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Isaiah 5-8
Easy-to-Read Version
Isaiah 5-8
Easy-to-Read Version
Judah, God’s Vineyard
5 Now I will sing a song for my friend, my love song about his vineyard.
My friend had a vineyard
on a very fertile hill.
2 He dug and cleared the field
and planted the best grapevines there.
He built a tower in the middle
and cut a winepress into the stone.
He expected good grapes to grow there,
but there were only rotten ones.
3 My friend said, “You people living in Jerusalem and you people of Judah,[a]
think about me and my vineyard.
4 What more could I do for my vineyard?
I did everything I could.
I hoped for good grapes to grow,
but there were only rotten ones.
Why did that happen?
5 “Now I will tell you
what I will do to my vineyard:
I will pull up the thornbushes that protect it,
and I will burn them.
I will break down the stone wall
and use the stones for a walkway.
6 I will turn my vineyard into useless land.
No one will care for the plants or work in the field.
Weeds and thorns will grow there.
I will command the clouds
not to rain on it.”
7 The vineyard that belongs to the Lord All-Powerful is the house of Israel. The grapevine, the plant he loves, is the man of Judah.[b]
The Lord hoped for justice,
but there was only killing.
He hoped for fairness,
but there were only cries from people being treated badly.
8 Look at you people! You join houses to houses and fields to fields until there is no room for anyone else. But when the punishment comes, you will be forced to live alone. You will be the only people in the whole land. 9 I heard the Lord All-Powerful make this oath: “I swear, all these houses will be destroyed. These big, fancy houses will be empty. 10 A ten-acre vineyard will make only a little wine,[c] and many sacks of seed will grow only a little grain.[d]”
11 How terrible it will be for you people who rise early in the morning and go looking for beer to drink. You stay awake late at night, getting drunk on wine. 12 At your parties with your wine, harps, drums, flutes, and other musical instruments, you don’t see what the Lord has done. You don’t notice what his hands have made.
13 My people don’t really know God. So they will be captured and taken away. Everyone, the respected leaders and the common people as well, will be hungry and thirsty. 14 They will die, and the place of death will open its mouth wide and swallow many of them. Then the noisy crowds and all the beautiful, happy people who are now so comfortable will go down into the grave.
15 Everyone, common people and leaders alike, will be humbled. Those who are now so proud will bow their heads in shame. 16 The Lord All-Powerful will judge fairly, and people will honor him. They will respect the Holy God when he brings justice. 17 Then sheep will be able to go wherever they want and graze on the land that rich people once owned.
18 Look at those people! They pull their guilt and sins behind them like people pulling wagons with ropes.[e] 19 They say, “We wish God would hurry and do what he plans to do so that we can see it. Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel happen soon so that we can know what it is.”
20 Look at those people! They say good is bad and bad is good. They think light is dark and dark is light. They think sour is sweet and sweet is sour. 21 They think they are so smart. They think they are very intelligent. 22 They are famous for drinking wine and are heroes known for mixing drinks. 23 And if you pay them enough money, they will forgive a criminal. But they will not let good people be judged fairly. 24 So bad things will happen to them. Their descendants will be destroyed completely, just as fire burns straw and leaves. Their descendants will be like plants with rotten roots, whose flowers have all blown away like dust in the wind.
Those people refused to obey the teachings[f] of the Lord All-Powerful. They hated the message from the Holy One of Israel. 25 So the Lord became angry with his people, and he raised his hand to punish them. Even the mountains shook with fear. Dead bodies were left in the streets like garbage. And he is not finished yet. He is still angry, and his arm is raised to continue punishing his people.
God Will Bring Armies to Punish Israel
26 Look! God is giving a sign to the nations far away. He is raising a flag and whistling for them to come.
Now the enemy is coming from a faraway land and will soon enter the country. They are moving very quickly. 27 The enemy soldiers never get tired and stumble. They never get sleepy and fall asleep. Their weapon belts are always ready. Their sandal straps never break. 28 Their arrows are sharp. Their bows are strung and ready to shoot. The horses’ hooves are as hard as flint. Clouds of dust rise from behind their chariots.
29 The shouts of the enemy sound like the roar of lions. Like strong, young lions, they growl and grab their prey. The captives struggle and try to escape, but there is no one to save them. 30 Then there is a roar as loud as the ocean waves, and the captives turn their faces to the ground. And there is only darkness closing in as the light fades away in a black cloud.
