Isaiah 29
29
1Tragedy is coming to you Ariel, Ariel the city where David lived! Year after year you have your festivals. 2But I'm going to cause trouble for Ariel; the city will cry and mourn, it will be like an altar hearth#29:2. “Altar hearth”: the part where the sacrifice was burned, generally a messy area of animal remains and ash. In Hebrew the word Ariel can mean “altar” (Ezekiel 43:15-16) or “lion of God.” to me. 3I will surround you, I will besiege you with towers and build ramps to attack you. 4You will be brought down, you will speak from where you're lying on the ground, mumbling in the dust. Your words will come like a ghost from the grave; your voice will be a whisper from the dust.
5But then all your enemies will become like fine dust; all your cruel oppressors like chaff that's blown away. Then suddenly, in no time at all, 6the Lord Almighty will arrive with thunder, earthquake, and tremendous noise, with whirlwind, storm, and flames of fire that burn everything up. 7The nations besieging Ariel, attacking its fortifications and tormenting the people, they will all disappear as if it was a dream! 8It will be like someone hungry dreaming that they're eating but who wakes up still hungry. It will be like someone thirsty dreaming of drinking but who wakes up still weak and thirsty. This is what it will be like for all your enemies, the ones attacking Mount Zion.
9Be shocked and amazed! Make yourselves blind so you can't see! Get drunk, but not from wine! Stagger around, but not from beer! 10For the Lord has made you very sleepy, and he has shut the eyes and covered the heads of those who speak for God and see visions.
11This entire vision is like words in a scroll that is sealed shut. If you give it to someone who knows how to read and say, “Please read it,” they'll say, “I can't read it because it's sealed shut.” 12If you give it to someone who doesn't know how to read and say, “Please read it,” they'll say, “I don't know how to read.”
13The Lord says, “These people come and praise me with their words, and honor me with lip service, but their thoughts are miles away. Their worship of me only consists of them following rules people have taught them. 14So once again I will surprise these people with miracle upon miracle. The wisdom of the wise will die, and the insight of the insightful will disappear.”
15Tragedy is coming to people who take such trouble to hide their plans from the Lord. They work in the dark and say to themselves, “Nobody can see us, can they? Nobody will know, will they?”
16How perverse you are! It's as if the clay was thought of as making the potter! Should something made say to its maker, “You didn't make me”? Can the pot tell the potter, “You don't understand anything”?
17It won't be long and the forests of Lebanon will be turned into a productive field, and a productive field will seem like a forest. 18At that time the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and the eyes of the blind will see through the gloomy darkness what's written there.#29:18. “What's written there”: supplied for clarity. 19The humble will be even happier in the Lord, and the poor will find their joy in the Holy One of Israel. 20Cruel people will no longer exist, the scornful will vanish, and those looking to do evil will be destroyed— 21those who say things to trick others into sin, those who trap people by legal arguments in court, those who lie to mislead the innocent.
22So this is what the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, says to the descendants of Jacob: “You don't need to be ashamed anymore; your faces won't grow pale with fright any longer. 23When you see all your children and everything I've done for you, then you will regard my character as holy, and you will respect the Holy One of Jacob. You will have reverence for the God of Israel. 24Those who've gone astray will understand their mistakes; those who grumble will learn how to receive instruction.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com
Isaiah 29
29
The Siege of David’s City
1“Woe to Ariel # 29:1 Ariel is a name for the altar in the temple (see Ezek. 43:13–27, including footnote on 43:18). It is used as a metonymy for the entire city of Jerusalem. The meaning of Ariel is “lion of God” or “altar hearth.” —Ariel, the town where David encamped! # 29:1 Or “the town David besieged.”
Go ahead—keep your annual feasts,
and year after year celebrate your annual festivals.
2I will bring distress to Ariel and there will be great mourning.
Jerusalem will be to me as the meaning of the name Ariel—a burning altar hearth.
3I will lay siege to you on all sides, # 29:3 Or “Like David I will encamp against you” (LXX). encircling you with towers
and raising up my siege works against you.
4Brought low, you will speak from the dust of the earth.
Your voice will be heard speaking from the ground,
and like the voice of a ghost, you will whisper out of the dust. # 29:4 Isaiah is using a series of metaphors to describe Israel’s defeated condition, as though Israel is speaking out of the dust of defeat.
5Then suddenly, in an instant, your ruthless enemies
will become nothing more than dust in the wind
and your vile tyrants like wind-driven chaff!
