Isaiah 30
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Futility of Reliance on Egypt
30 Woe to the rebellious children, says the Lord,
who carry out a plan but not mine;
who make an alliance but against my will,
adding sin to sin;(A)
2 who set out to go down to Egypt
without asking for my counsel,
to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh
and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt.(B)
3 Therefore the protection of Pharaoh shall become your shame,
and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt your humiliation.(C)
4 For though his officials are at Zoan
and his envoys reach Hanes,(D)
5 everyone comes to shame
through a people that cannot profit them,
that brings neither help nor profit,
only shame and disgrace.(E)
6 An oracle concerning the animals of the Negeb.
Through a land of trouble and distress,
of lioness and roaring[a] lion,
of viper and flying serpent,
they carry their riches on the backs of donkeys
and their treasures on the humps of camels
to a people that cannot profit them.(F)
7 For Egypt’s help is worthless and empty;
therefore I have called her,
“Rahab who sits still.”[b](G)
A Rebellious People
8 Go now, write it before them on a tablet,
and inscribe it on a scroll,
so that it may be for the time to come
as a witness forever.(H)
9 For they are a rebellious people,
faithless children,
children who will not hear
the instruction of the Lord;(I)
10 who say to the seers, “Do not see,”
and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us what is right;
speak to us smooth things;
prophesy illusions;(J)
11 leave the way; turn aside from the path;
let us hear no more about the Holy One of Israel.”(K)
12 Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel:
Because you reject this word
and put your trust in oppression and deceit
and rely on them,(L)
13 therefore this iniquity shall become for you
like a break in a high wall, bulging out and about to collapse,
whose crash comes suddenly, in an instant;(M)
14 its breaking is like that of a potter’s vessel
that is smashed so ruthlessly
that among its fragments not a sherd is found
for taking fire from the hearth
or dipping water out of the cistern.(N)
15 For thus said the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel:
In returning and rest you shall be saved;
in quietness and in trust shall be your strength.
But you refused(O) 16 and said,
‘No! We will flee upon horses’—
therefore you shall flee!
and, ‘We will ride upon swift steeds’—
therefore your pursuers shall be swift!(P)
17 A thousand shall flee at the threat of one;
at the threat of five you shall flee
until you are left
like a flagstaff on the top of a mountain,
like a signal on a hill.(Q)
God’s Promise to Zion
18 Therefore the Lord waits to be gracious to you;
therefore he will rise up to show mercy to you.
For the Lord is a God of justice;
blessed are all those who wait for him.(R)
19 O people in Zion, inhabitants of Jerusalem, you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when he hears it, he will answer you.(S) 20 Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any longer, but your eyes shall see your Teacher.(T) 21 And when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.”(U) 22 Then you will defile your silver-covered idols and your gold-plated images. You will scatter them like impure things; you will say to them, “Away with you!”(V)
23 He will give rain for the seed with which you sow the ground, and grain, the produce of the ground, will be rich and plenteous. On that day your cattle will graze in broad pastures,(W) 24 and the oxen and donkeys that till the ground will eat silage that has been winnowed with shovel and fork. 25 On every lofty mountain and every high hill there will be brooks running with water—on a day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall. 26 Moreover, the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, like the light of seven days, on the day when the Lord binds up the injuries of his people and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.(X)
Judgment on Assyria
27 See, the name of the Lord comes from far away,
his anger burning and his burden heavy;[c]
his lips are full of indignation,
and his tongue is like a devouring fire;(Y)
28 his breath is like an overflowing stream
that reaches up to the neck—
to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction
and to place on the jaws of the peoples a bridle that leads them astray.(Z)
29 You shall have a song as in the night when a holy festival is kept and gladness of heart, as when one sets out to the sound of the flute to go to the mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel.(AA) 30 And the Lord will cause his majestic voice to be heard and the descending blow of his arm to be seen, in furious anger and a flame of devouring fire, with a cloudburst and tempest and hailstones.(AB) 31 The Assyrian will be terror-stricken at the voice of the Lord when he strikes with his rod.(AC) 32 And every stroke of the staff of punishment[d] that the Lord lays upon him will be to the sound of timbrels and lyres with dancing;[e] with brandished arm he will fight with him.(AD) 33 For his burning place[f] has long been prepared, also for the king;[g] its pyre is made deep and wide, with fire and wood in abundance; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of sulfur, kindles it.(AE)
Isaiah 30
International Standard Version
Foolish Trust in Egypt
30 “Oh, you stubborn children,” declares the Lord,
“who carry out plans—
but they are not mine,
and who make alliances—
but not by my Spirit,
piling sin upon sin.
