Isaiah 29

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

Ho! Ariel, Ariel, the town against which David made war; put year to year, let the feasts come round:

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

And I will send trouble on Ariel, and there will be weeping and cries of grief; and she will be to me as Ariel.

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

And I will make war on you like David, and you will be shut in by earthworks, and I will make towers round you.

4 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,

And you will be made low, and your voice will come out of the earth, and your words will be low out of the dust; and your voice will come out of the earth like that of a spirit, making bird-like noises out of the dust.

5 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.

And the army of your attackers will be like small dust, and all the cruel ones like dry stems gone before the wind; suddenly it will come about.

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

The Lord of armies will come in with thunder and earth-shaking and great noise, with rushing wind and storm, and the flame of burning fire.

7 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.

And all the nations making war on Ariel, and all those who are fighting against her and shutting her in with their towers, will be like a dream, like a vision of the night.

8 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.

And it will be like a man desiring food, and dreaming that he is feasting; but when he is awake there is nothing in his mouth: or like a man in need of water, dreaming that he is drinking; but when he is awake he is feeble and his soul is full of desire: so will all the nations be which make war on Mount Zion.

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

Be surprised and full of wonder; let your eyes be covered and be blind: be overcome, but not with wine; go with uncertain steps, but not because of strong drink.

10 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.

For the Lord has sent on you a spirit of deep sleep; and by him your eyes, the prophets, are shut, and your heads, the seers, are covered.

11 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”;

And the vision of all this has become to you like the words of a book which is shut, which men give to one who has knowledge of writing, saying, Make clear to us what is in the book: and he says, I am not able to, for the book is shut:

12 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.”

And they give it to one without learning, saying, Make clear to us what is in the book: and he says, I have no knowledge of writing.

13 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!

And the Lord said, because this people come near to me with their mouths, and give honour to me with their lips, but their heart is far from me, and their fear of me is false, a rule given them by the teaching of men;

14 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.”

For this cause I will again do a strange thing among this people, a thing to be wondered at: and the wisdom of their wise men will come to nothing, and the sense of their guides will no longer be seen.

15 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?”

Cursed are those who go deep to keep their designs secret from the Lord, and whose works are in the dark, and who say, Who sees us? and who has knowledge of our acts?

16 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?”

You are turning things upside down! Is the wet earth the same to you as the one who is forming it? will the thing made say of him who made it, He made me not: or the thing formed say of him who gave it form, He has no knowledge?

17 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?

In a very short time Lebanon will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will seem like a wood.

18 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.

And in that day those whose ears are stopped will be hearing the words of the book; and the eyes of the blind will see through the mist and the dark.

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

And the poor will have their joy in the Lord increased, and those in need will be glad in the Holy One of Israel.

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

For the cruel one has come to nothing; and those who make sport of the Lord are gone; and those who are watching to do evil are cut off:

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

Who give help to a man in a wrong cause, and who put a net for the feet of him who gives decisions in the public place, taking away a man's right without cause.

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

For this reason the Lord, the saviour of Abraham, says about the family of Jacob, Jacob will not now be put to shame, or his face be clouded with fear.

23 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.

But when they, the children of Jacob, see the work of my hands among them, they will give honour to my name; yes, they will give honour to the Holy One of Jacob, and go in fear of the God of Israel.

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

Those whose hearts were turned away from him will get knowledge, and those who made an outcry against him will give attention to his teaching.