Bible in 90 Days
Israel Will Return Home
14 The Lord will again show his love to Jacob. He will again choose the people of Israel. He will give them their land. Then the non-Israelites[a] will join the Israelites, and both will become one family—Jacob’s family. 2 Those nations will bring the Israelites back to their land. The men and women from the other nations will become slaves to Israel. In the past, those people forced the Israelites to become their slaves. But in the future the Israelites will defeat those nations, and Israel will then rule over them in the Lord’s land. 3 In the past, you were slaves. People forced you to work hard. But the Lord will take away the hard work you were forced to do.
A Song About the King of Babylon
4 At that time you will begin to sing this song about the king of Babylon:
The king was cruel when he ruled us,
but now his rule is finished.
5 The Lord breaks the scepter of evil rulers;
he takes away their power.
6 In anger, the king of Babylon beat the people.
He never stopped beating them.
He was an evil ruler who ruled in anger.
He never stopped hurting people.
7 But now, the whole country rests and is quiet.
Now the people begin to celebrate.
8 You were an evil king,
and now you are finished.
Even the pine trees are happy.
The cedar trees of Lebanon rejoice.
They say, “The king chopped us down,
but now the king has fallen,
and he will never stand again.”
9 The place of death is excited
that you are coming.
Sheol is waking the spirits
of all the leaders of the earth for you.
Sheol is making the kings stand up
from their thrones to meet you.
10 They will make fun of you, saying,
“Now you are as dead as we are.
Now you are just like us.”
11 Your pride has been sent down to Sheol.
The music from your harps announces the coming of your proud spirit.
Maggots will be the bed you lie on,
and other worms will cover your body like a blanket.
12 You were like the morning star,
but you have fallen from the sky.
In the past, all the nations on earth bowed down before you,
but now you have been cut down.
13 You always told yourself,
“I will go to the skies above.
I will put my throne above God’s stars.
I will sit on Zaphon,[b] the holy mountain where the gods meet.
14 I will go up to the altar above the tops of the clouds.
I will be like God Most High.”
15 But that did not happen.
You were brought down to the deep pit—Sheol, the place of death.
16 People will come to look at your dead body.
They will think about you and say,
“Is this the same man
who caused great fear in all the kingdoms on earth,
17 who destroyed cities
and turned the land into a desert,
who captured people in war
and would not let them go home?”
18 The kings of other nations lie buried with honor,
each king with his own grave.
19 But you were thrown out of your grave
like a branch cut from a tree and thrown away.
You are like a dead man who fell in battle,
trampled under the feet of other soldiers.
Now you look like any other dead man
wrapped in burial clothes.
20 Other kings have their own graves,
but you will not join them,
because you ruined your own country
and killed your own people.
So your wicked descendants will be stopped.
21 Prepare to kill his children,
because their father is guilty.
His children will never take control of the land.
They will never fill the world with their cities.
22 The Lord All-Powerful said, “I will stand and fight against those people. I will destroy the famous city, Babylon. I will destroy all the people there. I will destroy their children, their grandchildren, and their great-grandchildren.” The Lord himself said this.
23 “I will change Babylon. It will be a place for animals,[c] not people. It will be a swamp. I will use the ‘broom of destruction’ to sweep Babylon away.” The Lord All-Powerful said this.
God Will Also Punish Assyria
24 The Lord All-Powerful made this promise: “This will happen exactly as I meant for it to happen. It will happen just the way I planned. 25 I will destroy the king of Assyria in my country. I will walk on him on my mountains. He forced my people to be his slaves; he put a yoke on their necks. But that pole will be taken off Judah’s neck, and that burden will be removed. 26 This is what I plan to do for this land. I will use my power to punish all those nations.”
27 When the Lord All-Powerful makes a plan, no one can change it. When he raises his arm to punish, no one can stop him.
God’s Message to Philistia
28 This message[d] was given to me the year King Ahaz died[e]:
29 Country of Philistia, don’t be happy that the king who beat you is now dead. It is true that his rule has ended, but his son will come and rule. It will be like one snake giving birth to a more dangerous one. The new king will be like a quick and dangerous snake to you. 30 But even the poorest of my people will be able to eat safely. And their children will be able to lie down and feel safe. But I will make your family die from hunger, and your enemy will kill anyone who survives.
31 People near the city gates, cry!
People in the city, cry out!
Everyone in Philistia,
your courage will melt like hot wax.
Look to the north!
There is a cloud of dust.
An army is coming,
and everyone in that army is strong.[f]
32 But what will the messengers from that nation report about us?
They will say, “The Lord made Zion strong,
and his poor people went there for safety.”
God’s Message to Moab
15 This is a message about Moab:
One night armies took the wealth from Ar in Moab,
and the city was destroyed.
