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Isaiah 8:11-22
New King James Version
Isaiah 8:11-22
New King James Version
Fear God, Heed His Word
11 For the Lord spoke thus to me with [a]a strong hand, and instructed me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying:
12 “Do not say, ‘A conspiracy,’
Concerning all that this people call a conspiracy,
Nor be afraid of their [b]threats, nor be [c]troubled.
13 The Lord of hosts, Him you shall hallow;
Let Him be your fear,
And let Him be your dread.
14 (A)He will be as a [d]sanctuary,
But (B)a stone of stumbling and a rock of [e]offense
To both the houses of Israel,
As a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
15 And many among them shall (C)stumble;
They shall fall and be broken,
Be snared and [f]taken.”
16 Bind up the testimony,
Seal the law among my disciples.
17 And I will wait on the Lord,
Who (D)hides His face from the house of Jacob;
And I (E)will hope in Him.
18 (F)Here am I and the children whom the Lord has given me!
We (G)are for signs and wonders in Israel
From the Lord of hosts,
Who dwells in Mount Zion.
19 And when they say to you, (H)“Seek those who are mediums and wizards, (I)who whisper and mutter,” should not a people seek their God? Should they (J)seek the dead on behalf of the living? 20 (K)To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because (L)there[g] is no light in them.
21 They will pass through it hard-pressed and hungry; and it shall happen, when they are hungry, that they will be enraged and (M)curse [h]their king and their God, and look upward. 22 Then they will look to the earth, and see trouble and darkness, gloom of anguish; and they will be driven into darkness.
The Government of the Promised Son(N)
9 Nevertheless (O)the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed,
As when at (P)first He lightly esteemed
The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,
And (Q)afterward more heavily oppressed her,
By the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan,
In Galilee of the Gentiles.
2 (R)The people who walked in darkness
Have seen a great light;
Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death,
Upon them a light has shined.
3 You have multiplied the nation
And [i]increased its joy;
They rejoice before You
According to the joy of harvest,
As men rejoice (S)when they divide the spoil.
4 For You have broken the yoke of his burden
And the staff of his shoulder,
The rod of his oppressor,
As in the day of (T)Midian.
5 For every warrior’s [j]sandal from the noisy battle,
And garments rolled in blood,
(U)Will be used for burning and fuel [k]of fire.
6 (V)For unto us a Child is born,
Unto us a (W)Son is given;
And (X)the government will be upon His shoulder.
And His name will be called
(Y)Wonderful, Counselor, (Z)Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, (AA)Prince of Peace.
7 Of the increase of His government and peace
(AB)There will be no end,
Upon the throne of David and over His kingdom,
To order it and establish it with judgment and justice
From that time forward, even forever.
The (AC)zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.
The Punishment of Samaria
8 The Lord sent a word against (AD)Jacob,
And it has fallen on Israel.
9 All the people will know—
Ephraim and the inhabitant of Samaria—
Who say in pride and arrogance of heart:
10 “The bricks have fallen down,
But we will rebuild with hewn stones;
The sycamores are cut down,
But we will replace them with cedars.”
11 Therefore the Lord shall set up
The adversaries of Rezin against him,
And spur his enemies on,
12 The Syrians before and the Philistines behind;
And they shall devour Israel with an open mouth.
For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is [l]stretched out still.
13 For the people do not turn to Him who strikes them,
Nor do they seek the Lord of hosts.
14 Therefore the Lord will cut off head and tail from Israel,
Palm branch and bulrush (AE)in one day.
15 The elder and honorable, he is the head;
The prophet who teaches lies, he is the tail.
16 For (AF)the leaders of this people cause them to err,
And those who are led by them are destroyed.
17 Therefore the Lord (AG)will have no joy in their young men,
Nor have mercy on their fatherless and widows;
For everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer,
And every mouth speaks [m]folly.
(AH)For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.
18 For wickedness (AI)burns as the fire;
It shall devour the briers and thorns,
And kindle in the thickets of the forest;
They shall mount up like rising smoke.
19 Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts
(AJ)The land is burned up,
And the people shall be as fuel for the fire;
(AK)No man shall spare his brother.
20 And he shall [n]snatch on the right hand
And be hungry;
He shall devour on the left hand
(AL)And not be satisfied;
(AM)Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.
21 Manasseh shall devour Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh;
Together they shall be (AN)against Judah.
(AO)For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.
Assyria Shall Be Broken
10 “Woe to those who (AP)decree unrighteous decrees,
Who write misfortune,
Which they have prescribed
2 To rob the needy of justice,
And to take what is right from the poor of My people,
That widows may be their prey,
And that they may rob the fatherless.
3 (AQ)What will you do in (AR)the day of punishment,
And in the desolation which will come from (AS)afar?
To whom will you flee for help?
And where will you leave your glory?
4 Without Me they shall bow down among the (AT)prisoners,
And they shall fall [o]among the slain.”
(AU)For all this His anger is not turned away,
But His hand is stretched out still.
Arrogant Assyria Also Judged
5 “Woe to Assyria, (AV)the rod of My anger
And the staff in whose hand is My indignation.
6 I will send him against (AW)an ungodly nation,
And against the people of My wrath
I will (AX)give him charge,
To seize the spoil, to take the prey,
And to tread them down like the mire of the streets.
7 (AY)Yet he does not mean so,
Nor does his heart think so;
But it is in his heart to destroy,
And cut off not a few nations.
8 (AZ)For he says,
‘Are not my princes altogether kings?
9 Is not (BA)Calno (BB)like Carchemish?
Is not Hamath like Arpad?
Is not Samaria (BC)like Damascus?
10 As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols,
Whose carved images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria,
11 As I have done to Samaria and her idols,
Shall I not do also to Jerusalem and her idols?’ ”
12 Therefore it shall come to pass, when the Lord has [p]performed all His work (BD)on Mount Zion and on Jerusalem, that He will say, (BE)“I will punish the fruit of the arrogant heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his haughty looks.”
13 (BF)For he says:
“By the strength of my hand I have done it,
And by my wisdom, for I am prudent;
Also I have removed the boundaries of the people,
And have robbed their treasuries;
So I have put down the inhabitants like a [q]valiant man.
14 (BG)My hand has found like a nest the riches of the people,
And as one gathers eggs that are left,
I have gathered all the earth;
And there was no one who moved his wing,
Nor opened his mouth with even a peep.”
15 Shall (BH)the ax boast itself against him who chops with it?
Or shall the saw exalt itself against him who saws with it?
As if a rod could wield itself against those who lift it up,
Or as if a staff could lift up, as if it were not wood!
16 Therefore the Lord, the [r]Lord of hosts,
Will send leanness among his fat ones;
And under his glory
He will kindle a burning
Like the burning of a fire.
17 So the Light of Israel will be for a fire,
And his Holy One for a flame;
(BI)It will burn and devour
His thorns and his briers in one day.
18 And it will consume the glory of his forest and of (BJ)his fruitful field,
Both soul and body;
And they will be as when a sick man wastes away.
19 Then the rest of the trees of his forest
Will be so few in number
That a child may write them.
The Returning Remnant of Israel
20 And it shall come to pass in that day
That the remnant of Israel,
And such as have escaped of the house of Jacob,
(BK)Will never again depend on him who [s]defeated them,
But will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21 The remnant will return, the remnant of Jacob,
To the (BL)Mighty God.
22 (BM)For though your people, O Israel, be as the sand of the sea,
(BN)A remnant of them will return;
The destruction decreed shall overflow with righteousness.
23 (BO)For the Lord God of hosts
Will make a determined end
In the midst of all the land.
24 Therefore thus says the Lord God of hosts: “O My people, who dwell in Zion, (BP)do not be afraid of the Assyrian. He shall strike you with a rod and lift up his staff against you, in the manner of (BQ)Egypt. 25 For yet a very little while (BR)and the indignation will cease, as will My anger in their destruction.” 26 And the Lord of hosts will [t]stir up (BS)a scourge for him like the slaughter of (BT)Midian at the rock of Oreb; (BU)as His rod was on the sea, so will He lift it up in the manner of Egypt.
27 It shall come to pass in that day
That his burden will be taken away from your shoulder,
And his yoke from your neck,
And the yoke will be destroyed because of (BV)the anointing oil.
28 He has come to Aiath,
He has passed Migron;
At Michmash he has attended to his equipment.
29 They have gone [u]along (BW)the ridge,
They have taken up lodging at Geba.
Ramah is afraid,
(BX)Gibeah of Saul has fled.
30 [v]Lift up your voice,
O daughter (BY)of Gallim!
Cause it to be heard as far as (BZ)Laish—
[w]O poor Anathoth!
31 (CA)Madmenah has fled,
The inhabitants of Gebim seek refuge.
32 As yet he will remain (CB)at Nob that day;
He will (CC)shake his fist at the mount of (CD)the daughter of Zion,
The hill of Jerusalem.
33 Behold, the Lord,
The Lord of hosts,
Will lop off the bough with terror;
(CE)Those of high stature will be hewn down,
And the haughty will be humbled.
34 He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron,
And Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One.
The Reign of Jesse’s Offspring(CF)
11 There (CG)shall come forth a [x]Rod from the [y]stem of (CH)Jesse,
And (CI)a Branch shall [z]grow out of his roots.
2 (CJ)The Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him,
The Spirit of wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit of counsel and might,
The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.
3 His delight is in the fear of the Lord,
And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes,
Nor decide by the hearing of His ears;
4 But (CK)with righteousness He shall judge the poor,
And decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
He shall (CL)strike the earth with the rod of His mouth,
And with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked.
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins,
And faithfulness the belt of His waist.
6 “The(CM) wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them.
7 The cow and the bear shall graze;
Their young ones shall lie down together;
And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra’s hole,
And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper’s den.
9 (CN)They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,
For (CO)the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.
10 “And(CP) in that day (CQ)there shall be a Root of Jesse,
Who shall stand as a (CR)banner to the people;
For the (CS)Gentiles shall seek Him,
And His resting place shall be glorious.”
