Isaiah 56
56
All Nations Will Follow the Lord
1The Lord said these things, “Be fair to all people. Do what is right, because soon my salvation will come to you. My goodness will soon be shown to the whole world. 2I will bless those who refuse to do wrong and who obey the law about the Sabbath.”
3Some foreigners will choose to follow the Lord. They should not say, “The Lord will not really accept me like the rest of his people.” A eunuch should not say, “I am only a dry piece of wood. I cannot have any children.”
4They should not say that because the Lord says, “Some eunuchs obey the laws about the Sabbath. They choose to do what I want, and they follow my agreement.#56:4 agreement This usually means the agreement God made with Israel through Moses. (See “agreement” in the Word List.) Here, it might mean the agreement of Isa. 55:3. 5So I will put a memorial stone in my Temple for them. Their name will be remembered in my city! Yes, I will give those eunuchs something better than sons and daughters. I will give them a name that will last forever! They will not be cut off#56:5 cut off To be removed from the list of the people of Israel. This included a person’s being forced to leave family, land, and the people of Israel. from my people.
6“Some foreigners have chosen to follow the Lord. They do this so that they can serve him and love his name and be his servants. They keep the Sabbath as a special day of worship, and they will continue to follow closely my agreement. 7So I will bring them to my holy mountain and make them happy in my house of prayer. The offerings and sacrifices they give me will please me, because my Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations.” 8The Lord GOD said these things.
The Israelites were forced to leave their country, but the Lord will gather them together again. He says, “I will bring them back together again!”
9Wild animals in the forest,
come and eat.
10The watchmen#56:10 The watchmen Literally, “The seers,” an ancient title for prophets. are all blind.
They don’t know what they are doing.
They are like dogs that will not bark.
They lie on the ground and sleep.
Oh, they love to sleep.
11They are like hungry dogs.
They are never satisfied.
The shepherds don’t know what they are doing.
Like their sheep, they have all wandered away.
They are greedy.
All they want is to satisfy themselves.
12They come and say,
“I will drink some wine.
I will drink some beer.
I will do the same thing tomorrow,
but I will drink even more.”
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Isaiah 56
56
1Thus says the Lord:
“Keep justice, and do righteousness,
for soon my salvation will come,
and my deliverance be revealed.
2Blessed is the man who does this,
and the son of man who holds it fast,
who keeps the sabbath, not profaning it,
and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”
3Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely separate me from his people”;
and let not the eunuch say,
“Behold, I am a dry tree.”
4For thus says the Lord:
“To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths,
who choose the things that please me
and hold fast my covenant,
5I will give in my house and within my walls
a monument and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting name
which shall not be cut off.
6“And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord,
to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord,
and to be his servants,
every one who keeps the sabbath, and does not profane it,
and holds fast my covenant—
7 #
Mt 21.13; Mk 11.17; Lk 19.46. these I will bring to my holy mountain,
and make them joyful in my house of prayer;
their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house shall be called a house of prayer
for all peoples.
8Thus says the Lord God,
who gathers the outcasts of Israel,
I will gather yet others to him
besides those already gathered.”#56.8 Heb his gathered ones
9All you beasts of the field, come to devour—
all you beasts in the forest.
10His watchmen are blind,
they are all without knowledge;
they are all dumb dogs,
they cannot bark;
dreaming, lying down,
loving to slumber.
11The dogs have a mighty appetite;
they never have enough.
The shepherds also have no understanding;
they have all turned to their own way,
each to his own gain, one and all.
12“Come,” they say, “let us#56.12 One ancient Ms Syr Vg Tg: Heb me get wine,
let us fill ourselves with strong drink;
and tomorrow will be like this day,
great beyond measure.”
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Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America