Bible in 90 Days
Israel Mocks Babylon’s King
14 However, the Lord will have compassion on Jacob and will once again choose Israel. He will settle them in their own land, and foreigners will join them, affiliating themselves with the house of Jacob. 2 Many[a] nations will take them and bring them to their land and[b] their own place. The house of Israel will put those nations[c] to conscripted labor[d] in the Lord’s land. They will take captive those who were their captors, and will rule continually[e] over those who oppressed them.
3 At the time,[f] when the Lord gives you rest from your suffering, turmoil, and the cruel bondage which they forced you to serve,[g] 4 you will lift up this song of mockery against[h] the king of Babylon:
“How the oppressor has come to an end!
How the attacker[i] has ceased!
5 The Lord has broken the staff of the wicked,
the scepter of rulers,
6 that struck down peoples in anger
with unceasing blows,
that oppressed nations in fury
with relentless persecution.
7 The entire earth is at rest and peace;
its inhabitants[j] break into song.
8 Even the cypresses rejoice over you,
as do[k] the cedars of Lebanon, saying,
‘Now that you’ve been laid low,
no woodcutter comes up against us.’[l]
9 “The afterlife[m] below is all astir
to meet you when you arrive;[n]
it rouses up the spirits of the dead to greet you—
everyone who used to be world leaders.
It has raised up from their thrones
all who used to be kings of the nations.
10 In answer, all of them[o] will tell you,
‘You’ve also become as weak as we are!
You have become just like us!’
11 Your[p] pomp has been brought down to Sheol,[q]
along with the noise of your harps.
Maggots are spread out beneath you,
and worms are your covering.”[r]
The Fall of the Day Star
12 “How you have fallen from heaven,
Day Star,[s] son of the Dawn![t]
How you have been thrown down to earth,
you who laid low the nation![u]
13 You said in your heart,
‘I’ll ascend to heaven,
above the stars of God.
I’ll erect my throne;
I’ll sit[v] on the Mount of Assembly
in the far reaches of the north;[w]
14 I’ll ascend above the tops of the clouds;
I’ll make myself like the Most High.’
15 But you are brought down to join the dead,[x]
to the far reaches of the Pit.[y]
16 “Those who see you will stare at you.
They will wonder about you:
‘Is this the man who[z] made the earth tremble,
who made kingdoms quake,
17 who made the world like a desert,
who[aa] destroyed its cities,
who would not open the jails for his prisoners?’
18 All the kings of the nations lie[ab] in state,
each in his own tomb.
19 But you are cast away from your grave,
like a repulsive branch,
your clothing is the slain,
those pierced by the sword;
those who go down to the Pit.[ac]
Like a dead body trampled underfoot,
20 you will not be united[ad] with them[ae] in burial,
for you have destroyed your land,
you have slain your people.
People will never mention
the descendants of those who practice evil again![af]
21 Prepare a massacre for his sons
because of the guilt of their forefathers!
They are not to rise and inherit the earth,
and cover[ag] the surface of the world with cities.”
Babylon’s Desolation
22 “I will rise up against them,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, “and I will eliminate from Babylon her name and survivors, her offspring and descendants,”[ah] declares the Lord. 23 “And[ai] I’m going to make it a possession of the hedgehog—pools[aj] of water—and I’ll sweep[ak] with the broom of destruction,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.
24 The Lord of the Heavenly Armies has sworn:
“Surely as I have planned,
that’s what she[al] will become;[am]
and just as I have determined,
so will it remain—
25 to crush the Assyrian in my land,
and on my mountains I will trample him down.
His yoke[an] will turn away from you,[ao]
and his burden from your[ap] shoulders.”
26 “This is what I’ve planned
for the whole earth,
and this is the hand that is stretched out
over all the nations.
27 For the Lord of the Heavenly Armies has planned,
and who can thwart him?
His hand is stretched out,
and who can turn it back?”
A Pronouncement against Philistia
28 In the year that King Ahaz died this message[aq] came:
29 “Don’t rejoice, all of you Philistines,
that the rod that struck you is broken,
because from the snake’s root a viper will spring up,
and its offspring[ar] will be a darting, poisonous serpent.
30 The firstborn of the poor will find pasture,
and the needy will lie down in safety;
but I’ll kill your root[as] by famine,
and I’ll[at] execute your survivors.
31 Wail, you gate!
Cry out, you city!
Melt away,[au] all you Philistines!
For smoke comes from the north,
and there’s no one to take measure[av] in its festivals.[aw]
32 How will they[ax] answer the messengers of the nation?
“The Lord has founded Zion,
and in it[ay] the afflicted among his people will find refuge.”
Moab’s Pending Judgment
15 A message[az] concerning Moab:
“For Ir[ba] in Moab is destroyed in a night,
and Moab[bb] is ruined!
Because Ir[bc] in Moab is destroyed in a single night,
Moab is ruined!
2 He has gone up to the temple, and to Dibon,
to the high places to weep;
over Nebo and over Medeba
Moab wails.
His head is completely[bd] bald,
and[be] every beard is shaved off.