God Calls Isaiah to Be a Prophet
6 In the year that King Uzziah died,[g] I saw the Lord sitting on a very high and wonderful throne. His long robe filled the Temple. 2 Seraph angels stood around him. Each angel had six wings. They used two wings to cover their faces, two wings to cover their bodies, and two wings to fly. 3 The angels were calling to each other, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord All-Powerful. His Glory fills the whole earth.” 4 The sound was so loud that it caused the frame around the door to shake, and the Temple was filled with smoke.[h]
5 I was frightened and said, “Oh, no! I will be destroyed. I am not pure enough to speak to God, and I live among people who are not pure enough to speak to him.[i] But I have seen the King, the Lord All-Powerful.”
6 There was a fire on the altar. One of the Seraph angels used a pair of tongs to take a hot coal from the fire. Then the angel flew to me with it in his hand. 7 Then he touched my mouth with the hot coal and said, “When this hot coal touched your lips, your guilt was taken away, and your sins were erased.[j]”
8 Then I heard the Lord’s voice, saying, “Who can I send? Who will go for us?”
So I said, “Here I am. Send me!”
9 Then the Lord said, “Go and tell the people, ‘Listen closely, but don’t understand. Look closely, but don’t learn.’ 10 Confuse them. Make them unable to understand what they hear and see. If you don’t do this, they might really look with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their minds. Then they might come back to me and be healed!”
11 Then I asked, “Lord, how long should I do this?”
He answered, “Do this until the cities are destroyed and all the people are gone. Do this until there is no one left living in the houses and the land is destroyed and empty.”
12 The Lord will make the people go far away, and there will be large areas of empty land in the country. 13 A tenth of the people will be allowed to stay in the land, but it will be destroyed again. They will be like an oak tree. When the tree is chopped down, a stump is left. This stump will be a very special seed that will grow again.
Trouble With Aram
7 Ahaz was the son of Jotham, who was the son of Uzziah. Rezin was the king of Aram, Pekah son of Remaliah[k] was the king of Israel. When Ahaz was king of Judah, Rezin and Pekah went up to Jerusalem to attack it, but they were not able to defeat the city.[l]
2 The family of David received a message that said, “The armies of Aram and Ephraim have joined together in one camp.” When King Ahaz heard this message, he and the people became frightened. They shook with fear like trees of the forest blowing in the wind.
3 Then the Lord told Isaiah, “You and your son Shear Jashub[m] should go out and talk to Ahaz. Go to the place where the water flows into the Upper Pool,[n] on the street that leads up to Laundryman’s Field.
4 “Tell Ahaz, ‘Be careful, but be calm. Don’t be afraid. Don’t let those two men, Rezin and Remaliah’s son,[o] frighten you! They are like two burning sticks. They might be hot now, but soon they will be nothing but smoke. Rezin, Aram, and Remaliah’s son became angry 5 and made plans against you. They said, 6 “Let’s go fight against Judah and divide it among ourselves. Then we will make Tabeel’s son the new king of Judah.”’”
7 But the Lord God says, “Their plan will not succeed. It will not happen 8 because Aram depends on its capital Damascus, and Damascus is led by its weak king Rezin. And don’t worry about Ephraim. Within 65 years it will be crushed, no longer a nation. 9 Ephraim depends on its capital Samaria, and Samaria is led by Remaliah’s son. So you have no reason to fear. Believe this, or you will not survive.”
Immanuel—God Is With Us
10 Then the Lord spoke to Ahaz again 11 and said, “Ask for a sign from the Lord your God to prove to yourself that this is true. You can ask for any sign you want. The sign can come from a place as deep as Sheol[p] or as high as the skies.[q]”
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask for a sign as proof. I will not test the Lord.”
13 Then Isaiah said, “Family of David, listen very carefully! Is it not enough that you would test the patience of humans? Will you now test the patience of my God? 14 But the Lord will still show you this sign:
The young woman is pregnant[r]
and will give birth to a son.
She will name him Immanuel.[s]
15 He will eat milk curds and honey[t]
as he learns to choose good and refuse evil.
16 But before he is old enough to make that choice,
the land of the two kings you fear will be empty.
17 “But the Lord will bring troubled times to you. These troubles will be worse than anything that has happened since the time Israel separated from Judah. This will happen to your people and to your father’s family when God brings the king of Assyria to fight against you.
