2
- In that day the Branch of the LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the
fruit of the earth will be the pride and the adornment of the survivors of
Israel.
- 3
- It will come about that he who is left in Zion and remains in Jerusalem
will be called holyeveryone who is recorded for life in Jerusalem.
- 4
- When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and
purged the bloodshed of Jerusalem from her midst, by the spirit of judgment
and the spirit of burning,
- 5
- then the LORD will create over the whole area of Mount Zion and over her
assemblies a cloud by day, even smoke, and the brightness of a flaming fire by
night; for over all the glory will be a canopy.
- 6
- There will be a shelter to give shade from the heat by day, and refuge and
protection from the storm and the rain. 5
Isaiah 5
- 1
- Let me sing now for my well-beloved A song of my beloved concerning His
vineyard. My well-beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill.
- 2
- He dug it all around, removed its stones, And planted it with the choicest
vine. And He built a tower in the middle of it And also hewed out a wine vat
in it; Then He expected it to produce good grapes, But it produced only
worthless ones.
- 3
- ""And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, Judge between Me
and My vineyard.
- 4
- "" What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it?
Why, when I expected it to produce good grapes did it produce worthless ones?
- 5
- ""So now let Me tell you what I am going to do to My vineyard: I will
remove its hedge and it will be consumed; I will break down its wall and it
will become trampled ground.
- 6
- ""I will lay it waste; It will not be pruned or hoed, But briars and
thorns will come up. I will also charge the clouds to rain no rain on it.''
- 7
- For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel And the men
of Judah His delightful plant. Thus He looked for justice, but behold,
bloodshed; For righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.
- 8
- Woe to those who add house to house and join field to field, Until there
is no more room, So that you have to live alone in the midst of the land!
- 9
- In my ears the LORD of hosts has sworn, ""Surely, many houses shall become
desolate, Even great and fine ones, without occupants.
- 10
- ""For ten acres of vineyard will yield only one bath of wine, And a homer
of seed will yield but an ephah of grain.''
- 11
- Woe to those who rise early in the morning that they may pursue strong
drink, Who stay up late in the evening that wine may inflame them!
- 12
- Their banquets are accompanied by lyre and harp, by tambourine and flute,
and by wine; But they do not pay attention to the deeds of the LORD, Nor do
they consider the work of His hands.
- 13
- Therefore My people go into exile for their lack of knowledge; And their
honorable men are famished, And their multitude is parched with thirst.
- 14
- Therefore Sheol has enlarged its throat and opened its mouth without
measure; And Jerusalem's splendor, her multitude, her din of revelry and the
jubilant within her, descend into it.
- 15
- So the common man will be humbled and the man of importance abased, The
eyes of the proud also will be abased.
- 16
- But the LORD of hosts will be exalted in judgment, And the holy God will
show Himself holy in righteousness.
- 17
- Then the lambs will graze as in their pasture, And strangers will eat in
the waste places of the wealthy.
- 18
- Woe to those who drag iniquity with the cords of falsehood, And sin as if
with cart ropes;
- 19
- Who say, ""Let Him make speed, let Him hasten His work, that we may see
it; And let the purpose of the Holy One of Israel draw near And come to pass,
that we may know it!''
- 20
- Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness
for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet and sweet
for bitter!
- 21
- Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes And clever in their own sight!
- 22
- Woe to those who are heroes in drinking wine And valiant men in mixing
strong drink,
- 23
- Who justify the wicked for a bribe, And take away the rights of the ones
who are in the right!
- 24
- Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes stubble And dry grass collapses
into the flame, So their root will become like rot and their blossom blow away
as dust; For they have rejected the law of the LORD of hosts And despised the
word of the Holy One of Israel.
- 25
- On this account the anger of the LORD has burned against His people, And
He has stretched out His hand against them and struck them down. And the
mountains quaked, and their corpses lay like refuse in the middle of the
streets. For all this His anger is not spent, But His hand is still stretched
out.
- 26
- He will also lift up a standard to the distant nation, And will whistle
for it from the ends of the earth; And behold, it will come with speed
swiftly.
- 27
- No one in it is weary or stumbles, None slumbers or sleeps; Nor is the
belt at its waist undone, Nor its sandal strap broken.
- 28
- Its arrows are sharp and all its bows are bent; The hoofs of its horses
seem like flint and its chariot wheels like a whirlwind.
- 29
- Its roaring is like a lioness, and it roars like young lions; It growls as
it seizes the prey And carries it off with no one to deliver it.
- 30
- And it will growl over it in that day like the roaring of the sea. If one
looks to the land, behold, there is darkness and distress; Even the light is
darkened by its clouds. 6
Isaiah 6
- 1
- In the year of King Uzziah's death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne,
lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.
- 2
- Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his
face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew.
- 3
- And one called out to another and said, "" Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD
of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.''
- 4
- And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who
called out, while the temple was filling with smoke.
- 5
- Then I said, "" Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean
lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the
King, the LORD of hosts.''
- 6
- Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which
he had taken from the altar with tongs.
- 7
- He touched my mouth with it and said, ""Behold, this has touched your
lips; and your iniquity is taken away and your sin is forgiven.''
- 8
- Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ""Whom shall I send, and who
will go for Us?'' Then I said, ""Here am I. Send me!''
- 9
- He said, ""Go, and tell this people: "Keep on listening, but do not
perceive; Keep on looking, but do not understand.'
- 10
- "" Render the hearts of this people insensitive, Their ears dull, And
their eyes dim, Otherwise they might see with their eyes, Hear with their
ears, Understand with their hearts, And return and be healed.''
- 11
- Then I said, ""Lord, how long?'' And He answered, ""Until cities are
devastated and without inhabitant, Houses are without people And the land is
utterly desolate,
- 12
- ""The LORD has removed men far away, And the forsaken places are many in
the midst of the land.
- 13
- ""Yet there will be a tenth portion in it, And it will again be subject to
burning, Like a terebinth or an oak Whose stump remains when it is felled. The
holy seed is its stump.'' 7
Isaiah 7
- 1
- Now it came about in the days of Ahaz, the son of Jotham, the son of
Uzziah, king of Judah, that Rezin the king of Aram and Pekah the son of
Remaliah, king of Israel, went up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but
could not conquer it.
- 2
- When it was reported to the house of David, saying, ""The Arameans have
camped in Ephraim,'' his heart and the hearts of his people shook as the trees
of the forest shake with the wind.
- 3
- Then the LORD said to Isaiah, ""Go out now to meet Ahaz, you and your son
Shear-jashub, at the end of the conduit of the upper pool, on the highway to
the fuller's field,
- 4
- and say to him, "Take care and be calm, have no fear and do not be
fainthearted because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands, on account
of the fierce anger of Rezin and Aram and the son of Remaliah.
- 5
- "Because Aram, with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah, has planned evil
against you, saying,
- 6
- ""Let us go up against Judah and terrorize it, and make for ourselves a
breach in its walls and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,''
- 7
- thus says the Lord GOD: "" It shall not stand nor shall it come to pass.
- 8
- ""For the head of Aram is Damascus and the head of Damascus is Rezin (now
within another 65 years Ephraim will be shattered, so that it is no longer a
people),
- 9
- and the head of Ephraim is Samaria and the head of Samaria is the son of
Remaliah. If you will not believe, you surely shall not last.'''''
- 10
- Then the LORD spoke again to Ahaz, saying,
- 11
- ""Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God; make it deep as Sheol or
high as heaven.''
- 12
- But Ahaz said, ""I will not ask, nor will I test the LORD!''
- 13
- Then he said, ""Listen now, O house of David! Is it too slight a thing for
you to try the patience of men, that you will try the patience of my God as
well?
- 14
- ""Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will
be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.
- 15
- ""He will eat curds and honey at the time He knows enough to refuse evil
and choose good.
- 16
- "" For before the boy will know enough to refuse evil and choose good, the
land whose two kings you dread will be forsaken.
- 17
- ""The LORD will bring on you, on your people, and on your father's house
such days as have never come since the day that Ephraim separated from Judah,
the king of Assyria.''
- 18
- In that day the LORD will whistle for the fly that is in the remotest part
of the rivers of Egypt and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria.
- 19
- They will all come and settle on the steep ravines, on the ledges of the
cliffs, on all the thorn bushes and on all the watering places.
- 20
- In that day the Lord will shave with a razor, hired from regions beyond
the Euphrates (that is, with the king of Assyria), the head and the hair of
the legs; and it will also remove the beard.
- 21
- Now in that day a man may keep alive a heifer and a pair of sheep;
- 22
- and because of the abundance of the milk produced he will eat curds, for
everyone that is left within the land will eat curds and honey.
- 23
- And it will come about in that day, that every place where there used to
be a thousand vines, valued at a thousand shekels of silver, will become
briars and thorns.
- 24
- People will come there with bows and arrows because all the land will be
briars and thorns.
- 25
- As for all the hills which used to be cultivated with the hoe, you will
not go there for fear of briars and thorns; but they will become a place for
pasturing oxen and for sheep to trample. 8
Isaiah 8
- 1
- Then the LORD said to me, ""Take for yourself a large tablet and write on
it in ordinary letters: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey.
- 2
- ""And I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, Uriah the
priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.''
- 3
- So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son.
Then the LORD said to me, ""Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz;
- 4
- for before the boy knows how to cry out "My father' or "My mother,' the
wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the
king of Assyria.''
- 5
- Again the LORD spoke to me further, saying,
- 6
- ""Inasmuch as these people have rejected the gently flowing waters of
Shiloah And rejoice in Rezin and the son of Remaliah;
- 7
- ""Now therefore, behold, the Lord is about to bring on them the strong and
abundant waters of the Euphrates, Even the king of Assyria and all his glory;
And it will rise up over all its channels and go over all its banks.
- 8
- ""Then it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass through, It
will reach even to the neck; And the spread of its wings will fill the breadth
of your land, O Immanuel.
- 9
- "" Be broken, O peoples, and be shattered; And give ear, all remote places
of the earth. Gird yourselves, yet be shattered; Gird yourselves, yet be
shattered.
- 10
- "" Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will
not stand, For God is with us.''
- 11
- For thus the LORD spoke to me with mighty power and instructed me not to
walk in the way of this people, saying,
- 12
- ""You are not to say, "It is a conspiracy!' In regard to all that this
people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear or be in
dread of it.
- 13
- ""It is the LORD of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be
your fear, And He shall be your dread.
- 14
- ""Then He shall become a sanctuary; But to both the houses of Israel, a
stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the
inhabitants of Jerusalem.
- 15
- ""Many will stumble over them, Then they will fall and be broken; They
will even be snared and caught.''
- 16
- Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.
- 17
- And I will wait for the LORD who is hiding His face from the house of
Jacob; I will even look eagerly for Him.
- 18
- Behold, I and the children whom the LORD has given me are for signs and
wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.
- 19
- When they say to you, "" Consult the mediums and the spiritists who
whisper and mutter,'' should not a people consult their God? Should they
consult the dead on behalf of the living?
- 20
- To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this
word, it is because they have no dawn.
- 21
- They will pass through the land hard-pressed and famished, and it will
turn out that when they are hungry, they will be enraged and curse their king
and their God as they face upward.
- 22
- Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the
gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness.
9
Isaiah 9
- 1
- But there will be no more gloom for her who was in anguish; in earlier
times He treated the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali with contempt,
but later on He shall make it glorious, by the way of the sea, on the other
side of Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles.
- 2
- The people who walk in darkness Will see a great light; Those who live in
a dark land, The light will shine on them.
- 3
- You shall multiply the nation, You shall increase their gladness; They
will be glad in Your presence As with the gladness of harvest, As men rejoice
when they divide the spoil.
- 4
- For You shall break the yoke of their burden and the staff on their
shoulders, The rod of their oppressor, as at the battle of Midian.
- 5
- For every boot of the booted warrior in the battle tumult, And cloak
rolled in blood, will be for burning, fuel for the fire.
- 6
- For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the
government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful
Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.
- 7
- There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, On the
throne of David and over his kingdom, To establish it and to uphold it with
justice and righteousness From then on and forevermore. The zeal of the LORD
of hosts will accomplish this.
- 8
- The Lord sends a message against Jacob, And it falls on Israel.
- 9
- And all the people know it, That is, Ephraim and the inhabitants of
Samaria, Asserting in pride and in arrogance of heart:
- 10
- ""The bricks have fallen down, But we will rebuild with smooth stones; The
sycamores have been cut down, But we will replace them with cedars.''
- 11
- Therefore the LORD raises against them adversaries from Rezin And spurs
their enemies on,
- 12
- The Arameans on the east and the Philistines on the west; And they devour
Israel with gaping jaws. In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away
And His hand is still stretched out.
- 13
- Yet the people do not turn back to Him who struck them, Nor do they seek
the LORD of hosts.
- 14
- So the LORD cuts off head and tail from Israel, Both palm branch and
bulrush in a single day.
- 15
- The head is the elder and honorable man, And the prophet who teaches
falsehood is the tail.
- 16
- For those who guide this people are leading them astray; And those who are
guided by them are brought to confusion.
- 17
- Therefore the Lord does not take pleasure in their young men, Nor does He
have pity on their orphans or their widows; For every one of them is godless
and an evildoer, And every mouth is speaking foolishness. In spite of all
this, His anger does not turn away And His hand is still stretched out.
- 18
- For wickedness burns like a fire; It consumes briars and thorns; It even
sets the thickets of the forest aflame And they roll upward in a column of
smoke.
- 19
- By the fury of the LORD of hosts the land is burned up, And the people are
like fuel for the fire; No man spares his brother.
- 20
- They slice off what is on the right hand but still are hungry, And they
eat what is on the left hand but they are not satisfied; Each of them eats the
flesh of his own arm.
- 21
- Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh, And together they are
against Judah. In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away And His hand
is still stretched out. 10
Isaiah 10
- 1
- Woe to those who enact evil statutes And to those who constantly record
unjust decisions,
- 2
- So as to deprive the needy of justice And rob the poor of My people of
their rights, So that widows may be their spoil And that they may plunder the
orphans.
- 3
- Now what will you do in the day of punishment, And in the devastation
which will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help? And where will you
leave your wealth?
- 4
- Nothing remains but to crouch among the captives Or fall among the slain.
In spite of all this, His anger does not turn away And His hand is still
stretched out.
- 5
- Woe to Assyria, the rod of My anger And the staff in whose hands is My
indignation,
- 6
- I send it against a godless nation And commission it against the people of
My fury To capture booty and to seize plunder, And to trample them down like
mud in the streets.
- 7
- Yet it does not so intend, Nor does it plan so in its heart, But rather it
is its purpose to destroy And to cut off many nations.
- 8
- For it says, ""Are not my princes all kings?
- 9
- ""Is not Calno like Carchemish, Or Hamath like Arpad, Or Samaria like
Damascus?
- 10
- ""As my hand has reached to the kingdoms of the idols, Whose graven images
were greater than those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
- 11
- Shall I not do to Jerusalem and her images Just as I have done to Samaria
and her idols?''
- 12
- So it will be that when the Lord has completed all His work on Mount Zion
and on Jerusalem, He will say, ""I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart
of the king of Assyria and the pomp of his haughtiness.''
- 13
- For he has said, ""By the power of my hand and by my wisdom I did this,
For I have understanding; And I removed the boundaries of the peoples And
plundered their treasures, And like a mighty man I brought down their
inhabitants,
- 14
- And my hand reached to the riches of the peoples like a nest, And as one
gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth; And there was not one that
flapped its wing or opened its beak or chirped.''
- 15
- Is the axe to boast itself over the one who chops with it? Is the saw to
exalt itself over the one who wields it? That would be like a club wielding
those who lift it, Or like a rod lifting him who is not wood.
- 16
- Therefore the Lord, the GOD of hosts, will send a wasting disease among
his stout warriors; And under his glory a fire will be kindled like a burning
flame.
- 17
- And the light of Israel will become a fire and his Holy One a flame, And
it will burn and devour his thorns and his briars in a single day.
- 18
- And He will destroy the glory of his forest and of his fruitful garden,
both soul and body, And it will be as when a sick man wastes away.
- 19
- And the rest of the trees of his forest will be so small in number That a
child could write them down.
- 20
- Now in that day the remnant of Israel, and those of the house of Jacob who
have escaped, will never again rely on the one who struck them, but will truly
rely on the LORD, the Holy One of Israel.
- 21
- A remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God.
- 22
- For though your people, O Israel, may be like the sand of the sea, Only a
remnant within them will return; A destruction is determined, overflowing with
righteousness.
- 23
- For a complete destruction, one that is decreed, the Lord GOD of hosts
will execute in the midst of the whole land.
- 24
- Therefore thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, ""O My people who dwell in
Zion, do not fear the Assyrian who strikes you with the rod and lifts up his
staff against you, the way Egypt did.
- 25
- ""For in a very little while My indignation against you will be spent and
My anger will be directed to their destruction.''
- 26
- The LORD of hosts will arouse a scourge against him like the slaughter of
Midian at the rock of Oreb; and His staff will be over the sea and He will
lift it up the way He did in Egypt.
- 27
- So it will be in that day, that his burden will be removed from your
shoulders and his yoke from your neck, and the yoke will be broken because of
fatness.
- 28
- He has come against Aiath, He has passed through Migron; At Michmash he
deposited his baggage.
- 29
- They have gone through the pass, saying, "" Geba will be our lodging
place.'' Ramah is terrified, and Gibeah of Saul has fled away.
- 30
- Cry aloud with your voice, O daughter of Gallim! Pay attention, Laishah
and wretched Anathoth!
- 31
- Madmenah has fled. The inhabitants of Gebim have sought refuge.
- 32
- Yet today he will halt at Nob; He shakes his fist at the mountain of the
daughter of Zion, the hill of Jerusalem.
- 33
- Behold, the Lord, the GOD of hosts, will lop off the boughs with a
terrible crash; Those also who are tall in stature will be cut down And those
who are lofty will be abased.
- 34
- He will cut down the thickets of the forest with an iron axe, And Lebanon
will fall by the Mighty One. 11
Isaiah 11
- 1
- Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his
roots will bear fruit.
- 2
- The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and
understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and
the fear of the LORD.
- 3
- And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what
His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear;
- 4
- But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness
for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of
His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked.
- 5
- Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the
belt about His waist.
- 6
- And the wolf will dwell with the lamb, And the leopard will lie down with
the young goat, And the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And
a little boy will lead them.
- 7
- Also the cow and the bear will graze, Their young will lie down together,
And the lion will eat straw like the ox.
- 8
- The nursing child will play by the hole of the cobra, And the weaned child
will put his hand on the viper's den.
- 9
- They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth will
be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.
- 10
- Then in that day The nations will resort to the root of Jesse, Who will
stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.
- 11
- Then it will happen on that day that the Lord Will again recover the
second time with His hand The remnant of His people, who will remain, From
Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, And from the islands of
the sea.
- 12
- And He will lift up a standard for the nations And assemble the banished
ones of Israel, And will gather the dispersed of Judah From the four corners
of the earth.
- 13
- Then the jealousy of Ephraim will depart, And those who harass Judah will
be cut off; Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, And Judah will not harass
Ephraim.
- 14
- They will swoop down on the slopes of the Philistines on the west;
Together they will plunder the sons of the east; They will possess Edom and
Moab, And the sons of Ammon will be subject to them.