One night armies took the wealth from Kir in Moab,
and the city was destroyed.
2 The king’s family and the people of Dibon[g] go to the places of worship[h] to cry.
The people of Moab are crying for Nebo[i] and Medeba.[j]
They have shaved their heads and beards to show their sadness.
3 Everywhere in Moab, on the housetops and in the streets,
people are wearing sackcloth.
Everyone is crying.
4 In Heshbon and Elealeh they are crying loudly.
You can hear their voices as far away as Jahaz.
Even the soldiers are frightened.
They are shaking with fear.
5 My heart cries, full of sorrow for Moab.
Its people run away to Zoar for safety.
They run to Eglath Shelishiyah.
The people are crying
as they go up the road to Luhith.
They are crying loudly
as they walk on the road to Horonaim.
6 But Nimrim Brook is as dry as a desert.
The grass has dried up,
and the plants are all dead.
Nothing is green.
7 So the people gather up everything they own
and cross the border at Arabah stream.
8 You can hear crying everywhere in Moab—
as far away as Eglaim and Beer Elim.
9 The water of Dimon[k] is full of blood,
and I will bring even more troubles to Dimon.
A few people living in Moab have escaped the enemy,
but I will send lions to eat them.
16 You people should send a gift to the king of the land. You should send a lamb from Sela, through the desert, to the mountain in the city of Jerusalem.[l]
2 The women of Moab try to cross the river Arnon.
They run around looking for help,
like little birds that have fallen from their nest.
3 They say, “Help us!
Tell us what to do.
Protect us from our enemies
as shade protects us from the noon sun.
We are running from our enemies.
Hide us!
Don’t give us to our enemies.
4 People from Moab were forced to leave their homes.
So let them live in your land.
Hide them from their enemies.”
The robbing will stop.
The enemy will be defeated.
The men who hurt the people will be gone from the land.
5 Then a new king will come.
He will be from David’s family.[m]
He will be loyal, loving, and kind.
He will be a king who judges fairly.
He will do what is right and good.
6 We have heard that the people of Moab
are very proud and conceited.
They are hot-tempered braggers,
but their boasts are only empty words.
7 Because of their pride, everyone in Moab will mourn.
They will wish for the way things used to be.
They will wish for the raisin cakes from Kir Hareseth.[n]
8 The fields of Heshbon and the vines of Sibmah no longer grow grapes.
Foreign rulers have destroyed the vines.
The enemy has reached Jazer
and has spread into the desert and down to the sea.[o]
9 I will cry with the people of Jazer and Sibmah,
because the grapes have been destroyed.
I will cry with the people of Heshbon and Elealeh
because there will be no harvest.
There will be no summer fruit,
and there will be no shouts of joy for the harvest.
10 There will be no joy and happiness in the orchard.
I will end the happy singing and shouting in the vineyard.
The grapes are ready to make wine,
but they will all be ruined.
11 So I will hum a sad song for Moab and Kir Heres,[p]
like a harp playing a funeral song.
12 The people of Moab will go
to their high places to worship.
They will go to their temple to pray,
but it will not help them.
13 The Lord said these things about Moab many times. 14 And now the Lord says, “In three years (counting as exactly as a hired helper would) all those people and the things they are proud of will be gone. Only a few of their weakest people will be left.”
God’s Message to Aram
17 This is a message[q] about Damascus[r]:
“Damascus is now a city, but it will be destroyed.
Only ruined buildings will be left there.
2 People will leave the cities of Aroer.[s]
Flocks of sheep will wander freely in those empty towns;
there will be no one to bother them.
3 The fort cities of Ephraim will be destroyed.
The government in Damascus will be finished.
Those left in Aram will lose everything,
just like the people of Israel,” says the Lord All-Powerful.
4 “At that time Jacob’s wealth will all be gone.
Yes, Israel will be like a sick man who has become weak and thin.
5 “That time will be like the grain harvest in Rephaim Valley.[t] The workers gather the plants that grow in the field. Then they cut the heads of grain from the plants and collect the grain.
6 “That time will also be like the olive harvest. People knock olives from the trees, but a few olives are usually left at the top of each tree. Four or five olives are left on some of the top branches. It will be the same for those cities,” says the Lord All-Powerful.
7 Then the people will look up to the one who made them. Their eyes will see the Holy One of Israel. 8 They will not trust the great things they have made. They will not go to the special gardens[u] and altars[v] they made for false gods. 9 At that time all the walled cities will be empty. They will be like the mountains and the forests[w] in the land before the Israelites came. In the past, all the people ran away because the Israelites were coming. In the future, the country will be empty again. 10 This will happen because you have forgotten the God who saves you. You have not remembered that God is your place of safety.
