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Isaiah 37-41
Complete Jewish Bible
Isaiah 37-41
Complete Jewish Bible
37 On hearing it, King Hizkiyahu tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth and entered the house of Adonai. 2 He sent Elyakim, who was in charge of the household, Shevnah the general secretary and the leading cohanim, covered with sackcloth, to Yesha‘yahu the prophet, the son of Amotz. 3 They said to him, “This is what Hizkiyahu says: ‘Today is a day of trouble, rebuke and disgrace. Children are ready to be born, but there is no strength to bring them to birth. 4 Maybe Adonai your God will hear the words of Rav-Shakeh, whom his master the king of Ashur has sent to taunt the living God, and will rebuke the message which Adonai your God has heard. So pray for the remnant that is left.’”
5 When King Hizkiyahu’s servants came to Yesha‘yahu, 6 he said to them, “Tell your master that this is what Adonai says: ‘Don’t be afraid of the words you heard the servants of the king of Ashur use to insult me. 7 I will put a spirit in him that will make him hear a rumor and return to his own land; then I will cause him to die by the sword in his own land.’”
8 Rav-Shakeh returned and, having heard that the king of Ashur had left Lakhish, found him making war with Livnah. 9 Then he heard it said that Tirhakah king of Ethiopia was on his way to fight him. On hearing this, the king of Ashur sent messengers to Hizkiyahu, after ordering them, 10 “This is what you are to say to Hizkiyahu king of Y’hudah: ‘Don’t let your God in whom you trust deceive you by saying, “Yerushalayim will not be handed over to the power of the king of Ashur.” 11 You have heard what the kings of Ashur have done to all lands — they have completely destroyed them. So how will you be delivered? 12 Have the gods of the nations delivered them? No, my ancestors destroyed them — Gozan, Haran, Retzef and the people of ‘Eden who were in Tel’asar. 13 Where is the king of Hamat? the king of Arpad? the king of the city of S’farvayim, of Hena and ‘Ivah?’” 14 Hizkiyahu took the letter from the messengers’ hands and read it. Then Hizkiyahu went up to the house of Adonai and spread it out before Adonai. 15 This is the prayer that Hizkiyahu prayed to Adonai: 16 “Adonai-Tzva’ot, God of Isra’el, who dwells above the k’ruvim! You alone are God of all the kingdoms on earth. You made heaven and earth. 17 Turn your ear, Adonai, and hear! Open your eyes, Adonai, and see! Hear all the words that Sancheriv sent to taunt the living God. 18 It is true that the kings of Ashur have laid waste all the countries and their lands 19 and have thrown their gods into the fire. For those were non-gods, merely the products of people’s hands, wood and stone; this is why they could destroy them. 20 Now therefore, Adonai our God, save us from his power — so that all the kingdoms on earth will know that you are Adonai — you only.”
21 Then Yesha‘yahu the son of Amotz sent this message to Hizkiyahu: “Adonai the God of Isra’el says: ‘You prayed to me against Sancheriv king of Ashur.’ 22 Here is Adonai’s answer concerning him:
“ ‘The virgin daughter of Tziyon
despises you; she laughs you to scorn.
The daughter of Yerushalayim
shakes her head at you.
23 Whom have you taunted and insulted?
Against whom have you raised your voice
and haughtily lifted your eyes?
The Holy One of Isra’el!
24 “ ‘Through your servants you taunted Adonai.
You said, “With my many chariots
I have ascended the mountain heights
even in the far reaches of the L’vanon.
I cut down its tall cedars
and its best cypress trees.
I reached its remotest heights
and its best forests.
25 I dug [wells] and drank the water.
The soles of my [soldiers’] feet
dried up all the rivers of Egypt.”
26 “ ‘Haven’t you heard? Long ago I made it;
in antiquity I produced it;
and now I am making it happen:
you are turning fortified cities
into heaps of ruins,
27 while their inhabitants, shorn of power,
are disheartened and ashamed,
weak as grass, frail as plants,
like grass on the rooftops
or grain scorched by the east wind.
28 “ ‘But I know when you sit, when you leave,
when you enter — and when you rage against me.
29 And because of your rage against me,
because of your pride that has reached my ears,
I am putting my hook in your nose
and my bridle on your lips;
and I will make you return
by the way on which you came.
30 “ ‘This will be the sign for you [people of Isra’el]: this year, you will eat the grain that grows of itself; the second year, you will eat what grows from that; but in the third year, you will sow, reap, plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
31 “ ‘Meanwhile, the remnant
of the house of Y’hudah that has escaped
will again take root downward
and bear fruit upward;
32 for a remnant will go out from Yerushalayim,
those escaping will go out from Mount Tziyon.
