Font Size
Isaiah 32-33
Common English Bible
Isaiah 32-33
Common English Bible
Righteous rule
32 See here: A king rules to promote righteousness;
rulers govern to promote justice,
2 each like a shelter from the wind
and a refuge from a storm,
like streams of water in a wasteland,
like the shade of a massive cliff in a worn-out land.
3 Then the eyes of those who can see will no longer be blind,
the ears of those who can hear will listen,
4 the minds of the rash will know and comprehend,
and the tongues of those who stammer will speak fluently and plainly.
5 Then a fool will no longer be called honorable,
nor a villain considered respectable.
6 Fools speak folly;
their minds devise wickedness,
acting irreverently,
speaking falsely of the Lord,
leaving the hungry empty,
and depriving the thirsty of drink.
7 As for the villain, his villainies are evil.
He plans schemes to destroy the poor with lying words,
even when the needy speak justly.
8 But an honorable person plans honorable things
and stands up for what is honorable.
Warnings to the carefree
9 Women of leisure, stand up! Hear my voice!
Carefree daughters, listen to my word!
10 In a little over a year,
the carefree will shudder,
because the grape harvest will fail;
the vintage won’t arrive.
11 Tremble, all of you who are at ease;
shudder, all of you who are secure!
Strip yourselves, bare your skin,
and tie mourning clothes around your waist,
12 beating your breasts for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vine,
13 for my people’s soil
growing barbs and thorns,
for all the joyous houses
in the jubilant town.
14 The palace will be deserted,
the crowded city abandoned.
Stronghold and watchtower
will become empty fields forever,
suited for the pleasure of wild donkeys,
and a pasture for flocks—
15 until a spirit from on high
is poured out on us,
and the desert turns into farmland, and the farmland is considered a forest.
16 Then justice will reside in wild lands,
and righteousness will abide in farmlands.
17 The fruit of righteousness will be peace,
and the outcome of righteousness,
calm and security forever.
18 Then my people will live in a peaceful dwelling,
in secure homes, in carefree resting places.
19 Even if the forest falls[a]
and the humbled city is laid low,
20 those who sow beside any stream will be happy,
sending out ox and donkey to graze.
Judgment and hope for the righteous
33 Doom to the destroyer left undestroyed,
you traitor whom none have betrayed:
when you have finished destroying, you will be destroyed;
and when you have stopped betraying, they will betray you.
2 Lord, show us favor;
we hope in you.
Be our strength every morning,
our salvation in times of distress.
3 At the noise, peoples fled;
on account of your roar, nations scattered.
4 They gathered spoil like insects;
they rushed upon it like a swarm of locusts.[b]
5 The Lord is exalted; he lives on high,
filling Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 He will provide security during a lifetime:[c]
a source of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge—
fear of the Lord will be Zion’s treasure.[d]
7 But then those in Ariel[e] cried out in the streets;
messengers of peace wept bitterly.
8 The highways were deserted;
travelers left the road.
The covenant was broken;
solemn pledges[f] were rejected;
no one cared for humanity.
9 The land mourned; it wasted away;
Lebanon was ashamed; it withered.
Sharon became like the desert,
and Bashan and Carmel were dropping their leaves.
10 Now I will arise, says the Lord.
Now I will exalt myself; now I will stand tall.
11 You conceive straw, give birth to stubble;
your breath is a fire that devours you.
12 Peoples will be burned to lime,
thorns cut up and set ablaze.
13 You who are far away, hear what I have done;
and you who are near, know my strength!
14 Sinners became terrified in Zion;
trembling seized the godless:
“Who among us can live with the devouring fire?
Who among us can live with the everlasting blaze?”
15 The one who walks righteously and speaks truthfully,
who rejects profit from extortion,
who waves away a bribe instead of grabbing it,
who won’t listen to bloody plots,
and who won’t contemplate doing something evil.
16 He will live on the heights;
fortresses in the cliffs will be his refuge.
His food will be provided,
his water guaranteed.
17 When you gaze upon a king in his glamour
and look at the surrounding land,
18 in dismay you will think:
Where is the one who counts?
Where is the one who weighs?
Where is the one who counts towers?
19 You will no longer see the defiant people,
the people of speech too obscure to understand,
who stammer in an incomprehensible language.
20 Gaze upon Zion, our festival town.
Your eyes will see Jerusalem,
a carefree dwelling,
a tent that is not packed up,
whose stakes are never pulled up,
whose ropes won’t snap.
21 The Lord’s majesty will be there for us:
as a place of rivers, broad streams
where no boat will go,
no majestic ship will cross.
22 The Lord is our judge;
the Lord is our leader;
the Lord is our king—
he will deliver us.
23 Your ropes are loosened;
they can’t hold the mast firmly;
they can’t spread the sail.
Then abundant spoil will be divided;
even the lame will seize spoil.
24 And no inhabitant will say, “I’m sick.”
The people living there will be forgiven their sin.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 32:19 Or it will hail when the forest falls
- Isaiah 33:4 Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 33:6 Or your times
- Isaiah 33:6 Or his treasure
- Isaiah 33:7 Or the valiant; Heb uncertain
- Isaiah 33:8 Correction; or cities; DSS (1QIsaa) witnesses
Isaiah 32-33
New International Version
Isaiah 32-33
New International Version
The Kingdom of Righteousness
32 See, a king(A) will reign in righteousness
and rulers will rule with justice.(B)
2 Each one will be like a shelter(C) from the wind
and a refuge from the storm,(D)
like streams of water(E) in the desert(F)
and the shadow of a great rock in a thirsty land.
3 Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed,(G)
and the ears(H) of those who hear will listen.
4 The fearful heart will know and understand,(I)
and the stammering tongue(J) will be fluent and clear.
