Introduction | A Rebellious Nation

The vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.


       Hear, O heavens! Listen, O earth!
          For THE LORD has spoken:
       "I reared children and brought them up,
          but they have rebelled against ME.
       The ox knows his master,
          the donkey his owner's manger,
       but Israel does not know,
          MY people do not understand."

       Ah, sinful nation,
          a people loaded with guilt,
       a brood of evildoers,
          children given to corruption!
       They have forsaken THE LORD;
          they have spurned THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL
          and turned their backs on HIM.

       Why should you be beaten anymore?
          Why do you persist in rebellion?
       Your whole head is injured,
          your whole heart afflicted.
       From the sole of your foot to the top of your head
          there is no soundness--
       only wounds and welts
          and open sores,
       not cleansed or bandaged
          or soothed with oil.

       Your country is desolate,
          your cities burned with fire;
       your fields are being stripped by foreigners
          right before you,
          laid waste as when overthrown by strangers.
       The Daughter of Zion is left
          like a shelter in a vineyard,
       like a hut in a field of melons,
          like a city under siege.
       Unless THE LORD ALMIGHTY
          had left us some survivors,
       we would have become like Sodom,
          we would have been like Gomorrah.

       Hear the word of THE LORD,
          you rulers of Sodom;
       listen to the law of our GOD,
          you people of Gomorrah!
       "The multitude of your sacrifices--
          what are they to ME?" says THE LORD.
       "I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
          of rams and the fat of fattened animals;
       I have no pleasure
          in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
       When you come to appear before ME,
          who has asked this of you,
          this trampling of MY courts?
       Stop bringing meaningless offerings!
          Your incense is detestable to ME.
       New Moons, Sabbaths and convocations--
          I cannot bear your evil assemblies.
       Your New Moon festivals and your appointed feasts
          MY soul hates.
       They have become a burden to ME;
          I am weary of bearing them.
       When you spread out your hands in prayer,
          I will hide MY eyes from you;
       even if you offer many prayers,
          I will not listen.
       Your hands are full of blood;
          wash and make yourselves clean.
       Take your evil deeds
          out of MY sight!
       Stop doing wrong,
          learn to do right!
       Seek justice,
          encourage the oppressed.
       Defend the cause of the fatherless,
          plead the case of the widow.

       "Come now, let us reason together,"
          says THE LORD.
       "Though your sins are like scarlet,
          they shall be as white as snow;
       though they are red as crimson,
          they shall be like wool.
       If you are willing and obedient,
          you will eat the best from the land;
       but if you resist and rebel,
          you will be devoured by the sword."
                     For the mouth of THE LORD has spoken.

       See how the faithful city
          has become a harlot!
       She once was full of justice;
         righteousness used to dwell in her--
          but now murderers!
       Your silver has become dross,
          your choice wine is diluted with water.
       Your rulers are rebels,
          companions of thieves;
       they all love bribes
          and chase after gifts.
       They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
          the widow's case does not come before them.
       Therefore THE LORD, THE LORD ALMIGHTY,
          THE MIGHTY ONE OF ISRAEL, declares:
       "Ah, I will get relief from MY foes
          and avenge MYSELF on MY enemies.
       I will turn MY hand against you;
          I will thoroughly purge away your dross
          and remove all your impurities.
       I will restore your judges as in days of old,
          your counselors as at the beginning.
       Afterward you will be called
          the City of Righteousness,
          the Faithful City."

       Zion will be redeemed with justice,
          her penitent ones with righteousness.
       But rebels and sinners will both be broken,
          and those who forsake THE LORD will perish.

       "You will be ashamed because of the sacred oaks
          in which you have delighted;
       you will be disgraced because of the gardens
          that you have chosen.
       You will be like an oak with fading leaves,
          like a garden without water.
       The mighty man will become tinder
          and his work a spark;
       both will burn together,
          with no one to quench the fire."


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 1

The Mountain of THE LORD

This is what Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

   In the last days

       the mountain of THE LORD'S temple will be established
          as chief among the mountains;
       it will be raised above the hills,
          and all nations will stream to it.

   Many peoples will come and say,

       "Come, let us go up to the mountain of THE LORD,
          to the house of THE GOD OF JACOB.
       HE will teach us HIS ways,
          so that we may walk in HIS paths."
       The law will go out from Zion,
          the word of THE LORD from Jerusalem.
       HE will judge between the nations
          and will settle disputes for many peoples.
       They will beat their swords into plowshares
          and their spears into pruning hooks.
       Nation will not take up sword against nation,
          nor will they train for war anymore.

       Come, O house of Jacob,
          let us walk in the light of THE LORD.


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 2, verses 1 - 5

The Day of THE LORD

       You have abandoned your people,
          the house of Jacob.
       They are full of superstitions from the East;
          they practice divination like the Philistines
          and clasp hands with pagans.
       Their land is full of silver and gold;
          there is no end to their treasures.
       Their land is full of horses;
          there is no end to their chariots.
       Their land is full of idols;
          they bow down to the work of their hands,
          to what their fingers have made.
       So man will be brought low
          and mankind humbled--
          do not forgive them.