The zeal of Adonai-Tzva’ot
will accomplish this.’
33 “Therefore this is what Adonai says concerning the king of Ashur:
“ ‘He will not come to this city
or even shoot an arrow there;
he will not confront it with a shield
or erect earthworks against it.
34 “ ‘By the way he came he will return;
he will not come to this city,’
says Adonai. 35 ‘For I will defend this city and save it, both for my own sake and for my servant David’s sake.’ ”
36 Then the angel of Adonai went out and struck down 185,000 men in the camp of Ashur. Early the next morning, there they were, all of them, corpses — dead. 37 So Sancheriv king of Ashur left, went and returned to live in Ninveh.
38 One day, as he was worshipping in the temple of Nisrokh his god, his sons Adramelekh and Shar’etzer struck him with the sword and escaped into the land of Ararat. So his son Esar-Hadon took his place as king.
38 Around this time Hizkiyahu became ill to the point of death. Yesha‘yahu the prophet, the son of Amotz, came and said to him, “Here is what Adonai says: ‘Put your house in order, because you are going to die; you will not live.’” 2 Hizkiyahu turned his face toward the wall and prayed to Adonai: 3 “I plead with you, Adonai, remember now how I have lived before you truly and wholeheartedly, and how I have done what you see as good.” And he cried bitter tears.
4 Then the word of Adonai came to Yesha‘yahu: 5 “Go and tell Hizkiyahu that this is what Adonai, the God of David your ancestor, says: ‘I have heard your prayer and seen your tears; therefore I will add fifteen years to your life. 6 Also I will rescue you and this city from the power of the king of Ashur; I will defend this city. 7 The sign for you from Adonai that Adonai will do what he said is 8 that I will cause the shadow of the sundial, which has started going down on the sundial of Achaz, to go backward ten intervals.’” So the sun went back ten intervals of the distance it had already gone down.
9 After Hizkiyahu king of Y’hudah had been ill and had recovered, he wrote the following:
10 “I once said: ‘In the prime of life
I am going off to the gates of Sh’ol.
I am being deprived of living out
the full span of my life.’
11 “I said, ‘I will never again see Yah,
Yah in the land of the living;
I will look on human beings no more
or be with those who live in this world.
12 My home is uprooted and taken away
from me like a shepherd’s tent.
Like a weaver, I have rolled up my life;
he cuts me off from the loom.
Between day and night you could finish me off.
13 I try to be strong like a lion till morning,
but still my illness breaks all my bones —
between day and night you could finish me off.
14 I make little chattering sounds like a swallow,
I moan aloud like a dove,
My eyes are weary with looking upward.
Adonai, I am overwhelmed; guarantee my life!’
15 “What is there that I can say?
He has spoken to me and acted!
I will go humbly all my years,
remembering how bitter I was.
16 Adonai, by these things people live;
in all these is the life of my spirit.
You’re restoring my health and giving me life —
17 though instead of peace, I felt very bitter.
You desired my life and preserved it
from the nothingness pit;
for you threw all my sins behind your back.
18 “Sh’ol cannot thank you, death cannot praise you;
those descending to the pit cannot hope for your truth.
19 The living, the living — they can thank you,
as I do today;
fathers will make their children know
about your faithfulness.
20 Adonai is ready to save me;
hence we will make our stringed instruments sound
all the days of our life
in the house of Adonai.”
21 Then Yesha‘yahu said, “Have them take a fig-plaster and apply it to the inflammation, and he will recover.” 22 Hizkiyahu asked, “What sign will there be that I will be able to go up to the house of Adonai?”
39 M’rodakh-Bal’adan the son of Bal’adan, king of Bavel, heard that Hizkiyahu had been ill and had recovered, so he sent a letter and a gift to him. 2 Hizkiyahu was pleased with the gifts and showed the messengers all of the building where he kept his treasures, including the silver, gold, spices and precious oils; also all of the building where he kept his armor; and everything in his treasury — there was nothing in his palace or in his entire domain that Hizkiyahu did not show them. 3 Then Yesha‘yahu the prophet came to King Hizkiyahu and asked him, “What did these men say? Where did they come from?” Hizkiyahu answered, “They came to me from a distant country, Bavel.” 4 Yesha‘yahu asked, “What have they seen in your palace?” “They have seen everything in my palace,” said Hizkiyahu. “There isn’t a thing among my treasures that I haven’t shown them.” 5 Yesha‘yahu said to Hizkiyahu, “Hear what Adonai-Tzva’ot says: 6 ‘The day will come when everything in your palace, along with everything your ancestors stored up until today, will be carried off to Bavel. Nothing will be left,’ says Adonai. 7 ‘They will carry off some of your descendants, your own offspring; and they will be made eunuchs serving in the palace of the king of Bavel.” 8 Hizkiyahu said to Yesha‘yahu, “The word of Adonai which you have just told me is good”; because he thought, “At least peace and truth will continue during my lifetime.”
