1:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem ¹  that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned over Judah. ² 

1:2 Listen, O heavens,

pay attention, O earth! ³ 

For the Lord speaks:

“I raised children, ⁴  I brought them up, ⁵ 

but ⁶  they have rebelled ⁷  against me!

1:3 An ox recognizes its owner,

a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; ⁸ 

but Israel does not recognize me, ⁹ 

my people do not understand.”

1:4 ¹⁰ 

The sinful nation is as good as dead, ¹¹ 

the people weighed down by evil deeds.

They are offspring who do wrong,

children ¹²  who do wicked things.

They have abandoned the Lord,

and rejected the Holy One of Israel. ¹³ 

They are alienated from him. ¹⁴ 

1:5 ¹⁵ 

Why do you insist on being battered?

Why do you continue to rebel? ¹⁶ 

Your head has a massive wound, ¹⁷ 

your whole body is weak. ¹⁸ 

1:6 From the soles of your feet to your head,

there is no spot that is unharmed. ¹⁹ 

There are only bruises, cuts,

and open wounds.

They have not been cleansed ²⁰  or bandaged,

nor have they been treated ²¹  with olive oil. ²² 

1:7 Your land is devastated,

your cities burned with fire.

Right before your eyes your crops

are being destroyed by foreign invaders. ²³ 

They leave behind devastation and destruction. ²⁴ 

1:8 Daughter Zion ²⁵  is left isolated,

like a hut in a vineyard,

or a shelter in a cucumber field;

she is a besieged city. ²⁶ 

1:9 If the Lord who commands armies ²⁷  had not left us a few survivors,

we would have quickly become like Sodom, ²⁸ 

we would have become like Gomorrah.

1:10 Listen to the Lord’s word,

you leaders of Sodom! ²⁹ 

Pay attention to our God’s rebuke, ³⁰ 

people of Gomorrah!

1:11 “Of what importance to me are your many sacrifices?” ³¹ 

says the Lord.

“I am stuffed with ³²  burnt sacrifices

of rams and the fat from steers.

The blood of bulls, lambs, and goats

I do not want. ³³ 

1:12 When you enter my presence,

do you actually think I want this –

animals trampling on my courtyards? ³⁴ 

1:13 Do not bring any more meaningless ³⁵  offerings;

I consider your incense detestable! ³⁶ 

You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations,

but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations! ³⁷ 

1:14 I hate your new moon festivals and assemblies;

they are a burden

that I am tired of carrying.

1:15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,

I look the other way; ³⁸ 

when you offer your many prayers,

I do not listen,

because your hands are covered with blood. ³⁹ 

1:16 ⁴⁰ 

Wash! Cleanse yourselves!

Remove your sinful deeds ⁴¹ 

from my sight.

Stop sinning!

1:17 Learn to do what is right!

Promote justice!

Give the oppressed reason to celebrate! ⁴² 

Take up the cause of the orphan!

Defend the rights of the widow! ⁴³ 

1:18 ⁴⁴ 

Come, let’s consider your options,” ⁴⁵  says the Lord.

“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,

you can become ⁴⁶  white like snow;

though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,

you can become ⁴⁷  white like wool. ⁴⁸ 

1:19 If you have a willing attitude and obey, ⁴⁹ 

then you will again eat the good crops of the land.

1:20 But if you refuse and rebel,

you will be devoured ⁵⁰  by the sword.”

Know for certain that the Lord has spoken. ⁵¹ 

1:21 How tragic that the once-faithful city

has become a prostitute! ⁵² 

She was once a center of ⁵³  justice,

fairness resided in her,

but now only murderers. ⁵⁴ 

1:22 Your ⁵⁵  silver has become scum, ⁵⁶ 

your beer is diluted with water. ⁵⁷ 

1:23 Your officials are rebels, ⁵⁸ 

they associate with ⁵⁹  thieves.

All of them love bribery,

and look for ⁶⁰  payoffs. ⁶¹ 

They do not take up the cause of the orphan, ⁶² 

or defend the rights of the widow. ⁶³ 

1:24 Therefore, the sovereign Lord who commands armies, ⁶⁴ 

the powerful ruler of Israel, ⁶⁵  says this:

“Ah, I will seek vengeance ⁶⁶  against my adversaries,

I will take revenge against my enemies. ⁶⁷ 

1:25 I will attack you; ⁶⁸ 

I will purify your metal with flux. ⁶⁹ 

I will remove all your slag. ⁷⁰ 

1:26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,

wise advisers as in earlier days. ⁷¹ 

Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,

Faithful Town.’”

1:27 ⁷² 

Zion will be freed by justice, ⁷³ 

and her returnees by righteousness. ⁷⁴ 

1:28 All rebellious sinners will be shattered, ⁷⁵ 

those who abandon the Lord will perish.

1:29 Indeed, they ⁷⁶  will be ashamed of the sacred trees

you ⁷⁷  find so desirable;

you will be embarrassed because of the sacred orchards ⁷⁸ 

where you choose to worship.

1:30 For you will be like a tree whose leaves wither,

like an orchard ⁷⁹  that is unwatered.

1:31 The powerful will be like ⁸⁰  a thread of yarn,

their deeds like a spark;

both will burn together,

and no one will put out the fire.

2:1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem ⁸¹  that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz. ⁸² 

2:2 In the future ⁸³ 

the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure ⁸⁴ 

as the most important of mountains,

and will be the most prominent of hills. ⁸⁵ 

All the nations will stream to it,

2:3 many peoples will come and say,

“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,

to the temple of the God of Jacob,

so ⁸⁶  he can teach us his requirements, ⁸⁷ 

and ⁸⁸  we can follow his standards.” ⁸⁹ 

For Zion will be the center for moral instruction; ⁹⁰ 

the Lord will issue edicts from Jerusalem. ⁹¹ 

2:4 He will judge disputes between nations;

he will settle cases for many peoples.

They will beat their swords into plowshares, ⁹² 

and their spears into pruning hooks. ⁹³ 

Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,

and they will no longer train for war.

2:5 O descendants ⁹⁴  of Jacob,

come, let us walk in the Lord’s guiding light. ⁹⁵ 

2:6 Indeed, O Lord, ⁹⁶  you have abandoned your people,

the descendants of Jacob.

For diviners from the east are everywhere; ⁹⁷ 

they consult omen readers like the Philistines do. ⁹⁸ 

Plenty of foreigners are around. ⁹⁹ 

2:7 Their land is full of gold and silver;

there is no end to their wealth. ¹⁰⁰ 

Their land is full of horses;

there is no end to their chariots. ¹⁰¹ 

2:8 Their land is full of worthless idols;

they worship ¹⁰²  the product of their own hands,

what their own fingers have fashioned.

2:9 Men bow down to them in homage,

they lie flat on the ground in worship. ¹⁰³ 

Don’t spare them! ¹⁰⁴ 

2:10 Go up into the rocky cliffs,

hide in the ground.

Get away from the dreadful judgment of the Lord, ¹⁰⁵ 

from his royal splendor!

2:11 Proud men will be brought low,

arrogant men will be humiliated; ¹⁰⁶ 

the Lord alone will be exalted ¹⁰⁷ 

in that day.

2:12 Indeed, the Lord who commands armies has planned a day of judgment, ¹⁰⁸ 

for ¹⁰⁹  all the high and mighty,

for all who are proud – they will be humiliated;

2:13 for all the cedars of Lebanon,

that are so high and mighty,

for all the oaks of Bashan; ¹¹⁰ 

2:14 for all the tall mountains,

for all the high hills, ¹¹¹ 

2:15 for every high tower,

for every fortified wall,

2:16 for all the large ships, ¹¹² 

for all the impressive ¹¹³  ships. ¹¹⁴ 

2:17 Proud men will be humiliated,

arrogant men will be brought low; ¹¹⁵ 

the Lord alone will be exalted ¹¹⁶ 

in that day.

2:18 The worthless idols will be completely eliminated. ¹¹⁷ 

2:19 They ¹¹⁸  will go into caves in the rocky cliffs

and into holes in the ground, ¹¹⁹ 

trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord ¹²⁰ 

and his royal splendor,

when he rises up to terrify the earth. ¹²¹ 

2:20 At that time ¹²²  men will throw

their silver and gold idols,

which they made for themselves to worship, ¹²³ 

into the caves where rodents and bats live, ¹²⁴ 

2:21 so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs

and the openings under the rocky overhangs, ¹²⁵ 

trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord ¹²⁶ 

and his royal splendor,

when he rises up to terrify the earth. ¹²⁷ 

2:22 Stop trusting in human beings,

whose life’s breath is in their nostrils.

For why should they be given special consideration?

3:1 Look, the sovereign Lord who commands armies ¹²⁸ 

is about to remove from Jerusalem ¹²⁹  and Judah

every source of security, including ¹³⁰ 

all the food and water, ¹³¹ 

3:2 the mighty men and warriors,

judges and prophets,

omen readers and leaders, ¹³² 

3:3 captains of groups of fifty,

the respected citizens, ¹³³ 

advisers and those skilled in magical arts, ¹³⁴ 

and those who know incantations.

3:4 The Lord says, ¹³⁵  “I will make youths their officials;

malicious young men ¹³⁶  will rule over them.

3:5 The people will treat each other harshly;

men will oppose each other;

neighbors will fight. ¹³⁷ 

Youths will proudly defy the elderly

and riffraff will challenge those who were once respected. ¹³⁸ 

3:6 Indeed, a man will grab his brother

right in his father’s house ¹³⁹  and say, ¹⁴⁰ 

‘You own a coat –

you be our leader!

This heap of ruins will be under your control.’ ¹⁴¹ 

3:7 At that time ¹⁴²  the brother will shout, ¹⁴³ 

‘I am no doctor, ¹⁴⁴ 

I have no food or coat in my house;

don’t make me a leader of the people!’”

3:8 Jerusalem certainly stumbles,

Judah falls,

for their words and their actions offend the Lord; ¹⁴⁵ 

they rebel against his royal authority. ¹⁴⁶ 

3:9 The look on their faces ¹⁴⁷  testifies to their guilt; ¹⁴⁸ 

like the people of Sodom they openly boast of their sin. ¹⁴⁹ 

Too bad for them! ¹⁵⁰ 

For they bring disaster on themselves.

3:10 Tell the innocent ¹⁵¹  it will go well with them, ¹⁵² 

for they will be rewarded for what they have done. ¹⁵³ 

3:11 Too bad for the wicked sinners!

For they will get exactly what they deserve. ¹⁵⁴ 

3:12 Oppressors treat my ¹⁵⁵  people cruelly;

creditors rule over them. ¹⁵⁶ 

My people’s leaders mislead them;

they give you confusing directions. ¹⁵⁷ 

3:13 The Lord takes his position to judge;

he stands up to pass sentence on his people. ¹⁵⁸ 

3:14 The Lord comes to pronounce judgment

on the leaders of his people and their officials.

He says, ¹⁵⁹  “It is you ¹⁶⁰  who have ruined ¹⁶¹  the vineyard! ¹⁶² 

You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor. ¹⁶³ 

3:15 Why do you crush my people

and grind the faces of the poor?” ¹⁶⁴ 

The sovereign Lord who commands armies ¹⁶⁵  has spoken.

3:16 The Lord says,

“The women ¹⁶⁶  of Zion are proud.

They walk with their heads high ¹⁶⁷ 

and flirt with their eyes.

They skip along ¹⁶⁸ 

and the jewelry on their ankles jingles. ¹⁶⁹ 

3:17 So ¹⁷⁰  the sovereign master ¹⁷¹  will afflict the foreheads of Zion’s women ¹⁷²  with skin diseases, ¹⁷³ 

the Lord will make the front of their heads bald.” ¹⁷⁴ 

3:18 ¹⁷⁵ 

At that time ¹⁷⁶  the sovereign master will remove their beautiful ankle jewelry, ¹⁷⁷  neck ornaments, crescent shaped ornaments, 3:19 earrings, bracelets, veils, 3:20 headdresses, ankle ornaments, sashes, sachets, ¹⁷⁸  amulets, 3:21 rings, nose rings, 3:22 festive dresses, robes, shawls, purses, 3:23 garments, vests, head coverings, and gowns. ¹⁷⁹ 

3:24 A putrid stench will replace the smell of spices, ¹⁸⁰ 

a rope will replace a belt,

baldness will replace braided locks of hair,

a sackcloth garment will replace a fine robe,

and a prisoner’s brand will replace beauty.

3:25 Your ¹⁸¹  men will fall by the sword,

your strong men will die in battle. ¹⁸² 

3:26 Her gates will mourn and lament;

deprived of her people, she will sit on the ground. ¹⁸³ 

4:1 Seven women will grab hold of

one man at that time. ¹⁸⁴ 

They will say, “We will provide ¹⁸⁵  our own food,

we will provide ¹⁸⁶  our own clothes;

but let us belong to you ¹⁸⁷  –

take away our shame!” ¹⁸⁸ 

4:2 At that time ¹⁸⁹ 

the crops given by the Lord will bring admiration and honor; ¹⁹⁰ 

the produce of the land will be a source of pride and delight

to those who remain in Israel. ¹⁹¹ 

4:3 Those remaining in Zion, ¹⁹²  those left in Jerusalem, ¹⁹³ 

will be called “holy,” ¹⁹⁴ 

all in Jerusalem who are destined to live. ¹⁹⁵ 

4:4 At that time ¹⁹⁶  the sovereign master ¹⁹⁷  will wash the excrement ¹⁹⁸  from Zion’s women,

he will rinse the bloodstains from Jerusalem’s midst, ¹⁹⁹ 

as he comes to judge

and to bring devastation. ²⁰⁰ 

4:5 Then the Lord will create

over all of Mount Zion ²⁰¹ 

and over its convocations

a cloud and smoke by day

and a bright flame of fire by night; ²⁰² 

indeed a canopy will accompany the Lord’s glorious presence. ²⁰³ 

4:6 By day it will be a shelter to provide shade from the heat,

as well as safety and protection from the heavy downpour. ²⁰⁴ 

5:1 I ²⁰⁵  will sing to my love –

a song to my lover about his vineyard. ²⁰⁶ 

My love had a vineyard

on a fertile hill. ²⁰⁷ 

5:2 He built a hedge around it, ²⁰⁸  removed its stones,

and planted a vine.

He built a tower in the middle of it,

and constructed a winepress.

He waited for it to produce edible grapes,

but it produced sour ones instead. ²⁰⁹ 

5:3 So now, residents of Jerusalem, ²¹⁰ 

people ²¹¹  of Judah,

you decide between me and my vineyard!

5:4 What more can I do for my vineyard

beyond what I have already done?

When I waited for it to produce edible grapes,

why did it produce sour ones instead?

