Isaiah 30:8-14
Christian Standard Bible
8 Go now, write it on a tablet in their presence
and inscribe it on a scroll;
it will be for the future,
forever and ever.
9 They are a rebellious people,
deceptive children,(A)
children who do not want to listen to the Lord’s instruction.
10 They say to the seers, “Do not see,”
and to the prophets,
“Do not prophesy the truth to us.
Tell us flattering things.(B)
Prophesy illusions.
11 Get out of the way!
Leave the pathway.
Rid us of the Holy One of Israel.”(C)
12 Therefore the Holy One of Israel says:
“Because you have rejected this message
and have trusted in oppression and deceit,
and have depended on them,
13 this iniquity(D) of yours will be
like a crumbling gap,
a bulge in a high wall
whose collapse will come in an instant—suddenly!
14 Its collapse will be like the shattering
of a potter’s jar,(E) crushed to pieces,
so that not even a fragment of pottery
will be found among its shattered remains—
no fragment large enough to take fire from a hearth
or scoop water from a cistern.”
Isaiah 30:8-14
New English Translation
8 Now go, write it[a] down on a tablet in their presence,[b]
inscribe it on a scroll,
so that it might be preserved for a future time
as an enduring witness.[c]
9 For these are rebellious people—
they are lying children,
children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law.[d]
10 They[e] say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”
and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right![f]
Tell us nice things;
relate deceptive messages.[g]
11 Turn aside from the way;
stray off the path.[h]
Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.”[i]
12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
“You have rejected this message;[j]
you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick,[k]
and rely on that kind of behavior.[l]
13 So this sin will become your downfall.
You will be like a high wall
that bulges and cracks and is ready to collapse;
it crumbles suddenly, in a flash.[m]
14 It shatters in pieces like a clay jar,
so shattered to bits that none of it can be salvaged.[n]
Among its fragments one cannot find a shard large enough[o]
to scoop a hot coal from a fire[p]
or to skim off water from a cistern.”[q]
Footnotes
- Isaiah 30:8 tn The referent of the third feminine singular pronominal suffix is uncertain. Perhaps it refers to the preceding message, which accuses the people of rejecting the Lord’s help in favor of an alliance with Egypt.
- Isaiah 30:8 tn Heb “with them.” On the use of the preposition here, see BDB 86 s.v. II אֵת.
- Isaiah 30:8 sn Recording the message will enable the prophet to use it in the future as evidence that God warned his people of impending judgment and clearly spelled out the nation’s guilt. An official record of the message will also serve as proof of the prophet’s authority as God’s spokesman.
- Isaiah 30:9 tn Or perhaps, “instruction” (so NASB, NIV, NRSV); NCV, TEV “teachings.”
- Isaiah 30:10 tn Heb “who” (so NASB, NRSV). A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
- Isaiah 30:10 tn Heb “Do not see for us right things.”
- Isaiah 30:10 tn Heb “Tell us smooth things, see deceptive things.”
- Isaiah 30:11 sn The imagery refers to the way or path of truth, as revealed by God to the prophet.
- Isaiah 30:11 sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.
- Isaiah 30:12 tn The sentence actually begins with the word “because.” In the Hebrew text vv. 12-13 are one long sentence.
- Isaiah 30:12 tn Heb “and you trust in oppression and cunning.”
- Isaiah 30:12 tn Heb “and you lean on it”; NAB “and depend on it.”
- Isaiah 30:13 tn The verse reads literally, “So this sin will become for you like a breach ready to fall, bulging on a high wall, the breaking of which comes suddenly, in a flash.” Their sin produces guilt and will result in judgment. Like a wall that collapses their fall will be swift and sudden.
- Isaiah 30:14 tn Heb “Its shattering is like the shattering of a jug of [i.e., “made by”] potters, [so] shattered one cannot save [any of it].”
- Isaiah 30:14 tn The words “large enough” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
- Isaiah 30:14 tn Heb “to remove fire from the place of kindling.”
- Isaiah 30:14 tn On the meaning of גֶבֶא (geveh, “cistern”) see HALOT 170 s.v.
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