To The Word – Day 91

₁This book contains the messages about Judah and Jerusalem which God revealed to Isaiah son of Amoz during the time when Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah were kings of Judah.

₂The LORD said, “Earth and sky, listen to what I am saying! The children I brought up have rebelled against me. ₃Cattle know who owns them, and donkeys know where their master feeds them. But that is more than my people Israel know. They don't understand at all.”

₄You are doomed, you sinful nation, you corrupt and evil people! Your sins drag you down! You have rejected the LORD, the holy God of Israel, and have turned your backs on him. ₅Why do you keep on rebelling? Do you want to be punished even more? Israel, your head is already covered with wounds, and your heart and mind are sick. ₆From head to foot there is not a healthy spot on your body. You are covered with bruises and sores and open wounds. Your wounds have not been cleaned or bandaged. No ointment has been put on them.

₇Your country has been devastated, and your cities have been burnt to the ground. While you look on, foreigners take over your land and bring everything to ruin. ₈Jerusalem alone is left, a city under siege — as defenceless as a guard's hut in a vineyard or a shed in a cucumber field. ₉If the LORD Almighty had not let some of the people survive, Jerusalem would have been totally destroyed, just as Sodom and Gomorrah were.

₁₀Jerusalem, your rulers and your people are like those of Sodom and Gomorrah. Listen to what the LORD is saying to you. Pay attention to what our God is teaching you. ₁₁He says, “Do you think I want all these sacrifices you keep offering to me? I have had more than enough of the sheep you burn as sacrifices and of the fat of your fine animals. I am tired of the blood of bulls and sheep and goats. ₁₂Who asked you to bring me all this when you come to worship me? Who asked you to do all this tramping about in my Temple? ₁₃It's useless to bring your offerings. I am disgusted with the smell of the incense you burn. I cannot stand your New Moon Festivals, your Sabbaths, and your religious gatherings; they are all corrupted by your sins. ₁₄I hate your New Moon Festivals and holy days; they are a burden that I am tired of bearing.

₁₅“When you lift your hands in prayer, I will not look at you. No matter how much you pray, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with blood. ₁₆Wash yourselves clean. Stop all this evil that I see you doing. Yes, stop doing evil ₁₇and learn to do right. See that justice is done — help those who are oppressed, give orphans their rights, and defend widows.”

₁₈The LORD says, “Now, let's settle the matter. You are stained red with sin, but I will wash you as clean as snow. Although your stains are deep red, you will be as white as wool. ₁₉If you will only obey me, you will eat the good things the land produces. ₂₀But if you defy me, you are doomed to die. I, the LORD, have spoken.”

₂₁The city that once was faithful is behaving like a whore! At one time it was filled with righteous people, but now only murderers remain. ₂₂Jerusalem, you were once like silver, but now you are worthless; you were like good wine, but now you are only water. ₂₃Your leaders are rebels and friends of thieves; they are always accepting gifts and bribes. They never defend orphans in court or listen when widows present their case.

₂₄So now, listen to what the LORD Almighty, Israel's powerful God, is saying: “I will take revenge on you, my enemies, and you will cause me no more trouble. ₂₅I will take action against you. I will purify you just as metal is refined, and will remove all your impurity. ₂₆I will give you rulers and advisers like those you had long ago. Then Jerusalem will be called the righteous, faithful city.”

₂₇Because the LORD is righteous, he will save Jerusalem and everyone there who repents. ₂₈But he will crush everyone who sins and rebels against him; he will kill everyone who forsakes him.

₂₉You will be sorry that you ever worshipped trees and planted sacred gardens. ₃₀You will wither like a dying oak, like a garden that no one waters. ₃₁Just as straw is set on fire by a spark, so powerful people will be destroyed by their own evil deeds, and no one will be able to stop the destruction.

₁This is the message which God gave to Isaiah son of Amoz about Judah and Jerusalem:

₅Now, descendants of Jacob, let us walk in the light which the LORD gives us!