18 “At that time the Lord will call for the ‘Fly’ that is now near the streams of Egypt, and he will call for the ‘Bee’ that is now in the country of Assyria. Those enemies will come to your country. 19 They will settle in the deep valleys and in the caves, by the thornbushes and watering holes. 20 The Lord will use Assyria to punish Judah. Assyria will be hired and used like a razor to shave off Judah’s beard and to remove the hair from his head and body.[u]
21 “At that time someone might keep only one young cow and two sheep alive. 22 But there will be enough milk for them to eat milk curds. In fact, everyone left in the country will eat milk curds and honey. 23 There are now fields that have 1000 grapevines, and each grapevine is worth 1000 pieces of silver. But those fields will be covered with weeds and thorns. 24 That land will be wild and used only as a hunting ground where people go with bows and arrows. 25 People once worked the soil and grew food on these hills, but at that time they will not go there, because the fields will be covered with weeds and thorns. It will be a place where cattle graze and sheep wander.”
Assyria Is Coming Soon
8 The Lord told me, “Get a large scroll,[v] and use an ordinary pen[w] to write these words: ‘This is for Maher Shalal Hash Baz.’[x]”
2 I found some men who could be trusted to serve as witnesses: Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah. They watched me write those words. 3 Then I went to my wife, the woman prophet. She became pregnant and had a son. The Lord told me, “Name the boy Maher Shalal Hash Baz.” 4 He said that because before the boy learns to say “Mama” and “Daddy,” God will take all the wealth and riches from Damascus[y] and Samaria and give them to the king of Assyria.
5 The Lord spoke to me again. 6 He said, “These people[z] refuse to accept the slow-moving waters of Shiloah.[aa] They prefer Rezin and Remaliah’s son.” 7 But the Lord will bring the king of Assyria and all his power against them. The Assyrians will come like their swift moving river, like water that rises and spills over its banks. 8 This water will be like a flash flood as it passes through Judah. It will rise to Judah’s throat and almost drown him.
But he will spread his wings over your whole country, Immanuel.[ab]
9 All you nations, prepare for war.
You will be defeated.
Listen, all you faraway countries!
Prepare for battle.
You will be defeated.
10 Make your plans for the fight.
Your plans will be defeated.
Give orders to your armies,
but your orders will be useless,
because God is with us![ac]
Warnings to Isaiah
11 The Lord spoke to me with his great power and warned[ad] me not to be like these people. He said, 12 “Don’t think there is a plan against you just because the people say there is. Don’t be afraid of what they fear. Don’t let them frighten you!”
13 The Lord All-Powerful is the one you should fear. He is the one you should respect.[ae] He is the one who should frighten you. 14 If you people would respect him, he would be a safe place[af] for you. But you don’t respect him, so he is like a stone that you stumble over. He is a rock that makes both families of Israel fall. He has become a trap that all the people of Jerusalem will fall into. 15 (Many people will trip over this rock. They will fall and be broken. They will be caught in the trap.)
16 The Lord said, “Write this agreement.[ag] Tie it up and seal it so that it cannot be changed. Give these teachings to my followers for safekeeping.”
17 The Lord has turned away from the family of Jacob.
But I will wait for him.
I trust that he will come to save us.
18 Here I am with the children the Lord has given me. We are here as signs from the Lord All-Powerful, who lives on Mount Zion. He is using us to show his plans for the people of Israel.
19 The people will say, “Go to the fortunetellers and wizards who mumble and chirp like birds. Ask them what to do.” But I say, “Shouldn’t people go to their God for help? Why go to the dead to get help for the living?” 20 You should follow the teachings and the agreement.[ah] I swear, if you follow those other things, there is no future for you. 21 When the enemy comes, there will be hard times and hunger. And when he becomes hungry, he will become angry. He will say curses in the name of his king and his gods. Then he will lift his head upwards like a roaring lion. 22 And when the captives turn their faces to the ground, there is only a depressing darkness closing in—the dark sadness of people forced to leave their country.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 5:3 You people … Judah Or “Rulers of Jerusalem and leader of Judah ….”
- Isaiah 5:7 man of Judah This could mean either “the king of Judah” or simply, “people of Judah.”
- Isaiah 5:10 only a little wine Literally, “one bath,” a measure that equals about 6 gallons (22 l).
