Isaiah 33
1 Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and that dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! When thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; when thou shalt make an end of dealing treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.
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 Jehovah, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be their arm every morning, yea, our salvation in the time of trouble.
O LORD, be gracious to us! We wait for You. Be our strength every morning and our salvation in time of trouble.
3 At the noise of the tumult the peoples fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations were scattered.
The peoples flee the thunder of Your voice; the nations scatter when You rise.
4 And your spoil shall be gathered [like] the gathering of the caterpillar: as the running of locusts shall they run upon it.
Your spoil, O nations, is gathered as by locusts; like a swarm of locusts men sweep over it.
5 Jehovah is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with justice and righteousness;
The LORD is exalted, for He dwells on high; He has filled Zion with justice and righteousness.
6 and he shall be the stability of thy times, the riches of salvation, wisdom and knowledge: the fear of Jehovah shall be your treasure.
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, their valiant ones cry without; the messengers of peace weep bitterly.
Behold, their valiant ones cry aloud in the streets; the envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8 The highways are desolate, the wayfaring man ceaseth. He hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.
The highways are deserted; travel has ceased. The treaty has been broken, the witnesses are despised, and human life is disregarded.
9 The land mourneth, it languisheth; Lebanon is ashamed, is withered; the Sharon is become as a desert, and Bashan and Carmel are stripped.
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, saith Jehovah; now will I be exalted, now will I lift up myself.
“Now I will arise,” says the LORD. “Now I will lift Myself up. Now I will be exalted.
11 Ye shall conceive dry grass, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath shall devour you [as] fire.
You conceive chaff; you give birth to stubble. Your breath is a fire that will consume you.
12 And the peoples shall be [as] burnings of lime, [as] thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire.
The peoples will be burned to ashes, like thorns cut down and set ablaze.
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and ye that are near, acknowledge my might.
You who are far off, hear what I have done; you who are near, acknowledge My might.”
14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling hath surprised the hypocrites: Who among us shall dwell with the consuming fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting flames?
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 walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking hold of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil:
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 on high, the fortresses of the rocks shall be his high retreat; bread shall be given him, 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 Thine eyes shall see the King in his beauty; they shall behold the land that is far off.
Your eyes will see the King in His beauty and behold a land that stretches afar.
18 Thy heart shall meditate on terror: Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers?
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 Thou shalt no more see the fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst comprehend, of a stammering tongue that cannot be understood.
You will no longer see the insolent, a people whose speech is unintelligible, who stammer in a language you cannot understand.
20 Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tent that shall not be removed, the stakes whereof shall never be pulled up, neither shall any of its cords be 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 but there Jehovah is unto us glorious, — a place of rivers, of broad streams: no galley with oars shall go there, neither shall gallant ship pass 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 Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah, our lawgiver, Jehovah, our king: he will 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 Thy tacklings are loosed; they strengthen not the socket of their mast, they cannot spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey.
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 inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven [their] iniquity.
And no resident of Zion will say, “I am sick.” The people who dwell there will be forgiven of iniquity.
