Bible in 90 Days
The Servant’s Suffering and Exaltation
13 Look, my servant shall achieve success;
he shall be exalted,
and he shall be lifted up,
and he shall be very high.
14 Just as many were appalled at you—
such was his appearance beyond human disfigurement,
and his form beyond the sons of mankind—
15 so he shall sprinkle many nations;
because of him, kings shall shut their mouths.[a]
For they shall see what has not been told them,
and they shall consider with full attention what they have not heard.
53 Who has believed our message,
and to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed?
2 For[b] he went[c] up like a shoot before him,
and like a root from dry ground.
He had no form and no majesty that[d] we should see him,
and no appearance that[e] we should take pleasure in him.
3 He was despised and rejected by men,
a man of suffering, and acquainted with[f] sickness,
and like one from whom others hide their faces,[g] he was despised,
and we did not hold him in high regard.
4 However, he was the one who lifted up our sicknesses,
and he carried our pain,
yet[h] we ourselves assumed him stricken,
struck down by God and afflicted.
5 But[i] he was pierced[j] because of our transgressions,
crushed because of our iniquities;
the chastisement for[k] our peace[l] was upon him,
and by his wounds[m] we were healed.[n]
6 All of us have wandered about like sheep;
we each have turned to his own way;
and Yahweh let fall on him
the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet[o] he did not open his mouth;
he was brought like a lamb to the slaughter,
and like a sheep is dumb before its shearers,
so[p] he did not open his mouth.
8 He was taken by restraint of justice,
and who concerned himself with his generation?
For he was cut off from the land of the living;
he received a blow because of the transgression of my people.
9 He made[q] his grave with the wicked,
and with the rich in his death,
although he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet[r] Yahweh was pleased to crush him;
he made him sick.[s]
If she[t] places[u] his life a guilt offering,[v]
he will see offspring.
He will prolong days,
and the will of Yahweh will succeed in his hand.
11 From the trouble of his life[w] he will see;[x]
he will be satisfied.
In his knowledge, the righteous one, my servant, shall declare many righteous,[y]
and he is the one who will bear their iniquities.
12 Therefore, I will divide to him a portion among the many,[z]
and with the strong ones he will divide bounty,
because[aa] he poured his life out to death
and was counted with the transgressors;
and[ab] he was the one who bore the sin of many
and will intercede for the transgressors.
The Fertile Wife of Yahweh
54 “Sing for joy, barren woman; who has not borne!
Burst forth into rejoicing and rejoice, she who has not been in labor!
For the children of the desolate woman are more than the children of the married woman,” says Yahweh.
2 “Enlarge the site of your tent,
and let them stretch out the tent curtains of your dwelling place.
You must not spare; make your tent cords long
and strengthen your pegs,
3 for you will spread out to the right and to the left.
And your descendants[ac] will be heir to the nations,
and they will inhabit desolate towns.
4 You must not fear, for you will not be ashamed,
and you must not be confounded, for you will not feel abashed,
for you will forget the shame of your youth,
and you will no longer remember the disgrace of your widowhood.
5 For your husband[ad] is your maker,[ae] his name is Yahweh of hosts;
and your redeemer is the holy one of Israel, he is called the God of all of the earth.
6 For Yahweh has called you like a wife forsaken and hurt of spirit,
like[af] the wife of childhood when she is rejected, says your God.
7 I abandoned you for a short[ag] moment,
but[ah] I will gather you with great compassion.
8 I hid my face from you for a moment, in the flowing of anger,
but[ai] I will have compassion on you with everlasting faithfulness” says your redeemer, Yahweh.
9 “For this is like the waters of Noah to me,
when I swore that the waters of Noah would never again pass[aj] over the earth,
so I swore that I would not be[ak] angry at you and rebuke you.
10 For the mountains may depart,
and the hills may sway,
but[al] my faithfulness shall not depart from you,
and my covenant of peace shall not sway,”
says Yahweh, who has compassion on you,
11 “O afflicted one, driven away, who is not consoled.
Look! I am about to set your stones in hard mortar,
and I will lay your foundation with sapphires.
12 And I will make[am] your battlements of ruby,
and your gates of stones of beryl,
and all your wall of precious stones.
13 And all your children shall be pupils of Yahweh,
and the peace of your children shall be great.
14 In righteousness you shall be established.
Be far from oppression, for you shall not fear,
and from terror, for it shall not come near you.
15 If indeed one attacks, it is not from me;
whoever attacks you shall fall because of you.
