Isaiah 38:9-20
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
9 A writing of King Hezekiah of Judah, after he had been sick and had recovered from his sickness:
10 I said: In the noontide of my days
I must depart;
I am consigned to the gates of Sheol
for the rest of my years.(A)
11 I said, I shall not see the Lord
in the land of the living;
I shall look upon mortals no more
among the inhabitants of the world.(B)
12 My dwelling is plucked up and removed from me
like a shepherd’s tent;
like a weaver I have rolled up my life;
he cuts me off from the loom;
from day to night you bring me to an end;(C)
13 I cry for help[a] until morning;
like a lion he breaks all my bones;
from day to night you bring me to an end.(D)
14 Like a swallow or a crane[b] I clamor;
I moan like a dove.
My eyes are weary with looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed; be my security!(E)
15 But what can I say? For he has spoken to me,
and he himself has done it.
All my sleep has fled[c]
because of the bitterness of my soul.(F)
16 O Lord, by these things people live,
and in all these is the life of my spirit.[d]
Oh, restore me to health and make me live!
17 Surely it was for my welfare
that I had great bitterness,
but you have held back[e] my life
from the pit of destruction,
for you have cast all my sins
behind your back.(G)
18 For Sheol cannot thank you;
death cannot praise you;
those who go down to the Pit cannot hope
for your faithfulness.(H)
19 The living, the living, they thank you,
as I do this day;
fathers make known to children
your faithfulness.(I)
20 The Lord will save me,
and we will sing to stringed instruments[f]
all the days of our lives,
at the house of the Lord.(J)
Isaiah 38:9-20
Evangelical Heritage Version
9 A poem written by Hezekiah king of Judah, after his illness and recovery.[a]
10 I thought that, only halfway through my life,
I was entering into the gates of death,[b]
deprived of the remaining years of my life.
11 I thought, I will not see the Lord—
the Lord[c] in the land of the living.
I will no longer see anyone among the inhabitants of the world.[d]
12 My dwelling place is being pulled down.
It is carried away from me like a shepherd’s tent.
I have rolled up my life like a weaver.
He is cutting me off from the loom.
From day until night, you make an end of me.[e]
13 I pondered this until the morning.
He will break all my bones like a lion!
From day until night, you make an end of me.
14 I chirp weakly like a swift or a swallow.
I mourn like a dove.
My eyes are tired from looking upward.
O Lord, I am oppressed.
Be my security.
15 What can I say?
He has spoken to me, and he is the one to act.
I will march slowly throughout all my years,
because my heart is bitter.[f]
16 Lord, people live because you give them life.
My spirit lives through this.[g]
Restore me, and let me live.[h]
17 The bitter things I experienced were for my benefit.
Your love has preserved my life from the pit of destruction,
for you have thrown all my sins behind your back.
18 The grave[i] cannot thank you.
Death cannot praise you.
Those who go down into the pit cannot trust your faithfulness.
19 The living one, the living one, he praises you, as I do today.
A father tells his children about your faithfulness.
20 The Lord will save me,
so we will sing songs with stringed instruments
all the days of our lives in the House of the Lord.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 38:9 This poem is not included in 2 Kings.
- Isaiah 38:10 Hebrew sheol
- Isaiah 38:11 The Hebrew text here has two occurrences of Yah, the short form of the divine name. Some Hebrew manuscripts have a single occurrence of Yahweh.
- Isaiah 38:11 Hebrew variant this passing world
- Isaiah 38:12 Or day, and then night! So quickly you have made an end of me. The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
- Isaiah 38:15 The translation follows the Hebrew. The Dead Sea Scroll of Isaiah and the Syriac read What can I say? I will say to him that he is the one to act. I cannot sleep, because my heart is bitter.
- Isaiah 38:16 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
- Isaiah 38:16 Or you restore me, and you let me live!
- Isaiah 38:18 Hebrew sheol
New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The Holy Bible, Evangelical Heritage Version®, EHV®, © 2019 Wartburg Project, Inc. All rights reserved.