1 A nd Jehovah saith unto me, `Take to thee a great tablet, and write upon it with a graving tool of man, To haste spoil, enjoy prey.'

Then the Lord said to me, “Take for yourself a large tablet and write on it in ordinary letters: Swift is the booty, speedy is the prey.

2 A nd I cause faithful witnesses to testify to me, Uriah the priest, and Zechariah son of Jeberechiah.

And I will take to Myself faithful witnesses for testimony, Uriah the priest and Zechariah the son of Jeberechiah.”

3 A nd I draw near unto the prophetess, and she conceiveth, and beareth a son; and Jehovah saith unto me, `Call his name Maher-shalal-hash-baz,

So I approached the prophetess, and she conceived and gave birth to a son. Then the Lord said to me, “Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz;

4 f or before the youth doth know to cry, My father, and My mother, one taketh away the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria, before the king of Asshur.'

for before the boy knows how to cry out ‘My father’ or ‘My mother,’ the wealth of Damascus and the spoil of Samaria will be carried away before the king of Assyria.”

5 A nd Jehovah addeth to speak unto me again, saying:

Again the Lord spoke to me further, saying,

6 ` Because that this people hath refused The waters of Shiloah that go softly, And is rejoicing with Rezin and the son of Remaliah,

“Inasmuch as these people have rejected the gently flowing waters of Shiloah And rejoice in Rezin and the son of Remaliah;

7 T herefore, lo, the Lord is bringing up on them, The waters of the river, the mighty and the great, (The king of Asshur, and all his glory,) And it hath gone up over all its streams, And hath gone on over all its banks.

“Now therefore, behold, the Lord is about to bring on them the strong and abundant waters of the Euphrates, Even the king of Assyria and all his glory; And it will rise up over all its channels and go over all its banks.

8 A nd it hath passed on into Judah, It hath overflown and passed over, Unto the neck it cometh, And the stretching out of its wings Hath been the fulness of the breadth of thy land, O Emmanu-El!

“Then it will sweep on into Judah, it will overflow and pass through, It will reach even to the neck; And the spread of its wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel. A Believing Remnant

9 B e friends, O nations, and be broken, And give ear, all ye far off ones of earth, Gird yourselves, and be broken, Gird yourselves, and be broken.

“ Be broken, O peoples, and be shattered; And give ear, all remote places of the earth. Gird yourselves, yet be shattered; Gird yourselves, yet be shattered.

10 T ake counsel, and it is broken, Speak a word, and it doth not stand, Because of Emmanu-El!'

“ Devise a plan, but it will be thwarted; State a proposal, but it will not stand, For God is with us.”

11 F or thus hath Jehovah spoken unto me with strength of hand, and instructeth me against walking in the way of this people, saying,

For thus the Lord spoke to me with mighty power and instructed me not to walk in the way of this people, saying,

12 ` Ye do not say, A confederacy, To all to whom this people saith, A confederacy, And its fear ye do not fear, Nor declare fearful.

“You are not to say, ‘ It is a conspiracy!’ In regard to all that this people call a conspiracy, And you are not to fear what they fear or be in dread of it.

13 J ehovah of Hosts -- Him ye do sanctify, And He your Fear, and He your Dread,

“It is the Lord of hosts whom you should regard as holy. And He shall be your fear, And He shall be your dread.

14 A nd He hath been for a sanctuary, And for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of falling, To the two houses of Israel, For a gin and for a snare to the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

“Then He shall become a sanctuary; But to both the houses of Israel, a stone to strike and a rock to stumble over, And a snare and a trap for the inhabitants of Jerusalem.

15 A nd many among them have stumbled and fallen, And been broken, and snared, and captured.

“Many will stumble over them, Then they will fall and be broken; They will even be snared and caught.”

16 B ind up the testimony, Seal the law among My disciples.

Bind up the testimony, seal the law among my disciples.

17 A nd I have waited for Jehovah, Who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob, And I have looked for Him.

And I will wait for the Lord who is hiding His face from the house of Jacob; I will even look eagerly for Him.

18 L o, I, and the children whom Jehovah hath given to me, for signs and for wonders in Israel, From Jehovah of Hosts, who is dwelling in Mount Zion.

Behold, I and the children whom the Lord has given me are for signs and wonders in Israel from the Lord of hosts, who dwells on Mount Zion.

19 A nd when they say unto you, `Seek unto those having familiar spirits, And unto wizards, who chatter and mutter, Doth not a people seek unto its God? -- For the living unto the dead!

When they say to you, “ Consult the mediums and the spiritists who whisper and mutter,” should not a people consult their God? Should they consult the dead on behalf of the living?

20 T o the law and to the testimony! If not, let them say after this manner, `That there is no dawn to it.'

To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because they have no dawn.

21 - - And it hath passed over into it, hardened and hungry, And it hath come to pass, That it is hungry, and hath been wroth, And made light of its king, and of its God, And hath looked upwards.

They will pass through the land hard-pressed and famished, and it will turn out that when they are hungry, they will be enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward.

22 A nd unto the land it looketh attentively, And lo, adversity and darkness! -- Dimness, distress, and thick darkness is driven away, But not the dimness for which she is in distress!

Then they will look to the earth, and behold, distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish; and they will be driven away into darkness.