5:5 Now I will inform you

what I am about to do to my vineyard:

I will remove its hedge and turn it into pasture, ²¹² 

I will break its wall and allow animals to graze there. ²¹³ 

5:6 I will make it a wasteland;

no one will prune its vines or hoe its ground, ²¹⁴ 

and thorns and briers will grow there.

I will order the clouds

not to drop any rain on it.

5:7 Indeed ²¹⁵  Israel ²¹⁶  is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies,

the people ²¹⁷  of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight.

He waited for justice, but look what he got – disobedience! ²¹⁸ 

He waited for fairness, but look what he got – cries for help! ²¹⁹ 

5:8 Those who accumulate houses are as good as dead, ²²⁰ 

those who also accumulate landed property ²²¹ 

until there is no land left, ²²² 

and you are the only landowners remaining within the land. ²²³ 

5:9 The Lord who commands armies told me this: ²²⁴ 

“Many houses will certainly become desolate,

large, impressive houses will have no one living in them. ²²⁵ 

5:10 Indeed, a large vineyard ²²⁶  will produce just a few gallons, ²²⁷ 

and enough seed to yield several bushels ²²⁸  will produce less than a bushel.” ²²⁹ 

5:11 Those who get up early to drink beer are as good as dead, ²³⁰ 

those who keep drinking long after dark

until they are intoxicated with wine. ²³¹ 

5:12 They have stringed instruments, ²³²  tambourines, flutes,

and wine at their parties.

So they do not recognize what the Lord is doing,

they do not perceive what he is bringing about. ²³³ 

5:13 Therefore my ²³⁴  people will be deported ²³⁵ 

because of their lack of understanding.

Their ²³⁶  leaders will have nothing to eat, ²³⁷ 

their ²³⁸  masses will have nothing to drink. ²³⁹ 

5:14 So Death ²⁴⁰  will open up its throat,

and open wide its mouth; ²⁴¹ 

Zion’s dignitaries and masses will descend into it,

including those who revel and celebrate within her. ²⁴² 

5:15 Men will be humiliated,

they will be brought low;

the proud will be brought low. ²⁴³ 

5:16 The Lord who commands armies will be exalted ²⁴⁴  when he punishes, ²⁴⁵ 

the sovereign God’s authority will be recognized when he judges. ²⁴⁶ 

5:17 Lambs ²⁴⁷  will graze as if in their pastures,

amid the ruins the rich sojourners will graze. ²⁴⁸ 

5:18 Those who pull evil along using cords of emptiness are as good as dead, ²⁴⁹ 

who pull sin as with cart ropes. ²⁵⁰ 

5:19 They say, “Let him hurry, let him act quickly, ²⁵¹ 

so we can see;

let the plan of the Holy One of Israel ²⁵²  take shape ²⁵³  and come to pass,

then we will know it!”

5:20 Those who call evil good and good evil are as good as dead, ²⁵⁴ 

who turn darkness into light and light into darkness,

who turn bitter into sweet and sweet into bitter. ²⁵⁵ 

5:21 Those who think they are wise are as good as dead, ²⁵⁶ 

those who think they possess understanding. ²⁵⁷ 

5:22 Those who are champions ²⁵⁸  at drinking wine are as good as dead, ²⁵⁹ 

who display great courage when mixing strong drinks.

5:23 They pronounce the guilty innocent for a payoff,

they ignore the just cause of the innocent. ²⁶⁰ 

5:24 Therefore, as flaming fire ²⁶¹  devours straw,

and dry grass disintegrates in the flames,

so their root will rot,

and their flower will blow away like dust. ²⁶² 

For they have rejected the law of the Lord who commands armies,

they have spurned the commands ²⁶³  of the Holy One of Israel. ²⁶⁴ 

5:25 So the Lord is furious ²⁶⁵  with his people;

he lifts ²⁶⁶  his hand and strikes them.

The mountains shake,

and corpses lie like manure ²⁶⁷  in the middle of the streets.

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ²⁶⁸ 

5:26 He lifts a signal flag for a distant nation, ²⁶⁹ 

he whistles for it to come from the far regions of the earth.

Look, they ²⁷⁰  come quickly and swiftly.

5:27 None tire or stumble,

they don’t stop to nap or sleep.

They don’t loosen their belts,

or unstrap their sandals to rest. ²⁷¹ 

5:28 Their arrows are sharpened,

and all their bows are prepared. ²⁷² 

The hooves of their horses are hard as flint, ²⁷³ 

and their chariot wheels are like a windstorm. ²⁷⁴ 

5:29 Their roar is like a lion’s;

they roar like young lions.

They growl and seize their prey;

they drag it away and no one can come to the rescue.

5:30 At that time ²⁷⁵  they will growl over their prey, ²⁷⁶ 

it will sound like sea waves crashing against rocks. ²⁷⁷ 

One will look out over the land and see the darkness of disaster,

clouds will turn the light into darkness. ²⁷⁸ 

6:1 In the year of King Uzziah’s death, ²⁷⁹  I saw the sovereign master ²⁸⁰  seated on a high, elevated throne. The hem of his robe filled the temple. 6:2 Seraphs ²⁸¹  stood over him; each one had six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, ²⁸²  and they used the remaining two to fly. 6:3 They called out to one another, “Holy, holy, holy ²⁸³  is the Lord who commands armies! ²⁸⁴  His majestic splendor fills the entire earth!” 6:4 The sound of their voices shook the door frames, ²⁸⁵  and the temple was filled with smoke.

6:5 I said, “Too bad for me! I am destroyed, ²⁸⁶  for my lips are contaminated by sin, ²⁸⁷  and I live among people whose lips are contaminated by sin. ²⁸⁸  My eyes have seen the king, the Lord who commands armies.” ²⁸⁹  6:6 But then one of the seraphs flew toward me. In his hand was a hot coal he had taken from the altar with tongs. 6:7 He touched my mouth with it and said, “Look, this coal has touched your lips. Your evil is removed; your sin is forgiven.” ²⁹⁰  6:8 I heard the voice of the sovereign master say, “Whom will I send? Who will go on our behalf?” ²⁹¹  I answered, “Here I am, send me!” 6:9 He said, “Go and tell these people:

‘Listen continually, but don’t understand!

Look continually, but don’t perceive!’

6:10 Make the hearts of these people calloused;

make their ears deaf and their eyes blind!

Otherwise they might see with their eyes and hear with their ears,

their hearts might understand and they might repent and be healed.” ²⁹² 

6:11 I replied, “How long, sovereign master?” He said,

“Until cities are in ruins and unpopulated,

and houses are uninhabited,

and the land is ruined and devastated,

6:12 and the Lord has sent the people off to a distant place,

and the very heart of the land is completely abandoned. ²⁹³ 

6:13 Even if only a tenth of the people remain in the land, it will again be destroyed, ²⁹⁴  like one of the large sacred trees ²⁹⁵  or an Asherah pole, when a sacred pillar on a high place is thrown down. ²⁹⁶  That sacred pillar symbolizes the special chosen family.” ²⁹⁷ 

7:1 During ²⁹⁸  the reign of Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, King Rezin of Syria and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel marched up to Jerusalem ²⁹⁹  to do battle, but they were unable to prevail against it. ³⁰⁰ 

7:2 It was reported to the family ³⁰¹  of David, “Syria has allied with ³⁰²  Ephraim.” They and their people were emotionally shaken, just as the trees of the forest shake before the wind. ³⁰³  7:3 So the Lord told Isaiah, “Go out with your son Shear-jashub ³⁰⁴  and meet Ahaz at the end of the conduit of the upper pool which is located on the road to the field where they wash and dry cloth. ³⁰⁵  7:4 Tell him, ‘Make sure you stay calm! ³⁰⁶  Don’t be afraid! Don’t be intimidated ³⁰⁷  by these two stubs of smoking logs, ³⁰⁸  or by the raging anger of Rezin, Syria, and the son of Remaliah. 7:5 Syria has plotted with Ephraim and the son of Remaliah to bring about your demise. ³⁰⁹  7:6 They say, “Let’s attack Judah, terrorize it, and conquer it. ³¹⁰  Then we’ll set up the son of Tabeel as its king.” ³¹¹  7:7 For this reason the sovereign master, ³¹²  the Lord, says:

“It will not take place;

it will not happen.

7:8 For Syria’s leader is Damascus,

and the leader of Damascus is Rezin.

Within sixty-five years Ephraim will no longer exist as a nation. ³¹³ 

7:9 Ephraim’s leader is Samaria,

and Samaria’s leader is the son of Remaliah.

If your faith does not remain firm,

then you will not remain secure.” ³¹⁴ 

7:10 The Lord again spoke to Ahaz: 7:11 “Ask for a confirming sign from the Lord your God. You can even ask for something miraculous.” ³¹⁵  7:12 But Ahaz responded, “I don’t want to ask; I don’t want to put the Lord to a test.” ³¹⁶  7:13 So Isaiah replied, ³¹⁷  “Pay attention, ³¹⁸  family ³¹⁹  of David. ³²⁰  Do you consider it too insignificant to try the patience of men? Is that why you are also trying the patience of my God? 7:14 For this reason the sovereign master himself will give you a confirming sign. ³²¹  Look, this ³²²  young woman ³²³  is about to conceive ³²⁴  and will give birth to a son. You, young woman, will name him ³²⁵  Immanuel. ³²⁶  7:15 He will eat sour milk ³²⁷  and honey, which will help him know how ³²⁸  to reject evil and choose what is right. 7:16 Here is why this will be so: ³²⁹  Before the child knows how to reject evil and choose what is right, the land ³³⁰  whose two kings you fear will be desolate. ³³¹  7:17 The Lord will bring on you, your people, and your father’s family a time ³³²  unlike any since Ephraim departed from Judah – the king of Assyria!” ³³³ 

7:18 At that time ³³⁴  the Lord will whistle for flies from the distant streams of Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria. ³³⁵  7:19 All of them will come and make their home ³³⁶  in the ravines between the cliffs, and in the crevices of the cliffs, in all the thorn bushes, and in all the watering holes. ³³⁷  7:20 At that time ³³⁸  the sovereign master will use a razor hired from the banks of the Euphrates River, ³³⁹  the king of Assyria, to shave the head and the pubic hair; ³⁴⁰  it will also shave off the beard. 7:21 At that time ³⁴¹  a man will keep alive a young cow from the herd and a couple of goats. 7:22 From the abundance of milk they produce, ³⁴²  he will have sour milk for his meals. Indeed, everyone left in the heart of the land will eat sour milk and honey. 7:23 At that time ³⁴³  every place where there had been a thousand vines worth a thousand shekels will be overrun ³⁴⁴  with thorns and briers. 7:24 With bow and arrow ³⁴⁵  men will hunt ³⁴⁶  there, for the whole land will be covered ³⁴⁷  with thorns and briers. 7:25 They will stay away from all the hills that were cultivated, for fear of the thorns and briers. ³⁴⁸  Cattle will graze there and sheep will trample on them. ³⁴⁹ 

8:1 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet ³⁵⁰  and inscribe these words ³⁵¹  on it with an ordinary stylus: ³⁵²  ‘Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.’ ³⁵³  8:2 Then I will summon ³⁵⁴  as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.” 8:3 I then had sexual relations with the prophetess; she conceived and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz, 8:4 for before the child knows how to cry out, ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria ³⁵⁵  will be carried off by the king of Assyria.” ³⁵⁶ 

8:5 The Lord spoke to me again: 8:6 “These people ³⁵⁷  have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah ³⁵⁸  and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah. ³⁵⁹  8:7 So look, the sovereign master ³⁶⁰  is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River ³⁶¹  – the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks. ³⁶²  8:8 It will spill into Judah, flooding and engulfing, as it reaches to the necks of its victims. He will spread his wings out over your entire land, ³⁶³  O Immanuel.” ³⁶⁴ 

8:9 You will be broken, ³⁶⁵  O nations;

you will be shattered! ³⁶⁶ 

Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!

Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered! ³⁶⁷ 

8:10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted!

Issue your orders, but they will not be executed! ³⁶⁸ 

For God is with us! ³⁶⁹ 

8:11 Indeed this is what the Lord told me. He took hold of me firmly and warned me not to act like these people: ³⁷⁰ 

8:12 “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. ³⁷¹ 

Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.

8:13 You must recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. ³⁷² 

He is the one you must respect;

he is the one you must fear. ³⁷³ 

8:14 He will become a sanctuary, ³⁷⁴ 

but a stone that makes a person trip,

and a rock that makes one stumble –

to the two houses of Israel. ³⁷⁵ 

He will become ³⁷⁶  a trap and a snare

to the residents of Jerusalem. ³⁷⁷ 

8:15 Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, ³⁷⁸ 

and will fall and be seriously injured,

and will be ensnared and captured.”

8:16 Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, ³⁷⁹ 

seal the official record of God’s instructions and give it to my followers. ³⁸⁰ 

8:17 I will wait patiently for the Lord,

who has rejected the family of Jacob; ³⁸¹ 

I will wait for him.

8:18 Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me ³⁸²  are reminders and object lessons ³⁸³  in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion.

8:19 ³⁸⁴ 

They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. ³⁸⁵  Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?” ³⁸⁶  8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. ³⁸⁷  Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. ³⁸⁸  8:21 They will pass through the land ³⁸⁹  destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry, ³⁹⁰  and they will curse their king and their God ³⁹¹  as they look upward. 8:22 When one looks out over the land, he sees ³⁹²  distress and darkness, gloom ³⁹³  and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land. ³⁹⁴  9:1 ³⁹⁵  The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious. ³⁹⁶ 

In earlier times he ³⁹⁷  humiliated

the land of Zebulun,

and the land of Naphtali; ³⁹⁸ 

but now he brings honor ³⁹⁹ 

to the way of the sea,

the region beyond the Jordan,

and Galilee of the nations. ⁴⁰⁰ 

9:2 The people walking in darkness

see a bright light; ⁴⁰¹ 

light shines

on those who live in a land of deep darkness. ⁴⁰² 

9:3 You ⁴⁰³  have enlarged the nation;

you give them great joy. ⁴⁰⁴ 

They rejoice in your presence

as harvesters rejoice;

as warriors celebrate ⁴⁰⁵  when they divide up the plunder.

9:4 For their oppressive yoke

and the club that strikes their shoulders,

the cudgel the oppressor uses on them, ⁴⁰⁶ 

you have shattered, as in the day of Midian’s defeat. ⁴⁰⁷ 

9:5 Indeed every boot that marches and shakes the earth ⁴⁰⁸ 

and every garment dragged through blood

is used as fuel for the fire.

9:6 For a child has been ⁴⁰⁹  born to us,

a son has been given to us.