3 In its streets they wear sackcloth;
on its rooftops and in its squares
everyone wails and falls down[bf] weeping.
4 Heshbon and Elealeh cry out,
their voices are heard as far as Jahaz;
therefore the loins[bg] of Moab cry aloud;
its heart quakes for itself.
5 My heart cries out over Moab;
her fugitives flee as far as Zoar,
as far as Eglath-shelishiyah.
For at the ascent to Luhith
they go up weeping;
on the road to Horonaim
they raise a cry of destruction.
6 The Nimrim waters are desolate;
the grass is withered,
its vegetation gone;
there is[bh] no foliage left.
7 Therefore the wealth they have acquired
and what they have stored up—
they carry them away
over the Arab[bi] Wadi.[bj]
8 For the cry has gone out
along the border of Moab;
her wailing reaches as far as Eglaim,
her wailing reaches as far as Beer-elim.
9 The Dibon[bk] streams are full of blood;
but I will bring upon Dibon[bl] even more—
a lion will pounce[bm] upon those of Moab who escape,
upon[bn] those who remain in the land.”
Moab’s Destruction
16 “Send a lamb to the ruler of the land,
from Selah,[bo] by way of the desert,
to the mountain of the Daughter of Zion.[bp]
2 Like fluttering birds,
like an abandoned nest,
so are the daughters of Moab
at the fords of the Arnon River.[bq]
3 “Give us advice;
reach a decision!
Cast your shadow as if night had come
at high noon.
Shelter the fugitives,
And don’t betray a single refugee.
4 Let the fugitives[br] from Moab
settle among you;
be a shelter to them
from the destroyer.
When the oppressor comes to an end,
and destruction has[bs] ceased,
and the marauder[bt] has[bu] vanished from the land,
5 then a throne will be established in gracious love,
and there will sit in faithfulness—
in the Tent of David—
one who judges, seeks justice,
and is swift to do what is right.”
6 “We’ve heard about Moab’s pride—
so very proud he became!—[bv]
his arrogance, his pride, and his insolence;
therefore he is alone.[bw]
7 Therefore, let Moab not[bx] wail,
let everyone wail for Moab.
Lament and grieve deeply
for the ruined remains[by] of Kir-hareseth.
8 For the fields of Heshbon wither,
as well as the vines of Sibmah.[bz]
The rulers of the nations
have struck down its choicest vines,
which once reached Jazer
and pushed to the desert.
Its shoots spread out
and passed over the sea.”
Isaiah Weeps for Moab
9 “Therefore I weep with the tears of Jazer
for the vines of Sibmah.
I drench you with my tears,
O Heshbon and Elealeh—
for the shouts of joy over your summer fruit
and your grain harvest have ended.
10 Joy and gladness are taken away from the orchards,
in the vineyards people will sing no songs,[ca]
and[cb] no cheers are raised.
No vintner[cc] treads out wine in the presses,
because I’ve put an end to the shouting.
11 Therefore my insides[cd] moan like a lyre for Moab,
and my innermost being[ce] for Kir-hareseth.
12 When Moab appears,
when he arrives[cf] upon the high place
and comes to his sanctuary to pray,
he will not prevail.”
13 This was the message that the Lord spoke concerning Moab in the past. 14 But now the Lord has spoken again: “Within three years, like the years of a contract worker,[cg] Moab’s glory will be brought into contempt, in spite of all its great multitude, and its survivors will be very few and[ch] of no importance.”
A Rebuke to Damascus
17 A message[ci] about Damascus:[cj]
“Look! Damascus[ck] will cease to be a city.
Instead, it will become a pile of ruins.
2 The cities of Oraru[cl] will be deserted—
they will be devoted to herds that will lay at rest,
and terrorism will be no more.[cm]
3 The fortress will disappear from Ephraim,
and royal authority from Damascus;[cn]
the survivors[co] from Aram[cp] will be like the glory of the Israelis,”
declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.
A Time of Weakness for Israel
4 “At that time,[cq] Jacob’s glory will have become weakened,
and his strong[cr] flesh will turn gaunt;
5 it will be as if harvesters gather standing grain,
reaping the ears by hand,[cs]
or it will be as if grain is harvested
in the valley of Rephaim.[ct]
6 Nevertheless, gleanings will remain in Israel,[cu]
as when an olive tree is beaten—[cv]
two or three ripe olives left in the topmost branches,
four or five left among the branches of a fruit-filled tree,”[cw]
declares the Lord God of Israel.
Revival to Come to Israel
7 At that time, men will look upon[cx] their Maker, and their eyes will honor the Holy One of Israel. 8 They will not look upon[cy] the altars, the products[cz] that their own fingers[da] have made, and they will have no regard for Asherah poles[db] or incense altars.[dc]
Desolation to the Nations
9 “At that time,[dd] their fortified cities
that they abandoned because of the Israelis
will be like desolate places[de] of the forests and hilltops—[df]
there will be desolation.
10 For you have forgotten the God of your salvation
and have not remembered the Rock
that is your strength.
