Isaiah 11

And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots:

1A new shoot will grow up from the stump of Jesse. Jesse was King David's father. A branch will grow from his roots and bear fruit.

2And the spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD;

2The Spirit of the LORD will rest on him. It is the Spirit of wisdom and understanding. It is the Spirit of good advice and strength. It is the Spirit of knowing God and honoring him.

NoteIn the Bible, to "fear the LORD" means to respect and honor God deeply. It does not mean being scared of him.

3And shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the LORD: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears:

3He will be glad to honor the LORD. He will not judge by what his eyes see. He will not decide by what his ears hear.

4But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked.

4He will judge poor people in the right way. He will decide fairly for people who are humble. His words will strike the earth like a stick. His breath will put an end to wicked people.

5And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.

5Doing what is right will be like a belt around his waist. Being faithful will be like a sash he wears.

6The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them.

6The wolf will live with the lamb. The leopard will lie down with the young goat. The calf, the young lion, and the fat young animal will be together. A little child will lead them.

7And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox.

7The cow and the bear will eat side by side. Their babies will lie down together. The lion will eat straw like an ox.

8And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den.

8A baby will play beside a cobra's hole. A small child will reach into a poisonous snake's nest.

NoteThe King James Bible uses the old words "asp" and "cockatrice" here. Both are poisonous snakes, like a cobra and a viper.

9They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.

9They will not hurt or destroy anywhere on my holy mountain. The earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD. It will be as full as the sea is full of water.

10And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and his rest shall be glorious.

10On that day the root of Jesse will stand like a flag. People from many nations will come looking for him. The place where he rests will be full of glory.

11And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.

11On that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time. He will bring back the few of his people who are left. They will come from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, and Elam. They will come from Shinar, Hamath, and the islands of the sea.

12And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.

12He will raise a flag for the nations to see. He will gather the people of Israel who were sent away. He will bring back the people of Judah who were scattered. They will come from the four corners of the earth.

13The envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off: Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim.

13Ephraim will stop being jealous. Ephraim was the northern part of Israel. The enemies of Judah will be cut off. Ephraim will not envy Judah anymore. Judah will not bother Ephraim anymore.

14But they shall fly upon the shoulders of the Philistines toward the west; they shall spoil them of the east together: they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab; and the children of Ammon shall obey them.

14They will swoop down on the hills of the Philistines in the west. Together they will take goods from the people in the east. They will take over Edom and Moab. The people of Ammon will obey them.

15And the LORD shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea; and with his mighty wind shall he shake his hand over the river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men go over dryshod.

15The LORD will dry up the narrow arm of the sea near Egypt. He will wave his hand over the Euphrates River with a hot wind. He will split it into seven small streams. Then people can walk across without getting their feet wet.

Note"The tongue of the Egyptian sea" means a long, narrow strip of sea near Egypt. "The river" here means the Euphrates River.

16And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.

16There will be a wide road for the few of his people left in Assyria. It will be like the road Israel had when they came up out of Egypt.