You brought some very good grapevines from faraway places. You might plant those grapevines, but they will not grow. 11 You will plant your grapevines one day and try to make them grow, and the next day they will blossom. But at harvest time, you will go to gather the fruit from the plants, and you will see that everything is dead. A sickness will kill all the plants.
12 Listen to all these people!
Their loud crying sounds like the noise from the sea.
Listen, it is like the crashing of waves in the sea.
13 And like the waves,
they will rush away when God speaks harshly to them.
They will be like chaff blown away by the wind.
They will be like weeds chased by a storm.
14 That night, the people will be frightened.
By morning, nothing will be left.
So our enemies will get nothing.
They will come to our land, but nothing will be there.
God’s Message to Ethiopia
18 Look at the land along the rivers of Ethiopia where you can hear the buzzing of insect wings. 2 That land sends people down the Nile River in reed boats.[x]
Fast messengers, go to the people
who are tall and smooth,
who are feared far and wide.
Go to that powerful nation that defeats other countries
and whose land is divided by rivers.
Go warn them!
3 Like a flag on a hill,
everyone on earth will see what happens.
Like a trumpet call,
everyone in the country will hear it.
4 The Lord said, “I will be in the place prepared for me.[y] I will quietly watch these things happen: On a beautiful summer day, at noon, people will be resting. (It will be during the hot harvest time when there is no rain, but only early morning dew.) 5 Then something terrible will happen. Earlier in the year, the flowers bloomed and the new grapes formed buds and began to grow. But before the crop is harvested, the enemy will come and cut the plants. They will break the vines and throw them away. 6 The vines will be left for the birds from the mountains and the wild animals to eat. The birds will feed on them throughout the summer, and that winter the wild animals will eat the vines.”
7 At that time a special offering will be brought to the Lord All-Powerful from the people who are tall and smooth, from those who are feared far and wide, from that powerful nation that defeats other countries and whose land is divided by rivers.[z] This offering will be brought to the Lord’s place on Mount Zion.
God’s Message to Egypt
19 A message[aa] about Egypt: Look, the Lord is coming on a fast cloud. He will enter Egypt, and all the false gods of Egypt will shake with fear. Egypt’s courage will melt away like hot wax.
2 The Lord says, “I will cause the Egyptians to fight against themselves. Men will fight their brothers. Neighbors will be against neighbors. Cities will be against cities. Kingdoms will be against kingdoms.[ab] 3 The Egyptians will be afraid and confused. They will ask their false gods and wise men what they should do. They will ask their wizards and magicians, but I will ruin their plans.” 4 The Lord God All-Powerful says, “I will give Egypt to a hard master. A powerful king will rule over the people.”
5 The water in the Nile River will dry up and disappear. 6 All the rivers will smell very bad.[ac] The canals in Egypt will be dry, and the water will be gone. All the water plants will rot. 7 All the plants along the riverbanks will die and blow away. Even the plants at the widest part of the river will dry up, blow away, and disappear.
8 The fishermen, all those who catch fish from the Nile River, will become sad and they will cry. They depend on the Nile River for their food, but it will be dry. 9 Those who make cloth from flax, who weave it into linen, will all be sad. 10 Those who weave cloth will be broken, and those who work for money will be depressed.
11 The leaders of the city of Zoan[ad] are fools. Pharaoh’s “wise advisors” give bad advice. They say they are wise. They say they are from the old family of the kings, but they are not as smart as they think. 12 Egypt, where are your wise men? They should learn what the Lord All-Powerful has planned for Egypt. They should be the ones to tell you what will happen.
13 The leaders of Zoan have been fooled. The leaders of Noph[ae] have believed lies, so they lead Egypt the wrong way. 14 The Lord confused them, so they wander around and lead Egypt the wrong way. Everything they do is wrong. They are like drunks rolling in their vomit. 15 There is nothing the leaders can do. (They are “the heads and the tails.” They are “the tops and the stalks of plants.”[af])
16 At that time the Egyptians will be like frightened women. They will be afraid of the Lord All-Powerful, because he will raise his arm to punish the people. 17 The land of Judah brings fear to everyone in Egypt. Anyone in Egypt who hears the name Judah will be afraid. This will happen because the Lord All-Powerful has planned terrible things to happen to Egypt. 18 At that time there will be five cities in Egypt where people speak Hebrew.[ag] One of these cities will be named “Destruction City.”[ah] The people in these cities will promise to follow the Lord All-Powerful.
19 At that time there will be an altar for the Lord in the middle of Egypt. At the border of Egypt there will be a monument to show honor to the Lord. 20 This will be a sign to show that the Lord All-Powerful does amazing things. Any time the people cry for help from the Lord, he will send help. He will send someone to save and defend the people—to rescue the people from those who hurt them.