Therefore even though you plant delightful plants,
sowing them with imported vine-seedlings,
11 at the time that you plant them,
carefully making them grow,
the very morning you make your seed to sprout,
your harvest will be ruined[dg]
in a time of grief and unbearable pain.”[dh]
12 “How terrible it will be for many peoples,
who rage like the roaring sea!
Oh, how the uproar of nations
is like the sound of rushing, mighty water—
How they roar!
13 The nations roar like the rushing of many waters,[di]
but the Lord[dj] will rebuke them,
and they will run far away,
chased like chaff blown down from the mountains
or like thick dust[dk] that rolls along,
blown along by a wind storm.
14 When the evening arrives, watch out—sudden terror!
By morning they will be there no longer!
So it will be for those who plunder us
and what will happen to those who rob us.”
A Rebuke to Cush
18 Woe to the land of whirring wings
that is beyond the rivers of Cush,[dl]
2 which sends envoys by the sea,[dm]
in papyrus boats over the water!
Go, swift messengers,
to a tall, smooth-skinned nation,
to a people feared far and wide,
a nation that metes out[dn] punishment[do] and oppresses,
whose land the rivers divide.
3 All you inhabitants of the world,
you who live on the earth,
when a banner is raised on the mountains,
you’ll see it.
When a trumpet sounds,
you’ll hear it!
4 For this is what the Lord told me:
“I will remain quiet and watch in my dwelling place
like dazzling heat in sunshine,
like a cloud of dew in the heat[dp] of harvest.”
5 For before the harvest, when the season of[dq] budding is over,
and sour grapes ripen into mature grapes,[dr]
he cuts off the shoots with pruning knives,
clearing away the spreading branches
as he lops them off.
6 And[ds] they will all be left
for birds of prey that live on the mountains[dt]
and for wild animals.[du]
Birds of prey will pass the summer feeding on them,
and all the wild animals[dv] will pass the winter feeding[dw] on them.
7 At that time tribute will be brought to the Lord of the Heavenly Armies
from[dx] a tall and smooth-skinned people,
from a people feared far and wide,
a nation that metes out[dy] punishment[dz] and oppresses,
whose land the rivers divide,
to Mount Zion,
the place that bears[ea] the name of the Lord.[eb]
A Rebuke to Egypt
19 A message[ec] about Egypt:
“Watch out! The Lord rides on a swift cloud,
and is coming to Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him,
and the hearts of the Egyptians melt within them.
2 I will stir up Egyptians against Egyptians,
and everyone will fight against his brother,
everyone against his neighbor,
city[ed] against city,
kingdom against kingdom.
3 The spirits of the Egyptians within them will be drained of courage,[ee]
and I will bring their plans to nothing.
They will consult idols[ef] and spirits of the dead,
and mediums and spiritists.
4 I will hand the Egyptians over
to the power of a cruel master,
and a fierce king will rule over them,”
declares the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies.
A Rebuke to Egypt’s Ecology and Industry
5 “The water sources[eg] of the Nile[eh] will be dried up,
and the river[ei] will become dry and parched.
6 The canals will stink,
and[ej] the tributaries of Egypt will dwindle and dry up.
Reeds and rushes will wither away.[ek]
7 And the bulrushes along the Nile,[el]
along the mouth of the Nile,[em] will wither away.
All the sown fields of the Nile will become parched,
and[en] they will be blown away;
there will be nothing left.[eo]
8 The fishermen will groan,
and all who cast hooks into the Nile will lament;
those who spread nets upon the water
will become weaker and weaker.
9 The workers[ep] in combed flax
and the weavers of white linen
will be in despair.
10 Egypt’s[eq] workers in cloth[er] will be crushed,
and all who work for wages will be sick at heart.”
A Rebuke to Egypt’s Leaders
11 Zoan’s princes are nothing but fools;
the wisest advisors of Pharaoh give stupid advice.
How can you say to Pharaoh,
“I’m a descendant of wise men,
a descendant of ancient kings”?
12 Where are your wise men now?
Let them tell you,
let them make known
what the Lord[es] has planned against Egypt.
13 The princes of Zoan have become fools,
and the princes of Memphis deluded;
the leaders[et] of its tribes
have led Egypt astray.
14 The Lord has mixed[eu] within them[ev] a spirit of confusion;
so they make Egypt stagger in all that it does,
like a drunkard staggers around in his vomit.
15 As a result, there will be nothing for Egypt
that head or tail, palm branch or reed, can do.[ew]
Egypt and Syria Will Worship God
16 At that time,[ex] the Egyptians will be like women—they[ey] will shudder and be afraid before the uplifted hand of the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, when he brandishes his hand against her.[ez] 17 And the land of Judah will become a terror to the Egyptians. Everyone to whom it is mentioned will be afraid, because of the uplifted hand[fa] of the Lord of the Heavenly Armies that[fb] is turning in their direction.
