Isaiah 29

1 Ah, Ariel, Ariel, the city where David encamped! Add ye year to year, let the feasts come round!

Woe to you, O Ariel, the city of Ariel where David camped! Year upon year let your festivals recur.

2 Then will I distress Ariel, and there shall be mourning and moaning; and she shall be unto Me as a hearth of God.

And I will constrain Ariel, and there will be mourning and lamentation; she will be like an altar hearth before Me.

3 And I will encamp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with a mound, and I will raise siege works against thee.

I will camp in a circle around you; I will besiege you with towers and set up siege works against you.

4 And brought down thou shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust; and thy voice shall be as of a ghost out of the ground, and thy speech shall chirp out of the dust.

You will be brought low, you will speak from the ground, and out of the dust your words will be muffled. Your voice will be like a spirit from the ground; your speech will whisper out of the dust.

5 But the multitude of thy foes shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones as chaff that passeth away; yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly —

But your many foes will be like fine dust, the multitude of the ruthless like blowing chaff. Then suddenly, in an instant,

6 There shall be a visitation from the LORD of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with whirlwind and tempest, and the flame of a devouring fire.

you will be visited by the LORD of Hosts with thunder and earthquake and loud noise, with windstorm and tempest and consuming flame of fire.

7 And the multitude of all the nations that war against Ariel, even all that war against her, and the bulwarks about her, and they that distress her, shall be as a dream, a vision of the night.

All the many nations going out to battle against Ariel— even all who war against her, laying siege and attacking her— will be like a dream, like a vision in the night,

8 And it shall be as when a hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth, but he awaketh, and his soul is empty; or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh, but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite — so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.

as when a hungry man dreams he is eating, then awakens still hungry; as when a thirsty man dreams he is drinking, then awakens faint and parched. So will it be for all the many nations who go to battle against Mount Zion.

9 Stupefy yourselves, and be stupid! Blind yourselves, and be blind! ye that are drunken, but not with wine, that stagger, but not with strong drink.

Stop and be astonished; blind yourselves and be sightless; be drunk, but not with wine; stagger, but not from strong drink.

10 For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes; the prophets, and your heads, the seers, hath He covered.

For the LORD has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He has shut your eyes, O prophets; He has covered your heads, O seers.

11 And the vision of all this is become unto you as the words of a writing that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying: 'Read this, I pray thee'; and he saith: 'I cannot, for it is sealed';

And the entire vision will be to you like the words sealed in a scroll. If it is handed to someone to read, he will say, “I cannot, because it is sealed.”

12 and the writing is delivered to him that is not learned, saying: 'Read this, I pray thee'; and he saith: 'I am not learned.'

Or if the scroll is handed to one unable to read, he will say, “I cannot read.”

13 And the Lord said: Forasmuch as this people draw near, and with their mouth and with their lips do honour Me, but have removed their heart far from Me, and their fear of Me is a commandment of men learned by rote;

Therefore the Lord said: “These people draw near to Me with their mouths and honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me. Their worship of Me is but rules taught by men.

14 Therefore, behold, I will again do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder; and the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the prudence of their prudent men shall be hid.

Therefore I will again confound these people with wonder upon wonder. The wisdom of the wise will vanish, and the intelligence of the intelligent will be hidden.”

15 Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say: 'Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?'

Woe to those who dig deep to hide their plans from the LORD. In darkness they do their works and say, “Who sees us, and who will know?”

16 O your perversity! Shall the potter be esteemed as clay; that the thing made should say of him that made it: 'He made me not'; or the thing framed say of him that framed it: 'He hath no understanding?'

You have turned things upside down, as if the potter were regarded as clay. Shall what is formed say to him who formed it, “He did not make me”? Can the pottery say of the potter, “He has no understanding”?

17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?

In a very short time, will not Lebanon become an orchard, and the orchard seem like a forest?

18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of a book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity and out of darkness.

On that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and out of the deep darkness the eyes of the blind will see.

19 The humble also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the neediest among men shall exult in the Holy One of Israel.

The humble will increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the scorner ceaseth, and all they that watch for iniquity are cut off;

For the ruthless will vanish, the mockers will disappear, and all who look for evil will be cut down—

21 That make a man an offender by words, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just with a thing of nought.

those who indict a man with a word, who ensnare the mediator at the gate, and who with false charges deprive the innocent of justice.

22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now wax pale;

Therefore the LORD who redeemed Abraham says of the house of Jacob: “No longer will Jacob be ashamed and no more will his face grow pale.

23 When he seeth his children, the work of My hands, in the midst of him, that they sanctify My name; yea, they shall sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall stand in awe of the God of Israel.

For when he sees his children around him, the work of My hands, they will honor My name, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and they will stand in awe of the God of Israel.

24 They also that err in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmur shall learn instruction.

Then the wayward in spirit will come to understanding, and those who grumble will accept instruction.”