Isaiah 26
26
Judah’s Praise and Prayer for Deliverance.#This text is a mixture of praise for the salvation that will take place, a confession of Judah’s inability to achieve deliverance on its own, and earnest prayer that God may quickly bring about the longed-for salvation. 1On that day this song shall be sung in the land of Judah:
“A strong city#Strong city: Jerusalem, the antithesis of the “city of chaos” (24:10); see note on 24:1–27:13. have we;
he sets up victory as our walls and ramparts.#Is 60:18.
2Open up the gates
that a righteous nation may enter,
one that keeps faith.#Ps 118:19–20.
3With firm purpose you maintain peace;
in peace, because of our trust in you.”#Is 32:17–18; Ps 112:7.
4Trust in the Lord forever!
For the Lord is an eternal Rock.#Is 17:10; 30:29; Ps 62:8.
5He humbles those who dwell on high,
the lofty city he brings down,
Brings it down to the ground,
levels it to the dust.#Is 25:11–12; 32:19.
6The feet of the needy trample on it—
the feet of the poor.
7The way of the just is smooth;
the path of the just you make level.#Ps 23:3–4; Prv 11:3, 5.
8The course of your judgments, Lord, we await;
your name and your memory are the desire of our souls.
9My soul yearns for you at night,
yes, my spirit within me seeks you at dawn;
When your judgment comes upon the earth,
the world’s inhabitants learn justice.#Ps 63:2.
10The wicked, when spared, do not learn justice;
in an upright land they act perversely,
and do not see the majesty of the Lord.#Is 5:12; Eccl 8:11.
11Lord, your hand is raised high,
but they do not perceive it;
Let them be put to shame when they see your zeal for your people:
let the fire prepared for your enemies consume them.#Is 9:6; 30:27; 37:32.
12Lord, you will decree peace for us,
for you have accomplished all we have done.#Jer 29:11; Phil 2:13.
13Lord, our God, lords other than you have ruled us;
only because of you can we call upon your name.
14Dead they are, they cannot live,
shades that cannot rise;
Indeed, you have punished and destroyed them,
and wiped out all memory of them.
15You have increased the nation, Lord,
you have increased the nation, have added to your glory,
you have extended far all the boundaries of the land.#Is 54:2–3.
16Lord, oppressed by your punishment,
we cried out in anguish under your discipline.#Hos 5:15.
17As a woman about to give birth
writhes and cries out in pain,
so were we before you, Lord.#Mi 4:10.
18We conceived and writhed in pain,
giving birth only to wind;
Salvation we have not achieved for the earth,
no inhabitants for the world were born.#Is 37:3.
19#This verse refers not to resurrection of the dead, but to the restoration of the people; cf. Ez 37. The population of Judah was radically reduced by the slaughter and deportations that the historical disasters of the late eighth and seventh centuries B.C. brought upon the country. In this context, a major concern for the future was for an increase in the population, a rebirth of the nation’s life. But your dead shall live, their corpses shall rise!
Awake and sing, you who lie in the dust!
For your dew is a dew of light,
and you cause the land of shades to give birth.#Ez 37:5–14; Dn 12:2; Hos 6:2.
The Lord’s Response#The time of wrath for Judah would soon be over, and the just punishment of its enemies would begin (cf. Hb 2:1–3).
20Go, my people, enter your chambers,
and close the doors behind you;
Hide yourselves for a brief moment,
until the wrath is past.#Is 10:25.
21See, the Lord goes forth from his place,
to punish the wickedness of the earth’s inhabitants;
The earth will reveal the blood shed upon it,
and no longer conceal the slain.#Gn 4:10; Jb 16:18; Ps 106:38; Mi 1:3.
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Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc
Isaiah 26
26
God will Give his People Victory
1A day is coming when the people will sing this song in the land of Judah:
Our city is strong!
God himself defends its walls!
2Open the city gates
and let the faithful nation enter,
the nation whose people do what is right.
3You, LORD, give perfect peace
to those who keep their purpose firm
and put their trust in you.
4Trust in the LORD for ever;
he will always protect us.
5He has humbled those who were proud;
he destroyed the strong city they lived in,
and sent its walls crashing into the dust.
6Those who were oppressed walk over it now
and trample it under their feet.
7 LORD, you make the path smooth for good people;
the road they travel is level.
8We follow your will and put our hope in you;
you are all that we desire.
9At night I long for you with all my heart;
when you judge the earth and its people,
they will all learn what justice is.
10Even though you are kind to the wicked,
they never learn to do what is right.
Even here in a land of righteous people they still do wrong;
they refuse to recognize your greatness.
11 #
Heb 10.27
Your enemies do not know that you will punish them.
LORD, put them to shame and let them suffer;
let them suffer the punishment you have prepared.
Show them how much you love your people.
12You will give us prosperity, LORD;
everything that we achieve
is the result of what you do.#26.12 everything that… do; or you treat us according to what we do.
13 LORD our God, we have been ruled by others,
but you alone are our LORD.
14Now they are dead and will not live again;
their ghosts will not rise,
for you have punished them and destroyed them.
No one remembers them any more.
15 LORD, you have made our nation grow,
enlarging its territory on every side,
and this has brought you honour.
16You punished your people, LORD,
and in anguish they prayed to you.#26.16 Verse 16 in Hebrew is unclear.
17You, LORD, have made us cry out,
as a woman in labour cries out in pain.
18We were in pain and agony,
but we gave birth to nothing.
We have won no victory for our land;
we have accomplished nothing.#26.18 We have won… nothing; Hebrew unclear.
19 #
Dan 12.2
Those of our people who have died will live again!
Their bodies will come back to life.
All those sleeping in their graves
will wake up and sing for joy.
As the sparkling dew refreshes the earth,
so the LORD will revive those who have long been dead.
Judgement and Restoration
20Go into your houses, my people, and shut the door behind you. Hide yourselves for a little while until God's anger is over. 21The LORD is coming from his heavenly dwelling place to punish the people of the earth for their sins. The murders that were secretly committed on the earth will be revealed, and the ground will no longer hide those who have been killed.
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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.