Category: Isaiah

God Commands That Babylon Be Taken

1 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning the Desert of theSea (the seasonally flooded plains just south of Babylon):

As windstorms in the Negev (the South) sweep through,

So it (God’s judgment) comes from the desert, from [the hostile armies of] a terrifying land.

2 A harsh vision has been shown to me;

The treacherous one deals treacherously, and the destroyer destroys.

Go up, Elam! Lay siege, Media!

All the groaning [caused by Babylon’s ruthless oppressions] I [the Lord] have brought to an end.

3 Therefore [continues Isaiah] my loins are filled with anguish;

Pains have seized me like the pains of a woman in childbirth;

I am so bentandbewildered that I cannot hear, I am so terrified that I cannot see.

4 My mind reels, horror overwhelms me;

The twilight I longed for has beenturned into fearandtrembling for me.

5 They set the table [for the doomed banquet], they spread out the cloth, they eat, they drink;

“Rise up, captains [of Belshazzar’s court], oil your shields [for battle, for your enemy is at the gates]!”

6 This is what the Lord says to me,

“Go, station the lookout, let him report what he sees.

7 When he sees a chariot, horsemen in pairs,

A train of donkeys and a train of camels,

Let him pay attentionandlisten closely, very closely.”

8 And the lookout calledlikea lion,

“O Lord, I stand continually on the watchtower by day,

And I am stationed every night at my guard post.

9 Now look! Here comes a troop of riders, horsemen in pairs.”

And one said, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon;

And all the carved images of her gods are shattered on the ground.”

10 O my threshedpeople[Judah, who must be judged and trampled down by Babylon], my afflicted of the threshing floor.

What I have heard from the Lordof hosts,

The God of Israel, I have [joyfully] announced to you [that Babylon is to fall].

Oracles about Edom and Arabia

11 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning Dumah (Edom):

Someone keeps calling to me from Seir (Edom),

“Watchman, what is left of the night [of Assyrian oppression]?

Watchman, what is left of the night? [How long until morning?]”

12 The watchman says,

“The morning comes [only briefly], but also [comes] the night [of Babylonian oppression].

If you would ask [of me then], ask [again, if Edom really wishes to know];

Come back again.”

13 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning Arabia:

In the thickets of Arabia you must spend the night,

Caravans of Dedanites.

14 Bring water for the thirsty [Dedanites],

O inhabitants of the land of Tema [in Arabia];

Meet the fugitive with bread.

15 For they have fled from the swords,

From the drawn sword, from the bent bow

And from the press of battleandgrief of war.

16 For the Lord has said this to me, “Within a year, according to the years of a hired man [who will work no longer than was agreed], all the splendor of [the tribe of] Kedar will end;

17 and the remainder of the number of archers, the mighty men of the sons of Kedar, will be few; for the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.”

The Valley of Vision

1 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning the Valley of Vision:

What is the matter with you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops,

2 You [Jerusalem] who were full of noise,

A tumultuous city, a joyousandexuberant city;

Your slain were not slain [in a glorious death] with the sword,

Nor did they die in battle.

3 All your leaders have fled together [with your king],

And have been captured without the bow [which they had thrown away];

All of you who were found were taken captive together,

Though they had fled far away.

4 Therefore I say, “Look away from me;

Let me weep bitterly.

Do not try to comfort me over the destruction of the daughter of my people.”

5 For the Lord Godof hosts has a day of panicandof tumult, of trampling, of confusion

In the Valley of Vision,

A [day of] breaking down walls

And a crying [for help] to the mountain.

6 Elam took up the quiver

With the chariots, infantry and horsemen;

And Kir uncovered the shield.

7 And it came to pass that your choicest valleys were full of chariots,

And the horsemen took their fixed positions [in an offensive array] at the gate [of Jerusalem].

8 Then God removed the [protective] covering of Judah;

And in that day you looked to the weapons of the House of the Forest (Solomon’s armory).

