< Isaiah 25 >
1 The LORD, you are my God. I will exalt you. I will praise your name, for you have done wonderful things, things planned long ago, in complete faithfulness and truth.
O Lord, you are my God! I will exalt you, and I will confess your name. For you have accomplished miracles. Your plan, from antiquity, is faithful. Amen.
2 For you have made a city into a heap, a fortified city into a ruin, a palace of the insolent is a city no more; it will never be rebuilt.
For you have appointed a city as a tomb, a strong city for ruination, a house of foreigners: so that it may not be a city, and so that it may not be rebuilt forever.
3 Therefore a strong people will glorify you. A city of awesome nations will fear you.
Concerning this, a strong people will praise you; a city with a robust people will fear you.
4 For you have been a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat, when the blast of the dreaded ones is like a storm against the wall.
For you have been the strength of the poor, the strength of the indigent in his tribulation, a refuge from the whirlwind, a shadow from the heat. For the spirit of the mighty is like a whirlwind striking against a wall.
5 As the heat in a dry place will you bring down the noise of strangers; as the heat by the shade of a cloud, the song of the dreaded ones will be brought low.
You will bring low the uprising of foreigners, just as heat brings thirst. And like heat under a torrential cloud, you will cause the offshoot of the strong to wither away.
6 In this mountain, the LORD of hosts will make all peoples a feast of fat things, a feast of choice wines, of fat things full of marrow, of well refined choice wines.
And the Lord of hosts will cause all the peoples on this mountain to feast on fatness, to feast on wine, a fatness full of marrow, a purified wine.
7 He will destroy in this mountain the surface of the covering that covers all peoples, and the veil that is spread over all nations.
And he will cast down violently, on this mountain, the face of the chains, with which all peoples had been bound, and the net, with which all nations had been covered.
8 He has swallowed up death in victory. The LORD will wipe away tears from off all faces. He will take the reproach of his people away from off all the earth, for the LORD has spoken it.
He will violently cast down death forever. And the Lord God will take away the tears from every face, and he will take away the disgrace of his people from the entire earth. For the Lord has spoken it.
9 It shall be said in that day, "Look, this is our God. We have waited for him, and he will save us. This is the LORD. We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation."
And they will say in that day: “Behold, this is our God! We have waited for him, and he will save us. This is the Lord! We have endured for him. We will exult and rejoice in his salvation.”
10 For in this mountain the hand of the LORD will rest. Moab will be trodden down in his place, even like straw is trodden down in a dunghill.
For the hand of the Lord will rest upon this mountain. And Moab will be trampled under him, just as stubble is worn away by a wagon.
11 He will spread out his hands in its midst, like one who swims spreads out hands to swim, but his pride will be humbled together with the craft of his hands.
And he will extend his hands under him, like a swimmer extending his hands to swim. And he will bring down his glory with a clap of his hands.
12 He has brought the high fortress of your walls down, laid low, and brought to the ground, even to the dust.
And the fortifications of your sublime walls will fall, and be brought low, and be torn down to the ground, even to the dust.