- 15
- And the LORD will utterly destroy The tongue of the Sea of Egypt; And He
will wave His hand over the River With His scorching wind; And He will strike
it into seven streams And make men walk over dry-shod.
- 16
- And there will be a highway from Assyria For the remnant of His people who
will be left, Just as there was for Israel In the day that they came up out of
the land of Egypt. 12
Isaiah 12
- 1
- Then you will say on that day, "" I will give thanks to You, O LORD; For
although You were angry with me, Your anger is turned away, And You comfort
me.
- 2
- ""Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the
LORD GOD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation.''
- 3
- Therefore you will joyously draw water From the springs of salvation.
- 4
- And in that day you will say, "" Give thanks to the LORD, call on His
name. Make known His deeds among the peoples; Make them remember that His name
is exalted.''
- 5
- Praise the LORD in song, for He has done excellent things; Let this be
known throughout the earth.
- 6
- Cry aloud and shout for joy, O inhabitant of Zion, For great in your midst
is the Holy One of Israel. 13
Isaiah 13
- 1
- The oracle concerning Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.
- 2
- Lift up a standard on the bare hill, Raise your voice to them, Wave the
hand that they may enter the doors of the nobles.
- 3
- I have commanded My consecrated ones, I have even called My mighty
warriors, My proudly exulting ones, To execute My anger.
- 4
- A sound of tumult on the mountains, Like that of many people! A sound of
the uproar of kingdoms, Of nations gathered together! The LORD of hosts is
mustering the army for battle.
- 5
- They are coming from a far country, From the farthest horizons, The LORD
and His instruments of indignation, To destroy the whole land.
- 6
- Wail, for the day of the LORD is near! It will come as destruction from
the Almighty.
- 7
- Therefore all hands will fall limp, And every man's heart will melt.
- 8
- They will be terrified, Pains and anguish will take hold of them; They
will writhe like a woman in labor, They will look at one another in
astonishment, Their faces aflame.
- 9
- Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, Cruel, with fury and burning anger,
To make the land a desolation; And He will exterminate its sinners from it.
- 10
- For the stars of heaven and their constellations Will not flash forth
their light; The sun will be dark when it rises And the moon will not shed its
light.
- 11
- Thus I will punish the world for its evil And the wicked for their
iniquity; I will also put an end to the arrogance of the proud And abase the
haughtiness of the ruthless.
- 12
- I will make mortal man scarcer than pure gold And mankind than the gold of
Ophir.
- 13
- Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, And the earth will be shaken
from its place At the fury of the LORD of hosts In the day of His burning
anger.
- 14
- And it will be that like a hunted gazelle, Or like sheep with none to
gather them, They will each turn to his own people, And each one flee to his
own land.
- 15
- Anyone who is found will be thrust through, And anyone who is captured
will fall by the sword.
- 16
- Their little ones also will be dashed to pieces Before their eyes; Their
houses will be plundered And their wives ravished.
- 17
- Behold, I am going to stir up the Medes against them, Who will not value
silver or take pleasure in gold.
- 18
- And their bows will mow down the young men, They will not even have
compassion on the fruit of the womb, Nor will their eye pity children.
- 19
- And Babylon, the beauty of kingdoms, the glory of the Chaldeans' pride,
Will be as when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah.
- 20
- It will never be inhabited or lived in from generation to generation; Nor
will the Arab pitch his tent there, Nor will shepherds make their flocks lie
down there.
- 21
- But desert creatures will lie down there, And their houses will be full of
owls; Ostriches also will live there, and shaggy goats will frolic there.
- 22
- Hyenas will howl in their fortified towers And jackals in their luxurious
palaces. Her fateful time also will soon come And her days will not be
prolonged. 14
Isaiah 14
- 1
- When the LORD will have compassion on Jacob and again choose Israel, and
settle them in their own land, then strangers will join them and attach
themselves to the house of Jacob.
- 2
- The peoples will take them along and bring them to their place, and the
house of Israel will possess them as an inheritance in the land of the LORD as
male servants and female servants; and they will take their captors captive
and will rule over their oppressors.
- 3
- And it will be in the day when the LORD gives you rest from your pain and
turmoil and harsh service in which you have been enslaved,
- 4
- that you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon, and say,
""How the oppressor has ceased, And how fury has ceased!
- 5
- ""The LORD has broken the staff of the wicked, The scepter of rulers
- 6
- Which used to strike the peoples in fury with unceasing strokes, Which
subdued the nations in anger with unrestrained persecution.
- 7
- ""The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; They break forth into shouts of
joy.
- 8
- ""Even the cypress trees rejoice over you, and the cedars of Lebanon,
saying, "Since you were laid low, no tree cutter comes up against us.'
- 9
- "" Sheol from beneath is excited over you to meet you when you come; It
arouses for you the spirits of the dead, all the leaders of the earth; It
raises all the kings of the nations from their thrones.
- 10
- "" They will all respond and say to you, "Even you have been made weak as
we, You have become like us.
- 11
- "Your pomp and the music of your harps Have been brought down to Sheol;
Maggots are spread out as your bed beneath you And worms are your covering.'
- 12
- ""How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn!
You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations!
- 13
- ""But you said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my
throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the
recesses of the north.
- 14
- "I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like
the Most High.'
- 15
- ""Nevertheless you will be thrust down to Sheol, To the recesses of the
pit.
- 16
- ""Those who see you will gaze at you, They will ponder over you, saying,
"Is this the man who made the earth tremble, Who shook kingdoms,
- 17
- Who made the world like a wilderness And overthrew its cities, Who did not
allow his prisoners to go home?'
- 18
- ""All the kings of the nations lie in glory, Each in his own tomb.
- 19
- ""But you have been cast out of your tomb Like a rejected branch, Clothed
with the slain who are pierced with a sword, Who go down to the stones of the
pit Like a trampled corpse.
- 20
- ""You will not be united with them in burial, Because you have ruined your
country, You have slain your people. May the offspring of evildoers not be
mentioned forever.
- 21
- ""Prepare for his sons a place of slaughter Because of the iniquity of
their fathers. They must not arise and take possession of the earth And fill
the face of the world with cities.''
- 22
- ""I will rise up against them,'' declares the LORD of hosts, ""and will
cut off from Babylon name and survivors, offspring and posterity,'' declares
the LORD.
- 23
- ""I will also make it a possession for the hedgehog and swamps of water,
and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,'' declares the LORD of
hosts.
- 24
- The LORD of hosts has sworn saying, ""Surely, just as I have intended so
it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand,
- 25
- to break Assyria in My land, and I will trample him on My mountains. Then
his yoke will be removed from them and his burden removed from their shoulder.
- 26
- ""This is the plan devised against the whole earth; and this is the hand
that is stretched out against all the nations.
- 27
- ""For the LORD of hosts has planned, and who can frustrate it? And as for
His stretched-out hand, who can turn it back?''
- 28
- In the year that King Ahaz died this oracle came:
- 29
- ""Do not rejoice, O Philistia, all of you, Because the rod that struck you
is broken; For from the serpent's root a viper will come out, And its fruit
will be a flying serpent.
- 30
- "" Those who are most helpless will eat, And the needy will lie down in
security; I will destroy your root with famine, And it will kill off your
survivors.
- 31
- ""Wail, O gate; cry, O city; Melt away, O Philistia, all of you; For smoke
comes from the north, And there is no straggler in his ranks.
- 32
- ""How then will one answer the messengers of the nation? That the LORD has
founded Zion, And the afflicted of His people will seek refuge in it.''
15
Isaiah 15
- 1
- The oracle concerning Moab. Surely in a night Ar of Moab is devastated and
ruined; Surely in a night Kir of Moab is devastated and ruined.
- 2
- They have gone up to the temple and to Dibon, even to the high places to
weep. Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba; Everyone's head is bald and every beard
is cut off.
- 3
- In their streets they have girded themselves with sackcloth; On their
housetops and in their squares Everyone is wailing, dissolved in tears.
- 4
- Heshbon and Elealeh also cry out, Their voice is heard all the way to
Jahaz; Therefore the armed men of Moab cry aloud; His soul trembles within
him.
- 5
- My heart cries out for Moab; His fugitives are as far as Zoar and
Eglath-shelishiyah, For they go up the ascent of Luhith weeping; Surely on the
road to Horonaim they raise a cry of distress over their ruin.
- 6
- For the waters of Nimrim are desolate. Surely the grass is withered, the
tender grass died out, There is no green thing.
- 7
- Therefore the abundance which they have acquired and stored up They carry
off over the brook of Arabim.
- 8
- For the cry of distress has gone around the territory of Moab, Its wail
goes as far as Eglaim and its wailing even to Beer-elim.
- 9
- For the waters of Dimon are full of blood; Surely I will bring added woes
upon Dimon, A lion upon the fugitives of Moab and upon the remnant of the
land. 16
Isaiah 16
- 1
- Send the tribute lamb to the ruler of the land, From Sela by way of the
wilderness to the mountain of the daughter of Zion.
- 2
- Then, like fleeing birds or scattered nestlings, The daughters of Moab
will be at the fords of the Arnon.
- 3
- "" Give us advice, make a decision; Cast your shadow like night at high
noon; Hide the outcasts, do not betray the fugitive.
- 4
- ""Let the outcasts of Moab stay with you; Be a hiding place to them from
the destroyer.'' For the extortioner has come to an end, destruction has
ceased, Oppressors have completely disappeared from the land.
- 5
- A throne will even be established in lovingkindness, And a judge will sit
on it in faithfulness in the tent of David; Moreover, he will seek justice And
be prompt in righteousness.
- 6
- We have heard of the pride of Moab, an excessive pride; Even of his
arrogance, pride, and fury; His idle boasts are false.
- 7
- Therefore Moab will wail; everyone of Moab will wail. You will moan for
the raisin cakes of Kir-hareseth As those who are utterly stricken.
- 8
- For the fields of Heshbon have withered, the vines of Sibmah as well; The
lords of the nations have trampled down its choice clusters Which reached as
far as Jazer and wandered to the deserts; Its tendrils spread themselves out
and passed over the sea.
- 9
- Therefore I will weep bitterly for Jazer, for the vine of Sibmah; I will
drench you with my tears, O Heshbon and Elealeh; For the shouting over your
summer fruits and your harvest has fallen away.
- 10
- Gladness and joy are taken away from the fruitful field; In the vineyards
also there will be no cries of joy or jubilant shouting, No treader treads out
wine in the presses, For I have made the shouting to cease.
- 11
- Therefore my heart intones like a harp for Moab And my inward feelings for
Kir-hareseth.
- 12
- So it will come about when Moab presents himself, When he wearies himself
upon his high place And comes to his sanctuary to pray, That he will not
prevail.
- 13
- This is the word which the LORD spoke earlier concerning Moab.
- 14
- But now the LORD speaks, saying, ""Within three years, as a hired man
would count them, the glory of Moab will be degraded along with all his great
population, and his remnant will be very small and impotent.''
17
Isaiah 17
- 1
- The oracle concerning Damascus. ""Behold, Damascus is about to be removed
from being a city And will become a fallen ruin.
- 2
- ""The cities of Aroer are forsaken; They will be for flocks to lie down
in, And there will be no one to frighten them.
- 3
- ""The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim, And sovereignty from
Damascus And the remnant of Aram; They will be like the glory of the sons of
Israel,'' Declares the LORD of hosts.
- 4
- Now in that day the glory of Jacob will fade, And the fatness of his flesh
will become lean.
- 5
- It will be even like the reaper gathering the standing grain, As his arm
harvests the ears, Or it will be like one gleaning ears of grain In the valley
of Rephaim.
- 6
- Yet gleanings will be left in it like the shaking of an olive tree, Two or
three olives on the topmost bough, Four or five on the branches of a fruitful
tree, Declares the LORD, the God of Israel.
- 7
- In that day man will have regard for his Maker And his eyes will look to
the Holy One of Israel.
- 8
- He will not have regard for the altars, the work of his hands, Nor will he
look to that which his fingers have made, Even the Asherim and incense stands.
- 9
- In that day their strong cities will be like forsaken places in the
forest, Or like branches which they abandoned before the sons of Israel; And
the land will be a desolation.
- 10
- For you have forgotten the God of your salvation And have not remembered
the rock of your refuge. Therefore you plant delightful plants And set them
with vine slips of a strange god.
- 11
- In the day that you plant it you carefully fence it in, And in the morning
you bring your seed to blossom; But the harvest will be a heap In a day of
sickliness and incurable pain.
- 12
- Alas, the uproar of many peoples Who roar like the roaring of the seas,
And the rumbling of nations Who rush on like the rumbling of mighty waters!
- 13
- The nations rumble on like the rumbling of many waters, But He will rebuke
them and they will flee far away, And be chased like chaff in the mountains
before the wind, Or like whirling dust before a gale.
- 14
- At evening time, behold, there is terror! Before morning they are no more.
Such will be the portion of those who plunder us And the lot of those who
pillage us. 18
Isaiah 18
- 1
- Alas, oh land of whirring wings Which lies beyond the rivers of Cush,
- 2
- Which sends envoys by the sea, Even in papyrus vessels on the surface of
the waters. Go, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth, To a people
feared far and wide, A powerful and oppressive nation Whose land the rivers
divide.
- 3
- All you inhabitants of the world and dwellers on earth, As soon as a
standard is raised on the mountains, you will see it, And as soon as the
trumpet is blown, you will hear it.
- 4
- For thus the LORD has told me, ""I will look from My dwelling place
quietly Like dazzling heat in the sunshine, Like a cloud of dew in the heat of
harvest.''
- 5
- For before the harvest, as soon as the bud blossoms And the flower becomes
a ripening grape, Then He will cut off the sprigs with pruning knives And
remove and cut away the spreading branches.
- 6
- They will be left together for mountain birds of prey, And for the beasts
of the earth; And the birds of prey will spend the summer feeding on them, And
all the beasts of the earth will spend harvest time on them.
- 7
- At that time a gift of homage will be brought to the LORD of hosts From a
people tall and smooth, Even from a people feared far and wide, A powerful and
oppressive nation, Whose land the rivers divide To the place of the name of
the LORD of hosts, even Mount Zion. 19
Isaiah 19
- 1
- The oracle concerning Egypt. Behold, the LORD is riding on a swift cloud
and is about to come to Egypt; The idols of Egypt will tremble at His
presence, And the heart of the Egyptians will melt within them.
- 2
- ""So I will incite Egyptians against Egyptians; And they will each fight
against his brother and each against his neighbor, City against city and
kingdom against kingdom.
- 3
- ""Then the spirit of the Egyptians will be demoralized within them; And I
will confound their strategy, So that they will resort to idols and ghosts of
the dead And to mediums and spiritists.
- 4
- ""Moreover, I will deliver the Egyptians into the hand of a cruel master,
And a mighty king will rule over them,'' declares the Lord GOD of hosts.
- 5
- The waters from the sea will dry up, And the river will be parched and
dry.
- 6
- The canals will emit a stench, The streams of Egypt will thin out and dry
up; The reeds and rushes will rot away.
- 7
- The bulrushes by the Nile, by the edge of the Nile And all the sown fields
by the Nile Will become dry, be driven away, and be no more.
- 8
- And the fishermen will lament, And all those who cast a line into the Nile
will mourn, And those who spread nets on the waters will pine away.
- 9
- Moreover, the manufacturers of linen made from combed flax And the weavers
of white cloth will be utterly dejected.
- 10
- And the pillars of Egypt will be crushed; All the hired laborers will be
grieved in soul.
- 11
- The princes of Zoan are mere fools; The advice of Pharaoh's wisest
advisers has become stupid. How can you men say to Pharaoh, ""I am a son of
the wise, a son of ancient kings''?
- 12
- Well then, where are your wise men? Please let them tell you, And let them
understand what the LORD of hosts Has purposed against Egypt.
- 13
- The princes of Zoan have acted foolishly, The princes of Memphis are
deluded; Those who are the cornerstone of her tribes Have led Egypt astray.
- 14
- The LORD has mixed within her a spirit of distortion; They have led Egypt
astray in all that it does, As a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
- 15
- There will be no work for Egypt Which its head or tail, its palm branch or
bulrush, may do.
- 16
- In that day the Egyptians will become like women, and they will tremble
and be in dread because of the waving of the hand of the LORD of hosts, which
He is going to wave over them.
- 17
- The land of Judah will become a terror to Egypt; everyone to whom it is
mentioned will be in dread of it, because of the purpose of the LORD of hosts
which He is purposing against them.
- 18
- In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will be speaking the language
of Canaan and swearing allegiance to the LORD of hosts; one will be called the
City of Destruction.
- 19
- In that day there will be an altar to the LORD in the midst of the land of
Egypt, and a pillar to the LORD near its border.
- 20
- It will become a sign and a witness to the LORD of hosts in the land of
Egypt; for they will cry to the LORD because of oppressors, and He will send
them a Savior and a Champion, and He will deliver them.
- 21
- Thus the LORD will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will
know the LORD in that day. They will even worship with sacrifice and offering,
and will make a vow to the LORD and perform it.
- 22
- The LORD will strike Egypt, striking but healing; so they will return to
the LORD, and He will respond to them and will heal them.
- 23
- In that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the
Assyrians will come into Egypt and the Egyptians into Assyria, and the
Egyptians will worship with the Assyrians.
- 24
- In that day Israel will be the third party with Egypt and Assyria, a
blessing in the midst of the earth,
- 25
- whom the LORD of hosts has blessed, saying, ""Blessed is Egypt My people,
and Assyria the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.''
20
Isaiah 20
- 1
- In the year that the commander came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of
Assyria sent him and he fought against Ashdod and captured it,
- 2
- at that time the LORD spoke through Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, ""Go
and loosen the sackcloth from your hips and take your shoes off your feet.''
And he did so, going naked and barefoot.
- 3
- And the LORD said, ""Even as My servant Isaiah has gone naked and barefoot
three years as a sign and token against Egypt and Cush,
- 4
- so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles
of Cush, young and old, naked and barefoot with buttocks uncovered, to the
shame of Egypt.
- 5
- ""Then they will be dismayed and ashamed because of Cush their hope and
Egypt their boast.
- 6
- ""So the inhabitants of this coastland will say in that day, "Behold, such
is our hope, where we fled for help to be delivered from the king of Assyria;
and we, how shall we escape?''' 21
Isaiah 21
- 1
- The oracle concerning the wilderness of the sea. As windstorms in the
Negev sweep on, It comes from the wilderness, from a terrifying land.
- 2
- A harsh vision has been shown to me; The treacherous one still deals
treacherously, and the destroyer still destroys. Go up, Elam, lay siege,
Media; I have made an end of all the groaning she has caused.
- 3
- For this reason my loins are full of anguish; Pains have seized me like
the pains of a woman in labor. I am so bewildered I cannot hear, so terrified
I cannot see.
- 4
- My mind reels, horror overwhelms me; The twilight I longed for has been
turned for me into trembling.
- 5
- They set the table, they spread out the cloth, they eat, they drink;
""Rise up, captains, oil the shields,''
- 6
- For thus the Lord says to me, ""Go, station the lookout, let him report
what he sees.
- 7
- ""When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs, A train of donkeys, a train of
camels, Let him pay close attention, very close attention.''
