Esajas’ kald til profettjeneste
1I det år kong Uzzija døde, så jeg Herrens herlighed i et syn. Han sad på en meget høj trone, og slæbet på hans kappe fyldte hele Templet. 2Han var omgivet af serafer, som hver havde seks vinger. Med de to vinger dækkede de ansigtet, med to andre dækkede de benene, og de to sidste brugte de, når de fløj. 3De råbte til hinanden: „Hellig, hellig, hellig er Herren, den almægtige Gud! Hele jorden er fuld af hans herlighed!” 4Templets dørstolper rystede ved deres høje råb, og rummet fyldtes med røg.
5Da udbrød jeg: „Ak, det er ude med mig, for jeg er et syndigt menneske, som taler syndige ord og tilhører et syndigt og urent folk. Og dog har jeg nu set Herren, den Almægtige!”
6Straks fløj en af seraferne hen til mig med et stykke glødende kul, som han havde taget fra alteret med en tang. 7Han berørte mine læber med det og sagde: „Nu, hvor dette stykke kul har berørt dine læber, er din skyld taget bort og din synd tilgivet.”
8Derpå sagde Herren: „Hvem skal jeg sende? Hvem vil gå bud for os?” Jeg svarede straks: „Herre, det vil jeg! Send mig!”
9Så fortsatte han: „Gå hen og sig til mit folk:
‚I hører, men forstår dog intet.
I ser, men fatter dog intet.’
10Folkets øjne dækkes til,
så de intet ser.
Deres ører stoppes til,
så de intet hører.
Deres hjerter lukkes af,
så de ikke føler anger eller skyld—
ellers ville de komme til mig,
så jeg kunne helbrede dem.”6,9-10 Den hebraiske kiasme er omstillet til parallelisme for at gøre det mere dansk. Oversættelsen bygger til dels på LXX.
11„Hvor længe skal det være sådan, Herre?” spurgte jeg. Han svarede: „Indtil byerne er ødelagt og uden indbyggere. Indtil husene står tomme, og landet ligger øde hen.” 12Herren vil sende folket langt bort, og landet bliver folketomt. 13Skulle der blive en tiendedel tilbage i landet, vil de også blive udryddet. Israel vil blive som en træstub, der står tilbage, når et stort træ er blevet fældet. Men fra den stub skal der vokse et helligt rodskud.
Isaiah’s Commission
1In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. 2Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. 3And they were calling to one another:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke.
5“Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty.”
6Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. 7With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
8Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?”
And I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
9He said, “Go and tell this people:
“ ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding;
be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’
10Make the heart of this people calloused;
make their ears dull
and close their eyes.6:9,10 Hebrew; Septuagint ‘You will be ever hearing, but never understanding; / you will be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ / 10 This people’s heart has become calloused; / they hardly hear with their ears, / and they have closed their eyes
Otherwise they might see with their eyes,
hear with their ears,
understand with their hearts,
and turn and be healed.”
11Then I said, “For how long, Lord?”
And he answered:
“Until the cities lie ruined
and without inhabitant,
until the houses are left deserted
and the fields ruined and ravaged,
12until the Lord has sent everyone far away
and the land is utterly forsaken.
13And though a tenth remains in the land,
it will again be laid waste.
But as the terebinth and oak
leave stumps when they are cut down,
so the holy seed will be the stump in the land.”
