The Book of Isaiah (1QIsa-a)
A DIVINE COMPLAINT AGAINST JUDAH
This is the vision of Isaiah, son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
Heaven and earth are called to listen as the Lord speaks: “I reared children and brought them up, but they have rebelled against me.” An ox knows its owner and a donkey its master’s trough, but Israel does not know or understand. This sinful nation, a people loaded with iniquity and offspring of evildoers, has forsaken the Lord, despised the Holy One of Israel, and is completely estranged.
Why persist in rebellion and continue to be struck down? The whole head is sick, the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot to the head, there is no soundness—only wounds, welts, and open sores, not cleansed, bandaged, or soothed with oil. Your country is desolate, your cities burned. Foreigners devour your land right in front of you, a desolation overthrown by strangers. Daughter Zion is left like a shelter in a vineyard, a hut in a cucumber field, a besieged city. If the Lord of Hosts had not left some survivors, we would be like Sodom and Gomorrah.
THE FUTILITY OF RITUAL WITHOUT JUSTICE
Hear the Lord's word, rulers of Sodom; listen to God's instruction, people of Gomorrah! "What are your many sacrifices to me?" asks the Lord. "I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fattened animals. I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs, or goats." When you come to appear before me, who asked this of you, this trampling of my courts?
Stop bringing meaningless offerings; your incense is detestable. I cannot endure your New Moons, Sabbaths, and convocations—they are wicked assemblies. I hate your festivals and feasts; they are a burden I am weary of bearing. When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide my eyes. Even if you offer many prayers, I will not listen, because your hands are full of blood.
A CALL TO REPENTANCE AND THE COMING JUDGMENT
Wash yourselves and make yourselves clean. Remove your evil deeds from my sight; stop doing wrong. Learn to do right, seek justice, rebuke the oppressor, defend the fatherless, and plead the widow's case.
"Come now, let us reason together," says the Lord. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool." If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good of the land. But if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.
See how the faithful city has become a prostitute! She was once full of justice and righteousness, but now murderers live there. Your silver has become dross, your wine is mixed with water. Your rulers are rebels, partners with thieves; they all love bribes and chase gifts. They do not defend the fatherless, and the widow’s cause does not reach them.
Therefore, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, declares: "Ah, I will get relief from my foes and avenge myself on my enemies." I will turn my hand against you, thoroughly purge your dross, and remove all your impurities. I will restore your judges and counselors as they were at the beginning. Afterward, you will be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.
Zion will be redeemed with justice, her penitent ones with righteousness. But rebels, sinners, and those who forsake the Lord will be broken and perish together. You will be ashamed of the sacred oaks and gardens you desired. You will be like an oak with fading leaves, like a garden without water. The mighty man will become tinder and his work a spark; both will burn together, with no one to quench the fire.
THE FUTURE EXALTATION OF ZION
In the last days, the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as the highest of the mountains and exalted above the hills. All nations will stream to it, and many peoples will come, saying, "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us his ways, so that we may walk in his paths." The law will go out from Zion, the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He will judge between the nations an
THE DAY OF JUDGMENT AGAINST HUMAN PRIDE
You have abandoned your people, the house of Jacob. They are full of superstitions from the East, practicing divination like the Philistines and clasping hands with foreigners. Their land is full of silver, gold, horses, and chariots, with no end to their treasures. Their land is full of idols; they bow down to the work of their hands. Humanity will be brought low and everyone humbled.
Go into the rocks, hide in the ground from the terror of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty. The arrogant eyes of humanity will be humbled and human pride brought low. The Lord alone will be exalted on that day.
The Lord of Hosts has a day planned against all the proud and lofty, against all that is exalted: against the cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bashan; against all high mountains, hills, towers, and fortified walls; against every ship of Tarshish and every stately vessel. Human arrogance will be brought low and pride humbled. The Lord alone will be exalted on that day, and the idols will completely disappear.
People will flee to caves, rocks, and holes in the ground from the terror of the Lord and the splendor of his majesty when he rises to shake the earth. On that day, they will throw away their idols of silver and gold to the moles and bats. Stop trusting in mere humans, who have only breath in their nostrils. Why hold them in esteem?
THE COLLAPSE OF JUDAH'S LEADERSHIP
See now, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, is taking away from Jerusalem and Judah every source of support: all supplies of food and water, the hero and warrior, the judge and prophet, the diviner and elder, the captain, the man of rank, the counselor, the skilled artisan, and the clever enchanter.
"I will make youths their officials; children will rule over them." People will oppress one another, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the base against the honorable. A man will grab his brother, saying, "You have a cloak; you be our leader over this heap of ruins." But the brother will cry out, "I cannot help; I have no food or clothing. Do not make me the leader."
Jerusalem stumbles and Judah falls because their speech and actions defy the Lord’s glorious presence. Their faces testify against them; they parade their sin like Sodom. Woe to them! They have brought disaster on themselves. Tell the righteous it will be well with them, for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds. Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them; they will be paid back for what their hands have done. Youths oppress my people, and women rule over them. My people, your guides mislead you and turn you from the path.
The Lord stands to argue his case; he rises to judge the peoples. The Lord enters into judgment against the elders and leaders: "It is you who have ruined the vineyard; the plunder from the poor is in your houses. What do you mean by crushing my people and grinding the faces of the poor?" declares the Lord, the Lord of Hosts.
JUDGMENT ON THE WOMEN OF ZION
The Lord says: The women of Zion are haughty, walking with outstretched necks, flirting with their eyes, strutting with swaying hips and tinkling anklets. Therefore, the Lord will bring sores on their heads and make them bald.
On that day, the Lord will snatch away their finery: the anklets, headbands, crescent necklaces, earrings, bracelets, veils, headdresses, ankle chains, sashes, perfume bottles, charms, signet rings, nose rings, fine robes, capes, cloaks, purses, mirrors, linen garments, turbans, and shawls.
Instead of perfume, there will be stench; instead of a sash, a rope; instead of styled hair, baldness; instead of a fine robe, sackcloth; instead of beauty, branding. Your men will fall by the sword, your warriors in battle. The gates of Zion will lament and mourn; destitute, she will sit on the ground.
THE PURIFIED REMNANT OF ZION
On that day, seven women will take hold of one man, saying, "We will eat our own food and provide our own clothes; just let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace."
On that day, the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. Those left in Zion, who remain in Jerusalem, will be called holy—all recorded among the living. The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion and cleanse Jerusalem's bloodstains by a spirit of judgment and fire.
Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night. Over everything, the glory will be a canopy and a shelter—a shade from the heat by day, and a refuge from the storm and rain.
THE PARABLE OF THE SOUR VINEYARD
I will sing a song for the one I love about his vineyard. My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside. He dug it, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines. He built a watchtower and cut out a winepress. Then he looked for a crop of good grapes, but it yielded only sour, wild grapes.
"Now, you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard. What more could have been done for it? When I looked for good grapes, why did it yield only sour ones? Now I will tell you what I am going to do: I will take away its hedge, and it will be destroyed. I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will make it a wasteland, unpruned and uncultivated; briers and thorns will grow there. I will also command the clouds not to rain on it."
The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are the garden of his delight. He looked for justice (mishpat), but saw bloodshed (mispah); for righteousness (tsedaqah), but heard cries of distress (tse'aqah).
WOES PRONOUNCING JUDGMENT ON INJUSTICE
Woe to you who add house to house and join field to field until no space is left, and you live alone in the land. The Lord of Hosts has sworn in my hearing: "Surely the great houses will become desolate, the fine mansions left without occupants." A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath (about 6 gallons) of wine, and a homer (about 6 bushels) of seed will yield only an ephah (about 3/5 bushel).
Woe to those who rise early to chase alcoholic drinks and stay up late until wine inflames them. They have harps, lyres, tambourines, flutes, and wine at their feasts, but they do not regard the deeds of the Lord or see the work of his hands. Therefore, my people will go into exile for lack of understanding. Their honored men will die of hunger, their masses parched with thirst.
The grave (Sheol) enlarges its appetite and opens its mouth wide; into it will descend the nobility and masses of Jerusalem, with all their brawlers and revelers. Humanity will be brought low, and everyone humbled. But the Lord of Hosts will be exalted in justice, and the holy God will show himself holy in righteousness. Then lambs will graze as in their own pasture, and nomads will feed among the ruins.
Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit, and wickedness as with cart ropes; who say, "Let God hurry his work so we may see it. Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel draw near so we may know it."
Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and clever in their own sight.
Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks; who acquit the guilty for a bribe but deny justice
THE APPROACHING JUDGMENT
Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw and dry grass sinks down in the flame, so their roots will rot and their blossoms blow away like dust. For they have rejected the law of the Lord of Hosts and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
The Lord’s anger burns against his people; his hand is raised to strike them. The mountains tremble, and the dead bodies lie like refuse in the streets. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away; his hand is still outstretched.
He lifts a banner for the distant nations and whistles for those at the ends of the earth. See how quickly they come! None of them grow weary or stumble, slumber or sleep. Not a belt is loose, not a sandal thong broken. Their arrows are sharp, their bows strung. Their horses’ hooves are like flint, their chariot wheels like a whirlwind. Their roar is like a lion; they growl, seize their prey, and carry it off, with no one to rescue it. On that day, they will roar over it like the sea. If one looks at the land, there is only darkness and distress; even the light is darkened by the clouds.
ISAIAH'S VISION AND COMMISSION
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and exalted; the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: with two they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. They called to one another: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory." The doorposts and thresholds shook at their voices, and the temple filled with smoke.
I cried out, "Woe to me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of Hosts." Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. He touched my mouth with it and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
Then I heard the Lord's voice asking, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" I said, "Here am I. Send me."
He said, "Go, and tell this people: 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make this people’s heart calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see, hear, understand, and turn, and be healed."
I asked, "For how long, Lord?" He answered, "Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, until the Lord has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. And though a tenth remains, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."
THE CONFLICT WITH SYRIA AND EPHRAIM
During the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, Rezin king of Syria and Pekah son of Remaliah, king of Israel (Ephraim), marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it. When the house of David was told that Syria had allied with Ephraim, the hearts of Ahaz and his people shook like trees in the wind.
The Lord told Isaiah: "Go out with your son Shear-Jashub (meaning 'a remnant will return') to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool. Say to him, 'Be careful, keep calm, and do not be afraid or fainthearted because of these two smoldering stubs of firewood—Rezin and Pekah. Syria, Ephraim, and Pekah have plotted your ruin, saying, "Let us invade Judah, tear it apart, and divide it among ourselves, setting up the son of Tabeel as king."'
"But this is what the Lord God says: 'It will not take place, it will not happen.' For the head of Syria is Damascus, and the head of Damascus is Rezin. Within sixty-five years, Ephraim will be shattered. The head of Ephraim is Samaria, and the head of Samaria is Remaliah’s son. If you do not stand firm in your faith, you will not stand at all."
THE SIGN OF IMMANUEL
The Lord spoke again to Ahaz: "Ask the Lord your God for a sign, whether in the deepest depths or the highest heights." But Ahaz said, "I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test."
Then Isaiah said, "Hear now, house of David! Is it not enough to try human patience? Will you try my God's patience too? Therefore, the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel (meaning 'God with us'). He will be eating curds and honey when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right. For before the boy knows this, the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste."
The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s house a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.
On that day, the Lord will whistle for flies from the streams of Egypt and for bees from Assyria. They will settle in the valleys, clefts, caves, and bushes. On that day, the Lord will use a "razor" hired from beyond the Euphrates—the king of Assyria—to shave your head, your legs, and your beard.
On that day, a man will keep alive one young cow and two goats. From the milk, he will eat curds; all who remain in the land will eat curds and honey. On that day, every place where there were a thousand vines will be overgrown with briers and thorns. People will go there only with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered in them. You will not go on the hills once cultivated, for fear of the briers and thorns; they will become places for cattle and sheep.
THE ASSYRIAN INVASION FORETOLD
The Lord told me to take a large scroll and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz (meaning 'quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil'). I gathered reliable witnesses, Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah. I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. The Lord said, "Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz. For before the boy knows how to say 'My father' or 'My mother,' the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria."
The Lord spoke to me again: "Because this people has rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah and rejoices in Rezin and Pekah, the Lord is bringing against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates—the king of Assyria and all his glory. It will overflow its channels, sweep through Judah, and pass on, reaching up to the neck. Its outstretched wings will cover the breadth of your land, O Immanuel."
Raise the war cry, you nations, and be shattered! Listen, all distant lands. Prepare for battle, and be shattered! Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted; propose your plan, but it will not stand, for God is with us (Immanuel).
A CALL TO FEAR GOD ALONE
The Lord spoke to me with his strong hand upon me, warning me not to follow the way of this people: "Do not call conspiracy everything this people calls conspiracy. Do not fear what they fear or be in dread. The Lord of Hosts is the one you are to regard as holy; he is the one you are to fear. He will be a holy place, but for both houses of Israel, he will be a stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall. For the people of Jerusalem, he will be a trap and a snare. Many will stumble, fall, be broken, snared, and captured."
Bind up the testimony and seal the law among my disciples. I will wait for the Lord, who is hiding his face from the house of Jacob. I will put my trust in him.
Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me. We are signs and symbols in Israel from the Lord of Hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. When someone tells you to consult mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter—should not a people inquire of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? Consult God’s instruction and testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, they have no light of dawn. Distressed and hungry, they will roam the land. They will look upward, then look to the earth, only to see distress, darkness, and fearful gloom, and they will be thrust into utter darkness.
