Jerusalem Is Warned

29 Woe, [a]Ariel, [b]Ariel the city where David once (A)camped!
Add year to year, [c](B)keep your feasts on schedule.
I will bring distress to Ariel,
And she will be a city of grieving and (C)mourning;
And she will be like an [d]Ariel to me.
I will (D)camp against you [e]encircling you,
And I will set up siegeworks against you,
And I will raise up battle towers against you.
Then you will (E)be brought low;
From the earth you will speak,
And from the dust where you are prostrate
Your words will come.
Your voice will also be like that of a [f]spirit from the ground,
And your speech will whisper from the dust.

But the multitude of your [g]enemies will become like fine (F)dust,
And the multitude of the (G)ruthless ones like the chaff which [h]blows away;
And it will happen (H)instantly, suddenly.
From the Lord of armies you will be (I)punished with (J)thunder and earthquake and loud noise,
With whirlwind and tempest and the flame of a consuming fire.
And the (K)multitude of all the nations who wage war against [i]Ariel,
Even all who wage war against her and her stronghold, and who distress her,
Will be like a dream, a (L)vision of the night.
It will be as when a hungry person dreams—
And behold, he is eating;
But when he awakens, his [j]hunger is not satisfied,
Or as when a thirsty person dreams—
And behold, he is drinking,
But when he awakens, behold, he is faint
And his [k]thirst is not quenched.
(M)So will the multitude of all the nations be
Who wage war against Mount Zion.

(N)Be delayed and horrified,
Blind yourselves and be blind;
They (O)become drunk, but not with wine,
They stagger, but not with intoxicating drink.
10 For the Lord has poured over you a spirit of deep (P)sleep,
He has (Q)shut your eyes—the prophets;
And He has covered your heads—the seers.

11 The entire vision will be to you like the words of a sealed [l](R)book, which, when they give it to the one who [m]is literate, saying, “Please read this,” he will say, “I cannot, because it is sealed.” 12 Then the [n]book will be given to the one who [o]is illiterate, saying, “Please read this.” And he will say, “I [p]cannot read.”

13 Then the Lord said,

“Because (S)this people approaches Me with their [q]words
And honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far away from Me,
And their [r]reverence for Me [s]consists of the commandment of men that is taught;
14 Therefore behold, I will once again deal (T)marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous;
And (U)the wisdom of their wise men will perish,
And the understanding of their men who have understanding will be concealed.”

15 Woe to those who deeply (V)hide their [t]plans from the Lord,
And whose (W)deeds are done in a dark place,
And they say, “(X)Who sees us?” or “Who knows us?”
16 You turn things around!
Shall the potter be considered [u]as equal with the clay,
That (Y)what is made would say to its maker, “He did not make me”;
Or what is formed say to him who formed it, “He has no understanding”?

Blessing after Discipline

17 Is it not yet just a little while
[v]Before Lebanon will be turned into a (Z)fertile field,
And the fertile field will be considered as a forest?
18 On that day those who are (AA)deaf will hear (AB)words of a book,
And out of their gloom and darkness the (AC)eyes of those who are blind will see.
19 The (AD)afflicted also will increase their joy in the Lord,
And the (AE)needy of mankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.
20 For the (AF)ruthless will come to an end and the (AG)scorner will be finished,
Indeed (AH)all who [w]are intent on doing evil will be eliminated,
21 Who [x]cause a person to be indicted by a word,
And (AI)set a trap for the arbitrator at the gate,
And [y](AJ)defraud the one in the right with [z]meaningless arguments.

22 Therefore this is what the Lord, who redeemed (AK)Abraham, says concerning the house of Jacob:

“Jacob (AL)will not be ashamed now, nor will his face turn pale now;
23 But when [aa]he sees his (AM)children, the (AN)work of My hands, in his midst,
They will sanctify My name;
Indeed, they will (AO)sanctify the Holy One of Jacob,
And will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24 Those who (AP)err in [ab]mind will (AQ)know [ac]the truth,
And those who [ad]criticize will [ae](AR)accept instruction.

Judah Warned against Egyptian Alliance

30 “Woe to the (AS)rebellious children,” declares the Lord,
“Who (AT)execute a plan, but not Mine,
And [af](AU)make an alliance, but not of My Spirit,
In order to add sin to sin;
Who (AV)proceed down to Egypt
Without (AW)consulting [ag]Me,
(AX)To take refuge in the safety of Pharaoh,
And to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!
Therefore the safety of Pharaoh will be (AY)your shame,
And the shelter in the shadow of Egypt, your humiliation.
For (AZ)their officials are at Zoan
And their ambassadors arrive at Hanes.
Everyone will be (BA)ashamed because of a people who do not benefit them,
Who are (BB)not a help or benefit, but a source of shame and also disgrace.”