11 It shall come to pass in that day
That the Lord shall set His hand again the second time
To recover the remnant of His people who are left,
(CT)From Assyria and Egypt,
From Pathros and Cush,
From Elam and Shinar,
From Hamath and the [aa]islands of the sea.
12 He will set up a banner for the nations,
And will [ab]assemble the outcasts of Israel,
And gather together (CU)the dispersed of Judah
From the four [ac]corners of the earth.
13 Also (CV)the envy of Ephraim shall depart,
And the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off;
Ephraim shall not envy Judah,
And Judah shall not harass Ephraim.
14 But they shall fly down upon the shoulder of the Philistines toward the west;
Together they shall plunder the [ad]people of the East;
(CW)They shall lay their hand on Edom and Moab;
And the people of Ammon shall obey them.
15 The Lord (CX)will utterly [ae]destroy the tongue of the Sea of Egypt;
With His mighty wind He will shake His fist over [af]the River,
And strike it in the seven streams,
And make men cross over [ag]dry-shod.
16 (CY)There will be a highway for the remnant of His people
Who will be left from Assyria,
(CZ)As it was for Israel
In the day that he came up from the land of Egypt.
A Hymn of Praise
12 And (DA)in that day you will say:
“O Lord, I will praise You;
Though You were angry with me,
Your anger is turned away, and You comfort me.
2 Behold, God is my salvation,
I will trust and not be afraid;
(DB)‘For (DC)Yah, the Lord, is my strength and song;
He also has become my salvation.’ ”
3 Therefore with joy you will draw (DD)water
From the wells of salvation.
4 And in that day you will say:
(DE)“Praise the Lord, call upon His name;
(DF)Declare His deeds among the peoples,
Make mention that His (DG)name is exalted.
5 (DH)Sing to the Lord,
For He has done excellent things;
This is known in all the earth.
6 (DI)Cry out and shout, O inhabitant of Zion,
For great is (DJ)the Holy One of Israel in your midst!”
Proclamation Against Babylon
13 The (DK)burden[ah] against Babylon which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw.
2 “Lift(DL) up a banner (DM)on the high mountain,
Raise your voice to them;
(DN)Wave your hand, that they may enter the gates of the nobles.
3 I have commanded My [ai]sanctified ones;
I have also called (DO)My mighty ones for My anger—
Those who (DP)rejoice in My exaltation.”
4 The (DQ)noise of a multitude in the mountains,
Like that of many people!
A tumultuous noise of the kingdoms of nations gathered together!
The Lord of hosts musters
The army for battle.
5 They come from a far country,
From the end of heaven—
The (DR)Lord and His [aj]weapons of indignation,
To destroy the whole (DS)land.
6 Wail, (DT)for the day of the Lord is at hand!
(DU)It will come as destruction from the Almighty.
7 Therefore all hands will be limp,
Every man’s heart will melt,
8 And they will be afraid.
(DV)Pangs[ak] and sorrows will take hold of them;
They will be in pain as a woman in childbirth;
They will be amazed at one another;
Their faces will be like flames.
9 Behold, (DW)the day of the Lord comes,
Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger,
To lay the land desolate;
And He will destroy (DX)its sinners from it.
10 For the stars of heaven and their constellations
Will not give their light;
The sun will be (DY)darkened in its going forth,
And the moon will not cause its light to shine.
11 “I will (DZ)punish the world for its evil,
And the wicked for their iniquity;
(EA)I will halt the arrogance of the proud,
And will lay low the haughtiness of the [al]terrible.
12 I will make a mortal more rare than fine gold,
A man more than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13 (EB)Therefore I will shake the heavens,
And the earth will move out of her place,
In the wrath of the Lord of hosts
And in (EC)the day of His fierce anger.
14 It shall be as the hunted gazelle,
And as a sheep that no man [am]takes up;
(ED)Every man will turn to his own people,
And everyone will flee to his own land.
15 Everyone who is found will be thrust through,
And everyone who is captured will fall by the sword.
16 Their children also will be (EE)dashed to pieces before their eyes;
Their houses will be plundered
And their wives (EF)ravished.
17 “Behold,(EG) I will stir up the Medes against them,
Who will not [an]regard silver;
And as for gold, they will not delight in it.
18 Also their bows will dash the young men to pieces,
And they will have no pity on the fruit of the womb;
Their eye will not spare children.
19 (EH)And Babylon, the glory of kingdoms,
The beauty of the Chaldeans’ pride,
Will be as when God overthrew (EI)Sodom and Gomorrah.
20 (EJ)It will never be inhabited,
Nor will it be settled from generation to generation;
Nor will the Arabian pitch tents there,
Nor will the shepherds make their sheepfolds there.
21 (EK)But wild beasts of the desert will lie there,
And their houses will be full of [ao]owls;
Ostriches will dwell there,
And wild goats will caper there.
22 The hyenas will howl in their citadels,
And jackals in their pleasant palaces.
(EL)Her time is near to come,
And her days will not be prolonged.”
Mercy on Jacob
14 For the Lord (EM)will have mercy on Jacob, and (EN)will still choose Israel, and settle them in their own land. (EO)The strangers will be joined with them, and they will cling to the house of Jacob. 2 Then people will take them (EP)and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will possess them for servants and maids in the land of the Lord; they will take them captive whose captives they were, (EQ)and rule over their oppressors.
Fall of the King of Babylon
3 It shall come to pass in the day the Lord gives you rest from your sorrow, and from your fear and the hard bondage in which you were made to serve, 4 that you (ER)will take up this proverb against the king of Babylon, and say:
“How the oppressor has ceased,
The (ES)golden[ap] city ceased!
5 The Lord has broken (ET)the staff of the wicked,
The scepter of the rulers;
6 He who struck the people in wrath with a continual stroke,
He who ruled the nations in anger,
Is persecuted and no one hinders.
7 The whole earth is at rest and quiet;
They break forth into singing.
8 (EU)Indeed the cypress trees rejoice over you,
And the cedars of Lebanon,
Saying, ‘Since you [aq]were cut down,
No woodsman has come up against us.’
9 “Hell(EV)[ar] from beneath is excited about you,
To meet you at your coming;
It stirs up the dead for you,
All the chief ones of the earth;
It has raised up from their thrones
All the kings of the nations.
10 They all shall (EW)speak and say to you:
‘Have you also become as weak as we?
Have you become like us?
11 Your pomp is brought down to Sheol,
And the sound of your stringed instruments;
The maggot is spread under you,
And worms cover you.’
The Fall of Lucifer
12 “How(EX) you are fallen from heaven,
O [as]Lucifer, son of the morning!
How you are cut down to the ground,
You who weakened the nations!
13 For you have said in your heart:
(EY)‘I will ascend into heaven,
(EZ)I will exalt my throne above the stars of God;
I will also sit on the (FA)mount of the congregation
(FB)On the farthest sides of the north;
14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds,
(FC)I will be like the Most High.’
15 Yet you (FD)shall be brought down to Sheol,
To the [at]lowest depths of the Pit.
16 “Those who see you will gaze at you,
And consider you, saying:
‘Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
Who shook kingdoms,
17 Who made the world as a wilderness
And destroyed its cities,
Who [au]did not open the house of his prisoners?’
18 “All the kings of the nations,
All of them, sleep in glory,
Everyone in his own house;
19 But you are cast out of your grave
Like an [av]abominable branch,
Like the garment of those who are slain,
[aw]Thrust through with a sword,
Who go down to the stones of the pit,
Like a corpse trodden underfoot.
20 You will not be joined with them in burial,
Because you have destroyed your land
And slain your people.
(FE)The brood of evildoers shall never be named.
21 Prepare slaughter for his children
(FF)Because of the iniquity of their fathers,
Lest they rise up and possess the land,
And fill the face of the world with cities.”
Babylon Destroyed
22 “For I will rise up against them,” says the Lord of hosts,
“And cut off from Babylon (FG)the name and (FH)remnant,
(FI)And offspring and posterity,” says the Lord.
23 “I will also make it a possession for the (FJ)porcupine,
And marshes of muddy water;
I will sweep it with the broom of destruction,” says the Lord of hosts.
Assyria Destroyed
24 The Lord of hosts has sworn, saying,
“Surely, as I have thought, so it shall come to pass,
And as I have purposed, so it shall (FK)stand:
25 That I will break the (FL)Assyrian in My land,
And on My mountains tread him underfoot.
Then (FM)his yoke shall be removed from them,
And his burden removed from their shoulders.
26 This is the (FN)purpose that is purposed against the whole earth,
And this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of hosts has (FO)purposed,
And who will annul it?
His hand is stretched out,
And who will turn it back?”
Philistia Destroyed
28 This is the [ax]burden which came in the year that (FP)King Ahaz died.
29 “Do not rejoice, all you of Philistia,
(FQ)Because the rod that struck you is broken;
For out of the serpent’s roots will come forth a viper,
(FR)And its offspring will be a fiery flying serpent.
30 The firstborn of the poor will feed,
And the needy will lie down in safety;
I will kill your roots with famine,
And it will slay your remnant.
31 Wail, O gate! Cry, O city!
All you of Philistia are dissolved;
For smoke will come from the north,
And no one will be alone in his [ay]appointed times.”
32 What will they answer the messengers of the nation?
That (FS)the Lord has founded Zion,
And (FT)the poor of His people shall take refuge in it.
Proclamation Against Moab
15 The (FU)burden[az] against Moab.
Because in the night (FV)Ar of (FW)Moab is laid waste
And destroyed,
Because in the night Kir of Moab is laid waste
And destroyed,
2 He has gone up to the [ba]temple and Dibon,
To the high places to weep.
Moab will wail over Nebo and over Medeba;
(FX)On all their heads will be baldness,
And every beard cut off.
3 In their streets they will clothe themselves with sackcloth;
On the tops of their houses
And in their streets
Everyone will wail, (FY)weeping bitterly.
