Isaiah 30
30
Judah Should Trust the LORD, Not Egypt
1The Lord declares,
“How horrible it will be for those rebellious children.
They carry out plans, but not mine.
They make alliances against my will.
They pile sin on top of sin.
2They go to Egypt without asking me.
They look for shelter under Pharaoh’s protection
and look for refuge in Egypt’s shadow.
3But Pharaoh’s protection will be their shame,
and the refuge in Egypt’s shadow will be their disgrace.
4Although Pharaoh’s officials are in Zoan
and his messengers have reached Hanes,
5the people of Judah will be put to shame
because that nation can’t help them.
That nation can’t give aid or help to them.
It can only offer shame and disgrace.”
6This is the divine revelation about the animals in the Negev.
“My people travel through lands
where they experience distress and hardship.
Lions and lionesses live there.
Vipers and poisonous snakes live there.
They carry their riches on the backs of young donkeys
and their treasures on the humps of camels
to a nation that can’t help them.
7Egypt’s help is completely useless.
That is why I call it, ‘Rahab #30:7 Rahab is the name of a demonic creature who opposes God. who sits still.’
8Now, write this on a tablet for them, and inscribe it in a book
so that it will be there in the future as a permanent witness.
9These people are rebellious and deceitful children,
children who refuse to listen to the Lord’s teachings.
10They say to the seers,#30:10 A seer is a prophet. ‘Don’t see ⌞the future⌟.’
They say to those who have visions,
‘Don’t have visions that tell us what is right.
Tell us what we want to hear. See illusions.
11Get out of our way! Stop blocking our path!
Get the Holy One of Israel out of our sight.’ ”
12This is what the Holy One of Israel says:
You have rejected this warning,
trusted oppression and deceit,
and leaned on them.
13That is why your sin will be
like a high wall with a bulging crack, ready to fall.
All of a sudden it will fall.
14It will break like pottery.
It will be smashed, and nothing will be left of it.
No piece will be big enough to carry live coals from a fireplace
or to dip water from a reservoir.
15This is what the Almighty Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:
You can be saved by returning to me.
You can have rest.
You can be strong by being quiet and by trusting me.
But you don’t want that.
16You’ve said, “No, we’ll flee on horses.”
So you flee.
You’ve added, “We’ll ride on fast horses.”
So those who chase you will also be fast.
17One thousand people will flee when one person threatens them,
and you will flee when five threaten you.
Then you will be left alone
like a flagpole on top of a mountain,
like a signpost on a hill.
18The Lord is waiting to be kind to you.
He rises to have compassion on you.
The Lord is a God of justice.
Blessed are all those who wait for him.
The LORD Will Heal His People’s Wounds
19You will live in Zion, in Jerusalem. You won’t cry anymore. The Lord will certainly have pity on you when you cry for help. As soon as he hears you, he will answer you. 20The Lord may give you troubles and hardships. But your teacher will no longer be hidden from you. You will see your teacher with your own eyes. 21You will hear a voice behind you saying, “This is the way. Follow it, whether it turns to the right or to the left.” 22Then you will dishonor your silver-plated idols and your gold-covered statues. You will throw them away like clothing ruined by stains. You will say to them, “Get out!”
23The Lord will give you rain for the seed that you plant in the ground, and the food that the ground provides will be rich and nourishing. When that day comes, your cattle will graze in large pastures. 24The oxen and the donkeys which work the soil will eat a mixture of food that has been winnowed #30:24 Winnowing is the process of separating husks from grain. with forks and shovels. 25There will be brooks and streams on every lofty mountain and every high hill. When the day of the great slaughter comes, towers will fall. 26Then the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun. The light of the sun will be seven times as strong, like the light of seven days. When that day comes, the Lord will bandage his people’s injuries and heal the wounds he inflicted.
27The name of the Lord is going to come from far away.
His anger is burning.
His burden is heavy.
His lips are filled with fury.
His tongue is like a devouring flame.
28His breath is like an overflowing stream.
It rises neck high,
sifting the nations with a sieve of destruction,
placing a bit in the mouths of the people
to lead them astray.
29You will sing a song
like the song you sing on a festival night.
Your hearts will be happy like someone going out with a flute
on the way to the Lord’s mountain, to the rock of Israel.
30The Lord will make his majestic voice heard.
He will come down with all his might,
with furious anger,
with fire storms, windstorms, rainstorms, and hailstones.
31At the sound of the Lord, the people of Assyria will be shattered.
He will strike them with his rod.
32To the sound of tambourines and lyres, the Lord will pound on them.
He will fight them in battle, swinging his fists.
33Topheth was prepared long ago.
It was made ready for the king.
It was made deep and wide and piled high with plenty of burning logs.
