Isaiah 58:1-59:13

English Standard Version

True and False Fasting

58 “Cry aloud; do not hold back;
    ^(A)lift up your voice like a trumpet;
^(B)declare to my people their transgression,
    to the house of Jacob their sins.
²^(C)Yet they seek me daily
    and delight to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that did righteousness
    and did not forsake the judgment of their God;
they ask of me righteous judgments;
    they delight to draw near to God.
³^(D)‘Why have we fasted, and you see it not?
    Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?’
Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure,^[a]
    ^(E)and oppress all your workers.
⁴Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight
    and to hit with a wicked fist.
Fasting like yours this day
    will not make your voice to be heard on high.
⁵^(F)Is such the fast that I choose,
    ^(G)a day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
    and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
    and a day acceptable to the Lord?

⁶“Is not this the fast that I choose:
    ^(H)to loose the bonds of wickedness,
    to undo the straps ^(I)of the yoke,
to let the oppressed^[b] go free,
    and to break every yoke?
⁷Is it not ^(J)to share your bread with the hungry
    and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
    ^(K)and not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
⁸^(L)Then shall your light break forth like the dawn,
    ^(M)and your healing shall spring up speedily;
^(N)your righteousness shall go before you;
    ^(O)the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
⁹Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
    you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away ^(P)the yoke from your midst,
    ^(Q)the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
¹⁰^(R)if you pour yourself out for the hungry
    and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
^(S)then shall your light rise in the darkness
    and your gloom be as the noonday.
¹¹And the Lord will guide you continually
    and satisfy your desire in scorched places
    and make your bones strong;
and you shall be ^(T)like a watered garden,
    like a spring of water,
    whose waters do not fail.
¹²^(U)And your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
    you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;
you shall be called the repairer of the breach,
    the restorer of streets to dwell in.

¹³^(V)“If you turn back your foot from the Sabbath,
    from doing your pleasure^[c] on my holy day,
and call the Sabbath a delight
    and the holy day of the Lord honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,
    or seeking ^(W)your own pleasure,^[d] or talking idly;^[e]
¹⁴then you shall take delight in the Lord,
    ^(X)and I will make you ride on the heights of the earth;^[f]
^(Y)I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father,
    ^(Z)for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

Evil and Oppression

59 Behold, ^(AA)the Lord's hand is not shortened, that it cannot save,
    or his ear dull, that it cannot hear;
²^(AB)but your iniquities have made a separation
    between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you
    so that he does not hear.
³^(AC)For your hands are defiled with blood
    and your fingers with iniquity;
your lips have spoken lies;
    your tongue mutters wickedness.
⁴^(AD)No one enters suit justly;
    no one goes to law honestly;
they rely on empty pleas, they speak lies,
    ^(AE)they conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.
⁵They hatch adders' eggs;
    they weave the spider's web;
he who eats their eggs dies,
    and from one that is crushed a viper is hatched.
⁶^(AF)Their webs will not serve as clothing;
    men will not cover themselves with what they make.
Their works are works of iniquity,
    and deeds of violence are in their hands.
⁷^(AG)Their feet run to evil,
    and they are swift to shed innocent blood;
their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;
    desolation and destruction are in their highways.
⁸The way of peace they do not know,
    and there is no justice in their paths;
they have made their roads crooked;
    ^(AH)no one who treads on them knows peace.

⁹Therefore justice is far from us,
    and righteousness does not overtake us;
^(AI)we hope for light, and behold, darkness,
    and for brightness, but we walk in gloom.
¹⁰^(AJ)We grope for the wall like the blind;
    we grope like those who have no eyes;
we stumble at noon as in the twilight,
    ^(AK)among those in full vigor we are like dead men.
¹¹We all growl like bears;
    ^(AL)we moan and moan like doves;
^(AM)we hope for justice, but there is none;
    for salvation, but it is far from us.
¹²For our transgressions are multiplied before you,
    and our sins testify against us;
for our transgressions are with us,
    and we know our iniquities:
¹³transgressing, and denying the Lord,
    and turning back from following our God,
^(AN)speaking oppression and revolt,
    conceiving and uttering from the heart lying words.

Footnotes

Isaiah 58:3 Or pursue your own business
Isaiah 58:6 Or bruised
Isaiah 58:13 Or business
Isaiah 58:13 Or pursuing your own business
Isaiah 58:13 Hebrew or speaking a word
Isaiah 58:14 Or of the land

Psalm 31:1-8

English Standard Version

Into Your Hand I Commit My Spirit

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.