4 Heshbon and Elealeh will cry out,
Their voice shall be heard as far as (FZ)Jahaz;
Therefore the [bb]armed soldiers of Moab will cry out;
His life will be burdensome to him.
5 “My(GA) heart will cry out for Moab;
His fugitives shall flee to Zoar,
Like [bc]a three-year-old heifer.
For (GB)by the Ascent of Luhith
They will go up with weeping;
For in the way of Horonaim
They will raise up a cry of destruction,
6 For the waters (GC)of Nimrim will be desolate,
For the green grass has withered away;
The grass fails, there is nothing green.
7 Therefore the abundance they have gained,
And what they have laid up,
They will carry away to the Brook of the Willows.
8 For the cry has gone all around the borders of Moab,
Its wailing to Eglaim
And its wailing to Beer Elim.
9 For the waters of [bd]Dimon will be full of blood;
Because I will bring more upon Dimon,
(GD)Lions upon him who escapes from Moab,
And on the remnant of the land.”
Moab Destroyed
16 Send (GE)the lamb to the ruler of the land,
(GF)From [be]Sela to the wilderness,
To the mount of the daughter of Zion.
2 For it shall be as a (GG)wandering bird thrown out of the nest;
So shall be the daughters of Moab at the fords of the (GH)Arnon.
3 “Take counsel, execute judgment;
Make your shadow like the night in the middle of the day;
Hide the outcasts,
Do not betray him who escapes.
4 Let My outcasts dwell with you, O Moab;
Be a shelter to them from the face of the [bf]spoiler.
For the extortioner is at an end,
Devastation ceases,
The oppressors are consumed out of the land.
5 In mercy (GI)the throne will be established;
And One will sit on it in truth, in the tabernacle of David,
(GJ)Judging and seeking justice and hastening (GK)righteousness.”
6 We have heard of the (GL)pride of Moab—
He is very proud—
Of his haughtiness and his pride and his wrath;
(GM)But his [bg]lies shall not be so.
7 Therefore Moab shall (GN)wail for Moab;
Everyone shall wail.
For the foundations (GO)of Kir Hareseth you shall mourn;
Surely they are stricken.
8 For (GP)the fields of Heshbon languish,
And (GQ)the vine of Sibmah;
The lords of the nations have broken down its choice plants,
Which have reached to Jazer
And wandered through the wilderness.
Her branches are stretched out,
They are gone over the (GR)sea.
9 Therefore I will bewail the vine of Sibmah,
With the weeping of Jazer;
I will drench you with my tears,
(GS)O Heshbon and Elealeh;
For [bh]battle cries have fallen
Over your summer fruits and your harvest.
10 (GT)Gladness is taken away,
And joy from the plentiful field;
In the vineyards there will be no singing,
Nor will there be shouting;
No treaders will tread out wine in the presses;
I have made their shouting cease.
11 Therefore (GU)my [bi]heart shall resound like a harp for Moab,
And my inner being for [bj]Kir Heres.
12 And it shall come to pass,
When it is seen that Moab is weary on (GV)the high place,
That he will come to his sanctuary to pray;
But he will not prevail.
13 This is the word which the Lord has spoken concerning Moab since that time. 14 But now the Lord has spoken, saying, “Within three years, (GW)as the years of a hired man, the glory of Moab will be despised with all that great multitude, and the remnant will be very small and feeble.”
Proclamation Against Syria and Israel
17 The (GX)burden[bk] against Damascus.
“Behold, Damascus will cease from being a city,
And it will be a ruinous heap.
2 [bl]The cities of (GY)Aroer are forsaken;
They will be for flocks
Which lie down, and (GZ)no one will make them afraid.
3 (HA)The fortress also will cease from Ephraim,
The kingdom from Damascus,
And the remnant of Syria;
They will be as the glory of the children of Israel,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
4 “In that day it shall come to pass
That the glory of Jacob will [bm]wane,
And (HB)the fatness of his flesh grow lean.
5 (HC)It shall be as when the harvester gathers the grain,
And reaps the heads with his arm;
It shall be as he who gathers heads of grain
In the Valley of Rephaim.
6 (HD)Yet gleaning grapes will be left in it,
Like the shaking of an olive tree,
Two or three olives at the top of the uppermost bough,
Four or five in its most fruitful branches,”
Says the Lord God of Israel.
7 In that day a man will (HE)look to his Maker,
And his eyes will have respect for the Holy One of Israel.
8 He will not look to the altars,
The work of his hands;
He will not respect what his (HF)fingers have made,
Nor the [bn]wooden images nor the incense altars.
9 In that day his strong cities will be as a forsaken [bo]bough
And [bp]an uppermost branch,
Which they left because of the children of Israel;
And there will be desolation.
10 Because you have forgotten (HG)the God of your salvation,
And have not been mindful of the Rock of your [bq]stronghold,
Therefore you will plant pleasant plants
And set out foreign seedlings;
11 In the day you will make your plant to grow,
And in the morning you will make your seed to flourish;
But the harvest will be a heap of ruins
In the day of grief and desperate sorrow.
12 Woe to the multitude of many people
Who make a noise (HH)like the roar of the seas,
And to the rushing of nations
That make a rushing like the rushing of mighty waters!
13 The nations will rush like the rushing of many waters;
But God will (HI)rebuke them and they will flee far away,
And (HJ)be chased like the chaff of the mountains before the wind,
Like a rolling thing before the whirlwind.
14 Then behold, at eventide, trouble!
And before the morning, he is no more.
This is the portion of those who plunder us,
And the lot of those who rob us.
Proclamation Against Ethiopia
18 Woe (HK)to the land shadowed with buzzing wings,
Which is beyond the rivers of [br]Ethiopia,
2 Which sends ambassadors by sea,
Even in vessels of reed on the waters, saying,
“Go, swift messengers, to a nation tall and smooth of skin,
To a people terrible from their beginning onward,
A nation powerful and treading down,
Whose land the rivers divide.”
3 All inhabitants of the world and dwellers on the earth:
(HL)When he lifts up a banner on the mountains, you see it;
And when he blows a trumpet, you hear it.
4 For so the Lord said to me,
“I will take My rest,
And I will [bs]look from My dwelling place
Like clear heat in sunshine,
Like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest.”
5 For before the harvest, when the bud is perfect
And the sour grape is ripening in the flower,
He will both cut off the sprigs with pruning hooks
And take away and cut down the branches.
6 They will be left together for the mountain birds of prey
And for the beasts of the earth;
The birds of prey will summer on them,
And all the beasts of the earth will winter on them.
7 In that time (HM)a present will be brought to the Lord of hosts
[bt]From a people tall and smooth of skin,
And from a people terrible from their beginning onward,
A nation powerful and treading down,
Whose land the rivers divide—
To the place of the name of the Lord of hosts,
To Mount Zion.
Proclamation Against Egypt
19 The (HN)burden[bu] against Egypt.
Behold, the Lord (HO)rides on a swift cloud,
And will come into Egypt;
(HP)The idols of Egypt will [bv]totter at His presence,
And the heart of Egypt will melt in its midst.
2 “I will (HQ)set Egyptians against Egyptians;
Everyone will fight against his brother,
And everyone against his neighbor,
City against city, kingdom against kingdom.
3 The spirit of Egypt will fail in its midst;
I will destroy their counsel,
And they will (HR)consult the idols and the charmers,
The mediums and the sorcerers.
4 And the Egyptians I will give
(HS)Into the hand of a cruel master,
And a fierce king will rule over them,”
Says the Lord, the Lord of hosts.
5 (HT)The waters will fail from the sea,
And the river will be wasted and dried up.
6 The rivers will turn foul;
The brooks (HU)of defense will be emptied and dried up;
The reeds and rushes will wither.
7 The papyrus reeds by [bw]the River, by the mouth of the River,
And everything sown by the River,
Will wither, be driven away, and be no more.
8 The fishermen also will mourn;
All those will lament who cast hooks into the River,
And they will languish who spread nets on the waters.
9 Moreover those who work in (HV)fine flax
And those who weave fine fabric will be ashamed;
10 And its foundations will be broken.
All who make wages will be troubled of soul.
11 Surely the princes of (HW)Zoan are fools;
Pharaoh’s wise counselors give foolish counsel.
(HX)How do you say to Pharaoh, “I am the son of the wise,
The son of ancient kings?”
12 (HY)Where are they?
Where are your wise men?
Let them tell you now,
And let them know what the Lord of hosts has (HZ)purposed against Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan have become fools;
(IA)The princes of [bx]Noph are deceived;
They have also [by]deluded Egypt,
Those who are the [bz]mainstay of its tribes.
14 The Lord has mingled (IB)a perverse spirit in her midst;
And they have caused Egypt to err in all her work,
As a drunken man staggers in his vomit.
15 Neither will there be any work for Egypt,
Which (IC)the head or tail,
Palm branch or bulrush, may do.
16 In that day Egypt will (ID)be like women, and will be afraid and fear because of the waving of the hand of the Lord of hosts, (IE)which He waves over it. 17 And the land of Judah will be a terror to Egypt; everyone who makes mention of it will be afraid in himself, because of the counsel of the Lord of hosts which He has (IF)determined against it.
Egypt, Assyria, and Israel Blessed
18 In that day five cities in the land of Egypt will (IG)speak the language of Canaan and (IH)swear by the Lord of hosts; one will be called the City of [ca]Destruction.
19 In that day (II)there will be an altar to the Lord in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to the (IJ)Lord at its border. 20 And (IK)it will be for a sign and for a witness to the Lord of hosts in the land of Egypt; for they will cry to the Lord because of the oppressors, and He will send them a (IL)Savior and a Mighty One, and He will deliver them. 21 Then the Lord will be known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will (IM)know the Lord in that day, and (IN)will make sacrifice and offering; yes, they will make a vow to the Lord and perform it. 22 And the Lord will strike Egypt, He will strike and (IO)heal it; they will return to the Lord, and He will be entreated by them and heal them.