He shoulders responsibility

and is called: ⁴¹⁰ 

Extraordinary Strategist, ⁴¹¹ 

Mighty God, ⁴¹² 

Everlasting Father, ⁴¹³ 

Prince of Peace. ⁴¹⁴ 

9:7 His dominion will be vast ⁴¹⁵ 

and he will bring immeasurable prosperity. ⁴¹⁶ 

He will rule on David’s throne

and over David’s kingdom, ⁴¹⁷ 

establishing it ⁴¹⁸  and strengthening it

by promoting justice and fairness, ⁴¹⁹ 

from this time forward and forevermore.

The Lord’s intense devotion to his people ⁴²⁰  will accomplish this.

9:8 ⁴²¹ 

The sovereign master ⁴²²  decreed judgment ⁴²³  on Jacob,

and it fell on Israel. ⁴²⁴ 

9:9 All the people were aware ⁴²⁵  of it,

the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria. ⁴²⁶ 

Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said, ⁴²⁷ 

9:10 “The bricks have fallen,

but we will rebuild with chiseled stone;

the sycamore fig trees have been cut down,

but we will replace them with cedars.” ⁴²⁸ 

9:11 Then the Lord provoked ⁴²⁹  their adversaries to attack them, ⁴³⁰ 

he stirred up ⁴³¹  their enemies –

9:12 Syria from the east,

and the Philistines from the west,

they gobbled up Israelite territory. ⁴³² 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ⁴³³ 

9:13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,

they did not seek reconciliation ⁴³⁴  with the Lord who commands armies.

9:14 So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail,

both the shoots and stalk ⁴³⁵  in one day.

9:15 The leaders and the highly respected people ⁴³⁶  are the head,

the prophets who teach lies are the tail.

9:16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people,

and the people being led were destroyed. ⁴³⁷ 

9:17 So the sovereign master was not pleased ⁴³⁸  with their young men,

he took no pity ⁴³⁹  on their orphans and widows;

for the whole nation was godless ⁴⁴⁰  and did wicked things, ⁴⁴¹ 

every mouth was speaking disgraceful words. ⁴⁴² 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ⁴⁴³ 

9:18 For ⁴⁴⁴  evil burned like a fire, ⁴⁴⁵ 

it consumed thorns and briers;

it burned up the thickets of the forest,

and they went up in smoke. ⁴⁴⁶ 

9:19 Because of the anger of the Lord who commands armies, the land was scorched, ⁴⁴⁷ 

and the people became fuel for the fire. ⁴⁴⁸ 

People had no compassion on one another. ⁴⁴⁹ 

9:20 They devoured ⁴⁵⁰  on the right, but were still hungry,

they ate on the left, but were not satisfied.

People even ate ⁴⁵¹  the flesh of their own arm! ⁴⁵² 

9:21 Manasseh fought against ⁴⁵³  Ephraim,

and Ephraim against Manasseh;

together they fought against Judah.

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ⁴⁵⁴ 

10:1 Those who enact unjust policies are as good as dead, ⁴⁵⁵ 

those who are always instituting unfair regulations, ⁴⁵⁶ 

10:2 to keep the poor from getting fair treatment,

and to deprive ⁴⁵⁷  the oppressed among my people of justice,

so they can steal what widows own,

and loot what belongs to orphans. ⁴⁵⁸ 

10:3 What will you do on judgment day, ⁴⁵⁹ 

when destruction arrives from a distant place?

To whom will you run for help?

Where will you leave your wealth?

10:4 You will have no place to go, except to kneel with the prisoners,

or to fall among those who have been killed. ⁴⁶⁰ 

Despite all this, his anger does not subside,

and his hand is ready to strike again. ⁴⁶¹ 

10:5 Assyria, the club I use to vent my anger, is as good as dead, ⁴⁶² 

a cudgel with which I angrily punish. ⁴⁶³ 

10:6 I sent him ⁴⁶⁴  against a godless ⁴⁶⁵  nation,

I ordered him to attack the people with whom I was angry, ⁴⁶⁶ 

to take plunder and to carry away loot,

to trample them down ⁴⁶⁷  like dirt in the streets.

10:7 But he does not agree with this,

his mind does not reason this way, ⁴⁶⁸ 

for his goal is to destroy,

and to eliminate many nations. ⁴⁶⁹ 

10:8 Indeed, ⁴⁷⁰  he says:

“Are not my officials all kings?

10:9 Is not Calneh like Carchemish?

Hamath like Arpad?

Samaria like Damascus? ⁴⁷¹ 

10:10 I overpowered kingdoms ruled by idols, ⁴⁷² 

whose carved images were more impressive than Jerusalem’s ⁴⁷³  or Samaria’s.

10:11 As I have done to Samaria and its idols,

so I will do to Jerusalem and its idols.” ⁴⁷⁴ 

10:12 But when ⁴⁷⁵  the sovereign master ⁴⁷⁶  finishes judging ⁴⁷⁷  Mount Zion and Jerusalem, then I ⁴⁷⁸  will punish the king of Assyria for what he has proudly planned and for the arrogant attitude he displays. ⁴⁷⁹  10:13 For he says:

“By my strong hand I have accomplished this,

by my strategy that I devised.

I invaded the territory of nations, ⁴⁸⁰ 

and looted their storehouses.

Like a mighty conqueror, ⁴⁸¹  I brought down rulers. ⁴⁸² 

10:14 My hand discovered the wealth of the nations, as if it were in a nest,

as one gathers up abandoned eggs,

I gathered up the whole earth.

There was no wing flapping,

or open mouth chirping.” ⁴⁸³ 

10:15 Does an ax exalt itself over the one who wields it,

or a saw magnify itself over the one who cuts with it? ⁴⁸⁴ 

As if a scepter should brandish the one who raises it,

or a staff should lift up what is not made of wood!

10:16 For this reason ⁴⁸⁵  the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, will make his healthy ones emaciated. ⁴⁸⁶  His majestic glory will go up in smoke. ⁴⁸⁷ 

10:17 The light of Israel ⁴⁸⁸  will become a fire,

their Holy One ⁴⁸⁹  will become a flame;

it will burn and consume the Assyrian king’s ⁴⁹⁰  briers

and his thorns in one day.

10:18 The splendor of his forest and his orchard

will be completely destroyed, ⁴⁹¹ 

as when a sick man’s life ebbs away. ⁴⁹² 

10:19 There will be so few trees left in his forest,

a child will be able to count them. ⁴⁹³ 

10:20 At that time ⁴⁹⁴  those left in Israel, those who remain of the family ⁴⁹⁵  of Jacob, will no longer rely on a foreign leader that abuses them. ⁴⁹⁶  Instead they will truly ⁴⁹⁷  rely on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel. ⁴⁹⁸  10:21 A remnant will come back, a remnant of Jacob, to the mighty God. ⁴⁹⁹  10:22 For though your people, Israel, are as numerous as ⁵⁰⁰  the sand on the seashore, only a remnant will come back. ⁵⁰¹  Destruction has been decreed; ⁵⁰²  just punishment ⁵⁰³  is about to engulf you. ⁵⁰⁴  10:23 The sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, is certainly ready to carry out the decreed destruction throughout the land. ⁵⁰⁵ 

10:24 So ⁵⁰⁶  here is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says: “My people who live in Zion, do not be afraid of Assyria, even though they beat you with a club and lift their cudgel against you as Egypt did. ⁵⁰⁷  10:25 For very soon my fury ⁵⁰⁸  will subside, and my anger will be directed toward their destruction.” 10:26 The Lord who commands armies is about to beat them ⁵⁰⁹  with a whip, similar to the way he struck down Midian at the rock of Oreb. ⁵¹⁰  He will use his staff against the sea, lifting it up as he did in Egypt. ⁵¹¹ 

10:27 At that time ⁵¹² 

the Lord will remove their burden from your shoulders, ⁵¹³ 

and their yoke from your neck;

the yoke will be taken off because your neck will be too large. ⁵¹⁴ 

10:28 ⁵¹⁵ 

They ⁵¹⁶  attacked ⁵¹⁷  Aiath,

moved through Migron,

depositing their supplies at Micmash.

10:29 They went through the pass,

spent the night at Geba.

Ramah trembled,

Gibeah of Saul ran away.

10:30 Shout out, daughter of Gallim!

Pay attention, Laishah!

Answer her, Anathoth! ⁵¹⁸ 

10:31 Madmenah flees,

the residents of Gebim have hidden.

10:32 This very day, standing in Nob,

they shake their fist at Daughter Zion’s mountain ⁵¹⁹  –

at the hill of Jerusalem.

10:33 Look, the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies,

is ready to cut off the branches with terrifying power. ⁵²⁰ 

The tallest trees ⁵²¹  will be cut down,

the loftiest ones will be brought low.

10:34 The thickets of the forest will be chopped down with an ax,

and mighty Lebanon will fall. ⁵²² 

11:1 A shoot will grow out of Jesse’s ⁵²³  root stock,

a bud will sprout ⁵²⁴  from his roots.

11:2 The Lord’s spirit will rest on him ⁵²⁵  –

a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom, ⁵²⁶ 

a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, ⁵²⁷ 

a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord. ⁵²⁸ 

11:3 He will take delight in obeying the Lord. ⁵²⁹ 

He will not judge by mere appearances, ⁵³⁰ 

or make decisions on the basis of hearsay. ⁵³¹ 

11:4 He will treat the poor fairly, ⁵³² 

and make right decisions ⁵³³  for the downtrodden of the earth. ⁵³⁴ 

He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, ⁵³⁵ 

and order the wicked to be executed. ⁵³⁶ 

11:5 Justice will be like a belt around his waist,

integrity will be like a belt around his hips. ⁵³⁷ 

11:6 A wolf will reside ⁵³⁸  with a lamb,

and a leopard will lie down with a young goat;

an ox and a young lion will graze together, ⁵³⁹ 

as a small child leads them along.

11:7 A cow and a bear will graze together,

their young will lie down together. ⁵⁴⁰ 

A lion, like an ox, will eat straw.

11:8 A baby ⁵⁴¹  will play

over the hole of a snake; ⁵⁴² 

over the nest ⁵⁴³  of a serpent

an infant ⁵⁴⁴  will put his hand. ⁵⁴⁵ 

11:9 They will no longer injure or destroy

on my entire royal mountain. ⁵⁴⁶ 

For there will be universal submission to the Lord’s sovereignty,

just as the waters completely cover the sea. ⁵⁴⁷ 

11:10 At that time ⁵⁴⁸  a root from Jesse ⁵⁴⁹  will stand like a signal flag for the nations. Nations will look to him for guidance, ⁵⁵⁰  and his residence will be majestic. 11:11 At that time ⁵⁵¹  the sovereign master ⁵⁵²  will again lift his hand ⁵⁵³  to reclaim ⁵⁵⁴  the remnant of his people ⁵⁵⁵  from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, ⁵⁵⁶  Cush, ⁵⁵⁷  Elam, Shinar, ⁵⁵⁸  Hamath, and the seacoasts. ⁵⁵⁹ 

11:12 He will lift a signal flag for the nations;

he will gather Israel’s dispersed people ⁵⁶⁰ 

and assemble Judah’s scattered people

from the four corners of the earth.

11:13 Ephraim’s jealousy will end, ⁵⁶¹ 

and Judah’s hostility ⁵⁶²  will be eliminated.

Ephraim will no longer be jealous of Judah,

and Judah will no longer be hostile toward Ephraim.

11:14 They will swoop down ⁵⁶³  on the Philistine hills to the west; ⁵⁶⁴ 

together they will loot the people of the east.

They will take over Edom and Moab, ⁵⁶⁵ 

and the Ammonites will be their subjects.

11:15 The Lord will divide ⁵⁶⁶  the gulf ⁵⁶⁷  of the Egyptian Sea; ⁵⁶⁸ 

he will wave his hand over the Euphrates River ⁵⁶⁹  and send a strong wind, ⁵⁷⁰ 

he will turn it into seven dried-up streams, ⁵⁷¹ 

and enable them to walk across in their sandals.

11:16 There will be a highway leading out of Assyria

for the remnant of his people, ⁵⁷² 

just as there was for Israel,

when ⁵⁷³  they went up from the land of Egypt.

12:1 At that time ⁵⁷⁴  you will say:

“I praise you, O Lord,

for even though you were angry with me,

your anger subsided, and you consoled me.

12:2 Look, God is my deliverer! ⁵⁷⁵ 

I will trust in him ⁵⁷⁶  and not fear.

For the Lord gives me strength and protects me; ⁵⁷⁷ 

he has become my deliverer.” ⁵⁷⁸ 

12:3 Joyfully you will draw water

from the springs of deliverance. ⁵⁷⁹ 

12:4 At that time ⁵⁸⁰  you will say:

“Praise the Lord!

Ask him for help! ⁵⁸¹ 

Publicize his mighty acts among the nations!

Make it known that he is unique! ⁵⁸² 

12:5 Sing to the Lord, for he has done magnificent things,

let this be known ⁵⁸³  throughout the earth!

12:6 Cry out and shout for joy, O citizens of Zion,

for the Holy One of Israel ⁵⁸⁴  acts mightily ⁵⁸⁵  among you!”

13:1 ⁵⁸⁶ 

This is a message about Babylon that God revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz: ⁵⁸⁷ 

13:2 ⁵⁸⁸ 

On a bare hill raise a signal flag,

shout to them,

wave your hand,

so they might enter the gates of the princes!

13:3 I have given orders to my chosen soldiers; ⁵⁸⁹ 

I have summoned the warriors through whom I will vent my anger, ⁵⁹⁰ 

my boasting, arrogant ones. ⁵⁹¹ 

13:4 ⁵⁹² 

There is a loud noise on the mountains –

it sounds like a large army! ⁵⁹³ 

There is great commotion among the kingdoms ⁵⁹⁴  –

nations are being assembled!

The Lord who commands armies is mustering

forces for battle.

13:5 They come from a distant land,

from the horizon. ⁵⁹⁵ 

It is the Lord with his instruments of judgment, ⁵⁹⁶ 

coming to destroy the whole earth. ⁵⁹⁷ 

13:6 Wail, for the Lord’s day of judgment ⁵⁹⁸  is near;

it comes with all the destructive power of the sovereign judge. ⁵⁹⁹ 

13:7 For this reason all hands hang limp, ⁶⁰⁰ 

every human heart loses its courage. ⁶⁰¹ 

13:8 They panic –

cramps and pain seize hold of them

like those of a woman who is straining to give birth.

They look at one another in astonishment;

their faces are flushed red. ⁶⁰² 

13:9 Look, the Lord’s day of judgment ⁶⁰³  is coming;

it is a day of cruelty and savage, raging anger, ⁶⁰⁴ 

destroying ⁶⁰⁵  the earth ⁶⁰⁶ 

and annihilating its sinners.

