Isaiah 29
1 [This is a message from Yahweh: ] Terrible things will happen to Jerusalem, the city where [King] David lived. You people continue to celebrate your festivals each year.
Ah altar, altar of the citie that Dauid dwelt in: adde yere vnto yere: let them kill lambs.
2 But I will cause you to experience a great disaster, [and when that happens], people will weep and lament [very much]. Your city will become like [MET] an altar [to me] [where people are burned as sacrifices].
But I wil bring the altar into distresse, and there shalbe heauines and sorowe, and it shall be vnto me like an altar.
3 I will cause your enemies [to come to your city]; they will surround it by [building] towers and putting in place other things with which to attack you.
And I wil besiege thee as a circle, and fight against thee on a mount, and will cast vp ramparts against thee.
4 Then you will talk [as though you were] buried deep in the ground [DOU]; it will sound like someone whispering from under the ground, like [SIM] a ghost speaking from a grave.
So shalt thou be humbled, and shalt speake out of the ground, and thy speach shalbe as out of the dust: thy voyce also shall be out of the ground like him that hath a spirite of diuination, and thy talking shall whisper out of the dust.
5 But, suddenly your enemies will be blown away like dust; their armies will disappear like [SIM] chaff that is blown away [by the wind]. [It will happen] very suddenly.
Moreouer, the multitude of thy strangers shalbe like small dust, and the multitude of strong men shalbe as chaffe that passeth away, and it shall be in a moment, euen suddenly.
6 The Commander of the armies of angels will come [to help you] with thunder and an earthquake and a very loud noise, with a strong wind and a big storm and a fire that will burn up everything.
Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of hostes with thunder, and shaking, and a great noyse, a whirlewinde, and a tempest, and a flame of a deuouring fire.
7 [Then] the armies of all the nations that will be attacking Jerusalem will quickly disappear like a dream in the night [DOU]. Those who will be attacking Jerusalem will suddenly vanish/disappear.
And the multitude of all the nations that fight against the altar, shalbe as a dreame or vision by night: euen all they that make the warre against it, and strong holdes against it, and lay siege vnto it.
8 People who are asleep dream about eating food, [but] when they wake up, they are still hungry. People who are thirsty dream about drinking something, [but] when they wake up they are still thirsty. It will be like that when your enemies come to attack Zion Hill; [they will dream about conquering you, but when they wake up, ] [they will realize that they have not succeeded].
And it shalbe like as an hungry man dreameth, and beholde, he eateth: and when he awaketh, his soule is emptie: or like as a thirsty man dreameth, and loe, he is drinking, and when he awaketh, beholde, he is faint, and his soule longeth: so shall the multitude of all nations be that fight against mount Zion.
9 You [people of Jerusalem], be amazed and surprised [about this] [IRO]! Do not believe [what I have said] [SAR]! And continue to be blind [IRO] [about what Yahweh is doing]. You are stupid, but it is not because you have drunk a lot of wine. You stagger, but not from drinking alcoholic drinks.
Stay your selues, and wonder: they are blinde, and make you blinde: they are drunken but not with wine: they stagger, but not by strong drinke.
10 Because Yahweh has prevented the prophets [DOU] from understanding [and telling you his messages], [it is as though] he has caused you to be fast/deeply asleep.
For the Lord hath couered you with a spirite of slumber, and hath shut vp your eyes: the Prophets, and your chiefe Seers hath he couered.
11 [Yahweh gave me] this vision; [but] for you, it is only words on a scroll that is sealed shut. If you give it to those who can read [and request that they read it], they will say, “We cannot read it because the scroll is sealed.”
And the vision of them all is become vnto you, as the wordes of a booke that is sealed vp, which they deliuer to one that can reade, saying, Reade this, I pray thee. Then shall he say, I can not: for it is sealed.
12 When you give it to [others] who cannot read, they will say, “[We cannot read it because] we do not know how to read.”
