Isaiah 33
Wycliffe Bible
33 Woe to thee, that robbest; whether and thou shalt not be robbed? and that despisest, whether and thou shalt not be despised? (Woe to thee, who robbest; shalt thou not be robbed? and who despisest, shalt thou not be despised?) When thou hast ended robbing, thou shalt be robbed; and when thou made weary ceasest to despise, thou shalt be despised.
2 Lord, have thou mercy on us, for we abided thee; be thou our arm in the morrowtide, and our health in the time of tribulation. (Lord, have thou mercy on us, for we have waited for thee; be thou our protection in the morning, and our deliverance, or our salvation, in the time of tribulation.)
3 Peoples fled from the voice of the angel; heathen men be scattered of thine enhancing. (The peoples shall flee from the roar of thy thunder; the heathen shall be scattered at thy exalting, or at thy lifting up.)
4 And your spoils shall be gathered together, as a bruchus, that is, (the) fruit of locusts, is gathered together, as when ditches be full thereof. (And their spoils shall be gathered up, like the gathering of the bruchi, that is, the fruit of the locusts, when the ditches be full of them.)
5 The Lord is magnified, for he dwelled on high, he filled Zion with doom and rightfulness (he filled Zion with justice, or judgement, and righteousness).
6 And faith shall be in thy times; the riches of health is wisdom and knowing; the dread of the Lord, that is the treasure of him. (And faith shall be in thy times; wisdom and knowledge be the riches of salvation, or of deliverance; the fear of the Lord is thy treasure.)
7 Lo! the seers withoutforth shall cry, [the] angels of peace shall weep bitterly. (Lo! the brave shall cry outside, or aloud, the messengers of peace shall weep bitterly.)
8 [The] Ways be destroyed, a goer by the path ceased; the covenant is made void, he casted down [the] cities, he areckoned not men.
9 The land mourned, and was sick; the Lebanon was shamed, and was foul; and Sharon is made as desert, and Bashan is shaken, and Carmel. (The land mourned, and was sick; Lebanon was shamed, and defiled; and Sharon is made a desert, or a wilderness, and Bashan, and Carmel, be shaken bare.)
10 Now I shall rise (up), saith the Lord, now I shall be enhanced (now I shall be exalted), and now I shall be raised up.
11 Ye shall conceive heat, ye shall bring forth stubble; your spirit, as fire, shall devour you. (Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble; your spirit, like a fire, shall devour you.)
12 And peoples shall be as ashes of the burning; thorns gathered together shall be burnt in fire. (And the peoples, or the nations, shall be like the ashes from burning; yea, like thorns gathered together that be burned in the fire.)
13 Ye that be far (Ye who be far away), hear what things I have done; and, ye neighbours, know my strength.
14 Sinners be all-broken in Zion, trembling wielded (the) hypocrites; who of you may dwell with fire devouring? who of you shall dwell with everlasting burnings? (The sinners in Zion be all-broken, fear and trembling held the hypocrites; who of you can live with devouring fire? who of you can live with everlasting burning?)
15 He that goeth in rightfulnesses, and speaketh truth; he that casteth away (the) avarice of false challenge, and shaketh away his hands from all gift(s), (or bribes); he that stoppeth his ears, that he hear not (of) blood, and closeth his eyes, that he see not evil.
16 This man shall dwell in high things, the strongholds of stones be the highness of him; bread is given to him, his waters be faithful. (This man shall live in the heights, yea, the strongholds of stones be his high places of safety; bread is given to him, his water never faileth, that is, it is always plentiful.)
17 They shall see the king in (all) his fairness; the eyes of him shall behold the land from [a]far.
18 Eliakim, thine heart shall bethink dread; where is the lettered man? Where is he that weigheth the words of the law? where is the teacher of little children? (Thy heart shall remember what thou feared, and thou shalt ask, Now where is he who counted? where is he who weighed? yea, where is he who counted out the treasures?)
