Judgment and Salvation

65 “I revealed myself to those who did not ask for me;
    I was found by those who did not seek me.(A)
To a nation(B) that did not call on my name,(C)
    I said, ‘Here am I, here am I.’
All day long I have held out my hands
    to an obstinate people,(D)
who walk in ways not good,
    pursuing their own imaginations(E)
a people who continually provoke me
    to my very face,(F)
offering sacrifices in gardens(G)
    and burning incense(H) on altars of brick;
who sit among the graves(I)
    and spend their nights keeping secret vigil;
who eat the flesh of pigs,(J)
    and whose pots hold broth of impure meat;
who say, ‘Keep away; don’t come near me,
    for I am too sacred(K) for you!’
Such people are smoke(L) in my nostrils,
    a fire that keeps burning all day.

“See, it stands written before me:
    I will not keep silent(M) but will pay back(N) in full;
    I will pay it back into their laps(O)
both your sins(P) and the sins of your ancestors,”(Q)
    says the Lord.
“Because they burned sacrifices on the mountains
    and defied me on the hills,(R)
I will measure into their laps
    the full payment(S) for their former deeds.”

This is what the Lord says:

“As when juice is still found in a cluster of grapes(T)
    and people say, ‘Don’t destroy it,
    there is still a blessing in it,’
so will I do in behalf of my servants;(U)
    I will not destroy them all.
I will bring forth descendants(V) from Jacob,
    and from Judah those who will possess(W) my mountains;
my chosen(X) people will inherit them,
    and there will my servants live.(Y)
10 Sharon(Z) will become a pasture for flocks,(AA)
    and the Valley of Achor(AB) a resting place for herds,
    for my people who seek(AC) me.

11 “But as for you who forsake(AD) the Lord
    and forget my holy mountain,(AE)
who spread a table for Fortune
    and fill bowls of mixed wine(AF) for Destiny,
12 I will destine you for the sword,(AG)
    and all of you will fall in the slaughter;(AH)
for I called but you did not answer,(AI)
    I spoke but you did not listen.(AJ)
You did evil in my sight
    and chose what displeases me.”(AK)

13 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“My servants will eat,(AL)
    but you will go hungry;(AM)
my servants will drink,(AN)
    but you will go thirsty;(AO)
my servants will rejoice,(AP)
    but you will be put to shame.(AQ)
14 My servants will sing(AR)
    out of the joy of their hearts,
but you will cry out(AS)
    from anguish of heart
    and wail in brokenness of spirit.
15 You will leave your name
    for my chosen ones to use in their curses;(AT)
the Sovereign Lord will put you to death,
    but to his servants he will give another name.(AU)
16 Whoever invokes a blessing(AV) in the land
    will do so by the one true God;(AW)
whoever takes an oath in the land
    will swear(AX) by the one true God.
For the past troubles(AY) will be forgotten
    and hidden from my eyes.

New Heavens and a New Earth

17 “See, I will create
    new heavens and a new earth.(AZ)
The former things will not be remembered,(BA)
    nor will they come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice(BB) forever
    in what I will create,
for I will create Jerusalem(BC) to be a delight
    and its people a joy.
19 I will rejoice(BD) over Jerusalem
    and take delight(BE) in my people;
the sound of weeping and of crying(BF)
    will be heard in it no more.

20 “Never again will there be in it
    an infant(BG) who lives but a few days,
    or an old man who does not live out his years;(BH)
the one who dies at a hundred
    will be thought a mere child;
the one who fails to reach[a] a hundred
    will be considered accursed.
21 They will build houses(BI) and dwell in them;
    they will plant vineyards and eat their fruit.(BJ)
22 No longer will they build houses and others live in them,(BK)
    or plant and others eat.
For as the days of a tree,(BL)
    so will be the days(BM) of my people;
my chosen(BN) ones will long enjoy
    the work of their hands.
23 They will not labor in vain,(BO)
    nor will they bear children doomed to misfortune;(BP)
for they will be a people blessed(BQ) by the Lord,
    they and their descendants(BR) with them.
24 Before they call(BS) I will answer;(BT)
    while they are still speaking(BU) I will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb(BV) will feed together,
    and the lion will eat straw like the ox,(BW)
    and dust will be the serpent’s(BX) food.
They will neither harm nor destroy
    on all my holy mountain,”(BY)
says the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 65:20 Or the sinner who reaches

