Isaiah 2 in plain modern English. New Ground English Translation.
Time Period
~740-730 BC, during the prosperous reigns of Uzziah and Jotham before Assyria's pressure reached Judah
Location
Jerusalem, and Mount Zion, the temple hill that formed the city's high ground
Audience
The people of Judah and Jerusalem in a period of wealth and foreign trade
Situation
Isaiah sees the temple mountain raised above all others with nations streaming to it to learn God's ways, and weapons beaten into farm tools. He then turns on the present: a land full of silver, horses, and imported idols, where human pride will be brought down on a coming day of the Lord.
Key Background
Ancient peoples associated their gods with mountains, so a vision of Zion lifted highest is a claim about whose instruction the world will finally follow. Swords reforged into plow blades and spears into pruning knives reverses a real wartime practice, since a village blacksmith worked the same iron either way depending on the year. The day of the Lord was a popular idea Judeans expected to bring victory over enemies, and Isaiah turns it against his own audience, aiming it at their own arrogance.
The that son of Amoz, saw — about and
In the this will happen: The where stands will be established as the highest of all mountains, lifted above every hill — and every nation will toward it.
Many peoples will come and say, "Let's go up to the mountain of Yahweh, to the house of Jacob's God — so he can us how he us to live, and we can in his paths." Because will go out from Zion, and the word of Yahweh from Jerusalem.
He will between nations and for many peoples. They will beat their plowshares and their hooks. Nation will not raise a sword against nation, and they will never again for
People of come — let's walk in the of Yahweh.
Because you have abandoned your people, the house of Jacob — they are filled with from the East, with like the Philistines, and they make deals with foreigners' children.
Their land is full of and — their wealth has no end. Their land is full of — their have no end.
Their land is full of — they bow down to the work of their own hands, to what their own fingers have made.
So is low, each person humbled — do not lift them up.
Go into the rocks, hide in the dust — from the of Yahweh, from the of
The of humanity will be humbled, and the pride of people will be brought low. Yahweh alone will be exalted on that
Because of has reserved a day for everything proud and arrogant, for everything lifted up — it will be brought low.
For all the of tall and towering, and all the of
for all the high mountains and all the towering hills;
for every high tower and every
for all the of Tarshish and all the
The of humanity will be brought down, and the pride of people will be humbled. Yahweh alone will be exalted on that day.
And the worthless idols will
People will crawl into caves in the rocks and holes in the ground — from the terrifying presence of Yahweh, from the brilliance of his majesty, when he rises to the
On that day, people will throw away their idols of silver and their idols of gold — the ones they made for themselves to worship — they'll throw them to the and the
They will crawl into the crevices of rocks and the clefts of cliffs — from the terrifying presence of Yahweh, from the brilliance of his majesty, when he rises to shake the earth.
Stop putting your trust in humans, who have nothing but in their nostrils. What are they really worth?