Isaiah 29

1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the town where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let the festivals come round in order;

Woe [to] Ariel, Ariel, The city of the encampment of David! Add year to year, let festivals go around.

2 Yet will I distress Ariel, and there shall be groaning and wailing: and it shall be unto me like Ariel.

And I have sent distress to Ariel, And it has been lamentation and mourning, And it has been to me as Ariel.

3 And I will encamp against thee round about, and will lay siege against thee with hostile posts, and I will raise up entrenchments against thee.

And I encamped, O babbler, against you, And I laid siege against you—a camp. And I raised up bulwarks against you.

4 And brought down low, shalt thou speak [as though] out of the earth, and out of the dust shall come forth thy speech; and like one of a familiar spirit out of the earth shall be thy voice, and out of the dust shalt thou whisper forth thy speech.

And you have been low, You speak from the earth, And make your saying low from the dust, And your voice has been from the earth, As one having a familiar spirit, And your saying whispers from the dust,

5 And like the small dust shall be the multitude of thy barbarian enemies, and like the passing chaff the multitude of tyrants; and [this] shall be at unawares, suddenly.

And as small dust has been The multitude of those scattering you, And as chaff passing on the multitude of the terrible, And it has been in an instant—suddenly.

6 From the Lord of hosts shall the visitation come with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the devouring flame of fire.

You are inspected by YHWH of Hosts, With thunder, and with an earthquake, And great noise, windstorm, and whirlwind, And flame of devouring fire.

7 And as a dream of a night-vision shall be the multitude of all the nations that go to war against Ariel, even all that fight against her and raise towers against her, and that distress her.

And as a dream, a vision of night, Has been the multitude of all the nations Who are warring against Ariel, And all its warriors, and its bulwark, Even of those distressing her.

8 And it shall even be as when a hungry man dreameth, that, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty; or as when a thirsty man dreameth, that, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul yet longeth: so shall it be with the multitude of all the nations, that go to war against mount Zion.

And it has been, as when the hungry dreams, And behold, he is eating, And he has awoken, And his soul [is] empty, And as when the thirsty dreams, And behold, he is drinking, And he has awoken, And behold, he is weary, And his soul is longing, So is the multitude of all the nations Who are warring against Mount Zion.

9 Stay but still and wonder; turn your eyes away, and be blinded; they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.

Linger and wonder, look, indeed, look, Be drunk, and not with wine, Stagger, and not with strong drink.

10 For the Lord hath poured out over you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: [over] the prophets, and your chiefs, the seers, hath he cast a vail.

For YHWH has poured out a spirit of deep sleep on you, And He closes your eyes—the prophets, And your heads—the seers—He covered.

11 And the vision of every thing is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that can read, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed:

And the vision of the whole is to you, As words of the sealed scroll, That they give to one knowing scrolls, Saying, “Please read this,” And he has said, “I am not able, for it [is] sealed”;

12 And the book is then delivered to one that cannot read, saying, Read this, I pray thee; and he saith, I cannot read.

And the scroll is given to him who has not known scrolls, Saying, “Please read this,” And he has said, “I have not known scrolls.”

13 And the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near with their mouth, and with their lips do honor me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is but the acquired precept of men;

And the Lord says: “Because this people has drawn near with its mouth, And they have honored Me with its lips, And it has put its heart far off from Me, And their fear of Me is a precept taught by men!

14 Therefore, behold, I will do yet farther a marvelous work with this people, doing wonder on wonder; so that the wisdom of their wise men shall be lost, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.

Therefore, behold, I am adding to do wonderfully with this people, A wonder, and a marvel, And the wisdom of its wise ones has perished, And the understanding of its intelligent ones hides itself.”

15 Woe unto those that seek to hide deeply their counsel from the Lord, so that their works may be in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?

Woe [to] those going deep from YHWH to hide counsel, And whose works have been in darkness. And they say, “Who is seeing us? And who is knowing us?”

16 Oh your perverseness! shall the potter be esteemed as the clay? that the work shall say of its maker, He hath not made me? or shall the thing framed say of its framer, He had no understanding?

Your perversion! Is the potter esteemed as clay, That the work says of its maker, “He has not made me?” And the framed thing said of its framer, “He did not understand?”

17 Lo! but yet a very little while more, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest!

Is it not yet a very little [while], And Lebanon has turned into a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is reckoned for a forest?

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

And the deaf have heard the words of a scroll in that day, And out of thick darkness, and out of darkness, The eyes of the blind see.

19 And the sufferers shall have abundant joy in the Lord, and the needy among men shall be glad in the Holy One of Israel.

And the humble have added joy in YHWH, And the poor among men Rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the tyrant is no more, and consumed is the scorner, and cut off are all that watch for injustice;

For the terrible one has ceased, And the scorner has been consumed, And all watching for iniquity have been cut off,

21 That cause mankind to sin by [their] word; and lay a snare for him that reproveth [them] in the gate; and pervert through fraud the cause of the just.

Who cause men to sin in word, And lay a snare for a reprover in the gate, And turn aside the righteous into emptiness.

22 Therefore thus hath said the Lord unto the house of Jacob, he who hath redeemed Abraham, Not now shall Jacob be ashamed, and not now shall his face be made pale.

Therefore, thus said YHWH, Who ransomed Abraham, Concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob is not ashamed now, Nor does his face now become pale,

23 For when he seeth his children, the work of my hands in the midst of him, how they sanctify my name: then will they sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and the God of Israel will they reverence.

For in his seeing his children, The work of My hand, in his midst, They sanctify My Name, And have sanctified the Holy One of Jacob, And they declare the God of Israel fearful.

24 They also that were erring in spirit shall acquire understanding, and they that murmured shall obtain instruction.

And the erring in spirit have known understanding, And murmurers learn doctrine!”