THE BIRTH OF THE PRINCE OF PEACE
Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom for those who were in distress. In the past, he humbled the land of Zebulun and Naphtali, but in the future, he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan.
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; on those living in the land of deep darkness, a light has dawned. You have enlarged the nation and increased their joy; they rejoice before you as people rejoice at the harvest, as warriors rejoice when dividing the plunder. For you have shattered the yoke that burdened them, the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, as on the day of Midian’s defeat. Every warrior's boot and every garment rolled in blood will be destined for burning, fuel for the fire.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the greatness of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establis
JUDGMENT ON ISRAEL'S (EPHRAIM'S) ARROGANCE
The Lord has sent a message against Jacob; it has fallen on Israel. All the people will know it—Ephraim and Samaria—who say with pride and arrogance, "The bricks have fallen, but we will rebuild with dressed stone; the fig trees are cut down, but we will replace them with cedars."
But the Lord has strengthened Rezin's foes against them and spurred on their enemies: the Syrians from the east and the Philistines from the west, who devour Israel with open mouth.
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away; his hand is still outstretched.
The people do not repent or seek the Lord of Hosts. So the Lord will cut off from Israel both head (elders and officials) and tail (prophets who teach lies) in a single day. The Lord has no pleasure in the young men, no pity on the fatherless and widows, for everyone is godless and wicked, speaking folly.
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away; his hand is still outstretched.
Wickedness burns like a fire, consuming briers and thorns, setting the forest ablaze. The land is scorched by the Lord's wrath; the people are fuel for the fire, and no one spares another. They devour what is on the right, but are still hungry; they eat what is on the left, but are not satisfied. Each devours the flesh of his own offspring. Manasseh devours Ephraim, Ephraim devours Manasseh, and together they turn against Judah.
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away; his hand is still outstretched.
Woe to those who make unjust laws, who issue oppressive decrees, to deprive the poor of their rights, rob the oppressed of justice, make widows their prey, and plunder the fatherless. What will you do on the day of reckoning when disaster comes from afar? To whom will you flee for help? Where will you leave your wealth? Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives or fall among the slain.
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away; his hand is still outstretched.
ASSYRIA, THE ROD OF GOD'S ANGER
"Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of my anger, in whose hand is the club of my wrath! I send him against a godless nation, against a people who anger me, to seize plunder and loot, and to trample them down like mud in the streets. But this is not what he intends; his purpose is to destroy and cut off many nations.
"He says, 'Are not my commanders all kings? Has not Kalno fared like Carchemish? Is not Hamath like Arpad, and Samaria like Damascus? As my hand seized the kingdoms of the idols, whose images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria, shall I not do to Jerusalem as I did to Samaria?'"
When the Lord has finished his work against Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will punish the king of Assyria for his willful pride and haughty looks. For he says, "By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom. I removed boundaries, plundered treasures, and subdued kings. My hand found the wealth of the peoples like a nest; as one gathers abandoned eggs, I gathered all the earth. Not one flapped a wing or opened its mouth to chirp."
Does the ax boast over the one who wields it, or the saw magnify itself against the one who uses it? As if a rod could wield the one who lifts it, or a club brandish the one who is not wood! Therefore, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, will send a wasting disease upon Assyria's stout warriors; fire will burn beneath his glory. The Light of Israel will become a fire, their Holy One a flame; in a single day, it will burn and devour his thorns and briers, the glory of his forests and fields, destroying him body and soul. The remaining trees will be so few that a child could write them down.
THE REMNANT OF ISRAEL WILL RETURN
On that day, the remnant of Israel, the survivors of Jacob, will no longer rely on the one who struck them but will truly rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. A remnant will return (Shear-Jashub) to the Mighty God.
Though your people, Israel, are like the sand of the sea, only a remnant will return. Destruction is decreed, overwhelming with righteousness. The Lord, the Lord of Hosts, will carry out this destruction upon the whole land.
Therefore, the Lord God of Hosts says: "My people in Zion, do not fear the Assyrian, who beats you with a rod. In a little while, my anger against you will end, and my wrath will turn to their destruction." The Lord will raise a scourge against them, as he struck Midian at theRock of Oreb and raised his staff over the waters as he did in Egypt. On that day, their burden will be lifted from your shoulders, their yoke from your neck; the yoke will be broken because you have grown fat.
The enemy advances through Aiath, Migron, and Micmash. They cross the pass, lodge at Geba. Ramah trembles; Gibeah of Saul flees. Cry out, Gallim! Listen, Laishah! Anathoth, Madmenah, and Gebim take cover. This very day he will halt at Nob, shaking his fist at Mount Zion.
But see, the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, will lop off the boughs with terrifying power. The lofty trees will be felled, the tall ones humbled. He will clear the forest thickets with an ax, and Lebanon will fall before the Mighty One.
THE PEACEFUL KINGDOM OF THE BRANCH
A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—the Spirit of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, knowledge, and fear of the Lord. He will delight in fearing the Lord.
He will not judge by what he sees or decide by what he hears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy and give justice to the poor. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.
The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the cobra's den, the young child put its hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
On that day, the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious.
THE RETURN OF THE EXILES
On that day, the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant of his people from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar (Babylonia), Hamath, and the islands of the sea. He will raise a banner for the nations and gather the exiles of Israel; he will assemble the scattered people of Judah from the four corners of the earth.
Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish, and Judah’s enemies will be destroyed. Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah, nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim. They will swoop down on the Philistines to the west; together they will plunder the peoples to the east. They will lay hands on Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them.
The Lord will dry up the gulf of the Egyptian sea; with a scorching wind he will sweep his hand over the Euphrates River, breaking it into seven streams so people can cross in sandals. There will be a highway for the remnant of his people from Assyria, just as there was for Israel when they came up from Egypt.
SONGS OF PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING
On that day you will say: "I will praise you, Lord. Although you were angry with me, your anger has turned away and you have comforted me. Surely God is my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. The Lord, the Lord himself, is my strength and my defense; he
On that day you will say: "Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things; let this be known to all the world. Shout aloud and sing for joy, people of Zion, for great is the Holy One of Israel among you."
AN ORACLE AGAINST BABYLON
An oracle concerning Babylon, seen by Isaiah:
Lift up a banner on a bare hilltop, shout to them, beckon for them to enter the gates of the nobles. I have commanded my holy ones, I have summoned my warriors—my proudly exulting ones—to execute my anger.
Listen, a tumult on the mountains, like that of a great people! Listen, an uproar of kingdoms, of nations gathering! The Lord of Hosts is mustering an army for war. They come from distant lands, from the ends of the heavens—the Lord and the weapons of his wrath—to destroy the whole land.
Wail, for the day of the Lord is near; it will come as destruction from the Almighty. Every hand will go limp, every heart melt with fear. Terror will seize them, pain and anguish grip them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will stare at each other, their faces aflame.
See, the day of the Lord is coming—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon w
I will punish the world for its evil, the wicked for their sins. I will end the arrogance of the haughty and humble the pride of the ruthless. I will make people scarcer than pure gold. Therefore, I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will shake from its place at the wrath of the Lord of Hosts on the day of his fierce anger.
Like a hunted gazelle, like sheep without a shepherd, everyone will return to their own people, fleeing to their native land. Whoever is captured will be thrust through; whoever is caught will fall by the sword. Their infants will be dashed to pieces; their houses looted and their wives violated.
See, I will stir up against them the Medes, who do not value silver or delight in gold. Their bows will strike down young men; they will have no mercy on infants or compassion for children. Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in for all generations. No Arab will pitch a tent there, no shepherd rest flocks there. But desert creatures will lie down, and owls will fill her houses. Ostriches will dwell there, and wild goats will leap about. Hyenas will howl in her strongholds, jackals in her luxurious palaces. Her time is at hand, and her days will not be prolonged.
ISRAEL'S RESTORATION AND THE TAUNT AGAINST BABYLON'S KING
The Lord will have compassion on Jacob. He will again choose Israel and settle them in their own land. Foreigners will join them and unite with the house of Jacob. Nations will bring them back to their own place. Israel will possess the nations as male and female servants in the Lord’s land; they will capture their captors and rule over their oppressors.
On the day the Lord gives you relief from your suffering, turmoil, and harsh labor, you will take up this taunt against the king of Babylon:
How the oppressor has come to an end! How his fury has ended! The Lord has broken the rod of the wicked, the scepter of the rulers, which in anger struck down peoples with unceasing blows, and i
All the lands are at rest and at peace; they break into singing. Even the juniper trees and the cedars of Lebanon rejoice, saying, "Now that you have been laid low, no one comes to cut us down."
The realm of the dead (Sheol) below is excited to meet you. It rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you—all who were leaders on earth. It makes them rise from their thrones—all who were kings. They will all respond, "You have become weak, as we are; you have become like us."
All your pomp has been brought down to the grave, along with the music of your harps. Maggots are spread out beneath you, and worms cover you.
How you have fallen from heaven, O morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! You said in your heart, "I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God. I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights
But you are brought down to the grave, to the depths of the pit. Those who see you stare; they ponder your fate: "Is this the man who shook the earth and made kingdoms tremble, the man who made the world a wilderness, who overthrew its cities and would not let his captives go home?"
All kings are buried in splendor, each in his own tomb. But you are cast out of your tomb like a T-branch, covered with the slain, like a trampled corpse. You will not join them in burial, for you have destroyed your land and killed your people.
The offspring of the wicked will never be mentioned again. Prepare a place to slaughter his children for the sins of their ancestors; they must not rise to possess the land and cover the earth with their cities.
"I will rise up against them," declares the Lord of Hosts. "I will cut off from Babylon her name and survivors, her offspring and descendants. I will turn her into a place for owls and into swampland. I will sweep her with the broom of destruction," declares the Lord of Hosts.
ORACLES AGAINST ASSYRIA AND PHILISTIA
The Lord of Hosts has sworn: "Surely, as I have planned, so it will be. I will crush the Assyrian in my land; on my mountains I will trample him. His yoke will be taken from my people, his burden from their shoulders." This is the plan determined for the whole world, the hand stretched out over all nations. The Lord of Hosts has purposed, and who can thwart him?
An oracle concerning Philistia: Do not rejoice, all you Philistines, that the rod that struck you is broken. From the root of that snake will spring up a viper, its fruit a darting, venomous serpent. The poorest will find pasture, the needy lie down in safety. But I will kill your root with famine, and your remnant will be slain.
Wail, O gate! Cry out, O city! Melt away, all you Philistines! A cloud of smoke comes from the north, and there is no straggler in its ranks. What answer will be given to the envoys of that nation? "The Lord has established Zion, and in her his afflicted people will find refuge."
AN ORACLE AGAINST MOAB
Ar in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Kir in Moab is ruined, destroyed in a night! Dibon goes up to its high places to weep. Moab wails over Nebo and Medeba. Every head is shaved, every beard cut off. In the streets they wear sackcloth; on the roofs and squares they wail. Heshbon and Elealeh cry out; their voices are heard as far as Jahaz. The warriors of Moab cry out; their souls tremble.
My heart cries out for Moab. Her fugitives flee to Zoar, to Eglath Shelishiyah. They go up the ascent of Luhith, weeping. On the road to Horonaim they raise a cry of destruction. The waters of Nimrim are desolate; the grass is withered, the plants dead. So they carry their possessions over the Ravine of the Poplars. Their outcry echoes to Eglaim and Beer Elim. The waters of Dimon are full of blood, but I will bring more on Dimon—a lion on the fugitives of Moab and the survivors of the land.
Send lambs to the ruler of the land, from Sela in the desert to the mountain of Daughter Zion. Like fluttering birds pushed from the nest, so are the women of Moab at the fords of the Arnon.
"Offer counsel, render a decision. Make your shadow like night at midday. Hide the fugitives, do not betray the refugees. Let the outcasts of Moab stay with you; be their shelter." When the extortioner is gone and destruction has ceased, then in love a throne will be established. In faithfulness a man from the house of David will sit on it, one who judges, seeks justice, and speeds righteousness.
We have heard of Moab’s pride—her great arrogance, pride, and insolence—but her boasts are empty. Therefore, Moab wails for Moab; everyone wails. Mourn for the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. The fields of Heshbon languish, and the vines of Sibmah. The rulers of the nations have trampled its choice vines, which reached Jazer and strayed to the desert.
Therefore, I weep for the vines of Sibmah. I drench Heshbon and Elealeah with tears. Shouts of joy over your ripened fruit and harvest have ceased. Joy is gone from the fruitful field. No one treads grapes; the shouting has ended. My heart laments for Moab like a harp, my soul for Kir Hareseth. When Moab appears on her high place, she only wearies herself; when she goes to her sanctuary to pray, it is useless.
This is the word the Lord spoke previously about Moab. But now he says: "Within three years, as a hired worker counts them, Moab’s glory and her large population will be despised, and her survivors will be very few and feeble."
AN ORACLE AGAINST DAMASCUS AND EPHRAIM
An oracle concerning Damascus: See, Damascus will cease to be a city and will become a heap of ruins. The cities of Aroer will be deserted, left for flocks to lie down in peace. The fortified city will disappear from Ephraim (Israel), and royal power from Damascus. The remnant of Syria will share the fate of Israel's glory, declares the Lord of Hosts.
On that day, the glory of Jacob will fade; his healthy body will waste away. It will be as when a harvester gathers standing grain, reaping the ears with his arm, or as when one gleans leftover grain in the Valley of Rephaim. It will be like the beating of an olive tree: only two or three olives left on the topmost bough, four or five on the fruitful branches, declares the Lord, the God of Israel.