- 8
- Then the lookout called, "" O Lord, I stand continually by day on the
watchtower, And I am stationed every night at my guard post.
- 9
- ""Now behold, here comes a troop of riders, horsemen in pairs.'' And one
said, "" Fallen, fallen is Babylon; And all the images of her gods are
shattered on the ground.''
- 10
- O my threshed people, and my afflicted of the threshing floor! What I have
heard from the LORD of hosts, The God of Israel, I make known to you.
- 11
- The oracle concerning Edom. One keeps calling to me from Seir, ""Watchman,
how far gone is the night? Watchman, how far gone is the night?''
- 12
- The watchman says, ""Morning comes but also night. If you would inquire,
inquire; Come back again.''
- 13
- The oracle about Arabia. In the thickets of Arabia you must spend the
night, O caravans of Dedanites.
- 14
- Bring water for the thirsty, O inhabitants of the land of Tema, Meet the
fugitive with bread.
- 15
- For they have fled from the swords, From the drawn sword, and from the
bent bow And from the press of battle.
- 16
- For thus the Lord said to me, ""In a year, as a hired man would count it,
all the splendor of Kedar will terminate;
- 17
- and the remainder of the number of bowmen, the mighty men of the sons of
Kedar, will be few; for the LORD God of Israel has spoken.''
22
Isaiah 22
- 1
- The oracle concerning the valley of vision. What is the matter with you
now, that you have all gone up to the housetops?
- 2
- You who were full of noise, You boisterous town, you exultant city; Your
slain were not slain with the sword, Nor did they die in battle.
- 3
- All your rulers have fled together, And have been captured without the
bow; All of you who were found were taken captive together, Though they had
fled far away.
- 4
- Therefore I say, ""Turn your eyes away from me, Let me weep bitterly, Do
not try to comfort me concerning the destruction of the daughter of my
people.''
- 5
- For the Lord GOD of hosts has a day of panic, subjugation and confusion In
the valley of vision, A breaking down of walls And a crying to the mountain.
- 6
- Elam took up the quiver With the chariots, infantry and horsemen; And Kir
uncovered the shield.
- 7
- Then your choicest valleys were full of chariots, And the horsemen took up
fixed positions at the gate.
- 8
- And He removed the defense of Judah. In that day you depended on the
weapons of the house of the forest,
- 9
- And you saw that the breaches In the wall of the city of David were many;
And you collected the waters of the lower pool.
- 10
- Then you counted the houses of Jerusalem And tore down houses to fortify
the wall.
- 11
- And you made a reservoir between the two walls For the waters of the old
pool. But you did not depend on Him who made it, Nor did you take into
consideration Him who planned it long ago.
- 12
- Therefore in that day the Lord GOD of hosts called you to weeping, to
wailing, To shaving the head and to wearing sackcloth.
- 13
- Instead, there is gaiety and gladness, Killing of cattle and slaughtering
of sheep, Eating of meat and drinking of wine: "" Let us eat and drink, for
tomorrow we may die.''
- 14
- But the LORD of hosts revealed Himself to me, ""Surely this iniquity shall
not be forgiven you Until you die,'' says the Lord GOD of hosts.
- 15
- Thus says the Lord GOD of hosts, ""Come, go to this steward, To Shebna,
who is in charge of the royal household,
- 16
- "What right do you have here, And whom do you have here, That you have
hewn a tomb for yourself here, You who hew a tomb on the height, You who carve
a resting place for yourself in the rock?
- 17
- "Behold, the LORD is about to hurl you headlong, O man. And He is about to
grasp you firmly
- 18
- And roll you tightly like a ball, To be cast into a vast country; There
you will die And there your splendid chariots will be, You shame of your
master's house.'
- 19
- ""I will depose you from your office, And I will pull you down from your
station.
- 20
- ""Then it will come about in that day, That I will summon My servant
Eliakim the son of Hilkiah,
- 21
- And I will clothe him with your tunic And tie your sash securely about
him. I will entrust him with your authority, And he will become a father to
the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
- 22
- ""Then I will set the key of the house of David on his shoulder, When he
opens no one will shut, When he shuts no one will open.
- 23
- ""I will drive him like a peg in a firm place, And he will become a throne
of glory to his father's house.
- 24
- ""So they will hang on him all the glory of his father's house, offspring
and issue, all the least of vessels, from bowls to all the jars.
- 25
- ""In that day,'' declares the LORD of hosts, ""the peg driven in a firm
place will give way; it will even break off and fall, and the load hanging on
it will be cut off, for the LORD has spoken.'' 23
Isaiah 23
- 1
- The oracle concerning Tyre. Wail, O ships of Tarshish, For Tyre is
destroyed, without house or harbor; It is reported to them from the land of
Cyprus.
- 2
- Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland, You merchants of Sidon; Your
messengers crossed the sea
- 3
- And were on many waters. The grain of the Nile, the harvest of the River
was her revenue; And she was the market of nations.
- 4
- Be ashamed, O Sidon; For the sea speaks, the stronghold of the sea,
saying, ""I have neither travailed nor given birth, I have neither brought up
young men nor reared virgins.''
- 5
- When the report reaches Egypt, They will be in anguish at the report of
Tyre.
- 6
- Pass over to Tarshish; Wail, O inhabitants of the coastland.
- 7
- Is this your jubilant city, Whose origin is from antiquity, Whose feet
used to carry her to colonize distant places?
- 8
- Who has planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, Whose merchants
were princes, whose traders were the honored of the earth?
- 9
- The LORD of hosts has planned it, to defile the pride of all beauty, To
despise all the honored of the earth.
- 10
- Overflow your land like the Nile, O daughter of Tarshish, There is no more
restraint.
- 11
- He has stretched His hand out over the sea, He has made the kingdoms
tremble; The LORD has given a command concerning Canaan to demolish its
strongholds.
- 12
- He has said, "" You shall exult no more, O crushed virgin daughter of
Sidon. Arise, pass over to Cyprus; even there you will find no rest.''
- 13
- Behold, the land of the Chaldeansthis is the people which was not; Assyria
appointed it for desert creaturesthey erected their siege towers, they
stripped its palaces, they made it a ruin.
- 14
- Wail, O ships of Tarshish, For your stronghold is destroyed.
- 15
- Now in that day Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years like the days of
one king. At the end of seventy years it will happen to Tyre as in the song of
the harlot:
- 16
- Take your harp, walk about the city, O forgotten harlot; Pluck the strings
skillfully, sing many songs, That you may be remembered.
- 17
- It will come about at the end of seventy years that the LORD will visit
Tyre. Then she will go back to her harlot's wages and will play the harlot
with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.
- 18
- Her gain and her harlot's wages will be set apart to the LORD; it will not
be stored up or hoarded, but her gain will become sufficient food and choice
attire for those who dwell in the presence of the LORD.
24
Isaiah 24
- 1
- Behold, the LORD lays the earth waste, devastates it, distorts its surface
and scatters its inhabitants.
- 2
- And the people will be like the priest, the servant like his master, the
maid like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, the lender like the
borrower, the creditor like the debtor.
- 3
- The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled, for the
LORD has spoken this word.
- 4
- The earth mourns and withers, the world fades and withers, the exalted of
the people of the earth fade away.
- 5
- The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws,
violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant.
- 6
- Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held
guilty. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are
left.
- 7
- The new wine mourns, The vine decays, All the merry-hearted sigh.
- 8
- The gaiety of tambourines ceases, The noise of revelers stops, The gaiety
of the harp ceases.
- 9
- They do not drink wine with song; Strong drink is bitter to those who
drink it.
- 10
- The city of chaos is broken down; Every house is shut up so that none may
enter.
- 11
- There is an outcry in the streets concerning the wine; All joy turns to
gloom. The gaiety of the earth is banished.
- 12
- Desolation is left in the city And the gate is battered to ruins.
- 13
- For thus it will be in the midst of the earth among the peoples, As the
shaking of an olive tree, As the gleanings when the grape harvest is over.
- 14
- They raise their voices, they shout for joy; They cry out from the west
concerning the majesty of the LORD.
- 15
- Therefore glorify the LORD in the east, The name of the LORD, the God of
Israel, In the coastlands of the sea.
- 16
- From the ends of the earth we hear songs, "" Glory to the Righteous One,''
But I say, "" Woe to me! Woe to me! Alas for me! The treacherous deal
treacherously, And the treacherous deal very treacherously.''
- 17
- Terror and pit and snare Confront you, O inhabitant of the earth.
- 18
- Then it will be that he who flees the report of disaster will fall into
the pit, And he who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare; For the
windows above are opened, and the foundations of the earth shake.
- 19
- The earth is broken asunder, The earth is split through, The earth is
shaken violently.
- 20
- The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard And it totters like a shack,
For its transgression is heavy upon it, And it will fall, never to rise again.
- 21
- So it will happen in that day, That the LORD will punish the host of
heaven on high, And the kings of the earth on earth.
- 22
- They will be gathered together Like prisoners in the dungeon, And will be
confined in prison; And after many days they will be punished.
- 23
- Then the moon will be abashed and the sun ashamed, For the LORD of hosts
will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, And His glory will be before His
elders. 25
Isaiah 25
- 1
- OLord, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name;
For You have worked wonders, Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness.
- 2
- For You have made a city into a heap, A fortified city into a ruin; A
palace of strangers is a city no more, It will never be rebuilt.
- 3
- Therefore a strong people will glorify You; Cities of ruthless nations
will revere You.
- 4
- For You have been a defense for the helpless, A defense for the needy in
his distress, A refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; For the breath
of the ruthless Is like a rain storm against a wall.
- 5
- Like heat in drought, You subdue the uproar of aliens; Like heat by the
shadow of a cloud, the song of the ruthless is silenced.
- 6
- The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this
mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged
wine.
- 7
- And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all
peoples, Even the veil which is stretched over all nations.
- 8
- He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord GOD will wipe tears
away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all
the earth; For the LORD has spoken.
- 9
- And it will be said in that day, ""Behold, this is our God for whom we
have waited that He might save us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited;
Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation.''
- 10
- For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, And Moab will be
trodden down in his place As straw is trodden down in the water of a manure
pile.
- 11
- And he will spread out his hands in the middle of it As a swimmer spreads
out his hands to swim, But the Lord will lay low his pride together with the
trickery of his hands.
- 12
- The unassailable fortifications of your walls He will bring down, Lay low
and cast to the ground, even to the dust. 26
Isaiah 26
- 1
- In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: ""We have a
strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security.
- 2
- ""Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter, The one that
remains faithful.
- 3
- ""The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts
in You.
- 4
- "" Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting
Rock.
- 5
- ""For He has brought low those who dwell on high, the unassailable city;
He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He casts it to the dust.
- 6
- "" The foot will trample it, The feet of the afflicted, the steps of the
helpless.''
- 7
- The way of the righteous is smooth; O Upright One, make the path of the
righteous level.
- 8
- Indeed, while following the way of Your judgments, O LORD, We have waited
for You eagerly; Your name, even Your memory, is the desire of our souls.
- 9
- At night my soul longs for You, Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You
diligently; For when the earth experiences Your judgments The inhabitants of
the world learn righteousness.
- 10
- Though the wicked is shown favor, He does not learn righteousness; He
deals unjustly in the land of uprightness, And does not perceive the majesty
of the LORD.
- 11
- O LORD, Your hand is lifted up yet they do not see it. They see Your zeal
for the people and are put to shame; Indeed, fire will devour Your enemies.
- 12
- LORD, You will establish peace for us, Since You have also performed for
us all our works.
- 13
- O LORD our God, other masters besides You have ruled us; But through You
alone we confess Your name.
- 14
- The dead will not live, the departed spirits will not rise; Therefore You
have punished and destroyed them, And You have wiped out all remembrance of
them.
- 15
- You have increased the nation, O LORD, You have increased the nation, You
are glorified; You have extended all the borders of the land.
- 16
- O LORD, they sought You in distress; They could only whisper a prayer,
Your chastening was upon them.
- 17
- As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth, She writhes and
cries out in her labor pains, Thus were we before You, O LORD.
- 18
- We were pregnant, we writhed in labor, We gave birth, as it seems, only to
wind. We could not accomplish deliverance for the earth, Nor were inhabitants
of the world born.
- 19
- Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust,
awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth
will give birth to the departed spirits.
- 20
- Come, my people, enter into your rooms And close your doors behind you;
Hide for a little while Until indignation runs its course.
- 21
- For behold, the LORD is about to come out from His place To punish the
inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; And the earth will reveal her
bloodshed And will no longer cover her slain. 27
Isaiah 27
- 1
- In that day the LORD will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, With His
fierce and great and mighty sword, Even Leviathan the twisted serpent; And He
will kill the dragon who lives in the sea.
- 2
- In that day, ""A vineyard of wine, sing of it!
- 3
- ""I, the LORD, am its keeper; I water it every moment. So that no one will
damage it, I guard it night and day.
- 4
- ""I have no wrath. Should someone give Me briars and thorns in battle,
Then I would step on them, I would burn them completely.
- 5
- ""Or let him rely on My protection, Let him make peace with Me, Let him
make peace with Me.''
- 6
- In the days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and sprout,
And they will fill the whole world with fruit.
- 7
- Like the striking of Him who has struck them, has He struck them? Or like
the slaughter of His slain, have they been slain?
- 8
- You contended with them by banishing them, by driving them away. With His
fierce wind He has expelled them on the day of the east wind.
- 9
- Therefore through this Jacob's iniquity will be forgiven; And this will be
the full price of the pardoning of his sin: When he makes all the altar stones
like pulverized chalk stones; When Asherim and incense altars will not stand.
- 10
- For the fortified city is isolated, A homestead forlorn and forsaken like
the desert; There the calf will graze, And there it will lie down and feed on
its branches.
- 11
- When its limbs are dry, they are broken off; Women come and make a fire
with them, For they are not a people of discernment, Therefore their Maker
will not have compassion on them. And their Creator will not be gracious to
them.
- 12
- In that day the LORD will start His threshing from the flowing stream of
the Euphrates to the brook of Egypt, and you will be gathered up one by one, O
sons of Israel.
- 13
- It will come about also in that day that a great trumpet will be blown,
and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in
the land of Egypt will come and worship the LORD in the holy mountain at
Jerusalem. 28
Isaiah 28
- 1
- Woe to the proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim, And to the fading
flower of its glorious beauty, Which is at the head of the fertile valley Of
those who are overcome with wine!
- 2
- Behold, the Lord has a strong and mighty agent; As a storm of hail, a
tempest of destruction, Like a storm of mighty overflowing waters, He has cast
it down to the earth with His hand.
- 3
- The proud crown of the drunkards of Ephraim is trodden under foot.
- 4
- And the fading flower of its glorious beauty, Which is at the head of the
fertile valley, Will be like the first-ripe fig prior to summer, Which one
sees, And as soon as it is in his hand, He swallows it.
- 5
- In that day the LORD of hosts will become a beautiful crown And a glorious
diadem to the remnant of His people;
- 6
- A spirit of justice for him who sits in judgment, A strength to those who
repel the onslaught at the gate.
- 7
- And these also reel with wine and stagger from strong drink: The priest
and the prophet reel with strong drink, They are confused by wine, they
stagger from strong drink; They reel while having visions, They totter when
rendering judgment.
- 8
- For all the tables are full of filthy vomit, without a single clean place.
- 9
- ""To whom would He teach knowledge, And to whom would He interpret the
message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just taken from the breast?
- 10
- ""For He says, " Order on order, order on order, Line on line, line on
line, A little here, a little there.'''
- 11
- Indeed, He will speak to this people Through stammering lips and a foreign
tongue,
- 12
- He who said to them, ""Here is rest, give rest to the weary,'' And, ""Here
is repose,'' but they would not listen.
- 13
- So the word of the LORD to them will be, "" Order on order, order on
order, Line on line, line on line, A little here, a little there,'' That they
may go and stumble backward, be broken, snared and taken captive.
- 14
- Therefore, hear the word of the LORD, O scoffers, Who rule this people who
are in Jerusalem,
- 15
- Because you have said, ""We have made a covenant with death, And with
Sheol we have made a pact. The overwhelming scourge will not reach us when it
passes by, For we have made falsehood our refuge and we have concealed
ourselves with deception.''
- 16
- Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, "" Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone,
a tested stone, A costly cornerstone for the foundation, firmly placed. He who
believes in it will not be disturbed.
- 17
- ""I will make justice the measuring line And righteousness the level; Then
hail will sweep away the refuge of lies And the waters will overflow the
secret place.
- 18
- ""Your covenant with death will be canceled, And your pact with Sheol will
not stand; When the overwhelming scourge passes through, Then you become its
trampling place.
- 19
- ""As often as it passes through, it will seize you; For morning after
morning it will pass through, anytime during the day or night, And it will be
sheer terror to understand what it means.''
- 20
- The bed is too short on which to stretch out, And the blanket is too small
to wrap oneself in.
- 21
- For the LORD will rise up as at Mount Perazim, He will be stirred up as in
the valley of Gibeon, To do His task, His unusual task, And to work His work,
His extraordinary work.
- 22
- And now do not carry on as scoffers, Or your fetters will be made
stronger; For I have heard from the Lord GOD of hosts Of decisive destruction
on all the earth.
- 23
- Give ear and hear my voice, Listen and hear my words.
- 24
- Does the farmer plow continually to plant seed? Does he continually turn
and harrow the ground?
- 25
- Does he not level its surface And sow dill and scatter cummin And plant
wheat in rows, Barley in its place and rye within its area?
- 26
- For his God instructs and teaches him properly.
- 27
- For dill is not threshed with a threshing sledge, Nor is the cartwheel
driven over cummin; But dill is beaten out with a rod, and cummin with a club.
- 28
- Grain for bread is crushed, Indeed, he does not continue to thresh it
forever. Because the wheel of his cart and his horses eventually damage it, He
does not thresh it longer.
- 29
- This also comes from the LORD of hosts, Who has made His counsel wonderful
and His wisdom great. 29
Isaiah 29
- 1
- Woe, O Ariel, Ariel the city where David once camped! Add year to year,
observe your feasts on schedule.
- 2
- I will bring distress to Ariel, And she will be a city of lamenting and
mourning; And she will be like an Ariel to me.
- 3
- I will camp against you encircling you, And I will set siegeworks against
you, And I will raise up battle towers against you.
- 4
- Then you will be brought low; From the earth you will speak, And from the
dust where you are prostrate Your words will come. Your voice will also be
like that of a spirit from the ground, And your speech will whisper from the
dust.
- 5
- But the multitude of your enemies will become like fine dust, And the
multitude of the ruthless ones like the chaff which blows away; And it will
happen instantly, suddenly.
- 6
- From the LORD of hosts you will be punished with thunder and earthquake
and loud noise, With whirlwind and tempest and the flame of a consuming fire.
- 7
- And the multitude of all the nations who wage war against Ariel, Even all
who wage war against her and her stronghold, and who distress her, will be
like a dream, a vision of the night.
- 8
- It will be as when a hungry man dreams And behold, he is eating; But when
he awakens, his hunger is not satisfied, Or as when a thirsty man dreams And
behold, he is drinking, But when he awakens, behold, he is faint And his
thirst is not quenched. Thus the multitude of all the nations will be Who wage
war against Mount Zion.
