Isaiah 38

1 In those days Ezechias was sick even to death, and Isaias the son of Amos the prophet came unto him, and said to him: Thus saith the Lord: Take order with thy house, for thou shalt die, and not live.

In those days was Hezekiah sick unto death; and Isaiah the prophet, the son of Amoz, came to him, and said to him, Set thy house in order, for thou shalt die, and not live.

2 And Ezechias turned his face toward the wall, and prayed to the Lord,

Then Hezekiah turned his face toward the wall, and made his supplication to Jehovah.

3 And said: I beseech thee, O Lord, remember how I have walked before thee in truth, and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Ezechias wept with great weeping.

And he said, I beseech thee, O Jehovah, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth, and with a perfect heart, and have done that which is good in thine eyes! And Hezekiah wept bitterly.

4 And the word of the Lord came to Isaias, saying:

Then came the word of Jehovah to Isaiah,

5 Go and say to Ezechias: Thus saith the Lord the God of David thy father: I have heard thy prayer, and I have seen thy tears: behold I will add to thy days fifteen years:

Go in and say to Hezekiah, Thus saith Jehovah, the God of David thy father: I have heard thy prayer; I have seen thy tears. Behold, I will add to thy life fifteen years.

6 And I will deliver thee and this city out of the hand of the king of the Assyrians, and I will protect it.

And I will deliver thee and this city from the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city.

7 And this shall be a sign to thee from the Lord, that the Lord will do this word which he hath spoken:

And this shall be the sign to thee from Jehovah, that Jehovah will do that which he hath spoken.

8 Behold I will bring again the shadow of the lines, by which it is now gone down in the sun dial of Achaz with the sun, ten lines backward. And the sun returned ten lines by the degrees by which it was gone down.

Behold, I will cause the shadow upon the dial, which hath gone down upon the dial of Ahaz with the sun, to go back ten degrees. So the sun went back ten degrees, which degrees it had gone down.

9 The writing of Ezechias king of Juda, when he had been sick, and was recovered of his sickness.

The writing of Hezekiah, king of Judah, when he had been sick, and had recovered from his sickness.

10 I said: In the midst of my days I shall go to the gates of hell: I sought for the residue of my years. (Sheol h7585)

I said: “Now, in the quiet of my days, shall I go down to the gates of the under-world; I am deprived of the residue of my years.” (Sheol h7585)

11 I said: I shall not see the Lord God in the land of the living. I shall behold man no more, nor the inhabitant of rest.

I said: “No more shall I see Jehovah, Jehovah in the land of the living. I shall behold man no more Among the inhabitants of stillness.

12 My generation is at an end, and it is rolled away from me, as a shepherd’s tent. My life is cut off, as by a weaver: whilst I was yet but beginning, he out me off: from morning even to night thou wilt make an end of me.

My habitation is torn away and removed from me, Like a shepherd's tent; My life is rolled up as by the weaver; He cutteth me off from the thrum; Between morning and night wilt thou make an end of me!”

13 I hoped till morning, as a lion so hath he broken all my bones: from morning even to night thou wilt make an end of me.

I waited till morning, and like a lion Did he crush all my bones; “Between morning and night wilt thou make an end of me!”

14 I will cry like a young swallow, I will meditate like a dove: my eyes are weakened looking upward: Lord, I suffer violence, answer thou for me.

Like a swallow or a crane, so did I twitter; I did mourn as a dove; Mine eyes failed with looking upward; “O Lord, I am in distress; O, deliver me!”

15 What shall I say, or what shall he answer for me, whereas he himself hath done it? I will recount to thee all my years in the bitterness of my soul.

What shall I say? He promised it, and he hath done it; I will walk humbly all my life On account of the bitterness of my soul.

16 O Lord, if man’s life be such, and the life of my spirit be in such things as these, thou shalt correct me, and make me to live.

Lord, it is thus that men live; From thee alone cometh the life of my spirit; Thou hast restored me, and caused me to live.

17 Behold in peace is my bitterness most bitter: but thou best delivered my soul that it should not perish, thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.

Behold, my anguish is changed into ease; In love thou hast delivered me from the pit of destruction; Thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.

18 For hell shall not confess to thee, neither shall death praise thee: nor shall they that go down into the pit, look for thy truth. (Sheol h7585)

For the under-world cannot praise thee; The realms of death cannot celebrate thee; They that go down to the pit cannot wait for thy faithfulness. (Sheol h7585)

19 The living, the living, he shall give praise to thee, as I do this day: the father shall make thy truth known to the children.

The living, the living praise thee, as I do this day; The father to the children shall make known thy faithfulness.

20 O Lord, save me, and we will sing our psalms all the days of our life in the house of the Lord.

Jehovah hath saved me; Therefore will we sing our songs with stringed instruments, All the days of our life, In the house of Jehovah.

21 Now Isaias had ordered that they should take a lump of figs, and lay it as it plaster upon the wound, and that he should be healed.

Now Isaiah had said, let them take a lump of figs, and bruise them, and lay them upon the ulcer, and he shall recover.

22 And Ezechias bed said: What shall be the sign that I shall go up to the house of the Lord?

Hezekiah also had said, What is the sign that I shall go up to the house of Jehovah?