9 You saw that the breaches

In the wall of the City of David [the citadel of Zion] were many;

You collected [within the city’s walls] the waters of the Lower Pool (Siloam).

10 Then you counted the houses of Jerusalem

And you tore down the houses [to get materials] to fortify the city wall [by extending it].

11 You also made a reservoir between the two walls

For the waters of theOld Pool,

But you did not look to its Maker,

Nor did you recognize Him who planned it long ago.

12 Therefore in that day the Lord Godof hosts called you to weeping, to mourning,

To shaving the head and to wearing sackcloth [in humiliation].

13 Instead, there is joy and jubilation,

Killing of oxen and slaughtering of sheep,

Eating meat and drinking wine,saying,

“Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we may die.”

14 But the Lordof hosts revealed Himself in my ears,

“This sin absolutely will not be forgiven you

Until you die,” says the Lord Godof hosts.

15 For the Lord Godof hosts says this, “Go to this [contemptible] steward,

ToShebna, who is in charge of theroyalhousehold [but is building himself a tomb worthy of a king, and say to him],

16 ‘What business do you have here?

And whom do you have here,

That you have hewn out a tomb here for yourself,

You who hew a sepulcher on the height,

You who carve a resting place for yourself in the rock?

17 Listen carefully, the Lordis about to hurl you away violently, O man;

And He is about to grasp you firmly

18 And roll you up tightly like a ball

And toss you 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 you will be pulled down from your position [of importance].

20 Then it will come to pass in that day

That I will summon My servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah.

21 And I will clothe him with your tunic [of distinction]

And tie your sash securely around him.

I will entrust him with your authority;

He will become a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.

22 Then I will set on his shoulder the key of the house of David;

When he opens no one will shut,

When he shuts no one will open.

23 I will drive himlikea peg in a firm place,

And he will become a throne of honorandglory to his father’s house.

24 So they will hang on him all the honorandglory [the complete responsibility] of his father’s house, offspring and issue [of the family, high and low], all the least of the articles, from the bowls to all the jars.

25 In that day,” declares the Lordof hosts, “the peg (Eliakim) that was driven into the firm place will give way; it will even break off and fall, and the burden hanging on it will be cut off, for the Lordhas spoken.”

The Fall of Tyre

1 The [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerningTyre:

Wail, O ships of Tarshish,

ForTyreis destroyed, without house, without harbor;

It is reported to them from the land of Cyprus (Kittim).

2 Be silent, you inhabitants of the coastland,

Youmerchants of Sidon;

Your messengers crossed the sea

3 Andthey wereon great waters.

The grain of theShihor, the harvest of the Nile River, was Tyre’s revenue;

And she was the market of nations.

4 Be ashamed, O Sidon [mother-city of Tyre, now like a widow bereaved of her children];

For the sea speaks, the stronghold of the sea, saying,

“I have neither labored nor given birth [to children];

I have neither brought up young men nor reared virgins.”

5 When the reportreachesEgypt,

They will be in agony at the report about Tyre.

6 Cross over to Tarshish [to seek safety as exiles];

Wail, O inhabitants of the coastland [of Tyre].

7 Is this your jubilantcity,

Whose origin dates back to antiquity,

Whose feet used to carry her [far away] 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 Lordof hosts has planned it, to defile the pride of all beauty,

To bring into contemptandhumiliation all the honored of the earth.

10 Overflow your land like [the overflow of] the Nile, O Daughter of Tarshish;

There is no more restraint [on you to make you pay tribute to Tyre].

11 He has stretched out His hand over the sea,

He has shaken the kingdoms;

The Lordhas given a command concerning Canaan to destroy her strongholdsandher fortresses [like Tyre and Sidon].

12 He has said, “You shall never again exult [in triumph], O crushed Virgin Daughter of Sidon.

Arise, cross over to Cyprus; even there you will find no rest.”

