Isaiah, 33

1. Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou [wast] not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! when thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; [and] when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.

1. Woe to you, O ravager who never have been ravaged, you O treacherous one who have not been betrayed! When your ravaging is over, you yourself will be ravaged; when your treacherous deals are ended, you yourself will be betrayed.

2. O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

2. O Yahweh, have mercy on us who put all our hope in you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation when trouble comes.

3. At the noise of the tumult the people fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations were scattered.

3. Peoples flee when you thunder and threaten, nations scatter when you rise majestically.

4. And your spoil shall be gathered [like] the gathering of the caterpiller: as the running to and fro of locusts shall he run upon them.

4. Your spoil, O nations, will be gathered like grasshoppers or locusts leaping and pouncing at grain in the fields.

5. The LORD is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with judgment and righteousness.

5. Great is Yahweh who dwells in the height who fills Zion with justice and right,

6. And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, [and] strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD [is] his treasure.

6. at any time he makes you secure. Wisdom and knowledge are the helpful riches, the fear of Yahweh will be your treasure.

7. Behold, their valiant ones shall cry without: the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly.

7. The people of Ariel lament in the street, their envoys of peace bitterly weep.

8. The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man.

8. The highways lie waste with no traveler in sight. For the covenants were broken, the promises trampled down; no one has been respected.

9. The earth mourneth [and] languisheth: Lebanon is ashamed [and] hewn down: Sharon is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off [their fruits].

9. The earth mourns and languishes, Lebanon withers away with shame, Sharon has become a wilderness, and Bashan and Carmel are stripped bare.

10. Now will I rise, saith the LORD; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself.

10. Yahweh says: now I will rise up, now I will be exalted, now I will lift myself up.

11. Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, [as] fire, shall devour you.

11. You conceived chaff, you will deliver stubble, my breath like fire will devour you.

12. And the people shall be [as] the burnings of lime: [as] thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire.

12. The nations will be burned to lime, like thorns cut down and burned in the fire.

13. Hear, ye [that are] far off, what I have done; and, ye [that are] near, acknowledge my might.

13. You who are afar, hear what I have done; and you who are near, acknowledge my might.

14. The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings?

14. The sinners of Zion shake, trembling in fear are the hypocrites. "Who among us will dwell with flames? Who can subsist in the midst of fire?

15. He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil;

15. He who walks uprightly and speaks righteously, spurns profit from oppression, shakes his fists at graft and corruption, stops his ears against suggestions of bloodshed and averts his eyes from evil plans.

16. He shall dwell on high: his place of defence [shall be] the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters [shall be] sure.

16. This is the man who will dwell on the heights, his stronghold a fortress of rocks; bread is given to him, his water will not fail.

17. Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.

17. Your eyes will behold a king in his splendor and a land that stretches afar.

18. Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where [is] the scribe? where [is] the receiver? where [is] he that counted the towers?

18. Yet your mind may still dwell on its old fears: Where is the oppressor who counted and weighed the taxes and enrolled our sons?

19. Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue, [that thou canst] not understand.

19. But you will see no more of those fierce people with obscure speech you cannot comprehend, with stammering tongue you cannot understand.

20. Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle [that] shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.

20. Look to Zion, the city of our festivals; see Jerusalem, a peaceful abode, a tabernacle never to be destroyed. Not one of its stakes will ever be removed nor any of its ropes severed.

21. But there the glorious LORD [will be] unto us a place of broad rivers [and] streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby.

21. But there is Yahweh mighty for our sake, in place of broad rivers and streams. Here you see no galley with oars; no stately sailing ship.

22. For the LORD [is] our judge, the LORD [is] our lawgiver, the LORD [is] our king; he will save us.

22. But Yahweh is our judge, Yahweh is our king: he will save us.

23. Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey.

23. Your rigging hangs loose: it cannot hold the mast firm, it cannot keep the sail spread out. Such have been the prey and spoil that even the lame pounced on it.

24. And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein [shall be] forgiven [their] iniquity.

24. On that day no one apologized, "I am sickly." The people who dwell there have been forgiven their sins.