40 “Comfort and keep comforting my people,” says your God.
2 “Tell Yerushalayim to take heart; proclaim to her
that she has completed her time of service,
that her guilt has been paid off,
that she has received at the hand of Adonai
double for all her sins.”
3 A voice cries out:
“Clear a road through the desert for Adonai!
Level a highway in the ‘Aravah for our God!
4 Let every valley be filled in,
every mountain and hill lowered,
the bumpy places made level
and the crags become a plain.
5 Then the glory of Adonai will be revealed;
all humankind together will see it,
for the mouth of Adonai has spoken.”
6 A voice says, “Proclaim!”
And I answer, “What should I proclaim?”
“All humanity is merely grass,
all its kindness like wildflowers:
7 the grass dries up, the flower fades,
when a wind from Adonai blows on it.
Surely the people are grass!
8 The grass dries up, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand forever.”
9 You who bring good news to Tziyon,
get yourself up on a high mountain;
you who bring good news to Yerushalayim,
cry out at the top of your voice!
Don’t be afraid to shout out loud!
Say to the cities of Y’hudah,
“Here is your God!
10 Here comes Adonai Elohim with power,
and his arm will rule for him.
Look! His reward is with him,
and his recompense is before him.
11 He is like a shepherd feeding his flock,
gathering his lambs with his arm,
carrying them against his chest,
gently leading the mother sheep.”
12 Who has counted the handfuls of water in the sea,
measured off the sky with a ruler,
gauged how much dust there is on the earth,
weighed the mountains on scales, or the hills in a balance?
13 Who has measured the Spirit of Adonai?
Who has been his counselor, instructing him?
14 Whom did he consult, to gain understanding?
Who taught him how to judge,
taught him what he needed to know,
showed him how to discern?
15 The nations are like a drop in a bucket,
they count like a grain of dust on the scales.
The islands weigh as little as specks of dust.
16 The L’vanon would not suffice for fuel
or its animals be enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations are like nothing.
He regards them as less than nothing.
18 With whom, then, will you compare God?
By what standard will you evaluate him?
19 An image made by a craftsman,
which a goldsmith overlays with gold,
for which he then casts silver chains?
20 A man too poor to afford an offering
chooses a piece of wood that won’t rot,
then seeks out a skilled artisan
to prepare an image that won’t fall over.
21 Don’t you know? Don’t you hear?
Haven’t you been told from the start?
Don’t you understand how the earth is set up?
22 He who sits above the circle of the earth —
for whom its inhabitants appear like grasshoppers —
stretches out the heavens like a curtain,
spreads them out like a tent to live in.
23 He reduces princes to nothing,
the rulers of the earth to emptiness.
24 Scarcely are they planted, scarcely sown,
scarcely their stem taken root in the ground,
when he blows on them, they dry up,
and the whirlwind carries them off like straw.
25 “With whom, then, will you compare me?
With whom am I equal?” asks the Holy One.
26 Turn your eyes to the heavens!
See who created these?
He brings out the army of them in sequence,
summoning each by name.
Through his great might and his massive strength,
not one of them is missing.
27 Why do you complain, Ya‘akov;
why do you say, Isra’el,
“My way is hidden from Adonai,
my rights are ignored by my God”?
28 Haven’t you known, haven’t you heard
that the everlasting God, Adonai,
the Creator of the ends of the earth,
does not grow tired or weary?
His understanding cannot be fathomed.
29 He invigorates the exhausted,
he gives strength to the powerless.
30 Young men may grow tired and weary,
even the fittest may stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in Adonai will renew their strength,
they will soar aloft as with eagles’ wings;
when they are running they won’t grow weary,
when they are walking they won’t get tired.
41 “Keep silence before me, coastlands!
Let the peoples replenish their strength!
Let them approach; then let them speak.
Let us assemble for judgment.”
2 Who has raised from the east one who is just
and called him to be in his service?
He hands nations over to him
and subjects kings to him;
his sword reduces them to dust,
his bow to driven straw.
