Deliverance of Israel

27 In that day,(A)

the Lord will punish with his sword(B)
    his fierce, great and powerful sword—
Leviathan(C) the gliding serpent,(D)
    Leviathan the coiling serpent;
he will slay the monster(E) of the sea.

In that day(F)

“Sing(G) about a fruitful vineyard:(H)
    I, the Lord, watch over it;
    I water(I) it continually.
I guard(J) it day and night
    so that no one may harm(K) it.
    I am not angry.
If only there were briers and thorns confronting me!
    I would march against them in battle;
    I would set them all on fire.(L)
Or else let them come to me for refuge;(M)
    let them make peace(N) with me,
    yes, let them make peace with me.”

In days to come Jacob will take root,(O)
    Israel will bud and blossom(P)
    and fill all the world with fruit.(Q)

Has the Lord struck her
    as he struck(R) down those who struck her?
Has she been killed
    as those were killed who killed her?
By warfare[a] and exile(S) you contend with her—
    with his fierce blast he drives her out,
    as on a day the east wind(T) blows.
By this, then, will Jacob’s guilt be atoned(U) for,
    and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin:(V)
When he makes all the altar stones(W)
    to be like limestone crushed to pieces,
no Asherah poles[b](X) or incense altars(Y)
    will be left standing.
10 The fortified city stands desolate,(Z)
    an abandoned settlement, forsaken(AA) like the wilderness;
there the calves graze,(AB)
    there they lie down;(AC)
    they strip its branches bare.
11 When its twigs are dry, they are broken off(AD)
    and women come and make fires(AE) with them.
For this is a people without understanding;(AF)
    so their Maker has no compassion on them,
    and their Creator(AG) shows them no favor.(AH)

12 In that day the Lord will thresh(AI) from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt,(AJ) and you, Israel, will be gathered(AK) up one by one. 13 And in that day(AL) a great trumpet(AM) will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled(AN) in Egypt(AO) will come and worship(AP) the Lord on the holy mountain(AQ) in Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 27:8 See Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
  2. Isaiah 27:9 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah

Israel’s Deliverance

27 At that time,[a] with his fierce, mighty, and powerful sword, the Lord will punish the gliding serpent Leviathan—the coiling serpent Leviathan—and he will kill the dragon that’s in the sea.

At that time,[b]
    “A fermenting[c] vineyard—
        sing about it!
I, the Lord, watch over it
    And I water it continuously.
I guard it night and day
    so no one can harm it.
I am not angry.
    If only the vineyard[d] could give me briers and thorns[e] to battle,
I would march against it,
    and[f] I would burn it all up.
Or else let it lay claim to my protection;
    let it make peace with me,
        yes, let it make peace with me.”

In times to come, Jacob will take root,
    and[g] Israel will blossom, sprout shoots,
        and fill the whole world with fruit.

Has the Lord[h] struck them down,
    just as he struck down those who struck them?
Or have they been killed,
    just as their killers were killed?
Measure by measure,[i]
    in their exile you contended with them;
with his fierce blast he removed them,
    as on a day when the east wind blows.
By this, then, Jacob’s guilt will be atoned for,
    and this will be the full harvest
        that comes from the removal of his sin:
when he makes all the altar stones
    like pulverized chalkstones,
no Asherah[j] poles or incense altars will be left standing.
10 For the fortified city stands desolate,
    a settlement abandoned and forsaken like the desert;
calves graze there,
    and there they lie down
        and strip bare its branches.
11 When its branches are dry,
    they are broken off,
and women come and kindle fires with them,
    since this is a people who show no consideration.
That is why the One who made them shows them no compassion;
    the One who created them shows them no mercy.

Assyria and Egypt Exiles Redeemed

12 At that time,[k] the Lord will winnow grain from the Euphrates River[l] channel to the Wadi[m] of Egypt,[n] and you will be gathered in one by one, O people of Israel. 13 Furthermore, at that time,[o] a great trumpet will be sounded, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and those who had been expelled[p] to the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord on his holy mountain at Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 27:1 Lit. On that day
  2. Isaiah 27:2 Lit. On that day
  3. Isaiah 27:2 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read pleasant
  4. Isaiah 27:4 Lit. only it
  5. Isaiah 27:4 So 1QIsaa; MT reads thorns
  6. Isaiah 27:4 So 1QIsaa; the Heb. lacks and
  7. Isaiah 27:6 So 1QIsaa LXX; the Heb. lacks and
  8. Isaiah 27:7 Lit. Has he
  9. Isaiah 27:8 Or With war cries
  10. Isaiah 27:9 Or sacred
  11. Isaiah 27:12 Lit. On that day
  12. Isaiah 27:12 DSS MT lack River
  13. Isaiah 27:12 I.e. a seasonal stream or river that channels water during rain seasons but is dry at other times
  14. Isaiah 27:12 I.e. the southwestern-most border of ancient Philistia
  15. Isaiah 27:13 Lit. Furthermore, on that day
  16. Isaiah 27:13 Or exiled