Isaiah 59

1Behold, Yahweh's hand is not too short to save, nor his ear too heavy to hear.

2But your iniquities have separated you from your God, and your sins have concealed his face from you so he does not hear.

3For your hands are stained with blood, and your fingers with iniquity; your lips have uttered deceit, your tongue murmurs injustice.

4No one calls for justice, and no one contends in faithfulness; they rely on emptiness, speak lies, conceive trouble, and bear wickedness.

5They hatch adders' eggs and weave spider webs; whoever eats their eggs dies, and the crushed one bursts forth a viper.

6Their webs will not become garments, nor will they clothe themselves with their works; their works are works of iniquity, and a deed of violence is in their hands.

7Their feet run to evil, and they hasten to shed innocent blood; their thoughts are thoughts of iniquity, with destruction and ruin in their paths.

8They do not know the way of peace, and no justice marks their tracks; they have perverted their paths, and whoever treads them knows no peace.

9Therefore justice is far from us, nor does righteousness overtake us; we wait for light, but behold darkness—for brightness, we walk in gloom.

10We grope for the wall like the blind, and like those without eyes we grope; we stumble at midday as in twilight, in desolate places like the dead.

11All of us roar like bears and moan like doves; we hope for justice, but there is none, for salvation, but it stays far from us.

12For our transgressions are many before you, and our sins accuse us; for our transgressions cling to us, and we acknowledge our iniquities.

13rebelling and denying Yahweh, turning back from after our God, speaking oppression and rebellion, conceiving and muttering from the heart words of deceit.

14Justice retreats backward, and righteousness stands far off; for truth has fallen in the street, and uprightness cannot enter.

15Truth failed, and whoever turned from evil became prey. Yahweh saw it, and it was evil in his eyes because there was no justice.

16He saw that there was no man and was appalled that there was no intercessor; his arm brought him salvation, and his righteousness upheld him.

17He clothed himself with righteousness like a breastplate and a helmet of salvation on his head; he clothed himself with garments of vengeance as clothing and wrapped zeal around himself like a mantle.

18According to their recompenses, he will repay wrath to his adversaries, recompense to his enemies; to the islands he will repay recompense.

19They will fear the name of Yahweh from the west, and his glory from the sunrise; for the adversary will come like a river, the spirit of Yahweh driving him back.

20A redeemer will come to Zion, and to those turning from transgression in Jacob, says Yahweh.

21As for me, this is my covenant with them, says Yahweh: my Spirit that is upon you, and my words that I have put in your mouth, will not depart from your mouth, nor from the mouth of your offspring, nor from the mouth of your offspring's offspring, says Yahweh, from now on and forever.