       Go into the rocks,
          hide in the ground
       from dread of THE LORD
          and the splendor of HIS majesty!
       The eyes of the arrogant man will be humbled
          and the pride of men brought low;
       THE LORD alone will be exalted in that day.

       THE LORD ALMIGHTY has a day in store
          for all the proud and lofty,
          for all that is exalted
          (and they will be humbled),
       for all the cedars of Lebanon, tall and lofty,
          and all the oaks of Bashan,
       for all the towering mountains
          and all the high hills,
       for every lofty tower
          and every fortified wall,
       for every trading ship
          and every stately vessel.
       The arrogance of man will be brought low
          and the pride of men humbled;
       THE LORD alone will be exalted in that day,
          and the idols will totally disappear.

       Men will flee to caves in the rocks
          and to holes in the ground
       from dread of THE LORD
          and the splendor of HIS majesty,
          when HE rises to shake the earth.
       In that day men will throw away
          to the rodents and bats
       their idols of silver and idols of gold,
          which they made to worship.
       They will flee to caverns in the rocks
          and to the over hanging crags
       from dread of THE LORD
          and the splendor of HIS majesty,
          when HE rises to shake the earth.

       Stop trusting in man,
          who has but a breath in his nostrils.
       Of what account is he?


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 2, verses 6 - 22

Judgment on Jerusalem and Judah

       See now, THE LORD,

          THE LORD ALMIGHTY,

       is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah

          both supply and support:

       all supplies of food and all supplies of water,

          the hero and warrior,

       the judge and prophet,

          the soothsayer and elder,

       the captain of fifty and man of rank,

          the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter.

       I will make boys their officials;

          mere children will govern them.

       People will oppress each other--

          man against man, neighbor against neighbor.

       The young will rise up against the old,

          the base against the honorable.

       A man will seize one of his brothers

          at his father's home, and say,

       "You have a cloak, you be our leader;

          take charge of this heap of ruins!"

       But in that day he will cry out,

          "I have no remedy.

       I have no food or clothing in my house;

          do not make me the leader of the people."

       Jerusalem staggers,

          Judah is falling;

       their words and deeds are against THE LORD,

          defying HIS glorious presence.

       The look on their faces testifies against them;

          they parade their sin like Sodom;

          they do not hide it.

       Woe to them!

          They have brought disaster upon themselves.

       Tell the righteous it will be well with them,

          for they will enjoy the fruit of their deeds.

       Woe to the wicked! Disaster is upon them!

       They will be paid back for what their hands have done.

       Youths oppress my people,

          women rule over them.

       O my people, your guides lead you astray;

          they turn you from the path.

       THE LORD takes HIS place in court;

          HE rises to judge the people.

       THE LORD enters into judgment

          against the elders and leaders of HIS people:

       "It is you who have ruined MY vineyard;

          the plunder from the poor is in your houses.

       What do you mean by crushing MY people

          and grinding the faces of the poor?"

                                   declares THE LORD, THE LORD ALMIGHTY.

       THE LORD says,

          "The women of Zion are haughty,

       walking along with outstretched necks,

          flirting with their eyes,

       tripping along with mincing steps,

          with ornaments jingling on their ankles.

       Therefore THE LORD will bring sores on the heads of the women of Zion;

          THE LORD will make their scalps bald."

       In that day THE LORD will snatch away their finery: the bangles and headbands and crescent necklaces, the earrings and bracelets and veils, the headdresses and ankle chains and sashes, the perfume bottles and charms, the signet rings and nose rings, the fine robes and the capes and cloaks, the purses and mirrors, and the linen garments and tiaras and shawls.

       Instead of fragrance there will be a stench;

          instead of a sash, a rope;

       instead of well-dressed hair, baldness;

          instead of fine clothing, sackcloth;

          instead of beauty, branding.

       Your men will fall by the sword,

          your warriors in battle.

       The gates of Zion will lament and mourn;

          destitute, she will sit on the ground.

       In that day seven women

          will take hold of one man

       and say, "We will eat our own food

          and provide our own clothes;

       only let us be called by your name.

          Take away our disgrace!"

The Book of Isaiah: chapter 3 & chapter 4, verse 1

The Branch of THE LORD

       In that day the Branch of THE LORD will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel. Those who are left in Zion, who remain in Jerusalem, will be called holy, all who are recorded among the living in Jerusalem. THE LORD will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; HE will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire. Then THE LORD will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over all the glory will be a canopy. It will be a shelter and shade from the heat of the day, and a refuge and hiding place from the storm and rain.


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 4, verses 2 - 6

The Song of the Vineyard

       I will sing for THE ONE I love
          a song about HIS vineyard:
       My loved one had a vineyard
          on a fertile hillside.
       HE dug it up and cleared it of stones
          and planted it with the choicest vines.
       HE built a watchtower in it
          and cut out a winepress as well.
       Then HE looked for a crop of good grapes,
          but it yielded only bad fruit.

