Isaiah 7-9
English Standard Version
Isaiah Sent to King Ahaz
7 In the days of (A)Ahaz the son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, king of Judah, (B)Rezin the king of Syria and (C)Pekah the son of Remaliah the king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to wage war against it, but could not yet mount an attack against it. 2 When the house of David was told, (D)“Syria is in league with[a] (E)Ephraim,” the heart of Ahaz[b] and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.
3 And the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out to meet Ahaz, you and (F)Shear-jashub[c] your son, at the end of (G)the conduit of the upper pool on the highway to the Washer's Field. 4 And say to him, (H)‘Be careful, (I)be quiet, do not fear, and do not let your heart be faint because of these two (J)smoldering stumps of firebrands, at the fierce anger of Rezin and Syria and (K)the son of Remaliah. 5 Because Syria, with Ephraim and (L)the son of Remaliah, has devised evil against you, saying, 6 “Let us go up against Judah and terrify it, and let us conquer it[d] for ourselves, and set up the son of Tabeel as king in the midst of it,” 7 thus says the Lord God:
(M)“‘It shall not stand,
and it shall not come to pass.
8 For the head of Syria is (N)Damascus,
and the head of Damascus is Rezin.
And within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be shattered from being a people.
9 And the head of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the head of Samaria is (O)the son of Remaliah.
(P)If you[e] are not firm in faith,
you will not be firm at all.’”
The Sign of Immanuel
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz: 11 “Ask (Q)a sign of the Lord your[f] God; let it be deep as Sheol or high as heaven.” 12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask, and I will not put the Lord to the test.” 13 And he[g] said, “Hear then, O house of David! Is it too little for you to weary men, that you (R)weary my God also? 14 Therefore the (S)Lord himself will give you a sign. (T)Behold, the (U)virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name (V)Immanuel.[h] 15 He shall eat (W)curds and honey when he knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good. 16 (X)For before the boy knows how to refuse the evil and choose the good, the land whose two kings you dread will be (Y)deserted. 17 (Z)The Lord will bring upon you and upon your people and upon your father's house such days as have not come since the day that (AA)Ephraim departed from Judah—the king of Assyria!”
18 In that day the Lord will (AB)whistle for the fly that is at the end of the streams of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria. 19 And they will all come and settle in the steep ravines, and (AC)in the clefts of the rocks, and on all the thornbushes, and on all the pastures.[i]
20 In that day (AD)the Lord will (AE)shave with a razor that is (AF)hired beyond (AG)the River[j]—with the king of Assyria—the head and the hair of the feet, and it will sweep away the beard also.
21 (AH)In that day a man will keep alive a young cow and two sheep, 22 and because of the abundance of milk that they give, he will eat curds, for everyone who is left in the land will eat (AI)curds and honey.
23 In that day every place where there used to be a thousand vines, worth a thousand shekels[k] of silver, will become (AJ)briers and thorns. 24 (AK)With bow and arrows a man will come there, for all the land will be briers and thorns. 25 (AL)And as for all the hills that used to be hoed with a hoe, you will not come there for fear (AM)of briers and thorns, but they will become a place where cattle are let loose and where sheep tread.
The Coming Assyrian Invasion
8 Then the Lord said to me, “Take a large tablet (AN)and write on it in common characters,[l] ‘Belonging to Maher-shalal-hash-baz.’[m] 2 And (AO)I will get reliable witnesses, (AP)Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah, to attest for me.”
3 And I went to the prophetess, and she conceived and bore a son. Then the Lord said to me, (AQ)“Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz; 4 (AR)for before the boy knows how to cry ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the (AS)wealth of (AT)Damascus and the spoil of (AU)Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”
5 The Lord spoke to me again: 6 “Because this people has refused the waters of (AV)Shiloah that flow gently, and rejoice over (AW)Rezin and the son of Remaliah, 7 therefore, behold, the Lord is bringing up against them (AX)the waters of (AY)the River,[n] mighty and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory. And it (AZ)will rise over all its channels and go over all its banks, 8 and it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass on, (BA)reaching even to the neck, and its (BB)outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, (BC)O Immanuel.”
9 Be broken,[o] you peoples, and (BD)be shattered;[p]
give ear, all you far countries;
strap on your armor and be shattered;
strap on your armor and be shattered.
