Devarim

This translation was taken from the JPS Tanakh

Isaiah 1:1-27

Chapter 1

¹ The prophecies of Isaiah son of Amoz, who prophesied concerning Judah and Jerusalem in the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

² Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth,
For the Lord has spoken:
“I reared children and brought them up — 
And they have rebelled against Me!
³ An ox knows its owner,
An ass its master’s crib:
Israel does not know,
My people takes no thought.”

⁴ Ah, sinful nation!
People laden with iniquity!
Brood of evildoers!
Depraved children!
They have forsaken the Lord,
Spurned the Holy One of Israel,
Turned their backs [on Him].

⁵ Why do you seek further beatings,
That you continue to offend?
Every head is ailing,
And every heart is sick.
⁶ From head to foot
No spot is sound:
All bruises, and welts,
And festering sores — 
Not pressed out, not bound up,
Not softened with oil.
⁷ Your land is a waste,
Your cities burnt down;
Before your eyes, the yield of your soil
Is consumed by strangers — 
A wasteland as overthrown by strangers!
⁸ Fair Zion is left
Like a booth in a vineyard,
Like a hut in a cucumber field,
Like a city beleaguered.
⁹ Had not the Lord of Hosts
Left us some survivors,
We should be like Sodom,
Another Gomorrah.

¹⁰ Hear the word of the Lord,
You chieftains of Sodom;
Give ear to our God’s instruction,
You folk of Gomorrah!
¹¹ “What need have I of all your sacrifices?”
Says the Lord.
“I am sated with burnt offerings of rams,
And suet of fatlings,
And blood of bulls;
And I have no delight
In lambs and he-goats.
¹² That you come to appear before Me — 
Who asked that of you?
Trample My courts
¹³ no more;
Bringing oblations is futile,
Incense is offensive to Me.
New moon and sabbath,
Proclaiming of solemnities,
Assemblies with iniquity,
I cannot abide.

¹⁴ Your new moons and fixed seasons
Fill Me with loathing;
They are become a burden to Me,
I cannot endure them.
¹⁵ And when you lift up your hands,
I will turn My eyes away from you;
Though you pray at length,
I will not listen.
Your hands are stained with crime — 
¹⁶ Wash yourselves clean;
Put your evil doings
Away from My sight.
Cease to do evil;
¹⁷ Learn to do good.
Devote yourselves to justice;
Aid the wronged.
Uphold the rights of the orphan;
Defend the cause of the widow.

¹⁸ “Come, let us reach an understanding,

–declares the Lord–

Be your sins like crimson,
They can turn snow-white;
Be they red as dyed wool,
They can become like fleece.”
¹⁹ If, then, you agree and give heed,
You will eat the good things of the earth;
²⁰ But if you refuse and disobey,
You will be devoured [by] the sword. — 
For it was the Lord who spoke.

²¹ Alas, she has become a harlot,
The faithful city
That was filled with justice,
Where righteousness dwelt — 
But now murderers.
²² Your silver has turned to dross;
Your wine is cut with water.
²³ Your rulers are rogues
And cronies of thieves,
Every one avid for presents
And greedy for gifts;
They do not judge the case of the orphan,
And the widow’s cause never reaches them.

²⁴ Assuredly, this is the declaration
Of the Sovereign, the Lord of Hosts,
The Mighty One of Israel:
“Ah, I will get satisfaction from My foes;
I will wreak vengeance on My enemies!
²⁵ I will turn My hand against you,
And smelt out your dross as with lye,
And remove all your slag:
²⁶ I will restore your magistrates as of old,
And your counselors as of yore.
After that you shall be called
City of Righteousness, Faithful City.”

²⁷ Zion shall be saved in the judgment;
Her repentant ones, in the retribution.

Taken from Tanakh, The Holy Scriptures, (Philadelphia, Jerusalem: Jewish Publication Society) 1985.
Used by permission of The Jewish Publication Society. Copyright © 1962, 1992
Third Edition by the Jewish Publication Society.
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