Heaven Is God’s Throne

1 Thus says the LORD,
“Heaven is My throne and the earth is My footstool.
Where then is a house you could build for Me?
And where is a place that I may rest? 2
“For My hand made all these things,
Thus all these things came into being, declares the LORD.
“But to this one I will look,
To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.

Hypocrisy Rebuked

 3
“{But} he who kills an ox is {like} one who slays a man;
He who sacrifices a lamb is {like} the one who breaks a dog’s neck;
He who offers a grain offering {is like one who offers} swine’s blood;
He who burns incense is {like} the one who blesses an idol.
As they have chosen their {own} ways,
And their soul delights in their abominations, 4
So I will choose their punishments
And will bring on them what they dread.
Because I called, but no one answered;
I spoke, but they did not listen.
And they did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight. 5
Hear the word of the LORD, you who tremble at His word:
“Your brothers who hate you, who exclude you for My name’s sake,
Have said, `Let the LORD be glorified, that we may see your joy.’
But they will be put to shame. 6
“A voice of uproar from the city, a voice from the temple,
The voice of the LORD who is rendering recompense to His enemies.

 7
“Before she travailed, she brought forth;
Before her pain came, she gave birth to a boy. 8
“Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?
Can a land be born in one day?
Can a nation be brought forth all at once?
As soon as Zion travailed, she also brought forth her sons. 9
“Shall I bring to the point of birth and not give delivery? says the LORD.
“Or shall I who gives delivery shut {the womb?} says your God.

Joy in Jerusalem’s Future 10
“Be joyful with Jerusalem and rejoice for her, all you who love her;
Be exceedingly glad with her, all you who mourn over her, 11
That you may nurse and be satisfied with her comforting breasts,
That you may suck and be delighted with her bountiful bosom. 12
For thus says the LORD, “Behold, I extend peace to her like a river,
And the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream;
And you will be nursed, you will be carried on the hip and fondled on the knees. 13
“As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you;
And you will be comforted in Jerusalem. 14
Then you will see {this,} and your heart will be glad,
And your bones will flourish like the new grass;
And the hand of the LORD will be made known to His servants,
But He will be indignant toward His enemies. 15
For behold, the LORD will come in fire
And His chariots like the whirlwind,
To render His anger with fury,
And His rebuke with flames of fire. 16
For the LORD will execute judgment by fire
And by His sword on all flesh,
And those slain by the LORD will be many. 17
“Those who sanctify and purify themselves {to go} to the gardens,
Following one in the center,
Who eat swine’s flesh, detestable things and mice,
Will come to an end altogether, declares the LORD.

 18 “For I know their works and their thoughts; the time is coming to gather all nations and tongues. And they shall come and see My glory. 19 “I will set a sign among them and will send survivors from them to the nations: Tarshish, Put, Lud, Meshech, Tubal and Javan, to the distant coastlands that have neither heard My fame nor seen My glory. And they will declare My glory among the nations. 20 “Then they shall bring all your brethren from all the nations as a grain offering to the LORD, on horses, in chariots, in litters, on mules and on camels, to My holy mountain Jerusalem, says the LORD, “just as the sons of Israel bring their grain offering in a clean vessel to the house of the LORD. 21 “I will also take some of them for priests {and} for Levites, says the LORD. 22
“For just as the new heavens and the new earth
Which I make will endure before Me, declares the LORD,
“So your offspring and your name will endure. 23
“And it shall be from new moon to new moon
And from sabbath to sabbath,
All mankind will come to bow down before Me, says the LORD. 24
“Then they will go forth and look
On the corpses of the men
Who have transgressed against Me.
For their worm will not die
And their fire will not be quenched;
And they will be an abhorrence to all mankind.

A Rebellious People

1
“I permitted Myself to be sought by those who did not ask {for Me;}
I permitted Myself to be found by those who did not seek Me.
I said, `Here am I, here am I,’
To a nation which did not call on My name. 2
“I have spread out My hands all day long to a rebellious people,
Who walk {in} the way which is not good, following their own thoughts, 3
A people who continually provoke Me to My face,
Offering sacrifices in gardens and burning incense on bricks; 4
Who sit among graves and spend the night in secret places;
Who eat swine’s flesh,
And the broth of unclean meat is {in} their pots. 5
“Who say, `Keep to yourself, do not come near me,
For I am holier than you!’
These are smoke in My nostrils,
A fire that burns all the day. 6
“Behold, it is written before Me,
I will not keep silent, but I will repay;
I will even repay into their bosom, 7
Both their own iniquities and the iniquities of their fathers together, says the LORD.
“Because they have burned incense on the mountains
And scorned Me on the hills,
Therefore I will measure their former work into their bosom.

