Isaiah 65

¹ I have let myself be approached by those who did not consult me, I have let myself be found by thosewho did not seek me. I said, 'Here I am, here I am!' to a nation that did not invoke my name.

² Each day I stretched out my hands to a rebel ious people who fol ow a way which is not good, as thefancy takes them;

³ a people constantly provoking me to my face by sacrificing in gardens, burning incense on bricks,

⁴ living in tombs, spending the night in dark corners, eating the meat of pigs, putting unclean foods ontheir plates.

⁵ 'Keep your distance,' they say, 'do not touch me, lest my sanctity come near you!' Such words are likestifling smoke to me, an ever-burning fire.

⁶ Look, it is inscribed before me: I shal not be silent until I have repaid them, repaid them in ful ,

⁷ punished your guilt and your ancestors' guilt together, Yahweh declares. For having burnt incense onthe mountains and insulted me on the hil s, I shal pay them back in ful for what they have done.

⁸ Yahweh says this: As when a bunch of grapes is found stil to have juice in it, people say, 'Do notdestroy it, for it contains a blessing,' so I shall act for my servants' sake, I shal not destroy them all.

⁹ I shal produce descendants from Jacob and heirs to my mountains from Judah, my chosen ones wilown them and my servants wil live there.

¹⁰ Sharon wil be a pasture for flocks, the Val ey of Achor a feeding ground for cattle, for those of mypeople who have sought me.

¹¹ But as for those of you who abandon Yahweh, who forget my holy mountain, who lay the table forGad, who fil cups of mixed wine for Meni,

¹² you I shal destine to the sword and al of you wil stoop to be slaughtered, because I cal ed and youwould not answer, I spoke and you would not listen; you have done what I consider evil, you chose to do whatdispleases me.

¹³ Therefore Lord Yahweh says this: You will see my servants eating while you go hungry; you will seemy servants drinking while you go thirsty; you wil see my servants rejoicing while you are put to shame;

¹⁴ you will hear my servants shouting for joy of heart, while you shriek for sorrow of heart and howl with abroken spirit.

¹⁵ And you wil leave your name behind as a curse for my chosen ones, 'May Lord Yahweh strike youdead!' But to his servants he wil give another name.

¹⁶ Whoever blesses himself on earth wil bless himself by the God of truth, and whoever swears an oathon earth will swear by the God of truth, for past troubles will be forgotten and hidden from my eyes.

¹⁷ For look, I am going to create new heavens and a new earth, and the past will not be rememberedand will come no more to mind.

¹⁸ Rather be joyful, be glad for ever at what I am creating, for look, I am creating Jerusalem to be 'Joy'and my people to be 'Gladness'.

¹⁹ I shal be joyful in Jerusalem and I shal rejoice in my people. No more will the sound of weeping beheard there, nor the sound of a shriek;

²⁰ never again wil there be an infant there who lives only a few days, nor an old man who does not runhis ful course; for the youngest wil die at a hundred, and at a hundred the sinner wil be accursed.

²¹ They will build houses and live in them, they wil plant vineyards and eat their fruit.

²² They will not build for others to live in, or plant for others to eat; for the days of my people wil be likethe days of a tree, and my chosen ones wil themselves use what they have made.

²³ They will not toil in vain, nor bear children destined to disaster, for they are the race of Yahweh'sblessed ones and so are their offspring.

²⁴ Thus, before they cal I shal answer, before they stop speaking I shal have heard.

²⁵ The wolf and the young lamb wil feed together, the lion wil eat hay like the ox, and dust be theserpent's food. No hurt, no harm wil be done on al my holy mountain, Yahweh says.