Isaiah 58
58
True Religion
1Shout the message!
Don't hold back.
Say to my people Israel:
You've sinned! You've turned
against the Lord.
2Day after day, you worship him
and seem eager to learn
his teachings.
You act like a nation
that wants to do right
by obeying his laws.
You ask him about justice,
and say you enjoy
worshiping the Lord.
3You wonder why the Lord
pays no attention
when you go without eating
and act humble.
But on those same days
that you give up eating,
you think only of yourselves#58.3 you think … yourselves: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
and abuse your workers.
4You even get angry
and ready to fight.
No wonder God won't listen
to your prayers!
5Do you think the Lord
wants you to give up eating
and to act as humble
as a bent-over bush?
Or to dress in sackcloth
and sit in ashes?
Is this really what he wants
on a day of worship?
6I'll tell you
what it really means
to worship the Lord.
Remove the chains of prisoners
who are bound unjustly.
Free those who are abused!
7 #
Mt 25.34. Share your food with everyone
who is hungry;
share your home
with the poor and homeless.
Give clothes to those in need;
don't turn away your relatives.
8Then your light will shine
like the dawning sun, and you
will quickly be healed.
Your honesty#58.8 honesty: Or “honest leader.” will protect you
as you advance,
and the glory of the Lord
will defend you from behind.
9When you beg the Lord for help,
he will answer, “Here I am!”
Don't mistreat others
or falsely accuse them
or say something cruel.
10Give your food to the hungry
and care for the homeless.
Then your light will shine
in the dark;
your darkest hour will be
like the noonday sun.
11The Lord will always guide you
and provide good things to eat
when you are in the desert.
He will make you healthy.
You will be like a garden
that has plenty of water
or like a stream
that never runs dry.
12You will rebuild those houses
left in ruins for years;
you will be known
as a builder and repairer
of city walls and streets.
13But first, you must start
respecting the Sabbath
as a joyful day of worship.
You must stop doing and saying
whatever you please
on this special day.
14Then you will truly enjoy
knowing the Lord.
He will let you rule
from the highest mountains
and bless you with the land
of your ancestor Jacob.
The Lord has spoken!
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Isaiah 58: CEV
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 58
58
True Fasting
1“Cry out loudly, don’t hold back!
Raise your voice like a ram’s horn.
Tell my people their transgression
and the house of Jacob their sins.
2They seek me day after day
and delight to know my ways,
like a nation that does what is right
and does not abandon the justice of their God.
They ask me for righteous judgments;
they delight in the nearness of God.”#Ps 119:151; Is 29:13; 57:3; Jms 4:8
3“Why have we fasted, but you have not seen?#Mal 3:14; Lk 18:12
We have denied ourselves, but you haven’t noticed!” #58:3 These are Israel’s words to God.
“Look, you do as you please on the day of your fast,
and oppress all your workers.#Is 22:12–13; Zch 7:5–6
4You fast with contention and strife
to strike viciously with your fist.
You cannot fast as you do today,
hoping to make your voice heard on high.
5Will the fast I choose be like this:
A day for a person to deny himself,
to bow his head like a reed,
and to spread out sackcloth and ashes?#Est 4:3; Dn 9:3
Will you call this a fast
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6Isn’t this the fast I choose:
To break the chains of wickedness,#Jb 36:8; Ps 107:10; Ec 7:26
to untie the ropes of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free,
and to tear off every yoke?#Neh 5:10–12; Is 58:9; Jr 34:8
7Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,#Jb 31:19–20; Is 58:10; Ezk 18:7,16
to bring the poor and homeless into your house,
to clothe the naked when you see him,#Mt 25:35–36; Lk 3:11
and not to ignore your own flesh and blood?#58:7 Lit not hide yourself from your flesh#Dt 22:1–4; Lk 10:31–32
8Then your light will appear like the dawn,
and your recovery will come quickly.#Is 30:26; 33:24; Jr 30:17; 33:6
Your righteousness will go before you,#Ps 85:13; Is 62:1
and the Lord’s glory will be your rear guard.#Ex 14:19; Is 52:12
9At that time, when you call, the Lord will answer;#Ps 50:15; Is 55:6; 65:24
when you cry out, he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you get rid of the yoke among you,
the finger-pointing and malicious speaking,#Pr 6:13
10and if you offer yourself#58:10 Some Hb mss, LXX, Syr read offer your bread to the hungry,
and satisfy the afflicted one,
then your light will shine in the darkness,#Jb 11:17; Ps 37:6; Is 42:16; 58:8
and your night will be like noonday.
11The Lord will always lead you,
satisfy you in a parched land,
and strengthen your bones.
You will be like a watered garden#Sg 4:15; Is 27:3; Jr 31:12
and like a spring whose water never runs dry.#Jn 4:14; 7:38
12Some of you will rebuild the ancient ruins;#Ezr 6:14; Neh 4:6; Is 49:8; 61:4; Ezk 36:10
you will restore the foundations laid long ago;#1Kg 6:37; Ezr 3:10–12
you will be called the repairer of broken walls,
the restorer of streets where people live.
13“If you keep from desecrating the Sabbath,#Ex 31:16–17; 35:2–3; Is 56:2–6; Jr 17:21–27
from doing whatever you want on my holy day;
if you call the Sabbath a delight,
and the holy day of the Lord honorable;
if you honor it, not going your own ways,#Is 55:8
seeking your own pleasure, or talking business;#58:13 Or idly#58:13 Lit or speak a word
14then you will delight in the Lord,#Jb 22:26; Ps 37:4
and I will make you ride over the heights of the land,#Dt 32:13; 33:29; Is 33:16; Hab 3:19
and let you enjoy the heritage of your father Jacob.”
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.#Is 1:20; 40:5
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