Isaiah 1
1 The Visions of Isaiah son of Amoz, that he hath seen concerning Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
The vision of Isaiah, the son of Amoz, which he saw about Judah and Jerusalem, in the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.
2 Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth, For Jehovah hath spoken: Sons I have nourished and brought up, And they — they transgressed against Me.
Give ear, O heavens, and you, O earth, to the word which the Lord has said: I have taken care of my children till they became men, but their hearts have been turned away from me.
3 An ox hath known its owner, And an ass the crib of its master, Israel hath not known, My people hath not understood.
Even the ox has knowledge of its owner, and the ass of the place where its master puts its food: but Israel has no knowledge, my people give no thought to me.
4 Ah, sinning nation, a people heavy [with] iniquity, A seed of evil doers, sons — corrupters! They have forsaken Jehovah, They have despised the Holy One of Israel, They have gone away backward.
O nation full of sin, a people weighted down with crime, a generation of evil-doers, false-hearted children: they have gone away from the Lord, they have no respect for the Holy One of Israel, their hearts are turned back from him.
5 Wherefore are ye stricken any more? Ye do add apostasy! Every head is become diseased, and every heart [is] sick.
Why will you have more and more punishment? why keep on in your evil ways? Every head is tired and every heart is feeble.
6 From the sole of the foot — unto the head, There is no soundness in it, Wound, and bruise, and fresh smiting! They have not been closed nor bound, Nor have they softened with ointment.
The body, from head to foot, is all diseased; it is a mass of open wounds, marks of blows, and broken flesh: the flow of blood has not been stopped, and no oil has been put on the wounds.
7 Your land [is] a desolation, your cities burnt with fire, Your ground, before you strangers are consuming it, And a desolation as overthrown by strangers!
Your country has become waste; your towns are burned with fire; as for your land, it is overturned before your eyes, made waste and overcome by men from strange lands.
8 And left hath been the daughter of Zion, As a booth in a vineyard, As a lodge in a place of cucumbers — as a city besieged.
And the daughter of Zion has become like a tent in a vine-garden, like a watchman's house in a field of fruit, like a town shut in by armies.
9 Unless Jehovah of Hosts had left to us a remnant, Shortly — as Sodom we had been, To Gomorrah we had been like!
If the Lord of armies had not kept some at least of us safe, we would have been like Sodom, and the fate of Gomorrah would have been ours.
10 Hear the word of Jehovah, ye rulers of Sodom, Give ear to the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah,
Give ear to the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom; let your hearts be turned to the law of our God, you people of Gomorrah.
11 'Why to Me the abundance of your sacrifices? saith Jehovah, I have been satiated [with] burnt-offerings of rams, And fat of fatlings; And blood of bullocks, and lambs, And he-goats I have not desired.
What use to me is the number of the offerings which you give me? says the Lord; your burned offerings of sheep, and the best parts of fat cattle, are a weariness to me; I take no pleasure in the blood of oxen, or of lambs, or of he-goats.
12 When ye come in to appear before Me, Who hath required this of your hand, To trample My courts?
At whose request do you come before me, making my house unclean with your feet?
13 Add not to bring in a vain present, Incense — an abomination it [is] to Me, New moon, and sabbath, calling of convocation! Rendure not iniquity — and a restraint!
Give me no more false offerings; the smoke of burning flesh is disgusting to me, so are your new moons and Sabbaths and your holy meetings.
14 Your new moons and your set seasons hath My soul hated, They have been upon me for a burden, I have been weary of bearing.
Your new moons and your regular feasts are a grief to my soul: they are a weight in my spirit; I am crushed under them.
15 And in your spreading forth your hands, I hide mine eyes from you, Also when ye increase prayer, I do not hear, Your hands of blood have been full.
And when your hands are stretched out to me, my eyes will be turned away from you: even though you go on making prayers, I will not give ear: your hands are full of blood.
16 Wash ye, make ye pure, Turn aside the evil of your doings, from before Mine eyes, Cease to do evil, learn to do good.
Be washed, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from before my eyes; let there be an end of sinning;
17 Seek judgment, make happy the oppressed, Judge the fatherless, strive [for] the widow.
Take pleasure in well-doing; let your ways be upright, keep down the cruel, give a right decision for the child who has no father, see to the cause of the widow.
18 Come, I pray you, and we reason, saith Jehovah, If your sins are as scarlet, as snow they shall be white, If they are red as crimson, as wool they shall be!
Come now, and let us have an argument together, says the Lord: how may your sins which are red like blood be white as snow? how may their dark purple seem like wool?
19 If ye are willing, and have hearkened, The good of the land ye consume,
If you will give ear to my word and do it, the good things of the land will be yours;
20 And if ye refuse, and have rebelled, [By] the sword ye are consumed, For the mouth of Jehovah hath spoken.
But if your hearts are turned against me, I will send destruction on you by the sword; so the Lord has said.
21 How hath a faithful city become a harlot? I have filled it [with] judgment, Righteousness lodgeth in it — now murderers.
The upright town has become untrue; there was a time when her judges gave right decisions, when righteousness had a resting-place in her, but now she is full of those who take men's lives.
22 Thy silver hath become dross, Thy drink polluted with water.
Your silver is no longer true metal, your wine is mixed with water.
23 Thy princes [are] apostates, and companions of thieves, Every one loving a bribe, and pursuing rewards, The fatherless they judge not, And the plea of the widow cometh not to them.
Your chiefs have gone against the Lord, they have become friends of thieves; every one of them is looking for profit and going after rewards; they do not give right decisions for the child who has no father, and they do not let the cause of the widow come before them.
24 Therefore — the affirmation of the Lord — Jehovah of Hosts, the Mighty One of Israel: Ah, I am eased of Mine adversaries, And I am avenged of Mine enemies,
For this reason the Lord, the Lord of armies, the Strong One of Israel, has said, I will put an end to my haters, and send punishment on those who are against me;
25 And I turn back My hand upon thee, And I refine as purity thy dross, And I turn aside all thy tin,
And my hand will again be on you, washing away what is unclean as with soap, and taking away all your false metal;
26 And I give back thy judges as at the first, And thy counsellors as in the beginning, After this thou art called, 'A city of righteousness — a faithful city.'
And I will give you judges again as at the first, and wise guides as in the past; then you will be named, The Town of Righteousness, the true town.
27 Zion in judgment is redeemed, And her captivity in righteousness.
Upright acts will be the price of Zion's forgiveness, and by righteousness will men be living there.
28 And the destruction of transgressors and sinners [is] together, And those forsaking Jehovah are consumed.
But a common destruction will overtake sinners and evil-doers together, and those who have gone away from the Lord will be cut off.
29 For [men] are ashamed because of the oaks That ye have desired, And ye are confounded because of the gardens That ye have chosen.
For you will be put to shame because of the trees of your desire, and because of the gardens of your pleasure.
30 For ye are as an oak whose leaf is fading, And as a garden that hath no water.
For you will be like a tree whose leaves have become dry, and like a garden without water.
31 And the strong hath been for tow, And his work for a spark, And burned have both of them together, And there is none quenching!
And the strong will be as food for the fire, and his work as a flame; and they will be burned together, with no one to put out the fire.
