Isaiah 64

Contemporary English Version

64 Rip the heavens apart!
Come down, Lord;
    make the mountains tremble.
² Be a spark that starts a fire
    causing water to boil.^[a]
Then your enemies will know
    who you are;
all nations will tremble
    because you are nearby.

³ Your fearsome deeds
    have completely amazed us;
even the mountains shake
    when you come down.
^4 (A) You are the only God
    ever seen or heard of
who works miracles
    for his followers.

⁵ You help all who gladly obey
and do what you want,
    but sin makes you angry.
Only by your help
    can we ever be saved.^[b]
6 We are unfit to worship you;
each of our good deeds
    is merely a filthy rag.
We dry up like leaves;
our sins are storm winds
    sweeping us away.
⁷ No one worships in your name
    or remains faithful.
You have turned your back on us
and let our sins melt us away.^[c]

⁸ You, Lord, are our Father.
    We are nothing but clay,
but you are the potter
    who molded us.
⁹ Don't be so furious
or keep our sins
    in your thoughts forever!
Remember that all of us
    are your people.
¹⁰ Every one of your towns
has turned into a desert,
    especially Jerusalem.
¹¹ Zion's glorious and holy temple
where our ancestors praised you
    has been destroyed by fire.
Our beautiful buildings
    are now a pile of ruins.
¹² When you see these things,
how can you just sit there
    and make us suffer more?