I do not bother with my pain, the pain of the other is that it bothers me ...

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What God's Servant Did for Us

1  Has anyone believed us or seen the mighty power of the Lord in action?

2 Like a young plant or a root that sprouts in dry ground, the servant grew up obeying the Lord. He wasn't some handsome king. Nothing about the way he looked made him attractive to us.

3 He was hated and rejected; his life was filled with sorrow and terrible suffering.

No one wanted to look at him. We despised him and said, “He is a nobody!”

4 He suffered and endured great pain for us, but we thought his suffering was punishment from God.

5 He was wounded and crushed because of our sins; by taking our punishment, he made us completely well.

6 All of us were like sheep that had wandered off.

We had each gone our own way, but the Lord gave him the punishment we deserved.

7 He was painfully abused, but he did not complain.

He was silent like a lamb being led to the butcher, as quiet as a sheep having its wool cut off.

8 He was condemned to death without a fair trial.

Who could have imagined what would happen to him?

His life was taken away because of the sinful things my people had done.

9 He wasn't dishonest or violent, but he was buried in a tomb among cruel, rich people.

10 The Lord decided his servant would suffer as a sacrifice to take away the sin and guilt of others.

Now the servant will live to see his own descendants.

He did everything the Lord had planned.

11 By suffering, the servant will learn the true meaning of obeying the Lord.

Although he is innocent, he will take the punishment for the sins of others, so that many of them will no longer be guilty.

12 The Lord will reward him with honor and power for sacrificing his life.

Others thought he was a sinner, but he suffered for our sins and asked God to forgive us.

Happy is he who does what he says, and loves what he has ...

Be Careful How You Worship

1 Be careful what you do when you enter the house of God. Fools go there to offer sacrifices, because all they do is sin. But it's best just to listen when you go to worship. 2 Don't talk before you think or make promises to God without thinking them through. God is in heaven, and you are on earth, so don't talk too much. 3 If you keep thinking about something, you will dream about it. If you talk too much, you will say the wrong thing.

4 God doesn't like fools. So don't be slow to keep your promises to God. 5 It's better not to make a promise at all than to make one and not keep it. 6 Don't let your mouth get you in trouble! And don't say to the worship leader, “I didn't mean what I said.” God can destroy everything you have worked for, so don't say something that makes God angry.

7 Respect and obey God! Daydreaming leads to a lot of senseless talk.

If your GOOD told you, it was because your EVIL helped you! Listen to yourself!

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Prophets Who Fool Themselves

9 Be shocked and stunned, you prophets!

Refuse to see. 

Get drunk and stagger, but not from wine.

10 The Lord has made you drowsy; he put you into a deep sleep and covered your head.

11 Now his message is like a sealed letter to you. Some of you say, “We can't read it, because it's sealed.” 12 Others say, “We can't read it, because we don't know how to read.”

13 The Lord has said:

“These people praise me with their words, but they never really think about me.

They worship me by repeating rules made up by humans.

14 So once again I will do things that shock and amaze them, and I will destroy the wisdom

of those who claim to know and understand.”

15 You are in for trouble, if you try to hide your plans from the Lord!

Or if you think what you do in the dark can't be seen.

16 You have it all backwards.

A clay dish doesn't say to the potter, “You didn't make me.

You don't even know how.”

Hope for the Future

17 Soon the forest of Lebanon will become a field with crops, thick as a forest.

18 The deaf will be able to hear whatever is read to them; the blind will be freed from a life of darkness.

19 The poor and the needy will celebrate and shout because of the Lord, the holy God of Israel.

20 All who are cruel and arrogant will be gone forever. Those who live by crime will disappear, 21 together with everyone who tells lies in court and keeps innocent people from getting a fair trial.

22 The Lord who rescued Abraham has this to say about Jacob's descendants:

“They will no longer be ashamed and disgraced.

23 When they see how great I have made their nation, they will praise and honor me, the holy God of Israel.

24 Everyone who is confused will understand, and all who have complained will obey my teaching.”

“This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.”

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16 So Jesus was baptized. And as soon as he came out of the water, the sky opened, and he saw the Spirit of God coming down on him like a dove. 17 Then a voice from heaven said, “This is my own dear Son, and I am pleased with him.”

If, by chance, God spoke, what would He say about you?

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Israel Refuses To Listen

8 The Lord told me to write down his message for his people, so that it would be there forever. 9 They have turned against the Lord and can't be trusted. They have refused his teaching 10 and have said to his messengers and prophets: Don't tell us what God has shown you and don't preach the truth. Just say what we want to hear, even if it's false. 11 Stop telling us what God has said! We don't want to hear any more about the holy One of Israel.

12 Now this is the answer of the holy One of Israel: “You rejected my message, and you trust in violence and lies.

13 This sin is like a crack that makes a high wall quickly crumble 14 and shatter like a crushed bowl.

There's not a piece left big enough to carry hot coals or to dip out water.”

Trust the Lord

15 The holy Lord God of Israel had told all of you, “I will keep you safe if you turn back to me

and calm down.

I will make you strong if you quietly trust me.”

Then you stubbornly 16 said, “No! We will safely escape on speedy horses.”

But those who chase you will be even faster.

17 As few as five of them, or even one, will be enough to chase a thousand of you.

Finally, all that will be left will be a few survivors as lonely as a flag pole on a barren hill.

Your hands do not touch me, but your thoughts do...

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Idols Are Useless

21 I am the Lord, the King of Israel!

Come argue your case with me.

Present your evidence.

22 Come near me, you idols.

Tell us about the past, and we will think about it.

Tell us about the future, so we will know what is going to happen.

23 Prove that you are gods by making your predictions come true.

Do something good or evil, so we can be amazed and terrified.

24 You idols are nothing, and you are powerless. To worship you would be disgusting.

25 I, the Lord, appointed a ruler in the north; now he comes from the east to honor my name. He tramples kings like mud, as potters trample clay.

26 Did any of you idols predict what would happen?

Did any of you get it right?

None of you told about this or even spoke a word.

27 I was the first to tell the people of Jerusalem, “Look, it's happening!”

I was the one who announced this good news to Zion.

28 None of these idols are able to give advice or answer questions.

29 They are nothing, and they can do nothing— they are merely a passing breeze.