The word that Isaias the son of Amos saw, concerning Juda and Jerusalem.2 And in the last days the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be prepared on the top of mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it.3 And many people shall go, and say: Come and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, and to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will teach us his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall come forth from Sion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.4 And he shall judge the Gentiles, and rebuke many people: and they shall turn their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into sickles: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they be exercised any more to war.5 O house of Jacob, come ye, and let us walk in the light of the Lord.
And when the Spirit of prophecy speaks as predicting things that are to come to pass, He speaks in this way: "For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people; and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more." And that it did so come to pass, we can convince you. For from Jerusalem there went out into the world, men, twelve in number, and these illiterate, of no ability in speaking: but by the power of God they proclaimed to every race of men that they were sent by Christ to teach to all the word of God; and we who formerly used to murder one another do not only now refrain from making war upon our enemies, but also, that we may not lie nor deceive our examiners, willingly die confessing Christ.
But as there the prophet says, 'And now, O house of Jacob, come and let us walk in the light of the Lord; for He has sent away His people, the house of Jacob, because their land was full, as at the first, of soothsayers and divinations;' even so it is necessary for us here to observe that there are two seeds of Judah, and two races, as there are two houses of Jacob: the one begotten by blood and flesh, the other by faith and the Spirit.
I rejoiced at the things that were said to me: We shall go into the house of the Lord.2 Our feet were standing in thy courts, O Jerusalem.3 Jerusalem, which is built as a city, which is compact together.4 For thither did the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord: the testimony of Israel, to praise the name of the Lord.4 For thither did the tribes go up, the tribes of the Lord: the testimony of Israel, to praise the name of the Lord.5 Because their seats have sat in judgment, seats upon the house of David.6 Pray ye for the things that are for the peace of Jerusalem: and abundance for them that love thee.7 Let peace be in thy strength: and abundance in thy towers.8 For the sake of my brethren, and of my neighbours, I spoke peace of thee.9 Because of the house of the Lord our God, I have sought good things for thee.
These are the feet that David washes in spirit when he teaches you how to keep them unsoiled, saying, "Our feet have been standing in your courts, O Jerusalem." Certainly, here "feet" is to be understood not as of the body but as of the soul. For how could a person on earth have his physical feet in heaven? Since Jerusalem, as Paul tells you, is in heaven, he also shows you how to stand in heaven when he says, "But our abode is in heaven": 2 the "abode" of your behavior, the "abode" of your deeds, the "abode" of your faith.
And that knowing the season; that it is now the hour for us to rise from sleep. For now our salvation is nearer than when we believed.†12 The night is passed, and the day is at hand. Let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and put on the armour of light.13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day: not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and impurities, not in contention and envy:†14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh in its concupiscences.
May I have joy of you in the Lord! Be ye sober. Lay aside, every one of you, all malice and beast-like fury, evil-speaking, calumny, filthy speaking, ribaldry, whispering, arrogance, drunkenness, lust, avarice, vainglory, envy, and everything akin to these. "But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof." Ye presbyters, be subject to the bishop; ye deacons, to the presbyters; and ye, the people, to the presbyters and the deacons. Let my soul be for theirs who preserve this good order; and may the Lord be with them continually!
And as in the days of Noe, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, even till that day in which Noe entered into the ark,†39 And they knew not till the flood came, and took them all away; so also shall the coming of the Son of man be.40 Then two shall be in the field: one shall be taken, and one shall be left.41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill: one shall be taken, and one shall be left.42 Watch ye therefore, because ye know not what hour your Lord will come.†43 But know this ye, that if the goodman of the house knew at what hour the thief would come, he would certainly watch, and would not suffer his house to be broken open.†44 Wherefore be you also ready, because at what hour you know not the Son of man will come.
Or otherwise; The body is laid as sick on the bed of carnal passions, the soul grinds in the mill of this world, and the bodily senses labour in the field of the world.
Those of more plain understanding say, that He spoke this of His second coming; but others would say that it applies to an intellectual coming of the word into the understanding of the disciples, for as yet He was not in their understanding as He was to be.
The master of the household is the understanding, the house is the soul, the thief is the Devil. The thief is also every contrary doctrine which enters the soul of the unwary by other than the natural entrance, breaking into the house, and pulling down the soul’s natural fences, that is, the natural powers of understanding, it enters the breach, and spoils the soul. Sometimes one takes the thief in the act of breaking in, and seizing him, stabs him with a word, and slays him. And the thief comes not in the day-time, when the soul of the thoughtful man is illuminated with the Sun of righteousness, but in the night, that is, in the time of prevailing wickedness; in which, when one is plunged, it is possible, though he have not the power of the sun, that he may be illuminated by some rays from the Word, as from a lamp; continuing still in evil, yet having a better purpose, and watchfulness, that this his purpose should not be broken through. Or in time of temptation, or of any calamities, is the time when the thief is most found to come, seeking to break through the house of the soul.
About CSB. A personal translation of the New Testament, rendered directly from the public-domain Greek in a literary style — not a scholarly critical edition, and not for liturgical or doctrinal authority. It is one reader's work, offered for enjoyment; where it matters, weigh it against an established translation. (Placeholder text — final wording to come.)