Isaiah 64
1 If only You would rend the heavens and come down, so that mountains would quake at Your presence,
Oh that thou mightest rend the heavens, come down: at thy presence would mountains [then] melt away.
2 as fire kindles the brushwood and causes the water to boil, to make Your name known to Your enemies, so that the nations will tremble at Your presence!
As fire is kindled on brushwood, as water is made to bubble up by fire—to make thy name known to thy adversaries, that at thy presence nations might tremble!
3 When You did awesome works that we did not expect, You came down, and the mountains trembled at Your presence.
[As] when thou didst fearful deeds which we had not looked for, thou camest down, [while] at thy presence mountains melted away;
4 From ancient times no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides You, who acts on behalf of those who wait for Him.
Yea! what from the beginning of the world men had not heard, not perceived by their hearing; no eye [also] had seen a god beside thee, who could do [the like] for the one that waiteth for him.
5 You welcome those who gladly do right, who remember Your ways. Surely You were angry, for we sinned. How can we be saved if we remain in our sins?
Thou acceptest him that rejoiceth and worketh righteousness, those that remember thee in thy ways: behold, thou wast wroth, for we had sinned on them continually; and can we thus be saved?
6 Each of us has become like something unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all wither like a leaf, and our iniquities carry us away like the wind.
And we are become like an unclean man all of us, and like a soiled garment, all our righteousness; and we wither like a leaf all of us; and our iniquities, like the wind, will bear us away.
7 No one calls on Your name or strives to take hold of You. For You have hidden Your face from us and delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
And there is none that calleth upon thy name, that stirreth himself up to lay hold of thee; for thou hast hidden thy face from us, and hast let us melt away, through the force of our iniquities.
8 But now, O LORD, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You are the potter; we are all the work of Your hand.
But now, O Lord, our father art thou; we are the clay, and thou our fashioner; and the work of thy hand are we all.
9 Do not be angry, O LORD, beyond measure; do not remember our iniquity forever. Oh, look upon us, we pray; we are all Your people!
Be not wroth, O Lord, so very greatly, and do not for ever remember [our] iniquity: behold, look, we beseech thee, thy people are we all.
10 Your holy cities have become a wilderness. Zion has become a wasteland and Jerusalem a desolation.
Thy holy cities are become a wilderness, Zion is become a wilderness, Jerusalem, a desolate place.
11 Our holy and beautiful temple, where our fathers praised You, has been burned with fire, and all that was dear to us lies in ruins.
Our holy and beautiful house where our fathers praised thee, is burnt up with fire; and all our costly things are become ruins.
12 After all this, O LORD, will You restrain Yourself? Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?
Wilt thou for these things refrain thyself, O Lord? wilt thou be silent, and afflict us so very greatly?