13 Now look at the land of the Chaldeans (Babylonia)—this is the people which was not; the Assyrians allocated Tyre for desert creatures—they set up theirsiege towers, they stripped its palaces, they made it a ruin.

14 Wail, O ships of Tarshish,

For your stronghold [of Tyre] 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 prostitute’s song:

16 Take a harp, walk around the city,

O forgotten prostitute;

Play the strings skillfully, sing many songs,

That you may be remembered.

17 It will come to pass at the end of seventy years that the Lordwill remember Tyre. Then she will return to her prostitute’s wages and will play the [role of a] prostitute [by trading] with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth.

18 But her commercial gain and her prostitute’s wages will bededicated to the Lord; it will not be treasured or stored up, but her commercial gain will become sufficient food and stately clothing for those who dwell (minister) in the presence of the Lord.

Judgment on the Earth

1 Behold, the Lordlays waste to the earth, devastates it, twistsanddistorts its face 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 [as God’s impartial judgment of sin comes on all].

3 The earth will be completely laid waste and utterly pillaged, for the Lordhas spoken this word.

4 The earth dries up and crumbles away, the world dries out and crumbles away, the exalted of the people of the earth fade away.

5 The earth also is pollutedby its inhabitants, because they have transgressed laws, violated statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant.

6 Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live on it suffer the punishment of their guilt. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned [under the curse of God’s wrath], and few people are left.

7 The new wine mourns,

The vine decays;

All the merry-hearted sighandgroan.

8 The mirth of the timbrels (tambourines) ceases,

The noise of those who rejoice ends,

The joy of the harp ceases.

9 They do not drink wine with a 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 no one may enter.

11 There is an outcry in the streets concerning the wine;

All jubilation is darkened,

The joy of the earth is banished.

12 Horrible desolation is left in the city,

And the gate is battered into ruins.

13 For so 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 [and only a little of the fruit remains].

14 They [who have escaped and remain] raise their voices, they shout for joy;

They rejoice from the [Mediterranean] Sea in the majesty of the Lord.

15 Therefore honorandglorify the Lordin the east [in the region of light],

The name of the Lord, the God of Israel [honor His name],

In the coastlandsandislands of the [Mediterranean] Sea.

16 From the ends of the earth we hear songs, “Gloryandhonor to the Righteous One,”

But I say, “I waste away, I waste away. Woe to me!

The treacherous deal treacherously,

Indeed, the treacherous deal very treacherously.”

17 Terror and pit [of destruction] and snare

Confront you, O inhabitant of the earth.

18 Then it will be that he who flees at the sound of terror will fall into the pit,

And he who comes up out of the pit will be caught in the snare;

For the windows of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth tremble.

19 The earth is broken completely apart,

The earth is split apart,

The earth is shaken violently.

20 The earth reels back and forth like a drunkard

And sways like a shack;

Its transgression lies heavily upon it,

And it will fall and not rise again.

21 So it will happen in that day

That the Lordwill visitandpunish the host (fallen angels) of heaven on high,

And the kings of the earth on the earth.

22 They will be gathered together

As prisoners [are gathered] in a dungeon;

They will be shut up in prison,

And after many days they will be visitedandpunished.

23 Then the full moon will be embarrassed and the sun ashamed,

For the Lordof hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,

AndHisgloryandbrilliance will shine before His elders.

Song of Praise for God’s Favor

1 O Lord, You are my God;

I will exalt You, I will praiseandgive thanks to Your name;

For You have done miraculous things,

Plansformedlong, long ago, [fulfilled] with perfect faithfulness.

2 For You have made a city into a heap [of trash],

A fortified city into a ruin;

A palace offoreigners is no longer a city,

It will never be rebuilt.

3 Therefore a strong people will honor You;

Cities of terribleandviolent nations will fear You.