21 At that time the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and they really will know the Lord. They will serve him and give him many sacrifices. They will make promises[ai] to the Lord, and they will do what they promise. 22 The Lord will punish the Egyptians, but then he will heal them, and they will come back to him. The Lord will listen to their prayers and heal them.
23 At that time there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. Then the Assyrians will go to Egypt, and the Egyptians will go to Assyria. Egypt will work with Assyria.[aj] 24 Then Israel, Assyria, and Egypt will join together and control the land. This will be a blessing for the land. 25 The Lord All-Powerful will bless these countries. He will say, “Egypt, you are my people. Assyria, I made you. Israel, I own you. You are all blessed!”
Assyria Will Defeat Egypt and Ethiopia
20 Sargon[ak] was the king of Assyria. He sent his military commander to fight against Ashdod. The commander went there and captured the city. 2 At that time the Lord spoke through Isaiah son of Amoz. He said, “Go, take the sackcloth off your waist and the sandals off your feet.” So Isaiah obeyed the Lord and went without clothes or sandals.
3 Then the Lord said, “My servant Isaiah has gone without clothes or sandals for three years. This is a sign for Egypt and Ethiopia. 4 The king of Assyria will defeat Egypt and Ethiopia. Assyria will take prisoners and lead them away from their countries. The people, young and old, will be led away without clothes or sandals. They will be completely naked. 5 Those who looked to Ethiopia for help will be shattered. Those who were amazed by Egypt’s glory will be ashamed.”
6 People living along the coast will say, “We trusted those countries to help us. We ran to them so that they would rescue us from the king of Assyria. But look at them. They have been captured, so how can we escape?”
God’s Message About Babylon
21 This is a message[al] about the “desert by the sea”[am]:
It is coming like a storm blowing through the Negev.
It is coming in from the desert, from a frightening nation.
2 I was given a vision of the hard times to come.
I see traitors turning against you.
I see people taking your wealth.
Elam, go against them!
Media, surround the city!
I will put an end to all their moaning.
3 I saw those terrible things, and now I am afraid.
My fear makes my stomach hurt like the pain of giving birth.
What I hear frightens me.
What I see makes me shake with fear.
4 I am worried and shaking with fear.
My pleasant evening has become a nightmare.
5 People are rushing around shouting their orders:
“Set the table!
Post the guard!
Get something to eat and drink!
Officers, get up!
Polish your shields!”
6 The Lord said to me, “Go find someone to guard this city. He must report whatever he sees. 7 Whether he sees a chariot and a team of horses or men riding donkeys or camels, he must listen carefully.”[an]
8 Then one day the watchman[ao] called out,
“My master, every day I have been in the watchtower[ap] watching.
Every night I have been standing on duty.
9 Look! I see a man in a chariot
with a team of horses.[aq]”
The messenger said,
“Babylon has been defeated!
It has fallen to the ground!
All the statues of her false gods
were thrown to the ground and broken to pieces.”
10 My people, you will be like the grain crushed on my threshing floor. I have told you everything I heard from the Lord All-Powerful, the God of Israel.
God’s Message About Dumah
11 This is a message about Dumah[ar]:
There is someone calling to me from Seir,[as]
“Guard, how much of the night is left?
How much longer will it be night?”
12 The guard answered,
“Morning is coming, but then night will come again.
If you have something else to ask,
then come back[at] later and ask.”
God’s Message About Arabia
13 This is a message about Arabia:
A caravan from Dedan spent the night
near some trees in the Arabian Desert.
14 They gave water to some thirsty travelers.
The people of Tema gave them food.
15 They were running from swords
that were ready to kill.
They were running from bows
that were ready to shoot.
They were running from a hard battle.
16 The Lord told me this would happen. He said, “In one year, the way a hired helper counts time, all Kedar’s glory will be gone. 17 Only a few of the archers, the great soldiers of Kedar, will be left alive.” The Lord, the God of Israel, told me this.
God’s Message to Jerusalem
22 This is a message[au] about the Valley of Vision[av]:
Jerusalem, what is wrong?
Why has everyone gone up to hide in their upper rooms?
2 This city was so happy,
but now there is a terrible uproar.
There are bodies lying everywhere,
but they were not killed with swords.
The people died,
but not while fighting.
3 All your officers ran away together,
but they have all been captured without bows.[aw]
All the leaders ran away together,
but they were found and captured.
4 So I say, “Don’t look at me!
Let me cry!
Don’t rush to comfort me
about the destruction of Jerusalem.”