19 Thou shalt not see a people unwise, a people of deep word, so that thou mayest not understand the fair speaking of his tongue, in which people is no wisdom. (Thou shalt no longer see a fierce people, a people of deep words, those whom thou cannot understand the strange speaking of their tongues, in which people there is no wisdom.)
20 Behold thou Zion, the city of your solemnity (Behold thou Zion, the city of our solemn, or our sacred, feasts); thine eyes shall see Jerusalem, a rich city, a tabernacle that may not be borne over, neither the nails thereof shall be taken away without end; and all the cords thereof shall not be broken.
21 For only the worshipful doer, our Lord God, is there; the place of floods is strands full large and open (a place of very large rivers and wide streams); the ship of rowers shall not enter by it, neither a great ship shall pass over (to) it.
22 For why the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our lawgiver, the Lord is our king; he shall save us.
23 Thy ropes be slacked, but those shall not avail; thy mast shall be so, that thou may not alarge a sign. Then the spoils of many preys shall be parted, crooked men shall ravish (the) raven. (Thy ropes be slackened, and so they cannot hold thy masts firm, and thou shalt not be able to spread the sails. Then the spoils of many preys shall be divided, and even the lame shall share in the taking.)
24 And a neighbour shall say, I was not sick; (and for) the people that dwelleth in that Jerusalem, wickedness shall be taken away from it. (And no one there shall say, I am sick; and for the people who liveth in that Jerusalem, their wickednesses, that is, their sins, shall be taken away.)
Isaiah 33
English Standard Version
O Lord, Be Gracious to Us
33 (A)Ah, you destroyer,
who yourself have not been destroyed,
you traitor,
whom none has betrayed!
When you have ceased to destroy,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have finished betraying,
they will betray you.
2 O Lord, be gracious to us; (B)we wait for you.
Be our arm every morning,
our salvation in the time of trouble.
3 (C)At the tumultuous noise peoples flee;
when you lift yourself up, nations are scattered,
4 and your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
(D)as locusts leap, it is leapt upon.
5 (E)The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness,
6 (F)and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is Zion's[a] treasure.
7 Behold, their heroes cry in the streets;
(G)the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8 (H)The highways lie waste;
the traveler ceases.
(I)Covenants are broken;
cities[b] are despised;
there is no regard for man.
9 (J)The land mourns and languishes;
Lebanon is confounded and withers away;
Sharon is like a desert,
and Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
10 (K)“Now I will arise,” says the Lord,
“now I will lift myself up;
now I will be exalted.
11 (L)You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble;
your breath is (M)a fire that will consume you.
12 And the peoples will be as if burned to lime,
(N)like thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.”
13 Hear, you who are far off, what I have done;
and you who are near, acknowledge my might.
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid;
trembling has seized the godless:
(O)“Who among us can dwell (P)with the consuming fire?
Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15 (Q)He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
who despises the gain of oppressions,
who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe,
who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed
(R)and shuts his eyes from looking on evil,
16 he will dwell on the heights;
his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks;
(S)his bread will be given him; his water will be sure.
17 (T)Your eyes will behold the king in his beauty;
(U)they will see a land that stretches afar.
18 (V)Your heart will muse on the terror:
“Where is he who counted, where is (W)he who weighed the tribute?
Where is (X)he who counted the towers?”
19 (Y)You will see no more the insolent people,
the people (Z)of an obscure speech that you cannot comprehend,
stammering in a tongue that you cannot understand.
20 Behold Zion, the city of our appointed feasts!
(AA)Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
an untroubled habitation, an (AB)immovable tent,
whose stakes will never be plucked up,
nor will any of its cords be broken.
21 But there the Lord in majesty will be for us
a place of (AC)broad rivers and streams,
(AD)where no galley with oars can go,
nor majestic ship can pass.
22 For the Lord is our (AE)judge; the Lord is our (AF)lawgiver;
the Lord is our (AG)king; he will save us.
