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Isaiah 1
Contemporary English Version
Isaiah 1
Contemporary English Version
1 (A) I am Isaiah, the son of Amoz.
And this is the message[a] that I was given about Judah and Jerusalem when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were the kings of Judah:[b]
A Guilty Nation
2 The Lord has said,
“Listen, heaven and earth!
The children I raised
have turned against me.
3 Oxen and donkeys know
who owns and feeds them,
but my people won't ever learn.”
4 Israel, you are a sinful nation
loaded down with guilt.
You are wicked and corrupt
and have turned from the Lord,
the holy God of Israel.
5 Why be punished more?
Why not give up your sin?
Your head is badly bruised,
and you are weak all over.
6 From your head to your toes
there isn't a healthy spot.
Bruises, cuts, and open sores
go without care
or oil to ease the pain.
A Country in Ruins
7 Your country lies in ruins;
your towns are in ashes.
Foreigners and strangers
take and destroy your land
while you watch.
8 Enemies surround Jerusalem,
alone like a hut
in a vineyard[c]
or in a cucumber field.
9 (B) Zion would have disappeared
like Sodom and Gomorrah,[d]
if the Lord All-Powerful
had not let a few
of its people survive.
Justice, Not Sacrifices
10 You are no better
than the leaders and people
of Sodom and Gomorrah!
So listen to the Lord God:
11 (C) “Your sacrifices
mean nothing to me.
I am sick of your offerings
of rams and choice cattle;
I don't like the blood
of bulls or lambs or goats.
12 “Who asked you to bring all this
when you come to worship me?
Stay out of my temple!
13 Your sacrifices are worthless,
and your incense disgusting.
I can't stand the evil you do
on your New Moon Festivals
or on your Sabbaths
and other times of worship.
14 I hate your New Moon Festivals
and all others as well.
They are a heavy burden
I am tired of carrying.
15 “No matter how much you pray,
I won't listen.
You are too violent.
16 Wash yourselves clean!
I hate your filthy deeds.
Stop doing wrong
17 and learn to live right.
See that justice is done.
Defend widows and orphans
and help the oppressed.”[e]
An Invitation from the Lord
18 I, the Lord, invite you
to come and talk it over.
Your sins are scarlet red,
but they will be whiter
than snow or wool.
19 If you willingly obey me,
the best crops in the land
will be yours.
20 But if you turn against me,
your enemies will kill you.
I, the Lord, have spoken.
The Lord Condemns Jerusalem
21 Jerusalem, you are like
an unfaithful wife.
Once your judges were honest
and your people lived right;
now you are a city
full of murderers.
22 Your silver is fake,
and your wine
is watered down.
23 Your leaders have rejected me
to become friends of crooks;
your rulers are looking
for gifts and bribes.
Widows and orphans
never get a fair trial.
24 I am the Lord All-Powerful,
the mighty ruler of Israel,
and I make you a promise:
You are now my enemy,
and I will show my anger
by taking revenge on you.
25 I will punish you terribly
and burn away everything
that makes you unfit
to worship me.
26 Jerusalem, I will choose
judges and advisors
like those you had before.
Your new name will be
“Justice and Faithfulness.”
The Lord Will Save Jerusalem
27 Jerusalem, you will be saved
by showing justice;[f]
Zion's people who turn to me
will be saved
by doing right.
28 But those rebellious sinners
who turn against me, the Lord,
will all disappear.
29 You will be made ashamed
of those groves of trees
where you worshiped idols.
30 You will be like a grove of trees
dying in a drought.
31 Your strongest leaders
will be like dry wood
set on fire by their idols.[g]
No one will be able to help,
as they all go up in flames.
Footnotes
- 1.1 message: Or “vision.”
- 1.1 kings of Judah: Uzziah (783–742 b.c.); Jotham (742–735 b.c.; Ahaz (735–715 b.c.); Hezekiah (715–687 b.c.).
- 1.8 a hut in a vineyard: When it was almost time for grapes to ripen, farmers would put up a temporary shelter or hut in the field or vineyard and stay there to keep thieves and wild animals away.
- 1.9 Sodom and Gomorrah: Two ancient cities of Palestine that God destroyed because the people were so wicked (see Genesis 19.1-29).
- 1.17 and help the oppressed: Or “and punish cruel people.”
- 1.27 by showing justice: Or “by my saving power.”
- 1.31 Your … idols: Or “Your wealth will be like dry wood, set on fire by its owners.”
Isaiah 1
New International Version
Isaiah 1
New International Version
1 The vision(A) concerning Judah and Jerusalem(B) that Isaiah son of Amoz saw(C) during the reigns of Uzziah,(D) Jotham,(E) Ahaz(F) and Hezekiah,(G) kings of Judah.