10 Take counsel together, but it will come to nothing;
speak a word, (BE)but it will not stand,
for God (BF)is with us.[q]
Fear God, Wait for the Lord
11 For the Lord spoke thus to me with his strong hand upon me, and (BG)warned me not to walk in the way of this people, saying: 12 “Do not call (BH)conspiracy all that this people calls conspiracy, and (BI)do not fear what they fear, nor be in dread. 13 But the Lord of hosts, (BJ)him you shall honor as holy. Let him be your fear, and let him be your dread. 14 And he will become a (BK)sanctuary and (BL)a stone of offense and a rock of stumbling to both houses of Israel, a trap and a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 15 And many (BM)shall stumble on it. They shall fall and be broken; they shall be snared and taken.”
16 Bind up (BN)the testimony; (BO)seal the teaching[r] among my disciples. 17 I will (BP)wait for the Lord, who is (BQ)hiding his face from the house of Jacob, and I will hope in him. 18 (BR)Behold, I and (BS)the children whom the Lord has given me are signs and portents in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion. 19 And when they say to you, “Inquire of the (BT)mediums and the necromancers who chirp and mutter,” should not a people inquire of their God? Should they inquire of (BU)the dead on behalf of the living? 20 (BV)To the teaching and to the testimony! If they will not speak according to this word, it is because they have no (BW)dawn. 21 They will pass through the land,[s] greatly distressed and hungry. And when they are hungry, they will be enraged and will speak contemptuously against[t] their king and their God, and turn their faces upward. 22 (BX)And they will look to the earth, but behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish. And they will be thrust into (BY)thick darkness.
For to Us a Child Is Born
9 [u] But there will be no (BZ)gloom for her who was in anguish. In the former time he (CA)brought into contempt the land of (CB)Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he (CC)has made glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.[v]
2 [w] (CD)The people (CE)who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of (CF)deep darkness,
on them has light shone.
3 (CG)You have multiplied the nation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
as with (CH)joy at the harvest,
as they (CI)are glad (CJ)when they divide the spoil.
4 (CK)For the yoke of his burden,
(CL)and the staff for his shoulder,
the rod of his oppressor,
you have broken as (CM)on the day of Midian.
5 (CN)For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
and every garment rolled in blood
will be burned as fuel for the fire.
6 (CO)For to us a child is born,
to us (CP)a son is given;
(CQ)and the government shall be (CR)upon[x] his shoulder,
and his name shall be called[y]
Wonderful (CS)Counselor, (CT)Mighty God,
(CU)Everlasting (CV)Father, Prince of (CW)Peace.
7 Of the increase of his government and of peace
(CX)there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
(CY)with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
(CZ)The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.
Judgment on Arrogance and Oppression
8 The Lord has sent a word against Jacob,
and it will fall on Israel;
9 and all the people will know,
(DA)Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria,
who say in pride and in arrogance of heart:
10 “The bricks have fallen,
but we will build with dressed stones;
the sycamores have been cut down,
but we will put cedars in their place.”
11 But the Lord raises the adversaries of Rezin against him,
and stirs up his enemies.
12 (DB)The Syrians on the east and (DC)the Philistines on the west
devour Israel with open mouth.
(DD)For all this his anger has not turned away,
and his hand is stretched out still.
13 The people (DE)did not turn to him who struck them,
nor inquire of the Lord of hosts.
14 So the Lord cut off from Israel (DF)head and tail,
palm branch and reed in one day—
15 (DG)the elder and honored man is the head,
and (DH)the prophet who teaches lies is the tail;
16 for those who guide this people have been leading them astray,
and those who are guided by them are swallowed up.
17 Therefore the Lord does not (DI)rejoice over their young men,
and has no compassion on their fatherless and widows;
for everyone is (DJ)godless and an evildoer,
and every mouth speaks (DK)folly.[z]
(DL)For all this his anger has not turned away,
and his hand is stretched out still.
18 For wickedness burns like (DM)a fire;
it consumes briers and thorns;
it kindles the thickets of the forest,
and they roll upward in a column of smoke.
19 Through the wrath of the Lord of hosts
the land is scorched,
and (DN)the people are like fuel for the fire;
(DO)no one spares another.
