Isaiah 28:16-22
The Message
The Meaning of the Stone
16-17 But the Master, God, has something to say to this:
“Watch closely. I’m laying a foundation in Zion,
a solid granite foundation, squared and true.
And this is the meaning of the stone:
a trusting life won’t topple.
I’ll make justice the measuring stick
and righteousness the plumb line for the building.
A hailstorm will knock down the shantytown of lies,
and a flash flood will wash out the rubble.
18-22 “Then you’ll see that your precious life insurance policy
wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.
Your careful precautions against death
were a pack of illusions and lies.
When the disaster happens,
you’ll be crushed by it.
Every time disaster comes, you’ll be in on it—
disaster in the morning, disaster at night.”
Every report of disaster
will send you cowering in terror.
There will be no place where you can rest,
nothing to hide under.
God will rise to full stature,
raging as he did long ago on Mount Perazim
And in the valley of Gibeon against the Philistines.
But this time it’s against you.
Hard to believe, but true.
Not what you’d expect, but it’s coming.
Sober up, friends, and don’t scoff.
Scoffing will just make it worse.
I’ve heard the orders issued for destruction, orders from
God-of-the-Angel-Armies—ending up in an international disaster.
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Isaiah 28:16-18
New International Version
16 So this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“See, I lay a stone in Zion,(A) a tested stone,(B)
a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation;(C)
the one who relies on it
will never be stricken with panic.(D)
17 I will make justice(E) the measuring line
and righteousness the plumb line;(F)
hail(G) will sweep away your refuge, the lie,
and water will overflow(H) your hiding place.
18 Your covenant with death will be annulled;
your agreement with the realm of the dead will not stand.(I)
When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by,(J)
you will be beaten down(K) by it.
Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson
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