Isaiah 30

1 Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of Me; and that form projects, but not of My spirit, that they may add sin to sin;

Alas! for sons who are rebellious, Declareth Yahweh. Executing a purpose, but not from me, And pouring out a libation but not from my spirit, —That they may add sin to sin:

2 That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at My mouth; to take refuge in the stronghold of Pharaoh, and to take shelter in the shadow of Egypt!

Who are setting out to go down to Egypt, But at my mouth, have not asked, —Betaking them to the protection of Pharaoh And seeking refuge under the shadow of Egypt.

3 Therefore shall the stronghold of Pharaoh turn to your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt to your confusion.

Therefore shall the protection of Pharaoh become to you a shame, And, the refuge in the shadow of Egypt, an insult;

4 For his princes are at Zoan, and his ambassadors are come to Hanes.

For their princes have been, in Zoan, —And, their messengers unto Hanes, would draw near.

5 They shall all be ashamed of a people that cannot profit them, that are not a help nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach.

Every one, hath felt ashamed of a people that could not serve them, —Neither with help, nor with service, But they are a shame, yea even a reproach.

6 The burden of the beasts of the South. Through the land of trouble and anguish, from whence come the lioness and the lion, the viper and flying serpent, they carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the humps of camels, to a people that shall not profit them.

The Oracle on the Beasts of the South, —Through a land of distress and oppression—Lioness and lion coming therefrom, Viper and fiery flying serpent, They would carry, on the shoulders of young asses their wealth And on the humps of camels their treasures Unto a people that cannot serve them.

7 For Egypt helpeth in vain, and to no purpose; therefore have I called her arrogancy that sitteth still.

But, the Egyptians, with vanity and emptiness, would help, —Therefore have I proclaimed concerning this, Insolent, they sit still!

8 Now go, write it before them on a tablet, and inscribe it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever.

Now, enter—Write it upon a tablet before them And upon a scroll, inscribe it, —That it may serve for a later day, For futurity, unto times age-abiding: —

9 For it is a rebellious people, lying children, children that refuse to hear the teaching of the LORD;

That it is, a rebellious people, Sons apt at deceiving, —Sons unwilling to hear the law of Yahweh:

10 That say to the seers: 'See not,' and to the prophets: 'Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy delusions;

Who have said to the seers, Ye must not see! To the prophets, Ye must not prophesy to us reproofs! Speak to us smooth things, Prophesy delusions:

11 Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.'

Depart ye from the way, Turn aside from the path, —Desist from setting before us the Holy One of Israel.

12 Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel: because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon;

Therefore—Thus, saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye have rejected this word, —And have trusted in oppression and perverseness, And have relied thereon,

13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

Therefore, shall this iniquity become to you As a breach ready to fall, A bulging in a high wall, —Whose breaking down cometh, suddenly in a twinkling.

14 And He shall break it as a potter's vessel is broken, breaking it in pieces without sparing; so that there shall not be found among the pieces thereof a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water out of the cistern.

Yea he will break it—as the breaking of the pitcher of a potter, crushed, he will not spare; So that there shall not be found when it is smashed, A sherd wherewith to snatch fire from a hearth, Or to skim off water out of a cistern.

15 For thus said the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel: in sitting still and rest shall ye be saved, in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength; and ye would not.

For thus, said my Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel—By returning and resting, shall ye be saved, In keeping quiet and trusting, shall be your strength, —Howbeit ye would not!

16 But ye said: 'No, for we will flee upon horses'; therefore shall ye flee; and: 'We will ride upon the swift'; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.

But ye said, —Nay! but on horses, will we flee For this cause, shall ye indeed flee, —And on the swift, will we ride, For this cause, swift, shall be your pursuers:

17 One thousand shall flee at the rebuke of one, at the rebuke of five shall ye flee; till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on a hill.

One thousand, before the war-cry of one—before the war-cry of five, shall ye flee, —Until ye have been left, As a pole on the top of a mountain, And as an ensign upon a hill.

18 And therefore will the LORD wait, that He may be gracious unto you, and therefore will He be exalted, that He may have compassion upon you; for the LORD is a God of justice, happy are all they that wait for Him.

And, therefore, will Yahweh wait, That he may grant you favour, And, therefore, will he lift himself up, That he may show you compassion, —For A God of justice, is, Yahweh, How happy all they who are waiting for him

19 For, O people that dwellest in Zion at Jerusalem, thou shalt weep no more; He will surely be gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry, when He shall hear, He will answer thee.