31 ^(A)In you, O Lord, do I ^(B)take refuge;
    ^(C)let me never be put to shame;
    in your ^(D)righteousness deliver me!
²Incline your ear to me;
    rescue me speedily!
Be ^(E)a rock of ^(F)refuge for me,
    a strong fortress to save me!

³For you are my rock and my fortress;
    and for your ^(G)name's sake you lead me and guide me;
⁴you ^(H)take me out of ^(I)the net they have hidden for me,
    for you are my ^(J)refuge.
⁵^(K)Into your hand I commit my spirit;
    you have redeemed me, O Lord, ^(L)faithful God.

⁶I ^(M)hate^[a] those who pay ^(N)regard to worthless ^(O)idols,
    but I trust in the Lord.
⁷I will rejoice and be glad in your steadfast love,
    because you have seen my affliction;
    you have ^(P)known the distress of my soul,
⁸and you have not ^(Q)delivered me into the hand of the enemy;
    you have set my feet in ^(R)a broad place.

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Footnotes

Psalm 31:6 Masoretic Text; one Hebrew manuscript, Septuagint, Syriac, Jerome You hate

John 9-10

English Standard Version

Jesus Heals a Man Born Blind

9 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. ²And his disciples asked him, ^(A)“Rabbi, ^(B)who sinned, ^(C)this man or ^(D)his parents, that he was born blind?” ³Jesus answered, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but ^(E)that the works of God might be displayed in him. ⁴We must ^(F)work the works of him who sent me ^(G)while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. ⁵As long as I am in the world, ^(H)I am the light of the world.” ⁶Having said these things, ^(I)he spit on the ground and made mud with the saliva. ^(J)Then he anointed the man's eyes with the mud ⁷and said to him, “Go, wash in ^(K)the pool of Siloam” (which means Sent). So he went and washed and ^(L)came back seeing.

⁸The neighbors and those who had seen him before as a beggar were saying, ^(M)“Is this not the man who used to sit and beg?” ⁹Some said, “It is he.” Others said, “No, but he is like him.” He kept saying, “I am the man.” ¹⁰So they said to him, “Then how were your eyes opened?” ¹¹He answered, ^(N)“The man called Jesus made mud and anointed my eyes and said to me, ‘Go to Siloam and wash.’ So I went and washed and received my sight.” ¹²They said to him, “Where is he?” He said, “I do not know.”

¹³They brought to the Pharisees the man who had formerly been blind. ¹⁴^(O)Now it was a Sabbath day when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes. ¹⁵^(P)So the Pharisees again asked him how he had received his sight. And he said to them, “He put mud on my eyes, and I washed, and I see.” ¹⁶Some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not ^(Q)from God, ^(R)for he does not keep the Sabbath.” But others said, ^(S)“How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?” And ^(T)there was a division among them. ¹⁷So they said again to the blind man, “What do you say about him, since he has opened your eyes?” He said, ^(U)“He is a prophet.”

¹⁸^(V)The Jews^[a] did not believe that he had been blind and had received his sight, until they called the parents of the man who had received his sight ¹⁹and asked them, “Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?” ²⁰His parents answered, “We know that this is our son and that he was born blind. ²¹But how he now sees we do not know, nor do we know who opened his eyes. Ask him; he is of age. He will speak for himself.” ²²(His parents said these things ^(W)because they feared the Jews, for ^(X)the Jews had already agreed that if anyone should ^(Y)confess Jesus^[b] to be Christ, ^(Z)he was to be put out of the synagogue. ²³Therefore his parents said, ^(AA)“He is of age; ask him.”)

²⁴So for the second time they called the man who had been blind and said to him, ^(AB)“Give glory to God. We know that ^(AC)this man is a sinner.” ²⁵He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I ^(AD)was blind, now I see.” ²⁶They said to him, “What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?” ²⁷He answered them, ^(AE)“I have told you already, and you would not listen. Why do you want to hear it again? Do you also want to become his disciples?” ²⁸And they reviled him, saying, “You are his disciple, but ^(AF)we are disciples of Moses. ²⁹We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this man, ^(AG)we do not know where he comes from.” ³⁰The man answered, “Why, this is ^(AH)an amazing thing! ^(AI)You do not know where he comes from, and yet he opened my eyes. ³¹We know that ^(AJ)God does not listen to sinners, but ^(AK)if anyone is a worshiper of God and does his will, God listens to him. ³²Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. ³³^(AL)If this man were not from God, he could do nothing.” ³⁴They answered him, ^(AM)“You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?” And they ^(AN)cast him out.