16 Look! I myself have created the craftsman who blows[an] the fire of coals,
and who produces[ao] a weapon for his work;
also[ap] I myself have created the destroyer to destroy.
17 Every weapon formed against you shall not succeed,
and you shall declare guilty every tongue that rises against you for judgment.
This is the inheritance of the servants of Yahweh,
and their legal right[aq] from me,”
declares[ar] Yahweh.
Invitation to True Rewards
55 “Ho! Everyone thirsty, come to the waters!
And whoever has no money, come, buy and eat,
and come, buy without money,
wine and milk without price!
2 Why do you weigh out money for what is not food,
and your labor for what cannot satisfy?[as]
Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,
and let your soul take pleasure in rich[at] food.
3 Extend your ear, and come to me!
Listen so that[au] your soul may live,
and I will make[av] an everlasting covenant with[aw] you,
the enduring proofs of the mercies shown to[ax] David.
4 Look! I made[ay] him a witness to the peoples,
a leader and a commander for the peoples.
5 Look! You shall call a nation that you do not know,
and a nation that does not know you shall run to you,
because of Yahweh your God,
and the holy one of Israel, for he has glorified you.”
6 Seek Yahweh while he lets himself be found;[az]
call him while he is[ba] near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
and the man of sin his thoughts.
And let him return to Yahweh, that[bb] he may take pity on him,
and to our God, for he will forgive manifold.[bc]
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not my ways,”
declares[bd] Yahweh.
9 “For as the heavens are higher[be] than the earth,
so my ways are higher[bf] than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For just as the rain and the snow come down from heaven,
and they do not return there
except they have watered the earth thoroughly
and cause it to bring forth and sprout,
and give seed to the sower
and bread to the eater,
11 so shall be my word that goes out from my mouth.
It shall not return to me without success,
but shall accomplish[bg] what I desire
and be successful in the thing for which I sent it.
12 For you shall go out in joy,
and you shall be led in peace.
The mountains and the hills shall break forth before you, rejoicing
and all the trees of the field shall clap hands.[bh]
13 Instead of the thorn bush, the juniper shall go up;
instead of the brier, the myrtle shall go up,
and it shall serve as a memorial to Yahweh,
for an everlasting sign that shall not be cut off.”
Salvation for All Who Obey
56 Thus says Yahweh:
“Observe justice
and do righteousness,
for my salvation is close to coming,
and my justice to being revealed.
2 Happy is the man who does this,
and the son of humankind who keeps hold of it,
who keeps the Sabbath so as not to profane[bi] it,
and who keeps his hand from doing any[bj] evil.”
3 And do not let the foreigner[bk] who joins himself to Yahweh say, “Surely Yahweh will separate me from his people.”
And do not let the eunuch say, “Look! I am a dry tree!”
4 For thus says Yahweh, “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths,
and choose that in which I delight,
and who keep hold of my covenant.
5 And I will give them a monument and a name in my house and within my walls,
better than sons and daughters;
I will give him an everlasting name
that shall not be cut off.
6 And the foreigners[bl] who join themselves to Yahweh to serve him
and to love the name of Yahweh, to become his servants,
every one who keeps the Sabbath, so as not to profane[bm] it,
and those who keep hold of my covenant,
7 I will bring them to my holy mountain;[bn]
I will make them merry in my house of prayer.
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted[bo] on my altar,
for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples,”
8 declares[bp] the Lord Yahweh, who gathers[bq] the scattered ones of Israel (still I will gather to[br] him, to his gathered ones).
Wicked Leaders
9 All wild animals in the field, come,
to devour,[bs] all wild animals in the forest!
10 His watchmen are blind,
none of them know.
They are all dumb dogs;
they are unable to bark,
panting, lying down,
loving to slumber.
11 And the dogs have a greedy appetite;[bt]
they are never satisfied.[bu]
And they are the shepherds!
They do not have[bv] understanding.
They all turn to their own way,
each one for his own gain, every one of them.[bw]
12 “Come, let me take wine,
and let us carouse with intoxicating drink,
and tomorrow will be like today,
very great indeed.”[bx]
Idolatry is Adultery
57 The righteous one perishes, and there is no one who takes[by] it to heart.
And men of faithfulness are gathered, while there is no one who understands,
for the righteous is gathered from the presence of wickedness.
2 he enters into peace;
they will rest on their beds,
walking straight ahead of him.
3 “But[bz] you, come near here, you children of a soothsayer,
offspring of an adulterer and she who commits fornication.
