19:1 Here is a message about Egypt:
Look, the Lord rides on a swift-moving cloud
and approaches Egypt.
The idols of Egypt tremble before him;
the Egyptians lose their courage. 15
19:2 “I will provoke civil strife in Egypt, 16
brothers will fight with each other,
as will neighbors,
cities, and kingdoms. 17
19:3 The Egyptians will panic, 18
and I will confuse their strategy. 19
They will seek guidance from the idols and from the spirits of the dead,
from the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, and from the magicians. 20
19:4 I will hand Egypt over to a harsh master;
a powerful king will rule over them,”
says the sovereign master, 21 the Lord who commands armies.
19:5 The water of the sea will be dried up,
and the river will dry up and be empty. 22
19:6 The canals 23 will stink; 24
the streams of Egypt will trickle and then dry up;
the bulrushes and reeds will decay,
19:7 along with the plants by the mouth of the river. 25
All the cultivated land near the river
will turn to dust and be blown away. 26
19:8 The fishermen will mourn and lament,
all those who cast a fishhook into the river,
and those who spread out a net on the water’s surface will grieve. 27
19:9 Those who make clothes from combed flax will be embarrassed;
those who weave will turn pale. 28
19:10 Those who make cloth 29 will be demoralized; 30
all the hired workers will be depressed. 31
19:11 The officials of Zoan are nothing but fools; 32
Pharaoh’s wise advisers give stupid advice.
How dare you say to Pharaoh,
“I am one of the sages,
one well-versed in the writings of the ancient kings?” 33
19:12 But where, oh where, are your wise men? 34
Let them tell you, let them find out
what the Lord who commands armies has planned for Egypt.
19:13 The officials of Zoan are fools,
the officials of Memphis 35 are misled;
the rulers 36 of her tribes lead Egypt astray.
19:14 The Lord has made them undiscerning; 37
they lead Egypt astray in all she does,
so that she is like a drunk sliding around in his own vomit. 38
19:15 Egypt will not be able to do a thing,
head or tail, shoots and stalk. 39
19:16 At that time 40 the Egyptians 41 will be like women. 42 They will tremble and fear because the Lord who commands armies brandishes his fist against them. 43 19:17 The land of Judah will humiliate Egypt. Everyone who hears about Judah will be afraid because of what the Lord who commands armies is planning to do to them. 44
19:18 At that time five cities 45 in the land of Egypt will speak the language of Canaan and swear allegiance to the Lord who commands armies. One will be called the City of the Sun. 46 19:19 At that time there will be an altar for the Lord in the middle of the land of Egypt, as well as a sacred pillar 47 dedicated to the Lord at its border. 19:20 It 48 will become a visual reminder in the land of Egypt of 49 the Lord who commands armies. When they cry out to the Lord because of oppressors, he will send them a deliverer and defender 50 who will rescue them. 19:21 The Lord will reveal himself to the Egyptians, and they 51 will acknowledge the Lord’s authority 52 at that time. 53 They will present sacrifices and offerings; they will make vows to the Lord and fulfill them. 19:22 The Lord will strike Egypt, striking and then healing them. They will turn to the Lord and he will listen to their prayers 54 and heal them.
19:23 At that time there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria. The Assyrians will visit Egypt, and the Egyptians will visit Assyria. The Egyptians and Assyrians will worship together. 55 19:24 At that time Israel will be the third member of the group, along with Egypt and Assyria, and will be a recipient of blessing 56 in the earth. 57 19:25 The Lord who commands armies will pronounce a blessing over the earth, saying, 58 “Blessed be my people, Egypt, and the work of my hands, Assyria, and my special possession, 59 Israel!”
29:1 Ariel is as good as dead 60 –
Ariel, the town David besieged! 61
Keep observing your annual rituals,
celebrate your festivals on schedule. 62
29:2 I will threaten Ariel,
and she will mourn intensely
and become like an altar hearth 63 before me.
29:3 I will lay siege to you on all sides; 64
I will besiege you with troops; 65
I will raise siege works against you.
29:4 You will fall;
while lying on the ground 66 you will speak;
from the dust where you lie, your words will be heard. 67
Your voice will sound like a spirit speaking from the underworld; 68
from the dust you will chirp as if muttering an incantation. 69
29:5 But the horde of invaders will be like fine dust,
the horde of tyrants 70 like chaff that is blown away.