23 In that day (IP)there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian will come into Egypt and the Egyptian into Assyria, and the Egyptians will (IQ)serve with the Assyrians.
24 In that day Israel will be one of three with Egypt and Assyria—a blessing in the midst of the land, 25 whom the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, “Blessed is Egypt My people, and Assyria (IR)the work of My hands, and Israel My inheritance.”
The Sign Against Egypt and Ethiopia
20 In the year that (IS)Tartan[cb] came to Ashdod, when Sargon the king of Assyria sent him, and he fought against Ashdod and took it, 2 at the same time the Lord spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying, “Go, and remove (IT)the sackcloth from your [cc]body, and take your sandals off your feet.” And he did so, (IU)walking naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as My servant Isaiah has walked naked and barefoot three years (IV)for a sign and a wonder against Egypt and Ethiopia, 4 so shall the (IW)king of Assyria lead away the Egyptians as prisoners and the Ethiopians as captives, young and old, naked and barefoot, (IX)with their buttocks uncovered, to the shame of Egypt. 5 (IY)Then they shall be afraid and ashamed of Ethiopia their expectation and Egypt their glory. 6 And the inhabitant of this territory will say in that day, ‘Surely such is our expectation, wherever we flee for (IZ)help to be delivered from the king of Assyria; and how shall we escape?’ ”
The Fall of Babylon Proclaimed
21 The [cd]burden against the Wilderness of the Sea.
As (JA)whirlwinds in the South pass through,
So it comes from the desert, from a terrible land.
2 A distressing vision is declared to me;
(JB)The treacherous dealer deals treacherously,
And the plunderer plunders.
(JC)Go up, O Elam!
Besiege, O Media!
All its sighing I have made to cease.
3 Therefore (JD)my loins are filled with pain;
(JE)Pangs have taken hold of me, like the pangs of a woman in labor.
I was [ce]distressed when I heard it;
I was dismayed when I saw it.
4 My heart wavered, fearfulness frightened me;
(JF)The night for which I longed He turned into fear for me.
5 (JG)Prepare the table,
Set a watchman in the tower,
Eat and drink.
Arise, you princes,
Anoint the shield!
6 For thus has the Lord said to me:
“Go, set a watchman,
Let him declare what he sees.”
7 And he saw a chariot with a pair of horsemen,
A chariot of donkeys, and a chariot of camels,
And he listened earnestly with great care.
8 [cf]Then he cried, “A lion, my Lord!
I stand continually on the (JH)watchtower in the daytime;
I have sat at my post every night.
9 And look, here comes a chariot of men with a pair of horsemen!”
Then he answered and said,
(JI)“Babylon is fallen, is fallen!
And (JJ)all the carved images of her gods
He has broken to the ground.”
10 (JK)Oh, my threshing and the grain of my floor!
That which I have heard from the Lord of hosts,
The God of Israel,
I have declared to you.
Proclamation Against Edom
11 (JL)The [cg]burden against Dumah.
He calls to me out of (JM)Seir,
“Watchman, what of the night?
Watchman, what of the night?”
12 The watchman said,
“The morning comes, and also the night.
If you will inquire, inquire;
Return! Come back!”
Proclamation Against Arabia
13 (JN)The [ch]burden against Arabia.
In the forest in Arabia you will lodge,
O you traveling companies (JO)of Dedanites.
14 O inhabitants of the land of Tema,
Bring water to him who is thirsty;
With their bread they met him who fled.
15 For they fled from the swords, from the drawn sword,
From the bent bow, and from the distress of war.
16 For thus the Lord has said to me: “Within a year, (JP)according to the year of a hired man, all the glory of (JQ)Kedar will fail; 17 and the remainder of the number of archers, the mighty men of the people of Kedar, will be diminished; for the Lord God of Israel has spoken it.”
Proclamation Against Jerusalem
22 The [ci]burden against the Valley of Vision.
What ails you now, that you have all gone up to the housetops,
2 You who are full of noise,
A [cj]tumultuous city, (JR)a joyous city?
Your slain men are not slain with the sword,
Nor dead in battle.
3 All your rulers have fled together;
They are captured by the archers.
All who are found in you are bound together;
They have fled from afar.
4 Therefore I said, “Look away from me,
(JS)I will weep bitterly;
Do not labor to comfort me
Because of the plundering of the daughter of my people.”
5 (JT)For it is a day of trouble and treading down and perplexity
(JU)By the Lord God of hosts
In the Valley of Vision—
Breaking down the walls
And of crying to the mountain.
6 (JV)Elam bore the quiver
With chariots of men and horsemen,
And (JW)Kir uncovered the shield.
7 It shall come to pass that your choicest valleys
Shall be full of chariots,
And the horsemen shall set themselves in array at the gate.
8 (JX)He removed the [ck]protection of Judah.
You looked in that day to the armor (JY)of the House of the Forest;
9 (JZ)You also saw the [cl]damage to the city of David,
That it was great;
And you gathered together the waters of the lower pool.
10 You numbered the houses of Jerusalem,
And the houses you broke down
To fortify the wall.
11 (KA)You also made a reservoir between the two walls
For the water of the old (KB)pool.
But you did not look to its Maker,
Nor did you have respect for Him who fashioned it long ago.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 8:11 Mighty power
- Isaiah 8:12 Lit. fear or terror
- Isaiah 8:12 Lit. in dread
- Isaiah 8:14 holy abode
- Isaiah 8:14 stumbling over
- Isaiah 8:15 captured
- Isaiah 8:20 Or they have no dawn
- Isaiah 8:21 Or by their king and by their God
- Isaiah 9:3 So with Qr., Tg.; Kt., Vg. not increased joy; LXX Most of the people You brought down in Your joy
- Isaiah 9:5 boot
- Isaiah 9:5 for the fire
- Isaiah 9:12 In judgment
- Isaiah 9:17 foolishness
- Isaiah 9:20 slice off or tear
- Isaiah 10:4 Lit. under
- Isaiah 10:12 completed
- Isaiah 10:13 mighty
- Isaiah 10:16 So with Bg.; MT, DSS YHWH (the Lord)
- Isaiah 10:20 Lit. struck
- Isaiah 10:26 arouse
- Isaiah 10:29 Or over the pass
- Isaiah 10:30 Or Cry shrilly
- Isaiah 10:30 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Syr. Listen to her, O Anathoth
- Isaiah 11:1 Shoot
- Isaiah 11:1 stock or trunk
- Isaiah 11:1 be fruitful
- Isaiah 11:11 Or coastlands
- Isaiah 11:12 gather
- Isaiah 11:12 Lit. wings
- Isaiah 11:14 Lit. sons
- Isaiah 11:15 So with MT, Vg.; LXX, Syr., Tg. dry up
- Isaiah 11:15 The Euphrates
- Isaiah 11:15 Lit. in sandals
- Isaiah 13:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 13:3 consecrated or set apart
- Isaiah 13:5 Or instruments
- Isaiah 13:8 Sharp pains
- Isaiah 13:11 Or tyrants
- Isaiah 13:14 gathers
- Isaiah 13:17 esteem
- Isaiah 13:21 Or howling creatures
- Isaiah 14:4 Or insolent
- Isaiah 14:8 have lain down
- Isaiah 14:9 Or Sheol
- Isaiah 14:12 Lit. Day Star
- Isaiah 14:15 Lit. recesses
- Isaiah 14:17 Would not release
- Isaiah 14:19 despised
- Isaiah 14:19 Pierced
- Isaiah 14:28 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 14:31 Or ranks
- Isaiah 15:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 15:2 Heb. bayith, lit. house
- Isaiah 15:4 So with MT, Tg., Vg.; LXX, Syr. loins
- Isaiah 15:5 Or The Third Eglath, an unknown city, Jer. 48:34
- Isaiah 15:9 So with MT, Tg.; DSS, Vg. Dibon; LXX Rimon
- Isaiah 16:1 Lit. Rock
- Isaiah 16:4 devastator
- Isaiah 16:6 Lit. vain talk
- Isaiah 16:9 Or shouting has
- Isaiah 16:11 Lit. belly
- Isaiah 16:11 Kir Hareseth, v. 7
- Isaiah 17:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 17:2 So with MT, Vg.; LXX It shall be forsaken forever; Tg. Its cities shall be forsaken and desolate
- Isaiah 17:4 fade
- Isaiah 17:8 Heb. Asherim, Canaanite deities
- Isaiah 17:9 LXX Hivites; Tg. laid waste; Vg. as the plows
- Isaiah 17:9 LXX Amorites; Tg. in ruins; Vg. corn
- Isaiah 17:10 refuge
- Isaiah 18:1 Heb. Cush
- Isaiah 18:4 watch
- Isaiah 18:7 So with DSS, LXX, Vg.; MT omits From; Tg. To
- Isaiah 19:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 19:1 Lit. shake
- Isaiah 19:7 The Nile
- Isaiah 19:13 Ancient Memphis
- Isaiah 19:13 Lit. caused to stagger
- Isaiah 19:13 cornerstone
- Isaiah 19:18 Some Heb. mss., Arab., DSS, Tg., Vg. Sun; LXX Asedek, lit. Righteousness
- Isaiah 20:1 Or the Commander in Chief
- Isaiah 20:2 Lit. loins
- Isaiah 21:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 21:3 Lit. bowed
- Isaiah 21:8 DSS Then the observer cried, “My Lord!
- Isaiah 21:11 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 21:13 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 22:1 oracle, prophecy
- Isaiah 22:2 boisterous
- Isaiah 22:8 Lit. covering
- Isaiah 22:9 Lit. breaches in the city walls
Isaiah 8:11-22
New International Version
Isaiah 8:11-22
New International Version
11 This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me,(A) warning me not to follow(B) the way of this people:
12 “Do not call conspiracy(C)
everything this people calls a conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,(D)
and do not dread it.(E)
13 The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,(F)
he is the one you are to fear,(G)
he is the one you are to dread.(H)
14 He will be a holy place;(I)
for both Israel and Judah he will be
a stone(J) that causes people to stumble(K)
and a rock that makes them fall.(L)
And for the people of Jerusalem he will be
a trap and a snare.(M)
15 Many of them will stumble;(N)
they will fall and be broken,
they will be snared and captured.”