4 At whom do you make fun?
At whom do you open[ca] your mouth and stick out[cb] your tongue?
Are you not children of transgression,
offspring of deception,
5 who burn with lust among the oaks,
under every leafy tree,
who slaughter children in the valleys,
under the clefts of the rocks?
6 Your portion is among the smooth stones of the valley;
they, they are your lot;
indeed, to them you have poured out a drink offering,
you have brought a food offering.
Shall I relent concerning these things?
7 You have set your bed upon a high and lofty mountain;
indeed, you went up there to slaughter sacrifice.
8 And you have set your symbol behind the door and the doorpost;
for you depart[cc] from me, and you go up;
you make your bed wide, and you make a deal with[cd] them,
you have loved their bed; you have seen their genitals.[ce]
9 And you climbed down to the king with oil,
and you made your perfumes numerous,
and you sent your envoys far away,[cf]
and you sent down deep[cg] to Sheol.
10 You grow weary by the greatness of your way,
but you did not say, ‘Despairing!’
You found the renewal[ch] of your strength,[ci]
therefore you do not grow weak.
11 And of whom were you afraid and feared, that you deceived
and did not remember me?
Did you not place it on your heart?
Have I not been silent, even from long ago,
and so you do not fear me?
12 I myself will declare your righteousness and your works,
but[cj] they will not benefit you.
13 When you cry,[ck] let your collection deliver you,
and the wind will carry all of them away;
a breath will take them away.
But[cl] he who takes refuge in me shall take possession of the land,
and he shall inherit my holy mountain.”[cm]
Peace for the Contrite
14 And one shall say, “Build up, build up! Clear the way!
Remove the obstacles[cn] from the way of my people!”
15 For thus says the high and lofty one who resides forever, and whose name is holy:
“I reside in a high and holy place,
and with the contrite[co] and humble of spirit,
to revive the spirit of the humble,
and to revive the heart of the contrite.[cp]
16 For I will not attack forever,
and I will not be angry forever,
for the spirit will grow faint before me,
and the breaths that I myself I have made.
17 I was angry because of his sin of gain, and I struck him;
I hid and I was angry, but[cq] he walked apostate, in the ways[cr] of his heart.
18 I have seen his ways, but[cs] I will heal him;
and I will lead him and give him and his mourners comfort as a recompense,
19 creating fruit of lips.
Peace, peace to the far and near,” says Yahweh, “and I will heal him.
20 But[ct] the wicked are like the churning sea,
that is not able to keep quiet,
and its waters toss up mire and mud.
21 There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”
True Fasts and Sabbaths
58 “Call with the throat; you must not keep back!
lift up your voice like a trumpet,
and declare[cu] to my people their rebellion,
and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Yet[cv] they seek me day by day,
and they desire the knowledge of my ways
like a nation that practiced[cw] righteousness,
and had not forsaken the judgment of its God;
they ask me for righteous judgments,[cx]
they desire the closeness of God.
3 ‘Why do we fast, and you do not see it?
We humiliate our soul, and you do not notice it?’
Look! You find delight on the day of your fast,
and you oppress all your workers!
4 Look! You fast to quarrel and strife,
and to strike with a wicked fist.[cy]
You shall not fast as you do today,[cz]
to make your voice heard[da] on the height.
5 Is the fast I choose like this,
a day for humankind to humiliate himself[db]?
To bow his head like a reed,
and make[dc] his bed on sackcloth and ashes;
you call this a fast
and a day of pleasure to Yahweh?
6 Is this not the fast I choose: to release the bonds of injustice,
to untie the ropes of the yoke,
and to let the oppressed go free,
and tear[dd] every yoke to pieces?
7 Is it not to break your bread for the hungry?
You must bring home[de] the poor, the homeless.
When you see the naked, you must cover him,
and you must not hide yourself from your relatives.[df]
8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,
and your healing shall grow quickly.
And your salvation shall go before you;
the glory of Yahweh will be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and Yahweh himself will answer.
You shall cry for help, and he will say, ‘Here I am!’
If you remove from among you the yoke,
the finger-pointing[dg] and evil speech,[dh]
10 if[di] you offer your soul to the hungry,
and you satisfy the appetite of the afflicted,
then[dj] your light shall rise in the darkness,
and your darkness will be like noon.
11 And Yahweh will lead you continually, and satisfy your soul in a barren land,
and he will strengthen your bones,
and you shall be like a well-watered garden,
and like a spring of water whose water does not fail.
