Isaiah 57

₁Righteous people die,

but no one is worried about them.

Faithful people are being destroyed,

but no one understands why.

₂But these people who live in the right way

have peace in their hearts

when they die and go to the grave.

₃‘Come here, you magicians,

you are children of prostitutes and men

who have sex with wives of other men.

₄You don't realise it,

but you are mocking the Lord

and laughing at Him.

You have turned away from God

and you are false.

₅You have sex and serve_idols

under the big trees,

under every green tree.

You kill your children

and sacrifice them to idols

on the mountains among the rocks.

₆You think that the beautiful rocks

in the rivers will make you happy,

and you bring drink-offerings

and grain-offerings to them.’

The Lord asks:

‘Do you think that I must be pleased

and do nothing

if you do bad things like this?

₇You made beds to have sex

on the high mountains and you

go up there to sacrifice to idols.

₈You hide images behind the doors

in your homes.

You have turned away from Me

and you worship gods.

You are like a bad woman

who takes off her clothes

and gets into bed with another man,

and enjoys looking at his naked body.

₉You have taken a lot of olive oil

and incense and

you have served the idol Molek.

You have sent people to look

for more gods in places far away,

and also in the underworld.

₁₀You went so far

looking for gods that you became tired,

but you did not stop.

You always wanted to have more idols,

so you kept on looking.

₁₁Whom were you afraid of?

Why did you tell lies to Me?

Why did you forget Me?

Why are you not afraid of Me?

Is it because I have kept quiet for so long?

₁₂You think you have done right,

but I will now tell you what you did,

and your gods will not be able to help you.

₁₃You must ask your many gods

to save you when you suffer

and everything is going wrong,

but they are all worthless.

A soft wind will blow them away.

The people who trust in Me

to protect them will get this land,

and they will live on my holy_mountain.’

‘You must make a road. Build a road,

and prepare a way for my people.

Take away everything that is in their way,

and everything that can stop them.’

‘I live in the highest heaven,

the holy heaven, but I am also

with the people who are humble.

I give new life to people who know

that they are unimportant and worthless.

₁₆Yes, I will not continue punishing them.

I will not always be angry,

because if I stay angry with them,

they will not be able to stay alive,

and the life that I give them will disappear.

₁₇I became angry because

they were never satisfied

with the things they had,

and they always wanted more.

That is why I punished them

and I did not want to see them.

They rebelled_against Me and

they lived like they wanted to live.

₁₈I have seen what happened to them

but I will heal them.

I will lead them, I will be with them

and help them and I will comfort

the people who mourn for them.

₁₉I will make them sing and praise Me.

They will have peace everywhere they go,

those who are far away

and those who are near.

I will heal them all.’

₂₀‘But people who always keep on

doing what is wrong

are like the sea when there is a storm.

They don't have peace

and the water becomes very dirty.

₂₁People who keep doing what is wrong

will never have peace.’

This is what my God says.