A Rebellious Nation
2 Hear me, you heavens! Listen, earth!(H)
For the Lord has spoken:(I)
“I reared children(J) and brought them up,
but they have rebelled(K) against me.
3 The ox knows(L) its master,
the donkey its owner’s manger,(M)
but Israel does not know,(N)
my people do not understand.(O)”
4 Woe to the sinful nation,
a people whose guilt is great,(P)
a brood of evildoers,(Q)
children given to corruption!(R)
They have forsaken(S) the Lord;
they have spurned the Holy One(T) of Israel
and turned their backs(U) on him.
5 Why should you be beaten(V) anymore?
Why do you persist(W) in rebellion?(X)
Your whole head is injured,
your whole heart(Y) afflicted.(Z)
6 From the sole of your foot to the top of your head(AA)
there is no soundness(AB)—
only wounds and welts(AC)
and open sores,
not cleansed or bandaged(AD)
or soothed with olive oil.(AE)
7 Your country is desolate,(AF)
your cities burned with fire;(AG)
your fields are being stripped by foreigners(AH)
right before you,
laid waste as when overthrown by strangers.(AI)
8 Daughter Zion(AJ) is left(AK)
like a shelter in a vineyard,
like a hut(AL) in a cucumber field,
like a city under siege.
9 Unless the Lord Almighty
had left us some survivors,(AM)
we would have become like Sodom,
we would have been like Gomorrah.(AN)
10 Hear the word of the Lord,(AO)
you rulers of Sodom;(AP)
listen to the instruction(AQ) of our God,
you people of Gomorrah!(AR)
11 “The multitude of your sacrifices—
what are they to me?” says the Lord.
“I have more than enough of burnt offerings,
of rams and the fat of fattened animals;(AS)
I have no pleasure(AT)
in the blood of bulls(AU) and lambs and goats.(AV)
12 When you come to appear before me,
who has asked this of you,(AW)
this trampling of my courts?
13 Stop bringing meaningless offerings!(AX)
Your incense(AY) is detestable(AZ) to me.
New Moons,(BA) Sabbaths and convocations(BB)—
I cannot bear your worthless assemblies.
14 Your New Moon(BC) feasts and your appointed festivals(BD)
I hate with all my being.(BE)
They have become a burden to me;(BF)
I am weary(BG) of bearing them.
15 When you spread out your hands(BH) in prayer,
I hide(BI) my eyes from you;
even when you offer many prayers,
I am not listening.(BJ)
16 Wash(BM) and make yourselves clean.
Take your evil deeds out of my sight;(BN)
stop doing wrong.(BO)
17 Learn to do right;(BP) seek justice.(BQ)
Defend the oppressed.[a](BR)
Take up the cause of the fatherless;(BS)
plead the case of the widow.(BT)
18 “Come now, let us settle the matter,”(BU)
says the Lord.
“Though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;(BV)
though they are red as crimson,
they shall be like wool.(BW)
19 If you are willing and obedient,(BX)
you will eat the good things of the land;(BY)
20 but if you resist and rebel,(BZ)
you will be devoured by the sword.”(CA)
For the mouth of the Lord has spoken.(CB)
21 See how the faithful city
has become a prostitute!(CC)
She once was full of justice;
righteousness(CD) used to dwell in her—
but now murderers!(CE)
22 Your silver has become dross,(CF)
your choice wine is diluted with water.
23 Your rulers are rebels,(CG)
partners with thieves;(CH)
they all love bribes(CI)
and chase after gifts.
They do not defend the cause of the fatherless;
the widow’s case does not come before them.(CJ)
24 Therefore the Lord, the Lord Almighty,
the Mighty One(CK) of Israel, declares:
“Ah! I will vent my wrath on my foes
and avenge(CL) myself on my enemies.(CM)
25 I will turn my hand against you;[b](CN)
I will thoroughly purge(CO) away your dross(CP)
and remove all your impurities.(CQ)
26 I will restore your leaders as in days of old,(CR)
your rulers as at the beginning.
Afterward you will be called(CS)
the City of Righteousness,(CT)
the Faithful City.(CU)”
27 Zion will be delivered with justice,
her penitent(CV) ones with righteousness.(CW)
28 But rebels and sinners(CX) will both be broken,
and those who forsake(CY) the Lord will perish.(CZ)
29 “You will be ashamed(DA) because of the sacred oaks(DB)
in which you have delighted;
you will be disgraced because of the gardens(DC)
that you have chosen.
30 You will be like an oak with fading leaves,(DD)
like a garden without water.
31 The mighty man will become tinder
and his work a spark;
both will burn together,
with no one to quench the fire.(DE)”
Footnotes
- Isaiah 1:17 Or justice. / Correct the oppressor
- Isaiah 1:25 That is, against Jerusalem
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