Isaiah 66
Legacy Standard Bible
Heaven Is Yahweh’s Throne
66 Thus says Yahweh,
“(A)Heaven is My throne, and the earth is the footstool of My feet.
Where then is a (B)house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that [a]I may rest?
2 For (C)My hand made all these things,
Thus all these things came into being,” declares Yahweh.
“But to this one I will look,
To him who is humble and (D)contrite of spirit, and who (E)trembles at My word.
3 “But he who slaughters an ox is the one who strikes down a man;
He who sacrifices a lamb is the one who breaks a dog’s neck;
He who offers a grain offering is the one who offers (F)swine’s blood;
He who (G)offers a memorial offering of frankincense is the one who blesses wickedness.
As they have chosen their (H)own ways,
And their soul takes pleasure in their (I)detestable things,
4 So I will (J)choose their [b]punishments
And will (K)bring on them what they dread,
Because I called, but (L)no one answered;
I spoke, but they did not listen.
And they did what was (M)evil in My eyes
And chose that in which I did not take pleasure.”
5 Hear the word of Yahweh, you who (N)tremble at His word:
“Your brothers who (O)hate you, who (P)exclude you for My name’s sake,
Have said, ‘Let Yahweh be glorified, that we may see your gladness.’
But (Q)they will be put to shame.
6 A voice of rumbling from the city, a voice from the temple,
The voice of Yahweh who is (R)paying recompense to His enemies.
7 “Before she was in labor pains, (S)she gave birth;
Before her pangs came, (T)she delivered a male child.
8 (U)Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?
Can a land be [c]brought forth through labor pains in one day?
Can a nation be born all at once?
As soon as Zion was in labor pains, she also gave birth to her sons.
9 Shall I bring to the point of breaking forth and (V)not cause birth?” says Yahweh.
“Or shall I who causes birth shut the womb?” says your God.
Joy in Jerusalem’s Future
10 “Be (W)glad with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who (X)love her;
Be exceedingly (Y)joyful with her, all you who mourn over her,
11 That you may nurse and (Z)be satisfied with her comforting breasts,
That you may suck and be delighted with her (AA)bountiful bosom.”
12 For thus says Yahweh, “Behold, I stretch out (AB)peace to her like a river,
And the (AC)glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;
And you will [d]be nursed; you will be (AD)carried on the [e]hip and played with on the knees.
13 As one whom his mother comforts, so I will (AE)comfort you;
And you will be comforted in Jerusalem.”
14 Then you will (AF)see this, and your (AG)heart will be joyful,
And your (AH)bones will flourish like the new grass;
And the (AI)hand of Yahweh will be made known to His slaves,
But He will be (AJ)indignant toward His enemies.
15 For behold, Yahweh will come in (AK)fire
And His (AL)chariots like the whirlwind,
To return His anger with wrath,
And His rebuke with flames of fire.
16 For Yahweh will execute judgment by (AM)fire
And by His (AN)sword on all flesh,
And those slain by Yahweh will be many.
17 “Those who sanctify and purify themselves to go to the (AO)gardens,
[f]Following one in the center,
Who eat (AP)swine’s flesh, detestable things, and mice,
Will (AQ)come to an end altogether,” declares Yahweh.
18 “And I [g]know their works and their (AR)thoughts; [h]the time is coming to (AS)gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My glory. 19 I will set a (AT)sign among them and will send those who have escaped from them to the nations: (AU)Tarshish, [i]Put, (AV)Lud, [j]Meshech, (AW)Tubal, and [k]Javan, to the distant (AX)coastlands that have neither heard My report nor seen My glory. And they will (AY)declare My glory among the nations. 20 Then they shall (AZ)bring all your brothers from all the nations as a grain offering to Yahweh, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules, and on camels, to My (BA)holy mountain Jerusalem,” says Yahweh, “just as the sons of Israel bring their grain offering in a (BB)clean vessel to the house of Yahweh. 21 I will also take some of them for (BC)priests and for Levites,” says Yahweh.
22 “For just as the (BD)new heavens and the new earth
Which I make will endure before Me,” declares Yahweh,
“So your (BE)seed and your (BF)name will endure.
23 And it shall be from (BG)new moon to new moon
And from sabbath to sabbath,
All [l]mankind will come to (BH)worship before Me,” says Yahweh.
24 “Then they will go forth and look
On the (BI)corpses of the men
Who have [m](BJ)transgressed against Me.
For their (BK)worm will not die
(BL)And their fire will not be quenched;
And they will be an object of (BM)contempt to all [n]mankind.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 66:1 Lit is My resting place?
