Isaiah, 30

1. Woe to the rebellious children -- declares Yahweh -- who make plans which do not come from me and make alliances not inspired by me, and so add sin to sin!

1. Woe to the rebellious children, saith the LORD, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin:

2. They are leaving for Egypt, without consulting me, to take refuge in Pharaoh's protection, to shelter in Egypt's shadow.

2. That walk to go down into Egypt, and have not asked at my mouth; to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt!

3. Pharaoh's protection will be your shame, the shelter of Egypt's shadow your confounding.

3. Therefore shall the strength of Pharaoh be your shame, and the trust in the shadow of Egypt [your] confusion.

4. For his princes have gone to Zoan and his messengers have reached Hanes.

4. For his princes were at Zoan, and his ambassadors came to Hanes.

5. Everyone has been disappointed by a people who cannot help, who bring neither aid nor profit, only disappointment and confusion.

5. They were all ashamed of a people [that] could not profit them, nor be an help nor profit, but a shame, and also a reproach.

6. Proclamation about the beasts of the Negeb: Into the land of distress and of anguish, of lioness and roaring lion, of viper and flying dragon, they bear their riches on donkeys' backs, their treasures on camels' humps, to a nation that cannot help:

6. The burden of the beasts of the south: into the land of trouble and anguish, from whence [come] the young and old lion, the viper and fiery flying serpent, they will carry their riches upon the shoulders of young asses, and their treasures upon the bunches of camels, to a people [that] shall not profit [them].

7. Egypt, whose help is vain and futile; and so I call her 'Rahab -the-collapsed'.

7. For the Egyptians shall help in vain, and to no purpose: therefore have I cried concerning this, Their strength [is] to sit still.

8. Now go, inscribe this on a tablet, write it on a scroll, so that it may serve for time to come for ever and for ever.

8. Now go, write it before them in a table, and note it in a book, that it may be for the time to come for ever and ever:

9. This is a rebellious people, they are lying children, children who will not listen to Yahweh's Law.

9. That this [is] a rebellious people, lying children, children [that] will not hear the law of the LORD:

10. To the seers they say, 'See nothing!' To the prophets, 'Do not prophesy the truth to us; tell us flattering things; have illusory visions;

10. Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits:

11. turn aside from the way, leave the path, rid us of the Holy One of Israel.'

11. Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us.

12. So the Holy One of Israel says this, 'Since you have rejected this word and put your trust in fraud and disloyalty and rely on these,

12. Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon:

13. for you this guilt will prove to be a breach opening up, a bulge at the top of a wall which suddenly and all at once comes crashing down.

13. Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a high wall, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant.

14. He will shatter it like an earthenware pot, ruthlessly knocking it to pieces, so that of the fragments not one shard can be found with which to take up fire from the hearth or scoop water from the storage-well.'

14. And he shall break it as the breaking of the potters' vessel that is broken in pieces; he shall not spare: so that there shall not be found in the bursting of it a sherd to take fire from the hearth, or to take water [withal] out of the pit.

15. For Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, says this, 'Your salvation lay in conversion and tranquillity, your strength in serenity and trust and you would have none of it.

15. For thus saith the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel; In returning and rest shall ye be saved; in quietness and in confidence shall be your strength: and ye would not.

16. "No," you said, "we shall flee on horses." And so flee you will! And again, "We shall ride on swift ones." And so your pursuers will be swift!

16. But ye said, No; for we will flee upon horses; therefore shall ye flee: and, We will ride upon the swift; therefore shall they that pursue you be swift.

17. A thousand will quake at the threat of one and when five threaten you will flee, until what is left of you will be like a flagstaff on a mountain top, like a signal on a hill.'

17. One thousand [shall flee] at the rebuke of one; at the rebuke of five shall ye flee: till ye be left as a beacon upon the top of a mountain, and as an ensign on an hill.

18. But Yahweh is waiting to be gracious to you, the Exalted One, to take pity on you, for Yahweh is a God of fair judgement; blessed are all who hope in him.

18. And therefore will the LORD wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted, that he may have mercy upon you: for the LORD [is] a God of judgment: blessed [are] all they that wait for him.