- Isaiah 5:10 only a little grain Literally, “A homer of seed will grow only an ephah of grain.” A homer equals about 6 bushels (220 l). An ephah equals about 2/3 bushel (22 l).
- Isaiah 5:18 ropes Literally, “useless ropes.” The Hebrew words here are like those meaning “useless things,” that is, idols.
- Isaiah 5:24 teachings This can also mean “laws.” Sometimes this means the laws God gave Moses to teach to the people of Israel.
- Isaiah 6:1 year … died This was probably 740 B.C.
- Isaiah 6:4 smoke This showed that God was in the Temple. See Ex. 40:34-35.
- Isaiah 6:5 I am not pure … him Literally, “I am a man of unclean lips and live among people of unclean lips.”
- Isaiah 6:7 erased Or “atoned” or “covered over.”
- Isaiah 7:1 Pekah son of Remaliah A king of northern Israel. He ruled about 740-731 B.C.
- Isaiah 7:1 Rezin and Pekah … the city Or “Rezin and Pekah went up to attack Jerusalem, but they were not able to fight.”
- Isaiah 7:3 Shear Jashub This is a name that means “a few people will come back.”
- Isaiah 7:3 Upper Pool Probably the Pool of Siloam at the southern tip of the City of David, just above the older pool now called the Red Pool.
- Isaiah 7:4 Remaliah’s son Pekah, the king of northern Israel. He ruled about 740–731 B.C.
- Isaiah 7:11 The sign … Sheol Or “Make your request deep.” The Hebrew word for “question” is like the word for Sheol.
- Isaiah 7:11 The sign … skies Literally, “make your request very high.”
- Isaiah 7:14 The young woman is pregnant Or “Look at this young woman. She is pregnant.” The ancient Greek version (quoted in Mt. 1:23) translates “young woman” here with a word meaning “virgin” and has “Look! The virgin will become pregnant.”
- Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel This name means “God is with us.”
- Isaiah 7:15 milk curds and honey This refers to some of the first solid foods, something like yogurt, that were fed to a baby. This is also the food that even the poor can find to eat. Also in verse 22.
- Isaiah 7:20 shave … body This means that the people of Judah would be humiliated and treated like slaves.
- Isaiah 8:1 scroll This Hebrew word might also mean a clay or stone tablet.
- Isaiah 8:1 ordinary pen Literally, “stylus of a man.” This might be a pen for writing on clay.
- Isaiah 8:1 Maher Shalal Hash Baz This means “There will soon be looting and stealing.”
- Isaiah 8:4 Damascus A city in the country of Aram (Syria).
- Isaiah 8:6 These people Probably Judeans who wanted to join Rezin and Pekah. Also in verse 11.
- Isaiah 8:6 Shiloah A channel that carried water from Gihon Spring to a pool at the south end of the City of David (Jerusalem). Men from David’s family were anointed to be kings there.
- Isaiah 8:8 But he … Immanuel Or “Immanuel, it will spread throughout your whole country.” This might be a promise of God’s protection, or it might be a warning about Assyria’s power.
- Isaiah 8:10 God is with us In Hebrew this is like the name Immanuel.
- Isaiah 8:11 warned Or “prevented.”
- Isaiah 8:13 respect Literally, “consider holy.”
- Isaiah 8:14 safe place Or “holy place.”
- Isaiah 8:16 Write this agreement Or “Take a document.” This could refer to the large scroll in verse 1 or to the promise that follows in verse 17.
- Isaiah 8:20 agreement This usually means the agreement God made with Israel through Moses. Here, it probably means the agreement in verse 17.
Isaiah 5-8
New International Version
Isaiah 5-8
New International Version
The Song of the Vineyard
5 I will sing for the one I love
a song about his vineyard:(A)
My loved one had a vineyard
on a fertile hillside.
2 He dug it up and cleared it of stones
and planted it with the choicest vines.(B)
He built a watchtower(C) in it
and cut out a winepress(D) as well.
Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
but it yielded only bad fruit.(E)
3 “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
judge between me and my vineyard.(F)
4 What more could have been done for my vineyard
than I have done for it?(G)
When I looked for good grapes,
why did it yield only bad?(H)
5 Now I will tell you
what I am going to do to my vineyard:
I will take away its hedge,
and it will be destroyed;(I)
I will break down its wall,(J)
and it will be trampled.(K)
6 I will make it a wasteland,(L)
neither pruned nor cultivated,
and briers and thorns(M) will grow there.
