The Bible, Douay-Rheims Part 483

34:13. And thorns and nettles shall grow up in its houses, and the thistle in the fortresses thereof: and it shall be the habitation of dragons, and the pasture of ostriches.

34:14. And demons and monsters shall meet, and the hairy ones shall cry out one to another, there hath the lamia lain down, and found rest for herself.

34:15. There hath the ericius had its hole, and brought up its young ones, and hath dug round about, and cherished them in the shadow thereof: thither are the kites gathered together one to another.

34:16. Search ye diligently in the book of the Lord, and read: not one of them was wanting, one hath not sought for the other: for that which proceedeth out of my mouth, he hath commanded, and his spirit it hath gathered them.

34:17. And he hath cast the lot for them, and his hand hath divided it to them by line: they shall possess it for ever, from generation to generation they shall dwell therein.

Isaias Chapter 35

The joyful flouris.h.i.+ng of Christ's kingdom: in his church shall be a holy and secure way.

35:1. The land that was desolate and impa.s.sable shall be glad, and the wilderness shall rejoice, and shall flourish like the lily.

35:2. It shall bud forth and blossom, and shall rejoice with joy and praise: the glory of Liba.n.u.s is given to it: the beauty of Carmel, and Saron, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the beauty of our G.o.d.

35:3. Strengthen ye the feeble hands, and confirm the weak knees.

35:4. Say to the fainthearted: Take courage, and fear not: behold your G.o.d will bring the revenge of recompense: G.o.d himself will come and will save you.

35:5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

35:6. Then shall the lame man leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb shall be free: for waters are broken out in the desert, and streams in the wilderness.

35:7. And that which was dry land, shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water. In the dens where dragons dwelt before, shall rise up the verdure of the reed and the bulrush.

35:8. And a path and a way shall be there, and it shall be called the holy way: the unclean shall not pa.s.s over it, and this shall be unto you a straight way, so that fools shall not err therein.

35:9. No lion shall be there, nor shall any mischievous beast go up by it, nor be found there: but they shall walk there that shall be delivered.

35:10. And the redeemed of the Lord shall return, and shall come into Sion with praise, and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and mourning shall flee away.

Isaias Chapter 36

Sennacherib invades Juda: his blasphemies.

36:1. And it came to pa.s.s in the fourteenth year of king Ezechias, that Sennacherib king of the a.s.syrians came up against all the fenced cities of Juda, and took them.

36:2. And the king of the a.s.syrians sent Rabsaces from Lachis to Jerusalem, to king Ezechias with a great army, and he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the way of the fuller's field.

36:3. And there went out to him Eliacim the son of Helcias, who was over the house, and Sobna the scribe, and Joahe the son of Asaph the recorder.

36:4. And Rabsaces said to them: Tell Ezechias: Thus saith the great king, the king of the a.s.syrians: What is this confidence wherein thou trustest?

36:5. Or with what counsel or strength dost thou prepare for war? on whom dost thou trust, that thou art revolted from me?

36:6. Lo thou trustest upon this broken staff of a reed, upon Egypt: upon which if a man lean, it will go into his hand, and pierce it: so is Pharao king of Egypt to all that trust in him.

36:7. But if thou wilt answer me: We trust in the Lord our G.o.d: is it not he whose high places and altars Ezechias hath taken away, and hath said to Juda and Jerusalem: You shall wors.h.i.+p before this altar?

36:8. And now deliver thyself up to my lord the king of the a.s.syrians, and I will give thee two thousand horses, and thou wilt not be able on thy part to find riders for them.

36:9. And how wilt thou stand against the face of the judge of one place, of the least of my master's servants? But if thou trust in Egypt, in chariots and in hors.e.m.e.n:

36:10. And am I now come up without the Lord against this land to destroy it? The Lord said to me: Go up against this land, and destroy it.

36:11. And Eliacim, and Sobna, and Joahe said to Rabsaces: Speak to thy servants in the Syrian tongue: for we understand it: speak not to us in the Jews' language in the hearing of the people, that are upon the wall.

36:12. And Rabsaces said to them: Hath my master sent me to thy master and to thee, to speak all these words; and not rather to the men that sit on the wall; that they may eat their own dung, and drink their urine with you?

36:13. Then Rabsaces stood, and cried out with a loud voice in the Jews'

language, and said: Hear the words of the great king, the king of the a.s.syrians.

36:14. Thus saith the king: Let not Ezechias deceive you, for he shall not be able to deliver you.

36:15. And let not Ezechias make you trust in the Lord, saying: The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be given into the hands of the king of the a.s.syrians.

36:16. Do not hearken to Ezechias: for thus said the king of the a.s.syrians: Do with me that which is for your advantage, and come out to me, and eat ye every one of his vine, and every one of his fig tree, and drink ye every one the water of his cistern,

36:17. Till I come and take you away to a land, like to your own, a land of corn and of wine, a land of bread and vineyards.

36:18. Neither let Ezechias trouble you, saying: The Lord will deliver us. Have any of the G.o.ds of the nations delivered their land out of the hand of the king of the a.s.syrians?

36:19. Where is the G.o.d of Emath and of Arphad? where is the G.o.d of Sepharvaim? have they delivered Samaria out of my hand?

36:20. Who is there among all the G.o.ds of these lands, that hath delivered his country out of my hand, that the Lord may deliver Jerusalem out of my hand?

36:21. And they held their peace, and answered him not a word. For the king had commanded, saying: Answer him not.

36:22. And Eliacim the son of Helcias, that was over the house, and Sobna the scribe, and Joahe the son of Asaph the recorder, went in to Ezechias with their garments rent, and told him the words of Rabsaces.

Isaias Chapter 37

Ezechias, his mourning and prayer. G.o.d's promise of protection. The a.s.syrian army is destroyed. Sennacherib is slain.

37:1. And it came to pa.s.s, when king Ezechias had heard it, that he rent his garments and covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Lord.

37:2. And he sent Eliacim who was over the house, and Sobna the scribe, and the ancients of the priests covered with sackcloth, to Isaias the son of Amos the prophet.

37:3. And they said to him: Thus saith Ezechias: This day is a day of tribulation, and of rebuke, and of blasphemy: for the children are come to the birth, and there is not strength to bring forth.

37:4. It may be the Lord thy G.o.d will hear the words of Rabsaces, whom the king of the a.s.syrians his master hath sent to blaspheme the living G.o.d, and to reproach with words which the Lord thy G.o.d hath heard: wherefore lift up by prayer for the remnant that is left.

37:5. And the servants of Ezechias came to Isaias.

37:6. And Isaias said to them: Thus shall you say to your master: Thus saith the Lord: Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, with which the servants of the king of the a.s.syrians have blasphemed me.

37:7. Behold, I will send a spirit upon him, and he shall hear a message, and shall return to his own country, and I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own country.