Isaiah 1
1
1 THE VISION [seen by spiritual perception] of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah [the kingdom] and Jerusalem [its capital] in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth! For the Lord has spoken: I have nourished and brought up sons and have made them great and exalted, but they have rebelled against Me and broken away from Me.
3 The ox [instinctively] knows his owner, and the donkey his master's crib, but Israel does not know or recognize Me [as Lord], My people do not consider or understand.
4 Ah, sinful nation, a people loaded with iniquity, offspring of evildoers, sons who deal corruptly! They have forsaken the Lord, they have despised and shown contempt and provoked the Holy One of Israel to anger, they have become utterly estranged (alienated).
5 Why should you be stricken and punished any more [since it brings no correction]? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, and the whole heart is faint (feeble, sick, and nauseated).
6 From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness or health in [the nation's body]–but wounds and bruises and fresh and bleeding stripes; they have not been pressed out and closed up or bound up or softened with oil. [No one has troubled to seek a remedy.]
7 [Because of your detestable disobedience] your country lies desolate, your cities are burned with fire; your land–strangers devour it in your very presence, and it is desolate, as overthrown by aliens.
8 And the Daughter of Zion [Jerusalem] is left like a [deserted] booth in a vineyard, like a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, like a besieged city [spared, but in the midst of desolation].
9 Except the Lord of hosts had left us a very small remnant [of survivors], we should have been like Sodom, and we should have been like Gomorrah. [Gen. 19:24, 25; Rom. 9:29.]
10 Hear [O Jerusalem] the word of the Lord, you rulers or judges of [another] Sodom! Give ear to the law and the teaching of our God, you people of [another] Gomorrah!
11 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices to Me [unless they are the offering of the heart]? says the Lord. I have had enough of the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts [without obedience]; and I do not delight in the blood of bulls or of lambs or of he-goats [without righteousness].
12 When you come to appear before Me, who requires of you that your [unholy feet] trample My courts?
13 Bring no more offerings of vanity (emptiness, falsity, vainglory, and futility); [your hollow offering of] incense is an abomination to Me; the New Moons and Sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot endure–[it is] iniquity and profanation, even the solemn meeting.
14 Your New Moon festivals and your [hypocritical] appointed feasts My soul hates. They are an oppressive burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them.
15 And when you spread forth your hands [in prayer, imploring help], I will hide My eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not hear. Your hands are full of blood!
16 Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before My eyes! Cease to do evil,
17 Learn to do right! Seek justice, relieve the oppressed, and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.
18 Come now, and let us reason together, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall be like wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land;
20 But if you refuse and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword. For the mouth of the Lord has spoken it.
21 How the faithful city has become an [idolatrous] harlot, she who was full of justice! Uprightness and right standing with God [once] lodged in her–but now murderers.
22 Your silver has become dross, your wine is mixed with water.
23 Your princes are rebels and companions of thieves; everyone loves bribes and runs after compensation and rewards. They judge not for the fatherless nor defend them, neither does the cause of the widow come to them [for they delay or turn a deaf ear].
24 Therefore says the Lord, the Lord of hosts, the Mighty One of Israel, Ah, I will appease Myself on My adversaries and avenge Myself on My enemies.
25 And I will bring My hand again upon you and thoroughly purge away your dross [as with lye] and take away all your tin or alloy.
26 And I will restore your judges as at the first, and your counselors as at the beginning; afterward you shall be called the City of Righteousness, the Faithful City.
27 Zion shall be redeemed with justice, and her [returned] converts with righteousness (uprightness and right standing with God).
28 But the crushing and destruction of rebels and sinners shall be together, and they who forsake the Lord shall be consumed.
29 For you will be ashamed [of the folly and degradation] of the oak or terebinth trees in which you found [idolatrous] pleasure, and you will blush with shame for the [idolatrous worship which you practice in the passion-inflaming] gardens which you have chosen.
30 For you shall be like an oak or terebinth whose leaf withers, and like a garden that has no water.
31 And the strong shall become like tow and become tinder, and his work like a spark, and they shall both burn together, with none to quench them.
