Old/New Testament
39 Soon afterwards, the king of Babylon (Merodach-baladan, the son of Baladan) sent Hezekiah a present and his best wishes,[a] for he had heard that Hezekiah had been very sick and now was well again. 2 Hezekiah appreciated this and took the envoys from Babylon on a tour of the palace, showing them his treasure-house full of silver, gold, spices, and perfumes. He took them into his jewel rooms, too, and opened to them all his treasures—everything.
3 Then Isaiah the prophet came to the king and said, “What did they say? Where are they from?”
“From far away in Babylon,” Hezekiah replied.
4 “How much have they seen?” asked Isaiah.
And Hezekiah replied, “I showed them everything I own, all my priceless treasures.”
5 Then Isaiah said to him, “Listen to this message from the Lord Almighty:
6 “The time is coming when everything you have—all the treasures stored up by your fathers—will be carried off to Babylon. Nothing will be left. 7 And some of your own sons will become slaves, yes, eunuchs, in the palace of the king of Babylon.”
8 “All right,” Hezekiah replied. “Whatever the Lord says is good. At least there will be peace during my lifetime!”
40 “Comfort, yes, comfort my people,” says your God. 2 “Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and tell her that her sad days are gone. Her sins are pardoned, and I have punished her in full for all her sins.”
3 Listen! I hear the voice of someone shouting, “Make a road for the Lord through the wilderness; make him a straight, smooth road through the desert. 4 Fill the valleys; level the hills; straighten out the crooked paths, and smooth off the rough spots in the road. 5 The glory of the Lord will be seen by all mankind together.” The Lord has spoken—it shall be.
6 The voice says, “Shout!”
“What shall I shout?” I asked.
“Shout that man is like the grass that dies away, and all his beauty fades like dying flowers. 7 The grass withers, the flower fades beneath the breath of God. And so it is with fragile man. 8 The grass withers, the flowers fade, but the word of our God shall stand forever.”
9 O crier of good news, shout to Jerusalem from the mountaintops! Shout louder—don’t be afraid—tell the cities of Judah, “Your God is coming!” 10 Yes, the Lord God is coming with mighty power; he will rule with awesome strength. See, his reward is with him, to each as he has done. 11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd; he will carry the lambs in his arms and gently lead the ewes with young.
12 Who else has held the oceans in his hands and measured off the heavens with his ruler? Who else knows the weight of all the earth and weighs the mountains and the hills? 13 Who can advise the Spirit of the Lord or be his teacher or give him counsel? 14 Has he ever needed anyone’s advice? Did he need instruction as to what is right and best? 15 No, for all the peoples of the world are nothing in comparison with him—they are but a drop in the bucket, dust on the scales. He picks up the islands as though they had no weight at all. 16 All of Lebanon’s forests do not contain sufficient fuel to consume a sacrifice large enough to honor him, nor are all its animals enough to offer to our God. 17 All the nations are as nothing to him; in his eyes they are less than nothing—mere emptiness and froth.
18 How can we describe God? With what can we compare him? 19 With an idol? An idol made from a mold, overlaid with gold, and with silver chains around its neck? 20 The man too poor to buy expensive gods like that will find a tree free from rot and hire a man to carve a face on it, and that’s his god—a god that cannot even move!
21 Are you so ignorant? Are you so deaf to the words of God—the words he gave before the world began? Have you never heard nor understood? 22 It is God who sits above the circle of the earth. (The people below must seem to him like grasshoppers!) He is the one who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them. 23 He dooms the great men of the world and brings them all to naught. 24 They hardly get started, barely take root, when he blows on them and their work withers, and the wind carries them off like straw.
25 “With whom will you compare me? Who is my equal?” asks the Holy One.
26 Look up into the heavens! Who created all these stars? As a shepherd leads his sheep,[b] calling each by its pet name, and counts them to see that none are lost or strayed, so God does with stars and planets!
27 O Jacob, O Israel, how can you say that the Lord doesn’t see your troubles and isn’t being fair? 28 Don’t you yet understand? Don’t you know by now that the everlasting God, the Creator of the farthest parts of the earth, never grows faint or weary? No one can fathom the depths of his understanding. 29 He gives power to the tired and worn out, and strength to the weak. 30 Even the youths shall be exhausted, and the young men will all give up. 31 But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength. They shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.
4 You slave owners must be just and fair to all your slaves. Always remember that you, too, have a Master in heaven who is closely watching you.
2 Don’t be weary in prayer; keep at it; watch for God’s answers, and remember to be thankful when they come. 3 Don’t forget to pray for us too, that God will give us many chances to preach the Good News of Christ for which I am here in jail. 4 Pray that I will be bold enough to tell it freely and fully and make it plain, as, of course, I should.
5 Make the most of your chances to tell others the Good News. Be wise in all your contacts with them. 6 Let your conversation be gracious as well as sensible, for then you will have the right answer for everyone.
7 Tychicus, our much-loved brother, will tell you how I am getting along. He is a hard worker and serves the Lord with me. 8 I have sent him on this special trip just to see how you are and to comfort and encourage you. 9 I am also sending Onesimus, a faithful and much-loved brother, one of your own people. He and Tychicus will give you all the latest news.
10 Aristarchus, who is with me here as a prisoner, sends you his love, and so does Mark, a relative of Barnabas. And as I said before, give Mark a hearty welcome[a] if he comes your way. 11 Jesus Justus also sends his love. These are the only Jewish Christians working with me here, and what a comfort they have been!
12 Epaphras, from your city, a servant of Christ Jesus, sends you his love. He is always earnestly praying for you, asking God to make you strong and perfect and to help you know his will in everything you do. 13 I can assure you that he has worked hard for you with his prayers, and also for the Christians in Laodicea and Hierapolis.
14 Dear Doctor Luke sends his love, and so does Demas.
15 Please give my greeting to the Christian friends at Laodicea, and to Nymphas, and to those who meet in his home. 16 By the way, after you have read this letter, will you pass it on to the church at Laodicea? And read the letter I wrote to them. 17 And say to Archippus, “Be sure that you do all the Lord has told you to.”
18 Here is my own greeting in my own handwriting: Remember me here in jail. May God’s blessings surround you.
Sincerely, Paul
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.