The Lord’s breath will be like a flood of burning sulfur,
setting it on fire.
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Isaiah 30: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Isaiah 30
30
Don't expect help from Egypt
1This is the LORD's message for his rebellious people:
“You follow your own plans
instead of mine;
you make treaties
without asking me,
and you keep on sinning.
2You trust Egypt for protection.
So you refuse my advice
and send messengers to Egypt
to beg their king for help.
3You will be disappointed,
completely disgraced
for trusting Egypt.
4The king's power reaches
from the city of Zoan
as far south as Hanes.#30.4 Zoan…Hanes: Or “Your messengers have reached the city of Zoan and gone as far as Hanes.” Zoan was in north-east Egypt; Hanes was to the south.
5But Egypt can't protect you,
and to trust that nation
is useless and foolish.”
6This is a message
about the animals
of the Southern Desert:
you people carry treasures
on donkeys and camels.
You travel to a feeble nation
through a troublesome desert
filled with lions
and flying fiery dragons.
7Egypt can't help you!
That's why I call that nation
a helpless monster.#30.7 a helpless monster: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
Israel refuses to listen
8The LORD told me to write down his message for his people, so that it would be there for ever. 9They have turned against the LORD and can't be trusted. They have refused his teaching 10and have said to his messengers and prophets:
Don't tell us what God has shown you and don't preach the truth. Just say what we want to hear, even if it's false. 11Stop telling us what God has said! We don't want to hear any more about the holy God of Israel.
12Now this is the answer
of the holy God of Israel:
“You rejected my message,
and you trust in violence
and lies.
13This sin is like a crack
that makes a high wall
quickly crumble 14and shatter
like a crushed bowl.
There's not a piece left
big enough to carry hot coals
or to scoop up water.”
Trust the LORD
15The holy LORD God of Israel
had told all of you,
“I will keep you safe
if you turn back to me
and calm down.
I will make you strong
if you quietly trust me.”
Then you stubbornly 16said,
“No! We will safely escape
on speedy horses.”
But those who chase you
will be even faster.
17As few as five of them,
or even one, will be enough
to chase a thousand of you.
Finally, all that will be left
will be a few survivors
as lonely as a flag pole
on a barren hill.
The LORD will show mercy
18The LORD God is waiting
to show how kind he is
and to have pity on you.
The LORD always does right;
he blesses those who trust him.
19People of Jerusalem, you don't need to cry any more. The Lord is kind, and as soon as he hears your cries for help, he will come. 20The Lord has given you trouble and sorrow as your food and drink. But now you will again see the Lord, your teacher, and he will guide you. 21Whether you turn to the right or to the left, you will hear a voice saying, “This is the road! Now follow it.” 22Then you will treat your idols of silver and gold like rubbish; you will throw them away like filthy rags.
23The Lord will send rain to water the seeds you have planted—your fields will produce more crops than you need, and your cattle will graze in open pastures. 24Even the oxen and donkeys that plough your fields will be fed the finest grain.#30.24 the finest grain: The Hebrew text refers to grain with the husks removed.
25On that day people will be slaughtered and towers destroyed, but streams of water will flow from high hills and towering mountains. 26Then the LORD will bandage his people's injuries and heal the wounds he has caused. The moon will shine as bright as the sun, and the sun will shine seven times brighter than usual. It will be like the light of seven days all at once.
Assyria will be punished
27The LORD is coming
from far away
with his fiery anger
and thick clouds of smoke.#30.27 with…smoke: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text.
His angry words flame up
like a destructive fire;
28he breathes out a flood
that comes up to the neck.
He sifts the nations
and destroys them.
Then he puts a bridle
in every foreigner's mouth
and leads them to doom.
29The LORD's people will sing as they do when they celebrate a religious festival#30.29 a religious festival: Probably Passover. at night. The LORD is Israel's mighty rock,#30.29 mighty rock: See the note at 17.10. and his people will be as happy as they are when they follow the sound of flutes to the mountain where he is worshipped.
30The LORD will get furious. His fearsome voice will be heard, his arm will be seen ready to strike, and his anger will be like a destructive fire, followed by thunderstorms and hailstones. 31When the Assyrians hear the LORD's voice and see him striking with his iron rod, they will be terrified. 32He will attack them in battle, and each time he strikes them, it will be to the music of tambourines and harps.
33Long ago the LORD got a place ready for burning the body of the dead king.#30.33 burning…king: Or “sacrificing the king” or “sacrificing to Molech”. Human sacrifices were sometimes offered to Molech, a god whose name sounds like the Hebrew word for “king” (see 2 Kings 23.10; Jeremiah 32.35). The place for the fire is deep and wide, the wood is piled high, and the LORD will start the fire by breathing out flaming sulphur.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012