Isaiah 30:
1 "Woe to the rebellious children," says the Lord, "Who take
counsel, but not of Me, And who devise plans, but not of My Spirit,
That they may add sin to sin; 2 Who walk to go down to Egypt, And
have not asked My advice, To strengthen themselves in the strength
of Pharaoh, And to trust in the shadow of Egypt! 3 Therefore the
strength of Pharaoh Shall be your shame, And trust in the shadow of
Egypt Shall be your humiliation. 4 For his princes were at Zoan,
And his ambassadors came to Hanes. 5 They were all ashamed of a
people who could not benefit them, Or be help or benefit, But a
shame and also a reproach." 6 The burden against the beasts of the
South. Through a land of trouble and anguish, From which came the
lioness and lion, The viper and fiery flying serpent, They will
carry their riches on the backs of young donkeys, And their
treasures on the humps of camels, To a people who shall not profit;
7 For the Egyptians shall help in vain and to no purpose. Therefore
I have called her Rahab-Hem-Shebeth. F43
8 Now go, write it before them on a tablet, And note it on a
scroll, That it may be for time to come, Forever and ever: 9 That
this is a rebellious people, Lying children, Children who will not
hear the law of the Lord; 10 Who say to the seers, "Do not see,"
And to the prophets, "Do not prophesy to us right things; Speak to
us smooth things, prophesy deceits. 11 Get out of the way, Turn
aside from the path, Cause the Holy One of Israel To cease from
before us." 12 Therefore thus says the Holy One of Israel: "Because
you despise this word, And trust in oppression and perversity, And
rely on them, 13 Therefore this iniquity shall be to you Like a
breach ready to fall, A bulge in a high wall, Whose breaking comes
suddenly, in an instant. 14 And He shall break it like the breaking
of the potter's vessel, Which is broken in pieces; He shall not
spare. So there shall not be found among its fragments A shard to
take fire from the hearth, Or to take water from the cistern." 15
For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: "In returning
and rest you shall be saved; In quietness and confidence shall be
your strength." But you would not, 16 And you said, "No, for we
will flee on horses"-- Therefore you shall flee! And, "We will ride
on swift horses"-- Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift!
17 One thousand shall flee at the threat of one, At the threat of
five you shall flee, Till you are left as a pole on top of a
mountain And as a banner on a hill.
18 Therefore the Lord will wait, that He may be gracious to
you; And therefore He will be exalted, that He may have mercy on
you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who
wait for Him. 19 For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem;
You shall weep no more. He will be very gracious to you at the
sound of your cry; When He hears it, He will answer you. 20 And
though the Lord gives you The bread of adversity and the water of
affliction, Yet your teachers will not be moved into a corner
anymore, But your eyes shall see your teachers. 21 Your ears shall
hear a word behind you, saying, "This is the way, walk in it,"
Whenever you turn to the right hand Or whenever you turn to the
left. 22 You will also defile the covering of your graven
images of silver, And the ornament of your molded images of gold.
You will throw them away as an unclean thing; You will say to them,
"Get away!" 23 Then He will give the rain for your seed With which
you sow the ground, And bread of the increase of the earth; It will
be fat and plentiful. In that day your cattle will feed In large
pastures. 24 Likewise the oxen and the young donkeys that work the
ground Will eat cured fodder, Which has been winnowed with the
shovel and fan. 25 There will be on every high mountain And on
every high hill Rivers and streams of waters, In the day of the
great slaughter, When the towers fall. 26 Moreover the light of the
moon will be as the light of the sun, And the light of the sun will
be sevenfold, As the light of seven days, In the day that the Lord
binds up the bruise of His people And heals the stroke of their
wound.
27 Behold, the name of the Lord comes from afar, Burning with His
anger, And His burden is heavy; His lips are full of indignation,
And His tongue like a devouring fire. 28 His breath is like an
overflowing stream, Which reaches up to the neck, To sift the
nations with the sieve of futility; And there shall be a bridle in
the jaws of the people, Causing them to err. 29 You shall have a
song As in the night when a holy festival is kept, And gladness of
heart as when one goes with a flute, To come into the mountain of
the Lord, To the Mighty One of Israel. 30 The Lord will cause His
glorious voice to be heard, And show the descent of His arm, With
the indignation of His anger And the flame of a devouring fire,
With scattering, tempest, and hailstones. 31 For through the voice
of the Lord Assyria will be beaten down, As He strikes with the
rod. 32 And in every place where the staff of punishment passes,
Which the Lord lays on him, It will be with tambourines and harps;
And in battles of brandishing He will fight with it. 33 For Tophet
was established of old, Yes, for the king it is prepared. He has
made it deep and large; Its pyre is fire with much wood; The breath
of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, Kindles it.