3 He pursues them, passing on unscathed,
hardly touching the path with his feet.
4 Whose work is this? Who has brought it about?
He who called the generations from the beginning,
“I, Adonai, am the first;
and I am the same with those who are last.”
5 The coastlands have seen and became afraid.
The ends of the earth have trembled.
They have approached, and now they have come.
6 Every one helps his fellow workman,
everyone says to his brother, “Be strong!”
7 The woodworker encourages the goldsmith,
the polisher encourages the hammerer;
he says of the soldering, “Yes, that’s good,”
then puts nails in [the idol] to keep it from moving.
8 “But you, Isra’el, my servant;
Ya‘akov, whom I have chosen,
descendants of Avraham my friend,
9 I have taken you from the ends of the earth,
summoned you from its most distant parts
and said to you, ‘You are my servant’ —
I have chosen you, not rejected you.
10 Don’t be afraid, for I am with you;
don’t be distressed, for I am your God.
I give you strength, I give you help,
I support you with my victorious right hand.
11 All those who were angry with you
will be disgraced, put to shame;
those who fought against you
will be destroyed, brought to nothing.
12 You will seek them but not find them,
those who contended with you;
yes, those who made war with you
will be brought to nothing, nothing at all.
13 For I, Adonai, your God,
say to you, as I hold your right hand,
‘Have no fear; I will help you.
14 Have no fear, Ya‘akov, you worm,
you men of Isra’el!’
I will help you,” says Adonai;
“Your redeemer is the Holy One of Isra’el.
15 “I will make you into a threshing-sledge,
new, with sharp, pointed teeth,
to thresh the mountains and crush them to dust,
to reduce the hills to chaff.
16 As you fan them, the wind will carry them off,
and the whirlwind will scatter them.
Then you will rejoice in Adonai,
you will glory in the Holy One of Isra’el.
17 “The poor and needy look for water in vain;
their tongues are parched with thirst.
I, Adonai, will answer them.
I, the God of Isra’el, will not leave them.
18 I will open up rivers on the barren hills
and wells down in the broad valleys.
I will turn the desert into a lake
and dry ground into springs.
19 I will plant the desert with cedars,
acacias, myrtles and olive trees;
In the ‘Aravah I will put cypresses
together with elm trees and larches.”
20 Then the people will see and know,
together observe and understand
that the hand of Adonai has done this,
that the Holy One of Isra’el created it.
21 “Present your case,” says Adonai,
“Produce your arguments,” says Ya‘akov’s king.
22 Bring out those idols!
Have them foretell the future for us,
tell us about past events,
so that we can reflect on them
and understand their consequences.
Or tell us about events yet to come,
23 state what will happen in the future,
so that we can know you are gods.
At least, do something, either good or bad —
anything, to make us awestruck and fearful!
24 You can’t! — because you are less than nothing.
Whoever chooses you is an abomination!
25 “I roused someone from the north,
and he has come from the rising sun;
he will call on my name.
He will trample on rulers as if they were mud,
like a potter treading clay.”
26 Who said this at the start, so we could know,
or foretold it, so we could say, “He’s right”?
In fact, no one said it; no one foretold it —
the fact is, nobody hears what you say.
27 I am the first to declare it to Tziyon,
to send Yerushalayim a messenger with good news.
28 But when I look around, there is no one —
not a single one can give counsel,
who, when I ask, can give an answer.
29 Look at them all! What they do is nothing!
Their idols are so much wind and waste.
Isaiah 37-41
New International Version
Isaiah 37-41
New International Version
Jerusalem’s Deliverance Foretold(A)
37 When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes(B) and put on sackcloth(C) and went into the temple(D) of the Lord. 2 He sent Eliakim(E) the palace administrator, Shebna(F) the secretary, and the leading priests, all wearing sackcloth, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz.(G) 3 They told him, “This is what Hezekiah says: This day is a day of distress(H) and rebuke and disgrace, as when children come to the moment of birth(I) and there is no strength to deliver them. 4 It may be that the Lord your God will hear the words of the field commander, whom his master, the king of Assyria, has sent to ridicule(J) the living God,(K) and that he will rebuke him for the words the Lord your God has heard.(L) Therefore pray(M) for the remnant(N) that still survives.”
5 When King Hezekiah’s officials came to Isaiah, 6 Isaiah said to them, “Tell your master, ‘This is what the Lord says: Do not be afraid(O) of what you have heard—those words with which the underlings of the king of Assyria have blasphemed(P) me. 7 Listen! When he hears a certain report,(Q) I will make him want(R) to return to his own country, and there I will have him cut down(S) with the sword.’”