5 The Lord God All-Powerful chose a special day for there to be riots and confusion. People trampled on each other in the Valley of Vision. The city walls were pulled down. People in the valley shouted up at those on the mountain. 6 Horse soldiers from Elam took their bags of arrows and rode into battle. Soldiers from Kir rattled their shields. 7 Your favorite valley was filled with chariots. Horse soldiers were stationed in front of the city gates. 8 Then the cover protecting Judah[ax] was removed, and the people turned to the weapons they kept at the Forest Palace.[ay]
9-11 Then you noticed how many cracks there were in the walls around the City of David, so you began collecting water from the Lower Pool.[az] You counted the houses and used stones from them to repair the walls. Then you built a pool between the double walls[ba] for storing water from the Old Pool.[bb]
You did all this to protect yourselves, but you did not trust the God who made all these things. You did not even notice the one who made all these things so long ago. 12 So the Lord God All-Powerful told the people to cry and mourn for their dead friends. He told them to shave their heads and wear mourning clothes. 13 But look, everyone was happy. The people rejoiced, saying,
“Kill the cattle and sheep,
and let’s celebrate.
Let’s eat meat and drink wine.
Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die.”
14 The Lord All-Powerful said this to me and I heard it with my own ears: “You are guilty of doing wrong, and I promise that you will die before this guilt is forgiven.” The Lord God All-Powerful said these things.
God’s Message to Shebna
15 The Lord God All-Powerful told me to go to Shebna, the palace manager, 16 and say this: “What are you doing here? None of your relatives are buried here, are they? Then what right do you have to prepare a tomb for yourself in this high place? Why are you cutting a tomb out of this rock?
17-18 “What a big man you are! But the Lord will crush you. He will roll you into a small ball and throw you far away into the open arms of another country, and there you will die.
“You are very proud of your chariots. But in that faraway land, your new ruler will have better chariots. And your chariots will not look important in his palace. 19 I will force you out of your position here. Your new leader will take you away from your important job. 20 At that time I will call for my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah. 21 I will take your robe and put it on him. I will give him your scepter. I will give him the important job you have, and he will be like a father to the people of Jerusalem and Judah’s family.[bc]
22 “I will put the key to David’s house around his neck. If he opens a door, no one will be able to close it. If he closes a door, no one will be able to open it. 23 He will be like a favorite chair in his father’s house. I will make him like a strong peg in a solid board. 24 All the honored and important things of his father’s house will hang on him. All the adults and little children will depend on him. They will be like little dishes and big water bottles hanging on him.”
25 The Lord All-Powerful said, “At that time the peg that is now in the solid board will get weak and break. It will fall to the ground, and everything hanging on it will be destroyed. Then everything I said in this message will happen. It will happen because the Lord said it would.”
God’s Message About Tyre
23 This is a message[bd] about Tyre:
Ships traveling from Cyprus heard this message:
“Cry, you ships from Tarshish[be]!
Your harbor has been destroyed.”
2 You people living near the sea, mourn in silence.
The merchants of Sidon sent traders across the sea
and filled the city with riches.
3 They traveled the seas looking for grain.
The men from Tyre bought grain that grows near the Nile River
and sold it to other nations.
4 Sidon, you should be very sad,
because now the Sea and the Fort of the Sea[bf] say,
“I have no children.
I have never felt the pain of birth;
I have never given birth to children.
I have never raised young men and women.”
5 When Egypt hears the news about Tyre,
it will feel the pain of sorrow.
6 You ships, try to escape to Tarshish!
Cry out, you people living near the sea!
7 Can this be that happy city that was founded so long ago?
Is it that same city whose people traveled so far to settle other lands?[bg]
8 This city produced so many leaders.
Its merchants were like princes.
Its traders had the whole world’s respect.
So who made these plans against Tyre?
9 It was the Lord All-Powerful.
He decided to destroy the great things they were so proud of.
He wanted to disgrace those who were so highly respected.
10 Ships from Tarshish, go back home.
Cross the sea as if it were a river.
No one will stop you now.
11 The Lord raised his arm over the sea
to make the kingdoms angry enough to fight against Tyre.
He commanded Canaan
to destroy her place of safety.[bh]
12 He said, “Daughter Sidon,[bi] you have been hurt badly,
so you will no longer rejoice like a bride.
Go ahead, go to Cyprus[bj] for help,
but you will not find a place to rest there either.”
13 As for Babylon, look at the land of the Chaldeans!
It is not even a country now.
Assyria built war towers to attack it.
The soldiers took everything from the beautiful houses.
Assyria destroyed Babylon.
They turned it into a pile of ruins
and made it a place for wild animals.
14 So be sad, you ships from Tarshish.
Your place of safety has been destroyed.
15 People will forget about Tyre for 70 years—that is, about the length of a king’s rule. After 70 years, Tyre will be like the prostitute in this song:
16 “Oh, woman who men forgot,
take your harp and walk through the city.