12 And they shall rebuild ancient ruins from you;
you shall erect the foundations of many generations,[dk]
and you shall be called[dl] the bricklayer of the breach,
the restorer of paths to live in.
13 If you hold your foot back from the Sabbath,
from doing your affairs on my holy day,[dm]
if[dn] you call the Sabbath a pleasure,
the holy day of Yahweh honorable,
if[do] you honor him more than[dp] doing your ways,
than finding your affairs[dq] and speaking a word,
14 then you shall take your pleasure in[dr] Yahweh,
and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth,
and I will feed you the heritage of Jacob your ancestor,[ds]
for the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.”
Rampant Transgression
59 Look! The hand of Yahweh is not too short to save,[dt]
and his ear is not too dull to hear.[du]
2 Rather, your iniquities have been barriers[dv] between you and your God,
and your sins have hidden his face from you, from hearing.
3 For your hands are defiled with blood,
and your fingers with iniquity.
Your lips have spoken lies,
your tongue speaks wickedness.
4 There is nobody who pleads with[dw] justice,
and there is nobody who judges with honesty.
They rely on nothing
and speak vanity.
They conceive trouble
and beget iniquity;
5 they hatch viper eggs,
and they weave a spider web.
One who eats their eggs dies,
and that which is pressed is hatched as a serpent.
6 Their webs cannot become clothing,
and they cannot cover themselves with their works.
Their works are works of iniquity,
and deeds[dx] of violence are in their hands.
7 Their feet run to evil,
and they hasten to shed innocent blood.
Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity;
devastation and destruction are in their highways.
8 They do not know the way of peace,
and there is no justice in their firm paths.
They have made their paths crooked for themselves;
everyone who walks[dy] in it knows no peace.
9 Therefore justice is far from us,
and righteousness does not reach us.
We wait for light, but[dz] look! there is darkness;
for brightness, but we walk in darkness.
10 We grope like the blind along a wall,
and we grope as without[ea] eyes.
We stumble at noon as in the twilight;
among the strong we are like the dead.
11 We all groan like bears,
and we coo mutteringly like doves.
We wait for justice, but[eb] there is none;
for salvation, but it is far from us.
12 For our transgressions are numerous before you,
and our sins testify[ec] against us.
Indeed, our transgressions are with us,
and we know our iniquities:
13 transgressing and denying Yahweh,
and turning away from following[ed] our God;
speaking oppression and falsehood,
conceiving and uttering words of deception from the heart.
14 And justice is pushed back,
and righteousness stands afar;
for truth stumbles in the public square,
and straightforwardness is unable to enter,
15 and truth is missing,
and he who turns aside from evil is plundered.
And Yahweh saw,
and it was displeasing in his eyes that there was no justice
16 And he saw that there was no man,
and he was appalled that there was no one who intercedes,
so[ee] his arm came to assist him,
and his righteousness was what[ef] sustained him.
17 And he put on righteousness like a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation on his head,
and he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and he wrapped himself in zeal as in a robe.
18 According to deeds, so he will repay;
wrath to his enemies, requital to those who are his enemies.[eg]
He will repay requital to the coastlands.
19 So[eh] they shall fear the name of Yahweh from the west,
and his glory from the sunrise,
for he will come like a narrow stream;
the wind of Yahweh drives it on.
20 “And a redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who turn away from transgression,”
declares[ei] Yahweh.
21 “And as for me, this is my covenant with them, says Yahweh:
my spirit that is upon you,
and my words that I have placed in your mouth
shall not depart from your mouth,
or[ej] from the mouths[ek] of your children,[el]
or[em] from the mouths[en] of your children’s children,”[eo]
says Yahweh, “from now on and forever.”
Zion Glorified
60 “Arise, shine! For your light has come,
and the glory of Yahweh has risen on you.
2 For look! darkness shall cover the earth,
and thick darkness the peoples,
but[ep] Yahweh will rise on you,
and his glory will appear over you.
3 And nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the bright light of your sunrise.
4 Lift up your eyes all around and see!
All of them gather; they come to you.
Your sons shall come from afar,
and your daughters shall be looked after on the hip.
5 Then you shall see
and you shall be radiant;
and your heart shall tremble
and open itself wide,
because the abundance of the sea shall fall upon you;
the wealth of the nations shall come to you.
6 A multitude of camels shall cover you,
the young male camels of Midian and Ephah.
All those from Sheba shall come;
they shall bring gold and frankincense,
and they shall proclaim the praise of Yahweh.