8 When the field commander heard that the king of Assyria had left Lachish,(T) he withdrew and found the king fighting against Libnah.(U)
9 Now Sennacherib(V) received a report(W) that Tirhakah, the king of Cush,[a](X) was marching out to fight against him. When he heard it, he sent messengers to Hezekiah with this word: 10 “Say to Hezekiah king of Judah: Do not let the god you depend on deceive(Y) you when he says, ‘Jerusalem will not be given into the hands of the king of Assyria.’(Z) 11 Surely you have heard what the kings of Assyria have done to all the countries, destroying them completely. And will you be delivered?(AA) 12 Did the gods of the nations that were destroyed by my predecessors(AB) deliver them—the gods of Gozan, Harran,(AC) Rezeph and the people of Eden(AD) who were in Tel Assar? 13 Where is the king of Hamath or the king of Arpad?(AE) Where are the kings of Lair, Sepharvaim,(AF) Hena and Ivvah?”(AG)
Hezekiah’s Prayer(AH)
14 Hezekiah received the letter(AI) from the messengers and read it. Then he went up to the temple(AJ) of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord. 15 And Hezekiah prayed(AK) to the Lord: 16 “Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, enthroned(AL) between the cherubim,(AM) you alone are God(AN) over all the kingdoms(AO) of the earth. You have made heaven and earth.(AP) 17 Give ear, Lord, and hear;(AQ) open your eyes, Lord, and see;(AR) listen to all the words Sennacherib(AS) has sent to ridicule(AT) the living God.(AU)
18 “It is true, Lord, that the Assyrian kings have laid waste all these peoples and their lands.(AV) 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire(AW) and destroyed them,(AX) for they were not gods(AY) but only wood and stone, fashioned by human hands.(AZ) 20 Now, Lord our God, deliver(BA) us from his hand, so that all the kingdoms of the earth(BB) may know that you, Lord, are the only God.[b](BC)”
Sennacherib’s Fall(BD)
21 Then Isaiah son of Amoz(BE) sent a message to Hezekiah: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Because you have prayed to me concerning Sennacherib king of Assyria, 22 this is the word the Lord has spoken against him:
“Virgin Daughter(BF) Zion(BG)
despises and mocks you.
Daughter Jerusalem
tosses her head(BH) as you flee.
23 Who is it you have ridiculed and blasphemed?(BI)
Against whom have you raised your voice(BJ)
and lifted your eyes in pride?(BK)
Against the Holy One(BL) of Israel!
24 By your messengers
you have ridiculed the Lord.
And you have said,
‘With my many chariots(BM)
I have ascended the heights of the mountains,
the utmost heights(BN) of Lebanon.(BO)
I have cut down its tallest cedars,
the choicest of its junipers.(BP)
I have reached its remotest heights,
the finest of its forests.
25 I have dug wells in foreign lands[c]
and drunk the water there.
With the soles of my feet
I have dried up(BQ) all the streams of Egypt.(BR)’
26 “Have you not heard?
Long ago I ordained(BS) it.
In days of old I planned(BT) it;
now I have brought it to pass,
that you have turned fortified cities
into piles of stone.(BU)
27 Their people, drained of power,
are dismayed and put to shame.
They are like plants in the field,
like tender green shoots,
like grass(BV) sprouting on the roof,(BW)
scorched[d] before it grows up.
28 “But I know where you are
and when you come and go(BX)
and how you rage(BY) against me.
29 Because you rage against me
and because your insolence(BZ) has reached my ears,
I will put my hook(CA) in your nose(CB)
and my bit in your mouth,
and I will make you return
by the way you came.(CC)
30 “This will be the sign(CD) for you, Hezekiah:
“This year(CE) you will eat what grows by itself,
and the second year what springs from that.
But in the third year(CF) sow and reap,
plant vineyards(CG) and eat their fruit.(CH)
31 Once more a remnant of the kingdom of Judah
will take root(CI) below and bear fruit(CJ) above.
32 For out of Jerusalem will come a remnant,(CK)
and out of Mount Zion a band of survivors.(CL)
The zeal(CM) of the Lord Almighty
will accomplish this.
33 “Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning the king of Assyria:
“He will not enter this city(CN)
or shoot an arrow here.
He will not come before it with shield
or build a siege ramp(CO) against it.
34 By the way that he came he will return;(CP)
he will not enter this city,”
declares the Lord.
35 “I will defend(CQ) this city and save it,
for my sake(CR) and for the sake of David(CS) my servant!”
