Isaiah 25-27

New International Version

Praise to the Lord

25 Lord, you are my God;^(A)
    I will exalt you and praise your name,^(B)
for in perfect faithfulness^(C)
    you have done wonderful things,^(D)
    things planned^(E) long ago.
²You have made the city a heap of rubble,^(F)
    the fortified^(G) town a ruin,^(H)
the foreigners’ stronghold^(I) a city no more;
    it will never be rebuilt.^(J)
³Therefore strong peoples will honor you;^(K)
    cities of ruthless^(L) nations will revere you.
⁴You have been a refuge^(M) for the poor,^(N)
    a refuge for the needy^(O) in their distress,
a shelter from the storm^(P)
    and a shade from the heat.
For the breath of the ruthless^(Q)
    is like a storm driving against a wall
⁵    and like the heat of the desert.
You silence^(R) the uproar of foreigners;^(S)
    as heat is reduced by the shadow of a cloud,
    so the song of the ruthless^(T) is stilled.

⁶On this mountain^(U) the Lord Almighty will prepare
    a feast^(V) of rich food for all peoples,
a banquet of aged wine—
    the best of meats and the finest of wines.^(W)
⁷On this mountain he will destroy
    the shroud^(X) that enfolds all peoples,^(Y)
the sheet that covers all nations;
⁸    he will swallow up death^(Z) forever.
The Sovereign Lord will wipe away the tears^(AA)
    from all faces;
he will remove his people’s disgrace^(AB)
    from all the earth.
The Lord has spoken.^(AC)

⁹In that day^(AD) they will say,

“Surely this is our God;^(AE)
we trusted^(AF) in him, and he saved^(AG) us.
This is the Lord, we trusted in him;
let us rejoice^(AH) and be glad in his salvation.”^(AI)

¹⁰The hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain;^(AJ)
    but Moab^(AK) will be trampled in their land
    as straw is trampled down in the manure.
¹¹They will stretch out their hands in it,
    as swimmers stretch out their hands to swim.
God will bring down^(AL) their pride^(AM)
    despite the cleverness^[a] of their hands.
¹²He will bring down your high fortified walls^(AN)
    and lay them low;^(AO)
he will bring them down to the ground,
    to the very dust.

A Song of Praise

26 In that day^(AP) this song will be sung^(AQ) in the land of Judah:

We have a strong city;^(AR)
    God makes salvation
    its walls^(AS) and ramparts.^(AT)
²Open the gates^(AU)
    that the righteous^(AV) nation may enter,
    the nation that keeps faith.
³You will keep in perfect peace^(AW)
    those whose minds are steadfast,
    because they trust^(AX) in you.
⁴Trust^(AY) in the Lord forever,^(AZ)
    for the Lord, the Lord himself, is the Rock^(BA) eternal.
⁵He humbles those who dwell on high,
    he lays the lofty city low;
he levels it to the ground^(BB)
    and casts it down to the dust.^(BC)
⁶Feet trample^(BD) it down—
    the feet of the oppressed,^(BE)
    the footsteps of the poor.^(BF)

⁷The path of the righteous is level;^(BG)
    you, the Upright One,^(BH) make the way of the righteous smooth.^(BI)
⁸Yes, Lord, walking in the way of your laws,^[b]^(BJ)
    we wait^(BK) for you;
your name^(BL) and renown
    are the desire of our hearts.
⁹My soul yearns for you in the night;^(BM)
    in the morning my spirit longs^(BN) for you.
When your judgments^(BO) come upon the earth,
    the people of the world learn righteousness.^(BP)
¹⁰But when grace is shown to the wicked,^(BQ)
    they do not learn righteousness;
even in a land of uprightness they go on doing evil^(BR)
    and do not regard^(BS) the majesty of the Lord.
¹¹Lord, your hand is lifted high,^(BT)
    but they do not see^(BU) it.
Let them see your zeal^(BV) for your people and be put to shame;^(BW)
    let the fire^(BX) reserved for your enemies consume them.

¹²Lord, you establish peace^(BY) for us;
    all that we have accomplished you have done^(BZ) for us.
¹³Lord our God, other lords^(CA) besides you have ruled over us,
    but your name^(CB) alone do we honor.^(CC)
¹⁴They are now dead,^(CD) they live no more;
    their spirits^(CE) do not rise.
You punished them and brought them to ruin;^(CF)
    you wiped out all memory of them.^(CG)
¹⁵You have enlarged the nation, Lord;
    you have enlarged the nation.^(CH)
You have gained glory for yourself;
    you have extended all the borders^(CI) of the land.

¹⁶Lord, they came to you in their distress;^(CJ)
    when you disciplined^(CK) them,
    they could barely whisper^(CL) a prayer.^[c]
¹⁷As a pregnant woman about to give birth^(CM)
    writhes and cries out in her pain,
    so were we in your presence, Lord.
¹⁸We were with child, we writhed in labor,
    but we gave birth^(CN) to wind.
We have not brought salvation^(CO) to the earth,
    and the people of the world have not come to life.^(CP)

¹⁹But your dead^(CQ) will live, Lord;
    their bodies will rise—
let those who dwell in the dust^(CR)
    wake up and shout for joy—
your dew^(CS) is like the dew of the morning;
    the earth will give birth to her dead.^(CT)

²⁰Go, my people, enter your rooms
    and shut the doors^(CU) behind you;
hide^(CV) yourselves for a little while
    until his wrath^(CW) has passed by.^(CX)
²¹See, the Lord is coming^(CY) out of his dwelling^(CZ)
    to punish^(DA) the people of the earth for their sins.
The earth will disclose the blood^(DB) shed on it;
    the earth will conceal its slain no longer.

