Isaiah’s Commission

6 In the year that King Uzziah^(A) died,^(B) I saw the Lord,^(C) high and exalted,^(D) seated on a throne;^(E) and the train of his robe^(F) filled the temple. ² Above him were seraphim,^(G) each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet,^(H) and with two they were flying. ³ And they were calling to one another:

⁴ At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.^(M)

⁵ “Woe^(N) to me!” I cried. “I am ruined!^(O) For I am a man of unclean lips,^(P) and I live among a people of unclean lips,^(Q) and my eyes have seen^(R) the King,^(S) the Lord Almighty.”^(T)

⁶ Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal^(U) in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. ⁷ With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips;^(V) your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.^(W)”

⁸ Then I heard the voice^(X) of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?^(Y) And who will go for us?^(Z)”

And I said, “Here am I.^(AA) Send me!”

⁹ He said, “Go^(AB) and tell this people:

¹¹ Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”^(AH)

And he answered:

The Sign of Immanuel

7 When Ahaz^(AS) son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin^(AT) of Aram^(AU) and Pekah^(AV) son of Remaliah^(AW) king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.

² Now the house of David^(AX) was told, “Aram has allied itself with^[b] Ephraim^(AY)”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken,^(AZ) as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.

³ Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub,^[c](BA) to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.^{(BB) 4} Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm^(BC) and don’t be afraid.^(BD) Do not lose heart^(BE) because of these two smoldering stubs^(BF) of firewood—because of the fierce anger^(BG) of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.^{(BH) 5} Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s^(BI) son have plotted^(BJ) your ruin, saying, ⁶ “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” ⁷ Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:^(BK)

¹⁰ Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, ¹¹ “Ask the Lord your God for a sign,^(BT) whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.^(BU)”

¹² But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.^(BV)”

¹³ Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David!^(BW) Is it not enough^(BX) to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience^(BY) of my God^(BZ) also? ¹⁴ Therefore the Lord himself will give you^[d] a sign:^(CA) The virgin^[e](CB) will conceive and give birth to a son,^(CC) and^[f] will call him Immanuel.^{[g](CD) 15} He will be eating curds^(CE) and honey^(CF) when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, ¹⁶ for before the boy knows^(CG) enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,^(CH) the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.^{(CI) 17} The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away^(CJ) from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.^(CK)”

Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument

¹⁸ In that day^(CL) the Lord will whistle^(CM) for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.^{(CN) 19} They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices^(CO) in the rocks, on all the thornbushes^(CP) and at all the water holes. ²⁰ In that day^(CQ) the Lord will use^(CR) a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River^(CS)—the king of Assyria^(CT)—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard^(CU) also.^{(CV) 21} In that day,^(CW) a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.^{(CX) 22} And because of the abundance of the milk they give, there will be curds to eat. All who remain in the land will eat curds^(CY) and honey.^{(CZ) 23} In that day,^(DA) in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,^[h](DB) there will be only briers and thorns.^{(DC) 24} Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers^(DD) and thorns. ²⁵ As for all the hills^(DE) once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns;^(DF) they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.^(DG)

Faith in Action

11 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for^(A) and assurance about what we do not see.^{(B) 2} This is what the ancients were commended for.^(C)

³ By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command,^(D) so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

⁴ By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended^(E) as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings.^(F) And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.^(G)

⁵ By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.”^[a](H) For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. ⁶ And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him^(I) must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

⁷ By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen,^(J) in holy fear built an ark^(K) to save his family.^(L) By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.^(M)

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance,^(N) obeyed and went,^(O) even though he did not know where he was going. ⁹ By faith he made his home in the promised land^(P) like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents,^(Q) as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.^{(R) 10} For he was looking forward to the city^(S) with foundations,^(T) whose architect and builder is God.^{(U) 11} And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age,^(V) was enabled to bear children^(W) because she^[b] considered him faithful^(X) who had made the promise. ¹² And so from this one man, and he as good as dead,^(Y) came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.^(Z)

¹³ All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised;^(AA) they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance,^(AB) admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.^{(AC) 14} People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return.^{(AD) 16} Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one.^(AE) Therefore God is not ashamed^(AF) to be called their God,^(AG) for he has prepared a city^(AH) for them.

¹⁷ By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice.^(AI) He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, ¹⁸ even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”^{[c](AJ) 19} Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead,^(AK) and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.

²⁰ By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.^(AL)

²¹ By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons,^(AM) and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

²² By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones.^(AN)

²³ By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born,^(AO) because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.^(AP)

²⁴ By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.^{(AQ) 25} He chose to be mistreated^(AR) along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. ²⁶ He regarded disgrace^(AS) for the sake of Christ^(AT) as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.^{(AU) 27} By faith he left Egypt,^(AV) not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. ²⁸ By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer^(AW) of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.^(AX)

²⁹ By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.^(AY)

³⁰ By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.^(AZ)

³¹ By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.^[d](BA)

³² And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon,^(BB) Barak,^(BC) Samson^(BD) and Jephthah,^(BE) about David^(BF) and Samuel^(BG) and the prophets, ³³ who through faith conquered kingdoms,^(BH) administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,^{(BI) 34} quenched the fury of the flames,^(BJ) and escaped the edge of the sword;^(BK) whose weakness was turned to strength;^(BL) and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies.^{(BM) 35} Women received back their dead, raised to life again.^(BN) There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. ³⁶ Some faced jeers and flogging,^(BO) and even chains and imprisonment.^{(BP) 37} They were put to death by stoning;^[e](BQ) they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword.^(BR) They went about in sheepskins and goatskins,^(BS) destitute, persecuted and mistreated— ³⁸ the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves^(BT) and in holes in the ground.

³⁹ These were all commended^(BU) for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised,^{(BV) 40} since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us^(BW) would they be made perfect.^(BX)