Isaiah 31-32

New American Standard Bible

Help Not in Egypt but in God

31 Woe to those who go down to ^(A)Egypt for help
And ^(B)rely on horses,
And trust in chariots because they are many
And in horsemen because they are very strong,
But they do not ^(C)look to the ^(D)Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
²Yet He also is ^(E)wise and will ^(F)bring disaster,
And does ^(G)not retract His words,
But will arise against the house of ^(H)evildoers,
And against the help of the ^(I)workers of injustice.
³Now the Egyptians are ^(J)human and not God,
And their ^(K)horses are flesh and not spirit;
So the Lord will ^(L)stretch out His hand,
And any ^(M)helper will stumble,
And one who is helped will fall.
And all of them will come to an end together.

⁴For this is what the Lord says to me:
“As the ^(N)lion or the young lion growls over his prey,
Against which a band of shepherds is called out,
And he will not be terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise,
So will the Lord of armies come down to wage ^(O)war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”
⁵Like ^[a]flying ^(P)birds so the Lord of armies will protect Jerusalem.
He will ^(Q)protect and save it;
He will pass over and rescue it.

⁶^(R)Return to Him against whom ^[b]you have been ^(S)profoundly obstinate, you sons of Israel. ⁷For on that day every person will ^(T)reject his silver idols and his gold idols, which your hands have made for you as ^(U)a sin.

⁸And the ^(V)Assyrian will fall by a sword not wielded by a man,
And a ^(W)sword not of man will devour him.
So he will ^[c]^(X)not escape the sword,
And his young men will become ^(Y)forced laborers.
⁹“His ^(Z)rock will pass away because of panic,
And his officers will be terrified by the ^(AA)flag,”
Declares the Lord, whose ^(AB)fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

The Glorious Future

32 Behold, a ^(AC)king will reign righteously,
And officials will rule justly.
²Each will be like a ^(AD)refuge from the wind
And a shelter from the storm,
Like ^[d]^(AE)streams of water in a dry country,
Like the ^(AF)shade of a ^[e]huge rock in an exhausted land.
³Then ^(AG)the eyes of those who see will not be ^[f]blinded,
And the ears of those who hear will listen.
⁴The ^[g]mind of the ^(AH)rash will discern the ^[h]truth,
And the tongue of the stammerers will hurry to speak clearly.
⁵No longer will the ^(AI)fool be called noble,
Or the rogue be spoken of as generous.
⁶For a fool speaks nonsense,
And his heart ^[i]^(AJ)inclines toward wickedness:
To practice ^(AK)ungodliness and to speak error against the Lord,
To ^[j]^(AL)keep the hungry person unsatisfied
And ^[k]to withhold drink from the thirsty.
⁷As for a rogue, his weapons are evil;
He ^(AM)devises wicked schemes
To ^(AN)destroy the poor with ^[l]slander,
^(AO)Even though the needy one speaks ^[m]what is right.
⁸But ^(AP)the noble person devises noble plans;
And by noble plans he stands.

⁹Rise up, you ^(AQ)women who are at ease,
And hear my voice;
^(AR)Listen to my word,
You complacent daughters.
¹⁰Within a year and a few days
You will be troubled, you complacent daughters;
^(AS)For the vintage is ended,
And the fruit gathering will not come.
¹¹Tremble, you women who are at ease;
^(AT)Be troubled, you complacent daughters;
^(AU)Strip, undress, and put sackcloth on your waist,
¹²^(AV)Beat your breasts for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,
¹³^(AW)For the land of my people in which thorns and briars will come up;
Indeed, for all the joyful houses and for the ^(AX)jubilant city.
¹⁴For ^(AY)the palace has been neglected, the ^[n]populated ^(AZ)city abandoned.
^[o]Hill and watch-tower have become ^(BA)caves forever,
A delight for ^(BB)wild donkeys, a pasture for flocks,
¹⁵Until the ^(BC)Spirit is poured out upon us from on high,
And the wilderness becomes a ^(BD)fertile field,
And the fertile field is considered as a forest.
¹⁶Then ^(BE)justice will dwell in the wilderness,
And righteousness will remain in the fertile field.
¹⁷And the ^(BF)work of righteousness will be peace,
And the service of righteousness, ^(BG)quietness and ^[p]confidence forever.
¹⁸Then my people will live in a ^(BH)peaceful settlement,
In secure dwellings, and in undisturbed ^(BI)resting places;
¹⁹And it will ^(BJ)hail when the ^(BK)forest comes down,
And ^(BL)the city will be utterly laid low.
²⁰How ^(BM)blessed will you be, you who sow beside all waters,
Who ^[q]let the ox and the donkey out freely.