Isaiah 23

A Message about Tyre
 ¹  This message came to me concerning Tyre:

Weep, O ships of Tarshish,
  for the harbor and houses of Tyre are gone!
The rumors you heard in Cyprus [1] 
  are all true.
 ²  Mourn in silence, you people of the coast
  and you merchants of Sidon.
Your traders crossed the sea,
 ³    sailing over deep waters.
They brought you grain from Egypt [3] 
  and harvests from along the Nile.
You were the marketplace of the world.

 ⁴  But now you are put to shame, city of Sidon,
  for Tyre, the fortress of the sea, says,
"Now I am childless;
  I have no sons or daughters."
 ⁵  When Egypt hears the news about Tyre,
  there will be great sorrow.
 ⁶  Send word now to Tarshish!
  Wail, you people who live in distant lands!
 ⁷  Is this silent ruin all that is left of your once joyous city?
  What a long history was yours!
  Think of all the colonists you sent to distant places.

 ⁸  Who has brought this disaster on Tyre,
  that great creator of kingdoms?
Her traders were all princes,
  her merchants were nobles.
 ⁹  The LORD of Heaven's Armies has done it
  to destroy your pride
  and bring low all earth's nobility.
 ¹⁰  Come, people of Tarshish,
  sweep over the land like the flooding Nile,
  for Tyre is defenseless. [10] 
 ¹¹  The LORD held out his hand over the sea
  and shook the kingdoms of the earth.
He has spoken out against Phoenicia, [11] 
  ordering that her fortresses be destroyed.
 ¹²  He says, "Never again will you rejoice,
  O daughter of Sidon, for you have been crushed.
Even if you flee to Cyprus,
  you will find no rest."

 ¹³  Look at the land of Babylonia [13] —
  the people of that land are gone!
The Assyrians have handed Babylon over
  to the wild animals of the desert.
They have built siege ramps against its walls,
  torn down its palaces,
  and turned it to a heap of rubble.

 ¹⁴  Wail, O ships of Tarshish,
  for your harbor is destroyed!

   ¹⁵  For seventy years, the length of a king's life, Tyre will be forgotten. But then the city will come back to life as in the song about the prostitute:

 ¹⁶  Take a harp and walk the streets,
  you forgotten harlot.
Make sweet melody and sing your songs
  so you will be remembered again.

   ¹⁷  Yes, after seventy years the LORD will revive Tyre. But she will be no different than she was before. She will again be a prostitute to all kingdoms around the world.  ¹⁸  But in the end her profits will be given to the LORD. Her wealth will not be hoarded but will provide good food and fine clothing for the LORD's priests.

Isaiah 24

Destruction of the Earth
 ¹  Look! The LORD is about to destroy the earth
  and make it a vast wasteland.
He devastates the surface of the earth
  and scatters the people.
 ²  Priests and laypeople,
  servants and masters,
  maids and mistresses,
  buyers and sellers,
  lenders and borrowers,
  bankers and debtors—none will be spared.
 ³  The earth will be completely emptied and looted.
  The LORD has spoken!

 ⁴  The earth mourns and dries up,
  and the crops waste away and wither.
  Even the greatest people on earth waste away.
 ⁵  The earth suffers for the sins of its people,
  for they have twisted God's instructions,
violated his laws,
  and broken his everlasting covenant.
 ⁶  Therefore, a curse consumes the earth.
  Its people must pay the price for their sin.
They are destroyed by fire,
  and only a few are left alive.
 ⁷  The grapevines waste away,
  and there is no new wine.
  All the merrymakers sigh and mourn.
 ⁸  The cheerful sound of tambourines is stilled;
  the happy cries of celebration are heard no more.
  The melodious chords of the harp are silent.
 ⁹  Gone are the joys of wine and song;
  alcoholic drink turns bitter in the mouth.
 ¹⁰  The city writhes in chaos;
  every home is locked to keep out intruders.
 ¹¹  Mobs gather in the streets, crying out for wine.
  Joy has turned to gloom.
  Gladness has been banished from the land.
 ¹²  The city is left in ruins,
  its gates battered down.
 ¹³  Throughout the earth the story is the same—
  only a remnant is left,
like the stray olives left on the tree
  or the few grapes left on the vine after harvest.