I will command the clouds
not to rain(N) on it.”
7 The vineyard(O) of the Lord Almighty
is the nation of Israel,
and the people of Judah
are the vines he delighted in.
And he looked for justice,(P) but saw bloodshed;
for righteousness,(Q) but heard cries of distress.(R)
Woes and Judgments
8 Woe(S) to you who add house to house
and join field to field(T)
till no space is left
and you live alone in the land.
9 The Lord Almighty(U) has declared in my hearing:(V)
“Surely the great houses will become desolate,(W)
the fine mansions left without occupants.
10 A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath[a] of wine;
a homer[b] of seed will yield only an ephah[c] of grain.”(X)
11 Woe(Y) to those who rise early in the morning
to run after their drinks,
who stay up late at night
till they are inflamed with wine.(Z)
12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
pipes(AA) and timbrels(AB) and wine,
but they have no regard(AC) for the deeds of the Lord,
no respect for the work of his hands.(AD)
13 Therefore my people will go into exile(AE)
for lack of understanding;(AF)
those of high rank(AG) will die of hunger
and the common people will be parched with thirst.(AH)
14 Therefore Death(AI) expands its jaws,
opening wide its mouth;(AJ)
into it will descend their nobles and masses
with all their brawlers and revelers.(AK)
15 So people will be brought low(AL)
and everyone humbled,(AM)
the eyes of the arrogant(AN) humbled.
16 But the Lord Almighty will be exalted(AO) by his justice,(AP)
and the holy God will be proved holy(AQ) by his righteous acts.
17 Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;(AR)
lambs will feed[d] among the ruins of the rich.
18 Woe(AS) to those who draw sin along with cords(AT) of deceit,
and wickedness(AU) as with cart ropes,
19 to those who say, “Let God hurry;
let him hasten(AV) his work
so we may see it.
The plan of the Holy One(AW) of Israel—
let it approach, let it come into view,
so we may know it.”(AX)
20 Woe(AY) to those who call evil good(AZ)
and good evil,(BA)
who put darkness for light
and light for darkness,(BB)
who put bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter.(BC)
21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes(BD)
and clever in their own sight.
22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine(BE)
and champions at mixing drinks,(BF)
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe,(BG)
but deny justice(BH) to the innocent.(BI)
24 Therefore, as tongues of fire(BJ) lick up straw(BK)
and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
so their roots will decay(BL)
and their flowers blow away like dust;(BM)
for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty
and spurned the word(BN) of the Holy One(BO) of Israel.
25 Therefore the Lord’s anger(BP) burns against his people;
his hand is raised and he strikes them down.
The mountains shake,(BQ)
and the dead bodies(BR) are like refuse(BS) in the streets.(BT)
26 He lifts up a banner(BW) for the distant nations,
he whistles(BX) for those at the ends of the earth.(BY)
Here they come,
swiftly and speedily!
27 Not one of them grows tired(BZ) or stumbles,
not one slumbers or sleeps;
not a belt(CA) is loosened at the waist,(CB)
not a sandal strap is broken.(CC)
28 Their arrows are sharp,(CD)
all their bows(CE) are strung;
their horses’ hooves(CF) seem like flint,
their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.(CG)
29 Their roar is like that of the lion,(CH)
they roar like young lions;
they growl as they seize(CI) their prey
and carry it off with no one to rescue.(CJ)
30 In that day(CK) they will roar over it
like the roaring of the sea.(CL)
And if one looks at the land,
there is only darkness(CM) and distress;(CN)
even the sun will be darkened(CO) by clouds.
Isaiah’s Commission
6 In the year that King Uzziah(CP) died,(CQ) I saw the Lord,(CR) high and exalted,(CS) seated on a throne;(CT) and the train of his robe(CU) filled the temple. 2 Above him were seraphim,(CV) each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet,(CW) and with two they were flying. 3 And they were calling to one another:
4 At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.(DB)
5 “Woe(DC) to me!” I cried. “I am ruined!(DD) For I am a man of unclean lips,(DE) and I live among a people of unclean lips,(DF) and my eyes have seen(DG) the King,(DH) the Lord Almighty.”(DI)
6 Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal(DJ) in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7 With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips;(DK) your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.(DL)”
8 Then I heard the voice(DM) of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send?(DN) And who will go for us?(DO)”
And I said, “Here am I.(DP) Send me!”