- 9
- Be delayed and wait, Blind yourselves and be blind; They become drunk, but
not with wine, They stagger, but not with strong drink.
- 10
- For the LORD has poured over you a spirit of deep sleep, He has shut your
eyes, the prophets; And He has covered your heads, the seers.
- 11
- The entire vision will be to you like the words of a sealed book, which
when they give it to the one who is literate, saying, ""Please read this,'' he
will say, ""I cannot, for it is sealed.''
- 12
- Then the book will be given to the one who is illiterate, saying, ""Please
read this.'' And he will say, ""I cannot read.''
- 13
- Then the Lord said, ""Because this people draw near with their words And
honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And
their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,
- 14
- Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people,
wondrously marvelous; And the wisdom of their wise men will perish, And the
discernment of their discerning men will be concealed.''
- 15
- Woe to those who deeply hide their plans from the LORD, And whose deeds
are done in a dark place, And they say, "" Who sees us?'' or ""Who knows us?''
- 16
- You turn things around! Shall the potter be considered as equal with the
clay, That what is made would say to its maker, ""He did not make me''; Or
what is formed say to him who formed it, ""He has no understanding''?
- 17
- Is it not yet just a little while Before Lebanon will be turned into a
fertile field, And the fertile field will be considered as a forest?
- 18
- On that day the deaf will hear words of a book, And out of their gloom and
darkness the eyes of the blind will see.
- 19
- The afflicted also will increase their gladness in the LORD, And the needy
of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
- 20
- For the ruthless will come to an end and the scorner will be finished,
Indeed all who are intent on doing evil will be cut off;
- 21
- Who cause a person to be indicted by a word, And ensnare him who
adjudicates at the gate, And defraud the one in the right with meaningless
arguments.
- 22
- Therefore thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house
of Jacob: ""Jacob shall not now be ashamed, nor shall his face now turn pale;
- 23
- But when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst, They
will sanctify My name; Indeed, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob And
will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
- 24
- ""Those who err in mind will know the truth, And those who criticize will
accept instruction. 30
Isaiah 30
- 1
- ""Woe to the rebellious children,'' declares the LORD, ""Who execute a
plan, but not Mine, And make an alliance, but not of My Spirit, In order to
add sin to sin;
- 2
- Who proceed down to Egypt Without consulting Me, To take refuge in the
safety of Pharaoh And to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!
- 3
- ""Therefore the safety of Pharaoh will be your shame And the shelter in
the shadow of Egypt, your humiliation.
- 4
- ""For their princes are at Zoan And their ambassadors arrive at Hanes.
- 5
- ""Everyone will be ashamed because of a people who cannot profit them, Who
are not for help or profit, but for shame and also for reproach.''
- 6
- The oracle concerning the beasts of the Negev. Through a land of distress
and anguish, From where come lioness and lion, viper and flying serpent, They
carry their riches on the backs of young donkeys And their treasures on
camels' humps, To a people who cannot profit them;
- 7
- Even Egypt, whose help is vain and empty. Therefore, I have called her ""
Rahab who has been exterminated.''
- 8
- Now go, write it on a tablet before them And inscribe it on a scroll, That
it may serve in the time to come As a witness forever.
- 9
- For this is a rebellious people, false sons, Sons who refuse to listen To
the instruction of the LORD;
- 10
- Who say to the seers, ""You must not see visions''; And to the prophets,
""You must not prophesy to us what is right, Speak to us pleasant words,
Prophesy illusions.
- 11
- ""Get out of the way, turn aside from the path, Let us hear no more about
the Holy One of Israel.''
- 12
- Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel, "" Since you have rejected
this word And have put your trust in oppression and guile, and have relied on
them,
- 13
- Therefore this iniquity will be to you Like a breach about to fall, A
bulge in a high wall, Whose collapse comes suddenly in an instant,
- 14
- ""Whose collapse is like the smashing of a potter's jar, So ruthlessly
shattered That a sherd will not be found among its pieces To take fire from a
hearth Or to scoop water from a cistern.''
- 15
- For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, ""In repentance
and rest you will be saved, In quietness and trust is your strength.'' But you
were not willing,
- 16
- And you said, ""No, for we will flee on horses,'' Therefore you shall
flee! ""And we will ride on swift horses,'' Therefore those who pursue you
shall be swift.
- 17
- One thousand will flee at the threat of one man; You will flee at the
threat of five, Until you are left as a flag on a mountain top And as a signal
on a hill.
- 18
- Therefore the LORD longs to be gracious to you, And therefore He waits on
high to have compassion on you. For the LORD is a God of justice; How blessed
are all those who long for Him.
- 19
- O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He
will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He
will answer you.
- 20
- Although the Lord has given you bread of privation and water of
oppression, He, your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will
behold your Teacher.
- 21
- Your ears will hear a word behind you, "" This is the way, walk in it,''
whenever you turn to the right or to the left.
- 22
- And you will defile your graven images overlaid with silver, and your
molten images plated with gold. You will scatter them as an impure thing, and
say to them, "" Be gone!''
- 23
- Then He will give you rain for the seed which you will sow in the ground,
and bread from the yield of the ground, and it will be rich and plenteous; on
that day your livestock will graze in a roomy pasture.
- 24
- Also the oxen and the donkeys which work the ground will eat salted
fodder, which has been winnowed with shovel and fork.
- 25
- On every lofty mountain and on every high hill there will be streams
running with water on the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.
- 26
- The light of the moon will be as the light of the sun, and the light of
the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day
the LORD binds up the fracture of His people and heals the bruise He has
inflicted.
- 27
- Behold, the name of the LORD comes from a remote place; Burning is His
anger and dense is His smoke; His lips are filled with indignation And His
tongue is like a consuming fire;
- 28
- His breath is like an overflowing torrent, Which reaches to the neck, To
shake the nations back and forth in a sieve, And to put in the jaws of the
peoples the bridle which leads to ruin.
- 29
- You will have songs as in the night when you keep the festival, And
gladness of heart as when one marches to the sound of the flute, To go to the
mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel.
- 30
- And the LORD will cause His voice of authority to be heard, And the
descending of His arm to be seen in fierce anger, And in the flame of a
consuming fire In cloudburst, downpour and hailstones.
- 31
- For at the voice of the LORD Assyria will be terrified, When He strikes
with the rod.
- 32
- And every blow of the rod of punishment, Which the LORD will lay on him,
Will be with the music of tambourines and lyres; And in battles, brandishing
weapons, He will fight them.
- 33
- For Topheth has long been ready, Indeed, it has been prepared for the
king. He has made it deep and large, A pyre of fire with plenty of wood; The
breath of the LORD, like a torrent of brimstone, sets it afire.
31
Isaiah 31
- 1
- Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help And rely on horses, And trust
in chariots because they are many And in horsemen because they are very
strong, But they do not look to the Holy One of Israel, nor seek the LORD!
- 2
- Yet He also is wise and will bring disaster And does not retract His
words, But will arise against the house of evildoers And against the help of
the workers of iniquity.
- 3
- Now the Egyptians are men and not God, And their horses are flesh and not
spirit; So the LORD will stretch out His hand, And he who helps will stumble
And he who is helped will fall, And all of them will come to an end together.
- 4
- For thus says the LORD to me, ""As the lion or the young lion growls over
his prey, Against which a band of shepherds is called out, And he will not be
terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise, So will the LORD of
hosts come down to wage war on Mount Zion and on its hill.''
- 5
- Like flying birds so the LORD of hosts will protect Jerusalem. He will
protect and deliver it; He will pass over and rescue it.
- 6
- Return to Him from whom you have deeply defected, O sons of Israel.
- 7
- For in that day every man will cast away his silver idols and his gold
idols, which your sinful hands have made for you as a sin.
- 8
- And the Assyrian will fall by a sword not of man, And a sword not of man
will devour him. So he will not escape the sword, And his young men will
become forced laborers.
- 9
- ""His rock will pass away because of panic, And his princes will be
terrified at the standard,'' Declares the LORD, whose fire is in Zion and
whose furnace is in Jerusalem. 32
Isaiah 32
- 1
- Behold, a king will reign righteously And princes will rule justly.
- 2
- Each will be like a refuge from the wind And a shelter from the storm,
Like streams of water in a dry country, Like the shade of a huge rock in a
parched land.
- 3
- Then the eyes of those who see will not be blinded, And the ears of those
who hear will listen.
- 4
- The mind of the hasty will discern the truth, And the tongue of the
stammerers will hasten to speak clearly.
- 5
- No longer will the fool be called noble, Or the rogue be spoken of as
generous.
- 6
- For a fool speaks nonsense, And his heart inclines toward wickedness: To
practice ungodliness and to speak error against the LORD, To keep the hungry
person unsatisfied And to withhold drink from the thirsty.
- 7
- As for a rogue, his weapons are evil; He devises wicked schemes To destroy
the afflicted with slander, Even though the needy one speaks what is right.
- 8
- But the noble man devises noble plans; And by noble plans he stands.
- 9
- Rise up, you women who are at ease, And hear my voice; Give ear to my
word, You complacent daughters.
- 10
- Within a year and a few days You will be troubled, O complacent daughters;
For the vintage is ended, And the fruit gathering will not come.
- 11
- Tremble, you women who are at ease; Be troubled, you complacent daughters;
Strip, undress and put sackcloth on your waist,
- 12
- Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,
- 13
- For the land of my people in which thorns and briars shall come up; Yea,
for all the joyful houses and for the jubilant city.
- 14
- Because the palace has been abandoned, the populated city forsaken. Hill
and watch-tower have become caves forever, A delight for wild donkeys, a
pasture for flocks;
- 15
- Until the Spirit is poured out upon us from on high, And the wilderness
becomes a fertile field, And the fertile field is considered as a forest.
- 16
- Then justice will dwell in the wilderness And righteousness will abide in
the fertile field.
- 17
- And the work of righteousness will be peace, And the service of
righteousness, quietness and confidence forever.
- 18
- Then my people will live in a peaceful habitation, And in secure dwellings
and in undisturbed resting places;
- 19
- And it will hail when the forest comes down, And the city will be utterly
laid low.
- 20
- How blessed will you be, you who sow beside all waters, Who let out freely
the ox and the donkey. 33
Isaiah 33
- 1
- Woe to you, O destroyer, While you were not destroyed; And he who is
treacherous, while others did not deal treacherously with him. As soon as you
finish destroying, you will be destroyed; As soon as you cease to deal
treacherously, others will deal treacherously with you.
- 2
- O LORD, be gracious to us; we have waited for You. Be their strength every
morning, Our salvation also in the time of distress.
- 3
- At the sound of the tumult peoples flee; At the lifting up of Yourself
nations disperse.
- 4
- Your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers; As locusts rushing
about men rush about on it.
- 5
- The LORD is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with
justice and righteousness.
- 6
- And He will be the stability of your times, A wealth of salvation, wisdom
and knowledge; The fear of the LORD is his treasure.
- 7
- Behold, their brave men cry in the streets, The ambassadors of peace weep
bitterly.
- 8
- The highways are desolate, the traveler has ceased, He has broken the
covenant, he has despised the cities, He has no regard for man.
- 9
- The land mourns and pines away, Lebanon is shamed and withers; Sharon is
like a desert plain, And Bashan and Carmel lose their foliage.
- 10
- ""Now I will arise,'' says the LORD, ""Now I will be exalted, now I will
be lifted up.
- 11
- ""You have conceived chaff, you will give birth to stubble; My breath will
consume you like a fire.
- 12
- ""The peoples will be burned to lime, Like cut thorns which are burned in
the fire.
- 13
- ""You who are far away, hear what I have done; And you who are near,
acknowledge My might.''
- 14
- Sinners in Zion are terrified; Trembling has seized the godless. ""Who
among us can live with the consuming fire? Who among us can live with
continual burning?''
- 15
- He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity, He who rejects unjust
gain And shakes his hands so that they hold no bribe; He who stops his ears
from hearing about bloodshed And shuts his eyes from looking upon evil;
- 16
- He will dwell on the heights, His refuge will be the impregnable rock; His
bread will be given him, His water will be sure.
- 17
- Your eyes will see the King in His beauty; They will behold a far-distant
land.
- 18
- Your heart will meditate on terror: ""Where is he who counts? Where is he
who weighs? Where is he who counts the towers?''
- 19
- You will no longer see a fierce people, A people of unintelligible speech
which no one comprehends, Of a stammering tongue which no one understands.
- 20
- Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts; Your eyes will see
Jerusalem, an undisturbed habitation, A tent which will not be folded; Its
stakes will never be pulled up, Nor any of its cords be torn apart.
- 21
- But there the majestic One, the LORD, will be for us A place of rivers and
wide canals On which no boat with oars will go, And on which no mighty ship
will pass
- 22
- For the LORD is our judge, The LORD is our lawgiver, The LORD is our king;
He will save us
- 23
- Your tackle hangs slack; It cannot hold the base of its mast firmly, Nor
spread out the sail. Then the prey of an abundant spoil will be divided; The
lame will take the plunder.
- 24
- And no resident will say, ""I am sick''; The people who dwell there will
be forgiven their iniquity. 34
Isaiah 34
- 1
- Draw near, O nations, to hear; and listen, O peoples! Let the earth and
all it contains hear, and the world and all that springs from it.
- 2
- For the LORD'S indignation is against all the nations, And His wrath
against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them
over to slaughter.
- 3
- So their slain will be thrown out, And their corpses will give off their
stench, And the mountains will be drenched with their blood.
- 4
- And all the host of heaven will wear away, And the sky will be rolled up
like a scroll; All their hosts will also wither away As a leaf withers from
the vine, Or as one withers from the fig tree.
- 5
- For My sword is satiated in heaven, Behold it shall descend for judgment
upon Edom And upon the people whom I have devoted to destruction.
- 6
- The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, It is sated with fat, with the
blood of lambs and goats, With the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the LORD
has a sacrifice in Bozrah And a great slaughter in the land of Edom.
- 7
- Wild oxen will also fall with them And young bulls with strong ones; Thus
their land will be soaked with blood, And their dust become greasy with fat.
- 8
- For the LORD has a day of vengeance, A year of recompense for the cause of
Zion.
- 9
- Its streams will be turned into pitch, And its loose earth into brimstone,
And its land will become burning pitch.
- 10
- It will not be quenched night or day; Its smoke will go up forever. From
generation to generation it will be desolate; None will pass through it
forever and ever.
- 11
- But pelican and hedgehog will possess it, And owl and raven will dwell in
it; And He will stretch over it the line of desolation And the plumb line of
emptiness.
- 12
- Its noblesthere is no one there Whom they may proclaim king And all its
princes will be nothing.
- 13
- Thorns will come up in its fortified towers, Nettles and thistles in its
fortified cities; It will also be a haunt of jackals And an abode of
ostriches.
- 14
- The desert creatures will meet with the wolves, The hairy goat also will
cry to its kind; Yes, the night monster will settle there And will find
herself a resting place.
- 15
- The tree snake will make its nest and lay eggs there, And it will hatch
and gather them under its protection. Yes, the hawks will be gathered there,
Every one with its kind.
- 16
- Seek from the book of the LORD, and read: Not one of these will be
missing; None will lack its mate. For His mouth has commanded, And His Spirit
has gathered them.
- 17
- He has cast the lot for them, And His hand has divided it to them by line.
They shall possess it forever; From generation to generation they will dwell
in it. 35
Isaiah 35
- 1
- The wilderness and the desert will be glad, And the Arabah will rejoice
and blossom; Like the crocus
- 2
- It will blossom profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The
glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They
will see the glory of the LORD, The majesty of our God.
- 3
- Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble.
- 4
- Say to those with anxious heart, ""Take courage, fear not. Behold, your
God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will
save you.''
- 5
- Then the eyes of the blind will be opened And the ears of the deaf will be
unstopped.
- 6
- Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout
for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the
Arabah.
- 7
- The scorched land will become a pool And the thirsty ground springs of
water; In the haunt of jackals, its resting place, Grass becomes reeds and
rushes.
- 8
- A highway will be there, a roadway, And it will be called the Highway of
Holiness. The unclean will not travel on it, But it will be for him who walks
that way, And fools will not wander on it.
- 9
- No lion will be there, Nor will any vicious beast go up on it; These will
not be found there. But the redeemed will walk there,
- 10
- And the ransomed of the LORD will return And come with joyful shouting to
Zion, With everlasting joy upon their heads. They will find gladness and joy,
And sorrow and sighing will flee away. 36
Isaiah 36
- 1
- Now in the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah, Sennacherib king of Assyria
came up against all the fortified cities of Judah and seized them.
- 2
- And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem to King
Hezekiah with a large army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool on
the highway of the fuller's field.
- 3
- Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna
the scribe, and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came out to him.
- 4
- Then Rabshakeh said to them, ""Say now to Hezekiah, "Thus says the great
king, the king of Assyria, ""What is this confidence that you have?
- 5
- ""I say, "Your counsel and strength for the war are only empty words.' Now
on whom do you rely, that you have rebelled against me?
- 6
- ""Behold, you rely on the staff of this crushed reed, even on Egypt, on
which if a man leans, it will go into his hand and pierce it. So is Pharaoh
king of Egypt to all who rely on him.
- 7
- ""But if you say to me, "We trust in the LORD our God,' is it not He whose
high places and whose altars Hezekiah has taken away and has said to Judah and
to Jerusalem, "You shall worship before this altar'?
- 8
- ""Now therefore, come make a bargain with my master the king of Assyria,
and I will give you two thousand horses, if you are able on your part to set
riders on them.
- 9
- ""How then can you repulse one official of the least of my master's
servants and rely on Egypt for chariots and for horsemen?
- 10
- ""Have I now come up without the LORD'S approval against this land to
destroy it? The LORD said to me, "Go up against this land and destroy
it.''''''
- 11
- Then Eliakim and Shebna and Joah said to Rabshakeh, ""Speak now to your
servants in Aramaic, for we understand it; and do not speak with us in Judean
in the hearing of the people who are on the wall.''
- 12
- But Rabshakeh said, ""Has my master sent me only to your master and to you
to speak these words, and not to the men who sit on the wall, doomed to eat
their own dung and drink their own urine with you?''
- 13
- Then Rabshakeh stood and cried with a loud voice in Judean and said,
""Hear the words of the great king, the king of Assyria.
- 14
- ""Thus says the king, "Do not let Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be
able to deliver you;
- 15
- nor let Hezekiah make you trust in the LORD, saying, ""The LORD will
surely deliver us, this city will not be given into the hand of the king of
Assyria.''
- 16
- "Do not listen to Hezekiah,' for thus says the king of Assyria, " Make
your peace with me and come out to me, and eat each of his vine and each of
his fig tree and drink each of the waters of his own cistern,
- 17
- until I come and take you away to a land like your own land, a land of
grain and new wine, a land of bread and vineyards.
- 18
- "Beware that Hezekiah does not mislead you, saying, "" The LORD will
deliver us.'' Has any one of the gods of the nations delivered his land from
the hand of the king of Assyria?
- 19
- "Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim?
And when have they delivered Samaria from my hand?
- 20
- "Who among all the gods of these lands have delivered their land from my
hand, that the LORD would deliver Jerusalem from my hand?'''