23 Your cords hang loose;
they cannot hold the mast firm in its place
or keep the sail spread out.
(AH)Then prey and spoil in abundance will be divided;
even (AI)the lame will take the prey.
24 And no inhabitant will say, (AJ)“I am sick”;
(AK)the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:6 Hebrew his
- Isaiah 33:8 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll witnesses
Isaiah 33
New King James Version
A Prayer in Deep Distress
33 Woe to you (A)who plunder, though you have not been plundered;
And you who deal treacherously, though they have not dealt treacherously with you!
(B)When you cease plundering,
You will be (C)plundered;
When you make an end of dealing treacherously,
They will deal treacherously with you.
2 O Lord, be gracious to us;
(D)We have waited for You.
Be [a]their arm every morning,
Our salvation also in the time of trouble.
3 At the noise of the tumult the people (E)shall flee;
When You lift Yourself up, the nations shall be scattered;
4 And Your plunder shall be gathered
Like the gathering of the caterpillar;
As the running to and fro of locusts,
He shall run upon them.
5 (F)The Lord is exalted, for He dwells on high;
He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 Wisdom and knowledge will be the stability of your times,
And the strength of salvation;
The fear of the Lord is His treasure.
7 Surely their valiant ones shall cry outside,
(G)The ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.
8 (H)The highways lie waste,
The traveling man ceases.
(I)He has broken the covenant,
[b]He has despised the [c]cities,
He regards no man.
9 (J)The earth mourns and languishes,
Lebanon is shamed and shriveled;
Sharon is like a wilderness,
And Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits.
Impending Judgment on Zion
10 “Now(K) I will rise,” says the Lord;
“Now I will be exalted,
Now I will lift Myself up.
11 (L)You shall conceive chaff,
You shall bring forth stubble;
Your breath, as fire, shall devour you.
12 And the people shall be like the burnings of lime;
(M)Like thorns cut up they shall be burned in the fire.
13 Hear, (N)you who are afar off, what I have done;
And you who are near, acknowledge My might.”
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid;
Fearfulness has seized the hypocrites:
“Who among us shall dwell with the devouring (O)fire?
Who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15 He who (P)walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
He who despises the gain of oppressions,
Who gestures with his hands, refusing bribes,
Who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed,
And (Q)shuts his eyes from seeing evil:
16 He will dwell on [d]high;
His place of defense will be the fortress of rocks;
Bread will be given him,
His water will be sure.
The Land of the Majestic King
17 Your eyes will see the King in His (R)beauty;
They will see the land that is very far off.
18 Your heart will meditate on terror:
(S)“Where is the scribe?
Where is he who weighs?
Where is he who counts the towers?”
19 (T)You will not see a fierce people,
(U)A people of obscure speech, beyond perception,
Of a [e]stammering tongue that you cannot understand.
20 (V)Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts;
Your eyes will see (W)Jerusalem, a quiet home,
A tabernacle that will not be taken down;
(X)Not one of (Y)its stakes will ever be removed,
Nor will any of its cords be broken.
21 But there the majestic Lord will be for us
A place of broad rivers and streams,
In which no [f]galley with oars will sail,
Nor majestic ships pass by
22 (For the Lord is our (Z)Judge,
The Lord is our (AA)Lawgiver,
(AB)The Lord is our King;
He will save us);
23 Your tackle is loosed,
They could not strengthen their mast,
They could not spread the sail.
Then the prey of great plunder is divided;
The lame take the prey.
24 And the inhabitant will not say, “I am sick”;
(AC)The people who dwell in it will be forgiven their iniquity.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:2 LXX omits their; Syr., Tg., Vg. our
- Isaiah 33:8 Tg. They have been removed from their cities
- Isaiah 33:8 So with MT, Vg.; DSS witnesses; LXX omits cities
- Isaiah 33:16 Lit. heights
- Isaiah 33:19 Unintelligible speech
- Isaiah 33:21 ship
2001 by Terence P. Noble
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