7 All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered to you;
the rams of Nebaioth shall serve you.
They shall present a sacrifice for favor on my altar,
and I will glorify my honorable house.[eq]
8 Who are these? They fly like a cloud,
and like doves to their coops.
9 Because the coastlands wait for me,
and the ships of Tarshish are first
to bring your children from afar,
their silver and gold with them,
for the name of Yahweh your God,
and for the holy one of Israel, because he has glorified you.
10 And foreigners[er] shall build your walls,
and their kings shall serve you,
for in my anger I struck you,
but[es] in my favor I have taken pity on you.
11 And your gates shall continually be open,
day and night they shall not be shut,
to bring you the wealth of nations,
and their kings shall be led.
12 For the nation and the kingdom that will not serve you shall perish,
and the nations shall be utterly devastated.
13 The glory of Lebanon shall come to you;
the cypress, the plane, and the pine together,
to glorify the place of my sanctuary,
and I will do honor to the place of my feet.
14 And the children of those who oppressed you shall come to you bending low,
and all those who treated you disrespectfully shall bow down at the soles of your feet.
And they shall call you the city of Yahweh,
Zion of the holy one of Israel.
15 Instead of you being forsaken
and hated with no one passing through,[et]
I will make[eu] you an everlasting object of pride,[ev]
a joy of coming generations.[ew]
16 And you shall suck the milk of nations,
and suck the breast of kings,
and you shall know that I am Yahweh your Savior,
and your Redeemer, the Strong One of Jacob.
17 Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
and instead of iron I will bring silver,
and instead of wood, bronze,
and instead of stones, iron.
And I will appoint[ex] peace as your overseer,
and righteousness as your ruling body.[ey]
18 Violence shall no longer be heard in your land;
devastation or[ez] destruction on your borders.
And you shall call your walls Salvation,
and your gates, Praise.
19 The sun shall no longer be your light by day,
and for bright light the moon shall not give you light,
but[fa] Yahweh will be your everlasting light,
and your God your glory.
20 Your sun shall no longer go down,
and your moon shall not wane,[fb]
for Yahweh himself will be your everlasting light,
and your days of mourning shall come to an end.
21 And all your people shall be righteous;
they shall take possession of the land forever,
the shoot of his[fc] planting,
the work of my hands, to show my glory.
22 The small one shall become a tribe,
and the smallest one a mighty nation.
I am Yahweh; I will hasten it in its time.”
The Year of Yahweh’s Favor
61 The Spirit of the Lord Yahweh is upon me,
because Yahweh has anointed me,
he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the brokenhearted,[fd]
to proclaim[fe] release to the captives
and liberation to those who are bound,
2 to proclaim[ff] the year of Yahweh’s favor,
and our God’s day of vengeance,
to comfort all those in mourning,
3 to give[fg] for those in mourning in Zion,
to give them a head wrap instead of ashes,
the oil of joy instead of mourning,
a garment of praise instead of a faint spirit.
And they will be called[fh] oaks of righteousness,
the planting of Yahweh, to show his glory.
4 And they shall build the ancient ruins,
they shall erect the former deserted places.
And they shall restore the devastated cities,[fi]
the deserted places of many generations.[fj]
5 And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks,[fk]
and foreigners[fl] shall be your farmers and vinedressers.
6 But[fm] you shall be called the priests of Yahweh,
you will be called[fn] servers of our God.
You shall eat the wealth of the nations,
and you shall boast in their riches.
7 Instead of your shame, a double portion,
and instead of insult, they will rejoice over their portion.
Therefore they will take a double portion in their land;
they shall possess everlasting joy.[fo]
8 For I, Yahweh, love justice,
hate robbery and[fp] injustice,
and I will faithfully[fq] give their reward,
and I will make[fr] an everlasting covenant with[fs] them.
9 And their descendants[ft] will be known among the nations,
and their offspring in the midst of the peoples.
All those who see them shall recognize them,
that they are descendants[fu] whom Yahweh has blessed.
10 I will rejoice greatly in Yahweh;
my being shall shout in exultation in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation,
he has covered me with the robe of righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns himself with a head wrap like a priest,
and as a bride adorns herself with her jewelry.
11 For as the earth produces[fv] its sprout,
and as a garden makes its plants sprout,
so the Lord Yahweh will make righteousness sprout,
and praise before all the nations.