₆O God, you have forsaken your people, the descendants of Jacob! The land is full of magic practices from the east and from Philistia. The people follow foreign customs. ₇Their land is full of silver and gold, and there is no end to their treasures. Their land is full of horses, and there is no end to their chariots. ₈Their land is full of idols, and they worship objects that they have made with their own hands.

₉Everyone will be humiliated and disgraced. Do not forgive them, LORD!

₁₀They will hide in caves in the rocky hills or dig holes in the ground to try to escape from the LORD's anger and to hide from his power and glory! ₁₁A day is coming when human pride will be ended and human arrogance destroyed. Then the LORD alone will be exalted. ₁₂On that day the LORD Almighty will humble everyone who is powerful, everyone who is proud and conceited. ₁₃He will destroy the tall cedars of Lebanon and all the oaks in the land of Bashan. ₁₄He will level the high mountains and hills, ₁₅every high tower, and the walls of every fortress. ₁₆He will sink even the largest and most beautiful ships. _17-18Human pride will be ended, and human arrogance will be destroyed. Idols will completely disappear, and the LORD alone will be exalted on that day.

₁₉People will hide in caves in the rocky hills or dig holes in the ground to try to escape from the LORD's anger and to hide from his power and glory, when he comes to shake the earth. ₂₀When that day comes, they will throw away the gold and silver idols they have made, and abandon them to the moles and the bats. ₂₁When the LORD comes to shake the earth, people will hide in holes and caves in the rocky hills to try to escape from his anger and to hide from his power and glory.

₂₂Put no more confidence in mortals. What are they worth?

₁Now the Lord, the Almighty LORD, is about to take away from Jerusalem and Judah everything and everyone that the people depend on. He is going to take away their food and their water, ₂their heroes and their soldiers, their judges and their prophets, their fortune tellers and their statesmen, ₃their military and civilian leaders, their politicians and everyone who uses magic to control events. ₄The LORD will let the people be governed by immature boys. ₅Everyone will take advantage of everyone else. Young people will not respect their elders, and worthless people will not respect their superiors.

₆A time will come when the members of a clan will choose one of their number and say to him, “You at least have something to wear, so be our leader in this time of trouble.”

₇But he will answer, “Not me! I can't help you. I haven't any food or clothes either. Don't make me your leader!”

₈Yes, Jerusalem is doomed! Judah is collapsing! Everything they say and do is against the LORD; they openly insult God himself. ₉Their prejudices will be held against them. They sin as openly as the people of Sodom did. They are doomed, and they have brought it on themselves.

₁₀The righteous will be happy, and things will go well for them. They will be able to enjoy what they have worked for. ₁₁But evil people are doomed; what they have done to others will now be done to them.

₁₂Moneylenders oppress my people, and their creditors cheat them.

My people, your leaders are misleading you, so that you do not know which way to turn.

₁₃The LORD is ready to state his case; he is ready to judge his people. ₁₄The LORD is bringing the elders and leaders of his people to judgement. He makes this accusation: “You have plundered vineyards, and your houses are full of what you have taken from the poor. ₁₅You have no right to crush my people and take advantage of the poor. I, the Sovereign LORD Almighty, have spoken.”

₁₆The LORD said, “Look how proud the women of Jerusalem are! They walk along with their noses in the air. They are always flirting. They take dainty little steps, and the bracelets on their ankles jingle. ₁₇But I will punish them — I will shave their heads and leave them bald.”

₁₈A day is coming when the Lord will take away from the women of Jerusalem everything they are so proud of — the ornaments they wear on their ankles, on their heads, on their necks, ₁₉and on their wrists. He will take away their veils ₂₀and their hats; the magic charms they wear on their arms and at their waists; ₂₁the rings they wear on their fingers and in their noses; ₂₂all their fine robes, gowns, cloaks, and purses; ₂₃their revealing garments, their linen handkerchiefs, and the scarves and long veils they wear on their heads.

₂₄Instead of using perfumes, they will stink; instead of fine belts, they will wear coarse ropes; instead of having beautiful hair, they will be bald; instead of fine clothes, they will be dressed in rags; their beauty will be turned to shame!