65 Eternal One: I was ready and willing to help before anyone even asked.
        I was found by people who did not seek Me;
    I showed My face and said, “Here I am! I am right here!”
        to a nation which did not call on Me.[a]
    I kept extending Myself to a people who don’t care a whit.
        All day long I opened my hands to those who constantly work against Me,
    Those busy pursuing their own rotten path, inspired by their own rotten schemes.[b]
    These people continue to insult Me, right to My face,
        pursuing other gods, sacrificing in gardens
    And offering incense on altars made of bricks.
    They sit among the graves and spend their nights in secret rituals;
        they eat the flesh of pigs and pollute their pots with unclean meats.
    They have the gall to say, “Oooh, not so close! I am holier than you!”
        These unholy people are smoke in My nostrils,
    A fire that burns and burns all day.
    Look and see what stands written before Me:
        “I will not remain silent and watch this disgrace;
    But I will pay them back for what they have done.
        I will pour their pay directly into their laps.
    They will pay for their sins and the sins of their parents too.
        For they turned to other gods, burned incense on the mountains
    And insulted Me on the hillsides.
        I will bring everything they deserve back to them, to their very core.”

This is what the Eternal has to say:

Eternal One: It’s like noticing the promise of new wine in a cluster of grapes.
        One will say, “Don’t destroy them all; some of them are bound to be good.”
    So for the sake of My servants,
        I won’t destroy absolutely everyone.
    But I will bring up children from Jacob’s line to inherit this land.
        To Jacob’s son Judah I will give My mountains.
    These, My chosen ones, will inherit it;
        these, My servants, will live there and call it home.
10     From the plains of Sharon to the valley of Achor,
        My people—who look to Me and no other—
    Will have pasture for their sheep
        and safe places for their herds.
11     But those of you who ignore Me, the Eternal One—
        who turn away from My sanctuaries
    And reject My holy mountain
        to chase Lady Luck and cater to Destiny—
12     Will find yourselves a bit unlucky and your destiny an early death.
        You’ll bow down and be killed like sheep brought to the slaughter
    Because when I called you, you did not answer;
        when I spoke, you refused to listen.
    Instead you did all the wrong things and made terrible choices—
        what I expressly said that I hate.

13 So this is what the Lord, the Eternal, has to say:

Eternal One: My servants will eat and eat well, while you go hungry;
        My servants will drink and be satisfied, while you are parched with thirst;
    My servants will celebrate with joy, while you are put to shame.
14         My servants will sing with gladness in their hearts,
    While you cry out in anguish and despair and bemoan your brokenness.

15 And when you are gone, your name will become a curse—
    a repugnant byword—to My chosen people;
The Eternal God will put you to death
    and call His servants by a new name altogether.
16 Whoever speaks a blessing in this special land
    will invoke the God of truth;
Whoever takes a vow in the land of promise
    will make his pledge by the God of truth.
For the bitterness and pain of earlier times will nevermore come to mind;
    they’ll be hidden even from My eyes, God says.

17 Eternal One: Now look here!
        I am creating new heavens and a new earth.
    The weary and painful past will be as if it never happened.
        No one will talk or even think about it anymore.
18     So take joy and celebrate with unending gladness
        on account of what I am creating.
    Look carefully! I am making this place I’ve chosen, this Jerusalem, a city of joy.
        I’m making her citizens, My people, a people of gladness.
19     This Jerusalem, My pride and joy, and her people will be a delight to Me.
        Though you listen at every corner,
    You will never hear crying, never hear despair or grief.

20     Never again will a person not live a full life,
        for the young will live to be a hundred
    And any who die earlier will be considered cursed.

21     People will confidently build houses and make them their homes;
        they will plant vineyards and enjoy their fruit for years to come.
22     They won’t worry that someone else will come along, drive them out,
        and take it all away.
    For My people will live as long as these age-old trees;
        My chosen will use up and wear out whatever they make.
23     They will not work hard for what others take away;
        they will not lose children to sudden terror and death.
    For they are the offspring of those blessed by the Eternal;
        they and their descendants will enjoy God’s blessings.
24     I’ll anticipate their prayers and respond before they know it;
        even as they speak, I will hear.
25     But they’ll all eat together like friends—wolf and lamb, lion and ox,
        and the biting snake will feed on dust.
    When that day arrives, there will be no evil, no violence, no hurt or wrong
        in all My sacred mountain.

