Isaiah 4:2-5:30

New International Version

The Branch of the Lord

²In that day^(A) the Branch of the Lord^(B) will be beautiful^(C) and glorious, and the fruit^(D) of the land will be the pride and glory^(E) of the survivors^(F) in Israel. ³Those who are left in Zion,^(G) who remain^(H) in Jerusalem, will be called holy,^(I) all who are recorded^(J) among the living in Jerusalem. ⁴The Lord will wash away the filth^(K) of the women of Zion;^(L) he will cleanse^(M) the bloodstains^(N) from Jerusalem by a spirit^[a] of judgment^(O) and a spirit^[b] of fire.^(P) ⁵Then the Lord will create^(Q) over all of Mount Zion^(R) and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night;^(S) over everything the glory^[c]^(T) will be a canopy.^(U) ⁶It will be a shelter^(V) and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge^(W) and hiding place from the storm^(X) and rain.

The Song of the Vineyard

5 I will sing for the one I love
    a song about his vineyard:^(Y)
My loved one had a vineyard
    on a fertile hillside.
²He dug it up and cleared it of stones
    and planted it with the choicest vines.^(Z)
He built a watchtower^(AA) in it
    and cut out a winepress^(AB) as well.
Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
    but it yielded only bad fruit.^(AC)

³“Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
    judge between me and my vineyard.^(AD)
⁴What more could have been done for my vineyard
    than I have done for it?^(AE)
When I looked for good grapes,
    why did it yield only bad?^(AF)
⁵Now I will tell you
    what I am going to do to my vineyard:
I will take away its hedge,
    and it will be destroyed;^(AG)
I will break down its wall,^(AH)
    and it will be trampled.^(AI)
⁶I will make it a wasteland,^(AJ)
    neither pruned nor cultivated,
    and briers and thorns^(AK) will grow there.
I will command the clouds
    not to rain^(AL) on it.”

⁷The vineyard^(AM) of the Lord Almighty
    is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
    are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice,^(AN) but saw bloodshed;
    for righteousness,^(AO) but heard cries of distress.^(AP)

Woes and Judgments

⁸Woe^(AQ) to you who add house to house
and join field to field^(AR)
till no space is left
and you live alone in the land.

⁹The Lord Almighty^(AS) has declared in my hearing:^(AT)

“Surely the great houses will become desolate,^(AU)
the fine mansions left without occupants.
¹⁰A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath^[d] of wine;
a homer^[e] of seed will yield only an ephah^[f] of grain.”^(AV)

¹¹Woe^(AW) to those who rise early in the morning
    to run after their drinks,
who stay up late at night
    till they are inflamed with wine.^(AX)
¹²They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
    pipes^(AY) and timbrels^(AZ) and wine,
but they have no regard^(BA) for the deeds of the Lord,
    no respect for the work of his hands.^(BB)
¹³Therefore my people will go into exile^(BC)
    for lack of understanding;^(BD)
those of high rank^(BE) will die of hunger
    and the common people will be parched with thirst.^(BF)
¹⁴Therefore Death^(BG) expands its jaws,
    opening wide its mouth;^(BH)
into it will descend their nobles and masses
    with all their brawlers and revelers.^(BI)
¹⁵So people will be brought low^(BJ)
    and everyone humbled,^(BK)
    the eyes of the arrogant^(BL) humbled.
¹⁶But the Lord Almighty will be exalted^(BM) by his justice,^(BN)
    and the holy God will be proved holy^(BO) by his righteous acts.
¹⁷Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;^(BP)
    lambs will feed^[g] among the ruins of the rich.

¹⁸Woe^(BQ) to those who draw sin along with cords^(BR) of deceit,
    and wickedness^(BS) as with cart ropes,
¹⁹to those who say, “Let God hurry;
    let him hasten^(BT) his work
    so we may see it.
The plan of the Holy One^(BU) of Israel—
    let it approach, let it come into view,
    so we may know it.”^(BV)

²⁰Woe^(BW) to those who call evil good^(BX)
    and good evil,^(BY)
who put darkness for light
    and light for darkness,^(BZ)
who put bitter for sweet
    and sweet for bitter.^(CA)

²¹Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes^(CB)
and clever in their own sight.