16 Bind up this testimony of warning(O)
and seal(P) up God’s instruction among my disciples.
17 I will wait(Q) for the Lord,
who is hiding(R) his face from the descendants of Jacob.
I will put my trust in him.(S)
18 Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me.(T) We are signs(U) and symbols(V) in Israel from the Lord Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion.(W)
The Darkness Turns to Light
19 When someone tells you to consult(X) mediums and spiritists,(Y) who whisper and mutter,(Z) should not a people inquire(AA) of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction(AB) and the testimony of warning.(AC) If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light(AD) of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry,(AE) they will roam through the land;(AF) when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse(AG) their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom,(AH) and they will be thrust into utter darkness.(AI)
9 [a]Nevertheless, there will be no more gloom(AJ) for those who were in distress. In the past he humbled the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali,(AK) but in the future he will honor Galilee of the nations, by the Way of the Sea, beyond the Jordan—
2 The people walking in darkness(AL)
have seen a great light;(AM)
on those living in the land of deep darkness(AN)
a light has dawned.(AO)
3 You have enlarged the nation(AP)
and increased their joy;(AQ)
they rejoice before you
as people rejoice at the harvest,
as warriors rejoice
when dividing the plunder.(AR)
4 For as in the day of Midian’s defeat,(AS)
you have shattered(AT)
the yoke(AU) that burdens them,
the bar across their shoulders,(AV)
the rod of their oppressor.(AW)
5 Every warrior’s boot used in battle
and every garment rolled in blood
will be destined for burning,(AX)
will be fuel for the fire.
6 For to us a child is born,(AY)
to us a son is given,(AZ)
and the government(BA) will be on his shoulders.(BB)
And he will be called
Wonderful Counselor,(BC) Mighty God,(BD)
Everlasting(BE) Father,(BF) Prince of Peace.(BG)
7 Of the greatness of his government(BH) and peace(BI)
there will be no end.(BJ)
He will reign(BK) on David’s throne
and over his kingdom,
establishing and upholding it
with justice(BL) and righteousness(BM)
from that time on and forever.(BN)
The zeal(BO) of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
The Lord’s Anger Against Israel
8 The Lord has sent a message(BP) against Jacob;
it will fall on Israel.
9 All the people will know it—
Ephraim(BQ) and the inhabitants of Samaria(BR)—
who say with pride
and arrogance(BS) of heart,
10 “The bricks have fallen down,
but we will rebuild with dressed stone;(BT)
the fig(BU) trees have been felled,
but we will replace them with cedars.(BV)”
11 But the Lord has strengthened Rezin’s(BW) foes against them
and has spurred their enemies on.
12 Arameans(BX) from the east and Philistines(BY) from the west
have devoured(BZ) Israel with open mouth.
13 But the people have not returned(CC) to him who struck(CD) them,
nor have they sought(CE) the Lord Almighty.
14 So the Lord will cut off from Israel both head and tail,
both palm branch and reed(CF) in a single day;(CG)
15 the elders(CH) and dignitaries(CI) are the head,
the prophets(CJ) who teach lies(CK) are the tail.
16 Those who guide(CL) this people mislead them,
and those who are guided are led astray.(CM)
17 Therefore the Lord will take no pleasure in the young men,(CN)
nor will he pity(CO) the fatherless and widows,
for everyone is ungodly(CP) and wicked,(CQ)
every mouth speaks folly.(CR)
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,
his hand is still upraised.(CS)
18 Surely wickedness burns like a fire;(CT)
it consumes briers and thorns,(CU)
it sets the forest thickets ablaze,(CV)
so that it rolls upward in a column of smoke.
19 By the wrath(CW) of the Lord Almighty
the land will be scorched(CX)
and the people will be fuel for the fire;(CY)
they will not spare one another.(CZ)
20 On the right they will devour,
but still be hungry;(DA)
on the left they will eat,(DB)
but not be satisfied.
Each will feed on the flesh of their own offspring[b]:
21 Manasseh will feed on Ephraim, and Ephraim on Manasseh;(DC)
together they will turn against Judah.(DD)
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,
his hand is still upraised.(DE)
10 Woe(DF) to those who make unjust laws,
to those who issue oppressive decrees,(DG)
2 to deprive(DH) the poor of their rights
and withhold justice from the oppressed of my people,(DI)
making widows their prey
and robbing the fatherless.(DJ)
3 What will you do on the day of reckoning,(DK)
when disaster(DL) comes from afar?
To whom will you run for help?(DM)
Where will you leave your riches?
4 Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives(DN)
or fall among the slain.(DO)
Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,(DP)
his hand is still upraised.
God’s Judgment on Assyria
5 “Woe(DQ) to the Assyrian,(DR) the rod(DS) of my anger,
in whose hand is the club(DT) of my wrath!(DU)
6 I send him against a godless(DV) nation,
I dispatch(DW) him against a people who anger me,(DX)
to seize loot and snatch plunder,(DY)
and to trample(DZ) them down like mud in the streets.
7 But this is not what he intends,(EA)
this is not what he has in mind;
his purpose is to destroy,
to put an end to many nations.
8 ‘Are not my commanders(EB) all kings?’ he says.
9 ‘Has not Kalno(EC) fared like Carchemish?(ED)
Is not Hamath(EE) like Arpad,(EF)
and Samaria(EG) like Damascus?(EH)
10 As my hand seized the kingdoms of the idols,(EI)
kingdoms whose images excelled those of Jerusalem and Samaria—
11 shall I not deal with Jerusalem and her images
as I dealt with Samaria and her idols?(EJ)’”
12 When the Lord has finished all his work(EK) against Mount Zion(EL) and Jerusalem, he will say, “I will punish the king of Assyria(EM) for the willful pride(EN) of his heart and the haughty look(EO) in his eyes. 13 For he says:
“‘By the strength of my hand(EP) I have done this,(EQ)
and by my wisdom, because I have understanding.
I removed the boundaries of nations,
I plundered their treasures;(ER)
like a mighty one I subdued[c] their kings.(ES)
14 As one reaches into a nest,(ET)
so my hand reached for the wealth(EU) of the nations;
as people gather abandoned eggs,
so I gathered all the countries;(EV)
not one flapped a wing,
or opened its mouth to chirp.(EW)’”
15 Does the ax raise itself above the person who swings it,
or the saw boast against the one who uses it?(EX)
As if a rod were to wield the person who lifts it up,
or a club(EY) brandish the one who is not wood!
16 Therefore, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
will send a wasting disease(EZ) upon his sturdy warriors;(FA)
under his pomp(FB) a fire(FC) will be kindled
like a blazing flame.
17 The Light of Israel will become a fire,(FD)
their Holy One(FE) a flame;
in a single day it will burn and consume
his thorns(FF) and his briers.(FG)
18 The splendor of his forests(FH) and fertile fields
it will completely destroy,(FI)
as when a sick person wastes away.
19 And the remaining trees of his forests(FJ) will be so few(FK)
that a child could write them down.
The Remnant of Israel
20 In that day(FL) the remnant of Israel,
the survivors(FM) of Jacob,
will no longer rely(FN) on him
who struck them down(FO)
but will truly rely(FP) on the Lord,
the Holy One of Israel.(FQ)
21 A remnant(FR) will return,[d](FS) a remnant of Jacob
will return to the Mighty God.(FT)
22 Though your people be like the sand(FU) by the sea, Israel,
only a remnant will return.(FV)
Destruction has been decreed,(FW)
overwhelming and righteous.
23 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, will carry out
the destruction decreed(FX) upon the whole land.(FY)
24 Therefore this is what the Lord, the Lord Almighty, says:
“My people who live in Zion,(FZ)
do not be afraid(GA) of the Assyrians,
who beat(GB) you with a rod(GC)
and lift up a club against you, as Egypt did.
25 Very soon(GD) my anger against you will end
and my wrath(GE) will be directed to their destruction.(GF)”
26 The Lord Almighty will lash(GG) them with a whip,
as when he struck down Midian(GH) at the rock of Oreb;
and he will raise his staff(GI) over the waters,(GJ)
as he did in Egypt.
27 In that day(GK) their burden(GL) will be lifted from your shoulders,
their yoke(GM) from your neck;(GN)
the yoke(GO) will be broken
because you have grown so fat.[e]
28 They enter Aiath;
they pass through Migron;(GP)
they store supplies(GQ) at Mikmash.(GR)
29 They go over the pass, and say,
“We will camp overnight at Geba.(GS)”
Ramah(GT) trembles;
Gibeah(GU) of Saul flees.(GV)
30 Cry out, Daughter Gallim!(GW)
Listen, Laishah!
Poor Anathoth!(GX)
31 Madmenah is in flight;
the people of Gebim take cover.
32 This day they will halt at Nob;(GY)
they will shake their fist(GZ)
at the mount of Daughter Zion,(HA)
at the hill of Jerusalem.
33 See, the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
will lop off(HB) the boughs with great power.
The lofty trees will be felled,(HC)
the tall(HD) ones will be brought low.(HE)
34 He will cut down(HF) the forest thickets with an ax;
Lebanon(HG) will fall before the Mighty One.(HH)
The Branch From Jesse
11 A shoot(HI) will come up from the stump(HJ) of Jesse;(HK)
from his roots a Branch(HL) will bear fruit.(HM)
2 The Spirit(HN) of the Lord will rest on him—
the Spirit of wisdom(HO) and of understanding,
the Spirit of counsel and of might,(HP)
the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
3 and he will delight in the fear(HQ) of the Lord.