4 For You have been a stronghold for the helpless,

A stronghold for the poor in his distress,

A shelter from the storm, a shade from the heat;

For the breath of tyrants

Is like a rainstormagainsta wall.

5 Like heat in a dry land, You will subdue the noise of foreigners [rejoicing over their enemies];

Like heat in the shadow of a cloud, the song of the tyrants issilenced.

6 On this mountain [Zion] the Lordof hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples [to welcome His reign on earth],

A banquet of aged wines—choice pieces [flavored] with marrow,

Of refined, aged wines.

7 And on this mountain He will destroy the covering that is [cast] over all peoples,

And the veil [of death] that is wovenandspread over all the nations.

8 He will swallow up death [and abolish it] for all time.

And the Lord Godwill wipe away tears from all faces,

And He will take away the disgrace of His people from all the earth;

For the Lordhas spoken.

9 It will be said in that day,

“Indeed, this is our God for whom we have waited that He would save us.

This is the Lordfor whom we have waited;

Let us shout for joy and rejoice in His salvation.”

10 For the hand of the Lordwill rest on this mountain [Zion],

And Moab will be trampled down in his place

As straw is trampled down in the [filthy] water of a manure pile.

11 And Moab will spread out his hands in the middle of the filth

As a swimmer spreads outhis handsto swim,

Butthe Lordwill humiliate his pride in spite of the [skillful] movements of his hands.

12 The high fortifications of your walls He will bring down,

Lay low, and cast to the ground, to the dust.

Song of Trust in God’s Protection

1 In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

“We have a strong city;

He sets up salvation as walls and ramparts.

2 Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter,

The one thatremains faithfulandtrustworthy.

3 You will keep inperfectandconstant peacethe onewhose mind is steadfast [that is, committed and focused on You—in bothinclination and character],

Because he trustsandtakes refuge in You [with hope and confident expectation].

4 Trust [confidently] in the Lordforever [He is your fortress, your shield, your banner],

For the LordGodis an everlasting Rock [the Rock of Ages].

5 For He has thrown down the [arrogant] ones who dwell on high, the loftyandinaccessible city;

He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He hurls it to the dust.

6 The foot will trample it,

Eventhe feet of the suffering, and the steps of the helpless.”

7 The way of the righteous [those in right-standing with God—living in moral and spiritual integrity] is smoothandlevel;

O Upright One, make a level path for the justandrighteous.

8 Indeed, in the path of Your judgments, O Lord,

We have waited expectantly for You;

Your name, even Your memory, is the desireanddeep longing of our souls.

9 In the night my soul longs for You [O Lord],

Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently;

For [only] when Your judgments are experienced on the earth

Will the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.

10 Thoughthe wicked is shown compassionandfavor,

He does not learn righteousness;

In the land of uprightness he deals unjustly,

And refuses to see the majesty of the Lord.

11 ThoughYour hand is lifted up [to strike], O Lord, the wicked do not see it.

Let them see Your zeal forYourpeople and be put to shame;

Indeed, let the fire reserved for Your enemies consume them.

12 Lord, You will establish peace for us,

Since You have also performed for us all that we have done.

13 O Lordour God, other masters besides You have ruled over us;

But through You alone we confess Your name.

14 The [wicked] dead will not live [again], the spirits of the dead will not riseandreturn;

Therefore You have punished and destroyed them,

And You have wiped out every memory of them [every trace 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 managed only a prayerful whisper

When Your discipline was upon them.

17 As a woman with child approachesthe timeto give birth,

She is in painandstruggles and cries out in her labor,

So we were before You, O Lord.

18 We have been with child, we have twistedandstruggledin labor;

We gave birth, as it seems,onlyto wind.

We could not accomplish salvation for the earth,

Nor were inhabitants of the worldborn.

19 Your dead will live;

Their dead bodies will rise.

You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy!

For your dew is a dew of [celestial] light [heavenly, supernatural],

And the earth will give birth to the spirits of the dead.