 8 Thus says the LORD,
“As the new wine is found in the cluster,
And one says, `Do not destroy it, for there is benefit in it,’
So I will act on behalf of My servants
In order not to destroy all of them. 9
“I will bring forth offspring from Jacob,
And an heir of My mountains from Judah;
Even My chosen ones shall inherit it,
And My servants will dwell there. 10
“Sharon will be a pasture land for flocks,
And the valley of Achor a resting place for herds,
For My people who seek Me. 11
“But you who forsake the LORD,
Who forget My holy mountain,
Who set a table for Fortune,
And who fill {cups} with mixed wine for Destiny, 12
I will destine you for the sword,
And all of you will bow down to the slaughter.
Because I called, but you did not answer;
I spoke, but you did not hear.
And you did evil in My sight
And chose that in which I did not delight.

 13 Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD,
“Behold, My servants will eat, but you will be hungry.
Behold, My servants will drink, but you will be thirsty.
Behold, My servants will rejoice, but you will be put to shame. 14
“Behold, My servants will shout joyfully with a glad heart,
But you will cry out with a heavy heart,
And you will wail with a broken spirit. 15
“You will leave your name for a curse to My chosen ones,
And the Lord GOD will slay you.
But My servants will be called by another name. 16
“Because he who is blessed in the earth
Will be blessed by the God of truth;
And he who swears in the earth
Will swear by the God of truth;
Because the former troubles are forgotten,
And because they are hidden from My sight!

New Heavens and a New Earth

 17
“For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth;
And the former things will not be remembered or come to mind. 18
“But be glad and rejoice forever in what I create;
For behold, I create Jerusalem {for} rejoicing
And her people {for} gladness. 19
“I will also rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in My people;
And there will no longer be heard in her
The voice of weeping and the sound of crying. 20
“No longer will there be in it an infant {who lives but a few} days,
Or an old man who does not live out his days;
For the youth will die at the age of one hundred
And the one who does not reach the age of one hundred
Will be {thought} accursed. 21
“They will build houses and inhabit {them;}
They will also plant vineyards and eat their fruit. 22
“They will not build and another inhabit,
They will not plant and another eat;
For as the lifetime of a tree, {so will be} the days of My people,
And My chosen ones will wear out the work of their hands. 23
“They will not labor in vain,
Or bear {children} for calamity;
For they are the offspring of those blessed by the LORD,
And their descendants with them.

 24 “It will also come to pass that before they call, I will answer; and while they are still speaking, I will hear. 25 “The wolf and the lamb will graze together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox; and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will do no evil or harm in all My holy mountain, says the LORD.

Prayer for Mercy and Help 1
Oh, that You would rend the heavens {and} come down,
That the mountains might quake at Your presence– 2
As fire kindles the brushwood, {as} fire causes water to boil–
To make Your name known to Your adversaries,
{That} the nations may tremble at Your presence! 3
When You did awesome things which we did not expect,
You came down, the mountains quaked at Your presence. 4
For from days of old they have not heard or perceived by ear,
Nor has the eye seen a God besides You,
Who acts in behalf of the one who waits for Him. 5
You meet him who rejoices in doing righteousness,
Who remembers You in Your ways.
Behold, You were angry, for we sinned,
{We continued} in them a long time;
And shall we be saved? 6
For all of us have become like one who is unclean,
And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment;
And all of us wither like a leaf,
And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. 7
There is no one who calls on Your name,
Who arouses himself to take hold of You;
For You have hidden Your face from us
And have delivered us into the power of our iniquities.

 8
But now, O LORD, You are our Father,
We are the clay, and You our potter;
And all of us are the work of Your hand. 9
Do not be angry beyond measure, O LORD,
Nor remember iniquity forever;
Behold, look now, all of us are Your people. 10
Your holy cities have become a wilderness,
Zion has become a wilderness,
Jerusalem a desolation. 11
Our holy and beautiful house,
Where our fathers praised You,
Has been burned {by} fire;
And all our precious things have become a ruin. 12
Will You restrain Yourself at these things, O LORD?
Will You keep silent and afflict us beyond measure?