- 21
- But they were silent and answered him not a word; for the king's
commandment was, ""Do not answer him.''
- 22
- Then Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna
the scribe and Joah the son of Asaph, the recorder, came to Hezekiah with
their clothes torn and told him the words of Rabshakeh.
37
Isaiah 37
- 1
- And when King Hezekiah heard it, he tore his clothes, covered himself with
sackcloth and entered the house of the LORD.
- 2
- Then he sent Eliakim who was over the household with Shebna the scribe and
the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah the prophet, the
son of Amoz.
- 3
- They said to him, ""Thus says Hezekiah, "This day is a day of distress,
rebuke and rejection; for children have come to birth, and there is no
strength to deliver.
- 4
- "Perhaps the LORD your God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom his
master the king of Assyria has sent to reproach the living God, and will
rebuke the words which the LORD your God has heard. Therefore, offer a prayer
for the remnant that is left.'''
- 5
- So the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah.
- 6
- Isaiah said to them, ""Thus you shall say to your master, "Thus says the
LORD, "" Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which
the servants of the king of Assyria have blasphemed Me.
- 7
- ""Behold, I will put a spirit in him so that he will hear a rumor and
return to his own land. And I will make him fall by the sword in his own
land.'''''
- 8
- Then Rabshakeh returned and found the king of Assyria fighting against
Libnah, for he had heard that the king had left Lachish.
- 9
- When he heard them say concerning Tirhakah king of Cush, ""He has come out
to fight against you,'' and when he heard it he sent messengers to Hezekiah,
saying,
- 10
- ""Thus you shall say to Hezekiah king of Judah, " Do not let your God in
whom you trust deceive you, saying, ""Jerusalem will not be given into the
hand of the king of Assyria.''
- 11
- " Behold, you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the
lands, destroying them completely. So will you be spared?
- 12
- "Did the gods of those nations which my fathers have destroyed deliver
them, even Gozan and Haran and Rezeph and the sons of Eden who were in
Telassar?
- 13
- "Where is the king of Hamath, the king of Arpad, the king of the city of
Sepharvaim, and of Hena and Ivvah?'''
- 14
- Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it,
and he went up to the house of the LORD and spread it out before the LORD.
- 15
- Hezekiah prayed to the LORD saying,
- 16
- ""O LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim,
You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made
heaven and earth.
- 17
- "" Incline Your ear, O LORD, and hear; open Your eyes, O LORD, and see;
and listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to reproach the
living God.
- 18
- ""Truly, O LORD, the kings of Assyria have devastated all the countries
and their lands,
- 19
- and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the
work of men's hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them.
- 20
- ""Now, O LORD our God, deliver us from his hand that all the kingdoms of
the earth may know that You alone, LORD, are God.''
- 21
- Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent word to Hezekiah, saying, ""Thus says the
LORD, the God of Israel, "Because you have prayed to Me about Sennacherib king
of Assyria,
- 22
- this is the word that the LORD has spoken against him: ""She has despised
you and mocked you, The virgin daughter of Zion; She has shaken her head
behind you, The daughter of Jerusalem!
- 23
- ""Whom have you reproached and blasphemed? And against whom have you
raised your voice And haughtily lifted up your eyes? Against the Holy One of
Israel!
- 24
- ""Through your servants you have reproached the Lord, And you have said,
"With my many chariots I came up to the heights of the mountains, To the
remotest parts of Lebanon; And I cut down its tall cedars and its choice
cypresses. And I will go to its highest peak, its thickest forest.
- 25
- "I dug wells and drank waters, And with the sole of my feet I dried up All
the rivers of Egypt.'
- 26
- "" Have you not heard? Long ago I did it, From ancient times I planned it.
Now I have brought it to pass, That you should turn fortified cities into
ruinous heaps.
- 27
- ""Therefore their inhabitants were short of strength, They were dismayed
and put to shame; They were as the vegetation of the field and as the green
herb, As grass on the housetops is scorched before it is grown up.
- 28
- ""But I know your sitting down And your going out and your coming in And
your raging against Me.
- 29
- ""Because of your raging against Me And because your arrogance has come up
to My ears, Therefore I will put My hook in your nose And My bridle in your
lips, And I will turn you back by the way which you came.
- 30
- ""Then this shall be the sign for you: you will eat this year what grows
of itself, in the second year what springs from the same, and in the third
year sow, reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
- 31
- ""The surviving remnant of the house of Judah will again take root
downward and bear fruit upward.
- 32
- ""For out of Jerusalem will go forth a remnant and out of Mount Zion
survivors. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.'''
- 33
- ""Therefore, thus says the LORD concerning the king of Assyria, "He will
not come to this city or shoot an arrow there; and he will not come before it
with a shield, or throw up a siege ramp against it.
- 34
- " By the way that he came, by the same he will return, and he will not
come to this city,' declares the LORD.
- 35
- "For I will defend this city to save it for My own sake and for My servant
David's sake.'''
- 36
- Then the angel of the LORD went out and struck 185,000 in the camp of the
Assyrians; and when men arose early in the morning, behold, all of these were
dead.
- 37
- So Sennacherib king of Assyria departed and returned home and lived at
Nineveh.
- 38
- It came about as he was worshiping in the house of Nisroch his god, that
Adrammelech and Sharezer his sons killed him with the sword; and they escaped
into the land of Ararat. And Esarhaddon his son became king in his place.
38
Isaiah 38
- 1
- In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill. And Isaiah the prophet the son
of Amoz came to him and said to him, ""Thus says the LORD, " Set your house in
order, for you shall die and not live.'''
- 2
- Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD,
- 3
- and said, "" Remember now, O LORD, I beseech You, how I have walked before
You in truth and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in Your
sight.'' And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
- 4
- Then the word of the LORD came to Isaiah, saying,
- 5
- ""Go and say to Hezekiah, "Thus says the LORD, the God of your father
David, ""I have heard your prayer, I have seen your tears; behold, I will add
fifteen years to your life.
- 6
- ""I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria;
and I will defend this city.'''
- 7
- ""This shall be the sign to you from the LORD, that the LORD will do this
thing that He has spoken:
- 8
- ""Behold, I will cause the shadow on the stairway, which has gone down
with the sun on the stairway of Ahaz, to go back ten steps.'' So the sun's
shadow went back ten steps on the stairway on which it had gone down.
- 9
- A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:
- 10
- I said, "" In the middle of my life I am to enter the gates of Sheol; I am
to be deprived of the rest of my years.''
- 11
- I said, ""I will not see the LORD, The LORD in the land of the living; I
will look on man no more among the inhabitants of the world.
- 12
- ""Like a shepherd's tent my dwelling is pulled up and removed from me; As
a weaver I rolled up my life. He cuts me off from the loom; From day until
night You make an end of me.
- 13
- ""I composed my soul until morning. Like a lionso He breaks all my bones,
From day until night You make an end of me.
- 14
- "" Like a swallow, like a crane, so I twitter; I moan like a dove; My eyes
look wistfully to the heights; O Lord, I am oppressed, be my security.
- 15
- "" What shall I say? For He has spoken to me, and He Himself has done it;
I will wander about all my years because of the bitterness of my soul.
- 16
- ""O Lord, by these things men live, And in all these is the life of my
spirit; O restore me to health and let me live!
- 17
- ""Lo, for my own welfare I had great bitterness; It is You who has kept my
soul from the pit of nothingness, For You have cast all my sins behind Your
back.
- 18
- ""For Sheol cannot thank You, Death cannot praise You; Those who go down
to the pit cannot hope for Your faithfulness.
- 19
- ""It is the living who give thanks to You, as I do today; A father tells
his sons about Your faithfulness.
- 20
- ""The LORD will surely save me; So we will play my songs on stringed
instruments All the days of our life at the house of the LORD.''
- 21
- Now Isaiah had said, ""Let them take a cake of figs and apply it to the
boil, that he may recover.''
- 22
- Then Hezekiah had said, ""What is the sign that I shall go up to the house
of the LORD?'' 39
Isaiah 39
- 1
- At that time Merodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent
letters and a present to Hezekiah, for he heard that he had been sick and had
recovered.
- 2
- Hezekiah was pleased, and showed them all his treasure house, the silver
and the gold and the spices and the precious oil and his whole armory and all
that was found in his treasuries. There was nothing in his house nor in all
his dominion that Hezekiah did not show them.
- 3
- Then Isaiah the prophet came to King Hezekiah and said to him, ""What did
these men say, and from where have they come to you?'' And Hezekiah said,
""They have come to me from a far country, from Babylon.''
- 4
- He said, ""What have they seen in your house?'' So Hezekiah answered,
""They have seen all that is in my house; there is nothing among my treasuries
that I have not shown them.''
- 5
- Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, ""Hear the word of the LORD of hosts,
- 6
- "Behold, the days are coming when all that is in your house and all that
your fathers have laid up in store to this day will be carried to Babylon;
nothing will be left,' says the LORD.
- 7
- "And some of your sons who will issue from you, whom you will beget, will
be taken away, and they will become officials in the palace of the king of
Babylon.'''
- 8
- Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ""The word of the LORD which you have spoken
is good.'' For he thought, ""For there will be peace and truth in my days.''
40
Isaiah 40
- 1
- ""Comfort, O comfort My people,'' says your God.
- 2
- "" Speak kindly to Jerusalem; And call out to her, that her warfare has
ended, That her iniquity has been removed, That she has received of the LORD'S
hand Double for all her sins.''
- 3
- A voice is calling, "" Clear the way for the LORD in the wilderness; Make
smooth in the desert a highway for our God.
- 4
- ""Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low;
And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad
valley;
- 5
- Then the glory of the LORD will be revealed, And all flesh will see it
together; For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.''
- 6
- A voice says, ""Call out.'' Then he answered, ""What shall I call out?''
All flesh is grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the field.
- 7
- The grass withers, the flower fades, When the breath of the LORD blows
upon it; Surely the people are grass.
- 8
- The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands
forever.
- 9
- Get yourself up on a high mountain, O Zion, bearer of good news, Lift up
your voice mightily, O Jerusalem, bearer of good news; Lift it up, do not
fear. Say to the cities of Judah, "" Here is your God!''
- 10
- Behold, the Lord GOD will come with might, With His arm ruling for Him.
Behold, His reward is with Him And His recompense before Him.
- 11
- Like a shepherd He will tend His flock, In His arm He will gather the
lambs And carry them in His bosom; He will gently lead the nursing ewes.
- 12
- Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, And marked off the
heavens by the span, And calculated the dust of the earth by the measure, And
weighed the mountains in a balance And the hills in a pair of scales?
- 13
- Who has directed the Spirit of the LORD, Or as His counselor has informed
Him?
- 14
- With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding? And who taught
Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge And informed Him of the
way of understanding?
- 15
- Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, And are regarded as a
speck of dust on the scales; Behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust.
- 16
- Even Lebanon is not enough to burn, Nor its beasts enough for a burnt
offering.
- 17
- All the nations are as nothing before Him, They are regarded by Him as
less than nothing and meaningless.
- 18
- To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare with
Him?
- 19
- As for the idol, a craftsman casts it, A goldsmith plates it with gold,
And a silversmith fashions chains of silver.
- 20
- He who is too impoverished for such an offering Selects a tree that does
not rot; He seeks out for himself a skillful craftsman To prepare an idol that
will not totter.
- 21
- Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from
the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth?
- 22
- It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are
like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads
them out like a tent to dwell in.
- 23
- He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth
meaningless.
- 24
- Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely
has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they
wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.
- 25
- "" To whom then will you liken Me That I would be his equal?'' says the
Holy One.
- 26
- Lift up your eyes on high And see who has created these stars, The One who
leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; Because of the
greatness of His might and the strength of His power, Not one of them is
missing.
- 27
- Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel, ""My way is hidden from the
LORD, And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God''?
- 28
- Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the
Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His
understanding is inscrutable.
- 29
- He gives strength to the weary, And to him who lacks might He increases
power.
- 30
- Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly,
- 31
- Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up
with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and
not become weary. 41
Isaiah 41
- 1
- ""Coastlands, listen to Me in silence, And let the peoples gain new
strength; Let them come forward, then let them speak; Let us come together for
judgment.
- 2
- "" Who has aroused one from the east Whom He calls in righteousness to His
feet? He delivers up nations before him And subdues kings. He makes them like
dust with his sword, As the wind-driven chaff with his bow.
- 3
- ""He pursues them, passing on in safety, By a way he had not been
traversing with his feet.
- 4
- "" Who has performed and accomplished it, Calling forth the generations
from the beginning? " I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am
He.'''
- 5
- The coastlands have seen and are afraid; The ends of the earth tremble;
They have drawn near and have come.
- 6
- Each one helps his neighbor And says to his brother, ""Be strong!''
- 7
- So the craftsman encourages the smelter, And he who smooths metal with the
hammer encourages him who beats the anvil, Saying of the soldering, ""It is
good''; And he fastens it with nails, So that it will not totter.
- 8
- ""But you, Israel, My servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, Descendant of
Abraham My friend,
- 9
- You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth, And called from its
remotest parts And said to you, "You are My servant, I have chosen you and not
rejected you.
- 10
- "Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am
your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold
you with My righteous right hand.'
- 11
- ""Behold, all those who are angered at you will be shamed and dishonored;
Those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
- 12
- "" You will seek those who quarrel with you, but will not find them, Those
who war with you will be as nothing and non-existent.
- 13
- ""For I am the LORD your God, who upholds your right hand, Who says to
you, " Do not fear, I will help you.'
- 14
- ""Do not fear, you worm Jacob, you men of Israel; I will help you,''
declares the LORD, "" and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
- 15
- ""Behold, I have made you a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges;
You will thresh the mountains and pulverize them, And will make the hills like
chaff.
- 16
- ""You will winnow them, and the wind will carry them away, And the storm
will scatter them; But you will rejoice in the LORD, You will glory in the
Holy One of Israel.
- 17
- ""The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, And their
tongue is parched with thirst; I, the LORD, will answer them Myself, As the
God of Israel I will not forsake them.
- 18
- ""I will open rivers on the bare heights And springs in the midst of the
valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of water And the dry land fountains
of water.
- 19
- ""I will put the cedar in the wilderness, The acacia and the myrtle and
the olive tree; I will place the juniper in the desert Together with the box
tree and the cypress,
- 20
- That they may see and recognize, And consider and gain insight as well,
That the hand of the LORD has done this, And the Holy One of Israel has
created it.
- 21
- "" Present your case,'' the LORD says. ""Bring forward your strong
arguments,'' The King of Jacob says.
- 22
- Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; As for
the former events, declare what they were, That we may consider them and know
their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming;
- 23
- Declare the things that are going to come afterward, That we may know that
you are gods; Indeed, do good or evil, that we may anxiously look about us and
fear together.
- 24
- Behold, you are of no account, And your work amounts to nothing; He who
chooses you is an abomination.
- 25
- ""I have aroused one from the north, and he has come; From the rising of
the sun he will call on My name; And he will come upon rulers as upon mortar,
Even as the potter treads clay.''
- 26
- Who has declared this from the beginning, that we might know? Or from
former times, that we may say, ""He is right!''? Surely there was no one who
declared, Surely there was no one who proclaimed, Surely there was no one who
heard your words.
- 27
- "" Formerly I said to Zion, "Behold, here they are.' And to Jerusalem, "I
will give a messenger of good news.'
- 28
- ""But when I look, there is no one, And there is no counselor among them
Who, if I ask, can give an answer.
- 29
- ""Behold, all of them are false; Their works are worthless, Their molten
images are wind and emptiness. 42
Isaiah 42
- 1
- ""Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul
delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the
nations.
- 2
- ""He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the
street.
- 3
- ""A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not
extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice.
- 4
- ""He will not be disheartened or crushed Until He has established justice
in the earth; And the coastlands will wait expectantly for His law.''
- 5
- Thus says God the LORD, Who created the heavens and stretched them out,
Who spread out the earth and its offspring, Who gives breath to the people on
it And spirit to those who walk in it,
- 6
- ""I am the LORD, I have called you in righteousness, I will also hold you
by the hand and watch over you, And I will appoint you as a covenant to the
people, As a light to the nations,
- 7
- To open blind eyes, To bring out prisoners from the dungeon And those who
dwell in darkness from the prison.
- 8
- "" I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another,
Nor My praise to graven images.
- 9
- ""Behold, the former things have come to pass, Now I declare new things;
Before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.''
- 10
- Sing to the LORD a new song, Sing His praise from the end of the earth!
You who go down to the sea, and all that is in it. You islands, and those who
dwell on them.
- 11
- Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voices, The settlements
where Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing aloud, Let them shout
for joy from the tops of the mountains.
- 12
- Let them give glory to the LORD And declare His praise in the coastlands.
- 13
- The LORD will go forth like a warrior, He will arouse His zeal like a man
of war. He will utter a shout, yes, He will raise a war cry. He will prevail
against His enemies.
- 14
- "" I have kept silent for a long time, I have kept still and restrained
Myself. Now like a woman in labor I will groan, I will both gasp and pant.
- 15
- ""I will lay waste the mountains and hills And wither all their
vegetation; I will make the rivers into coastlands And dry up the ponds.
- 16
- ""I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not
know I will guide them. I will make darkness into light before them And rugged
places into plains. These are the things I will do, And I will not leave them
undone.''
- 17
- They will be turned back and be utterly put to shame, Who trust in idols,
Who say to molten images, ""You are our gods.''
- 18
- Hear, you deaf! And look, you blind, that you may see.
- 19
- Who is blind but My servant, Or so deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who
is so blind as he that is at peace with Me, Or so blind as the servant of the
LORD?
- 20
- You have seen many things, but you do not observe them; Your ears are
open, but none hears.
- 21
- The LORD was pleased for His righteousness' sake To make the law great and
glorious.
- 22
- But this is a people plundered and despoiled; All of them are trapped in
caves, Or are hidden away in prisons; They have become a prey with none to
deliver them, And a spoil, with none to say, ""Give them back!''
- 23
- Who among you will give ear to this? Who will give heed and listen
hereafter?
- 24
- Who gave Jacob up for spoil, and Israel to plunderers? Was it not the
LORD, against whom we have sinned, And in whose ways they were not willing to
walk, And whose law they did not obey?
- 25
- So He poured out on him the heat of His anger And the fierceness of
battle; And it set him aflame all around, Yet he did not recognize it; And it
burned him, but he paid no attention. 43
Isaiah 43
- 1
- But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you,
O Israel, ""Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name;
you are Mine!
- 2
- ""When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the
rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will
not be scorched, Nor will the flame burn you.
- 3
- ""For I am the LORD your God, The Holy One of Israel, your Savior; I have
given Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in your place.
- 4
- ""Since you are precious in My sight, Since you are honored and I love
you, I will give other men in your place and other peoples in exchange for
your life.
- 5
- ""Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the
east, And gather you from the west.
- 6
- ""I will say to the north, "Give them up!' And to the south, "Do not hold
them back.' Bring My sons from afar And My daughters from the ends of the
earth,
- 7
- Everyone who is called by My name, And whom I have created for My glory,
Whom I have formed, even whom I have made.''
- 8
- Bring out the people who are blind, even though they have eyes, And the
deaf, even though they have ears.
