Study Desk

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a very high throne. His long robe filled the Temple.

Each creature was calling to the others: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord All-Powerful. His glory fills the whole earth."

One of the heavenly creatures used a pair of tongs to take a hot coal from the altar. Then he flew to me with the hot coal in his hand.

So I, the Lord, will bring the king of Assyria and all his power against them, like a powerful flood of water from the Euphrates River. The Assyrians will be like water rising over the banks of the river, flowing over the land.

The Lord spoke to me with his great power and warned me not to follow the lead of the rest of the people. He said,

Then he will be a place of safety for you. But for the two families of Israel, he will be like a stone that causes people to stumble, like a rock that makes them fall. He will be like a trap for the people of Jerusalem, and he will catch them in his trap.

A child has been born to us; God has given a son to us. He will be responsible for leading the people. His name will be Wonderful Counselor, Powerful God, Father Who Lives Forever, Prince of Peace.

Power and peace will be in his kingdom and will continue to grow forever. He will rule as king on David's throne and over David's kingdom. He will make it strong by ruling with justice and goodness from now on and forever. The Lord All-Powerful will do this because of his strong love for his people.

The Arameans came from the east and the Philistines from the west, and they ate up Israel with their armies. But the Lord was still angry; his hand was still raised to punish the people.

So the Lord is not happy with the young people, nor will he show mercy to the orphans and widows. All the people are separated from God and are very evil; they all speak lies. But the Lord is still angry; his hand is still raised to strike down the people.

The Lord All-Powerful is angry, so the land will be burned. The people are like fuel for the fire; no one will try to save his brother or sister.

The people of Manasseh will fight against the people of Ephraim, and Ephraim will fight against Manasseh. Then both of them will turn against Judah. But the Lord is still angry; his hand is still raised to strike down the people.

You will have to bow down among the captives or fall down among the dead bodies. But the Lord is still angry; his hand is still raised to strike down the people.

When the Lord finishes doing what he planned to Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he will punish Assyria. The king of Assyria is very proud, and his pride has made him do these evil things, so God will punish him.

Then the Lord All-Powerful will beat the Assyrians with a whip as he defeated Midian at the rock of Oreb. He will raise his stick over the waters as he did in Egypt.

Watch! The Lord God All-Powerful with his great power will chop them down like a great tree. Those who are great will be cut down; those who are important will fall to the ground.

But he will judge the poor honestly; he will be fair in his decisions for the poor people of the land. At his command evil people will be punished, and by his words the wicked will be put to death.

Goodness and fairness will give him strength, like a belt around his waist.

A baby will be able to play near a cobra's hole, and a child will be able to put his hand into the nest of a poisonous snake.

At that time the Lord will again reach out and take his people who are left alive in Assyria, North Egypt, South Egypt, Cush, Elam, Babylonia, Hamath, and all the islands of the sea.