NAS - Isaiah Chapter 24 to 26

24 Judgment on the Earth

¹Behold, the LORD lays the earth waste, devastates it, distorts its surface and scatters its inhabitants. ²And the people will be like the priest, the servant like his master, the maid like her mistress, the buyer like the seller, the lender like the borrower, the creditor like the debtor. ³The earth will be completely laid waste and completely despoiled, for the LORD has spoken this word. ⁴The earth mourns and withers, the world fades and withers, the exalted of the people of the earth fade away. ⁵The earth is also polluted by its inhabitants, for they transgressed laws, violated statutes, broke the everlasting covenant. ⁶Therefore, a curse devours the earth, and those who live in it are held guilty. Therefore, the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men are left.

⁷The new wine mourns, The vine decays, All the merry-hearted sigh. ⁸ The gaiety of tambourines ceases, The noise of revelers stops, The gaiety of the harp ceases. ⁹They do not drink wine with song; Strong drink is bitter to those who drink it. ¹⁰The city of chaos is broken down; Every house is shut up so that none may enter. ¹¹ There is an outcry in the streets concerning the wine; All joy turns to gloom. The gaiety of the earth is banished. ¹² Desolation is left in the city And the gate is battered to ruins. ¹³ For thus it will be in the midst of the earth among the peoples, As the shaking of an olive tree, As the gleanings when the grape harvest is over. ¹⁴ They raise their voices, they shout for joy; They cry out from the west concerning the majesty of the LORD. ¹⁵ Therefore glorify the LORD in the east, The name of the LORD, the God of Israel, In the coastlands of the sea. ¹⁶From the ends of the earth we hear songs, "Glory to the Righteous One," But I say, "Woe to me! Woe to me! Alas for me! The treacherous deal treacherously, And the treacherous deal very treacherously." ¹⁷ Terror and pit and snare Confront you, O inhabitant of the earth. ¹⁸ Then it will be that he who flees the report of disaster will fall into the pit, And he who climbs out of the pit will be caught in the snare; For the windows above are opened, and the foundations of the earth shake. ¹⁹ The earth is broken asunder, The earth is split through, The earth is shaken violently. ²⁰The earth reels to and fro like a drunkard And it totters like a shack, For its transgression is heavy upon it, And it will fall, never to rise again. ²¹ So it will happen in that day, That the LORD will punish the host of heaven on high, And the kings of the earth on earth. ²² They will be gathered together Like prisoners in the dungeon, And will be confined in prison; And after many days they will be punished. ²³ Then the moon will be abashed and the sun ashamed, For the LORD of hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, And His glory will be before His elders.

25 Song of Praise for God's Favor

¹O LORD, You are my God; I will exalt You, I will give thanks to Your name; For You have worked wonders, Plans formed long ago, with perfect faithfulness. ² For You have made a city into a heap, A fortified city into a ruin; A palace of strangers is a city no more, It will never be rebuilt. ³ Therefore a strong people will glorify You; Cities of ruthless nations will revere You. ⁴ For You have been a defense for the helpless, A defense for the needy in his distress, A refuge from the storm, a shade from the heat; For the breath of the ruthless Is like a rain storm against a wall. ⁵Like heat in drought, You subdue the uproar of aliens; Like heat by the shadow of a cloud, the song of the ruthless is silenced.

⁶The LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; A banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, And refined, aged wine. ⁷ And on this mountain He will swallow up the covering which is over all peoples, Even the veil which is stretched over all nations. ⁸He will swallow up death for all time, And the Lord GOD will wipe tears away from all faces, And He will remove the reproach of His people from all the earth; For the LORD has spoken. ⁹ And it will be said in that day, "Behold, this is our God for whom we have waited that He might save us. This is the LORD for whom we have waited; Let us rejoice and be glad in His salvation." ¹⁰ For the hand of the LORD will rest on this mountain, And Moab will be trodden down in his place As straw is trodden down in the water of a manure pile. ¹¹ And he will spread out his hands in the middle of it As a swimmer spreads out his hands to swim, But the Lord will lay low his pride together with the trickery of his hands. ¹²The unassailable fortifications of your walls He will bring down, Lay low and cast to the ground, even to the dust.

26 Song of Trust in God's Protection

¹In that day this song will be sung in the land of Judah: "We have a strong city; He sets up walls and ramparts for security. ² "Open the gates, that the righteous nation may enter, The one that remains faithful. ³ "The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You. ⁴ "Trust in the LORD forever, For in GOD the LORD, we have an everlasting Rock. ⁵ "For He has brought low those who dwell on high, the unassailable city; He lays it low, He lays it low to the ground, He casts it to the dust. ⁶"The foot will trample it, The feet of the afflicted, the steps of the helpless."

⁷The way of the righteous is smooth; O Upright One, make the path of the righteous level. ⁸ Indeed, while following the way of Your judgments, O LORD, We have waited for You eagerly; Your name, even Your memory, is the desire of our souls. ⁹ At night my soul longs for You, Indeed, my spirit within me seeks You diligently; For when the earth experiences Your judgments The inhabitants of the world learn righteousness. ¹⁰ Though the wicked is shown favor, He does not learn righteousness; He deals unjustly in the land of uprightness, And does not perceive the majesty of the LORD.

¹¹O LORD, Your hand is lifted up yet they do not see it. They see Your zeal for the people and are put to shame; Indeed, fire will devour Your enemies. ¹² LORD, You will establish peace for us, Since You have also performed for us all our works. ¹³ O LORD our God, other masters besides You have ruled us; But through You alone we confess Your name. ¹⁴ The dead will not live, the departed spirits will not rise; Therefore You have punished and destroyed them, And You have wiped out all remembrance of them. ¹⁵ You have increased the nation, O LORD, You have increased the nation, You are glorified; You have extended all the borders of the land. ¹⁶ O LORD, they sought You in distress; They could only whisper a prayer, Your chastening was upon them. ¹⁷As the pregnant woman approaches the time to give birth, She writhes and cries out in her labor pains, Thus were we before You, O LORD. ¹⁸ We were pregnant, we writhed in labor, We gave birth, as it seems, only to wind. We could not accomplish deliverance for the earth, Nor were inhabitants of the world born. ¹⁹ Your dead will live; Their corpses will rise. You who lie in the dust, awake and shout for joy, For your dew is as the dew of the dawn, And the earth will give birth to the departed spirits.

²⁰Come, my people, enter into your rooms And close your doors behind you; Hide for a little while Until indignation runs its course. ²¹ For behold, the LORD is about to come out from His place To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity; And the earth will reveal her bloodshed And will no longer cover her slain.