20 Come, my people, enter your chambers

And shut your doors behind you;

Hide for a little while

Until the [Lord’s]wrath is past.

21 Listen carefully, the Lordis about to come out of His [heavenly] place

To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their wickedness [their sin, their injustice, their wrongdoing];

The earth will reveal the [innocent] blood shed upon her

And will no longer cover her slain.

The Deliverance of Israel

1 In that day the Lord will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent

With His fierce and great and mighty sword [rescuing Israel from her enemy],

Even Leviathan the twisted serpent;

And He will kill the dragon wholivesin the sea.

2 In that day [it will be said of the redeemed nation of Israel],

“A vineyard ofwine, sing in praise of it!

3 I, the Lord, am its Keeper;

I water it every moment.

So that no one will harm it,

I guard it night and day.

4 I have no wrath.

Should anyone give Me briarsandthorns in battle,

I would step on them, I would set them all on fire.

5 Or let him (Israel) cling to My strengthandrely on My protection [My stronghold],

Let him make peace with Me,

Let him make peace with Me.”

6 In the generations to come Jacob will take root;

Israel will blossom and sprout,

And they will fill the surface of the world with fruit.

7 Like the strikingby 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 exile, by driving them away [from Canaan];

He has expelled them with His fierce wind on the day of the east wind.

9 Therefore through this the wickedness [the sin, the injustice, the wrongdoing] of Jacob (Israel) will be atoned forandforgiven;

And this will bethe full price [that God requires] for taking away his sin:

When Israel makes all the stones of the [pagan] altars like crushed chalk stones;

When the Asherim and the incense altars will not stand.

10 For the fortified city is isolated,

A settlement deserted and abandoned like the desert;

There the calf will graze,

And there it will lie down andfeed on its branches.

11 When its branches are dry, they are broken off;

The women come andmake a fire with them.

For they are not a people of understanding,

Therefore He who made them will not have compassion on them,

And He who created them will not be gracious to them.

12 In that day the Lordwill thresh [out His grain] from the flowing stream of the River [Euphrates] to the Brook of Egypt, and you will be gathered up one by one, O sons of Israel.

13 It will come to pass in that day that a great trumpet will be blown, and those who were lostandperishing in the land of Assyria and who were scattered in the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lordon the holy mountain at Jerusalem.

Ephraim’s Captivity Predicted

1 Woe (judgment is coming) to [Samaria] the splendid crown of the drunkards ofEphraim,

And to the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

Which is at the head of the rich valley

Of those who are overcome with wine!

2 Listen carefully, the Lord has a strong and mightyagent[the Assyrian];

Like a tempest of hail, a disastrous storm,

Like a tempest of mighty overflowing waters,

He has cast it down to the earth withHishand.

3 The splendid crown of the drunkards of Ephraim is trampled by [the foreigners’] feet.

4 And the fading flower of its glorious beauty,

Which is at the head of the rich valley,

Will be like the early fig before the summer,

Which one sees,

And as soon as it is in his hand

He [greedily] swallows it [and so will the Assyrians rapidly devour Samaria, Israel’s capital].

5 In that day the Lordof hosts will become a magnificent crown

And a glorious diadem to the [converted] remnant of His people,

6 A spirit of justice for him who sits in judgment [administering the law],

A strength to those who drive back the battle at the gate.

7 But even these 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 seeing visions,

They staggerwhen pronouncingjudgment.

8 For all the tables are full of filthy vomit, so that there is no place [that is clean.]

9 They say“To whom would He teach knowledge?

And to whom would He explain the message?

Thosejustweaned from milk?

Thosejusttaken from the breast?

10 ForHe says,

‘Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

Rule upon rule, rule upon rule,

Here a little, there a little.’ ”

11 Indeed, the Lordwill teach this people [in a more humiliating way]

By [men with] stammering lips and a foreign tongue,

12 He who said to them, “This is the place of quiet, give rest to the weary,”

And, “This is the resting place,” yet they would not listen.

