1For the LORD will have mercy on Jacob, and will again choose Israel, and settle them in their own land; and foreigners shall join with them, and unite with the house of Jacob.
2And the nations of the world shall help them return to their land; and the house of Israel shall possess the land of the LORD; and those that are in their land shall be their servants and handmaids. And they shall take captive those who had held them captive; and they shall rule over those who had oppressed them.
3And in that wonderful day the LORD shall give you rest from sorrow and fear, and from the hard labor that you were made to serve,
4And you shall taunt the king of Babylon by saying, “Behold how our oppressor has been stopped; and his insolent fury ended!”
5The LORD has broken the rod of the wicked, and ended his wicked rule.
6He who repeatedly struck our people in anger, who ruled the nations with unending fury, is now punished.
7The whole earth is at rest, and at peace; they break out in song.
8Even the fir trees and the cedars of Lebanon gloat over you, saying, “Since you are cut down, no one will come up to cut us down!
9In the realm of the dead below, there is excitement about your coming; the mighty kings of old would rise from their thrones to greet you!
10They shall all now say to you, “Have you also become as weak as we? Have you become like us?”
11All your pomp, might and power are buried with you, along with the sound of your harps; maggots now spread beneath you, and worms cover you.
12How you have fallen from heaven, O Lucifer (this is a reference to the king of Babylon – and not to Satan), son of the morning! How you are thrown to the ground (humbled), who once ravaged the nations!
13For you have said in your heart, “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon.
14I will rise above the tops of the clouds, I will be like the Most High.”
15But you shall be brought down to hell, to the depths of the pit.
16They who see you shall stare at you, and ponder your fate, saying, “Is this the man (king) who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms,
17Who made the world a wilderness, and destroyed its cities; and would not let his captives return home?”
18All the kings of the nations - all of them - lie in state, each one in his own tomb.
19But you are thrown out of your grave like an detestable branch, like those killed in battle, that are thrown into a mass grave and covered with stones; or a carcass trampled underfoot.
20You shall not join them in burial, because you have destroyed your land, and killed your people; may the descendants of such a wicked person never be remembered.
21Prepare a place to slaughter his children for the sins of their fathers, that they do not rise to inherit the land, nor cover the face of the world with their cities.
22“For I will rise up against them”, says the LORD Almighty, and cut off from Babylon the name, and survivors, the son, and nephew”, says the LORD.
23“I will also make Babylon a desolate place for owls, the porcupine, and swamps; and I will sweep it with the broom of destruction”, says the LORD Almighty.
24The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely as I have planned, so shall it come to pass; and as I have purposed, so shall it be:
25That I will break the Assyrian in My land; and on My mountains I will tread him under foot; then shall his yoke be removed from My people, and from their shoulders.”
26This is the purpose that I have determined for the whole earth, and this is the hand that is stretched out over all the nations.
27For it is the purpose of the LORD Almighty, and who shall thwart it? And His hand is stretched out, and who shall turn it back?”
28This prophetic message came in the year that king Ahaz died.
29Do not rejoice, you Philistines, because the rod of him (the Assyrian king) who struck you is broken; for out of that snake's root shall come a more poisonous viper (Sennacherib), a fiery, flying serpent.
30And I will feed the poor in My pasture; and the needy shall lie down in safety; and I will destroy you (the Philistines) with famine, and shall slay your survivors.
31Howl, city gate; wail, O city! Melt away, all you Philistines; for there shall come from the north a powerful army like a cloud of smoke, each warrior eager for the battle.
32What answer shall then be given the envoys from that nation? Tell them that, “The LORD has founded Zion, and its walls shall give refuge to the poor and oppressed of His people.” Isaiah 15 Easy Reader Bible: Purple Letter Edition © 2023 by Jim Musser. Used by Permission. All rights Reserved. Bible Hub |
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