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11 This vision is like the words of a book that is closed and sealed. You may give the book to someone who can read. And you may tell that person to read it. But he will say, “I can’t read the book. It is closed, and I can’t open it.” 12 Or you may give the book to someone who cannot read. You may tell him to read the book. But he will say, “I can’t read it because I don’t know how to read.”

13 The Lord says:

“These people say they love me.
    They show honor to me with words.
    But their hearts are far from me.
The honor they show me
    is nothing but human rules they have memorized.

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11 For you this whole vision(A) is nothing but words sealed(B) in a scroll. And if you give the scroll to someone who can read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I can’t; it is sealed.” 12 Or if you give the scroll to someone who cannot read, and say, “Read this, please,” they will answer, “I don’t know how to read.”

13 The Lord says:

“These people(C) come near to me with their mouth
    and honor me with their lips,(D)
    but their hearts are far from me.(E)
Their worship of me
    is based on merely human rules they have been taught.[a](F)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 29:13 Hebrew; Septuagint They worship me in vain; / their teachings are merely human rules