13:10 Indeed the stars in the sky and their constellations

no longer give out their light; ⁶⁰⁷ 

the sun is darkened as soon as it rises,

and the moon does not shine. ⁶⁰⁸ 

13:11 ⁶⁰⁹ 

I will punish the world for its evil, ⁶¹⁰ 

and wicked people for their sin.

I will put an end to the pride of the insolent,

I will bring down the arrogance of tyrants. ⁶¹¹ 

13:12 I will make human beings more scarce than pure gold,

and people more scarce ⁶¹²  than gold from Ophir.

13:13 So I will shake the heavens, ⁶¹³ 

and the earth will shake loose from its foundation, ⁶¹⁴ 

because of the fury of the Lord who commands armies,

in the day he vents his raging anger. ⁶¹⁵ 

13:14 Like a frightened gazelle ⁶¹⁶ 

or a sheep with no shepherd,

each will turn toward home, ⁶¹⁷ 

each will run to his homeland.

13:15 Everyone who is caught will be stabbed;

everyone who is seized ⁶¹⁸  will die ⁶¹⁹  by the sword.

13:16 Their children will be smashed to pieces before their very eyes;

their houses will be looted

and their wives raped.

13:17 Look, I am stirring up the Medes to attack them; ⁶²⁰ 

they are not concerned about silver,

nor are they interested in gold. ⁶²¹ 

13:18 Their arrows will cut young men to ribbons; ⁶²² 

they have no compassion on a person’s offspring, ⁶²³ 

they will not ⁶²⁴  look with pity on children.

13:19 Babylon, the most admired ⁶²⁵  of kingdoms,

the Chaldeans’ source of honor and pride, ⁶²⁶ 

will be destroyed by God

just as Sodom and Gomorrah were. ⁶²⁷ 

13:20 No one will live there again;

no one will ever reside there again. ⁶²⁸ 

No bedouin ⁶²⁹  will camp ⁶³⁰  there,

no shepherds will rest their flocks ⁶³¹  there.

13:21 Wild animals will rest there,

the ruined ⁶³²  houses will be full of hyenas. ⁶³³ 

Ostriches will live there,

wild goats will skip among the ruins. ⁶³⁴ 

13:22 Wild dogs will yip in her ruined fortresses,

jackals will yelp in the once-splendid palaces. ⁶³⁵ 

Her time is almost up, ⁶³⁶ 

her days will not be prolonged. ⁶³⁷ 

14:1 The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; ⁶³⁸  he will again choose Israel as his special people ⁶³⁹  and restore ⁶⁴⁰  them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family ⁶⁴¹  of Jacob. 14:2 Nations will take them and bring them back to their own place. Then the family of Jacob will make foreigners their servants as they settle in the Lord’s land. ⁶⁴²  They will make their captors captives and rule over the ones who oppressed them. 14:3 When the Lord gives you relief from your suffering and anxiety, ⁶⁴³  and from the hard labor which you were made to perform, 14:4 you will taunt the king of Babylon with these words: ⁶⁴⁴ 

“Look how the oppressor has met his end!

Hostility ⁶⁴⁵  has ceased!

14:5 The Lord has broken the club of the wicked,

the scepter of rulers.

14:6 It ⁶⁴⁶  furiously struck down nations

with unceasing blows. ⁶⁴⁷ 

It angrily ruled over nations,

oppressing them without restraint. ⁶⁴⁸ 

14:7 The whole earth rests and is quiet;

they break into song.

14:8 The evergreens also rejoice over your demise, ⁶⁴⁹ 

as do the cedars of Lebanon, singing, ⁶⁵⁰ 

‘Since you fell asleep, ⁶⁵¹ 

no woodsman comes up to chop us down!’ ⁶⁵² 

14:9 Sheol ⁶⁵³  below is stirred up about you,

ready to meet you when you arrive.

It rouses ⁶⁵⁴  the spirits of the dead for you,

all the former leaders of the earth; ⁶⁵⁵ 

it makes all the former kings of the nations

rise from their thrones. ⁶⁵⁶ 

14:10 All of them respond to you, saying:

‘You too have become weak like us!

You have become just like us!

14:11 Your splendor ⁶⁵⁷  has been brought down to Sheol,

as well as the sound of your stringed instruments. ⁶⁵⁸ 

You lie on a bed of maggots,

with a blanket of worms over you. ⁶⁵⁹ 

14:12 Look how you have fallen from the sky,

O shining one, son of the dawn! ⁶⁶⁰ 

You have been cut down to the ground,

O conqueror ⁶⁶¹  of the nations! ⁶⁶² 

14:13 You said to yourself, ⁶⁶³ 

“I will climb up to the sky.

Above the stars of El ⁶⁶⁴ 

I will set up my throne.

I will rule on the mountain of assembly

on the remote slopes of Zaphon. ⁶⁶⁵ 

14:14 I will climb up to the tops ⁶⁶⁶  of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High!” ⁶⁶⁷ 

14:15 But you were brought down ⁶⁶⁸  to Sheol,

to the remote slopes of the pit. ⁶⁶⁹ 

14:16 Those who see you stare at you,

they look at you carefully, thinking: ⁶⁷⁰ 

“Is this the man who shook the earth,

the one who made kingdoms tremble?

14:17 Is this the one who made the world like a desert,

who ruined its ⁶⁷¹  cities,

and refused to free his prisoners so they could return home?”’ ⁶⁷² 

14:18 ⁶⁷³ 

As for all the kings of the nations,

all of them ⁶⁷⁴  lie down in splendor, ⁶⁷⁵ 

each in his own tomb. ⁶⁷⁶ 

14:19 But you have been thrown out of your grave

like a shoot that is thrown away. ⁶⁷⁷ 

You lie among ⁶⁷⁸  the slain,

among those who have been slashed by the sword,

among those headed for ⁶⁷⁹  the stones of the pit, ⁶⁸⁰ 

as if you were a mangled corpse. ⁶⁸¹ 

14:20 You will not be buried with them, ⁶⁸² 

because you destroyed your land

and killed your people.

The offspring of the wicked

will never be mentioned again.

14:21 Prepare to execute ⁶⁸³  his sons

for the sins their ancestors have committed. ⁶⁸⁴ 

They must not rise up and take possession of the earth,

or fill the surface of the world with cities.” ⁶⁸⁵ 

14:22 “I will rise up against them,”

says the Lord who commands armies.

“I will blot out all remembrance of Babylon and destroy all her people, ⁶⁸⁶ 

including the offspring she produces,” ⁶⁸⁷ 

says the Lord.

14:23 “I will turn her into a place that is overrun with wild animals ⁶⁸⁸ 

and covered with pools of stagnant water.

I will get rid of her, just as one sweeps away dirt with a broom,” ⁶⁸⁹ 

says the Lord who commands armies.

14:24 ⁶⁹⁰ 

The Lord who commands armies makes this solemn vow:

“Be sure of this:

Just as I have intended, so it will be;

just as I have planned, it will happen.

14:25 I will break Assyria ⁶⁹¹  in my land,

I will trample them ⁶⁹²  underfoot on my hills.

Their yoke will be removed from my people,

the burden will be lifted from their shoulders. ⁶⁹³ 

14:26 This is the plan I have devised for the whole earth;

my hand is ready to strike all the nations.” ⁶⁹⁴ 

14:27 Indeed, ⁶⁹⁵  the Lord who commands armies has a plan,

and who can possibly frustrate it?

His hand is ready to strike,

and who can possibly stop it? ⁶⁹⁶ 

14:28 In the year King Ahaz died, ⁶⁹⁷  this message was revealed: ⁶⁹⁸ 

14:29 Don’t be so happy, all you Philistines,

just because the club that beat you has been broken! ⁶⁹⁹ 

For a viper will grow out of the serpent’s root,

and its fruit will be a darting adder. ⁷⁰⁰ 

14:30 The poor will graze in my pastures; ⁷⁰¹ 

the needy will rest securely.

But I will kill your root by famine;

it will put to death all your survivors. ⁷⁰² 

14:31 Wail, O city gate!

Cry out, O city!

Melt with fear, ⁷⁰³  all you Philistines!

For out of the north comes a cloud of smoke,

and there are no stragglers in its ranks. ⁷⁰⁴ 

14:32 How will they respond to the messengers of this nation? ⁷⁰⁵ 

Indeed, the Lord has made Zion secure;

the oppressed among his people will find safety in her.

15:1 Here is a message about Moab:

Indeed, in a night it is devastated,

Ar of Moab is destroyed!

Indeed, in a night it is devastated,

Kir of Moab is destroyed!

15:2 They went up to the temple, ⁷⁰⁶ 

the people of Dibon went up to the high places to lament. ⁷⁰⁷ 

Because of what happened to Nebo and Medeba, ⁷⁰⁸  Moab wails.

Every head is shaved bare,

every beard is trimmed off. ⁷⁰⁹ 

15:3 In their streets they wear sackcloth;

on their roofs and in their town squares

all of them wail,

they fall down weeping.

15:4 The people of ⁷¹⁰  Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,

their voices are heard as far away as Jahaz.

For this reason Moab’s soldiers shout in distress;

their courage wavers. ⁷¹¹ 

15:5 My heart cries out because of Moab’s plight, ⁷¹² 

and for the fugitives ⁷¹³  stretched out ⁷¹⁴  as far as Zoar and Eglath Shelishiyah.

For they weep as they make their way up the ascent of Luhith;

they loudly lament their demise on the road to Horonaim. ⁷¹⁵ 

15:6 For the waters of Nimrim are gone; ⁷¹⁶ 

the grass is dried up,

the vegetation has disappeared,

and there are no plants.

15:7 For this reason what they have made and stored up,

they carry over the Stream of the Poplars.

15:8 Indeed, the cries of distress echo throughout Moabite territory;

their wailing can be heard in Eglaim and Beer Elim. ⁷¹⁷ 

15:9 Indeed, the waters of Dimon ⁷¹⁸  are full of blood!

Indeed, I will heap even more trouble on Dimon. ⁷¹⁹ 

A lion will attack ⁷²⁰  the Moabite fugitives

and the people left in the land.

16:1 Send rams as tribute to the ruler of the land, ⁷²¹ 

from Sela in the desert ⁷²² 

to the hill of Daughter Zion.

16:2 At the fords of the Arnon ⁷²³ 

the Moabite women are like a bird

that flies about when forced from its nest. ⁷²⁴ 

16:3 “Bring a plan, make a decision! ⁷²⁵ 

Provide some shade in the middle of the day! ⁷²⁶ 

Hide the fugitives! Do not betray ⁷²⁷  the one who tries to escape!

16:4 Please let the Moabite fugitives live ⁷²⁸  among you.

Hide them ⁷²⁹  from the destroyer!”

Certainly ⁷³⁰  the one who applies pressure will cease, ⁷³¹ 

the destroyer will come to an end,

those who trample will disappear ⁷³²  from the earth.

16:5 Then a trustworthy king will be established;

he will rule in a reliable manner,

this one from David’s family. ⁷³³ 

He will be sure to make just decisions

and will be experienced in executing justice. ⁷³⁴ 

16:6 We have heard about Moab’s pride,

their great arrogance,

their boasting, pride, and excess. ⁷³⁵ 

But their boastful claims are empty! ⁷³⁶ 

16:7 So Moab wails over its demise ⁷³⁷  –

they all wail!

Completely devastated, they moan

about what has happened to the raisin cakes of Kir Hareseth. ⁷³⁸ 

16:8 For the fields of Heshbon are dried up,

as well as the vines of Sibmah.

The rulers of the nations trample all over its vines,

which reach Jazer and spread to the desert;

their shoots spread out and cross the sea.

16:9 So I weep along with Jazer ⁷³⁹ 

over the vines of Sibmah.

I will saturate you ⁷⁴⁰  with my tears, Heshbon and Elealeh,

for the conquering invaders shout triumphantly

over your fruit and crops. ⁷⁴¹ 

16:10 Joy and happiness disappear from the orchards,

and in the vineyards no one rejoices or shouts;

no one treads out juice in the wine vats ⁷⁴²  –

I have brought the joyful shouts to an end. ⁷⁴³ 

16:11 So my heart constantly sighs for Moab, like the strumming of a harp, ⁷⁴⁴ 

my inner being sighs ⁷⁴⁵  for Kir Hareseth. ⁷⁴⁶ 

16:12 When the Moabites plead with all their might at their high places, ⁷⁴⁷ 

and enter their temples to pray, their prayers will be ineffective! ⁷⁴⁸ 

16:13 This is the message the Lord previously announced about Moab. 16:14 Now the Lord makes this announcement: “Within exactly three years ⁷⁴⁹  Moab’s splendor will disappear, along with all her many people; there will be just a few, insignificant survivors left.” ⁷⁵⁰ 

17:1 Here is a message about Damascus:

“Look, Damascus is no longer a city,

it is a heap of ruins!

17:2 The cities of Aroer are abandoned. ⁷⁵¹ 

They will be used for herds,

which will lie down there in peace. ⁷⁵² 

17:3 Fortified cities will disappear from Ephraim,

and Damascus will lose its kingdom. ⁷⁵³ 

The survivors in Syria

will end up like the splendor of the Israelites,”

says the Lord who commands armies.

17:4 “At that time ⁷⁵⁴ 

Jacob’s splendor will be greatly diminished, ⁷⁵⁵ 

and he will become skin and bones. ⁷⁵⁶ 

17:5 It will be as when one gathers the grain harvest,

and his hand gleans the ear of grain.

It will be like one gathering the ears of grain

in the Valley of Rephaim.

17:6 There will be some left behind,

like when an olive tree is beaten –

two or three ripe olives remain toward the very top,

four or five on its fruitful branches,”

says the Lord God of Israel.

17:7 At that time ⁷⁵⁷  men will trust in their creator; ⁷⁵⁸ 

they will depend on ⁷⁵⁹  the Holy One of Israel. ⁷⁶⁰ 

17:8 They will no longer trust in ⁷⁶¹  the altars their hands made,

or depend on the Asherah poles and incense altars their fingers made. ⁷⁶² 

17:9 At that time ⁷⁶³  their fortified cities will be

like the abandoned summits of the Amorites, ⁷⁶⁴ 

which they abandoned because of the Israelites;

there will be desolation.

17:10 For you ignore ⁷⁶⁵  the God who rescues you;

you pay no attention to your strong protector. ⁷⁶⁶ 

So this is what happens:

You cultivate beautiful plants

and plant exotic vines. ⁷⁶⁷ 

17:11 The day you begin cultivating, you do what you can to make it grow; ⁷⁶⁸ 

the morning you begin planting, you do what you can to make it sprout.

