Isaiah 2

1 This is the vision that Isaiah, son of Amoz, saw about Judah and Jerusalem.

The word which came to Esaias the son of Amos concerning Judea, and concerning Jerusalem.

2 In the last days the mountain where the Lord's Temple stands will be recognized as the highest of all mountains, rising above other hills. Many from the other nations will travel to it.

For in the last days the mountain of the Lord shall be glorious, and the house of God [shall be] on the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall come to it.

3 People will come and say, “Let's go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the Temple of the God of Jacob. There God will teach us his ways and we will follow his directions. God's teachings will spread out from Zion, his word from Jerusalem.”

And many nations shall go and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will tell us his way, and we will walk in it: for out of Sion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord out of Jerusalem.

4 The Lord will decide the cases of the nations; he will settle arguments between nations. They will hammer their swords and turn them into plough blades, and their spears into pruning hooks. Nations will not fight against each other anymore; they will no longer learn methods of warfare.

And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plow-shares, and their spears into sickles: and nation shall not take up sword against nation, neither shall they learn to war any more.

5 Come, you Israelites, let's walk in the Lord's light.

And now, O house of Jacob, come, [and] let us walk in the light of the Lord.

6 For you, Lord, have given up on your people the Israelites, because they have adopted pagan practices from the East, they use spells like the Philistines, and make friends with foreigners.

For he has forsaken his people the house of Israel, because their land is filled as at the beginning with divinations, as the [land] of the Philistines, and many strange children were born to them.

7 Their country is full of silver and gold, and endless wealth. Their land is full of horses; and they have an endless amount of chariots.

For their land is filled with silver and gold, and there was no number of their treasures; their land also is filled with horses, and there was no number of chariots.

8 Their country is full of idols; they bow down and worship what they have made themselves—produced by their own hands!

And the land is filled with abominations, [even] the works of their hands; and they have worshipped [the works] which their fingers made.

9 These people will be brought down and humiliated—Lord, don't forgive them!

And the mean man bowed down, and the great man was humbled: and I will not pardon them.

10 Run away into rock caves, hide underground from the terrifying presence of the Lord, from the glory of his majesty.

Now therefore enter ye into the rocks, and hide yourselves in the earth, for fear of the Lord, and by reason of the glory of his might, when he shall arise to strike terribly the earth.

11 Those who look with arrogance will be brought low; those who are proud will be humbled. On that day only the Lord will be lifted high.

For the eyes of the Lord are high, but man is low; and the haughtiness of men shall be brought low, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.

12 The Lord has set aside a day when he will deal with the proud and arrogant. He will end all self-glorification, bringing it down.

For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and haughty, and upon every one that is high and towering, and they shall be brought down;

13 He will cut down the cedars of Lebanon, tall and high, and all the great oaks of Bashan,

and upon every cedar of Libanus, of them that are high and towering, and upon every oak of Basan,

14 He will bring down the tall mountains and the high hills.

and upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill,

15 He will tear down every high tower and every defensive wall.

and upon every high tower, and upon every high wall,

16 He will wipe out all the commercial ships of Tarshish as well as the pleasure vessels.

and upon every ship of the sea, and upon every display of fine ships.

17 The arrogant will be humbled; the proud will be brought low. On that day only the Lord will be lifted high.

And every man shall be brought low, and the pride of men shall fall: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day.

18 Idols will completely vanish away.

And they shall hide all [idols] made with hands,

19 People will run away into rock caves and holes in the ground to try and hide from the terrifying presence of the Lord, from the glory of his majesty, when he arrives to shake the earth.

having carried [them] into the caves, and into the clefts of the rocks, and into the caverns of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and by reason of the glory of his might, when he shall arise to strike terribly the earth.

20 On that day the people will take the idols of silver and gold that they made to worship and throw them away to the rats and the bats.

For in that day a man shall cast forth his silver and gold abominations, which they made [in order] to worship vanities and bats;

21 They will run to cracks in the rocks and gaps on the cliffs to try and hide from the terrifying presence of the Lord, from the glory of his majesty, when he arrives to shake the earth.

to enter into the caverns of the solid rock, and into the clefts of the rocks, for fear of the Lord, and by reason of the glory of his might, when he shall arise to strike terribly the earth.

22 Don't bother trusting human beings who only live for a while. How much do they count?