Old/New Testament
The Lord Invites Outsiders to Enter
56 This is what the Lord says,
“Promote[a] justice! Do what is right!
For I am ready to deliver you;
I am ready to vindicate you openly.[b]
2 The people who do this will be blessed,[c]
the people who commit themselves to obedience,[d]
who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it,
who refrain from doing anything that is wrong.[e]
3 No foreigner who becomes a follower of[f] the Lord should say,
‘The Lord will certainly[g] exclude me from his people.’
The eunuch should not say,
‘Look, I am like a dried-up tree.’”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“For the eunuchs who observe my Sabbaths
and choose what pleases me
and are faithful to[h] my covenant,
5 I will set up within my temple and my walls a monument[i]
that will be better than sons and daughters.
I will set up a permanent monument[j] for them that will remain.
6 As for foreigners who become followers of[k] the Lord and serve him,
who love the name of the Lord and want to be his servants—
all who observe the Sabbath and do not defile it,
and who are faithful to[l] my covenant—
7 I will bring them to my holy mountain;
I will make them happy in the temple where people pray to me.[m]
Their burnt offerings and sacrifices will be accepted on my altar,
for my temple will be known as a temple where all nations may pray.”[n]
8 The Sovereign Lord says this,
the one who gathers the dispersed of Israel:
“I will still gather them up.”[o]
The Lord Denounces Israel’s Paganism
9 All you wild animals in the fields, come and devour,
all you wild animals in the forest!
10 All their watchmen[p] are blind,
they are unaware.[q]
All of them are like mute dogs,
unable to bark.
They pant,[r] lie down,
and love to snooze.
11 The dogs have big appetites;
they are never full.[s]
They are shepherds who have no understanding;
they all go their own way,
each one looking for monetary gain.[t]
12 Each one says,[u]
‘Come on, I’ll get some wine!
Let’s guzzle some beer!
Tomorrow will be just like today!
We’ll have everything we want!’[v]
57 The godly[w] perish,
but no one cares.[x]
Honest people disappear,[y]
when no one[z] minds[aa]
that the godly[ab] disappear[ac] because of[ad] evil.[ae]
2 Those who live uprightly enter a place of peace;
they rest on their beds.[af]
3 “But approach, you sons of omen readers,
you offspring of adulteresses and prostitutes![ag]
4 At whom are you laughing?
At whom are you opening your mouth
and sticking out your tongue?
You are the children of rebels,
the offspring of liars,[ah]
5 you who inflame your lusts[ai] among the oaks[aj] and under every green tree,
who slaughter children near the streams under the rocky overhangs.[ak]
6 Among the smooth stones of the stream are the idols you love;
they, they are the object of your devotion.[al]
You pour out liquid offerings to them,
you make an offering.
Because of these things how can I relent from judgment?[am]
7 On every high, elevated hill you prepare your bed;
you go up there to offer sacrifices.
8 Behind the door and doorpost you put your symbols.[an]
Indeed,[ao] you depart from me[ap] and go up
and invite them into bed with you.[aq]
You purchase favors from them;[ar]
you love their bed,
and gaze longingly[as] on their naked bodies.[at]
9 You take olive oil as tribute[au] to your king,[av]
along with many perfumes.[aw]
You send your messengers to a distant place;
you go all the way to Sheol.[ax]
10 Because of the long distance you must travel, you get tired,[ay]
but you do not say, ‘I give up.’[az]
You get renewed energy,[ba]
so you don’t collapse.[bb]
11 Whom are you worried about?
Whom do you fear, that you would act so deceitfully
and not remember me
or think about me?[bc]
Because I have been silent for so long,[bd]
you are not afraid of me.[be]
12 I will denounce your so-called righteousness and your deeds,[bf]
but they will not help you.
13 When you cry out for help, let your idols[bg] help you!
The wind blows them all away,[bh]
a breeze carries them away.[bi]
But the one who looks to me for help[bj] will inherit the land
and will have access to[bk] my holy mountain.”
14 He says,[bl]
“Build it! Build it! Clear a way!
Remove all the obstacles out of the way of my people!”
15 For this is what the high and exalted one says,
the one who rules[bm] forever, whose name is holy:
“I dwell in an exalted and holy place,
but also with the discouraged and humiliated,[bn]
in order to cheer up the humiliated
and to encourage the discouraged.[bo]
16 For I will not be hostile[bp] forever
or perpetually angry,
for then man’s spirit would grow faint before me,[bq]
the life-giving breath I created.
17 I was angry because of their sinful greed;
I attacked them and angrily rejected them,[br]
yet they remained disobedient and stubborn.[bs]
18 I have seen their behavior,[bt]
but I will heal them. I will lead[bu] them,
and I will provide comfort[bv] to them and those who mourn with them.[bw]
19 I am the one who gives them reason to celebrate.[bx]
Complete prosperity[by] is available both to those who are far away and those who are nearby,”
says the Lord, “and I will heal them.
