< Isaiah 58 >
1 Call with the throat, restrain not, As a trumpet lift up thy voice, And declare to My people their transgression, And to the house of Jacob their sins;
Cry with a full throat, spare not, like the cornet lift up thy voice, and declare unto my people their transgression, and to the house of Jacob their sins.
2 Seeing — Me day by day they seek, And the knowledge of My ways they desire, As a nation that righteousness hath done, And the judgment of its God hath not forsaken, They ask of me judgments of righteousness, The drawing near of God they desire:
Yet me do they ever seek day by day, and to know my ways do they always desire; as a nation that hath done righteousness, and hath not forsaken the ordinance of their God: continually do they ask of me the ordinances of justice—do they desire to draw nigh unto God.
3 'Why have we fasted, and Thou hast not seen? We have afflicted our soul, and Thou knowest not.' Lo, in the day of your fast ye find pleasure, And all your labours ye exact.
“Wherefore have we fasted, and thou seest it not? have we afflicted our soul, and thou regardest it not?” Behold, on the day of your fasting ye follow your business, and all your acquired gains do ye exact.
4 Lo, for strife and debate ye fast, And to smite with the fist of wickedness, Ye fast not as [to] -day, To sound in the high place your voice.
Behold, for contention and strife do ye fast, and to smite with the fist of wickedness: ye fast not so at this day, to cause your voice to be heard on high.
5 Like this is the fast that I choose? The day of a man's afflicting his soul? To bow as a reed his head, And sackcloth and ashes spread out? This dost thou call a fast, And a desirable day — to Jehovah?
Is such then the fast which I can choose? a day that a man afflicteth his soul? to bend his head as a bulrush, and to spread sackcloth and ashes for his couch? wilt thou call this a fast, and a day of acceptability unto the Lord?
6 Is not this the fast that I chose — To loose the bands of wickedness, To shake off the burdens of the yoke, And to send out the oppressed free, And every yoke ye draw off?
Is not this [rather] the fast that I will choose? to open the snares of wickedness, to undo the bands of the yoke, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye should break asunder every yoke?
7 Is it not to deal to the hungry thy bread, And the mourning poor bring home, That thou seest the naked and cover him, And from thine own flesh hide not thyself?
Is it not to distribute thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the afflicted poor into thy house! when thou seest the naked, that thou clothe him; and that thou hide not thyself from thy own flesh?
8 Then broken up as the dawn is thy light, And thy health in haste springeth up, Gone before thee hath thy righteousness, The honour of Jehovah doth gather thee.
Then shall break forth as the morning-dawn thy light, and thy healing shall speedily spring forth; and before thee shall go thy righteousness, the glory of the Lord shall be thy rereward.
9 Then thou callest, and Jehovah answereth, Thou criest, and He saith, 'Behold Me.' If thou turn aside from thy midst the yoke, The sending forth of the finger, And the speaking of vanity,
Then shalt thou call, and the Lord will answer; thou shalt cry, and he will say, Here am I. If thou remove from the midst of thee the yoke, the stretching out of the finger, and speaking wickedly;
10 And dost bring out to the hungry thy soul, And the afflicted soul dost satisfy, Then risen in the darkness hath thy light, And thy thick darkness [is] as noon.
And if thou pour out to the hungry thy soul, and satisfy the afflicted soul: then shall shine forth in the darkness thy light, and thy obscurity be as the noonday;
11 And Jehovah doth lead thee continually, And hath satisfied in drought thy soul, And thy bones He armeth, And thou hast been as a watered garden, And as an outlet of waters, whose waters lie not.
And the Lord will guide thee continually, and will satisfy thy soul in times of famine, and will strengthen thy bones; and thou shalt be like a well-watered garden, and like a spring of water, the waters of which will never deceive.
12 And they have built out of thee the wastes of old, The foundations of many generations thou raisest up, And one calleth thee, 'Repairer of the breach, Restorer of paths to rest in.'
And they that spring from thee shall build up the ancient ruins; the foundations of many generations shalt thou raise up again: and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breaches, The restorer of paths to the dwelling-place.
13 If thou dost turn from the sabbath thy foot, Doing thine own pleasure on My holy day, And hast cried to the sabbath, 'A delight,' To the holy of Jehovah, 'Honoured,' And hast honoured it, without doing thine own ways, Without finding thine own pleasure, And speaking a word.
If thou restrain thy foot for the sake of the sabbath, not doing thy business on my holy day; and if thou call the sabbath a delight, the holy day of the Lord, honorable; and honor it by not doing thy usual pursuits, by not following thy own business, and speaking [vain] words:
14 Then dost thou delight thyself on Jehovah, And I have caused thee to ride on high places of earth, And have caused thee to eat the inheritance of Jacob thy father, For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken!
Then shalt thou find delight in the Lord; and I will cause thee to tread upon the high places of the earth, and I will cause thee to enjoy the inheritance of Jacob thy father; for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.