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Isaiah 1: AMPC
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1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation
Isaiah 1
1
1This is the vision which Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw about Judah and Jerusalem at the time of Kings Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah.
The LORD Accuses Israel of Sin
2Listen, heaven, and pay attention, earth!
The Lord has spoken,
“I raised ⌞my⌟ children and helped them grow,
but they have rebelled against me.
3Oxen know their owners,
and donkeys know where their masters feed them.
But Israel doesn’t know ⌞its owner⌟.
My people don’t understand ⌞who feeds them⌟.
4“How horrible it will be for a nation that sins.
⌞Its⌟ people are loaded down with guilt.
They are descendants of evildoers
and destructive children.
They have abandoned the Lord.
They have despised the Holy One of Israel.
They have turned their backs on him.
5“Why do you still want to be beaten?
Why do you continue to rebel?
Your whole head is infected.
Your whole heart is failing.
6From the bottom of your feet to the top of your head
there is no healthy spot left on your ⌞body⌟—
only bruises, sores, and fresh wounds.
They haven’t been cleansed, bandaged,
or soothed with oil.
7“Your country is devastated.
Your cities are burned down.
Your fields are destroyed right before your eyes by foreigners.
Your fields are devastated and taken over by foreigners.
8My people Zion are left like a hut in a vineyard,
like a shack in a cucumber field,
like a city under attack.”
9If the Lord of Armies hadn’t left us a few survivors,
we would have been like Sodom and Gomorrah.
Israel’s Corrupt Religion
10Listen to the Lord’s word, you rulers of Sodom!
Pay attention to the teachings from our God, you people of Gomorrah!
11The Lord asks, “What do your many animal sacrifices mean to me?
I’ve had enough of your burnt offerings of rams
and enough fat from your fattened calves.
I’m not pleased with the blood of bulls, lambs, or male goats.
12When you appear in my presence,
who asked you to trample on my courtyards?
13Don’t bring any more worthless grain offerings.
Your incense is disgusting to me,
so are your New Moon Festivals, your days of rest—holy days,
and the assemblies you call.
I can’t stand your evil assemblies.
14I hate your New Moon Festivals and your appointed festivals.
They’ve become a burden to me,
and I’m tired of putting up with them.
15So when you stretch out your hands ⌞in prayer⌟,
I will turn my eyes away from you.
Even though you offer many prayers,
I will not listen because your hands are covered with blood.
The LORD Invites Israel to Turn Away from Sin
16“Wash yourselves! Become clean!
Get your evil deeds out of my sight.
Stop doing evil.
17Learn to do good.
Seek justice.
Arrest oppressors.
Defend orphans.
Plead the case of widows.”
18“Come on now, let’s discuss this!” says the Lord.
“Though your sins are bright red,
they will become as white as snow.
Though they are dark red,
they will become as white as wool.
19If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the best from the land.
20But if you refuse and rebel,
you will be destroyed by swords.”
The Lord has spoken.
Jerusalem’s Future
21How the faithful town has become a prostitute!
She was full of justice,
and righteousness lived in her.
But now murderers live there!
22Your silver is not pure.
Your wine is watered down.
23Your rulers are rebels, friends with thieves.
They all love bribes and run after gifts.
They never defend orphans.
They don’t notice the widows’ pleas.
24That’s why the Lord, the Lord of Armies, the Mighty One of Israel, says,
“How horrible it will be when I take revenge on my opponents!
I will avenge myself against my enemies.
25I will turn my power against you.
I will remove your impurities with bleach.
I will get rid of all your impurities.
26I will give you judges like you had long ago,
advisers like you had in the beginning.
After that you will be called the Righteous City,
the Faithful Town.”
27Zion will be pardoned by ⌞the Lord’s⌟ justice,
and those who return will be pardoned
by ⌞the Lord’s⌟ righteousness.
28Rebels and sinners will be crushed at the same time,
and those who abandon the Lord will come to an end.
29You will be ashamed of the oaks that you wanted to worship
and embarrassed by the garden that you have chosen for your gods.
30You will be like an oak whose leaves wither
and like a garden without water.
31Strong people will become tinder for a fire,
and their work will be the spark.
Both of them will burn together,
and there will be no one to put out the fire.
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