The pronouncement concerning the (BC)animals of the (BD)Negev:

Through a land of (BE)distress and anguish,
From [ah]where come lioness and lion, viper and (BF)flying serpent,
They (BG)carry their riches on the [ai]backs of young donkeys,
And their treasures on (BH)camels’ humps,
To a people who will not benefit them;
Even Egypt, whose (BI)help is vain and empty.
Therefore, I have called [aj]her
[ak](BJ)Rahab who has been exterminated.”
Now go, (BK)write it on a tablet in their presence
And inscribe it on a scroll,
That it may [al]serve in the time to come
[am]As a witness forever.
For this is a (BL)rebellious people, (BM)false sons,
Sons who [an]refuse to (BN)listen
To the [ao]instruction of the Lord;
10 Who say to the (BO)seers, “You must not see visions”;
And to the prophets, “You must not (BP)prophesy the truth to us.
(BQ)Speak to us [ap]pleasant words,
Prophesy illusions.
11 Get out of the way, (BR)turn aside from the path,
(BS)Stop speaking before us about the Holy One of Israel!”

12 Therefore this is what the Holy One of Israel says:

(BT)Since you have rejected this word
And have put your trust in (BU)oppression and crookedness, and have relied on them,
13 Therefore this (BV)wrongdoing will be to you
Like a (BW)breach about to fall,
A bulge in a high wall,
Whose collapse comes (BX)suddenly in an instant,
14 Whose collapse is like the smashing of a (BY)potter’s jar,
[aq]So ruthlessly shattered
That a shard will not be found among its pieces
To [ar]take fire from a hearth
Or to scoop water from a cistern.”

15 For this is what the Lord [as]God, the Holy One of Israel, has said:

“In [at]repentance and (BZ)rest you will be saved,
In (CA)quietness and trust is your strength.”
But you were not willing,
16 And you said, “No, for we will flee on (CB)horses!”
Therefore you shall flee!
“And we will ride on swift horses!”
Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift.
17 (CC)One thousand will flee at the threat of one man;
You will flee at the threat of five,
Until you are left like a signal post on a mountain top,
And like a flag on a hill.

God Is Gracious and Just

18 Therefore the Lord [au](CD)longs to be gracious to you,
And therefore He [av]waits on (CE)high to have compassion on you.
For the Lord is a (CF)God of justice;
How blessed are all those who [aw](CG)long for Him.

19 [ax]For, you people in Zion, (CH)inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will (CI)weep no longer. He will certainly be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will (CJ)answer you. 20 Although the Lord has given you (CK)bread of deprivation and water of oppression, He, your Teacher, will no longer (CL)hide Himself, but your eyes will see your Teacher. 21 Your ears will hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the (CM)way, walk in it,” whenever you (CN)turn to the right or to the left. 22 And you will desecrate your carved (CO)images plated with silver, and your cast metal (CP)images plated with gold. You will scatter them as a filthy thing, and say to [ay]them, “(CQ)Be gone!”

23 Then He will (CR)give you rain for your seed which you will sow in the ground, and bread from the yield of the ground, and it will be [az]rich and [ba]plentiful; on that day (CS)your livestock will graze in a wide pasture. 24 Also the oxen and the donkeys that work the ground will eat [bb]seasoned feed, which [bc]has been (CT)winnowed with shovel and pitchfork. 25 And on every lofty mountain and (CU)every high hill there will be [bd]streams running with water on the day of the great (CV)slaughter, when the towers fall. 26 (CW)And the light of the full moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven days, on the day (CX)the Lord binds up the (CY)fracture of His people and (CZ)heals the wound [be]He has inflicted.

