Isaiah 1
Christian Standard Bible
1 The vision(A) concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah(B) son of Amoz saw during the reigns[a] of Kings Uzziah,(C) Jotham,(D) Ahaz,(E) and Hezekiah(F) of Judah.(G)
Judah on Trial
2 Listen, heavens, and pay attention, earth,(H)
for the Lord has spoken:
“I have raised children[b] and brought them up,
but they have rebelled against me.(I)
3 The ox knows its owner,
and the donkey its master’s feeding trough,
but Israel does not know;
my people do not understand.”(J)
4 Oh sinful nation,
people weighed down with iniquity,(K)
brood of evildoers,(L)
depraved children!
They have abandoned(M) the Lord;
they have despised(N) the Holy One of Israel;(O)
they have turned their backs on him.
5 Why do you want more beatings?
Why do you keep on rebelling?
The whole head is hurt,
and the whole heart is sick.
6 From the sole of the foot even to the head,(P)
no spot is uninjured(Q)—
wounds, welts, and festering sores
not cleansed, bandaged,
or soothed with oil.
7 Your land is desolate,
your cities burned down;(R)
foreigners devour your fields
right in front of you—
a desolation, like a place demolished by foreigners.
8 Daughter Zion(S) is abandoned
like a shelter in a vineyard,
like a shack in a cucumber field,
like a besieged city.
9 If the Lord of Armies(T)
had not left us a few survivors,(U)
we would be like Sodom,
we would resemble Gomorrah.(V)
10 Hear the word of the Lord,(W)
you rulers of Sodom!
Listen to the instruction of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!(X)
11 “What are all your sacrifices to me?”
asks the Lord.
“I have had enough of burnt offerings and rams
and the fat of well-fed cattle;
I have no desire for the blood of bulls,
lambs, or male goats.(Y)
12 When you come to appear before me,
who requires this from you—
this trampling of my courts?
13 Stop bringing useless offerings.(Z)
Your incense is detestable to me.
New Moons and Sabbaths,(AA)
and the calling of solemn assemblies(AB)—
I cannot stand iniquity(AC) with a festival.
14 I hate your New Moons and prescribed festivals.
They have become a burden to me;
I am tired of putting up with them.
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,(AD)
I will refuse to look at you;
even if you offer countless prayers,
I will not listen.(AE)
Your hands are covered with blood.(AF)
Purification of Jerusalem
16 “Wash yourselves. Cleanse yourselves.(AG)
Remove your evil deeds from my sight.
Stop doing evil.(AH)
17 Learn to do what is good.
Pursue justice.(AI)
Correct the oppressor.[c]
Defend the rights of the fatherless.
Plead the widow’s cause.
18 “Come, let’s settle this,”(AJ)
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are scarlet,
they will be as white as snow;(AK)
though they are crimson red,
they will be like wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the good things of the land.(AL)
20 But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be devoured by the sword.”(AM)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.(AN)
21 The faithful town—
what an adulteress[d] she has become!
She was once full of justice.
Righteousness once dwelt in her,
but now, murderers!
22 Your silver has become dross to be discarded,
your beer[e] is diluted with water.
23 Your rulers are rebels,
friends of thieves.(AO)
They all love graft
and chase after bribes.(AP)
They do not defend the rights of the fatherless,
and the widow’s case never comes before them.(AQ)
24 Therefore the Lord God of Armies,
the Mighty One of Israel, declares:
“Ah, I will get even with my foes;
I will take revenge against my enemies.(AR)
25 I will turn my hand against you(AS)
and will burn away your dross completely;[f]
I will remove all your impurities.(AT)
26 I will restore your judges(AU) to what they were at first,
and your advisers to what they were at the start.
Afterward you will be called the Righteous City,(AV)
a Faithful Town.”
27 Zion will be redeemed by justice,
those who repent, by righteousness.(AW)
28 At the same time both rebels and sinners will be broken,
and those who abandon the Lord will perish.
29 Indeed, they[g] will be ashamed of the sacred trees
you desired,(AX)
and you will be embarrassed because of the garden shrines
you have chosen.(AY)
30 For you will become like an oak
whose leaves are withered,
and like a garden without water.(AZ)
31 The strong one will become tinder,
and his work a spark;
both will burn together,(BA)
with no one to extinguish the flames.(BB)
Isaiah 1
International Children’s Bible
God’s Message in Troubled Times
1 This is the vision Isaiah son of Amoz saw. God showed Isaiah what would happen to Judah and Jerusalem. Isaiah saw these things while Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah were kings of Judah.