 ¹⁴  But all who are left shout and sing for joy.
  Those in the west praise the LORD's majesty.
 ¹⁵  In eastern lands, give glory to the LORD.
  In the lands beyond the sea, praise the name of the LORD, the God of Israel.
 ¹⁶  We hear songs of praise from the ends of the earth,
  songs that give glory to the Righteous One!

But my heart is heavy with grief.
  Weep for me, for I wither away.
Deceit still prevails,
  and treachery is everywhere.
 ¹⁷  Terror and traps and snares will be your lot,
  you people of the earth.
 ¹⁸  Those who flee in terror will fall into a trap,
  and those who escape the trap will be caught in a snare.

Destruction falls like rain from the heavens;
  the foundations of the earth shake.
 ¹⁹  The earth has broken up.
  It has utterly collapsed;
  it is violently shaken.
 ²⁰  The earth staggers like a drunk.
  It trembles like a tent in a storm.
It falls and will not rise again,
  for the guilt of its rebellion is very heavy.

 ²¹  In that day the LORD will punish the gods in the heavens
  and the proud rulers of the nations on earth.
 ²²  They will be rounded up and put in prison.
  They will be shut up in prison
  and will finally be punished.
 ²³  Then the glory of the moon will wane,
  and the brightness of the sun will fade,
for the LORD of Heaven's Armies will rule on Mount Zion.
  He will rule in great glory in Jerusalem,
  in the sight of all the leaders of his people.

Isaiah 25

Praise for Judgment and Salvation
 ¹  O LORD, I will honor and praise your name,
  for you are my God.
You do such wonderful things!
  You planned them long ago,
  and now you have accomplished them.
 ²  You turn mighty cities into heaps of ruins.
  Cities with strong walls are turned to rubble.
Beautiful palaces in distant lands disappear
  and will never be rebuilt.
 ³  Therefore, strong nations will declare your glory;
  ruthless nations will fear you.

 ⁴  But you are a tower of refuge to the poor, O LORD,
  a tower of refuge to the needy in distress.
You are a refuge from the storm
  and a shelter from the heat.
For the oppressive acts of ruthless people
  are like a storm beating against a wall,
 ⁵    or like the relentless heat of the desert.
But you silence the roar of foreign nations.
  As the shade of a cloud cools relentless heat,
  so the boastful songs of ruthless people are stilled.

 ⁶  In Jerusalem, [6]  the LORD of Heaven's Armies
  will spread a wonderful feast
  for all the people of the world.
It will be a delicious banquet
  with clear, well-aged wine and choice meat.
 ⁷  There he will remove the cloud of gloom,
  the shadow of death that hangs over the earth.
 ⁸  He will swallow up death forever! [8] 
  The Sovereign LORD will wipe away all tears.
He will remove forever all insults and mockery
  against his land and people.
  The LORD has spoken!

 ⁹  In that day the people will proclaim,
"This is our God!
  We trusted in him, and he saved us!
This is the LORD, in whom we trusted.
  Let us rejoice in the salvation he brings!"
 ¹⁰  For the LORD's hand of blessing will rest on Jerusalem.
  But Moab will be crushed.
  It will be like straw trampled down and left to rot.
 ¹¹  God will push down Moab's people
  as a swimmer pushes down water with his hands.
He will end their pride
  and all their evil works.
 ¹²  The high walls of Moab will be demolished.
  They will be brought down to the ground,
  down into the dust.