It will happen suddenly, in a flash.
29:6 Judgment will come from the Lord who commands armies, 71
accompanied by thunder, earthquake, and a loud noise,
by a strong gale, a windstorm, and a consuming flame of fire.
29:7 It will be like a dream, a night vision.
There will be a horde from all the nations that fight against Ariel,
those who attack her and her stronghold and besiege her.
29:8 It will be like a hungry man dreaming that he is eating,
only to awaken and find that his stomach is empty. 72
It will be like a thirsty man dreaming that he is drinking,
only to awaken and find that he is still weak and his thirst unquenched. 73
So it will be for the horde from all the nations
that fight against Mount Zion.
29:9 You will be shocked and amazed! 74
You are totally blind! 75
They are drunk, 76 but not because of wine;
they stagger, 77 but not because of beer.
29:10 For the Lord has poured out on you
a strong urge to sleep deeply. 78
He has shut your eyes (the prophets),
and covered your heads (the seers).
29:11 To you this entire prophetic revelation 79 is like words in a sealed scroll. When they hand it to one who can read 80 and say, “Read this,” he responds, “I can’t, because it is sealed.” 29:12 Or when they hand the scroll to one who can’t read 81 and say, “Read this,” he says, “I can’t read.” 82
29:13 The sovereign master 83 says,
“These people say they are loyal to me; 84
they say wonderful things about me, 85
but they are not really loyal to me. 86
Their worship consists of
nothing but man-made ritual. 87
29:14 Therefore I will again do an amazing thing for these people –
an absolutely extraordinary deed. 88
Wise men will have nothing to say,
the sages will have no explanations.” 89
29:15 Those who try to hide their plans from the Lord are as good as dead, 90
who do their work in secret and boast, 91
“Who sees us? Who knows what we’re doing?” 92
29:16 Your thinking is perverse! 93
Should the potter be regarded as clay? 94
Should the thing made say 95 about its maker, “He didn’t make me”?
Or should the pottery say about the potter, “He doesn’t understand”?
29:17 In just a very short time 96
Lebanon will turn into an orchard,
and the orchard will be considered a forest. 97
29:18 At that time 98 the deaf will be able to hear words read from a scroll,
and the eyes of the blind will be able to see through deep darkness. 99
29:19 The downtrodden will again rejoice in the Lord;
the poor among humankind will take delight 100 in the Holy One of Israel. 101
29:20 For tyrants will disappear,
those who taunt will vanish,
and all those who love to do wrong will be eliminated 102 –
29:21 those who bear false testimony against a person, 103
who entrap the one who arbitrates at the city gate 104
and deprive the innocent of justice by making false charges. 105
29:22 So this is what the Lord, the one who delivered Abraham, says to the family of Jacob: 106
“Jacob will no longer be ashamed;
their faces will no longer show their embarrassment. 107
29:23 For when they see their children,
whom I will produce among them, 108
they will honor 109 my name.
They will honor the Holy One of Jacob; 110
they will respect 111 the God of Israel.
29:24 Those who stray morally will gain understanding; 112
those who complain will acquire insight. 113
30:1 “The rebellious 114 children are as good as dead,” 115 says the Lord,
“those who make plans without consulting me, 116
who form alliances without consulting my Spirit, 117
and thereby compound their sin. 118
30:2 They travel down to Egypt
without seeking my will, 119
seeking Pharaoh’s protection,
and looking for safety in Egypt’s protective shade. 120
30:3 But Pharaoh’s protection will bring you nothing but shame,
and the safety of Egypt’s protective shade nothing but humiliation.
30:4 Though his 121 officials are in Zoan
and his messengers arrive at Hanes, 122
30:5 all will be put to shame 123
because of a nation that cannot help them,
who cannot give them aid or help,
but only shame and disgrace.”