27 Behold, (DA)the name of the Lord comes from a [bf]remote place;
(DB)His anger is burning and [bg]dense with [bh]smoke;
His lips are filled with (DC)indignation,
And His tongue is like a (DD)consuming fire;
28 His (DE)breath is like an overflowing river,
Which (DF)reaches to the neck,
To (DG)shake the nations back and forth in a [bi]sieve,
And to put in the jaws of the peoples (DH)the bridle which leads astray.
29 You will have [bj]songs as in the night when you keep the festival,
And gladness of heart as when one marches to the sound of the flute,
To go to the mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel.
30 And the Lord will cause [bk]His voice of authority to be heard,
And the [bl]descending of His arm to be seen in fierce anger,
And in the flame of a consuming fire
In cloudburst, downpour, and hailstones.
31 For (DI)at the voice of the Lord (DJ)Assyria will be terrified,
When He strikes with the (DK)rod.
32 And every [bm]blow of the [bn](DL)rod of punishment,
Which the Lord will lay on him,
Will be with the music of (DM)tambourines and lyres;
And in battles, (DN)brandishing weapons, He will fight them.
33 For [bo](DO)Topheth has long been ready,
Indeed, it has been prepared for the king.
He has made it deep and large,
[bp]A pyre of fire with plenty of wood;
The (DP)breath of the Lord, like a torrent of (DQ)brimstone, sets it afire.

Help Not in Egypt but in God

31 Woe to those who go down to (DR)Egypt for help
And (DS)rely on horses,
And trust in chariots because they are many
And in horsemen because they are very strong,
But they do not (DT)look to the (DU)Holy One of Israel, nor seek the Lord!
Yet He also is (DV)wise and will (DW)bring disaster,
And does (DX)not retract His words,
But will arise against the house of (DY)evildoers,
And against the help of the (DZ)workers of injustice.
Now the Egyptians are (EA)human and not God,
And their (EB)horses are flesh and not spirit;
So the Lord will (EC)stretch out His hand,
And any (ED)helper will stumble,
And one who is helped will fall.
And all of them will come to an end together.

For this is what the Lord says to me:
“As the (EE)lion or the young lion growls over his prey,
Against which a band of shepherds is called out,
And he will not be terrified at their voice nor disturbed at their noise,
So will the Lord of armies come down to wage (EF)war on Mount Zion and on its hill.”
Like [bq]flying (EG)birds so the Lord of armies will protect Jerusalem.
He will (EH)protect and save it;
He will pass over and rescue it.

(EI)Return to Him against whom [br]you have been (EJ)profoundly obstinate, you sons of Israel. For on that day every person will (EK)reject his silver idols and his gold idols, which your hands have made for you as (EL)a sin.

And the (EM)Assyrian will fall by a sword not wielded by a man,
And a (EN)sword not of man will devour him.
So he will [bs](EO)not escape the sword,
And his young men will become (EP)forced laborers.
“His (EQ)rock will pass away because of panic,
And his officers will be terrified by the (ER)flag,”
Declares the Lord, whose (ES)fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 29:1 I.e., Lion of God, or Jerusalem
  2. Isaiah 29:1 I.e., Lion of God, or Jerusalem
  3. Isaiah 29:1 Lit let your feasts run their round
  4. Isaiah 29:2 Ariel (i.e., Jerusalem) is a Heb word for “altar hearth” where offerings were burned
  5. Isaiah 29:3 Lit like a circle
  6. Isaiah 29:4 Or ghost
  7. Isaiah 29:5 Lit strangers
  8. Isaiah 29:5 Lit passes away
  9. Isaiah 29:7 See note 1 v 1
  10. Isaiah 29:8 Lit soul
  11. Isaiah 29:8 Lit soul
  12. Isaiah 29:11 Or scroll
  13. Isaiah 29:11 Lit knows books
  14. Isaiah 29:12 Or scroll
  15. Isaiah 29:12 Lit does not know books
  16. Isaiah 29:12 Lit do not know books
  17. Isaiah 29:13 Lit mouth
  18. Isaiah 29:13 Lit fear of Me
  19. Isaiah 29:13 Lit is
  20. Isaiah 29:15 Lit counsel
  21. Isaiah 29:16 Lit like
  22. Isaiah 29:17 Lit And
  23. Isaiah 29:20 Lit watch evil
  24. Isaiah 29:21 Lit bring a person under condemnation
  25. Isaiah 29:21 Lit turn aside
  26. Isaiah 29:21 Lit confusion
  27. Isaiah 29:23 Or his children see
  28. Isaiah 29:24 Lit spirit
  29. Isaiah 29:24 Lit understanding
  30. Isaiah 29:24 Lit murmur
  31. Isaiah 29:24 Lit learn
  32. Isaiah 30:1 Lit pour out a drink offering
  33. Isaiah 30:2 Lit My mouth
  34. Isaiah 30:6 Lit them
  35. Isaiah 30:6 Lit shoulders
  36. Isaiah 30:7 Lit this one
  37. Isaiah 30:7 MT They are Rahab or arrogance, to remain; i.e., Egypt, as a sea monster; see note Job 26:12
  38. Isaiah 30:8 Lit be
  39. Isaiah 30:8 As in most ancient versions; MT Forever and ever
  40. Isaiah 30:9 Lit are not willing
  41. Isaiah 30:9 Or Law
  42. Isaiah 30:10 Lit smooth things
  43. Isaiah 30:14 Lit Crushed, it will not be spared
  44. Isaiah 30:14 Lit snatch up
  45. Isaiah 30:15 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  46. Isaiah 30:15 Lit returning
  47. Isaiah 30:18 Lit waits
  48. Isaiah 30:18 Lit is on high
  49. Isaiah 30:18 Lit wait
  50. Isaiah 30:19 MT For a people will inhabit Zion, Jerusalem
  51. Isaiah 30:22 Lit it “Go out”
  52. Isaiah 30:23 Lit fatness
  53. Isaiah 30:23 Lit fat
  54. Isaiah 30:24 Lit sorrel-seasoned
  55. Isaiah 30:24 Lit one winnows
  56. Isaiah 30:25 Lit canals, streams of water
  57. Isaiah 30:26 Lit of His blow
  58. Isaiah 30:27 Lit distance
  59. Isaiah 30:27 Lit heaviness
  60. Isaiah 30:27 Lit uplifting
  61. Isaiah 30:28 Lit sifting of the worthless
  62. Isaiah 30:29 Lit the song
  63. Isaiah 30:30 Lit the majesty of His voice
  64. Isaiah 30:30 Lit descent
  65. Isaiah 30:32 Lit passing
  66. Isaiah 30:32 Lit staff of foundation
  67. Isaiah 30:33 I.e., the place of human sacrifice to Molech
  68. Isaiah 30:33 Lit Its pile
  69. Isaiah 31:5 Or hovering
  70. Isaiah 31:6 Lit they
  71. Isaiah 31:8 Lit flee