God’s Vengeance on the Nations

1
Who is this who comes from Edom,
With garments of glowing colors from Bozrah,
This One who is majestic in His apparel,
Marching in the greatness of His strength?
“It is I who speak in righteousness, mighty to save. 2
Why is Your apparel red,
And Your garments like the one who treads in the wine press? 3
“I have trodden the wine trough alone,
And from the peoples there was no man with Me.
I also trod them in My anger
And trampled them in My wrath;
And their lifeblood is sprinkled on My garments,
And I stained all My raiment. 4
“For the day of vengeance was in My heart,
And My year of redemption has come. 5
“I looked, and there was no one to help,
And I was astonished and there was no one to uphold;
So My own arm brought salvation to Me,
And My wrath upheld Me. 6
“I trod down the peoples in My anger
And made them drunk in My wrath,
And I poured out their lifeblood on the earth.

God’s Ancient Mercies Recalled

 7
I shall make mention of the lovingkindnesses of the LORD, the praises of the LORD,
According to all that the LORD has granted us,
And the great goodness toward the house of Israel,
Which He has granted them according to His compassion
And according to the abundance of His lovingkindnesses. 8
For He said, “Surely, they are My people,
Sons who will not deal falsely.
So He became their Savior. 9
In all their affliction He was afflicted,
And the angel of His presence saved them;
In His love and in His mercy He redeemed them,
And He lifted them and carried them all the days of old. 10
But they rebelled
And grieved His Holy Spirit;
Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy,
He fought against them. 11
Then His people remembered the days of old, of Moses.
Where is He who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of His flock?
Where is He who put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them, 12
Who caused His glorious arm to go at the right hand of Moses,
Who divided the waters before them to make for Himself an everlasting name, 13
Who led them through the depths?
Like the horse in the wilderness, they did not stumble; 14
As the cattle which go down into the valley,
The Spirit of the LORD gave them rest.
So You led Your people,
To make for Yourself a glorious name.

“You Are Our Father

 15
Look down from heaven and see from Your holy and glorious habitation;
Where are Your zeal and Your mighty deeds?
The stirrings of Your heart and Your compassion are restrained toward me. 16
For You are our Father, though Abraham does not know us
And Israel does not recognize us.
You, O LORD, are our Father,
Our Redeemer from of old is Your name. 17
Why, O LORD, do You cause us to stray from Your ways
And harden our heart from fearing You?
Return for the sake of Your servants, the tribes of Your heritage. 18
Your holy people possessed Your sanctuary for a little while,
Our adversaries have trodden {it} down. 19
We have become {like} those over whom You have never ruled,
{Like} those who were not called by Your name.

Zion’s Glory and New Name

1
For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
And for Jerusalem’s sake I will not keep quiet,
Until her righteousness goes forth like brightness,
And her salvation like a torch that is burning. 2
The nations will see your righteousness,
And all kings your glory;
And you will be called by a new name
Which the mouth of the LORD will designate. 3
You will also be a crown of beauty in the hand of the LORD,
And a royal diadem in the hand of your God. 4
It will no longer be said to you, “Forsaken,
Nor to your land will it any longer be said, “Desolate;
But you will be called, “My delight is in her,
And your land, “Married;
For the LORD delights in you,
And {to Him} your land will be married. 5
For {as} a young man marries a virgin,
{So} your sons will marry you;
And {as} the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
{So} your God will rejoice over you.

 6
On your walls, O Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen;
All day and all night they will never keep silent.
You who remind the LORD, take no rest for yourselves; 7
And give Him no rest until He establishes
And makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth. 8
The LORD has sworn by His right hand and by His strong arm,
“I will never again give your grain {as} food for your enemies;
Nor will foreigners drink your new wine for which you have labored. 9
But those who garner it will eat it and praise the LORD;
And those who gather it will drink it in the courts of My sanctuary.

 10
Go through, go through the gates,
Clear the way for the people;
Build up, build up the highway,
Remove the stones, lift up a standard over the peoples. 11
Behold, the LORD has proclaimed to the end of the earth,
Say to the daughter of Zion, “Lo, your salvation comes;
Behold His reward is with Him, and His recompense before Him. 12
And they will call them, “The holy people,
The redeemed of the LORD;
And you will be called, “Sought out, a city not forsaken.