30:6 This is a message 124 about the animals in the Negev:
Through a land of distress and danger,
inhabited by lionesses and roaring lions, 125
by snakes and darting adders, 126
they transport 127 their wealth on the backs of donkeys,
their riches on the humps of camels,
to a nation that cannot help them. 128
30:7 Egypt is totally incapable of helping. 129
For this reason I call her
‘Proud one 130 who is silenced.’” 131
30:8 Now go, write it 132 down on a tablet in their presence, 133
inscribe it on a scroll,
so that it might be preserved for a future time
as an enduring witness. 134
30:9 For these are rebellious people –
they are lying children,
children unwilling to obey the Lord’s law. 135
30:10 They 136 say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”
and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! 137
Tell us nice things,
relate deceptive messages. 138
30:11 Turn aside from the way,
stray off the path. 139
Remove from our presence the Holy One of Israel.” 140
30:12 For this reason this is what the Holy One of Israel says:
“You have rejected this message; 141
you trust instead in your ability to oppress and trick, 142
and rely on that kind of behavior. 143
30:13 So this sin will become your downfall.
You will be like a high wall
that bulges and cracks and is ready to collapse;
it crumbles suddenly, in a flash. 144
30:14 It shatters in pieces like a clay jar,
so shattered to bits that none of it can be salvaged. 145
Among its fragments one cannot find a shard large enough 146
to scoop a hot coal from a fire 147
or to skim off water from a cistern.” 148
30:15 For this is what the master, the Lord, the Holy One of Israel says:
“If you repented and patiently waited for me, you would be delivered; 149
if you calmly trusted in me you would find strength, 150
but you are unwilling.
30:16 You say, ‘No, we will flee on horses,’
so you will indeed flee.
You say, ‘We will ride on fast horses,’
so your pursuers will be fast.
30:17 One thousand will scurry at the battle cry of one enemy soldier; 151
at the battle cry of five enemy soldiers you will all run away, 152
until the remaining few are as isolated 153
as a flagpole on a mountaintop
or a signal flag on a hill.”
30:18 For this reason the Lord is ready to show you mercy;
he sits on his throne, ready to have compassion on you. 154
Indeed, the Lord is a just God;
all who wait for him in faith will be blessed. 155
30:19 For people will live in Zion;
in Jerusalem 156 you will weep no more. 157
When he hears your cry of despair, he will indeed show you mercy;
when he hears it, he will respond to you. 158
30:20 The sovereign master 159 will give you distress to eat
and suffering to drink; 160
but your teachers will no longer be hidden;
your eyes will see them. 161
30:21 You 162 will hear a word spoken behind you, saying,
“This is the correct 163 way, walk in it,”
whether you are heading to the right or the left.
30:22 You will desecrate your silver-plated idols 164
and your gold-plated images. 165
You will throw them away as if they were a menstrual rag,
saying to them, “Get out!”
30:23 He will water the seed you plant in the ground,
and the ground will produce crops in abundance. 166
At that time 167 your cattle will graze in wide pastures.
30:24 The oxen and donkeys used in plowing 168
will eat seasoned feed winnowed with a shovel and pitchfork. 169
30:25 On every high mountain
and every high hill
there will be streams flowing with water,
at the time of 170 great slaughter when the fortified towers collapse.
30:26 The light of the full moon will be like the sun’s glare
and the sun’s glare will be seven times brighter,
like the light of seven days, 171
when the Lord binds up his people’s fractured bones 172
and heals their severe wound. 173
30:27 Look, the name 174 of the Lord comes from a distant place
in raging anger and awesome splendor. 175
He speaks angrily
and his word is like destructive fire. 176
30:28 His battle cry overwhelms like a flooding river 177
that reaches one’s neck.
He shakes the nations in a sieve that isolates the chaff; 178
he puts a bit into the mouth of the nations and leads them to destruction. 179
30:29 You will sing
as you do in the evening when you are celebrating a festival.
You will be happy like one who plays a flute
as he goes to the mountain of the Lord, the Rock who shelters Israel. 180
30:30 The Lord will give a mighty shout 181
and intervene in power, 182
with furious anger and flaming, destructive fire, 183
with a driving rainstorm and hailstones.
30:31 Indeed, the Lord’s shout will shatter Assyria; 184
he will beat them with a club.
30:32 Every blow from his punishing cudgel, 185
with which the Lord will beat them, 186
will be accompanied by music from the 187 tambourine and harp,
and he will attack them with his weapons. 188
30:33 For 189 the burial place is already prepared; 190
it has been made deep and wide for the king. 191
The firewood is piled high on it. 192
The Lord’s breath, like a stream flowing with brimstone,
will ignite it.
31:1 Those who go down to Egypt for help are as good as dead, 193
those who rely on war horses,
and trust in Egypt’s many chariots 194
and in their many, many horsemen. 195
But they do not rely on the Holy One of Israel 196
and do not seek help from the Lord.
31:2 Yet he too is wise 197 and he will bring disaster;
he does not retract his decree. 198
He will attack the wicked nation, 199
and the nation that helps 200 those who commit sin. 201
31:3 The Egyptians are mere humans, not God;
their horses are made of flesh, not spirit.
The Lord will strike with 202 his hand;
the one who helps will stumble
and the one being helped will fall.
Together they will perish. 203
31:4 Indeed, this is what the Lord says to me:
“The Lord will be like a growling lion,
like a young lion growling over its prey. 204
Though a whole group of shepherds gathers against it,
it is not afraid of their shouts
or intimidated by their yelling. 205
In this same way the Lord who commands armies will descend
to do battle on Mount Zion and on its hill. 206
31:5 Just as birds hover over a nest, 207
so the Lord who commands armies will protect Jerusalem. 208
He will protect and deliver it;
as he passes over 209 he will rescue it.
31:6 You Israelites! Return to the one against whom you have so blatantly rebelled! 210 31:7 For at that time 211 everyone will get rid of 212 the silver and gold idols your hands sinfully made. 213
31:8 Assyria will fall by a sword, but not one human-made; 214
a sword not made by humankind will destroy them. 215
They will run away from this sword 216
and their young men will be forced to do hard labor.
31:9 They will surrender their stronghold 217 because of fear; 218
their officers will be afraid of the Lord’s battle flag.” 219
This is what the Lord says –
the one whose fire is in Zion,
whose firepot is in Jerusalem. 220
32:1 Look, a king will promote fairness; 221
officials will promote justice. 222
32:2 Each of them 223 will be like a shelter from the wind
and a refuge from a rainstorm;
like streams of water in a dry region
and like the shade of a large cliff in a parched land.
32:3 Eyes 224 will no longer be blind 225
and ears 226 will be attentive.
32:4 The mind that acts rashly will possess discernment 227
and the tongue that stutters will speak with ease and clarity.
32:5 A fool will no longer be called honorable;
a deceiver will no longer be called principled.
32:6 For a fool speaks disgraceful things; 228
his mind plans out sinful deeds. 229
He commits godless deeds 230
and says misleading things about the Lord;
he gives the hungry nothing to satisfy their appetite 231
and gives the thirsty nothing to drink. 232
32:7 A deceiver’s methods are evil; 233
he dreams up evil plans 234
to ruin the poor with lies,
even when the needy are in the right. 235
32:8 An honorable man makes honorable plans;
his honorable character gives him security. 236
32:9 You complacent 237 women,
get up and listen to me!
You carefree 238 daughters,
pay attention to what I say!
32:10 In a year’s time 239
you carefree ones will shake with fear,
for the grape 240 harvest will fail,
and the fruit harvest will not arrive.
32:11 Tremble, you complacent ones!
Shake with fear, you carefree ones!
Strip off your clothes and expose yourselves –
put sackcloth on your waist! 241
32:12 Mourn over the field, 242
over the delightful fields
and the fruitful vine!
32:13 Mourn 243 over the land of my people,
which is overgrown with thorns and briers,
and over all the once-happy houses 244
in the city filled with revelry. 245
32:14 For the fortress is neglected;
the once-crowded 246 city is abandoned.
Hill 247 and watchtower
are permanently uninhabited. 248
Wild donkeys love to go there,
and flocks graze there. 249
32:15 This desolation will continue until new life is poured out on us from heaven. 250
Then the desert will become an orchard
and the orchard will be considered a forest. 251
32:16 Justice will settle down in the desert
and fairness will live in the orchard. 252
32:17 Fairness will produce peace 253
and result in lasting security. 254
32:18 My people will live in peaceful settlements,
in secure homes,
and in safe, quiet places. 255
32:19 Even if the forest is destroyed 256
and the city is annihilated, 257
32:20 you will be blessed,
you who plant seed by all the banks of the streams, 258
you who let your ox and donkey graze. 259