36 Then the angel(CT) of the Lord went out and put to death(CU) a hundred and eighty-five thousand in the Assyrian(CV) camp. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies! 37 So Sennacherib(CW) king of Assyria broke camp and withdrew. He returned to Nineveh(CX) and stayed there.
38 One day, while he was worshiping in the temple(CY) of his god Nisrok, his sons Adrammelek and Sharezer killed him with the sword, and they escaped to the land of Ararat.(CZ) And Esarhaddon(DA) his son succeeded him as king.(DB)
Hezekiah’s Illness(DC)
38 In those days Hezekiah became ill and was at the point of death. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz(DD) went to him and said, “This is what the Lord says: Put your house in order,(DE) because you are going to die; you will not recover.”(DF)
2 Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord, 3 “Remember, Lord, how I have walked(DG) before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion(DH) and have done what is good in your eyes.(DI)” And Hezekiah wept(DJ) bitterly.
4 Then the word(DK) of the Lord came to Isaiah: 5 “Go and tell Hezekiah, ‘This is what the Lord, the God of your father David,(DL) says: I have heard your prayer and seen your tears;(DM) I will add fifteen years(DN) to your life. 6 And I will deliver you and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria. I will defend(DO) this city.
7 “‘This is the Lord’s sign(DP) to you that the Lord will do what he has promised: 8 I will make the shadow cast by the sun go back the ten steps it has gone down on the stairway of Ahaz.’” So the sunlight went back the ten steps it had gone down.(DQ)
9 A writing of Hezekiah king of Judah after his illness and recovery:
10 I said, “In the prime of my life(DR)
must I go through the gates of death(DS)
and be robbed of the rest of my years?(DT)”
11 I said, “I will not again see the Lord himself(DU)
in the land of the living;(DV)
no longer will I look on my fellow man,
or be with those who now dwell in this world.
12 Like a shepherd’s tent(DW) my house
has been pulled down(DX) and taken from me.
Like a weaver I have rolled(DY) up my life,
and he has cut me off from the loom;(DZ)
day and night(EA) you made an end of me.
13 I waited patiently(EB) till dawn,
but like a lion he broke(EC) all my bones;(ED)
day and night(EE) you made an end of me.
14 I cried like a swift or thrush,
I moaned like a mourning dove.(EF)
My eyes grew weak(EG) as I looked to the heavens.
I am being threatened; Lord, come to my aid!”(EH)
15 But what can I say?(EI)
He has spoken to me, and he himself has done this.(EJ)
I will walk humbly(EK) all my years
because of this anguish of my soul.(EL)
16 Lord, by such things people live;
and my spirit finds life in them too.
You restored me to health
and let me live.(EM)
17 Surely it was for my benefit(EN)
that I suffered such anguish.(EO)
In your love you kept me
from the pit(EP) of destruction;
you have put all my sins(EQ)
behind your back.(ER)
18 For the grave(ES) cannot praise you,
death cannot sing your praise;(ET)
those who go down to the pit(EU)
cannot hope for your faithfulness.
19 The living, the living—they praise(EV) you,
as I am doing today;
parents tell their children(EW)
about your faithfulness.
20 The Lord will save me,
and we will sing(EX) with stringed instruments(EY)
all the days of our lives(EZ)
in the temple(FA) of the Lord.
21 Isaiah had said, “Prepare a poultice of figs and apply it to the boil, and he will recover.”
22 Hezekiah had asked, “What will be the sign(FB) that I will go up to the temple of the Lord?”
Envoys From Babylon(FC)
39 At that time Marduk-Baladan son of Baladan king of Babylon(FD) sent Hezekiah letters and a gift, because he had heard of his illness and recovery. 2 Hezekiah received the envoys(FE) gladly and showed them what was in his storehouses—the silver, the gold,(FF) the spices, the fine olive oil—his entire armory and everything found among his treasures.(FG) There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them.
3 Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked, “What did those men say, and where did they come from?”
“From a distant land,(FH)” Hezekiah replied. “They came to me from Babylon.”
4 The prophet asked, “What did they see in your palace?”
“They saw everything in my palace,” Hezekiah said. “There is nothing among my treasures that I did not show them.”
5 Then Isaiah said to Hezekiah, “Hear the word(FI) of the Lord Almighty: 6 The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to Babylon.(FJ) Nothing will be left, says the Lord. 7 And some of your descendants, your own flesh and blood who will be born to you, will be taken away, and they will become eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.(FK)”
8 “The word of the Lord you have spoken is good,(FL)” Hezekiah replied. For he thought, “There will be peace and security in my lifetime.(FM)”
Comfort for God’s People
40 Comfort, comfort(FN) my people,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly(FO) to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service(FP) has been completed,(FQ)
that her sin has been paid for,(FR)
that she has received from the Lord’s hand
double(FS) for all her sins.
