Fluent Translation · Read & Reflect
Isaiah 32
A Righteous King and the Spirit from Above
Look! A king will reign in righteousness,
and officials will govern with justice.
Each will be like a shelter from wind,
a refuge from a storm,
like streams in a dry place,
like a great rock’s shade in a weary land.
The eyes of those who see will no longer be closed,
and the ears of those who hear will pay attention.
Impulsive minds will understand and know;
stammering tongues will speak readily and clearly.
A fool will no longer be called noble,
nor a scoundrel be described as generous.
For a fool speaks folly and plots wrongdoing in his heart:
practicing godlessness, speaking error about the LORD,
leaving the hungry empty
and depriving the thirsty of drink.
The scoundrel’s tools are evil.
He devises schemes to ruin the poor with lying words,
even when the needy plead a just case.
But the noble person devises noble things
and stands by noble things.
Rise, women at ease, and hear my voice!
Confident daughters, listen to what I say!
In a year and some days you confident women will tremble,
for the grape harvest will fail
and no fruit gathering will come.
Shudder, women at ease! Tremble, confident women!
Strip yourselves bare
and tie sackcloth around your waists.
Beat your breasts
for the pleasant fields, for the fruitful vine,
for my people’s soil, overgrown with thorns and briers,
for every joyful house in the jubilant city.
The palace is abandoned, the noisy city deserted.
Citadel and watchtower become caves forever,
a delight for wild donkeys, pasture for flocks,
until a spirit is poured on us from on high.
Then the wilderness becomes fruitful land,
and fruitful land is regarded as forest.
Justice will dwell in the wilderness,
and righteousness live in fruitful land.
The work of righteousness will be peace,
its effect quietness and confidence forever.
My people will live in a home of peace,
in secure dwellings and restful places free from fear.
Though hail brings the forest down
and the city is brought very low,
happy are you who sow beside every water,
letting ox and donkey roam free.