And the booke is giuen vnto him that can not reade, saying, Reade this, I pray thee. And he shall say, I can not reade.
13 [So] the Lord says, “These people say that they belong to me. They honor me by what they say [MTY], but they do not think [IDM] about what I [desire]. When they worship me, all they do is recite rules that people have made and that they have memorized.
Therefore the Lord sayd, Because this people come neere vnto me with their mouth, and honour me with their lips, but haue remooued their heart farre from me, and their feare toward me was taught by the precept of men,
14 Therefore, again I will do something to amaze these people; I will perform many miracles. And [I will show that] the people [who tell others that they] are wise are not really wise, and [I will show that] the people [who tell others that they] are intelligent are not really intelligent.
Therefore behold, I wil againe doe a marueilous worke in this people, euen a marueilous worke, and a wonder: for the wisdome of their wise men shall perish, and the vnderstanding of their prudent men shalbe hid.
15 Terrible things will happen to those who try to conceal from me, Yahweh, the [evil] things that they plan to do; they do those things in the darkness and they think, ‘Yahweh certainly cannot [RHQ] see us; he cannot [RHQ] know what we are doing!’
Wo vnto them that seeke deepe to hide their counsell from the Lord: for their workes are in darkenes, and they say, Who seeth vs? and who knoweth vs?
16 They are extremely foolish! [They act as though] they were the potters and I was the clay! Something that was created should certainly never [RHQ] say to the one who made it, ‘You did not make me!’ A jar should never say, ‘The potter who made me did not know what he was doing!’”
Your turning of deuises shall it not be esteemed as the potters clay? for shall the worke say of him that made it, Hee made me not? or the thing formed, say of him that facioned it, He had none vnderstanding?
17 Soon [the forests in] Lebanon will become fertile fields, and abundant crops will grow in those fields, and that will happen very soon.
Is it not yet but a litle while, and Lebanon shall be turned into Carmel? and Carmel shall be counted as a forest?
18 At that time, deaf people will [be able to hear]; [they will be able to] hear when someone reads from a book; and blind people will [be able to see]; [they will be able to] see things when it is gloomy and [even] when it is dark.
And in that day shall the deafe heare the wordes of the booke, and the eyes of the blinde shall see out of obscuritie, and out of darkenesse.
19 Yahweh will enable humble people to be very joyful again. Poor people will rejoice about what the Holy One of Israel [has done].
The meeke in the Lord shall receiue ioye againe, and the poore men shall reioyce in the holy one of Israel.
20 There will be no more people who ridicule [others] and no more arrogant people. And those who plan to do evil things will be executed.
For the cruel man shall cease, and the scornefull shalbe consumed: and all that hasted to iniquitie, shalbe cut off:
21 Those who testify falsely in order to persuade judges to punish innocent people will vanish/disappear. Similar things will happen to those who by lying in court [persuade judges to] make unjust decisions.
Which made a man to sinne in ye worde, and tooke him in a snare: which reproued them in the gate, and made the iust to fall without cause.
22 That is why Yahweh, who rescued Abraham, says about the people of Israel, “My people will no longer be ashamed; no longer will they show on their faces that they are ashamed.
Therefore thus sayth the Lord vnto the house of Iaakob, euen hee that redeemed Abraham, Iaakob shall not now be confounded, neither now shall his face be pale.
23 When they see that I have blessed them by giving them many children and doing many other things for them, they will realize that I am the Holy One of Israel, and they will revere me, the God to whom they, the descendants of Jacob, belong.
But when he seeth his children, the worke of mine hands, in the mids of him, they shall sanctifie my Name, and sanctifie the holy one of Iaakob, and shall feare the God of Israel.
24 When that happens, those who have not been able to think well will think clearly, and those who complain [about what I am doing] will accept what I am teaching them.”
Then they that erred in spirit, shall haue vnderstanding, and they that murmured, shall learne doctrine.