Woe to David’s City

29 Woe(A) to you, Ariel, Ariel,(B)
    the city(C) where David settled!
Add year to year
    and let your cycle of festivals(D) go on.
Yet I will besiege Ariel;(E)
    she will mourn and lament,(F)
    she will be to me like an altar hearth.[a](G)
I will encamp against you on all sides;
    I will encircle(H) you with towers
    and set up my siege works(I) against you.
Brought low, you will speak from the ground;
    your speech will mumble(J) out of the dust.(K)
Your voice will come ghostlike(L) from the earth;
    out of the dust your speech will whisper.(M)

But your many enemies will become like fine dust,(N)
    the ruthless(O) hordes like blown chaff.(P)
Suddenly,(Q) in an instant,
    the Lord Almighty will come(R)
with thunder(S) and earthquake(T) and great noise,
    with windstorm and tempest(U) and flames of a devouring fire.(V)
Then the hordes of all the nations(W) that fight against Ariel,(X)
    that attack her and her fortress and besiege her,
will be as it is with a dream,(Y)
    with a vision in the night—
as when a hungry person dreams of eating,
    but awakens(Z) hungry still;
as when a thirsty person dreams of drinking,
    but awakens faint and thirsty still.(AA)
So will it be with the hordes of all the nations
    that fight against Mount Zion.(AB)

Be stunned and amazed,(AC)
    blind yourselves and be sightless;(AD)
be drunk,(AE) but not from wine,(AF)
    stagger,(AG) but not from beer.
10 The Lord has brought over you a deep sleep:(AH)
    He has sealed your eyes(AI) (the prophets);(AJ)
    he has covered your heads (the seers).(AK)

11 For you this whole vision(AL) is nothing but words sealed(AM) in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” 12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.”

13 The Lord says:

“These people(AN) come near to me with their mouth
    and honor me with their lips,(AO)
    but their hearts are far from me.(AP)
Their worship of me
    is based on merely human rules they have been taught.[b](AQ)
14 Therefore once more I will astound these people
    with wonder upon wonder;(AR)
the wisdom of the wise(AS) will perish,
    the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.(AT)
15 Woe to those who go to great depths
    to hide(AU) their plans from the Lord,
who do their work in darkness and think,
    “Who sees us?(AV) Who will know?”(AW)
16 You turn things upside down,
    as if the potter were thought to be like the clay!(AX)
Shall what is formed say to the one who formed(AY) it,
    “You did not make me”?
Can the pot say to the potter,(AZ)
    “You know nothing”?(BA)