Yet the harvest will disappear ⁷⁶⁹  in the day of disease

and incurable pain.

17:12 The many nations massing together are as good as dead, ⁷⁷⁰ 

those who make a commotion as loud as the roaring of the sea’s waves. ⁷⁷¹ 

The people making such an uproar are as good as dead, ⁷⁷² 

those who make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves. ⁷⁷³ 

17:13 Though these people make an uproar as loud as the roaring of powerful waves, ⁷⁷⁴ 

when he shouts at ⁷⁷⁵  them, they will flee to a distant land,

driven before the wind like dead weeds on the hills,

or like dead thistles ⁷⁷⁶  before a strong gale.

17:14 In the evening there is sudden terror; ⁷⁷⁷ 

by morning they vanish. ⁷⁷⁸ 

This is the fate of those who try to plunder us,

the destiny of those who try to loot us! ⁷⁷⁹ 

18:1 The land of buzzing wings is as good as dead, ⁷⁸⁰ 

the one beyond the rivers of Cush,

18:2 that sends messengers by sea,

who glide over the water’s surface in boats made of papyrus.

Go, you swift messengers,

to a nation of tall, smooth-skinned people, ⁷⁸¹ 

to a people that are feared far and wide, ⁷⁸² 

to a nation strong and victorious, ⁷⁸³ 

whose land rivers divide. ⁷⁸⁴ 

18:3 All you who live in the world,

who reside on the earth,

you will see a signal flag raised on the mountains;

you will hear a trumpet being blown.

18:4 For this is what the Lord has told me:

“I will wait ⁷⁸⁵  and watch from my place,

like scorching heat produced by the sunlight, ⁷⁸⁶ 

like a cloud of mist ⁷⁸⁷  in the heat ⁷⁸⁸  of harvest.” ⁷⁸⁹ 

18:5 For before the harvest, when the bud has sprouted,

and the ripening fruit appears, ⁷⁹⁰ 

he will cut off the unproductive shoots ⁷⁹¹  with pruning knives;

he will prune the tendrils. ⁷⁹² 

18:6 They will all be left ⁷⁹³  for the birds of the hills

and the wild animals; ⁷⁹⁴ 

the birds will eat them during the summer,

and all the wild animals will eat them during the winter.

18:7 At that time

tribute will be brought to the Lord who commands armies,

by a people that are tall and smooth-skinned,

a people that are feared far and wide,

a nation strong and victorious,

whose land rivers divide. ⁷⁹⁵ 

The tribute ⁷⁹⁶  will be brought to the place where the Lord who commands armies has chosen to reside, on Mount Zion. ⁷⁹⁷ 

19:1 Here is a message about Egypt:

Look, the Lord rides on a swift-moving cloud

and approaches Egypt.

The idols of Egypt tremble before him;

the Egyptians lose their courage. ⁷⁹⁸ 

19:2 “I will provoke civil strife in Egypt, ⁷⁹⁹ 

brothers will fight with each other,

as will neighbors,

cities, and kingdoms. ⁸⁰⁰ 

19:3 The Egyptians will panic, ⁸⁰¹ 

and I will confuse their strategy. ⁸⁰² 

They will seek guidance from the idols and from the spirits of the dead,

from the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, and from the magicians. ⁸⁰³ 

19:4 I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master;

a powerful king will rule over them,”

says the sovereign master, ⁸⁰⁴  the Lord who commands armies.

19:5 The water of the sea will be dried up,

and the river will dry up and be empty. ⁸⁰⁵ 

19:6 The canals ⁸⁰⁶  will stink; ⁸⁰⁷ 

the streams of Egypt will trickle and then dry up;

the bulrushes and reeds will decay,

19:7 along with the plants by the mouth of the river. ⁸⁰⁸ 

All the cultivated land near the river

will turn to dust and be blown away. ⁸⁰⁹ 

19:8 The fishermen will mourn and lament,

all those who cast a fishhook into the river,

and those who spread out a net on the water’s surface will grieve. ⁸¹⁰ 

19:9 Those who make clothes from combed flax will be embarrassed;

those who weave will turn pale. ⁸¹¹ 

19:10 Those who make cloth ⁸¹²  will be demoralized; ⁸¹³ 

all the hired workers will be depressed. ⁸¹⁴ 

19:11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; ⁸¹⁵ 

Pharaoh’s wise advisers give stupid advice.

How dare you say to Pharaoh,

“I am one of the sages,

one well-versed in the writings of the ancient kings?” ⁸¹⁶ 

19:12 But where, oh where, are your wise men? ⁸¹⁷ 

Let them tell you, let them find out

what the Lord who commands armies has planned for Egypt.

19:13 The officials of Zoan are fools,

the officials of Memphis ⁸¹⁸  are misled;

the rulers ⁸¹⁹  of her tribes lead Egypt astray.

19:14 The Lord has made them undiscerning; ⁸²⁰ 

they lead Egypt astray in all she does,

so that she is like a drunk sliding around in his own vomit. ⁸²¹ 

19:15 Egypt will not be able to do a thing,

head or tail, shoots and stalk. ⁸²² 

19:16 At that time ⁸²³  the Egyptians ⁸²⁴  will be like women. ⁸²⁵  They will tremble and fear because the Lord who commands armies brandishes his fist against them. ⁸²⁶  19:17 The land of Judah will humiliate Egypt. Everyone who hears about Judah will be afraid because of what the Lord who commands armies is planning to do to them. ⁸²⁷ 

19:18 At that time five cities ⁸²⁸  in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord who commands armies. One will be called the City of the Sun. ⁸²⁹  19:19 At that time there will be an altar for the Lord in the middle of the land of Egypt, as well as a sacred pillar ⁸³⁰  dedicated to the Lord at its border. 19:20 It ⁸³¹  will become a visual reminder in the land of Egypt of ⁸³²  the Lord who commands armies. When they cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, he will send them a deliverer and defender ⁸³³  who will rescue them. 19:21 The Lord will reveal himself to the Egyptians, and they ⁸³⁴  will acknowledge the Lord’s authority ⁸³⁵  at that time. ⁸³⁶  They will present sacrifices and offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and fulfill them. 19:22 The Lord will strike Egypt, striking and then healing them. They will turn to the Lord and he will listen to their prayers ⁸³⁷  and heal them.

19:23 At that time there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will visit Egypt, and the Egyptians will visit Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. ⁸³⁸  19:24 At that time Israel will be the third member of the group, along with Egypt and Assyria, and will be a recipient of blessing ⁸³⁹  in the earth. ⁸⁴⁰  19:25 The Lord who commands armies will pronounce a blessing over the earth, saying, ⁸⁴¹  “Blessed be my people, Egypt, and the work of my hands, Assyria, and my special possession, ⁸⁴²  Israel!”

20:1 The Lord revealed the following message during the year in which King Sargon of Assyria sent his commanding general to Ashdod, and he fought against it and captured it. ⁸⁴³  20:2 At that time the Lord announced through ⁸⁴⁴  Isaiah son of Amoz: “Go, remove the sackcloth from your waist and take your sandals off your feet.” He did as instructed and walked around in undergarments ⁸⁴⁵  and barefoot. 20:3 Later the Lord explained, “In the same way that my servant Isaiah has walked around in undergarments and barefoot for the past three years, as an object lesson and omen pertaining to Egypt and Cush, 20:4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the captives of Egypt and the exiles of Cush, both young and old. They will be in undergarments and barefoot, with the buttocks exposed; the Egyptians will be publicly humiliated. ⁸⁴⁶  20:5 Those who put their hope in Cush and took pride in Egypt will be afraid and embarrassed. ⁸⁴⁷  20:6 At that time ⁸⁴⁸  those who live on this coast ⁸⁴⁹  will say, ‘Look what has happened to our source of hope to whom we fled for help, expecting to be rescued from the king of Assyria! How can we escape now?’”

21:1 Here is a message about the Desert by the Sea: ⁸⁵⁰ 

Like strong winds blowing in the south, ⁸⁵¹ 

one invades from the desert,

from a land that is feared.

21:2 I have received a distressing message: ⁸⁵² 

“The deceiver deceives,

the destroyer destroys.

Attack, you Elamites!

Lay siege, you Medes!

I will put an end to all the groaning!” ⁸⁵³ 

21:3 For this reason my stomach churns; ⁸⁵⁴ 

cramps overwhelm me

like the contractions of a woman in labor.

I am disturbed ⁸⁵⁵  by what I hear,

horrified by what I see.

21:4 My heart palpitates, ⁸⁵⁶ 

I shake in fear; ⁸⁵⁷ 

the twilight I desired

has brought me terror.

21:5 Arrange the table,

lay out ⁸⁵⁸  the carpet,

eat and drink! ⁸⁵⁹ 

Get up, you officers,

smear oil on the shields! ⁸⁶⁰ 

21:6 For this is what the sovereign master ⁸⁶¹  has told me:

“Go, post a guard!

He must report what he sees.

21:7 When he sees chariots,

teams of horses, ⁸⁶² 

riders on donkeys,

riders on camels,

he must be alert,

very alert.”

21:8 Then the guard ⁸⁶³  cries out:

“On the watchtower, O sovereign master, ⁸⁶⁴ 

I stand all day long;

at my post

I am stationed every night.

21:9 Look what’s coming!

A charioteer,

a team of horses.” ⁸⁶⁵ 

When questioned, he replies, ⁸⁶⁶ 

“Babylon has fallen, fallen!

All the idols of her gods lie shattered on the ground!”

21:10 O my downtrodden people, crushed like stalks on the threshing floor, ⁸⁶⁷ 

what I have heard

from the Lord who commands armies,

the God of Israel,

I have reported to you.

21:11 Here is a message about Dumah: ⁸⁶⁸ 

Someone calls to me from Seir, ⁸⁶⁹ 

“Watchman, what is left of the night?

Watchman, what is left of the night?” ⁸⁷⁰ 

21:12 The watchman replies,

“Morning is coming, but then night. ⁸⁷¹ 

If you want to ask, ask;

come back again.” ⁸⁷² 

21:13 Here is a message about Arabia:

In the thicket of Arabia you spend the night,

you Dedanite caravans.

21:14 Bring out some water for the thirsty.

You who live in the land of Tema,

bring some food for the fugitives.

21:15 For they flee from the swords –

from the drawn sword

and from the battle-ready bow

and from the severity of the battle.

21:16 For this is what the sovereign master ⁸⁷³  has told me: “Within exactly one year ⁸⁷⁴  all the splendor of Kedar will come to an end. 21:17 Just a handful of archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be left.” ⁸⁷⁵  Indeed, ⁸⁷⁶  the Lord God of Israel has spoken.

22:1 Here is a message about the Valley of Vision: ⁸⁷⁷ 

What is the reason ⁸⁷⁸ 

that all of you go up to the rooftops?

22:2 The noisy city is full of raucous sounds;

the town is filled with revelry. ⁸⁷⁹ 

Your slain were not cut down by the sword;

they did not die in battle. ⁸⁸⁰ 

22:3 ⁸⁸¹ 

All your leaders ran away together –

they fled to a distant place;

all your refugees ⁸⁸²  were captured together –

they were captured without a single arrow being shot. ⁸⁸³ 

22:4 So I say:

“Don’t look at me! ⁸⁸⁴ 

I am weeping bitterly.

Don’t try ⁸⁸⁵  to console me

concerning the destruction of my defenseless people.” ⁸⁸⁶ 

22:5 For the sovereign master, ⁸⁸⁷  the Lord who commands armies,

has planned a day of panic, defeat, and confusion. ⁸⁸⁸ 

In the Valley of Vision ⁸⁸⁹  people shout ⁸⁹⁰ 

and cry out to the hill. ⁸⁹¹ 

22:6 The Elamites picked up the quiver,

and came with chariots and horsemen; ⁸⁹² 

the men of Kir ⁸⁹³  prepared ⁸⁹⁴  the shield. ⁸⁹⁵ 

22:7 Your very best valleys were full of chariots; ⁸⁹⁶ 

horsemen confidently took their positions ⁸⁹⁷  at the gate.

22:8 They ⁸⁹⁸  removed the defenses ⁸⁹⁹  of Judah.

At that time ⁹⁰⁰  you looked

for the weapons in the House of the Forest. ⁹⁰¹ 

22:9 You saw the many breaks

in the walls of the city of David; ⁹⁰² 

you stored up water in the lower pool.

22:10 You counted the houses in Jerusalem, ⁹⁰³ 

and demolished houses so you could have material to reinforce the wall. ⁹⁰⁴ 

22:11 You made a reservoir between the two walls

for the water of the old pool –

but you did not trust in ⁹⁰⁵  the one who made it; ⁹⁰⁶ 

you did not depend on ⁹⁰⁷  the one who formed it long ago!

22:12 At that time the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, called for weeping and mourning,

for shaved heads and sackcloth. ⁹⁰⁸ 

22:13 But look, there is outright celebration! ⁹⁰⁹ 

You say, “Kill the ox and slaughter the sheep,

eat meat and drink wine.

Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!” ⁹¹⁰ 

22:14 The Lord who commands armies told me this: ⁹¹¹  “Certainly this sin will not be forgiven as long as you live,” ⁹¹²  says the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies.

22:15 This is what the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, says:

“Go visit this administrator, Shebna, who supervises the palace, ⁹¹³  and tell him: ⁹¹⁴ 

22:16 ‘What right do you have to be here? What relatives do you have buried here? ⁹¹⁵ 

Why ⁹¹⁶  do you chisel out a tomb for yourself here?

He chisels out his burial site in an elevated place,

he carves out his tomb on a cliff.

22:17 Look, the Lord will throw you far away, ⁹¹⁷  you mere man! ⁹¹⁸ 

He will wrap you up tightly. ⁹¹⁹ 

22:18 He will wind you up tightly into a ball

and throw you into a wide, open land. ⁹²⁰ 

There you will die,

and there with you will be your impressive chariots, ⁹²¹ 

which bring disgrace to the house of your master. ⁹²² 

22:19 I will remove you from ⁹²³  your office;

you will be thrown down ⁹²⁴  from your position.

22:20 “At that time ⁹²⁵  I will summon my servant Eliakim, son of Hilkiah. 22:21 I will put your robe on him, tie your belt around him, and transfer your authority to him. ⁹²⁶  He will become a protector of ⁹²⁷  the residents of Jerusalem and of the people ⁹²⁸  of Judah. 22:22 I will place the key ⁹²⁹  to the house of David on his shoulder. When he opens the door, no one can close it; when he closes the door, no one can open it. 22:23 I will fasten him like a peg into a solid place; ⁹³⁰  he will bring honor and respect to his father’s family. ⁹³¹  22:24 His father’s family will gain increasing prominence because of him, ⁹³²  including the offspring and the offshoots. ⁹³³  All the small containers, including the bowls and all the jars will hang from this peg.’ ⁹³⁴ 

22:25 “At that time,” ⁹³⁵  says the Lord who commands armies, “the peg fastened into a solid place will come loose. It will be cut off and fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut off.” ⁹³⁶  Indeed, ⁹³⁷  the Lord has spoken.