13 Therefore the word of the Lordto them will be [merely monotonous repetitions]:

“Precept upon precept, precept upon precept,

Rule upon rule, rule upon rule,

Here a little, there a little.”

That they may go and stumble backward, and be broken, ensnared, and taken captive.

Judah Is Warned

14 Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, you arrogant men

Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem!

15 Because you have said, “We have made a covenant with death,

And with Sheol (the place of the dead) we have made an agreement,

When the overwhelming scourge passes by, it will not reach us,

For we have made lies our refuge and we have concealed ourselves in deception.”

16 Therefore the Lord Godsays this,

“Listen carefully, I am laying in Zion a Stone, a tested Stone,

A precious Cornerstone for the [secure] foundation, firmly placed.

He who believes [who trusts in, relies on, and adheres to that Stone] will notbe disturbedorgive way [in sudden panic].

17 I will make justice the measuring line

And righteousness the mason’s level;

Then hail will sweep away the refuge of lies

And waters will flood over the secret [hiding] place.

18 Your covenant with death will be annulled,

And your agreement with Sheol (the place of the dead) will not stand;

When the overwhelming scourge passes through,

Then you will become its trampling ground.

19 As often as it passes through, it will seize you;

For morning after morning it will pass through, by day and by night,

And it will be sheer terror to understand what it means.”

20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on,

And the blanket is too narrow to wrap around oneself [and likewise all their preparations are inadequate].

21 For the Lordwill rise up as at Mount Perazim,

He will be stirred up as in the Valley of Gibeon,

To do His work, His unusualandincredible work,

And to accomplish His work, His extraordinary work.

22 Now do not carry on as scoffers,

Or the bands which bind you will be made stronger;

For I have heard from the Lord Godof hosts [a decree]

Of decisive destruction on all the earth.

23 Listen and hear my voice;

Listen carefully and hear my words.

24 Does the farmer plow all day to plant seed?

Does hecontinuallydig furrows and harrow his ground [after it is prepared]?

25 When he has leveled its surface,

Does he not sow [the seed of] dill and scatter cumin,

And plant wheat in rows,

And barley in its [intended] place andrye within its border?

26 For his God instructs [him correctly] and teaches him properly.

27 For dill is not threshed with a sharp threshing sledge,

Nor is a cartwheel rolled over cumin;

But dill is beaten out with a staff, and cumin with a rod.

28 Breadgrainis crushed fine,

Indeed, the farmer does not continue to thresh it forever.

Because the wheel of his cart and his horseseventuallydamage it,

He does not thresh it longer.

29 This also comes from the Lordof hosts,

Who has made His counsel wonderful and His wisdom great.

Jerusalem Is Warned

1 Woe (judgment is coming) toAriel, to Ariel, the city where David [once] camped!

Addyet another year; let the feasts run their course [but only one year more].

2 Then I will harass Ariel,

And she will be acity ofmourning and lamenting (crying out in grief)

Yet she will be like anAriel [an altar hearth] to Me.

3 I will camp against you and encircle you,

And I will hem you in with siege works,

And I will raise fortifications against you.

4 Then you [Jerusalem] will be brought low,

You will speak from the earth,

And from the dust where you lie face down

Your muffled wordswill come.

Your voice will also be like that of a spirit from the earth [like one produced by a medium],

And your speech will whisperandsqueak from the dust.

5 But the multitude of your enemies [that assault you] will become like fine dust,

And the multitude of the tyrants like the chaff whichblows away;

And it will happen in an instant, suddenly [that your enemy is destroyed].

6 You will be punished by the Lordof hosts with thunder and earthquake and great noise,

With whirlwind and tempest and the flame of a consuming fire.

7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel (Jerusalem),

Even all who fight 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

That he is eating,

But when he awakens, hishunger is not satisfied;

Or as when a thirsty man dreams

That he is drinking,

But when he awakens, in fact, he is faint

And his thirst is not quenched.