2 They set out to go down to Egypt,
without asking my advice;
taking refuge in Pharaoh’s protection,
and seeking shelter in Egypt’s shadow.
3 But Pharaoh’s protection will become your shame,
and sheltering in Egypt’s shadow your longing.[a]
4 And it will turn out that[b] his officials are at Zoan,
and his envoys will reach Hanes.
5 There is only loathsome destruction[c]
through a people that cannot benefit them,
who bring neither help nor profit,
but only shame and disgrace.”
The Animals of the Negev
6 An oracle about the animals of the Negev:[d]
“Through a land of trouble, dryness,[e] and distress,
of lionesses and roaring lions,
where there is no water,[f]
a land of vipers and darting snakes,
he carries[g] their riches on donkeys’ backs,
and their treasures on the humps of camels,
to a nation that cannot benefit them,
7 to Egypt, which gives help that is worthless and useless.
Therefore I call her,
‘Rahab,[h] who just sits still.’”
The Illusions of False Prophecy
8 “Go now, and write it down[i] on a tablet in their presence,
inscribing it in a book,
so that for times to come
it may be an everlasting witness.
9 For they are a rebellious people,
deceitful children,
children unwilling to hear
the Lord’s instruction.
10 They say to the seers,
‘Don’t see visions,’
and to the prophets,
‘Don’t give us visions of what is right!
Instead, tell us welcome things, prophesy illusions,
11 get out of the way,
turn aside from the path,
and stop confronting us with the Holy One of Israel.”[j]
Rejecting God’s Message
12 Therefore, this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
“Because you reject this message,
and put your trust in oppression and enjoy it,[k]
and since you rely on it,
13 therefore, for you this sin will become
like a breach in a high wall that is about to collapse,
bulging out,
and whose crash comes suddenly—in an instant.
14 Its breaking will be like when potters’ vessels are broken,
shattered so ruthlessly[l]
that among its fragments not even a broken sliver will be found
for taking fire from a hearth
or scooping water out of a cistern.”
“In repentance and rest you will be saved;
in staying calm and trusting will be your strength.
But you refused.
16 Instead, you said,
‘No! We’ll escape on horses!’
Therefore, you’ll flee away.
And you said,
‘We’ll ride off on swift steeds!’
Therefore your pursuers will be swift.
17 A thousand will flee at the threat of one;
and run away, pursued by[o] five,
until you are left
like a flagpole on a mountaintop,[p]
like a banner on a hill.”
Restoration is Promised to Israel
18 “Nevertheless, the Lord will wait
so he can be gracious to you;
and thus he will rise up to show you mercy.
For the Lord is a God of justice.
How blessed are all those who wait for him.”
19 Indeed, you people who live in Zion and in Jerusalem,[q] you[r] will weep no more. How gracious the Lord[s] will be to you at the sound of your cry! As soon as he hears it, he will answer you. 20 And although the Lord gives you the bread of adversity and the water[t] of affliction, your teachers won’t hide themselves[u] anymore, but your own eyes will see your teachers. 21 And whether you turn to the right or turn to the left, your ears will hear a message behind you: “This is the way, walk in it.” 22 Then you will defile your carved idols that are overlaid with silver and your images plated with gold. You’ll throw them away like disgusting objects[v] and say to them, “Away with you!”
23 He will also provide rain for your seed that you sow in the ground, and the food that comes from the ground will be[w] rich and abundant. At that time,[x] your cattle will graze in broad meadows, 24 and oxen and donkeys that work the ground will eat seasoned[y] fodder that workers will winnow with shovels and forks. 25 And on every lofty mountain and every high hill there will be brooks and canals[z] running with water on the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.