23:1 Here is a message about Tyre:

Wail, you large ships, ⁹³⁸ 

for the port is too devastated to enter! ⁹³⁹ 

From the land of Cyprus ⁹⁴⁰  this news is announced to them.

23:2 Lament, ⁹⁴¹  you residents of the coast,

you merchants of Sidon ⁹⁴²  who travel over the sea,

whose agents sail over 23:3 the deep waters! ⁹⁴³ 

Grain from the Shihor region, ⁹⁴⁴ 

crops grown near the Nile ⁹⁴⁵  she receives; ⁹⁴⁶ 

she is the trade center ⁹⁴⁷  of the nations.

23:4 Be ashamed, O Sidon,

for the sea ⁹⁴⁸  says this, O fortress of the sea:

“I have not gone into labor

or given birth;

I have not raised young men

or brought up young women.” ⁹⁴⁹ 

23:5 When the news reaches Egypt,

they will be shaken by what has happened to Tyre. ⁹⁵⁰ 

23:6 Travel to Tarshish!

Wail, you residents of the coast!

23:7 Is this really your boisterous city ⁹⁵¹ 

whose origins are in the distant past, ⁹⁵² 

and whose feet led her to a distant land to reside?

23:8 Who planned this for royal Tyre, ⁹⁵³ 

whose merchants are princes,

whose traders are the dignitaries ⁹⁵⁴  of the earth?

23:9 The Lord who commands armies planned it –

to dishonor the pride that comes from all her beauty, ⁹⁵⁵ 

to humiliate all the dignitaries of the earth.

23:10 Daughter Tarshish, travel back to your land, as one crosses the Nile;

there is no longer any marketplace in Tyre. ⁹⁵⁶ 

23:11 The Lord stretched out his hand over the sea, ⁹⁵⁷ 

he shook kingdoms;

he ⁹⁵⁸  gave the order

to destroy Canaan’s fortresses. ⁹⁵⁹ 

23:12 He said,

“You will no longer celebrate,

oppressed ⁹⁶⁰  virgin daughter Sidon!

Get up, travel to Cyprus,

but you will find no relief there.” ⁹⁶¹ 

23:13 Look at the land of the Chaldeans,

these people who have lost their identity! ⁹⁶² 

The Assyrians have made it a home for wild animals.

They erected their siege towers, ⁹⁶³ 

demolished ⁹⁶⁴  its fortresses,

and turned it into a heap of ruins. ⁹⁶⁵ 

23:14 Wail, you large ships, ⁹⁶⁶ 

for your fortress is destroyed!

23:15 At that time ⁹⁶⁷  Tyre will be forgotten for seventy years, ⁹⁶⁸  the typical life span of a king. ⁹⁶⁹  At the end of seventy years Tyre will try to attract attention again, like the prostitute in the popular song: ⁹⁷⁰ 

23:16 “Take the harp,

go through the city,

forgotten prostitute!

Play it well,

play lots of songs,

so you’ll be noticed!” ⁹⁷¹ 

23:17 At the end of seventy years ⁹⁷²  the Lord will revive ⁹⁷³  Tyre. She will start making money again by selling her services to all the earth’s kingdoms. ⁹⁷⁴  23:18 Her profits and earnings will be set apart for the Lord. They will not be stored up or accumulated, for her profits will be given to those who live in the Lord’s presence and will be used to purchase large quantities of food and beautiful clothes. ⁹⁷⁵ 

24:1 Look, the Lord is ready to devastate the earth

and leave it in ruins;

he will mar its surface

and scatter its inhabitants.

24:2 Everyone will suffer – the priest as well as the people, ⁹⁷⁶ 

the master as well as the servant, ⁹⁷⁷ 

the elegant lady as well as the female attendant, ⁹⁷⁸ 

the seller as well as the buyer, ⁹⁷⁹ 

the borrower as well as the lender, ⁹⁸⁰ 

the creditor as well as the debtor. ⁹⁸¹ 

24:3 The earth will be completely devastated

and thoroughly ransacked.

For the Lord has decreed this judgment. ⁹⁸² 

24:4 The earth ⁹⁸³  dries up ⁹⁸⁴  and withers,

the world shrivels up and withers;

the prominent people of the earth ⁹⁸⁵  fade away.

24:5 The earth is defiled by ⁹⁸⁶  its inhabitants, ⁹⁸⁷ 

for they have violated laws,

disregarded the regulation, ⁹⁸⁸ 

and broken the permanent treaty. ⁹⁸⁹ 

24:6 So a treaty curse ⁹⁹⁰  devours the earth;

its inhabitants pay for their guilt. ⁹⁹¹ 

This is why the inhabitants of the earth disappear, ⁹⁹² 

and are reduced to just a handful of people. ⁹⁹³ 

24:7 The new wine dries up,

the vines shrivel up,

all those who like to celebrate ⁹⁹⁴  groan.

24:8 The happy sound ⁹⁹⁵  of the tambourines stops,

the revelry of those who celebrate comes to a halt,

the happy sound of the harp ceases.

24:9 They no longer sing and drink wine; ⁹⁹⁶ 

the beer tastes bitter to those who drink it.

24:10 The ruined town ⁹⁹⁷  is shattered;

all of the houses are shut up tight. ⁹⁹⁸ 

24:11 They howl in the streets because of what happened to the wine; ⁹⁹⁹ 

all joy turns to sorrow; ¹⁰⁰⁰ 

celebrations disappear from the earth. ¹⁰⁰¹ 

24:12 The city is left in ruins; ¹⁰⁰² 

the gate is reduced to rubble. ¹⁰⁰³ 

24:13 This is what will happen throughout ¹⁰⁰⁴  the earth,

among the nations.

It will be like when they beat an olive tree,

and just a few olives are left at the end of the harvest. ¹⁰⁰⁵ 

24:14 They ¹⁰⁰⁶  lift their voices and shout joyfully;

they praise ¹⁰⁰⁷  the majesty of the Lord in the west.

24:15 So in the east ¹⁰⁰⁸  extol the Lord,

along the seacoasts extol ¹⁰⁰⁹  the fame ¹⁰¹⁰  of the Lord God of Israel.

24:16 From the ends of the earth we ¹⁰¹¹  hear songs –

the Just One is majestic. ¹⁰¹² 

But I ¹⁰¹³  say, “I’m wasting away! I’m wasting away! I’m doomed!

Deceivers deceive, deceivers thoroughly deceive!” ¹⁰¹⁴ 

24:17 Terror, pit, and snare

are ready to overtake you inhabitants of the earth! ¹⁰¹⁵ 

24:18 The one who runs away from the sound of the terror

will fall into the pit; ¹⁰¹⁶ 

the one who climbs out of the pit,

will be trapped by the snare.

For the floodgates of the heavens ¹⁰¹⁷  are opened up ¹⁰¹⁸ 

and the foundations of the earth shake.

24:19 The earth is broken in pieces,

the earth is ripped to shreds,

the earth shakes violently. ¹⁰¹⁹ 

24:20 The earth will stagger around ¹⁰²⁰  like a drunk;

it will sway back and forth like a hut in a windstorm. ¹⁰²¹ 

Its sin will weigh it down,

and it will fall and never get up again.

24:21 At that time ¹⁰²²  the Lord will punish ¹⁰²³ 

the heavenly forces in the heavens ¹⁰²⁴ 

and the earthly kings on the earth.

24:22 They will be imprisoned in a pit, ¹⁰²⁵ 

locked up in a prison,

and after staying there for a long time, ¹⁰²⁶  they will be punished. ¹⁰²⁷ 

24:23 The full moon will be covered up, ¹⁰²⁸ 

the bright sun ¹⁰²⁹  will be darkened; ¹⁰³⁰ 

for the Lord who commands armies will rule ¹⁰³¹ 

on Mount Zion in Jerusalem ¹⁰³² 

in the presence of his assembly, in majestic splendor. ¹⁰³³ 

25:1 O Lord, you are my God! ¹⁰³⁴ 

I will exalt you in praise, I will extol your fame. ¹⁰³⁵ 

For you have done extraordinary things,

and executed plans made long ago exactly as you decreed. ¹⁰³⁶ 

25:2 Indeed, ¹⁰³⁷  you have made the city ¹⁰³⁸  into a heap of rubble,

the fortified town into a heap of ruins;

the fortress of foreigners ¹⁰³⁹  is no longer a city,

it will never be rebuilt.

25:3 So a strong nation will extol you;

the towns of ¹⁰⁴⁰  powerful nations will fear you.

25:4 For you are a protector for the poor,

a protector for the needy in their distress,

a shelter from the rainstorm,

a shade from the heat.

Though the breath of tyrants ¹⁰⁴¹  is like a winter rainstorm, ¹⁰⁴² 

25:5 like heat ¹⁰⁴³  in a dry land,

you humble the boasting foreigners. ¹⁰⁴⁴ 

Just as the shadow of a cloud causes the heat to subside, ¹⁰⁴⁵ 

so he causes the song of tyrants to cease. ¹⁰⁴⁶ 

25:6 The Lord who commands armies will hold a banquet for all the nations on this mountain. ¹⁰⁴⁷ 

At this banquet there will be plenty of meat and aged wine –

tender meat and choicest wine. ¹⁰⁴⁸ 

25:7 On this mountain he will swallow up

the shroud that is over all the peoples, ¹⁰⁴⁹ 

the woven covering that is over all the nations; ¹⁰⁵⁰ 

25:8 he will swallow up death permanently. ¹⁰⁵¹ 

The sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears from every face,

and remove his people’s disgrace from all the earth.

Indeed, the Lord has announced it! ¹⁰⁵² 

25:9 At that time they will say, ¹⁰⁵³ 

“Look, here ¹⁰⁵⁴  is our God!

We waited for him and he delivered us.

Here ¹⁰⁵⁵  is the Lord! We waited for him.

Let’s rejoice and celebrate his deliverance!”

25:10 For the Lord’s power will make this mountain secure. ¹⁰⁵⁶ 

Moab will be trampled down where it stands, ¹⁰⁵⁷ 

as a heap of straw is trampled down in ¹⁰⁵⁸  a manure pile.

25:11 Moab ¹⁰⁵⁹  will spread out its hands in the middle of it, ¹⁰⁶⁰ 

just as a swimmer spreads his hands to swim;

the Lord ¹⁰⁶¹  will bring down Moab’s ¹⁰⁶²  pride as it spreads its hands. ¹⁰⁶³ 

25:12 The fortified city (along with the very tops of your ¹⁰⁶⁴  walls) ¹⁰⁶⁵  he will knock down,

he will bring it down, he will throw it down to the dusty ground. ¹⁰⁶⁶ 

26:1 At that time ¹⁰⁶⁷  this song will be sung in the land of Judah:

“We have a strong city!

The Lord’s ¹⁰⁶⁸  deliverance, like walls and a rampart, makes it secure. ¹⁰⁶⁹ 

26:2 Open the gates so a righteous nation can enter –

one that remains trustworthy.

26:3 You keep completely safe the people who maintain their faith,

for they trust in you. ¹⁰⁷⁰ 

26:4 Trust in the Lord from this time forward, ¹⁰⁷¹ 

even in Yah, the Lord, an enduring protector! ¹⁰⁷² 

26:5 Indeed, ¹⁰⁷³  the Lord knocks down those who live in a high place,

he brings down an elevated town;

he brings it down to the ground, ¹⁰⁷⁴ 

he throws it down to the dust.

26:6 It is trampled underfoot

by the feet of the oppressed,

by the soles of the poor.”

26:7 ¹⁰⁷⁵ 

The way of the righteous is level,

the path of the righteous that you make is straight. ¹⁰⁷⁶ 

26:8 Yes, as your judgments unfold, ¹⁰⁷⁷ 

O Lord, we wait for you.

We desire your fame and reputation to grow. ¹⁰⁷⁸ 

26:9 I ¹⁰⁷⁹  look for ¹⁰⁸⁰  you during the night,

my spirit within me seeks you at dawn,

for when your judgments come upon the earth,

those who live in the world learn about justice. ¹⁰⁸¹ 

26:10 If the wicked are shown mercy,

they do not learn about justice. ¹⁰⁸² 

Even in a land where right is rewarded, they act unjustly; ¹⁰⁸³ 

they do not see the Lord’s majesty revealed.

26:11 O Lord, you are ready to act, ¹⁰⁸⁴ 

but they don’t even notice.

They will see and be put to shame by your angry judgment against humankind, ¹⁰⁸⁵ 

yes, fire will consume your enemies. ¹⁰⁸⁶ 

26:12 O Lord, you make us secure, ¹⁰⁸⁷ 

for even all we have accomplished, you have done for us. ¹⁰⁸⁸ 

26:13 O Lord, our God,

masters other than you have ruled us,

but we praise your name alone.

26:14 The dead do not come back to life,

the spirits of the dead do not rise. ¹⁰⁸⁹ 

That is because ¹⁰⁹⁰  you came in judgment ¹⁰⁹¹  and destroyed them,

you wiped out all memory of them.

26:15 You have made the nation larger, ¹⁰⁹²  O Lord,

you have made the nation larger and revealed your splendor, ¹⁰⁹³ 

you have extended all the borders of the land.

26:16 O Lord, in distress they looked for you;

they uttered incantations because of your discipline. ¹⁰⁹⁴ 

26:17 As when a pregnant woman gets ready to deliver

and strains and cries out because of her labor pains,

so were we because of you, O Lord.

26:18 We were pregnant, we strained,

we gave birth, as it were, to wind. ¹⁰⁹⁵ 

We cannot produce deliverance on the earth;

people to populate the world are not born. ¹⁰⁹⁶ 

26:19 ¹⁰⁹⁷ 

Your dead will come back to life;

your corpses will rise up.

Wake up and shout joyfully, you who live in the ground! ¹⁰⁹⁸ 

For you will grow like plants drenched with the morning dew, ¹⁰⁹⁹ 

and the earth will bring forth its dead spirits. ¹¹⁰⁰ 

26:20 Go, my people! Enter your inner rooms!

Close your doors behind you!

Hide for a little while,

until his angry judgment is over! ¹¹⁰¹ 

26:21 For look, the Lord is coming out of the place where he lives, ¹¹⁰² 

to punish the sin of those who live on the earth.