5 No longer will the fool(K) be called noble
nor the scoundrel be highly respected.
6 For fools speak folly,(L)
their hearts are bent on evil:(M)
They practice ungodliness(N)
and spread error(O) concerning the Lord;
the hungry they leave empty(P)
and from the thirsty they withhold water.
7 Scoundrels use wicked methods,(Q)
they make up evil schemes(R)
to destroy the poor with lies,
even when the plea of the needy(S) is just.(T)
8 But the noble make noble plans,
and by noble deeds(U) they stand.(V)
The Women of Jerusalem
9 You women(W) who are so complacent,
rise up and listen(X) to me;
you daughters who feel secure,(Y)
hear what I have to say!
10 In little more than a year(Z)
you who feel secure will tremble;
the grape harvest will fail,(AA)
and the harvest of fruit will not come.
11 Tremble,(AB) you complacent women;
shudder, you daughters who feel secure!(AC)
Strip off your fine clothes(AD)
and wrap yourselves in rags.(AE)
12 Beat your breasts(AF) for the pleasant fields,
for the fruitful vines(AG)
13 and for the land of my people,
a land overgrown with thorns and briers(AH)—
yes, mourn(AI) for all houses of merriment
and for this city of revelry.(AJ)
14 The fortress(AK) will be abandoned,
the noisy city deserted;(AL)
citadel and watchtower(AM) will become a wasteland forever,
the delight of donkeys,(AN) a pasture for flocks,(AO)
15 till the Spirit(AP) is poured on us from on high,
and the desert becomes a fertile field,(AQ)
and the fertile field seems like a forest.(AR)
16 The Lord’s justice(AS) will dwell in the desert,(AT)
his righteousness(AU) live in the fertile field.
17 The fruit of that righteousness(AV) will be peace;(AW)
its effect will be quietness and confidence(AX) forever.
18 My people will live in peaceful(AY) dwelling places,
in secure homes,(AZ)
in undisturbed places of rest.(BA)
19 Though hail(BB) flattens the forest(BC)
and the city is leveled(BD) completely,
20 how blessed you will be,
sowing(BE) your seed by every stream,(BF)
and letting your cattle and donkeys range free.(BG)
Distress and Help
33 Woe(BH) to you, destroyer,
you who have not been destroyed!
Woe to you, betrayer,
you who have not been betrayed!
When you stop destroying,
you will be destroyed;(BI)
when you stop betraying,
you will be betrayed.(BJ)
2 Lord, be gracious(BK) to us;
we long for you.
Be our strength(BL) every morning,
our salvation(BM) in time of distress.(BN)
3 At the uproar of your army,(BO) the peoples flee;(BP)
when you rise up,(BQ) the nations scatter.
4 Your plunder,(BR) O nations, is harvested(BS) as by young locusts;(BT)
like a swarm of locusts people pounce on it.
5 The Lord is exalted,(BU) for he dwells on high;(BV)
he will fill Zion with his justice(BW) and righteousness.(BX)
6 He will be the sure foundation for your times,
a rich store of salvation(BY) and wisdom and knowledge;
the fear(BZ) of the Lord is the key to this treasure.[a](CA)
7 Look, their brave men(CB) cry aloud in the streets;
the envoys(CC) of peace weep bitterly.
8 The highways are deserted,
no travelers(CD) are on the roads.(CE)
The treaty is broken,(CF)
its witnesses[b] are despised,
no one is respected.
9 The land dries up(CG) and wastes away,
Lebanon(CH) is ashamed and withers;(CI)
Sharon(CJ) is like the Arabah,
and Bashan(CK) and Carmel(CL) drop their leaves.
10 “Now will I arise,(CM)” says the Lord.
“Now will I be exalted;(CN)
now will I be lifted up.
11 You conceive(CO) chaff,
you give birth(CP) to straw;
your breath is a fire(CQ) that consumes you.
12 The peoples will be burned to ashes;(CR)
like cut thornbushes(CS) they will be set ablaze.(CT)”
13 You who are far away,(CU) hear(CV) what I have done;
you who are near, acknowledge my power!
14 The sinners(CW) in Zion are terrified;
trembling(CX) grips the godless:
“Who of us can dwell with the consuming fire?(CY)
Who of us can dwell with everlasting burning?”
15 Those who walk righteously(CZ)
and speak what is right,(DA)
who reject gain from extortion(DB)
and keep their hands from accepting bribes,(DC)
who stop their ears against plots of murder
and shut their eyes(DD) against contemplating evil—
16 they are the ones who will dwell on the heights,(DE)
whose refuge(DF) will be the mountain fortress.(DG)
Their bread will be supplied,
and water will not fail(DH) them.
17 Your eyes will see the king(DI) in his beauty(DJ)
and view a land that stretches afar.(DK)
18 In your thoughts you will ponder the former terror:(DL)
“Where is that chief officer?
Where is the one who took the revenue?
Where is the officer in charge of the towers?(DM)”
19 You will see those arrogant people(DN) no more,
people whose speech is obscure,
whose language is strange and incomprehensible.(DO)
20 Look on Zion,(DP) the city of our festivals;
your eyes will see Jerusalem,
a peaceful abode,(DQ) a tent(DR) that will not be moved;(DS)
its stakes will never be pulled up,
nor any of its ropes broken.
21 There the Lord will be our Mighty(DT) One.
It will be like a place of broad rivers and streams.(DU)
No galley with oars will ride them,
no mighty ship(DV) will sail them.
22 For the Lord is our judge,(DW)
the Lord is our lawgiver,(DX)
the Lord is our king;(DY)
it is he who will save(DZ) us.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:6 Or is a treasure from him
- Isaiah 33:8 Dead Sea Scrolls; Masoretic Text / the cities
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.