19. Yes, people of Zion living in Jerusalem, you will weep no more. He will be gracious to you when your cry for help rings out; as soon as he hears it, he will answer you.

19. For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: he will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when he shall hear it, he will answer thee.

20. When the Lord has given you the bread of suffering and the water of distress, he who is your teacher will hide no longer, and you will see your teacher with your own eyes.

20. And [though] the Lord give you the bread of adversity, and the water of affliction, yet shall not thy teachers be removed into a corner any more, but thine eyes shall see thy teachers:

21. Your ears will hear these words behind you, 'This is the way, keep to it,' whether you turn to right or left.

21. And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This [is] the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left.

22. You will hold unclean the silverplating of your idols and the goldplating of your images. You will throw them away like the polluted things they are, shouting after them, 'Good riddance!'

22. Ye shall defile also the covering of thy graven images of silver, and the ornament of thy molten images of gold: thou shalt cast them away as a menstruous cloth; thou shalt say unto it, Get thee hence.

23. He will send rain for the seed you sow in the ground, and the bread that the ground provides will be rich and nourishing. That day, your cattle will graze in wide pastures.

23. Then shall he give the rain of thy seed, that thou shalt sow the ground withal; and bread of the increase of the earth, and it shall be fat and plenteous: in that day shall thy cattle feed in large pastures.

24. Oxen and donkeys that work the land will eat for fodder wild sorrel, spread by the shovel-load and fork-load.

24. The oxen likewise and the young asses that ear the ground shall eat clean provender, which hath been winnowed with the shovel and with the fan.

25. On every lofty mountain, on every high hill there will be streams and water-courses, on the day of the great slaughter when the strongholds fall.

25. And there shall be upon every high mountain, and upon every high hill, rivers [and] streams of waters in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall.

26. Then moonlight will be bright as sunlight and sunlight itself be seven times brighter -- like the light of seven days in one -- on the day Yahweh dresses his people's wound and heals the scars of the blows they have received.

26. Moreover the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the stroke of their wound.

27. See, the name of Yahweh comes from afar, blazing his anger, heavy his threat. His lips are brimming over with fury, his tongue is like a devouring fire.

27. Behold, the name of the LORD cometh from far, burning [with] his anger, and the burden [thereof is] heavy: his lips are full of indignation, and his tongue as a devouring fire:

28. His breath is like a river in spate coming up to the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of destruction, to harness the peoples in a bridle, that will lead them astray.

28. And his breath, as an overflowing stream, shall reach to the midst of the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity: and [there shall be] a bridle in the jaws of the people, causing [them] to err.

29. Your song will be like that on a festal night, and there will be joy in your hearts as when to the sound of the flute people make a pilgrimage to the mountain of Yahweh, the Rock of Israel.

29. Ye shall have a song, as in the night [when] a holy solemnity is kept; and gladness of heart, as when one goeth with a pipe to come into the mountain of the LORD, to the mighty One of Israel.

30. Yahweh will make his majestic voice ring out, he will show the weight of his arm in the heat of his anger, with a devouring fire, with thunderbolt, downpour and hailstones.

30. And the LORD shall cause his glorious voice to be heard, and shall shew the lighting down of his arm, with the indignation of [his] anger, and [with] the flame of a devouring fire, [with] scattering, and tempest, and hailstones.

31. Yes, at Yahweh's voice Assyria will be terrified, he will strike him with his rod;

31. For through the voice of the LORD shall the Assyrian be beaten down, [which] smote with a rod.

32. each time he goes by, will fall the punishing rod that Yahweh will lay on him, to the sound of tambourines and harps, in the battles which he will wage against him with uplifted hand.

32. And [in] every place where the grounded staff shall pass, which the LORD shall lay upon him, [it] shall be with tabrets and harps: and in battles of shaking will he fight with it.

33. Yes, Topheth has been ready for a long time now, that too is ready for the king, deep and wide his pyre, fire and wood in plenty. Yahweh's breath, like a stream of brimstone, will set fire to it.

33. For Tophet [is] ordained of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he hath made [it] deep [and] large: the pile thereof [is] fire and much wood; the breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.