- 9
- All the nations have gathered together So that the peoples may be
assembled. Who among them can declare this And proclaim to us the former
things? Let them present their witnesses that they may be justified, Or let
them hear and say, ""It is true.''
- 10
- ""You are My witnesses,'' declares the LORD, ""And My servant whom I have
chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He.
Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me.
- 11
- ""I, even I, am the LORD, And there is no savior besides Me.
- 12
- ""It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no
strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,'' declares the LORD, ""And I
am God.
- 13
- ""Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My
hand; I act and who can reverse it?''
- 14
- Thus says the LORD your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, ""For your sake
I have sent to Babylon, And will bring them all down as fugitives, Even the
Chaldeans, into the ships in which they rejoice.
- 15
- ""I am the LORD, your Holy One, The Creator of Israel, your King.''
- 16
- Thus says the LORD, Who makes a way through the sea And a path through the
mighty waters,
- 17
- Who brings forth the chariot and the horse, The army and the mighty man
(They will lie down together and not rise again; They have been quenched and
extinguished like a wick):
- 18
- "" Do not call to mind the former things, Or ponder things of the past.
- 19
- ""Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not
be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, Rivers in the
desert.
- 20
- ""The beasts of the field will glorify Me, The jackals and the ostriches,
Because I have given waters in the wilderness And rivers in the desert, To
give drink to My chosen people.
- 21
- ""The people whom I formed for Myself Will declare My praise.
- 22
- ""Yet you have not called on Me, O Jacob; But you have become weary of Me,
O Israel.
- 23
- ""You have not brought to Me the sheep of your burnt offerings, Nor have
you honored Me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with offerings,
Nor wearied you with incense.
- 24
- ""You have bought Me not sweet cane with money, Nor have you filled Me
with the fat of your sacrifices; Rather you have burdened Me with your sins,
You have wearied Me with your iniquities.
- 25
- ""I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake,
And I will not remember your sins.
- 26
- "" Put Me in remembrance, let us argue our case together; State your
cause, that you may be proved right.
- 27
- ""Your first forefather sinned, And your spokesmen have transgressed
against Me.
- 28
- ""So I will pollute the princes of the sanctuary, And I will consign Jacob
to the ban and Israel to revilement. 44
Isaiah 44
- 1
- ""But now listen, O Jacob, My servant, And Israel, whom I have chosen:
- 2
- Thus says the LORD who made you And formed you from the womb, who will
help you, " Do not fear, O Jacob My servant; And you Jeshurun whom I have
chosen.
- 3
- "For I will pour out water on the thirsty land And streams on the dry
ground; I will pour out My Spirit on your offspring And My blessing on your
descendants;
- 4
- And they will spring up among the grass Like poplars by streams of water.'
- 5
- ""This one will say, "I am the LORD'S'; And that one will call on the name
of Jacob; And another will write on his hand, "Belonging to the LORD,' And
will name Israel's name with honor.
- 6
- ""Thus says the LORD, the King of Israel And his Redeemer, the LORD of
hosts: "I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.
- 7
- "Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it; Yes, let him recount it
to Me in order, From the time that I established the ancient nation. And let
them declare to them the things that are coming And the events that are going
to take place.
- 8
- "Do not tremble and do not be afraid; Have I not long since announced it
to you and declared it? And you are My witnesses. Is there any God besides Me,
Or is there any other Rock? I know of none.'''
- 9
- Those who fashion a graven image are all of them futile, and their
precious things are of no profit; even their own witnesses fail to see or
know, so that they will be put to shame.
- 10
- Who has fashioned a god or cast an idol to no profit?
- 11
- Behold, all his companions will be put to shame, for the craftsmen
themselves are mere men. Let them all assemble themselves, let them stand up,
let them tremble, let them together be put to shame.
- 12
- The man shapes iron into a cutting tool and does his work over the coals,
fashioning it with hammers and working it with his strong arm. He also gets
hungry and his strength fails; he drinks no water and becomes weary.
- 13
- Another shapes wood, he extends a measuring line; he outlines it with red
chalk. He works it with planes and outlines it with a compass, and makes it
like the form of a man, like the beauty of man, so that it may sit in a house.
- 14
- Surely he cuts cedars for himself, and takes a cypress or an oak and
raises it for himself among the trees of the forest. He plants a fir, and the
rain makes it grow.
- 15
- Then it becomes something for a man to burn, so he takes one of them and
warms himself; he also makes a fire to bake bread. He also makes a god and
worships it; he makes it a graven image and falls down before it.
- 16
- Half of it he burns in the fire; over this half he eats meat as he roasts
a roast and is satisfied. He also warms himself and says, ""Aha! I am warm, I
have seen the fire.''
- 17
- But the rest of it he makes into a god, his graven image. He falls down
before it and worships; he also prays to it and says, ""Deliver me, for you
are my god.''
- 18
- They do not know, nor do they understand, for He has smeared over their
eyes so that they cannot see and their hearts so that they cannot comprehend.
- 19
- No one recalls, nor is there knowledge or understanding to say, ""I have
burned half of it in the fire and also have baked bread over its coals. I
roast meat and eat it. Then I make the rest of it into an abomination, I fall
down before a block of wood!''
- 20
- He feeds on ashes; a deceived heart has turned him aside. And he cannot
deliver himself, nor say, "" Is there not a lie in my right hand?''
- 21
- "" Remember these things, O Jacob, And Israel, for you are My servant; I
have formed you, you are My servant, O Israel, you will not be forgotten by
Me.
- 22
- ""I have wiped out your transgressions like a thick cloud And your sins
like a heavy mist. Return to Me, for I have redeemed you.''
- 23
- Shout for joy, O heavens, for the LORD has done it! Shout joyfully, you
lower parts of the earth; Break forth into a shout of joy, you mountains, O
forest, and every tree in it; For the LORD has redeemed Jacob And in Israel He
shows forth His glory.
- 24
- Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the
womb, ""I, the LORD, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by
Myself And spreading out the earth all alone,
- 25
- Causing the omens of boasters to fail, Making fools out of diviners,
Causing wise men to draw back And turning their knowledge into foolishness,
- 26
- Confirming the word of His servant And performing the purpose of His
messengers. It is I who says of Jerusalem, "She shall be inhabited!' And of
the cities of Judah, " They shall be built.' And I will raise up her ruins
again.
- 27
- ""It is I who says to the depth of the sea, "Be dried up!' And I will make
your rivers dry.
- 28
- ""It is I who says of Cyrus, "He is My shepherd! And he will perform all
My desire.' And he declares of Jerusalem, " She will be built,' And of the
temple, " Your foundation will be laid.''' 45
Isaiah 45
- 1
- Thus says the LORD to Cyrus His anointed, Whom I have taken by the right
hand, To subdue nations before him And to loose the loins of kings; To open
doors before him so that gates will not be shut:
- 2
- ""I will go before you and make the rough places smooth; I will shatter
the doors of bronze and cut through their iron bars.
- 3
- ""I will give you the treasures of darkness And hidden wealth of secret
places, So that you may know that it is I, The LORD, the God of Israel, who
calls you by your name.
- 4
- ""For the sake of Jacob My servant, And Israel My chosen one, I have also
called you by your name; I have given you a title of honor Though you have not
known Me.
- 5
- ""I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God. I will
gird you, though you have not known Me;
- 6
- That men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is
no one besides Me. I am the LORD, and there is no other,
- 7
- The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and
creating calamity; I am the LORD who does all these.
- 8
- "" Drip down, O heavens, from above, And let the clouds pour down
righteousness; Let the earth open up and salvation bear fruit, And
righteousness spring up with it. I, the LORD, have created it.
- 9
- ""Woe to the one who quarrels with his Maker An earthenware vessel among
the vessels of earth! Will the clay say to the potter, "What are you doing?'
Or the thing you are making say, "He has no hands'?
- 10
- ""Woe to him who says to a father, "What are you begetting?' Or to a
woman, "To what are you giving birth?'''
- 11
- Thus says the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker: "" Ask Me about
the things to come concerning My sons, And you shall commit to Me the work of
My hands.
- 12
- ""It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the
heavens with My hands And I ordained all their host.
- 13
- ""I have aroused him in righteousness And I will make all his ways smooth;
He will build My city and will let My exiles go free, Without any payment or
reward,'' says the LORD of hosts.
- 14
- Thus says the LORD, ""The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush
And the Sabeans, men of stature, Will come over to you and will be yours; They
will walk behind you, they will come over in chains And will bow down to you;
They will make supplication to you: " Surely, God is with you, and there is
none else, No other God.'''
- 15
- Truly, You are a God who hides Himself, O God of Israel, Savior!
- 16
- They will be put to shame and even humiliated, all of them; The
manufacturers of idols will go away together in humiliation.
- 17
- Israel has been saved by the LORD With an everlasting salvation; You will
not be put to shame or humiliated To all eternity.
- 18
- For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed
the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place,
But formed it to be inhabited), ""I am the LORD, and there is none else.
- 19
- "" I have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the
offspring of Jacob, " Seek Me in a waste place'; I, the LORD, speak
righteousness, Declaring things that are upright.
- 20
- "" Gather yourselves and come; Draw near together, you fugitives of the
nations; They have no knowledge, Who carry about their wooden idol And pray to
a god who cannot save.
- 21
- "" Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who
has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I,
the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior;
There is none except Me.
- 22
- "" Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and
there is no other.
- 23
- "" I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in
righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every
tongue will swear allegiance.
- 24
- ""They will say of Me, "Only in the LORD are righteousness and strength.'
Men will come to Him, And all who were angry at Him will be put to shame.
- 25
- ""In the LORD all the offspring of Israel Will be justified and will
glory.'' 46
Isaiah 46
- 1
- Bel has bowed down, Nebo stoops over; Their images are consigned to the
beasts and the cattle. The things that you carry are burdensome, A load for
the weary beast.
- 2
- They stooped over, they have bowed down together; They could not rescue
the burden, But have themselves gone into captivity.
- 3
- "" Listen to Me, O house of Jacob, And all the remnant of the house of
Israel, You who have been borne by Me from birth And have been carried from
the womb;
- 4
- Even to your old age I will be the same, And even to your graying years I
will bear you! I have done it, and I will carry you; And I will bear you and I
will deliver you.
- 5
- "" To whom would you liken Me And make Me equal and compare Me, That we
would be alike?
- 6
- ""Those who lavish gold from the purse And weigh silver on the scale Hire
a goldsmith, and he makes it into a god; They bow down, indeed they worship
it.
- 7
- ""They lift it upon the shoulder and carry it; They set it in its place
and it stands there. It does not move from its place. Though one may cry to
it, it cannot answer; It cannot deliver him from his distress.
- 8
- "" Remember this, and be assured; Recall it to mind, you transgressors.
- 9
- ""Remember the former things long past, For I am God, and there is no
other; I am God, and there is no one like Me,
- 10
- Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things which
have not been done, Saying, " My purpose will be established, And I will
accomplish all My good pleasure';
- 11
- Calling a bird of prey from the east, The man of My purpose from a far
country. Truly I have spoken; truly I will bring it to pass. I have planned
it, surely I will do it.
- 12
- "" Listen to Me, you stubborn-minded, Who are far from righteousness.
- 13
- ""I bring near My righteousness, it is not far off; And My salvation will
not delay. And I will grant salvation in Zion, And My glory for Israel.
47
Isaiah 47
- 1
- ""Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon; Sit on the
ground without a throne, O daughter of the Chaldeans! For you shall no longer
be called tender and delicate.
- 2
- ""Take the millstones and grind meal. Remove your veil, strip off the
skirt, Uncover the leg, cross the rivers.
- 3
- ""Your nakedness will be uncovered, Your shame also will be exposed; I
will take vengeance and will not spare a man.''
- 4
- Our Redeemer, the LORD of hosts is His name, The Holy One of Israel.
- 5
- "" Sit silently, and go into darkness, O daughter of the Chaldeans, For
you will no longer be called The queen of kingdoms.
- 6
- ""I was angry with My people, I profaned My heritage And gave them into
your hand. You did not show mercy to them, On the aged you made your yoke very
heavy.
- 7
- ""Yet you said, "I will be a queen forever.' These things you did not
consider Nor remember the outcome of them.
- 8
- ""Now, then, hear this, you sensual one, Who dwells securely, Who says in
your heart, " I am, and there is no one besides me. I will not sit as a widow,
Nor know loss of children.'
- 9
- ""But these two things will come on you suddenly in one day: Loss of
children and widowhood. They will come on you in full measure In spite of your
many sorceries, In spite of the great power of your spells.
- 10
- ""You felt secure in your wickedness and said, " No one sees me,' Your
wisdom and your knowledge, they have deluded you; For you have said in your
heart, " I am, and there is no one besides me.'
- 11
- ""But evil will come on you Which you will not know how to charm away; And
disaster will fall on you For which you cannot atone; And destruction about
which you do not know Will come on you suddenly.
- 12
- ""Stand fast now in your spells And in your many sorceries With which you
have labored from your youth; Perhaps you will be able to profit, Perhaps you
may cause trembling.
- 13
- ""You are wearied with your many counsels; Let now the astrologers, Those
who prophesy by the stars, Those who predict by the new moons, Stand up and
save you from what will come upon you.
- 14
- ""Behold, they have become like stubble, Fire burns them; They cannot
deliver themselves from the power of the flame; There will be no coal to warm
by Nor a fire to sit before!
- 15
- ""So have those become to you with whom you have labored, Who have
trafficked with you from your youth; Each has wandered in his own way; There
is none to save you. 48
Isaiah 48
- 1
- ""Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are named Israel And who came forth
from the loins of Judah, Who swear by the name of the LORD And invoke the God
of Israel, But not in truth nor in righteousness.
- 2
- ""For they call themselves after the holy city And lean on the God of
Israel; The LORD of hosts is His name.
- 3
- ""I declared the former things long ago And they went forth from My mouth,
and I proclaimed them. Suddenly I acted, and they came to pass.
- 4
- ""Because I know that you are obstinate, And your neck is an iron sinew
And your forehead bronze,
- 5
- Therefore I declared them to you long ago, Before they took place I
proclaimed them to you, So that you would not say, "My idol has done them, And
my graven image and my molten image have commanded them.'
- 6
- ""You have heard; look at all this. And you, will you not declare it? I
proclaim to you new things from this time, Even hidden things which you have
not known.
- 7
- ""They are created now and not long ago; And before today you have not
heard them, So that you will not say, "Behold, I knew them.'
- 8
- ""You have not heard, you have not known. Even from long ago your ear has
not been open, Because I knew that you would deal very treacherously; And you
have been called a rebel from birth.
- 9
- "" For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, And for My praise I restrain
it for you, In order not to cut you off.
- 10
- ""Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the
furnace of affliction.
- 11
- "" For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be
profaned? And My glory I will not give to another.
- 12
- ""Listen to Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called; I am He, I am the
first, I am also the last.
- 13
- ""Surely My hand founded the earth, And My right hand spread out the
heavens; When I call to them, they stand together.
- 14
- "" Assemble, all of you, and listen! Who among them has declared these
things? The LORD loves him; he will carry out His good pleasure on Babylon,
And His arm will be against the Chaldeans.
- 15
- ""I, even I, have spoken; indeed I have called him, I have brought him,
and He will make his ways successful.
- 16
- "" Come near to Me, listen to this: From the first I have not spoken in
secret, From the time it took place, I was there. And now the Lord GOD has
sent Me, and His Spirit.''
- 17
- Thus says the LORD, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, ""I am the LORD
your God, who teaches you to profit, Who leads you in the way you should go.
- 18
- ""If only you had paid attention to My commandments! Then your well-being
would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the
sea.
- 19
- ""Your descendants would have been like the sand, And your offspring like
its grains; Their name would never be cut off or destroyed from My presence.''
- 20
- Go forth from Babylon! Flee from the Chaldeans! Declare with the sound of
joyful shouting, proclaim this, Send it out to the end of the earth; Say, ""
The LORD has redeemed His servant Jacob.''
- 21
- They did not thirst when He led them through the deserts. He made the
water flow out of the rock for them; He split the rock and the water gushed
forth.
- 22
- "" There is no peace for the wicked,'' says the LORD.
49
Isaiah 49
- 1
- Listen to Me, O islands, And pay attention, you peoples from afar. The
LORD called Me from the womb; From the body of My mother He named Me.
- 2
- He has made My mouth like a sharp sword, In the shadow of His hand He has
concealed Me; And He has also made Me a select arrow, He has hidden Me in His
quiver.
- 3
- He said to Me, "" You are My Servant, Israel, In Whom I will show My
glory.''
- 4
- But I said, ""I have toiled in vain, I have spent My strength for nothing
and vanity; Yet surely the justice due to Me is with the LORD, And My reward
with My God.''
- 5
- And now says the LORD, who formed Me from the womb to be His Servant, To
bring Jacob back to Him, so that Israel might be gathered to Him (For I am
honored in the sight of the LORD, And My God is My strength),
- 6
- He says, ""It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant To raise
up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will
also make You a light of the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end
of the earth.''
- 7
- Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and its Holy One, To the
despised One, To the One abhorred by the nation, To the Servant of rulers, ""
Kings will see and arise, Princes will also bow down, Because of the LORD who
is faithful, the Holy One of Israel who has chosen You.''
- 8
- Thus says the LORD, ""In a favorable time I have answered You, And in a
day of salvation I have helped You; And I will keep You and give You for a
covenant of the people, To restore the land, to make them inherit the desolate
heritages;
- 9
- Saying to those who are bound, "Go forth,' To those who are in darkness,
"Show yourselves.' Along the roads they will feed, And their pasture will be
on all bare heights.
- 10
- ""They will not hunger or thirst, Nor will the scorching heat or sun
strike them down; For He who has compassion on them will lead them And will
guide them to springs of water.
- 11
- ""I will make all My mountains a road, And My highways will be raised up.
- 12
- ""Behold, these will come from afar; And lo, these will come from the
north and from the west, And these from the land of Sinim.''
- 13
- Shout for joy, O heavens! And rejoice, O earth! Break forth into joyful
shouting, O mountains! For the LORD has comforted His people And will have
compassion on His afflicted.
- 14
- But Zion said, ""The LORD has forsaken me, And the Lord has forgotten
me.''
- 15
- ""Can a woman forget her nursing child And have no compassion on the son
of her womb? Even these may forget, but I will not forget you.
- 16
- ""Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; Your walls are
continually before Me.
- 17
- ""Your builders hurry; Your destroyers and devastators Will depart from
you.
- 18
- "" Lift up your eyes and look around; All of them gather together, they
come to you. As I live,'' declares the LORD, ""You will surely put on all of
them as jewels and bind them on as a bride.
- 19
- ""For your waste and desolate places and your destroyed land Surely now
you will be too cramped for the inhabitants, And those who swallowed you will
be far away.
- 20
- ""The children of whom you were bereaved will yet say in your ears, "The
place is too cramped for me; Make room for me that I may live here.'
- 21
- ""Then you will say in your heart, "Who has begotten these for me, Since I
have been bereaved of my children And am barren, an exile and a wanderer? And
who has reared these? Behold, I was left alone; From where did these come?'''
- 22
- Thus says the Lord GOD, ""Behold, I will lift up My hand to the nations
And set up My standard to the peoples; And they will bring your sons in their
bosom, And your daughters will be carried on their shoulders.