He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes,(HR)
or decide by what he hears with his ears;(HS)
4 but with righteousness(HT) he will judge the needy,(HU)
with justice(HV) he will give decisions for the poor(HW) of the earth.
He will strike(HX) the earth with the rod of his mouth;(HY)
with the breath(HZ) of his lips he will slay the wicked.(IA)
5 Righteousness will be his belt(IB)
and faithfulness(IC) the sash around his waist.(ID)
6 The wolf will live with the lamb,(IE)
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling[f] together;
and a little child will lead them.
7 The cow will feed with the bear,
their young will lie down together,
and the lion will eat straw like the ox.(IF)
8 The infant(IG) will play near the cobra’s den,
and the young child will put its hand into the viper’s(IH) nest.
9 They will neither harm nor destroy(II)
on all my holy mountain,(IJ)
for the earth(IK) will be filled with the knowledge(IL) of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
10 In that day(IM) the Root of Jesse(IN) will stand as a banner(IO) for the peoples; the nations(IP) will rally to him,(IQ) and his resting place(IR) will be glorious.(IS) 11 In that day(IT) the Lord will reach out his hand a second time to reclaim the surviving remnant(IU) of his people from Assyria,(IV) from Lower Egypt, from Upper Egypt,(IW) from Cush,[g](IX) from Elam,(IY) from Babylonia,[h] from Hamath(IZ) and from the islands(JA) of the Mediterranean.(JB)
12 He will raise a banner(JC) for the nations
and gather(JD) the exiles of Israel;(JE)
he will assemble the scattered people(JF) of Judah
from the four quarters of the earth.(JG)
13 Ephraim’s jealousy will vanish,
and Judah’s enemies[i] will be destroyed;
Ephraim will not be jealous of Judah,
nor Judah hostile toward Ephraim.(JH)
14 They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia(JI) to the west;
together they will plunder the people to the east.(JJ)
They will subdue Edom(JK) and Moab,(JL)
and the Ammonites(JM) will be subject to them.(JN)
15 The Lord will dry up(JO)
the gulf of the Egyptian sea;
with a scorching wind(JP) he will sweep his hand(JQ)
over the Euphrates River.(JR)
He will break it up into seven streams
so that anyone can cross over in sandals.(JS)
16 There will be a highway(JT) for the remnant(JU) of his people
that is left from Assyria,(JV)
as there was for Israel
when they came up from Egypt.(JW)
Songs of Praise
12 In that day(JX) you will say:
“I will praise(JY) you, Lord.
Although you were angry with me,
your anger has turned away(JZ)
and you have comforted(KA) me.
2 Surely God is my salvation;(KB)
I will trust(KC) and not be afraid.
The Lord, the Lord himself,(KD) is my strength(KE) and my defense[j];
he has become my salvation.(KF)”
3 With joy you will draw water(KG)
from the wells(KH) of salvation.
4 In that day(KI) you will say:
“Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name;(KJ)
make known among the nations(KK) what he has done,
and proclaim that his name is exalted.(KL)
5 Sing(KM) to the Lord, for he has done glorious things;(KN)
let this be known to all the world.
6 Shout aloud and sing for joy,(KO) people of Zion,
for great(KP) is the Holy One of Israel(KQ) among you.(KR)”
A Prophecy Against Babylon
13 A prophecy(KS) against Babylon(KT) that Isaiah son of Amoz(KU) saw:(KV)
2 Raise a banner(KW) on a bare hilltop,
shout to them;
beckon to them
to enter the gates(KX) of the nobles.
3 I have commanded those I prepared for battle;
I have summoned my warriors(KY) to carry out my wrath(KZ)—
those who rejoice(LA) in my triumph.
4 Listen, a noise on the mountains,
like that of a great multitude!(LB)
Listen, an uproar(LC) among the kingdoms,
like nations massing together!
The Lord Almighty(LD) is mustering(LE)
an army for war.
5 They come from faraway lands,
from the ends of the heavens(LF)—
the Lord and the weapons(LG) of his wrath(LH)—
to destroy(LI) the whole country.
6 Wail,(LJ) for the day(LK) of the Lord is near;
it will come like destruction(LL) from the Almighty.[k](LM)
7 Because of this, all hands will go limp,(LN)
every heart will melt with fear.(LO)
8 Terror(LP) will seize them,
pain and anguish will grip(LQ) them;
they will writhe like a woman in labor.(LR)
They will look aghast at each other,
their faces aflame.(LS)
9 See, the day(LT) of the Lord is coming
—a cruel(LU) day, with wrath(LV) and fierce anger(LW)—
to make the land desolate
and destroy the sinners within it.
10 The stars of heaven and their constellations
will not show their light.(LX)
The rising sun(LY) will be darkened(LZ)
and the moon will not give its light.(MA)
11 I will punish(MB) the world for its evil,
the wicked(MC) for their sins.
I will put an end to the arrogance of the haughty(MD)
and will humble(ME) the pride of the ruthless.(MF)
12 I will make people(MG) scarcer than pure gold,
more rare than the gold of Ophir.(MH)
13 Therefore I will make the heavens tremble;(MI)
and the earth will shake(MJ) from its place
at the wrath(MK) of the Lord Almighty,
in the day of his burning anger.(ML)
14 Like a hunted(MM) gazelle,
like sheep without a shepherd,(MN)
they will all return to their own people,
they will flee(MO) to their native land.(MP)
15 Whoever is captured will be thrust through;
all who are caught will fall(MQ) by the sword.(MR)
16 Their infants(MS) will be dashed to pieces before their eyes;
their houses will be looted and their wives violated.(MT)
17 See, I will stir up(MU) against them the Medes,(MV)
who do not care for silver
and have no delight in gold.(MW)
18 Their bows(MX) will strike down the young men;(MY)
they will have no mercy(MZ) on infants,
nor will they look with compassion on children.(NA)
19 Babylon,(NB) the jewel of kingdoms,(NC)
the pride and glory(ND) of the Babylonians,[l]
will be overthrown(NE) by God
like Sodom and Gomorrah.(NF)
20 She will never be inhabited(NG)
or lived in through all generations;
there no nomads(NH) will pitch their tents,
there no shepherds will rest their flocks.
21 But desert creatures(NI) will lie there,
jackals(NJ) will fill her houses;
there the owls(NK) will dwell,
and there the wild goats(NL) will leap about.
22 Hyenas(NM) will inhabit her strongholds,(NN)
jackals(NO) her luxurious palaces.
Her time is at hand,(NP)
and her days will not be prolonged.(NQ)
14 The Lord will have compassion(NR) on Jacob;
once again he will choose(NS) Israel
and will settle them in their own land.(NT)
Foreigners(NU) will join them
and unite with the descendants of Jacob.
2 Nations will take them
and bring(NV) them to their own place.
And Israel will take possession of the nations(NW)
and make them male and female servants in the Lord’s land.
They will make captives(NX) of their captors
and rule over their oppressors.(NY)
3 On the day the Lord gives you relief(NZ) from your suffering and turmoil(OA) and from the harsh labor forced on you,(OB) 4 you will take up this taunt(OC) against the king of Babylon:(OD)
How the oppressor(OE) has come to an end!
How his fury[m] has ended!
5 The Lord has broken the rod(OF) of the wicked,(OG)
the scepter(OH) of the rulers,
6 which in anger struck down peoples(OI)
with unceasing blows,
and in fury subdued(OJ) nations
with relentless aggression.(OK)
7 All the lands are at rest and at peace;(OL)
they break into singing.(OM)
8 Even the junipers(ON) and the cedars of Lebanon
gloat over you and say,
“Now that you have been laid low,
no one comes to cut us down.”(OO)
9 The realm of the dead(OP) below is all astir
to meet you at your coming;
it rouses the spirits of the departed(OQ) to greet you—
all those who were leaders(OR) in the world;
it makes them rise from their thrones—
all those who were kings over the nations.(OS)
10 They will all respond,
they will say to you,
“You also have become weak, as we are;
you have become like us.”(OT)
11 All your pomp has been brought down to the grave,(OU)
along with the noise of your harps;(OV)
maggots are spread out beneath you
and worms(OW) cover you.(OX)
12 How you have fallen(OY) from heaven,
morning star,(OZ) son of the dawn!
You have been cast down to the earth,
you who once laid low the nations!(PA)
13 You said in your heart,
“I will ascend(PB) to the heavens;
I will raise my throne(PC)
above the stars of God;
I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly,(PD)
on the utmost heights(PE) of Mount Zaphon.[n]
14 I will ascend above the tops of the clouds;(PF)
I will make myself like the Most High.”(PG)
15 But you are brought down(PH) to the realm of the dead,(PI)
to the depths(PJ) of the pit.(PK)
16 Those who see you stare at you,
they ponder your fate:(PL)
“Is this the man who shook(PM) the earth
and made kingdoms tremble,
17 the man who made the world a wilderness,(PN)
who overthrew(PO) its cities
and would not let his captives go home?”(PP)
18 All the kings of the nations lie in state,
each in his own tomb.(PQ)
19 But you are cast out(PR) of your tomb
like a rejected branch;
you are covered with the slain,(PS)
with those pierced by the sword,(PT)
those who descend to the stones of the pit.(PU)
Like a corpse trampled underfoot,
20 you will not join them in burial,(PV)
for you have destroyed your land
and killed your people.
Let the offspring(PW) of the wicked(PX)
never be mentioned(PY) again.
21 Prepare a place to slaughter his children(PZ)
for the sins of their ancestors;(QA)
they are not to rise to inherit the land
and cover the earth with their cities.
22 “I will rise up(QB) against them,”
declares the Lord Almighty.
“I will wipe out Babylon’s name(QC) and survivors,
her offspring and descendants,(QD)”
declares the Lord.
23 “I will turn her into a place for owls(QE)
and into swampland;
I will sweep her with the broom of destruction,(QF)”
declares the Lord Almighty.(QG)
24 The Lord Almighty has sworn,(QH)
“Surely, as I have planned,(QI) so it will be,
and as I have purposed, so it will happen.(QJ)
25 I will crush the Assyrian(QK) in my land;
on my mountains I will trample him down.