For, a people, In Zion, shall dwell, In Jerusalem, —As for weeping, thou shalt not weep! As for favour, he will grant thee favour, at the sound of thine outcry, —As soon as he heareth, he hath answered thee!

20 And though the Lord give you sparing bread and scant water, yet shall not thy Teacher hide Himself any more, but thine eyes shall see thy Teacher;

Though My Lord, should give you bread in short measure and water in scant allowance Yet will thy Teacher not hide himself any more, But thine eyes shall ever be looking on thy Teacher.

21 And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying: 'This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.'

So shall, thine own ears, hear a word from behind thee saying, —This, is the way, walk ye therein, When ye would turn to the right hand Or when ye would turn to the left.

22 And ye shall defile thy graven images overlaid with silver, and thy molten images covered with gold; thou shalt put them far away as one unclean; thou shalt say unto it: 'Get thee hence.'

Then will ye defile—The overlaying of thy graven images of silver, And the coating of thy molten image, of gold, —Thou wilt cash them away, as a woman the token of her sickness, Begone! shalt thou say thereto,

23 And He will give the rain for thy seed, wherewith thou sowest the ground, and bread of the increase of the ground, and it shall be fat and plenteous; in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.

Then will he give—Rain for thy seed—wherewith thou shalt sow thy ground and Bread as the increase of thy ground, which shall be fertile and fat, —Thy cattle, in that day, shall feed in broad pasture:

24 The oxen likewise and the young asses that till the ground shall eat savoury provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.

And the oxen and the young asses that till the ground, salted provender, shall eat, which hath been winnowed with shovel or fan.

25 And there shall be upon every lofty mountain, and upon every high hill streams and watercourses, in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

Then shall there be, On every lofty mountain and On every lifted hill, Channels, Conduits of water, —In the great day of slaughter, When the towers fall.

26 Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the bruise of His people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.

Then shall the light of the moon, be as the light of the sun, And, the light of the sun, shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, —In the day—When Yahweh, bindeth up, the laceration of his people, and When the severe wound caused by smiting them, he healeth.

27 Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, with His anger burning, and in thick uplifting of smoke; His lips are full of indignation, and His tongue is as a devouring fire;

Lo! the Name of Yahweh, coming in from afar, His anger kindling, A heavy storm, —His lips, are full of indignation, And, his tongue, is like a fire that devoureth;

28 And His breath is as an overflowing stream, that divideth even unto the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction; and a bridle that causeth to err shall be in the jaws of the peoples.

And, his breath like an overflowing torrent, even unto the neck, doth reach, To sift nations with a sieve of calamity, —A bridle leading to ruin, being upon the jaws of the peoples.

29 Ye shall have a song as in the night when a feast is hallowed; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with the pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD, to the Rock of Israel.

A song, shall ye have, As in the night of hallowing a festival, —And gladness of heart, As when one goeth with the flute to enter Into the mountain of Yahweh Unto the Rock of Israel.

30 And the LORD will cause His glorious voice to be heard, and will show the lighting down of His arm, with furious anger, and the flame of a devouring fire, with a bursting of clouds, and a storm of rain, and hailstones.

Then will Yahweh cause to be heard—the resounding of his voice And the bringing down of his arm, shall be seen, In a rage of anger, And with the flame of a devouring fire, —A burst and a downpour, and a hailstone!

31 For through the voice of the LORD shall Asshur be dismayed, the rod with which He smote.

For at the voice of Yahweh, shall Assyria be crushed, —With his rod, will he smite.

32 And in every place where the appointed staff shall pass, which the LORD shall lay upon him, it shall be with tabrets and harps; and in battles of wielding will He fight with them.

And it shall come to pass, —that, every stroke of the staff of doom which Yahweh shall lay upon him, shall be with timbrels and with lyres, —when, with battles of brandished weapons, he hath fought against them.

33 For a hearth is ordered of old; yea, for the king it is prepared, deep and large; the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.

For there hath been set in order, beforehand a Topheth, Yea, the same, for the king, hath been prepared He hath made it deep—made it large, —The circumference thereof is for fire and wood in abundance, the breath of Yahweh, like a torrent of brimstone, is ready to kindle it.