Isaiah 59

1 Behold, the Lord's hand is not too short to save; neither his ear too heavy for hearing;

Has the hand of the Lord no power to save? or has he made his ear heavy, so that he should not hear?

2 But your iniquities have ever made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have caused him to hide his face from you, so that he would not hear.

Nay, your iniquities separate between you and God, and because of your sins has he turned away [his] face from you, so as not to have mercy [upon you].

3 For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with iniquity: your lips have spoken falsehood, your tongue uttereth deception.

For your hands are defiled with blood, and your fingers with sins; your lips also have spoken iniquity, and your tongue meditates unrighteousness.

4 No one admonisheth with righteousness, and no one executeth justice in truth; men trust in naught, and speak lies; they have conceived mischief, and bring forth wickedness.

None speaks justly, neither is there true judgement: they trust in vanities, and speak empty [words]; for they conceive trouble, and bring forth iniquity.

5 Basilisk's eggs do they hatch, and spider's webs do they weave: he that eateth of their eggs must die, and if one be crushed, a viper will break forth.

They have hatched asps' eggs, and weave a spider's web: and he that is going to eat of their eggs, having crushed an addled egg, has found also in it a basilisk.

6 Their webs cannot serve for garments, and they cannot clothe themselves with their works: their works are works of wickedness, and the deed of violence is in their hands.

Their web shall not become a garment, nor shall they at all clothe themselves with their works; for their works are works of iniquity.

7 Their feet run to what is evil, and they make haste to shed innocent blood: their thoughts are thoughts of wickedness; wasting and destruction are on their highways.

And their feet run to wickedness, swift to shed blood; their thoughts also are thoughts of murder; destruction and misery are in their ways;

8 The way of peace they know not; and there is no justice on their tracks: their paths they have made unto themselves crooked; whosoever walketh therein knoweth not peace.

and the way of peace they know not, neither is there judgement in their ways; for their paths by which they go are crooked, and they know not peace.

9 Therefore is justice far from us, nor will happiness overtake us: we ever hope for light, but behold there is darkness; for brightness, but in obscurity must we walk.

Therefore has judgement departed from them, and righteousness shall not overtake them: while they waited for light, darkness came upon them; while they waited for brightness, they walked in perplexity.

10 We grope like the blind on the wall, and as if we had no eyes do we grope: we stumble at noonday as in the twilight; we are in complete darkness like the dead.

They shall feel for the wall as blind [men], and shall feel [for it] as if they had no eyes: and they shall feel at noon-day as at midnight; they shall groan as dying men.

11 We growl all of us like bears, and like doves do we moan sorely; we ever hope for justice, but there is none; for aid, but it is far from us.

They shall proceed together as a bear and as a dove: we have waited for judgement, and there is no salvation, it is gone far from us.

12 For our transgressions are numerous in thy presence, and our sins testify against us; for of our transgressions are we aware; and our iniquities—we know them;

For our iniquity is great before you, and our sins have risen up against us: for our iniquities are in us, and we know our unrighteous deeds.

13 We transgressed and denied the Lord, and departed away from our God; we spoke oppression and revolt, conceived and brought forth in our heart words of falsehood.

We have sinned, and dealt falsely, and revolted from our God: we have spoken unrighteous words, and have been disobedient; we have conceived and uttered from our heart unrighteous words.

14 And justice is forced to turn backward, and righteousness standeth afar off; for truth stumbled in the street, and equity is not able to enter.

And we have turned judgement back, and righteousness has departed afar off: for truth is consumed in their ways, and they could not pass by a straight [path].

15 And thus is the truth missing; and he that departeth from evil is regarded as foolish: and the Lord saw it, and it was displeasing in his eyes that there was no justice.

And truth has been taken away, and they have turned aside [their] mind from understanding. And the Lord saw it, and it pleased him not that there was no judgement.

16 And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor; therefore his arm brought him aid, and his righteousness, —yea, this sustained him.

And he looked, and there was no man, and he observed, and there was none to help: so he defended them with his arm, and established [them] with [his] mercy.

17 And he put on righteousness as a coat of mail, and [placed] the helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the garments of vengeance as raiment, and wrapped himself with zeal as with a cloak.

And he put on righteousness as a breast-plate, and placed the helmet of salvation on his head; and he clothed himself with the garment of vengeance, and with his cloak,

18 According to the demerits, so will he repay [all], fury to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands will he repay what they have merited.

as one about to render a recompence, [even] reproach to his adversaries.

19 And they shall fear from the west the name of the Lord, and from the rising of the sun his glory; for there shall come distress like the stream which the Spirit of the Lord urgeth forward.

So shall they of the west fear the name of the Lord, and they [that come] from the rising of the sun his glorious name: for the wrath of the Lord shall come as a mighty river, it shall come with fury.

20 But unto Zion shall come the redeemer, and unto those who return from transgression in Jacob, saith the Lord.

And the deliverer shall come for Sion's sake, and shall turn away ungodliness from Jacob.

21 And 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 children, nor out of the mouth of thy children's children, saith the Lord, from henceforth and unto all eternity.

And this shall be my covenant with them, said the Lord; My Spirit which is upon you, and the words which I have put in your mouth, shall never fail from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your seed, for the Lord has spoken it, henceforth and for ever.