So will the multitude of all the nations be

Who fight against Mount Zion.

9 Stopandtake some time and wonder [at this prophecy],

Blind yourselves and be blinded [at its fulfillment by your spiritual incompetence].

They are drunk, but not from wine;

They stagger, but not from strong drink.

10 For the Lordhas poured over you a spirit of deep sleep.

He has closed your eyes, [you who are] the prophets;

And He has covered your heads, [you who are] the seers.

11 The entire vision [of all these things] will be to you like the words of a scroll that is sealed, which they give to one who can read, saying, “Read this, please,” he shall say, “I cannot, for it is sealed.”

12 Then the book will be given to the one who cannot read, saying, “Read this, please.” And he will say, “I cannot read.”

13 Then the Lord said,

“Because this nation approaches [Me only] with their words

And honors Me [only] with their lip service,

But they remove their hearts far from Me,

And their reverence for Me is a tradition that is learnedby rote[without any regard for its meaning],

14 Therefore, listen carefully, I will again do marvelousandamazing things with this people, wonderful and astonishing things;

And the wisdom of their wise men will perish,

And the understanding of their discerning men will be hidden.”

15 Woe (judgment is coming) to those who [try to] deeply hide their plans from the Lord,

Whose deeds aredonein a dark place,

And who say, “Who sees us?” or “Who knows us?”

16 You turnthingsupside down [with your perversity]!

Shall the potter be considered equal with the clay,

That the thing that is made would say to its maker, “He did not make me”;

Or the thing that is formed say to him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?

Blessing after Discipline

17 Is it not yet a very little while

Until Lebanon will be turned into a fertile field,

And the fertile field regarded as a forest?

18 On that day the deaf will hear the words of a book,

And out oftheirgloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see [the words of the book].

19 The afflicted also will increase their joy in the Lord,

And the needy of mankind will rejoiceandcelebrate in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the tyrant will come to an end and the scorner will be finished,

Indeed all who are intent on doing evil will be cut off—

21 Those who cause a person to be condemned with a [false] word,

And lay a trap for him who upholds justice at the [city] gate,

And defraud the one in the right with meaningless arguments.

22 Therefore, the Lord, who redeemed Abraham [from paganism] says this, concerning the house of Jacob (Israel):

“Jacob will not be ashamed, nor will his face turn pale [with disappointment because of his children’s degenerate behavior];

23 For when he sees his children, the work of My hands, in his midst,

They will sanctify My Name;

They will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob

And will stand in aweandreverent fear of the God of Israel.

24 Those who err in mind will know the truth,

And those who criticizeandmurmur discontentedly will accept instruction.

Judah Warned against Egyptian Alliance

1 “Woe (judgment is coming) to the rebellious children,” declares the Lord,

“Who carry out a plan, but not Mine,

And make an alliance [by pouring out a libation], but not of My Spirit,

In order to add sin to sin;

2 Who proceed down to Egypt

Without consultingMe,

To take refuge in the stronghold of Pharaoh

And to take shelter in the shadow of Egypt!

3 Therefore the safetyandprotection of Pharaoh will be your shame

And the refuge in the shadow of Egypt, your humiliationanddisgrace.

4 For his princes are at Zoan

And his ambassadors arrive at Hanes [in Egypt].

5 All will be ashamed because of a people (the Egyptians) who cannot benefit them,

Who are not a help or benefit, but a shame and also a disgrace.”

6 A [mournful, inspired] oracle (a burden to be carried) concerning the beasts of the Negev (the South):

Through a land of trouble and anguish,

Fromwherecomelioness and lion, viper and [fiery] flying serpent,

They carry their riches on the shoulders of young donkeys

And their treasures on the humps of camels,

To a people (Egyptians) who cannot benefit them.

7 For Egypt’s help is worthless and good for nothing.

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,

So that it may serve in the time to come

As a witness [against them] forevermore.

