Isaiah 1
1 The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amoz, which he saw about Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
The vision of Isaiah son of Amoz, which he saw, concerning Judah and Jerusalem, —in the days of Uzziah Jotham Ahaz Hezekiah—kings of Judah.
2 Give ear, O heavens, and you, O earth, to the word which the Lord has said: I have taken care of my children till they became men, but their hearts have been turned away from me.
Hear O heavens, And give ear, O earth, for Yahweh, hath spoken: —Sons, have I brought up, and advanced, And, they, have rebelled against me.
3 Even the ox has knowledge of its owner, and the ass of the place where its master puts its food: but Israel has no knowledge, my people give no thought to me.
An ox knoweth, his owner, And an ass his masters crib, —Israel, doth not know, My people doth not consider.
4 O nation full of sin, a people weighted down with crime, a generation of evil-doers, false-hearted children: they have gone away from the Lord, they have no respect for the Holy One of Israel, their hearts are turned back from him.
Alas! a nation—committing sin, a people—burdened with iniquity, a seed—practising wickedness, sons—acting corruptly. They have forsaken Yahweh despised the Holy One of Israel, —Are estranged and gone back.
5 Why will you have more and more punishment? why keep on in your evil ways? Every head is tired and every heart is feeble.
Why should ye be smitten any more? Ye would again turn aside! The whole head is sick, And the whole heart faint:
6 The body, from head to foot, is all diseased; it is a mass of open wounds, marks of blows, and broken flesh: the flow of blood has not been stopped, and no oil has been put on the wounds.
From the sole of the foot even unto the head, there is in it no soundness, Bruise and stripe and newly-made wound, —They have not been pressed out, nor bound up, nor soothed with oil.
7 Your country has become waste; your towns are burned with fire; as for your land, it is overturned before your eyes, made waste and overcome by men from strange lands.
Your country—is a desolation, Your cities—are consumed with fire, —Your soil—right before your eyes, foreigners are devouring it, And it is a desolation a very overthrow by foreigners;
8 And the daughter of Zion has become like a tent in a vine-garden, like a watchman's house in a field of fruit, like a town shut in by armies.
And left is the Daughter of Zion, Like a hut in a vineyard, —Like a lodge in a gourd-plot Like a city besieged.
9 If the Lord of armies had not kept some at least of us safe, we would have been like Sodom, and the fate of Gomorrah would have been ours.
If, Yahweh of hosts, had not left us a very small remnant, Like Sodom, had we become, Gomorrah, had we resembled.
10 Give ear to the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; let your hearts be turned to the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah.
Hear the word of Yahweh, ye rulers of Sodom, —Give ear to the instruction of our God, ye people of Gomorrah: —
11 What use to me is the number of the offerings which you give me? says the Lord; your burned offerings of sheep, and the best parts of fat cattle, are a weariness to me; I take no pleasure in the blood of oxen, or of lambs, or of he-goats.
Of what use to me, is your multitude of sacrifices: Saith Yahweh: I am sated with ascending-offerings of rams and the fat of fed beasts, —In the blood of bulls and young rams and he-goats, have I no pleasure.
12 At whose request do you come before me, making my house unclean with your feet?
When ye enter to see my face, Who hath required this at your hand trampling my courts?
13 Give me no more false offerings; the smoke of burning flesh is disgusting to me, so are your new moons and Sabbaths and your holy meetings.
Ye shall not again bring in an empty, present, Incense, an abomination, is that unto me! New moon, and sabbath calling an assembly—I cannot endure, iniquity and sacred festival!
14 Your new moons and your regular feasts are a grief to my soul: they are a weight in my spirit; I am crushed under them.
Your new moons and your appointed feasts, my soul, hateth, —They have become unto me a burden I am too weary to bear:
15 And when your hands are stretched out to me, my eyes will be turned away from you: even though you go on making prayers, I will not give ear: your hands are full of blood.
Even when ye spread forth your open palms, I hide mine eyes from you; Yea, though ye multiply prayers, I am not hearkening, —Your hands, with deeds of blood, are filled.
16 Be washed, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes; let there be an end of sinning;
Wash you make you clean, Put away the wickedness of your doings from before mine eyes, —Cease to do evil.
17 Take pleasure in well-doing; let your ways be upright, keep down the cruel, give a right decision for the child who has no father, see to the cause of the widow.
Learn to do well—Seek justice, Correct the oppressor, —Vindicate the fatherless, Plead the cause of the widow,
18 Come now, and let us have an argument together, says the Lord: how may your sins which are red like blood be white as snow? how may their dark purple seem like wool?
Come, I pray you, and let us settle the dispute Saith Yahweh, —Though your sins be found like scarlet, As snow, shall they be made white, Though they appear red like crimson, As wool, shall they become.
19 If you will give ear to my word and do it, the good things of the land will be yours;
If ye be willing—and hearken Of the good of the land, shall ye eat;
20 But if your hearts are turned against me, I will send destruction on you by the sword; so the Lord has said.
But, if ye refuse and rebel, With the sword, shall ye be devoured, For, the mouth of Yahweh, hath spoken it.
21 The upright town has become untrue; there was a time when her judges gave right decisions, when righteousness had a resting-place in her, but now she is full of those who take men's lives.
How hath she become unchaste!—The city that was Faithful, —Full of justice, Righteousness lodged in her, But, now, murderers!
22 Your silver is no longer true metal, your wine is mixed with water.
Thy silver, hath become dross, —Thy wine, weakened with water;
23 Your chiefs have gone against the Lord, they have become friends of thieves; every one of them is looking for profit and going after rewards; they do not give right decisions for the child who has no father, and they do not let the cause of the widow come before them.
Thy rulers, are unruly, and companions of thieves, Every one of the people, loveth a bribe, and runneth after rewards, —The fatherless, they do not vindicate, And, the plea of the widow, reacheth them not.
24 For this reason the Lord, the Lord of armies, the Strong One of Israel, has said, I will put an end to my haters, and send punishment on those who are against me;
Therefore, Declareth the Lord Yahweh of hosts, The Mighty One of Israel, —Alas! I must appease me on mine adversaries, I must avenge me on mine enemies
25 And my hand will again be on you, washing away what is unclean as with soap, and taking away all your false metal;
That I may turn my hand against thee, And smelt away, as with potash, thy dross, And remove all thine alloy;
26 And I will give you judges again as at the first, and wise guides as in the past; then you will be named, The Town of Righteousness, the true town.
That I may restore thy Judges as at the first, and thy Counsellors as at the beginning, —After that, shalt thou be called Righteous citadel, Trusty city, —
27 Upright acts will be the price of Zion's forgiveness, and by righteousness will men be living there.
Zion, with justice shall be redeemed, —And her returning ones, with righteousness;
28 But a common destruction will overtake sinners and evil-doers together, and those who have gone away from the Lord will be cut off.
And the downfall of transgressors and sinners, shall be, together, —And, they who forsake Yahweh, shall be brought to an end;
29 For you will be put to shame because of the trees of your desire, and because of the gardens of your pleasure.
For they shall turn pale on account of the oaks which ye desired, —And ye shall blush on account of the gardens which ye had chosen;
30 For you will be like a tree whose leaves have become dry, and like a garden without water.
For ye shall be as an oak with its leaf faded, And as a garden that hath no, water;
31 And the strong will be as food for the fire, and his work as a flame; and they will be burned together, with no one to put out the fire.
Then shall the strong one become tow, And his work a spark, —And they shall both blaze together And there be none to quench the fire.