On that day, people will look to their Maker and turn their eyes to the Holy One of Israel. They will no longer regard the altars their hands have made, nor look to the Asherah poles and incense altars.
On that day, their strong cities will be like abandoned places, deserted because of the Israelites; all will be desolation. You have forgotten God your Savior and failed to remember the Rock, your fortress. Therefore, though you plant the choicest vines, your harvest will flee on a day of grief and incurable pain.
Woe to the many nations who roar like the roaring of the seas, to the peoples who thunder like the thundering of mighty waters! The Lord will rebuke them, and they will flee far away, driven like chaff on the hills before the wind, like tumbleweed before the storm. In the evening, there is sudden terror; before morning, they are gone! This is the portion of those who plunder us, the lot of those who rob us.
AN ORACLE AGAINST CUSH
Woe to the land of whirring wings along the rivers of Cush, which sends envoys by sea in papyrus boats over the water.
Go, swift messengers, to a people tall and smooth-skinned, to a people feared near and far, an aggressive nation whose land is divided by rivers.
All people of the world, inhabitants of the earth, when a banner is raised on the mountains, you will see it; when a trumpet sounds, you will hear it. The Lord said to me: "I will remain quiet and watch from my dwelling, like shimmering heat in the sunshine, like a cloud of dew in the harvest heat." For before the harvest, when the blossom is gone and the flower becomes a ripening grape, he will cut off the shoots with pruning knives and remove the spreading branches. They will all be left to the mountain birds of prey and the wild animals; the birds will feed on them all summer, and the wild animals all winter.
At that time, gifts will be brought to the Lord of Hosts—from a people tall and smooth-skinned, a people feared near and far—to Mount Zion, the place of the Name of the Lord of Hosts.
AN ORACLE AGAINST EGYPT
An oracle concerning Egypt: See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud and is coming to Egypt. The idols of Egypt tremble before him, and the hearts of the Egyptians melt within them.
"I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian—brother will fight against brother, neighbor against neighbor, city against
The water from the sea (the Nile) will dry up, the riverbed will be parched and empty. The canals will stink; the streams of Egypt will diminish and dry up. The reeds and rushes will wither; the plants by the Nile and all crops will dry up, blow away, and be gone. The fishermen will mourn; all who cast hooks or spread nets on the Nile will despair. The workers in combed flax and the weavers of white linen will be dismayed. The pillars of Egypt will be crushed, all wage earners disheartened.
The officials of Zoan are fools; Pharaoh's wisest counselors give senseless advice. How can you say to Pharaoh, "I am one of the wise, a descendant of ancient kings?" Where are your wise men now? Let them tell you what the Lord of Hosts has planned against Egypt. The officials of Zoan and Memphis are deluded; the leaders of her tribes have led Egypt astray. The Lord has poured into them a spirit of dizziness; they make Egypt stagger in all she does, like a drunkard in his vomit. No one in Egypt—head or tail, palm branch or reed—can do anything.
On that day, the Egyptians will be like women. They will shudder and tremble with fear at the upraised hand the Lord of Hosts lifts against them. The land of Judah will bring terror to Egypt; everyone who hears Judah mentioned will dread it, because of the plan the Lord of Hosts has decreed against them.
On that day, five cities in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord of Hosts. One of them will be called the City of the Sun (or City of Destruction).
On that day, there will be an altar to the Lord in the heart of Egypt, and a monument to the Lord at its border. It will be a sign and a witness. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior and defender, and he will rescue them. The Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and on that day they will acknowledge the Lord. They will worship with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them. The Lord will strike Egypt—striking them and healing them. They will turn to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.
On that day, there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria, and the Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. On that day, Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria, a blessing on the earth. The Lord of Hosts will bless them, saying, "Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance."
A SIGN AGAINST EGYPT AND CUSH
In the year that the supreme commander, sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdod, attacked it, and captured it, the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz. He said, "Go, remove the sackcloth from your body and the sandals from your feet." Isaiah obeyed, walking naked and barefoot.
The Lord then said, "Just as my servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and omen against Egypt and Cush, so the king of Assyria will lead away the Egyptian captives and Cushite exiles, young and old, naked and barefoot, with buttocks exposed, to Egypt’s shame."
Those who trusted in Cush and boasted in Egypt will be dismayed and ashamed. On that day, the people living on this coastland will say, "See what has happened to those we relied on, those we fled to for help and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How then can we escape?"
ORACLES CONCERNING BABYLON, EDOM, AND ARABIA
An oracle concerning the Desert by the Sea: A dreadful vision comes from the desert, from a terrifying land: The traitor betrays, the destroyer destroys! Go up, Elam! Lay siege, Media! I will end all the groaning she caused.
This vision fills me with anguish; pain grips me like a woman in labor. I am staggered by what I hear, horrified by what I see. My mind reels, and the twilight I longed for has become a horror. They set the tables, spread the rugs, eat and drink! Rise up, commanders, oil the shields!
The Lord said to me: "Go, post a lookout and have him report what he sees. When he sees chariots with pairs of horsemen, riders on donkeys, or riders on camels, he must be vigilant." The lookout cried, "Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower; every night I stay at my post. Look, here comes a man in a chariot with a pair of horsemen!" He answered, "Fallen, fallen is Babylon! All the images of her gods lie shattered on the ground." My people, who are threshed on the threshing floor, I tell you what I have heard from the Lord of Hosts, the God of Israel.
An oracle concerning Dumah (Edom): Someone calls to me from Seir, "Watchman, what is left of the night? Watchman, what is left of the night?" The watchman replies, "Morning is coming, but also the night. If you wish to inquire again, then inquire. Come back."
An oracle concerning Arabia: You caravans of Dedanites, who camp in the thickets of Arabia, bring water to the thirsty. You who live in the land of Tema, bring food for the fugitives. They flee from the drawn sword, the bent bow, and the stress of battle. For this is what the Lord says to me: "Within one year, as a hired worker counts it, all the glory of Kedar will end. The surviving archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few." The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.
AN ORACLE CONCERNING JERUSALEM (THE VALLEY OF VISION)
An oracle concerning the Valley of Vision: What is the matter with you now, that you have all gone up to the rooftops, you city full of commotion, you town of revelry? Your slain did not fall by the sword, nor did they die in battle. All your leaders fled together; they were captured without firing a bow.
Therefore I said, "Turn away from me; let me weep bitterly. Do not try to comfort me over the destruction of my people." The Lord, the Lord of Hosts, has a day of tumult, trampling, and terror in the Valley of Vision—a day of battering down walls and crying out to the mountains. Elam takes up the quiver, with her charioteers and horsemen; Kir uncovers the shield. Your choicest valleys are full of chariots, and horsemen are posted at the gates.
Judah's defenses are stripped. On that day, you looked to the weapons in the Palace of the Forest. You saw that the breaches in the City of David were many, and you stored water in the Lower Pool. You counted the houses of Jerusalem and tore some down to fortify the wall. You made a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool. But you did not look to the One who made it, or regard the One who planned it long ago.
On that day, the Lord God of Hosts called you to weep and mourn, to shave your heads and wear sackcloth. But instead, there is joy and revelry: slaughtering oxen, killing sheep, eating meat, and drinking wine. "Let us eat and drink," you say, "for tomorrow we die!" The Lord of Hosts revealed this to me: "This sin will not be atoned for until you die," says the Lord God of Hosts.
This is what the Lord God of Hosts says to Shebna, the palace administrator: "What are you doing here and who gave you permission to carve out a tomb for yourself, hewing your resting place on the height? See, the Lord will hurl you away violently. He will roll you up tightly like a ball and throw you into a large country. There you will die, and there your splendid chariots will remain—you disgrace to your master's house! I will depose you from your office and oust you from your position."
"On that day, I will summon my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah. I will clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him. I will hand your authority over to him, and he will be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the house of Judah. I will place the key of the house of David on his shoulder: what he opens, no one can shut; what he shuts, no one can open. I will drive him like a peg into a firm place; he will be a seat of honor for his father's house. All the glory of his family will hang on him: offspring and descendants, from the smallest cups to the largest jars."
"On that day," declares the Lord of Hosts, "the peg driven firmly into place will give way; it will be cut down and fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut off." The Lord has spoken.
AN ORACLE CONCERNING TYRE
Wail, O ships of Tarshish! For Tyre is destroyed, left without house or harbor. This is reported to them from the land of Cyprus.
Be silent, you people of the coastland, you merchants of Sidon, whose envoys crossed the sea. On the great waters, the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the Nile, was her revenue; she became the merchant of the nations.
Be ashamed, Sidon, and you, Fortress of the Sea, for the sea says: "I no longer have labor pains or give birth; I no longer rear sons or daughters." When the report reaches Egypt, they will be in anguish over the news about Tyre.
Cross over to Tarshish; wail, you people of the coastland. Is this your jubilant city, founded in days of old, whose feet have taken her to settle in distant lands? Who planned this against Tyre, the bestower of crowns, whose merchants were princes, whose traders were honored throughout the earth? The Lord of Hosts planned it, to shatter all human pride and to humble all who are honored on earth.
Till your land, O Daughter Tarshish, for your harbor is no more. The Lord has stretched his hand over the sea and shaken the kingdoms. He has commanded that Canaan's strongholds be destroyed. He said, "You will rejoice no more, O Virgin Daughter Sidon, now crushed!"
Flee to Cyprus; even there you will find no rest. Look at the land of the Babylonians—this people is now nothing. The Assyrians have made it a place for desert creatures; they set up their siege towers, stripped its fortresses, and turned it into a ruin. Wail, ships of Tarshish; your stronghold is destroyed.
On that day, Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, the span of a king's life. But at the end of seventy years, Tyre will be like the prostitute in the song: "Take up a harp, walk through the city, O forgotten prostitute. Play skillfully, sing many songs, so you will be remembered."
At the end of seventy years, the Lord will restore Tyre. She will return to her trade, engaging in prostitution with all the kingdoms on the face of the earth. Yet her profit and wages will be set apart for the Lord. They will not be hoarded or stored, but will go to those who live before the Lord, providing them with abundant food and fine clothing.
THE GREAT JUDGMENT ON THE EARTH
See, the Lord is about to lay waste to the earth and devastate it. He will ruin its surface and scatter its inhabitants. The judgment will be the same for everyone: people and priest, servant and master, maid and mistress, buyer and seller, lender and borrower, debtor and creditor. The earth will be completely laid waste and plundered, for the Lord has spoken this word.
The earth dries up and withers; the world languishes and withers; the exalted of the earth languish. The earth is defiled by its people because they have disobeyed the laws, violated the statutes, and broken the everlasting covenant. Therefore, a curse consumes the earth, and its people are held guilty. They are burned up, and very few are left.
The new wine dries up, the vine withers, and all the merrymakers groan. The joyful sound of tambourines has ceased, the noise of revelers has stopped, and the melody of the harp is silent. They no longer drink wine with a song; the beer is bitter to those who drink it.
The city of chaos is broken down; every house is shut so no one can enter. In the streets, they cry out for wine. All joy has turned to gloom; all mirth is banished from the earth. The city is left in ruins, its gate shattered to pieces. This is how it will be: only a remnant will remain, like the few olives left after beating a tree, or the gleanings after the grape harvest.
This remnant, however, will raise their voices and shout for joy; from the west, they acclaim the Lord’s majesty. Therefore, glorify the Lord in the east; in the islands of the sea, honor the name of the Lord, the God of Israel. From the ends of the earth, we hear songs: "Glory to the Righteous One."
But I said, "I waste away! Woe to me! The treacherous betray; they deal very treacherously." Terror, the pit, and the snare await you, people of the earth. Whoever flees from the sound of terror will fall into the pit, and whoever climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare. The floodgates of heaven are opened, and the foundations of the earth shake. The earth is utterly broken, split apart, and violently shaken. It reels like a drunkard and sways like a hut. Its rebellion is so heavy upon it that it will fall, never to rise again.
On that day, the Lord will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below. They will be gathered together like prisoners in a dungeon, locked in a pit, and punished after many days. The moon will be abashed and the sun ashamed, for the Lord of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, in glorious splendor before his elders.
A SONG OF PRAISE FOR SALVATION
O Lord, you are my God. I will exalt you and praise your name, for you have done wonderful things—plans formed long ago with perfect faithfulness. You have made the city a heap of rubble, the fortified town a ruin. The stronghold of foreigners is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt. Therefore, strong peoples will honor you; cities of ruthless nations will revere you.
You have been a refuge for the poor, a shelter for the needy in their distress, a shade from the heat, and protection from the storm, for the breath of the ruthless is like a driving rain. You silence the uproar of foreigners and the song of the ruthless.
On this mountain, the Lord of Hosts will prepare a feast of rich food and aged wine for all peoples. On this mountain, he will destroy the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations. He will swallow up death forever. The Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces and remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The Lord has spoken.
On that day, they will say, "Surely this is our God; we trusted in him, and he saved us. This is the Lord, we trusted in him; let us rejoice and be glad in his salvation."
The hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain. But Moab will be trampled down in his place, as straw is trampled in the manure pit. Though he spreads out his hands in it like a swimmer, the Lord will bring down his pride despite his skillful strokes. He will level the high, fortified walls of Moab, bringing them down to the dust.