3 A voice of one calling:
“In the wilderness prepare
the way(FT) for the Lord[e];
make straight(FU) in the desert
a highway for our God.[f](FV)
4 Every valley shall be raised up,(FW)
every mountain and hill(FX) made low;
the rough ground shall become level,(FY)
the rugged places a plain.
5 And the glory(FZ) of the Lord will be revealed,
and all people will see it together.(GA)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”(GB)
6 A voice says, “Cry out.”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
“All people are like grass,(GC)
and all their faithfulness is like the flowers of the field.
7 The grass withers(GD) and the flowers fall,
because the breath(GE) of the Lord blows(GF) on them.
Surely the people are grass.
8 The grass withers and the flowers(GG) fall,
but the word(GH) of our God endures(GI) forever.(GJ)”
9 You who bring good news(GK) to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good news to Jerusalem,[g](GL)
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
“Here is your God!”(GM)
10 See, the Sovereign Lord comes(GN) with power,(GO)
and he rules(GP) with a mighty arm.(GQ)
See, his reward(GR) is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.
11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:(GS)
He gathers the lambs in his arms(GT)
and carries them close to his heart;(GU)
he gently leads(GV) those that have young.(GW)
12 Who has measured the waters(GX) in the hollow of his hand,(GY)
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?(GZ)
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?(HA)
13 Who can fathom the Spirit[h](HB) of the Lord,
or instruct the Lord as his counselor?(HC)
14 Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge,(HD)
or showed him the path of understanding?(HE)
15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales;(HF)
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.(HG)
16 Lebanon(HH) is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals(HI) enough for burnt offerings.
17 Before him all the nations(HJ) are as nothing;(HK)
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.(HL)
18 With whom, then, will you compare God?(HM)
To what image(HN) will you liken him?
19 As for an idol,(HO) a metalworker casts it,
and a goldsmith(HP) overlays it with gold(HQ)
and fashions silver chains for it.
20 A person too poor to present such an offering
selects wood(HR) that will not rot;
they look for a skilled worker
to set up an idol(HS) that will not topple.(HT)
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(HU)
Has it not been told(HV) you from the beginning?(HW)
Have you not understood(HX) since the earth was founded?(HY)
22 He sits enthroned(HZ) above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.(IA)
He stretches out the heavens(IB) like a canopy,(IC)
and spreads them out like a tent(ID) to live in.(IE)
23 He brings princes(IF) to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.(IG)
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root(IH) in the ground,
than he blows(II) on them and they wither,(IJ)
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.(IK)
25 “To whom will you compare me?(IL)
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.(IM)
26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:(IN)
Who created(IO) all these?
He who brings out the starry host(IP) one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,(IQ)
not one of them is missing.(IR)
27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?(IS)
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?(IT)
The Lord is the everlasting(IU) God,
the Creator(IV) of the ends of the earth.(IW)
He will not grow tired or weary,(IX)
and his understanding no one can fathom.(IY)
29 He gives strength(IZ) to the weary(JA)
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men(JB) stumble and fall;(JC)
31 but those who hope(JD) in the Lord
will renew their strength.(JE)
They will soar on wings like eagles;(JF)
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.(JG)
The Helper of Israel
41 “Be silent(JH) before me, you islands!(JI)
Let the nations renew their strength!(JJ)
Let them come forward(JK) and speak;
let us meet together(JL) at the place of judgment.
2 “Who has stirred(JM) up one from the east,(JN)
calling him in righteousness(JO) to his service[i]?(JP)
He hands nations over to him
and subdues kings before him.
He turns them to dust(JQ) with his sword,
to windblown chaff(JR) with his bow.(JS)
3 He pursues them and moves on unscathed,(JT)
by a path his feet have not traveled before.
4 Who has done this and carried it through,
calling(JU) forth the generations from the beginning?(JV)
I, the Lord—with the first of them
and with the last(JW)—I am he.(JX)”
5 The islands(JY) have seen it and fear;
the ends of the earth(JZ) tremble.
They approach and come forward;
6 they help each other
and say to their companions, “Be strong!(KA)”
7 The metalworker(KB) encourages the goldsmith,(KC)
and the one who smooths with the hammer
spurs on the one who strikes the anvil.
One says of the welding, “It is good.”