³⁵Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him he said, “Do you believe in ^(AO)the Son of Man?”^[c] ³⁶He answered, ^(AP)“And who is he, sir, that I may believe in him?” ³⁷Jesus said to him, “You have seen him, and ^(AQ)it is he who is speaking to you.” ³⁸He said, “Lord, I believe,” and he worshiped him. ³⁹Jesus said, ^(AR)“For judgment I came into this world, ^(AS)that those who do not see may see, and ^(AT)those who see may become blind.” ⁴⁰Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, ^(AU)“Are we also blind?” ⁴¹Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, ^(AV)you would have no guilt;^[d] but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

I Am the Good Shepherd

10 “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber. ²But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. ³To him the gatekeeper opens. The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. ⁴When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. ⁵^(AW)A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.” ⁶This figure of speech Jesus ^(AX)used with them, but they ^(AY)did not understand what he was saying to them.

⁷So Jesus again said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, ^(AZ)I am the door of the sheep. ⁸All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. ⁹I am the door. If anyone enters by me, ^(BA)he will be saved and will go in and out and ^(BB)find pasture. ¹⁰The thief comes only to steal and ^(BC)kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. ¹¹^(BD)I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd ^(BE)lays down his life for the sheep. ¹²He who is ^(BF)a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and ^(BG)leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and ^(BH)scatters them. ¹³He flees because ^(BI)he is a hired hand and ^(BJ)cares nothing for the sheep. ¹⁴^(BK)I am the good shepherd. ^(BL)I know my own and ^(BM)my own know me, ¹⁵^(BN)just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and ^(BO)I lay down my life for the sheep. ¹⁶And ^(BP)I have other sheep that are not of this fold. ^(BQ)I must bring them also, and ^(BR)they will listen to my voice. So there will be ^(BS)one flock, ^(BT)one shepherd. ¹⁷^(BU)For this reason the Father loves me, ^(BV)because ^(BW)I lay down my life that I may take it up again. ¹⁸^(BX)No one takes it from me, but ^(BY)I lay it down ^(BZ)of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and ^(CA)I have authority to take it up again. ^(CB)This charge I have received from my Father.”

¹⁹^(CC)There was again a division among the Jews because of these words. ²⁰Many of them said, ^(CD)“He has a demon, and ^(CE)is insane; why listen to him?” ²¹Others said, “These are not the words of one who is oppressed by a demon. ^(CF)Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?”

I and the Father Are One

²²At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, ²³and Jesus was walking in the temple, ^(CG)in the colonnade of Solomon. ²⁴So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are ^(CH)the Christ, ^(CI)tell us plainly.” ²⁵Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. ^(CJ)The works that I do ^(CK)in my Father's name bear witness about me, ²⁶but ^(CL)you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. ²⁷^(CM)My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸^(CN)I give them eternal life, and ^(CO)they will never perish, and ^(CP)no one will snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹My Father, ^(CQ)who has given them to me,^[e] ^(CR)is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of ^(CS)the Father's hand. ³⁰^(CT)I and the Father are one.”

³¹^(CU)The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. ³²Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” ³³The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but ^(CV)for blasphemy, because you, being a man, ^(CW)make yourself God.” ³⁴Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in ^(CX)your Law, ^(CY)‘I said, you are gods’? ³⁵If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be ^(CZ)broken— ³⁶do you say of him whom ^(DA)the Father consecrated and ^(DB)sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because ^(DC)I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? ³⁷^(DD)If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; ³⁸but if I do them, ^(DE)even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that ^(DF)the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” ³⁹^(DG)Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.

⁴⁰He went away again across the Jordan to the place ^(DH)where John had been baptizing at first, and there he remained. ⁴¹And many came to him. And they said, “John did no sign, but ^(DI)everything that John said about this man was true.” ⁴²And ^(DJ)many believed in him there.

Footnotes

John 9:18 Greek Ioudaioi probably refers here to Jewish religious leaders, and others under their influence, in that time; also verse 22
John 9:22 Greek him
John 9:35 Some manuscripts the Son of God
John 9:41 Greek you would not have sin
John 10:29 Some manuscripts What my Father has given to me