6She will be visited by the Lord Yahweh,
Commander of Angel Armies,
with thunder, earthquake, and deafening noise,
with whirlwind, tempest, and the blaze of a consuming fire!
7As quickly as a fading dream or as fleeting as a vision of the night,
so will all the vast hordes of all the nations fade away
and all who war against Ariel # 29:7 Or “attack her and besiege her.” and her fortress disappear.
8Just as a hungry man dreams that he is eating
but wakes up still hungry, # 29:8 Or “Empty is his soul.”
or as a thirsty man dreams that he is drinking
but wakes up weak and still longing for water, # 29:8 Or “His soul is craving.”
so it will be for the vast hordes of all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.”
Insensitive to God
9Be totally shocked and amazed by what I am about to say to you:
“Blind yourselves—and be totally blind!
(They are drunk but not from wine.
They stagger but not from hard liquor.)
10For Yahweh has poured out over you
the spirit of a deep, deep sleep # 29:10 See Rom. 11:8. —
putting the covers over your slumbering seers # 29:10 Or “He has covered the heads of the seers.”
and rocking all your prophets to sleep.”
11This entire prophetic revelation will become to you like the words of a sealed book. If it’s given to one who can read it with the command “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t because it is sealed.” 12Or if it’s given to one who is illiterate with the command “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t because I cannot read.”
13This is what the Lord says about these people:
“They come near to me with hollow words
and honor me superficially with their lips;
all the while their hearts run far away from me!
Their worship is nothing more than man-made rules. # 29:13 Or “Their fear of me is motivated by man’s teaching [of a fear of punishment].” The Hebrew word for “teaching” is lamed, which traced back to its Semitic roots means “an oxgoad,” something used to punish or prod. It is teaching motivated by the fear of punishment.
14So therefore, I will again jolt this people awake
with astonishing wonders upon wonders!
And the wisdom of their wise ones will fail,
and the intelligent know-it-alls will have no explanations. # 29:14 Or “the discernment of the discerning ones will be kept hidden.” See 1 Cor. 1:18–31.
15Woe to you who think you can hide
your plan from the Lord Yahweh.
Ha! Do you actually think your secret schemes are so hidden
that you say, ‘Who sees us doing this?
No one knows what we’re doing!’
16Oh, how great is your perversion!
Who is more intelligent—the potter or the clay?
Should a created thing say to its creator,
‘You didn’t make # 29:16 Or “imagine” (Hb. yêtser). The root word of yêtser is yâtsar and has the primary meaning of “to form, fashion, frame, or make, especially as a potter.” Before you can form or frame something, it has to be imagined. The first use of yâtsar in the Bible is Yahweh forming man from the dust of the ground (see Gen. 2:7). me’?
Should a clay pot say to the potter, ‘You don’t understand’?”
Our Future Hope
17Before you know it, Lebanon will be transformed
into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field will seem like a forest. # 29:17 Isaiah frequently used Lebanon as a metaphor for mighty ones and those with great influence (see Isa. 2:13; 10:34; 35:2). This phrase refers to a restoration of God’s people who have experienced humiliation.
18In that day the deaf will begin to hear
the words that have been written, # 29:18 That is, their hearts are now open and tender toward God.
and out of the darkness and gloom,
the eyes of the blind will be opened to see.
19The meek will overflow with fresh joy in the Lord Yahweh,
and the poor will shout their praises
to the Holy One of Israel!
20For the terrible one # 29:20 See 2 Thess. 2:3–8. will be no more,
the scornful jester will not be found,
and all the lovers of evil # 29:20 Or “all the watchers of wrong [those diligent to do evil].” This would include those who use their political power or influence to harm others. will be cut off.
21Those who make the innocent appear guilty,
those who ensnare others with deceitful tactics,
and those who lie to keep the innocent from getting justice
will likewise be destroyed.
22So now, listen to what Yahweh, the God of Israel, who redeemed Abraham, has to say to Jacob’s tribes:
“My people # 29:22 Or “Jacob,” a metonymy for God’s people, Israel. will no longer be disgraced,
and their shame-faces will disappear.
23For when they see the miracle of the many children
that I give them, they will see me as holy and honor me. # 29:23 Or “they will sanctify my name.”
Yes, they will honor the Holy One of Jacob
and stand in awe of the God of Israel.
24Those who are in spiritual error
will come to understanding,
and those who are always complaining
will be glad to accept instruction.”
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