Isaiah 65
International Children’s Bible
All People Will Learn About God
65 The Lord says, “I made myself known to people who were not looking for me.
I was found by those who were not asking me for help.
I spoke to a nation that was not praying to me.
I said, ‘Here I am. Here I am.’
2 All day long I stood ready to accept
people who turned against me.
But the way they continue to live is not good.
They do anything they want to do.
3 Right in front of me they continue
to do things that make me angry.
They offer sacrifices to their false gods in their gardens.
They burn incense on altars of brick.
4 They sit among the graves.
They spend their nights waiting to get messages from the dead.
They eat the meat of pigs.
Their pots are full of soup made from meat that is wrong to eat.
5 But they tell others, ‘Stay away. Don’t come near me.
I am too holy for you.’
These people are like smoke in my nose.
Like a fire that burns all the time, they continue to make me angry.
6 “Look, it is written here before me.
I will not be quiet. Instead, I will repay you in full.
I will punish you for what you have done.
7 I will punish you for your sins and your ancestors’ sins,”
says the Lord.
“They burned incense to false gods on the mountains.
They shamed me on those hills.
So I will punish them as they should be punished
for what they did.”
8 This is what the Lord says:
“When there is juice left in the grapes,
people do not destroy them.
They know there is good left in them.
I will do the same thing to my servants.
I will not completely destroy them.
9 I will leave some of the children of Jacob.
Some of the people of Judah will receive my mountain.
I will choose the people who will live there.
My servants will live there.
10 Then the Plain of Sharon will be a field for sheep.
The Valley of Achor will be a place for cattle to rest.
They will be for the people who want to follow me.
11 “But you who left the Lord will be punished.
You forgot about my holy mountain.
You worship the false god Luck.
You hold religious feasts for the false god Fate.
12 But I decide your fate, and I will punish you with my sword.
You will all be killed.
This is because I called you, but you refused to answer.
I spoke to you, but you wouldn’t listen.
You did the things I said were evil.
You chose to do things that displease me.”
13 So the Lord God said these things:
“My servants will eat.
But you evil people will be hungry.
My servants will drink.
But you evil people will be thirsty.
My servants will be happy.
But you evil people will be shamed.
14 My servants will shout for joy
because of the goodness of their hearts.
But you evil people will cry,
because you will be sad.
You will cry loudly because your spirits will be broken.
15 Your names will be like curses to my servants.
And the Lord God will put you to death.
But he will call his servants by another name.
16 People in the land who ask for blessings
will ask for them from the faithful God.
People in the land who make a promise
will promise in the name of the faithful God.
This is because the troubles of the past will be forgotten.
I will make those troubles go away.
A New Time Is Coming
17 “Look, I will make new heavens and a new earth.
And people will not remember the past.
They will not think about those things.
18 My people will be happy forever
because of the things I will make.
I will make a Jerusalem that is full of joy.
And I will make her people a delight.
19 Then I will rejoice over Jerusalem.
I will be delighted with my people.
There will never again be
crying and sadness in that city.
20 There will never be a baby from that city
who lives only a few days.
And there will never be an older person
who doesn’t have a long life.
A person who lives 100 years will be called young.
And the person who dies before he is 100 will be thought of as a sinner.
21 In that city the person who builds a house will live there.
The person who plants vineyards will get to eat grapes.
22 No more will one person build a house and someone else live there.
One person will not plant a garden and someone else eat its fruit.
My people will live a long time
as trees live long.
My chosen people will live there
and enjoy the things they make.
23 People will never again work for nothing.
They will never again give birth to children who die young.
All my people will be blessed by the Lord.
My people and their children will be blessed.
24 I will provide for their needs before they ask.
I will help them while they are still asking for help.
25 Wolves and lambs will eat together in peace.
Lions will eat hay like oxen.
A snake on the ground will not hurt anyone.
They will not hurt or destroy each other
on all my holy mountain,”
says the Lord.
Isaiah 65
New King James Version
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.
2 (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;
3 A people (F)who provoke Me to anger continually to My face;
(G)Who sacrifice in gardens,
And burn incense on altars of brick;
4 (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;
5 (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.
6 “Behold, (K)it is written before Me:
(L)I will not keep silence, (M)but will repay—
Even repay into their bosom—
7 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.”
8 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.
9 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
- Isaiah 65:4 Unclean meats, Lev. 7:18; 19:7
- Isaiah 65:5 Cause My wrath to smoke
- Isaiah 65:11 Lit. Troop or Fortune; a pagan deity
- Isaiah 65:11 Lit. Number or Destiny; a pagan deity
- Isaiah 65:14 Or a broken spirit
- Isaiah 65:17 Lit. come upon the heart
Isaiah 65
English Standard Version
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.
2 (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;
3 a people who provoke me
to my face continually,
(D)sacrificing in gardens
and making offerings on bricks;
4 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;
5 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.
6 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
7 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]
8 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.
9 (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
- Isaiah 65:1 Or that did not call upon
- Isaiah 65:7 Or I will first measure their payment into their lap
- Isaiah 65:22 Hebrew shall wear out
- Isaiah 65:23 Or for sudden terror
The Holy Bible, International Children’s Bible® Copyright© 1986, 1988, 1999, 2015 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