₂₅The men of the city, yes, even the strongest men, will be killed in war. ₂₆The city gates will mourn and cry, and the city itself will be like a woman sitting on the ground, stripped naked.

₁When that time comes, seven women will grab hold of one man and say, “We can feed and clothe ourselves, but please let us say you are our husband, so that we won't have to endure the shame of being unmarried.”

₂The time is coming when the LORD will make every plant and tree in the land grow large and beautiful. All the people of Israel who survive will take delight and pride in the crops that the land produces. ₃Everyone who is left in Jerusalem, whom God has chosen for survival, will be called holy. ₄By his power the Lord will judge and purify the nation and wash away the guilt of Jerusalem and the blood that has been shed there. ₅Then over Mount Zion and over all who are gathered there, the LORD will send a cloud in the daytime and smoke and a bright flame at night. God's glory will cover and protect the whole city. ₆His glory will shade the city from the heat of the day and make it a place of safety, sheltered from the rain and storm.

₃So now my friend says, “You people who live in Jerusalem and Judah, judge between my vineyard and me. ₄Is there anything I failed to do for it? Then why did it produce sour grapes and not the good grapes I expected?

₅“This is what I am going to do to my vineyard; I will take away the hedge round it, break down the wall that protects it, and let wild animals eat it and trample it down. ₆I will let it be overgrown with weeds. I will not prune the vines or hoe the ground; instead I will let briars and thorns cover it. I will even forbid the clouds to let rain fall on it.”

₈You are doomed! You buy more houses and fields to add to those you already have. Soon there will be nowhere for anyone else to live, and you alone will live in the land. ₉I have heard the LORD Almighty say, “All these big, fine houses will be empty ruins. ₁₀The grapevines growing on ten hectares of land will yield only eight litres of wine. 180 litres of seed will produce only eighteen litres of corn.”

₁₁You are doomed! You get up early in the morning to start drinking, and you spend long evenings getting drunk. ₁₂At your feasts you have harps and tambourines and flutes — and wine. But you don't understand what the LORD is doing, ₁₃and so you will be carried away as prisoners. Your leaders will starve to death, and the common people will die of thirst. ₁₄The world of the dead is hungry for them, and it opens its mouth wide. It gulps down the nobles of Jerusalem along with the noisy crowd of common people.

₁₅Everyone will be disgraced, and all who are proud will be humbled. ₁₆But the LORD Almighty shows his greatness by doing what is right, and he reveals his holiness by judging his people. ₁₇In the ruins of the cities lambs will eat grass and young goats will find pasture.

₁₈You are doomed! You are unable to break free from your sins. ₁₉You say, “Let the LORD hurry up and do what he says he will, so that we can see it. Let Israel's holy God carry out his plans; let's see what he has in mind.”

₂₀You are doomed! You call evil good and call good evil. You turn darkness into light and light into darkness. You make what is bitter sweet, and what is sweet you make bitter.

₂₁You are doomed! You think you are wise, so very clever.

₂₂You are doomed! Heroes of the wine bottle! Brave and fearless when it comes to mixing drinks! ₂₃But for just a bribe you let the guilty go free, and you prevent the innocent from getting justice. ₂₄So now, just as straw and dry grass shrivel and burn in the fire, your roots will rot and your blossoms will dry up and blow away, because you have rejected what the LORD Almighty, Israel's holy God, has taught us. ₂₅The LORD is angry with his people and has stretched out his hand to punish them. The mountains will shake, and the bodies of those who die will be left in the streets like rubbish. Yet even then the LORD's anger will not be ended, but his hand will still be stretched out to punish.

₂₆The LORD gives a signal to call for a distant nation. He whistles for them to come from the ends of the earth. And here they come, swiftly, quickly! ₂₇None of them grows tired; none of them stumbles. They never doze or sleep. Not a belt is loose; not a sandal strap is broken. ₂₈Their arrows are sharp, and their bows are ready to shoot. Their horses' hooves are as hard as flint, and their chariot-wheels turn like a whirlwind. ₂₉The soldiers roar like lions that have killed an animal and are carrying it off where no one can take it away from them.

