Isaiah 66
66
The People of the LORD’s New Creation
1This is what the Lord says:
Heaven is my throne.
The earth is my footstool.
Where can you build a house or resting place for me?
2I have made all these things.
“That is why all these things have come into being,”
declares the Lord.
I will pay attention to those
who are humble and sorry ⌞for their sins⌟
and who tremble at my word.
3Whoever kills a bull is like someone who kills a person.
Whoever sacrifices a lamb is like someone who breaks a dog’s neck.
Whoever offers a grain sacrifice
is like someone who ⌞offers⌟ pig’s blood.
Whoever burns incense is like someone who worships an idol.
People have certainly chosen their own ways,
and their souls delight in detestable things.
4So I will choose harsh treatment for them
and bring on them what they fear.
I called, but no one answered.
I spoke, but they didn’t listen.
They did what I consider evil.
They chose what I don’t like.
5Listen to the Lord’s word, all who tremble at his word.
Your relatives, who hate you and exclude you for my name’s sake, say,
“Let the Lord show his glory; then we will see your joy.”
But they will be put to shame.
6Listen to the uproar from the city.
Listen to the sound from the temple.
It is the sound of the Lord
paying back his enemies as they deserve.
7Before a woman goes into labor, she gives birth.
Before she has labor pains, she delivers a child.
8Who has heard of such a thing?
Who has seen such things?
Can a country be born in one day?
Can a nation be born in a moment?
When Zion went into labor,
she also gave birth to her children.
9“Do I bring a mother to the moment of birth
and not let her deliver?” asks the Lord.
“Do I cause a mother to deliver
and then make her unable to have children?” asks your God.
10All who love Jerusalem, be happy and rejoice with her.
All who mourn for her, be glad with her.
11You will nurse and be satisfied from her comforting breasts.
You will nurse to your heart’s delight at her full breasts.
12This is what the Lord says:
I will offer you peace like a river
and the wealth of the nations like an overflowing stream.
You will nurse and be carried in Jerusalem’s arms
and cuddled on her knees.
13As a mother comforts her child,
so will I comfort you.
You will be comforted in Jerusalem.
14When you see it, your heart will rejoice
and you will flourish like new grass.
The power of the Lord will be made known to his servants,
but he will condemn his enemies.
15The Lord will come with fire
and with his chariots like a thunderstorm.
He will pay them back with his burning anger
and punish them with flames of fire.
16The Lord will judge with fire,
and he will judge all people with his sword.
Many people will be struck dead by the Lord.
17People make themselves holy
and prepare themselves for their garden rituals.
They go into the garden
and devour pork, disgusting things, and mice.
“They will come to an end at the same time,”
declares the Lord.
18Because of their actions and their thoughts,
I am coming to gather the nations of every language.
They will come and see my glory.
19I will set up a sign among them
and send some of their survivors to the nations:
to Tarshish, Put and Lud, Meshech, Rosh, Tubal, Javan,
and to the distant coastlands
who have not heard of my fame or seen my glory.
They will tell about my glory among the nations.
20They will bring all your relatives
from every nation like a grain offering to the Lord.
“They will come on horses, in chariots, in wagons,
on mules and camels to my holy mountain, Jerusalem,”
declares the Lord.
They will come like the people of Israel who bring
their grain offerings in clean dishes to the Lord’s temple.
21“I will make some of them priests and Levites,” declares the Lord.
22“The new heaven and earth that I am about to make
will continue in my presence,” declares the Lord.
“So your descendants and your name
will also continue in my presence.
23From one month to the next and from one week to the next
all people will come to worship me,” declares the Lord.
24Then they will go out
and look at the corpses of those who have rebelled against me.
The worms that eat them will not die.
The fire that burns them will not go out.
All humanity will be disgusted by them.
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Isaiah 66: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 66
66
True Worship
1 #
3 Macc 2.15; Mt 5.34; 23.22;
Mt 5.35. #Ac 7.49,50. The Lord said:
Heaven is my throne;
the earth is my footstool.
What kind of house
could you build for me?
In what place will I rest?
2I have made everything;
that's how it all came to be.#66.2 that's … be: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
The people I treasure most
are the humble—
they depend only on me
and tremble when I speak.