18 At that time,[fc] there will be five cities in the land of Egypt that speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. One of them will be called the City of the Sun.[fd]
19 At that time,[fe] there will be an altar to the Lord of the Heavenly Armies[ff] in the heart of the land of Egypt, and a monument to the Lord[fg] at its border. 20 It will be a sign and a witness to the Lord of the Heavenly Armies in the land of Egypt; when they cry out to the Lord because of their oppressors, he will send them a savior, and he will come down[fh] and rescue them. 21 So the Lord will make himself known to the Egyptians, and the Egyptians will acknowledge the Lord.
At that time,[fi] they will worship[fj] with sacrifices and offerings, and they will make vows to the Lord and carry them out. 22 The Lord will strike Egypt with a plague, striking but then healing. Then they will turn to the Lord, and he will respond to their pleas and heal them.
23 At that time,[fk] there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will come into Egypt, and the Egyptians into Assyria, and they[fl] will worship with the Assyrians.
24 At that time,[fm] Israel will be in a triple alliance[fn] with Egypt and Assyria; they will be[fo] a blessing in the midst of the earth. 25 The Lord of the Heavenly Armies has blessed them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel my inheritance.”
The Conquest of Egypt and Cush
20 In the year that the supreme commander, sent by Sargon the king of Assyria, came to Ashdod, attacked it, and captured it— 2 at that time the Lord spoke through Amoz’s son Isaiah: “Go loosen the sackcloth that’s around your waist,[fp] and take your sandals[fq] off your feet.” So that’s what he did: he went around naked and barefoot.
3 Then the Lord said, “Just as my servant Isaiah has walked around naked and barefoot for three years as a sign and a warning for Egypt and Ethiopia,[fr] 4 so the king of Assyria will lead away the Egyptian captives and exiles from Cush,[fs] both the young and the old, naked and barefoot—with even their buttocks uncovered—to the shame[ft] of Egypt. 5 Then they will be dismayed and put to shame because of Cush,[fu] their hope, and Egypt, their jewel.[fv] 6 At that time, the inhabitants of this coastland will say, ‘See, this is what has happened to those on whom we counted and relied[fw] for help and deliverance from the king of Assyria! How, then, can we escape?’”
Elam and Media are Rebuked
21 A message[fx] concerning the pasture[fy] by the Sea.
“Like whirlwinds in the Negev[fz] sweep on,
it comes from the desert,
from a distant[ga] land.
2 A dire vision has been announced to me:
the traitor betrays,
and the plunderer takes loot.
Get up, Elam!
Attack, Media!
I am putting a stop
to all the groaning she has caused.
3 Therefore my body is[gb] racked with pain;
pangs have seized me,
like the pangs of a woman in labor;
I am so upset that I cannot hear;
I am so frightened that I cannot see
while I’m reeling around.[gc]
4 And as for my heart,[gd] horror has terrified me;
the twilight I longed for
has started to make me tremble.
5 They set the tables;
they spread the carpets;[ge]
they eat, they drink!
Get up, you officers!
Oil the shields!”
The Fall of Babylon
6 For this is what the Lord told me:
“Go post a lookout.
Have him report what he sees.
7 When he sees chariots, each man[gf] with a pair of horses,
riders on donkeys or riders on[gg] camels,
let him pay attention,
full attention.”
8 Then the lookout[gh] shouted:
“Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord,
continually by day,
and I am stationed at my post
throughout the night.
9 Look! Here come riders,[gi]
each man with a pair of horses!”
They’re shouting out the answer:
“Babylon has fallen, has fallen,
and they have shattered
all the images of her gods[gj] on the ground!
10 O my downtrodden people,[gk] my wall![gl]
I’ll tell you what I have heard
from the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, the God of Israel.”
A Message about Dumah
11 A message[gm] concerning Dumah.
“Someone is calling to me from Seir:
‘Watchman, what is left of the night?[gn]
Watchman, what is left of the night?’[go]
12 The watchman replies:
‘Morning is coming, but also the night.
If you want to ask, then ask;
come back again.’”
A Message about Arabia
13 A message[gp] concerning Arabia.
“You will camp in the thickets in Arabia,
you caravans of the Dedanites.
14 Bring water for the thirsty,
you who live in the land of Tema.
Meet the fugitive with bread,[gq]
15 For he has fled[gr] from swords,
from the drawn sword,
from the bent bow,
and from the heat of battle.”
16 For this is what the Lord[gs] is saying to me: “Within three years,[gt] according to the years of a contract worker,[gu] the pomp[gv] of Kedar will come to an end. 17 And there will be few archers, those who are descendants of Kedar, who survive, because the Lord, the God of Israel, has spoken.”
Jerusalem is Rebuked
22 A message[gw] concerning the Valley of Vision.[gx]
“What troubles you,
now that you’ve all gone up
to the rooftops,
2 you who are full of commotion,
you passionate city,
you rollicking town?
Your slain weren’t killed by the sword,
nor are they dead in battle.
3 All your leaders have fled together;
she is captured[gy] without using bows.
All of you who were caught were captured together,
although they had fled
while the enemy was still[gz] far away.