17 In a very short time,(BB) will not Lebanon(BC) be turned into a fertile field(BD)
    and the fertile field seem like a forest?(BE)
18 In that day(BF) the deaf(BG) will hear the words of the scroll,
    and out of gloom and darkness(BH)
    the eyes of the blind will see.(BI)
19 Once more the humble(BJ) will rejoice in the Lord;
    the needy(BK) will rejoice in the Holy One(BL) of Israel.
20 The ruthless(BM) will vanish,(BN)
    the mockers(BO) will disappear,
    and all who have an eye for evil(BP) will be cut down—
21 those who with a word make someone out to be guilty,
    who ensnare the defender in court(BQ)
    and with false testimony(BR) deprive the innocent of justice.(BS)

22 Therefore this is what the Lord, who redeemed(BT) Abraham,(BU) says to the descendants of Jacob:

“No longer will Jacob be ashamed;(BV)
    no longer will their faces grow pale.(BW)
23 When they see among them their children,(BX)
    the work of my hands,(BY)
they will keep my name holy;(BZ)
    they will acknowledge the holiness of the Holy One(CA) of Jacob,
    and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24 Those who are wayward(CB) in spirit will gain understanding;(CC)
    those who complain will accept instruction.”(CD)

Woe to the Obstinate Nation

30 “Woe(CE) to the obstinate children,”(CF)
    declares the Lord,
“to those who carry out plans that are not mine,
    forming an alliance,(CG) but not by my Spirit,
    heaping sin upon sin;
who go down to Egypt(CH)
    without consulting(CI) me;
who look for help to Pharaoh’s protection,(CJ)
    to Egypt’s shade for refuge.(CK)
But Pharaoh’s protection will be to your shame,
    Egypt’s shade(CL) will bring you disgrace.(CM)
Though they have officials in Zoan(CN)
    and their envoys have arrived in Hanes,
everyone will be put to shame
    because of a people(CO) useless(CP) to them,
who bring neither help(CQ) nor advantage,
    but only shame and disgrace.(CR)

A prophecy(CS) concerning the animals of the Negev:(CT)

Through a land of hardship and distress,(CU)
    of lions(CV) and lionesses,
    of adders and darting snakes,(CW)
the envoys carry their riches on donkeys’(CX) backs,
    their treasures(CY) on the humps of camels,
to that unprofitable nation,
    to Egypt, whose help is utterly useless.(CZ)
Therefore I call her
    Rahab(DA) the Do-Nothing.

Go now, write it on a tablet(DB) for them,
    inscribe it on a scroll,(DC)
that for the days to come
    it may be an everlasting witness.(DD)
For these are rebellious(DE) people, deceitful(DF) children,
    children unwilling to listen to the Lord’s instruction.(DG)
10 They say to the seers,(DH)
    “See no more visions(DI)!”
and to the prophets,
    “Give us no more visions of what is right!
Tell us pleasant things,(DJ)
    prophesy illusions.(DK)
11 Leave this way,(DL)
    get off this path,
and stop confronting(DM) us
    with the Holy One(DN) of Israel!”

12 Therefore this is what the Holy One(DO) of Israel says:

“Because you have rejected this message,(DP)
    relied on oppression(DQ)
    and depended on deceit,
13 this sin will become for you
    like a high wall,(DR) cracked and bulging,
    that collapses(DS) suddenly,(DT) in an instant.
14 It will break in pieces like pottery,(DU)
    shattered so mercilessly
that among its pieces not a fragment will be found
    for taking coals from a hearth
    or scooping water out of a cistern.”

15 This is what the Sovereign(DV) Lord, the Holy One(DW) of Israel, says:

“In repentance and rest(DX) is your salvation,
    in quietness and trust(DY) is your strength,
    but you would have none of it.(DZ)
16 You said, ‘No, we will flee(EA) on horses.’(EB)
    Therefore you will flee!
You said, ‘We will ride off on swift horses.’
    Therefore your pursuers will be swift!
17 A thousand will flee
    at the threat of one;
at the threat of five(EC)
    you will all flee(ED) away,
till you are left(EE)
    like a flagstaff on a mountaintop,
    like a banner(EF) on a hill.”