Play your song well and sing it often.
Maybe someone will remember you.”
17 After 70 years, the Lord will review Tyre’s case, and he will give her a decision. Tyre will again have trade. She will be like a prostitute for all the nations on earth. 18 But Tyre will not keep the money she earns. The profit from her trade will be saved for the Lord. Tyre will give that money to the people who serve the Lord to buy good food and nice clothes.
God Will Punish Israel
24 Look, the Lord is destroying this land.[bk] He will clean out the land completely and force all the people to go far away. 2 At that time whatever happens to the common people will also happen to the priests. Slaves and masters will be the same. Women slaves and their women masters will be the same. Buyers and sellers will be the same. Those who borrow and those who lend will be the same. Bankers and those who owe the bank will be the same. 3 Everyone will be forced out of the land. All the wealth will be taken. This will happen because the Lord commanded it. 4 The country will be empty and sad. The world will be empty and weak. The great leaders of the people in this land will become weak.
5 The people have ruined the land. They did what God said was wrong. They did not obey God’s laws. They made an agreement with God a long time ago, but they broke their agreement with God. 6 The people living in this land are guilty of doing wrong, so God promised to destroy the land. The people will be punished, and only a few of them will survive.
7 The grapevines are dying. The new wine is bad. People who were happy are now sad. 8 They have stopped showing their joy. The happy music from the drums and harps has ended. 9 They no longer sing as they drink their wine. The beer now tastes bitter to those who drink it.
10 “Total Confusion” is a good name for this city. The city has been destroyed. People cannot enter the houses. The doors are blocked. 11 People still ask for wine in the marketplaces, but all the joy is gone. It was carried off with everything else. 12 All that is left is destruction. Even the gates are crushed.
13 At harvest time, people knock olives from the trees.
But a few olives are left in the trees.
It will be like that in this land and among the nations.
14 Those who are left will begin shouting louder than the ocean.
They will rejoice about the Lord’s greatness.
15 They will say, “People in the east, praise the Lord!
People in faraway lands,
praise the name of the Lord, the God of Israel.”
16 We hear songs of praise for God from every place on earth.
They praise the God who does what is right.
But I say, “Enough!
I have had enough.
What I see is terrible.
Traitors are turning against people and hurting them.”
17 I see troubles for you people living in this land.
I see fear, pits, and problems all around.
18 People will hear about the danger,
and they will be afraid.
Some of them will run away,
but they will fall into holes and be trapped.
Some of them will climb out of the holes,
but they will be caught in another trap.
The floodgates in the sky above will open,
and the floods will begin.
The foundations of the earth will shake.
19 There will be earthquakes,
and the earth will split open.
20 The sins of the world are very heavy,
so the earth will fall under the weight.
It will shake like an old house.
It will fall like a drunk.
It will not be able to stand.
21 At that time the Lord will judge
the heavenly armies in heaven
and the earthly kings on earth.
22 Many people will be gathered together.
They have been locked in the Pit.
They have been in prison.[bl]
But finally, after a long time, they will be judged.
23 The Lord will rule as king on Mount Zion in Jerusalem.
His Glory will be shown to the city leaders with such brightness that
the moon will be embarrassed
and the sun will be ashamed.
A Song of Praise to God
25 Lord, you are my God.
I honor you and praise your name,
because you did amazing things.
The words you said long ago are completely true;
everything happened exactly as you said it would.
2 And you destroyed the city that was protected by strong walls.
Now it is only a pile of rocks.
The foreign palace has been destroyed.
It will never be rebuilt.
3 That is why powerful nations will honor you.
Powerful people from strong cities will fear you.
4 You have been a safe place for poor people in trouble.
You are like a shelter from floods and shade from the heat
when powerful men attack.
They are like rain streaming down the walls
that protect us from the storm.
5 Like the heat of summer in a dry land,
the angry shouts of those foreigners brought us to our knees.
But like a thick cloud that blocks the summer heat,
you answered their challenge.
God’s Banquet for His Servants
6 The Lord All-Powerful will give a feast for all the people on this mountain. At the feast, there will be the best foods and wines. The meat will be good and tender, the wine pure and clear.
7 But now there is a veil covering all nations and people. This veil is called “death.” 8 But death will be destroyed forever.[bm] And the Lord God will wipe away every tear from every face. In the past, all of his people were sad, but God will take away that sadness from the earth. All of this will happen because the Lord said it would.
9 At that time people will say,
“Here is our God!
He is the one we have been waiting for.
He has come to save us.
We have been waiting for our Lord.
So we will rejoice and be happy when he saves us.”
10 The Lord’s power is on this mountain,
and Moab[bn] will be defeated.