God Finds Fault with His People
2 Heaven and earth, listen,
because the Lord is speaking:
“I raised my children and helped them grow.
But they have turned against me.
3 An ox knows its master.
And a donkey knows where its owner feeds it.
But the people of Israel do not know me.
My people do not understand.”
4 Terrible times are coming for Israel, a nation of sin.
The people are loaded down with guilt.
They are like a group of children doing evil.
They are full of evil.
They have left the Lord.
They hate God, the Holy One of Israel.
They have turned away from him.
5 Why should you continue to be punished?
Why do you continue to turn against him?
Your whole head is hurt.
And your whole heart is sick.
6 There is no healthy spot
from the bottom of your foot to the top of your head.
You are covered with wounds, hurts and open sores.
Your wounds are not cleaned and covered.
No medicine takes away the pain.
7 Your land is ruined.
Your cities have been burned with fire.
While you watch,
your enemies are stealing everything from your land.
Your land is ruined like a country destroyed by enemies.
8 Jerusalem is left alone
like an empty shelter in a vineyard.
It is like a hut left in a field of melons.
It is like a city surrounded by enemies.
9 The Lord of heaven’s armies
allowed a few of our people to live.
Otherwise we would have been completely destroyed
like the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.
10 Jerusalem, your rulers are like those of Sodom.
Your people are like those of Gomorrah.
Hear the word of the Lord.
Listen to the teachings of our God!
11 The Lord says,
“I do not want all these sacrifices you give me.
I have had enough of your sacrifices
of male sheep and fat from fine animals.
I am not pleased
by the blood of bulls, sheep and goats.
12 You come to meet with me.
But who asked you to do
all this running in and out?
13 Don’t continue bringing me worthless sacrifices!
I hate the incense you burn.
I can’t stand your New Moons, Sabbaths and other feast days.
I can’t stand the evil you do in holding your holy meetings.
14 I hate your New Moon feasts
and your other yearly feasts.
They have become like heavy weights on me.
I am tired of carrying them.
15 You will raise your arms in prayer to me.
But I will refuse to look at you.
Even if you say many prayers,
I will not listen to you.
It’s because your hands are full of blood.
16 Wash yourselves and make yourselves clean.
Stop doing the evil things I see you do.
Stop doing wrong!
17 Learn to do good.
Be fair to other people.
Punish those who hurt others.
Help the orphans.
Stand up for the rights of widows.”
18 The Lord says,
“Come, we will talk these things over.
Your sins are red like deep red cloth.
But they can be as white as snow.
Your sins are bright red.
But you can be white like wool.
19 If you will obey me,
you will eat good crops from the land.
20 But if you refuse to obey and if you turn against me,
you will be destroyed by your enemies’ swords.”
The Lord himself said these things.
Jerusalem Is Not Loyal to God
21 The city of Jerusalem once followed the Lord.
But she is no longer loyal to the Lord.
She used to be filled with fairness.
People there lived the way God wanted.
But now, murderers live there.
22 Jerusalem, you have become like the scum left when silver is purified.
You are like wine mixed with water.
23 Your rulers are rebels.
They are friends of thieves.
They all accept money for doing wrong things.
They are paid to cheat people.
They don’t try to help the orphans.
And they don’t listen to the widows’ needs.
24 The Master, the Lord of heaven’s armies,
the Mighty One of Israel, says:
“You, my enemies, will not cause me any more trouble.
I will pay you back for what you did.
25 I will turn against you.
I will clean away all your wrongs as if with soap.
I will take all the worthless things out of you.
26 I will bring back judges as you had long ago.
Your counselors will be like the ones you had in the beginning.
Then you will be called the City That Is Right with God.
You will be called the Loyal City.”
27 Because the Lord does what is fair,
he will rescue Jerusalem.
Because the Lord does what is right,
he will save her people who come back to him.
28 But sinners and those who turn against him will be destroyed.
Those who have left the Lord will die.
29 “You will be ashamed
because you have worshiped false gods under the oak trees.
You will be disgraced
because you have worshiped idols in your gardens.
30 You will be like an oak whose leaves are dying.
You will be like a garden without water.
31 Powerful people will be like small, dry pieces of wood.
And what they do will be like sparks.
The people and what they do will burn together.
And no one will be able to stop that fire.”
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission. Christian Standard Bible®, and CSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers, all rights reserved.
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