Zion’s New Identity
62 For the sake of Zion I will not be silent,
and for the sake of Jerusalem I will not maintain a quiet attitude,
until her righteousness goes out like the bright light,
and her salvation burns like a torch.
2 And the nations shall see your righteousness,
and all the kings your glory,
and you will be called[fw] a new name
that the mouth of Yahweh will designate.
3 And you shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of Yahweh,
and a headband of royalty in the hand of your God.
4 It shall no longer be said of you, “Forsaken,”
and it shall no longer be said of your land, “Desolation!”
but you will[fx] be called “My Delight Is In Her,”
and your land, “Married,”
for Yahweh delights in you,
and your land shall be married.
5 For as a young man marries a virgin,
so shall your sons marry you,
and as is the joy of the bridegroom over the bride,
so shall your God rejoice over you.
6 I have appointed watchmen upon your walls, Jerusalem;
all day and all night they shall never be silent.
You who profess Yahweh have no rest.
7 And you must not give him rest until he establishes,
and until he makes[fy] Jerusalem an object of praise[fz] in the earth.
8 Yahweh has sworn by his right hand,
and by his mighty arm,[ga]
“Surely I will never again give your grain as food to your enemies,[gb]
and surely foreigners[gc] shall not drink your new wine at which you have labored.”
9 But those who gather it shall eat it, and they shall praise Yahweh,
and those who gather it shall drink it in my holy courts.[gd]
10 Pass through, pass through the gates!
Make the way clear for[ge] the people!
Pile up, pile up the highway; clear it of stones![gf]
Lift up an ensign over the peoples!
11 Look! Yahweh has proclaimed to the end of the earth:
Say to daughter Zion, “Look, your salvation is coming!
Look, his reward is with him,
and his reward before him.
12 And they shall call them “The Holy People,[gg] The Redeemed Of Yahweh,”
and you[gh] shall be called “Sought After, A City Is Not Forsaken.”
Yahweh’s Day of Vengeance
63 Who is this, coming from Edom,
from Bozrah in bright red garments?
Who is this honored in his garment,
lying down in his great strength?
“It is I, speaking in justice,
mighty[gi] to save!”
2 Why are your garments[gj] red,
and your garments like he who treads in the winepress?
3 “I have trodden the winepress alone,
and there was no man from the peoples with me.
And I trod them in my anger,
and I trampled them in my wrath,
and spattered their juice on my garments,
and stained all my clothing,
4 for the day of vengeance was in my heart,
and the year of my blood-vengeance has come!
5 And I looked, but[gk] there was no helper,
and I was appalled, but[gl] there was no one who sustains,
so[gm] my arm came to assist me,
and my wrath was what[gn] sustained me.
6 And I trampled peoples in my anger,
and I made them drunk in my wrath,
and I brought their juice down to the earth.”
Remembering Yahweh’s Mercy
7 I will mention the loyal love of Yahweh, the praises of Yahweh, according to all that Yahweh has done for us,
and the greatness of goodness to the house of Israel that he has done to them according to his mercy and the abundance of his loyal love.
8 And he said, “Surely my people are children; they will not break faith.” And he became a Savior to them.
9 In all their distress, there was no distress,[go]
and the messenger of his presence[gp] saved them,
in his love and compassion he himself redeemed them,
and he lifted them up,
and he supported them all the days of old.
10 But[gq] they were the ones who[gr] rebelled,
and they grieved his Holy Spirit,[gs]
so[gt] he became an enemy to them;[gu]
he himself fought against them.
11 Then[gv] his people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is the one who led up them from the sea with the shepherds of his flock?
Where is the one who puts his Holy Spirit[gw] inside him,
12 who made[gx] his magnificent arm move at[gy] the right hand of Moses,
who divided[gz] the waters before them,[ha]
to make an everlasting name for himself,
13 who led[hb] them through the depths?
They did not stumble like a horse in the desert;
14 like cattle in the valley that goes down, the Spirit of Yahweh gave him rest,[hc]
so you lead your people to make a magnificent name for yourself.
Prayer for Mercy
15 Look from heaven,
and see from the lofty residence of your holiness and glory.
Where are your zeal and strength?
Your compassion[hd] and mercy to me hold themselves back.
16 For you are our father, although Abraham does not know us,
and Israel does not acknowledge us.
You, Yahweh are our father,
Our Redeemer from of old is your name.
17 Why do you make us wander, Yahweh?
You harden our heart from your ways so that we do not fear[he] you.
Turn back for the sake of your servants,
the tribes of your inheritance.