A SONG OF TRUST AND DELIVERANCE
On that day, this song will be sung in the land of Judah: We have a strong city; God makes salvation its walls and ramparts. Open the gates, that the righteous nation which remains faithful may enter. You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord is the everlasting Rock. He brings down those who dwell on high, humbling the lofty city to the ground, where the feet of the poor and the oppressed trample it.
The path of the righteous is level; you make their way smooth. We wait for you, Lord; our soul desires your name and renown. My soul yearns for you in the night; my spirit within me seeks you. When your judgments are on the earth, the world's inhabitants learn righteousness. But if grace is shown to the wicked, they do not learn righteousness; even in a land of uprightness, they continue to do wrong and do not see the Lord’s majesty.
Lord, your hand is lifted high, but they do not see it. Let them see your zeal for your people and be ashamed; let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them. Lord, you establish peace for us, for all that we have accomplished, you have done for us. Lord our God, other masters besides you have ruled us, but your name alone do we honor. They are now dead, mere spirits; they will not rise. You punished and destroyed them, ending all memory of them. You have enlarged the nation, Lord; you have enlarged the nation and brought glory to yourself.
Lord, in distress they came to you; they whispered a prayer when you disciplined them. We were like a woman in labor, writhing and crying out in her pain. We writhed, but we gave birth only to wind; we brought no salvation to the earth, nor did we bear inhabitants for the world.
But your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy! Your dew is like the dew of the morning, and the earth will give birth to her dead.
Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you. Hide yourselves for a little while until this wrath has passed. For the Lord is coming from his dwelling to punish the earth's inhabitants for their iniquity. The earth will disclose the blood shed upon it and will no longer cover its slain.
THE DEFEAT OF LEVIATHAN AND THE GATHERING OF ISRAEL
On that day, the Lord will punish with his great, strong, and hard sword Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster that is in the sea.
On that day, sing about a fruitful vineyard: "I, the Lord, watch over it; I water it constantly. I guard it day and night so that no one may harm it. I am not angry. If only briers and thorns were set against me in battle, I would march against them and burn them completely. Or let them come to me for refuge; let them make peace with me." In the days to come, Jacob will take root; Israel will blossom and bud, filling the whole world with fruit.
Has the Lord struck Israel as he struck those who struck Israel? Or has he slain Israel as he slew those who were slain? He contended with them by exile, driving them away with his fierce blast on the day of the east wind. By this, Jacob's guilt will be atoned for, and the full fruit of the removal of his sin will be this: when he makes all the altar stones like crushed chalk, no Asherah poles or incense altars will be left standing.
The fortified city lies desolate, an abandoned pasture, forsaken like the wilderness. Calves feed there; they lie down and strip its branches. When its twigs are dry, they are broken off, and women come and use them for fuel. For this is a people without understanding; therefore, their Maker shows them no compassion, and their Creator shows them no favor.
On that day, the Lord will thresh from the flowing Euphrates River to the Wadi of Egypt, and you, O Israelites, will be gathered one by one. And on that day, a great trumpet will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those exiled in Egypt will come and worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem.
WOE TO EPHRAIM AND THE SCOFFERS OF JERUSALEM
Woe to the proud crown of Ephraim's drunkards, the fading flower of their glorious beauty, set on the head of those overcome by wine! See, the Lord has one who is strong and mighty. Like a hailstorm and a destructive wind, like a torrential flood, he will throw that crown to the ground. The proud crown of Ephraim's drunkards will be trampled underfoot. That fading flower will be like the first ripe fig of summer—whoever sees it swallows it immediately.
On that day, the Lord of Hosts will be a glorious crown, a beautiful wreath for the remnant of his people. He will be a spirit of justice to the one who sits in judgment, and a source of strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
But these leaders also stagger from wine and reel from beer. The priest and the prophet stagger; they are confused by wine, they reel from beer, they err in vision, and they stumble in judgment. All their tables are covered in vomit and filth, with no spot left clean.
They mock, asking, "Who is he trying to teach? Who is he explaining this message to? To children just weaned from milk? For it is: 'Do this, do this, do that, do that, a little here, a little there.'" Very well then, with foreign lips and strange tongues God will speak to this people. He said to them, "This is the resting place, let the weary rest," but they would not listen. So the word of the Lord will be to them, "Do this, do this, do that, do that, a little here, a little there," so that they will go and fall backward, be broken, snared, and captured.
THE COVENANT WITH DEATH AND THE SURE CORNERSTONE
Therefore, hear the word of the Lord, you scoffers who rule this people in Jerusalem. You boast, "We have entered into a covenant with death, and made an agreement with the grave (Sheol). When an overwhelming scourge sweeps by, it will not touch us, for we have made lies our refuge and falsehood our hiding place."
So this is what the Lord God says: "See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation. The one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic. I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line. Hail will sweep away your refuge of lies, and water will overflow your hiding place.
"Your covenant with death will be annulled; your agreement with the grave will not stand. When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it. As often as it comes, it will carry you away;
The bed is too short to stretch out on, the blanket too narrow to wrap around you. The Lord will rise up as he did at Mount Perazim, he will rouse himself as in the Valley of Gibeon, to do his work—his
GOD’S STRANGE WORK AND THE FARMER'S WISDOM
Listen and hear my voice; pay attention and hear what I say. When a farmer plows for planting, does he plow continually? Does he keep breaking up and harrowing the soil? No. After leveling the ground, he scatters dill, sows cumin, and plants wheat, barley, and spelt in their designated places. His God instructs him and teaches him the right way.
Caraway is not threshed with a sharp threshing sledge, nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin. Caraway is beaten out with a rod, and cumin with a flail. Grain must be ground to make bread, but he does not thresh it forever. Though he drives the wheels of his threshing cart over it, his horses do not grind it. This wisdom also comes from the Lord of Hosts, who is wonderful in counsel and magnificent in wisdom.
WOE TO ARIEL (JERUSALEM) AND THE SEALED VISION
Woe to Ariel (Jerusalem), the city where David settled! Let year after year pass; let the festivals recur. Yet I will besiege Ariel; she will be filled with mourning and lament. She will be like an altar hearth to me. I will encamp against you on all sides; I will surround you with towers and siege works. You will be brought low, speaking from the ground; your speech will whisper from the dust. Your voice will be like a ghost's from the earth.
But suddenly, your many enemies will become like fine dust, the ruthless hordes like blowing chaff. The Lord of Hosts will come with thunder, earthquake, and great noise, with windstorm, tempest, and consuming fire. Then the horde of nations fighting Ariel, all who besiege her, will be like a dream, like a vision in the night. They will be like a hungry man who dreams he is eating but wakes up hungry, or a thirsty man who dreams he is drinking but wakes up faint and parched.
Be stunned and amazed, blind yourselves and be blind! Be drunk, but not with wine; stagger, but not from beer. For the Lord has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He has closed your eyes (the prophets) and covered your heads (the seers).
For you, this entire vision is like the words of a sealed book. If you give it to someone who can read, saying "Read this," they will answer, "I cannot; it is sealed." If you give it to someone who cannot read, saying "Read this," they will answer, "I do not know how to read."
JUDGMENT ON HYPOCRISY AND PROMISE OF RESTORATION
The Lord says: "These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on human rules they have been taught." Therefore, I will once more do wonderful and amazing things with this people. The wisdom of the wise will perish; the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.
Woe to those who go to great depths to hide their plans from the Lord, who do their work in darkness and think, "Who sees us? Who will know?" You turn things upside down! Should the potter be regarded as the clay? Shall what is formed say to the one who formed it, "You did not make me"? Can the pot say to the potter, "You know nothing"?
In a very little while, will not Lebanon be turned into a fertile field, and the fertile field seem like a forest? On that day, the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and the eyes of the blind will see out of gloom and darkness. The humble will find new joy in the Lord; the poorest of people will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
The ruthless will vanish, the mockers will disappear, and all who look for evil will be cut down. The house of Jacob will no longer be ashamed or pale. When they see among them their children, the work of my hands, they will keep my name holy. They will acknowledge the holiness of the Holy One of Jacob and stand in awe of the God of Israel. Those who are wayward in spirit will gain understanding, and those who grumble will accept instruction.
WOE TO THOSE WHO RELY ON EGYPT
"Woe to the obstinate children," declares the Lord, "who carry out plans that are not mine, forging an alliance without my Spirit, heaping sin upon sin. They go down to Egypt without consulting me, seeking help from Pharaoh and taking refuge in his shadow. But Pharaoh’s protection will be your shame; Egypt’s shadow will be your disgrace."
Though their officials are at Zoan and their envoys reach Hanes, everyone will be ashamed of this useless people, who bring no help, only shame and disgrace.
An oracle concerning the animals of the Negev: Through a land of hardship and distress, of lions, vipers, and darting snakes, they carry their riches on donkeys' backs and their treasures on camels' humps, to a people who cannot profit them. Egypt is a useless vapor; I call her "Rahab-the-Do-Nothing."
A REBELLIOUS PEOPLE AND THEIR COMING COLLAPSE
Now, go and write this down on a tablet, inscribe it on a scroll, so that it may be a witness for the time to come. For these are a rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction. They say to the seers, "Stop seeing visions!" and to the prophets, "Don't prophesy to us what is right. Tell us pleasant things; prophesy illusions. Leave this path, get off this way, and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel!"
Therefore, this is what the Holy One of Israel says: "Because you have rejected this message, and relied on oppression and deceit, this sin will be for you like a high wall, cracked and bulging, that collapses suddenly, in an instant. It will break like pottery, shattered so mercilessly that not a shard will be found large enough to scoop coals from a hearth or water from a cistern."
This is what the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength, but you would have none of it." You said, "No, we will flee on horses." Therefore, you will flee! You said, "We will ride swift horses." Therefore, your pursuers will be swift! A thousand will flee at the threat of one; at the threat of five, you will all flee, until you are left like a signal pole on a mountaintop.
THE LORD'S GRACE AND THE DESTRUCTION OF ASSYRIA
Yet the Lord longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the Lord is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him.
People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious when you cry for help; as soon as he hears, he will answer. Although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, your Teacher will no longer be hidden. Your eyes will see him, and your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, "This is the way; walk in it," when you turn to the right or the left. Then you will desecrate your silver-plated idols and gold-covered images, scattering them like a polluted thing and saying, "Away with you!"
He will give you rain for the seed you sow, and the food that comes from the land will be rich and plentiful. On that day, your livestock will graze in broad pastures. The oxen and donkeys that work the soil will eat fodder, spread with shovel and fork. On every lofty mountain and high hill, there will be streams of water on the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. The moon will shine like the sun, and the sun’s light will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day the Lord bandages the bruises of his people and heals their wounds.
See, the Name of the Lord comes from afar, his anger burning, his breath a raging fire. He sifts the nations in the sieve of destruction; he places in their jaws a bit that leads them astray.
But you will sing as on the night of a holy festival. The Lord will cause his majestic voice to be heard and his arm to descend with raging anger, consuming fire, and torrential rain. The voice of the Lord will shatter Assyria; he will strike them with his rod. Every blow the Lord lays on them will be to the sound of tambourines and harps, as he fights them in battle. Topheth (the pyre) has been prepared; it is made deep and wide for the king. Its fire and wood are abundant. The breath of theL ord, like a stream of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
WOE TO THOSE WHO TRUST IN EGYPT
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help, relying on horses and trusting in their many chariots and strong horsemen, but who do not look to the Holy One of Israel or seek the Lord. Yet he is also wise and will bring disaster; he will not take back his words. He will rise against the house of the wicked and against those who help them. The Egyptians are mere humans, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the Lord stretches out his hand, the helper (Egypt) will stumble, and the one helped (Judah) will fall; both will perish together.
The Lord says to me: "As a lion growls over its prey, and is not frightened by the shouts of many shepherds, so the Lord of Hosts will come down to wage war on Mount Zion." Like birds hovering overhead, the Lord of Hosts will shield Jerusalem; he will shield and deliver it, he will pass over and rescue it.
Return, people of Israel, to the One you have so deeply revolted against. For on that day, every one of you will reject the idols of silver and gold your hands have sinfully made. "Assyria will fall by a sword that is not human; a non-human sword will devour them. They will flee from the sword, and their young men will be put to forced labor. Their 'rock' (king or deity) will pass away in terror, and their princes will desert the banner in panic," declares the Lord, whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.
THE COMING REIGN OF JUSTICE
See, a king will reign in righteousness, and princes will rule with justice. Each ruler will be like a shelter from the wind, a refuge from the storm, like streams of water in a dry land, and like the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed, and the ears of those who hear will listen. The heart of the impulsive will understand, and the stammering tongue will speak clearly and fluently. The fool will no longer be called noble, nor the scoundrel highly respected. For the fool speaks folly and his mind plots iniquity, practicing ungodliness and spreading error about the Lord; he leaves the hungry empty and withholds water from the thirsty. The scoundrel's methods are wicked; he devises evil schemes to ruin the poor with lies, even when the needy's plea is just. But the noble person plans noble things and stands firm in them.
A WARNING TO COMPLACENT WOMEN
Rise up, you women who are at ease; hear my voice, you daughters who feel secure! In a little more than a year, you secure women will tremble, for the grape harvest will fail and the fruit gathering will not come. Tremble, you complacent women; shudder, you secure daughters! Strip yourselves bare and put sackcloth around your waists. Beat your breasts in mourning for the pleasant fields and the fruitful vines.