4 Therefore I said:
“Look away from me;
and let me weep bitter tears;
don’t try to console[ha] me
over the destruction of the daughter of my people.”[hb]
5 For to the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies
belongs the day of tumult, trampling, and confusion
in the Valley of Vision,[hc]
and the pulling down of his Temple on[hd] its mountain.
6 Elam takes up the quiver
with chariots and cavalry,
while Kir unsheathes the shield.
7 And it will come about[he]
that your choicest valleys will be filled with chariots,
and horsemen will take their positions at the gates.
8 He has uncovered the defenses of Judah.”
At that time,[hf] you looked at the arsenal of the Palace of the Forest,[hg] 9 and saw that there were many breaches in the City of David. So you stored up water from the Lower Pool, 10 counted the houses of Jerusalem, tore down certain houses to strengthen the wall, 11 and built a reservoir between the walls to store water from the Old Pool. But you did not look at[hh] the One who did it, nor did you see the One who planned it long ago.
12 On that day the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies
called for weeping and mourning,
for shaving heads[hi] and wearing sackcloth.
13 But look!
There is joy and festivity,
slaughtering of cattle
and killing of sheep,
eating meat
and drinking[hj] wine.
“Let us eat and drink, you say,
because we die tomorrow.”
14 “Nevertheless, the Lord of the Heavenly Armies has revealed himself to my hearing:
‘“Surely because of you[hk]
this iniquity will not be forgiven
you until you die,’
says the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies.”
The Lord Rebukes Shebna
15 This is what the Lord God of the Heavenly Armies[hl] says:
“Come, go to this steward, to Shebna who is in charge of the household, and ask him: 16 ‘What are you doing here, and who are your relatives here[hm] that you could carve out a grave for yourself here—cutting out a tomb at the choicest location,[hn] chiseling out a resting place for yourself out of solid rock? 17 Look Out! The Lord is about to hurl you away violently, my strong fellow! He[ho] will fold you up completely, 18 rolling you up tightly like a ball and throwing you into a large country. There[hp] you will die, and there[hq] your splendid chariots will lie. You’re a disgrace to your master’s house! 19 I will depose you from your office, ousting you[hr] from your position.
20 “At that time,[hs] I’ll call for my servant, Hilkiah’s[ht] son Eliakim, 21 and I’ll clothe him with your robe and fasten your sash around him. I’ll transfer your authority to him,[hu] and he’ll be a father to those who live in Jerusalem and to the house of Judah.
22 “I’ll place on his shoulder the key to the house of David—what he opens, no one will shut, and what he shuts, no one will open. 23 I’ll set him like a peg into a secure place; he will become a throne of honor to his father’s house. 24 The entire reputation of his father’s house will hang on him: its offspring and offshoots—all its smaller vessels, from the cups to all the jars. 25 At that time,”[hv] declares the Lord[hw] of the Heavenly Armies, “the peg that was driven into a secure place will give way; it will be sheared and will fall, and the load hanging on it will be cut down.”
The Lord has spoken.
Tyre is Rebuked
23 A message[hx] concerning Tyre.
“Wail, you ships of Tarshish,
for Tyre is destroyed
and is without house or harbor!
From the land of Cyprus[hy]
it was revealed to them.
2 “Be silent,[hz] you inhabitants of the coast,
you merchants of Sidon,
whose messengers crossed over the sea,[ia]
3 and were on mighty waters.
Her revenue was the grain of Shihor,
the harvest of the Nile;
and she became the marketplace of nations.
4 Be ashamed, Sidon, because the sea[ib] has spoken,
the fortress of the sea:
I have neither been in labor nor given birth,
I have neither reared young men
nor brought up young women.”
5 When the news reaches Egypt,
they will be in anguish
at the report about Tyre.
6 “You who are crossing over[ic] to Tarshish—
Wail, you inhabitants of the coast!
7 Is this your exciting[id] city,
that was founded long ago,
whose feet carried her
to settle in far-off lands?
8 Who has planned this
against Tyre,
that bestower of crowns,
whose merchants were princes,[ie]
whose traders were the most renowned on earth?
9 The Lord of the Heavenly Armies has planned it—
to neutralize all the hubris of grandeur,[if]
to discredit all the renowned men of earth.
10 “Cultivate[ig] your land like the Nile,
you daughter of Tarshish;
for there is no longer a harbor.
11 He has stretched out his hand over the sea;
he has made[ih] kingdoms tremble.
The Lord has issued orders concerning Canaan
to destroy its strongholds.
12 And he said:
‘You will revel no longer,[ii]
you virgin daughter of Sidon,
now crushed.
Get up, cross over to Cyprus—
but even there you will find no rest.’”
Tyre’s Desolation and Restoration
13 “Look at the land of the Chaldeans!
This is a people that no longer exist;
Assyria destined her[ij] for desert creatures.[ik]
They raised up her[il] siege towers,
they stripped her fortresses bare
and turned her into a ruin.
14 Wail, you ships of Tarshish,
because your[im] stronghold is destroyed!”