Deliverance of Israel

27 In that day,^(DC)

the Lord will punish with his sword^(DD)—
his fierce, great and powerful sword—
Leviathan^(DE) the gliding serpent,^(DF)
Leviathan the coiling serpent;
he will slay the monster^(DG) of the sea.

²In that day^(DH)—

“Sing^(DI) about a fruitful vineyard:^(DJ)
³    I, the Lord, watch over it;
    I water^(DK) it continually.
I guard^(DL) it day and night
    so that no one may harm^(DM) it.
⁴    I am not angry.
If only there were briers and thorns confronting me!
    I would march against them in battle;
    I would set them all on fire.^(DN)
⁵Or else let them come to me for refuge;^(DO)
    let them make peace^(DP) with me,
    yes, let them make peace with me.”

⁶In days to come Jacob will take root,^(DQ)
Israel will bud and blossom^(DR)
and fill all the world with fruit.^(DS)

⁷Has the Lord struck her
    as he struck^(DT) down those who struck her?
Has she been killed
    as those were killed who killed her?
⁸By warfare^[d] and exile^(DU) you contend with her—
    with his fierce blast he drives her out,
    as on a day the east wind^(DV) blows.
⁹By this, then, will Jacob’s guilt be atoned^(DW) for,
    and this will be the full fruit of the removal of his sin:^(DX)
When he makes all the altar stones^(DY)
    to be like limestone crushed to pieces,
no Asherah poles^[e]^(DZ) or incense altars^(EA)
    will be left standing.
¹⁰The fortified city stands desolate,^(EB)
    an abandoned settlement, forsaken^(EC) like the wilderness;
there the calves graze,^(ED)
    there they lie down;^(EE)
    they strip its branches bare.
¹¹When its twigs are dry, they are broken off^(EF)
    and women come and make fires^(EG) with them.
For this is a people without understanding;^(EH)
    so their Maker has no compassion on them,
    and their Creator^(EI) shows them no favor.^(EJ)

¹²In that day the Lord will thresh^(EK) from the flowing Euphrates to the Wadi of Egypt,^(EL) and you, Israel, will be gathered^(EM) up one by one. ¹³And in that day^(EN) a great trumpet^(EO) will sound. Those who were perishing in Assyria and those who were exiled^(EP) in Egypt^(EQ) will come and worship^(ER) the Lord on the holy mountain^(ES) in Jerusalem.

Footnotes

Isaiah 25:11 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Isaiah 26:8 Or judgments
Isaiah 26:16 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.
Isaiah 27:8 See Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Isaiah 27:9 That is, wooden symbols of the goddess Asherah

Matthew 5:1-26

New International Version

Introduction to the Sermon on the Mount

5 Now when Jesus saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, ²and he began to teach them.

The Beatitudes^(A)

He said:

³“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.^(B)
⁴Blessed are those who mourn,
    for they will be comforted.^(C)
⁵Blessed are the meek,
    for they will inherit the earth.^(D)
⁶Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
    for they will be filled.^(E)
⁷Blessed are the merciful,
    for they will be shown mercy.^(F)
⁸Blessed are the pure in heart,^(G)
    for they will see God.^(H)
⁹Blessed are the peacemakers,^(I)
    for they will be called children of God.^(J)
¹⁰Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,^(K)
    for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.^(L)

¹¹“Blessed are you when people insult you,^(M) persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me.^(N) ¹²Rejoice and be glad,^(O) because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.^(P)

Salt and Light

¹³“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.^(Q)

¹⁴“You are the light of the world.^(R) A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. ¹⁵Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.^(S) ¹⁶In the same way, let your light shine before others,^(T) that they may see your good deeds^(U) and glorify^(V) your Father in heaven.

The Fulfillment of the Law

¹⁷“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.^(W) ¹⁸For truly I tell you, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.^(X) ¹⁹Therefore anyone who sets aside one of the least of these commands^(Y) and teaches others accordingly will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. ²⁰For I tell you that unless your righteousness surpasses that of the Pharisees and the teachers of the law, you will certainly not enter the kingdom of heaven.^(Z)

Murder^(AA)

²¹“You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder,^[a]^(AB) and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ ²²But I tell you that anyone who is angry^(AC) with a brother or sister^[b]^[c] will be subject to judgment.^(AD) Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’^[d] is answerable to the court.^(AE) And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.^(AF)

²³“Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother or sister has something against you, ²⁴leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to them; then come and offer your gift.

²⁵“Settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court. Do it while you are still together on the way, or your adversary may hand you over to the judge, and the judge may hand you over to the officer, and you may be thrown into prison. ²⁶Truly I tell you, you will not get out until you have paid the last penny.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Matthew 5:21 Exodus 20:13
Matthew 5:22 The Greek word for brother or sister (adelphos) refers here to a fellow disciple, whether man or woman; also in verse 23.
Matthew 5:22 Some manuscripts brother or sister without cause
Matthew 5:22 An Aramaic term of contempt