- Isaiah 66:4 Lit ill treatments
- Isaiah 66:8 Lit travailed with
- Isaiah 66:12 Lit nurse
- Isaiah 66:12 Lit side
- Isaiah 66:17 Lit After
- Isaiah 66:18 As in Gr; Heb omits know
- Isaiah 66:18 Lit it is coming
- Isaiah 66:19 As in Gr; Heb Pul
- Isaiah 66:19 As in Gr; Heb those who draw the bow
- Isaiah 66:19 Greece
- Isaiah 66:23 Lit flesh
- Isaiah 66:24 Or rebelled
- Isaiah 66:24 Lit flesh
Isaiah 66
Christian Standard Bible
Final Judgment and Joyous Restoration
66 This is what the Lord says:
Heaven(A) is my throne,(B)
and earth is my footstool.(C)
Where could you possibly build a house for me?
And where would my resting place be?(D)
2 My hand made all these things,
and so they all came into being.
This is the Lord’s declaration.
I will look favorably on this kind of person:
one who is humble,(E) submissive[a] in spirit,(F)
and trembles at my word.
3 One person slaughters an ox, another kills a person;
one person sacrifices a lamb, another breaks a dog’s neck;
one person offers a grain offering, another offers pig’s blood;
one person offers incense, another praises an idol—
all these have chosen their ways
and delight in their abhorrent practices.(G)
4 So I will choose their punishment,
and I will bring on them what they dread
because I called and no one answered;
I spoke and they did not listen;
they did what was evil in my sight
and chose what I did not delight in.(H)
5 You who tremble at his word,(I)
hear the word of the Lord:(J)
“Your brothers who hate and exclude you
for my name’s sake have said,(K)
‘Let the Lord be glorified
so that we can see your joy!’
But they will be put to shame.”(L)
6 A sound of uproar from the city!
A voice from the temple—
the voice of the Lord,
paying back his enemies what they deserve!(M)
7 Before Zion was in labor, she gave birth;
before she was in pain, she delivered a boy.
8 Who has heard of such a thing?
Who has seen such things?
Can a land be born in one day
or a nation be delivered in an instant?
Yet as soon as Zion was in labor,
she gave birth to her sons.
9 “Will I bring a baby to the point of birth
and not deliver it?”
says the Lord;
“or will I who deliver, close the womb?”
says your God.
10 Be glad for Jerusalem and rejoice over her,
all who love her.(N)
Rejoice greatly with her,
all who mourn over her—
11 so that you may nurse and be satisfied
from her comforting breast
and drink deeply and delight yourselves
from her glorious breasts.
12 For this is what the Lord says:
I will make peace flow to her like a river,(O)
and the wealth[b] of nations like a flood;(P)
you will nurse and be carried on her hip(Q)
and bounced on her lap.
13 As a mother comforts her son,
so I will comfort you,(R)
and you will be comforted in Jerusalem.
14 You will see, you will rejoice,
and you[c] will flourish like grass;(S)
then the Lord’s power will be revealed to his servants,
but he will show his wrath against his enemies.
15 Look, the Lord will come with fire(T)—
his chariots are like the whirlwind(U)—
to execute his anger with fury
and his rebuke with flames of fire.
16 For the Lord will execute judgment
on all humanity(V) with his fiery sword,
and many will be slain by the Lord.
17 “Those who dedicate and purify themselves to enter the groves(W) following their leader,[d] eating meat from pigs, vermin,[e] and rats, will perish together.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
18 “Knowing[f] their works and their thoughts, I have come to gather all nations and languages;(X) they will come and see my glory. 19 I will establish a sign among them, and I will send survivors from them to the nations—to Tarshish, Put,[g] Lud (who are archers), Tubal, Javan,(Y) and the coasts and islands far away—who have not heard about me or seen my glory. And they will proclaim my glory among the nations.(Z) 20 They will bring all your brothers from all the nations as a gift to the Lord on horses and chariots, in litters, and on mules and camels, to my holy mountain Jerusalem,”(AA) says the Lord, “just as the Israelites bring an offering in a clean vessel to the house of the Lord. 21 I will also take some of them as priests and Levites,”(AB) says the Lord.
22 “For just as the new heavens and the new earth,(AC)
which I will make,
will remain before me”—
this is the Lord’s declaration—
“so your offspring and your name will remain.
23 All humanity will come to worship me
from one New Moon to another
and from one Sabbath to another,”
says the Lord.
24 “As they leave, they will see the dead bodies of those who have rebelled against me;(AD) for their worm(AE) will never die, their fire will never go out,(AF) and they will be a horror to all humanity.”(AG)
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