9 He said, “Go(DQ) and tell this people:
“‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’(DR)
10 Make the heart of this people calloused;(DS)
make their ears dull
and close their eyes.[e](DT)
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,(DU)
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”(DV)
11 Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”(DW)
And he answered:
“Until the cities lie ruined(DX)
and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left deserted(DY)
and the fields ruined and ravaged,(DZ)
12 until the Lord has sent everyone far away(EA)
and the land is utterly forsaken.(EB)
13 And though a tenth remains(EC) in the land,
it will again be laid waste.(ED)
But as the terebinth and oak
leave stumps(EE) when they are cut down,
so the holy(EF) seed will be the stump in the land.”(EG)
The Sign of Immanuel
7 When Ahaz(EH) son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin(EI) of Aram(EJ) and Pekah(EK) son of Remaliah(EL) king of Israel marched up to fight against Jerusalem, but they could not overpower it.
2 Now the house of David(EM) was told, “Aram has allied itself with[f] Ephraim(EN)”; so the hearts of Ahaz and his people were shaken,(EO) as the trees of the forest are shaken by the wind.
3 Then the Lord said to Isaiah, “Go out, you and your son Shear-Jashub,[g](EP) to meet Ahaz at the end of the aqueduct of the Upper Pool, on the road to the Launderer’s Field.(EQ) 4 Say to him, ‘Be careful, keep calm(ER) and don’t be afraid.(ES) Do not lose heart(ET) because of these two smoldering stubs(EU) of firewood—because of the fierce anger(EV) of Rezin and Aram and of the son of Remaliah.(EW) 5 Aram, Ephraim and Remaliah’s(EX) son have plotted(EY) your ruin, saying, 6 “Let us invade Judah; let us tear it apart and divide it among ourselves, and make the son of Tabeel king over it.” 7 Yet this is what the Sovereign Lord says:(EZ)
“‘It will not take place,
it will not happen,(FA)
8 for the head of Aram is Damascus,(FB)
and the head of Damascus is only Rezin.(FC)
Within sixty-five years
Ephraim will be too shattered(FD) to be a people.
9 The head of Ephraim is Samaria,(FE)
and the head of Samaria is only Remaliah’s son.
If you do not stand(FF) firm in your faith,(FG)
you will not stand at all.’”(FH)
10 Again the Lord spoke to Ahaz, 11 “Ask the Lord your God for a sign,(FI) whether in the deepest depths or in the highest heights.(FJ)”
12 But Ahaz said, “I will not ask; I will not put the Lord to the test.(FK)”
13 Then Isaiah said, “Hear now, you house of David!(FL) Is it not enough(FM) to try the patience of humans? Will you try the patience(FN) of my God(FO) also? 14 Therefore the Lord himself will give you[h] a sign:(FP) The virgin[i](FQ) will conceive and give birth to a son,(FR) and[j] will call him Immanuel.[k](FS) 15 He will be eating curds(FT) and honey(FU) when he knows enough to reject the wrong and choose the right, 16 for before the boy knows(FV) enough to reject the wrong and choose the right,(FW) the land of the two kings you dread will be laid waste.(FX) 17 The Lord will bring on you and on your people and on the house of your father a time unlike any since Ephraim broke away(FY) from Judah—he will bring the king of Assyria.(FZ)”
Assyria, the Lord’s Instrument
18 In that day(GA) the Lord will whistle(GB) for flies from the Nile delta in Egypt and for bees from the land of Assyria.(GC) 19 They will all come and settle in the steep ravines and in the crevices(GD) in the rocks, on all the thornbushes(GE) and at all the water holes. 20 In that day(GF) the Lord will use(GG) a razor hired from beyond the Euphrates River(GH)—the king of Assyria(GI)—to shave your head and private parts, and to cut off your beard(GJ) also.(GK) 21 In that day,(GL) a person will keep alive a young cow and two goats.(GM) 22 And because of the abundance of the milk they give, there will be curds to eat. All who remain in the land will eat curds(GN) and honey.(GO) 23 In that day,(GP) in every place where there were a thousand vines worth a thousand silver shekels,[l](GQ) there will be only briers and thorns.(GR) 24 Hunters will go there with bow and arrow, for the land will be covered with briers(GS) and thorns. 25 As for all the hills(GT) once cultivated by the hoe, you will no longer go there for fear of the briers and thorns;(GU) they will become places where cattle are turned loose and where sheep run.(GV)
Isaiah and His Children as Signs
8 The Lord said to me, “Take a large scroll(GW) and write on it with an ordinary pen: Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.”[m](GX) 2 So I called in Uriah(GY) the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah as reliable witnesses(GZ) for me. 3 Then I made love to the prophetess,(HA) and she conceived and gave birth to a son.(HB) And the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz.(HC) 4 For before the boy knows(HD) how to say ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus(HE) and the plunder of Samaria will be carried off by the king of Assyria.(HF)”
5 The Lord spoke to me again:
6 “Because this people has rejected(HG)
the gently flowing waters of Shiloah(HH)
and rejoices over Rezin
and the son of Remaliah,(HI)
7 therefore the Lord is about to bring against them
the mighty floodwaters(HJ) of the Euphrates—
the king of Assyria(HK) with all his pomp.(HL)
It will overflow all its channels,
run over all its banks(HM)
8 and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it,(HN)
passing through it and reaching up to the neck.
