Isaiah 26
26
Judah's Song of Victory
1On that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah:
We have a strong city;
he sets up victory
like walls and bulwarks.
2Open the gates,
so that the righteous nation that keeps faith
may enter in.
3Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace—
in peace because they trust in you.
4Trust in the Lord forever,
for in the Lord God#26.4 Heb in Yah, the Lord
you have an everlasting rock.
5For he has brought low
the inhabitants of the height;
the lofty city he lays low.
He lays it low to the ground,
casts it to the dust.
6The foot tramples it,
the feet of the poor,
the steps of the needy.
7The way of the righteous is level;
O Just One, you make smooth the path of the righteous.
8In the path of your judgments,
O Lord, we wait for you;
your name and your renown
are the soul's desire.
9My soul yearns for you in the night,
my spirit within me earnestly seeks you.
For when your judgments are in the earth,
the inhabitants of the world learn righteousness.
10If favor is shown to the wicked,
they do not learn righteousness;
in the land of uprightness they deal perversely
and do not see the majesty of the Lord.
11O Lord, your hand is lifted up,
but they do not see it.
Let them see your zeal for your people, and be ashamed.
Let the fire for your adversaries consume them.
12O Lord, you will ordain peace for us,
for indeed, all that we have done, you have done for us.
13O Lord our God,
other lords besides you have ruled over us,
but we acknowledge your name alone.
14The dead do not live;
shades do not rise—
because you have punished and destroyed them,
and wiped out all memory of them.
15But you have increased the nation, O Lord,
you have increased the nation; you are glorified;
you have enlarged all the borders of the land.
16O Lord, in distress they sought you,
they poured out a prayer#26.16 Meaning of Heb uncertain
when your chastening was on them.
17Like a woman with child,
who writhes and cries out in her pangs
when she is near her time,
so were we because of you, O Lord;
18we were with child, we writhed,
but we gave birth only to wind.
We have won no victories on earth,
and no one is born to inhabit the world.
19Your dead shall live, their corpses#26.19 Cn Compare Syr Tg: Heb my corpse shall rise.
O dwellers in the dust, awake and sing for joy!
For your dew is a radiant dew,
and the earth will give birth to those long dead.#26.19 Heb to the shades
20Come, my people, enter your chambers,
and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourselves for a little while
until the wrath is past.
21For the Lord comes out from his place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;
the earth will disclose the blood shed on it,
and will no longer cover its slain.
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Isaiah 26: NRSV-CI
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New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 26
26
A Song of Victory
1The time is coming when the people of Judah will sing this song:
“Our city#26.1 city: Probably Jerusalem. is protected.
The Lord is our fortress,
and he gives us victory.
2Open the city gates
for a law-abiding nation
that is faithful to God.
3The Lord gives perfect peace
to those whose faith is firm.
4So always trust the Lord
because he is forever
our mighty rock.#26.4 mighty rock: See the note at 17.10.
5God has put down our enemies
in their mountain city#26.5 our enemies … city: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
and rubbed it in the dirt.
6Now the poor and abused
trample all over that city.”
The Lord Can Be Trusted
7Our Lord, you always do right,
and you make the path smooth
for those who obey you.
8You are the one we trust
to bring about justice;
above all else we want
your name to be honored.
9Throughout the night,
my heart searches for you,
because your decisions
show everyone on this earth
how to live right.
10Even when the wicked
are treated with mercy
in this land of justice,
they do wrong and are blind
to your glory, our Lord.
11 #
He 10.27. Your hand is raised and ready
to punish them,
but they don't see it.
Put them to shame!
Show how much you care for us
and throw them into the fire
intended for your enemies.
12You will give us peace, Lord,
because everything we have done
was by your power.
13Others have ruled over us
besides you, our Lord God,
but we obey only you.
14Those enemies are now dead
and can never live again.
You have punished them—
they are destroyed,
completely forgotten.
15Our nation has grown
because of you, our Lord.
We have more land than before,
and you are honored.
The Lord Gives Life to the Dead
16When you punished our people,
they turned and prayed
to you, our Lord.#26.16 Lord: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 16.
17Because of what you did to us,
we suffered like a woman
about to give birth.
18But instead of having a child,
our terrible pain
produced only wind.
We have won no victories,
and we have no descendants
to take over the earth.
19Your people will rise to life!
Tell them to leave their graves
and celebrate with shouts.
You refresh the earth
like morning dew;
you give life to the dead.
20Go inside and lock the doors,
my people.
Hide there for a little while,
until the Lord
is no longer angry.
The Earth and the Sea Will Be Punished
21The Lord will come out
to punish everyone on earth
for their sins.
And when he does,
those who did violent crimes
will be known and punished.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.