Isaiah 62-64

New International Version

Zion’s New Name

62 For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,^(A)
    for Jerusalem’s sake I will not remain quiet,
till her vindication^(B) shines out like the dawn,^(C)
    her salvation^(D) like a blazing torch.
²The nations^(E) will see your vindication,
    and all kings your glory;
you will be called by a new name^(F)
    that the mouth of the Lord will bestow.
³You will be a crown^(G) of splendor in the Lord’s hand,
    a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
⁴No longer will they call you Deserted,^(H)
    or name your land Desolate.^(I)
But you will be called Hephzibah,^[a]^(J)
    and your land Beulah^[b];
for the Lord will take delight^(K) in you,
    and your land will be married.^(L)
⁵As a young man marries a young woman,
    so will your Builder marry you;
as a bridegroom^(M) rejoices over his bride,
    so will your God rejoice^(N) over you.

⁶I have posted watchmen^(O) on your walls, Jerusalem;
    they will never be silent day or night.
You who call on the Lord,
    give yourselves no rest,^(P)
⁷and give him no rest^(Q) till he establishes Jerusalem
    and makes her the praise^(R) of the earth.

⁸The Lord has sworn^(S) by his right hand
    and by his mighty arm:
“Never again will I give your grain^(T)
    as food for your enemies,
and never again will foreigners drink the new wine
    for which you have toiled;
⁹but those who harvest it will eat^(U) it
    and praise the Lord,^(V)
and those who gather the grapes will drink it
    in the courts of my sanctuary.”^(W)

¹⁰Pass through, pass through the gates!^(X)
Prepare the way for the people.
Build up, build up the highway!^(Y)
Remove the stones.
Raise a banner^(Z) for the nations.

¹¹The Lord has made proclamation
    to the ends of the earth:^(AA)
“Say to Daughter Zion,^(AB)
    ‘See, your Savior comes!^(AC)
See, his reward is with him,
    and his recompense accompanies him.’”^(AD)
¹²They will be called^(AE) the Holy People,^(AF)
    the Redeemed^(AG) of the Lord;
and you will be called Sought After,
    the City No Longer Deserted.^(AH)

God’s Day of Vengeance and Redemption

63 Who is this coming from Edom,^(AI)
from Bozrah,^(AJ) with his garments stained crimson?^(AK)
Who is this, robed in splendor,
striding forward in the greatness of his strength?^(AL)

“It is I, proclaiming victory,
mighty to save.”^(AM)

²Why are your garments red,
like those of one treading the winepress?^(AN)

³“I have trodden the winepress^(AO) alone;
    from the nations no one was with me.
I trampled^(AP) them in my anger
    and trod them down in my wrath;^(AQ)
their blood spattered my garments,^(AR)
    and I stained all my clothing.
⁴It was for me the day of vengeance;^(AS)
    the year for me to redeem had come.
⁵I looked, but there was no one^(AT) to help,
    I was appalled that no one gave support;
so my own arm^(AU) achieved salvation for me,
    and my own wrath sustained me.^(AV)
⁶I trampled^(AW) the nations in my anger;
    in my wrath I made them drunk^(AX)
    and poured their blood^(AY) on the ground.”

Praise and Prayer

⁷I will tell of the kindnesses^(AZ) of the Lord,
    the deeds for which he is to be praised,
    according to all the Lord has done for us—
yes, the many good things^(BA)
    he has done for Israel,
    according to his compassion^(BB) and many kindnesses.
⁸He said, “Surely they are my people,^(BC)
    children who will be true to me”;
    and so he became their Savior.^(BD)
⁹In all their distress he too was distressed,
    and the angel^(BE) of his presence^(BF) saved them.^[c]
In his love and mercy he redeemed^(BG) them;
    he lifted them up and carried^(BH) them
    all the days of old.^(BI)
¹⁰Yet they rebelled^(BJ)
    and grieved his Holy Spirit.^(BK)
So he turned and became their enemy^(BL)
    and he himself fought^(BM) against them.

¹¹Then his people recalled^[d] the days of old,
    the days of Moses and his people—
where is he who brought them through the sea,^(BN)
    with the shepherd of his flock?^(BO)
Where is he who set
    his Holy Spirit^(BP) among them,
¹²who sent his glorious arm^(BQ) of power
    to be at Moses’ right hand,
who divided the waters^(BR) before them,
    to gain for himself everlasting renown,^(BS)
¹³who led^(BT) them through the depths?^(BU)
Like a horse in open country,
    they did not stumble;^(BV)
¹⁴like cattle that go down to the plain,
    they were given rest^(BW) by the Spirit of the Lord.
This is how you guided your people
    to make for yourself a glorious name.

