Isaiah 57
Amplified Bible
Evil Leaders Rebuked
57 The righteous man perishes [at the hand of evil], and no one takes it to heart;
Faithful and devout men are taken away, while no one understands
That the righteous person is taken away [to be spared] from disaster and evil.
2
He enters into peace [through death];
They rest in their beds (graves),
Each one who walked uprightly [following God’s will, living with integrity].
3
“But come here, you sons of a sorceress [raised in deception and superstition],
Offspring of an adulterer and a prostitute.
4
“Of whom do you make fun?
Against whom do you open wide your mouth
And stick out your tongue?
Are you not children of rebellion (sin),
Offspring of deceit,
5
Who inflame yourselves [with lust in pagan rites] among the oaks (terebinth trees),
Under every green and leafy tree,
Who slaughter the children [in sacrifice] in the ravines
Under the clefts of the rocks?
6
“Among the smooth stones of the ravine
Is your portion, they (the idols) are your lot;
Even to them you have poured out a drink offering,
You have offered a grain offering.
Should I be quiet concerning these things [leaving them unpunished—bearing them with patience]?
7
“Upon a high and lofty mountain
You have [openly and shamelessly] made your [idolatrous and adulterous] bed;
Even there you went up to offer sacrifice [to idols, in spiritual unfaithfulness to Me].
8
“Behind the door and the doorpost
You have set up your [pagan] symbol;
Indeed, far removed from Me, you have uncovered yourself,
And have gone up and made your bed wide.
And you have made a [new] agreement for yourself with the adulterers,
You have loved their bed,
You have looked [with passion] on their [a]manhood.(A)
9
“You have gone to [b]the king [of a pagan land] with oil
And increased your [c]perfumes;
You have sent your messengers a great distance
And made them go down to Sheol (the realm of the dead).
10
“You were wearied by the length of your road,
Yet you did not say, ‘It is no use.’
You found [d]renewed strength,
Therefore you did not grow weak.
11
“About whom were you worried and fearful
That you lied and did not [e]remember Me,
Nor [f]give Me a thought?
Was I not silent even for a long time
And [as a result] you do not fear Me?
12
“I will declare your [hypocritical] righteousness and your deeds,
But they will not benefit you.
13
“When you cry out [for help], let your [ridiculous] collection of idols save you.
But the wind will carry them all away,
A [mere] breath will take them.
But he who takes refuge in Me will possess the land [Judea]
And will inherit My holy mountain.”(B)
14
And it will be said,
“Build up, build up, clear the way.
Remove the stumbling block out of the way [of the spiritual return] of My people.”
15
For the high and exalted One
He who inhabits eternity, Whose name is Holy says this,
“I dwell on the high and holy place,
But also with the [g]contrite and humble in spirit
In order to revive the spirit of the humble
And to revive the heart of the contrite [overcome with sorrow for sin].(C)
16
“For I will not contend forever,
Nor will I always be angry;
For [if I did stay angry] the spirit [of man] would grow weak before Me,
And the breath of those whom I have created.
17
“Because of the wickedness of his unjust gain I was angry and struck him;
I hid My face and was angry,
And he went on turning away and backsliding, in the way of his [own willful] heart.
18
“I have seen his [willful] ways, but I will heal him;
I will lead him [also] and will restore comfort to him and to those who mourn for him,(D)
19
As I create the [h]praise of his lips,
Peace, peace, to him who is far away [both Jew and Gentile] and to him who is near!”
Says the Lord;
“And I will heal him [making his lips blossom anew with thankful praise].”(E)
20
But the wicked are like the tossing sea,
For it cannot be quiet,
And its waters toss up mire and mud.
21
“There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 57:8 Lit hand.
- Isaiah 57:9 Another reading is Molech, i.e. to an idol of the pagan god.
- Isaiah 57:9 Lit ointments.
- Isaiah 57:10 Lit the life of your hand.
- Isaiah 57:11 Or mention.
- Isaiah 57:11 Lit put on your heart.
- Isaiah 57:15 Lit crushed.
- Isaiah 57:19 Lit fruit.
Isaiah 57
Contemporary English Version
God's Faithful People Suffer
57 God's faithful people
are dragged off and killed,
and no one even cares.
Evil sweeps them away,
2 but in death they find peace
for obeying God.[a]
The Lord Condemns Idolatry
3 You people are unfaithful!
You go to fortunetellers,
and you worship idols.
Now pay close attention!
4 Who are you making fun of?
Who are you sneering at?
Look how your sins
have made fools of you.
5 All you think about is sex
under those green trees
where idols are worshiped.
You sacrifice your children
on altars built in valleys
under rocky slopes.
6 You have chosen to worship
idols made of stone;[b]
you have given them offerings
of wine and grain.
Should I be pleased?
7 You have spread out your beds
on the tops of high mountains,
where you sacrifice to idols.
8 Even in your homes
you have placed pagan symbols
all around your huge beds.
Yes, you have rejected me,
sold yourselves to your lovers,
and gone to bed with them.[c]
9 You smear on olive oil
and all kinds of perfume
to worship the god Molech.[d]
You even seek advice
from spirits of the dead.
10 Though you tired yourself out
by running after idols,
you refused to stop.
Your desires were so strong
that they kept you going.
11 Did you forget about me
and become unfaithful
because you were more afraid
of someone else?
Have I been silent so long[e]
that you no longer fear me?
12 You think you're so good,
but I'll point out the truth.
13 Ask your idols to save you
when you are in trouble.
Be careful though—
it takes only a faint breath
to blow them over.
But if you come to me
for protection,
this land and my holy mountain
will always belong to you.
The Lord Helps the Helpless
14 The Lord says,
“Clear the road!
Get it ready for my people.”
15 (A) Our holy God lives forever
in the highest heavens,
and this is what he says:
Though I live high above
in the holy place,
I am here to help those
who are humble
and depend only on me.
16 My people, I won't stay angry
and keep on accusing you.
After all, I am your Creator.
I don't want you to give up
in complete despair.
17 Your greed made me furious.
That's why I punished you
and refused to be found,
while you kept returning
to your old sinful ways.
18 I know what you are like!
But I will heal you, lead you,
and give you comfort,
until those who are mourning
19 (B) start singing my praises.[f]
No matter where you are,
I, the Lord, will heal you[g]
and give you peace.
20 The wicked are a restless sea
tossing up mud.
21 (C) But I, the Lord, have promised
that none who are evil
will live in peace.
Footnotes
- 57.1,2 Evil … God: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 57.6 You have … stone: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 57.8 them: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 8.
- 57.9 the god Molech: Or “the king.” In Hebrew “Molech” and “king” sound alike.
- 57.11 so long: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 57.18,19 until … praises: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
- 57.19 heal you: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
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