Isaiah 26:1–9

A Song of Praise to God

26At that time people will sing this song in Judah:

We have a strong city.

God protects us with its strong walls and defenses.

²Open the gates,

and the good people will enter,

those who follow God.

³You, Lord, give true peace

to those who depend on you,

because they trust you.

⁴So, trust the Lord always,

because he is our Rock forever.

⁵He will destroy the proud city,

and he will punish the people living there.

He will bring that high city down to the ground

and throw it down into the dust.

⁶Then those who were hurt by the city will walk on its ruins;

those who were made poor by the city will trample it under their feet.

⁷The path of life is level for those who are right with God;

Lord, you make the way of life smooth for those people.

⁸But, Lord, we are waiting

for your way of justice.

Our souls want to remember

you and your name.

⁹My soul wants to be with you at night,

and my spirit wants to be with you at the dawn of every day.

When your way of justice comes to the land,

people of the world will learn the right way of living.