The other nails down the idol so it will not topple.(KD)
8 “But you, Israel, my servant,(KE)
Jacob, whom I have chosen,(KF)
you descendants of Abraham(KG) my friend,(KH)
9 I took you from the ends of the earth,(KI)
from its farthest corners I called(KJ) you.
I said, ‘You are my servant’;(KK)
I have chosen(KL) you and have not rejected you.
10 So do not fear,(KM) for I am with you;(KN)
do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen(KO) you and help(KP) you;
I will uphold you(KQ) with my righteous right hand.(KR)
11 “All who rage(KS) against you
will surely be ashamed and disgraced;(KT)
those who oppose(KU) you
will be as nothing and perish.(KV)
12 Though you search for your enemies,
you will not find them.(KW)
Those who wage war against you
will be as nothing(KX) at all.
13 For I am the Lord your God
who takes hold of your right hand(KY)
and says to you, Do not fear;
I will help(KZ) you.
14 Do not be afraid,(LA) you worm(LB) Jacob,
little Israel, do not fear,
for I myself will help(LC) you,” declares the Lord,
your Redeemer,(LD) the Holy One(LE) of Israel.
15 “See, I will make you into a threshing sledge,(LF)
new and sharp, with many teeth.
You will thresh the mountains(LG) and crush them,
and reduce the hills to chaff.(LH)
16 You will winnow(LI) them, the wind will pick them up,
and a gale(LJ) will blow them away.(LK)
But you will rejoice(LL) in the Lord
and glory(LM) in the Holy One(LN) of Israel.
17 “The poor and needy search for water,(LO)
but there is none;
their tongues are parched with thirst.(LP)
But I the Lord will answer(LQ) them;
I, the God of Israel, will not forsake(LR) them.
18 I will make rivers flow(LS) on barren heights,
and springs within the valleys.
I will turn the desert(LT) into pools of water,(LU)
and the parched ground into springs.(LV)
19 I will put in the desert(LW)
the cedar and the acacia,(LX) the myrtle and the olive.
I will set junipers(LY) in the wasteland,
the fir and the cypress(LZ) together,(MA)
20 so that people may see and know,(MB)
may consider and understand,(MC)
that the hand(MD) of the Lord has done this,
that the Holy One(ME) of Israel has created(MF) it.
21 “Present your case,(MG)” says the Lord.
“Set forth your arguments,” says Jacob’s King.(MH)
22 “Tell us, you idols,
what is going to happen.(MI)
Tell us what the former things(MJ) were,
so that we may consider them
and know their final outcome.
Or declare to us the things to come,(MK)
23 tell us what the future holds,
so we may know(ML) that you are gods.
Do something, whether good or bad,(MM)
so that we will be dismayed(MN) and filled with fear.
24 But you are less than nothing(MO)
and your works are utterly worthless;(MP)
whoever chooses you is detestable.(MQ)
25 “I have stirred(MR) up one from the north,(MS) and he comes—
one from the rising sun who calls on my name.
He treads(MT) on rulers as if they were mortar,
as if he were a potter treading the clay.
26 Who told of this from the beginning,(MU) so we could know,
or beforehand, so we could say, ‘He was right’?
No one told of this,
no one foretold(MV) it,
no one heard any words(MW) from you.
27 I was the first to tell(MX) Zion, ‘Look, here they are!’
I gave to Jerusalem a messenger of good news.(MY)
28 I look but there is no one(MZ)—
no one among the gods to give counsel,(NA)
no one to give answer(NB) when I ask them.
29 See, they are all false!
Their deeds amount to nothing;(NC)
their images(ND) are but wind(NE) and confusion.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 37:9 That is, the upper Nile region
- Isaiah 37:20 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:19); Masoretic Text you alone are the Lord
- Isaiah 37:25 Dead Sea Scrolls (see also 2 Kings 19:24); Masoretic Text does not have in foreign lands.
- Isaiah 37:27 Some manuscripts of the Masoretic Text, Dead Sea Scrolls and some Septuagint manuscripts (see also 2 Kings 19:26); most manuscripts of the Masoretic Text roof / and terraced fields
- Isaiah 40:3 Or A voice of one calling in the wilderness: / “Prepare the way for the Lord
- Isaiah 40:3 Hebrew; Septuagint make straight the paths of our God
- Isaiah 40:9 Or Zion, bringer of good news, / go up on a high mountain. / Jerusalem, bringer of good news
- Isaiah 40:13 Or mind
- Isaiah 41:2 Or east, / whom victory meets at every step
Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.
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