Isaiah 30

1 Woe [to] apostate sons, A declaration of YHWH! To do counsel, and not from Me, And to spread out a covering, and not of My Spirit, So as to add sin to sin.

Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not from me; and that set themselves a ruler, but not by my spirit, in order that they may add sin to sin:

2 Who are walking to go down to Egypt, And have not asked My mouth, To be strong in the strength of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt.

That travel to go down into Egypt, and have not asked my will; to strengthen themselves through the strength of Pharaoh, and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!

3 And the strength of Pharaoh Has been to you for shame, And the trust in the shadow of Egypt confusion,

Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh become your shame, and the shelter in the shadow of Egypt your disgrace.

4 For his princes were in Zoan, And his messengers reach Hanes.

For his princes were at Zo'an, and his ambassadors had reached Chanes.

5 He made all ashamed of a people that do not profit, Not for help, and not for profit, But for shame, and also for reproach!

They all are ashamed because of a people that cannot profit them, neither be a help nor give profit; but [bringeth] shame, and also a reproach.

6 The burden of the beasts of the south. Into a land of adversity and distress, Of young lion and of old lion, From where [are] viper and flying, burning serpent, They carry their wealth on the shoulder of donkeys, And their treasures on the hump of camels, To a people not profitable.

The doom of the beasts of the south: Through the land of trouble and anguish, whence come the lioness and the lion, the viper and flying dragons, they will carry upon the shoulders of young asses their riches, and upon the humps of camels their treasures, to a people that cannot profit.

7 Indeed, Egyptians [are] vanity, and help in vain, Therefore I have cried concerning this: “Their strength [is] to sit still.”

And the Egyptians will help in vain, and to no purpose; therefore have I called this, Boasters they are in sitting still.

8 No, go in, write it on a tablet with them, And inscribe it on a scroll, And it is for a latter day, for a witness for all time,

Now go, write it before them on a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the latest time to come, for ever, and to eternity:

9 That this [is] a people of rebellion, sons—liars, Sons not willing to hear the Law of YHWH.

For this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of the Lord:

10 Who have said to seers, “Do not see,” And to prophets, “Do not prophesy to us straightforward things, Speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits,

Who have said to the seers, Ye shall not see; and to the prophets, Reveal not unto us true things, speak unto us smooth things, reveal deceits;

11 Turn aside from the way, Decline from the path, Cause the Holy One of Israel To cease from before us.”

Depart you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, remove from before us the Holy One of Israel.

12 Therefore, thus said the Holy One of Israel: “Because of your kicking against this word, And you trust in oppression, And perverseness, and rely on it,

Therefore thus hath said the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and lean thereon for aid:

13 Therefore this iniquity is to you as a breach falling, Swelled out in a wall set on high, Whose destruction comes suddenly, in an instant.

Therefore shall this iniquity be to you as a threatening breach, swelling out in a high-towering wall, the fall of which will come unawares, suddenly.

14 And He has broken it As the breaking of the potters’ bottle, Beaten down—He does not spare, Nor is there found, in its beating down, A potsherd to take fire from the burning, And to draw out waters from a ditch.”

And he will break it, as one breaketh a potter's vessel, dashing it in pieces without sparing it; so that there cannot be found among its fragments a sherd to rake fire from a hearth and to draw water from a pit.

15 For thus said Lord YHWH, The Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you are saved, In keeping quiet and in confidence is your might,” And you have not been willing.

For thus hath said the Lord Eternal, the Holy One of Israel, In repose and rest shall ye be helped; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength; and ye would not.

16 And you say, “No, for we flee on a horse,” Therefore you flee, And, “We ride on the swift!” Therefore your pursuers are swift.

And ye said, “No; for upon horses will we flee;” therefore shall ye flee: and, “Upon swift beasts will we ride;” therefore shall your pursuers be swift.

17 One thousand [flee] because of the rebuke of one, Because of the rebuke of five you flee, Until you have surely been left as a pole On the top of the mountain, And as an ensign on the height.

One thousand [shall flee] at the threatening of one; at the threatening of five shall ye [all] flee: till ye be left as a pole upon a mountain-top, and as an ensign on a hill.

18 And therefore YHWH waits to favor you, And therefore He is exalted to pity you, For YHWH [is] a God of judgment, O the blessedness of all waiting for Him.

