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A Child is Born for a Sign
8 The Lord told me, “Take a large tablet[a] and inscribe these words[b] on it with an ordinary stylus:[c] ‘Maher Shalal Hash Baz.’[d] 2 Then I will summon[e] as my reliable witnesses Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah.” 3 I then approached the prophetess for marital relations;[f] she conceived and gave birth to a son. The Lord told me, “Name him Maher Shalal Hash Baz, 4 for before the child knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.”[g]
5 The Lord spoke to me again: 6 “These people[h] have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah[i] and melt in fear over Rezin and the son of Remaliah.[j] 7 So look, the Lord[k] is bringing up against them the turbulent and mighty waters of the Euphrates River[l]—the king of Assyria and all his majestic power. It will reach flood stage and overflow its banks.[m] 8 It will spill into Judah, flooding and engulfing, as it reaches to the necks of its victims. He will spread his wings out over your entire land,[n] O Immanuel.”[o]
9 You will be broken,[p] O nations;
you will be shattered![q]
Pay attention, all you distant lands of the earth.
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered!
Get ready for battle, and you will be shattered![r]
10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted.
Issue your orders, but they will not be executed![s]
For God is with us![t]
The Lord Encourages Isaiah
11 Indeed this is what the Lord told me quite forcefully.[u] He warned me not to act like these people:[v]
12 “Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word.[w]
Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.
13 You must recognize the authority of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.[x]
He is the one you must respect;
he is the one you must fear.[y]
14 He will become a sanctuary,[z]
but a stone that makes a person trip,
and a rock that makes one stumble—
to the two houses of Israel.[aa]
He will become[ab] a trap and a snare
to the residents of Jerusalem.
15 Many will stumble over the stone and the rock,[ac]
and will fall and be seriously injured,
and will be ensnared and captured.”
16 Tie up the scroll as legal evidence,[ad]
seal the official record of God’s instructions and give it to my followers.[ae]
17 I will wait patiently for the Lord,
who has rejected the family of Jacob;[af]
I will wait for him.
18 Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me[ag] are reminders and object lessons[ah] in Israel, sent from the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, who lives on Mount Zion.
Darkness Turns to Light as an Ideal King Arrives
19 [ai] They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations.[aj] Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?”[ak] 20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen.[al] Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened.[am] 21 They will pass through the land[an] destitute and starving. Their hunger will make them angry,[ao] and they will curse their king and their God[ap] as they look upward. 22 When one looks out over the land, he sees[aq] distress and darkness, gloom[ar] and anxiety, darkness and people forced from the land.[as] 9 1 (8:23)[at] The gloom will be dispelled for those who were anxious.[au]
In earlier times he[av] humiliated
the land of Zebulun,
and the land of Naphtali;[aw]
but now he brings honor[ax]
to the way of the sea,
the region beyond the Jordan,
and Galilee of the nations.[ay]
2 (9:1) The people walking in darkness
see a bright light;[az]
light shines
on those who live in a land of deep darkness.[ba]
3 You[bb] have enlarged the nation;
you give them great joy.[bc]
They rejoice in your presence
as harvesters rejoice;
as warriors celebrate[bd] when they divide up the plunder.
4 For their oppressive yoke
and the club that strikes their shoulders,
the cudgel the oppressor uses on them,[be]
you have shattered, as in the day of Midian’s defeat.[bf]
5 Indeed every boot that marches and shakes the earth[bg]
and every garment dragged through blood
is used as fuel for the fire.
6 For a child has been[bh] born to us,
a son has been given to us.
He shoulders responsibility[bi]
and is called[bj]
Wonderful Adviser,[bk]
Mighty God,[bl]
Everlasting Father,[bm]
Prince of Peace.[bn]
7 His dominion will be vast,[bo]
and he will bring immeasurable prosperity.[bp]
He will rule on David’s throne
and over David’s kingdom,[bq]
establishing it[br] and strengthening it
by promoting justice and fairness,[bs]
from this time forward and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies[bt] will accomplish this.
God’s Judgment Intensifies
8 [bu] The Lord[bv] decreed judgment[bw] on Jacob,
and it fell on Israel.[bx]
9 All the people were aware[by] of it,
the people of Ephraim and those living in Samaria.[bz]
Yet with pride and an arrogant attitude, they said,[ca]
10 “The bricks have fallen,
but we will rebuild with chiseled stone;
the sycamore fig trees have been cut down,
but we will replace them with cedars.”[cb]
11 Then the Lord provoked[cc] their adversaries to attack them,[cd]
he stirred up[ce] their enemies—
12 Syria from the east,
and the Philistines from the west;
they gobbled up Israelite territory.[cf]
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again.[cg]
13 The people did not return to the one who struck them,
they did not seek reconciliation[ch] with the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
14 So the Lord cut off Israel’s head and tail,
both the shoots and stalk[ci] in one day.