18 Your holy people[hf] took possession for a little while;
our adversaries have trampled down your sanctuary.
19 We have been since antiquity; you did not rule them;
they were not called by your name.[hg]
64 [hh] Would that you would tear the heavens and come down;
the mountains would quake before you,
2 [hi] as fire kindles brushwood,
the fire causes water to boil,
to make your name known to your adversaries,
that the nations might tremble from your presence.[hj]
3 When you did terrible deeds which we did not expect,[hk] you came down;
the mountains quaked because of your presence.[hl]
4 And since ancient times they have not heard,
have not listened,
no eye has seen a God except you;
he acts[hm] for the one who waits for him.
5 You meet with the one who rejoices,
one who does righteousness.
In your ways they remember you.
Look! You were angry and we sinned against them in ancient times and we were saved.
6 And we all have become like the unclean,
and all our deeds of justice like a menstrual cloth,
And we all wither like a leaf,
and our iniquities take us away like the wind.
7 And there is no one who calls on your name,
who pulls himself up to keep hold of you,
for you have hidden your face from us,[hn]
and melted us into the hand of our iniquity.
8 Yet now Yahweh, you are our father;
we are the clay and you are our potter,[ho]
and we all are the work of your hand.
9 You must not be exceedingly angry, Yahweh,
and you must not remember iniquity forever!
Look! Behold, now! We all are your people!
10 Your holy cities[hp] have become a wilderness;
Zion has become a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.
11 Our holy and beautiful temple,[hq] where our ancestors[hr] praised you has been burned[hs] by fire,
and all our precious objects have become ruins.[ht]
12 Will you control yourself because of these, Yahweh?
Will you be silent?
And will you oppress us exceedingly?
Judgment and Salvation
65 “I let myself be sought by those who did not ask;
I let myself be found by those who did not seek me.
I said, ‘Here I am; here I am!’ to a nation that did not call on my name;
2 I spread out my hands all day to a stubborn people,
those who walk after their thoughts in the way that is not good,
3 the people who provoke[hu] me to anger continually to my face,
slaughtering for sacrifices in the garden,
and making smoke offerings on bricks,
4 who sit[hv] in graves
and spend the night in secret places,[hw]
who eat[hx] the flesh of swine
with[hy] a fragment[hz] of impurity in their vessels,
5 who say,[ia] “Keep to yourself![ib]
You must not come near me, for I am too holy for you!”
These are a smoke in my nostrils,[ic]
a fire burning all day.
6 Look! It is written before me: I will not be silent, but I will repay;
and I will repay in[id] the fold of their garment
7 your iniquities and the iniquities of your ancestors[ie] together, says Yahweh,
because they made smoke offerings on the mountains
and they taunted me on the hills,
I will measure their punishment from the beginning into the fold of their garment.”
8 Thus says Yahweh: “Just as the new wine is found in the cluster, and they say ‘You must not destroy it, for there is a blessing in it,’ so I will do for the sake of my servants by[if] not destroying everyone.[ig]
9 And I will bring descendant s[ih] out from Jacob,
and a people[ii] from Judah to take possession of my mountain,
and my chosen ones shall inherit it,
and my servants shall settle there.
10 And Sharon shall become a pasture for[ij] flocks,[ik]
and the valley of Achor a resting place for[il] herds[im]
for my people who have sought me.
11 But[in] you who forsake[io] Yahweh,
forgetting my holy mountain,[ip]
who set a table for Fortune,
and who pour out[iq] a jug of mixed wine for Destiny,
12 and I will remit you to the sword,
and all of you shall bow down to the slaughter,
because I called, but[ir] you did not answer;
I spoke, but[is] you did not listen,
but[it] you did the evil in my eyes,
and you chose that in which I do not delight.”
13 Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh:
“Look! My servants shall eat but[iu] you, you shall be hungry.
Look! My servants shall drink but[iv] you, you shall be thirsty.
Look! My servants shall rejoice but[iw] you, you shall be ashamed.
14 Look! My servants shall shout for joy,[ix] but[iy] you, you shall cry out for pain[iz] and howl for sadness.[ja]
15 And you shall leave your name to my chosen ones as a curse,
and the Lord Yahweh will kill you, and he will give[jb] his servants another name.
16 Whoever blesses himself in the land shall bless himself by the God of trustworthiness,
and the one who swears an oath in the land shall swear by the God of trustworthiness,
because the former troubles are forgotten,
and they are hidden from my eyes.
