Isaiah 29

1 Woe to Ariel, to Ariel, the city where David dwelt! add ye year to year; let them kill sacrifices.

Woe [to] Ariel, Ariel, The city of the encampment of David! Add year to year, let festivals go around.

2 Yet I will distress Ariel, and there shall be heaviness and sorrow: and it shall be to me as Ariel.

And I have sent distress to Ariel, And it has been lamentation and mourning, And it has been to me as Ariel.

3 And I will encamp against thee all around, and will lay siege against thee with a mound, and I will raise forts against thee.

And I encamped, O babbler, against you, And I laid siege against you—a camp. And I raised up bulwarks against you.

4 And thou shalt be brought down, and shalt speak out of the ground, and thy speech shall be low out of the dust, and thy voice shall be, like a medium, out of the ground, and thy speech shall whisper out of the dust.

And you have been low, You speak from the earth, And make your saying low from the dust, And your voice has been from the earth, As one having a familiar spirit, And your saying whispers from the dust,

5 Moreover the multitude of thy strangers shall be like small dust, and the multitude of the terrible ones shall be as chaff that passeth away: yea, it shall be at an instant suddenly.

And as small dust has been The multitude of those scattering you, And as chaff passing on the multitude of the terrible, And it has been in an instant—suddenly.

6 Thou shalt be visited by the LORD of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire.

You are inspected by YHWH of Hosts, With thunder, and with an earthquake, And great noise, windstorm, and whirlwind, And flame of devouring fire.

7 And the multitude of all the nations that fight against Ariel, even all that fight against her and her strong hold, and that distress her, shall be as a dream of a night vision.

And as a dream, a vision of night, Has been the multitude of all the nations Who are warring against Ariel, And all its warriors, and its bulwark, Even of those distressing her.

8 It shall even be as when an hungry man dreameth, and, behold, he eateth; but he awaketh, and his soul is empty: or as when a thirsty man dreameth, and, behold, he drinketh; but he awaketh, and, behold, he is faint, and his soul hath appetite: so shall the multitude of all the nations be, that fight against mount Zion.

And it has been, as when the hungry dreams, And behold, he is eating, And he has awoken, And his soul [is] empty, And as when the thirsty dreams, And behold, he is drinking, And he has awoken, And behold, he is weary, And his soul is longing, So is the multitude of all the nations Who are warring against Mount Zion.

9 Stay yourselves, and wonder; cry ye out, and cry: they are drunk, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink.

Linger and wonder, look, indeed, look, Be drunk, and not with wine, Stagger, and not with strong drink.

10 For the LORD hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers hath he covered.

For YHWH has poured out a spirit of deep sleep on you, And He closes your eyes—the prophets, And your heads—the seers—He covered.

11 And the vision of all is become to you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot; for it is sealed:

And the vision of the whole is to you, As words of the sealed scroll, That they give to one knowing scrolls, Saying, “Please read this,” And he has said, “I am not able, for it [is] sealed”;

12 And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned.

And the scroll is given to him who has not known scrolls, Saying, “Please read this,” And he has said, “I have not known scrolls.”

13 Therefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

And the Lord says: “Because this people has drawn near with its mouth, And they have honored Me with its lips, And it has put its heart far off from Me, And their fear of Me is a precept taught by men!

14 Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.

Therefore, behold, I am adding to do wonderfully with this people, A wonder, and a marvel, And the wisdom of its wise ones has perished, And the understanding of its intelligent ones hides itself.”

15 Woe to them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the LORD, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us?

Woe [to] those going deep from YHWH to hide counsel, And whose works have been in darkness. And they say, “Who is seeing us? And who is knowing us?”

16 Surely your turning of things upside down shall be esteemed as the potter’s clay: for shall the work say of him that made it, He made me not? or shall the thing formed say of him that formed it, He had no understanding?

Your perversion! Is the potter esteemed as clay, That the work says of its maker, “He has not made me?” And the framed thing said of its framer, “He did not understand?”

17 Is it not yet a very little while, and Lebanon shall be turned into a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be esteemed as a forest?

Is it not yet a very little [while], And Lebanon has turned into a fruitful field, And the fruitful field is reckoned for a forest?

18 And in that day shall the deaf hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind shall see out of obscurity, and out of darkness.

And the deaf have heard the words of a scroll in that day, And out of thick darkness, and out of darkness, The eyes of the blind see.

19 The meek also shall increase their joy in the LORD, and the poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

And the humble have added joy in YHWH, And the poor among men Rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

20 For the terrible one is brought to nought, and the mocker is consumed, and all that watch for iniquity are cut off:

For the terrible one has ceased, And the scorner has been consumed, And all watching for iniquity have been cut off,

21 That make a man an offender for a word, and lay a snare for him that reproveth in the gate, and turn aside the just for a thing of nought.

Who cause men to sin in word, And lay a snare for a reprover in the gate, And turn aside the righteous into emptiness.

22 Therefore thus saith the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob, Jacob shall not now be ashamed, neither shall his face now become pale.

Therefore, thus said YHWH, Who ransomed Abraham, Concerning the house of Jacob: “Jacob is not ashamed now, Nor does his face now become pale,

23 But when he seeth his children, the work of my hands, in the midst of him, they shall sanctify my name, and sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and shall fear the God of Israel.

For in his seeing his children, The work of My hand, in his midst, They sanctify My Name, And have sanctified the Holy One of Jacob, And they declare the God of Israel fearful.

24 They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.

And the erring in spirit have known understanding, And murmurers learn doctrine!”