20 But the wicked are like a surging sea
that is unable to be quiet;
its waves toss up mud and sand.
21 There will be no prosperity,” says my God, “for the wicked.”
The Lord Desires Genuine Devotion
58 “Shout loudly! Don’t be quiet!
Yell as loudly as a trumpet!
Confront my people with their rebellious deeds;[bz]
confront Jacob’s family with their sin.[ca]
2 They seek me day after day;
they want to know my requirements,[cb]
like a nation that does what is right
and does not reject the law of their God.
They ask me for just decrees;
they want to be near God.
3 They lament,[cc] ‘Why don’t you notice when we fast?
Why don’t you pay attention when we humble ourselves?’
Look, at the same time you fast, you satisfy your selfish desires,[cd]
you oppress your workers.[ce]
4 Look, your fasting is accompanied by[cf] arguments, brawls,
and fistfights.[cg]
Do not fast as you do today,
trying to make your voice heard in heaven.
5 Is this really the kind of fasting I want?[ch]
Do I want a day when people merely humble themselves,[ci]
bowing their heads like a reed
and stretching out[cj] on sackcloth and ashes?
Is this really what you call a fast,
a day that is pleasing to the Lord?
6 No, this is the kind of fast I want:[ck]
I want you[cl] to remove the sinful chains,
to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke,
to set free the oppressed,[cm]
and to break every burdensome yoke.
7 I want you[cn] to share your food with the hungry
and to provide shelter for homeless, oppressed people.[co]
When you see someone naked, clothe them!
Don’t turn your back on your own flesh and blood.[cp]
8 Then your light will shine like the sunrise;[cq]
your restoration will quickly arrive;[cr]
your godly behavior[cs] will go before you,
and the Lord’s splendor will be your rear guard.[ct]
9 Then you will call out, and the Lord will respond;
you will cry out, and he will reply, ‘Here I am.’
You must[cu] remove the burdensome yoke from among you
and stop pointing fingers and speaking sinfully.
10 You must[cv] actively help the hungry
and feed the oppressed.[cw]
Then your light will dispel the darkness,[cx]
and your darkness will be transformed into noonday.[cy]
11 The Lord will continually lead you;
he will feed you even in parched regions.[cz]
He will give you renewed strength,[da]
and you will be like a well-watered garden,
like a spring that continually produces water.
12 Your perpetual ruins will be rebuilt;[db]
you will reestablish the ancient foundations.
You will be called, ‘The one who repairs broken walls,
the one who makes the streets inhabitable again.’[dc]
13 You must[dd] observe the Sabbath[de]
rather than doing anything you please on my holy day.[df]
You must look forward to the Sabbath[dg]
and treat the Lord’s holy day with respect.[dh]
You must treat it with respect by refraining from your normal activities,
and by refraining from your selfish pursuits and from making business deals.[di]
14 Then you will find joy in your relationship to the Lord,[dj]
and I will give you great prosperity,[dk]
and cause crops to grow on the land I gave to your ancestor Jacob.”[dl]
Know for certain that the Lord has spoken.[dm]
The Day of the Lord
2 Now regarding the arrival[a] of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to be with him,[b] we ask you, brothers and sisters,[c] 2 not to be easily[d] shaken from your composure or disturbed by any kind of spirit or message or letter allegedly from us,[e] to the effect that the day of the Lord is already here. 3 Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not arrive until the rebellion comes[f] and the man of lawlessness[g] is revealed, the son of destruction.[h] 4 He[i] opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, and as a result he takes his seat[j] in God’s temple, displaying himself as God.[k] 5 Surely you recall[l] that I used to tell you these things while I was still with you. 6 And so[m] you know what holds him back,[n] so that he will be revealed in his own time. 7 For the hidden power of lawlessness[o] is already at work. However, the one who holds him back[p] will do so until he is taken out of the way, 8 and then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord[q] will destroy by the breath of his mouth and wipe out by the manifestation of his arrival. 9 The arrival of the lawless one[r] will be by Satan’s working with all kinds of miracles[s] and signs and false wonders, 10 and with every kind of evil deception directed against[t] those who are perishing, because they found no place in their hearts for the truth[u] so as to be saved. 11 Consequently[v] God sends on them a deluding influence[w] so that they will believe what is false. 12 And so[x] all of them who have not believed the truth but have delighted in evil will be condemned.[y]
Call to Stand Firm
13 But we ought to thank God always for you, brothers and sisters[z] loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning[aa] for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. 14 He called you to this salvation[ab] through our gospel, so that you may possess the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.[ac] 15 Therefore, brothers and sisters,[ad] stand firm and hold on to the traditions that we taught you, whether by speech or by letter.[ae] 16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who loved us and by grace gave us eternal comfort and good hope, 17 encourage your hearts and strengthen you[af] in every good thing you do or say.[ag]
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