Isaiah 29

1 Woe to Ariel. Ariel, the city where David camped. Add year to year; let the feasts come around;

Tragedy is coming to you Ariel, Ariel the city where David lived! Year after year you have your festivals.

2 then I will distress Ariel, and there will be mourning and lamentation. She shall be to me as an altar hearth.

But I'm going to cause trouble for Ariel; the city will cry and mourn, it will be like an altar hearth to me.

3 And I will camp in a circle around you, and will lay siege against you with posted troops. I will raise siege works against you.

I will surround you, I will besiege you with towers and build ramps to attack you.

4 You will be brought down, and will speak out of the ground. Your speech will mumble out of the dust. Your voice will be as of one who has a familiar spirit, out of the ground, and your speech will whisper out of the dust.

You will be brought down, you will speak from where you're lying on the ground, mumbling in the dust. Your words will come like a ghost from the grave; your voice will be a whisper from the dust.

5 But the multitude of your arrogant will be like fine dust, and the multitude of the ruthless ones like chaff that blows away. Yes, it will be in an instant, suddenly.

But then all your enemies will become like fine dust; all your cruel oppressors like chaff that's blown away. Then suddenly, in no time at all,

6 She will be visited by the LORD of hosts with thunder, with earthquake, with great noise, with whirlwind and storm, and with the flame of a devouring fire.

the Lord Almighty will arrive with thunder, earthquake, and tremendous noise, with whirlwind, storm, and flames of fire that burn everything up.

7 The multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all who fight against her and her stronghold, and who distress her, will be like a dream, a vision of the night.

The nations besieging Ariel, attacking its fortifications and tormenting the people, they will all disappear as if it was a dream!

8 It will be like when a hungry man dreams, and look, he eats; but he awakes, and his hunger isn't satisfied; or like when a thirsty man dreams, and look, he drinks; but he awakes, and look, he is faint, and he is still thirsty. The multitude of all the nations that fight against Mount Zion will be like that.

It will be like someone hungry dreaming that they're eating but who wakes up still hungry. It will be like someone thirsty dreaming of drinking but who wakes up still weak and thirsty. This is what it will be like for all your enemies, the ones attacking Mount Zion.

9 Pause and wonder. Blind yourselves and be blind. They are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.

Be shocked and amazed! Make yourselves blind so you can't see! Get drunk, but not from wine! Stagger around, but not from beer!

10 For the LORD has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep, and has closed your eyes (the prophets), and he has covered your heads (the seers).

For the Lord has made you very sleepy, and he has shut the eyes and covered the heads of those who speak for God and see visions.

11 All vision has become to you like the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is educated, saying, "Read this, please;" and he says, "I can't, for it is sealed:"

This entire vision is like words in a scroll that is sealed shut. If you give it to someone who knows how to read and say, “Please read it,” they'll say, “I can't read it because it's sealed shut.”

12 and the book is delivered to one who is not educated, saying, "Read this, please;" and he says, "I can't read."

If you give it to someone who doesn't know how to read and say, “Please read it,” they'll say, “I don't know how to read.”

13 And the LORD said, "Because these people draw near with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but they have removed their heart far from me. And in vain do they worship me, teaching instructions that are the commandments of humans.

The Lord says, “These people come and praise me with their words, and honor me with lip service, but their thoughts are miles away. Their worship of me only consists of them following rules people have taught them.

14 Therefore, look, I will again do a marvelous work among this people, even a marvelous work and a wonder; and I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will nullify."

So once again I will surprise these people with miracle upon miracle. The wisdom of the wise will die, and the insight of the insightful will disappear.”

15 Woe to those who deeply hide their counsel from the LORD, and whose works are in the dark, and who say, "Who sees us?" and "Who knows us?"

Tragedy is coming to people who take such trouble to hide their plans from the Lord. They work in the dark and say to themselves, “Nobody can see us, can they? Nobody will know, will they?”

16 You turn things upside down. Should the potter be thought to be like clay; that the thing made should say about him who made it, "He did not make me;" or the thing formed say of him who formed it, "He has no understanding?"

How perverse you are! It's as if the clay was thought of as making the potter! Should something made say to its maker, “You didn't make me”? Can the pot tell the potter, “You don't understand anything”?

17 Isn't it yet a very little while, and Lebanon will be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field will be regarded as a forest?

It won't be long and the forests of Lebanon will be turned into a productive field, and a productive field will seem like a forest.

18 In that day, the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and the eyes of the blind will see out of obscurity and out of darkness.

At that time the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and the eyes of the blind will see through the gloomy darkness what's written there.

19 The humble also will increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among humankind will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

The humble will be even happier in the Lord, and the poor will find their joy in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the ruthless is brought to nothing, and the scoffer ceases, and all those who are alert to do evil are cut off—

Cruel people will no longer exist, the scornful will vanish, and those looking to do evil will be destroyed—

21 who cause a person to be indicted by a word, and lay a snare for the arbiter in the gate, and who deprive the innocent of justice with false testimony.

those who say things to trick others into sin, those who trap people by legal arguments in court, those who lie to mislead the innocent.

22 Therefore thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: "Jacob shall no longer be ashamed, neither shall his face grow pale.

So this is what the Lord, who redeemed Abraham, says to the descendants of Jacob: “You don't need to be ashamed anymore; your faces won't grow pale with fright any longer.

23 But when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they will sanctify my name. Yes, they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.

When you see all your children and everything I've done for you, then you will regard my character as holy, and you will respect the Holy One of Jacob. You will have reverence for the God of Israel.

24 They also who err in spirit will come to understanding, and those who grumble will receive instruction."

Those who've gone astray will understand their mistakes; those who grumble will learn how to receive instruction.”