Mourn for the land of my people, overgrown with thorns and briers; yes, mourn for all the houses of joy in the jubilant city. The fortress will be abandoned, the noisy city deserted. The citadel and watchtower will become desolate lairs forever, a delight for wild donkeys and a pasture for flocks.
THE SPIRIT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS AND PEACE
This desolation will last until the Spirit is poured out on us from on high. Then the wilderness will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will seem like a forest. Justice will dwell in the wilderness, and righteousness will live in the fertile field. The fruit of this righteousness will be peace (Shalom), and its effect will be quietness and confidence forever.
My people will live in peaceful dwellings, in secure homes, and in undisturbed resting places. But hail will flatten the forest, and the city will be utterly humbled. Blessed are you who sow seed by all waters and let your cattle and donkeys range free.
WOE TO THE DESTROYER
Woe to you, destroyer, you who have not been destroyed! Woe to you, traitor, you who have not been betrayed! When you finish destroying, you will be destroyed; when you stop betraying, you will be betrayed.
Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress. At the sound of your tumult, the peoples flee; when you rise up, the nations scatter. Your plunder, O nations, is gathered as young locusts gather; people swarm over it.
The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high; he fills Zion with justice and righteousness. He will be the sure foundation for your times, a rich store of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge; the fear of the Lord is the key to this treasure.
THE LAND MOURNS AND THE LORD'S FIERY JUDGMENT
Look, their heroes cry out in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly. The highways are deserted; no travelers are on the roads. The covenant is broken, its witnesses are despised, and human life is disregarded. The land dries up and mourns; Lebanon is ashamed and withered. Sharon is like the desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
"Now I will rise up," says the Lord. "Now I will be exalted; now I will be lifted high. You conceive chaff, you give birth to straw; your breath is a fire that consumes you. The peoples will be burned as if to lime; like cut thorns, they will be set ablaze."
You who are far off, hear what I have done; you who are near, acknowledge my might! The sinners in Zion are terrified; trembling grips the godless: "Who among us can dwell with the consuming fire? Who among us can dwell with everlasting burning?"
THE RIGHTEOUS CITIZEN AND THE BEAUTIFUL KING
The one who walks righteously and speaks what is right, who rejects gain from extortion and keeps his hand from accepting bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes from looking at evil—this is the person who will dwell on the heights. Their refuge will be a mountain fortress; their bread will be supplied, and their water will be guaranteed.
Your eyes will see the King in his beauty and behold a land that stretches far. In your mind, you will ponder the past terror: "Where is the chief officer? Where is the one who weighed the tribute? Where is the one who counted the towers?" You will no longer see those fierce people, whose speech is obscure and stammering, and which you cannot understand.
ZION, THE SECURE HABITATION
Look upon Zion, the city of our festivals. Your eyes will see Jerusalem as a peaceful habitation, a tent that will not be moved; its stakes will never be pulled up, nor any of its ropes broken. There the Lord will be our Mighty One. It will be a place of broad rivers and streams, but no galley with oars will row on them, nor will any mighty ship sail them.
For the Lord is our Judge, the Lord is our Lawgiver, the Lord is our King; he will save us. Your ship's ropes hang loose: The mast is not secured, the sail is not unfurled. Then an abundance of plunder will be divided, and even the lame will carry off plunder. No one living in Zion will say, "I am ill," and the sins of those who dwell there will be forgiven.
THE LORD'S JUDGMENT ON THE NATIONS
Come near, you nations, and listen; pay attention, you peoples! Let the earth and all that is in it hear, the world and all that comes from it. The Lord is angry with all nations, furious with all their armies. He will utterly destroy them, giving them over to slaughter. Their slain will be thrown out, their stench will rise, and the mountains will be soaked with their blood. All the stars of the heavens will be dissolved, and the heavens will be rolled up like a scroll. All their starry host will fall like withered leaves from the vine, like shriveled fruit from the fig tree.
THE SLAUGHTER AND ETERNAL DESOLATION OF EDOM
The Lord's sword is bathed in blood in heaven; see, it descends on Edom, on the people I have doomed to judgment. The sword of the Lord is covered with blood and fat—the blood of lambs and goats, the fat of the kidneys of rams. For the Lord has a sacrifice in Bozrah, a great slaughter in the land of Edom. Wild oxen will fall with them, the young bulls with the strong steers. Their land will be drenched with blood, and their dust will be rich with fat. For the Lord has a day of vengeance, a year of retribution, to uphold Zion's cause.
Edom's streams will be turned into pitch, her dust into burning sulfur; her land will become blazing pitch. It will not be quenched night
Thorns will overrun her fortresses, briers and thistles her strongholds. It will become a haunt for jackals and a home for owls. Desert creatures will meet with hyenas, and wild goats will call to their companions. There the night creature will also repose and find a resting place. The owl will nest there, lay and hatch her eggs, and gather her young under her shadow. Indeed, there the falcons will gather, each with its mate.
Look in the scroll of the Lord and read: Not one of these will be missing, not one will lack her mate. For it is his mouth that has commanded, and his Spirit that has gathered them. He has allotted their portions; his hand has distributed the land to them by line. They will possess it forever and dwell there from generation to generation.
THE JOYFUL RETURN OF THE REDEEMED
The desert and the parched land will be glad; the wilderness will rejoice and blossom like the crocus. It will burst into bloom; it will rejoice greatly and shout for joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of the Lord, the splendor of our Go
Strengthen the feeble hands, steady the knees that give way. Say to those with fearful hearts, "Be stron
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, and the mute tongue will shout for joy. Water will gush forth in the wilderness and streams in the desert. The burning sand will become a pool
And a highway will be there; it will be called the Way of Holiness. The unclean will not journey on it; it will be for those who walk on that Way. Wicked fools will not go about on it. No lion will be there, nor will any ferocious beast get up on it; they will not be found there. But only the redeemed will walk there, and the ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads.
SENNACHERIB'S INVASION AND THE TAUNT OF THE RABSHAKEH
In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah's reign, Sennacherib king of Assyria attacked and captured all the fortified cities of Judah. He then sent his supreme commander from Lachish to King Hezekiah in Jerusalem with a massive army. The commander stood at the aqueduct of the Upper Pool. Hezekiah's palace administrator, Eliakim, the secretary, Shebna, and the recorder, Joah, went out to meet him.
The Assyrian commander said, "Tell Hezekiah: What is this confidence you have? Do you think mere words are strategy and military strength? On whom are you relying, that you rebel against me? Look, you are relying on Egypt, that splintered reed of a staff, which pierces the hand of anyone who leans on it! And if you say you are trusting in the Lord, is he not the one whose high places and altars Hezekiah removed, telling Judah and Jerusalem to worship only at the altar in Jerusalem?"
The commander continued, "Come, make a wager with my master, the king of Assyria: I will give you two thousand horses if you can put riders on them. How can you repulse even one of the least of my master's officials? And do you think I have come here without the Lord's approval? The Lord himself told me to attack and destroy this land!"
Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah asked him to speak in Aramaic (Syriac) rather than Hebrew, so that the people on the city wall would not understand. But the commander refused, declaring that his message was for the very people on the wall, who would be forced to eat their own excrement and drink their own urine during the siege.
He then shouted in Hebrew for all the people on the wall to hear: "Do not let Hezekiah deceive you! He cannot deliver you. Do not let him make you trust in the Lord by saying, 'The Lord will surely deliver us.' Has the god of any other nation delivered his land from the king of Assyria? Where are the gods of Hamath, Arpad, Sepharvaim, or Samaria? Who among all the gods of these lands has rescued their land from me? How then can the Lord deliver Jerusalem from my hand?"
The people remained silent, as the king had commanded. Then Eliakim, Shebna, and Joah returned to Hezekiah with their clothes torn and reported what the commander had said.
HEZEKIAH CONSULTS ISAIAH AND THE DESTRUCTION OF ASSYRIA
When King Hezekiah heard their report, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth, and went into the temple of the Lord. He sent his officials to the prophet Isaiah, describing the day as one of distress, rebuke, and disgrace, and asking him to pray for the remnant of the people who were left.
Isaiah replied to them, "Tell your master this is what the Lord says: 'Do not be afraid of the words you have heard, with which the servants of Assyria's king have blasphemed me. Listen! I will put a spirit in him; he will hear a rumor and return to his own land, and there I will make him fall by the sword.'"
When Sennacherib heard a report that the king of Cush was marching out to fight him, he sent another letter to Hezekiah, warning him, "Do not let the god you depend on deceive you by promising Jerusalem will not be captured. You have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all other lands. Will you be delivered?"
Hezekiah took the letter, went to the temple, and spread it out before the Lord. He prayed, "O Lord of Hosts, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you alone are God over all the kingdoms of the earth. Incline your ear, O Lord, and hear; open your eyes and see. Listen to all the words Sennacherib has sent to insult the living God. It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste to nations and their lands, and have thrown their gods into the fire—but they were not gods, only wood and stone. Now, O Lord our God, save us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you alone are the Lord."
Then Isaiah sent a message back to Hezekiah: "The Lord, the God of Israel, says: I have heard your prayer concerning Sennacherib. This is the word the Lord has spoken against him: 'The Virgin Daughter Zion despises and mocks you. Whom have you insulted and blasphemed? The Holy One of Israel! Because you have raged against me, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will turn you back by the way you came.'"
Isaiah then gave Hezekiah a sign: "This year you will eat what grows by itself, and the next year the same. But in the third year, you will sow and reap. The remnant of the house of Judah will again take root and bear fruit."
Isaiah concluded with the Lord's promise: "The king of Assyria will not enter this city, shoot an arrow here, or build a siege ramp against it. He will return by the way he came. I will defend this city and save it, for my sake and for the sake of my servant David."
That night, the angel of the Lord went out and put to death one hundred and eighty-five thousand men in the Assyrian camp. When the people woke up the next morning, they saw all the dead bodies. So Sennacherib king of Assyria broke camp and retreated to Nineveh. One day, while he was worshiping in the temple of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelech and Sharezer assassinated him with the sword, and his son Esarhaddon succeeded him.
HEZEKIAH'S ILLNESS AND RECOVERY
In those days, Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah came to him and said, "This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not recover."
Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, "Remember, O Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes." And Hezekiah wept bitterly.
The word of the Lord came to Isaiah: "Go and tell Hezekiah, 'This is what the Lord, the God of your father David, says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears. I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria.'"
Hezekiah asked Isaiah, "What will be the sign that I will go up to the temple of the Lord?" Isaiah replied, "Shall the shadow on the stairway of Ahaz go forward ten steps, or go back ten steps?" Hezekiah answered that it was easy for the shadow to go forward, so he asked for it to go back. The prophet Isaiah called on the Lord, and the Lord brought the shadow back the ten steps it had gone down.
Isaiah had instructed them to make a poultice of figs and apply it to the king's boil, so that he would recover.
After his illness, Hezekiah wrote this: "I said, in the prime of my life, must I pass through the gates of the grave (Sheol) and be robbed of the rest of my years? I said I would not see the Lord again in the land of the living, nor look on humanity anymore. My life has been pulled up and taken from me like a shepherd's tent. I am in anguish; O Lord, be my security! But what can I say? He has spoken to me, and he himself has done this. The grave cannot praise you, death cannot sing your praise. The living, the living—they praise you, as I do today. The Lord will save me, and we will sing with stringed instruments all the days of our lives in the temple of the Lord."
THE ENVOYS FROM BABYLON AND THE COMING EXILE
At that time, Merodach-baladan son of Baladan, king of Babylon, sent letters and a gift to Hezekiah, for he had heard of his illness and recovery. Hezekiah was pleased and showed the envoys his entire treasury—his silver, gold, spices, fine oil, his armory, and everything found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that he did not show them.
Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, "What did those men say, and where did they come from?" Hezekiah answered, "They came from a distant land, from Babylon. They have seen everything in my palace."
Isaiah then said to Hezekiah, "Hear the word of the Lord of Hosts: The time is surely coming when everything in your palace, and all that your ancestors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left. And some of your own descendants will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon."
Hezekiah replied to Isaiah, "The word of the Lord you have spoken is good," for he thought, "There will be peace and security in my lifetime."
A MESSAGE OF COMFORT AND THE GREATNESS OF GOD
"Comfort, comfort my people," says your God. "Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her that her hard service is completed, that her sin has been paid for, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins."
A voice of one calling: "In the wilderness prepare the way for the Lord; make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be raised up, every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground shall become level, the rough places a plain. And the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all people will see it together."
A voice says, "Cry out." And I said, "What shall I cry?" "All people are like grass, and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field. The grass withers and the flowers fall, because the breath of the Lord blows on them. Surely the people are grass. The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God endures forever."
You who bring good news to Zion, go up on a high mountain. You who bring good news to Jerusalem, lift up your voice
Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, or marked off the heavens with a span? Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket, or weighed the mountains on the scales and the hills in a balance? Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor? Before him, all the nations are like a drop in a bucket; they are regarded as dust on the scales. Lebanon is not enough for his altar fire, nor its animals enough for a burnt offering.
To whom will you compare God? Or what image will you compare him to? To an idol that a craftsman casts and a goldsmith overlays with gold, or that a poor person chooses of wood that will not rot?
Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been told to you from the beginning? He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy. He brings princes to nothing and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing. No sooner are they planted than he blows on them and they wither, and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.
"To whom will you compare me? Or who is my equal?" asks the Holy One. Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.
Why do you complain, Jacob, and say, O Israel, "My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God"? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
ISRAEL THE CHOSEN SERVANT AND THE FOLLY OF IDOLS
"Be silent before me, you islands; let the nations renew their strength! Let them approach and speak; let us meet together for judgment."