The earth will display the blood shed on it;

it will no longer cover up its slain. ¹¹⁰³ 

27:1 At that time ¹¹⁰⁴  the Lord will punish

with his destructive, ¹¹⁰⁵  great, and powerful sword

Leviathan the fast-moving ¹¹⁰⁶  serpent,

Leviathan the squirming serpent;

he will kill the sea monster. ¹¹⁰⁷ 

27:2 When that time comes, ¹¹⁰⁸ 

sing about a delightful vineyard! ¹¹⁰⁹ 

27:3 I, the Lord, protect it; ¹¹¹⁰ 

I water it regularly. ¹¹¹¹ 

I guard it night and day,

so no one can harm it. ¹¹¹² 

27:4 I am not angry.

I wish I could confront some thorns and briers!

Then I would march against them ¹¹¹³  for battle;

I would set them ¹¹¹⁴  all on fire,

27:5 unless they became my subjects ¹¹¹⁵ 

and made peace with me;

let them make peace with me. ¹¹¹⁶ 

27:6 The time is coming when Jacob will take root; ¹¹¹⁷ 

Israel will blossom and grow branches.

The produce ¹¹¹⁸  will fill the surface of the world. ¹¹¹⁹ 

27:7 Has the Lord struck down Israel like he did their oppressors? ¹¹²⁰ 

Has Israel been killed like their enemies? ¹¹²¹ 

27:8 When you summon her for divorce, you prosecute her; ¹¹²² 

he drives her away ¹¹²³  with his strong wind in the day of the east wind. ¹¹²⁴ 

27:9 So in this way Jacob’s sin will be forgiven, ¹¹²⁵ 

and this is how they will show they are finished sinning: ¹¹²⁶ 

They will make all the stones of the altars ¹¹²⁷ 

like crushed limestone,

and the Asherah poles and the incense altars will no longer stand. ¹¹²⁸ 

27:10 For the fortified city ¹¹²⁹  is left alone;

it is a deserted settlement

and abandoned like the desert.

Calves ¹¹³⁰  graze there;

they lie down there

and eat its branches bare. ¹¹³¹ 

27:11 When its branches get brittle, ¹¹³²  they break;

women come and use them for kindling. ¹¹³³ 

For these people lack understanding, ¹¹³⁴ 

therefore the one who made them has no compassion on them;

the one who formed them has no mercy on them.

27:12 At that time ¹¹³⁵  the Lord will shake the tree, ¹¹³⁶  from the Euphrates River ¹¹³⁷  to the Stream of Egypt. Then you will be gathered up one by one, O Israelites. ¹¹³⁸  27:13 At that time ¹¹³⁹  a large ¹¹⁴⁰  trumpet will be blown, and the ones lost ¹¹⁴¹  in the land of Assyria will come, as well as the refugees in ¹¹⁴²  the land of Egypt. They will worship the Lord on the holy mountain in Jerusalem. ¹¹⁴³ 

28:1 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards is doomed, ¹¹⁴⁴ 

the withering flower, its beautiful splendor, ¹¹⁴⁵ 

situated ¹¹⁴⁶  at the head of a rich valley,

the crown of those overcome with wine. ¹¹⁴⁷ 

28:2 Look, the sovereign master ¹¹⁴⁸  sends a strong, powerful one. ¹¹⁴⁹ 

With the force of a hailstorm or a destructive windstorm, ¹¹⁵⁰ 

with the might of a driving, torrential rainstorm, ¹¹⁵¹ 

he will knock that crown ¹¹⁵²  to the ground with his hand. ¹¹⁵³ 

28:3 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards

will be trampled underfoot.

28:4 The withering flower, its beautiful splendor,

situated at the head of a rich valley,

will be like an early fig before harvest –

as soon as someone notices it,

he grabs it and swallows it. ¹¹⁵⁴ 

28:5 At that time ¹¹⁵⁵  the Lord who commands armies will become a beautiful crown

and a splendid diadem for the remnant of his people.

28:6 He will give discernment to the one who makes judicial decisions,

and strength to those who defend the city from attackers. ¹¹⁵⁶ 

28:7 Even these men ¹¹⁵⁷  stagger because of wine,

they stumble around because of beer –

priests and prophets stagger because of beer,

they are confused ¹¹⁵⁸  because of wine,

they stumble around because of beer;

they stagger while seeing prophetic visions, ¹¹⁵⁹ 

they totter while making legal decisions. ¹¹⁶⁰ 

28:8 Indeed, all the tables are covered with vomit;

no place is untouched. ¹¹⁶¹ 

28:9 Who is the Lord ¹¹⁶²  trying to teach?

To whom is he explaining a message? ¹¹⁶³ 

Those just weaned from milk!

Those just taken from their mother’s breast! ¹¹⁶⁴ 

28:10 Indeed, they will hear meaningless gibberish,

senseless babbling,

a syllable here, a syllable there. ¹¹⁶⁵ 

28:11 For with mocking lips and a foreign tongue

he will speak to these people. ¹¹⁶⁶ 

28:12 In the past he said to them, ¹¹⁶⁷ 

“This is where security can be found.

Provide security for the one who is exhausted!

This is where rest can be found.” ¹¹⁶⁸ 

But they refused to listen.

28:13 So the Lord’s word to them will sound like

meaningless gibberish,

senseless babbling,

a syllable here, a syllable there. ¹¹⁶⁹ 

As a result, they will fall on their backsides when they try to walk, ¹¹⁷⁰ 

and be injured, ensnared, and captured. ¹¹⁷¹ 

28:14 Therefore, listen to the Lord’s word,

you who mock,

you rulers of these people

who reside in Jerusalem! ¹¹⁷² 

28:15 For you say,

“We have made a treaty with death,

with Sheol ¹¹⁷³  we have made an agreement. ¹¹⁷⁴ 

When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by ¹¹⁷⁵ 

it will not reach us.

For we have made a lie our refuge,

we have hidden ourselves in a deceitful word.” ¹¹⁷⁶ 

28:16 Therefore, this is what the sovereign master, the Lord, says:

“Look, I am laying ¹¹⁷⁷  a stone in Zion,

an approved ¹¹⁷⁸  stone,

set in place as a precious cornerstone for the foundation. ¹¹⁷⁹ 

The one who maintains his faith will not panic. ¹¹⁸⁰ 

28:17 I will make justice the measuring line,

fairness the plumb line;

hail will sweep away the unreliable refuge, ¹¹⁸¹ 

the floodwaters will overwhelm the hiding place.

28:18 Your treaty with death will be dissolved; ¹¹⁸² 

your agreement ¹¹⁸³  with Sheol will not last. ¹¹⁸⁴ 

When the overwhelming judgment sweeps by, ¹¹⁸⁵ 

you will be overrun by it. ¹¹⁸⁶ 

28:19 Whenever it sweeps by, it will overtake you;

indeed, ¹¹⁸⁷  every morning it will sweep by,

it will come through during the day and the night.” ¹¹⁸⁸ 

When this announcement is understood,

it will cause nothing but terror.

28:20 For the bed is too short to stretch out on,

and the blanket is too narrow to wrap around oneself. ¹¹⁸⁹ 

28:21 For the Lord will rise up, as he did at Mount Perazim, ¹¹⁹⁰ 

he will rouse himself, as he did in the Valley of Gibeon, ¹¹⁹¹ 

to accomplish his work,

his peculiar work,

to perform his task,

his strange task. ¹¹⁹² 

28:22 So now, do not mock,

or your chains will become heavier!

For I have heard a message about decreed destruction,

from the sovereign master, the Lord who commands armies, against the entire land. ¹¹⁹³ 

28:23 Pay attention and listen to my message! ¹¹⁹⁴ 

Be attentive and listen to what I have to say! ¹¹⁹⁵ 

28:24 Does a farmer just keep on plowing at planting time? ¹¹⁹⁶ 

Does he keep breaking up and harrowing his ground?

28:25 Once he has leveled its surface,

does he not scatter the seed of the caraway plant,

sow the seed of the cumin plant,

and plant the wheat, barley, and grain in their designated places? ¹¹⁹⁷ 

28:26 His God instructs him;

he teaches him the principles of agriculture. ¹¹⁹⁸ 

28:27 Certainly ¹¹⁹⁹  caraway seed is not threshed with a sledge,

nor is the wheel of a cart rolled over cumin seed. ¹²⁰⁰ 

Certainly caraway seed is beaten with a stick,

and cumin seed with a flail.

28:28 Grain is crushed,

though one certainly does not thresh it forever.

The wheel of one’s wagon rolls over it,

but his horses do not crush it.

28:29 This also comes from the Lord who commands armies,

who gives supernatural guidance and imparts great wisdom. ¹²⁰¹ 

29:1 Ariel is as good as dead ¹²⁰²  –

Ariel, the town David besieged! ¹²⁰³ 

Keep observing your annual rituals,

celebrate your festivals on schedule. ¹²⁰⁴ 

29:2 I will threaten Ariel,

and she will mourn intensely

and become like an altar hearth ¹²⁰⁵  before me.

29:3 I will lay siege to you on all sides; ¹²⁰⁶ 

I will besiege you with troops; ¹²⁰⁷ 

I will raise siege works against you.

29:4 You will fall;

while lying on the ground ¹²⁰⁸  you will speak;

from the dust where you lie, your words will be heard. ¹²⁰⁹ 

Your voice will sound like a spirit speaking from the underworld; ¹²¹⁰ 

from the dust you will chirp as if muttering an incantation. ¹²¹¹ 

29:5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,

the horde of tyrants ¹²¹²  like chaff that is blown away.

It will happen suddenly, in a flash.

29:6 Judgment will come from the Lord who commands armies, ¹²¹³ 

accompanied by thunder, earthquake, and a loud noise,

by a strong gale, a windstorm, and a consuming flame of fire.

29:7 It will be like a dream, a night vision.

There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel,

those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.

29:8 It will be like a hungry man dreaming that he is eating,

only to awaken and find that his stomach is empty. ¹²¹⁴ 

It will be like a thirsty man dreaming that he is drinking,

only to awaken and find that he is still weak and his thirst unquenched. ¹²¹⁵ 

So it will be for the horde from all the nations

that fight against Mount Zion.

29:9 You will be shocked and amazed! ¹²¹⁶ 

You are totally blind! ¹²¹⁷ 

They are drunk, ¹²¹⁸  but not because of wine;

they stagger, ¹²¹⁹  but not because of beer.

29:10 For the Lord has poured out on you

a strong urge to sleep deeply. ¹²²⁰ 

He has shut your eyes (the prophets),

and covered your heads (the seers).

29:11 To you this entire prophetic revelation ¹²²¹  is like words in a sealed scroll. When they hand it to one who can read ¹²²²  and say, “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t, because it is sealed.” 29:12 Or when they hand the scroll to one who can’t read ¹²²³  and say, “Read this,” he says, “I can’t read.” ¹²²⁴ 

29:13 The sovereign master ¹²²⁵  says,

“These people say they are loyal to me; ¹²²⁶ 

they say wonderful things about me, ¹²²⁷ 

but they are not really loyal to me. ¹²²⁸ 

Their worship consists of

nothing but man-made ritual. ¹²²⁹ 

29:14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people –

an absolutely extraordinary deed. ¹²³⁰ 

Wise men will have nothing to say,

the sages will have no explanations.” ¹²³¹ 

29:15 Those who try to hide their plans from the Lord are as good as dead, ¹²³² 

who do their work in secret and boast, ¹²³³ 

“Who sees us? Who knows what we’re doing?” ¹²³⁴ 

29:16 Your thinking is perverse! ¹²³⁵ 

Should the potter be regarded as clay? ¹²³⁶ 

Should the thing made say ¹²³⁷  about its maker, “He didn’t make me”?

Or should the pottery say about the potter, “He doesn’t understand”?

29:17 In just a very short time ¹²³⁸ 

Lebanon will turn into an orchard,

and the orchard will be considered a forest. ¹²³⁹ 

29:18 At that time ¹²⁴⁰  the deaf will be able to hear words read from a scroll,

and the eyes of the blind will be able to see through deep darkness. ¹²⁴¹ 

29:19 The downtrodden will again rejoice in the Lord;

the poor among humankind will take delight ¹²⁴²  in the Holy One of Israel. ¹²⁴³ 

29:20 For tyrants will disappear,

those who taunt will vanish,

and all those who love to do wrong will be eliminated ¹²⁴⁴  –

29:21 those who bear false testimony against a person, ¹²⁴⁵ 

who entrap the one who arbitrates at the city gate ¹²⁴⁶ 

and deprive the innocent of justice by making false charges. ¹²⁴⁷ 

29:22 So this is what the Lord, the one who delivered Abraham, says to the family of Jacob: ¹²⁴⁸ 

“Jacob will no longer be ashamed;

their faces will no longer show their embarrassment. ¹²⁴⁹ 

29:23 For when they see their children,

whom I will produce among them, ¹²⁵⁰ 

they will honor ¹²⁵¹  my name.

They will honor the Holy One of Jacob; ¹²⁵² 

they will respect ¹²⁵³  the God of Israel.

29:24 Those who stray morally will gain understanding; ¹²⁵⁴ 

those who complain will acquire insight. ¹²⁵⁵ 

30:1 “The rebellious ¹²⁵⁶  children are as good as dead,” ¹²⁵⁷  says the Lord,

“those who make plans without consulting me, ¹²⁵⁸ 

who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, ¹²⁵⁹ 

and thereby compound their sin. ¹²⁶⁰ 

30:2 They travel down to Egypt

without seeking my will, ¹²⁶¹ 

seeking Pharaoh’s protection,

and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. ¹²⁶² 

30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,

and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.

30:4 Though his ¹²⁶³  officials are in Zoan

and his messengers arrive at Hanes, ¹²⁶⁴ 

30:5 all will be put to shame ¹²⁶⁵ 

because of a nation that cannot help them,

who cannot give them aid or help,

but only shame and disgrace.”

30:6 This is a message ¹²⁶⁶  about the animals in the Negev:

Through a land of distress and danger,

inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, ¹²⁶⁷ 

by snakes and darting adders, ¹²⁶⁸ 

they transport ¹²⁶⁹  their wealth on the backs of donkeys,

their riches on the humps of camels,

to a nation that cannot help them. ¹²⁷⁰ 

30:7 Egypt is totally incapable of helping. ¹²⁷¹ 

For this reason I call her

‘Proud one ¹²⁷²  who is silenced.’” ¹²⁷³ 

30:8 Now go, write it ¹²⁷⁴  down on a tablet in their presence, ¹²⁷⁵ 

inscribe it on a scroll,

so that it might be preserved for a future time

as an enduring witness. ¹²⁷⁶ 

30:9 For these are rebellious people –

they are lying children,

children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law. ¹²⁷⁷ 

30:10 They ¹²⁷⁸  say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”

and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! ¹²⁷⁹ 

Tell us nice things,

relate deceptive messages. ¹²⁸⁰ 

30:11 Turn aside from the way,

stray off the path. ¹²⁸¹ 

Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.” ¹²⁸² 

30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:

“You have rejected this message; ¹²⁸³ 

you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, ¹²⁸⁴ 

and rely on that kind of behavior. ¹²⁸⁵ 

30:13 So this sin will become your downfall.