The Righteousness of God’s Judgment

65 “I was (A)sought by those who did not ask for Me;
I was found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am,’
To a nation that (B)was not called by My name.
(C)I have stretched out My hands all day long to a (D)rebellious people,
Who (E)walk in a way that is not good,
According to their own thoughts;
A people (F)who provoke Me to anger continually to My face;
(G)Who sacrifice in gardens,
And burn incense on altars of brick;
(H)Who sit among the graves,
And spend the night in the tombs;
(I)Who eat swine’s flesh,
And the broth of [a]abominable things is in their vessels;
(J)Who say, ‘Keep to yourself,
Do not come near me,
For I am holier than you!’
These [b]are smoke in My nostrils,
A fire that burns all the day.

“Behold, (K)it is written before Me:
(L)I will not keep silence, (M)but will repay—
Even repay into their bosom—
Your iniquities and (N)the iniquities of your fathers together,”
Says the Lord,
(O)“Who have burned incense on the mountains
(P)And blasphemed Me on the hills;
Therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.”

Thus says the Lord:

“As the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, ‘Do not destroy it,
For (Q)a blessing is in it,’
So will I do for My servants’ sake,
That I may not destroy them (R)all.
I will bring forth descendants from Jacob,
And from Judah an heir of My mountains;
My (S)elect shall inherit it,
And My servants shall dwell there.
10 (T)Sharon shall be a fold of flocks,
And (U)the Valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down,
For My people who have (V)sought Me.

11 “But you are those who forsake the Lord,
Who forget (W)My holy mountain,
Who prepare (X)a table for [c]Gad,
And who furnish a drink offering for [d]Meni.
12 Therefore I will number you for the sword,
And you shall all bow down to the slaughter;
(Y)Because, when I called, you did not answer;
When I spoke, you did not hear,
But did evil before My eyes,
And chose that in which I do not delight.”

13 Therefore thus says the Lord God:

“Behold, My servants shall eat,
But you shall be hungry;
Behold, My servants shall drink,
But you shall be thirsty;
Behold, My servants shall rejoice,
But you shall be ashamed;
14 Behold, My servants shall sing for joy of heart,
But you shall cry for sorrow of heart,
And (Z)wail for [e]grief of spirit.
15 You shall leave your name (AA)as a curse to (AB)My chosen;
For the Lord God will slay you,
And (AC)call His servants by another name;
16 (AD)So that he who blesses himself in the earth
Shall bless himself in the God of truth;
And (AE)he who swears in the earth
Shall swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My eyes.

The Glorious New Creation

17 “For behold, I create (AF)new heavens and a new earth;
And the former shall not be remembered or [f]come to mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing,
And her people a joy.
19 (AG)I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
And joy in My people;
The (AH)voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her,
Nor the voice of crying.

20 “No more shall an infant from there live but a few days,
Nor an old man who has not fulfilled his days;
For the child shall die one hundred years old,
(AI)But the sinner being one hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 (AJ)They shall build houses and inhabit them;
They shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit;
They shall not plant and (AK)another eat;
For (AL)as the days of a tree, so shall be the days of My people,
And (AM)My elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor in vain,
(AN)Nor bring forth children for trouble;
For (AO)they shall be the descendants of the blessed of the Lord,
And their offspring with them.

