Isaiah 64
Jubilee Bible 2000
64 ¶ Oh that thou would rend the heavens, that thou would come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence,
2 as when the melting fire burns, the fire causes the waters to boil, to make thy name known to thine adversaries, that the Gentiles may tremble at thy presence!
3 As thou didst come down when thou didst terrible things which we did not look for, that the mountains flowed down at thy presence.
4 Nor have men heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither has the eye seen a God beside thee, that thou might do it again for the one who waits in him.
5 Thou didst come out to meet him that with rejoicing had worked righteousness. In thy ways they remembered thee. Behold, thou art wroth; for we have sinned: thy ways are eternal, and we shall be saved.
6 ¶ But we were all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses as filthy rags; and we all fell as the leaves of a tree; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
7 And there is none that calls upon thy name, that wakes himself up to take hold of thee; therefore, thou hast hid thy face from us and hast allowed us to wither in the power of our iniquities.
8 But now, O LORD, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; such that we all are the work of thy hands.
9 Be not wroth very sore, O LORD, neither remember iniquity for ever; behold, see, we beseech thee, we are all thy people.
10 Thy holy cities are a wilderness, Zion is a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.
11 Our house of our Sanctuary and of our glory, where our fathers praised thee, was burned up with fire; and all our precious things were destroyed.
12 Wilt thou refrain thyself regarding these things, O LORD? Wilt thou hold thy peace and afflict us very sore?
Isaiah 64
New King James Version
A Prayer for Help
64 Oh, that You would [a]rend the heavens!
That You would come down!
That the mountains might shake at Your (A)presence—
2 As fire burns brushwood,
As fire causes water to boil—
To make Your name known to Your adversaries,
That the nations may tremble at Your presence!
3 When (B)You did awesome things for which we did not look,
You came down,
The mountains shook at Your presence.
4 For since the beginning of the world
(C)Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear,
Nor has the eye seen any God besides You,
Who acts for the one who waits for Him.
5 You meet him who rejoices and does righteousness,
Who remembers You in Your ways.
You are indeed angry, for we have sinned—
(D)In these ways we continue;
And we need to be saved.
6 But we are all like an unclean thing,
And all (E)our righteousnesses are like [b]filthy rags;
We all (F)fade as a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind,
Have taken us away.
7 And there is no one who calls on Your name,
Who stirs himself up to take hold of You;
For You have hidden Your face from us,
And have [c]consumed us because of our iniquities.
8 But now, O Lord,
You are our Father;
We are the clay, and You our (G)potter;
And all we are the work of Your hand.
9 Do not be furious, O Lord,
Nor remember iniquity forever;
Indeed, please look—we all are Your people!
10 Your holy cities are a wilderness,
Zion is a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
11 Our holy and beautiful [d]temple,
Where our fathers praised You,
Is burned up with fire;
And all (H)our pleasant things [e]are laid waste.
12 (I)Will You restrain Yourself because of these things, O Lord?
(J)Will You [f]hold Your peace, and afflict us very severely?
Footnotes
- Isaiah 64:1 tear open
- Isaiah 64:6 Lit. a filthy garment
- Isaiah 64:7 Lit. caused us to melt
- Isaiah 64:11 Lit. house
- Isaiah 64:11 have become a ruin
- Isaiah 64:12 keep silent
Isaiah 64
English Standard Version
64 (A)Oh that you would rend the heavens and come down,
(B)that the mountains might quake at your presence—
2 [a] as when fire kindles brushwood
and the fire causes water to boil—
(C)to make your name known to your adversaries,
and that the nations might tremble at your presence!
3 (D)When you did awesome things that we did not look for,
you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.
4 (E)From of old no one has heard
or perceived by the ear,
(F)no eye has seen a God besides you,
who acts for those who wait for him.
5 You meet him who joyfully works righteousness,
those who remember you in your ways.
Behold, you were angry, and we sinned;
in our sins we have been a long time, and shall we be saved?[b]
6 (G)We have all become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment.
(H)We all fade like a leaf,
and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
7 (I)There is no one who calls upon your name,
who rouses himself to take hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us,
and have made us melt in[c] the hand of our iniquities.
8 (J)But now, O Lord, you are our Father;
(K)we are the clay, and you are our potter;
(L)we are all the work of your hand.
9 (M)Be not so terribly angry, O Lord,
(N)and remember not iniquity forever.
Behold, please look, we are all your people.
10 (O)Your holy cities have become a wilderness;
Zion has become a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation.
11 (P)Our holy and beautiful[d] house,
where our fathers praised you,
has been burned by fire,
and all our pleasant places have become ruins.
12 (Q)Will you restrain yourself at these things, O Lord?
Will you keep silent, and afflict us so terribly?
Footnotes
- Isaiah 64:2 Ch 64:1 in Hebrew
- Isaiah 64:5 Or in your ways is continuance, that we might be saved
- Isaiah 64:7 Masoretic Text; Septuagint, Syriac, Targum have delivered us into
- Isaiah 64:11 Or holy and glorious
Isaiah 64
Living Bible
64 Oh, that you would burst forth from the skies and come down! How the mountains would quake in your presence! 2 The consuming fire of your glory would burn down the forests and boil the oceans dry. The nations would tremble before you; then your enemies would learn the reason for your fame! 3 So it was before when you came down, for you did awesome things beyond our highest expectations, and how the mountains quaked! 4 For since the world began no one has seen or heard of such a God as ours, who works for those who wait for him! 5 You welcome those who cheerfully do good, who follow godly ways.
But we are not godly; we are constant sinners and have been all our lives. Therefore your wrath is heavy on us. How can such as we be saved? 6 We are all infected and impure with sin. When we put on our prized robes of righteousness, we find they are but filthy rags.[a] Like autumn leaves we fade, wither, and fall. And our sins, like the wind, sweep us away. 7 Yet no one calls upon your name or pleads with you for mercy. Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins.
8 And yet, O Lord, you are our Father. We are the clay and you are the Potter. We are all formed by your hand. 9 Oh, be not so angry with us, Lord, nor forever remember our sins. Oh, look and see that we are all your people.
10 Your holy cities are destroyed; Jerusalem is a desolate wilderness. 11 Our holy, beautiful Temple where our fathers praised you is burned down, and all the things of beauty are destroyed. 12 After all of this, must you still refuse to help us, Lord? Will you stand silent and still punish us?
Footnotes
- Isaiah 64:6 filthy rags, literally, “filthy as a menstruating woman’s rags.”
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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