"Who has stirred up one from the east, calling him in righteousness to his service? He hands nations over to him and subdues kings. He scatters them like dust with his sword, like chaff with his bow. I, the Lord—with the first of them and with the last—I am he."
The islands see this and fear; the ends of the earth tremble. They approach and come forward. The idol-makers encourage one another. The craftsman cheers the goldsmith, and the one who smooths with the hammer encourages the one who strikes the anvil, fastening the idol so it will not toM.
"But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend, I took you from the ends of the earth; I said, 'You are my servant.' Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. All who rage against you will surely be ashamed and disgraced; those who oppose you will be as nothing and per
"Do not be afraid, O worm Jacob, O little Israel, for I myself will help you," declares the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel. "I will make you into a new, sharp threshing sledge with double edges. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff. You will rejoice in the Lord."
The poor and needy search for water, but there is none. I, the Lord, will answer them. I will make rivers flow on barren heights and springs in the valleys. I will turn the desert into a pool of water. I will put cedar, acacia, myrtle, olive, juniper, fir, and cypress trees in the wilderness, so that people may see and know that the hand of the Lord has done this.
The Lord challenges the idols: "Present your case. Bring forth your strong arguments. Tell us what is going to happen, so we may know you are gods. Do something, whether good or bad, so we may be dismayed. But you are less than nothing, and your works are worthless."
"I have stirred up one from the north (Cyrus), one from the east who calls on my name. Who foretold this from the beginning? I was the first to tell Zion, 'Look, here they are!' I gave Jerusalem a messenger of good news. But when I look at the idols, there is no one who can give counsel or answer. See, they are all false; their images are wind and confusion."
THE LORD'S RIGHTEOUS SERVANT AND ISRAEL'S BLINDNESS
"Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight. I will put my Spirit on him, and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a smoldering
This is what God the Lord says—he who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and all that comes from it: "I, the Lord, have called you in righteousness. I will hold your hand and keep you, and I will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles, to open eyes that are blind, to free captives from prison, and to release from the dungeon those who sit in darkness. I am the Lord; that is my name! I will not yield my glory to another or my praise to idols. See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being, I announce them to y
Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise from the ends of the earth. Let the wilderness and its towns, the settlements of Kedar, and the people of Sela raise their voices. The Lord will march out like a champion, like a warrior; he will shout the battle cry and triumph over his enemies.
"For a long time I have held my peace; I have been quiet and restrained myself. But now, like a woman in childbirth, I cry out, I gasp and pant. I will lay waste mountains and hills, and I will lead the blind by ways they have not known. I will turn the darkness into light. These are the things I will do; I will not forsake them. But those who trust in carved images, who say to idols, 'You are our gods,' will be turned back in utter shame."
"Hear, you deaf; look, you blind, and see! Who is blind but my servant (Israel), and deaf like the messenger I send? You have seen many things, but you pay no attention; your ears are open, but you hear nothing." It pleased the Lord, for the sake of his righteousness, to make his law great and glorious. But this is a people plundered and looted, all of them trapped in pits or hidden away in prisons. They have become plunder, with no one to rescue them.
Who handed Jacob over to be plundered, and Israel to the robbers? Was it not the Lord, against whom we have sinned? They would not follow his ways; they did not obey his law. So he poured out on them his burning anger, the violence of war. It enveloped them in flames, yet they did not understand; it consumed them, but they did not take it to heart.
ISRAEL REDEEMED AND GOD THE ONLY SAVIOR
But now, this is what the Lord says—he who created you, Jacob, he who formed you, Israel: "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt for your ransom, Cush and Seba in your stead.
"Since you are precious and honored in my sight, and because I love you, I will give people in exchange for you. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west. 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—everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory."
"Lead out those who have eyes but are blind, and those who have ears but are deaf. Let all the nations gather. Which of their gods foretold this? Let them bring their witnesses to prove they were right. But 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 no god was formed, nor will there be one after me. I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior. I have revealed and saved and proclaimed—I, and not some foreign god among you. You are my witnesses that I am God."
This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "For your sake I will send to Babylon and bring down all the Babylonians as fugitives. I am the Lord, your Holy One, Israel’s Creator, your King." This is what the Lord says—he who made a way through the sea, a path through the mighty waters, who drew out the chariots and horses of Egypt: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland, to give drink to my people, my chosen, the people I formed for myself that they might proclaim my praise."
"Yet you have not called on me, Jacob; you have grown weary of me, Israel. You have not brought me your sheep for burnt offerings, nor honored me with your sacrifices. I have not burdened you with grain offerings nor wearied you with demands for incense. But you have burdened me with your sins and wearied me with your offenses.
"I, even I, am he who blots out your transgressions, for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more. Review the past together; state your case, that you may be vindicated. Your first father sinned; your mediators rebelled against me. So I will disgrace the officials of your sanctuary, and I will consign Jacob to destruction and Israel to scorn."
ISRAEL'S RESTORATION AND THE FOLLY OF IDOLS
"But now listen, Jacob, my servant, Israel, whom I have chosen." This is what the Lord says—he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: "Do not be afraid, Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun (a name for Israel), whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit on your offspring and my blessing on your descendants. They will spring up like grass in a meadow, like poplar trees by flowing streams. One will say, 'I belong to the Lord'; another will call himself by the name of Jacob; another will write on his hand, 'The Lord’s,' and take the name Israel."
This is what the Lord says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord of Hosts: "I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God. Who then is like me? Let him proclaim it. Let him declare and lay out his case before me, since I established my ancient people. Let them foretell what is to come. Do not tremble, do not be afraid. Did I not proclaim this and foretell it long ago? You are my witnesses. Is there any God besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one."
All who make idols are nothing, and the things they treasure are worthless. Their witnesses see nothing and know nothing, leaving them to shame. Who shapes a god or casts an idol, which profits nothing? His companions will be put to shame; the craftsmen are only human. Let them all assemble and take their stand; they will be brought to terror and shame together.
The blacksmith takes a tool and works it over the coals; he shapes an idol with hammers, forging it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry and loses his strength; he drinks no water and grows faint.
The carpenter measures with a line and marks it out with a gauge. He planes it and shapes it with calipers, fashioning it into a human form, beautiful and dwelling in a shrine. He cuts down cedars, or perhaps cypress or oak, which he let grow strong in the forest. He plants a pine, and the rain makes it grow. It becomes fuel for the person to burn; he uses some to warm himself and bakes bread. But he also fashions a god and worships it; he makes an idol and bows down to it. Half of the wood he burns in the fire, using it to roast meat and eat his fill. The other half he makes into a god, his idol. He bows down to it and prays, "Save me; you are my god!"
They know nothing, they understand nothing. Their eyes are plastered over so they cannot see, and their minds are closed so they cannot understand. No one stops to think or has the knowledge to say, "Half of it I used for fuel; I even baked bread, roasted meat, and ate. Shall I make the rest into something detestable? Shall I bow down to a block of wood?" He feeds on ashes, a deluded heart misleads him. He cannot save himself or say, "Is not this thing in my right hand a lie?"
"Remember these things, Jacob, for you, Israel, are my servant. I have made you; you will not be forgotten by me. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you."
Sing for joy, you heavens, for the Lord has done this; shout, earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the Lord has redeemed Jacob; he displays his glory in Israel.
CYRUS, THE LORD'S SHEPHERD AND ANOINTED
This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, who formed you in the womb: "I am the Lord, the Maker of all things, who alone stretched out the heavens, who spread out the earth by myself. I foil the signs of false prophets and make fools of diviners. I make the wise retreat and turn their knowledge into nonsense. But I confirm the word of my servant and fulfill the predictions of my messengers."
I am the one who says of Jerusalem, "It shall be inhabited," and of the towns of Judah, "They shall be rebuilt." I am the one who says to the watery deep, "Be dry, and I will dry up your streams." I am the one who says of Cyrus, "He is my shepherd and will accomplish all that I please; he will say of Jerusalem, 'Let it be rebuilt,' and of the temple, 'Let its foundations be laid.'"
This is what the Lord says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I take hold of to subdue nations before him an
"For the sake of Jacob my servant, of Israel my chosen, I summon you by name and bestow on you a title of honor, though you do not acknowledge me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting, people may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperit
"You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, theLord, have created it."
Woe to the one who quarrels with their Maker—a potsherd among potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter, "What are you making?" Does your work say, "The potter has no hands"? Woe to the one who says to a father, "What have you begotten?" or to a mother, "What have you brought to birth?"
This is what the Lord says—the Holy One of Israel, and its Mak
THE CONVERSION OF NATIONS AND THE ONLY SAVIOR
This is what the Lord says: "The products of Egypt and the merchandise of Cush, and those tall Sabeans, will come over to you and be yours. They will follow you in chains and bow down before you, saying, 'Surely God is with you, and there is no other; there is no other god.'" Truly you are a God who hides himself, O God and Savior of Israel.
All the makers of idols will be put to shame and disgraced; they will go off into disgrace together. But Israel will be saved by the Lord with an everlasting salvation; you will never be put to shame or disgraced,
For this is what the Lord says—he who created the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned and made the earth, he founded it; he did not create it to be empty, but formed it to be inhabited: "I am the Lord, and there is no other. I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness. I did not say to Jacob’s descendants, 'Seek me in vain.' I, the Lord, speak the truth; I declare what is right."
"Gather yourselves and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. They are ignorant who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. Declare your case, present it—let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago? Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me."
"Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of theearth; for I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, 'In the Lord alone are righteousness and strength.'"
All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But all the descendants of Israel will find righteousness in the Lord and will glory in him.
THE DOWNFALL OF BABYLON'S IDOLS
Bel bows down, Nebo stoops low; their idols are borne by beasts of burden. The images that were carried about are now a heavy load for the weary animal. They stoop and bow down together; they cannot save the burden, but are themselves carried off into captivity.
"Listen to me, house of Jacob, all you who remain of the house of Israel, you whom I have upheld since your conception, and have carried since your birth. Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you."
"To whom will you compare me or count me equal? To whom will you liken me? Some pour out gold from their bags and weigh out silver on the scales. They hire a goldsmith to make it into a god, and they bow down and worship it. They lift it to their shoulders and carry it; they set i
"Remember this, fix it in mind, take it to heart, you rebels. Remember the former things, those of long ago. I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say, 'My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.'
THE HUMILIATION OF BABYLON
"Go down, sit in the dust, Virgin Daughter Babylon; sit on the ground without a throne, Daughter of the Babylonians. You will no longer be called tender or delicate. Take millstones and grind flour; remove your veil. Lift up your skirts, bare your legs, and wade through the streams. Your nakedness will be exposed and your shame seen. I will take vengeance; I will spare no one." Our Redeemer—the Lord of Hosts is his name—is the Holy One of Israel.
"Sit in silence, go into darkness, Daughter of the Babylonians; you will no longer be called queen of kingdoms. I was angry with my people and desecrated my inheritance; I gave them into your hand, and you showed them no mercy. You laid a very heavy yoke on the aged. You said, 'I will be queen forever!' But you did not consider these things or reflect on what might happen."
"Now then, listen, you lover of pleasure, lounging in your security and saying to yourself, 'I am, and there is none besides me. I will never be a widow or suffer the loss of children
"You have trusted in your wickedness and said, 'No one sees me.' Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you. You have said, 'I am, and there is none besides me.' Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to charm it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom. A catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you."
"Keep on, then, with your spells and your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror. You are worn out by your many counselors. Let your astrologers, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, stand up and save you from what is coming upon you. Surely they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves from the power of the flame. These are not coals for warmth; this is not a fire to sit by. This is all they are to you—these partners you have labored with since youth. Each goes his own way; there is no one to save you."
REBUKE OF ISRAEL'S STUBBORNNESS AND THE CALL TO FLEE BABYLON
Listen to this, house of Jacob, you who are called by the name of Israel and come from the line of Judah; you who swear by the Lord’s name and invoke the God of Israel, but not in truth or righteousness. You call yourselves citizens of the holy city and rely on the God of Israel—the Lord of Hosts is his name.
I foretold the former things long ago; they came from my mouth and I proclaimed them. Then suddenly I acted, and they happened. I did this because I knew how stubborn you are; your neck was an iron sinew, your forehead bronze. I told you these things long ago, before they happened, so you could not say, "My idol did them; my image commanded them."
You have heard these things; look at them all. Will you not admit them? From now on, I will tell you of new things, hidden things you do not know. They are created now, not long ago. I have kept them hidden so you cannot say, "I already knew them." You have neither heard nor understood; from of old your ear was not open. For I knew how treacherous you would be; you were known as a rebel from birth.
For my own name's sake, I delay my wrath; for my own praise, I hold it back from destroying you. See, I have refined you, but not as silver; I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For my own sake, I do this. How can I let myself be profaned? I will not give my glory to another.
Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last. My hand laid the earth's foundation, my right hand spread out the heavens. I have summoned Cyrus; he will carry out my purpose against Babylon and the Babylonians.
Come near and listen: I have not spoken in secret. I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best, who directs you in the way you should go. If only you had paid attention to my commands, your peace would have been like a river, your well-being like the waves of the sea. Your descendants would have been like the sand, your offspring like its grains.
Leave Babylon, flee from the Babylonians! Announce this with shouts of joy; proclaim it to the ends of the earth: "The Lord has redeemed his servant Jacob!" They did not thirst when he led them through the deserts; he split the rock, and water gushed out for them.