²²Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine^(CC)
    and champions at mixing drinks,^(CD)
²³who acquit the guilty for a bribe,^(CE)
    but deny justice^(CF) to the innocent.^(CG)
²⁴Therefore, as tongues of fire^(CH) lick up straw^(CI)
    and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
so their roots will decay^(CJ)
    and their flowers blow away like dust;^(CK)
for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty
    and spurned the word^(CL) of the Holy One^(CM) of Israel.
²⁵Therefore the Lord’s anger^(CN) burns against his people;
    his hand is raised and he strikes them down.
The mountains shake,^(CO)
    and the dead bodies^(CP) are like refuse^(CQ) in the streets.^(CR)

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,^(CS)
his hand is still upraised.^(CT)

²⁶He lifts up a banner^(CU) for the distant nations,
    he whistles^(CV) for those at the ends of the earth.^(CW)
Here they come,
    swiftly and speedily!
²⁷Not one of them grows tired^(CX) or stumbles,
    not one slumbers or sleeps;
not a belt^(CY) is loosened at the waist,^(CZ)
    not a sandal strap is broken.^(DA)
²⁸Their arrows are sharp,^(DB)
    all their bows^(DC) are strung;
their horses’ hooves^(DD) seem like flint,
    their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.^(DE)
²⁹Their roar is like that of the lion,^(DF)
    they roar like young lions;
they growl as they seize^(DG) their prey
    and carry it off with no one to rescue.^(DH)
³⁰In that day^(DI) they will roar over it
    like the roaring of the sea.^(DJ)
And if one looks at the land,
    there is only darkness^(DK) and distress;^(DL)
    even the sun will be darkened^(DM) by clouds.

Footnotes

Isaiah 4:4 Or the Spirit
Isaiah 4:4 Or the Spirit
Isaiah 4:5 Or over all the glory there
Isaiah 5:10 That is, about 6 gallons or about 22 liters
Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 360 pounds or about 160 kilograms
Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
Isaiah 5:17 Septuagint; Hebrew / strangers will eat

Psalm 135

New International Version

Psalm 135^(A)

¹Praise the Lord.^[a]

Praise the name of the Lord;
praise him, you servants^(B) of the Lord,
²you who minister in the house^(C) of the Lord,
in the courts^(D) of the house of our God.

³Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good;^(E)
sing praise to his name,^(F) for that is pleasant.^(G)
⁴For the Lord has chosen Jacob^(H) to be his own,
Israel to be his treasured possession.^(I)

⁵I know that the Lord is great,^(J)
    that our Lord is greater than all gods.^(K)
⁶The Lord does whatever pleases him,^(L)
    in the heavens and on the earth,^(M)
    in the seas and all their depths.
⁷He makes clouds rise from the ends of the earth;
    he sends lightning with the rain^(N)
    and brings out the wind^(O) from his storehouses.^(P)

⁸He struck down the firstborn^(Q) of Egypt,
    the firstborn of people and animals.
⁹He sent his signs^(R) and wonders into your midst, Egypt,
    against Pharaoh and all his servants.^(S)
¹⁰He struck down many^(T) nations
    and killed mighty kings—
¹¹Sihon^(U) king of the Amorites,^(V)
    Og king of Bashan,^(W)
    and all the kings of Canaan^(X)—
¹²and he gave their land as an inheritance,^(Y)
    an inheritance to his people Israel.

¹³Your name, Lord, endures forever,^(Z)
your renown,^(AA) Lord, through all generations.
¹⁴For the Lord will vindicate his people^(AB)
and have compassion on his servants.^(AC)

¹⁵The idols of the nations^(AD) are silver and gold,
    made by human hands.^(AE)
¹⁶They have mouths, but cannot speak,^(AF)
    eyes, but cannot see.
¹⁷They have ears, but cannot hear,
    nor is there breath^(AG) in their mouths.
¹⁸Those who make them will be like them,
    and so will all who trust in them.

¹⁹All you Israelites, praise the Lord;^(AH)
    house of Aaron, praise the Lord;
²⁰house of Levi, praise the Lord;
    you who fear him, praise the Lord.
²¹Praise be to the Lord from Zion,^(AI)
    to him who dwells in Jerusalem.^(AJ)