Isaiah 33
33
Jerusalem will be safe
1You defeated my people.
Now you're in for trouble!
You've never been destroyed,
but you will be destroyed;
you've never been betrayed,
but you will be betrayed.
When you have finished
destroying and betraying,
you will be destroyed
and betrayed in return.
2Please, LORD, be kind to us!
We depend on you.
Make us strong each morning,
and come to save us
when we are in trouble.
3Nations scatter when you roar
and show your greatness.#33.3 greatness: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 3.
4We attack our enemies
like swarms of locusts;#33.4 locusts: Insects like grasshoppers that travel in swarms and cause great damage to crops.
we take everything
that belongs to them.#33.4 them: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 4.
5You, LORD, are above all others,
and you live in the heavens.
You have brought justice
and fairness to Jerusalem;
6you are the foundation
on which we stand today.
You always save us and give
true wisdom and knowledge.
Nothing means more to us#33.6 Nothing…us: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
than obeying you.
The LORD will do something
7Listen! Our bravest soldiers
are running through the streets,
screaming for help.#33.7 Listen…help: Or “The LORD heard our shouts and will come to help us.”
Our messengers hoped for peace,
but came home crying.
8No one travels any more;
every road is empty.
Treaties are broken,
and no respect is shown
to any who keep promises.#33.8 to any…promises: The Dead Sea Scrolls; the Standard Hebrew Text “to those in the cities”.
9Fields are dry and barren;
Mount Lebanon wilts
with shame.
Sharon Valley is a desert;
the forests of Bashan and Carmel
have lost their leaves.
10But the LORD says,
“Now I will do something
and be greatly praised.
11Your deeds are straw
that will be set on fire
by your very own breath.
12You will be burnt to ashes
like thorns in a fire.
13Everyone, both far and near,
come, look at what I have done.
See my mighty power!”
Punishment and rewards
14Those terrible sinners
on Mount Zion tremble
as they ask in fear,
“How can we possibly live
where a raging fire
never stops burning?”
15But there will be rewards
for those who live right
and tell the truth,
for those who refuse
to take money by force
or accept bribes,
for all who hate murder
and violent crimes.
16They will live in a fortress
high on a rocky cliff,
where they will have food
and plenty of water.
The LORD is our King
17With your own eyes
you will see the glorious King;
you will see his kingdom
reaching far and wide.
18Then you will ask yourself,
“Where are those officials
who terrified us and forced us
to pay such heavy taxes?”
19You will never again have to see
the proud people who spoke
a strange and foreign language
you could not understand.
20Look to Mount Zion
where we celebrate
our religious festivals.
You will see Jerusalem,
secure as a tent with pegs
that cannot be pulled up
and fastened with ropes
that can never be broken.
21Our wonderful LORD
will be with us!
There will be deep rivers
and wide streams
safe from enemy ships.#33.21 safe…ships: This probably means that Jerusalem will have a lot of water, without the danger of attacks from enemy ships.
The LORD is our judge
22The LORD is our judge
and our ruler;
the LORD is our king
and will keep us safe.
23But your nation#33.23 your nation: Possibly Judah or Assyria. is a ship
with its rigging loose,
its mast shaky,
and its sail not spread.
Some day even you who are lame
will take everything you want
from your enemies.
24The LORD will forgive your sins,
and none of you will say,
“I feel ill.”
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Isaiah 33: CEVUK
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012
Isaiah 33
33
1Woe to you, destroyer,
who yourself have not been destroyed;
you treacherous one,
with whom none has dealt treacherously!
When you have ceased to destroy,
you will be destroyed;
and when you have made an end of dealing treacherously,
you will be dealt with treacherously.
2O Lord, be gracious to us; we wait for thee.
Be our arm every morning,
our salvation in the time of trouble.
3At the thunderous noise peoples flee,
at the lifting up of thyself nations are scattered;
4and spoil is gathered as the caterpillar gathers;
as locusts leap, men leap upon it.
5The Lord is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he will fill Zion with justice and righteousness;
6and he will be the stability of your times,
abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge;
the fear of the Lord is his treasure.
7Behold, the valiant ones#33.7 The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain cry without;
the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8The highways lie waste,
the wayfaring man ceases.
Covenants are broken,
witnesses#33.8 One ancient Ms: Heb cities are despised,
there is no regard for man.
9The land mourns and languishes;
Lebanon is confounded and withers away;
Sharon is like a desert;
and Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.
10“Now I will arise,” says the Lord,
“now I will lift myself up;
now I will be exalted.
11You conceive chaff, you bring forth stubble;
your breath is a fire that will consume you.
12And the peoples will be as if burned to lime,
like thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.”
13Hear, you who are far off, what I have done;
and you who are near, acknowledge my might.
14The sinners in Zion are afraid;
trembling has seized the godless:
“Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire?
Who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings?”
15He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly,
who despises the gain of oppressions,
who shakes his hands, lest they hold a bribe,
who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed
and shuts his eyes from looking upon evil,
16he will dwell on the heights;
his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks;
his bread will be given him, his water will be sure.
17Your eyes will see the king in his beauty;
they will behold a land that stretches afar.
18Your mind will muse on the terror:
“Where is he who counted, where is he who weighed the tribute?
Where is he who counted the towers?”
19You will see no more the insolent people,
the people of an obscure speech which you cannot comprehend,
stammering in a tongue which you cannot understand.
20Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts!
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
a quiet habitation, an immovable tent,
whose stakes will never be plucked up,
nor will any of its cords be broken.
21But there the Lord in majesty will be for us
a place of broad rivers and streams,
where no galley with oars can go,
nor stately ship can pass.
22For the Lord is our judge, the Lord is our ruler,
the Lord is our king; he will save us.
23Your tackle hangs loose;
it cannot hold the mast firm in its place,
or keep the sail spread out.
Then prey and spoil in abundance will be divided;
even the lame will take the prey.
24And no inhabitant will say, “I am sick”;
the people who dwell there will be forgiven their iniquity.
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America