Isaiah 57

Idolatry is Adultery

57The righteous one perishes, and there is no one who takes^a it to heart.

And men of faithfulness are gathered, while there is no one who understands,

for the righteous is gathered from the presence of wickedness.

²he enters into peace;

they will rest on their beds,

walking straight ahead of him.

³“But^b you, come near here, you children of a soothsayer,

offspring of an adulterer and she who commits fornication.

⁴At whom do you make fun?

At whom do you open^c your mouth and stick out^d your tongue?

Are you not children of transgression,

offspring of deception,

⁵who burn with lust among the oaks,

under every leafy tree,

who slaughter children in the valleys,

under the clefts of the rocks?

⁶Your portion is among the smooth stones of the valley;

they, they are your lot;

indeed, to them you have poured out a drink offering,

you have brought a food offering.

Shall I relent concerning these things?

⁷You have set your bed upon a high and lofty mountain;

indeed, you went up there to slaughter sacrifice.

⁸And you have set your symbol behind the door and the doorpost;

for you depart^e from me, and you go up;

you make your bed wide, and you make a deal with^f them,

you have loved their bed; you have seen their genitals.^g

⁹And you climbed down to the king with oil,

and you made your perfumes numerous,

and you sent your envoys far away,^h

and you sent down deepⁱ to Sheol.

¹⁰You grow weary by the greatness of your way,

but you did not say, ‘Despairing!’

You found the renewal^j of your strength,^k

therefore you do not grow weak.

¹¹And of whom were you afraid and feared, that you deceived

and did not remember me?

Did you not place it on your heart?

Have I not been silent, even from long ago,

and so you do not fear me?

¹²I myself will declare your righteousness and your works,

but^l they will not benefit you.

¹³When you cry,^m let your collection deliver you,

and the wind will carry all of them away;

a breath will take them away.

Butⁿ he who takes refuge in me shall take possession of the land,

and he shall inherit my holy mountain.”^o

Peace for the Contrite

¹⁴And one shall say, “Build up, build up! Clear the way!

Remove the obstacles^p from the way of my people!”

¹⁵For thus says the high and lofty one who resides forever, and whose name is holy:

“I reside in a high and holy place,

and with the contrite^q and humble of spirit,

to revive the spirit of the humble,

and to revive the heart of the contrite.^r

¹⁶For I will not attack forever,

and I will not be angry forever,

for the spirit will grow faint before me,

and the breaths that I myself I have made.

¹⁷I was angry because of his sin of gain, and I struck him;

I hid and I was angry, but^s he walked apostate, in the ways^t of his heart.

¹⁸I have seen his ways, but^u I will heal him;

and I will lead him and give him and his mourners comfort as a recompense,

¹⁹creating fruit of lips.

Peace, peace to the far and near,” says Yahweh, “and I will heal him.

²⁰But^v the wicked are like the churning sea,

that is not able to keep quiet,

and its waters toss up mire and mud.

²¹There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked.”