| King James Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Woe to thee that spoilest, and thou wast not spoiled; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! when thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee. | 1What sorrow awaits you Assyrians, who have destroyed others but have never been destroyed yourselves. You betray others, but you have never been betrayed. When you are done destroying, you will be destroyed. When you are done betraying, you will be betrayed. |
| 2O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble. | 2But LORD, be merciful to us, for we have waited for you. Be our strong arm each day and our salvation in times of trouble. |
| 3At the noise of the tumult the people fled; at the lifting up of thyself the nations were scattered. | 3The enemy runs at the sound of your voice. When you stand up, the nations flee! |
| 4And your spoil shall be gathered like the gathering of the caterpiller: as the running to and fro of locusts shall he run upon them. | 4Just as caterpillars and locusts strip the fields and vines, so the fallen army of Assyria will be stripped! |
| 5The LORD is exalted; for he dwelleth on high: he hath filled Zion with judgment and righteousness. | 5Though the LORD is very great and lives in heaven, he will make Jerusalem his home of justice and righteousness. |
| 6And wisdom and knowledge shall be the stability of thy times, and strength of salvation: the fear of the LORD is his treasure. | 6In that day he will be your sure foundation, providing a rich store of salvation, wisdom, and knowledge. The fear of the LORD will be your treasure. |
| 7Behold, their valiant ones shall cry without: the ambassadors of peace shall weep bitterly. | 7But now your brave warriors weep in public. Your ambassadors of peace cry in bitter disappointment. |
| 8The highways lie waste, the wayfaring man ceaseth: he hath broken the covenant, he hath despised the cities, he regardeth no man. | 8Your roads are deserted; no one travels them anymore. The Assyrians have broken their peace treaty and care nothing for the promises they made before witnesses. They have no respect for anyone. |
| 9The earth mourneth and languisheth: Lebanon is ashamed and hewn down: Sharon is like a wilderness; and Bashan and Carmel shake off their fruits. | 9The land of Israel wilts in mourning. Lebanon withers with shame. The plain of Sharon is now a wilderness. Bashan and Carmel have been plundered. |
| 10Now will I rise, saith the LORD; now will I be exalted; now will I lift up myself. | 10But the LORD says: “Now I will stand up. Now I will show my power and might. |
| 11Ye shall conceive chaff, ye shall bring forth stubble: your breath, as fire, shall devour you. | 11You Assyrians produce nothing but dry grass and stubble. Your own breath will turn to fire and consume you. |
| 12And the people shall be as the burnings of lime: as thorns cut up shall they be burned in the fire. | 12Your people will be burned up completely, like thornbushes cut down and tossed in a fire. |
| 13Hear, ye that are far off, what I have done; and, ye that are near, acknowledge my might. | 13Listen to what I have done, you nations far away! And you that are near, acknowledge my might!” |
| 14The sinners in Zion are afraid; fearfulness hath surprised the hypocrites. Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire? who among us shall dwell with everlasting burnings? | 14The sinners in Jerusalem shake with fear. Terror seizes the godless. “Who can live with this devouring fire?” they cry. “Who can survive this all-consuming fire?” |
| 15He that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes, that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil; | 15Those who are honest and fair, who refuse to profit by fraud, who stay far away from bribes, who refuse to listen to those who plot murder, who shut their eyes to all enticement to do wrong— |
| 16He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. | 16these are the ones who will dwell on high. The rocks of the mountains will be their fortress. Food will be supplied to them, and they will have water in abundance. |
| 17Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off. | 17Your eyes will see the king in all his splendor, and you will see a land that stretches into the distance. |
| 18Thine heart shall meditate terror. Where is the scribe? where is the receiver? where is he that counted the towers? | 18You will think back to this time of terror, asking, “Where are the Assyrian officers who counted our towers? Where are the bookkeepers who recorded the plunder taken from our fallen city?” |
| 19Thou shalt not see a fierce people, a people of a deeper speech than thou canst perceive; of a stammering tongue, that thou canst not understand. | 19You will no longer see these fierce, violent people with their strange, unknown language. |
| 20Look upon Zion, the city of our solemnities: thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken. | 20Instead, you will see Zion as a place of holy festivals. You will see Jerusalem, a city quiet and secure. It will be like a tent whose ropes are taut and whose stakes are firmly fixed. |
| 21But there the glorious LORD will be unto us a place of broad rivers and streams; wherein shall go no galley with oars, neither shall gallant ship pass thereby. | 21The LORD will be our Mighty One. He will be like a wide river of protection that no enemy can cross, that no enemy ship can sail upon. |
| 22For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us. | 22For the LORD is our judge, our lawgiver, and our king. He will care for us and save us. |
| 23Thy tacklings are loosed; they could not well strengthen their mast, they could not spread the sail: then is the prey of a great spoil divided; the lame take the prey. | 23The enemies’ sails hang loose on broken masts with useless tackle. Their treasure will be divided by the people of God. Even the lame will take their share! |
| 24And the inhabitant shall not say, I am sick: the people that dwell therein shall be forgiven their iniquity. | 24The people of Israel will no longer say, “We are sick and helpless,” for the LORD will forgive their sins. |
| King James Bible, text courtesy of BibleProtector.com. | Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved. |
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