Isaiah 33
Common English Bible
Judgment and hope for the righteous
33 Doom to the destroyer left undestroyed,
you traitor whom none have betrayed:
when you have finished destroying, you will be destroyed;
and when you have stopped betraying, they will betray you.
2 Lord, show us favor;
we hope in you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in times of distress.
3 At the noise, peoples fled;
on account of your roar, nations scattered.
4 They gathered spoil like insects;
they rushed upon it like a swarm of locusts.[a]
5 The Lord is exalted; he lives on high,
filling Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 He will provide security during a lifetime:[b]
a source of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge—
fear of the Lord will be Zion’s treasure.[c]
7 But then those in Ariel[d] cried out in the streets;
messengers of peace wept bitterly.
8 The highways were deserted;
travelers left the road.
The covenant was broken;
solemn pledges[e] were rejected;
no one cared for humanity.
9 The land mourned; it wasted away;
Lebanon was ashamed; it withered.
Sharon became like the desert,
and Bashan and Carmel were dropping their leaves.
10 Now I will arise, says the Lord.
Now I will exalt myself; now I will stand tall.
11 You conceive straw, give birth to stubble;
your breath is a fire that devours you.
12 Peoples will be burned to lime,
thorns cut up and set ablaze.
13 You who are far away, hear what I have done;
and you who are near, know my strength!
14 Sinners became terrified in Zion;
trembling seized the godless:
“Who among us can live with the devouring fire?
Who among us can live with the everlasting blaze?”
15 The one who walks righteously and speaks truthfully,
who rejects profit from extortion,
who waves away a bribe instead of grabbing it,
who won’t listen to bloody plots,
and who won’t contemplate doing something evil.
16 He will live on the heights;
fortresses in the cliffs will be his refuge.
His food will be provided,
his water guaranteed.
17 When you gaze upon a king in his glamour
and look at the surrounding land,
18 in dismay you will think:
Where is the one who counts?
Where is the one who weighs?
Where is the one who counts towers?
19 You will no longer see the defiant people,
the people of speech too obscure to understand,
who stammer in an incomprehensible language.
20 Gaze upon Zion, our festival town.
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
a carefree dwelling,
a tent that is not packed up,
whose stakes are never pulled up,
whose ropes won’t snap.
21 The Lord’s majesty will be there for us:
as a place of rivers, broad streams
where no boat will go,
no majestic ship will cross.
22 The Lord is our judge;
the Lord is our leader;
the Lord is our king—
he will deliver us.
23 Your ropes are loosened;
they can’t hold the mast firmly;
they can’t spread the sail.
Then abundant spoil will be divided;
even the lame will seize spoil.
24 And no inhabitant will say, “I’m sick.”
The people living there will be forgiven their sin.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:4 Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 33:6 Or your times
- Isaiah 33:6 Or his treasure
- Isaiah 33:7 Or the valiant; Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 33:8 Correction; or cities; DSS (1QIsaa) witnesses
Isaiah 33
Tree of Life Version
Ambassadors of Peace Weep Bitterly
33 Oy, you destroyer, never destroyed,
you traitor, never betrayed!
When you have stopped destroying,
you will be destroyed;
and when you finish betraying,
they will betray you.
2 Adonai, be gracious to us!
We long for You.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in time of trouble.
3 From the noise of tumult people will flee;
When You lift Yourself up, the nations will be scattered.
4 Your spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
like a swarm of locusts, they are rushing over it.
5 Adonai is exalted, for He dwells on high!
He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 It will be your time of faithfulness,
a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge—
the fear of Adonai is His treasure.
7 Behold, heroes cry outside.
Ambassadors of peace weep bitterly.
8 Highways are desolate;
travel has ceased;
covenant is broken;
cities are despised;
there is no regard for humanity.
9 The land mourns and languishes;
Lebanon is shamed and withers;
Sharon is like a wilderness;
Bashan and Carmel are shaken bare.
Our Eternal Judge Arises
10 “Now I will arise,” says Adonai.
“Now I will be exalted.
Now I will lift Myself up.
11 You conceive chaff,
you will give birth to stubble.
My breath is a fire that will consume you.
12 Then peoples will be burned as lime,
like thorns cut down, burned in the fire.
13 Hear, you who are afar off, what I have done,
and you who are near, acknowledge My might.”
14 Sinners in Zion are afraid.
Trembling has seized the godless:
“Who among us can live with the consuming fire?”
“Who among us can live with everlasting burnings?”
15 One who walks righteously, and speaks uprightly,
who refuses unjust gain by extortion,
who shakes his hands free of bribes,
who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed,
and shuts his eyes from looking on evil.
16 He will dwell on the heights—
his refuge will be an impregnable cliff.
His bread will be provided,
his water assured.
17 Your eyes will see the King in His beauty.
They will gaze at a far-distant land.
18 Your heart will meditate on terror:
“Where is the counter?”
“Where is the weigher?”
“Where is the counter of towers?”
19 You will no longer see the fierce people,
the people of speech too obscure to comprehend,
with a stammering tongue no one understands.
20 Look upon Zion, city of our Festivals.
Your eyes will see Jerusalem as a quiet home,
a tent that will never be folded,
Its stakes never pulled up,
its cords never broken.
21 For there the majestic One, Adonai, will be for us—
a place of rivers and wide canals,
on which no boat with oars will go,
nor any mighty ship will travel by.
22 For Adonai is our Judge,
Adonai is our Lawgiver,
Adonai is our King—
He will save us!
23 Your cords hang slack,
not holding the mast in place firmly,
nor spreading out the sail.
Then abundant spoil will be divided—
even the lame will carry off plunder.
24 No inhabitant will say, “I am sick.”
The people dwelling there will be forgiven their iniquity.
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.