Isaiah 8

1 And the LORD said unto me: 'Take thee a great tablet, and write upon it in common script: The spoil speedeth, the prey hasteth;

And the Lord said to me, Take a great writing-board, and on it put down in common letters, Maher-shalal-hash-baz;

2 and I will take unto Me faithful witnesses to record, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.'

And take true witnesses to the writing, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah, the son of Jeberechiah.

3 And I went unto the prophetess; and she conceived, and bore a son. Then said the LORD unto me: 'Call his name Maher-shalal-hashbaz.

And I went in to my wife, and she became with child, and gave birth to a son. Then the Lord said to me, Give him the name Maher-shalal-hash-baz,

4 For before the child shall have knowledge to cry: My father, and: My mother, the riches of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria shall be carried away before the king of Assyria.'

For before the child is able to say, Father, or, Mother, the wealth of Damascus and the goods of Samaria will be taken away by the king of Assyria.

5 And the LORD spoke unto me yet again, saying:

And the Lord said again to me,

6 Forasmuch as this people hath refused the waters of Shiloah that go softly, and rejoiceth with Rezin and Remaliah's son;

Because this people will have nothing to do with the softly-flowing waters of Shiloah, and have fear of Rezin and Remaliah's son;

7 Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the River, mighty and many, even the king of Assyria and all his glory; and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks;

For this cause the Lord is sending on them the waters of the River, deep and strong, even the king of Assyria and all his glory: and it will come up through all its streams, overflowing all its edges:

8 And he shall sweep through Judah overflowing as he passeth through he shall reach even to the neck; and the stretching out of his wings shall fill the breadth of thy land, O Immanuel.

And it will come on into Judah; rushing on and overflowing, till the waters are up to the neck; and his outstretched wings will be covering the land from side to side: for God is with us.

9 Make an uproar, O ye peoples, and ye shall be broken in pieces; and give ear, all ye of far countries; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces; gird yourselves, and ye shall be broken in pieces.

Have knowledge, O peoples, and be in fear; give ear, all you far-off parts of the earth:

10 Take counsel together, and it shall be brought to nought; speak the word, and it shall not stand; for God is with us.

Let your designs be formed, and they will come to nothing; give your orders, and they will not be effected: for God is with us.

11 For the LORD spoke thus to me with a strong hand, admonishing me that I should not walk in the way of this people, saying:

For the Lord, controlling me with a strong hand, gave me orders not to go in the way of this people, saying,

12 'Say ye not: A conspiracy, concerning all whereof this people do say: A conspiracy; neither fear ye their fear, nor account it dreadful.

Do not say, It is holy, about everything of which this people says, It is holy; and do not be in fear of what they go in fear of.

13 The LORD of hosts, Him shall ye sanctify; and let Him be your fear, and let Him be your dread.

But let the Lord of armies be holy to you, and go in fear of him, giving honour to him.

14 And He shall be for a sanctuary; but for a stone of stumbling and for a rock of offence to both the houses of Israel, for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

And he will be for a holy place: but for a stone of falling and a rock of trouble to the two houses of Israel, and to the men of Jerusalem, for a net in which they may be taken.

15 And many among them shall stumble, and fall, and be broken, and be snared, and be taken.'

And numbers of them, falling on the stone, will be broken, and will be taken in the net.

16 'Bind up the testimony, seal the instruction among My disciples.'

Let my teaching be kept secret: and my words be given to my disciples only.

17 And I will wait for the LORD, that hideth His face from the house of Jacob, and I will look for Him.

And I will be waiting for the Lord, whose face is veiled from the house of Jacob, and I will be looking for him.

18 Behold, I and the children whom the LORD hath given me shall be for signs and for wonders in Israel from the LORD of hosts, who dwelleth in mount Zion.

See, I and the children whom the Lord has given me, are for signs and for wonders in Israel from the Lord of armies, whose resting-place is in Mount Zion.

19 And when they shall say unto you: 'Seek unto the ghosts and the familiar spirits, that chirp and that mutter; should not a people seek unto their God? on behalf of the living unto the dead

And when they say to you, Make request for us to those who have control of spirits, and to those wise in secret arts, who make hollow bird-like sounds; is it not right for a people to make request to their gods, to make request for the living to the dead?

20 for instruction and for testimony?' — Surely they will speak according to this word, wherein there is no light. —

Then say to them, Put your faith in the teaching and the witness. ... If they do not say such things. ... For him there is no dawn. ...

21 And they shall pass this way that are sore bestead and hungry; and it shall come to pass that, when they shall be hungry, they shall fret themselves, and curse by their king and by their God, and, whether they turn their faces upward,

And he will go through the land in bitter trouble and in need of food; and when he is unable to get food, he will become angry, cursing his king and his God, and his eyes will be turned to heaven on high;

22 or look unto the earth, behold distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish, and outspread thick darkness.

And he will be looking down on the earth, and there will be trouble and dark clouds, black night where there is no seeing.