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1 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah reigned over Judah.[a]
Obedience, not Sacrifice
2 Listen, O heavens,
pay attention, O earth![b]
For the Lord speaks:
“I raised children,[c] I brought them up,[d]
but[e] they have rebelled[f] against me!
3 An ox recognizes its owner,
a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food;[g]
but Israel does not recognize me,[h]
my people do not understand.”
4 [i] Beware sinful nation,
the people weighed down by evil deeds.
They are offspring who do wrong,
children[j] who do wicked things.
They have abandoned the Lord,
and rejected the Holy One of Israel.[k]
They are alienated from him.[l]
5 [m] Why do you insist on being battered?
Why do you continue to rebel?[n]
Your head has a massive wound,[o]
your whole heart is sick.
6 From the soles of your feet to your head,
there is no spot that is unharmed.[p]
There are only bruises, cuts,
and open wounds.
They have not been cleansed[q] or bandaged,
nor have they been treated[r] with olive oil.[s]
7 Your land is devastated,
your cities burned with fire.
Right before your eyes your crops
are being destroyed by foreign invaders.[t]
They leave behind devastation and destruction.[u]
8 Daughter Zion[v] is left isolated,
like a hut in a vineyard,
or a shelter in a cucumber field;
she is a besieged city.[w]
9 If the Lord of Heaven’s Armies[x] had not left us a few survivors,
we would have quickly been like Sodom,[y]
we would have become like Gomorrah.
10 Listen to the Lord’s message,
you leaders of Sodom![z]
Pay attention to our God’s rebuke,[aa]
people of Gomorrah!
11 “Of what importance to me are your many sacrifices?”[ab]
says the Lord.
“I have had my fill[ac] of burnt sacrifices,
of rams and the fat from steers.
The blood of bulls, lambs, and goats
I do not want.[ad]
12 When you enter my presence,
do you actually think I want this—
animals trampling on my courtyards?[ae]
13 Do not bring any more meaningless[af] offerings;
I consider your incense detestable![ag]
You observe new moon festivals, Sabbaths, and convocations,
but I cannot tolerate sin-stained celebrations![ah]
14 I hate your new moon festivals and assemblies;
they are a burden
that I am tired of carrying.
15 When you spread out your hands in prayer,
I look the other way;[ai]
when you offer your many prayers,
I do not listen,
because your hands are covered with blood.[aj]
16 [ak] Wash! Cleanse yourselves!
Remove your sinful deeds[al]
from my sight.
Stop sinning.
17 Learn to do what is right.
Promote justice.
Give the oppressed reason to celebrate.[am]
Take up the cause of the orphan.
Defend the rights of the widow.[an]
18 [ao] Come, let’s consider your options,”[ap] says the Lord.
“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,
you can become white[aq] like snow;
though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,
you can become[ar] white like wool.[as]
19 If you have a willing attitude and obey,[at]
then you will again eat the good crops of the land.
20 But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be devoured[au] by the sword.”
Know for certain that the Lord has spoken.[av]
Purifying Judgment
21 How tragic that the once-faithful city
has become a prostitute![aw]
She was once a center of[ax] justice;
fairness resided in her—
but now only murderers![ay]
22 Your[az] silver has become scum,[ba]
your beer is diluted with water.[bb]
23 Your officials are rebels,[bc]
they associate with[bd] thieves.
All of them love bribery,
and look for[be] payoffs.[bf]
They do not take up the cause of the orphan,[bg]
or defend the rights of the widow.[bh]
24 Therefore, the Sovereign Lord of Heaven’s Armies,[bi]
the Powerful One of Israel,[bj] says this:
“Ah, I will seek vengeance[bk] against my adversaries,
I will take revenge against my enemies.[bl]
25 I will attack you;[bm]
I will purify your metal with flux.[bn]
I will remove all your slag.[bo]
26 I will reestablish honest judges as in former times,
wise advisers as in earlier days.[bp]
Then you will be called, ‘The Just City,
Faithful Town.’”
27 [bq] Zion will be freed by justice,[br]
and her returnees by righteousness.[bs]
28 All rebellious sinners will be shattered,[bt]
those who abandon the Lord will perish.
29 Indeed, they[bu] will be ashamed of the sacred trees
you[bv] find so desirable;
you will be embarrassed because of the sacred orchards[bw]
where you choose to worship.
30 For you will be like a tree whose leaves wither,
like an orchard[bx] that is unwatered.
31 The powerful will be like[by] a thread of yarn,
their deeds like a spark;
both will burn together,
and no one will put out the fire.
The Future Glory of Jerusalem
2 Here is the message about Judah and Jerusalem that was revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz.[bz]
2 In future days[ca]
the mountain of the Lord’s temple will endure[cb]
as the most important of mountains,
and will be the most prominent of hills.[cc]
All the nations will stream to it;
3 many peoples will come and say,
“Come, let us go up to the Lord’s mountain,
to the temple of the God of Jacob,
so[cd] he can teach us his requirements,[ce]
and[cf] we can follow his standards.”[cg]
For Zion will be the center for moral instruction;[ch]
the Lord’s message will issue from Jerusalem.
4 He will judge disputes between nations;
he will settle cases for many peoples.
They will beat their swords into plowshares,[ci]
and their spears into pruning hooks.[cj]
Nations will not take up the sword against other nations,
and they will no longer train for war.
5 O descendants[ck] of Jacob,
come, let us walk in the Lord’s guiding light.[cl]
The Lord’s Day of Judgment
6 Indeed, O Lord,[cm] you have abandoned your people,
the descendants of Jacob.