His yoke(QL) will be taken from my people,
and his burden removed from their shoulders.(QM)”
26 This is the plan(QN) determined for the whole world;
this is the hand(QO) stretched out over all nations.
27 For the Lord Almighty has purposed,(QP) and who can thwart him?
His hand(QQ) is stretched out, and who can turn it back?(QR)
A Prophecy Against the Philistines
28 This prophecy(QS) came in the year(QT) King Ahaz(QU) died:
29 Do not rejoice, all you Philistines,(QV)
that the rod that struck you is broken;
from the root of that snake will spring up a viper,(QW)
its fruit will be a darting, venomous serpent.(QX)
30 The poorest of the poor will find pasture,
and the needy(QY) will lie down in safety.(QZ)
But your root I will destroy by famine;(RA)
it will slay(RB) your survivors.(RC)
31 Wail,(RD) you gate!(RE) Howl, you city!
Melt away, all you Philistines!(RF)
A cloud of smoke comes from the north,(RG)
and there is not a straggler in its ranks.(RH)
32 What answer shall be given
to the envoys(RI) of that nation?
“The Lord has established Zion,(RJ)
and in her his afflicted people will find refuge.(RK)”
A Prophecy Against Moab(RL)
15 A prophecy(RM) against Moab:(RN)
Ar(RO) in Moab is ruined,(RP)
destroyed in a night!
Kir(RQ) in Moab is ruined,
destroyed in a night!
2 Dibon(RR) goes up to its temple,
to its high places(RS) to weep;
Moab wails(RT) over Nebo(RU) and Medeba.
Every head is shaved(RV)
and every beard cut off.(RW)
3 In the streets they wear sackcloth;(RX)
on the roofs(RY) and in the public squares(RZ)
they all wail,(SA)
prostrate with weeping.(SB)
4 Heshbon(SC) and Elealeh(SD) cry out,
their voices are heard all the way to Jahaz.(SE)
Therefore the armed men of Moab cry out,
and their hearts are faint.
5 My heart cries out(SF) over Moab;(SG)
her fugitives(SH) flee as far as Zoar,(SI)
as far as Eglath Shelishiyah.
They go up the hill to Luhith,
weeping as they go;
on the road to Horonaim(SJ)
they lament their destruction.(SK)
6 The waters of Nimrim are dried up(SL)
and the grass is withered;(SM)
the vegetation is gone(SN)
and nothing green is left.(SO)
7 So the wealth they have acquired(SP) and stored up
they carry away over the Ravine of the Poplars.
8 Their outcry echoes along the border of Moab;
their wailing reaches as far as Eglaim,
their lamentation as far as Beer(SQ) Elim.
9 The waters of Dimon[o] are full of blood,
but I will bring still more upon Dimon[p]—
a lion(SR) upon the fugitives of Moab(SS)
and upon those who remain in the land.
16 Send lambs(ST) as tribute(SU)
to the ruler of the land,
from Sela,(SV) across the desert,
to the mount of Daughter Zion.(SW)
2 Like fluttering birds
pushed from the nest,(SX)
so are the women of Moab(SY)
at the fords(SZ) of the Arnon.(TA)
3 “Make up your mind,” Moab says.
“Render a decision.
Make your shadow like night—
at high noon.
Hide the fugitives,(TB)
do not betray the refugees.
4 Let the Moabite fugitives stay with you;
be their shelter(TC) from the destroyer.”
The oppressor(TD) will come to an end,
and destruction will cease;(TE)
the aggressor will vanish from the land.
5 In love a throne(TF) will be established;(TG)
in faithfulness a man will sit on it—
one from the house[q] of David(TH)—
one who in judging seeks justice(TI)
and speeds the cause of righteousness.
6 We have heard of Moab’s(TJ) pride(TK)—
how great is her arrogance!—
of her conceit, her pride and her insolence;
but her boasts are empty.
7 Therefore the Moabites wail,(TL)
they wail together for Moab.
Lament and grieve
for the raisin cakes(TM) of Kir Hareseth.(TN)
8 The fields of Heshbon(TO) wither,(TP)
the vines of Sibmah(TQ) also.
The rulers of the nations
have trampled down the choicest vines,(TR)
which once reached Jazer(TS)
and spread toward the desert.
Their shoots spread out(TT)
and went as far as the sea.[r](TU)
9 So I weep,(TV) as Jazer weeps,
for the vines of Sibmah.
Heshbon and Elealeh,(TW)
I drench you with tears!(TX)
The shouts of joy(TY) over your ripened fruit
and over your harvests(TZ) have been stilled.
10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards;(UA)
no one sings or shouts(UB) in the vineyards;
no one treads(UC) out wine at the presses,(UD)
for I have put an end to the shouting.
11 My heart laments for Moab(UE) like a harp,(UF)
my inmost being(UG) for Kir Hareseth.
12 When Moab appears at her high place,(UH)
she only wears herself out;
when she goes to her shrine(UI) to pray,
it is to no avail.(UJ)
13 This is the word the Lord has already spoken concerning Moab. 14 But now the Lord says: “Within three years,(UK) as a servant bound by contract(UL) would count them,(UM) Moab’s splendor and all her many people will be despised,(UN) and her survivors will be very few and feeble.”(UO)
A Prophecy Against Damascus
17 A prophecy(UP) against Damascus:(UQ)
“See, Damascus will no longer be a city
but will become a heap of ruins.(UR)
2 The cities of Aroer(US) will be deserted
and left to flocks,(UT) which will lie down,(UU)
with no one to make them afraid.(UV)
3 The fortified(UW) city will disappear from Ephraim,
and royal power from Damascus;
the remnant of Aram will be
like the glory(UX) of the Israelites,”(UY)
declares the Lord Almighty.
4 “In that day(UZ) the glory(VA) of Jacob will fade;
the fat of his body will waste(VB) away.
5 It will be as when reapers harvest the standing grain,
gathering(VC) the grain in their arms—
as when someone gleans heads of grain(VD)
in the Valley of Rephaim.(VE)
6 Yet some gleanings will remain,(VF)
as when an olive tree is beaten,(VG)
leaving two or three olives on the topmost branches,
four or five on the fruitful boughs,”
declares the Lord, the God of Israel.
7 In that day(VH) people will look(VI) to their Maker(VJ)
and turn their eyes to the Holy One(VK) of Israel.
8 They will not look to the altars,(VL)
the work of their hands,(VM)
and they will have no regard for the Asherah poles[s](VN)
and the incense altars their fingers(VO) have made.
9 In that day their strong cities, which they left because of the Israelites, will be like places abandoned to thickets and undergrowth.(VP) And all will be desolation.
10 You have forgotten(VQ) God your Savior;(VR)
you have not remembered the Rock,(VS) your fortress.(VT)
Therefore, though you set out the finest plants
and plant imported vines,(VU)
11 though on the day you set them out, you make them grow,
and on the morning(VV) when you plant them, you bring them to bud,
yet the harvest(VW) will be as nothing(VX)
in the day of disease and incurable(VY) pain.(VZ)
12 Woe to the many nations that rage(WA)—
they rage like the raging sea!(WB)
Woe to the peoples who roar(WC)—
they roar like the roaring of great waters!(WD)
13 Although the peoples roar(WE) like the roar of surging waters,
when he rebukes(WF) them they flee(WG) far away,
driven before the wind like chaff(WH) on the hills,
like tumbleweed before a gale.(WI)
14 In the evening, sudden(WJ) terror!(WK)
Before the morning, they are gone!(WL)
This is the portion of those who loot us,
the lot of those who plunder us.
A Prophecy Against Cush
18 Woe(WM) to the land of whirring wings[t]
along the rivers of Cush,[u](WN)
2 which sends envoys(WO) by sea
in papyrus(WP) boats over the water.
Go, swift messengers,
to a people tall and smooth-skinned,(WQ)
to a people feared far and wide,
an aggressive(WR) nation of strange speech,
whose land is divided by rivers.(WS)
3 All you people of the world,(WT)
you who live on the earth,
when a banner(WU) is raised on the mountains,
you will see it,
and when a trumpet(WV) sounds,
you will hear it.
4 This is what the Lord says to me:
“I will remain quiet(WW) and will look on from my dwelling place,(WX)
like shimmering heat in the sunshine,(WY)
like a cloud of dew(WZ) in the heat of harvest.”
5 For, before the harvest, when the blossom is gone
and the flower becomes a ripening grape,
he will cut off(XA) the shoots with pruning knives,
and cut down and take away the spreading branches.(XB)
6 They will all be left to the mountain birds of prey(XC)
and to the wild animals;(XD)
the birds will feed on them all summer,
the wild animals all winter.
7 At that time gifts(XE) will be brought to the Lord Almighty
from a people tall and smooth-skinned,(XF)
from a people feared(XG) far and wide,
an aggressive nation of strange speech,
whose land is divided by rivers(XH)—
the gifts will be brought to Mount Zion, the place of the Name of the Lord Almighty.(XI)
A Prophecy Against Egypt
19 A prophecy(XJ) against Egypt:(XK)
See, the Lord rides on a swift cloud(XL)
and is coming to Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him,
and the hearts of the Egyptians melt(XM) with fear.
2 “I will stir up Egyptian against Egyptian—
brother will fight against brother,(XN)
neighbor against neighbor,
city against city,
kingdom against kingdom.(XO)
3 The Egyptians will lose heart,(XP)
and I will bring their plans(XQ) to nothing;(XR)
they will consult the idols and the spirits of the dead,
the mediums and the spiritists.(XS)
4 I will hand the Egyptians over
to the power of a cruel master,
and a fierce king(XT) will rule over them,”
declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.
5 The waters of the river will dry up,(XU)
and the riverbed will be parched and dry.(XV)
6 The canals will stink;(XW)
the streams of Egypt will dwindle and dry up.(XX)
The reeds(XY) and rushes will wither,(XZ)
7 also the plants(YA) along the Nile,
at the mouth of the river.