¹⁵Look down from heaven^(BX) and see,
    from your lofty throne,^(BY) holy and glorious.
Where are your zeal^(BZ) and your might?
    Your tenderness and compassion^(CA) are withheld^(CB) from us.
¹⁶But you are our Father,^(CC)
    though Abraham does not know us
    or Israel acknowledge^(CD) us;
you, Lord, are our Father,
    our Redeemer^(CE) from of old is your name.
¹⁷Why, Lord, do you make us wander^(CF) from your ways
    and harden our hearts^(CG) so we do not revere^(CH) you?
Return^(CI) for the sake of your servants,
    the tribes that are your inheritance.^(CJ)
¹⁸For a little while^(CK) your people possessed your holy place,
    but now our enemies have trampled^(CL) down your sanctuary.^(CM)
¹⁹We are yours from of old;
    but you have not ruled over them,
    they have not been called^[e] by your name.^(CN)

64 ^[f]Oh, that you would rend the heavens^(CO) and come down,^(CP)
    that the mountains^(CQ) would tremble before you!
²As when fire sets twigs ablaze
    and causes water to boil,
come down to make your name^(CR) known to your enemies
    and cause the nations to quake^(CS) before you!
³For when you did awesome^(CT) things that we did not expect,
    you came down, and the mountains trembled^(CU) before you.
⁴Since ancient times no one has heard,
    no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,^(CV)
    who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.^(CW)
⁵You come to the help of those who gladly do right,^(CX)
    who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
    you were angry.^(CY)
    How then can we be saved?
⁶All of us have become like one who is unclean,^(CZ)
    and all our righteous^(DA) acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,^(DB)
    and like the wind our sins sweep us away.^(DC)
⁷No one^(DD) calls on your name^(DE)
    or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden^(DF) your face from us
    and have given us over^(DG) to^[g] our sins.

⁸Yet you, Lord, are our Father.^(DH)
    We are the clay, you are the potter;^(DI)
    we are all the work of your hand.^(DJ)
⁹Do not be angry^(DK) beyond measure, Lord;
    do not remember our sins^(DL) forever.
Oh, look on us, we pray,
    for we are all your people.^(DM)
¹⁰Your sacred cities^(DN) have become a wasteland;
    even Zion is a wasteland, Jerusalem a desolation.^(DO)
¹¹Our holy and glorious temple,^(DP) where our ancestors praised you,
    has been burned with fire,
    and all that we treasured^(DQ) lies in ruins.
¹²After all this, Lord, will you hold yourself back?^(DR)
    Will you keep silent^(DS) and punish us beyond measure?

Footnotes

Isaiah 62:4 Hephzibah means my delight is in her.
Isaiah 62:4 Beulah means married.
Isaiah 63:9 Or Savior ⁹in their distress. / It was no envoy or angel / but his own presence that saved them
Isaiah 63:11 Or But may he recall
Isaiah 63:19 Or We are like those you have never ruled, / like those never called
Isaiah 64:1 In Hebrew texts 64:1 is numbered 63:19b, and 64:2-12 is numbered 64:1-11.
Isaiah 64:7 Septuagint, Syriac and Targum; Hebrew have made us melt because of

Hebrews 12

New International Version

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run^(A) with perseverance^(B) the race marked out for us, ²fixing our eyes on Jesus,^(C) the pioneer^(D) and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross,^(E) scorning its shame,^(F) and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.^(G) ³Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary^(H) and lose heart.

God Disciplines His Children

⁴In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.^(I) ⁵And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says,

“My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline,
and do not lose heart^(J) when he rebukes you,
⁶because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,^(K)
and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”^[a]^(L)

⁷Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.^(M) For what children are not disciplined by their father? ⁸If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline^(N)—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. ⁹Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits^(O) and live!^(P) ¹⁰They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.^(Q) ¹¹No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace^(R) for those who have been trained by it.

¹²Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees.^(S) ¹³“Make level paths for your feet,”^[b]^(T) so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.^(U)

Warning and Encouragement

¹⁴Make every effort to live in peace with everyone^(V) and to be holy;^(W) without holiness no one will see the Lord.^(X) ¹⁵See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God^(Y) and that no bitter root^(Z) grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ¹⁶See that no one is sexually immoral,^(AA) or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.^(AB) ¹⁷Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears,^(AC) he could not change what he had done.

The Mountain of Fear and the Mountain of Joy

¹⁸You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm;^(AD) ¹⁹to a trumpet blast^(AE) or to such a voice speaking words^(AF) that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them,^(AG) ²⁰because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.”^[c]^(AH) ²¹The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”^[d]^(AI)

²²But you have come to Mount Zion,^(AJ) to the city^(AK) of the living God,^(AL) the heavenly Jerusalem.^(AM) You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, ²³to the church of the firstborn,^(AN) whose names are written in heaven.^(AO) You have come to God, the Judge of all,^(AP) to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,^(AQ) ²⁴to Jesus the mediator^(AR) of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood^(AS) that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.^(AT)

²⁵See to it that you do not refuse^(AU) him who speaks.^(AV) If they did not escape when they refused him who warned^(AW) them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven?^(AX) ²⁶At that time his voice shook the earth,^(AY) but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”^[e]^(AZ) ²⁷The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken^(BA)—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

²⁸Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken,^(BB) let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,^(BC) ²⁹for our “God is a consuming fire.”^[f]^(BD)