Isaiah 59

1 Behold, the LORD’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

Lo, the hand of Jehovah Hath not been shortened from saving, Nor heavy his ear from hearing.

2 But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid [his] face from you, that he will not hear.

But your iniquities have been separating Between you and your God, And your sins have hidden The Presence from you — from hearing.

3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have spoken lies, your tongue hath muttered perverseness.

For your hands have been polluted with blood, And your fingers with iniquity, Your lips have spoken falsehood, Your tongue perverseness doth mutter.

4 None calleth for justice, nor [any] pleadeth for truth: they trust in vanity, and speak lies; they conceive mischief, and bring forth iniquity.

There is none calling in righteousness, And there is none pleading in faithfulness, Trusting on emptiness, and speaking falsehood, Conceiving perverseness, and bearing iniquity.

5 They hatch cockatrice’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.

Eggs of a viper they have hatched, And webs of a spider they weave, Whoso is eating their eggs doth die, And the crushed hatcheth a viper.

6 Their webs shall not become garments, neither shall they cover themselves with their works: their works [are] works of iniquity, and the act of violence [is] in their hands.

Their webs become not a garment, Nor do they cover themselves with their works, Their works [are] works of iniquity, And a deed of violence [is] in their hands.

7 Their feet run to evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts [are] thoughts of iniquity; wasting and destruction [are] in their paths.

Their feet to evil do run, And they haste to shed innocent blood, Their thoughts [are] thoughts of iniquity, Spoiling and destruction [are] in their highways.

8 The way of peace they know not; and [there is] no judgment in their goings: they have made them crooked paths: whosoever goeth therein shall not know peace.

A way of peace they have not known, And there is no judgment in their paths, Their paths they have made perverse for themselves, No treader in it hath known peace.

9 Therefore is judgment far from us, neither doth justice overtake us: we wait for light, but behold obscurity; for brightness, [but] we walk in darkness.

Therefore hath judgment been far from us, And righteousness reacheth us not, We wait for light, and lo, darkness, For brightness — in thick darkness we go,

10 We grope for the wall like the blind, and we grope as if [we had] no eyes: we stumble at noonday as in the night; [we are] in desolate places as dead [men].

We feel like the blind [for] the wall, Yea, as without eyes we feel, We have stumbled at noon as at twilight, In desolate places as the dead.

11 We roar all like bears, and mourn sore like doves: we look for judgment, but [there is] none; for salvation, [but] it is far off from us.

We make a noise as bears — all of us, And as doves we coo sorely; We wait for judgment, and there is none, For salvation — it hath been far from us.

12 For our transgressions are multiplied before thee, and our sins testify against us: for our transgressions [are] with us; and [as for] our iniquities, we know them;

For our transgressions have been multiplied before Thee, And our sins have testified against us, For our transgressions [are] with us, And our iniquities — we have known them.

13 In transgressing and lying against the LORD, and departing away from our God, speaking oppression and revolt, conceiving and uttering from the heart words of falsehood.

Transgressing, and lying against Jehovah, And removing from after our God, Speaking oppression and apostasy, Conceiving and uttering from the heart Words of falsehood.

14 And judgment is turned away backward, and justice standeth afar off: for truth is fallen in the street, and equity cannot enter.

And removed backward is judgment, And righteousness afar off standeth, For truth hath been feeble in the street, And straightforwardness is not able to enter,

15 Yea, truth faileth; and he [that] departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw [it], and it displeased him that [there was] no judgment.

And the truth is lacking, And whoso is turning aside from evil, Is making himself a spoil. And Jehovah seeth, and it is evil in His eyes, That there is no judgment.

16 And he saw that [there was] no man, and wondered that [there was] no intercessor: therefore his arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it sustained him.

And He seeth that there is no man, And is astonished that there is no intercessor, And His own arm giveth salvation to Him, And His righteousness — it sustained Him.

17 For he put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance [for] clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloke.

And He putteth on righteousness as a breastplate, And an helmet of salvation on His head, And He putteth on garments of vengeance [for] clothing, And is covered, as [with] an upper-robe, [with] zeal.

18 According to [their] deeds, accordingly he will repay, fury to his adversaries, recompence to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompence.

According to deeds — so He repayeth. Fury to His adversaries, [their] deed to His enemies, To the isles [their] deed He repayeth.

19 So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a standard against him.

And they fear from the west the name of Jehovah, And from the rising of the sun — His honour, When come in as a flood doth an adversary, The Spirit of Jehovah hath raised an ensign against him.

20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion, and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD.

And come to Zion hath a redeemer, Even to captives of transgression in Jacob, An affirmation of Jehovah.

21 As for me, this [is] my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit that [is] upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out of the mouth of thy seed’s seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and for ever.

And I — this [is] My covenant with them, said Jehovah, My Spirit that [is] on thee, And My words that I have put in thy mouth, Depart not from thy mouth, And from the mouth of thy seed, And from the mouth of thy seed's seed, said Jehovah, From henceforth unto the age!