Study Desk

But now those leaders are drunk. The priests and prophets are all drunk with wine and beer. They stumble and fall down. The prophets are drunk when they see their dreams. The judges are drunk when they make their decisions.

Look at them! They try to hide things from the Lord . They think he will not understand. They do their evil things in darkness. They tell themselves: "No one can see us. No one will know who we are."

The deaf will hear the words in the book. The blind will see through the darkness and fog.

Yes, when they see all their children, the children I myself have made for them, they will honor my name as holy. They will respect the God of Israel.

Now write this on a sign so that all people can see it, and write this in a book. Write these things for a future time. This will be far, far in the future:

They tell the prophets, "Don't see dreams about things we should do. Don't tell us the truth. Say nice things to us and make us feel good. See only good things for us.

The Lord might give you sorrow and pain like the bread and water you eat every day. But God is your teacher, and he will not continue to hide from you. You will see your teacher with your own eyes.

The Lord will cause all people to hear his great voice and to see his powerful arm come down in anger. That arm will be like a great fire that burns everything. His power will be like a great storm with much rain and hail.

Then people would actually see what they look at. They would actually listen to what they hear.

Your eyes will see the King in his beauty. You will see the great land.

It will be covered with flowers and dance with joy. It will be as beautiful as the forest of Lebanon, the hill of Carmel, and the Sharon Valley. This will happen because all people will see the Glory of the Lord . They will see the beauty of our God.

Then the eyes of the blind will be opened so that they can see, and the ears of the deaf will be opened so that they can hear.

Now people see mirages that look like water, but then there will be real pools of water. There will be wells in the dry land where water flows from the ground. Tall water plants will grow where wild animals once ruled.

Lord , please pay attention and hear this. Open your eyes, Lord , and see what is happening. Listen to all the insults against the living God in the message Sennacherib sent!

At that time Hezekiah became sick and almost died. The prophet Isaiah son of Amoz went to see him and told him, "The Lord told me to tell you this: ‘You will die soon. So you should tell your family what they should do when you die. You will not get well.'"

So I said, "I will not see the Lord Yah in the land of the living again. I will not see the people living on earth.

Hezekiah asked Isaiah, "What is the sign that proves I will get well and go to the Lord 's Temple?" This is the sign from the Lord to show you that he will do what he says: "Look, I am causing the shadow that is on the steps of Ahaz to move back ten steps. The sun's shadow will go back up the ten steps that it has already been on." This is the letter from Hezekiah when he became well: I thought I would live a full life. But now, in the middle of my life, the time has come for me to die. So I said, "I will not see the Lord Yah in the land of the living again. I will not see the people living on earth. My home, my shepherd's tent, is being pulled down and taken from me. I am finished like the cloth someone rolls up and cuts from the loom. You ended my life in such a short time. All night I cried as loud as a lion, but my hopes were crushed like a lion eating bones. You finished my life in such a short time. I cried like a bird and moaned like a dove. My eyes became tired, but I continued looking to the heavens. Lord, I am so depressed. Promise to help me." What can I say? He told me what would happen, and he will make it happen. I have had these troubles in my soul, so now I will be humble all my life. Lord, use this hard time to make my spirit live again. Help my spirit become strong and healthy. Help me become well! Help me live again! Look, my troubles are gone! I now have peace. You love me very much. You did not let me rot in the grave. You took my sins and threw them away. The dead cannot praise you. People in Sheol cannot sing praises to you. Those who have died and gone below are not trusting in your faithfulness. People who are alive, people like me, are the ones who will praise you. Fathers should tell their children about how faithful you are. So I say, "The Lord saved me. So we will sing and play songs in the Lord 's Temple all our lives."

Then Isaiah the prophet went to King Hezekiah and asked him, "What did these men say? Where did they come from?" Hezekiah said, "These men came all the way from Babylon just to see me."

So Isaiah asked him, "What did they see in your house?" Hezekiah said, "They saw everything in my palace. I showed them all my wealth."

Then the Glory of the Lord will be shown to everyone. Together, all people will see it. Yes, this is what the Lord himself said!"