The Message

Never Tired of Trying New Religions

1-2 Meanwhile, right-living people die

and no one gives them a thought.

God-fearing people are carted off

and no one even notices.

The right-living people are out of their misery,

they’re finally at rest.

They lived well and with dignity

and now they’re finally at peace.

3-10 “But you, children of a witch, come here!

Sons of a slut, daughters of a whore.

What business do you have taunting,

sneering, and sticking out your tongue?

Do you have any idea what wretches you’ve turned out to be?

A race of rebels, a generation of liars.

You satisfy your lust any place you find some shade

and fornicate at whim.

You kill your children at any convenient spot—

any cave or crevasse will do.

You take stones from the creek

and set up your sex-and-religion shrines.

You’ve chosen your fate.

Your worship will be your doom.

You’ve climbed a high mountain

to practice your foul sex-and-death religion.

Behind closed doors

you assemble your precious gods and goddesses.

Deserting me, you’ve gone all out, stripped down

and made your bed your place of worship.

You’ve climbed into bed with the ‘sacred’ whores

and loved every minute of it,

adoring every curve of their naked bodies.

You anoint your king-god with ointments

and lavish perfumes on yourselves.

You send scouts to search out the latest in religion,

send them all the way to hell and back.

You wear yourselves out trying the new and the different,

and never see what a waste it all is.

You’ve always found strength for the latest fad,

never got tired of trying new religions.

11-13 “Who talked you into the pursuit of this nonsense,

leaving me high and dry,

forgetting you ever knew me?

Because I don’t yell and make a scene

do you think I don’t exist?

I’ll go over, detail by detail, all your ‘righteous’ attempts at religion,

and expose the absurdity of it all.

Go ahead, cry for help to your collection of no-gods:

A good wind will blow them away.

They’re smoke, nothing but smoke.

“But anyone who runs to me for help

will inherit the land,

will end up owning my holy mountain!”

14 Someone says: “Build, build! Make a road!

Clear the way, remove the rocks

from the road my people will travel.”

15-21 A Message from the high and towering God,

who lives in Eternity,

whose name is Holy:

“I live in the high and holy places,

but also with the low-spirited, the spirit-crushed,

And what I do is put new spirit in them,

get them up and on their feet again.

For I’m not going to haul people into court endlessly,

I’m not going to be angry forever.

Otherwise, people would lose heart.

These souls I created would tire out and give up.

Iwasangry, good and angry, because of Israel’s sins.

I struck him hard and turned away in anger,

while he kept at his stubborn, willful ways.

When I looked again and saw what he was doing,

I decided to heal him, lead him, and comfort him,

creating a new language of praise for the mourners.

Peace to the far-off, peace to the near-at-hand,” saysGod—

“and yes, I will heal them.

But the wicked are storm-battered seas

that can’t quiet down.

The waves stir up garbage and mud.

There’s no peace,” God says, “for the wicked.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/57-3133f693eeb70756528268fbb0063130.mp3?version_id=97—

Your Prayers Won’t Get Off the Ground

1-3 “Shout! A full-throated shout!

Hold nothing back—a trumpet-blast shout!

Tell my people what’s wrong with their lives,

face my family Jacob with their sins!

They’re busy, busy, busy at worship,

and love studying all about me.

To all appearances they’re a nation of right-living people—

law-abiding, God-honoring.

They ask me, ‘What’s the right thing to do?’

and love having me on their side.

But they also complain,

‘Why do we fast and you don’t look our way?

Why do we humble ourselves and you don’t even notice?’

3-5 “Well, here’s why:

“The bottom line on your ‘fast days’ is profit.

You drive your employees much too hard.

You fast, but at the same time you bicker and fight.

You fast, but you swing a mean fist.

The kind of fasting you do

won’t get your prayers off the ground.

Do you think this is the kind of fast day I’m after:

a day to show off humility?

To put on a pious long face

and parade around solemnly in black?

Do you callthatfasting,

a fast day that I,God, would like?

6-9 “This is the kind of fast day I’m after:

to break the chains of injustice,

get rid of exploitation in the workplace,

free the oppressed,

cancel debts.