26 Moreover, the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun, and the sun’s light will be seven times brighter, like the light of seven full days,[aa] when the Lord binds up the bruises of his people and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.
27 See, the name of the Lord comes from far away,
burning with his anger, and in thick rising smoke;
his lips are full of fury,
and his tongue is like a devouring fire.
28 His breath is like an overflowing torrent,
and it rises right up to the neck,
to shake[ab] the nations in the sieve of destruction,
and to place in the jaws of the peoples a bit that leads them astray.
29 You will have songs as on nights when people celebrate a holy festival,[ac] and gladness of heart, as when they set out with flutes to go to the Lord’s mountain, to the Rock of Israel.
God’s Judgment on Assyria
30 And the Lord will make heard—yes, he will make heard[ad]—his majestic voice, and make his arm[ae] seen descending in raging anger and in a flame of consuming fire, with a cloudburst, thunderstorm and hailstones. 31 Indeed, the Assyrians will be shattered at the Lord’s voice, when he strikes them with his scepter. 32 And every stroke of his punishing rod[af] that the Lord brings down on them will be to the sound of tambourines and harps, as he fights against her[ag] in battle with a brandished arm.
33 For the Fire Pit[ah] has long been prepared; truly it is for the king; it will indeed be made ready.[ai] And[aj] its pyre will be deep and wide, with abundant fire and wood. Like a stream of burning sulfur, the breath of the Lord will set it ablaze.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 30:3 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read disgrace
- Isaiah 30:4 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read For even though
- Isaiah 30:5 So 1QIsaa; MT reads Everyone comes to shame
- Isaiah 30:6 I.e. southern region of Israel; cf. Josh 10:40
- Isaiah 30:6 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX lack dryness; cf. Isa 41:18
- Isaiah 30:6 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read from whence come
- Isaiah 30:6 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read they carry
- Isaiah 30:7 The Heb. word Rahab means The One who Storms; i.e. Egypt; cf. Isa 51:9; Ps 87:4
- Isaiah 30:8 So 1QIsaa MT; 4QIsac LXX read write down
- Isaiah 30:11 Lit. bring to an end the Holy One from before us.
- Isaiah 30:12 Apparent meaning 1QIsaa; MT reads and are perverse
- Isaiah 30:14 Lit. broken—they do not take pity; so 1QIsaa; MT reads broken—he does not take pity
- Isaiah 30:15 So 1QIsaa
- Isaiah 30:15 So 1QIsaa corrector
- Isaiah 30:17 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read away at the threat of
- Isaiah 30:17 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads the mountaintop
- Isaiah 30:19 So 1QIsaa; cf. LXX; MT reads at Jerusalem
- Isaiah 30:19 So 1QIsaa (pl.); MT (sing.)
- Isaiah 30:19 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read he
- Isaiah 30:20 So 1QIsaa; MT lacks the correct Heb. construct
- Isaiah 30:20 So 1QIsaa; MT reads himself
- Isaiah 30:22 Lit. like menstrual rags
- Isaiah 30:23 So 1QIsaa LXX; MT reads and it will be
- Isaiah 30:23 Lit. On that day
- Isaiah 30:24 Lit. salted
- Isaiah 30:25 So 1QIsaa; MT reads streams
- Isaiah 30:26 So 1QIsaa MT; LXX lacks like the light of seven full days
- Isaiah 30:28 So 1QIsaa; MT reads to sift; LXX reads to confuse
- Isaiah 30:29 So 1QIsaa; MT reads one celebrates a holy festival
- Isaiah 30:30 So 1QIsaa; MT LXX read heard only once
- Isaiah 30:30 I.e. the Messiah
- Isaiah 30:32 So MTmss; 1QIsaa reads the rod of his foundation; MT reads the rod of foundation
- Isaiah 30:32 So 1QIsaa MT; MTqere, mss read against them
- Isaiah 30:33 Lit. the Topheth; i.e. a fire pit near Jerusalem where the Canaanite deity Molech was worshipped
- Isaiah 30:33 So 1QIsaa; MT reads it is made ready for the king; cf. LXX
- Isaiah 30:33 So 1QIsaa; MT lacks And
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