Isaiah 33
American Standard Version
33 Woe to thee that destroyest, and thou wast not destroyed; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! When thou hast ceased to destroy, thou shalt be destroyed; and when thou hast made an end of dealing treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee. 2 O Jehovah, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou [a]our arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble. 3 At the noise of the tumult the peoples are fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations are scattered. 4 And your spoil shall be gathered as the caterpillar gathereth: as locusts leap shall men leap upon it. 5 Jehovah is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with justice and righteousness. 6 [b]And there shall be stability in thy times, abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge: the fear of Jehovah is [c]thy treasure.
7 Behold, their valiant ones cry without; the ambassadors of peace weep bitterly. 8 The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: [d]the enemy hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth not man. 9 The land mourneth and languisheth; Lebanon is confounded and withereth away; Sharon is like [e]a desert; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their leaves. 10 Now will I arise, saith Jehovah; now will I lift up myself; now will I be exalted. 11 Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath is a fire that shall devour you. 12 And the peoples shall be as the burnings of lime, as thorns cut down, that are burned in the fire.
13 Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might. 14 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling hath seized the godless ones: Who among us can dwell with the devouring fire? who among us can dwell with everlasting burnings? 15 He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of [f]oppressions, that shaketh his hands from taking a bribe, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from looking upon evil: 16 He shall dwell on high; his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks; his bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.
17 Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold [g]a land that reacheth afar. 18 Thy heart shall muse on the terror: Where is [h]he that counted, where is he that weighed the tribute? where is he that counted the towers? 19 Thou shalt not see the fierce people, a people of a deep speech that thou canst not comprehend, of a [i]strange tongue that thou canst not understand. 20 Look upon Zion, the city of our [j]solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tent that shall not be removed, the stakes whereof shall never be plucked up, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. 21 But there Jehovah will be with us in majesty, [k]a place of broad rivers and streams, wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby. 22 For Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah is our lawgiver, Jehovah is our king; he will save us. 23 Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not strengthen the foot of their mast, they could not spread the sail: then was the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame took the prey. 24 And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 33:2 Hebrew their.
- Isaiah 33:6 Or, And abundance of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times
- Isaiah 33:6 Hebrew his.
- Isaiah 33:8 Hebrew he.
- Isaiah 33:9 Or, the Arabah
- Isaiah 33:15 Or, fraud
- Isaiah 33:17 Or, a land that is very far off. Hebrew a land of far distances.
- Isaiah 33:18 Or, the scribe
- Isaiah 33:19 Or, stammering
- Isaiah 33:20 Or, set feasts
- Isaiah 33:21 Or, but in the place . . . streams there shall go etc.
Isaiah 33
Complete Jewish Bible
33 Woe, destroyer, yourself undestroyed!
Woe, betrayer, yourself unbetrayed!
When you stop destroying, you will be destroyed;
when you tire of betraying, they will betray you.
2 Adonai, show us mercy;
we have waited for you.
Be their arm every morning,
and our salvation in time of trouble.
3 At the sound of the tumult, the peoples wander off;
when you exalt yourself, the nations are scattered.
4 Your spoil is gathered as if stripped by shearer-worms;
they run over it like a swarm of locusts.
5 Adonai is exalted, for he dwells on high;
he has filled Tziyon with justice and right.
6 He will be the stability of your times,
a wealth of salvation, wisdom and knowledge,
and fear of Adonai, which is his treasure.
7 Hear their brave men crying out for help!
The envoys of peace weep bitterly.
8 The highways are deserted, there are no travelers.
He has broken the covenant, despised the cities;
he has no regard for human life.
9 The land is mourning and wilting away.
The L’vanon is withering with shame.
The Sharon has become like the ‘Aravah.
Bashan and Karmel have been shaken bare.
10 “Now I will arise,” says Adonai,
“Now I will exalt and lift myself up.
11 You conceive chaff and give birth to stubble,
your breath is a fire devouring you.
12 The peoples will be as if burned into lime,
like thorns cut off to burn in the fire.
13 You living far off, hear what I have done!
You who are near, acknowledge my strength!”
14 The sinners in Tziyon are frightened;
trembling has seized the ungodly.
“Who of us can live with the devouring fire?
Who of us can live with eternal burning?”
15 He whose life is right and whose speech is straight,
he who scorns getting rich by extortion,
he who shakes his hands free of bribes,
stops his ears against talk of bloodshed
and shuts his eyes against looking at evil.
16 Such a person will live on the heights,
his refuge a fortress among the cliffs,
his food and water in steady supply.
17 Your eyes will see the king in his beauty,
they will gaze on a land stretching into the distance.
18 Your mind will meditate on the terror:
“Where is the man who did the counting?
Where is the man who did the weighing?
Where is the man who numbered the towers?”
19 You will not see the intransigent people,
that people whose language is so obscure,
whose stuttering speech you cannot understand.
20 Look at Tziyon, the city of our festivals;
your eyes will see Yerushalayim a secure abode,
a tent that will not be removed,
whose pegs will never be pulled out
and whose guy-ropes will not be cut.
21 But there in his splendor Adonai will be with us,
in a place of rivers and broad streams.
But no boat with oars will go there,
no majestic ship will pass by.
22 For Adonai is our judge, Adonai is our lawgiver,
Adonai is our king. He will save us.
23 For your ropes are hanging loose,
not holding the mast, not spreading the sail.
Then the plunder shared out is so huge
that even the lame get part of the spoil.
24 No inhabitant will say, “I am ill”;
the people living there will be forgiven their sin.
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Copyright © 1998 by David H. Stern. All rights reserved.