For diviners from the east are everywhere;[cn]
they consult omen readers like the Philistines do.[co]
Plenty of foreigners are around.[cp]
7 Their land is full of gold and silver;
there is no end to their wealth.[cq]
Their land is full of horses;
there is no end to their chariots.[cr]
8 Their land is full of worthless idols;
they worship[cs] the product of their own hands,
what their own fingers have fashioned.
9 Men bow down to them in homage,
they lie flat on the ground in worship.[ct]
Don’t spare them![cu]
10 Go up into the rocky cliffs,
hide in the ground.
Get away from the dreadful judgment of the Lord,[cv]
from his royal splendor!
11 Proud men will be brought low,
arrogant men will be humiliated;[cw]
the Lord alone will be exalted[cx]
in that day.
12 Indeed, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has planned a day of judgment,[cy]
for[cz] all the high and mighty,
for all who are proud—they will be humiliated;
13 for all the cedars of Lebanon,
that are so high and mighty,
for all the oaks of Bashan;[da]
14 for all the tall mountains,
for all the high hills,[db]
15 for every high tower,
for every fortified wall,
16 for all the large ships,[dc]
for all the impressive[dd] ships.[de]
17 Proud men will be humiliated,
arrogant men will be brought low;[df]
the Lord alone will be exalted[dg]
in that day.
18 The worthless idols will be completely eliminated.[dh]
19 They[di] will go into caves in the rocky cliffs
and into holes in the ground,[dj]
trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord[dk]
and his royal splendor,
when he rises up to terrify the earth.[dl]
20 At that time[dm] men will throw
their silver and gold idols,
which they made for themselves to worship,[dn]
into the caves where rodents and bats live,[do]
21 so they themselves can go into the crevices of the rocky cliffs
and the openings under the rocky overhangs,[dp]
trying to escape the dreadful judgment of the Lord[dq]
and his royal splendor,
when he rises up to terrify the earth.[dr]
22 Stop trusting in human beings,
whose life’s breath is in their nostrils.
For why should they be given special consideration?
Paul’s Authority from the Lord
10 Now I, Paul, appeal to you[a] personally[b] by the meekness and gentleness[c] of Christ (I who am meek[d] when present among[e] you, but am full of courage[f] toward you when away!)— 2 now I ask that when I am present I may not have to be bold with the confidence that (I expect) I will dare to use against some who consider us to be behaving[g] according to human standards.[h] 3 For though we live[i] as human beings,[j] we do not wage war according to human standards,[k] 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not human weapons,[l] but are made powerful by God[m] for tearing down strongholds.[n] We tear down arguments[o] 5 and every arrogant obstacle[p] that is raised up against the knowledge of God, and we take every thought captive to make it obey[q] Christ. 6 We are also ready to punish every act of disobedience,[r] whenever your obedience is complete. 7 You are looking at outward appearances.[s] If anyone is confident that he belongs to Christ, he should reflect on this again: Just as he himself belongs to Christ, so too do we. 8 For if I boast somewhat more about our authority that the Lord gave us[t] for building you up and not for tearing you down, I will not be ashamed of doing so.[u] 9 I do not want to seem as though I am trying to terrify you with my letters, 10 because some say, “His letters are weighty and forceful, but his physical presence is weak[v] and his speech is of no account.”[w] 11 Let such a person consider this: What we say[x] by letters when we are absent, we also are in actions when we are present.
Paul’s Mission
12 For we would not dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who recommend themselves. But when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are without understanding.[y] 13 But we will not boast beyond certain limits,[z] but will confine our boasting[aa] according to the limits of the work to which God has appointed us,[ab] that reaches even as far as you. 14 For we were not overextending ourselves, as though we did not reach as far as you, because we were the first to reach as far as you with the gospel about Christ.[ac] 15 Nor do we boast beyond certain limits[ad] in the work[ae] done by others, but we hope[af] that as your faith continues to grow, our work may be greatly expanded[ag] among you according to our limits,[ah] 16 so that we may preach the gospel in the regions that lie beyond you, and not boast of work already done in another person’s area. 17 But the one who boasts must boast in the Lord.[ai] 18 For it is not the person who commends himself who is approved, but the person the Lord commends.
Psalm 52[a]
For the music director, a well-written song[b] by David. It was written when Doeg the Edomite went and informed Saul: “David has arrived at the home of Ahimelech.”[c]
52 Why do you boast about your evil plans,[d] O powerful man?
God’s loyal love protects me all day long.[e]
2 Your tongue carries out your destructive plans;[f]
it is as effective as a sharp razor, O deceiver.[g]
3 You love evil more than good,
lies more than speaking the truth.[h] (Selah)
4 You love to use all the words that destroy,[i]
and the tongue that deceives.
5 Yet[j] God will make you a permanent heap of ruins.[k]
He will scoop you up[l] and remove you from your home;[m]
he will uproot you from the land of the living. (Selah)
6 When the godly see this, they will be filled with awe,
and will mock the evildoer, saying:[n]
7 “Look, here is the man who would not make[o] God his protector.
He trusted in his great wealth
and was confident about his plans to destroy others.”[p]
8 But I[q] am like a flourishing[r] olive tree in the house of God;
I continually[s] trust in God’s loyal love.
9 I will continually[t] thank you when[u] you execute judgment;[v]
I will rely on[w] you,[x] for your loyal followers know you are good.[y]
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