3You sacrifice oxen to me,
and you commit murder;
you sacrifice lambs to me
and dogs to other gods;
you offer grain to me
and pigs' blood to idols;
you burn incense to me
and praise your idols.#66.3 You sacrifice oxen … idols: Or “Sacrificing oxen to me is the same as murder; sacrificing lambs to me is the same as sacrificing dogs to other gods; offering grain to me is the same as offering pigs' blood to idols; and burning incense to me is the same as praising idols.”
You have made your own choice
to do these disgusting things
that you enjoy so much.
4You refused to answer
when I called out;
you paid no attention
to my instructions.
Instead, you did what I hated,
knowing it was wrong.
Now I will punish#66.4 punish: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. you
in a way you dread the most.
The Lord Will Help Jerusalem
5If you tremble
when the Lord speaks,
listen to what he says:
“Some of your own people hate
and reject you because of me.
They make fun and say,
‘Let the Lord show his power!
Let us see him
make you truly happy.’#66.5 Some … happy: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
But those who say these things
will be terribly ashamed.”
6Do you hear that noise
in the city and those shouts
coming from the temple?
It is the Lord shouting
as he punishes his enemies.
7 #
Rev 12.5. Have you ever heard of a woman
who gave birth to a child
before having labor pains?
8Who ever heard of such a thing
or imagined it could happen?
Can a nation be born in a day
or come to life in a second?
Jerusalem is like a mother
who gave birth to her children
as soon as she was in labor.
9The Lord is the one
who makes birth possible.
And he will see that Zion
has many more children.
The Lord has spoken.
10If you love Jerusalem,
celebrate and shout!
If you were in sorrow
because of the city,
you can now be glad.
11She will nurse and comfort you,
just like your own mother,
until you are satisfied.
You will fully enjoy
her wonderful glory.
12The Lord has promised:
“I will flood Jerusalem
with the wealth of nations
and make the city prosper.
Zion will nurse you at her breast,
carry you in her arms,
and hold you in her lap.
13I will comfort you there
like a mother
comforting her child.”
14When you see this happen,
you will celebrate;
your strength will return
faster than grass can sprout.
Then everyone will know
that the Lord provides help
for his servants,
but he is angry
with his enemies.
15The Lord will come down
like a whirlwind
with his flaming chariots.
He will be furiously angry
and punish his enemies
with fire.
16The Lord's fiery sword
will bring justice
everywhere on this earth
and execute many people.
A Threat and a Promise
17Some of you get yourselves ready and go to a garden to worship a foreign goddess.#66.17 Some … goddess: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. You eat the meat of pigs, lizards, and mice. But I, the Lord, will destroy you for this.
18I know everything you do and think! The time has now come#66.18 I … come: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. to bring together the people of every language and nation and to show them my glory 19by proving what I can do.#66.19 by … do: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. I will send the survivors to Tarshish, Pul,#66.19 Pul: Hebrew; one ancient translation “Put,” a country in Africa, but neither the location of Pul or Put is known for certain. Lud, Meshech,#66.19 Meshech: One ancient translation; Hebrew “those who use bows and arrows.” Tubal, Javan,#66.19 Tarshish … Javan: Tarshish may have been a Phoenician city in Spain; Put (see note on Pul) and Lud were African people; Meshech and Tubal were regions south or southeast of the Black Sea; the Javan were people of Asia Minor and the Greek islands. and to the distant islands. I will send them to announce my wonderful glory to nations that have never heard about me.
20They will bring your relatives from the nations as an offering to me, the Lord. They will come to Jerusalem, my holy mountain, on horses, chariots, wagons, mules, and camels.#66.20 camels: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text. It will be like the people of Israel bringing the right offering to my temple. 21I promise that some of them will be priests and others will be helpers in my temple. I, the Lord, have spoken.
22 #
Is 65.17; 2 P 3.13; Rev 21.1. I also promise that you will always have descendants and will never be forgotten, just as the new heavens and the new earth that I create will last forever. 23On the first day of each month and on each Sabbath, everyone will worship me. I, the Lord, have spoken.
24 #
Jdt 16.17; Mk 9.48. My people will go out and look at the dead bodies of those who turned against me. The worms there never die, the fire never stops burning, and the sight of those bodies will be disgusting to everyone.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.