Every sown field(YB) along the Nile
will become parched, will blow away and be no more.(YC)
8 The fishermen(YD) will groan and lament,
all who cast hooks(YE) into the Nile;
those who throw nets on the water
will pine away.
9 Those who work with combed flax(YF) will despair,
the weavers of fine linen(YG) will lose hope.
10 The workers in cloth will be dejected,
and all the wage earners will be sick at heart.
11 The officials of Zoan(YH) are nothing but fools;
the wise counselors(YI) of Pharaoh give senseless advice.(YJ)
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I am one of the wise men,(YK)
a disciple of the ancient kings”?
12 Where are your wise men(YL) now?
Let them show you and make known
what the Lord Almighty
has planned(YM) against Egypt.
13 The officials of Zoan(YN) have become fools,
the leaders of Memphis(YO) are deceived;
the cornerstones(YP) of her peoples
have led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has poured into them
a spirit of dizziness;(YQ)
they make Egypt stagger in all that she does,
as a drunkard staggers(YR) around in his vomit.
15 There is nothing Egypt can do—
head or tail, palm branch or reed.(YS)
16 In that day(YT) the Egyptians will become weaklings.(YU) They will shudder with fear(YV) at the uplifted hand(YW) that the Lord Almighty raises against them. 17 And the land of Judah will bring terror to the Egyptians; everyone to whom Judah is mentioned will be terrified,(YX) because of what the Lord Almighty is planning(YY) against them.
18 In that day(YZ) five cities(ZA) in Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance(ZB) to the Lord Almighty. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.[v](ZC)
19 In that day(ZD) there will be an altar(ZE) to the Lord in the heart of Egypt,(ZF) and a monument(ZG) to the Lord at its border. 20 It will be a sign and witness(ZH) to the Lord Almighty in the land of Egypt. When they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior(ZI) and defender, and he will rescue(ZJ) them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and in that day they will acknowledge(ZK) the Lord. They will worship(ZL) with sacrifices and grain offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and keep them.(ZM) 22 The Lord will strike(ZN) Egypt with a plague;(ZO) he will strike them and heal them. They will turn(ZP) to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal(ZQ) them.
23 In that day(ZR) there will be a highway(ZS) from Egypt to Assyria.(ZT) The Assyrians will go to Egypt and the Egyptians to Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship(ZU) together. 24 In that day(ZV) Israel will be the third, along with Egypt and Assyria,(ZW) a blessing[w](ZX) on the earth. 25 The Lord Almighty will bless(ZY) them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people,(ZZ) Assyria my handiwork,(AAA) and Israel my inheritance.(AAB)”
A Prophecy Against Egypt and Cush
20 In the year that the supreme commander,(AAC) sent by Sargon king of Assyria, came to Ashdod(AAD) and attacked and captured it— 2 at that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz.(AAE) He said to him, “Take off the sackcloth(AAF) from your body and the sandals(AAG) from your feet.” And he did so, going around stripped(AAH) and barefoot.(AAI)
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as my servant(AAJ) Isaiah has gone stripped and barefoot for three years,(AAK) as a sign(AAL) and portent(AAM) against Egypt(AAN) and Cush,[x](AAO) 4 so the king(AAP) of Assyria will lead away stripped(AAQ) and barefoot the Egyptian captives(AAR) and Cushite(AAS) exiles, young and old, with buttocks bared(AAT)—to Egypt’s shame.(AAU) 5 Those who trusted(AAV) in Cush(AAW) and boasted in Egypt(AAX) will be dismayed and put to shame.(AAY) 6 In that day(AAZ) the people who live on this coast will say, ‘See what has happened(ABA) to those we relied on,(ABB) those we fled to for help(ABC) and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How then can we escape?(ABD)’”
A Prophecy Against Babylon
21 A prophecy(ABE) against the Desert(ABF) by the Sea:
Like whirlwinds(ABG) sweeping through the southland,(ABH)
an invader comes from the desert,
from a land of terror.
2 A dire(ABI) vision has been shown to me:
The traitor betrays,(ABJ) the looter takes loot.
Elam,(ABK) attack! Media,(ABL) lay siege!
I will bring to an end all the groaning she caused.
3 At this my body is racked with pain,(ABM)
pangs seize me, like those of a woman in labor;(ABN)
I am staggered by what I hear,
I am bewildered(ABO) by what I see.
4 My heart(ABP) falters,
fear makes me tremble;(ABQ)
the twilight I longed for
has become a horror(ABR) to me.
5 They set the tables,
they spread the rugs,
they eat, they drink!(ABS)
Get up, you officers,
oil the shields!(ABT)
6 This is what the Lord says to me:
“Go, post a lookout(ABU)
and have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariots(ABV)
with teams of horses,
riders on donkeys
or riders on camels,(ABW)
let him be alert,
fully alert.”
8 And the lookout[y](ABX) shouted,
“Day after day, my lord, I stand on the watchtower;
every night I stay at my post.
9 Look, here comes a man in a chariot(ABY)
with a team of horses.
And he gives back the answer:
‘Babylon(ABZ) has fallen,(ACA) has fallen!
All the images of its gods(ACB)
lie shattered(ACC) on the ground!’”
10 My people who are crushed on the threshing floor,(ACD)
I tell you what I have heard
from the Lord Almighty,
from the God of Israel.
A Prophecy Against Edom
11 A prophecy against Dumah[z]:(ACE)
Someone calls to me from Seir,(ACF)
“Watchman, what is left of the night?
Watchman, what is left of the night?”
12 The watchman replies,
“Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you would ask, then ask;
and come back yet again.”
A Prophecy Against Arabia
13 A prophecy(ACG) against Arabia:(ACH)
You caravans of Dedanites,(ACI)
who camp in the thickets of Arabia,
14 bring water for the thirsty;
you who live in Tema,(ACJ)
bring food for the fugitives.
15 They flee(ACK) from the sword,(ACL)
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow
and from the heat of battle.
16 This is what the Lord says to me: “Within one year, as a servant bound by contract(ACM) would count it, all the splendor(ACN) of Kedar(ACO) will come to an end. 17 The survivors of the archers, the warriors of Kedar, will be few.(ACP)” The Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.(ACQ)
A Prophecy About Jerusalem
22 A prophecy(ACR) against the Valley(ACS) of Vision:(ACT)
What troubles you now,
that you have all gone up on the roofs,(ACU)
2 you town so full of commotion,
you city of tumult(ACV) and revelry?(ACW)
Your slain(ACX) were not killed by the sword,(ACY)
nor did they die in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled(ACZ) together;
they have been captured(ADA) without using the bow.
All you who were caught were taken prisoner together,
having fled while the enemy was still far away.
4 Therefore I said, “Turn away from me;
let me weep(ADB) bitterly.
Do not try to console me
over the destruction of my people.”(ADC)
5 The Lord, the Lord Almighty, has a day(ADD)
of tumult and trampling(ADE) and terror(ADF)
in the Valley of Vision,(ADG)
a day of battering down walls(ADH)
and of crying out to the mountains.
6 Elam(ADI) takes up the quiver,(ADJ)
with her charioteers and horses;
Kir(ADK) uncovers the shield.
7 Your choicest valleys(ADL) are full of chariots,
and horsemen are posted at the city gates.(ADM)
8 The Lord stripped away the defenses of Judah,
and you looked in that day(ADN)
to the weapons(ADO) in the Palace of the Forest.(ADP)
9 You saw that the walls of the City of David
were broken through(ADQ) in many places;
you stored up water
in the Lower Pool.(ADR)
10 You counted the buildings in Jerusalem
and tore down houses(ADS) to strengthen the wall.(ADT)
11 You built a reservoir between the two walls(ADU)
for the water of the Old Pool,(ADV)
but you did not look to the One who made it,
or have regard(ADW) for the One who planned(ADX) it long ago.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 9:1 In Hebrew texts 9:1 is numbered 8:23, and 9:2-21 is numbered 9:1-20.
- Isaiah 9:20 Or arm
- Isaiah 10:13 Or treasures; / I subdued the mighty,
- Isaiah 10:21 Hebrew shear-jashub (see 7:3 and note); also in verse 22
- Isaiah 10:27 Hebrew; Septuagint broken / from your shoulders
- Isaiah 11:6 Hebrew; Septuagint lion will feed
- Isaiah 11:11 That is, the upper Nile region
- Isaiah 11:11 Hebrew Shinar
- Isaiah 11:13 Or hostility
- Isaiah 12:2 Or song
- Isaiah 13:6 Hebrew Shaddai
- Isaiah 13:19 Or Chaldeans
- Isaiah 14:4 Dead Sea Scrolls, Septuagint and Syriac; the meaning of the word in the Masoretic Text is uncertain.
- Isaiah 14:13 Or of the north; Zaphon was the most sacred mountain of the Canaanites.
- Isaiah 15:9 Dimon, a wordplay on Dibon (see verse 2), sounds like the Hebrew for blood.
- Isaiah 15:9 Dimon, a wordplay on Dibon (see verse 2), sounds like the Hebrew for blood.
- Isaiah 16:5 Hebrew tent
- Isaiah 16:8 Probably the Dead Sea
- Isaiah 17:8 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah
- Isaiah 18:1 Or of locusts
- Isaiah 18:1 That is, the upper Nile region
- Isaiah 19:18 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls, Symmachus and Vulgate; most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text City of Destruction
- Isaiah 19:24 Or Assyria, whose names will be used in blessings (see Gen. 48:20); or Assyria, who will be seen by others as blessed
- Isaiah 20:3 That is, the upper Nile region; also in verse 5
- Isaiah 21:8 Dead Sea Scrolls and Syriac; Masoretic Text A lion
- Isaiah 21:11 Dumah, a wordplay on Edom, means silence or stillness.
New King James Version (NKJV) 
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.