What I’m interested in seeing you do is:

sharing your food with the hungry,

inviting the homeless poor into your homes,

putting clothes on the shivering ill-clad,

being available to your own families.

Do this and the lights will turn on,

and your lives will turn around at once.

Your righteousness will pave your way.

TheGodof glory will secure your passage.

Then when you pray,Godwill answer.

You’ll call out for help and I’ll say, ‘Here I am.’

A Full Life in the Emptiest of Places

9-12 “If you get rid of unfair practices,

quit blaming victims,

quit gossiping about other people’s sins,

If you are generous with the hungry

and start giving yourselves to the down-and-out,

Your lives will begin to glow in the darkness,

your shadowed lives will be bathed in sunlight.

I will always show you where to go.

I’ll give you a full life in the emptiest of places—

firm muscles, strong bones.

You’ll be like a well-watered garden,

a gurgling spring that never runs dry.

You’ll use the old rubble of past lives to build anew,

rebuild the foundations from out of your past.

You’ll be known as those who can fix anything,

restore old ruins, rebuild and renovate,

make the community livable again.

13-14 “If you watch your step on the Sabbath

and don’t use my holy day for personal advantage,

If you treat the Sabbath as a day of joy,

God’s holy day as a celebration,

If you honor it by refusing ‘business as usual,’

making money, running here and there—

Then you’ll be free to enjoyGod!

Oh, I’ll make you ride high and soar above it all.

I’ll make you feast on the inheritance of your ancestor Jacob.”

Yes!Godsays so!

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/58-8293d4e3772af7030e460c2a0452a5de.mp3?version_id=97—

We Long for Light but Sink into Darkness

1-8 Look! Listen!

God’s arm is not amputated—he can still save.

God’s ears are not stopped up—he can still hear.

There’s nothing wrong with God; the wrong is inyou.

Your wrongheaded lives caused the split between you and God.

Your sins got between you so that he doesn’t hear.

Your hands are drenched in blood,

your fingers dripping with guilt,

Your lips smeared with lies,

your tongue swollen from muttering obscenities.

No one speaks up for the right,

no one deals fairly.

They trust in illusion, they tell lies,

they get pregnant with mischief and have sin-babies.

They hatch snake eggs and weave spider webs.

Eat an egg and die; break an egg and get a snake!

The spider webs are no good for shirts or shawls.

No one can wear these weavings!

They weave wickedness,

they hatch violence.

They compete in the race to do evil

and run to be the first to murder.

They plan and plot evil, think and breathe evil,

and leave a trail of wrecked lives behind them.

They know nothing about peace

and less than nothing about justice.

They make tortuously twisted roads.

No peace for the wretch who walks down those roads!

9-11 Which means that we’re a far cry from fair dealing,

and we’re not even close to right living.

We long for light but sink into darkness,

long for brightness but stumble through the night.

Like the blind, we inch along a wall,

groping eyeless in the dark.

We shuffle our way in broad daylight,

like the dead, but somehow walking.

We’re no better off than bears, groaning,

and no worse off than doves, moaning.

We look for justice—not a sign of it;

for salvation—not so much as a hint.

12-15 Our wrongdoings pile up before you, God,

our sins stand up and accuse us.

Our wrongdoings stare us down;

we know in detail what we’ve done:

Mocking and denyingGod,

not following our God,

Spreading false rumors, inciting sedition,

pregnant with lies, muttering malice.

Justice is beaten back,

Righteousness is banished to the sidelines,

Truth staggers down the street,

Honesty is nowhere to be found,

Good is missing in action.

Anyone renouncing evil is beaten and robbed.

15-19 Godlooked and saw evil looming on the horizon—

so much evil and no sign of Justice.

He couldn’t believe what he saw:

not a soul around to correct this awful situation.

So he did it himself, took on the work of Salvation,

fueled by his own Righteousness.

He dressed in Righteousness, put it on like a suit of armor,

with Salvation on his head like a helmet,

Put on Judgment like an overcoat,

and threw a cloak of Passion across his shoulders.

He’ll make everyone pay for what they’ve done:

fury for his foes, just deserts for his enemies.

Even the far-off islands will get paid off in full.

In the west they’ll fear the name ofGod,

in the east they’ll fear the glory ofGod,

For he’ll arrive like a river in flood stage,

whipped to a torrent by the wind ofGod.

20 “I’ll arrive in Zion as Redeemer,

to those in Jacob who leave their sins.”

God’s Decree.

21 “As for me,”Godsays, “this is my covenant with them: My Spirit that I’ve placed upon you and the words that I’ve given you to speak, they’re not going to leave your mouths nor the mouths of your children nor the mouths of your grandchildren. You will keep repeating these words and won’t ever stop.”God’s orders.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/59-7bd44255b156f17fdc272c33c28c3249.mp3?version_id=97—

People Returning for the Reunion

1-7 “Get out of bed, Jerusalem!

Wake up. Put your face in the sunlight.

God’s bright glory has risen for you.

The whole earth is wrapped in darkness,

all people sunk in deep darkness,

ButGodrises on you,

his sunrise glory breaks over you.

Nations will come to your light,

kings to your sunburst brightness.

Look up! Look around!

Watch as they gather, watch as they approach you:

Your sons coming from great distances,

your daughters carried by their nannies.

When you see them coming you’ll smile—big smiles!

Your heart will swell and, yes, burst!

All those people returning by sea for the reunion,

a rich harvest of exiles gathered in from the nations!

And then streams of camel caravans as far as the eye can see,

young camels of nomads in Midian and Ephah,

Pouring in from the south from Sheba,

loaded with gold and frankincense,

preaching the praises ofGod.

And yes, a great roundup

of flocks from the nomads in Kedar and Nebaioth,

Welcome gifts for worship at my altar

as I bathe my glorious Temple in splendor.

What’s That We See in the Distance?

8-22 “What’s that we see in the distance,

a cloud on the horizon, like doves darkening the sky?

It’s ships from the distant islands,

the famous Tarshish ships

Returning your children from faraway places,

loaded with riches, with silver and gold,

And backed by the name of yourGod, The Holy of Israel,

showering you with splendor.

Foreigners will rebuild your walls,

and their kings assist you in the conduct of worship.

When I was angry I hit you hard.

It’s my desire now to be tender.

Your Jerusalem gates will always be open

—open house day and night!—

Receiving deliveries of wealth from all nations,

and their kings, the delivery boys!

Any nation or kingdom that doesn’t deliver will perish;

those nations will be totally wasted.

The rich woods of Lebanon will be delivered

—all that cypress and oak and pine—

To give a splendid elegance to my Sanctuary,

as I make my footstool glorious.

The descendants of your oppressor

will come bowing and scraping to you.

All who looked down at you in contempt

will lick your boots.

They’ll confer a title on you: City ofGod,

Zion of The Holy of Israel.

Not long ago you were despised refuse—

out-of-the-way, unvisited, ignored.

But now I’ve put you on your feet,

towering and grand forever, a joy to look at!

When you suck the milk of nations

and the breasts of royalty,

You’ll know that I,God, am your Savior,

your Redeemer, Champion of Jacob.

I’ll give you only the best—no more hand-me-downs!

Gold instead of bronze, silver instead of iron,

bronze instead of wood, iron instead of stones.

I’ll install Peace to run your country,

make Righteousness your boss.

There’ll be no more stories of crime in your land,

no more robberies, no more vandalism.

You’ll name your main street Salvation Way,

and install Praise Park at the center of town.

You’ll have no more need of the sun by day

nor the brightness of the moon at night.

Godwill be your eternal light,

your God will bathe you in splendor.

Your sun will never go down,

your moon will never fade.

I will be your eternal light.

Your days of grieving are over.

All your people will live right and well,

in permanent possession of the land.

They’re the green shoot that I planted,

planted with my own hands to display my glory.

The runt will become a great tribe,

the weakling become a strong nation.

I amGod.

At the right time I’ll make it happen.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/60-1d1023523aaab300f49f71b6dde4a6b8.mp3?version_id=97—

Announce Freedom to All Captives

1-7 The Spirit ofGod, the Master, is on me

becauseGodanointed me.

He sent me to preach good news to the poor,

heal the heartbroken,

Announce freedom to all captives,

pardon all prisoners.

Godsent me to announce the year of his grace—

a celebration of God’s destruction of our enemies—

and to comfort all who mourn,

To care for the needs of all who mourn in Zion,

give them bouquets of roses instead of ashes,

Messages of joy instead of news of doom,

a praising heart instead of a languid spirit.

Rename them “Oaks of Righteousness”

planted byGodto display his glory.

They’ll rebuild the old ruins,

raise a new city out of the wreckage.

They’ll start over on the ruined cities,

take the rubble left behind and make it new.

You’ll hire outsiders to herd your flocks

and foreigners to work your fields,

But you’ll have the title “Priests ofGod,”

honored as ministers of our God.

You’ll feast on the bounty of nations,

you’ll bask in their glory.

Because you got a double dose of trouble

and more than your share of contempt,

Your inheritance in the land will be doubled

and your joy go on forever.

8-9 “Because I,God, love fair dealing

and hate thievery and crime,

I’ll pay your wages on time and in full,

and establish my eternal covenant with you.

Your descendants will become well-known all over.

Your children in foreign countries

Will be recognized at once

as the people I have blessed.”

10-11 I will sing for joy inGod,

explode in praise from deep in my soul!

He dressed me up in a suit of salvation,

he outfitted me in a robe of righteousness,

As a bridegroom who puts on a tuxedo

and a bride a jeweled tiara.

For as the earth bursts with spring wildflowers,

and as a garden cascades with blossoms,

So the Master,God, brings righteousness into full bloom

and puts praise on display before the nations.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/61-89a46cfd870001060c1ef00ad9a0a1fa.mp3?version_id=97—

Look, Your Savior Comes!

1-5 Regarding Zion, I can’t keep my mouth shut,

regarding Jerusalem, I can’t hold my tongue,

Until her righteousness blazes down like the sun

and her salvation flames up like a torch.

Foreign countries will see your righteousness,

and world leaders your glory.

You’ll get a brand-new name

straight from the mouth ofGod.

You’ll be a stunning crown in the palm ofGod’s hand,

a jeweled gold cup held high in the hand of your God.

No more will anyone call you Rejected,

and your country will no more be called Ruined.

You’ll be called Hephzibah (My Delight),

and your land Beulah (Married),

BecauseGoddelights in you

and your land will be like a wedding celebration.

For as a young man marries his virgin bride,

so your builder marries you,

And as a bridegroom is happy in his bride,

so your God is happy with you.

6-7 I’ve posted watchmen on your walls, Jerusalem.

Day and night they keep at it, praying, calling out,

remindingGodto remember.

They are to give him no peace until he does what he said,

until he makes Jerusalem famous as the City of Praise.

8-9 Godhas taken a solemn oath,

an oath he means to keep:

“Never again will I open your grain-filled barns

to your enemies to loot and eat.

Never again will foreigners drink the wine

that you worked so hard to produce.

No. The farmers who grow the food will eat the food

and praiseGodfor it.

And those who make the wine will drink the wine

in my holy courtyards.”

10-12 Walk out of the gates. Get going!

Get the road ready for the people.

Build the highway. Get at it!

Clear the debris,

hoist high a flag, a signal to all peoples!

Yes!Godhas broadcast to all the world:

“Tell daughter Zion, ‘Look! Your Savior comes,

Ready to do what he said he’d do,

prepared to complete what he promised.’”

Zion will be called new names: Holy People,God-Redeemed,

Sought-Out, City-Not-Forsaken.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/62-e85bc27ac84d8ae7f9d560cf7479bbd1.mp3?version_id=97—

Who Goes There?

1 The watchmen call out,

“Who goes there, marching out of Edom,

out of Bozrah in clothes dyed red?

Name yourself, so splendidly dressed,

advancing, bristling with power!”

“It is I: I speak what is right,

I, mighty to save!”

2 “And why are your robes so red,

your clothes dyed red like those who tread grapes?”

3-6 “I’ve been treading the winepress alone.

No one was there to help me.

Angrily, I stomped the grapes;

raging, I trampled the people.

Their blood spurted all over me—

all my clothes were soaked with blood.

I was set on vengeance.

The time for redemption had arrived.

I looked around for someone to help

—no one.

I couldn’t believe it

—not one volunteer.

So I went ahead and did it myself,

fed and fueled by my rage.

I trampled the people in my anger,

crushed them under foot in my wrath,

soaked the earth with their lifeblood.”

All the Things God Has Done That Need Praising

7-9 I’ll make a list ofGod’s gracious dealings,

all the thingsGodhas done that need praising,

All the generous bounties ofGod,

his great goodness to the family of Israel—

Compassion lavished,

love extravagant.

He said, “Without question these are my people,

children who would never betray me.”

So he became their Savior.

In all their troubles,

he was troubled, too.

He didn’t send someone else to help them.

He did it himself, in person.

Out of his own love and pity

he redeemed them.

He rescued them and carried them along

for a long, long time.

10 But they turned on him;

they grieved his Holy Spirit.

So he turned on them,

became their enemy and fought them.

11-14 Then they remembered the old days,

the days of Moses, God’s servant:

“Where is he who brought the shepherds of his flock

up and out of the sea?

And what happened to the One who set

his Holy Spirit within them?

Who linked his arm with Moses’ right arm,

divided the waters before them,

Making him famous ever after,

and led them through the muddy abyss

as surefooted as horses on hard, level ground?

Like a herd of cattle led to pasture,

the Spirit ofGodgave them rest.”

14-19 That’show you led your people!

That’show you became so famous!

Look down from heaven, look at us!

Look out the window of your holy and magnificent house!

Whatever happened to your passion,

your famous mighty acts,

Your heartfelt pity, your compassion?

Why are you holding back?

You are our Father.

Abraham and Israel are long dead.

They wouldn’t know us from Adam.

But you’re ourlivingFather,

our Redeemer, famous from eternity!

Why,God, did you make us wander from your ways?

Why did you make us cold and stubborn

so that we no longer worshiped you in awe?

Turn back for the sake of your servants.

You own us! We belong to you!

For a while your holy people had it good,

but now our enemies have wrecked your holy place.

For a long time now, you’ve paid no attention to us.

It’s like you never knew us.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/63-9a06963ec58714e2edc93274d5aac6c8.mp3?version_id=97—

Can We Be Saved?

1-7 Oh, that you would rip open the heavens and descend,

make the mountains shudder at your presence—

As when a forest catches fire,

as when fire makes a pot to boil—

To shock your enemies into facing you,

make the nations shake in their boots!

You did terrible things we never expected,

descended and made the mountains shudder at your presence.

Since before time began

no one has ever imagined,

No ear heard, no eye seen, a God like you

who works for those who wait for him.

You meet those who happily do what is right,

who keep a good memory of the way you work.

But how angry you’ve been with us!

We’ve sinned and kept at it so long!

Is there any hope for us? Can we be saved?

We’re all sin-infected, sin-contaminated.

Our best efforts are grease-stained rags.

We dry up like autumn leaves—

sin-dried, we’re blown off by the wind.

No one prays to you

or makes the effort to reach out to you

Because you’ve turned away from us,

left us to stew in our sins.

8-12 Still,God, you are our Father.

We’re the clay and you’re our potter:

All of us are what you made us.

Don’t be too angry with us, OGod.

Don’t keep a permanent account of wrongdoing.

Keep in mind, please, weareyour people—all of us.

Your holy cities are all ghost towns:

Zion’s a ghost town,

Jerusalem’s a field of weeds.

Our holy and beautiful Temple,

which our ancestors filled with your praises,

Was burned down by fire,

all our lovely parks and gardens in ruins.

In the face of all this,

are you going to sit there unmoved,God?

Aren’t you going to say something?

Haven’t you made us miserable long enough?

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/64-39485aa46d88e25a62edfc205bbb254d.mp3?version_id=97—

The People Who Bothered to Reach Out to God

1-7 “I’ve made myself available

to those who haven’t bothered to ask.