24 “It shall come to pass
That (AP)before they call, I will answer;
And while they are still speaking, I will (AQ)hear.
25 The (AR)wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
The lion shall eat straw like the ox,
(AS)And dust shall be the serpent’s food.
They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain,”
Says the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 65:4 Unclean meats, Lev. 7:18; 19:7
  2. Isaiah 65:5 Cause My wrath to smoke
  3. Isaiah 65:11 Lit. Troop or Fortune; a pagan deity
  4. Isaiah 65:11 Lit. Number or Destiny; a pagan deity
  5. Isaiah 65:14 Or a broken spirit
  6. Isaiah 65:17 Lit. come upon the heart

Judgment and Salvation

65 (A)I was ready to be sought by (B)those who did not ask for me;
    I was ready to be found by those who did not seek me.
I said, “Here I am, here I am,”
    to a nation that was not called by[a] my name.
(C)I spread out my hands all the day
    to a rebellious people,
who walk in a way that is not good,
    following their own devices;
a people who provoke me
    to my face continually,
(D)sacrificing in gardens
    and making offerings on bricks;
who sit in tombs,
    and spend the night in secret places;
(E)who eat pig's flesh,
    and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels;
who say, “Keep to yourself,
    do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.”
(F)These are a smoke in my nostrils,
    a fire that burns all the day.
Behold, (G)it is written before me:
    (H)“I will not keep silent, but I will repay;
(I)I will indeed repay into their lap
    both your iniquities (J)and your fathers' iniquities together,
says the Lord;
(K)because they made offerings on the mountains
    (L)and insulted me on the hills,
I will measure into their lap
    payment for their former deeds.”[b]

Thus says the Lord:
(M)“As the new wine is found in the cluster,
    and they say, ‘Do not destroy it,
    for there is a blessing in it,’
so I will do for my servants' sake,
    (N)and not destroy them all.
(O)I will bring forth offspring from Jacob,
    and from Judah possessors of my mountains;
my chosen shall possess it,
    and my servants shall dwell there.
10 (P)Sharon shall become a pasture for flocks,
    and (Q)the Valley of Achor a place for herds to lie down,
    for my people (R)who have sought me.
11 But (S)you who forsake the Lord,
    who forget (T)my holy mountain,
who (U)set a table for Fortune
    and (V)fill cups of mixed wine for Destiny,
12 I will destine you to the sword,
    and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter,
(W)because, when I called, you did not answer;
    when I spoke, you did not listen,
(X)but you did what was evil in my eyes
    and chose what I did not delight in.”

13 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
“Behold, (Y)my servants shall eat,
    but you shall be hungry;
behold, my servants shall drink,
    but you shall be thirsty;
behold, my servants shall rejoice,
    but you shall be put to shame;
14 behold, (Z)my servants shall sing for gladness of heart,
    but you shall cry out for pain of heart
    and shall wail for breaking of spirit.
15 You shall leave your name to (AA)my chosen (AB)for a curse,
    and the Lord God will put you to death,
    but his servants (AC)he will call by another name,
16 so that he who (AD)blesses himself in the land
    shall bless himself by (AE)the God of truth,
and he who takes an oath in the land
    shall swear by (AF)the God of truth;
(AG)because the former troubles are forgotten
    and are hidden from my eyes.

New Heavens and a New Earth

17 “For behold, (AH)I create new heavens
    and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered
    or come into mind.
18 But be glad and rejoice forever
    in that which I create;
for behold, (AI)I create Jerusalem to be a joy,
    and her people to be a gladness.
19 (AJ)I will rejoice in Jerusalem
    and be glad in my people;
(AK)no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping
    and the cry of distress.
20 No more shall there be in it
    an infant who lives but a few days,
    or an old man who does not fill out his days,
for (AL)the young man shall die a hundred years old,
    and (AM)the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.
21 (AN)They shall build houses and inhabit them;
    they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 (AO)They shall not build and another inhabit;
    they shall not plant and another eat;
(AP)for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
    and my chosen shall long enjoy[c] the work of their hands.
23 (AQ)They shall not labor in vain
    (AR)or bear children for calamity,[d]
for (AS)they shall be the offspring of the blessed of the Lord,
    and their descendants with them.
24 (AT)Before they call I will answer;
    (AU)while they are yet speaking I will hear.
25 (AV)The wolf and the lamb shall graze together;
    the lion shall eat straw like the ox,
    and (AW)dust shall be the serpent's food.
(AX)They shall not hurt or destroy
    in all my holy mountain,”
says the Lord.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 65:1 Or that did not call upon
  2. Isaiah 65:7 Or I will first measure their payment into their lap
  3. Isaiah 65:22 Hebrew shall wear out
  4. Isaiah 65:23 Or for sudden terror