Isaiah 56:1–58:14
56 This is what the Lord says:
“Maintain justicec
and do what is right,d
for my salvatione is close at hand
and my righteousnessf will soon be revealed.
2 Blessedg is the one who does this—
the person who holds it fast,
who keeps the Sabbathh without desecrating it,
and keeps their hands from doing any evil.”
3 Let no foreigneri who is bound to the Lord say,
“The Lord will surely exclude me from his people.”j
And let no eunuchk complain,
“I am only a dry tree.”
4 For this is what the Lord says:
“To the eunuchsl who keep my Sabbaths,
who choose what pleases me
and hold fast to my covenantm—
5 to them I will give within my temple and its wallsn
a memorialo and a name
better than sons and daughters;
I will give them an everlasting namep
that will endure forever.q
6 And foreignersr who bind themselves to the Lord
to ministers to him,
to love the namet of the Lord,
and to be his servants,
all who keep the Sabbathu without desecrating it
and who hold fast to my covenant—
7 these I will bring to my holy mountainv
and give them joy in my house of prayer.
Their burnt offerings and sacrificesw
will be accepted on my altar;
for my house will be called
a house of prayer for all nations.x”y
8 The Sovereign Lord declares—
he who gathers the exiles of Israel:
“I will gatherz still others to them
besides those already gathered.”
God’s Accusation Against the Wicked
9 Come, all you beasts of the field,a
come and devour, all you beasts of the forest!
10 Israel’s watchmenb are blind,
they all lack knowledge;c
they are all mute dogs,
they cannot bark;
they lie around and dream,
they love to sleep.d
11 They are dogs with mighty appetites;
they never have enough.
They are shepherdse who lack understanding;f
they all turn to their own way,g
they seek their own gain.h
12 “Come,” each one cries, “let me get wine!i
Let us drink our fill of beer!
And tomorrow will be like today,
or even far better.”j
57 The righteous perish,k
and no one takes it to heart;l
the devout are taken away,
and no one understands
that the righteous are taken away
to be spared from evil.m
2 Those who walk uprightlyn
enter into peace;
they find resto as they lie in death.
3 “But you—come here, you children of a sorceress,p
you offspring of adulterersq and prostitutes!r
At whom do you sneer
and stick out your tongue?
Are you not a brood of rebels,s
the offspring of liars?
5 You burn with lust among the oakst
and under every spreading tree;u
you sacrifice your childrenv in the ravines
and under the overhanging crags.
6 The idolsw among the smooth stones of the ravines are your portion;
indeed, they are your lot.
Yes, to them you have poured out drink offeringsx
and offered grain offerings.
In view of all this, should I relent?y
7 You have made your bed on a high and lofty hill;z
there you went up to offer your sacrifices.a
8 Behind your doors and your doorposts
you have put your pagan symbols.
Forsaking me, you uncovered your bed,
you climbed into it and opened it wide;
you made a pact with those whose beds you love,b
and you looked with lust on their naked bodies.c
9 You went to Moleka d with olive oil
and increased your perfumes.e
You sent your ambassadorsb f far away;
you descended to the very realm of the dead!g
10 You weariedh yourself by such going about,
but you would not say, ‘It is hopeless.’i
You found renewal of your strength,j
and so you did not faint.
11 “Whom have you so dreaded and fearedk
that you have not been true to me,
and have neither rememberedl me
nor taken this to heart?m
Is it not because I have long been silentn
that you do not fear me?
12 I will expose your righteousness and your works,o
and they will not benefit you.
13 When you cry outp for help,
let your collection of idols saveq you!
The wind will carry all of them off,
a mere breath will blowr them away.
But whoever takes refuges in me
will inherit the landt
and possess my holy mountain.”u
14 And it will be said:
“Build up, build up, prepare the road!v
Remove the obstacles out of the way of my people.”w
15 For this is what the high and exaltedx One says—
he who lives forever,y whose name is holy:
“I live in a highz and holy place,
but also with the one who is contritea and lowly in spirit,b
to revive the spirit of the lowly
and to revive the heart of the contrite.c
16 I will not accused them forever,
nor will I always be angry,e
for then they would faint away because of me—
the very peoplef I have created.
17 I was enraged by their sinful greed;g
I punished them, and hidh my face in anger,
yet they kept on in their willful ways.i
18 I have seen their ways, but I will healj them;
I will guidek them and restore comfortl to Israel’s mourners,
19 creating praise on their lips.m
Peace, peace,n to those far and near,”o
says the Lord. “And I will heal them.”
20 But the wickedp are like the tossing sea,q
which cannot rest,
whose waves cast up mirer and mud.
21 “There is no peace,”s says my God, “for the wicked.”t
58 “Shout it aloud,u do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.v
Declare to my people their rebellionw
and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.x
2 For day after day they seeky me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsakenz the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come neara them.
3 ‘Why have we fasted,’b they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbledc ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’d
“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you pleasee
and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,f
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heardg on high.
5 Is this the kind of fasth I have chosen,
only a day for people to humblei themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reedj
and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?k
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the kind of fastingl I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injusticem
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressedn free
and break every yoke?o
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungryp
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelterq—
when you see the naked, to clother them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?s
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,t
and your healingu will quickly appear;
then your righteousnessa v will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.w
9 Then you will call,x and the Lord will answer;y
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
“If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing fingerz and malicious talk,a
10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,b
then your lightc will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like the noonday.d
11 The Lord will guidee you always;
he will satisfy your needsf in a sun-scorched landg
and will strengthenh your frame.
You will be like a well-watered garden,i
like a springj whose waters never fail.
12 Your people will rebuild the ancient ruinsk
and will raise up the age-old foundations;l
you will be called Repairer of Broken Walls,m
Restorer of Streets with Dwellings.
13 “If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbathn
and from doing as you please on my holy day,
if you call the Sabbath a delighto
and the Lord’s holy day honorable,
and if you honor it by not going your own way
and not doing as you please or speaking idle words,p
14 then you will find your joyq in the Lord,
and I will cause you to ride in triumph on the heightsr of the land
and to feast on the inheritances of your father Jacob.”
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.t