The Lord will trample the enemy
like someone walking on straw in a pile of waste.
11 They will reach out their arms to escape
like someone trying to swim.
But their pride will sink
with each stroke they take.
12 He will destroy their high walls and safe places.
He will throw them down into the dust on the ground.
A Song of Praise to God
26 At that time people will sing this song in Judah:
We have a strong city with strong walls and defenses.
But God gives us our salvation.[bo]
2 Open the gates for the good people to enter.
They are the God’s faithful followers.
3 God, you give true peace
to people who depend on you,
to those who trust in you.
4 So trust the Lord always,
because in the Lord Yah[bp] you have a place of safety forever.
5 But he will destroy the proud city
and punish those who live there.
He will throw that high city down to the ground.
It will fall into the dust.
6 Then poor and humble people will walk on those ruins.
7 Honesty is the path good people follow.
They follow the path that is straight and true.
And God, you make that way smooth
and easy to follow.
8 But, Lord, we are waiting for your way of justice.
We want to honor you and your name.
9 At night my soul longs to be with you,
and the spirit in me wants to be with you at the dawn of every new day.
When your way of justice comes to the world,
people will learn the right way of living.
10 Evil people will not learn to do good,
even if you show them only kindness.
They will still do wrong, even if they live in a good world.
They never see the Lord’s greatness.
11 Lord, your arm is raised to punish them,
but they don’t see it.
Show them how strong your love[bq] is for your people.
Then those who are evil will be ashamed.
Yes, your fire will destroy your enemies.
12 Lord, you have succeeded in doing everything we tried to do,
so give us peace.
God Will Give New Life to His People
13 Lord, you are our God,
but in the past, we followed other lords.
We belonged to other masters,[br]
but now we want people to remember only one name—yours.
14 Those dead lords will not come to life.
Those ghosts will not rise from death.
You decided to destroy them,
and you destroyed everything that makes us think about them.
15 Lord, you have helped the nation you love.
You made our nation grow
and brought honor to yourself.[bs]
16 Lord, people remember you
when they are in trouble.
So because of your punishment,
we called out to you.
17 Lord, because of you we were in pain,
like a woman giving birth,
who struggles and cries out when it is time.
18 But we struggled in pain for nothing.
We gave birth only to wind.
We did nothing to save the land.
No one was born to live in the world.
19 But the Lord says,
“Your people have died,
but they will live again.
The bodies of my people
will rise from death.
Dead people in the ground,
stand and be happy!
The dew covering you is like
the dew sparkling in the light of a new day.
It shows that a new time is coming,
when the earth will give birth to the dead who are in it.”
Judgment: Reward or Punishment
20 My people, go into your rooms
and lock your doors.
Hide in there for a short time
until God’s anger is finished.
21 Look! The Lord is coming out from his place[bt]
to judge the people of the world for the bad things they have done.
The earth will reveal the blood that has been spilled on it.
It will no longer hide the proof of those murders.
27 At that time the Lord will judge Leviathan,[bu]
the crooked snake.
He will use his great sword, his hard and powerful sword,
to punish Leviathan, that twisting, turning snake.
He will kill the monster of the sea.[bv]
2 At that time people will sing
about the pleasant vineyard.
3 “I, the Lord, will care for the vineyard.
I will water it at the right time.
I will guard it day and night.
No one will hurt it.
4 I am not angry.
But if there is war and someone builds a wall of thornbushes,[bw]
then I will march to it and burn it.
5 But if anyone comes to me for safety
and wants to make peace with me,
then let them come and make peace.
6 In the future, Jacob will take root firmly on his soil.
Then Israel will sprout and bloom,
and the world will be filled with his fruit.”
God Will Send Israel Away
7 Israel was not hurt as badly as the enemy who tried to hurt it. Not as many of its people were killed as those who tried to kill them.
8 The Lord will settle his argument with Israel by sending the people far away. He will speak harshly to Israel. His words will burn like the hot desert wind.
9 How will Jacob’s guilt be forgiven? What will happen so his sins can be taken away? The rocks of the altar will be crushed to dust; the statues[bx] and altars for worshiping false gods will all be destroyed.
10 The great city will be empty; it will be like a desert. All the people will be gone—they will run away. The city will be like an open pasture. Young cattle will eat grass there. The cattle will eat leaves from the branches of the vines. 11 The vines will become dry, and the branches will break off. Women will use them for firewood.
The people refuse to understand. So God, their Maker, will not comfort them or be kind to them.
12 At that time the Lord will begin separating his people from others. He will begin at the Euphrates River and will gather his people from there[by] to the River of Egypt.[bz]
You people of Israel will be gathered together one by one. 13 Many of my people are now lost in Assyria. Some of my people have run away to Egypt. But at that time a great trumpet will be blown, and all those people will come back to Jerusalem. They will bow down before the Lord on that holy mountain.
