Isaiah 8:11-20

11Indeed this is what the Lord told me. He took hold of me firmly and warned me not to act like these people:

12“Do not say, ‘Conspiracy,’ every time these people say the word. Don’t be afraid of what scares them; don’t be terrified.

13You must recognize the authority of the Lord who commands armies. He is the one you must respect; he is the one you must fear.

14He will become a sanctuary, but a stone that makes a person trip, and a rock that makes one stumble – to the two houses of Israel. He will become a trap and a snare to the residents of Jerusalem.

15Many will stumble over the stone and the rock, and will fall and be seriously injured, and will be ensnared and captured.”

16Tie up the scroll as legal evidence, seal the official record of God’s instructions and give it to my followers.

17I will wait patiently for the Lord, who has rejected the family of Jacob; I will wait for him.

18Look, I and the sons whom the Lord has given me are reminders and object lessons in Israel, sent from the Lord who commands armies, who lives on Mount Zion.

19They will say to you, “Seek oracles at the pits used to conjure up underworld spirits, from the magicians who chirp and mutter incantations. Should people not seek oracles from their gods, by asking the dead about the destiny of the living?”

20Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened.