Isaiah 57 | King James Version

King James Version

1 The righteous perisheth, and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away, none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come . 2 He shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness. 3 But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore. 4 Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, 5 Enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks? 6 Among the smooth stones of the stream is thy portion; they, they are thy lot: even to them hast thou poured a drink offering, thou hast offered a meat offering. Should I receive comfort in these? 7 Upon a lofty and high mountain hast thou set thy bed: even thither wentest thou up to offer sacrifice. 8 Behind the doors also and the posts hast thou set up thy remembrance: for thou hast discovered thyself to another than me, and art gone up; thou hast enlarged thy bed, and made thee a covenant with them; thou lovedst their bed where thou sawest it . 9 And thou wentest to the king with ointment, and didst increase thy perfumes, and didst send thy messengers far off, and didst debase thyself even unto hell. 10 Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved. 11 And of whom hast thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and hast not remembered me, nor laid it to thy heart? have not I held my peace even of old, and thou fearest me not? 12 I will declare thy righteousness, and thy works; for they shall not profit thee. 13 When thou criest, let thy companies deliver thee; but the wind shall carry them all away; vanity shall take them : but he that putteth his trust in me shall possess the land, and shall inherit my holy mountain; 14 And shall say, Cast ye up, cast ye up, prepare the way, take up the stumblingblock out of the way of my people. 15 For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place , with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. 16 For I will not contend for ever, neither will I be always wroth: for the spirit should fail before me, and the souls which I have made. 17 For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly in the way of his heart. 18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him: I will lead him also, and restore comforts unto him and to his mourners. 19 I create the fruit of the lips; Peace, peace to him that is far off, and to him that is near, saith the LORD; and I will heal him. 20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. 21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked.

New International Reader’s Version

1 Those who are right with God die. And no one really cares about it. People who are faithful to the LORD are swept away by trouble. And no one understands why that happens to those who do what is right. 2 Those who lead honest lives will enjoy peace and rest when they die. 3 The LORD says, ‘Come here, you children of women who practise evil magic! You are children of prostitutes and those who commit adultery. 4 Who are you making fun of? Who are you laughing at? Who are you sticking your tongue out at? You are people who refuse to obey me. You are just a bunch of liars! 5 You burn with sinful desire among the oak trees. You worship your gods under every green tree. You sacrifice your children in the valleys. You also do it under the cliffs. 6 You have chosen some of the smooth stones in the valleys to be your gods. You have joined yourselves to them. You have even poured out drink offerings to them. You have given grain offerings to them. So why should I take pity on you? 7 You have made your bed on a very high hill. You went up there to offer your sacrifices. 8 You have set up statues to remind you of your gods. You have put them behind your doors and doorposts. You deserted me. You invited other lovers into your bed. You climbed into it and welcomed them. You made a deal with them. And you looked with desire at their naked bodies. 9 You took olive oil to the god named Molek. You took a lot of perfume along with you. You sent your messengers to places far away. You even sent them down to the place of the dead. 10 You wore yourself out with all your efforts. But you would not say, “It’s hopeless.” You received new strength. So you did not give up. 11 ‘Who are you so afraid of that you have not been faithful to me? You have not remembered me. What you do doesn’t even bother you. I have not punished you for a long time. That is why you are not afraid of me. 12 You have not done what is right or good. I will let everyone know about it. And that will not be of any benefit to you. 13 Go ahead and cry out for help to all the statues of your gods. See if they can save you! The wind will carry them off. Just a puff of air will blow them away. But anyone who comes to me for safety will receive the land. They will possess my holy mountain of Zion.’

The Lord comforts people who are sorry for their sins

14 A messenger says, ‘Build up the road! Build it up! Get it ready! Remove anything that would keep my people from coming back.’ 15 The God who is highly honoured lives for ever. His name is holy. He says, ‘I live in a high and holy place. But I also live with anyone who turns away from their sins. I live with anyone who is not proud. I give new life to them. I give it to anyone who turns away from their sins. 16 I will not find fault with my people for ever. I will not always be angry with them. If I were, I would cause their spirits to grow weak. The people I created would faint away. 17 I was very angry with them. They always longed for more and more of everything. So I punished them for that sin. I turned my face away from them because I was angry. But they kept on wanting their own way. 18 I have seen what they have done. But I will heal them. I will guide them. I will give those who mourn in Israel the comfort they had before. 19 Then they will praise me. I will give perfect peace to those who are far away and those who are near. And I will heal them,’ says the LORD. 20 But those who are evil are like the rolling sea. It never rests. Its waves toss up mud and sand. 21 ‘There is no peace for those who are evil,’ says my God.