I’m here, ready to be found

by those who haven’t bothered to look.

I kept saying ‘I’m here, I’m right here’

to a nation that ignored me.

I reached out day after day

to a people who turned their backs on me,

People who make wrong turns,

who insist on doing things their own way.

They get on my nerves,

are rude to my face day after day,

Make up their own kitchen religion,

a potluck religious stew.

They spend the night in tombs

to get messages from the dead,

Eat forbidden foods

and drink a witch’s brew of potions and charms.

They say, ‘Keep your distance.

Don’t touch me. I’m holier than thou.’

These people gag me.

I can’t stand their stench.

Look at this! Their sins are all written out—

I have the list before me.

I’m not putting up with this any longer.

I’ll pay them the wages

They have coming for their sins.

And for the sins of their parents lumped in,

a bonus.”Godsays so.

“Because they’ve practiced their blasphemous worship,

mocking me at their hillside shrines,

I’ll let loose the consequences

and pay them in full for their actions.”

8-10 God’s Message:

“But just as one bad apple doesn’t ruin the whole bushel,

there are still plenty of good apples left.

So I’ll preserve those in Israel who obey me.

I won’t destroy the whole nation.

I’ll bring out my true children from Jacob

and the heirs of my mountains from Judah.

My chosen will inherit the land,

my servants will move in.

The lush valley of Sharon in the west

will be a pasture for flocks,

And in the east, the valley of Achor,

a place for herds to graze.

These will be for the people

who bothered to reach out to me, who wanted me in their lives,

who actually bothered to look for me.

11-12 “But you who abandon me, yourGod,

who forget the holy mountains,

Who hold dinners for Lady Luck

and throw cocktail parties for Sir Fate,

Well, you asked for it. Fate it will be:

your destiny, Death.

For when I invited you, you ignored me;

when I spoke to you, you brushed me off.

You did the very things I exposed as evil;

you chose what I hate.”

13-16 Therefore, this is the Message from the Master,God:

“My servants will eat,

and you’ll go hungry;

My servants will drink,

and you’ll go thirsty;

My servants will rejoice,

and you’ll hang your heads.

My servants will laugh from full hearts,

and you’ll cry out heartbroken,

yes, wail from crushed spirits.

Your legacy to my chosen

will be your name reduced to a cussword.

I,God, will put you to death

and give a new name to my servants.

Then whoever prays a blessing in the land

will use my faithful name for the blessing,

And whoever takes an oath in the land

will use my faithful name for the oath,

Because the earlier troubles are gone and forgotten,

banished far from my sight.

New Heavens and a New Earth

17-25 “Pay close attention now:

I’m creating new heavens and a new earth.

All the earlier troubles, chaos, and pain

are things of the past, to be forgotten.

Look ahead with joy.

Anticipate what I’m creating:

I’ll create Jerusalem as sheer joy,

create my people as pure delight.

I’ll take joy in Jerusalem,

take delight in my people:

No more sounds of weeping in the city,

no cries of anguish;

No more babies dying in the cradle,

or old people who don’t enjoy a full lifetime;

One-hundredth birthdays will be considered normal—

anything less will seem like a cheat.

They’ll build houses

and move in.

They’ll plant fields

and eat what they grow.

No more building a house

that some outsider takes over,

No more planting fields

that some enemy confiscates,

For my people will be as long-lived as trees,

my chosen ones will have satisfaction in their work.

They won’t work and have nothing come of it,

they won’t have children snatched out from under them.

For they themselves are plantings blessed byGod,

with their children and grandchildren likewiseGod-blessed.

Before they call out, I’ll answer.

Before they’ve finished speaking, I’ll have heard.

Wolf and lamb will graze the same meadow,

lion and ox eat straw from the same trough,

but snakes—they’ll get a diet of dirt!

Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill

anywhere on my Holy Mountain,” saysGod.

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/65-a85c6dc9bbe313348405b248cdda717c.mp3?version_id=97—

Living Worship to God

1-2 God’s Message:

“Heaven’s my throne,

earth is my footstool.