"There is no peace," says the Lord, "for the wicked."
THE SERVANT'S MISSION TO ISRAEL AND THE NATIONS
Listen to me, you islands; hear this, you distant nations: Before I was born, the Lord called me; from my mother’s womb, he has spoken my name. He made my mouth like a sharpened sword, in the shadow of his hand he hid me. He made me a polished arrow and concealed me in his quiver.
He said to me, "You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will display my splendor." But I said, "I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing." Yet what is due me is in the Lord’s hand, and my reward is with my God.
And now the Lord says—he who formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him and gather Israel to himself—he says: "It is too small a thing for you to be my servant merely to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth."
This is what the Lord, the Redeemer and Holy One of Israel, says to him who was despised and abhorred by the nation: "Kings will see you and stand up, princes will see and bow down, because of the Lord, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you."
ZION'S COMFORT AND PROMISED RESTORATION
This is what the Lord says: "In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you. I will keep you and make you a covenant for the people, to restore the land and reassign its desolate inheritances, to say to the captives, 'Come out,' and to those in darkness, 'Be free!'"
They will feed along the roads and find pasture on every barren hill. They will not hunger or thirst, nor will the desert heat or sun beat down on them. For he who has compassion on them will guide them and lead them by springs of water. I will turn all my mountains into roads, and my highways will be raised up. See, they will come from afar—from the north, the west, and the land of Sinim (Aswan).
Shout for joy, you heavens; rejoice, you earth; burst into song, you mountains! For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.
But Zion said, "The Lord has forsaken me; the Lord has forgotten me."
"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and hav
"Lift up your eyes and look around: They all gather and come to you. As surely as I live," declares the Lord, "you will wear them all like ornaments; you will put them on like a bride. Though you were ruined, desolate, and devastated, you will soon be too small for your people. The children born during your bereavement will yet say in your hearing, 'This place is too small for us; give us more space to live in.'
"Then you will say in your heart, 'Who bore me these? I was bereaved and barren, an exile and rejected. Who reared these?'"
This is what the Lord God says: "See, I will beckon to the Gentiles, I will lift my banner to the peoples. They will bring your sons in their arms and carry your daughters on their shoulders. Kings will be your foster fathers, and their queens your nursing mothers. They will bow down before you with their faces to the ground; they will lick the dust at your feet. Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who hope in me will not be disappointed
Can plunder be taken from warriors, or captives rescued from the fierce? But this is what the Lord says: "Yes, captives will be taken from warriors, and plunder retrieved from the fierce. I will contend with those who contend with yo
ISRAEL'S SIN AND GOD'S POWER TO SAVE
This is what the Lord says: "Where is your mother's certificate of divorce with which I sent her away? Or to which of my creditors did I sell you? Because of your sins you were sold; because of your transgressions your mother was sent away.
"
THE OBEDIENCE AND SUFFERING OF THE SERVANT
The Lord God has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. He wakens me morning by morning, wakens my ear to listen like one being taught. The Lord God has opened my ears; I have not been rebellious, I have not turned away.
I offered my back to those who beat me, my cheeks to those who pulled out my beard. I did not hide my face from mocking and spitting. Because the Lord God helps me, I will not be disgraced. Therefore, I have set my face like flint, and I know I will not be put to shame. He who vindicates me is near. Who then will bring charges against me? Let us face each other!
It is the Lord God who helps me. Who will condemn me? They will all wear out like a garment; the moth will eat them up.
Let the one who fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant, yet walks in darkness and has no light, trust in the name of the Lord and rely on their God. But you who light your own fires and provide yourselves with flaming torches, go, walk in the light of your fires! This is what you shall receive from my hand: You will lie down in torment.
LOOK TO THE PAST FOR FUTURE HOPE
"Listen to me, you who pursue righteousness and seek the Lord: Look to the rock from which you were cut and the quarry from which you were hewn. Look to Abraham, your father, and to Sarah, who gave you birth. When I called him he was only one man, and I blessed him and made him many."
The Lord will surely comfort Zion and will look with compassion on all her ruins; he will make her deserts like Eden, her wilderness like the garden of the Lord. Joy and gladness will be found in her, thanksgiving and the sound of singing.
"Listen to me, my people; hear me, my nation. The law will go out from me; my justice will become a light to the nations. My righteousness is near, my salvation has gone forth, and my arm will bring justice to the nations. The islands will wait for me and long for my arm.
"Lift up your eyes to the heavens, and look at the earth beneath. The heavens will vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and its inhabitants will die like flies. But my salvation will last forever, my righteousness will never fail.
"Hear me, you who know what is right, you people who have my law in your hearts: Do not fear human reproach or be terrified by their insults. For the moth will eat them up like a garment; the worm will devour them like wool. But my righteousness will last forever, my salvation through all generations."
AWAKE, ZION, YOUR SUFFERING IS ENDED
Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the Lord! Awake, as in days of old, as in generations long ago. Was it not you who cut Rahab (Egypt) to pieces, who pierced that monster through? Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea so the redeemed could cross over? The ransomed of the Lord will return. They will enter Zion with singing; everlasting joy will crown their heads.
"I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men, who are but grass? You have forgotten the Lord your Maker, who stretched out the heavens and laid the foundations of the earth. You live in constant terror all day long because of the wrath of the oppressor, who is bent on destruction. But where is that wrath? The cowering prisoners will soon be set free; they will not die in their dungeon, nor will they lack bread. For I am the Lord your God, who stirs up the sea so that its waves roar—the Lord of Hosts is his name. I have put my words in your mouth and covered you with the shadow of my hand."
Awake, awake! Rise up, Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the Lord’s hand the cup of his wrath. You have drained to its dregs the goblet that makes people stagger. Of all the children she bore, there was none to guide her; of all those she reared, none took her by the hand. These two calamities have come upon you—ruin and destruction, famine and sword.
Therefore, hear this, you afflicted one, drunk, but not with wine. This is what your Sovereign Lord says, your God, who defends his people: "See, I have taken out of your hand the cup that made you stagger; it is the cup of my wrath. You will never drink it again. I will put it into the hands of your tormentors, who said to you, 'Bow down, that we may walk over you,' and you made your back like the ground, like a street for them to walk on."
ZION'S LIBERATION AND THE CALL TO DEPART
Awake, awake, Zion! Clothe yourself with strength. Put on your beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city. For the uncircumcised and defiled will no longer enter you. Shake off your dust; rise up, captive Jerusalem. Free yourself from the chains on your neck, O captive Daughter Zion.
For this is what the Lord says: "You were sold for nothing, and without money you will be redeemed." The Lord God says: "At first my people went down to Egypt to live; later, Assyria oppressed them for no reason. And now what do I have here? My people have been taken away for nothing, their rulers mock, and my name is constantly blasphemed all day long. Therefore, my people will know my name; on that day, they will know that I am the one who foretold it."
How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of the messenger who announces peace, brings good news, proclaims salvation, and says to Zion, "Your God reigns!" Listen! Your watchmen lift up their voices; they shout for joy. With their own eyes, they see the Lord returning to Zion. Burst into song together, you ruins of Jerusalem, for the Lord has comforted his people, he has redeemed Jerusalem. The Lord has bared his holy arm before all the nations, and all the ends of the earth will see the salvation of our God.
Depart, depart, go out from there! Touch no unclean thing. Come out from Babylon and be pure, you who carry the vessels of the Lord. But you will not leave in haste or go in flight; for the Lord will go before you, and the God of Israel will be your rear guard.
THE EXALTATION OF THE SUFFERKING SERVANT
See, my servant will act wisely; he will be raised and lifted up and highly exalted. Just as many were appalled at him—his appearance so disfigured beyond human semblance, his form marred beyond human likeness—so he will startle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him. For they will see what they were not told, and they will understand what they had not heard.
THE SUFFERING AND SACRIFICE OF THE SERVANT
Who has believed our message? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?
He grew up before him like a tender shoot, and like a root out of dry ground. He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide the
Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and affli
He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away. Who of his generation protested? For he was cut off from the land of the living; for the transgression of my people, he was punished. He was assigned a grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death, though he had done no violence, nor was any deceit in his mouth.
Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer. And though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After his suffering, he will see light and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities.
Therefore, I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out
THE EVERLASTING COVENANT OF PEACE WITH ZION
"Sing, barren woman, you who never bore a child; burst into song, you who were never in labor. For the children of the desolate woman will be more than those of the married one," says the Lord.
"Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, and do not hold back. Lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes. For you will spread out to the right and to the left; your descendants will dispossess nations and settle in their desolate cities."
"Do not be afraid; you will not be put to shame. Do not fear disgrace; you will not be humiliated. You will forget the
"The Lord will call you back as if you were a wife deserted and distressed in spirit—a wife married young, only to be rejected. For a brief moment I abandoned you, but with deep compassion I will bring you back. In a surge of anger I hid my face from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness I will have compassion on you," says the Lord your Redeeme
"To me, this is like the days of Noah, when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again cover the earth. So now I have sworn not to be angry with you or rebuke you. Though the mountains be shaken and the hills be removed, yet my unfailing love for you will not be shaken, nor my covenant of peace be removed," says the Lord, who has compassion on you.
"Afflicted city, lashed by storms and not comforted, I will rebuild you with stones of turquoise, your foundations with
"See, I created the blacksmith who fans the coals and forges a weapon, and I created the destroyer to wreak havoc. No weapon forged against you will prevail, and you will refute every tongue that accuses you. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and this is their vindication from me," declares the Lord.
AN INVITATION TO ETERNAL LIFE
The Lord calls: "Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost." Why spend your money on what is not bread, and your labor on what does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of fare. Give ear and come to me; listen, that your soul may live.
THE EVERLASTING COVENANT OF DAVID
"I will make an everlasting covenant with you, my faithful love promised to David. See, I made him a witness to the peoples, a ruler and commander of the peoples. Surely you will summon nations you do not know, and nations that do not know you will run to you, because of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, for he has endowed you with splendor."
A CALL TO SEEK THE LORD
Seek the Lord while he may be found; call on him while he is near. Let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts. Let them turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on them; and to our God, for he will freely pardon.
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than you
THE POWER OF THE WORD AND THE JOYFUL EXODUS
"As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it."
You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands. Instead of the thornbush, the juniper will grow, and instead of briers, the myrtle will grow. This will be for the Lord’s renown, for an everlasting sign that will endure forever.
SALVATION FOR ALL NATIONS
This is what the Lord says: "Maintain justice and do what is right, for my salvation is close at hand, and my righteousness will soon be revealed." Blessed is the one who does this, who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath from desecration and keeps their hand from doing any evil.
Let no foreigner who has joined the Lord say, "The Lord will surely exclude me." And let no eunuch complain, "I am only a dry tree." For this is what the Lord says: "To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant—to them I will give within my temple and its walls a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that will not be cut off."
And foreigners who join the Lord to minister to him, to love his name and be his servants—all who keep the Sabbath and hold fast to my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain and give them joy in my house of prayer. Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; "for my house will be called a house of prayer for all nation
INDICTMENT OF ISRAEL'S BLIND AND CORRUPT LEADERS
Come, all you beasts of the field; come and devour, all you beasts of the forest! Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge. They are all mute dogs; they cannot bark. They lie around and dream; they love to sleep. They are dogs with greedy appetites, never having enough. They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, each seeking their own gain. "Come," each one cries, "let me get wine! Let us fill ourselves with beer! And tomorrow will be just like today, or even more abundant."
THE PEACE OF THE RIGHTEOUS AND THE SIN OF THE IDOLATERS
The righteous perish, and no one takes it to heart; the devout are taken away, and no one understands that they are spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest in death.
"But you, come here, you children of a sorceress, you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes! Who are you mocking, making faces and sticking out your tongue? Are you not children of rebellion, offspring of falsehood?"
You burn with lust among the sacred oaks and under every spreading tree. You sacrifice your children in the ravines. Your portion is among the smooth stones of the valley; you have poured out drink offerings and presented grain offerings to them. Should I be satisfied with this? You have made your bed on a high mountain and gone up to offer sacrifices. Behind your doors and doorposts, you have set up your pagan symbols. Forsaking me, you have uncovered your bed and made a pact with those whose beds you love. You went to the king (Molek) with olive oil and perfumes. You sent your envoys far; you descended to the realm of the dead (Sheol). You were wearied by all your ways, but you never said, "It is hopeless."
"Whom did you dread that you lied, failed to remember me, or take this to heart? Is it not because I have long been silent that you do not fear me? I will expose your 'righteousness' and your deeds; they will not profit you. When you cry out for help, let your collection ofidols save you! The wind will sweep them all away. But the one who takes refuge in me will possess the land and inherit my holy mountain."
HEALING FOR THE CONTRITE, NO PEACE FOR THE WICKED
And it will be said: "Build up, build up, prepare the road! Remove the obstacles from my people’s way." For this is what the high and exalted One says—he who lives forever, whose name is holy: "I live in a high and holy place, but also with the one who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite."
I will not accuse them forever, nor will I always be angry, for then the human spirit would grow faint. I was enraged by their sinful greed; I struck them and hid my face. Yet I have seen their ways, and I will heal them. I will guide them and restore comfort to Israel's mourners, creating praise on their lips. "Peace, peace, to those far and near," says the Lord, "and I will heal them."
But the wicked are like the tossing sea, which cannot rest, whose waves cast up mire and mud. "There is no peace," says my God, "for the wicked."