- 23
- "" Kings will be your guardians, And their princesses your nurses. They
will bow down to you with their faces to the earth And lick the dust of your
feet; And you will know that I am the LORD; Those who hopefully wait for Me
will not be put to shame.
- 24
- "" Can the prey be taken from the mighty man, Or the captives of a tyrant
be rescued?''
- 25
- Surely, thus says the LORD, ""Even the captives of the mighty man will be
taken away, And the prey of the tyrant will be rescued; For I will contend
with the one who contends with you, And I will save your sons.
- 26
- ""I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh, And they will become
drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine; And all flesh will know that I,
the LORD, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.''
50
Isaiah 50
- 1
- Thus says the LORD, ""Where is the certificate of divorce By which I have
sent your mother away? Or to whom of My creditors did I sell you? Behold, you
were sold for your iniquities, And for your transgressions your mother was
sent away.
- 2
- ""Why was there no man when I came? When I called, why was there none to
answer? Is My hand so short that it cannot ransom? Or have I no power to
deliver? Behold, I dry up the sea with My rebuke, I make the rivers a
wilderness; Their fish stink for lack of water And die of thirst.
- 3
- ""I clothe the heavens with blackness And make sackcloth their covering.''
- 4
- The Lord GOD has given Me the tongue of disciples, That I may know how to
sustain the weary one with a word. He awakens Me morning by morning, He
awakens My ear to listen as a disciple.
- 5
- The Lord GOD has opened My ear; And I was not disobedient Nor did I turn
back.
- 6
- I gave My back to those who strike Me, And My cheeks to those who pluck
out the beard; I did not cover My face from humiliation and spitting.
- 7
- For the Lord GOD helps Me, Therefore, I am not disgraced; Therefore, I
have set My face like flint, And I know that I will not be ashamed.
- 8
- He who vindicates Me is near; Who will contend with Me? Let us stand up to
each other; Who has a case against Me? Let him draw near to Me.
- 9
- Behold, the Lord GOD helps Me; Who is he who condemns Me? Behold, they
will all wear out like a garment; The moth will eat them.
- 10
- Who is among you that fears the LORD, That obeys the voice of His servant,
That walks in darkness and has no light? Let him trust in the name of the LORD
and rely on his God.
- 11
- Behold, all you who kindle a fire, Who encircle yourselves with
firebrands, Walk in the light of your fire And among the brands you have set
ablaze. This you will have from My hand: you will lie down in torment.
51
Isaiah 51
- 1
- ""Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness, Who seek the LORD: Look to
the rock from which you were hewn And to the quarry from which you were dug.
- 2
- ""Look to Abraham your father And to Sarah who gave birth to you in pain;
When he was but one I called him, Then I blessed him and multiplied him.''
- 3
- Indeed, the LORD will comfort Zion; He will comfort all her waste places.
And her wilderness He will make like Eden, And her desert like the garden of
the LORD; Joy and gladness will be found in her, Thanksgiving and sound of a
melody.
- 4
- "" Pay attention to Me, O My people, And give ear to Me, O My nation; For
a law will go forth from Me, And I will set My justice for a light of the
peoples.
- 5
- ""My righteousness is near, My salvation has gone forth, And My arms will
judge the peoples; The coastlands will wait for Me, And for My arm they will
wait expectantly.
- 6
- "" Lift up your eyes to the sky, Then look to the earth beneath; For the
sky will vanish like smoke, And the earth will wear out like a garment And its
inhabitants will die in like manner; But My salvation will be forever, And My
righteousness will not wane.
- 7
- "" Listen to Me, you who know righteousness, A people in whose heart is My
law; Do not fear the reproach of man, Nor be dismayed at their revilings.
- 8
- ""For the moth will eat them like a garment, And the grub will eat them
like wool. But My righteousness will be forever, And My salvation to all
generations.''
- 9
- Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD; Awake as in the days of
old, the generations of long ago. Was it not You who cut Rahab in pieces, Who
pierced the dragon?
- 10
- Was it not You who dried up the sea, The waters of the great deep; Who
made the depths of the sea a pathway For the redeemed to cross over?
- 11
- So the ransomed of the LORD will return And come with joyful shouting to
Zion, And everlasting joy will be on their heads. They will obtain gladness
and joy, And sorrow and sighing will flee away.
- 12
- ""I, even I, am He who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of
man who dies And of the son of man who is made like grass,
- 13
- That you have forgotten the LORD your Maker, Who stretched out the heavens
And laid the foundations of the earth, That you fear continually all day long
because of the fury of the oppressor, As he makes ready to destroy? But where
is the fury of the oppressor?
- 14
- ""The exile will soon be set free, and will not die in the dungeon, nor
will his bread be lacking.
- 15
- ""For I am the LORD your God, who stirs up the sea and its waves roar (the
LORD of hosts is His name).
- 16
- ""I have put My words in your mouth and have covered you with the shadow
of My hand, to establish the heavens, to found the earth, and to say to Zion,
"You are My people.'''
- 17
- Rouse yourself! Rouse yourself! Arise, O Jerusalem, You who have drunk
from the LORD'S hand the cup of His anger; The chalice of reeling you have
drained to the dregs.
- 18
- There is none to guide her among all the sons she has borne, Nor is there
one to take her by the hand among all the sons she has reared.
- 19
- These two things have befallen you; Who will mourn for you? The
devastation and destruction, famine and sword; How shall I comfort you?
- 20
- Your sons have fainted, They lie helpless at the head of every street,
Like an antelope in a net, Full of the wrath of the LORD, The rebuke of your
God.
- 21
- Therefore, please hear this, you afflicted, Who are drunk, but not with
wine:
- 22
- Thus says your Lord, the LORD, even your God Who contends for His people,
""Behold, I have taken out of your hand the cup of reeling, The chalice of My
anger; You will never drink it again.
- 23
- ""I will put it into the hand of your tormentors, Who have said to you, "
Lie down that we may walk over you.' You have even made your back like the
ground And like the street for those who walk over it.''
52
Isaiah 52
- 1
- Awake, awake, Clothe yourself in your strength, O Zion; Clothe yourself in
your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city; For the uncircumcised and
the unclean Will no longer come into you.
- 2
- Shake yourself from the dust, rise up, O captive Jerusalem; Loose yourself
from the chains around your neck, O captive daughter of Zion.
- 3
- For thus says the LORD, ""You were sold for nothing and you will be
redeemed without money.''
- 4
- For thus says the Lord GOD, ""My people went down at the first into Egypt
to reside there; then the Assyrian oppressed them without cause.
- 5
- ""Now therefore, what do I have here,'' declares the LORD, ""seeing that
My people have been taken away without cause?'' Again the LORD declares,
""Those who rule over them howl, and My name is continually blasphemed all day
long.
- 6
- ""Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the
one who is speaking, "Here I am.'''
- 7
- How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who
announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation,
And says to Zion, ""Your God reigns!''
- 8
- Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices, They shout joyfully together;
For they will see with their own eyes When the LORD restores Zion.
- 9
- Break forth, shout joyfully together, You waste places of Jerusalem; For
the LORD has comforted His people, He has redeemed Jerusalem.
- 10
- The LORD has bared His holy arm In the sight of all the nations, That all
the ends of the earth may see The salvation of our God.
- 11
- Depart, depart, go out from there, Touch nothing unclean; Go out of the
midst of her, purify yourselves, You who carry the vessels of the LORD.
- 12
- But you will not go out in haste, Nor will you go as fugitives; For the
LORD will go before you, And the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
- 13
- Behold, My servant will prosper, He will be high and lifted up and greatly
exalted.
- 14
- Just as many were astonished at you, My people, So His appearance was
marred more than any man And His form more than the sons of men.
- 15
- Thus He will sprinkle many nations, Kings will shut their mouths on
account of Him; For what had not been told them they will see, And what they
had not heard they will understand. 53
Isaiah 53
- 1
- Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been
revealed?
- 2
- For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot, And like a root out of
parched ground; He has no stately form or majesty That we should look upon
Him, Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.
- 3
- He was despised and forsaken of men, A man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief; And like one from whom men hide their face He was despised, and we did
not esteem Him.
- 4
- Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we
ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted.
- 5
- But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our
iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His
scourging we are healed.
- 6
- All of us like sheep have gone astray, Each of us has turned to his own
way; But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
- 7
- He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He did not open His mouth; Like
a lamb that is led to slaughter, And like a sheep that is silent before its
shearers, So He did not open His mouth.
- 8
- By oppression and judgment He was taken away; And as for His generation,
who considered That He was cut off out of the land of the living For the
transgression of my people, to whom the stroke was due?
- 9
- His grave was assigned with wicked men, Yet He was with a rich man in His
death, Because He had done no violence, Nor was there any deceit in His mouth.
- 10
- But the LORD was pleased To crush Him, putting Him to grief; If He would
render Himself as a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong
His days, And the good pleasure of the LORD will prosper in His hand.
- 11
- As a result of the anguish of His soul, He will see it and be satisfied;
By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, As He
will bear their iniquities.
- 12
- Therefore, I will allot Him a portion with the great, And He will divide
the booty with the strong; Because He poured out Himself to death, And was
numbered with the transgressors; Yet He Himself bore the sin of many, And
interceded for the transgressors. 54
Isaiah 54
- 1
- ""Shout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no child; Break forth
into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed; For the sons
of the desolate one will be more numerous Than the sons of the married
woman,'' says the LORD.
- 2
- "" Enlarge the place of your tent; Stretch out the curtains of your
dwellings, spare not; Lengthen your cords And strengthen your pegs.
- 3
- ""For you will spread abroad to the right and to the left. And your
descendants will possess nations And will resettle the desolate cities.
- 4
- ""Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated,
for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth,
And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more.
- 5
- ""For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is the LORD of hosts; And
your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the
earth.
- 6
- ""For the LORD has called you, Like a wife forsaken and grieved in spirit,
Even like a wife of one's youth when she is rejected,'' Says your God.
- 7
- "" For a brief moment I forsook you, But with great compassion I will
gather you.
- 8
- ""In an outburst of anger I hid My face from you for a moment, But with
everlasting lovingkindness I will have compassion on you,'' Says the LORD your
Redeemer.
- 9
- ""For this is like the days of Noah to Me, When I swore that the waters of
Noah Would not flood the earth again; So I have sworn that I will not be angry
with you Nor will I rebuke you.
- 10
- ""For the mountains may be removed and the hills may shake, But My
lovingkindness will not be removed from you, And My covenant of peace will not
be shaken,'' Says the LORD who has compassion on you.
- 11
- ""O afflicted one, storm-tossed, and not comforted, Behold, I will set
your stones in antimony, And your foundations I will lay in sapphires.
- 12
- ""Moreover, I will make your battlements of rubies, And your gates of
crystal, And your entire wall of precious stones.
- 13
- "" All your sons will be taught of the LORD; And the well-being of your
sons will be great.
- 14
- ""In righteousness you will be established; You will be far from
oppression, for you will not fear; And from terror, for it will not come near
you.
- 15
- ""If anyone fiercely assails you it will not be from Me. Whoever assails
you will fall because of you.
- 16
- ""Behold, I Myself have created the smith who blows the fire of coals And
brings out a weapon for its work; And I have created the destroyer to ruin.
- 17
- "" No weapon that is formed against you will prosper; And every tongue
that accuses you in judgment you will condemn. This is the heritage of the
servants of the LORD, And their vindication is from Me,'' declares the LORD.
55
Isaiah 55
- 1
- ""Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; And you who have no money
come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk Without money and without cost.
- 2
- ""Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what
does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And delight
yourself in abundance.
- 3
- "" Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen, that you may live; And I will
make an everlasting covenant with you, According to the faithful mercies shown
to David.
- 4
- ""Behold, I have made him a witness to the peoples, A leader and commander
for the peoples.
- 5
- ""Behold, you will call a nation you do not know, And a nation which knows
you not will run to you, Because of the LORD your God, even the Holy One of
Israel; For He has glorified you.''
- 6
- Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near.
- 7
- Let the wicked forsake his way And the unrighteous man his thoughts; And
let him return to the LORD, And He will have compassion on him, And to our
God, For He will abundantly pardon.
- 8
- ""For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,''
declares the LORD.
- 9
- ""For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than
your ways And My thoughts than your thoughts.
- 10
- ""For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, And do not return
there without watering the earth And making it bear and sprout, And furnishing
seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
- 11
- So will My word be which goes forth from My mouth; It will not return to
Me empty, Without accomplishing what I desire, And without succeeding in the
matter for which I sent it.
- 12
- ""For you will go out with joy And be led forth with peace; The mountains
and the hills will break forth into shouts of joy before you, And all the
trees of the field will clap their hands.
- 13
- ""Instead of the thorn bush the cypress will come up, And instead of the
nettle the myrtle will come up, And it will be a memorial to the LORD, For an
everlasting sign which will not be cut off.'' 56
Isaiah 56
- 1
- Thus says the LORD, "" Preserve justice and do righteousness, For My
salvation is about to come And My righteousness to be revealed.
- 2
- ""How blessed is the man who does this, And the son of man who takes hold
of it; Who keeps from profaning the sabbath, And keeps his hand from doing any
evil.''
- 3
- Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the LORD say, ""The LORD
will surely separate me from His people.'' Nor let the eunuch say, ""Behold, I
am a dry tree.''
- 4
- For thus says the LORD, ""To the eunuchs who keep My sabbaths, And choose
what pleases Me, And hold fast My covenant,
- 5
- To them I will give in My house and within My walls a memorial, And a name
better than that of sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name
which will not be cut off.
- 6
- ""Also the foreigners who join themselves to the LORD, To minister to Him,
and to love the name of the LORD, To be His servants, every one who keeps from
profaning the sabbath And holds fast My covenant;
- 7
- Even those I will bring to My holy mountain And make them joyful in My
house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be acceptable
on My altar; For My house will be called a house of prayer for all the
peoples.''
- 8
- The Lord GOD, who gathers the dispersed of Israel, declares, ""Yet others
I will gather to them, to those already gathered.''
- 9
- All you beasts of the field, All you beasts in the forest, Come to eat.
- 10
- His watchmen are blind, All of them know nothing. All of them are mute
dogs unable to bark, Dreamers lying down, who love to slumber;
- 11
- And the dogs are greedy, they are not satisfied. And they are shepherds
who have no understanding; They have all turned to their own way, Each one to
his unjust gain, to the last one.
- 12
- ""Come,'' they say, ""let us get wine, and let us drink heavily of strong
drink; And tomorrow will be like today, only more so.''
57
Isaiah 57
- 1
- The righteous man perishes, and no man takes it to heart; And devout men
are taken away, while no one understands. For the righteous man is taken away
from evil,
- 2
- He enters into peace; They rest in their beds, Each one who walked in his
upright way.
- 3
- ""But come here, you sons of a sorceress, Offspring of an adulterer and a
prostitute.
- 4
- ""Against whom do you jest? Against whom do you open wide your mouth And
stick out your tongue? Are you not children of rebellion, Offspring of deceit,
- 5
- Who inflame yourselves among the oaks, Under every luxuriant tree, Who
slaughter the children in the ravines, Under the clefts of the crags?
- 6
- ""Among the smooth stones of the ravine Is your portion, they are your
lot; Even to them you have poured out a drink offering, You have made a grain
offering. Shall I relent concerning these things?
- 7
- ""Upon a high and lofty mountain You have made your bed. You also went up
there to offer sacrifice.
- 8
- ""Behind the door and the doorpost You have set up your sign; Indeed, far
removed from Me, you have uncovered yourself, And have gone up and made your
bed wide. And you have made an agreement for yourself with them, You have
loved their bed, You have looked on their manhood.
- 9
- ""You have journeyed to the king with oil And increased your perfumes; You
have sent your envoys a great distance And made them go down to Sheol.
- 10
- ""You were tired out by the length of your road, Yet you did not say, " It
is hopeless.' You found renewed strength, Therefore you did not faint.
- 11
- ""Of whom were you worried and fearful When you lied, and did not remember
Me Nor give Me a thought? Was I not silent even for a long time So you do not
fear Me?
- 12
- ""I will declare your righteousness and your deeds, But they will not
profit you.
- 13
- ""When you cry out, let your collection of idols deliver you. But the wind
will carry all of them up, And a breath will take them away. But he who takes
refuge in Me will inherit the land And will possess My holy mountain.''
- 14
- And it will be said, "" Build up, build up, prepare the way, Remove every
obstacle out of the way of My people.''
- 15
- For thus says the high and exalted One Who lives forever, whose name is
Holy, ""I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the contrite and lowly
of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart
of the contrite.
- 16
- ""For I will not contend forever, Nor will I always be angry; For the
spirit would grow faint before Me, And the breath of those whom I have made.
- 17
- ""Because of the iniquity of his unjust gain I was angry and struck him; I
hid My face and was angry, And he went on turning away, in the way of his
heart.
- 18
- ""I have seen his ways, but I will heal him; I will lead him and restore
comfort to him and to his mourners,
- 19
- Creating the praise of the lips. Peace, peace to him who is far and to him
who is near,'' Says the LORD, ""and I will heal him.''
- 20
- But the wicked are like the tossing sea, For it cannot be quiet, And its
waters toss up refuse and mud.
- 21
- "" There is no peace,'' says my God, ""for the wicked.''
58
Isaiah 58
- 1
- ""Cry loudly, do not hold back; Raise your voice like a trumpet, And
declare to My people their transgression And to the house of Jacob their sins.
- 2
- ""Yet they seek Me day by day and delight to know My ways, As a nation
that has done righteousness And has not forsaken the ordinance of their God.
They ask Me for just decisions, They delight in the nearness of God.
- 3
- "Why have we fasted and You do not see? Why have we humbled ourselves and
You do not notice?' Behold, on the day of your fast you find your desire, And
drive hard all your workers.
- 4
- ""Behold, you fast for contention and strife and to strike with a wicked
fist. You do not fast like you do today to make your voice heard on high.
- 5
- ""Is it a fast like this which I choose, a day for a man to humble
himself? Is it for bowing one's head like a reed And for spreading out
sackcloth and ashes as a bed? Will you call this a fast, even an acceptable
day to the LORD?
- 6
- ""Is this not the fast which I choose, To loosen the bonds of wickedness,
To undo the bands of the yoke, And to let the oppressed go free And break
every yoke?
- 7
- ""Is it not to divide your bread with the hungry And bring the homeless
poor into the house; When you see the naked, to cover him; And not to hide
yourself from your own flesh?
- 8
- ""Then your light will break out like the dawn, And your recovery will
speedily spring forth; And your righteousness will go before you; The glory of
the LORD will be your rear guard.
- 9
- ""Then you will call, and the LORD will answer; You will cry, and He will
say, "Here I am.' If you remove the yoke from your midst, The pointing of the
finger and speaking wickedness,
- 10
- And if you give yourself to the hungry And satisfy the desire of the
afflicted, Then your light will rise in darkness And your gloom will become
like midday.
- 11
- ""And the LORD will continually guide you, And satisfy your desire in
scorched places, And give strength to your bones; And you will be like a
watered garden, And like a spring of water whose waters do not fail.
- 12
- ""Those from among you will rebuild the ancient ruins; You will raise up
the age-old foundations; And you will be called the repairer of the breach,
The restorer of the streets in which to dwell.