And therefore will the Lord wait, to be gracious unto you, and therefore will he exalt himself, to have mercy upon you; for a God of justice is the Lord: happy are all those that wait for him.

19 For the people in Zion dwell in Jerusalem, Do not weep—weeping, Pitying, He pities you at the voice of your cry, When He hears He answers you.

For O people of Zion that shall dwell at Jerusalem! thou shalt indeed not weep: he will be surely gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; so soon as he heareth it, he answereth thee.

20 And the Lord has given to you bread of adversity, And water of oppression. And your teachers remove no longer, And your eyes have seen your teachers,

And the Lord will give you bread [in] adversity, and water [in] oppression; and thy teachers shall not have to hide themselves in a corner any more, but thy eyes shall see thy teachers:

21 And your ear hears a word behind you, saying, “This [is] the way, go in it,” When you turn to the right, And when you turn to the left.

And thy ears shall hear the word behind thee, saying, “This is the way, walk ye in it,” when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

22 And you have defiled the covering of Your carved images of silver, And the ephod of your molten image of gold, You scatter them as a sickening thing, “Go out,” you say to it.

And ye will regard as unclean the covering of thy graven idols of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou wilt cast them away as a filthy thing; “Get thee hence,” wilt thou say unto them.

23 And He has given rain [for] your seed, With which you sow the ground, And bread, the increase of the ground, And it has been fat and plentiful, Your livestock enjoy an enlarged pasture in that day.

Then will he give the rain for thy seed, that thou mayest sow in the ground; and bread—the produce of the ground—this shall be fat and nutritious: thy cattle shall feed on that day in extensive pastures.

24 And the oxen and the young donkeys serving the ground, Eat fermented provender, That one is winnowing with shovel and fan.

The oxen likewise and the young asses that till the ground shall eat salted provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.

25 And there has been on every high mountain, And on every exalted hill, Streams—conduits of waters, In a day of much slaughter, in the falling of towers.

And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every prominent hill, rivulets, streams of waters on the day of the great slaughter, when towers fall.

26 And the light of the moon has been as the light of the sun, And the light of the sun is sevenfold, As the light of seven days, In the day of YHWH’s binding up the breach of His people, When He heals the stroke of its wound.

And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days, on the day that the Lord bindeth up the broken [limbs] of his people, and healeth the bruise of their wound.

27 Behold, the Name of YHWH is coming from far, His anger is burning, and the flame [is] great, His lips have been full of indignation, And His tongue [is] as a devouring fire.

Behold, the name of the Lord cometh from afar, burning is his anger, and heavy the smoke; his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue is like a devouring fire;

28 And His breath [is] as an overflowing stream, It divides to the neck, To sift nations with a sieve of vanity, And a bridle causing to err, [Is] on the jaws of the peoples.

And his breath, like an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to toss the nations with the van of falsehood: and [to place] a deceiving bridle on the jaws of the people.

29 Singing is to you as in a night sanctified for a festival, And joy of heart as he who is going with a pipe, To go to the mountain of YHWH, To the rock of Israel.

[Then] shall ye have a song, as in the night when a festival is ushered in, and joy of heart, as when one goeth with the flute to come unto the mountain of the Lord, to the Rock of Israel.

30 And YHWH has caused The splendor of His voice to be heard, And the coming down of His arm He shows with the raging of anger, And the flame of a consuming fire, Scattering, and inundation, and hailstone.

And the Lord will cause his majestic voice to be heard, and will show the stretching down of his arm, in the indignation of [his] anger, and in the flame of a devouring fire, in flood, and tempest, and stones of hail.

31 For from the voice of YHWH Asshur [is] broken down, He strikes with a rod.

For because of the voice of the Lord shall be terrified Asshur, that smote [you] with the rod.

32 And every passage of the settled staff, That YHWH causes to rest on him, Has been with tambourines and with harps, And in battles of shaking He has fought with it.

And at every passage of the appointed staff which the Lord will let fall on him, there shall be [music] on tambourine and harp; and in the tumult of battles will he fight with them.

33 For Tophet is arranged from former time, Even it is prepared for the king, He has made deep, He has made large, Its pile [is] fire and much wood, The breath of YHWH, As a stream of brimstone, is burning in it!

For already of old is Topheth made ready; also this is prepared for the king—deep and wide; its pile hath fire and wood in plenty, the breath of the Lord, like a stream of sulfur, will kindle it into a flame.