Esias 33

1 Woe to them that afflict you; but no one makes you miserable: and he that deals perfidiously with you does not deal perfidiously: they that deal perfidiously shall be taken and given up, and as a moth on a garment, so shall they be spoiled.

Woe to you, O destroyer never destroyed, O traitor never betrayed! When you have finished destroying, you will be destroyed. When you have finished betraying, you will be betrayed.

2 Lord, have mercy upon us; for we have trusted in you: the seed of the rebellious is gone to destruction, but our deliverance was in a time of affliction.

O LORD, be gracious to us! We wait for You. Be our strength every morning and our salvation in time of trouble.

3 By reason of the terrible sound the nations were dismayed for fear of you, and the heathen were scattered.

The peoples flee the thunder of Your voice; the nations scatter when You rise.

4 And now shall the spoils of your small and great be gathered: as if one should gather locusts, so shall they mock you.

Your spoil, O nations, is gathered as by locusts; like a swarm of locusts men sweep over it.

5 The God who dwells on high is holy: Sion is filled with judgement and righteousness.

The LORD is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.

6 They shall be delivered up to the law: our salvation is our treasure: there are wisdom and knowledge and piety towards the Lord; these are the treasures of righteousness.

He will be the sure foundation for your times, a storehouse of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the LORD is Zion’s treasure.

7 Behold now, these shall be terrified with fear of you: those whom you feared shall cry out because of you: messengers shall be sent, bitterly weeping, entreating for peace.

Behold, their valiant ones cry aloud in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly.

8 For the ways of these shall be made desolate: the terror of the nations has been made to cease, and the covenant with these is taken away, and you shall by no means deem them men.

The highways are deserted; travel has ceased. The treaty has been broken, the witnesses are despised, and human life is disregarded.

9 The land mourns; Libanus is ashamed: Saron is become marshes; Galilee shall be laid bare, and Chermel.

The land mourns and languishes; Lebanon is ashamed and decayed. Sharon is like a desert; Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves.

10 Now will I arise, says the Lord, now will I be glorified; now will I be exalted.

“Now I will arise,” says the LORD. “Now I will lift Myself up. Now I will be exalted.

11 Now shall you see, now shall you perceive; the strength of your breath, shall be vain; fire shall devour you.

You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble. Your breath is a fire that will consume you.

12 And the nations shall be burnt up; as a thorn in the field cast out and burnt up.

The peoples will be burned to ashes, like thorns cut down and set ablaze.

13 They that are afar off shall hear what I have done; they that draw near shall know my strength.

You who are far off, hear what I have done; you who are near, acknowledge My might.”

14 The sinners in Sion have departed; trembling shall seize the ungodly. Who will tell you that a fire is kindled? Who will tell you of the eternal place?

The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling grips the ungodly: “Who of us can dwell with a consuming fire? Who of us can dwell with everlasting flames?”

15 He that walks in righteousness, speaking rightly, hating transgression and iniquity, and shaking his hands from gifts, stopping his ears that he should not hear the judgement of blood, shutting his eyes that he should not see injustice.

He who walks righteously and speaks with sincerity, who refuses gain from extortion, whose hand never takes a bribe, who stops his ears against murderous plots and shuts his eyes tightly against evil—

16 he shall dwell in a high cave of a strong rock: bread shall be given him, and his water shall be sure.

he will dwell on the heights; the mountain fortress will be his refuge; his food will be provided and his water assured.

17 You shall see a king with glory: your eyes shall behold a land from afar.

Your eyes will see the King in His beauty and behold a land that stretches afar.

18 Your soul shall meditate terror. Where are the scribes? where are the counsellors, where is he that numbers them that are growing up,

Your mind will ponder the former terror: “Where is he who tallies? Where is he who weighs? Where is he who counts the towers?”

19 [even] the small and great people? with whom he took not counsel, neither did he understand [a people] of deep speech, so that a despised people should not hear, and there is no understanding to him that hears.

You will no longer see the insolent, a people whose speech is unintelligible, who stammer in a language you cannot understand.

20 Behold the city of Sion, our refuge: your eyes shall behold Jerusalem, a rich city, tabernacles which shall not be shaken, neither shall the pins of her tabernacle be moved for ever, neither shall her cords be at all broken:

Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feasts. Your eyes will see Jerusalem, a peaceful pasture, a tent that does not wander; its tent pegs will not be pulled up, nor will any of its cords be broken.

21 for the name of the Lord is great to you: you shall have a place, [even] rivers and wide and spacious channels: you shall not go this way, neither a vessel with oars go [thereby].

But there the Majestic One, our LORD, will be for us a place of rivers and wide canals, where no galley with oars will row, and no majestic vessel will pass.

22 For my God is great: the Lord our judge shall not pass me by: the Lord is our prince, the Lord is our king; the Lord, he shall save us.

For the LORD is our Judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our King. It is He who will save us.

23 Your cords are broken, for they had no strength: your meat has given way, it shall not spread the sails, it shall not bear a signal, until it be given up for plunder; therefore shall many lame men take spoil.

Your ropes are slack; they cannot secure the mast or spread the sail. Then an abundance of spoils will be divided, and even the lame will carry off plunder.

24 And the people dwelling amongst them shall by no means say, I am in pain: for their sin shall be forgiven them.

And no resident of Zion will say, “I am sick.” The people who dwell there will be forgiven of iniquity.