Isaiah 11–13

The Peaceful Kingdom

11^*The royal line of David is like a tree that has been cut down; but just as new branches sprout from a stump, so a new king will arise from among David’s descendants.

²The spirit of the Lord will give him wisdom,

and the knowledge and skill to rule his people.

He will know the Lord’s will and honour him,

³and find pleasure in obeying him.

He will not judge by appearance or hearsay;

^4*he will judge the poor fairly and defend the rights of the helpless.

At his command the people will be punished,

and evil persons will die.

^5*He will rule his people with justice and integrity.

^6*Wolves and sheep will live together in peace,

and leopards will lie down with young goats.

Calves and lion cubs will feed^x together,

and little children will take care of them.

^7*Cows and bears will eat together,

and their calves and cubs will lie down in peace.

Lions will eat straw as cattle do.

^8*Even a baby will not be harmed

if it plays near a poisonous snake.

^9*On Zion, God’s sacred hill,

there will be nothing harmful or evil. The land will be as full of knowledge of the Lord

as the seas are full of water.

The Exiled People Will Return

^10*A day is coming when the new king from the royal line of David will be a symbol to the nations. They will gather in his royal city and give him honour. ¹¹When that day comes, the Lord will once again use his power and bring back home those of his people who are left in Assyria and Egypt, in the lands of Pathros, Ethiopia,^y Elam, Babylonia, and Hamath, and in the coastlands and on the islands of the sea. ¹²The Lord will raise a signal flag to show the nations that he is gathering together again the scattered people of Israel and Judah and bringing them back from the four corners of the earth. ¹³The kingdom of Israel will not be jealous of Judah any more, and Judah will not be the enemy of Israel. ¹⁴Together they will attack the Philistines on the west and plunder the people who live to the east. They will conquer the people of Edom and Moab, and the people of Ammon will obey them. ^15*The Lord will dry up the Gulf of Suez, and he will bring a hot wind to dry up the Euphrates, leaving only seven tiny streams, so that anyone will be able to walk across. ¹⁶There will be a highway out of Assyria for those of his people Israel who have survived there, just as there was for their ancestors when they left Egypt.

Hymn of Thanksgiving

12A day is coming when people will sing,

“I praise you, Lord! You were angry with me,

but now you comfort me and are angry no longer.

^2*God is my saviour;

I will trust him and not be afraid.

The Lord gives me power and strength;

he is my saviour.

³As fresh water brings joy to the thirsty,

so God’s people rejoice when he saves them.”

⁴A day is coming when people will sing,

“Give thanks to the Lord! Call for him to help you!

Tell all the nations what he has done!

Tell them how great he is!

⁵Sing to the Lord because of the great things he has done.

Let the whole world hear the news.

⁶Let everyone who lives in Zion shout and sing!

Israel’s holy God is great,

and he lives among his people.”

God Will Punish Babylon

13^*This is a message about Babylon, which Isaiah son of Amoz received from God.

^2*On the top of a barren hill raise the battle flag! Shout to the soldiers and raise your arm as the signal for them to attack the gates of the proud city. ^3*The Lord has called out his proud and confident soldiers to fight a holy war and punish those he is angry with.

^4*Listen to the noise on the mountains—the sound of a great crowd of people, the sound of nations and kingdoms gathering. The Lord of Armies is preparing his troops for battle. ^5*They are coming from far-off countries at the ends of the earth. In his anger the Lord is coming to devastate the whole country.

^6*Howl in pain! The day of the Lord is near, the day when the Almighty brings destruction. ^7*Everyone’s hands will hang limp, and everyone’s courage will fail. ^8*They will all be terrified and overcome with pain, like the pain of a woman in labour. They will look at each other in fear, and their faces will burn with shame. ^9*The day of the Lord is coming—that cruel day of his fierce anger and fury. The earth will be made a wilderness, and every sinner will be destroyed. ^10*Every star and every constellation will stop shining, the sun will be dark when it rises, and the moon will give no light.

^11*The Lord says, “I will bring disaster on the earth and punish all wicked people for their sins. I will humble everyone who is proud and punish everyone who is arrogant and cruel. ^12*Those who survive will be scarcer than gold. ^13*I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken out of its place on that day when I, the Lord Almighty, show my anger.

^14*“The foreigners living in Babylon will run away to their own countries, scattering like deer escaping from hunters, like sheep without a shepherd. ^15*Anyone who is caught will be stabbed to death. ^16*While they look on helplessly, their babies will be battered to death, their houses will be looted, and their wives will be raped.”

^17*The Lord says, “I am stirring up the Medes^z to attack Babylon. They care nothing for silver and are not tempted by gold. ^18*With their bows and arrows they will kill the young men. They will show no mercy to babies and take no pity on children. ^19*Babylonia is the most beautiful kingdom of all; it is the pride of its people. But I, the Lord, will overthrow Babylon as I did Sodom and Gomorrah! ^20*No one will ever live there again. No wandering Arab will ever pitch his tent there, and no shepherd will ever pasture his flock there. ^21*It will be a place where desert animals live and where owls build their nests. Ostriches will live there, and wild goats will prance through the ruins. ^22*The towers and palaces will echo with the cries of hyenas and jackals. Babylon’s time has come! Her days are almost over.”