₃₀When that day comes, they will roar over Israel as loudly as the sea. Look at this country! Darkness and distress! The light is swallowed by darkness.

₁And Saul approved of his murder.

That very day the church in Jerusalem began to suffer cruel persecution. All the believers, except the apostles, were scattered throughout the provinces of Judea and Samaria. ₂Some devout men buried Stephen, mourning for him with loud cries.

₃But Saul tried to destroy the church; going from house to house, he dragged out the believers, both men and women, and threw them into jail.

₄The believers who were scattered went everywhere, preaching the message. ₅Philip went to the principal city in Samaria and preached the Messiah to the people there. ₆The crowds paid close attention to what Philip said, as they listened to him and saw the miracles that he performed. ₇Evil spirits came out from many people with a loud cry, and many paralysed and lame people were healed. ₈So there was great joy in that city.

₉A man named Simon lived there, who for some time had astounded the Samaritans with his magic. He claimed that he was someone great, ₁₀and everyone in the city, from all classes of society, paid close attention to him. “He is that power of God known as ‘The Great Power’,” they said. ₁₁They paid this attention to him because for such a long time he had astonished them with his magic. ₁₂But when they believed Philip's message about the good news of the Kingdom of God and about Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. ₁₃Simon himself also believed; and after being baptized, he stayed close to Philip and was astounded when he saw the great wonders and miracles that were being performed.

₁₄The apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had received the word of God, so they sent Peter and John to them. ₁₅When they arrived, they prayed for the believers that they might receive the Holy Spirit. ₁₆For the Holy Spirit had not yet come down on any of them; they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. ₁₇Then Peter and John placed their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

₁₈Simon saw that the Spirit had been given to the believers when the apostles placed their hands on them. So he offered money to Peter and John, ₁₉and said, “Give this power to me too, so that anyone I place my hands on will receive the Holy Spirit.”

₂₀But Peter answered him, “May you and your money go to hell, for thinking that you can buy God's gift with money! ₂₁You have no part or share in our work, because your heart is not right in God's sight. ₂₂Repent, then, of this evil plan of yours, and pray to the Lord that he will forgive you for thinking such a thing as this. ₂₃For I see that you are full of bitter envy and are a prisoner of sin.”

₂₄Simon said to Peter and John, “Please pray to the Lord for me, so that none of these things you spoke of will happen to me.”

₂₅After they had given their testimony and proclaimed the Lord's message, Peter and John went back to Jerusalem. On their way they preached the Good News in many villages of Samaria.

₂₆An angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get ready and go south to the road that goes from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This road is not used nowadays.) _27-28So Philip got ready and went. Now an Ethiopian eunuch, who was an important official in charge of the treasury of the queen of Ethiopia, was on his way home. He had been to Jerusalem to worship God and was going back home in his carriage. As he rode along, he was reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah. ₂₉The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over to that carriage and stay close to it.” ₃₀Philip ran over and heard him reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah. He asked him, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

₃₁The official replied, “How can I understand unless someone explains it to me?” And he invited Philip to climb up and sit in the carriage with him. ₃₂The passage of scripture which he was reading was this:

₃₄The official asked Philip, “Tell me, of whom is the prophet saying this? Of himself or of someone else?” ₃₅Then Philip began to speak; starting from this passage of scripture, he told him the Good News about Jesus. ₃₆As they travelled down the road, they came to a place where there was some water, and the official said, “Here is some water. What is to keep me from being baptized?”

₃₈The official ordered the carriage to stop, and both Philip and the official went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. ₃₉When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away. The official did not see him again, but continued on his way, full of joy. ₄₀Philip found himself in Azotus; he went on to Caesarea, and on the way he preached the Good News in every town.

₁In the beginning the Word already existed; the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ₂From the very beginning the Word was with God. ₃Through him God made all things; not one thing in all creation was made without him. ₄The Word was the source of life, and this life brought light to humanity. ₅The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never put it out.

₆God sent his messenger, a man named John, ₇who came to tell people about the light, so that all should hear the message and believe. ₈He himself was not the light; he came to tell about the light. ₉This was the real light — the light that comes into the world and shines on everyone.