       "Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and men of Judah,
          judge between ME and MY vineyard.
       What more could have been done for MY vineyard
          than I have done for it?
       When I looked for good grapes,
          why did it yield only bad?
       Now I will tell you
          what I AM going to do to MY vineyard:
       I will take away its hedge,
          and it will be destroyed;
       I will break down its wall,
          and it will be trampled.
       I will make it a wasteland,
          neither pruned nor cultivated,
          and briers and thorns will grow there.
       I will command the clouds
          not to rain on it."

       The vineyard of THE LORD ALMIGHTY
          is the house of Israel,
       and the men of Judah
          are the garden of HIS delight.
       And HE looked for justice, but saw bloodshed;
          for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 5, verses 1 - 7

Woes and Judgments

       Woe to you who add house to house
          and join field to field
       till no space is left
          and you live alone in the land.

       THE LORD ALMIGHTY has declared in my hearing:

       "Surely the great houses will become desolate,
          the fine mansions left without occupants.
       A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath of wine,
          a homer of seed only an ephah of grain."

       Woe to those who rise early in the morning
          to run after their drinks,
       who stay up late at night
          till they are inflamed with wine.
       They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
          tambourines and flutes and wine,
       but they have no regard for the deeds of THE LORD,
          no respect for the work of HIS hands.
       Therefore my people will go into exile
          for lack of understanding;
       their men of rank will die of hunger
          and their masses will be parched with thirst.
       Therefore the grave enlarges its appetite
          and opens its mouth without limit;
       into it will descend their nobles and masses
          with all their brawlers and revelers.
       So man will be brought low
          and mankind humbled,
          the eyes of the arrogant humbled.
       But THE LORD ALMIGHTY will be exalted by HIS justice,
          and THE HOLY GOD will show HIMSELF holy by HIS righteousness.
       Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;
          lambs will feed among the ruins of the rich.

       Woe to those who draw sin along with cords of deceit,
          and wickedness as with cart ropes,
       to those who say, "Let GOD hurry,
          let HIM hasten HIS work
          so we may see it.
       Let it approach,
          let the plan of THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL come,
          so we may know it."

       Woe to those who call evil good
          and good evil,
       who put darkness for light
          and light for darkness,
       who put bitter for sweet
          and sweet for bitter.

       Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes
          and clever in their own sight.

       Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine
          and champions at mixing drinks,
       who acquit the guilty for a bribe,
          but deny justice to the innocent.
       Therefore, as tongues of fire lick up straw
          and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
       so their roots will decay
          and their flowers blow away like dust;
       for they have rejected the law of THE LORD ALMIGHTY
          and spurned the word of THE HOLY ONE OF ISRAEL.
       Therefore THE LORD'S anger burns against HIS people;
          HIS hand is raised and HE strikes them down.
       The mountains shake,
          and the dead bodies are like refuse in the streets.
       Yet for all this, HIS anger is not turned away,
          HIS hand is still upraised.

       HE lifts up a banner for the distant nations,
          HE whistles for those at the ends of the earth.
       Here they come,
          swiftly and speedily!
       Not one of them grows tired or stumbles,
          not one slumbers or sleeps;
       not a belt is loosened at the waist,
          not a sandal thong is broken.
       Their arrows are sharp,
          all their bows are strung;
       their horses' hoofs seem like flint,
          their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.
       Their roar is like that of the lion,
          they roar like young lions;
       they growl as they seize their prey
          and carry it off with no one to rescue.
       In that day they will roar over it
          like the roaring of the sea.
       And if one looks at the land,
          he will see darkness and distress;
          even the light will be darkened by the clouds.


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 5, verses 8 - 30

Isaiah's Commission

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw THE LORD seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of HIS robe filled the temple. Above HIM were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another:

       "Holy, holy, holy is THE LORD ALMIGHTY;
          the whole earth is full of HIS glory."

At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
       "Woe to me!" I cried. "I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen THE KING, THE LORD ALMIGHTY."
       Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, "See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for."
       Then I heard the voice of THE LORD saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?"
       And I said, "Here am I. Send me!"
       HE said, "Go and tell this people:

       " 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
          be ever seeing, but never perceiving.'
       Make the heart of this people calloused;
          make their ears dull
          and close their eyes.
       Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
          hear with their ears,
          understand with their hearts,
       and turn and be healed."

       Then I said, "For how long, O LORD?"
       And HE answered:

       "Until the cities lie ruined
          and without inhabitant,
       until the houses are left deserted
          and the fields ruined and ravaged,
       until THE LORD has sent everyone far away
          and the land is utterly forsaken.
       And though a tenth remains in the land,
          it will again be laid waste.
       But as the terebinth and oak
          leave stumps when they are cut down,
          so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."


The Book of Isaiah: chapter 6