<<  23:1 Hebrew Kittim; also in 23:12.
<<  23:3 Hebrew from Shihor, a branch of the Nile River.
<<  23:10 The meaning of the Hebrew in this verse is uncertain.
<<  23:11 Hebrew Canaan.
<<  23:13 Or Chaldea.
<<  25:6 Hebrew On this mountain; also in 25:10.
<<  25:8 Greek version reads Death is swallowed up in victory. Compare 1 Cor 15:54.

Philippians 1

Greetings from Paul
 ¹  This letter is from Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus.
  I am writing to all of God's holy people in Philippi who belong to Christ Jesus, including the elders [1]  and deacons.
   ²  May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

Paul's Thanksgiving and Prayer
 ³  Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God.  ⁴  Whenever I pray, I make my requests for all of you with joy,  ⁵  for you have been my partners in spreading the Good News about Christ from the time you first heard it until now.  ⁶  "And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns."    ⁷  So it is right that I should feel as I do about all of you, for you have a special place in my heart. You share with me the special favor of God, both in my imprisonment and in defending and confirming the truth of the Good News.  ⁸  God knows how much I love you and long for you with the tender compassion of Christ Jesus.
   ⁹  I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding.  ¹⁰  For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ's return.  ¹¹  May you always be filled with the fruit of your salvation—the righteous character produced in your life by Jesus Christ [11] —for this will bring much glory and praise to God.

Paul's Joy That Christ Is Preached
 ¹²  And I want you to know, my dear brothers and sisters, [12]  that everything that has happened to me here has helped to spread the Good News.  ¹³  For everyone here, including the whole palace guard, [13]  knows that I am in chains because of Christ.  ¹⁴  And because of my imprisonment, most of the believers [14]  here have gained confidence and boldly speak God's message [14]  without fear.
   ¹⁵  It's true that some are preaching out of jealousy and rivalry. But others preach about Christ with pure motives.  ¹⁶  They preach because they love me, for they know I have been appointed to defend the Good News.  ¹⁷  Those others do not have pure motives as they preach about Christ. They preach with selfish ambition, not sincerely, intending to make my chains more painful to me.  ¹⁸  But that doesn't matter. Whether their motives are false or genuine, the message about Christ is being preached either way, so I rejoice. And I will continue to rejoice.  ¹⁹  For I know that as you pray for me and the Spirit of Jesus Christ helps me, this will lead to my deliverance.

Paul's Life for Christ
 ²⁰  For I fully expect and hope that I will never be ashamed, but that I will continue to be bold for Christ, as I have been in the past. And I trust that my life will bring honor to Christ, whether I live or die.  ²¹  For to me, living means living for Christ, and dying is even better.  ²²  But if I live, I can do more fruitful work for Christ. So I really don't know which is better.  ²³  I'm torn between two desires: I long to go and be with Christ, which would be far better for me.  ²⁴  But for your sakes, it is better that I continue to live.
   ²⁵  Knowing this, I am convinced that I will remain alive so I can continue to help all of you grow and experience the joy of your faith.  ²⁶  And when I come to you again, you will have even more reason to take pride in Christ Jesus because of what he is doing through me.

Live as Citizens of Heaven
 ²⁷  Above all, you must live as citizens of heaven, conducting yourselves in a manner worthy of the Good News about Christ. Then, whether I come and see you again or only hear about you, I will know that you are standing together with one spirit and one purpose, fighting together for the faith, which is the Good News.  ²⁸  Don't be intimidated in any way by your enemies. This will be a sign to them that they are going to be destroyed, but that you are going to be saved, even by God himself.  ²⁹  For you have been given not only the privilege of trusting in Christ but also the privilege of suffering for him.  ³⁰  We are in this struggle together. You have seen my struggle in the past, and you know that I am still in the midst of it.

<<  1:1 Or overseers; or bishops.
<<  1:11 Greek with the fruit of righteousness through Jesus Christ.
<<  1:12 Greek brothers.
<<  1:13 Greek including all the Praetorium.
<<  1:14a Greek brothers in the Lord. 1:14b Some manuscripts read speak the message.