15 It will happen at that time that Tyre will be forgotten for 70 years, the span of a king’s life. Then, at the end of those 70 years, it will turn out for Tyre as in the prostitute’s song:[in]
16 “Take a harp;
walk around the city,
you forgotten whore!
Make sweet melody;
sing many songs,
and perhaps you’ll be remembered.”
17 At the end of 70 years, the Lord will deal with Tyre, at which time she’ll return to her courtesan’s trade, and prostitute herself with the kingdoms[io] of the world on the surface of the earth. 18 Nevertheless, her profits and her earnings will be dedicated[ip] to the Lord; they will not be stored up or hoarded—but her profits will go to those who live in the Lord’s presence,[iq] for abundant food and choice clothing.
The Earth is Judged
24 “Watch out! The Lord[ir] is about to depopulate the land
and devastate it;
he will turn it upside down[is]
and scatter its inhabitants.
2 It will be the same for the lay people as for priests,
the same for servants as for their masters,
for female servants as for their mistresses,
for buyers as for sellers,
for lenders as for borrowers,
and for creditors as for debtors.
3 The earth will be utterly depopulated
and completely laid waste —
for the Lord has spoken this message.[it]
4 “The earth dries up and withers;
the world languishes and fades away;
heaven fades away,
along with the earth.[iu]
5 The earth lies defiled
beneath its inhabitants;
because they have transgressed the laws,[iv]
violated the statutes,
and broken the everlasting covenant.
6 Therefore the curse keeps on consuming,[iw]
and its inhabitants are declared guilty.
Furthermore, the inhabitants of earth are ablaze,
and few people are left.
7 The new wine evaporates;
the vine and the oil[ix] dry up;
all the merrymakers groan.
8 “The celebrations of the tambourine have ended,
the noise of the jubilant has stopped,
and the mirth that the harp produces has ended.
9 No longer do they drink wine
accompanied by singing;
even beer[iy] tastes bitter to those who drink it.
10 The chaotic city lies broken down;
every house is closed up
so that no one can enter them.[iz]
11 There is an outcry in the streets over wine;
all cheer turns to gloom;
the fun times of the earth are banished.
12 Desolation remains in the city
whose gates lie battered into ruins.
13 So it will be on the earth
and among the nations—
as when an olive tree is beaten,
or as gleanings when the grape harvest has ended.”
Glorifying God
14 “They raise their voices;
they shout for joy;[ja]
from the west[jb] they shout aloud[jc]
over the Lord’s majesty.
15 Therefore, you in the east,[jd]
give glory to the Lord!
You in the coastlands of the sea,
give glory to the name of the Lord God of Israel!
16 From the ends of the earth
we hear songs of praise:
‘Glory to the Righteous One!’
“But I say, ‘I am pining away,
I’m pining away.
How terrible things are for me!
For treacherous people betray—
treacherous people are betraying with treachery!’”
The Universal Impact of Judgment
17 “Terror and pit and snare are coming in your direction,
you inhabitants of the earth!
18 Whoever flees at the sound of terror
will fall into a pit,
and whoever climbs out of the pit
will be caught in a snare.
For the windows of judgment[je] from above are opened,
and the foundations of the earth are shaken.
19 The earth is utterly shattered,
the earth is split apart,
the earth is violently shaken.
20 The earth[jf] reels to and fro like a drunkard;
it sways like a hut;[jg]
its transgression lies so heavy upon it,
that it falls, never to rise again.
21 “And it will come about at that time,[jh]
the Lord will punish
the armies of the exalted ones in the heavens,[ji]
and the rulers[jj] of the earth on earth.
22 They[jk] will be herded together[jl]
into the Pit;[jm]
they will be shut up in prison,
and after many days they will be punished.
23 Then the moon will be embarrassed
and the sun ashamed,
for the Lord of the Heavenly Armies will reign
on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem;
and in the presence of its elders
there will be glory.”
Praise to the Victorious God
25 Lord, you are my God;
I will exalt you and praise your name,
for you have done marvelous things,
plans made long ago in faithfulness and truth.
2 For you have made the city a heap of rubble,
the fortified city into a ruin;
the foreigners’ citadel[jn] is no longer a city—
it will never be rebuilt!
3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
cities of ruthless nations will revere you.
4 For you have been a stronghold for the poor,
a stronghold for the needy in distress,
a shelter from the storm
and a shade from the heat—
for the blistering attack[jo] from the ruthless
is like a rainstorm beating against a wall,
5 and the noise of foreigners is like the heat of the desert.
Just as you subdue heat by the shade of clouds,
so the victory songs of violent men will be stilled.
Celebration of the Righteous
6 “On this mountain,[jp] the Lord of the Heavenly Armies will prepare for all peoples
a banquet of rich food,
a banquet of well-aged wines—
rich food full of marrow,
and refined wines of the finest[jq] vintage
7 And on this mountain,[jr] he will swallow up
the burial[js] shroud that enfolds all peoples,
the veil that is spread over all nations—
8 he has swallowed up[jt] death forever!
Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
and he will take away the disgrace of his people
from the entire earth.”
for the Lord has spoken.
9 “And you[ju] will say at that time,[jv]
‘Look! It’s the Lord![jw] This is our God!