₁₀The Word was in the world, and though God made the world through him, yet the world did not recognize him. ₁₁He came to his own country, but his own people did not receive him. ₁₂Some, however, did receive him and believed in him; so he gave them the right to become God's children. ₁₃They did not become God's children by natural means, that is, by being born as the children of a human father; God himself was their Father.

₁₄The Word became a human being and, full of grace and truth, lived among us. We saw his glory, the glory which he received as the Father's only Son.

₁₅John spoke about him. He cried out, “This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘He comes after me, but he is greater than I am, because he existed before I was born.’ ”

₁₆Out of the fullness of his grace he has blessed us all, giving us one blessing after another. ₁₇God gave the Law through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ₁₈No one has ever seen God. The only Son, who is the same as God and is at the Father's side, he has made him known.

₁₉The Jewish authorities in Jerusalem sent some priests and Levites to John, to ask him, “Who are you?”

₂₀John did not refuse to answer, but spoke out openly and clearly, saying: “I am not the Messiah.”

₂₁“Who are you, then?” they asked. “Are you Elijah?”

“No, I am not,” John answered.

“Are you the Prophet?” they asked.

“No,” he replied.

₂₂“Then tell us who you are,” they said. “We have to take an answer back to those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?”

₂₃John answered by quoting the prophet Isaiah:

₂₄The messengers, who had been sent by the Pharisees, ₂₅then asked John, “If you are not the Messiah nor Elijah nor the Prophet, why do you baptize?”

₂₆John answered, “I baptize with water, but among you stands the one you do not know. ₂₇He is coming after me, but I am not good enough even to untie his sandals.”

₂₈All this happened in Bethany on the east side of the River Jordan, where John was baptizing.

₂₉The next day John saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “There is the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! ₃₀This is the one I was talking about when I said, ‘A man is coming after me, but he is greater than I am, because he existed before I was born.’ ₃₁I did not know who he would be, but I came baptizing with water in order to make him known to the people of Israel.”

₃₂And John gave this testimony: “I saw the Spirit come down like a dove from heaven and stay on him. ₃₃I still did not know that he was the one, but God, who sent me to baptize with water, had said to me, ‘You will see the Spirit come down and stay on a man; he is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ ₃₄I have seen it,” said John, “and I tell you that he is the Son of God.”

₃₅The next day John was standing there again with two of his disciples, ₃₆when he saw Jesus walking by. “There is the Lamb of God!” he said.

₃₇The two disciples heard him say this and went with Jesus. ₃₈Jesus turned, saw them following him, and asked, “What are you looking for?”

They answered, “Where do you live, Rabbi?” (This word means “Teacher”.)

₃₉“Come and see,” he answered. (It was then about four o'clock in the afternoon.) So they went with him and saw where he lived, and spent the rest of that day with him.

₄₀One of them was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. ₄₁At once he found his brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah.” (This word means “Christ”.) ₄₂Then he took Simon to Jesus.

Jesus looked at him and said, “Your name is Simon son of John, but you will be called Cephas.” (This is the same as Peter and means “a rock”.)

₄₃The next day Jesus decided to go to Galilee. He found Philip and said to him, “Come with me!” ₄₄(Philip was from Bethsaida, the town where Andrew and Peter lived.) ₄₅Philip found Nathanael and told him, “We have found the one whom Moses wrote about in the book of the Law and whom the prophets also wrote about. He is Jesus son of Joseph, from Nazareth.”

₄₆“Can anything good come from Nazareth?” Nathanael asked.

“Come and see,” answered Philip.

₄₇When Jesus saw Nathanael coming to him, he said about him, “Here is a real Israelite; there is nothing false in him!”

₄₈Nathanael asked him, “How do you know me?”

Jesus answered, “I saw you when you were under the fig tree before Philip called you.”

₄₉“Teacher,” answered Nathanael, “you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!”

₅₀Jesus said, “Do you believe just because I told you I saw you when you were under the fig tree? You will see much greater things than this!” ₅₁And he said to them, “I am telling you the truth: you will see heaven open and God's angels going up and coming down on the Son of Man.”