- 13
- ""If because of the sabbath, you turn your foot From doing your own
pleasure on My holy day, And call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the
LORD honorable, And honor it, desisting from your own ways, From seeking your
own pleasure And speaking your own word,
- 14
- Then you will take delight in the LORD, And I will make you ride on the
heights of the earth; And I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your
father, For the mouth of the LORD has spoken.'' 59
Isaiah 59
- 1
- Behold, the LORD'S hand is not so short That it cannot save; Nor is His
ear so dull That it cannot hear.
- 2
- But your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, And
your sins have hidden His face from you so that He does not hear.
- 3
- For your hands are defiled with blood And your fingers with iniquity; Your
lips have spoken falsehood, Your tongue mutters wickedness.
- 4
- No one sues righteously and no one pleads honestly. They trust in
confusion and speak lies; They conceive mischief and bring forth iniquity.
- 5
- They hatch adders' eggs and weave the spider's web; He who eats of their
eggs dies, And from that which is crushed a snake breaks forth.
- 6
- Their webs will not become clothing, Nor will they cover themselves with
their works; Their works are works of iniquity, And an act of violence is in
their hands.
- 7
- Their feet run to evil, And they hasten to shed innocent blood; Their
thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, Devastation and destruction are in their
highways.
- 8
- They do not know the way of peace, And there is no justice in their
tracks; They have made their paths crooked, Whoever treads on them does not
know peace.
- 9
- Therefore justice is far from us, And righteousness does not overtake us;
We hope for light, but behold, darkness, For brightness, but we walk in gloom.
- 10
- We grope along the wall like blind men, We grope like those who have no
eyes; We stumble at midday as in the twilight, Among those who are vigorous we
are like dead men.
- 11
- All of us growl like bears, And moan sadly like doves; We hope for
justice, but there is none, For salvation, but it is far from us.
- 12
- For our transgressions are multiplied before You, And our sins testify
against us; For our transgressions are with us, And we know our iniquities:
- 13
- Transgressing and denying the LORD, And turning away from our God,
Speaking oppression and revolt, Conceiving in and uttering from the heart
lying words.
- 14
- Justice is turned back, And righteousness stands far away; For truth has
stumbled in the street, And uprightness cannot enter.
- 15
- Yes, truth is lacking; And he who turns aside from evil makes himself a
prey. Now the LORD saw, And it was displeasing in His sight that there was no
justice.
- 16
- And He saw that there was no man, And was astonished that there was no one
to intercede; Then His own arm brought salvation to Him, And His righteousness
upheld Him.
- 17
- He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on
His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing And wrapped Himself
with zeal as a mantle.
- 18
- According to their deeds, so He will repay, Wrath to His adversaries,
recompense to His enemies; To the coastlands He will make recompense.
- 19
- So they will fear the name of the LORD from the west And His glory from
the rising of the sun, For He will come like a rushing stream Which the wind
of the LORD drives.
- 20
- ""A Redeemer will come to Zion, And to those who turn from transgression
in Jacob,'' declares the LORD.
- 21
- ""As for Me, this is My covenant with them,'' says the LORD: ""My Spirit
which is upon you, and My words which I have put in your mouth shall not
depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the
mouth of your offspring's offspring,'' says the LORD, ""from now and
forever.'' 60
Isaiah 60
- 1
- ""Arise, shine; for your light has come, And the glory of the LORD has
risen upon you.
- 2
- ""For behold, darkness will cover the earth And deep darkness the peoples;
But the LORD will rise upon you And His glory will appear upon you.
- 3
- "" Nations will come to your light, And kings to the brightness of your
rising.
- 4
- "" Lift up your eyes round about and see; They all gather together, they
come to you. Your sons will come from afar, And your daughters will be carried
in the arms.
- 5
- ""Then you will see and be radiant, And your heart will thrill and
rejoice; Because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you, The wealth of
the nations will come to you.
- 6
- ""A multitude of camels will cover you, The young camels of Midian and
Ephah; All those from Sheba will come; They will bring gold and frankincense,
And will bear good news of the praises of the LORD.
- 7
- ""All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered together to you, The rams of
Nebaioth will minister to you; They will go up with acceptance on My altar,
And I shall glorify My glorious house.
- 8
- "" Who are these who fly like a cloud And like the doves to their
lattices?
- 9
- ""Surely the coastlands will wait for Me; And the ships of Tarshish will
come first, To bring your sons from afar, Their silver and their gold with
them, For the name of the LORD your God, And for the Holy One of Israel
because He has glorified you.
- 10
- "" Foreigners will build up your walls, And their kings will minister to
you; For in My wrath I struck you, And in My favor I have had compassion on
you.
- 11
- ""Your gates will be open continually; They will not be closed day or
night, So that men may bring to you the wealth of the nations, With their
kings led in procession.
- 12
- ""For the nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish, And
the nations will be utterly ruined.
- 13
- ""The glory of Lebanon will come to you, The juniper, the box tree and the
cypress together, To beautify the place of My sanctuary; And I shall make the
place of My feet glorious.
- 14
- ""The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you, And all
those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet; And they
will call you the city of the LORD, The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
- 15
- ""Whereas you have been forsaken and hated With no one passing through, I
will make you an everlasting pride, A joy from generation to generation.
- 16
- ""You will also suck the milk of nations And suck the breast of kings;
Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior And your Redeemer, the
Mighty One of Jacob.
- 17
- ""Instead of bronze I will bring gold, And instead of iron I will bring
silver, And instead of wood, bronze, And instead of stones, iron. And I will
make peace your administrators And righteousness your overseers.
- 18
- "" Violence will not be heard again in your land, Nor devastation or
destruction within your borders; But you will call your walls salvation, and
your gates praise.
- 19
- ""No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness
will the moon give you light; But you will have the LORD for an everlasting
light, And your God for your glory.
- 20
- ""Your sun will no longer set, Nor will your moon wane; For you will have
the LORD for an everlasting light, And the days of your mourning will be over.
- 21
- ""Then all your people will be righteous; They will possess the land
forever, The branch of My planting, The work of My hands, That I may be
glorified.
- 22
- ""The smallest one will become a clan, And the least one a mighty nation.
I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time.'' 61
Isaiah 61
- 1
- The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, Because the LORD has anointed me To
bring good news to the afflicted; He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives And freedom to prisoners;
- 2
- To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD And the day of vengeance of our
God; To comfort all who mourn,
- 3
- To grant those who mourn in Zion, Giving them a garland instead of ashes,
The oil of gladness instead of mourning, The mantle of praise instead of a
spirit of fainting. So they will be called oaks of righteousness, The planting
of the LORD, that He may be glorified.
- 4
- Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins, They will raise up the former
devastations; And they will repair the ruined cities, The desolations of many
generations.
- 5
- Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks, And foreigners will be your
farmers and your vinedressers.
- 6
- But you will be called the priests of the LORD; You will be spoken of as
ministers of our God. You will eat the wealth of nations, And in their riches
you will boast.
- 7
- Instead of your shame you will have a double portion, And instead of
humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion. Therefore they will
possess a double portion in their land, Everlasting joy will be theirs.
- 8
- For I, the LORD, love justice, I hate robbery in the burnt offering; And I
will faithfully give them their recompense And make an everlasting covenant
with them.
- 9
- Then their offspring will be known among the nations, And their
descendants in the midst of the peoples. All who see them will recognize them
Because they are the offspring whom the LORD has blessed.
- 10
- I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, My soul will exult in my God; For He
has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of
righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride
adorns herself with her jewels.
- 11
- For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, And as a garden causes the
things sown in it to spring up, So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and
praise To spring up before all the nations. 62
Isaiah 62
- 1
- For Zion's sake I will not keep silent, And for Jerusalem's sake I will
not keep quiet, Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness, And her
salvation like a torch that is burning.
- 2
- The nations will see your righteousness, And all kings your glory; And you
will be called by a new name Which the mouth of the LORD will designate.
- 3
- You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD, And a royal
diadem in the hand of your God.
- 4
- It will no longer be said to you, "" Forsaken,'' Nor to your land will it
any longer be said, "" Desolate''; But you will be called, "" My delight is in
her,'' And your land, "" Married''; For the LORD delights in you, And to Him
your land will be married.
- 5
- For as a young man marries a virgin, So your sons will marry you; And as
the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, So your God will rejoice over you.
- 6
- On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen; All day and all
night they will never keep silent. You who remind the LORD, take no rest for
yourselves;
- 7
- And give Him no rest until He establishes And makes Jerusalem a praise in
the earth.
- 8
- The LORD has sworn by His right hand and by His strong arm, ""I will never
again give your grain as food for your enemies; Nor will foreigners drink your
new wine for which you have labored.''
- 9
- But those who garner it will eat it and praise the LORD; And those who
gather it will drink it in the courts of My sanctuary.
- 10
- Go through, go through the gates, Clear the way for the people; Build up,
build up the highway, Remove the stones, lift up a standard over the peoples.
- 11
- Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth, Say to the
daughter of Zion, ""Lo, your salvation comes; Behold His reward is with Him,
and His recompense before Him.''
- 12
- And they will call them, "" The holy people, The redeemed of the LORD'';
And you will be called, ""Sought out, a city not forsaken.''
63
Isaiah 63
- 1
- Who is this who comes from Edom, With garments of glowing colors from
Bozrah, This One who is majestic in His apparel, Marching in the greatness of
His strength? ""It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save.''
- 2
- Why is Your apparel red, And Your garments like the one who treads in the
wine press?
- 3
- "" I have trodden the wine trough alone, And from the peoples there was no
man with Me. I also trod them in My anger And trampled them in My wrath; And
their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments, And I stained all My raiment.
- 4
- ""For the day of vengeance was in My heart, And My year of redemption has
come.
- 5
- ""I looked, and there was no one to help, And I was astonished and there
was no one to uphold; So My own arm brought salvation to Me, And My wrath
upheld Me.
- 6
- ""I trod down the peoples in My anger And made them drunk in My wrath, And
I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.''
- 7
- I shall make mention of the lovingkindnesses of the LORD, the praises of
the LORD, According to all that the LORD has granted us, And the great
goodness toward the house of Israel, Which He has granted them according to
His compassion And according to the abundance of His lovingkindnesses.
- 8
- For He said, ""Surely, they are My people, Sons who will not deal
falsely.'' So He became their Savior.
- 9
- In all their affliction He was afflicted, And the angel of His presence
saved them; In His love and in His mercy He redeemed them, And He lifted them
and carried them all the days of old.
- 10
- But they rebelled And grieved His Holy Spirit; Therefore He turned Himself
to become their enemy, He fought against them.
- 11
- Then His people remembered the days of old, of Moses. Where is He who
brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of His flock? Where is He
who put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them,
- 12
- Who caused His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses, Who divided
the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name,
- 13
- Who led them through the depths? Like the horse in the wilderness, they
did not stumble;
- 14
- As the cattle which go down into the valley, The Spirit of the LORD gave
them rest. So You led Your people, To make for Yourself a glorious name.
- 15
- Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious habitation;
Where are Your zeal and Your mighty deeds? The stirrings of Your heart and
Your compassion are restrained toward me.
- 16
- For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know And Israel does not
recognize us. You, O LORD, are our Father, Our Redeemer from of old is Your
name.
- 17
- Why, O LORD, do You cause us to stray from Your ways And harden our heart
from fearing You? Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your
heritage.
- 18
- Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while, Our
adversaries have trodden it down.
- 19
- We have become like those over whom You have never ruled, Like those who
were not called by Your name. 64
Isaiah 64
- 1
- Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, That the mountains
might quake at Your presence
- 2
- As fire kindles the brushwood, as fire causes water to boil To make Your
name known to Your adversaries, That the nations may tremble at Your presence!
- 3
- When You did awesome things which we did not expect, You came down, the
mountains quaked at Your presence.
- 4
- For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear, Nor has the
eye seen a God besides You, Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him.
- 5
- You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness, Who remembers You in
Your ways. Behold, You were angry, for we sinned, We continued in them a long
time; And shall we be saved?
- 6
- For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous
deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our
iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
- 7
- There is no one who calls on Your name, Who arouses himself to take hold
of You; For You have hidden Your face from us And have delivered us into the
power of our iniquities.
- 8
- But now, O LORD, You are our Father, We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand.
- 9
- Do not be angry beyond measure, O LORD, Nor remember iniquity forever;
Behold, look now, all of us are Your people.
- 10
- Your holy cities have become a wilderness, Zion has become a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
- 11
- Our holy and beautiful house, Where our fathers praised You, Has been
burned by fire; And all our precious things have become a ruin.
- 12
- Will You restrain Yourself at these things, O LORD? Will You keep silent
and afflict us beyond measure? 65
Isaiah 65
- 1
- ""Ipermitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask for Me; I
permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me. I said, "Here am I,
here am I,' To a nation which did not call on My name.
- 2
- "" I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people, Who
walk in the way which is not good, following their own thoughts,
- 3
- A people who continually provoke Me to My face, Offering sacrifices in
gardens and burning incense on bricks;
- 4
- Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places; Who eat swine's
flesh, And the broth of unclean meat is in their pots.
- 5
- ""Who say, " Keep to yourself, do not come near me, For I am holier than
you!' These are smoke in My nostrils, A fire that burns all the day.
- 6
- ""Behold, it is written before Me, I will not keep silent, but I will
repay; I will even repay into their bosom,
- 7
- Both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together,''
says the LORD. ""Because they have burned incense on the mountains And scorned
Me on the hills, Therefore I will measure their former work into their
bosom.''
- 8
- Thus says the LORD, ""As the new wine is found in the cluster, And one
says, "Do not destroy it, for there is benefit in it,' So I will act on behalf
of My servants In order not to destroy all of them.
- 9
- ""I will bring forth offspring from Jacob, And an heir of My mountains
from Judah; Even My chosen ones shall inherit it, And My servants will dwell
there.
- 10
- "" Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks, And the valley of Achor a
resting place for herds, For My people who seek Me.
- 11
- ""But you who forsake the LORD, Who forget My holy mountain, Who set a
table for Fortune, And who fill cups with mixed wine for Destiny,
- 12
- I will destine you for the sword, And all of you will bow down to the
slaughter. Because I called, but you did not answer; I spoke, but you did not
hear. And you did evil in My sight And chose that in which I did not
delight.''
- 13
- Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD, ""Behold, My servants will eat, but you
will be hungry. Behold, My servants will drink, but you will be thirsty.
Behold, My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame.
- 14
- ""Behold, My servants will shout joyfully with a glad heart, But you will
cry out with a heavy heart, And you will wail with a broken spirit.
- 15
- ""You will leave your name for a curse to My chosen ones, And the Lord GOD
will slay you. But My servants will be called by another name.
- 16
- ""Because he who is blessed in the earth will be blessed by the God of
truth; And he who swears in the earth will swear by the God of truth; Because
the former troubles are forgotten, And because they are hidden from My sight!
- 17
- ""For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth; And the former things
will not be remembered or come to mind.
- 18
- ""But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create; For behold, I create
Jerusalem for rejoicing And her people for gladness.
- 19
- ""I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people; And there
will no longer be heard in her The voice of weeping and the sound of crying.
- 20
- ""No longer will there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, Or an
old man who does not live out his days; For the youth will die at the age of
one hundred And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred will be
thought accursed.
- 21
- ""They will build houses and inhabit them; They will also plant vineyards
and eat their fruit.
- 22
- ""They will not build and another inhabit, They will not plant and another
eat; For as the lifetime of a tree, so will be the days of My people, And My
chosen ones will wear out the work of their hands.
- 23
- ""They will not labor in vain, Or bear children for calamity; For they are
the offspring of those blessed by the LORD, And their descendants with them.
- 24
- ""It will also come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and
while they are still speaking, I will hear.
- 25
- ""The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw
like the ox; and dust will be the serpent's food. They will do no evil or harm
in all My holy mountain,'' says the LORD. 66
Isaiah 66
- 1
- Thus says the LORD, "" Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may
rest?
- 2
- ""For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into
being,'' declares the LORD. ""But to this one I will look, To him who is
humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.
- 3
- ""But he who kills an ox is like one who slays a man; He who sacrifices a
lamb is like the one who breaks a dog's neck; He who offers a grain offering
is like one who offers swine's blood; He who burns incense is like the one who
blesses an idol. As they have chosen their own ways, And their soul delights
in their abominations,
- 4
- So I will choose their punishments And will bring on them what they dread.
Because I called, but no one answered; I spoke, but they did not listen. And
they did evil in My sight And chose that in which I did not delight.''
- 5
- Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at His word: ""Your brothers
who hate you, who exclude you for My name's sake, Have said, "Let the LORD be
glorified, that we may see your joy.' But they will be put to shame.
- 6
- ""A voice of uproar from the city, a voice from the temple, The voice of
the LORD who is rendering recompense to His enemies.
- 7
- ""Before she travailed, she brought forth; Before her pain came, she gave
birth to a boy.
- 8
- "" Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Can a land be
born in one day? Can a nation be brought forth all at once? As soon as Zion
travailed, she also brought forth her sons.
- 9
- ""Shall I bring to the point of birth and not give delivery?'' says the
LORD. ""Or shall I who gives delivery shut the womb?'' says your God.
- 10
- ""Be joyful with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who love her; Be
exceedingly glad with her, all you who mourn over her,
- 11
- That you may nurse and be satisfied with her comforting breasts, That you
may suck and be delighted with her bountiful bosom.''
- 12
- For thus says the LORD, ""Behold, I extend peace to her like a river, And
the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream; And you will be nursed,
you will be carried on the hip and fondled on the knees.
- 13
- ""As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; And you will be
comforted in Jerusalem.''
- 14
- Then you will see this, and your heart will be glad, And your bones will
flourish like the new grass; And the hand of the LORD will be made known to
His servants, But He will be indignant toward His enemies.
- 15
- For behold, the LORD will come in fire And His chariots like the
whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire.
- 16
- For the LORD will execute judgment by fire And by His sword on all flesh,
And those slain by the LORD will be many.
- 17
- ""Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the gardens, Following
one in the center, Who eat swine's flesh, detestable things and mice, will
come to an end altogether,'' declares the LORD.
- 18
- ""For I know their works and their thoughts; the time is coming to gather
all nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My glory.
- 19
- ""I will set a sign among them and will send survivors from them to the
nations: Tarshish, Put, Lud, Meshech, Rosh, Tubal and Javan, to the distant
coastlands that have neither heard My fame nor seen My glory. And they will
declare My glory among the nations.
- 20
- ""Then they shall bring all your brethren from all the nations as a grain
offering to the LORD, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules and on
camels, to My holy mountain Jerusalem,'' says the LORD, ""just as the sons of
Israel bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD.
- 21
- ""I will also take some of them for priests and for Levites,'' says the
LORD.
- 22
- ""For just as the new heavens and the new earth Which I make will endure
before Me,'' declares the LORD, ""So your offspring and your name will endure.
- 23
- ""And it shall be from new moon to new moon And from sabbath to sabbath,
All mankind will come to bow down before Me,'' says the LORD.
- 24
- ""Then they will go forth and look On the corpses of the men Who have
transgressed against Me. For their worm will not die And their fire will not
be quenched; And they will be an abhorrence to all mankind.''