We waited for him,
and he saved us.
This is the Lord!
We waited for him,
so let us rejoice,
and we will[jx] be glad that he has saved us.”
The Misery of Moab
10 For the Lord’s power[jy] will rest on this mountain,[jz]
but the Moabites will be trodden down beneath him,
just as straw is trodden down
in the slime of[ka] a manure pit.
11 They will spread out their hands in the thick of it,
just as swimmers spread out their hands to swim,
but the Lord will bring down their pride,
together with the cleverness of their hands.
12 He brings down the high fortifications of your walls
and lays them low;
he will raze them[kb] to the ground,
right down to the dust.
The Song of Redeemed Judah
“We have a strong city;
God crafts victory,
its walls and ramparts.[ke]
2 Open your[kf] gates,
so the righteous nation that safeguards its faith may enter.
3 You will keep perfectly peaceful[kg]
the one whose mind remains focused on you,
because he remains[kh] in you.
4 “Trust in the Lord forever,
for in the Lord God[ki] you have an everlasting rock.
5 For he has made drunk[kj]
the inhabitants of the height,
the lofty city.
He lays it low[kk] to the ground
casting it down to the dust,
6 by the feet of the oppressed who trample it,[kl]
by the footsteps of the needy.[km]
7 “The path of the righteous is level;
O Upright One,[kn]
you make safe[ko] the way of justice.[kp]
8 Yes, Lord, in the path of your judgments we wait;[kq]
your name and your Law[kr] are the[ks] soul’s desire.
9 My soul yearns for you in the night;
my spirit within me searches for you.
For when your judgments come upon the earth,
the world’s inhabitants learn righteousness.
10 If favor is shown to the wicked,
they don’t learn righteousness;
even in a land of uprightness they act perversely
and do not perceive the majesty of the Lord.
11 “Lord, your hand is lifted up,
but they do not see it.
And[kt] let them see your zeal for your[ku] people
and be put to shame—
yes, let the fire reserved for your enemies consume them!
12 Lord, you will decide[kv] peace for us,
for you have indeed accomplished
all our achievements for us.
13 O Lord our God,
other lords besides you have ruled over us,
but through you alone
we acknowledge your name.
14 The dead won’t live,
and[kw] the departed spirits won’t rise—
to that end, you punished and destroyed them,
then locked away[kx] all memory of them.
15 “But you have enlarged the nation,[ky] Lord;
you have enlarged the nation.[kz]
You have gained honor;
you have extended all the borders of the land.
16 Lord, they[la] came to you in distress;
they poured out their secret[lb] prayer
when your chastenings were[lc] afflicting[ld] them.
17 Just as a pregnant woman writhes
and cries out during her labor
when she is about to give birth,
so were we because of you, Lord.
18 We were pregnant, writhing in pain,
but we gave birth only to wind.
We have not won your[le] victory on earth,
nor have the inhabitants of the world been born.”
The Resurrection of the Dead
19 “But your dead will live; their bodies will rise.
Those who live in the dust will wake up and shout for joy![lf]
For your dew is like the dew of dawn,
and the earth will give birth to the dead.
20 Come, my people, enter your rooms
and shut your doors[lg] behind you.
Hide yourselves[lh] for a little while
until the fury has passed by.
21 For see, the Lord is coming from his place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their sins;
the earth will reveal the blood that has been shed on it,
and will no longer conceal its slain.”
Israel’s Deliverance
27 At that time,[li] with his fierce, mighty, and powerful sword, the Lord will punish the gliding serpent Leviathan—the coiling serpent Leviathan—and he will kill the dragon that’s in the sea.
2 At that time,[lj]
“A fermenting[lk] vineyard—
sing about it!
3 I, the Lord, watch over it
And I water it continuously.
I guard it night and day
so no one can harm it.
4 I am not angry.
If only the vineyard[ll] could give me briers and thorns[lm] to battle,
I would march against it,
and[ln] I would burn it all up.
5 Or else let it lay claim to my protection;
let it make peace with me,
yes, let it make peace with me.”
6 In times to come, Jacob will take root,
and[lo] Israel will blossom, sprout shoots,
and fill the whole world with fruit.
7 Has the Lord[lp] struck them down,
just as he struck down those who struck them?
Or have they been killed,
just as their killers were killed?
8 Measure by measure,[lq]
in their exile you contended with them;
with his fierce blast he removed them,
as on a day when the east wind blows.
9 By this, then, Jacob’s guilt will be atoned for,
and this will be the full harvest
that comes from the removal of his sin:
when he makes all the altar stones
like pulverized chalkstones,
no Asherah[lr] poles or incense altars will be left standing.
10 For the fortified city stands desolate,
a settlement abandoned and forsaken like the desert;
calves graze there,
and there they lie down
and strip bare its branches.
11 When its branches are dry,
they are broken off,
and women come and kindle fires with them,
since this is a people who show no consideration.
That is why the One who made them shows them no compassion;
the One who created them shows them no mercy.