THE TRUE FAST AND THE REWARD OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
"Shout aloud!" the Lord commands. "Declare to my people their rebellion." They eagerly seek God, acting like a righteous nation, yet they wonder why God does not see their fasting. The Lord replies that on their fast days, they pursue their own interests and oppress their workers. They fast only to quarrel and fight, striking each other with wicked fists. This is not the fast he has chosen, which is more than just bowing one's head in sackcloth.
The true fast God desires is to loose the chains of injustice, untie the cords of the yoke, and set the oppressed free. It is to share food with the hungry, provide shelter for the poor wanderer, and clothe the naked, rather than turning away from one's own family.
If they do this, their light will break forth like the dawn, and their healing will quickly appear. Their righteousness will lead them, and the Lord's glory will be their rear guard. When they call, the Lord will answer; when they cry for help, he will say, "Here am I."
If they remove the yoke of oppression, the pointing finger, and malicious talk, and if they spend themselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then their light will rise in the darkness, and their night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide them always; he will satisfy their needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen their frame. They will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Their people will rebuild the ancient ruins and will raise up the age-old foundations; they will be called Repairer of Broken Walls, Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
Furthermore, if they keep their feet from breaking the Sabbath, and call that holy day a delight, honoring the Lord by not going their own way or speaking idle words, then they will find their joy in the Lord. He will cause them to ride in triumph on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of their father Jacob. The mouth of the Lord has spoken.
SIN'S SEPARATION AND THE DIVINE INTERVENTION
Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor his ear too dull to hear. Rather, your own iniquities have created a separation between you and your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.
Your hands are stained with blood, your fingers with guilt. Your lips speak lies, and your tongue mutters wickedness. No one calls for justice or pleads their case with integrity. They trust in empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil. They hatch the eggs of vipers and weave the spider’s web; their feet rush into sin, and they are swift to shed innocent blood. Ruin and destruction mark their paths, and they do not know the way of peace.
Therefore, justice is far from us, and righteousness does not reach us. We look for light, but find only darkness; for brightness, but we walk in deep shadows. We grope for the wall like the blind; we stumble at noon as if it were twilight. We all growl like bears and moan like doves, looking for justice, but finding none; for deliverance, but it is far away.
Our offenses are many in your sight, and our sins testify against us. We acknowledge our rebellion, our falsehood to the Lord, and our turning away from God. We speak of oppression and revolt; we mutter lies conceived in our hearts. So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance. Truth has stumbled in the streets, and honesty cannot enter.
The Lord looked and was displeased that there was no justice. He was appalled that there was no one to intervene. Therefore, his own arm brought salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him. He put on righteousness as a breastplate and a helmet of salvation on his head. He put on garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal. He will repay his enemies according to their deeds, with wrath for his adversaries.
From the west, people will fear the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun, they will revere his glory. When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord will put him to flight. "The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins," declares the Lord.
"As for me, this is my covenant with them," says the Lord. "My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or their children’s children, from this time on and forever."
THE FUTURE GLORY OF THE RESTORED ZION
"Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord rises upon you!" See, darkness covers the earth and thick darkness is over the peoples, but the Lord rises upon you and his glory appears over you. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.
"Lift up your eyes and look around you: All your children gather and come to you; your sons from afar, and your daughters carried on the hip." Then you will look and be radiant, your heart will throb and swell with joy. The wealth of the seas will be brought to you, and the riches of the nations will come.
Herds of camels will cover your land, young camels from Midian and Ephah. All from Sheba will come, bearing gold and incense and proclaiming the praise of the Lord. All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth will serve you; they will be accepted as offerings on my altar, and I will adorn my glorious temple.
"Who are these that fly like clouds, like doves to their nests?" Surely the islands look to me; in the lead are the ships of Tarshish, bringing your children from afar with their silver and gold, to the honor of the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, who has endowed you with splendor.
Foreigners will rebuild your walls, and their kings will serve you. Though I struck you in my anger, in my favor I will show you compassion. Your gates will always stand open; they will never be shut, day or night, so that the wealth of nations may be brought to you, with their kings led in procession. For the nation or kingdom that will not serve you will perish; it will be utterly ruined.
The glory of Lebanon will come to you—the juniper, the fir, and the cypress together—to adorn the place of my sanctuary; and I will glorify the place of my feet. The children of your oppressors will come bowing before you; all who despised you will bow down at your feet and will call you the City of the Lord, Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
"Although you have been forsaken and hated, with no one traveling through, I will make you an everlasting pride and the joy of all generations. You will drink the milk of nations and be nursed at royal breasts. Then you will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior, your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob."
"Instead of bronze I will bring you gold, and silver instead of iron. Instead of wood, bronze, and instead of stones, iron. I will make peace your governor and righteousness your ruler. No longer will violence be heard in your land, nor ruin or destruction within your borders. You will call your walls Salvation and your gates Praise."
The sun will no more be your light by day, nor will the brightness of the moon shine on you, for the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your God will be your glory. Your sun will never set again, and your moon will wane no more; the Lord will be your everlasting light, and your day
THE MISSION OF THE ANOINTED ONE
"The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor." He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and to release from darkness for the prisoners. My mission is to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God. I am to comfort all who mourn and provide for those grieving in Zion.
I will bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. They will be called Oaks of Righteousness, a planting of the Lord for the display of his splendor.
THE RESTORATION OF ZION AS A PRIESTHOOD
They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated. Foreigners will shepherd your flocks; strangers will work your fields and vineyards. But you will be called priests of the Lord; you will be named ministers of our God. You will feed on the wealth of nations and boast in their riches. Instead of your shame, you will receive a double portion; instead of disgrace, you will rejoice in your inheritance. You will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.
"For I, the Lord, love justice; I hate robbery and wrongdoing. In my faithfulness, I will reward my people and make an everlasting covenant with them." Their descendants will be known among the nations; all who see them will acknowledge that they are a people the Lord has blessed.
I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul will be joyful in my God. For he has clothed me with garments of salvation and arrayed me in a robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. For as the soil makes the sprout come up and a garden causes seeds to grow, so the Lord God will make righteousness and praise spring up before all nations.
THE NEW NAME AND RESTORATION OF ZION
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness shines out like the dawn, her salvation like a blazing torch. The nations will see your righteousness, and all kings your glory. You will be called by a new name that the mouth of the Lord will bestow. You will be a crown of splendor in the Lord’s hand, a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
No longer will they call you "Deserted," or name your land "Desolate."
I have posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem; they will never be silent day or night. You who call on the Lord, give yourselves no rest, and give him no rest until he establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth.
The Lord has sworn by his right hand: "Never again will I give your grain as food for your enemies, and never again will foreigners drink the new wine for which you have toiled. But those who harvest it will eat it and praise the Lord, and those who gather the grapes will drink it i
Pass through, pass through the gates! Prepare the way for the people. Build up the highway, remove the stones, and raise a banner for the nations. The Lord has proclaimed to the ends of the earth: "Say to Daughter Zion, 'See, your Savior comes! His reward is with him.'" They will be called the Holy People, the Redeemed of the Lord; and you will be called Sought After, the City No Longer Deserted.
THE DIVINE WARRIOR'S DAY OF VENGEANCE
Who is this coming from Edom, from Bozrah, with crimson-stained garments? He replies, "It is I, who speak in righteousness, mighty to save." Why are your garments red, like one treading the winepress?
"I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with me. I trampled them in my anger; their blood spattered my garments. For the day of vengeance was in my heart, and the year of my redemption had come. I looked, but there was no one to help; I was appalled that no one supported me. So my own arm brought salvation, and my own wrath sustained me. I made them drunk in my wrath and poured out their lifeblood on the ground."
A PRAYER RECALLING GOD'S PAST MERCY
I will tell of the Lord’s kindnesses and his great goodness to the house of Israel. He said, "Surely they are my people," and he became their Savior. In all their distress he too was distressed, and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy, he redeemed them and carried them all the days of old.
Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy, fighting against them. Then his people remembered the days of Moses: "Where is he who brought them through the sea with the shepherds of his flock? Where is he who set his Holy Spirit among them, who divided the waters before them to make for himself an everlasting name?" You led them through the depths, and they did not stumble; like cattle going down to the plain, the Spirit of the Lord gave them rest.
A PLEA FOR GOD TO RETURN
Look down from heaven, your holy dwelling place. Where are your zeal and your might? You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us and Israel does not acknowledge us. You, Lord, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old. Why do you make us wander from your ways and harden our hearts? Return for the sake of your servants. Our adversaries have trampled your sanctuary.
Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains would tremble before you! As when fire causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemies. Since ancient times, no one has heard, and no eye has seen any God besides you, who acts on behalf of those who wait for him. You help those who gladly do right. But you were angry when we continued to sin.
All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags. We all shrivel up like a leaf, and our sins sweep us away like the wind. No one calls on your name or strives to take hold of you, for you have hidden your face from us and given us over to our sins.
Yet you, Lord, are our Father. We are the clay, you are the potter; we are all the work of your hand. Do not be angry beyond measure; do not remember our sins forever. O Lord, look upon us, we pray, for we are all your people. Your sacred cities have become a wilderness. Our holy and glorious temple, where our ancestors praised you, has been burned with fire, and all our cherished places are in ruins. After all this, Lord, will you hold yourself back? Will you be silent and punish us beyond measure?
GOD'S JUDGMENT ON THE REBELLIOUS AND REWARD FOR THE FAITHFUL
The Lord responds: "I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me; I held out my hands all day long to an obstinate people, who walk in ways that are not good, following their own impulses." This is a people who continually provoke him, sacrificing in gardens, burning incense on altuars of brick, sitting among graves, and eating the flesh of pigs and other detestable things. Yet they say, "Stay away; I am too holy for you."
These people are smoke in God's nostrils. He will not keep silent but will repay them for their sins and the sins of their ancestors, who burned incense on the mountains.
Yet, God will not destroy them all. As juice is found in a cluster of grapes and the whole cluster is spared, so he will preserve a remnant from Jacob. His chosen servants will possess the land; the plain of Sharon will become a pasture for flocks, and the Valley of Achor a resting place for herds.
But as for those who forsake the Lord, who spread a table for the idol "Fortune" (Gad) and fill bowls of wine for "Destiny" (Meni), they will be destined for the sword. They will all bow down for the slaughter, because they did not answer when God called or listen when he spoke; they did evil in his sight and chose what displeased him.
Therefore, the Lord God says: "My servants will eat, but you will go hungry. My servants will drink, but you will be thirsty. My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame." The name of the rebellious will be used as a curse, but God's servants will be called by a new name. Whoever blesses themselves in the land will do so by the God of truth, for the past troubles will be forgotten.
THE NEW HEAVENS AND THE NEW EARTH
"See, I will create new heavens and a new earth," declares the Lord. "The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. Be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy. I will rejoice over Jerusalem, and the sound of weeping and crying will be heard in it no more."
In that place, an infant will no longer live only a few days, nor an old man fail to live out his years; one who dies at a hundred will be considered young. People will build houses and live in them; they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit. No longer will they build for others to inhabit, or plant for others to eat. Their days will be like the days of a tree, and my chosen ones will long enjoy the work of their hands. They will not labor in vain, nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune.
Before they call, I will answer; while they are still speaking, I will hear. The wolf and the lamb will feed together, the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent's food. In all my holy mountain, they will neither harm nor destroy.
TRUE WORSHIP AND THE FINAL GATHERING
This is what the Lord says: "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me?" The one I esteem is the one who is humble and contrite in spirit, and who trembles at my word.
But those who choose their own ways, who sacrifice a bull as if killing a person, or a lamb as if breaking a dog’s neck, or who bless an idol—because they did not answer when I called, I will choose harsh treatment for them.
Hear the word of the Lord, you who tremble at it: "Your own people who hate you and exclude you, saying, 'Let the Lord be glorified,' will be put to shame." Listen! A tumult from the city, a voice from the temple! It is the Lord repaying his enemies.
"Before she was in labor, she gave birth." Can a country be born in a day? Yet Zion will give birth to her children as soon as she is in labor. "Shall I bring to the point of birth and not deliver?" asks the Lord.
Rejoice with Jerusalem, all you who love her. Rejoice, all you who mourn for her, that you may nurse and be satisfied at her comforting breasts. For God will extend peace to her like a river and the wealth of nations like a flooding stream. As a mother comforts her child, so I will comfort you in Jerusalem.
See, the Lord is coming with fire and with his chariots like a whirlwind to settle his anger with fury. He will execute judgment by fire and by his sword on all people, and many will be those slain by the Lord. Those who consecrate themselves to worship in gardens, eating the flesh of pigs and other detestable things, will be consumed together.
"I am coming to gather all nations and tongues, and they will see my glory. I will set a sign among them and send survivors to the distant nations—to Tarshish, Lud, Tubal, Javan, and the islands—who have not heard of my fame. They will declare my glory, and they will bring all your people from all nations to my holy mountain in Jerusalem as an offering, just as the Israelites bring grain offerings in clean vessels. And I will select some of them to be priests and Levites," says the Lord.
"For as the new heavens and the new earth that I am making will endure before me," declares the Lord, "so will your name and descendants endure. From one New Moon to another, and one Sabbath to another, all mankind will come and bow down before me. Then they will go out and look on the dead bodies of those who rebelled against me. Their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they will be loathsome to all mankind."
Concise Summary
The book concludes with God's promise to create a new heaven and earth for his faithful, humble servants—who will be gathered from all nations—while the unrepentantly rebellious who rejected his call will face final, enduring judgment.