Isaiah 24
24
City of chaos falls
1Look! The LORD will devastate the earth and destroy it,
will twist its face and scatter its inhabitants.
2It will be the same for the people and for the priest;
for the slave and for his master;
for the female servant and for her mistress;
for the buyer and for the seller;
for the lender and for the borrower;
for the creditor and for the debtor.
3The earth will be devastated, totally devastated;
it will be destroyed, completely destroyed
because the LORD has said it would be so.
4The earth dries up and wilts;
the world withers and wilts;
the heavens wither away with the earth.
5The earth lies polluted under its inhabitants,
for they have disobeyed instruction,
swept aside law,
and broken the ancient covenant.
6Therefore, a curse devours the earth; its inhabitants suffer for their guilt.
Therefore, the earth’s inhabitants dwindle; very few are left.
7The wine dries up;
the vine withers;
all the merry-hearted groan.
8The joyous tambourines have ceased;
the roar of partiers has stopped;
the joyous harp has ceased.
9No one drinks wine or sings;
beer is bitter to its drinkers.
10The town is in chaos, broken;
every house is shut, without entrance.
11There is a cry for wine in the streets.
All joy has reached its dusk;
happiness is exiled from the earth.
12Ruin remains in the city,
and the gate is battered to wreckage.
13It will be like this in the central part of the land and among the peoples,
like an olive tree that has been shaken,
like remains from the grape harvest.
14They raise their voice;
they sing with joy;
from the west they will shout about the LORD’s majesty.
15Therefore, in the east honor the LORD;
in the islands of the sea,
the name of the LORD God of Israel!
16From the ends of the earth we have heard songs:
“Glory to the righteous one!”
But I say, “I waste away; I waste away;
I’m doomed!
Betrayers betray; treacherously betrayers betray.”
17Terror, trench, and trap are upon you,
ruler of the earth!
18Whoever flees from the sound of terror will fall into the trench;
whoever climbs from the trench will be caught in the trap.
Heaven’s windows will open, and the earth’s foundations will quake.
19The earth is shattering, shattering;
the earth is shaking, shaking;
the earth is teetering, tottering.
20The earth trembles like a drunk
and shudders like a hut;
its rebellion weighs heavy upon it;
it will fall, no more to rise.
21On that day, the LORD will punish the forces of heaven in heaven, and the kings of the earth on earth. 22They will be gathered together like prisoners in a pit, shut into a prison, and punished after many days. 23The moon will be diminished, and the sun will fade, since the LORD of heavenly forces will rule on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, glorious before his elders.
Currently Selected:
Isaiah 24: CEB
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 24
24
The LORD will Punish the Earth
1The LORD is going to devastate the earth and leave it desolate. He will twist the earth's surface and scatter its people. 2Everyone will meet the same fate — the priests and the people, slaves and masters, buyers and sellers, lenders and borrowers, rich and poor. 3The earth will lie shattered and ruined. The LORD has spoken and it will be done.
4The earth dries up and withers; the whole world grows weak; both earth and sky decay. 5The people have defiled the earth by breaking God's laws and by violating the covenant he made to last for ever. 6So God has pronounced a curse on the earth. Its people are paying for what they have done. Fewer and fewer remain alive. 7The grapevines wither, and wine is becoming scarce. Everyone who was once happy is now sad, 8and the joyful music of their harps and drums has ceased. 9There is no more happy singing over wine; no one enjoys its taste any more. 10In the city everything is in chaos, and people lock themselves in their houses for safety. 11People shout in the streets because there is no more wine. Happiness is gone for ever; it has been banished from the land. 12The city is in ruins, and its gates have been broken down. 13This is what will happen in every nation all over the world. It will be like the end of harvest, when the olives have been beaten off every tree and the last grapes picked from the vines.
14Those who survive will sing for joy. Those in the west will tell how great the LORD is, 15and those in the east will praise him. The people who live along the sea will praise the LORD, the God of Israel. 16From the most distant parts of the world we will hear songs in praise of Israel, the righteous nation.
But there is no hope for me! I am wasting away! Traitors continue to betray, and their treachery grows worse and worse. 17Listen to me, everyone! There are terrors, pits, and traps waiting for you. 18Anyone who tries to escape from the terror will fall into a pit, and anyone who escapes from the pit will be caught in a trap. Torrents of rain will pour from the sky, and earth's foundations will shake. 19The earth will crack and shatter and split open. 20The earth itself will stagger like a drunken man and sway like a hut in a storm. The world is weighed down by its sins; it will collapse and never rise again.
21A time is coming when the LORD will punish the powers above and the rulers of the earth. 22God will crowd kings together like prisoners in a pit. He will shut them in prison until the time of their punishment comes. 23The moon will grow dark, and the sun will no longer shine, for the LORD Almighty will be king. He will rule in Jerusalem on Mount Zion, and the leaders of the people will see his glory.
Currently Selected:
:
Highlight
Share
Copy
Want to have your highlights saved across all your devices? Sign up or sign in
Good News Bible. Scripture taken from the Good News Bible (r) (Today's English Version Second Edition, UK/British Edition). Copyright © 1992 British & Foreign Bible Society. Used by permission.