Isaiah 59

1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; nor his ear dull, that it cannot hear.

Truly, the Lord's hand has not become short, so that he is unable to give salvation; and his ear is not shut from hearing:

2 But your iniquities have separated you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.

But your sins have come between you and your God, and by your evil doings his face has been veiled from you, so that he will give you no answer.

3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity. Your lips have spoken lies. Your tongue mutters wickedness.

For your hands are unclean with blood, and your fingers with sin; your lips have said false things, and your tongue gives out deceit.

4 No one sues in righteousness, and no one pleads in truth. They trust in vanity and speak lies. They conceive mischief and give birth to iniquity.

No one puts forward an upright cause, or gives a true decision: their hope is in deceit, and their words are false; they are with child with sin, and give birth to evil.

5 They hatch adders’ eggs and weave the spider’s web. He who eats of their eggs dies; and that which is crushed breaks out into a viper.

They give birth to snake's eggs, and make spider's threads: whoever takes their eggs for food comes to his death, and the egg which is crushed becomes a poison-snake.

6 Their webs will not become garments. They will not cover themselves with their works. Their works are works of iniquity, and acts of violence are in their hands.

Their twisted threads will not make clothing, and their works will give them nothing for covering themselves: their works are works of sin, and violent acts are in their hands.

7 Their feet run to evil, and they hurry to shed innocent blood. Their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity. Desolation and destruction are in their paths.

Their feet go quickly to evil, and they take delight in the death of the upright; their thoughts are thoughts of sin; wasting and destruction are in their ways.

8 They do not know the way of peace; and there is no justice in their ways. They have made crooked paths for themselves; whoever goes in them does not know peace.

They have no knowledge of the way of peace, and there is no sense of what is right in their behaviour: they have made for themselves ways which are not straight; whoever goes in them has no knowledge of peace.

9 Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us. We look for light, but see darkness; for brightness, but we walk in obscurity.

For this cause our right is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us: we are looking for light, but there is only the dark; for the shining of the sun, but our way is in the night.

10 We grope for the wall like the blind. Yes, we grope as those who have no eyes. We stumble at noon as if it were twilight. Among those who are strong, we are like dead men.

We go on our way, like blind men feeling for the wall, even like those who have no eyes: we are running against things in daylight as if it was evening; our place is in the dark like dead men.

11 We all roar like bears and moan sadly like doves. We look for justice, but there is none, for salvation, but it is far off from us.

We make noises of grief, like bears, and sad sounds like doves: we are looking for our right, but it is not there; for salvation, but it is far from us.

12 For our transgressions are multiplied before you, and our sins testify against us; for our transgressions are with us, and as for our iniquities, we know them:

For our evil doings are increased before you, and our sins give witness against us: for our evil doings are with us, and we have knowledge of our sins:

13 transgressing and denying the LORD, and turning away from following our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

We have gone against the Lord, and been false to him, turning away from our God, our words have been uncontrolled, and in our hearts are thoughts of deceit.

14 Justice is turned away backward, and righteousness stands far away; for truth has fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.

And the right is turned back, and righteousness is far away: for good faith is not to be seen in the public places, and upright behaviour may not come into the town.

15 Yes, truth is lacking; and he who departs from evil makes himself a prey. The LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no justice.

Yes, faith is gone; and he whose heart is turned from evil comes into the power of the cruel: and the Lord saw it, and he was angry that there was no one to take up their cause.

16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor. Therefore his own arm brought salvation to him; and his righteousness sustained him.

And he saw that there was no man, and was surprised that there was no one to take up their cause: so his arm gave salvation, and he made righteousness his support.

17 He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on his head. He put on garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a mantle.

Yes, he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and salvation as a head-dress; and he put on punishment as clothing, and wrath as a robe.

18 According to their deeds, he will repay as appropriate: wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies. He will repay the islands their due.

He will give them the right reward of their doings, wrath to his attackers, punishment to his haters, and even on the sea-lands he will send punishment.

19 So they will fear the LORD’s name from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun; for he will come as a rushing stream, which the LORD’s breath drives.

So they will see the name of the Lord from the west, and his glory from the east: for he will come like a rushing stream, forced on by a wind of the Lord.

20 “A Redeemer will come to Zion, and to those who turn from disobedience in Jacob,” says the LORD.

And as a saviour he will come to Zion, turning away sin from Jacob, says the Lord.

21 “As for me, this is my covenant with them,” says the LORD. “My Spirit who is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth shall not depart out of your mouth, nor out of the mouth of your offspring, nor out of the mouth of your offspring’s offspring,” says the LORD, “from now on and forever.”

And as for me, this is my agreement with them, says the Lord: my spirit which is on you, and my words which I have put in your mouth, will not go away from your mouth, or from the mouth of your seed, or from the mouth of your seed's seed, says the Lord, from now and for ever.