Exaltation of the Afflicted

1
The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me
To bring good news to the afflicted;
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
To proclaim liberty to captives
And freedom to prisoners; 2
To proclaim the favorable year of the LORD
And the day of vengeance of our God;
To comfort all who mourn, 3
To grant those who mourn {in} Zion,
Giving them a garland instead of ashes,
The oil of gladness instead of mourning,
The mantle of praise instead of a spirit of fainting.
So they will be called oaks of righteousness,
The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified.

 4
Then they will rebuild the ancient ruins,
They will raise up the former devastations;
And they will repair the ruined cities,
The desolations of many generations. 5
Strangers will stand and pasture your flocks,
And foreigners will be your farmers and your vinedressers. 6
But you will be called the priests of the LORD;
You will be spoken of {as} ministers of our God.
You will eat the wealth of nations,
And in their riches you will boast. 7
Instead of your shame {you will have a} double {portion,}
And {instead of} humiliation they will shout for joy over their portion.
Therefore they will possess a double {portion} in their land,
Everlasting joy will be theirs. 8
For I, the LORD, love justice,
I hate robbery in the burnt offering;
And I will faithfully give them their recompense
And make an everlasting covenant with them. 9
Then their offspring will be known among the nations,
And their descendants in the midst of the peoples.
All who see them will recognize them
Because they are the offspring {whom} the LORD has blessed.

 10
I will rejoice greatly in the LORD,
My soul will exult in my God;
For He has clothed me with garments of salvation,
He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness,
As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland,
And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11
For as the earth brings forth its sprouts,
And as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up,
So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise
To spring up before all the nations.

A Glorified Zion

1
“Arise, shine; for your light has come,
And the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. 2
“For behold, darkness will cover the earth
And deep darkness the peoples;
But the LORD will rise upon you
And His glory will appear upon you. 3
“Nations will come to your light,
And kings to the brightness of your rising.

 4
“Lift up your eyes round about and see;
They all gather together, they come to you.
Your sons will come from afar,
And your daughters will be carried in the arms. 5
“Then you will see and be radiant,
And your heart will thrill and rejoice;
Because the abundance of the sea will be turned to you,
The wealth of the nations will come to you. 6
“A multitude of camels will cover you,
The young camels of Midian and Ephah;
All those from Sheba will come;
They will bring gold and frankincense,
And will bear good news of the praises of the LORD. 7
“All the flocks of Kedar will be gathered together to you,
The rams of Nebaioth will minister to you;
They will go up with acceptance on My altar,
And I shall glorify My glorious house. 8
“Who are these who fly like a cloud
And like the doves to their lattices? 9
“Surely the coastlands will wait for Me;
And the ships of Tarshish {will come} first,
To bring your sons from afar,
Their silver and their gold with them,
For the name of the LORD your God,
And for the Holy One of Israel because He has glorified you.

 10
“Foreigners will build up your walls,
And their kings will minister to you;
For in My wrath I struck you,
And in My favor I have had compassion on you. 11
“Your gates will be open continually;
They will not be closed day or night,
So that {men} may bring to you the wealth of the nations,
With their kings led in procession. 12
“For the nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish,
And the nations will be utterly ruined. 13
“The glory of Lebanon will come to you,
The juniper, the box tree and the cypress together,
To beautify the place of My sanctuary;
And I shall make the place of My feet glorious. 14
“The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet;
And they will call you the city of the LORD,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

 15
“Whereas you have been forsaken and hated
With no one passing through,
I will make you an everlasting pride,
A joy from generation to generation. 16
“You will also suck the milk of nations
And suck the breast of kings;
Then you will know that I, the LORD, am your Savior
And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. 17
“Instead of bronze I will bring gold,
And instead of iron I will bring silver,
And instead of wood, bronze,
And instead of stones, iron.
And I will make peace your administrators
And righteousness your overseers. 18
“Violence will not be heard again in your land,
Nor devastation or destruction within your borders;
But you will call your walls salvation, and your gates praise. 19
“No longer will you have the sun for light by day,
Nor for brightness will the moon give you light;
But you will have the LORD for an everlasting light,
And your God for your glory. 20
“Your sun will no longer set,
Nor will your moon wane;
For you will have the LORD for an everlasting light,
And the days of your mourning will be over. 21
“Then all your people {will be} righteous;
They will possess the land forever,
The branch of My planting,
The work of My hands,
That I may be glorified. 22
“The smallest one will become a clan,
And the least one a mighty nation.
I, the LORD, will hasten it in its time.