New Creation
17 For look! I am about to create new heavens and a new earth,
and the former things shall not be remembered,
and they shall not come to mind.[jc]
18 But rejoice and shout in exultation forever and ever over what I am about to create!
For look! I am about to create Jerusalem as a source of rejoicing,
and her people as a source of joy.
19 And I will shout in exultation over Jerusalem,
and I will rejoice over my people,
and the sound of weeping shall no longer be heard in it,
or[jd] the sound of a cry for help.
20 There will no longer be a nursing infant who lives only a few[je] days,
or[jf] an old man who does not fill his days,
for the boy will die a hundred years old,[jg]
and the one who fails to reach[jh] a hundred years[ji] will be considered[jj] accursed.
21 And they shall build houses and inhabit them,
and they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
22 They shall not build and another inhabit;
they shall not plant and another eat.
For the days of my people shall be like the days of a tree,
and my chosen ones shall enjoy the work of their hands.
23 They shall not labor for nothing,
and they shall not give birth to horror,
for they shall be offspring blessed by[jk] Yahweh,
and their descendants with them.
24 And this will happen: before they call, I myself will answer;
while still they are speaking, I myself will hear.
25 The wolf and the lamb shall feed like one,
and the lion shall eat straw like the ox,
but[jl] dust shall be the serpent’s food.
They shall do no evil,
and they shall not destroy on all my holy mountain,”[jm] says Yahweh.
Proper Worship
66 Thus says Yahweh:
“Heaven is my throne,
and the earth is the footstool for my feet.
Where is this house that you would build for me?
And where is this resting place for me?
2 And my hand has made all these things,
and all these came to be,”[jn]
declares[jo] Yahweh, “but[jp] I look to this one:
to the humble and the contrite of spirit
and the one frightened at my word.
3 The one who slaughters a bull strikes a man;
the one who slaughters a lamb for sacrifice breaks the neck of a dog.
The one who offers an offering, the blood of swine;
the one who offers frankincense blesses an idol.
Indeed, they themselves have chosen their ways,
and their soul delights in their abhorrence.
4 Indeed, I myself I will choose their ill treatment,
and I will bring them objects of their dread,
because I called, and no one answered;[jq]
I spoke and they did not listen,
but[jr] they did the evil in my eyes,
and they chose that in which I do not delight.”
5 Hear the word of Yahweh, you who are frightened at his word:
Your brothers who hate you,
who exclude you for my name’s sake have said,
“Let Yahweh be honored so that[js] we may see your joy!”
But[jt] they themselves shall be ashamed.
6 A voice, an uproar from the city!
A voice from the temple!
The voice of Yahweh paying back[ju] his enemies!
Zion’s Delivery
7 Before she was in labor she gave birth;
before labor pains[jv] came to her, she gave birth to a son.
8 Who has heard anything like this?
Who has seen anything like these things?
Can a land be born in one day?
Or can a nation be born in a moment?
Yet when she was in labor, Zion indeed gave birth to her children.
9 Shall I myself I break open and not deliver?”[jw] says Yahweh,
“or I who delivers[jx] lock up the womb?” says your God.
10 “Rejoice with Jerusalem
and shout in exultation with her, all those who love her!
Rejoice with her in joy, all those who mourn over her,
11 so that you may suck and be satisfied from her consoling breast,[jy]
so that you may drink deeply and refresh yourselves from her heavy breast.”[jz]
12 For thus says Yahweh:
“Look! I am about to spread prosperity out to her like a river,
and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream,
and you shall suck and be carried on the hip;
and you shall you shall be played with on the knees.
13 As a man whose mother comforts him, so I myself will comfort you,
and you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.
Yahweh’s Final Judgment
14 And you shall see and your heart shall rejoice,
and your bones shall flourish[ka] like the grass,
and the hand of Yahweh shall make itself known to[kb] his servants,
and he shall curse his enemies.
15 For look! Yahweh will come in fire,
and his chariots like the storm wind,
to give back[kc] his anger in wrath,
and his rebuke in flames of fire.
16 For Yahweh enters into judgment on all flesh with fire and his sword,
and those slain by[kd] Yahweh shall be many.
17 Those who sanctify themselves
and those who cleanse themselves to go into[ke] the gardens after the one in the middle,
eating the flesh of swine
and detestable things[kf] and rodents[kg] together
shall come to an end!” declares[kh] Yahweh.
18 “And I—their works and thoughts!—am about to come to gather all nations and tongues,
and they shall come and see my glory.
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software