15 The leaders and the highly respected people[cj] are the head,
the prophets who teach lies are the tail.
16 The leaders of this nation were misleading people,
and the people being led were destroyed.[ck]
17 So the Lord was not pleased[cl] with their young men,
he took no pity[cm] on their orphans and widows;
for the whole nation was godless[cn] and did wicked things,[co]
every mouth was speaking disgraceful words.[cp]
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again.[cq]
18 For[cr] evil burned like a fire,[cs]
it consumed thorns and briers;
it burned up the thickets of the forest,
and they went up in smoke.[ct]
19 Because of the anger of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, the land was scorched,[cu]
and the people became fuel for the fire.[cv]
People had no compassion on one another.[cw]
20 They devoured[cx] on the right, but were still hungry;
they ate on the left, but were not satisfied.
People even ate[cy] the flesh of their own arm![cz]
21 Manasseh fought against[da] Ephraim,
and Ephraim against Manasseh;
together they fought against Judah.
Despite all this, his anger does not subside,
and his hand is ready to strike again.[db]
Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh
12 It is necessary to go on boasting.[a] Though it is not profitable, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord. 2 I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago (whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows) was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know that this man (whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, God knows) 4 was caught up into paradise[b] and heard things too sacred to be put into words,[c] things that a person[d] is not permitted to speak. 5 On behalf of such an individual I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except about my weaknesses. 6 For even if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I would be telling[e] the truth, but I refrain from this so that no one may regard[f] me beyond what he sees in me or what he hears from me, 7 even because of the extraordinary character of the revelations. Therefore,[g] so that I would not become arrogant, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to trouble[h] me—so that I would not become arrogant.[i] 8 I asked the Lord three times about this, that it would depart from me. 9 But[j] he said to me, “My grace is enough[k] for you, for my[l] power is made perfect[m] in weakness.” So then, I will boast most gladly[n] about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in[o] me. 10 Therefore I am content with[p] weaknesses, with insults, with troubles, with persecutions and difficulties[q] for the sake of Christ, for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.
Psalm 55[a]
For the music director, to be accompanied by stringed instruments; a well-written song[b] by David.
55 Listen, O God, to my prayer.
Do not ignore[c] my appeal for mercy.
2 Pay attention to me and answer me.
I am so upset[d] and distressed,[e] I am beside myself,[f]
3 because of what the enemy says,[g]
and because of how the wicked[h] pressure me,[i]
for they hurl trouble[j] down upon me[k]
and angrily attack me.
4 My heart beats violently[l] within me;
the horrors of death overcome me.[m]
5 Fear and panic overpower me;[n]
terror overwhelms[o] me.
6 I say,[p] “I wish I had wings like a dove.
I would fly away and settle in a safe place.
7 Look, I will escape to a distant place;
I will stay in the wilderness. (Selah)
8 I will hurry off to a place that is safe
from the strong wind[q] and the gale.”
9 Confuse them,[r] O Lord.
Frustrate their plans.[s]
For I see violence and conflict in the city.
10 Day and night they walk around on its walls,[t]
while wickedness and destruction[u] are within it.
11 Disaster is within it;
violence[v] and deceit do not depart from its public square.
12 Indeed,[w] it is not an enemy who insults me,
or else I could bear it;
it is not one who hates me who arrogantly taunts me,[x]
or else I could hide from him.
13 But it is you,[y] a man like me,[z]
my close friend in whom I confided.[aa]
14 We would share personal thoughts with each other;[ab]
in God’s temple we would walk together among the crowd.
15 May death destroy them.[ac]
May they go down alive into Sheol.[ad]
For evil is in their dwelling place and in their midst.
16 As for me, I will call out to God,
and the Lord will deliver me.
17 During the evening, morning, and noontime
I will lament and moan,[ae]
and he will hear[af] me.[ag]
18 He will rescue[ah] me and protect me from those who attack me,[ai]
even though[aj] they greatly outnumber me.[ak]
19 God, the one who has reigned as king from long ago,
will hear and humiliate them.[al] (Selah)
They refuse to change,
and do not fear God.[am]
20 He[an] attacks[ao] his friends;[ap]
he breaks his solemn promises to them.[aq]
21 His words are as smooth as butter,[ar]
but he harbors animosity in his heart.[as]
His words seem softer than oil,
but they are really like sharp swords.[at]
22 Throw your burden[au] upon the Lord,
and he will sustain you.[av]
He will never allow the godly to be shaken.[aw]
23 But you, O God, will bring them[ax] down to the deep Pit.[ay]
Violent and deceitful people[az] will not live even half a normal lifespan.[ba]
But as for me, I trust in you.
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