What sort of house could you build for me?

What holiday spot reserve for me?

I made all this! I own all this!”

God’s Decree.

“But thereissomething I’m looking for:

a person simple and plain,

reverently responsive to what I say.

3-4 “Your acts of worship

are acts of sin:

Your sacrificial slaughter of the ox

is no different from murdering the neighbor;

Your offerings for worship,

no different from dumping pig’s blood on the altar;

Your presentation of memorial gifts,

no different from honoring a no-god idol.

You choose self-serving worship,

you delight in self-centered worship—disgusting!

Well, I choose to expose your nonsense

and let you realize your worst fears,

Because when I invited you, you ignored me;

when I spoke to you, you brushed me off.

You did the very things I exposed as evil,

you chose what I hate.”

5 But listen to whatGodhas to say

to you who reverently respond to his Word:

“Your own families hate you

and turn you out because of me.

They taunt you, ‘Let us seeGod’s glory!

If God’s so great, why aren’t you happy?’

But they’re the ones

who are going to end up shamed.”

6 Rumbles of thunder from the city!

A voice out of the Temple!

God’s voice,

handing out judgment to his enemies:

7-9 “Before she went into labor,

she had the baby.

Before the birth pangs hit,

she delivered a son.

Has anyone ever heard of such a thing?

Has anyone seen anything like this?

A country born in a day?

A nation born in a flash?

But Zion was barely in labor

when she had her babies!

Do I open the womb

and not deliver the baby?

Do I, the One who delivers babies,

shut the womb?

10-11 “Rejoice, Jerusalem,

and all who love her, celebrate!

And all you who have shed tears over her,

join in the happy singing.

You newborns can satisfy yourselves

at her nurturing breasts.

Yes, delight yourselves and drink your fill

at her ample bosom.”

12-13 God’s Message:

“I’ll pour robust well-being into her like a river,

the glory of nations like a river in flood.

You’ll nurse at her breasts,

nestle in her bosom,

and be bounced on her knees.

As a mother comforts her child,

so I’ll comfort you.

You will be comforted in Jerusalem.”

14-16 You’ll see all this and burst with joy

—you’ll feel ten feet tall—

As it becomes apparent thatGodis on your side

and against his enemies.

ForGodarrives like wildfire

and his chariots like a tornado,

A furious outburst of anger,

a rebuke fierce and fiery.

For it’s by fire thatGodbrings judgment,

a death sentence on the human race.

Many, oh so many,

are underGod’s sentence of death:

17 “All who enter the sacred groves for initiation in those unholy rituals that climaxed in that foul and obscene meal of pigs and mice will eat together and then die together.”God’s Decree.

18-21 “I know everything they’ve ever done or thought. I’m going to come and then gather everyone—all nations, all languages. They’ll come and see my glory. I’ll set up a station at the center. I’ll send the survivors of judgment all over the world: Spain and Africa, Turkey and Greece, and the far-off islands that have never heard of me, who know nothing of what I’ve done nor who I am. I’ll send them out as missionaries to preach my glory among the nations. They’ll return with all your long-lost brothers and sisters from all over the world. They’ll bring them back and offer them in living worship toGod. They’ll bring them on horses and wagons and carts, on mules and camels, straight to my holy mountain Jerusalem,” saysGod. “They’ll present them just as Israelites present their offerings in a ceremonial vessel in the Temple ofGod. I’ll even take some of them and make them priests and Levites,” saysGod.

22-23 “For just as the new heavens and new earth

that I am making will stand firm before me”

—God’s Decree—

“So will your children

and your reputation stand firm.

Month after month and week by week,

everyone will come to worship me,”Godsays.

24 “And then they’ll go out and look at what happened

to those who rebelled against me. Corpses!

Maggots endlessly eating away on them,

an endless supply of fuel for fires.

Everyone who sees what’s happened

and smells the stench retches.”

—https://api-cdn.youversionapi.com/audio-bible-youversionapi/85/32k/ISA/66-0f7586e33746fe532fe6375aa3c0be6b.mp3?version_id=97—