Isaiah 33
English Standard Version
O Lord, Be Gracious to Us
33 (A)Ah, you destroyer,
who yourself have not been destroyed,
you traitor,
whom none has betrayed!
When you have ceased to destroy,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have finished betraying,
they will betray you.
2 O Lord, be gracious to us; (B)we wait for you.
Be our arm every morning,
our salvation in the time of trouble.
3 (C)At the tumultuous noise peoples flee;
when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered,
4 and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
(D)as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.
5 (E)The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
6 (F)and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is Zion's[a] treasure.
7 Behold, their heroes cry in the streets;
(G)the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8 (H)The highways lie waste;
the traveler ceases.
(I)Covenants are broken;
cities[b] are despised;
there is no regard for man.
9 (J)The land mourns and languishes;
Lebanon is confounded and withers away;
Sharon is like a desert,
and Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
10 (K)“Now I will arise,” says the Lord,
“now I will lift myself up;
now I will be exalted.
11 (L)You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble;
your breath is (M)a fire that will consume you.
12 And the peoples will be as if burned to lime,
(N)like thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.”
13 Hear, you who are far off, what I have done;
and you who are near, acknowledge my might.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid;
trembling has seized the godless:
(O)“Who among us can dwell (P)with the consuming fire?
Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15 (Q)He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
who despises the gain of oppressions,
who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe,
who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed
(R)and shuts his eyes from looking on evil,
16 he will dwell on the heights;
his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks;
(S)his bread will be given him; his water will be sure.
17 (T)Your eyes will behold the king in his beauty;
(U)they will see a land that stretches afar.
18 (V)Your heart will muse on the terror:
“Where is he who counted, where is (W)he who weighed the tribute?
Where is (X)he who counted the towers?”
19 (Y)You will see no more the insolent people,
the people (Z)of an obscure speech that you cannot comprehend,
stammering in a tongue that you cannot understand.
20 Behold Zion, the city of our appointed feasts!
(AA)Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
an untroubled habitation, an (AB)immovable tent,
whose stakes will never be plucked up,
nor will any of its cords be broken.
21 But there the Lord in majesty will be for us
a place of (AC)broad rivers and streams,
(AD)where no galley with oars can go,
nor majestic ship can pass.
22 For the Lord is our (AE)judge; the Lord is our (AF)lawgiver;
the Lord is our (AG)king; he will save us.
23 Your cords hang loose;
they cannot hold the mast firm in its place
or keep the sail spread out.
(AH)Then prey and spoil in abundance will be divided;
even (AI)the lame will take the prey.
24 And no inhabitant will say, (AJ)“I am sick”;
(AK)the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:6 Hebrew his
- Isaiah 33:8 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll witnesses
Isaiah 33
International Standard Version
God’s Judgment
33 “How terrible it will be for you, destroyer,
you who have not been destroyed yourself!
And how terrible it will be for you, traitor,
one whom[a] people have not betrayed!
When you have sunk so low in[b] destroying others,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have finished betraying,
they will betray you.”
A Prayer for Grace
2 “Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you;
and[c] be our strength[d] every morning,
our salvation in times of trouble.
3 At the thunder of your voice, the peoples flee;
at your silence,[e] the nations scatter.
4 Your plunder is gathered as when grasshoppers gather;
just like[f] locusts pounce, people have pounced[g] on it.
5 “The Lord is exalted, for he lives on high;
he has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 He will be a sure foundation for your times,
abundance and salvation,[h] wisdom and knowledge —
the fear of the Lord is Zion’s treasure.”
Israel’s Unenviable Plight
7 “Listen! Their brave men cry out in the streets;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8 The highways are deserted;
travelers have quit the road.
The enemy[i] has broken treaties;
he despises their witnesses,[j]
and respects no one.
9 The land mourns and wastes away;
Lebanon feels ashamed and withers.
Sharon is like a desert;
Bashan[k] and Carmel shake off their leaves.”
God is Exalted
10 “Now I’ll rise up,” the Lord has said,[l]
“now I’ll exalt myself;
now I’ll be lifted up.
11 You conceive dried grass, you give birth to stubble;
your breath is a fire that will consume you.
12 And the peoples will be burned as if to ashes;
like cut thorn bushes, they will be set ablaze.
13 “Those who are far away have heard[m] what I’ve done;
and those that are near have acknowledged[n] my power.
14 The sinners in Zion are terrified;
trembling grips the godless:
“Who among us can live with the consuming fire?
Who among us can live with everlasting flames?”
15 The one who walks righteously and has spoken[o] sincere words,
who rejects gain from extortion
and waves his hand,
rejecting bribes,
who blocks his ears from hearing plots of murder
and shuts his eyes against seeing evil—
16 this is the one who will live on the heights;
his refuge will be a mountain fortress.
His food will be supplied,
and his water will be guaranteed.
17 “Your eyes will see the king in his elegance,
and will view a land that stretches afar.
18 Your mind will ponder at that time of terror:
‘Where is the king’s accountant?
Where is the one who weighed the revenue?
Where is the officer who supervises[p] the towers?’
19 No longer will you[q] see those arrogant people,
those people with their obscure speech you cannot comprehend,
stammering in a language you cannot understand.
20 “Look at Zion, city of our festivals![r]
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
an undisturbed abode, an immovable tent;
its stakes will never be pulled up,
nor will any of its ropes be broken.
21 But there the Lord in majesty will be for us
our source[s] of broad rivers and streams,
where no galley with oars can go,
where no stately ship can sail.
22 For the Lord is our judge,
and the Lord is our lawgiver;
and the Lord is our king,
and it is he who will save us.
23 “Your rigging hangs loose;
it cannot reliably[t] hold the mast in its place,
and the sail cannot spread out.[u]
Then an abundance of spoils will be divided —
even the lame will carry off plunder.
24 And no one living there will say, ‘I am ill.’
The people living there will have their sins forgiven.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:1 So 1QIsaa MT; MTmss read you whom
- Isaiah 33:1 So 1QIsaa; MT reads stopped
- Isaiah 33:2 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
- Isaiah 33:2 Lit. arm
- Isaiah 33:3 So 1QIsaa; MT reads when you rise up; LXX reads from fear of you
- Isaiah 33:4 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks just like
- Isaiah 33:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads people pounce
- Isaiah 33:6 So 1QIsaa; MT reads of salvation
- Isaiah 33:8 Lit. He
- Isaiah 33:8 So 1QIsaa; MT reads cities
- Isaiah 33:9 So 1QIsaa; MT reads and Bashan
- Isaiah 33:10 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read says the Lord
- Isaiah 33:13 So 1QIsaa; cf. LXX; MT reads You who are far away, hear
- Isaiah 33:13 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads you that are near, acknowledge
- Isaiah 33:15 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read and who speaks
- Isaiah 33:18 Lit. counts
- Isaiah 33:19 So 1QIsaa (pl.); MT (sing.)
- Isaiah 33:20 So 1QIsaa MTmss; MT reads our festival
- Isaiah 33:21 Lit. us a place
- Isaiah 33:23 So 1QIsaa; MT reads firmly
- Isaiah 33:23 So 1QIsaa; MT reads they cannot spread the sail
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