Assyria and Egypt Exiles Redeemed
12 At that time,[ls] the Lord will winnow grain from the Euphrates River[lt] channel to the Wadi[lu] of Egypt,[lv] and you will be gathered in one by one, O people of Israel. 13 Furthermore, at that time,[lw] a great trumpet will be sounded, and those who were perishing in the land of Assyria and those who had been expelled[lx] to the land of Egypt will come and worship the Lord on his holy mountain at Jerusalem.
The Captivity of Ephraim
28 How terrible it will be for that arrogant garland—
the drunks of Ephraim!
How terrible it will be for that fading flower of his glorious beauty,
which sits on the heads of people bloated with food,[ly]
of people overcome with wine!
2 Look! The Lord[lz] has one who is mighty and strong,
like a hailstorm and destructive tempest,
like a storm of mighty, overflowing water—
and[ma] he will give rest to the land.
3 With hands[mb] and feet, that proud garland[mc]—
those drunks of Ephraim—will be trampled.
4 And that fading flower, his glorious beauty,
which sits on the heads of people bloated with food,
will be like an early fig before summer—
whenever someone sees it, he swallows it
as soon as it’s in his hand.
5 At that time,[md] the Lord of the Heavenly Armies will become a glorious crown,
a beautiful diadem for the remnant of his people,
6 and a spirit of justice to the one who sits in judgment,
a source of strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.
7 These people also[me] stagger from wine
and reel from strong drink.
Priests and prophets stagger from strong drink;
they’re drunk from[mf] wine;
they reel from strong drink,
waver when seeing visions,
and stumble when rendering decisions.
8 For all the tables are covered in vomit and filth,
with no clean[mg] space left.
Misuse of God’s Word
9 To whom will he teach knowledge,
and to whom will he explain the message?
To children just weaned from milk?
To those just taken from the breast?
10 For it is: “Do this and do that,
do this and do that,
Line upon line, line upon line,
a little here, a little there.”
11 Very well, then, through the mouths of foreigners[mh]
and foreign languages
the Lord will speak to this people
12 to whom he said,
“This is the resting place,
so give rest to the weary”’
and,
“This is the place of repose”—
but they would not listen.
13 So, then, the message from the Lord to them will become:
“Do this and do that,
do this and do that,
line upon line,
line upon line,
a little here,
a little there,”
so that they will go,
but fall backward,
and be injured, snared, and captured.
God’s Precious Cornerstone
14 “Therefore hear[mi] the message from the Lord, you scoffers
who rule this people that are in Jerusalem.
15 Because you said:
‘We have entered into a covenant with death,
and we have an agreement with Sheol,[mj]
so when the overwhelming scourge makes its choice,[mk]
it cannot reach us,
since we have made lies our refuge
and have concealed ourselves inside falsehood,’
16 therefore this is what the Lord God[ml] says:
“Look! I am laying[mm] a foundation stone in Zion, a tested stone,
a precious cornerstone for a sure[mn] foundation:
Whoever believes firmly will not act hastily.
17 And I will make justice the measuring line,
and righteousness the plumb line;
hail will sweep away your refuge of lies,
and floods[mo] will overflow your hiding place.
18 “Then your covenant with death will be annulled,
and your agreement with Sheol[mp] will not stand;
when the overwhelming scourge sweeps by,
you will be trampled by it.
19 As often as it sweeps through,
it will carry you away,
for it will sweep by morning after morning in the day;
but understanding this message will bring sheer terror at night,[mq]
20 because the bed is too short to stretch out on,
and its blankets too narrow to wrap around oneself!
God is on Mount Perazim
21 For the Lord will stand upon[mr] Mount Perazim,[ms]
he will rouse himself in[mt] the Valley of Gibeon;
to carry out his work—
his strange deed,
and to perform his task—
his alien task!
22 But as for you,[mu] don’t start mocking,
or your chains will become tighter;
for I have heard from the Lord[mv] of the Heavenly Armies about destruction,
and it is decreed against the whole land.
The God who Plows and Harvests
23 “Pay attention!
Listen to what I have to say;
Pay attention,
and hear my speech.
24 Does he who plows for sowing plow all the time?
Does he keep on breaking up and harrowing his field?
25 When he has leveled its surface,
he scatters caraway[mw] and sows cumin, doesn’t he?
He plants wheat in rows,
barley in its designated place,
and feed for livestock[mx] around its borders,[my] doesn’t he?
26 His God instructs him regarding the correct way,
directing him how to plant.[mz]
27 For caraway is not threshed with a sharp sledge,
nor is a cart wheel rolled over cumin.
Instead, caraway is winnowed with a stick,
and cumin with a rod.
28 It[na] must be ground;[nb]
one cannot keep threshing it forever.
Even if he drives his cart[nc] and horses over it,
he cannot crush it.
29 This insight also comes from the Lord of the Heavenly Armies,
who is distinguished[nd] in practical advice
and[ne] magnificent in sound wisdom.”
Copyright © 1995-2014 by ISV Foundation. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED INTERNATIONALLY. Used by permission of Davidson Press, LLC.