Its outspread wings(HO) will cover the breadth of your land,
Immanuel[n]!”(HP)
9 Raise the war cry,[o](HQ) you nations, and be shattered!(HR)
Listen, all you distant lands.
Prepare(HS) for battle, and be shattered!
Prepare for battle, and be shattered!
10 Devise your strategy, but it will be thwarted;(HT)
propose your plan, but it will not stand,(HU)
for God is with us.[p](HV)
11 This is what the Lord says to me with his strong hand upon me,(HW) warning me not to follow(HX) the way of this people:
12 “Do not call conspiracy(HY)
everything this people calls a conspiracy;
do not fear what they fear,(HZ)
and do not dread it.(IA)
13 The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy,(IB)
he is the one you are to fear,(IC)
he is the one you are to dread.(ID)
14 He will be a holy place;(IE)
for both Israel and Judah he will be
a stone(IF) that causes people to stumble(IG)
and a rock that makes them fall.(IH)
And for the people of Jerusalem he will be
a trap and a snare.(II)
15 Many of them will stumble;(IJ)
they will fall and be broken,
they will be snared and captured.”
16 Bind up this testimony of warning(IK)
and seal(IL) up God’s instruction among my disciples.
17 I will wait(IM) for the Lord,
who is hiding(IN) his face from the descendants of Jacob.
I will put my trust in him.(IO)
18 Here am I, and the children the Lord has given me.(IP) We are signs(IQ) and symbols(IR) in Israel from the Lord Almighty, who dwells on Mount Zion.(IS)
The Darkness Turns to Light
19 When someone tells you to consult(IT) mediums and spiritists,(IU) who whisper and mutter,(IV) should not a people inquire(IW) of their God? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living? 20 Consult God’s instruction(IX) and the testimony of warning.(IY) If anyone does not speak according to this word, they have no light(IZ) of dawn. 21 Distressed and hungry,(JA) they will roam through the land;(JB) when they are famished, they will become enraged and, looking upward, will curse(JC) their king and their God. 22 Then they will look toward the earth and see only distress and darkness and fearful gloom,(JD) and they will be thrust into utter darkness.(JE)
Footnotes
- Isaiah 5:10 That is, about 6 gallons or about 22 liters
- Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 360 pounds or about 160 kilograms
- Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
- Isaiah 5:17 Septuagint; Hebrew / strangers will eat
- Isaiah 6:10 Hebrew; Septuagint ‘You will be ever hearing, but never understanding; / you will be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ / 10 This people’s heart has become calloused; / they hardly hear with their ears, / and they have closed their eyes
- Isaiah 7:2 Or has set up camp in
- Isaiah 7:3 Shear-Jashub means a remnant will return.
- Isaiah 7:14 The Hebrew is plural.
- Isaiah 7:14 Or young woman
- Isaiah 7:14 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls son, and he or son, and they
- Isaiah 7:14 Immanuel means God with us.
- Isaiah 7:23 That is, about 25 pounds or about 12 kilograms
- Isaiah 8:1 Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz means quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil; also in verse 3.
- Isaiah 8:8 Immanuel means God with us.
- Isaiah 8:9 Or Do your worst
- Isaiah 8:10 Hebrew Immanuel
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