Isaiah 66

True Worship and False

1 Thus says the Lord: Thus says the Lord: Heaven is My throne, And earth is My footstool. Where is the house that you will build Me? And where is the place of My rest?2 For all those things My hand has made, And all those things exist, Says the Lord. But on this one will I look: On him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, And who trembles at My word.3 He who kills a bull is as if he slays a man; He who sacrifices a lamb, as if he breaks a dogs neck; He who offers a grain offering, as if he offers swines blood; He who burns incense, as if he blesses an idol. Just as they have chosen their own ways, And their soul delights in their abominations,4 So will I choose their delusions, And bring their fears on them; Because, when I called, no one answered, When I spoke they did not hear; But they did evil before My eyes, And chose that in which I do not delight.

The Lord Vindicates Zion

5 Hear the word of the Lord, You who tremble at His word: Your brethren who hated you, Who cast you out for My names sake, said, Let the Lord be glorified, That we may see your joy. But they shall be ashamed.6 The sound of noise from the city! A voice from the temple! The voice of the Lord, Who fully repays His enemies!7 Before she was in labor, she gave birth; Before her pain came, She delivered a male child.8 Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things? Shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion was in labor, She gave birth to her children.9 Shall I bring to the time of birth, and not cause delivery? says the Lord. Shall I who cause delivery shut up the womb? says your God.10 Rejoice with Jerusalem, And be glad with her, all you who love her; Rejoice for joy with her, all you who mourn for her;11 That you may feed and be satisfied With the consolation of her bosom, That you may drink deeply and be delighted With the abundance of her glory.12 For thus says the Lord: Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, And the glory of the Gentiles like a flowing stream. Then you shall feed; On her sides shall you be carried, And be dandled on her knees.13 As one whom his mother comforts, So I will comfort you; And you shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

The Reign and Indignation of God

14 When you see this, your heart shall rejoice, And your bones shall flourish like grass; The hand of the Lord shall be known to His servants, And His indignation to His enemies.15 For behold, the Lord will come with fire And with His chariots, like a whirlwind, To render His anger with fury, And His rebuke with flames of fire.16 For by fire and by His sword The Lord will judge all flesh; And the slain of the Lord shall be many.17 Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves, To go to the gardens After an idol in the midst, Eating swines flesh and the abomination and the mouse, Shall be consumed together, says the Lord.18 For I know their works and their thoughts. It shall be that I will gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and see My glory.19 I will set a sign among them; and those among them who escape I will send to the nations: to Tarshish and Pul and Lud, who draw the bow, and Tubal and Javan, to the coastlands afar off who have not heard My fame nor seen My glory. And they shall declare My glory among the Gentiles.20 Then they shall bring all your brethren for an offering to the Lord out of all nations, on horses and in chariots and in litters, on mules and on camels, to My holy mountain Jerusalem, says the Lord, as the children of Israel bring an offering in a clean vessel into the house of the Lord.21 And I will also take some of them for priests and Levites, says the Lord.22 For as the new heavens and the new earth Which I will make shall remain before Me, says the Lord, So shall your descendants and your name remain.23 And it shall come to pass That from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, All flesh shall come to worship before Me, says the Lord.24 And they shall go forth and look Upon the corpses of the men Who have transgressed against Me. For their worm does not die, And their fire is not quenched. They shall be an abhorrence to all flesh.

ISAIAH 66

True Worship

1  t t The [Lord] said:
Heaven is my throne;
the earth is my footstool.
What kind of house
could you build for me?
In what place will I rest?

2 I have made everything;
that's how it all came to be.t
I, the [Lord], have spoken.
The people I treasure most
are the humble—
they depend only on me
and tremble when I speak.

3 You sacrifice oxen to me,
and you commit murder;
you sacrifice lambs to me
and dogs to other gods;
you offer grain to me
and pigs' blood to idols;
you burn incense to me
and praise your idols.t
You have made your own choice
to do these disgusting things
that you enjoy so much.

4 You refused to answer
when I called out;
you paid no attention
to my instructions.
Instead, you did what I hated,
knowing it was wrong.
Now I will punisht you
in a way you dread the most.

The [Lord] Will Help //Jerusalem

5 If you tremble
when the [Lord] speaks,
listen to what he says:
“Some of your own people hate
and reject you because of me.
They make fun and say,
‘Let the [Lord] show his power!
Let us see him
make you truly happy.’t
But those who say these things
will be terribly ashamed.”

6 Do you hear that noise
in the city and those shouts
coming from the temple?
It is the [Lord] shouting
as he punishes his enemies.

7  t Have you ever heard of a woman
who gave birth to a child
before having labor pains?

8 Who ever heard of such a thing
or imagined it could happen?
Can a nation be born in a day
or come to life in a second?
Jerusalem is like a mother
who gave birth to her children
as soon as she was in labor.

9 The [Lord] is the one
who makes birth possible.
And he will see that Zion
has many more children.
The [Lord] has spoken.

10 If you love Jerusalem,
celebrate and shout!
If you were in sorrow
because of the city,
you can now be glad.

11 She will nurse and comfort you,
just like your own mother,
until you are satisfied.
You will fully enjoy
her wonderful glory.

12 The [Lord] has promised:
“I will flood Jerusalem
with the wealth of nations
and make the city prosper.
Zion will nurse you at her breast,
carry you in her arms,
and hold you in her lap.

13 I will comfort you there
like a mother
comforting her child.”

14 When you see this happen,
you will celebrate;
your strength will return
faster than grass can sprout.
Then everyone will know
that the [Lord] provides help
for his servants,
but he is angry
with his enemies.

15 The [Lord] will come down
like a whirlwind
with his flaming chariots.
He will be furiously angry
and punish his enemies
with fire.

16 The [Lord]'s fiery sword
will bring justice
everywhere on this earth
and execute many people.

A Threat and a Promise

17 Some of you get yourselves ready and go to a garden to worship a foreign goddess.t You eat the meat of pigs, lizards, and mice. But I, the [Lord], will destroy you for this.
18 I know everything you do and think! The time has now comet to bring together the people of every language and nation and to show them my glory

19 by proving what I can do.t I will send the survivors to Tarshish, Pul, t Lud, Meshech, t Tubal, Javan, t and to the distant islands. I will send them to announce my wonderful glory to nations that have never heard about me.
20 They will bring your relatives from the nations as an offering to me, the [Lord]. They will come to Jerusalem, my holy mountain, on horses, chariots, wagons, mules, and camels.t It will be like the people of Israel bringing the right offering to my temple.

21 I promise that some of them will be priests and others will be helpers in my temple. I, the [Lord], have spoken.
22  t I also promise that you will always have descendants and will never be forgotten, just as the new heavens and the new earth that I create will last forever.

23 On the first day of each month and on each Sabbath, everyone will worship me. I, the [Lord], have spoken.
24  t My people will go out and look at the dead bodies of those who turned against me. The worms there never die, the fire never stops burning, and the sight of those bodies will be disgusting to everyone.