1 The avision of Isaiah the son of Amoz, which he saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem bin the days of cUzziah, dJotham, eAhaz, and fHezekiah, kings of Judah.
The Wickedness of Judah
2 gHear, O heavens, and give ear, O hearth;
for the Lord has spoken:
“Children1 ihave I reared and brought up,
but they have rebelled against me.
3 The ox jknows its owner,
and the donkey its master’s crib,
but Israel does jnot know,
my people do not understand.”
4 Ah, sinful nation,
a people laden with iniquity,
koffspring of evildoers,
children who deal corruptly!
They have forsaken the Lord,
they have ldespised mthe Holy One of Israel,
they are utterly nestranged.
5 Why will you still be ostruck down?
Why will you pcontinue to rebel?
The whole head is sick,
and the whole heart faint.
6 qFrom the sole of the foot even to the head,
there is no soundness in it,
but bruises and sores
and raw wounds;
they are rnot pressed out or bound up
or softened with oil.
7 sYour country lies desolate;
your cities are burned with fire;
in your very presence
foreigners devour your land;
it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners.
8 And tthe daughter of Zion is left
like a ubooth in a vineyard,
like a lodge in a cucumber field,
like a besieged city.
9 vIf the Lord of hosts
had not left us wa few survivors,
we should have been like xSodom,
and become like xGomorrah.
10 Hear the word of the Lord,
Give ear to the teaching2 of our God,
you people of zGomorrah!
5 hIs such the fast that I choose,
ia day for a person to humble himself?
Is it to bow down his head like a reed,
and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him?
Will you call this a fast,
and a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the fast that I choose:
jto loose the bonds of wickedness,
to undo the straps kof the yoke,
to let the oppressed1 go free,
and to break every yoke?
7 Is it not lto share your bread with the hungry
and bring the homeless poor into your house;
when you see the naked, to cover him,
mand not to hide yourself from your own flesh?
8 nThen shall your light break forth like the dawn,
oand your healing shall spring up speedily;
pyour righteousness shall go before you;
qthe glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard.
9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away rthe yoke from your midst,
sthe pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
10 tif you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
nthen shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.