Isaiah 31:4-9; Isaiah 32:1-20, NIV
Map stones: Like birds hovering overhead, the LORD Almighty will shield Jerusalem vs 5. Return to him you have so greatly revolted against, O Israelites vs 6…reject the idols of silver and gold your sinful hands have made.
Chapter 32-the Kingdom of Righteousness…;..the ears of those who hear will listen…, the mind will know and understand vs 3, 4; ..the Spirit is poured upon on us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field,…;justice will dwell in the desert and the righteousness live in the fertile field. The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever vs 16, 17
Isaiah 31:4-9, GNB
[4]The Lord said to me, “No matter how shepherds yell and shout, they can’t scare away a lion from an animal that it has killed; in the same way, there is nothing that can keep me, the Lord Almighty, from protecting Mount Zion.
[5]Just as a bird hovers over its nest to protect its young, so I, the Lord Almighty, will protect Jerusalem and defend it.”
[6]The Lord said, “People of Israel, you have sinned against me and opposed me. But now, come back to me!
[7]A time is coming when all of you will throw away the sinful idols you made out of silver and gold.
[8]Assyria will be destroyed in war, but not by human power. The Assyrians will run from battle, and their young men will be made slaves.
[9]Their emperor will run away in terror, and the officers will be so frightened that they will abandon their battle flags.” The Lord has spoken — the Lord who is worshipped in Jerusalem and whose fire burns there for sacrifices.
Isaiah 32:1-20
[1]Some day there will be a king who rules with integrity, and national leaders who govern with justice.
[2]Each of them will be like a shelter from the wind and a place to hide from storms. They will be like streams flowing in a desert, like the shadow of a giant rock in a barren land.
[3]Their eyes and ears will be open to the needs of the people.
[4]They will not be impatient any longer, but they will act with understanding and will say what they mean.
[5]No one will think that a fool is honourable or say that a scoundrel is honest.
[6]A fool speaks foolishly and thinks up evil things to do. What he does and what he says are an insult to the Lord, and he never feeds the hungry or gives thirsty people anything to drink.
[7]A stupid person is evil and does evil things; he plots to ruin the poor with lies and to prevent them getting their rights.
[8]But an honourable person acts honestly and stands firm for what is right.
[9]You women who live an easy life, free from worries, listen to what I am saying.
[10]You may be satisfied now, but this time next year you will be in despair because there will be no grapes for you to gather.
[11]You have been living an easy life, free from worries; but now, tremble with fear! Strip off your clothes and tie rags round your waist.
[12]Beat your breasts in grief because the fertile fields and the vineyards have been destroyed,
[13]and thorn bushes and briars are growing on my people’s land. Weep for all the houses where people were happy and for the city that was full of life.
[14]Even the palace will be abandoned and the capital city totally deserted. Homes and the forts that guarded them will be in ruins for ever. Wild donkeys will roam there, and sheep will find pasture there.
[15]But once more God will send us his Spirit. The waste land will become fertile, and fields will produce rich crops.
[16]Everywhere in the land righteousness and justice will be done.
[17]Because everyone will do what is right, there will be peace and security for ever.
[18]God’s people will be free from worries, and their homes peaceful and safe.
[19](But hail will fall on the forests, and the city will be torn down.)
[20]How happy everyone will be with plenty of water for the crops and safe pasture everywhere for the donkeys and cattle.