You will be like a high wall

that bulges and cracks and is ready to collapse;

it crumbles suddenly, in a flash. ¹²⁸⁶ 

30:14 It shatters in pieces like a clay jar,

so shattered to bits that none of it can be salvaged. ¹²⁸⁷ 

Among its fragments one cannot find a shard large enough ¹²⁸⁸ 

to scoop a hot coal from a fire ¹²⁸⁹ 

or to skim off water from a cistern.” ¹²⁹⁰ 

30:15 For this is what the master, the Lord, the Holy One of Israel says:

“If you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered; ¹²⁹¹ 

if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength, ¹²⁹² 

but you are unwilling.

30:16 You say, ‘No, we will flee on horses,’

so you will indeed flee.

You say, ‘We will ride on fast horses,’

so your pursuers will be fast.

30:17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; ¹²⁹³ 

at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, ¹²⁹⁴ 

until the remaining few are as isolated ¹²⁹⁵ 

as a flagpole on a mountaintop

or a signal flag on a hill.”

30:18 For this reason the Lord is ready to show you mercy;

he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you. ¹²⁹⁶ 

Indeed, the Lord is a just God;

all who wait for him in faith will be blessed. ¹²⁹⁷ 

30:19 For people will live in Zion;

in Jerusalem ¹²⁹⁸  you will weep no more. ¹²⁹⁹ 

When he hears your cry of despair, he will indeed show you mercy;

when he hears it, he will respond to you. ¹³⁰⁰ 

30:20 The sovereign master ¹³⁰¹  will give you distress to eat

and suffering to drink; ¹³⁰² 

but your teachers will no longer be hidden;

your eyes will see them. ¹³⁰³ 

30:21 You ¹³⁰⁴  will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,

“This is the correct ¹³⁰⁵  way, walk in it,”

whether you are heading to the right or the left.

30:22 You will desecrate your silver-plated idols ¹³⁰⁶ 

and your gold-plated images. ¹³⁰⁷ 

You will throw them away as if they were a menstrual rag,

saying to them, “Get out!”

30:23 He will water the seed you plant in the ground,

and the ground will produce crops in abundance. ¹³⁰⁸ 

At that time ¹³⁰⁹  your cattle will graze in wide pastures.

30:24 The oxen and donkeys used in plowing ¹³¹⁰ 

will eat seasoned feed winnowed with a shovel and pitchfork. ¹³¹¹ 

30:25 On every high mountain

and every high hill

there will be streams flowing with water,

at the time of ¹³¹²  great slaughter when the fortified towers collapse.

30:26 The light of the full moon will be like the sun’s glare

and the sun’s glare will be seven times brighter,

like the light of seven days, ¹³¹³ 

when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones ¹³¹⁴ 

and heals their severe wound. ¹³¹⁵ 

30:27 Look, the name ¹³¹⁶  of the Lord comes from a distant place

in raging anger and awesome splendor. ¹³¹⁷ 

He speaks angrily

and his word is like destructive fire. ¹³¹⁸ 

30:28 His battle cry overwhelms like a flooding river ¹³¹⁹ 

that reaches one’s neck.

He shakes the nations in a sieve that isolates the chaff; ¹³²⁰ 

he puts a bit into the mouth of the nations and leads them to destruction. ¹³²¹ 

30:29 You will sing

as you do in the evening when you are celebrating a festival.

You will be happy like one who plays a flute

as he goes to the mountain of the Lord, the Rock who shelters Israel. ¹³²² 

30:30 The Lord will give a mighty shout ¹³²³ 

and intervene in power, ¹³²⁴ 

with furious anger and flaming, destructive fire, ¹³²⁵ 

with a driving rainstorm and hailstones.

30:31 Indeed, the Lord’s shout will shatter Assyria; ¹³²⁶ 

he will beat them with a club.

30:32 Every blow from his punishing cudgel, ¹³²⁷ 

with which the Lord will beat them, ¹³²⁸ 

will be accompanied by music from the ¹³²⁹  tambourine and harp,

and he will attack them with his weapons. ¹³³⁰ 

30:33 For ¹³³¹  the burial place is already prepared; ¹³³² 

it has been made deep and wide for the king. ¹³³³ 

The firewood is piled high on it. ¹³³⁴ 

The Lord’s breath, like a stream flowing with brimstone,

will ignite it.

31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, ¹³³⁵ 

those who rely on war horses,

and trust in Egypt’s many chariots ¹³³⁶ 

and in their many, many horsemen. ¹³³⁷ 

But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel ¹³³⁸ 

and do not seek help from the Lord.

31:2 Yet he too is wise ¹³³⁹  and he will bring disaster;

he does not retract his decree. ¹³⁴⁰ 

He will attack the wicked nation, ¹³⁴¹ 

and the nation that helps ¹³⁴²  those who commit sin. ¹³⁴³ 

31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;

their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.

The Lord will strike with ¹³⁴⁴  his hand;

the one who helps will stumble

and the one being helped will fall.

Together they will perish. ¹³⁴⁵ 

31:4 Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me:

“The Lord will be like a growling lion,

like a young lion growling over its prey. ¹³⁴⁶ 

Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it,

it is not afraid of their shouts

or intimidated by their yelling. ¹³⁴⁷ 

In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend

to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill. ¹³⁴⁸ 

31:5 Just as birds hover over a nest, ¹³⁴⁹ 

so the Lord who commands armies will protect Jerusalem. ¹³⁵⁰ 

He will protect and deliver it;

as he passes over ¹³⁵¹  he will rescue it.

31:6 You Israelites! Return to the one against whom you have so blatantly rebelled! ¹³⁵²  31:7 For at that time ¹³⁵³  everyone will get rid of ¹³⁵⁴  the silver and gold idols your hands sinfully made. ¹³⁵⁵ 

31:8 Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made; ¹³⁵⁶ 

a sword not made by humankind will destroy them. ¹³⁵⁷ 

They will run away from this sword ¹³⁵⁸ 

and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.

31:9 They will surrender their stronghold ¹³⁵⁹  because of fear; ¹³⁶⁰ 

their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” ¹³⁶¹ 

This is what the Lord says –

the one whose fire is in Zion,

whose firepot is in Jerusalem. ¹³⁶² 

32:1 Look, a king will promote fairness; ¹³⁶³ 

officials will promote justice. ¹³⁶⁴ 

32:2 Each of them ¹³⁶⁵  will be like a shelter from the wind

and a refuge from a rainstorm;

like streams of water in a dry region

and like the shade of a large cliff in a parched land.

32:3 Eyes ¹³⁶⁶  will no longer be blind ¹³⁶⁷ 

and ears ¹³⁶⁸  will be attentive.

32:4 The mind that acts rashly will possess discernment ¹³⁶⁹ 

and the tongue that stutters will speak with ease and clarity.

32:5 A fool will no longer be called honorable;

a deceiver will no longer be called principled.

32:6 For a fool speaks disgraceful things; ¹³⁷⁰ 

his mind plans out sinful deeds. ¹³⁷¹ 

He commits godless deeds ¹³⁷² 

and says misleading things about the Lord;

he gives the hungry nothing to satisfy their appetite ¹³⁷³ 

and gives the thirsty nothing to drink. ¹³⁷⁴ 

32:7 A deceiver’s methods are evil; ¹³⁷⁵ 

he dreams up evil plans ¹³⁷⁶ 

to ruin the poor with lies,

even when the needy are in the right. ¹³⁷⁷ 

32:8 An honorable man makes honorable plans;

his honorable character gives him security. ¹³⁷⁸ 

32:9 You complacent ¹³⁷⁹  women,

get up and listen to me!

You carefree ¹³⁸⁰  daughters,

pay attention to what I say!

32:10 In a year’s time ¹³⁸¹ 

you carefree ones will shake with fear,

for the grape ¹³⁸²  harvest will fail,

and the fruit harvest will not arrive.

32:11 Tremble, you complacent ones!

Shake with fear, you carefree ones!

Strip off your clothes and expose yourselves –

put sackcloth on your waist! ¹³⁸³ 

32:12 Mourn over the field, ¹³⁸⁴ 

over the delightful fields

and the fruitful vine!

32:13 Mourn ¹³⁸⁵  over the land of my people,

which is overgrown with thorns and briers,

and over all the once-happy houses ¹³⁸⁶ 

in the city filled with revelry. ¹³⁸⁷ 

32:14 For the fortress is neglected;

the once-crowded ¹³⁸⁸  city is abandoned.

Hill ¹³⁸⁹  and watchtower

are permanently uninhabited. ¹³⁹⁰ 

Wild donkeys love to go there,

and flocks graze there. ¹³⁹¹ 

32:15 This desolation will continue until new life is poured out on us from heaven. ¹³⁹² 

Then the desert will become an orchard

and the orchard will be considered a forest. ¹³⁹³ 

32:16 Justice will settle down in the desert

and fairness will live in the orchard. ¹³⁹⁴ 

32:17 Fairness will produce peace ¹³⁹⁵ 

and result in lasting security. ¹³⁹⁶ 

32:18 My people will live in peaceful settlements,

in secure homes,

and in safe, quiet places. ¹³⁹⁷ 

32:19 Even if the forest is destroyed ¹³⁹⁸ 

and the city is annihilated, ¹³⁹⁹ 

32:20 you will be blessed,

you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams, ¹⁴⁰⁰ 

you who let your ox and donkey graze. ¹⁴⁰¹ 

33:1 The destroyer is as good as dead, ¹⁴⁰² 

you who have not been destroyed!

The deceitful one is as good as dead, ¹⁴⁰³ 

the one whom others have not deceived!

When you are through destroying, you will be destroyed;

when you finish ¹⁴⁰⁴  deceiving, others will deceive you!

33:2 Lord, be merciful to us! We wait for you.

Give us strength each morning! ¹⁴⁰⁵ 

Deliver us when distress comes. ¹⁴⁰⁶ 

33:3 The nations run away when they hear a loud noise; ¹⁴⁰⁷ 

the nations scatter when you spring into action! ¹⁴⁰⁸ 

33:4 Your plunder ¹⁴⁰⁹  disappears as if locusts were eating it; ¹⁴¹⁰ 

they swarm over it like locusts! ¹⁴¹¹ 

33:5 The Lord is exalted, ¹⁴¹² 

indeed, ¹⁴¹³  he lives in heaven; ¹⁴¹⁴ 

he fills Zion with justice and fairness.

33:6 He is your constant source of stability; ¹⁴¹⁵ 

he abundantly provides safety and great wisdom; ¹⁴¹⁶ 

he gives all this to those who fear him. ¹⁴¹⁷ 

33:7 Look, ambassadors ¹⁴¹⁸  cry out in the streets;

messengers sent to make peace ¹⁴¹⁹  weep bitterly.

33:8 Highways are empty, ¹⁴²⁰ 

there are no travelers. ¹⁴²¹ 

Treaties are broken, ¹⁴²² 

witnesses are despised, ¹⁴²³ 

human life is treated with disrespect. ¹⁴²⁴ 

33:9 The land ¹⁴²⁵  dries up ¹⁴²⁶  and withers away;

the forest of Lebanon shrivels up ¹⁴²⁷  and decays.

Sharon ¹⁴²⁸  is like the desert; ¹⁴²⁹ 

Bashan and Carmel ¹⁴³⁰  are parched. ¹⁴³¹ 

33:10 “Now I will rise up,” says the Lord.

“Now I will exalt myself;

now I will magnify myself. ¹⁴³² 

33:11 You conceive straw, ¹⁴³³ 

you give birth to chaff;

your breath is a fire that destroys you. ¹⁴³⁴ 

33:12 The nations will be burned to ashes; ¹⁴³⁵ 

like thorn bushes that have been cut down, they will be set on fire.

33:13 You who are far away, listen to what I have done!

You who are close by, recognize my strength!”

33:14 Sinners are afraid in Zion;

panic ¹⁴³⁶  grips the godless. ¹⁴³⁷ 

They say, ¹⁴³⁸  ‘Who among us can coexist with destructive fire?

Who among us can coexist with unquenchable ¹⁴³⁹  fire?’

33:15 The one who lives ¹⁴⁴⁰  uprightly ¹⁴⁴¹ 

and speaks honestly;

the one who refuses to profit from oppressive measures

and rejects a bribe; ¹⁴⁴² 

the one who does not plot violent crimes ¹⁴⁴³ 

and does not seek to harm others ¹⁴⁴⁴  –

33:16 This is the person who will live in a secure place; ¹⁴⁴⁵ 

he will find safety in the rocky, mountain strongholds; ¹⁴⁴⁶ 

he will have food

and a constant supply of water.

33:17 You will see a king in his splendor; ¹⁴⁴⁷ 

you will see a wide land. ¹⁴⁴⁸ 

33:18 Your mind will recall the terror you experienced, ¹⁴⁴⁹ 

and you will ask yourselves, ¹⁴⁵⁰  “Where is the scribe?

Where is the one who weighs the money?

Where is the one who counts the towers?” ¹⁴⁵¹ 

33:19 You will no longer see a defiant ¹⁴⁵²  people

whose language you do not comprehend, ¹⁴⁵³ 

whose derisive speech you do not understand. ¹⁴⁵⁴ 

33:20 Look at Zion, the city where we hold religious festivals!

You ¹⁴⁵⁵  will see Jerusalem, ¹⁴⁵⁶ 

a peaceful settlement,

a tent that stays put; ¹⁴⁵⁷ 

its stakes will never be pulled up;

none of its ropes will snap in two.

33:21 Instead the Lord will rule there as our mighty king. ¹⁴⁵⁸ 

Rivers and wide streams will flow through it; ¹⁴⁵⁹ 

no war galley will enter; ¹⁴⁶⁰ 

no large ships will sail through. ¹⁴⁶¹ 

33:22 For the Lord, our ruler,

the Lord, our commander,

the Lord, our king –

he will deliver us.

33:23 Though at this time your ropes are slack, ¹⁴⁶² 

the mast is not secured, ¹⁴⁶³ 

and the sail ¹⁴⁶⁴  is not unfurled,

at that time you will divide up a great quantity of loot; ¹⁴⁶⁵ 

even the lame will drag off plunder. ¹⁴⁶⁶ 

33:24 No resident of Zion ¹⁴⁶⁷  will say, “I am ill”;

the people who live there will have their sin forgiven.