Warnings to Northern Israel
28 Look at Samaria!
The drunks of Ephraim are proud of that city.
It sits on a hill with a rich valley around it.
The Samarians think their city is a beautiful crown of flowers.
But they are drunk with wine,
and this “beautiful crown” is just a dying plant.
2 Look, the Lord has someone who is strong and brave.
He will come into the country like a storm of hail and rain.
Like a powerful river of water flooding the country,
he will throw that crown[ca] down to the ground.
3 The drunks of Ephraim are proud of their beautiful crown,
but that city will be trampled down.
4 That city sits on a hill with a rich valley around it.
But that beautiful crown of flowers is just a dying plant.
It will be like the first figs of summer.
As soon as someone sees a ripe one, they pick it and eat it.
5 At that time the Lord All-Powerful will become the “Beautiful Crown.” He will be the “Wonderful Crown of Flowers” for his people who are left. 6 Then he will give wisdom to the judges who rule his people. He will give strength to the people who are in battles at the city gates. 7 But now those leaders are drunk. The priests and prophets are all drunk with wine and beer. They stumble and fall down. The prophets are drunk when they see their dreams. The judges are drunk when they make their decisions. 8 Every table is covered with vomit. There is not a clean place anywhere.
God Wants to Help His People
9 The people say, “Who does he think he is trying to teach and explain his message to? Does he think we are babies who were at their mother’s breast only a very short time ago? 10 He speaks to us as though we were babies:
“Saw lasaw saw lasaw
Qaw laqaw qaw laqaw
Ze’er sham ze’er sham.”[cb]
11 So God will use this strange way of talking, and he will use other languages to speak to these people.
12 In the past he spoke to them and said, “Here is a resting place. Let those who are tired come and rest. This is the place of peace.”
But they would not listen to him. 13 So the Lord’s words will be senseless sounds[cc] to them:
“Saw lasaw saw lasaw.
Qaw laqaw qaw laqaw.
Ze’er sham ze’er sham.”
When the people try to walk, they will fall backwards. They will be defeated, trapped, and captured.
No One Escapes God’s Judgment
14 You leaders in Jerusalem should listen to the Lord’s message, but now you refuse to listen to him. 15 You have said, “We have made an agreement with death. We have a contract with death. So we will not be punished. Punishment will pass us without hurting us. We will hide behind our tricks and lies.”
16 Because of these things, the Lord God says, “I will put a rock—a cornerstone—in the ground in Zion. This will be a very precious stone.[cd] Everything will be built on this very important rock. Anyone who trusts in that rock will not be disappointed.[ce]
17 “Workers use a string and weight to show their work is straight and true. I will use justice as the string and goodness as the weight when I lay that foundation. But your safe places were built on lies. So they will be destroyed and washed away when the troubles come against you like hail storms and floods. 18 Your agreement with death will be erased. Your contract with Sheol will not help you.
“Someone will come and punish you. He will make you like the dirt he walks on. 19 He will come and take you away. Your punishment will be terrible. Your punishment will come early in the morning, and it will continue late into the night.
“Then you will understand this story: 20 A man tried to sleep on a bed that was too short for him. He had a blanket that was not wide enough to cover him. The bed and blanket were useless, and so were your agreements.”
21 The Lord will fight as he did at Mount Perazim. He will be angry as he was in Gibeon Valley.[cf] He will do what he must do. It will be what some stranger should do, but he will finish his work. Yes, this is a stranger’s job. 22 Now don’t complain about these things. If you fight against them, you will only tighten the ropes around you.
The words I heard will not change. They came from the Lord God All-Powerful, the ruler of all the earth, and these things will be done.
The Lord Punishes Fairly
23 Listen closely to the message I am telling you. 24 Does a farmer plow his field all the time? No, he doesn’t work the soil all the time. 25 A farmer prepares the ground, and then he plants the seed. He plants different kinds of seeds different ways. He scatters dill seeds, he throws cumin seeds on the ground, and he plants wheat in rows. A farmer plants barley in its special place, and he plants spelt seeds at the edge of his field.
26 Our God is using this to teach you a lesson. This example shows us that God is fair when he punishes his people. 27 Does a farmer use large boards with sharp teeth to crush dill seeds? No, and he doesn’t use a wagon to crush cumin seeds. A farmer uses a small stick to break the hulls from these seeds of grain. 28 People grind grain to make flour, but they don’t grind it forever. As God does in punishing people, a worker might drive his wagon over the grain to remove the hulls, but he does not allow the horses[cg] to crush it. 29 This lesson comes from the Lord All-Powerful, who gives wonderful advice. He is very wise.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International