< Isaiah 64 >
1 Did You not tear the heavens? You came down, Mountains flowed from Your presence,
That thou wouldst rend the heavens, and wouldst come down: the mountains would melt away at thy presence.
2 (As fire kindles stubble—Fire causes water to boil), To make Your Name known to Your adversaries, Nations tremble from Your presence.
They would melt as at the burning of fire, the waters would burn with fire, that thy name might be made known to thy enemies: that the nations might tremble at thy presence.
3 In Your doing fearful things [that] we do not expect, You came down, Mountains flowed from Your presence.
When thou shalt do wonderful things, we shall not bear them: thou didst come down, and at thy presence the mountains melted away.
4 Even from antiquity [men] have not heard, They have not given ear, Eye has not seen a God except You, He works for those waiting for Him.
From the beginning of the world they have not heard, nor perceived with the ears: the eye hath not seen, O God, besides thee, what things thou hast prepared for them that wait for thee.
5 You have met with the rejoicer And the doer of righteousness, In Your ways they remember You, Behold, You have been angry when we sin, By them [is] continuance, and we are saved.
Thou hast met him that rejoiceth, and doth justice: in thy ways they shall remember thee: behold thou art angry, and we have sinned: in them we have been always, and we shall be saved.
6 And we are as unclean—all of us, And all our righteous acts [are] as garments of menstruation; And we fade as a leaf—all of us. And our iniquities take us away as wind.
And we are all become as one unclean, and all our justices as the rag of a menstruous woman: and we have all fallen as a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.
7 And there is none calling on Your Name, Stirring himself up to lay hold on You, For You have hid Your face from us, And You melt us away by our iniquities.
There is none that calleth upon thy name: that riseth up, and taketh hold of thee: thou hast hid thy face from us, and hast crushed us in the hand of our iniquity.
8 And now, O YHWH, You [are] our Father, We [are] the clay, and You [are] our Framer, And the work of Your hand—all of us.
And now, O Lord, thou art our father, and we are clay: and thou art our maker, and we all are the works of thy hands.
9 Do not be angry, O YHWH, very severely, Nor remember iniquity forever, Behold, look attentively, we implore You, We [are] all Your people.
Be not very angry, O Lord, and remember no longer our iniquity: behold, see we are all thy people.
10 Your holy cities have been a wilderness, Zion has been a wilderness, Jerusalem a desolation.
The city of thy sanctuary is become a desert, Sion is made a desert, Jerusalem is desolate.
11 Our holy and our beautiful house, Where our fathers praised You, Has become burned with fire, And all our desirable things have become a ruin.
The house of our holiness, and of our glory, where our fathers praised thee, is burnt with fire, and all our lovely things are turned into ruins.
12 Do You refrain Yourself for these, YHWH? You are silent, and afflict us very severely!
Wilt thou refrain thyself, O Lord, upon these things, wilt thou hold thy peace, and afflict us vehemently?