Isaiah 29

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

Alas for the city of Ariel, which David besieged. Gather ye fruits year by year; eat ye, for ye shall eat with Moab.

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

For I will grievously afflict Ariel: and her strength and her wealth shall be mine.

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.

And I will compass thee about like David, and will raise a mound about thee, and set up towers round thee.

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.

And thy words shall be brought down to the earth, and thy words shall sink down to the earth, and thy voice shall be as they that speak out of the earth, and thy voice shall be lowered to the ground.

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 the wealth of the ungodly shall be as dust from a wheel, and the multitude of them that oppress thee as flying chaff, and it shall be suddenly as a moment,

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.

from the Lord of Hosts: for there shall be a visitation with thunder, and earthquake, and a loud noise, a rushing tempest, and devouring flame of fire.

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.

And the wealth of all the nations together, as many as have fought against Ariel, and all they that war against Jerusalem, and all who are gathered against her, and they that distress her, shall be as one that dreams in sleep by night.

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.

And as men drink and eat in sleep, and when they have arisen, the dream is vain: and as a thirsty man dreams as if he drank, and having arisen is still thirsty, and his soul has desired in vain: so shall be the wealth of all the nations, as many as have fought against the mount Sion.

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

Faint ye, and be amazed, and be overpowered, not with strong drink nor with wine.

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 to drink a spirit of deep sleep; and he shall close their eyes, and [the eyes] of their prophets and of their rulers, who see secret things.

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:"

And all these things shall be to you as the words of this sealed book, which if they shall give to a learned man, saying, Read this, he shall then say, I cannot read [it], for it is sealed.

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

And this book shall be given into the hands of a man that is unlearned, and [one] shall say to him, Read this; and he shall say, I am not learned.

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.

And the Lord has said, This people draw nigh to me with their mouth, and they honour me with their lips, but their heart is far from me: but in vain do they worship me, teaching the commandments and doctrines of men.

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."

Therefore behold I will proceed to remove this people, and I will remove them: and I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will hide the understanding of the prudent.

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?"

Woe to them that deepen their counsel, and not by the Lord. Woe to them that take secret counsel, and whose works are in darkness, and they say, Who has seen us? and who shall know us, or what we do?

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?"

Shall ye not be counted as clay of the potter? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Thou didst not form me? or the work to the maker, Thou hast not made me wisely?

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?

[Is it] not yet a little while, and Libanus shall be changed as the mountains of Chermel, and Chermel shall be reckoned as 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.

And in that day the deaf shall hear the words of the book, and they that are in darkness, and they that are in mist: the eyes of the blind shall see,

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

and the poor shall rejoice with joy because of the Lord, and they that had no hope among men shall be filled with joy.

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

The lawless man has come to nought, and the proud man has perished, and they that transgress mischievously have been utterly 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.

and they that cause men to sin by a word: and men shall make all that reprove in the gates an offence, because they have unjustly turned aside the righteous.

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.

Therefore thus saith the Lord concerning the house of Jacob, whom he set apart from Abraam, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall he now change countenance.

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.

But when their children shall have seen my works, they shall sanctify my name for my sake, and they sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.

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

And they that erred in spirit shall know understanding, and the murmurers shall learn obedience, and the stammering tongues shall learn to speak peace.