9 For this is a rebellious people, lying sons,

Sons who refuse to listen to

The lawandinstruction of the Lord;

10 Who say to the seers, “You must not seevisions from God”;

And to the prophets, “You must not prophesy to us what is right!

Speak to us pleasant thingsandsmooth words,

Prophesy [deceitful] illusions [that we will enjoy].

11 Get out of the [true] way, turn aside from the path [of God],

Stop bothering us with the Holy One of Israel.”

12 Therefore, the Holy One of Israel says this,

“Because you have refusedandrejected this word [of Mine]

And have put your trust in oppression and guile, and have relied on them,

13 Therefore this wickedness [this sin, this injustice, this wrongdoing] will be to you

Like a crack [in a wall] 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,

Crushed so savagely

that there cannot be found among its pieces a potsherd [large enough]

To take [coals of] fire from a fireplace,

Or to scoop water from a cistern.”

15 For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel has said this,

“In returning [to Me] and rest you shall be saved,

In quietness and confident trust is your strength.”

But you were not willing,

16 And you said, “No! We will flee on horses!”

Therefore you will flee [from your enemies]!

And [you said], “We will ride on swift horses!”

Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift.

17 A thousandof you will fleeat the threat of oneman;

You will flee at the threat of five,

Until you are left like a flag on the top of a mountain,

And like a signal on a hill.

God Is Gracious and Just

18 Therefore the Lordwaits [expectantly]andlongs to be gracious to you,

And therefore He waits on high to have compassion on you.

For the Lordis a God of justice;

Blessed (happy, fortunate) are all those who long for Him [since He will never fail them].

19 O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He will most certainly be gracious to you at the sound of your cry for help; when He hears it, He will answer you.

20 Though the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of oppression, yet your Teacher will no longer hide Himself, but your eyes will [constantly] see 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 carved images overlaid with silver, and your cast images plated with gold. You will scatter them like a bloodstainedcloth,and will say to them, “Be gone!”

23 Then He will give you rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and bread [grain] from the produce of the ground, and it will be rich and plentiful. In that day your livestock will graze in largeandroomy pastures.

24 Also the oxen and the young donkeys that work the ground will eat salted fodder, which has been winnowed with shovel and pitchfork.

25 On every lofty mountain and on every high hill there will be streams of water on the day of the great slaughter (the day of the Lord), when the towers fall [and all His enemies are destroyed].

26 The light of the full moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven timesbrighter,like the light of seven days [concentrated in one], in the day the Lordbinds up the fracture of His people and heals the wound He has inflicted [because of their sins].

27 Now look, thename of the Lordcomes from far away,

Burning with His anger, and heavy withsmoke;

His lips are full ofindignation,

And His tongue is like a consuming fire.

28 His breath is like an overflowing river,

Which reaches to the neck,

To sift the nations back and forth in a sieve [of disaster],

Andto putin the jaws of the peoples the bridle which leads to ruin.

29 You will have a song as in the night when a holy feast is kept,

And joy of heart as when one marches [in procession] with a flute,

To go to the [temple on the] mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel.

30 And the Lordwill make His majestic voice heard,

And show the descending of His arm [striking] in [His] fierce anger,

And in the flame of a devouring fire,

In the crashing soundof heavy rain,cloudburst, and hailstones.

31 For at the voice of the Lordthe Assyrians will be terrified,

WhenHe strikes [them] with the rod.

32 And every blow of the rod of punishment,

Which the Lordwill lay on them,

Will be tothe music of Israel’stambourines and lyres;

And in battles, brandishing weapons, He will fight Assyria.

33 ForTopheth [in Hinnom] has long been ready;

Indeed, it has been prepared for the [Assyrian] king.

He has made it deep and wide,

A pit of fire with plenty of wood;

The breath of the Lord, like a river of brimstone (blazing sulfur), kindlesandfans it.