Isaiah 57

1 The righteous has perished, And there is none laying [it] to heart, And men of kindness are gathered, Without any considering that from the face of evil The righteous one is gathered.

Righteous people [sometimes] die [when they are still young], and no one is concerned about it. Godly people [sometimes] die because of disasters, and no one understands why. They are taken away in order that they will not endure more calamities,

2 He enters into peace, they rest on their beds, [Each] is going straightforward.

and now they have peace. They [continually] lived righteously, and [now] they rest [peacefully] in their graves.

3 “And you, come near here, O sons of a sorceress, seed of an adulterer, Even you commit whoredom.

[Yahweh says, ] “But you who practice sorcery, come here! You who worship idols [MET], [listen to me]!

4 Against whom do you sport yourselves? Against whom do you enlarge the mouth [And] prolong the tongue? Are you not children of transgression? A false seed?

Do you realize [RHQ] whom you are ridiculing, and whom you are insulting? Do you realize [RHQ] to whom you are sticking out your tongues? [You are insulting me, Yahweh]! You are [RHQ] always rebelling against me and always lying.

5 Who are inflamed among oaks, under every green tree, Slaughtering the children in valleys, Under clefts of the rocks.

You are eager to have sex under every [big] green tree where you worship your gods. You kill your children as sacrifices [to your idols] in the dry riverbeds, and [also] offer them [as sacrifices to your idols] in the rocky caves.

6 Your portion [is] among the smooth things of a brook, They [are] your lot, You have also poured out an oblation to them, You have caused a present to ascend, Am I comforted in these things?

[You take big] smooth stones from the riverbeds and worship them as your gods. You pour out [wine] to be an offering to them, and you bring grain [to burn for] an offering to them. Do you think that I should not punish you for doing all those things?

7 On a mountain, high and exalted, You have set your bed, You have also gone up there to make a sacrifice.

You have sex [EUP] [with cult prostitutes] on every hill and mountain, and you go there to offer sacrifices [to your gods].

8 And behind the door, and the post, You have set up your memorial, For you have removed from Me, and go up, You have enlarged your bed, And cut [a covenant] with them, You have loved their bed, the station you saw,

You have put (fetishes/pagan symbols) behind your doors and doorposts, and you have deserted me. You have taken off your clothes [EUP] and climbed into your bed and invited more [of your lovers] to come to bed with you. You have paid them to have sex with you, and you have fondled their sexual organs.

9 And go joyfully to the king in ointment, And multiply your perfumes, And send your ambassadors far off, And humble yourself to Sheol. (Sheol h7585)

You have given [fragrant] oil and lots of perfume to your god Molech, and you sent messengers to distant countries [to find other gods to worship]; you [even tried to] send [messengers] to the place of the dead [to search for new gods]. (Sheol h7585)

10 You have labored in the greatness of your way, You have not said, It is desperate. You have found the life of your hand, Therefore you have not been sick.

You became weary because of doing all those things, but you never said, ‘It is useless [for us to do that].’ You found new strength for worshiping idols, so you continued to do that [LIT].

11 And of whom have you been afraid, and fear, That you lie, and have not remembered Me? You have not laid [it] to your heart, Am I not silent, even from of old? And you do not fear Me?

Was it because you were afraid [of those idols more than you were afraid of me] that you lied [about what you were doing], and you do not even think about [DOU, RHQ] me? Was it because I did not punish you for a long time that you are not afraid of me [RHQ]?

12 I declare your righteousness, and your works, And they do not profit you.

You [think that] [IRO] the things that you have done are right, but I will tell the truth. It will not help you to do any of those things.

13 When you cry, let your gatherings deliver you, And wind carries all of them away, Vanity takes away, And whoever is trusting in Me inherits the land, And possesses My holy mountain.”

When you cry out [for help] to your collection of idols, they will not rescue you. The wind will blow them away [DOU]. But those who trust in me will live in the land [of Israel], and [they will worship me on Zion], my sacred hill.”

14 And He has said, “Raise up, raise up, prepare a way, Lift a stumbling-block out of the way of My people.”

Yahweh will say, “Prepare [yourselves to receive] me, [like] [MET] people build and prepare a road [for a king to come on]. Get rid of [the things that are causing you to sin] [like] [MET] people remove from a road (obstacles/things that cause people to stumble).

15 For thus said the high and exalted One, Inhabiting eternity, and His Name [is] holy: “I dwell in the high and holy place, And with the bruised and humble of spirit, To revive the spirit of the humble, And to revive the heart of bruised ones,

Because this is what [I], Yahweh, who am holy and greatly honored and who live forever, say: I live in the highest heaven, where [everything] is holy, but I also am with those who are humble and who are sorry for the sinful things that they have done. I will greatly encourage [DOU] those who have repented.

16 For I do not strive for all time, nor am I angry forever, For the spirit is feeble before Me, And the souls I have made.

I will not accuse [people] forever; I will not always be angry [with them], because [if I did that], people would become weak/discouraged; all the people whom I created and caused to live would die.

17 For the iniquity of his dishonest gain, I have been angry, and I strike him, Hiding—and am angry, And he goes on turning back in the way of his heart.

I was angry [with my people] because they sinned by wanting the things that others had. So because I was angry, I punished them and turned away from them, but they continued sinning.

18 I have seen his ways, and I heal him, indeed, I lead him, And repay comforts to him and to his mourning ones.

I have seen the evil things that they continually do, but I will restore them and lead them. I will encourage/comfort them. And to those who are mourning,

19 Producing the fruit of the lips, Peace, peace, to the far off, and to the near, And I have healed him,” said YHWH.

I will enable them to sing songs to praise me. I will restore [all my people], those who live near [Jerusalem] and those who live far away, and I will cause things to go well for them.

20 And the wicked [are] as the driven out sea, For it is not able to rest, And its waters cast out filth and mire.

Wicked [people do not have peace in their inner beings]; they are like [SIM] a sea [whose waves are] always churning up mud,

21 “There is no peace,” said my God, “for the wicked!”

and [I], Yahweh, say that things will never (go well/be peaceful) for those who are evil.”