20 (DP)They slice meat on the right, but are still hungry,
and they devour on the left, but are not satisfied;
(DQ)each devours the flesh of his own arm,
21 Manasseh devours Ephraim, and Ephraim devours Manasseh;
together they are (DR)against Judah.
(DS)For all this his anger has not turned away,
and his hand is stretched out still.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 7:2 Hebrew Syria has rested upon
- Isaiah 7:2 Hebrew his heart
- Isaiah 7:3 Shear-jashub means A remnant shall return
- Isaiah 7:6 Hebrew let us split it open
- Isaiah 7:9 The Hebrew for you is plural in verses 9, 13, 14
- Isaiah 7:11 The Hebrew for you and your is singular in verses 11, 16, 17
- Isaiah 7:13 That is, Isaiah
- Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel means God is with us
- Isaiah 7:19 Or watering holes, or brambles
- Isaiah 7:20 That is, the Euphrates
- Isaiah 7:23 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- Isaiah 8:1 Hebrew with a man's stylus
- Isaiah 8:1 Maher-shalal-hash-baz means The spoil speeds, the prey hastens
- Isaiah 8:7 That is, the Euphrates
- Isaiah 8:9 Or Be evil
- Isaiah 8:9 Or dismayed
- Isaiah 8:10 The Hebrew for God is with us is Immanuel
- Isaiah 8:16 Or law; also verse 20
- Isaiah 8:21 Hebrew it
- Isaiah 8:21 Or speak contemptuously by
- Isaiah 9:1 Ch 8:23 in Hebrew
- Isaiah 9:1 Or of the Gentiles
- Isaiah 9:2 Ch 9:1 in Hebrew
- Isaiah 9:6 Or is upon
- Isaiah 9:6 Or is called
- Isaiah 9:17 Or speaks disgraceful things
Psalm 106
English Standard Version
Give Thanks to the Lord, for He Is Good
106 (A)Praise the Lord!
(B)Oh give thanks to the Lord, (C)for he is good,
(D)for his steadfast love endures forever!
2 Who can utter the mighty deeds of the Lord,
or declare all his praise?
3 Blessed are they who observe justice,
who (E)do righteousness at all times!
4 (F)Remember me, O Lord, when you show favor to your people;
help me when you save them,[a]
5 that I may look upon the prosperity of your (G)chosen ones,
that I may rejoice in the gladness of your nation,
that I may glory with your inheritance.
6 (H)Both we and (I)our fathers have sinned;
we have committed iniquity; we have done wickedness.
7 Our fathers, when they were in Egypt,
did not consider your wondrous works;
they (J)did not remember the abundance of your steadfast love,
but (K)rebelled by the sea, at the Red Sea.
8 Yet he saved them (L)for his name's sake,
(M)that he might make known his mighty power.
9 He (N)rebuked the Red Sea, and it (O)became dry,
and he (P)led them through the deep as through a desert.
10 So he (Q)saved them from the hand of the foe
and (R)redeemed them from the power of the enemy.
11 And (S)the waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them was left.
12 Then (T)they believed his words;
they (U)sang his praise.
13 But they soon (V)forgot his works;
they did not wait for (W)his counsel.
14 But they had (X)a wanton craving in the wilderness,
and (Y)put God to the test in the desert;
15 he (Z)gave them what they asked,
but sent (AA)a wasting disease among them.
16 When men in the camp (AB)were jealous of Moses
and Aaron, (AC)the holy one of the Lord,
17 (AD)the earth opened and swallowed up Dathan,
and covered the company of Abiram.
18 (AE)Fire also broke out in their company;
the flame burned up the wicked.
19 They (AF)made a calf in Horeb
and worshiped a metal image.
20 They (AG)exchanged the glory of God[b]
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
21 They (AH)forgot God, their Savior,
who had done great things in Egypt,
22 wondrous works in (AI)the land of Ham,
and awesome deeds by the Red Sea.
23 Therefore (AJ)he said he would destroy them—
had not Moses, his (AK)chosen one,
(AL)stood in the breach before him,
to turn away his wrath from destroying them.
24 Then they (AM)despised (AN)the pleasant land,
having (AO)no faith in his promise.
25 They (AP)murmured in their tents,
and did not obey the voice of the Lord.
26 Therefore he (AQ)raised his hand and swore to them
that he would make them fall in the wilderness,
27 and would make their offspring fall among the nations,
(AR)scattering them among the lands.