18 Yet the Lord longs(EG) to be gracious to you;
    therefore he will rise up to show you compassion.(EH)
For the Lord is a God of justice.(EI)
    Blessed are all who wait for him!(EJ)

19 People of Zion, who live in Jerusalem, you will weep no more.(EK) How gracious he will be when you cry for help!(EL) As soon as he hears, he will answer(EM) you. 20 Although the Lord gives you the bread(EN) of adversity and the water of affliction, your teachers(EO) will be hidden(EP) no more; with your own eyes you will see them. 21 Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice(EQ) behind you, saying, “This is the way;(ER) walk in it.” 22 Then you will desecrate your idols(ES) overlaid with silver and your images covered with gold;(ET) you will throw them away like a menstrual(EU) cloth and say to them, “Away with you!(EV)

23 He will also send you rain(EW) for the seed you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the land will be rich(EX) and plentiful.(EY) In that day(EZ) your cattle will graze in broad meadows.(FA) 24 The oxen(FB) and donkeys that work the soil will eat fodder(FC) and mash, spread out with fork(FD) and shovel. 25 In the day of great slaughter,(FE) when the towers(FF) fall, streams of water will flow(FG) on every high mountain and every lofty hill. 26 The moon will shine like the sun,(FH) and the sunlight will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days, when the Lord binds up the bruises of his people and heals(FI) the wounds he inflicted.

27 See, the Name(FJ) of the Lord comes from afar,
    with burning anger(FK) and dense clouds of smoke;
his lips are full of wrath,(FL)
    and his tongue is a consuming fire.(FM)
28 His breath(FN) is like a rushing torrent,(FO)
    rising up to the neck.(FP)
He shakes the nations in the sieve(FQ) of destruction;
    he places in the jaws of the peoples
    a bit(FR) that leads them astray.
29 And you will sing
    as on the night you celebrate a holy festival;(FS)
your hearts will rejoice(FT)
    as when people playing pipes(FU) go up
to the mountain(FV) of the Lord,
    to the Rock(FW) of Israel.
30 The Lord will cause people to hear his majestic voice(FX)
    and will make them see his arm(FY) coming down
with raging anger(FZ) and consuming fire,(GA)
    with cloudburst, thunderstorm(GB) and hail.(GC)
31 The voice of the Lord will shatter Assyria;(GD)
    with his rod he will strike(GE) them down.
32 Every stroke the Lord lays on them
    with his punishing club(GF)
will be to the music of timbrels(GG) and harps,
    as he fights them in battle with the blows of his arm.(GH)
33 Topheth(GI) has long been prepared;
    it has been made ready for the king.
Its fire pit has been made deep and wide,
    with an abundance of fire and wood;
the breath(GJ) of the Lord,
    like a stream of burning sulfur,(GK)
    sets it ablaze.(GL)

Woe to Those Who Rely on Egypt

31 Woe(GM) to those who go down to Egypt(GN) for help,
    who rely on horses,(GO)
who trust in the multitude of their chariots(GP)
    and in the great strength of their horsemen,
but do not look to the Holy One(GQ) of Israel,
    or seek help from the Lord.(GR)
Yet he too is wise(GS) and can bring disaster;(GT)
    he does not take back his words.(GU)
He will rise up against that wicked nation,(GV)
    against those who help evildoers.
But the Egyptians(GW) are mere mortals and not God;(GX)
    their horses(GY) are flesh and not spirit.
When the Lord stretches out his hand,(GZ)
    those who help will stumble,
    those who are helped(HA) will fall;
    all will perish together.(HB)

This is what the Lord says to me:

“As a lion(HC) growls,
    a great lion over its prey—
and though a whole band of shepherds(HD)
    is called together against it,
it is not frightened by their shouts
    or disturbed by their clamor(HE)
so the Lord Almighty will come down(HF)
    to do battle on Mount Zion and on its heights.
Like birds hovering(HG) overhead,
    the Lord Almighty will shield(HH) Jerusalem;
he will shield it and deliver(HI) it,
    he will ‘pass over’(HJ) it and will rescue it.”

Return,(HK) you Israelites, to the One you have so greatly revolted(HL) against. For in that day(HM) every one of you will reject the idols of silver and gold(HN) your sinful hands have made.(HO)

“Assyria(HP) will fall by no human sword;
    a sword, not of mortals, will devour(HQ) them.
They will flee before the sword
    and their young men will be put to forced labor.(HR)
Their stronghold(HS) will fall because of terror;
    at the sight of the battle standard(HT) their commanders will panic,(HU)
declares the Lord,
    whose fire(HV) is in Zion,
    whose furnace(HW) is in Jerusalem.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 29:2 The Hebrew for altar hearth sounds like the Hebrew for Ariel.
  2. Isaiah 29:13 Hebrew; Septuagint They worship me in vain; / their teachings are merely human rules