Isaiah 24-26

Contemporary English Version

⁶ The earth is under a curse;
its people are dying out
    because of their sins.
⁷ Grapevines have dried up:
    wine is almost gone—
mournful sounds are heard
    instead of joyful shouts.

⁸ No one plays tambourines
    or stringed instruments;
all noisy celebrating
    has come to an end.
⁹ They no longer sing
as they drink their wine,
    and it tastes sour.

¹⁰ Towns are crushed and in chaos;
    houses are locked tight.
¹¹ Happy times have disappeared
    from the earth,
and people shout in the streets,
    “We're out of wine!”
¹² Cities are destroyed;
    their gates are torn down.
¹³ Nations will be stripped bare,
like olive trees or vineyards
    after the harvest season.

The sky has split apart
    like a window thrown open.
The foundations of the earth
    have been shaken;
¹⁹ the earth is shattered,
    ripped to pieces.
²⁰ It staggers and shakes
like a drunkard
    or a hut in a windstorm.
It is burdened down with sin;
the earth will fall,
    never again to get up.

²¹ On that day the Lord
    will punish the powers
in the heavens^[c]
    and the kings of the earth.
²² He will put them in a pit
    and keep them prisoner.
Then later on,
    he will punish them.
²³ Both the moon and sun will
    be embarrassed and ashamed.
The Lord All-Powerful will rule
    on Mount Zion in Jerusalem,
where he will show its rulers
    his wonderful glory.

⁴ You have been a place of safety
for the poor and needy
    in times of trouble.
Brutal enemies pounded us
    like a heavy rain
or the heat of the sun at noon,
    but you were our shelter.
⁵ Those wild foreigners struck
    like scorching desert heat.
But you were like a cloud,
    protecting us from the sun.
You kept our enemies from singing
    songs of victory.

⁹ At that time, people will say,
“The Lord has saved us!
    Let's celebrate.
We waited and hoped—
    now our God is here.”
^10 (B) The powerful arm of the Lord
    will protect this mountain.

The Moabites will be put down
and trampled on like straw
    in a pit of manure.
¹¹ They will struggle to get out,
but God will humiliate them
    no matter how hard they try.^[d]
12 The walls of their fortresses
will be knocked down
    and scattered in the dirt.

¹⁰ Even when the wicked
are treated with mercy
    in this land of justice,
they do wrong and are blind
    to your glory, our Lord.
^11 (C) Your hand is raised and ready
    to punish them,
but they don't see it.
    Put them to shame!
Show how much you care for us
and throw them into the fire
    intended for your enemies.

¹² You will give us peace, Lord,
because everything we have done
    was by your power.
¹³ Others have ruled over us
besides you, our Lord God,
    but we obey only you.
¹⁴ Those enemies are now dead
    and can never live again.
You have punished them—
they are destroyed,
    completely forgotten.
¹⁵ Our nation has grown
    because of you, our Lord.
We have more land than before,
    and you are honored.

¹⁹ Your people will rise to life!
Tell them to leave their graves
    and celebrate with shouts.
You refresh the earth
like morning dew;
    you give life to the dead.

²⁰ Go inside and lock the doors,
    my people.
Hide there for a little while,
until the Lord
    is no longer angry.