28 Then they (AS)yoked themselves to the (AT)Baal of Peor,
and ate sacrifices offered to (AU)the dead;
29 they provoked the Lord to anger with their deeds,
and a plague broke out among them.
30 Then (AV)Phinehas stood up and intervened,
and the plague was stayed.
31 And that was (AW)counted to him as righteousness
from generation to generation forever.
32 They (AX)angered him at the waters of Meribah,
and it went ill with Moses on their account,
33 for they (AY)made his spirit bitter,[c]
and he (AZ)spoke rashly with his lips.
34 They did not (BA)destroy the peoples,
(BB)as the Lord commanded them,
35 but they (BC)mixed with the nations
and learned to do as they did.
36 They served their idols,
which became (BD)a snare to them.
37 They (BE)sacrificed their sons
and their daughters to (BF)the demons;
38 they poured out innocent blood,
the blood of their sons and daughters,
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan,
and the land was (BG)polluted with blood.
39 Thus they (BH)became unclean by their acts,
and (BI)played the whore in their deeds.
40 Then (BJ)the anger of the Lord was kindled against (BK)his people,
and he abhorred his (BL)heritage;
41 he (BM)gave them into the hand of the nations,
so that those who hated them ruled over them.
42 Their enemies (BN)oppressed them,
and they were brought into subjection under their power.
43 (BO)Many times he delivered them,
but they were rebellious in their (BP)purposes
and were (BQ)brought low through their iniquity.
44 Nevertheless, he looked upon their distress,
when he (BR)heard their cry.
45 For their sake he (BS)remembered his covenant,
and (BT)relented according to (BU)the abundance of his steadfast love.
46 He caused them to be (BV)pitied
by all those who held them captive.
47 (BW)Save us, O Lord our God,
and (BX)gather us from among the nations,
that we may give thanks to your holy name
and glory in your praise.
48 (BY)Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,
from everlasting to everlasting!
(BZ)And let all the people say, “Amen!”
(CA)Praise the Lord!
Footnotes
- Psalm 106:4 Or Remember me, O Lord, with the favor you show to your people; help me with your salvation
- Psalm 106:20 Hebrew exchanged their glory
- Psalm 106:33 Or they rebelled against God's Spirit
1 Thessalonians 4
English Standard Version
A Life Pleasing to God
4 Finally, then, brothers,[a] we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you (A)received from us (B)how you ought to walk and (C)to please God, just as you are doing, that you (D)do so more and more. 2 For (E)you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. 3 For this is the will of God, (F)your sanctification:[b] (G)that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each one of you know how to control his own (H)body[c] in holiness and (I)honor, 5 not in (J)the passion of lust (K)like the Gentiles (L)who do not know God; 6 that no one transgress and (M)wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is (N)an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you. 7 For (O)God has not called us for (P)impurity, but in holiness. 8 Therefore (Q)whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, (R)who gives his Holy Spirit to you.
9 Now concerning (S)brotherly love (T)you have no need for anyone to write to you, for you yourselves have been (U)taught by God (V)to love one another, 10 for that indeed is what (W)you are doing to all the brothers throughout Macedonia. But we urge you, brothers, to (X)do this more and more, 11 and to aspire (Y)to live quietly, and (Z)to mind your own affairs, and (AA)to work with your hands, as we instructed you, 12 so that you may (AB)walk properly before (AC)outsiders and be dependent on no one.
The Coming of the Lord
13 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, (AD)that you may not grieve as others do (AE)who have no hope. 14 For (AF)since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him (AG)those who have fallen asleep. 15 For this we declare to you (AH)by a word from the Lord,[d] that (AI)we who are alive, who are left until (AJ)the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For (AK)the Lord himself will descend (AL)from heaven (AM)with a cry of command, with the voice of (AN)an archangel, and (AO)with the sound of the trumpet of God. And (AP)the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be (AQ)caught up together with them (AR)in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so (AS)we will always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
Footnotes
- 1 Thessalonians 4:1 Or brothers and sisters; also verses 10, 13
- 1 Thessalonians 4:3 Or your holiness
- 1 Thessalonians 4:4 Or how to take a wife for himself; Greek how to possess his own vessel
- 1 Thessalonians 4:15 Or by the word of the Lord
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
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