Isaiah 57
57
1The righteous person perishes,
and no one takes it to heart.
Loyal people are gathered together,
and no one understands that because of evil
the righteous one passed away.
2They will find peace;
those who walk in straight paths
will find rest on their burial beds.
Accusations against idolators
3Come here, you children of sorcery,
offspring of adultery and prostitution!
4Whom are you mocking?
Against whom do you open your mouth wide
and stick out your tongue?
Aren’t you children of rebellion, offspring of lies,
5who console yourselves with idols under every green tree,
who slaughter children in the valleys, under the rocky cliffs?
6You belong with the smooth talkers#57.6 Or smooth things in the valley;
they, they are your lot.
For them you poured out a drink offering,
and presented a grain offering.
Should I condone these things?
7On a very high mountain you made your bed.
You went up there to offer a sacrifice.
8Behind the door and the doorpost
you placed your symbols.
You abandoned me and lay down,
making room in your bed
and making deals for yourself with them.#57.8 Heb uncertain
You loved their bed;
you saw their nakedness.
9You went down to Molech#57.9 Or the king with oil,
and you slathered on your ointments;
you sent your messengers far away,
sent them down to the underworld.#57.9 Heb Sheol
10Worn out by all your efforts,
yet you wouldn’t say, “This is useless.”
You found new strength;
therefore, you weren’t tired.
11Whom did you dread and fear so that you lied,
didn’t remember me or give me a thought?
Isn’t it because I was silent and closed my eyes
that you stopped fearing me?
12I will bring evidence about your righteousness and your actions;
they won’t help you.
13When you cry out,
let those things you’ve gathered save you!
The wind will lift them all;
one breath will take them away.
but those taking refuge in me will inherit the land and possess my holy mountain.
Peace for the remorseful
14It will be said: “Survey, survey; build a road!
Remove barriers from my people’s road!”
15The one who is high and lifted up,
who lives forever, whose name is holy, says:
I live on high, in holiness,
and also with the crushed#57.15 Or contrite and the lowly,
reviving the spirit of the lowly,
reviving the heart of those who have been crushed.#57.15 Or contrite
16I won’t always accuse,
nor will I be enraged forever.
It is my own doing that their spirit is exhausted—
I gave them breath!
17I was enraged about their illegal profits;
I struck them; in rage I withdrew from them.
Yet they went on wandering wherever they wanted.
18I have seen their ways, but I will heal them.
I will guide them,
and reward them with comfort.
And for those who mourn,
19I will create reason for praise:#57.19 Heb uncertain
utter prosperity to those far and near,
and I will heal them, says the LORD.
20But the wicked are like the churning sea that can’t keep still.
They churn up from their waters muck and mud.
21There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked.
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Isaiah 57: CEB
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2011 Common English Bible. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 57
57
1Good people pass away;
the godly often die before their time.
But no one seems to care or wonder why.
No one seems to understand
that God is protecting them from the evil to come.
2For those who follow godly paths
will rest in peace when they die.
Idolatrous Worship Condemned
3“But you—come here, you witches’ children,
you offspring of adulterers and prostitutes!
4Whom do you mock,
making faces and sticking out your tongues?
You children of sinners and liars!
5You worship your idols with great passion
beneath the oaks and under every green tree.
You sacrifice your children down in the valleys,
among the jagged rocks in the cliffs.
6Your gods are the smooth stones in the valleys.
You worship them with liquid offerings and grain offerings.
They, not I, are your inheritance.
Do you think all this makes me happy?
7You have committed adultery on every high mountain.
There you have worshiped idols
and have been unfaithful to me.
8You have put pagan symbols
on your doorposts and behind your doors.
You have left me
and climbed into bed with these detestable gods.
You have committed yourselves to them.
You love to look at their naked bodies.
9You have gone to Molech#57:9a Or to the king.
with olive oil and many perfumes,
sending your agents far and wide,
even to the world of the dead.#57:9b Hebrew to Sheol.
10You grew weary in your search,
but you never gave up.
Desire gave you renewed strength,
and you did not grow weary.
11“Are you afraid of these idols?
Do they terrify you?
Is that why you have lied to me
and forgotten me and my words?
Is it because of my long silence
that you no longer fear me?
12Now I will expose your so-called good deeds.
None of them will help you.
13Let’s see if your idols can save you
when you cry to them for help.
Why, a puff of wind can knock them down!
If you just breathe on them, they fall over!
But whoever trusts in me will inherit the land
and possess my holy mountain.”
God Forgives the Repentant
14God says, “Rebuild the road!
Clear away the rocks and stones
so my people can return from captivity.”
15The high and lofty one who lives in eternity,
the Holy One, says this:
“I live in the high and holy place
with those whose spirits are contrite and humble.
I restore the crushed spirit of the humble
and revive the courage of those with repentant hearts.
16For I will not fight against you forever;
I will not always be angry.
If I were, all people would pass away—
all the souls I have made.
17I was angry,
so I punished these greedy people.
I withdrew from them,
but they kept going on their own stubborn way.
18I have seen what they do,
but I will heal them anyway!
I will lead them.
I will comfort those who mourn,
19bringing words of praise to their lips.
May they have abundant peace, both near and far,”
says the Lord, who heals them.
20“But those who still reject me are like the restless sea,
which is never still
but continually churns up mud and dirt.
21There is no peace for the wicked,”
says my God.
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